MMA NEWS & NOTES

By Gary Herman

Tim Sylvia – the boxer?

One of the more unusual things I recently heard was from Tim Sylvia. Sylvia claimed that he would be an outstanding boxer - basically better than anyone else.

“I’ll fight any heavyweight boxer in the world. Twelve rounds and I’d beat him,” said Sylvia.
Not only did Sylvia express how good he was, but he also put out an open call to all boxing promoters.

“I’d love to be approached about a fight with a top heavyweight because I’d go out there and win.”

I wonder why the recent trend of former UFC heavyweight champions wanting to get involved with boxing. First, it was Andrei Arlovski and now Sylvia. Based on size and speed alone, I would think that Arlovski would make a better boxer though. It will be hard for Sylvia to push a boxer up against the ropes and hold them there since… um… holding isn’t allowed in boxing.

Sylvia does have good hands, but I don’t think he belongs anywhere near the same ring as consensus top heavyweight Wladmir Klitschko. Although by the same reasoning, Klitschko doesn’t belong anywhere near the same cage as Sylvia.

Shogun’s possible return

Mauricio “Shogun” Rua has been out of action since his September 2007 loss to Forrest Griffin. Shogun had knee surgery shortly after the fight.

Apparently, the operation didn’t clear up all the problems.

“Shogun just had another knee surgery,” said Dana White.

Not knowing exactly what the surgery is for, it’s hard to speculate how bad Shogun’s knee is, but what White said next is definitely positive news for Shogun fans.
“I believe Shogun will back this fall.”

Should Shogun get back into the octagon in a few months, the leading candidate for an opponent may very well be Sokoudjou. Sokoudjou challenged Shogun shortly after defeating Kazuhiro Nakamura at UFC 84. The fight would seem to make sense for both fighters as a way to elevate one of the them into the title picture. The loser would have some work to do to rebuild himself, but it probably wouldn’t end their UFC run.

Would Gamburyan fight at featherweight?

Manny Gamburyan is one of the smaller fighters in the UFC’s lightweight division. With the recent popularity of the featherweight ranks and - of course - Urijah Faber, Gamburyan would seem to be a natural to compete at 145. Also, he would have a much quicker path to a title shot.

Gamburyan isn’t opposed to the idea, but he also isn’t in favor of it just yet.
“I don’t mind going down to 145 if the UFC brings it in. There isn’t enough money right now in the WEC,” Gamburyan said, “If the UFC brings in 145, I’d definitely go down. I’d definitely be interested in a fight with Urijah Faber.”

That response could be a little short-sighted on Gamburyan’s part. As the WEC continues to expand, Gamburyan would have a tremendous opportunity to make a big name for himself at the smaller weight. The UFC’s lightweight ranks are loaded with top talent, and many people see Gamburyan as just another fighter in the division. He is also viewed as being too small to compete with the bigger guys in the weight class.
One thing Gamburyan does have going for himself though is name recognition. Many fans recognize him from the Ultimate Fighter show. That would give Gamburyan instant credibility in the WEC. With one or two victories at featherweight, he would probably receive a title shot with Faber. Gamburyan has to answer the question if he’s satisfied with being just another fighter in the UFC or would he rather be in the main event on WEC.

Miguel Torres next title defense
WEC titlist Miguel Torres is coming off of two electric victories to retain his bantamweight championship. Now, Torres is preparing himself for the next potential challenger. While he doesn't know exactly who he'll be facing yet, he does know who the top fighters being considered are.

“There are a couple of guys being looked at - Damacio Page of Greg Jackson's team, the guy who just beat Chase Beebe - Will Ribiero, Manny Tapia - who I was supposed to fight before he hurt his knee, and there's one other guy but his name is escaping me right now," said Torres.

Torres would also like to have the match-up before the end of the year.
“They wanted me to fight again in September," said Torres, "But I am opening a new gym, just got a new house, and I am teaching some