Paul Smith says he will get his world-title chance in September.

The Liverpudlian super-middleweight told Ringside that he will face WBO champion Arthur Abraham in Germany.

Smith says the late-September showdown is almost done and will now get the chance to become another British super-middleweight world champion - ahead of George Groves and James DeGale, who have both beaten him.

I'm just waiting for the Sauerlands to give me that call and invite me over for a press conference to announce it, he told Ringside.

It's their show, it's their promotion but it is that close. I think all we need is a venue; the O2 Arena in Berlin is booked at the moment, so they are looking for another venue in Berlin.

Perfect

Smith could join Carl Froch as a super-middleweight world champion by beating Abraham.

He sparred with The Cobra ahead of his one-sided victory over the Armenian-born fighter back in 2010 and believes a repeat performance is well within his capabilities.

But Smith readily admitted he is going to have to produce the fight of his life.

Carl showed the perfect way to beat him, though I never thought I'd see it on the night as easy as it was for Carl, he said.

No disrespect to Abraham; I've said it time and time again, he's a great champion and he's going to be the hardest fight I've ever had and he's going to be the best opponent I've ever been in the ring with.

But this is my world title fight as well and I am going to give it everything. I know my style is made for him but his style is made for me and the way I fight.

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Undefeated WBC/WBO #2, WBA #3, IBF #4 super middleweight contender Gilberto “Zurdo” Ramirez (28-0, 22 KOs) is ready for his debut on the international stage. The southpaw Ramirez, 23, will be defending his NABF and NABO titles against “The One” Junior Talipeau (20-2-1, 7 KOs), a New Zealand native who fights out of Kogarah, New South Wales, Australia. The Ramirez-Talipeau super middleweight title fight will take place Saturday at The Venetian Macao’s Cotai Arena and will be televised via same-day delay on HBO2, beginning at 5:00 p.m. ET/PT.

Gilberto Ramirez: “I am very excited to be making my HBO debut on this card and I want to make a good impression so I can continue fighting on HBO. This is the Zurdo Ramirez Era and I want to shine. I am prepared for Junior Talipeau and I am prepared to give a good show on Saturday. I want to prove — in the most emphatic terms — that I am ready to challenge for a world title.

“This is my first time in Macau and I love it. The Venetian Macao is fabulous and the fans here are great. The climate in Macau is similar to Mazatlan and I had no problem adjusting to the time zone change. My punches land just as hard here as they do in the Western Hemisphere.”

Junior Talipeau: “I am excited for this fight and have trained very hard. I am impressed with Ramirez’s accomplishments but I am no intimidated by them. I intend to attack him early and bang his body and head and stop him late in the fight. It’s a great incentive to be the first one to blemish his perfect record and derail his world title shot plans. I did not travel to Macau to be another number in Ramirez’s victory column. I came here to win. I came here to hurt.”

The HBO2 telecast will also feature two-time Chinese Olympic gold medallist and national icon Zou Shiming (4-0, 1 KO),of Guizhu, China, stepping up to his first 10-round bout, facing off against three-time world title challenger Luis “Chino” De La Rosa (23-3-1, 13 KOs), of Barranquilla, Colombia.

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Round 1: Well, this is expected to be a wild one...here we go. Dan Miragliotta is the ref. They touch gloves, and Cerrone comes in swinging. He catches Miller with a knee to the body right off, but Miller shakes it off. Very nice left hand counter from Miller lands, and he wheels out. Leg kick and nice combo from Miller, connecting on a right and a left. Now When Cerrone tries to land a knee, Miller charges forward and posts him on fence. He keeps him there, and on break drops an elbow on his temple. At center, Cerrone tries a knee and Miller drops him with a big good shot! Wow. He jumps on, but Cerrone recovers and is back up. Mller bringing the fight. Big right hand from Miller as an isolation shot. A red mark on Cerrone's body begins to show. He comes up high on Miller with a kick, but it's blocked for the most part. Still plenty of spring there. As Cerrone moves in, Miller ties him up and wrestles him to the fence. He's landing knees to the thighs right now. And he swings Cerrone over, dumps him to the canvas momentarily, but Cerrone back up. A chant of MILLER breaks out. Leg kick into a spinning backfist from Miller, both errant. Now Cerrone comes forward throwing, and he might have caught Miller with the second shot. Cerrone now presses, takes Miller to fence. They tussle there, but Miller able to spin free. Huge right hand counter just as Cerrone comes in from Miller; he's been cracking him with those counters all round, punishing his aggression. MMA Fighting scores R1 for Miller, 10-9.

Round 2: Jumping right hand from Miller, and again Cerrone off balance. Cerrone comes up top with a kick, and Miller took some of that foot to the head. Good combo into leg kick from Miller, and Cerrone charges in and got Miller low with a kick. To the groin. Miller takes a minute while Miragliotta clears Cerrone. But he's back. Tough dude. They exchange kicks, and both absorb them. Quick though of takedown from Miller, but he lets it go. Cerrone throwing kicks, one, then another. To the body. Now he comes up top with a right hand. Another kick, and Miller catches it and spins Cerrone off. They circle back around the cage. Cerrone might have hurt Miller with a kick, and as he comes forward Miller tries to unload. Crazy action. Miller seems okay. They wheel. Cerrone now coming to life, pressuring. It's Miller trying to find something now. Miller seems to be favoring his body just a little bit. Cerrone closes in, and Miller clocks him with a right. Now Cerrone unleashes a huge head kick with his right foot, and Miller crumbles on fence! Cerrone comes in and it's over! Miragliotta calls him off. Cerrone scores a crazy knockout, headkick to Miller just behind the left ear, and Miller just back-pedaled into fence. He was stunned pretty good. No controversy on the stoppage.

UFC Fight Night 45 official results: Donald Cerrone def. Jim Miller via KO (kick) at 3:31 or R2

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ATLANTIC CITY, N.J. – This is the UFC Fight Night 45 main card live blog for the UFC Fight Night 45 event at the Revel Casino in Altantic City.

There will be six fights on the UFC Fight Night 45 main card. Donald Cerrone vs. Jim Miller, Edson Barboza vs. Evan Dunham, Rick Story vs. Leonardo Mafra, Justin Salas vs. Joe Proctor, John Lineker vs. Alptekin Ozkilic, and Lucas Martins vs. Alex White will be featured on the main card.

Check out the UFC Fight Night 45 main card live blog below.

More Coverage: UFC Fight Night 45 Results | UFC news

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Lucas Martins vs. Alex White

Round 1: Here we go...first fight on the main card. They touch them up. Leg kick from Martins out of the gate, and a pushkick follow-up that misses from White. They go again simultaneously, and neither scores. Good head movement from Martins there, and he comes up and lands a good right-left combo that staggered White a little bit. White's fine; he cuts the angle and moves in again. He gets smashed in the nose once, but now he returns fire on fence and get in a solid right hand. High kick grazes Martins. White with wreckles high kick, whiffs. White pursues. He's sending in rangy jabs, and nothing happening, but he catches hell on the counter. They exchange in the middle, and White took the brunt of that. Wow. Good hands from Martins there. Again, head movement from the Brazilian Martins, who takes center and stalks forward. White in southpaw stance, closes in but his offense is shut down. Martins quicker on the draw, landing in better volume on exchanges. A body kick from Martins is loud. Nice duck under there from White, who lands a decent uppercut. Overhand left might have landed from White, hard to tell from the angle. Martins comes in and they come to blows on the fence, with Martins landing the better shots. White peels out of there and takes center, and round ends. MMA Fighting scores R1 for Martins, 10-9.

Round 2: A chant of USA breaks out. Martins quickly to center, and he goes to work. Quick combo, and White retreats towards fence. Been a lot of movement and quick in-out striking from Martins, who has stood his ground in center. Push-kick from White. He now wheels around the fence, and here comes Martins cutting him off. High kick from the Brazilian, and that lands. White having trouble getting off his strikes, as swelling and blood above his right eye now in evidence. Martins lands an acute little hook just as White cocks back for big shot. Stifled again, is White, as he tries to get in close...this time by a push kick. Each time White comes in to create offense he gets greeted with shots. But wait, now he lands a nice combo that backs Martins up! Martins was hurt for a minute, as the crowd comes alive. White not done, but now Martins goes on the attack. He chases White around the cage winging bombs before dropping for a takedown. Nothing doing. White back to center, and they come back together on the fence. Good exchange, and both guys took right hands. Spinning high kick from Martins narrowly misses, and White lunges in with a flurry at the end. MMA Fighting scores R2 for Martins, 10-9 (20-18 overall)

Round 3: They come together in center and exchange. Good looking set-up to his strikes here for Martins. Again, White stays to the outside. Now Martins lands a right hand counter and, whoa, White grows woozy and falls! Martins sweeps in for the finish, and that's it. What a KO. Big right hand just felled White.

UFC Fight Night 45 official results: Lucas Martins def. Alex White via KO (punch) at 2:08 of R3

John Lineker vs. Alptekin Ozkilic

Round 1: Keith Peterson is the third man. Lineker to center, very poised and upright. Feel out process early for the flyweights. Ozkilic goes low and swings with his right, misses. Nice little combo from Lineker put Ozkilic on a back pedal, but he rolls around and resets. So far Lineker keeping Ozkilic in orbit, moving. Ozkilic swoops in for a takedown, and by the back of Lineker's heel, spins him down and gets into side control on fence. Lineker quickly into half guard, but he's kept with his back to chain links. Lineker able to sneak up to a knee, and he's up. He wheels back out to center, and we're back where we started. Lineker swings and misses and catches a counter from Ozkilic. They throw down on the fence, but it's a lot of near misses (Ozkilic may have landed one). Great combo there from the Brazilian, as he makes the uppercut count on fence. They are more willing to swing now, having both tasted each other's power. Lineker swings and misses and eats a cross counter. Lineker goes low for takedown threat, but it's empty. Leg kick from Ozkilic ends up becoming a wheelhouse brawl for a moment. Both guys caught leather there. Round ends with Ozkilic moving in, landing a shot on the fence. MMA Fighting scores R1 for Lineker, 10-9.

Round 2: They touch gloves again, and Lineker to center. He's waving the left hand out there, trying to set up the right. Ozkilic spins, and throws a shot on the roll. Shudder speed exchange there. Big uppercut from Lineker, again, and then again...the second one got through well, and Ozkilic peels out of there. Some swelling over Ozkilic's eye. His face is red. Another big shot from Lineker, and that put Ozkilic off balance. Lineker now feeling more confident, stalking forward and headhunting. Nice jab slowed him down from Ozkilic, landed flush. Lineker chases Ozkilic all the way around the cage there, and they come back to center. Big leg kick from Ozkilic. Trying to slow the assault by taking out the lead leg. Lineker returns the favor. Good body shots from Lineker, and now he strafes from the top. Another leg kick from Lineker; those are starting to hurt. Lineker coils and lets go a lunging flurry, but again Ozkilic rolls out. Ozkilic trying to change levels a little bit, trying to make his chin a little more evasive. He's landing from range, when he can keep it. But again Lineker gets in close, and lands a nice uppercut off a combo. Ozkilic comes over top with a right, and that's flush. Doesn't bother Lineker, who again waves his left out trying to establish the right. Huge overhand right misses from Lineker, but again he finds a home for the uppercut. Mad scramble there as Ozkilic loses his footing, and the round ends with him coming forward throwing bombs. MMA Fighting scores R2 for Lineker, 10-9 (20-18 overall)

Round 3: They come out swinging. Both men stand and trade in a battle, and each eating punches. Now Lineker lifts his arms up to bring on the crowd, and they oblige. They exchange again, and this thing is getting wild. Takedown attempt by Lineker buts Ozkilic on his bicycle, and the Brazilian pursues him around the fence. Ozkilic now with a takedown, and he can't get Lineker to budge. Crazy action here in the third. Both guys bringing it. Ozkilic stands at range and throws a couple of shots, while Lineker slowly plods forward with a solid left-right. Good body shot, you could hear it on press row. Another exchange, and Lineker misses with the uppercut. Lineker really trying to work Ozkilic's body with shots, as well. Been effective with it, too. Again, after Ozkilic swings from range, Lineker attempts to drop an uppercut on him but misses. Blood on Ozkilic's eye trickling down, and a nice body shot from Lineker. Ozkilic is wearing down. He's got a macabre face, just battered. But Lineker is still working that body, just a steady influx of punches. Ozkilic goes for a takedown, desperation maybe, can't get it. Lineker standing his ground and firing. Another good combo to head and body by Lineker, and he eats a couple of good shots there too. Now Ozkilic is swinging back as both men rile the crowd and slap fives. Good scrap. Plenty of action. But it looks like Lineker is the better man. With inside 15 seconds left, Lineker clips Ozkilic and he's down! Here comes Lineker for the finish, pouncing, and Peterson moves in and calls him off. Wow. Eleven seconds left, and the Brazilian Lineker puts him away.

UFC Fight Night 45 official results: John Lineker def. Alptekin Ozkilic via TKO (strikes) at 4:51 or R3

Justin Salas vs. Joe Proctor

Round 1: Heavy-handed Salas quickly to center, and he opens with a leg kick. Proctor returns one of his own, bouncing it off Salas' thigh. Little deke and quick burst from Salas coming forward with punches, but can't connect and Proctor smiles. Similar return from Proctor, and now they engage. Good land there by Salas, and he follows with a knee from the clinch that kisses off of Proctor's forehead. Blood already coming out of Proctor's nose. Salas wit ha low kick, very near the groin, and Proctor walks it off. Salas trying to time something out, and he swings big but misses, and Proctor lands a clean shot! It was on the counter, but it stopped Salas for a moment there. Both guys playing with fire in the pocket. Head kick from Proctor lands, but not clean. Good forward pressure there from Salas, who has been the aggressor so far. Leg kick from Salas. Now he swoops in for Proctor's leg, but can't get it. High-low combo from Proctor, neither the punch nor the kick got in flush. Proctor comes in throwing and eats a solid right hand. Great counter. Now Salas has some blood over his eye, too. His right eye. Salas wanted the takedown again, but Proctor thwarts. High kick from Proctor lands at the end. Close round. Real close. Hematoma forming on Proctor. MMA Fighting scores R1 for Salas, 10-9.

Round 2: That hematoma is nasty on Proctor, right over the ear. Salas comes right after it, too. Misses, and Proctor wheels around. High kick from the Brockton fighter. They engage on fence, and Salas sneaks in a good counter. Salas moves forward swinging, and on fence gets clinch, thrusts his knees into Proctor. That produced another smile from the Massachusetts fighter. Salas waits for Proctor to come in with a flurry, and dumps him to the ground momentarily with a double. Proctor right back up, with his back to fence. Now he circles out. Proctor covering up that hematoma, now, trying to protect himself; Salas definitely bulls-eyeing it. Salas rolls around, and Proctor catches him with a body shot, and now he lands another on the scramble! They stand, and Salas looks okay, but wait! He eats another shot, this one a left hook, and a short right follow. He goes down and Proctor pounces! Now he's hammerfisting, a series of hammerfists and it's over! Wow. Salas gets up wobble and doesn't like it, he's complaining, but Proctor with the comeback!

UFC Fight Night 45 official results: Joe Proctor def. Justin Salas via TKO (strikes) at 3:27 or R2

Rick Story vs. Leonardo Mafra

Round 1: Dan Miragliotta is the referee. Here we go. Quick touch of gloves, and Story is upright sizing up. He drops a nice body shot on Mafra, and now Mafra comes forward with some live kicks. Story wastes no time and takes him down right in front of press row on fence. Right underhook his corner is calling for, and elbows. Story postures up and creates spaces, and down come the elbows. Step over to half,  Story's corner says. Now he's dropping mean elbows on Mafra. Postures again, and big incoming shots. Mafra able to stand up, but it's a very brief reprieve as Story tackles him back down. Relentless Story so far. Half guard for Story, and he is grinding Mafra into the canvas. He is trying to step over into side control, but Mafra prevents. Big knee to the rib cage from Story, and Mafra returns fire from the bottom with his elbows, tucking them into Story's kidney. The pressure stays on though. All Story. He postures up again, and drops some sharp elbows right through the defense of limbs. He's landing little shots now to Mafra's side, and falls forward into his guard. Shogun elbow! yells his corner, and he obliges. It's an onslaught right now, all Story. He stands up, and before Mafra can follow he swings big at him on the ground. Mafra stands up, but Story explodes forward and takes him back down. In side control and landing bombs as the round ends. MMA Fighting scores R1 for Story, 10-9.

Round 2: Mafra bouncing in his corner, ready to go. So far he can't keep the fight standing. Story comes in and catches a right hand on the descent, so backs back out. Leg kicks from Mafra. Story shoots in for a single, and scoops up Mafra and drops him down...Mafra able to avoid going down and backs to fence, where he is more violently, more emphatically slammed down. Story in his half guard, and he's against dropping leather. Now Story is able to step into mount, and he sets up to swing but is bucked back into half guard. Story again working forward, relentless, and now he's got his arm trapped in, and he's squeezing his neck and Mafra's turning red -- head and arm choke! That's it. Miragliotta comes in as the tap comes. What a dominant performance by Story.

UFC Fight Night 45 official results: Rick Story def. Leonardo Mafra via submission (head and arm choke) at 2:12 or R2

Edson Barboza vs. Evan Dunham

Round 1: Keith Peterson is the ref. They touch them up. Dunham moves in, and Barao clobbers him to the body with a big right hand. Dunham is circling. Barboza stalks in, and lands a nice right. He's sort of wading forward, but patiently. Waiting for Dunham tom come in. Sure enough, Dunham comes flying in on cue, trying to take Barboza down. They slam into fence, but Barboza is resilient, and bounces off. Dunham back to circling. Very poised stuff from Barboza, who is letting the fight unfold. Dunham is the aggressor, though, and he's trying to find that opening. He comes in with a combo, but the fleet-a-foot Barboza scoots out. Huge body shot from Barboza sends a moan through the crowd, and Dunham folds! He's on fence clutching his stomach, and Barboza pounces! A couple of quick follow-ups and it's over! Wow. One explosive kick from the Brazilian Barboza, with his right leg -- it almost looked like it grazed Dunham -- and it's over. That was unique.

UFC Fight Night 45 official results: Edson Barboza def. Evan Dunham via TKO (strikes) at 3:06 of R1

Donald Cerrone vs. Jim Miller

Round 1: Well, this is expected to be a wild one...here we go. Dan Miragliotta is the ref. They touch gloves, and Cerrone comes in swinging. He catches Miller with a knee to the body right off, but Miller shakes it off. Very nice left hand counter from Miller lands, and he wheels out. Leg kick and nice combo from Miller, connecting on a right and a left. Now When Cerrone tries to land a knee, Miller charges forward and posts him on fence. He keeps him there, and on break drops an elbow on his temple. At center, Cerrone tries a knee and Miller drops him with a big good shot! Wow. He jumps on, but Cerrone recovers and is back up. Mller bringing the fight. Big right hand from Miller as an isolation shot. A red mark on Cerrone's body begins to show. He comes up high on Miller with a kick, but it's blocked for the most part. Still plenty of spring there. As Cerrone moves in, Miller ties him up and wrestles him to the fence. He's landing knees to the thighs right now. And he swings Cerrone over, dumps him to the canvas momentarily, but Cerrone back up. A chant of MILLER breaks out. Leg kick into a spinning backfist from Miller, both errant. Now Cerrone comes forward throwing, and he might have caught Miller with the second shot. Cerrone now presses, takes Miller to fence. They tussle there, but Miller able to spin free. Huge right hand counter just as Cerrone comes in from Miller; he's been cracking him with those counters all round, punishing his aggression. MMA Fighting scores R1 for Miller, 10-9.

Round 2: Jumping right hand from Miller, and again Cerrone off balance. Cerrone comes up top with a kick, and Miller took some of that foot to the head. Good combo into leg kick from Miller, and Cerrone charges in and got Miller low with a kick. To the groin. Miller takes a minute while Miragliotta clears Cerrone. But he's back. Tough dude. They exchange kicks, and both absorb them. Quick though of takedown from Miller, but he lets it go. Cerrone throwing kicks, one, then another. To the body. Now he comes up top with a right hand. Another kick, and Miller catches it and spins Cerrone off. They circle back around the cage. Cerrone might have hurt Miller with a kick, and as he comes forward Miller tries to unload. Crazy action. Miller seems okay. They wheel. Cerrone now coming to life, pressuring. It's Miller trying to find something now. Miller seems to be favoring his body just a little bit. Cerrone closes in, and Miller clocks him with a right. Now Cerrone unleashes a huge head kick with his right foot, and Miller crumbles on fence! Cerrone comes in and it's over! Miragliotta calls him off. Cerrone scores a crazy knockout, headkick to Miller just behind the left ear, and Miller just back-pedaled into fence. He was stunned pretty good. No controversy on the stoppage.

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This is it – the unofficial half-year awards season is coming to a close, and all that’s left is to determine the top fighters of the first half of 2014. Will your favorite be here? Read on to find out. (Note – to be considered, a fighter must have competed in two or more bouts)

5 - Luke Rockhold

Former Strikeforce middleweight champion Luke Rockhold got off to a rough start in his UFC career in 2013, getting knocked out in the first round by Vitor Belfort. But since then, Rockhold has campaigned for a rematch with “The Phenom” in the best way possible – by winning. In 2014, Rockhold picked up his first two Octagon victories, knocking out Costas Philippou and submitting Tim Boetch.

4 - Benson Henderson

Despite losing his UFC lightweight championship to Anthony Pettis last August, Benson Henderson rebounded in 2014 with a hard-fought five-round win over Josh Thomson in January and his first UFC finish ever in June as he submitted Rustam Khabilov. It was an emphatic reminder that “Smooth” is still one of the best 155-pounders on the planet, and that if not for Pettis, his record would sit at 21-1.

3 - Rory MacDonald

If you’re noticing a theme of redemption here, that would appear to be accurate. In 2013, highly-touted welterweight phenom lost a possible crack at the 170-pound title when he dropped a decision to Robbie Lawler. In response, “Ares” scored a come from behind Fight of the Night win over Demian Maia in February, then put on a clinic against Tyron Woodley in his British Columbia backyard in June. Now he’s knocking on the door for a shot at the belt once more.

2 - TJ Dillashaw

TJ Dillashaw’s January decision win over Mike Easton was impressive enough, but his knockout of Renan Barao in May to win the UFC bantamweight title was on a whole other level. Barao, who entered the UFC 173 bout with a 35-fight unbeaten streak, was starting to reach invincible status in the Octagon. Dillashaw put that talk to rest for the moment with a stellar effort from start to finish. It was such a dominating performance that even if Barao evens the score in their rematch later this year, you couldn’t possibly call the first win a fluke.

1 - Ronda Rousey

It was a tough call for the top spot, but when you consider that in two fights against world-class competition, Ronda Rousey spent a grand total of 82 seconds in the Octagon, that clinched it for me. Yet what may be most impressive about the UFC women’s bantamweight champion’s defeats of Sara McMann and Alexis Davis is that she finished both without her trusty armbar, instead knocking out each fighter in the opening round. “Rowdy” Ronda is scary, especially since she seems to be getting better with each fight.

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By Yannis Mihanos: After hitting the jackpot with his surprising victory over the heavy hitter Ruslan Provodnikov, Chris Algieri became a known fighter from virtually an unknown one. Suddenly many people in boxing know who Chris Algieri is.

So the question that automatically now surfaces is how much of a bad news is this new opponent for the people’s favorite champ and now WBO welterweight champion Manny Pacquiao?

Pacquiao has to wait until the 22nd of November to fight. That’s for me the first bad news. All fans around the world with me included after that convincing victory over Timothy Bradley last April were expecting from Manny to fight more often than almost once a year.

Also fans from around the world expected Manny to fight some big name next like Juan Manuel Marquez (for the 5th time) or Floyd Mayweather Jr. But these two have made themselves unavailable with their extreme demands.

Still there are many other strong opponents that Pacman could select instead of Algieri: Robert Guerrero, Saul “Canelo” Alvarez, Keith Thurman, Danny Garcia, Miguel Cotto or even Provodnikov . But I guess the last one blew it by losing on points against Algieri.

But was it that enough for Algieri to fight Pacman? Algieri winning Provodnikov? Algieri certainly brings some other things on the table.

He has other martial art experience, his kick boxing record is quite identical with this of boxing 20-0. Clean boxing records are good foundation for setting big fights and that’s a fact. Look were Algieri is into now…

Chris is very well spoken and educated; that is more like it: someone who can talk nice in front of the cameras.

His clean cut American look can turn the crowd’s attention. Promoter Bob Arum liked very much the idea of him fighting Pacquiao instead of Provodnikov prior their bout, he sees the bigger potential.

Arum is confident that this will be a commercial success.

Algieri is a talented boxer who moves nicely in the ring and counter punches. He is much taller than Pacquiao: 5 ft 11 in (180 cm). Pacquiao is barely 5 ft 6 1⁄2 in (169 cm) tall.

I think this will be an advantage for Chris in the ring.

His style is also different than this of Pacquiao, he is more of a boxer than fighter and doesn’t like to get caught a lot. When he was caught early in the first round against Provodnikov, he was sent down to the canvas and there suffered his eye injury. His punch power is insufficient for Pacquiao to worry about.

What Pacquiao must worry though is if he does not execute early Algieri with a knock down. Algieri is not a big puncher but has guts, he proved that by going on for most of the fight against Provodnikov with the one eye closed. He has the will to win and continue at any cost. He can also steal many points with his mosquito pinch punch. So Pacman must not underestimate this.

I know that already most of the fans and writers of boxing articles here and there, have already heavily set for favorite of the fight Pacquiao.

This fight to most of the world looks more like a tune up fight. In logic this seems the normal first reaction but let’s not forget that this is boxing and strange things can happen. Sometimes all the statistics, all the expectations can go completely wrong.

That’s what happened in the fight of Mayweather vs. Marcos Maidana, before the fight no one was giving a chance to Maidana. Look now what happened: Mayweather is facing again Maidana!

So let’s keep an open mind and see what happens.

Read more at http://www.boxingnews24.com/2014/07/is-chris-algieri-bad-news-for-pacquiao/#8hH6i76rs986pA7o.99

Eddie Bravo has laid relatively low since competing against Royler Gracie at Metamoris 3 in March.

The enthralling rematch of the Abu Dhabi Combat Club grappling tournament in 2003 ended in a 20-minute draw, but it was reports that came out following the event that really caught the combat sports world’s attention.

After the bout, the 10th Planet Jiu-Jitsu creator appeared to be at odds with Metamoris founder Ralek Gracie. Bravo wasn’t exactly pleased with some of Gracie’s comments after the fact and claimed that the event founder would not return his texts. In addition, Bravo’s post-match confrontation with Royce Gracie drew plenty of attention. However, all of that is water under the bridge now -- at least where it concerns Bravo and Ralek Gracie.

In an interview with Sherdog.com, Bravo attempted to explain the feud.

“I ended up doing my own show -- the Eddie Bravo Invitational. Now I understand, being the owner of the show, that I am in the exact same position Ralek is in. I mean Royler [Gracie] is his uncle, so he had to do some stuff, and above all else he is a part of a family. I mean, family comes first right?” Bravo said.

“So I get it now that I have my own show. I feel where Ralek is coming from because if I let my heart run everything, half of the show would be making 10th Planet look like we were kings of the world,” he continued. “But then no one would take me seriously; I have to be 100 percent unbiased. Your heart wants to just promote the hell out of your family. My family is 10th Planet; Ralek’s is the Gracie family, so I am not as hurt as I was initially.”

The prior issues didn’t prevent Gracie from reaching out to Bravo as recently as April 6 to compete at Metamoris 4 in Los Angeles on Aug. 9.

“Ralek invited me to Metamoris 4,” Bravo said. “We are cool. He and I had a dual misunderstanding. I’m not mad at him, and yeah, he invited me to Metamoris. I ran into him at Glory at the Forum. We talked for like 20 minutes and made peace.”

While Bravo declined the invitation to compete, the decision doesn’t stem from any animosity. Instead, it is purely so the 44-year-old can focus on other aspects of his life.

“Yeah, I don’t want to think about any opponents or talk with him about any opponents for a while. Metamoris [3] was really stressful,” Bravo explained. “I just want to focus on my family, focus on my music, my students, schools and improving the level of jiu-jitsu within the whole association.”

Relations between Bravo and Ralek have since been smoothed over, but the same cannot be said about his relationship with UFC Hall of Famer Royce Gracie.

Following Metamoris 3, Royce Gracie approached Bravo and told him that while he appreciated Bravo's kind comments made to the family after the event, he was still upset with the amount of trash talk directed at the Gracie family during the card’s buildup.

The remarks ultimately led to a shouting match that required the two to be separated by Jean Jacques Machado. Since the altercation, the two have not been in contact.

“I would love for there to be peace between him and I. But if he doesn’t want a peaceful resolution and wants to keep being angry at me for whatever reason, that’s fine too,” Bravo said. “Royce definitely has the personality that I could never get along with. I know what kind of person he is. I wouldn’t be able to hang out with him anyway. He is a legend; I will always respect him for that. If he wants to do a grappling match someday, I am down for that too.”

Bravo likes the card Ralek has put together for Metamoris 4, which will be headlined by Chael Sonnen and Andre Galvao. The trend of utilizing mixed martial arts fighters as special attractions is something Bravo could definitely see himself experimenting with for his own tournament.

“I think it’s a great idea,” Bravo said. “It’s kind of like Pride using pro wrestling to blow up MMA in Japan. MMA is the hottest sport in the United States. It’s smart of Metamoris to use MMA grapplers. I would do the same for [The Eddie Bravo Invitational] in a heartbeat.”

The Metamoris 3 headliner believes Galvao will defeat Sonnen on Aug 9.

“I think I would put my money on Galvao. He is just too much of a beast; he’s too good,” Bravo said. “If Galvao doesn’t submit Chael, I think he will have the better of him positionally. He might not be able to finish Chael because Chael’s a lot bigger than him, but I am going with Galvao.”

The Brazilian jiu-jitsu practitioner’s inaugural tournament in June went off without a hitch. Bravo said the event was such a success that he is already knee-deep in plans for the next one.

“We are shooting for the next event at the end of September,” Bravo said. “The next show is going to be 135 and 155 pounds. It’s going to be in Hollywood again.”

http://www.sherdog.com

John Dodson went under the knife to repair a torn meniscus as well as his anterior cruciate ligament (ACL) on Wednesday, putting him out of action for at least six to eight months.

The news is especially discerning for a UFC weight class that severely lacks contenders for Demetrious Johnson’s title.

In a report by FoxSports.com, Dodson revealed how the injury came about.

“I ended up tearing my ACL and my MCL before the Scott Jorgensen fight and then when I was getting ready for this fight against John Moraga, I didn't know it was going to be too much of a problem but then when I threw that first kick, I felt my knee pop when I threw that first kick in that first round and that's when I felt it go out,” Dodson said.

Dodson has only lost once while fighting under the Zuffa banner; the defeat came against none other than “Mighty Mouse” at UFC on Fox “Johnson vs. Dodson” in January of 2013.

Since the defeat, “The Magician” has made quick work of his next two opponents, Darrell Montague and John Moraga, finishing both with his explosive punching power.

The victories all but put the 29-year-old next in line for the 125-pound title.

http://www.sherdog.com

After what seems like an eternity, former boxing standout and Legacy FC 135-pound champion Holly Holm has signed a contract with Ultimate Fighting Championship.

UFC officials formally made the announcement on Thursday.

At the age of 32 and with seven fights under her belt, “The Preacher’s Daughter” has long been considered a test for Ronda Rousey’s bantamweight title.

The former women’s boxing champion has garnered five of her six knockouts or TKOs by way of her vicious leg power. This was most recently on full display when she landed a head kick against Juliana Werner at LFC 30 in April.

Rumors have swirled of Holm’s signing with UFC for quite some time, ultimately culminating in a meeting between both parties during UFC 171 in Dallas. The two sides didn’t reach an offer resulting in UFC President Dana White saying he was “not interested whatsoever.”

http://www.sherdog.com

Following his first defeat as a pro after winning his first 14 bouts, heavyweight prospect Alexander Flores and his manager/trainer Michael Love, along with their promoter Roy Englebrecht announced that boxing trainer Henry Ramirez has joined Team Flores as a training advisor. Flores tasted defeated last April as he was stopped in the fourth round by undefeated Charles Martin on a Kings Sports show in Santa Monica.

“I was approached by Michael Love and after our meeting I accepted the offer and am excited about joining their team,” said Ramirez. “I’ve known about Alexander Flores for a few years as he has sparred with Chris Arreola in preparation for a number of fights, and Alex is a good young heavyweight fighter.”

Only 23 years of age, Flores is the youngest heavyweight rated in the IBO Top 100, and is set to climb back in the ring in October.

“When I contacted Henry he didn’t hesitate and said he would help in any way he could,” stated Love. “I believe in building a strong team to surround Alex, and with the additional of Henry Ramirez I think we now have in place what is needed to be able to succeed at a high level. Regardless of his loss to Martin, Alexander will be in this sport for a long time and will only get better.”

With Ramirez on board Flores has agreed to a strict training schedule that will see him training in Victorville Monday thru Wednesday and in Riverside working one-on-one with Ramirez the rest of the week.

“The reason that both Roy and I are excited about Henry joining our team is that he has been through the ups and downs with Chris Arreola and knows the pitfalls and how to correct them. He believes in Alex’s ability and has been noted saying that Alex can FN fight,” said Love.

“I appreciate Michael Love moving in this direction to get some quality help in working with Alex,” said Roy Englebrecht who has a five year promotional agreement with Flores. “I have known Henry for a number of years and have always appreciated his no-nonsense way of working with fighters. He will bring a new discipline and attitude to Team Flores, and as a promoter that is music to my ears.”

“Alexander Flores has a million dollar smile, the looks of a GQ Model, and the talent to be successful in the heavyweight division,” said Englebrecht. “So this is the first step in Chapter Two for Team Flores and come October 16th at Fight Club OC we will see a new and improved fighter.”

Hailing from Rowland Heights, California, 6-5, 225 pound Alexander “The Great” Flores (14-1-12 KOs) didn’t spend much time in the amateur ranks, but after compiling an impressive 14-2 record and winning the Southern California Golden Gloves, he took his skills to the professional arena, debuting with a second round knockout of Antonio Robertson on March 19, 2010. In 2011, with three wins already under his belt, Flores upped his level of competition and didn’t skip a beat, as he defeated highly-touted former University of Miami football star Quadtrine Hill in April, and followed that victory up with a third round knockout of Serhiy Karpenko.

http://www.fightnews.com/

It looks like Stefan Struve will return to the Octagon after all.

The 7-foot-tall heavyweight from the Netherlands was pulled from his scheduled bout against Matt Mitrione at UFC 175 on July 5 after suffering a fainting spell in his locker room during warmups.

Since Struve was returning from more than a year out of action after being diagnosed with a heart condition, speculation that this would spell the end of Struve's career was near-instantaneous.

But on Monday's edition of the MMA Hour, Struve's manager, Lex McMahon, said that Struve will return to competition.

I've subsequently spoken with Dana [White] several times and his question has been ‘Does Stefan want to fight?' McMahon said. I've spent a fair amount of time with Stefan since the canceled bout, and his response was 100 percent, he definitely wants to fight.'

According to McMahon, the physical symptoms Struve experienced were unrelated to his heart condition.

He had essentially what boiled down to a panic attack, McMahon said. It manifested itself physically, he had a fainting episode backstage before his fight occurred. I don't think he took full account of the emotions to step into the Octagon. I think he had some lingering questions about where health was even though he'd been cleared by specialist. All those things came together in a perfect storm and unfortunately it created a tremendous amount of anxiety, and it caused him to faint. ... Stefan has already seen several doctors, the doctors have reiterated there is nothing physically wrong with him, it was more the psychological response which created the physical manifestation of him fainting.

McMahon says that he will work with Struve and the UFC to target a next fight which doesn't place Struve under as much of a spotlight as the scheduled Mitrione fight, which would have been held on the main card of one of the year's biggest events.

We'll work with the UFC maybe to map out an approach which doesn't put so much pressure on him for his first bout back he was on one of biggest cards of year for a featured bout, McMahon said. I think people take for granted how incredibly, how much pressure is associated with that, from the media responsibilities, to realizing you're being seen by millions of people, it was a lot for that young man.

There's no set timetable yet for Struve's return.

My guess is you'll see him sooner than later, McMahon said. Dana's been super supportive of that and he's kind of left it up to us to figure out what the timeline to be. We'll have something Stefan pretty soon.

http://www.mmafighting.com

Khan says that his adviser Al Haymon is working on the date for the fight to be televised in the United States on Showtime in December. Khan says he wants a big name that will get him a fight against WBA/WBC welterweight champion Floyd Mayweather Jr.

Khan also says he’s open to fighting Manny Pacquiao in the future now that Top Rank and Golden Boy Promotions are willing to work with each other now.

“I’m looking at fighting in December, maybe the second week,” Khan said to BT Sport. “I talked to Al Haymon a couple of days ago. Hopefully we can get that finalized for TV in America. There are a few names like Alexander, Robert Guerrero. I want to fight the top guys again to get into the position to fight Floyd Mayweather Jr and some of the big names.”

Khan hasn’t given up on his pursuit of Mayweather even though he’s not fought anyone even remotely good enough for him to share the ring with the talented champion.

Khan was on the verge of naming a third name but he was interrupted by one of the talking heads on the show, who stepped on his attempts to name the third guy. But obviously Alexander and Guerrero are the two top guys that Khan is looking to fight next, so I don’t expect a third option to come up that would move ahead of one of those guys.

Khan obviously knows that he can’t fight anymore old timers like he’s done in his last two fights again Julio Diaz and Luis Collazo and expect to get a fight against Mayweather. That’s not going to work, especially with Khan having unfinished business with Danny Garcia, Lamont Peterson and Breidis Prescott.

It already looks incredibly bad that Khan never avenged any of those losses. This is why it’s going to take a victory over a really good opponent for Khan to get a shot at Mayweather, and I’m not sure that you can consider Alexander or Guerrero good enough fighters for him to get a fight against Mayweather.

Guerrero just went life and death with little known fringe contender Yoshihiro Kamegai in beating him by a narrow 12 round decision last June, so Guerrero’s stock is way, way down right now. A win over Guerrero for Khan would be pretty much the same as a win over Collazo. Alexander was recently beaten by Porter last December, so Khan gains little in beating him.

It’s a step up from the old timers Khan has been beating recently, but not much of one. Unless Khan wants to step inside the ring to try and avenge his three losses to Prescott, Garcia and Peterson, then he’s going to need to beat guys that haven’t been recently exposed. Unfortunately Guerrero and Alexander both have been exposed recently, and that makes them guys that will give Khan essentially nothing if he beats them.

The only guys that will help Khan get a fight against Mayweather, besides the three that whipped him, is Shawn Porter and Keith Thurman. If Khan can beat either of them, then he’ll be in a good position to fight Mayweather. But unfortunately Khan hasn’t been talking about wanting to fight them.

“The speed is still there, but I can see the guys I’m fighting are a lot stronger,” Khan said. “I’m taking shots a lot better at 147 than I did at 140 because I’m making the weight a lot easier.”

With Khan only having one fight under his belt at 147 against an older welterweight in Collazo, Khan hardly is in the position to say whether his chin is better at 147. Khan also said the same thing about his chin when he moved up from the lightweight division to light welterweight following his 1st round knockout loss to Prescott.

What we discovered was that Khan still struggled when facing guys that could actually punch like Marcos Maidana and Danny Garcia. Khan likely would have been knocked out by Maidana if the referee working the fight Joe Cortez hadn’t gotten in between the two fighters so frequently in the last three rounds after Maidana had Khan out on his feet.

http://www.boxingnews24.com

The latest chapter in the ongoing saga between UFC president Dana White and the Diaz brothers is in the books.

Nate Diaz, the lightweight contender who has been sitting on the sidelines since last fall, took to Twitter on Monday to take a pointed, if not necessarily erudite, swipe at the UFC and Donald Cerrone.

Some people just suck way too much UFC d--, Diaz tweeted. An they where cowboy hats.

On Tuesday, White used his platform on UFC.com to swing back at the Stockton native.

Nate can do whatever he wants to do, White said. Nate can sit out and not suck any UFC whatever, for as long as he wants to. Who cares, he's a grown man. Sit out for as long as you want, sit out the rest of your career, it's your decision. But to start making fun of guys who actually like to fight, and guys who go out there and put on unbelievable fights and people love to see him? [Cowboy] steps up and does what he does. People love ‘Cowboy' Cerrone.

Diaz and older brother Nick have been on the sidelines for awhile. In Nate's case, he wants a better contract than he has; Nick Diaz has stated he is retired, although he is willing to return for the right fight at the right price.

Cerrone, who headlines Wednesday's Ultimate Fight Night card against Jim Miller, lost to Diaz via unanimous decision at UFC 141. Cerrone has won three straight fights and earned post-fight bonuses in each. His fight with Miller will mark his third this year and his fifth in the past 11 months.

http://www.mmafighting.com

Yesterday former British and Commonwealth heavyweight beltholder David Price (18-2, 15 KOs) underwent surgery to repair a damaged tendon in his right hand. The operation, performed by renowned hand specialist Mike Hayton, was a success and the 6’8 heavyweight is expected to make his ring return in December.

“I picked up a hand injury in my last fight against Zavorotnyi,” said Price. “It had been four weeks and there had been no real improvement so I went to see Mike Hayton and we decided to open it up and see what the problem was. There was a split in the tendon and some scar tissue that had to be removed. It is still a little sore now but Mike was pleased with how it went and he is confident that my hand will be back to full strength in no time.

“Realistically we will be looking at December before I am able to get back in the ring. I am going to stay in the gym. There is still a lot of work I can do. I will just need to avoid any impact training for the time being. I am glad I have got this sorted now. There was the option to take a fight in September, get an injection and fight through the injury but then you run the risk of making it worse or causing some permanent damage.

“There is no doubt that I will benefit from the additional time in the gym and come back even stronger. It is a minor setback but by the end of the year I will have boxed four times in 2014 and that is a massive step in the right direction. Next year I will be ready to take on anyone!”

http://www.fightnews.com/

LAS VEGAS, July 5 – If anyone ever says that a championship belt doesn’t mean anything, they obviously never saw Chris Weidman and Lyoto Machida fight for it Saturday night at the Mandalay Bay Events Center. But after five heated rounds, a winner had to be declared, and it was the unbeaten middleweight champion from Long Island, who won a hard-fought unanimous decision over Machida in an instant classic.

“He’s as good as I thought,” said Weidman, who retained the belt he won from Anderson Silva in July of 2013 for the second time. “He’s really tricky and tough as nails.”

“The plan was to keep it standing,” said the gracious Machida, a former UFC light heavyweight champion. “Chris Weidman is a tough opponent; he’s the true champion and he deserves the title.”

Scores were 49-45, 48-47, 49-46 for the 30-year-old New Yorker.

Weidman opened the fight with three kicks that didn’t hit that mark but that broke the ice immediately. Machida’s defense was up to par as usual, but he was taking his time getting into the bout offensively. In the second minute, a Machida kick was caught by Weidman, who looked for a takedown, but the Brazilian fought it off effectively. Weidman kept the pressure on, now focusing on his punches upstairs as well as the kicks to the body and legs, and he was getting the attention of Machida, who did little on the offensive end.

It sounded like a World Cup soccer game in round two as the two continued to battle, Machida just missing with a heat-seeking missile early on and Weidman continuing to press the action with a varied array of strikes. With a minute left, Weidman went all-in on the takedown and got it, pinning Machida to the fence. From there, he finished the round with ground strikes and some shots in the clinch as Machida rose to his feet.

Machida showed more urgency as the third commenced, and while Weidman blocked a couple of head kicks, he also saw his first two takedown attempts come up empty. The third hit its mark, though the action stalled on the mat. Midway through the round, the two rose and traded hard punches near the fence. Weidman briefly rocked Machida a few seconds later, and after missing a guillotine choke attempt, he dumped the challenger onto the seat of his trunks. Machida took some punches and rose, but Weidman slammed him back down emphatically. After getting some more punishment on the ground, the now bloodied Machida rose just before the horn.

Machida tried to get back in the fight with two hard kicks to open round four, but all that got was a wave

from Weidman to bring it on. Machida did avoid a takedown by the champion, and midway through the round, he showed signs of life in the stand-up game as he landed with punches and kicks on Weidman, causing the crowd to erupt. Weidman started to show signs of fatigue for the first time, as his punches didn’t have the same pop on them, and when Machida tossed off another takedown attempt and went all-out offensively, ending the round with a flush left hook to the chin, it looked like a new fight in there.

With his left eye rapidly closing, Weidman still pressed the action in his first visit to the fifth round, but Machida’s takedown defense was airtight and he was having more and more success tagging the champion. Weidman wasn’t about to go away that easily, resulting in some tense close range exchanges that saw each fighter take turns stunning the other. With under two minutes left, Weidman finally got the bout back to the mat, and with under a minute remaining he was able to take the challenger’s back. There was no end to Machida’s gameness though, and after fighting his way back to his feet, he fired off a barrage of shots in the closing seconds that thrilled the crowd once more. And when the final horn sounded, they know that they saw a fight, one they won’t forget anytime soon.

With the win, Weidman moves to 12-0; Machida falls to 21-5

www.ufc.com