Injured MMA Fighter: Benefit information

Please repost this to all your social networking sites and anywhere else you can.

Saturday evening in Shanandoah, IA a local MMA fighter broke his neck during a fight. He has has surgery to removed the crushed vertebrea and is still in the hospital. However, unfortunately the family does not have health insurance to cover the enormous cost of the surgery and hospital stay. I am hoping the MMA community will come togther to relieve that additional worry the this family. Even if you can only give $5, it's very much appreciated and a little can add up to a lot. -Samantha


The official benefit show to help the Kirk family is being formed right now. To be held in the Omaha area, the date and location is to be announced soon. Donation info.

We are seeking the cooperation of all the local mma shows to help raise money for the Kirk family in its time of need.
** Mailing information below.

(Shenandoah) -- A Shenandoah ultimate fighter is now contending for use of his limbs. 20 year-old Zack Kirk was rushed to Creighton University Medical Center in Omaha after being immobilized in a 'take-down' at Saturday night's Mayhem Martial Arts fight at the National Guard Armory. His mother Diana tells KMA News his fifth vertebrae was crushed and his spinal chord damaged. She reports that after a three-hour surgery, he has some use of his arms after replacing the vertebrae with a bone from his hip. Monday's M-R-I showed everything is lined up properly and there are no cuts in the spinal chord, but it did reflect chord damage. Diana believes miracles happen and says Zack is going to be one of them.

Kirk's friend and fellow-fighter Joe Perkins tells KMA News it was a freak accident that could have happened in football or wrestling just as easily. Perkins explains that Kirk went for a take-down but his unnamed contender had his arms restrained, preventing Zack from breaking his fall with his arms. He was then rolled over irresponsive. Without realizing injury, the opponent dealt a blow or two before the referee halted the match. Perkins says after exchanging a few words with Kirk, the referee called for a stretcher and Kirk was taken by ambulance to the hospital.

Kirk is a 145 lb 2-0 Wrestler with 6 years of Experience. His trainer Adam Miller tells KMA News "This kid has amazing ground work and slams that would wake the dead." For more information on the organization, visit mayhemmartialarts.com.

A fundraiser event is being planned by martial arts gyms in Omaha and Columbus, Nebraska to help defray medical costs.

A container for financial donations is currently at the Eagle's Club in Shenandoah at 709 West Thomas Avenue.

--An Article from the KETV website about the accident. http://www.ketv.com/news/19578023/detail.html

Donations can be send DIRECTLY to the Kirk Family via Paypal or to the mailing address listed below. Any paypal donations can be sent to rkirk77@hotmail.com This e-mail address is being protected from spambots, it is a paypal account belonging to Zach Kirk's Father.All donations go directly to the Kirk family and are not filtered through anyone else.

** Any donations or items to be auctioned off at/for the benefit show are to be sent to:

Care of Zach Kirk
6705 S 73rd St Cir
Ralston, NE 68127

If you live in the area you can visit Zach and show your support. He is at the Creighton Medical Center Hospital room 3121. Please be respectful if you do visit. He is still in pain and needs rest.




Thank you all again for doing anything you can for this individual. Personally, I do not know him- but any fighter of MMA is part of a community and as I stated earlier I am hoping this community can come together in a time of need and help his family in any way possible. If you cannot give monetarily please give with your time. Simply copy and pasting this will help get awareness and maybe someone you inform can also help.
Zach and his family do not blame MMA and know this could have happened in any contact sport. He is still hopefully and optimistic. Thank you all! -Samantha

WAMMA loses Miletich, Caplan

Pat Miletich signed on with WAMMA (World Alliance of Mixed Martial Arts, www.gowamma.com) in '07 as the Vice President of Fighter/Promoter Relations. Having competed in MMA for the last 15 years, been the first UFC WelterWeight title holder and an all around good guy, Pat was great for the job. Part of what brought him to WAMMA was his belief that there should be a universal, unified belt for each weight class. "Throughout my entire time with WAMMA, I've been sincere in my belief that the sport needs undisputed champions in every major weight class." But, somewhere along the way the implementation of the basic WAMMA principles went astray, "... I no longer believe that WAMMA's execution is where it needs to be in order for it to meet its full potential. Based on that and a growing difference of opinion with WAMMA's board of directors, I made the decision that it is time to move on." Miletich along with Sam Caplan, COO, both resigned today, effective immediately.

Sam Caplan was originally the Chair of the independent ranking committee but filled the vacant Chief Executive Officer roll left by Michael Lynch in April of this year.
Caplan explained his reasons for leaving, "There's no way to sugarcoat it. When you leave a position you had planned to serve for at least three months after just six weeks, it's not an amicable parting. But like Pat, I believe in what an organization such as WAMMA could bring to the sport. However, in my brief time as serving as its COO, I also share Pat's concerns whether WAMMA will be able to accomplish all that it originally set out to do. I felt the only decision for me to make was to leave the organization."
While Miletich and Caplan's leaving will be a huge loss to WAMMA I can only hope they fill the void with other talented, qualified individuals. The idea of a unified belt for all weight classes is a great idea... but will it be left as just an idea that was never executed?

Missed something? Comments? Questions? E-mail me: samantha.lynn.johnson@gmail.com

Frankie Edgar: A Path of Destruction No One Can Stop

By: Samantha L. Johnson

It’s a breezy Saturday evening in Las Vegas. This night is not so different than most others, it’s February, there are people crowding everywhere along the strip and Mandalay Bay is bustling as always. But, nestled in the event center Frank James Edgar knows this will be the night to change his life. Frankie “The Answer” came out guns blazing as the familiar calm of battle came over him. After 15 minutes of back and forth testing with Tyson Griffin, Edgar had changed his life. He won his UFC debut and was constructing his path to the title; one fight at a time.

Born in Toms River, NJ, Edgar is your stereo-typical north-east coast guy; he’s got the “accent” and demeanor to prove it. He never dreamed of being a movie star or Wall Street banker like others from the coast; instead, he wanted to compete. Growing up wrestling, Frankie was a natural athlete. While wrestling at Toms River High School he graced the State Championships twice and attending Clarion University in Pennsylvania he qualified for nationals all four years.

This Saturday Frankie will face a familiar feeling. This night, the night he faces Sean Sherk, can change the rest of his life. A win would mean a jump in ranks and opportunities to face guys in the top echelon of the lightweight division. But a loss, a loss would most likely put him back on preliminary cards facing only mediocre talent. Frankie isn’t even considering that possible outcome. He’s worked long and hard to get where he is; training jui jitsu with Ricardo Almeida at his Hamilton, NJ, school and boxing with Mark Henry to perfect every aspect of his game.

“The Answer” was married in April of 2008 and in January of this year welcomed his first baby boy, Francesco- he has more than himself to fight for now. 4-1 in the UFC, Edgar has proven time and again that he is not one to be over looked; he has the skill and talent needed to face top opponents and win. Sean Sherk will not be an easy battle for Frankie, but that’s okay, he likes a challenge.

Sherk is going into the fight with a tainted history of a positive steroid test and a stripped title. Some would say he has everything to gain and nothing to lose, making him an even more brutal warrior. Edgar knows this; he knows Sherk trains with some of the most intensive techniques and methods. He knows Sherk needs this win to stay relevant and on the upside of the game, but Frankie doesn’t care. This is his night, his win and he’ll do whatever it takes to secure his “W” and move to 10-1. He’s done the work and he’ll continue to do it until he reaches the ultimate prize… that shiny belt around his waist and the title of “Light Weight Champion” after his name.

This story will be posted on www.frankedgar.com

20 Questions with...

T.U.F. 9's Jason Dent

PHOTO CREDIT: SPIKE.COM

1. When did you fall in love with MMA?
I was always a big Martial Arts fan growing up. I've got picture of when I was about four of me wearing a ninja outfit swirling around some of those little plastic numjucks - LOL!

2. What was the first MMA fight you ever saw?
My first taste of MMA that I can remember was UFC 12 "Judgement Day" After that event I quickly got hooked and went back and watched all of the previous UFC's in addition to never missing a live one again.

3. What were your expectations of the house going in? How did those compare to the actual experience?
My expectations of the house going in was that it was going to be long and hard for me. As far as those comparing to the actually expereince were pretty accurate. I'm a married man and close with all of my family so for me to be on lock down with all those guys was not something I was looking forward to.

4. Both teams put obvious pressure on you going into the Junie Jr. fight. Was that something heavy on your mind going into the fight or were you able to not pay too much attention to it?
Getting to fight is always a good thing but getting to fight someone you genuinely don't like is even better. The funny thing is I own and operate my own MMA Academy and if I had lost to Junie Jr. I may have had to sell the place and move out of state.

5. Recently you mentioned you weren't really a "social" person, you'd rather keep to yourself. How did that affect you in the house? Were you able to use this experience to work on socializing more?
Even though I'm not the most social kind of guy I'm not a hermit and I did my best to socialize and get along with majority of the guys. I know I said I was not there to make friend but I didn't want to make any enemies either.

6. Having fought in the UFC twice before were you asked to come on the show or did you try out?
I drove to Chicago from Cleveland on my own free will to give the actually try outs a shot. For season 5 they let me by pass the tryouts to go straight to being interview by the producers.

7. Did you see going on the show as a "step back" - given you already had Octagon experience?
In a way yes but I know the national exposure one would get from being on Spike was second to none. I didn't apply for the show because I wanted to be some kind of reality tv star, I did it for job security.

8. When did Griffonrawl MMA Academy open?
I've been running the GriffonRawl MMA Academy for a little over three years. We are located in at 6090 Pinecone Drive Mentor, Ohio 44060. The gym's website is www.griffonrawl-ohio.com

9. You have the second most accomplished record on the show (following only TEAM USA coach Dan Henderson). What kind of advantage do you feel that gave you?
I believe its a huge advantage but also a little bit of a disadvantage as well. My body has been through many of wars as I have close to 50 fights between my Muay Thai & MMA career. A lot of these guys have some really good experience and there bodies have not been through as much as mine has. In the end I do think I have the advantage though.

10. Did you ever find yourself training the other guys? Stepping in to your familiar "coach" role?
NO! I tried to get out of the coach mode and tried to do nothing but get into fighter mode. Henderson brought in his own coaches and I'm sure they wouldn't want us getting in there way either. I came to the show to focus on myself and see what I could do if someone were to be training me.

11. What's the "softer" side of Jason Dent? Something we wouldn't expect from you...
LOL - I get made fun of for cuddling with my cats at home! My wife and I have a dog and three cats and my favorite one is fatter than Garfield and makes for a good pillow.

12. What does your normal diet while training for a fight consist of?
I'm still trying to discipline myself to be better with my diet. I try to clean it up you know by just mainly drinking water and increasing my protein intake and being careful what kind of carbs I put in my body.

13. Has there ever been a time when you thought "Forget it, this isn't for me! I'm done!" If so, what was the situation?
To be honest I've been doing this for over fifteen years and I've been to that point more than a few times. Usually I just take a short break and try to remember why I love this sport.

14. If you weren't an MMA fighter what would you be doing?
I honestly can't see myself doing anything else. Hmm, I guess I would be training MMA fighters seeing as I run my own gym.

15. Did you eat anything in the house you'd never ate before?
Nope. They had what was called a wish list where we would fill out whatever we wanted and if we were not to crazy it would always be there the next day.

16. How did your eating habits change -in the house- when the budget was unlimited? - You could literally have filet mignon for every meal if you wanted.
I guess I did eat a little more steak than I would normally eat back at home. If I knew I wasn't going to have to cut weight I would have really took advantage of the whole food situation - LOL!

17. If you could spend a day with anyone who would it be? (dead or alive, famous or non)
My Wife and the rest of my family.

18. If you could train with anyone who would it be?
I would love to get to meet Bas Rutten and train with him. I think it would be great training but also very entertaining.

19. Did you go to college? Did you graduate? What was your major?
No college for this guy. I think I may still go when my fighting career slows down a bit and I have a little spare time. There are a lot of courses I would like to take to help me run my business better.

20. What do you do when you're not training/fighting/teaching/running a gym?
For fun I hang out and watch movies with my wife, I go four wheeling, go to shooting ranges, deer hunting with my dad, swimming, and of course I really enjoy eating but who doesn't.

Do you have any sponsors you'd like to plug? Not at this time.

20 Questions with...

UFC Ring Girl Logan Stanton

PHOTO CREDIT: UFC.COM

1. When did you fall in love with MMA? Or is it just a "day job"?
Well i started watching UFC when I was 16. I didn't actually fall in love with it until recently when I began working for the UFC though. Now I have a ton of respect for the sport and the fighters.

2. How have things changed for you since UFC 92 (your debut)?
Thing's actually haven't necessarily changed in my everyday life. I still work during the week modeling. Only on fight weekends am I anything special ;) Then the craziness starts.. I still don't get it

3. What was your family's reaction when you told them you were going to be a ring girl? What was your mother's reaction? If you had a boyfriend at the time, what was his reaction?
I didn't necessarily "tell" my parents I was going to be a ring girl. We kind of figured it out together.. The first person I called was my mom. I called her right after I had met Dana and Craig and they had offered me the job, and I asked her what she thought about it. I always go to her for advice. She's able to relax me so that I'm able to look at a situation from every angle She was really excited for me, but nervous at the same time (typical mother haha). I called my boyfriend next and his reaction was the same. He was excited but also nervous, and I can understand that, because this was new for everyone and nobody knew what to expect. He told me that he would support me with whatever I wanted to do. Then I called my best friends Kyle and Stephanie. It wasn't until after talking to them, and listening to how excited they were for me, that I was truly set on taking the job.

4. Were do you want this whole "Octagon Girl" thing to go? What are your plans after the UFC?
I've been given this amazing opportunity and I plan to utilize the press it's given me, but I'm not sure which direction to take it in yet. I've got a few ideas floating around up there.. ;)

5. Did you watch the UFC before becoming an Octagon Girl?
I got a little ahead of myself I guess, because already answered that in the first question.. Oops!

6. You've got a great body. Did you do sports and work out growing up or are you just naturally thin?
Thank you! Growing up I was always tall and lanky. I could eat anything.. and I did. Since I began modeling though, I've become
more conscious of what I eat and how I work out. I work with a trainer who has taught me a lot about nutrition. As far as working out goes, I love to run. I live on the water so every morning I run 3-4 miles along the boardwalk. It's the most motivating way for me to start the day.

7. What is your favorite indulgence? (food, activities, etc)
I think I speak for every model when I say that my greatest indulgence is food. A lot of people don't realize how difficult modeling can be. My job is based on how my body looks so I'm constantly watching what I eat. It can be really stressful at times.. And that's probably why they created chocolate :P

8. Who are your role models?
I have 2. My mom and my sister. The two strongest women I've ever known.

9. I know you're a self-proclaimed "dork" (me too, no worries) but what's the "unseen" side of Logan?
I guess that I'm very sensitive. It's probably my greatest strength and weakness at the same time.

10. You're 20- have you gone to any college yet? Do you plan to? If so, what for?
I went to college for 2 years and then when I first began modeling I tried taking a couple online classes, but because I was constantly moving around I wasn't able to put in the time and effort I wanted, so I put college to the side. Now I'm settled in a place and can really focus on school.

11. What's your most embarrassing moment (while or before you were an Octagon Girl)?
I don't think I have a most embarrassing moment.. Probably because I don't take myself too seriously and anything that would have been considered a "most embarrassing moment" was just another laugh. I do have a lot of brain-farts though. My most recent one was yesterday when my boyfriend and I were debating about the spanish alphabet. It was something like this..
Stephan: "It's a, be, ce, de.."
Logan: "No! Uno, dos, tres!"
I sadly admit I took 2 years of spanish in high school..

12. If you could spend one day with anyone- living or dead, famous or not- who would it be?
Michael Cera. He's the kid from Superbad.. Nick & Norah.. I love him

13. What's the best part of being a ring girl? What's the worst part of being a ring girl?
Best part: Traveling, Worst part: Traveling

14. I know you have a boyfriend... but for the gentlemen reading- What do you look for in a guy?
The first thing that gets my attention is a smile. After that it's all personality. He needs to be confident, but still down to earth.. Somebody that can make me laugh as well as laugh at himself.. Oh! Somebody that likes animals. I went on a date once with a guy who told me he didn't like animals. I don't know what type of person doesn't like animals, but I'm pretty sure that can't be good..

15. Who's your favorite fighter?
It's hard to have a favorite fighter.. especially after getting to know some of the guys. (Not in a bad way, I would just base favorites more on their personality rather than fighting style.)

16. If you weren't doing this, what would you be doing?
I would probably be a little more focused on modeling

17. You recently moved to California- How's the move to L.A. been? Is it a
huge change from Florida?
I'll admit.. Although I love California I'm not very fond of LA. I just moved to Long Beach though and I love it. I've found that I'm most comfortable living by the water. It's just a different energy from living in the city. More mellow i guess.. Plus the people are normal here ;)

18. What's a normal days routine on fight day?
On the day of the fights I don't do much of anything really. I usually act like I would if I was on vacation. I wake up late and then check out the city for a few hours before I need to be at the arena. Even though we're only there for the weekend I try to make the most out of it and see as much of the area as I can.

19. Are there any weird restrictions the UFC puts on you? Like "No visible tattoos" or "Don't date the fighters" or anything like that?
Nothing too weird.. That I know of

20. What's one thing you want the majority of people to know about you that they probably don't?
I honestly can't think of anything.. There's nothing THAT interesting about me that I would want people to know about. I'm just a normal girl.. I would actually consider myself pretty boring haha

98 Curse continues, StrikeForce 6/19 & MORE...

98 INJURY CURSE
Luckily the main and co-main event have not been stricken with the "injury curse" raging over 98 competitors, but three others on the card have been effected. The latest is Houston "The Assassin" Alexander, who broke his hand during training earlier this week. With just a five-week break after his first-round submission over Brian Stann, Krzysztof Soszynski will fill in for Alexander. Both of Sos' wins have come via Kimura before the third round. Andre Gusmao (5-1, an IFL vet) is a grappling specialist who trains under Renzo Gracie in New York.
The full card is:
Main card

Rashad Evans v. Lyoto Machida
Matt Hughes v. Matt Serra
Drew McFedries v. Xavier Foupa-Pokam
Dan Miller v. Chael Sonnen
Sean Sherk v. Frank Edgar

Fights may not be broadcast*

Brock Larson v. Chris Wilson
Pat Barry v. Tim Hague
Phillipe Nover v. Kyle Bradley
Krzysztof Soszynski v. Andre Gusmao
Yoshiyuki Yoshida v. Brandon Wolff
Dave Kaplan v. George Roop

Tickets for UFC 98 are still available. Visit ticketmaster.com to purchase tickets.

StrikeForce
StrikeForce's June "Challengers" Series has added a few fighters to the card. UFC vet Jorge Gurgel, Dennis Hallman and Connor Huen (rumored to be facing Gurgel) will be on the June 19 event. The to-be-determined match-ups will air on Showtime at 11 ET/PT from the Showare Center in Kent, WA (just south of Seattle).

StrikeForce's St. Louis, June 6th card has Joe Riggs going up against "New York Bad Fat Ass" Baroni. Rento "Babalu" has removed himself from his fight (due to the date being so close to the birth of his next child), filling in for him against Rafael "Feijao" Cavalcante will be 10-1 Jared Hamman. Though Fiejao has "bigger" fights on his resume, he still has 3 less than Hamman. Neither fighter has gone to a decision; this should be a great slug-fest.

Also on the St. Louis card Rondonopolis-native "Cyborg" Santos will go up against Joey Villasenor. The welter weights join Robbie Lawler-Jake Sheilds and Scott Smith-Nick Diaz and others June 6th at the Scottrade Center in MO.
*A correction needs to be made to last weeks posting. Smith-Diaz will meet at a catch-weight of 180# rather than the previously reported 185#.

UFC ADDING TO ECONOMIC CRISIS
The UFC recently laid off 5 fighters (after sub-par performances at UFC 97, among other reasons). Joining the growing list is: Jason MacDonald, Previously-laid-off-the-rehired-then-refired David Loiseau, TUF finalist Vinny Magalhaes, Ryo Chonan, David Bielkheden and Akihiro Gono. Not GONO, what will we do without this::

Oh Gono, how we'll miss you..."

Tomorrow: "20 Questions" with UFC Ring Girl Logan Stanton, INJURY REPORT, RUMOR MILL, et cetra.

Miss something? Comments? Questions? E-mail me: samantha.lynn.johnson@gmail.com