Coach: Outcome result of failure in Sonnen's camp

Neil Melanson:

To be honest, and I have a bad habit of being honest, I think there was a failure in the camp a little bit with this and I think this is why the outcome was what it was. I think there was a little bit of assumption that Chael would get Anderson down a little too easy than they should have and maybe he should have wrestled more. When I got out there, not much wrestling had been done and when I took over, I put Chael back in wrestling a couple times a week and getting him back to his strength because in my opinion, I've seen this over and over and over again. That's when an athlete like Chael that has such a strong, specific strength, let's say wrestling. I've seen many wrestlers get good at striking and they start doing well, they maybe win a few fights but the fights but the fights tend to be close. They start winning decisions. They start to get comfortable and what happens is they forget what got them there in the first place which is their wrestling.

It's always good to train your weakness and you brought up Vinny for example. Vinny is such a good ground guy. He's an outstanding grappler. He wins lots of fights with some pretty badass submissions like the Magaplata he got in M-1 when he was the champion. That was pretty sweet to see in that kind of fight. I'm sure he's working on his striking but if he gets away from that ground game, if he just goes out there and boxes, he's gonna have problems. It's gonna catch up with him. Of all the athletes I work with, I remember Michael Chandler. I trained with him for his last four fights and I pleaded to him, "Learn from these guys' mistakes. You can keep getting better with your hands, that's outstanding, but don't forget what got you here and that is picking guys up, dumping them on the ground and smashing them in the face. Keep that tool sharpened."

In my opinion, I think that's what happened in the camp. Maybe it's just dumb luck. I know the coaches are very competent and they trained hard but just in my experience, any time I've seen a wrestler get away from his wrestling, it's always bit him in the ass and I think, in my opinion, that's what happened here.

http://www.mixedmartialarts.com/news/410962/Coach-Outcome-result-of-failure-in-Sonnens-camp/

Dana White: Sonnen is back at the end of the line

Did Anderson Silva fight dirty at UFC 148?

The beginning of the end was vintage Anderson Silva, avoiding a ferocious jab and spinning elbow like a scene out of The Matrix.

Then came the flying knee to a grounded Sonnen.

The fight ended shortly thereafter.

Tracy Lee managed to catch the moment of impact. It had appeared to many to be to the face, an illegal attack on a downed opponent.

While the point of the knee clearly drove into Sonnen's chest, some part of the knee also appeared to connect with Sonnen's head, but perhaps without significant impact.

Further, under the Unified Rules, the hand can be placed on the fence, but the fingers cannot extend through, changing the play of the game.

“You know, he got me with a good shot,” Sonnen told UFC color commentator Joe Rogan immediately after the fight. “I was on the ground and he got me with a good knee; other than that, I’m just going to have to look at the tape.”

Yves Lavigne, one of the best in the business, called the attack legal.

The dubious technique started at the weigh ins, where Silva, incensed by months of goading by Sonnen, shoulder bumped the Gangster from Oregon in the face.

Before the fight even began, Silva clearly wiped his hands over the legally applied grease on his face, and then wiped his chest, something he has done previously:

An alert Lavigne intervened, and towelled off Silva before the fight began.

The first round was a repeat of the first fight (sans Triangle), with Sonnen manhandling Silva, ending the round in full mount on the Brazilian black belt.

The second round was different. Silva landed to Sonnen's face, and the fight turned around abruptly.

However, the standing portion of the fight was marred by unfortunate tactics, including blatant holding of the shorts.

Tim Kennedy summed up the feelings of many, via Twitter.

"Wipe grease on your arms, grab your opponent shorts, and knee them in the face when they are down. That's how champions should act?"

Anderson Silva is the greatest pound for pound fighter in the sport, maybe ever.

After the fight was over he gave a magnanimous speech to the crowd, exhorting his countrymen not to boo, to show that Brazilians understabd respect. He even gave Sonnen an invite to come over for a BBQ, putting months or harsh talk to needed rest.

But did Anderson Silva fight dirty at UFC 148? 

And does it matter?

http://www.mixedmartialarts.com/news/410754/Did-Anderson-Silva-fight-dirty-at-UFC-148/

Six UFC 146 fighters drug tested by surprise after press conference

The Nevada state athletic commission took advantage of a Tuesday pre-fight press conference held within state lines, electing to order surprise drug tests for all six fighters who appeared at the UFC 146 event in Las Vegas.

The testing was done following its conclusion, NSAC executive director Keith Kizer told MMA Fighting, confirming a tweet by Ron Kruck of "Inside MMA."

Kizer said it was the first time the commission had screened multiple participants of a mixed martial arts event during a press conference so far ahead of time, though they had done the same in July for a championship boxing match scheduled to take place in August between Abner Mares and Joseph Agbeko.

"We brought the drug test to them instead of making them go to the drug test," Kizer said. "If they were not in Las Vegas, I would need to find them a lab, which is of course, much more of a hassle."

The six fighters tested were UFC heavyweight champion Junior Dos Santos, challenger Alistair Overeem, former champs Cain Velasquez and Frank Mir, and Roy Nelson and Antonio Silva.