Will UFC Undisputed 2010 be the next Madden?

Set to air live from Los Angeles on Saturday, December 12 at 8:00 p.m. ET/PT, the awards show will feature the first-ever gameplay footage from UFC Undisputed 2010, interspersed with commentary from top UFC fighters.  In addition, the footage will be introduced through a special UFC guest appearance.

Accompanying the worldwide debut of UFC Undisputed 2010, the franchise’s best-selling and critically acclaimed inaugural release, UFC 2009 Undisputed, is nominated for “Best Individual Sports Game” at the 2009 Spike TV “Video Game Awards.”  Fans can vote for UFC 2009 Undisputed to win this prestigious videogame industry honor by visiting http://vga.spike.com.

In addition to the live broadcast, the 2009 Spike TV “Video Game Awards” will be shown in over 180 territories and countries.  Non-U.S. residents should check their local listings for the date and time of the show.

More information about the UFC Undisputed videogame franchise can be found at www.ufcundisputed.com.

Ben Rothwell gets his big break tonight at UFC 104 against Cain Velasquez. (Picture courtesy of WiCombatSports.com)

Ben Rothwell wanted to make his stint in the UFC mean something.

He wasn’t just going to jump into the world’s largest fighting organization just for the sake of doing it. Rothwell wanted to make an impact immediately and, he hopes, to finish his career inside of the Octagon.

“I’m excited to finally be here. There were two big opportunities. Managerment decided and myself that we needed to wait,” Rothwell (30-6) said. “I didn’t want to be a guy to just happy to be in the UFC. My objective is to come in as somebody and finish my career here. The only way is if you win fights and make a name for yourself. I did something right. I don’t think it just happens. I plan on being around for a while.”

Rothwell wants to show that he has arrived and will face a huge test in fellow heavyweight contender Cain Velasquez at UFC 104 inside of the Staples Center in Los Angeles.

Velasquez (6-1) is highly considered one of the top young prospects in the company, but Rothwell is fully aware of what a victory would mean to his chances of getting another high profile bout.

“I want to fight the names. I want to be a name in the UFC. You have to be in there fighting guys you know. … The fight for me has more meaning [than fighting a no-name],” said Rothwell, who added that his past success was validated by having his image brandish the poster hyping the event. “It’s just extra fuel and motivation. It’s all positive for me.”

Rothwell’s fight will mark the end of a 10-month layoff. His last bout was on Dec. 11, 2008, but the time off doesn’t seem to bother him, considering it was similar to when he fought Andrei Arlovski.

Rothwell pushed the former UFC heavyweight champion, before falling prey to a fight-ending uppercut.

But Rothwell welcomes these long stretches because there was a time where he had no time to rest and recover.

From 2005 to 2007, Rothwell fought 14 times — a grueling schedule for any fighter, especially one considered to be one of the top 10 heavyweights in the world.

Rothwell said the training was more draining than the actual fights, and it started to take the fun away from something he loved.

“Instead of being something I’m passionate about, it became a job,” he said. “It was a problem. I was relieved when I got some time off. I like to break it down three or four times a year.”

With the UFC, he may get his wish. Most UFC fighters don’t usually fight more than three to four times a year, unless they’re taking fights on short notice and constantly performing.

“I’m happy to be in that situation,” Rothwell said. “As far as my career goes, it’s been a roller coaster.”

Shortly after Affliction shut its promotional doors, Rothwell said Joe Silva and the UFC approached him about coming into the company, signaling the next stage of his ride.

It didn’t take long for Rothwell to give his answer.

“It was time to go,” he said. “I was done with trying to fight with everyone else. The time is now.”

Lyoto Machida is ready to defend his championship belt for the first time.

Lyoto Machida will look to do something that neither Rashad Evans nor Forrest Griffin could accomplish — successfully defend the UFC light heavyweight title.

Machida will be facing Mauricio “Shogun” Rua at UFC 104 inside of the Staples Center in Los Angeles for the UFC light heavyweight title.

Since he lifted the title off of Evans at UFC 98, Machida admits that his popularity has grown and that the distractions have grown immensely.

However, he is thankful that he has the right support system that is keeping him grounded heading into such a marquee fight.

“Thank God, I have a team that protects me from [distractions,]” Machida said through his translator/manager Ed Soares during a UFC 104 conference call. “My biggest worry and thing I’m most concerned with is: what my goals are and keep that belt and keep winning that belt and putting on good performances.”

Whether it’s the extra attention or the more media demand, being the champion is different than being a contender hunting.

But Machida (15-0) isn’t too concerned with maintaining his hunger to keep the title. His approach as the champion is the same as he was the challenger — the belt is available for the taking.

“Basically, my thought and feelings are not much different than before,” Machida said. “I came in to get the belt. I look at it that I’m not there to defend, but to win it again. It’s the same thought process. I’m prepared to go in there and win the belt again.”

The last time this amount of pressure was on him was during his UFC 84 bout with Tito Ortiz, a fight that Machida called special more due to the circus atmosphere surrounding the bout rather than the technical aspect.

Machida was simply a fighter in there to defeat Ortiz and send the Huntington Beach Bad Boy out of the UFC with a loss.

“Every fight presents a different level of difficulty,” Machida said. “I had a lot of weight on my shoulders to beat Tito. It was more political reasons. I started to feel the pressure, and more of the mental pressure of that fight.”

With Rua (18-3), Machida will face the pressure of a former PRIDE light heavyweight grand prix winner and a fighter known for his hyper-aggressive style.

On paper, the bout should be exciting, but with the patience of Machida there is always a risk of a slow, methodical bout — or in the case of many casual fans — a boring one.

That type of talk doesn’t bother Machida. He said that it’s difficult for a fan to understand what’s going inside of a fighter’s head, but he pushes the idea that all fighters want to put on a good performance.

“Sometimes two guys go in and not end up as a highlight reel knockout,” Machida said. “It’s a strategic game. It’s like a chess game. People are always looking for people to more the wrong piece.”

Machida respects Shogun, calling him a “respectful” person, and is leery of Rua’s past accomplishments.

“He’s had a lot of success,” Machida said. “We both want to be the light heavyweight champion.”

Pat Barry doesn't expect as much kicking as everyone else does in his bout against Antoni Hardonk.

Pat Barry admits he got too excited in his bout with Tim Hague.

Barry was controlling the bout with Hague, and connected with some powerful shots before Hague took him to the ground and ended the fight with a guillotine choke at UFC 98.

He doesn’t look to make that same mistake when he takes on Antoni Hardonk at UFC 104 at the Staples Center in Los Angeles. The fight will be aired live on Spike TV.

“I’m not going to jump the gun,” Barry (4-1) said. “That’s awesome that we’re getting to be put on TV. I believe that people are going to be good for us sponsor-wise.”

Many fans are expecting a brawl between two of the heavyweight division’s explosive strikers, but Barry isn’t taking any chances by sticking to the stand up portion of the fight game.

Ceded, he is also improving on it as well.

“I’ve been doing a lot of ground work and footwork and moving,” Barry said. “I don’t want to get caught stagnant. I want to keep moving and not get trapped in a position.”

Hardonk (8-5) is more experienced and has two submission victories to his name — one over The Ultimate Fighter 10 contender Wes Sims.

By no means is Hardonk a submission wizard like Frank Mir or Antonio Nogueria, but the chance that Hardonk may take the fight to the ground is a thought looms in Barry’s mind, forcing him to prepare accordingly.

“I’m not too convinced he’s going to stay standing,” Barry said. “Rest of the world is saying you two are going to bang it out. He’s got more experienced than I do on the ground.”

It isn’t too much of a concern to Barry, who has been working on the ground aspect for quite some time now.

He’s just getting used to having to use the training in live situations rather than the controlled environment of the sparring and practice sessions.

“[My ground game is] coming. It’s better than the world knows,” Barry said. “I’ve only had one live experience. It’s better than the rest of the world think.”

But for the meantime fans can dream of the pending stand-up war featuring two men who have knockout victories by leg kicks.

Between Hardonk and Barry, the two men have won six fights by knockout via leg kicks.

“No matter how much the tree wants to stay up, it won’t after you chopped out its base,” Barry said. “You can’t put pressure on [your leg after it’s been attack]. It changes their mobility.”

Barry admits that he is getting himself up for the bigger challenge. He prefers it over battling a fighting neophyte.

“I know that I always performed better against higher-level guys. I’ve always been better against skill guys,” Barry said. “I’ve always had trouble with rollers and with no pattern and swinging and brute strength and no technique. I’ve always struggle with those.”

The fight will be aired on Spike TV along with the Ryan Bader and Eric Schafer fight. Barry doesn’t see any difference if he was fighting on Spike TV versus fighting an unaired preliminary bout.

“It’s not going to be different. A fight’s a fight,” Barry said. “We got to win to eat, advance move forward. Just because the fight is going to be televised. I’m not going to control my head differently. I’m going to fight to the best of my abilities.”

Barry has gone out to say the fight has a good chance to be fight of the night, but he warns that it may go longer than what many people are expecting.

Even though the fight maybe longer than the 30 seconds, Barry doesn’t want to see a second or third round.

He respects Hardonk and expects a good fight that will test his abilities to the fullest.

“He’s one of my friends in Amsterdam,” Barry said. “We’re going to get in there and do our thing.”

Ryan Bader will get a chance to shine against "Red" Schafer at UFC 106 Live on Spike TV

Recently, Spike TV telecast the prelims for UFC 103 on Saturday, September 19 drawing a robust 1.4 million viewers and placed #2 on cable with Men 18-34 in the timeslot.

A two-time NCAA Division I All-American wrestler at Arizona State University, Ryan Bader, fighting out of Tempe, Ariz., is 2-0 in the UFC and a perfect 10-0 in his mixed martial arts career.  The 26-year-old light heavyweight, winner of the eighth season of “The Ultimate Fighter,” earned a unanimous decision win against veteran Carmelo Marrero in April. 

 He now faces another experienced grappler in “Red” Schafer.  Fighting out of Milwaukee, Wisc., Schafer is a Brazilian jiu-jitsu black belt and on a four fight win streak, with two of his three UFC wins coming via submission.  His most recent victory came via TKO against Antonio Mendes at UFC 93.

Also featured, Dutch kickboxer Antoni Hardonk, a native of Amsterdam, fighting out of Los Angeles, has KOs in all four of his UFC wins.  The 6-foot-4, 245-pound heavyweight has won three of his last four fights and is looking to continue his hot streak against veteran Pat Barry, fighting out of Milwaukee, Wisc. A native of New Orleans, Barry looks to repeat the performance he put on against Dan Evensen at UFC 92, an impressive first round KO.

Other bouts on the card might air on Spike TV, determined by length of fights.

Mostly fighting in Japan, King Mo is ready to show America that he is the man!!

Amoussou vs. Doyle will be just one of seven total bouts to be featured during Friday’s HDNet telecast (10 p.m. ET) that will emanate from the historic Memorial Hall in Kansas City (tickets still available at Ticketmaster.com).

After weighing in, both Doyle and Amoussou were asked to partake in a pre-fight stare down intended as nothing more than a photo opportunity. However, what ensued was nearly a premature start to “Breakthrough,” with Amoussou and Doyle looking eager to lock horns a day early.

Amoussou tried to psyche out Doyle much in the way that his idol, former PRIDE middleweight champion Wanderlei Silva, used to try to intimidate his opposition. However, when Amoussou pushed his forehead into Doyle’s, the resurgent “Iron Bull” informed Amoussou that he didn’t want to be touched.

A second attempt was made to take a face off photo but Amoussou once again tried to get into Doyle’s head. With Amoussou not heeding his call, Doyle jammed his forehead into Amoussou before M-1 Global officials ended the photo opportunity early.

Amoussou is a French phenom who serves as an undercover police officer in his native France. With many International viewers not having access to HDNet, www.M-1Global.com is offering a special Internet pay-per-view stream (to order, simply visit M-1Global.com).

With the exception of three fighters, all of the combatants scheduled to compete on Friday successfully made weight. Spanish fighter Rogent Lloret, who will headline “Breakthrough’s” undercard during a free Sherdog.com stream (8:15 p.m. ET), was granted permission to weigh-in on Friday after visa problems delayed his arrival to the U.S.

Additionally, former Tunisian Olympian Ferrid “The Hurricane” Kheder weighed in at 159 lbs, four pounds over the contracted lightweight limit for his bout against DREAM veteran Daisuke Nakamura. Despite Kheder’s inability to make weight after having his flight from Los Angeles canceled Wednesday night, Nakamura did not let those expecting Nakamura vs. Kheder to steal tomorrow’s show down, as he accepted the fight. For his troubles, Nakamura will receive 10% of Kheder’s purse.

All remaining fighters made weight, including the headliners for “HDNET FIGHTS PRESENTS M-1 BREAKTHROUGH,” “King” Mo Lawal and Mark “The Smashing Machine” Kerr. Kerr, once considered one of the best pound-for-pound fighters in the world is making one last attempt at a comeback in hopes of re-writing an infamous legacy. That legacy was chronicled in the critically acclaimed HBO documentary The Smashing Machine.

In addition to Lawal vs. Kerr, “Breakthrough” will also feature a special sparring exhibition between M-1 fighters “The Last Emperor” Fedor Emelianenko and newly-crowned Strikeforce light heavyweight champion Gegard Mousasi.

Below are complete results of today’s weigh-in:

12. Heavyweight (3×5): Muhammed “King Mo” Lawal (219 lbs.) vs. Mark “The Smashing Machine” Kerr (263 lbs.)

11. Special Sparring Exhibition: “The Last Emperor” Fedor Emelianenko vs. “The Dreamcatcher” Gegard Mousasi

10. Middleweight (3×5): Lucio “The Spartan” Linhares (185 lbs.) vs. Mikhail Zayats (185 lbs.)

9. Heavyweight (3×5): Jessie Gibbs (254 lbs.) vs. Rob Broughton (262 lbs.)

8. Middleweight (3×5): Karl “Psycho” Amoussou (185 lbs.) vs. “The Iron Bull” John Doyle (184 lbs.)

7. Heavyweight (3×5): Lloyd “Kadillac” Marshbanks (253 lbs.) vs. Michael Kita (230 lbs.)

6. Lightweight (3×5): Daisuke Nakamura (154 lbs.) vs. *Ferrid “The Hurricane” Kheder (159 lbs.)

5. Heavyweight (3×5): **Rogent Lloret (N/A) vs. Alexey Oleinik (234 lbs.)

4. Lightweight (3×5): Eric Marriott (155 lbs.) vs. Tim Bazer (153 lbs.)

3. Lightweight (3×5): Sean “P-Town” Wilson (155 lbs.) vs. Josh Arocho (154 lbs.)

2. Welterweight (3×5): Rudy Bears (175 lbs.) vs. Brendan Seguin (175 lbs.)

1. Female 150 lbs. (3×3): **Andria Caplan (155 lbs.) vs. Mollie Ahlers-Estes (149 lbs.)

* Denotes fight changed from 155 lbs. to catchweight of 159 lbs. with Nakamura receiving 10% of Kheder’s purse

** Denotes that due to visa issues, Lloret will be allowed to weigh-in Friday.

*** Denotes that bout changed to catchweight of 155 lbs. and that fight has been changed from pro status to amateur status.