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Showing posts with label Michael Chiesa. Show all posts
Showing posts with label Michael Chiesa. Show all posts
Tuesday, June 5, 2012
Is The Ultimate Fighter Live Schedule Putting Too Much Strain on Contestants?
Thursday, May 24, 2012
THE ULTIMATE FIGHTER® LIVE ON FX BEGINS SEMIFINALS WITH “REALITY CHECK”
Tomorrow/Friday, May 25, LIVE on FX at 10 p.m. ET/PT
The Ultimate Fighter® Live on FX will stage two semifinal fights tomorrow/Friday, live on FX at 10 p.m. ET/PT (delayed on the West Coast).
In the first one, James Vick (4-0), of Fort Worth, Texas, meets Michael Chiesa (7-0), of Spokane Valley, Wash. Vinc Pichel (7-0), of Sherman Oaks, Calif., will then meet Al Iaquinta (5-1-1), of Wantagh, N.Y., in the other.
Below is a description of the upcoming “REALITY CHECK” episode:
“Tickle and Cruickshank get violent in the house. Dana makes a surprise announcement. Teams Cruz and Faber go to war for a spot in the Finale, as Vick takes on Chiesa and Pichel faces Iaquinta in the last 2 Semifinal fights.”
The semifinal winners will square-off when the 13-week season comes to a head with a three-hour finale on June 1 at the Pearl Concert Theater at the Palms in Las Vegas. That winner will be crowned The Ultimate Fighter® Live champion.
LAST SHOT AT REDEMPTION: ELIMINATED CONTESTANTS OF THE ULTIMATE FIGHTER® LIVE ON FX TO PARTICIPATE IN JUNE 1 FINALE
Semifinals this Friday on FX at 10 p.m. ET/PT
LAS VEGAS (May 24, 2012) – UFC President Dana White made it official this week, announcing that all but two of THE ULTIMATE FIGHTER® LIVE fighters, pending commission approval after the semifinals, will get one more opportunity for redemption and appear on national television during the three-hour season finale on FX, Friday, June 1, from the Pearl Concert Theater at the Palms in Las Vegas.
In addition, the winners of the semifinal bouts this Friday, May 25, live on FX (10 p.m. ET/PT, delayed on the West Coast) between James Vick (4-0), of Fort Worth, Texas, and Michael Chiesa 7-0), ofSpokane Valley, Wash., and Vinc Pichel (7-0), of Sherman Oaks, Calif., and Al Iaquinta (5-1-1), Wantagh, N.Y., will clash in the final fight of the season to crown the ULTIMATE FIGHTER LIVE winner. The winner will earn a lucrative contract from the UFC and a Harley Davidson motorcycle.
Confirmed June 1 matchups include: Jeremy Larsen, Phoenix, Ariz., vs. Joe Proctor, Pembroke, Mass.; Sam Sicilia, Spokane Valley, Wash., vs. Cristiano Marcello, Curitiba, Brazil; Chris Tickle, Bloomington, Ill., vs. Daron Cruickshank, Wayne, Mich.; Myles Jury, San Diego, Calif., vs. Chris Saunders, Long Beach, Calif.; and Justin Lawrence, Villa Ridge, Mo., vs. John Cofer, Hull, Ga.
Regretfully, two of the fighters who have spent the last three months in the TUF House will be unable to participate in the season finale on FX. Mike Rio, of Miami, Fla., suffered a rib injury in training whileAndy Ogle was medically suspended by the Nevada State Athletic Commission after being knocked out by Iaquinta in the quarterfinals.
Not surprisingly, the House was buzzing with excitement after the fighters learned they would be getting another shot on FX. Here’s what they had to say:
Jeremy Larsen
“I'm super thrilled about fighting Proctor. He's a tough guy who likes to fight, and that's what I like to do. I think we're going to go out there and put on a fantastic show for the fans."
Joe Proctor
"Train hard. Win easy. It's time for a war!”
Sam Sicilia
“I think this is a huge opportunity for me. He's a legend. We'll see if I belong in the UFC right now or not.”
Cristiano Marcello
“It's a great opportunity. He's a great opponent. Let's do what we need to do.”
Chris Tickle
“It's going to be a great fight, fast-paced and I'm ready to bang.”
Daron Cruickshank
“Hands up. Chin down. Let's bang. It's play time.”
Myles Jury
“I think it's a tough fight, but it's just another chance for me to live my dream."
Chris Saunders
“I’m looking forward to this test. It should be a good fight. Tune in!”
Justin Lawrence
“I think it's a good matchup for me. I think I'm more well-rounded. This is a huge opportunity and me and I'm not going to let it slip through my fingers."
John Cofer
“I’m excited for this fight and the chance at redemption after my last loss on the show. More importantly, though, is winning and landing a job fighting in the UFC.”
Don’t miss the opportunity to catch behind the scenes action by following the fighters on Facebook and Twitter. Find all these links and more on www.ultimatefighter.com.
Photo credits: Zuffa LLC
About Ultimate Fighting Championship®
Universally recognized for its action-packed, can’t-miss events that have sold out some of the biggest arenas and stadiums across the globe, the UFC® is the world’s premier mixed martial arts organization. Owned and operated by Zuffa, LLC, headquartered in Las Vegas and with offices in London, Torontoand Beijing, UFC produces more than 30 live events annually and is the largest Pay-Per-View event provider in the world. In 2011, the UFC burst into the mainstream with a landmark seven-year broadcast agreement with FOX Sports Media Group. The agreement includes four live events broadcast on the FOX network annually, with additional fight cards and thousands of hours of programming broadcast on FOX properties FX and FUEL TV. This includes the longest-running sports reality show on television,The Ultimate Fighter®, which now air on FX in an exciting new live format.
In addition to its reach on FOX, UFC programming is broadcast in over 149 countries and territories, to nearly one billion homes worldwide, in 20 different languages. UFC content is also distributed commercially in the United States to bars and restaurants through Joe Hand Promotions and in English throughout Canada via Premium Sports Broadcasting Inc. and in Quebec through Interbox. The UFC also connects with tens of millions of fans through its website, UFC.com, as well as social media sites Facebook and Twitter. UFC President Dana White is considered one of the most accessible and followed executives in sports, with over two million followers on Twitter. Ancillary UFC businesses include best-selling DVDs, an internationally distributed magazine, UFC.TV offering live event broadcasts and video on demand around the world, the best-selling UFC Undisputed® video game franchise distributed by THQ, UFC GYM®, UFC Fight Club affinity program, UFC Fan Expo® festivals, branded apparel and trading cards.
Thursday, May 3, 2012
THE ULTIMATE FIGHTER® LIVE ON FX WRAPS UP FIRST ROUND WITH “BECOME THAT HERO” TEAM CRUZ’S MIKE RIO vs. TEAM FABER’S ANDY OGLE
Friday, May 4, LIVE on FX at 10 p.m. ET/PT
The Ultimate Fighter® Live on FX wraps up the preliminary round of competitiontomorrow/Friday, May 4, live on FX at 10 p.m. ET/PT (delayed on the West Coast) when Team Cruz’s Mike Rio (8-1), of Miami, Fla., takes on Team Faber’s Andy Ogle (8-1), of Tynemouth, England, for the last spot in the quarterfinals.
Team Faber’s Chris Saunders scored an upset victory over Team Cruz’s Sam Sicilia as a massive underdog last week. Now, Faber’s squad holds a 4-3 lead over his bitter rival with just one fight to go until the quarterfinals.
Rio and Ogle are looking to advance and move one step closer to a six-figure UFC contract alongside previous winners James Vick, Justin Lawrence, Al Iaquinta, Michael Chiesa, Joe Proctor, Vinc Pichel and Saunders.
Below is a description of the upcoming “BECOME THAT HERO” episode:
“Both teams head to a desert shooting range for an explosive Coaches Challenge. Andy Ogle takes on Mike Rio in the last preliminary fight, then Dana announces the first two quarterfinal matchups.”
The 13-week season will culminate with a championship fight and three-hour finale on June 1 at the Pearl Palms Concert Theater in Las Vegas. The coaches will then meet on July 7 at UFC 148, when Cruz defends his title against Faber in the rubber match of their epic rivalry.
MIKE RIO:
It's the final preliminary fight this Friday. Team Cruz is down 4-3. Is there any added pressure to even the series? Or is it just another fight?
“There's always pressure in a situation like this but the wonderful thing about our sport is that we don't have to worry about the teams. You just focus on yourself and the better you do, the team just ends up benefitting from it. So as long as I just focus on what I have to do and not worry about the team or what's best for the team, everyone will benefit. That takes a lot of the pressure off when you focus on what you're supposed to focus on and not the outside distractions.”
What is your mood going into the fight and what do you have to do to win?
“I'm always relaxed. I'm one of those guys that never gets over-anxious, nervous or gets butterflies. I've been in competition a long time. I'm very relaxed until the time of the fight and then I get very energetic and very aggressive.
“What I need to do to win the fight? I need to push the pace. Ogle is by no means an easy fight. He's not just going to lay down for me. I just have to make sure I stay focused and take the fight to him and do what I need to do to win. I'm not going to focus on what he's going to do to me, just what I'm going to do to him.”
How difficult is it to sit and watch during the weeks you weren't fighting? Is it a relief to actually be fighting?
“That was a double-edged sword. First off, I'm sitting there watching and waiting, seeing all my teammates fight, watching everybody fight. I came here to fight, and was just sitting on the sidelines every week, waiting, waiting, waiting. On the positive side of this though, I literally just got a month and a half training camp with the champ, Dominick Cruz, and the champ's personal coaching squad. I've gotten in the best shape of my life for my first preliminary fight. “
Is there anything that's happened in the first seven weeks that's surprised you?
“Every fight has been a war. I've been really impressed by the level of talent in our season. We're a great group of 16 guys and we deserve to be here. Everyone is serious as hell and there's really no one who is here just to be a TV star.”
ANDY OGLE:
It's the final preliminary fight this Friday. Team Faber is up 4-3. Is there any added pressure to keep the series lead? Or is it just another fight?
“It's not a fight for the Team, it's a fight for myself. Because at the end of the day, I'm the one who's trying to get that glass plate. I'm the one that is trying to get that W. It's all about me thinking about myself. At the end of the day, two guys are going to go in there and the cage door is going to close and for 10, possibly 15, minutes I've got to kick somebody's ass to secure myself into the next round.”
What is your mood going into the fight and what do you have to do to win?
“I feel confident. I feel strong. I feel as if I've trained a long time for this fight and I've developed as a fighter as well as a person and become a hell of a lot more patient. In this fight, I'm going to have to be very patient and defend his takedowns a lot. I feel as if I can kill his spirit by doing so and lighting him up with my shoots and hitting him a lot in the face. Basically, just not making him want to come in and attempt a takedown.”
How difficult is it to sit and watch during the weeks you weren't fighting? Is it a relief to actually be fighting?
“Since I've been in the house, I've had to think about everything in two ways. It was killing me not fighting for the first seven fights. But at the same time, I'm getting more time to develop as a fighter, which means [Rio]'s going to get the best version of me because I'm last. I've now built up a relationship with the coaching staff and a great relationship with my team and gotten a whole lot stronger.”
Is there anything that's happened in the first eight weeks that's surprised you?
“I did not expect to get ill! I very rarely get ill. I'm the 'one more round' guy. I'm always happy to keep pushing. If I'm done training but someone wants to go another round, I'll jump up, I'll do that round. When my lungs were closing up and I felt as if I couldn't breathe, I didn't feel like the 'one more round' guy. But when I went to the doctor and they did an X-ray, the doctor said, ‘Wow, you've got a large heart’ and I said tell me something I don't know. That's something that Rio, or any opponent, won't ever have larger than me. It's impossible, I want it too much.”
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