Here are the news and notes from the world of MMA for Wednesday November 23rd.

• Gerald Harris was cut by the UFC on Tuesday. This came as a shocker to most as Harris had put together 4 straights wins in the UFC until he suffered a decision loss at UFC 123 Saturday night. Harris’s performance wasn’t great on Saturday, but most thought he would for sure get another shot

• Mike Bisping and Jorge Rivera have verbally committed to fighting each other in Australia at UFC 127. I’m not exactly sure what beating Rivera does for Bisping and he felt the same way, as it took him a few weeks to finally agree to the fight.

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Main Card

Lyoto Machida vs. Rashad Evans

With each fighter being a counter puncher, this fight could turn out to be a bore, but I wouldn’t count on it. Look for Machida will use his incredible footwork and Evans to use his wrestling more than he has in his last two fights and for Machida to pepper Evans with punches and kicks. I see this fight going like the first two rounds in the Forrest Griffin vs. Evans fight – but for all five rounds. Machida will keep his distance and pick Evans apart and will score a takedown or two each round on his way to a loop sided decision victory that will be a masterful display of a complete martial arts fighter in Machida. I would suspect to see a few 50-45 on the judge’s scorecards. Read More

In the last two weeks MMA has seen it all.

The good. When 22,000 screaming fans packed the Bell Centre in Montreal to watch one of the biggest sporting events in Canada this year. The main event aside, UFC 97 was a tremendous success for the UFC and for the city of Montreal.

The sad. Likely seeing Chuck Liddell’s last fight in MMA, when a crushing left hand from Shogun Rua knocked him out in Montreal. We’ll miss you Chuck. You’ve done more for the sport than you’ll ever know. Read More

UFC 97 is only three weeks away and what better time than to get our early picks out of the way. It’s going to be a star studded undercard filled with some of the UFC’s most talented fighters. How will TJ Grant do in his debut? Will the Crow bounce back in the UFC? And just how good is Denis Kang. Read on and find out. Read More

Keith Jardine vs. Rampage Jackson
Keith Jardine always wins the fights he shouldn’t. He’s beaten Forrest Griffin, Chuck Liddell and Brandon Vera when no one gave him a shot. Rampage on the other hand has been up and down throughout his career – his latest down time in the summer when he lost his belt to Griffin. Look for Rampage to have another bad night and Jardine to use his leg kicks and distance to keep Jackson away to win a decision on all 3 judges scorecards. Read More

Gray Maynard was once just another guy from the TV show. A skilled wrestler with some good one liners, he appeared to be head and shoulder above the rest of the TUF 5 cast in wrestling and he’ll be the first to admit looked inexperienced when it came to the complete MMA game. In just under 2 years Gray has emerged as the star of that season and will soon seriously be considered for a title shot with another win or two inside the Octagon. But he’s just taking his career one fight at a time. Read More

Far too many times I’ve seen Keith Jardine being counted out. Not from punches, but before the bell even rings. “He’s too unorthodox” they say. “He will lose this one for sure” fans have repeated. Yet, none of this bothers Keith Jardine. He goes about his business as a professional and always wins when the odds are against him. One thing I’ve learned is to never count out Keith Jardine. Read More

The UFC and the Quebec athletic commission have finally worked out their differences and life can go back to normal, as UFC 97 is to go ahead as scheduled. Good news for MMA fans that plan to make the trip north to one of the greatest cities in the world for a great UFC weekend.

The full UFC 97 card was announced by the UFC last week and while the main card is strong 1 through 5, it’s fair to say that this undercard is one of the greatest the UFC has ever assembled. Read More