Bellator adds inspirational fighter Rad Martinez to tournament

On Sunday, ESPN's "Outside the Lines" shared the heart-wrenching story of Rad Martinez, an aspiring fighter who is also responsible for taking care of his father, who suffered a traumatic brain injury in a car accident. The story is on the long side, but well worth your time:

Even with all those responsibilities, Martinez has put together a 9-2 record which includes a win over UFC veteran Joe Brammer. Now, Martinez has been signed to fight with Bellator in their featherweight tournament. From the Bellator press release:

"Rad not only has an incredibly uplifting, powerful story, but he's also a fierce competitor who will be a great addition to the Bellator family," said Bellator Chairman & CEO Bjorn Rebney. "We're proud to have Rad under the Bellator banner, and expect big things from him inside the Bellator cage."

In the featherweight tournament, Martinez will be in the cage with such fighters as Patricio Pitbull, Pat Curran, Ronnie Mann, and Marlon Sandro. If he wins the tournament, he will face featherweight champ Joe Warren. All of these fighters train full-time, and have been doing so for years.

One of the challenges that Martinez faces is that he doesn't get as much training time as his competitors, which can be downright dangerous  in the cage. Hopefully, Bellator will give Martinez the support he needs before his fight so that he can be as well-prepared as his opponents when he gets in the cage.

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UFC and Bellator bantamweights take center stage

The old adage in combat sports is that smaller athletes never bring the same amount of interest as the big fighters. That truism will be put to the test this weekend for the UFC and this fall for Bellator, as both promotions rely on the little guys to bring in plenty of pay-per-view buys and ratings.

At UFC 132, the UFC is putting their faith in the hands of two exciting bantamweights on what is traditionally one of their biggest weekends. Over the past two years, PPV king Brock Lesnar has headlined the 4th of July card. This year, the UFC has swung to the other end of the weight classes, as they rely on 135-lb. champ Dominick Cruz and former champ Urijah Faber to bring in the eyeballs.

Faber is already a big name who has headlined a pay-per-view. At WEC 48, Faber and Jose Aldo headlined a card that was considered a success by WEC standards. Through lots of promotion and smart sponsorships, Faber has become more well-known than any other WEC fighters, even among those who still hold their belts.

Cruz is not in the same boat. Though he's defended his championship belt twice, all of his fights have been on WEC cards. What will help fans get to know Cruz is his beef with the normally mild-mannered Faber.

The two fought early in Faber's run as the WEC featherweight champ, and since Faber won that bout with a guillotine, enmity has simmered between them. On Twitter, in interviews and in the "Countdown" show, they've talked about their dislike for each other. That will add heat to what promises to be an exciting bout.

Similarly, Bellator is hoping that their bantamweight tournament will draw in fans when its season starts on September 24. It has firepower. Featherweight champ Joe Warren is dropping down, and in the first round will face Alexis Vila, an Olympic bronze medal-winning wrestler from Cuba who like Warren, holds a world championship in wrestling.

The other first-round match-ups are Eduardo Dantas vs. Joe Soto (a former Bellator FW champ), Luiz Nogueira vs. Ed West, and Chase Beebe (former WEC champ) vs. Marcos Galvao (WEC veteran).

Will the 135-lbers deliver? Speak your mind in the comment section or on Facebook.

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UFC and Bellator bantamweights take center stage

The old adage in combat sports is that smaller athletes never bring the same amount of interest as the big fighters. That truism will be put to the test this weekend for the UFC and this fall for Bellator, as both promotions rely on the little guys to bring in plenty of pay-per-view buys and ratings.

At UFC 132, the UFC is putting their faith in the hands of two exciting bantamweights on what is traditionally one of their biggest weekends. Over the past two years, PPV king Brock Lesnar has headlined the 4th of July card. This year, the UFC has swung to the other end of the weight classes, as they rely on 135-lb. champ Dominick Cruz and former champ Urijah Faber to bring in the eyeballs.

Faber is already a big name who has headlined a pay-per-view. At WEC 48, Faber and Jose Aldo headlined a card that was considered a success by WEC standards. Through lots of promotion and smart sponsorships, Faber has become more well-known than any other WEC fighters, even among those who still hold their belts.

Cruz is not in the same boat. Though he's defended his championship belt twice, all of his fights have been on WEC cards. What will help fans get to know Cruz is his beef with the normally mild-mannered Faber.

The two fought early in Faber's run as the WEC featherweight champ, and since Faber won that bout with a guillotine, enmity has simmered between them. On Twitter, in interviews and in the "Countdown" show, they've talked about their dislike for each other. That will add heat to what promises to be an exciting bout.

Similarly, Bellator is hoping that their bantamweight tournament will draw in fans when its season starts on September 24. It has firepower. Featherweight champ Joe Warren is dropping down, and in the first round will face Alexis Vila, an Olympic bronze medal-winning wrestler from Cuba who like Warren, holds a world championship in wrestling.

The other first-round match-ups are Eduardo Dantas vs. Joe Soto (a former Bellator FW champ), Luiz Nogueira vs. Ed West, and Chase Beebe (former WEC champ) vs. Marcos Galvao (WEC veteran).

Will the 135-lbers deliver? Speak your mind in the comment section or on Facebook.

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KTM 350 Duke in 2013 ? India Only?

After first announcing that KTM would build a 200cc model of the new KTM 125 Duke for the Indian market, KTM CEO Stefan Pierer has been quoted as saying that a larger, 350cc, model is in the works, and will debut as a 2013 model year motorcycle. It would seem that the 2012 KTM 350 Duke is also slated as an India-only model, though rumors and plans for a larger displacement Duke for the US market ...

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Pennsylvania State Athletic Commission Lifts Nate Marquardt's Suspension

Nate Marquardt's road back to MMA stardom can officially begin.

The Pennsylvania State Athletic Commission lifted the former UFC fighter's suspension at noon ET on Wednesday because, according to Executive Director Greg Sirb, "he met all our medical requirements."

Sirb refused to go into detail as to what Marquardt had to do to meet the commission's requirements in order to get his suspension lifted.

MMA Junkie first reported the news earlier in the day.

Marquardt was not medically cleared to fight Rick Story at UFC Live on Versus 4 last month in Pittsburgh after a blood test administered on the day of the weigh-ins showed his testosterone levels to be outside the commission's accepted levels. Moments later, the UFC fired the former middleweight contender.

Marquardt discussed why his testosterone levels were high on a recent episode of The MMA Hour. For much more on the situation, click here.

According to Kelly Crigger, Vice President of Communications for Alchemist Management, the free agent Marquardt, one of Alchemist's top clients, is currently "talking to everybody."

"He absolutely he wants to fight again this year, for sure," Crigger said.

Crigger said that Marquardt had not yet decided where and at which weight he will fight next, but mentioned "The Great" had been approached by the likes of Bellator, DREAM and many other smaller promotions.

The 32-year-old Marquardt is currently 31-10-2 in his professional MMA career.

 

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Toney prepping for Shamrock by fighting with local gym members

If it were anyone else, we'd be shocked. But it's James Toney, so anything's possible. The former boxing world champion, holding on to the final shreds of his dignity, was recently booted from a local gym in Southern California.

Larry Brown Sports reports that Toney, who's "prepping" for a September fight against 47-year-old Ken Shamrock,  is no longer welcome at 360 Health Club in Reseda, Ca.

The gym would not comment on the matter citing company policy, but they did confirm that Toney is no longer a member. We're told Toney made another member feel uncomfortable with a verbal and/or physical threat.

When asked what happened between him and 360, Toney told LBS "We had a disagreement with the managers. We had too much traffic coming in ? the wrong traffic." We did not press Toney for details on the specifics of the incident, but officials at 360 say the suggestion that bringing in "the wrong traffic" was not the issue.

If you'd like to check out the 42-year-old in action, he's now at the IFC gym in Van Nuys, Ca.

Other popular stories on Yahoo! Sports:
? Kobe Bryant's possible new places to play
? Massive brawl mars HS football scrimmage
? Fan's pursuit of foul ball for son ends in tragedy

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ProElite Officially Announces Signings of Andrei Arlovski, Top Prospect Mark Ellis

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ProElite, the recently relaunched fight promotion that will host its next show on August 27 in Hawaii, has officially announced its first two hires.

The signings are former UFC champion Andrei Arlovski and MMA newcomer Mark Ellis. The pair of athletes are both heavyweights, but at very different stages of their respective careers.

While Arlovski is a former champ, he's fallen on hard times lately and has not won a fight since an October 2008 knockout of Roy Nelson. Since then, he's lost four in a row, dropping fights to Sergei Kharitonov, Antonio Silva, Brett Rogers and Fedor Emelianenko.

Notably, three of those losses came via knockout.

Arlovksi's opponent has yet to be named.

Meanwhile, the 24-year-old Ellis will be making his MMA debut at the upcoming event. The 6-foot-5, 255-pounder was the 2009 NCAA Division I heavyweight wrestling champion while at the University of Missouri. He currently trains at the well-respected American Kickboxing Academy gym in San Jose, California, alongside other heavyweight notables like UFC champ Cain Velasquez and Strikeforce contender Daniel Cormier.

Ellis' opponent was also not announced, but a previous report by Hawaii's KHON television station said he would be facing former University of Hawaii linebacker Jake Heun, who is 1-0 as a pro.

Other signings and match announcements should start to roll in fast and furious. On Wednesday, MMA Fighting broke the news that Reagan Penn -- brother of two-time UFC champ BJ Penn -- has also signed with the promotion and is expected to debut on the upcoming show.

The event takes place at the Blaisdell Center in Honolulu.

 

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Pat Miletich interview: Not everyone?s a fan of Tito getting UFC 133 main event

In describing his miraculous turnaround from the brink of retirement, Tito Ortiz is beginning to throw around the term "Cinderella story."  Ortiz, who fighting for his career at UFC 132, is now fighting Rashad Evans at UFC 133, but not everyone is feeling all warm and fuzzy. Showtime MMA analyst and former UFC fighter Pat Miletich was asked about Tito's tale and came across as less than thrilled that Ortiz is being given such a great opportunity (4:00 mark).

Miletich appeared on ESPNRadio1100 to promote his hour of the "The Sixth Annual ESPNRadio1100/98.9 FM 24-hour Radiothon" to benefit "The Caring Place" in Las Vegas.

Pat will be joined by Mauro Ranallo on Jul. 22 at the Palms. Anyone who'll be in the Las Vegas area that weekend can bid to sit in for an hour of radio with the Showtime duo. The proceeds go to "The Caring Place."

Check out the roster and bid if you'd like to contribute. Some of the other hours will hosted by Bernard Hopkins, Tony Dovolani, Brent Musberger, Larry Johnson, Jim Fassell and Mike Tyson.

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