This Week in MMA July 25th

[Qbins Missile Crisis]

Well, what a weekend for MMA it was!



Four hours of Affliction plus three hours of UFC Fight Night plus four hours of DREAM from Japan. I am officially cooked. It wasn't a good weekend for underdog bettors ... every single fight on the Affliction card went to the favorite and every televised fight for UFC Fight Night as well - with the exception of Kevin Burns vs Anthony Johnson. Burns won via 'KO', which I put in parenthesis because he really won by brutal eyepoke. Those betting on Burns are probably quite happy that God answered their Hail Mary prayers. Those that didn't? Can you take solace in the fact that Johnson is appealing the ruling with the commission as we speak?

Past that, Anderson Silva and Fedor both proved why they were heavy favorites. Those of you who haven't watched too much Japanese MMA may have just gotten your first glimpse of Fedor. If you were wondering why Tim Sylvia was such a heavy underdog going into this fight, now you know. Fedor is simply ... indestructible.

That doesn't mean other fighters aren't going to try and solve him. Immediately following the Fedor / Sylvia fight, Randy Couture entered the ring and both fighters declared their intent to fight as soon as possible. Unfortunately, that might not be for a while ... Randy Couture is still in the middle of a contractual cluster**** with the UFC. He did give people hope that regardless of the legal outcome, he would fight again. When questioned about what would happen if the UFC won, Couture said he would consider fighting UFC heavyweight champ Antonio Rodrigo Nogueira. We'll see if that statement stands once Randy's wife gets wind of it.

As an update on the Quinton Jackson situation, Dana White commented that it might be a while for Rampage to 'come back, and that's just as far as Rampage the human being'. The general consensus via the rumor mill is that Quinton suffered some sort of mental breakdown and now has a very confused and disturbing perception of God and religion. After posting bail, he was sent to a medical institution for observation. Originally set to be held for 72 hours, his stay has been extended and as far as anyone knows he's still there. This story was a whole lot funnier when it just seemed like another big time athlete acting like a retard.

Coming up this weekend, we have the second EliteXC show on CBS. The first show was a rollercoaster ride of mismatches and freakshows. Unfortunately this time they've gone the 'reputable' route, so that means less puss filled ears and controversial moments. On the upside, the fights are looking like they're going to be great. And Dan Miragliotta (the ref from Kimbo vs Thompson) is out with a shoulder injury, so he won't be around to mess up any of the fights. Let's break down what's been going on news-wise for this event.

Scott Smith (+200) left his first fight with Robbie Lawler (-260) with a busted foot and a bloody eyeball, but he wants everyone to know that the injuries healed up fast and didn't affect his training at all. It would have been nice to know Nick Diaz' (-700) thoughts on his fight with Thomas Denny (+500), but he's been AWOL from all promotional activities. Perhaps he's in Mexico trying to purge his urine of all traces of pot. Considering Nick's last few performances, I would recommend putting some coin on Denny. Hey, if the fight gets canceled because of Diaz' weed habit (again) or because Diaz shows up 9 pounds overweight (again), there's no harm done.

Shayna Baszler (-185) took some time off discussing her freakishly strong opponent Cris Cyborg (+145) and Gina Carano (a constant topic of conversation for every female in the fight game, unfortunately) to dish on Dana White for implying the talent pool in women's MMA is thin. "If he wants to question that, then I'd question the talent of his heavyweight division." After this weekend and it's Affliction implications, that's a comment that might hit close to home.

Last but not least, don't forget that Jake Shields (-350) is finally getting to fight for the EliteXC welterweight belt after numerous delays. Originally he was going to face Drew Fickett, but first Shields was injured and then Fickett was injured and then Fickett turned out to not be as injured as people thought, because he fought on another card the weekend before he and Sheilds were going to fight for the belt. So long story short, Fickett is out. But EliteXC (surprisingly) did a good job of replacing him with an even tougher opponent: Nick 'the Goat' Thompson (+250), who's on a 12 fight winning streak that includes a KO of Eddie Alvarez, who looked destined to win the DREAM lightweight grand prix this past weekend before doctors KO'd him over a cut.

There's plenty of other fights going on with EliteXC and there's some pretty good odds on the sportsbook to take advantage of. Lines for independent events like this usually have more edges to them than with UFC betting, so make sure to take advantage! Until next week, peeps.