Big UFC Title-Eliminator Fight Announced,CM Punk On Gracie Breakdown, Bellator Fighters Drug Tested
- As noted earlier, former WWE champion CM Punk put his Brazilian jiu-jitsu skills on display during a recent edition of "Gracie Breakdown," which you can watch in the video above. Punk and Rener and Ryron Gracie help fans understand how Luke Rockhold was able to secure a guillotine choke on Michael Bisping this past weekend and earn a submission victory.
- The next UFC No. 1 contender will be set this January in the light heavyweight division, as Anthony Johnson travels to Sweden to face Alexander Gustafsson. The promotion announced the card for January 24 from the Tele2 Arena in Stockholm on Wednesday.
Gustafsson (16-2) lost to current UFC champion Jon Jones last year, but earned a rematch when he stopped Jimi Manuway. "The Mauler" went down with an injury in training that forced his bout vs. Jones to be scrapped. Daniel Cormier was tabbed, and those two will meet in January for the title.
"This is going to be an epic event," Gustafsson said. "I want more than 30,000 fans to come and witness me win on January 24. Then I'm going to go and get the title! My journey back to the top starts now. "
Johnson (18-4) has picked up victories over Phil Davis and Antonio Rogerio Nogueira since signing back on with the UFC. He is 9-4 overall during his two stints, the first of which was stopped due to failure to make weight.
"This fight might be on his home turf, but I'm ready to go over to Sweden and prove that I'm the next in the line for the UFC light heavyweight title," Johnson said. "I'm not intimidated by fighting in front of Alex's hometown fans. I'm going to go in there and look for the knockout like I do in all of my fights. I can't wait for this!"
The card will air on FOX on Saturday night, which translates to an early morning start time in Sweden.
- According to MMAFighting.com, Bellator 131 main event fighters Tito Ortiz and Stephan Bonnar have passed multiple pre-fight drug tests administrated by the California Athletic Commission.
Andy Foster, executive director, told the site that Bonnar has passed two urine tests and Ortiz one. Bonnar previously tested positive for banned substances following two UFC fights, including his last vs. Anderson Silva in 2012.
Ortiz and Bonnar will square off Saturday night on Spike TV. The card also features Will Brooks vs. Michael Chandler for the lightweight title and Muhammed "King Mo" Lawal vs. Joe Vedepo.