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The title of this article really does sum things up, as I have a million and one martial arts-related topics to touch on.

I wanted to start by writing about a really great seminar I went to this month organized by WEC champion Jamie Varner. You’ve got to love Jamie Varner. I mean, we all know about his well-rounded and super aggressive fighting style, but this is also the guy who was instrumental in getting the ban on MMA leagues like UFC lifted in Arizona (along with Jason Genet, the Lally brothers and of course Rep. Paton himself, who wrote the law.) Varner also recently held this charity seminar in Tempe and donated 100% of the profits to Phoenix Children’s Hospital. Instead of funneling the project off to a non-profit like United Way, he decided to cut out the middle man and do all the work himself (with the help of his friends and teammates.) Organizing benefits is incredibly challenging and time-consuming and I feel a real testament to Varner’s character.

The seminar itself was awesome. It was held at Sunkist Kids and began with a self-defense class for beginners, women and children. It concluded with an intermediate class, which I attended. We started by splitting up into three different stations. I started with the wrestling station because I wanted to be in CB Dollaway’s station, since he’s one of my favorite fighters. He and Ryan “Darth” Bader worked us through a variety of takedowns and follow-up moves. Next I switched to the BJJ station where we worked triangle chokes and kimura counters out the wazoo. I LOVE BJJ and was pretty much smiling the whole entire time. That station was followed by a short stand-up session where I worked on making my boxing suck less by trying to figure out how to put my chin down even when I think it’s down already. My standup is embarrassingly bad but our coaches were really kind. Finally, we partnered up and tried to put everything together and learned some more techniques taught by Varner, Bader and Dolloway (who showed us the Peruvian neck tie). I got to work with this incredibly cool Pankration coach whose name I forget.

Needless to say, I was really impressed, not only with the caliber of athletes present but with their coaching ability and with the really great vibe. Everyone was extremely friendly and approachable. When you go to a seminar, you never know what to expect, so it was nice to not have to deal with that. And by the way, CB Dollaway is really frickin’ cool. Don’t believe everything you see on TV folks! Anyway, if you train at all or have children and live anywhere near Tempe keep your eyes peeled for charity events organized by Varner—there will be more and they are not to be missed!

By Kal Thompson

When it comes to his methods of victory, UFC heavyweight Shane Carwin believes in equal opportunity. With 10 professional MMA wins under his belt, Carwin has split his victories right down the middle with 5 coming by way of knockout, and 5 via submission. If you are curious about his losses, don’t be. In his case, the loss column simply does not exist. With a double digit number residing in the win column and a perfect record to match, Shane Carwin is a 6’4” 255 lb. rarity in the UFC heavyweight division.

While many current MMA stars and prospects focus on training full-time, Carwin has been able to accomplish his current level all while holding down a full time job as an engineer. The art of balancing priorities is something that Carwin has learned to do over the years. As a college student, he was a standout in both football and wrestling. The NFL heavily courted him until an untimely injury sidelined his action on the gridiron.

In his 2 most recent MMA bouts, Carwin spent just over 2 minutes (combined) within the octagon. With quick KO disposals of Christian Wellisch and Neil Wain, early nights have become old hat for the former two-sport All American. To keep things simple, none of his opponents have made it out of the first round.

While some athletes who achieve similar success choose to rest on their laurels, Shane Carwin is not one of them.  On a recent trip to Canada, Carwin met with his strength and conditioning coach Jonathan Chaimberg. “Jonathan is great guy. He’s a guru when it comes to strength and conditioning, and then knowing what his athletes need to work on,” says Carwin.

Prior to his completion of various strength and conditioning tests at Tristar in Montreal, Carwin chose to focus on cerebral expansion. He studied and viewed a who’s who roster of Canada’s elite MMA fighters conduct sparring sessions and ground work. “I watched Georges St. Pierre, Davis Loiseau, Jonathan Goulet and several others spar and roll quite a bit. They really get after it. I was itching to get in their and train with them, but as soon as their practice was over, I had to go and get hooked up to the computers. They studied my muscles and how they were firing in my core, as well as my spine,” shares Carwin.

With a battery of highly technical procedures, the doctors were able to pinpoint areas of Carwin’s core that require additional focus while training. “I have a degree in engineering, so it kind of reminded me of being back in lab again. I’m just glad that they won’t be testing me on this information,” Carwin jokes.

The feedback from his tests at Tristar will continue to roll in over the next few months. As it does, Carwin will be able target specific areas that need strengthening. To sum up this evaluation, it basically boils down to more bad news for his opponents. Improved core strength and function not only allows a fighter to throw more powerful strikes, it is also beneficial in the ability of taking a punch or kick.

Through scientific precision and an old fashioned work ethic, Shane Carwin has discovered a thus-far impeccable formula for  MMA success. Should he continue along this road, the not-to-distant future will undoubtedly hold a meeting of gigantic proportions. A bout with current UFC heavyweight champion Brock Lesnar would be one the biggest fights that the UFC heavyweight division has ever seen….in more ways than one.

Ultimate Fighting Championship reports that :

Thomas Gerbasi, UFC - If you ask most longtime MMA fans (and competitors) who their favorite fighter is, if Wanderlei Silva isn't at the top of the list, he's at least in the top five. But what is it about "The Axe Murderer" that has garnered him a legion of fans around the world over the last 12 years? Is it the staredowns, the loosening of his wrists before a fight? Nah, it's all about the fights, and here are seven that made Silva the fighter he is today.

Mike Van Arsdale – August 23, 1998 – IVC 6
Result – Silva KO1
The bare knuckle IVC fights in Brazil were no joke, and when the 4-1 Silva met standout US wrestler Mike Van Arsdale (then 4-0, with 1 UFC victory) in 1998, it was a pretty big deal for hardcore fight fans. The bout was competitive early on, with Van Arsdale working well from inside Silva’s guard. But after Silva worked his way back to his feet, he pounced, nailing Van Arsdale with a knee that hurt him. As the American backpedaled, Silva threw him to the canvas and ended matters with a soccer kick to the head. For all intents and purposes, this was the birth of “The Axe Murderer”.

Tito Ortiz – April 14, 2000 – UFC 25
Result – Ortiz W5
Less than two months after beating Van Arsdale, Silva made his UFC debut and was blitzed in 44 seconds by “The Phenom”, Vitor Belfort. The loss propelled him to a six fight winning streak that included wins over Eugene Jackson, Daijiro Matsui and “Dirty” Bob Schrijber in such diverse organizations as the UFC, IVC, and PRIDE. In April of 2000, he was brought back to the UFC to fight Tito Ortiz for the 205-pound championship, and though the fight was far from memorable, it was the bout that forced Silva to re-evaluate his career and where he was heading with it. As he said in 2007, “My last fight in UFC in Japan with Tito, it was a very small show,” remembered Silva. “And after the fight with him I didn’t have an event. I didn’t go back to PRIDE, I didn’t fight anymore in UFC, and in my mind, I thought, ‘I’m finished.’ I changed from PRIDE to UFC, but I lost.”

Kazushi Sakuraba I – March 25, 2001 – PRIDE 13
Result – Silva TKO1
After the loss to Ortiz, Silva realized that he would never become a world champion as a part-time fighter. And after a 39 second win over Todd Medina in August of 2000, he returned to PRIDE full-time and began a reign of terror that saw him go on a 17 fight unbeaten streak with the only hiccups being a draw with Mirko Cro Cop and a no contest with Gilbert Yvel.

“In PRIDE, I went step by step,” he said in 2007. “In UFC, they gave me the big names to fight and there was a lot of pressure. And before, I was also working another job and training. I didn’t have the money only to train. Now I was a professional fighter.”

Silva made an immediate impression in his return with exciting wins over Guy Mezger and Dan Henderson. But it was his 98 second demolition of Japanese superstar Kazushi Sakuraba that made the biggest impression. Sakuraba, with wins over four Gracies (Royce, Renzo, Royler, and Ryan) was at the top of his game, and he even sent Silva to a knee briefly with a right to the head. But Silva was just too big and strong for Sakuraba, and he ended the bout with a vicious display of kicks and knees. Silva would go on to dominate PRIDE. Sakuraba, who entered the bout with a 12-2-1, 1 NC record, has gone 12-8 with 1 NC in the 21 fights since that night.

Quinton Jackson II – October 31, 2004 – PRIDE 28
Result – Silva KO2
Many chalked up Silva’s first win over Jackson in 2003 to a favorable tournament draw that saw Silva waltz to an easy win over virtual MMA rookie Hidehiko Yoshida before fighting Jackson that same night, while ‘Rampage’ had to get by UFC standout Chuck Liddell before getting Silva in the final. There would be no such excuses the second time around, and Jackson fought well in the first round of the bout. In the second though, it was all Silva, and after a punch rocked the American, a series of knees finished him off in emphatic fashion. But even a 2-0 record against Jackson hasn’t dulled the animosity Silva feels for his foe. Three years after the rematch, I asked Silva if there was still bad blood.

“No change, I don’t like him,” said Silva of Jackson. “I’m a professional, but for me, fighting with him is not business, it’s pleasure.”

On December 27th, they’ll do it a third time at UFC 92.

Mark Hunt – December 31, 2004 – PRIDE Shockwave 2004
Result – Hunt W3
The fight wasn’t one for the time capsule, but as far as being the perfect display of what kind of warrior Silva is, you don’t need to look any further than this bout against 280-pound Mark Hunt. Silva took the bout with no reservations, despite the fact that he was being outweighed by over 70 pounds and was facing a fighter with a granite chin and fists to match. And in the end, it almost went Silva’s way, as he only lost his four year winning streak via split decision. Some fighters talk about fighting anyone, anywhere, at anytime. Silva does it.

“The guy who is serious and who fights with his heart is a warrior,” he said. “There are guys who fight only for the money or for the win or to take pictures, and I’m not like that. I like to fight, it’s my job, and I fight with my heart every time."

Chuck Liddell – December 29, 2007 – UFC 79
Result – Liddell W3
It took years and numerous starts and stops for Silva to finally meet up with future UFC hall of famer Chuck Liddell, but when they did on the final show of 2007, they lived up to all expectations, battling it out tooth and nail for three rounds, with Liddell emerging victorious via unanimous decision. Regardless of the result, this was one of those fights where you just got a smile on your face every time both Silva and Liddell planted their feet and started exchanging blows. It made you proud to be a mixed martial arts fan.

Keith Jardine – May 24, 2008 – UFC 84
Result – Silva KO1
For some fighters, like Silva, wins and losses really don’t matter. You would pay to watch guys like him hit the pads and not regret it. But when it comes down to business, three losses in a row, even if they’re to Liddell, Dan Henderson, and Mirko Cro Cop, makes a fighter hard to market. So the pressure was on Silva this past May when he took on Keith Jardine, a fighter who already had wins over Liddell and Forrest Griffin under his belt. But on this spring night in Vegas, the old “Axe Murderer” returned with a 36 second blitz that electrified the crowd at the MGM Grand and rejuvenated his career. Dare I say it was like 2003-2004 all over again?

Five Ounces of Pain reports that :

Martin Kampmann is latest fighter to be added to the card for UFC 93 on Jan. 17 in Dublin, Ireland, FiveOuncesOfPain.com has learned.

Kampmann, who recently signed a contract extension with the UFC, will be making his welterweight debut on the show against an opponent to be determined.

The Denmark native is 13-2 in his professional mixed martial arts career and is 4-1 lifetime inside of the Octagon. Kampmann’s most recent fight was a first round TKO loss to Nathan Marquardt at UFC 88 in September but prior to that he was 4-0 with victories over Crafton Wallace, Thales Leites, Drew McFedries, and Jorge Rivera.

A standout kickboxer prior to crossing over into MMA, Kampmann has become a respected grappler and had won nine consecutive fights prior to the loss to Marquardt.

UFC 93 is scheduled from to emanate from the O2 Arena in Dublin and will be headlined by a light heavyweight matchup featuring Rich Franklin and Dan Henderson. Additional matchups includes Mauricio “Shogun” Rua vs. Mark Coleman, Denis Kang vs. Alan Belcher, Andre Gusmao vs. Antonio Mendes, Rousimar Palhares vs. Jeremy Horn, and Marcus Davis vs. Chris Lytle.