UFC NEWS & NOTES

Champion vs. champion?
As Anderson Silva and Lyota Machida continue to tear through the middleweight and light heavyweight divisions, Dana White addressed the possibility of the two champions and friends meeting up in the octagon.

“It has nothing to do with friendship,” White said. “It’s about seeing who’s the best.”

Silva has been ultra-successful in his two forays to the 205 lb. weight class. Neither of his two opponents – Forrest Griffin or James Irvin – has made it past the opening round. To White, Silva’s winning streak makes the fight inevitable.

“If Anderson continues to take out 205ers, I’ll make that fight (vs. Machida),” White said.

However, Silva has a much different opinion on the potential dream match. He has trained with Machida in the past and the two remain close.

“Machida is my friend,” Silva said. “He’s my brother. There’s no way that fight will happen.”

A trip to the Far East

Since purchasing Pride Fighting Championships close to two years ago, the UFC has wanted to promote a card in Japan. They have, however, run into multiple roadblocks when they have tried to put together a show. The UFC is still determined to host a card in the country that helped build many of the promotion’s current stars.

“We’re going to get past these dirty, sneaky guys in Japan,” White said. “We’re going to make it happen.”

With the UFC putting together the “Best of Pride” series this January on Spike, many people have pondered the possibility of the UFC reinventing the Pride brand name in Japan. White quickly dispelled any of those rumors.

“We would go with the UFC.”

UFC vs. Fedor

Now that the ink has dried on Fedor Emelianenko’s deal with Strikeforce, the conversation involving the UFC and Fedor should have ended. Well, with a recent update from the UFC, the competition may just be starting.

The UFC already has one event scheduled for October. The card features Lyota Machida defending the light heavyweight championship against Mauricio “Shogun” Rua. Now, there comes talk of a second show.

“We’re also thinking about doing another fight in October,” White said.

In the past, the UFC has not been shy about quickly scheduling cards in an effort to keep attention away from the competition. They recently rushed together the Anderson Silva vs. James Irvin Spike special last June to go up against Affliction’s debut card.

What is likely not a coincidence is that Emelianenko’s debut for Strikeforce on Showtime is also scheduled for either October or November.

The new monster

The UFC has continued to grow by leaps and bounds over the past few years. One place the UFC has not been able to crack into is White’s hometown state of Massachusetts. White is determined to promote a show in the home of the famous “Green Monster”.

“We are looking at doing Fenway Park,” White said.

What makes the quote more interesting is that in the past White has promised not to hold shows in outdoor stadiums. He has said that big stadiums take away from the overall “UFC Experience”.

However, having a show at the famous baseball park would certainly garner a lot of national attention for the promotion.