Affliction: Trilogy (Cancelled)

[Hammy]

WAMMA Heavyweight Championship bout: Fedor Emelianenko vs. ?
Light Heavyweight bout: Renato Sobral vs. Gegard Mousasi
Middleweight bout: Vitor Belfort vs. Jorge Santiago
Heavyweight bout: Paul Buentello vs. Gilbert Yvel
Lightweight bout: Takanori Gomi vs. Rafaello Oliveira
Welterweight bout: Jay Hieron vs. Paul Daley
Lightweight bout: Dan Lauzon vs. Chris Horodecki
Heavyweight bout: Ben Rothwell vs. Chase Gormley
Lightweight bout: Deividas Taurosevicius vs. Mark Hominick
Featherweight bout: LC Davis vs. Javier Vasquez
Middleweight bout: Lucio Linhares vs. Givanildo Santana *Fight will not be televised
Heavyweight bout: Jessie Gibbs vs. Rob Broughton *Fight will not be televised

[Hammy]

Thats a really good looking card.  For the mainstream it problem isn't as gripping as it is for die hard fans.  Sherdog rank Fedor and Barnett as the #1 and #2 Heavyweights in the world for a damn good reason.  Barnett has only lost 5 times, 3 being to Cro Cop, 1 to Rizzo which he rectified at the first Affliction and 1 to Big Nog in a rematch of a match he originally won, and I'm pretty sure given a rematch with the Cro Cop of now, he'd beat him to.  Fedor on the other had has that reputation amongst fans in generally, many who have never seen him as the Terminator like MMA Fighter, who can't be knocked out, submitted or beaten.  No matter what you do he will just keep coming at you.  I really want Barnett to win and I think he's got the tools, although neither man looked superb in their last outings.  Barnett made a meal out of beating dirty Gilbert Yvel whereas Fedor was getting mashed before he exposed Arlovski's now world famous glass jaw.  Having demonstrated improved striking and a master of using his weight, Barnett could give him big problems.

Sobral and Mousasi has potential classic written all over it.  Both guys are on a role, Sobral is a veteran who could in many ways "Pass the torch" in this fight or he could expose Mousasi for being quite possibly overated.  After winning the DREAM Middleweight Grand Prix he's been highly touted, although Jacre fans have proclaimed it a fluke, either way it should be a lot of fun.

Santiago and Belfort are two guys who struggled last time they were in the UFC, but outside of it (recently) they have built up decent records.  I (think) Santiago won a Strikeforce Grand Prix if memory serves me correctly in the final he took out the talented UFC Vet Trevor Prangley.  Belfort on the other hand is the ultimate under achiever.  Coming into the UFC at such a young age he was seen as the future of the sport along with Tito Ortiz but he never quite lived up to his potential.  After some sluggish performances he seems to have reinvented himself as a Middleweight, his knockout of Matt Lindland was scary, more so for how Lindland reacted to it.

I'd expect Gilbert Yvel to defeat Rizzo to earn the fight with Buentello.  Rizzo in his day is far more talented than Yvel but Rizzo has lost a step in recent years and been knocked out by a fair few guys, Yvel on the other hand has a tendancy to go a little crazy.  At the Affliction event though I'd expect Buentello to win, he may not look the part but he is a very good striker.  I never understood why he got cut from the UFC, I think he posted a 3-1 record there, his only loss being to Arlovski, maybe he requested his release though I'm not sure.

Also good to see some English fighters on the card in Paul Daley and Rob Broughton.  Shame Broughton's fight is not televised he is always good to watch.

[D]

I really believe this is Affliction's last show. They have no more big matchups if u think about it and Vitor signed back with the UFC after this fight.

Hopefully Fedor comes to the UFC after this fight. It would be an MMA tragedy if he never fought in the octagon.

[Hammy]

I hope they don't go under, they are prepared to through a lot of money at guys and get good superfights.

With Tito Ortiz due back at some point they still have some potential big money fights.  Just depends how much bullshitting the owner has been doing, he claims they will be fine and have many more events, but he'd hardly admit if they were going under...

[D]

Tito will go to strikeforce. With their network TV deal, having Tito on Network TV is too much for Strikeforce and Tito to pass up.

Tito will fight a can on free TV and build towards fighting Babalu.

[Hammy]

Former PRIDE FC lightweight champion Takanori Gomi (30-5) has agreed to make his Affliction debut against Rafaello Oliveira (8-1) at “Trilogy” from the Honda Center in Anaheim, Calif., on Aug. 1, the organization today confirmed.

“The Fireball Kid” recently snapped a two-fight losing skid in the Sengoku promotion.

After dropping a split decision to Russian journeyman Sergey Golyaev (13-7) at Sengoku 6 last November, Gomi came up lame against Satoru Kitaoka at Sengoku “Rebellion” in January, tapping out to an Achilles lock just 1:41 into the very first round.

It was a major setback for a fighter as revered as he is. Gomi didn’t look like the same dominant fighter who once tore through PRIDE’s lightweight ranks with ease, which led to people questioning his heart and whether he still had what it takes to compete on an active level.

Gomi managed to silence some of his critics and get back to his winning ways by obliterating Takashi Nakakura with a barrage of strikes in an exciting showdown this past May when he went back to his roots and paid homage to the organization that kickstarted his career at Shooto “Final Tradition.”

Now with that victory it appears he’s refocused and motivated to once again climb up the lightweight ladder, continuing that journey when he clashes against Rafaello Oliveira at Affliction 3: “Trilogy.”


“The Tractor” has already competed three times in 2009, taking all three contests including a unanimous decision win over John Mahlow at Xtreme Fighting Championships (XFC) from the Thompson-Bowling Arena last April in Knoxville, Tennessee.

Oliveira, who’s only loss came to the up-and-coming Lyle Beerbohm at Sho XC in October 2008,  now faces the biggest challenge of his career against Gomi and a win would boost his stock considerably.

Affliction 3: “Trilogy” will feature a main event between WAMMA Heavyweight Champion Fedor Emelianenko and top-ranked division player, Josh Barnett. Former Dream middleweight champion Gegard Mousasi is also expected to make his fighting debut on American shores against Renato “Babalu” Sobral in a light heavyweight showdown.

http://mmamania.com/2009/07/06/affliction-trilogy-to-feature-takanori-gomi-vs-rafaello-oliveira-for-aug-1/#more-13790

I'm yet to see Gomi really impress me, he went on a tear in PRIDE but not against anyone of tremendous note, a past his best Pulver and he went 1-1 with Aurelio who struggled in the UFC, no doubt there are some solid guys he beat and he is talented, but I think he is someone who would struggle big time in the UFC, with UFC trying to crack Japan at some point I think he will eventually show up, because for the Japanese fans he is a legend.

[Rankin]

Fedor vs Barnett in trouble?

Affliction Entertainment and M-1 Global are looking for a new opponent to face Fedor Emelianenko at Affliction “Trilogy” on Aug. 1 at the Honda Center in Anaheim, Calif.

Multiple sources have told Sherdog.com that the California State Athletic Commission will not license Josh Barnett after a positive test result. Calls to Affliction Entertainment were not immediately returned. The CSAC said a comprehensive statement would be issued Wednesday.

Barnett said he had not been notified of any issues with his eligibility as of Tuesday evening.

“I took my test three weeks ago. I would have thought I would have heard something by now,” Barnett told Sherdog.com.

However, the former UFC heavyweight champion said he had not checked his phone messages recently and later added, “No matter what happens with this, I can assure you I will clear my name. This will not be something that I am defined by.”

Vitor Belfort has agreed in principle to face the world’s No. 1 heavyweight on 11 days’ notice, according to two separate sources close to the negotiations. One source told Sherdog.com that Emelianenko will have the opportunity to choose between Belfort and Bobby Lashley. Lashley has denied knowing anything about replacing Barnett, though.

"I don't know if I would want it right now. Since the last fight, I haven't really been into training again," he said. "That fight is next week. That would be something I would really have to take a look at. To just jump in there probably wouldn't be the smartest thing for me right now. A lot of people would say that might be a money fight. They figure, 'If we give him enough money, will he do it?' That's what people tend to look at. I don't want to get into fighting for the money so much right now.”

Belfort, a former UFC light heavyweight champion, is scheduled to face American Top Team standout Jorge Santiago in a middleweight bout on the Aug. 1 card.

From: Sherdog.com

[Hammy]

Hopefully they are wrong, strange proposed opponents though....really strange.

[Rankin]

It's only been reported on Sherdog so far but who knows, its very odd you'd imagine they would sort this out a month or two ago not the week before.

[Hammy]

Affliction Vice President Tom Atencio has confirmed with MMA Fanhouse that the August 1 main event between Fedor Emelianenko and Josh Barnett has been canceled.

Here’s a snip:

“(Barnett) tested positive for a banned substance. The athletic commission will not reinstate his license. Him and Fedor is off.”

It's 

[Rankin]

More indepth version:

LAS VEGAS – It's official: Josh Barnett (24-5) has been removed from his "Affliction: Trilogy" main-event bout with Fedor Emelianenko (30-1).

Affliction exec Tom Atencio confirmed the news this morning with AOL FanHouse, citing a positive test for a banned substance that will prevent Barnett from receiving a license to compete on the Aug.1 event in Anaheim, Calif.

MMAjunkie.com (www.mmajunkie.com) has since learned from sources close to the negotiations that middleweight Vitor Belfort (18-8) has verbally agreed to the bout, and negotiations are currently in progress to finalize the financial terms of the deal.

Should Belfort's management and Affliction officials agree to terms, an official announcement is expected to be made sometime today.

Xtreme Couture striking coach Shawn Tompkins, who has been training Belfort at the Las Vegas-based camp in preparation for currently scheduled opponent Jorge Santiago (21-7), declined to comment on the status of Belfort's contract. However, Tompkins did tell MMAjunkie.com that both Belfort and the camp considered the potential bout with Emelianenko an intriguing option.

Tompkins also said Belfort is currently walking around at approximately 205 pounds and that he could easily make 210-215 pounds should he commit to a heavyweight contest.

While Bobby Lashley had been mentioned in previous reports as a potential replacements for Barnett, American Top Team exec Dan Lambert told MMAjunkie.com the heavyweight prospect would not be stepping in on short notice.

Lambert also said he was unsure what would happen with fellow American Top Team product Santiago with the potential loss of Belfort as an opponent

It really is an odd choice of a replacement, imagine how bad Fedor would look if he lost to a Middleweight!

Shame about Barnett, I was really looking forward to it aswell. Any interest UFC had in him is definately gone now.

[Rankin]

Latest:

Some notes regarding where things stand at the moment with the Affliction main event.

Josh Barnett has confirmed that he has talked to the commission and his license to fight was not approved. Contrary to original reports, his June 25th drug test that came up positive was not part of California's new random out of competition testing. It was a test on a day Barnett himself chose as part of his licensing procedure in the state as his license had expired. He didn't want to give specifics because he is going to appeal, but made it clear there was no conspriacy against him, he knows what happened, and is looking to clear his name, but the timing of it is such that the fight with Fedor Emelianenko scheduled for 8/1 at the Honda Center is off.

At this moment, the leading candidate for the fight is Brett Rogers. The main hold-up is that Rogers is under contract to Strikeforce. Both Scott Coker and Showtime both have to approve of the fight. Coker is on vacation right now in Italy but is aware of what is going on. As of this moment, Showtime has not made a decision.

It appears the second choice is Vitor Belfort. Belfort has agreed to jump up two weight classes and take the fight. A name that has surfaced as a possible opponent for Jorge Santiago, who was to face Belfort, provided Belfort gets the spot, is David Loiseau. But there would likely be other names in the running for such a fight.

Accoding to American Top Team sources, Bobby Lashley has turned down the fight. Lashley was offered $500,000 for the fight, but their feeling is Lashley will be getting paydays like this in the future when he's ready, and at this stage of the game, Lashley, as a rookie in the sport, with no training camp and in ten days is not ready for Fedor. It's said that Affliction still believes it's not dead and that he would consider it with a stronger money offer.

[Hammy]

Is it a bad gamble for Lashley though?  Win and his stock increases ten fold, lose and it isn't bad for his career, 5th fight against the worlds best and all that.

Hopefully Rogers gets the spot!

[D]

Lashley should jump at this fight

he has nothing to lose. If he gets beat, who gives a ****, he is green and fighting the best fighter ever.

Hell, if he just lasted a couple rounds, that would be impressive.

I don't want to see a small Vitor fight a heavyweight Fedor.

[Hammy]

Affliction Vice President Tom Atencio today informed his fighters that the upcoming “Trilogy” event planned for the Honda Center in Anaheim, California on August 1 has been canceled, according to SI.com.

The news comes just days after Affliction suffered a major blow to its pay-per-view main event when headliner Josh Barnett tested positive for anabolic steroids in the first ever random drug test administered by the California State Athletic Commission on June 25.

As a result, Barnett was denied a license to compete, forcing company officials to scramble for a replacement opponent opposite Fedor Emelianenko.

Speculation had revolved around who that replacement fighter would be.

At the top of a short list of candidates was current middleweight contender Vitor Belfort, who was scheduled to face Jorge Santiago that same night, but who also stated he was willing to move up in weight to fight “The Last Emperor.”

Dark horse Brett Rogers, fresh off a stunning first round knockout of former UFC heavyweight champion Andrei Arlovski, as well as freelance fighter Jeff Monson were also under consideration.

Now it appears their services will no longer be needed.

What impact this cancellation has on the future of Affliction MMA remains to be seen — but as of now it’s not looking very promising.

Bye-Bye, the company is done it seems.  This sucks because even with the Main Event screwed this card rocked....