Get ready for some fireworks. According to DREAM’s official website, the Middleweight Grand Prix matchups for round 2 have been announced, and they won’t disappoint the hardcore fanbase in the least bit. Although I believe some of these fights could be flipped around to benefit other fighters, these matchups are definitely tailor made for the future. Here are the matchups:

• Kazushi Sakuraba vs. Melvin Manhoef
• Ronaldo Jacare vs. Jason “Mayhem” Miller
• Dong Sik Yoon vs. Gegard Mousasi
• Zelg Galesic vs. Kin Taiei

Obviously, one of my favorite MMA fighters in Melvin Manhoef will be looking to destroy the Japanese legend that is Sakuraba. I’ve hyped up Manhoef enough in the past to make him seem like a MMA god, but the fact of the matter is that I love the guy for being a straight up monster when it comes to the striking game. It’s all or nothing for Manhoef… comparative to some MLB baseball players like Ryan Howard or Adam Dunn… damn you Howard for screwing my fantasy team.

Unfortunately for Manhoef, Sakuraba is pretty able on the ground. DREAM may have seen this matchup as an easy win for Sakuraba to advance, but one Manhoef fist could end it. It should be an interesting style matchup.

Ronaldo Jacare vs. Jason Miller is going to be a tough matchup for “Mayhem”. While he has some slick jiu-jitsu and decent striking, Jacare is one of the best grapplers in the world. The ground game won’t be such a luxury for Miller in that matchup.

The “Dongbar” will be out in full force when he takes on Gegard Mousasi. Yoon has some solid judo skills and a good submission game, but I think Mousasi’s power in the standup along with some good submission abilities of his own will make this one of the more intriguing battles on the evening.

The Croatian striking Zelg Galesic will take on Kin Taiei for the second time in his career. In their first matchup, he stopped the fight via TKO in a little over :30 seconds. I don’t see how this will go too much different a second time around. Galesic will have a significant striking advantage.

June 15th should provide the hardcore fanbase with some great fights from Japan. For all the early morning fanatics, set your alarms and write DREAM 4 into your calendars.

The DREAM 3 post-presser had enough interesting notes that I couldn’t help but read into a bit for the sake of speculation and excitement regarding some of the future matchups we could potentially see in future events. Here’s a few of the items that were noteworthy:

• Sasahara, DREAM’s event producer, talked about possibly having Kimbo Slice on a future DREAM card due to their new partnership with ProElite. He stated that Kimbo has zero name recognition right now, but only one appearance could shift the fans to love him. Interestingly enough, Japan loves fighters with that monster physique and ability to stop opponents with one punch. It could definitely be a match made in heaven from an entertainment perspective, but I’m not sure if the Japanese fans would love his street thuggish look.

• Sasahara also stated that the promotion was growing and didn’t have a need for a women’s division at this time, but talk of Gina Carano making an appearance in the future on a DREAM card wasn’t out of the question.

• Jason Miller made comments that he would love to be matched up against a legend in Japan such as Sakuraba. I’d definitely love to see this matchup in the next round, but DREAM officials may look elsewhere to keep Sakuraba in the tournament as a draw. It’s an interesting development because Mayhem seemed to have won over the crowd with his antics, so matching both fighters against each other may produce much more interest in the event.

• Kawajiri wants to take on Uno due to Uno defeating his T-Blood campmate Mitsuhiro Ishida. I’m inclined to believe that the proposed fight between “The Crusher” and Uno will probably take place. It has a storyline to an extent, but who knows what DREAM will do. Uno still has status in the Japanese MMA fight scene, but I doubt DREAM will give him an easier fight.

• Alvarez talked about wanting to become a regular fighter for the organization. He also joked about being the lone American in the tournament. Alvarez definitely has a shot at winning the Grand Prix, and it’ll be very interesting to see how he handles his next opponent. Hansen was definitely a big win for Alvarez.

Overall, I like some of the suggested matchups that the fighters want. Miller vs. Sakuraba and Kawajiri vs. Uno both have storylines associated with them, but as we all know, MMA in Japan is a different beast when it comes to making money. We’ll see how it plays out in the coming weeks.

There is one huge piece of news that definitely gives DREAM some dreamier matchups for American fans. Their newly announced partnership with ProElite is going to bring over some fighters and possibly create a co-promotional event in the States. We could see Kimbo in Japan, and we are going to see Nick Diaz in Japan against “Mach” Sakurai according to MMAWeekly.com. We could definitely have some exciting fights happening in the coming months between DREAM and ProElite.

Miller clowns Shibata in this fight, and put on a good show for the fans.

When MMA fans hear about new promotions coming into the U.S. market, many of them think about the countless promotions that have lived and died. Others think of the current promotions that obtained a peak of less than good and then descended to the bottom are are barely hanging on. On Saturday night, the fans of this sport saw something different. HDNet Fights not only had very good production value, but also did things that other promotions seem to just throw together. There are, of course, a few differences between most upstarts and HDNet Fights. Mark Cuban can infuse the promotion with some money that many organizations simply cannot produce, and he has the capability to hold the event in a huge venue, the American Airlines Arena, in Dallas, Texas, an arena that houses his own Dallas Mavericks. Nonetheless, the event kicked off with some great action.

Great preliminary action, Main event works

The good thing about upstart promotions is that it forces them to find up-and-coming talent to fill their undercards. In this case, it wasn't exactly the most veteran of undercards, but definitely a suitable stable of young fighters and old fighters. Marcus Lanier improved his record against a weaker opponent in Lee King, but showed some promise in his wrestling abilities. Liam McCarthy got a much needed TKO win over Jason House. Jay White's record of 1-5 deceived everyone, but he pulled out an impressive submission victory over Patrick Castillo. Nissen Osterneck lived up to his new found hype as he defeated a decent Freddie Espircueta via ground and pound in the first round. Corey Mahon surprised some people with his win over an able Chris Bowles and improved his record to 8-0. There are definitely some flashes of talent within the group of guys on the undercard, and I'm sure we'll see more of them in future shows

Although there wasn't much in the realm of upsets on the main card, we did see some surprising outcomes. Tristan Yunker looked sickly on Friday when he failed to make the 170 pound cutoff, but Pete Spratt agreed to take 25% of Yunker's purse in order to fight. It worked out well for Spratt. Spratt smashed Yunker's eye early in the first round, cutting a deep gash below the left orbital. The referee stepped in and ended the bout in the first round. Krzysztof Soszynski defeated Robert Villegas after Villegas apparently broke his foot and was "flopping" to the ground according to the HDnet broadcast crew. Yves Edwards had a shaky first round, but came back in the second and was able to take Alonzo Martinez's back and sink the rear naked choke. Some excellent battles from some MMA veterans that seemingly haven't made their way back to the big leagues that are the UFC. Either way, it looks like HDNet has tapped into a resource that they can continue to use.

In the main events, Frank Trigg demolished a smaller looking Edwin Dewees by sinking in a kimura while on his back and rolling as Dewees tried to escape it. Dewees did not tap, and eventually, it looked as if Trigg may have cracked Dewees's arm. In the post-fight interview, Trigg led us to believe that it was broken. In the final fight of the night, Mayhem held off Tim Kennedy and won unanimously 29-28 to edge out Kennedy. After entering the cage with pinatas and candy, he walked toward the ring in silver tights and a red cape with a mask as if he was a pro-wrestler. Very entertaining for the Mayhem Monkeys in attendance.

Overall, the fights were fairly entertaining without too much controversy. Good performances from some unknowns, great outcomes for some veterans, and the main events set up the Frank Trigg vs. Jason Miller II. It wasn't a bad night for the first LIVE broadcasted event for HDNet Fights.

What really shined...

The most evident difference between HDNet and many of the other promotions was the commentary and broadcast interviewers. Although HDNet didn't provide the most in-depth broadcasting team, they did keep it informative and in-depth at times. It wasn't overly analytical and sounded more professional than many of the other promotions. Their in-cage interviewer was smooth in his asking of questions and asked questions that we as the fans would actually consider hearing. A vast improvement from Frank Mir's bumbling talk after WEC fights, and Joe Rogan's questioning after UFC fights. Impressive to say the least.

The production was also done in a different way than what we may see in the UFC. The arena wasn't lit up like is usually is for UFC events. It was dark, and the only light that was bright was the light hitting the cage canvas. During the entrances, the light show was full blown, but for viewers watching, the dim lighting around the cage had a very professional look and feel to it. We've seen this in boxing matches specifically, although not many of the huge title fights. In definitely kept up with the theme of not showing off ring girls, and more of the theme of professionalism that Mark Cuban stated in the past.

On another note, kudos to the balls of the man who interviewed Couture. Not only did he ask questions that MANY MMA interviewers never ask because they think it's respectful to just leave the issue alone, but he asked the question we all wanted to hear: When will we see you back in the cage, and will it be with the UFC? Couture stated it could be with the UFC if the co-promote with M-1, but that his fight contract ends in July and his employment contract ends in October. Couture hinted that we may see him against Fedor in October. They also asked Ken Shamrock some questions and he eluded to the fact that there may be a fight between himself and his brother Frank Shamrock. Why is it that HDNet has the balls to ask these questions and nobody else does?

What do we think about HDNet Fights?

HDNet Fights is definitely not a poorly produced or commentated event. They have been able to pick up on some of the other MMA veterans out there that remain unsigned, and they have also been able to find some talent that is up-and-coming around the country and locally in the state of Texas. The event definitely had a more professional feel to it and was without the extravagant ring girls and the flashy lights and spectacle of some of the other U.S. promotions. It was a simple, laid back MMA promotion that had a feel of real professionalism, at least to this viewer.

Check out HDNet Fights on HDNet. The channel also re-airs past events such as the IFO, and will be broadcasting Yarennoka from Japan as well on New Year's Eve. Definitely check out that card as Fedor Emelianenko will be fighting Hong Man Choi, as well as a plethora of RANKED lightweight matchups will be occuring.

Mark Cuban's brainchild, HDNet Fights, will hold its second event in the promotion's short existence on Saturday evening. It will also mark the first live telecast for the promotion. The event will feature a main event rematch between Jason "Mayhem" Miller and Tim Kennedy. Also on the card, Frank "Twinkletoes" Trigg will put his wrestling to the test against a streaking Edwin Dewees, The Ultimate Fighter Season 4 contestant. Other interesting bouts include Pete "Secret Weapon" Spratt vs. Tristan Yunker, Yves Edwards vs. Alonzo Martinez, Nissen Osterneck vs. Freddie Espiricueta, and Jason House taking on Liam McCarty. We'll take a look at the fighters and make some bold predictions for the card.

Main Event
Jason "Mayhem" Miller vs. Tim Kennedy

Jason "Mayhem" Miller (19-5) must be chomping at the bit for this fight. Mayhem hasn't fought since May of this year during his short stint in the WEC in which he defeated Hiromitsu Miura. Before his move to the WEC, he was fairly successful in Icon Sport, racking up a 3-1 record while in the promotion with a big win over the heavy-handed Robbie Lawler. Mayhem also has some key wins over Falaniko Vitale, Egan Inoue, and Denis Kang.

The hype surrounding this battle is the rematch aspect. Tim Kennedy defeated Mayhem back in February of 2003 in a Extreme Challenge card. Kennedy won by decision, but Mayhem has stated in some recent interviews that he felt he was much stronger now. Although we haven't seen promotion from HDNet on national television, for hardcore fans, this should be a matchup of interest due to the fact that Tim Kennedy is riding a huge win streak.

Kennedy (8-1) has had a very good career so far. He's currently on a seven fight win streak and has been dominant in his performances in the IFL. Much like Mayhem, Kennedy has not fought since May of this year either. His last win was over the cardio machine in Ryan McGivern in the IFL.

Kennedy is a banger and has some knockout power. He has the ability to set up some great combinations and will use kicks to set up his gameplan from the get go. He has some wrestling abilities as well, but mainly will be looking for a ground and pound victory or a straight knockout. During his last battle with Ryan McGivern, he showed some great wrestling ability against another very able wrestler in McGivern. Kennedy may try to stay away from Mayhem's ju-jitsu, or simply pound him while trying to avoid being submitted.

If you've had the pleasure of seeing Mayhem battle it out in the cage, he's fairly well-rounded. He has some significant reach, decent striking, great knees in the clinch, and will also utilize leg kicks to set up his gameplan. His main "win" trait is his jiu-jitsu ground game. He has some decent takedown abilities, but if you take him down and get into his guard, his length is definitely an issue to deal with. Combine a plethora of submission game along with some fairly good standup, Mayhem is a handful for many fighters... ask Georges St. Pierre who was unable to finish Mayhem.

Leland's Prediction: Jason "Mayhem" Miller via submission, Round 3

Mayhem tends to start slow, which may be an advantage in that Kennedy may tire later on in the bout. I look for Mayhem to either stand and trade or become a victim of a takedown. Either way, Mayhem should have the advantage unless Kennedy happens to catch him. I'll take the wiley activeness of Mayhem over Kennedy in this one.
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Frank Trigg vs. Edwin Dewees

Frank Trigg (15-6) is a veteran of PRIDE, UFC, and was once the champion of Icon Sport. He's been around the MMA scene for quite some time, and is also the co-host of TAGG Radio. Trigg has an impressive skillset in that he's a black belt in Judo as well as a seasoned wrestler who was a finalist in the 2000 Olympic Trials. Trigg has also demonstrated some heavy hands in many of his past fights as well. He has defeated notable fighters such as Kazuo Misaki, Jason Miller, Renato Verissimo, and Dennis Hallman while having losses to Georges St. Pierre, Matt Hughes, Hayato Sakurai, Carlos Condit, and his most recent loss to Robbie Lawler.

Although he had some fairly bad stints of running into the top fighters in the UFC, he has been making a fairly good run as of late. He defeated both Misaki and Miller toward the beginning of this year, and was involved in a war with Robbie Lawler that Trigg looked good in. He will be a very tough test for Edwin Dewees.

Dewees (34-10) has a significant amount of fights under his belt. His experience in the cage far exceeds Trigg's experience, but Trigg has fought some of the world's best fighters. Dewees, on the other hand, has fought a good amount of mid-tier fighters as well as fighters making their way up into the upper-echelon of his weight class. As of late, Dewees is coming off two losses, a knockout loss to Art Santore and a TKO loss to Jorge Rivera. His last fight was last November, and it looks like Dewees is refreshed and ready to continue his career.

Edwin is mainly a submission fighter, but has shown to have some power in his hands. His main skills revolve around wrestling on the ground, although he may be looking to keep it standing against an able wrestler in Trigg. Trigg has been known to be susceptible to having his back taken as was evident in his losses to St. Pierre and Matt Hughes. It'll be interesting to see if Dewees tries to take it to the ground or stand with Trigg.

Leland's Prediction: Frank Trigg via TKO, Round 2

Trigg has been working out at the Xtreme Couture gym in Las Vegas getting ready for this bout. I expect his wrestling to be very good, and he should be able to counter Dewees' attempts if they come along. Although Trigg has had problems getting his back taken in the past, I imagine Trigg will try to work his fists a bit more on top to soften up Dewees. I'll go out on a limb and take Trigg by devastating ground and pound or a stoppage due to strikes standing.
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In the past, I have been very critical that the UFC's middleweight division needs a kick in the ass. It seems that this statement hasn't been taken seriously by the UFC. The division is currently in a standstill due to the fact that Anderson Silva remains the undisputed middleweight champion and has no possible opponents that can challenge him for the title. Let's take a new look into the Middleweight possibilities or actually, the short list of possibilities.

UFC fails to convince Henderson

According to the UFC 78 Press Conference, it was said that Henderson is still not wanting to drop down to 185 lbs. to fight Anderson Silva. Is this a money issue? Is the UFC lowballing Henderson with a new deal? Fact of the matter is, the Middleweight division is by far one of the worst divisions in the UFC. It, in fact, is the least deep division in the promotion. What reason is there that Henderson wouldn't drop down to become the UFC champion at Middleweight?

The most obvious answer is that he would have to take on an ultra-dangerous Anderson Silva. Although Dan Henderson's Greco-Roman wrestling is a great counter for what Silva has to offer, Silva still possesses a black belt ju-jitsu ground game, a long reach and hard striking standup game, and has multiple tools to end fights. Henderson is a granite chin though. I imagine the fight has the potential to be a huge draw for many UFC fans. Does Henderson see that fight as a possible matchup that could hurt him? It's a possibility, but I think there are other motives.

I mentioned in my previous article that I felt Henderson was sticking to the Light Heavyweight Division because it garners bigger PPV draws, more money, and more prestige. Historically, the heavier weight classes bring bigger fights and draws. Could he simply want to fight through one of the best divisions in the world? I believe so. Henderson wants to fight the absolute best in the world, and the LHW division contains some of the greatest in the world. If he suffers another loss, he may take the money and drop to 185 to fight Silva in a card that I believe would definitely draw some huge numbers.

Unsigned talent goes elsewhere

Jason "Mayhem" Miller was one of the better prospects out there that could have at least made the division a bit more lively. He has some quality wins over Robbie Lawler and Denis Kang and sports an impressive 19-5 record. He has a fantastic submission game and decent standup, but more importantly to the UFC, he is a self-promoting machine. He has a large fanbase of MMA fans behind him who love his antics as seen during a few of the latest UFC events, a few great skit videos featuring Miller that include a spoof of the TapouT! reality show, and he loves to make grand entrances. I have no doubt that he would have gained more fans in the UFC and the extra exposure could have brought more fans into the sport or at least excitement in seeing him fight in the poor Middleweight division. Miller will fight Sean Salmon on the December 15th HDNet card.

Frank Trigg is another decent Middleweight at the end of his career, but nonetheless presents a fairly significant challenge to Anderson Silva because he has some very good wrestling skills. Barring a rear naked choke, Trigg could actually present a big problem for Silva. He has some decent power, but he doesn't have the range to stand with Silva. If Trigg went into the fight with a solid gameplan of putting Silva to the floor and was able to do that, it'd be a very interesting fight. He also presents problems to other fighters in the UFC, but his age is always a factor. This seems to be a case where White is still bitter over comments Trigg made during a few PRIDE broadcasts about the UFC. Trigg claims that he made them in regards to what PRIDE wanted him to say. Nonetheless, I'm still a fan of Frank Trigg for the mere fact that he will tell you exactly what he thinks. As Trigg mentioned in one of his most recent shows, "The UFC made me usable, Fox Sports made me famous, and my mouth made me infamous." Very true, Trigg's battle with Matt Hughes was a great battle, his gig on the PRIDE series put his face in front of millions, and his rants and pre-fight hype he generated made him infamous. For those reasons, Trigg should have been given a chance in the UFC. Trigg is now fighting Edwin Dewees on the December 15th HDNet card.

According to GracieMag.com, Ronaldo Jacare (7-1) didn't sign with the UFC, but has now decided to fight again in Jungle Fight a.k.a. MMA World League now. Why? This baffles me and I'm not sure if the UFC just lowballed him or what, but he will get absolutely no exposure in Jungle Fight and he will fight tomato cans until his name pops up later down the line again after he is sporting a ridiculous record. Kind of like Jason Reinhardt. Jacare is a Brazilian ju-jitsu black belt who placed second in the world at the ADCC championships in his weight class, only losing to Roger Gracie. He's ended every fight inside the first round. It's beyond me as to why he didn't sign with the UFC.

Well, then who the hell did they add?

Evan Tanner will make a new run back into the UFC... heh. One of the big points that people make about Evan Tanner is the fact that he self taught himself many of the techniques he used in the Octagon in his early days. Tanner sports a legendary 32-6 record and has fought nearly everyone. Baroni, Lawler, Terrell, Franklin, Sinosic, Ortiz, Minowa, Herring, Buentello, the list goes on. He hasn't fought since April of last year though. Why you might ask? Apparently Tanner had an excessive drinking problem that caused him to basically turn into a full blown alcoholic who roamed the country, randomly posting on his MySpace about his problems. Hit up Fightlinker for details.

This isn't an overwhelming good signing. Tanner is fairly old and may have a lot of ring rust due to such a long layoff. He also will have to battle through now coming off the alcohol and possibly have a very hard time doing so. Will we see a clean and sober Tanner who could begin another dominance run in the MW division? I doubt it, but people said the same thing about Randy Couture being too old to do much in the heavyweight division.

Existing talent

David Terrell (6-2) was the prospect that many were looking toward to bring some excitement to the division. Terrell never fights. He's basically permanently on the injured reserve list in the UFC because he seems to be the most injury prone athlete that I can remember besides Kerry Wood and Mark Prior of the Chicago Cubs. Terrell is a product of Cesar Gracie Ju-Jitsu Academy. It has produced fighters such as Nick and Nate Diaz and Jake Shields. Terrell is much of the same type of fighter with a great submission game on the ground. He would have presented some significant problems to the top tier of the Middleweight division. I wonder if we will actually ever see him fight in the UFC again.

Nate Marquardt was a fighter that was supposed to give Silva a challenge. He didn't, and I don't see him ever giving him a tough challenge. Okami is gone apparently because the UFC felt he was a boring fighter. Bad move by the UFC. Jason MacDonald can't even get through Franklin. Franklin has been destroyed twice by Silva in devastating fashion.

The Zuffa-owned WEC has Paulo Filho, who is a friend of Silva. Filho did state that he would fight Silva if he had to. I think the time is now that "you have to" pit these two great fighters against each other to help the UFC's MW division. Zuffa seems to want to pit both the organizations against each other. In the latest oddity, the WEC will go up against a UFC special on SpikeTV. WEC 31 has some unbelievable fights, but can it compete on Versus with the UFC on basic cable. The UFC will air a "Best of 2007" show at the same time. Very strange indeed.

Bisping, Evans, Henderson, and even Machida could drop down to Middleweight and make the division worth a damn, but it seems that they are content at sitting at Light Heavyweight for now. Machida has the best chance of making a splash in the LHW division so far since his style is unbelievably elusive, but I feel like he may get the White pinch for being boring. It is rumored that Rameau Thierry Sokoudjou could fight Machida on December 12th. Bisping and Evans winner may fight Tito Ortiz, so both could be locked into the division, or the loser may drop down. Henderson obviously is sticking to his guns and staying at Light Heavyweight. Will the UFC keep him out of fighting until he gets pissed enough to drop? I wouldn't put it past Dana White.

Final Thoughts

So, what can the UFC do since they've already allowed many of the natural middleweights to head to other organizations? Matt Lindland is available. Get over the little argument you have with him and just sign him. He is an opponent with a Greco-Roman background that could potentially counter Silva's strengths well. Matt Hughes has also talked about moving up to middleweight to take on Silva after he wins the Welterweight title. If Hughes can win his title back, look for that fight to happen as well. The most believable development in the division would be the fighters dropping down to the division. The loser of the Bisping vs. Evans fight could definitely make the cut to 185. Henderson is still on the line, but we could eventually see that happen. Machida is now fighting Soukodjou at UFC 79, and he still stands a very good chance at making waves at light heavyweight.

In the end, the UFC doesn't have a plethora of options at all. They will be banking on Hughes to win to increase his standing again. Lindland is still a non-option for Dana White. Henderson won't drop down and many of the other options have signed with other organizations or are existing fighters who are either injured or too far down the line to make an impact within the next year. Hopefully we will see some activity from the UFC into grabbing some talent out there. The upcoming TUF season will also feature Middleweights, so we could see a huge influx of talent.

Today’s news directly relates to the article I wrote regarding the fact that the middleweight division in the UFC needs a huge kick in the ass. In typical UFC fashion, it seems they are now trying to concentrate on the Middleweight division after helping out the lightweights, welterweights, light heavyweights, and acquiring some decent heavyweights. The usual form of acquiring talent is to use the reality series, The Ultimate Fighter, to bring new talent into the UFC. They will gain exposure to the fans and can essentially promote themselves on the show. Many of the fighters who have come off the show have had fan followings because of their antics inside the TUF house. Chris Leben is a prime example. The middleweights will be the featured fighters in the next Ultimate Fighter season, so get ready for an influx of warriors at that level. But for now, let’s talk about some of the recent moves by the UFC to add some talent to a division that seems to have two horses leading the pack… by huge lengths. 

Ricardo “Cachorrao” Almeida signs a six-fight deal

According to GracieMag.com, Ricardo Almeida has signed a six-fight deal with the UFC. Almeida is currently 8-2 in mixed martial arts, with a 3-fight stint in the UFC where he received his two losses. He lost by disqualification at UFC 31 to Matt Lindland and by TKO at UFC 35 to Andrei Semenov. Although those low points were fairly early in his career, he does have big wins over Ikuhisa Minowa, Kazuo Misaki, Nathan Marquardt, and Ryo Chonan. Minowa isn’t exactly a great fighter, but Misaki and Chonan were decent tests. Marquardt was dominating Pancrase at the time he was defeated. Almeida is a Brazilian ju-jitsu black belt who has mainly been teaching in Hamilton, New Jersey for the last 3 years.

“Mayhem” free to negotiate with other organizations

This was a mistake by the UFC. Not only is Jason Miller a decent fighter, but also he’s a promotional dream for an organization that wants to build a fanbase around a fighter. Mayhem literally has one of the bigger fan followings in MMA. His hilarious personality and odd mannerisms spark a lot of interest in him. He has been doing interviews of fighters for ProElite in which his most notable interview with Nick Diaz caused Diaz to get fairly pissed off when he found out Mayhem was making facial expressions as Diaz ranted on. Other notable appearances include his antics during the Shogun vs. Griffin fight and Liddell vs. Jardine battles. He was sitting behind Wanderlei during the fights, showing his trademark Mayhem brass knuckles and making faces toward the camera. His out of the cage personality is definitely something the UFC could have sold.

Middleweight Division moving up?