Pettis Brothers have a unique bond: MMA may have two future stars in the family

Anthony Pettis has risen to the top of MMA lightweight ranks. His mix of athleticism, stamina, creativity and well-rounded skill set is tough to beat. The sick part is that he's just 24 years old.

He's got the life experience of someone much older. That comes with training and staying dedicated for 14 professional fights.

It also happens when you have to survive the gruesome murder of your father at 15 years old. Pettis' father, Eugene was knifed down during a robbery gone bad. Anthony had to become a father figure for his then 8-year-old brother Sergio (pictured in the black shirt) along with staying on track to follow his fighting dream.

It's gone off with few hitches publicly and that includes the father figure part. His brother Sergio, now 17, is the spitting image of Anthony.

"I didn't even understand completely what happened," Sergio said referencing his father's death. "But as I grew older with all my friends at wrestling meets, their fathers were there and it was kind of depressing. But my brother Anthony was there, so it was alright."

Sergio's accompanied Anthony to Las Vegas to help him prepare for his lightweight showdown tomorrow night against Clay Guida in the main of the "Ultimate Fighter 13 Finale."

The younger Pettis is mature beyond his years, focused and incredibly poised for a teenager. He's even an amateur MMA fighter with plans set to turn pro when he turns 18. That's right Sergio is already in there fighting men while he's still a high school student.

Anthony raves about Sergio's potential.

"He was my main training partner for Guida," Pettis told "The MMA Insiders" show on ESPN1100 in Las Vegas. "He's already better than me in wrestling."

Anthony says the future is bright for his little bro.

"I guarantee my brother makes a big move in the sport," Pettis said. "Right now, it's my time but he's going to be 18 pretty soon and hopefully we will both be fighting on the same card sometime pretty soon."

Sergio just graduated high school, and shortly after his birthday in August, he'll make his pro debut in September.  The kid even speaks about his future career like he's a veteran.

"I've got a big name already with Pettis. That last name means I've got to live up to the hype he's had," Sergio said. "I've got high expectations, but I feel like I can reach them because of my training with him."

Let's allow Sergio to develop his career slowly,but Anthony doesn't have that luxury. All the pressure is on Pettis tomorrow night. He's a minus-170 favorite against a guy with 13 UFC and 39 overall fights under his belt. Guida feels disrespected a bit and wants to derail Pettis from getting his shot at the winner of Frank Edgar and Gray Maynard.

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TUF 13 Finale: Harvison and Bailey both winners

LAS VEGAS - Young fighters are fun to watch because they often fight a bit more recklessly. With that can also come mismanagement of their gas tank. "Ultimate Fighter 13" castmates Clay Harvison and Justin Edwards both ran into that problem. Completely exhausted, both gutted out a fun third round. In the end, two judges gave Harvison the nod. That was enough for a split decision victory, 29-28, 28-29 and 29-28, in fight No. 3 of the night of "The Ultimate Fighter 13 Finale" at the Palms.

"I thought the judging was fair.  That fight was extremely close and I knew the judging might end up like that. I felt I won second and third rounds and did enough in those rounds to earn the victory," said Harvison (9-3, 1-0 UFC).

Edwards (6-1, 0-1 UFC) scored four takedowns in the first and three more down the stretch in the third, but he didn't do much damage from top control, and too often Harvison got himself to his feet quickly. Harvison was the crisper striker and landed some good knees throughout the fight.

The winner was disappointed he didn't post a more resounding victory.

"I went out there and did exactly what I needed to do to beat him.  I knew I had to take what I could get and constantly counter what he was throwing at me," Harvison said. "I was looking for the finish, but I just couldn't find it with the way we were both fighting. "

Bailey wrestles way to victory over McGillivray, but fails to wow

Shamar Bailey was tabbed an early favorite on TUF 13. He couldn't make good on the lofty expectations, lost in the semifinals and found himself on tonight's undercard. Bailey had enough to take out Ryan McGillivray via unanimous decision, 30-27 on all cards, but he still has plenty to prove.

Based on early workouts, Bailey (12-3) was a big favorite of the coaches. Using his wrestling, Bailey is probably a terror in the gym.

The same thing that happened when he lost in the semifinals against Chris Cope, emerged tonight against McGillivray. Bailey's a one-trick pony. It was enough to get him the win over the young Canadian, but he needs to move to the next level with his stamina and hands if he expects to make a mark with the UFC.

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UFC 130 battle of the beef: Mir carves up Nelson

LAS VEGAS - Frank Mir did all he could to finish Roy Nelson, but "Big Country" refused to go out. Unfortunately Nelson's heart can't make up for his lack of conditioning and he was mauled in a one-sided fight against the former UFC heavyweight champ. In a physical, long fight Mir posted a unanimous decision victory, 30-27, 30-27 and 30-26, over Nelson in the co-main event of UFC 130 at the MGM Grand Arena.

Mir (15-5, 13-5 UFC) won his second straight fight, but probably didn't do enough to move himself back in the title chase. By playing the role of punching bag and possessing solid defensive work on the ground, Nelson makes it tough for anyone to look good.

"How many times did I knee him in the face," Mir asked UFC analyst Joe Rogan during the postfight conversation in the cage. "What's with that guy's chin?"

Nelson (15-6, 2-2 UFC) fought at a solid pace for about three minutes and then started breathing heavily in the middle of the first round. Mir decided to wear him down by clinching along the cage. He made good use of the thai clinch (hands around the neck of the opposing fighter) by landing knees to the body and some big shots to the head. Nelson's a top level grappler and jiu-jitsu practitioner, but he was so exhausted in the second and third rounds that Mir was able to dump him to the ground five times. Mir used relatively slow and simplistic single and double-leg takedowns to get Nelson down. After grinding it out with Nelson, Mir was somewhat satisfied by the win.

"Wrestling was my main focus in this camp and I think it worked out well for me tonight," Mir said. "I'd rate my performance as a seven (out of 10). I expected to win the grappling aspect. It went even better than I had a planned. I felt like I was able to win in every aspect of the fight. Roy is really tough and I'm glad to leave here with the win."

The calls for the 6-foot Nelson to get in better shape or go down to 205 pounds are probably going to go unheard. Big Country is stubborn and knows that even in less than stellar shape, he can compete with most heavyweights in the No. 5-15 range.

"I trained with too many smaller guys for this camp and I paid for it tonight," Nelson said. "His wrestling was something I wasn't expecting and I just got tired. I'm looking forward to getting my gym time back so that I can work on getting bigger and stronger."

If Nelson adds "slimmer" to than plan, he'll benefit immensely. At a blubbery 260, he'll probably never break through to elite status.

The UFC's heavyweight champ Cain Velasquez is sidelined until the fall with a shoulder injury. In two weeks at UFC 131, Junior dos Santos and Shane Carwin clash for the next title shot. After that, the division is wide open. Mir is certainly in the mix but probably has to post another win to lock up a shot.

Earlier in the night, UFC president Dana White announced that Brock Lesnar, another former champ, elected to undergo surgery in an effort to rid himself of diverticulitis. White said that Lesnar had 12 inches of his colon removed during a surgical procedure on Friday. The hope is that Lesnar can return in early 2012.

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Soszynski interview: Brawling mentality takes smarts and a certain mindset

Shane Carwin's insertion into the main event at UFC 131 guarantees one thing, Junior dos Santos' opponent won't be running away if he gets drilled with some hard punches. That was a still a big question surrounding Brock Lesnar in his first fight back after the vicious loss against Cain Velasquez (Lesnar withdrew from the main event last month due to complications with diverticulitis).

It's tough to make a living in MMA without being able to take a punch. Krzysztof Soszynski, a grinding brawler in the UFC's light heavyweight division, knows that better than anyone.

Soszynski's a well-rounded fighter, but he isn't supremely talented. He often gets by on taking some shots and deliver more punishment back.

"I don't think anyone wants to get hit in the face. I just cover up really well. It's a mindset. I don't know how it is or how it happens. I have fun with it. If someone hits me, I want to hit them back even harder," Soszynski said (6:26 mark). "It's something that you're born with, not something you just learn."

On Monday, Soszynski's will was tested outside the cage. He got a call from UFC matchmaker Joe Silva that his opponent Igor Pokrajac was dropping out the fight. Soszynski wasn't happy.

"[After] a 15-week training camp, I just wanted to fight. I asked Joe Silva when he called on Monday, please get me a fight. I'll fight anybody, it doesn't matter who," said Soszynski.

Soszysnki was originally slated to face Aussie jiu-jitsu ace Anthony Perosh, then Pokrajac, a striker. Silva was able to lineup Mike Massenzio, but he comes from a wrestling background. Soszynski didn't hesitate for one second.

"I've been in the sport a long time. It doesn't matter if I'm fighting a wrestler, a jiu-jitsu guy or a striker. I'm looking forward to just going in there and having a great time," said Soszynski said.

The Canadian trains with all types of fighters at Reign Training Center in Southern California. Mark Munoz, a former NCAA All-American wrestler at Oklahoma State, is his main training partner and he also works with another good wrestling MMA fighter in Emmanuel Newton. Jason Miller was around to work his jiu-jitsu and a partnership with King's MMA doesn't hurt either. That camp is loaded with Brazilian jiu-jitsu black belts.

This is a big fight for Soszynski (26-11, 5-2 UFC). He's facing a smallish 205-pounder in Massenzio, who took the fight on short notice. Though the fight is a bit perilous.

Soszynski hasn't fought since November. With the down time, he had both knees scoped and surgery on his nose, to alleviate a breathing issue. Massenzio (12-4, 1-2, UFC) is a tough style matchup. If he can get Soszynski to the ground, that'll eat away time from the clock and nullify the Canadian's power on the feet. Soszynski is a minus-240 favorite on the Las Vegas boards.

You can watch UFC 131 right here on Yahoo! Sports

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Front-kick KO video: Former UFC fighter Buchholz looks like an action movie star

Insert your Steven Seagal jokes here. We've found a spectacular front-kick knockout that the action movie star and Blackhouse MMA pal can't take credit for this time.

Two weeks ago, Justin Buchholz plucked one from the Anderson Silva/Lyoto Machida playbook. This was first good video to emerge of Buchholz's KO of Steve Lopez in Las Vegas at Superior Cage Combat.

Seagal has been mocked for taking credit for those fabulous kicks by Silva and Machida. After Machida knocked out Randy Couture at UFC 129, there was even an awkward moment in the arena where Seagal gloated to Dana White (4:58 mark - Video).

Tip via Cage Potato

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Pettis Brothers have a unique bond: MMA may have two future stars in the family

Anthony Pettis has risen to the top of MMA lightweight ranks. His mix of athleticism, stamina, creativity and well-rounded skill set is tough to beat. The sick part is that he's just 24 years old.

He's got the life experience of someone much older. That comes with training and staying dedicated for 14 professional fights.

It also happens when you have to survive the gruesome murder of your father at 15 years old. Pettis' father, Eugene was knifed down during a robbery gone bad. Anthony had to become a father figure for his then 8-year-old brother Sergio (pictured in the black shirt) along with staying on track to follow his fighting dream.

It's gone off with few hitches publicly and that includes the father figure part. His brother Sergio, now 17, is the spitting image of Anthony.

"I didn't even understand completely what happened," Sergio said referencing his father's death. "But as I grew older with all my friends at wrestling meets, their fathers were there and it was kind of depressing. But my brother Anthony was there, so it was alright."

Sergio's accompanied Anthony to Las Vegas to help him prepare for his lightweight showdown tomorrow night against Clay Guida in the main of the "Ultimate Fighter 13 Finale."

The younger Pettis is mature beyond his years, focused and incredibly poised for a teenager. He's even an amateur MMA fighter with plans set to turn pro when he turns 18. That's right Sergio is already in there fighting men while he's still a high school student.

Anthony raves about Sergio's potential.

"He was my main training partner for Guida," Pettis told "The MMA Insiders" show on ESPN1100 in Las Vegas. "He's already better than me in wrestling."

Anthony says the future is bright for his little bro.

"I guarantee my brother makes a big move in the sport," Pettis said. "Right now, it's my time but he's going to be 18 pretty soon and hopefully we will both be fighting on the same card sometime pretty soon."

Sergio just graduated high school, and shortly after his birthday in August, he'll make his pro debut in September.  The kid even speaks about his future career like he's a veteran.

"I've got a big name already with Pettis. That last name means I've got to live up to the hype he's had," Sergio said. "I've got high expectations, but I feel like I can reach them because of my training with him."

Let's allow Sergio to develop his career slowly,but Anthony doesn't have that luxury. All the pressure is on Pettis tomorrow night. He's a minus-170 favorite against a guy with 13 UFC and 39 overall fights under his belt. Guida feels disrespected a bit and wants to derail Pettis from getting his shot at the winner of Frank Edgar and Gray Maynard.

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A different Pettis kick to blow your mind

The MMA world was set on fire when Anthony Pettis threw his "Showtime Kick" against Ben Henderson at the final World Extreme Cagefighting fight, but he had another amazing kick before the Henderson fight.

At WEC 47, Pettis delivered a knockout kick to Danny Castillo. Pettis came into that fight with one loss, and knew he had deliver to keep his Zuffa career alive. Not only did he deliver, but he started on the road to a WEC championship.

His UFC debut is Saturday against Clay Guida. Will he be able to create magic again, or will Guida's wrestling stifle Pettis? Tell us in the comments or on Facebook.

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