My UFC Manila Experience

The UFC finally made it's way to Manila. Let's get it on!

The world's most popular mixed martial arts promotion had finally made it's way to the country and not only did it deliver but it provided Filipino fight fans with an experience of a lifetime.

From pillar to post, the UFC and its various sponsors provided many opportunities to meet and greet the fighters and UFC ambassadors that they flew in to promote the event.

It was such a great experience getting to watch our own local and fil-am fighters lock horns with international fighters, but most of all the win by the retiring "Filipino Wrecking Machine" Mark Munoz really brought the house down. Oh, and just watching Urijah Faber and Frankie Edgar fight had me breathing hard.

Kudos to all the fighters and you gave us all great fights.

Here's a run down of my UFC experience from fight week to the fights themselves.

Meet and Greet with Bryan Caraway and Miesha Tate at Solaire Resort and Casino

Meet and Greet with UFC Flyweight Champion Demetrious Johnson and
UFC Manila ring girl Red Dela Cruz at Watch Republic 

Attended the weigh-ins

With my wife and bro at the weigh-ins

Mighty Mouse and Miesha Tate doing a Q&A before the weigh-ins

Fight Night "Let's Get It On!"

Thank you Solaire Resort and Casino and Watch Republic for the opportunity to meet and greet the fighters and for bringing us a great UFC experience.

Great job and thank you UFC for coming to Manila!

It's Official: "The Filipino Wrecking Machine" Will Compete in UFC Fight Night Manila

© UFC

At the official on-sale event for UFC Fight Night Manila, it was announced that "The Filipino Wrecking Machine" Mark Munoz (13-6) will compete at the May 16 event against "The Big Slow" Luke Barnatt (8-2). Munoz was last seen in the Octagon at UFC 184, where he unfortunately dropped a submission loss to UFC-returnee Roan Carneiro.

That would serve as the third straight defeat for Munoz, as he was also previously defeated by Lyoto Machida and Gegard Mousasi. For many pundits it seemed like this would be it for the former Oklahoma State University wrestling standout.

The Filipino Wrecking Machine... doing some... well... wrecking. ©UFC

However. there is "Filipino" in "The Filipino Wrecking Machine" for a reason, and Mark would not go out until getting to fight for his fans and relatives in his homeland. With that said, we can all expect Mark Munoz to rely on his amateur wrestling work ethic and Filipino tenacity to pull out all the stops in getting this next win.

A win, apparently, that will be his last. It was also reported during the event that this will be Mark Munoz's final fight in the Octagon.

The warrior that he is, what could be his final win will not be easy to get. His opponent, Luke Barnatt, has also lost his last two, and a fight scheduled for April 4th with fellow The Ultimate Fighter alum Clint Hester was cancelled due to Hester suffering a foot injury.

Luke Barnatt. ©UFC

Standing at 6-feet-6-inches, Barnatt was introduced to taekwondo at age 15, but mostly competed in wrestling before training mixed martial arts. Prior to his recent two losses, Barnatt won eight straight, and on the heels of a fight cancellation, can be expected to wanting to play spoiler in Munoz's homeland retirement fight.

At the UFC Manila On-Sale Event / © Karl Vernon

***As a person who's had the honor and pleasuer of meeting Mark Munoz on three separate occasions, I wish nothing but the best for Mark in May and beyond. He's one off the most affable guys one can meet, always gracious to his fans despite how insanely popular he is. So thanks Mark, and I'll undoubtedly be rooting for you in everything you do.

UFC Fight Night Manila is scheduled for May 16 and will happen at the SM Mall of Asia Arena. The main event is a five-round featherweight bout between Frankie "The Answer" Edgar and "The California Kid" Urijah Faber.

UFC Fight Night Manila: "Thrilla" Card Takes Shape

Since the announcement of the first ever UFC event in Manila, there had been plenty of speculation of which fights would round out the card headlined by Frankie "The Answer" Edgar taking on "The California Kid" Urijah Faber.

Which other UFC stars will grace the Octagon for this historic event? How many of our own fighters will get to showcase the finest in Filipino mixed martial arts?

The past week or so had been interesting, and provided a bevy of answers:

Team Lakay's Mark Eddiva to Compete at Home

© UFC / Getty Images

Mark Eddiva (6-1-0), one of the Philippine's most notable fighters competing out of Team Lakay, was announced as competitor in the event. He takes on Alex "The Spartan" White (10-2-0), a competitor fighting professionally since 2009. While White won his Octagon debut by KO in April of last year, his last two outings had him on the losing end. It can be expected that he would want to play Eddiva's spoiler this May so he can get back on track.

Eddiva on the hand, similarly won his promotional debut, earning the decision against Jumabieke Texerun at a UFC: Fight Night card almost a year ago. He earned "Fight of the Night" honors in his second bout last May, despite suffering a KO/TKO to Kevin Souza. With the home crowd behind him, Eddiva will surely be looking to put on a show and earn another Fight of the Night honor, but this time coupled with a W.


Fil-Am Phillipe Nover Makes His Return to the Octagon

© Phillipe Nover Facebook Fan Page

Former The Ultimate Fighter finalist Phillipe Nover (10-5-1) will be getting a second chance in the Octagon, with the timing perfect for UFC: Fight Night Manila. Last competing in the promotion in 2010, "Super" tore through the competition on the eighth season of The Ultimate Fighter, He unfortunately dropped his final three bouts in the UFC, but has since won 5 out of 7 bouts and rightfully earned another shot in the big dance.

The now-featherweight takes on "The Korean Bulldozer," Yui Chul Nam (18-4-1), an exciting fighter who has won his last five bouts. Yui's most recent victory against Kazuki Tokudome last March was his promotional debut and was deemed Fight of the Night.


Lim Hyun-Gyu vs Neil Magny

©UFC

South Korean Lim Hyun-Gyu (13-4-1), a face familiar to Pinoy fight fans thanks to his time as a former Pacific Xtreme Combat champion, will face surging Neil Magny (14-3) in a welterweight bout.

Lim has won 3 out of his last 4 bouts, with the sole UFC loss to former Strikeforce Champion Tarec Saffiedine. Despite defeat, Lim put forth a memorable performance and the two men earned Fight of the Night at the Singapore Card.

Magny on the other hand, has been earning accolades of his own. He has won his last 6 bouts, 5 of which occured in 2014. He tied Roger "The Matador" Huerta for most UFC wins within a calendar year. His most recent win just was just last February, when he submitted Kiichi Kunimoto via rear-naked choke and earned Performance of the Night.


Mousasi vs. Philippou

©UFC

In what is most like the co-main event of the Manila card, Dutch kickboxer Gregard "The Dream Catcher" Mousasi will take on #12 ranked middleweight Constantinos "Costas" Philippou.

A former DREAM Light Heavyweight Champion and Middleweight Champion, and former Strikeforce Light Heavyweight Champion, Mousasi (36-5-2) last took the cage in January, toppling former Pride and Stikeforce Champion Dan Henderson in the first round and earning the TKO win.

Philippou (13-4-0) had been less active, last competing in May 2014, where he defeated Lorenz Larkin via KO.

©UFC

UFC Fight Night Manila will be headlined by a five-round featherweight bout between Frankie "The Answer" Edgar and "The California Kid" Urijah Faber, and is scheduled for May 15th and will be held at the SM Mall of Asia Arena.

For more information, visit UFC.com and SMTickets.com.

#UFCManila: What We Know So Far

Last January 29, sports and online media was set abuzz with the announcement that an Ultimate Fighting Championship (UFC) card was to be held in the Philippines. While the fights for the card was not announced along with the event, the excitement in the county was immediately palpable as fans began to speculate who the featured fighters would be.

Would the "Filipino Wrecking Machine" Mark Munoz be competing on the card despite being booked in a February 28th fight with Roan Carneiro? How many Pinoy fighters will be featured on the card? Who is the broadcast team that will call the action? Will Bruce Buffer be the announcer?

Fast forward 2 weeks, and we have some really exciting answers.


The Answer vs The California Kid

For the main, event,  Frankie "The Answer" Edgar (18-4-1) takes on the "The California Kid" Urijah Faber (32-7-0). Edgar, the former UFC Lightweight Champion, last fought in Novemeber, when he put away Cub Swanson in the main event of UFC Fight Night: Edgar vs.Swanson. Winning via neck crank at 4:58 of the fifth round, Edgar's victory earned the record of latest submission in a UFC fight, and on top of the victory got him a performance bonus for the night.

Faber on the other hand, was last seen gracing the Octagon last December, earning a submission victory over Francisco "Cisco" Rivera. The victory put "The California Kid" in a tie with Antonio Rodrigo Nogueira for most total submission finishes for a fighter in the combined history of the UFC, Strikeforce, World Extreme Cagefighting (WEC), and Pride Fighting Championship (Pride FC).

With Edgar currently a featherweight contender, and Faber having been the long time Featherweight Champion of the WEC, the Fight Night Manila main event has the makings of a mixed-martial arts Featherweight version of "The Thrilla in Manila".



The Usual Suspects


It wouldn't be an MMA event in the Philippines without Pinoy fighters on the card. Not surprisingly, the first to make it to the May fight card is a fighter from Team Lakay, arguably the best fight camp the country. Team Lakay's Roldan Sangcha-an (4-1-0) is scheduled to face Guam-based Jon "The Heat" Delos Reyes (7-4-0), whose also happens to be Filipino. Delos Reyes was last seen in the Octagon last September, falling to Kyoji Horiguchi via TKO.

Sangcha-an on the other hand, made his UFC debut last June, dropping a decision to Richie Vaculik at UFC Fight Night: Te Huna vs. Marquardt. With both fighters looking to turn their fortunes around, Manila looks to be the perfect venue for one to finally get a UFC win. Fans can expect a total war to be waged between the Mountain Province-based local hero and the Guam-raised Filipino as they scrap for that highly coveted W.

UFC: Fight Night Manila will also be the return of Jon "Super Saiyan" Tuck (8-2-0) to the Philippine fight scene. He was last seen in the country competing at Pacific Xtreme Combat 28 in 2011, knocking out Tristan Arenal in the first round. Tuck's success has been a little inconsistent in the big dance however, as he's alternated wins and losses in his four UFC fights. With the return to familiar stomping grounds, Tuck will look to get back on the win column.

It wont be easy however, as he is slated to face Tae Hyun Bang. While not having fought in six months, Bang (17-8-0), is coming off an impressive knock out of Kajan Johnson at UFC 174. With the long lay-off, it can be expected that he will be raring to repeat his previous success.


The complete list of fights for UFC Fight Night Manila (so far):

Frankie Edgar vs Urijah Faber (5 Round featherweight bout)

Bang Tae-Hyun vs Jon Tuck (lightweight bout)

Roldan Sangcha-an vs Jon Delos Reyes (flyweight bout)

Zhang LiPeng vs Kajan Johnson (lightweight bout)

Nolan Ticman vs Yao ZhiKui (flyweight bout)

Roger Zapata vs Li JingJiang (welterweight bout)


For the moment, Mark Munoz is not slated on to be the card, but he did mention in an interview that after he's through with his February 28th bout in Los Angeles, he'd like a ticket to the dance in Manila.

While it will be a little longer before it's known if "The Filipino Wrecking Machine" will or will not be part of what is already a great card for UFC Manila in May, fans can be happy with the reports that part-Filipina ring girl Arianny Celeste may also be working the event.

UFC Fight Night Manila is scheduled for May 16, 2015 and will take place at the SM Mall of Asia Arena. For tickets, visit SMTickets.com. For updates on the event, visit UFC.com and BallsChannel.tv.

All photos property of the Ultimate Fighting Championship.