Random Sports Stuff (plus UFC 100 picks)

I'm sure everyone has been this by now, but if you haven't, check out this amazing remix featuring some of the great sports press conference moments of all time. Even if you've never seen any of these original moments before, this is still worth watching because it's such a catchy tune. Let me just throw it out there right now: DJ Steve Porter is the next Moby. Or at least the equivalent of the guy who mixed the beats for Organized Rhyme.




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Mark's Top Ten Pro Wrestling Tag Teams of ALL TIME

10. The Heavenly Bodies (Gigolo Jimmy Delrey, "The Doctor Of Desire" Tom Pritchard)
9. The Natural Disasters (Earthquake and Typhoon)
8. Demolition (Ax and Smash)
7. The Hardy Brothers (Jeff Hardy, Matt Hardy)
6. The Steiner Brothers (Rick Steiner, Scott Steiner)
5. Edge and Christian
4. The Quebecers (Jacques Rougeau, Carl Ouelette)
3. The Hollywood Blonds (Stunning Steve Austin, Flyin' Brian Pillman)
2. The Midnight Express (Beautiful Bobby Eaton, Sweet Stan Lane)
1. The Hart Foundation (Bret 'Hitman' Hart, Jim 'The Anvil' Neidhart)

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Put it this way. If you're a retired and/or washed-up hockey player and you haven't been on Off The Record at some point, you're doing something wrong.

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UFC 100 picks!

* Jon Fitch over Paulo Thiago, decision
Thiago is the guy who one-punched Josh Koscheck into oblivion last winter, thus leading to this follow-up match against the second-best welterweight in the world. Given that Kos was dominating Thiago before the surprise KO, I'm going to go ahead and call Thiago's win a solid 0.6 on the Matt Serra Upset Scale. Fitch should dominate the Brazilian en route to another decision win, since Fitch never finishes anybody.

* Alan Belcher over Yoshihiro Akiyama, knockout, R2
Akiyama is a high-priced import from Japan who is known for his flashy entrances and all sorts of controversial finishes. As much as the UFC would love to see Akiyama become their big star to market to Japanese fans, I'm sticking with the tried and true rule that newcomers from abroad lose their first UFC fights. 'Alan The Talent,' stupid nickname and hilariously ugly Johnny Cash tattoo aside, is a tough fighter and a good gatekeeper in the division. I'm looking at another Belcher win that earns him a shot at a solid middleweight contender.

* Dan Henderson over Michael Bisping, chokeout, R2
I've said it before and I'll say it again --- I don't know if Michael Bisping sucks or not. The UFC has done such a good job of protecting their British marketing golden boy that this Henderson bout is his first defining challenge in a three-year career. Even when Bisping lost to Rashad Evans, he had the out that his ideal division was at middleweight. But if Bisping loses here, then we'll finally see that the emperor (or, the Count) has no clothes. Frankly, I think this is going to happen. Dan Henderson is a world-class middleweight and I think he'll wrestle Bisping down and pound his cocky ass out.

* Georges St. Pierre over Thiago Alves, TKO, R2
GSP had this fight won last February. When Alves came into the ring for the traditional 'next challenger congratulates the champ' meeting following St. Pierre's destruction of BJ Penn, Alves had his head down, mumbled his congratulations and had a look on his face similar to that on the look on Dan Aykroyd's face when the Marshmallow Man showed up. I don't think there's anything that Alves can do to top what St. Pierre brings to the table, so the only question here will be if GSP remains in the welterweight division (to defend against the winner of the Mike Swick/Martin Kampmann fight in September?) or if he moves on to a superfight against Anderson Silva.

* Brock Lesnar over Frank Mir, TKO, R1
Over a year after their first encounter, this match will decide the undisputed heavyweight title and (the UFC hopes) will establish Lesnar as the top drawing card in MMA. A Lesnar victory turns the heavyweight division into a headline attraction that it hasn't been without Randy Couture holding the belt. The playbook is simple; Lesnar must avoid the Mir submissions that caught him in their first fight, and Mir has to try and withstand the initial Lesnar onslaught and wrestling attack to catch him in a hold when they're on the ground. Mir's upset win over AR Nogueira last winter, however, might be his downfall. Mir won that match by outstriking Nog, and thus in classic MMA fashion, Mir probably now considers himself hot shit on his feet. Though it's obvious to anyone with brain that the only way he can beat Lesnar is via submissions, Mir will probably try to show his balls by engaging in a striking battle with Lesnar early. My guess is, this will end horribly for Mir. Brock wins, Dana White needs a change of pants, and Fedor loses not even a minute of sleep.

Undercard matches....
* Stephan Bonnar over Mark Coleman, TKO, R1. Good lord, why is Mark Coleman getting another match? He literally almost died in the ring last January, and now he's fighting a solid striker in Bonnar? Stop the madness!

* Matt Grice over Shannon Gugerty, decision. Yep, don't care about this fight whatsoever.

* TJ Grant over Dong Hyun Kim, decision. Kim probably should win, all things being equal, but I'm being a homer for Canadian TJ Grant. Grant beat Ryo Chonan in his UFC debut, so I'm just presuming that Grant is unbeatable against all Asian fighters. This is the kind of high-powered analysis you'll get from me, folks.

* Jim Miller over Mac Danzig, decision. Another loss will knock Mac out of the UFC, and unfortunately, his deciding fight is up against a tough guy in Miller. His only loss came to lightweight powerhouse Gray Maynard, and thus I think Miller has enough to send Mac out of the UFC quicker than a hummingbird can fly.

* Jon Jones over Jake O'Brien, TKO, R2. O'Brien is a smothering wrestler known for being, uh, let's say 'methodical' (read: boring as hell), while Jones is arguably the most exciting prospect in the light-heavyweight division. I'm dearly hoping that Jones takes this one and continues his ascent up the ladder, and I suspect he'll bust out yet another wacky move to counter O'Brien's wrestling.

* CB Dollaway over Tom Lawlor, TKO, R1. Dollaway is another guy that the UFC is babying and bringing along slowly, ergo why he's being matched up against this stiff Lawlor. You may recall Lawlor as the guy who knocked out a drunken Dave Kaplan on The Ultimate Fighter. This is his only highlight.