GSP's Final Word on Greasegate? B.J. Should Focus on Improving

NSAC's Keith Kizer Discusses "Greasegate" Hearing

(Courtesy of Steve Cofield of ESPN 1100 and Cagewriter.com)

Karo Parisyan Suspended 9 Months, Fined 40% of Purse

UFC welterweight Karo Parisyan was suspended today by the Nevada State Athletic Commission for a positive test arising from his fight with Dong Hyun Kim at UFC 94. Three Schedule II drugs, painkillers oxymorphone, hydromorphone, and hydrocodone, were found in his system following the fight.

The commission voted unanimously to suspend Parisyan, who slumped before the commission as the punishment was delivered.

As a result of the Commission's decision:

A)Parisyan is suspended from competition for 9 months

B)He is fined 40 percent of his $80,000 purse ($40,000 show/$40,000 win), totaling $32,000, which will go to the Athletic Commission

C)He must submit to random drug testing

D)The result of his UFC 94 bout with Dong Hyun Kim is changed to a "No Decision"

Stay tuned to MMAWeekly.com for the full story.

Dana White Believes GSP Cornerman Cheated

Neil Davidson of the Canadian Press recently spoke with Dana White, who pulled no punches about how he feels about Georges St. Pierre's cornerman, Phil Nurse, and his alleged illegal application of Vaseline in St. Pierre's fight against B.J. Penn at UFC 94.

(Audio courtesy of CageWriter.com)

B.J. Penn's GSP Greasegate Video

This is a video that B.J. Penn's camp posted on BJPenn.com in regards to alleged misuse of Vaseline by Georges St. Pierre's camp at UFC 94. Judge for yourself.

Parisyan's Temporary Suspension Upheld Pending Review

At a Nevada State Athletic Commission public hearing on Tuesday in Las Vegas, Karo Parisyan's temporary suspension stemming from a positive post-fight drug test was upheld pending a review of his case.

Parisyan tested positive for painkillers Hydrocodone, Hydromorphoone, and Oxycodone following his bout with Dong Hyun Kim at UFC 94.

Parisyan has until March 6 to respond to an NSAC complaint recommending a formal suspension.

Check back with MMAWeekly.com for more details as they arise.

B.J. Penn Confirms Florian Fight, Open to GSP Rematch

B.J. Penn spoke recently with Fox News Fight Game's Mike Straka both about Georges St. Pierre and the controversy around their fight. He also confirmed that he is in negotiations to fight Kenny Florian in defense of his UFC lightweight title in his next bout.

Retirement Talk by Penn Premature; Expect Him Back

Although there has been a lot of speculation that B.J. Penn was considering retirement following his UFC 94 bout with Georges St. Pierre, fueled mostly by the fighter himself, it sounds more and more like he's planning to return.

His trainer, Rudy Valentino, told Sports Illustrated's Josh Gross that on their way to Vegas, Penn had indicated to him that a win probably would have meant his retirement.

In an interview with KHON-2 News in Honolulu, Penn himself sounded unclear on his future, saying, "I was going to make this my last fight and finish up fighting GSP. In my head, I was with (the UFC) for nine or ten years and I kind of just wanted to be finished with this whole thing after this. So I don’t know where my head is right now. I just want to thank all the fans that supported me all this time, over this last nine, ten years fighting."

But over the past few days, Penn has made statements to the contrary, initially posting on his Facebook page that he was now looking to a UFC lightweight title defense against Kenny Florian sometime between May and July.

With the whole uproar about inappropriate Vaseline usage by St. Pierre's cornermen during their fight, St. Pierre made a public statement saying that he welcomed a second rematch with Penn to prove that the controversy had nothing to do with his dominating performance in sending Penn packing after the fourth round.

Penn responded in kind on his website, BJPenn.com, accepting a third bout between the two iconic figures. "To the untrained eye the grease might not look like much, but every grappler knows the effect that it has. Being able to apply your submissions and sweeps or just being able to hold on to your opponent to defend yourself from being hit is absolutely critical! ... I hereby accept George St. Pierre and Greg Jackson’s challenge for a fight in the summer 2009. Lets call Dana now and set it up."

So, it doesn't look like Penn is planning on going away anytime soon. It is now more of a question of what is next for the UFC lightweight champion. St. Pierre is expected to defend the welterweight title against Thiago Alves in his next bout. Although a third bout between GSP and Penn could come to fruition, it is more likely that Penn will be required by the UFC to defend his belt against Kenny Florian before anymore rematches.

Matt Hughes Says GSP Felt Greasy When They Fought

For better or worse, the hot topic of conversation following what was billed as the biggest fight in Ultimate Fighting Championship history -- the mega-fight between welterweight champion Georges St. Pierre and lightweight champion B.J. Penn -- has been the use of Vaseline by St. Pierre's cornermen.

Most of the parties involved have commented in one form or another, and the Penn camp is now determining their pursuit of the allegations against St. Pierre. On Tuesday, in his official blog, former UFC welterweight champion Matt Hughes, who has fought St. Pierre three times, weighed in on some of the UFC 94 bouts, but was most poignant in his comments about St. Pierre feeling greasy when they fought:

"I was also surprised by the final match, I thought B.J. would have put on a better performance. B.J. Penn is coming from a lighter weight class, but he took the fight at 170. That's the bottom line. I knew it was going to come down to who had the better cardio and even at the end of the first round B.J. looked tired.

Now, on to what everybody is talking about, the greasing. I'm not the only one who has said that GSP felt greasy during a fight. I know Matt Serra has mentioned it and, even in their first fight, I think B.J. said something. I'm not saying GSP did something wrong and I'm not saying that it would have changed any outcomes of any fights; but what I am saying is, for my last two fights against Georges, he felt greasy."

Courtesy of Matt-Hughes.com.

MMA Live's UFC 94 Post-Fight with GSP

Dana White's UFC 94 Video Blog (Saturday)

UFC 94 "More than a sellout"

The numbers aren't official yet, but UFC president Dana White on Saturday night indicated that everything about Georges St. Pierre vs. B.J. Penn 2 affirms its mega-fight status.

"We did a gate of $4.3 million, 14,885 people," he said at the post-fight press conference. "This thing was more than a sellout. The casino was scrambling today to add more seats. Other casinos were looking for tickets. This was the craziest event we've ever done, by far."

If those numbers prove to accurate, it easily puts UFC 94 as one of the top grossing UFC gates of all time.

Fight night numbers were the latest in a tremendous week for the promotion. On Friday at the UFC 94 weigh-ins – an event in and of itself – security had to turn people away at the door. UFC officials said that the set-up for the weigh-ins accommodated somewhere in the neighborhood of 5,000 fans, yet they were still turning them away in droves... for the weigh-ins!

At least as a live draw, UFC 94 could only be regarded as the resounding success that the promotion had expected.

MMA Live UFC 94 Postfight

Courtesy of ESPN.com

Gomi, Kid Yamamoto And Others At UFC 94

There are always a number of stars that come out for any UFC event, but tonight in Las Vegas the royalty of Japanese mixed martial arts has come out to see Georges St. Pierre battle B.J. Penn.

Former Pride lightweight champion Takanori Gomi, prized bantamweight and featherweight fighter, Norifumi "Kid" Yamamoto, Olympic Gold medalist Satoshi Ishii, and Caol Uno are all in attendance at UFC 94 to see the action at tonight's show.

UFC President Dana White has made it no secret that he wouldn't mind landing any or all of the above competitors. White has also mentioned top rated middleweight competitor, Yoshohiro Akiyama, as a fighter the promotion would like to add as well.

"Kid" Yamamoto was seen several times this week in Dana's blog, and the top ranked Japanese fighter stopped for a photo opportunity in the Octagon with the president.

BetUs.com Offers Unique Opportunities for UFC 94

If you're a fan of betting, but not sure which fighters to pick, BetUs.com has a few special offers that might make fans have some more fun while wagering on UFC 94 and other events.

With UFC 94 on Saturday and the Super Bowl on Sunday, BetUs.com has you covered for all of your traditional wagering and some not so traditional ideas to take a chance on this weekend.

Take a look...

What happens 1st

First score in Super Bowl 1/2

BJ Penn/St Pierre fight finishes 3/2

Number of tapouts at UFC 94 5/6

Number of TDs at SB XLIII 5/6

Number of Fights that go the distance at UFC 94 5/6

Number of FGS at SB XLIII 5/6

Most Likely to happen

Willie Parker gets MVP of the SB XLIII 10/13

Nate Diaz gets "Submission of the Night" 10/11

Pop-Culture, Sports, and Newsworthy odds can be found at:

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Fighters And Managers Weigh In On GSP vs. Penn

The MMA Insider spoke to several top MMA fighters and managers to get their picks on the upcoming UFC welterweight title fight pitting Georges St. Pierre against B.J. Penn.

Here are the picks:

Josh Thomson: "Penn, Penn, Penn, Penn, Penn, Penn, oh did I mention B.J. Penn to win?

Eliot Marshall: "GSP"

Dustin Hazelett: "I'm actually undecided. I believe the early rounds favor Penn, but the later rounds will favor GSP."

Marcus Davis: "B.J. Penn by the 3rd round. Not sure what, but some kind of stoppage"

Heath Herring: "Not gonna touch that one!"

Jason Genet (Magnetic Marketing Associates): "I think that GSP will be too big for Penn, who is easily one of the greatest MMA fighters of our time."

Jeff Curran: "I really don't know. Personally, I think you are better off rolling the dice!"

Ken Pavia (MMA Agents): "GSP late by conditioning."

Brian Stann: "GSP. My teammate, you don't need to ask!"

Dana White's UFC 94 Video Blog (Bonus Blog)

Dana's latest UFC 94 video blog takes fans to his E60 interview, the Ultimate Fighter gym, his meeting with Kid Yamamoto, and more.

GSP Open For Return To ADCC

Back in 2005, Georges St. Pierre was only 4 fights into his legendary UFC career. Little did the Abu Dhabi Combat Club know what kind of future star they would feature when GSP entered the 2005 competition in the 66 to 76kg weight class on short notice when invited to the tournament.

In his first round match-up, St. Pierre out wrestled and used superior technique to defeat Otto Olson on points. His next bout against Leo Santos didn't go as well as the Canadian was forced to tap out after getting caught in an armbar.

Since that time, St. Pierre has gone on to become a 2x UFC welterweight champion while also gaining fame as possibly the top pound for pound fighter in the sport of mixed martial arts.

Regardless of titles or accomplishments, St. Pierre is a competitor and he said during a recent interview with MMAWeekly Radio that if the timing worked out, he'd love the chance to compete in the Abu Dhabi tournament again in the future.

"If I have time and the timing is good, I will do it, of course I will," St. Pierre said. "I love competition, I'm a true mixed martial arts man, and I don't only like MMA. I like grappling, I like wrestling, I like jiu-jitsu, I like Muay Thai, I like everything. But of course my main job is MMA."

Many other top MMA stars still compete regularly in grappling tournaments and a great many of them are expected at this year's Abu Dhabi championships. If timing worked out, St. Pierre would be a huge addition to the show.

And just like everything else GSP puts his mind to, he'd probably be a force in the tournament as well.

How B.J. Penn Makes The Move Back To 170

Always considered one of the top pound for pound fighters in the world, B.J. Penn will once again venture back up the welterweight division for his upcoming showdown against Georges St. Pierre at UFC 94.

The last time Penn fought at 170lbs was in September 2006 in a loss to former UFC welterweight champion, Matt Hughes.

Since then Penn rededicated himself to a rigorous training plan, while making the move back down to 155lbs where he's won 3 straight fights including a title win and title defense.

So now going back to 170lbs, what is Penn doing to ensure that he will be in the same physical condition that got him to the pinnacle of the lightweight division?

"I'm lifting weights, but nothing extraordinary. I'm training hard, a lot of real work in the ring or in the cage, a lot of real practical work and training hard, and just eating a lot of rice and a lot of fish and a lot of oatmeal," Penn told MMAWeekly Radio recently. "That's pretty much what I'm doing preparing, I'm not doing anything drastic. I'm just getting ready and whatever my weight falls on, that's where I'll be for the fight."

It looks like Penn is ready to back up his move to 170lbs with a tremendous amount of skill and no worries about moving up in weight to accommodate the division.

UFC Primetime Episode 3 (Pt 2)