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UFC ON VERSUS

--THE SAVAGE SCIENCE will present live play by play coverage of UFC on VERSUS on March 21 live from the FirstBank Center in Broomfield, Colorado. Join us for the BEST live fight narrative in the world–the action begins 9 PM Eastern/6 PM Pacific!

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DREAM 13

--THE SAVAGE SCIENCE will present live play by play coverage of DREAM 13 coming to you from the Yokohama Arena in Yokohama, Japan on March 22. Join us for the BEST live fight narrative in the world–the action begins 3 AM Eastern/12 AM Pacific!

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STRIKEFORCE: CHALLENGERS

--THE SAVAGE SCIENCE will present live play by play coverage of STRIKEFORCE: CHALLENGERS on March 26 live from the SavMart Center in Fresno, CA. Join us for the BEST live fight narrative in the world–the action begins 10 PM Eastern/7 PM Pacific!

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UFC 111: GSP VS. HARDY

--THE SAVAGE SCIENCE will present live play by play coverage of UFC 111: St. Pierre vs. Hardy live from the Prudential Center in Newark, NJ on March 27. The event will be headlined by a welterweight title fight between Georges St. Pierre vs. Dan Hardy and feature a heavyweight showdown between Frank Mir and Shane Carwin! Join us for the BEST live fight narrative in the world–the action begins 10 PM Eastern/7 PM Pacific!

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UFC FIGHT NIGHT: FLORIAN VS. GOMI

--THE SAVAGE SCIENCE will present live play by play coverage of UFC Fight Night: Florian vs. Gomi live from the Bojangles Coliseum in Charlotte, NC on March 31. The event will be headlined by a lightweight battle between Kenny Florian and Takanori Gomi. Join us for the BEST live fight narrative in the world–the action begins 8:00 PM Eastern/5:00 PM Pacific!

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BELLATOR XIII

--THE SAVAGE SCIENCE will present live play by play coverage of Bellator Fighting XIII live from the Seminole Hard Rock Casino in Hollywood, Florida on April 8. Join us for the BEST live fight narrative in the world–the action begins 7:30 PM Eastern/4:30 PM Pacific!

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BELLATOR XIV

--THE SAVAGE SCIENCE will present live play by play coverage of Bellator Fighting XIV live from the Chicago Theatre in Chicago, Illinois on April 15. Join us for the BEST live fight narrative in the world–the action begins 7:30 PM Eastern/4:30 PM Pacific!

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STRIKEFORCE: NASHVILLE

--THE SAVAGE SCIENCE will present live play by play coverage of Strikeforce: Nashville live from the Bridgestone Arena in Nashville, TN on April 17. The event will be headlined by a middleweight title fight between Jake Shields and Dan Henderson and feature the US debut of Japanese submission god Shinya Aoki! Join us for the BEST live fight narrative in the world–the action begins 10 PM Eastern/7 PM Pacific!

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MFC 25: VINDICATION

--THE SAVAGE SCIENCE will present live play by play coverage of MFC 25: Vindication live from the Edmonton Expo Center in Edmonton, Alberta on April 17. Join us for the BEST live fight narrative in the world–the action begins 10 PM Eastern/7 PM Pacific!

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“If you go by the rules, you end up being an accountant.”

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Fedor and Arlovski vs. “Sugar Shane” and Margarito

Written by Ralph Gonzalez   |   Sunday, January 11 2009

arlovski4As one of the best fight writers in the business, the SAVSCI's Ralph Gonzalez is faced with an enviable decision.  Does he cover the Affliction: Day of Reckoning show in Anaheim, which will turn Andrei Arlovski's snarl into a smile, or does he cover the Shane Mosley vs. Antonio Margarito boxing event at the Staples Center in Los Angeles?(Photo: Affliction)
I’ve had two credential applications sitting in my email box for a few weeks and I can’t make a decision which one to fill out and send back. I’m running out of time.

On January 24th, Fedor Emelianenko is set to take on Andrei Arlovski at the Honda Center in Anaheim, California in what’s expected to be a stacked card with some of the greatest mixed martial artists the world has to offer. In my opinion, watching Fedor is like watching M.M.A.‘s version of Muhammad Ali or Sugar Ray Robinson during their peak. I have a feeling that decades in the future, I’ll be proud to say that I was ringside as the Russian destroyed the former UFC champion, Tim Sylvia, in only thirty six seconds in July of 2008. As for Arlovski, he’s no pushover. In fact, one could say that he’s now in his prime. The Belo-Russian is also a former UFC Heavyweight champion and looked impressive in his last two knockout wins over the very rugged Roy Nelson and highly regarded former IFL Heavyweight champion Ben Rothwell. Arlovski’s game has progressed far beyond his 14 and 5 record and should prove to be a refreshing new test for Emelianenko whose record stands at an amazing 28 wins with one fluky loss.

The undercard for the event is also intriguing. Some of the fighters slated for the evening include Josh Barnett, Gilbert Yvel, Vitor Belfort, Matt Lindland, Jay Hieron, Chris Horodecki and Rogerio Nogueira. That’s quite an impressive line up.

Here’s the conflict:

Just thirty miles north of Anaheim is the Staples Center in downtown Los Angeles where Antonio Margarito will face off against “Sugar” Shane Mosley in a highly anticipated bout for the Welterweight championship of the world and what looks to be a classic on paper.

I’ve been writing about boxing for almost a decade. I’ve interviewed Margarito and his manager Sergio Diaz for years and they’ve always provided me with first class access to the champion so there’s a real familiarity with the Tijuana based fighter nicknamed “The Tijuana Tornado”. Even more tempting is the fact that the atmosphere and overall energy for this bout will be through the roof since both fighters made their careers in “the city of angels” and their respective fans will be out in force. The only problem with this event is that the under-card seems downright lackluster in comparison to the M.M.A. show in Orange County.

Since I cover Boxing and MMA and am truly a fan of both sports, it’s created a real dilemma for me and others stuck in the same boat. There’s David A. Avila who covers MMA and Boxing for The Riverside Press Enterprise, The Sweet Science.com, CBSsports.com and a few other news outlets. Avila informed The Savage Science of his choice recently: He’ll be covering “Sugar Shane” and Margarito. The well known and highly regarded Mosley is a product of the Riverside area and has been covered extensively by Avila since Mosley’s amateur days so it makes complete sense.

Carlos Arias of the Orange County Register also covers boxing and mixed martial arts extensively and is currently leaning towards covering Emelianenko vs. Arlovski. This also makes sense since the show takes place in Orange County which is Arias’ home turf. Arias has been around for a long time and has the pull to cover any event he wants. I’ve got a feeling that the overall quality of the M.M.A. card made the difference in his decision.

As for myself, I cover boxing for The Sweet Science.com and MMA at The Savage Science.com. Boxing has been ingrained into my psyche since I was a child. Somewhere, out there, I’m sure a photo of me sporting giant boxing gloves and diapers exists. Yet as exciting and interesting as MMA is, it still hasn’t brought out the same kind of thrill in me that boxing has.

I’ve been watching the evolution of M.M.A. from the first UFC events when Royce Gracie was dominating all comers with his brilliant Brazilian Jiu Jitsu. Obviously the sport has changed greatly since those days and fighters like Keith Hackney, Gracie, “Tank” Abbott and many others have now been replaced by more complete martial artists like Anderson Silva, “Rampage” Jackson and B.J. Penn.

So where will I be on January 24? At this point I still don’t know.

Strangely enough, the M.M.A. card in Anaheim is being promoted by Affliction and Oscar De La Hoya’s Golden Boy Promotions. The boxing card in L.A. is being promoted by who you ask? That’s right. Golden Boy Promotions. De La Hoya’s company scheduled their boxing event on the same day as their M.M.A. promotion within 40 minutes of each other. I’m no Wharton School of business graduate but something tells me, perhaps common sense, that competing against yourself is no way to stay in business for long.

I’m often asked why I choose to write about these two particular sports and the answer is simple for me. There are two qualities of human expression that move me the most on a personal level. Passion and courage. It’s what drives people beyond their perceived boundaries and into greatness. Emelianenko, Arlovski, Margarito and Mosley have all demonstrated both qualities on several occasions. It’s why they’re considered to be among the best in their sport. They’re the reason I can’t make up my mind about January 24th. Whatever choice I make, it’s a dilemma I’m happy to have.

I’ll keep you posted.

For more on both events:
http://www.goldenboypromotions.com/

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written by Jim , January 10, 2009
Tough decision! Mosley has been a favorite of mine since his first fight against De La Hoya (which was also at The Staples Center if I remember correctly) and Margarito is just a stud. While your presence in Anaheim would provide a much needed element of dignity to the SAVSCI contingent we'll understand if you choose to cover the boxing.....
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