We met this morning to finish up our oral presentation. It went pretty well overall but the language barrier is definitely an issue. Our international students have had a little trouble completely following and understand some of the things we have asked of them, but they have worked really hard and worked well with the group. After our initial run through our time was a little short, and there was entirely to much reading off the power points. We need to be more enthusiastic during our presentation and really try to make the accounting firm interesting. We have all worked well as a group and should have a quality product here finishing up.
11/20
Today we turned in our paper. I was a little upset Brendon did not finish it till this morning and nobody got to see it before it was printed and ready to be turned in. I trust his work but still would of liked to see it. I feel it is really good and looked great. We need to work on the presentation and make sure we have a good script prepared because you could tell the group that did not today. Still kinda sick too and not sleeping great through the night and it sucks.
11/19
Worked on the project more today wrapping it all up. Meeting was a little disorganized but we accomplished a lot of what we needed done. We have a good group who seems to have done very good work. Brendon was a no show again had other work he needed to do instead. Being sick is killing me on wanting to stay up and get work done lately. We still have to work on the presentation which I do think some of our group members may not be very strong at, because they did not do very well in the interviews also.
Blog 1
I wanted to write my blogs on here 1 to use this since I have not for a couple years, and 2 so it is not completely public to my group. I am so far impressed with my group. I am feeling a sort of lack of leadership on Brendon’s part and a great job by Shelby for stepping up so much and being on top of this project. I feel that so far I may not have contributed a ton, but at the interview felt to me that I was the most comfortable in the situation. I have had only 1 issue so far, during the first consultation, the group leader was on his laptop and was on Facebook during that time.
I really liked what I have heard so far about our company and what I had to hear when I was there. I enjoyed hearing that an accounting firm does not have to be so mundane and can be fun and involved in the community, getting away from such strong red and blue mentalities. They seem to have a very strong culture and community. Seems like a place I would not mind submitting a resume or at least learn more about it.
I had a rough Halloween and I am really upset that all of my notes from the consultation and meeting with the company were stolen, along with some of my other possessions after the window to my car was broken and my backpack was taken.
GOOD4U Drinks Ban is Bull
As of the evening of October 18, 2010 GOOD4U Drinks was added to the list of banned sponsors from Zuffa. According to the Canadian GOOD4U Drinks web site, they were started in 2001, as Double D Suppliers Ltd. In 2004 the company started to innovate and become Double D Beverage Corporation and came out with Beaver Buzz Energy Drink. They now have 3 styles products they advertise and put out to consumers, BVR Buzz Energy, Vintage Soda, and GOOD4U RTD Performance Formulae.
Zuffa has owned the company Xyience for many years now. Xyience is known as the official energy drink of the UFC, as where AMP Energy is for the WEC. Xyience has been prominent on the Ultimate Fighter and has been seen on the octagon floor many times. This is great, Xyience’s product Xenergy is a great energy drink, but GOOD4U Drinks are NOT ENERGY DRINKS, they are sport drinks.
Zuffa went to GOOD4U Drinks saying that they are in direct competition with Xyience, and that their logo was not permitted at a Zuffa event. However unfortunate it is that they are not allowed to sponsor fighters in future events, one of the biggest issues is that GOOD4U Drinks are sponsors a total of 4 fights for Saturdays UFC 121. The four fighters being Chris Camozzi, Patrick Cote, Matt Hamill, and Jon Madsen, they also have sponsored other great fighters such as Todd Duffee, Gabe Ruediger, and heavyweight contender Shane Carwin. Pulling their sponsorship left less than a week for the four fighters competing Saturday night to find other sponsors to try to fill that spot.
Last night Ted Gruber from Chicago Now had a phone interview with Rick DeBanks Co-President of GOOD4U Drinks. DeBanks said that the reason they had issues was that two of their drinks had guarana in it, both not being energy drinks. DeBanks went on to say he is disappointed that this happened but it is not going to stop GOOD4U Drinks from getting their name out. DeBanks feels that they should have said after UFC 121 to not be able to sponsor fighters, but making them pull out of UFC 121 is not the best idea for the fighters. Pushing that it’s the fighters that go out into the cage and bleed, and that when a company like them puts out 100s of thousands of dollars to support their fighters should not be pulled like that. They still want to be present in mixed martial arts be it Bellator or other organizations, possibly even other sports.
GOOD4U Drinks is not the first company to be banned from Zuffa events. Numerous large clothing companies have been banned in the past. Hayabusa, RVCA, and Clinch Gear are prime examples. Other large companies such as Dethrone Royalty and One More Round were on this list at one point too. Along with Condom Depot, Full Tilt Poker, and Party Poker have been banned. The bright side to this though is that the majority of these companies have been allowed to reenter the octagon.
In the end, GOOD4U Drinks should not have been banned from the Zuffa in my opinion and if they had to be should have been handled better. This action has made me want to purchase GOOD4U Drinks over Xenergy. Like the fighters GOOD4U Drinks sponsor, they are tough guys and are not going to just tap out after this happens. I have faith that they will be back on fighters shorts and banners very soon, whether it is under Zuffa or not is to been seen, but mixed martial arts is a fast growing sport with many up and coming fighters and many organizations. All the best to GOOD4U drinks.
Check out GOOD4U Drinks website at http://www.gd4u.com/
Follow them on Twitter @GOOD4UDrinks
Ted Gruber’s interview with Rick DeBanks http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=g5uK0_SOQGE&feature=player_embedded
Strikeforce Diaz vs. Noons II Prediction
Tonight comes the rematch that people have wanted to see, but not exactly exspected, at least at this point. Nick Diaz the defending Strikeforce welterweight champion is taking on KJ Noons (9-1) who has been going between welterweight and lightweight recently. Noons is coming off of two big wins against Jorge Gurgel and Connor Heun is trying leave 2-0 against Diaz.
Nick Diaz a Cesar Gracie black belt and older brother of UFC fighter and Ultimate Fighter winner Nate Diaz has been improving leaps and bounds from fight to fight recently. Although this is his first official title defense with Strikeforce, Diaz has been in this position before. Being a former WEC champion and having many big fights in the UFC and in Japan, Diaz is no stranger to the spotlight.
These two guys genuinely dislike each other. Scott Cocker the CEO of Strikeforce has come out and said that there is going to be extra security everywhere these two guys are going to be. I think that this is going to be a great back and forth fight. I give Noons the advantage on the feet. Noons is a very good and technical boxer and could tag Diaz on the feet, but not very likely. Diaz has good enough boxing to stay out of Noons way and to keep moving and get the fight to the ground, where he has the distinct advantage. I am choosing Nick Diaz to walk away with his title still in hand. My pick is Nick Diaz by Submission in the fifth round.
WEC 51
With WEC 51 in the books many stories come away from that great night of fights. Starting off the card was a tough back and forth war between Leonard Garcia and Mark Hominick. Despite breaking his hand in the fight Hominick pulled out a split decision.
Following that fight came, George Roop and ‘The Korean Zombie’ Chan Sung Jung. In the first round Roop used his reach extremely well and kept Jung on the outside. Living up to his nickname ‘The Zombie’ just kept moving forward, trying to get into the pocket and throw with Roop. Roop kept moving very well and made sure Jung didn’t get comfortable and pulled out a convincing first round. Coming out in the second though Roop starting throwing more high kicks and mixing up his strikes much more and really pushing the pace. You could see this was making Jung a little uncomfortable. Then at 1:30 into the second round Roop though a beautiful high kick which caught Jung and knocked him out, and awarding Roop the Knock Out of the Night bonus of an extra ten thousand dollars.
The televised Versus card then showed an undercard fight, of the first fighter to come from Chinese mainland to fight in the United States, Tiequan Zhang who fought Pablo Garza. Both fighters came out strong and were throwing very hard. Zhang then pulled out a very slick guillotine choke and finished the fight in the first round. A big win for the Chinese fighter making his United States MMA debut.
The third fight on the main card was Miguel ‘Angel’ Torres and Charlie Valencia. Valencia a well know California guy but does not have a big name at this point. Both guys came out tough in the first round. Miguel, who is now training in Montreal with the TriStar gym under Firas Zahabi, has become almost a completely new fighter. Torres used his much longer reach very effectively and kept Valencia on the outside. A much more focused Torres used great standup and controlled the first round with a late knock down at the end of the round. Round two started out with Valencia coming forward and strong right at Torres firing off some kicks and hard punches. Torres throws a hard shot and connects with Valencia and rocks him, and Torres pounces on him. Going for the finish Miguel takes his back and works for the rare naked choke and finishes the fight in the second round, awarding him the Submission of the Night. Torres looked like a new and focused man, and looked lean and mean. He sounded much more focused and is ready to make another run at the title and within a fight or two he will be there, and if he keeps this trend up, there is no reason why he cannot be the WEC champion again in 2011.
The co-main event on the WEC 51 card was Donald ‘Cowboy’ Cerrone and Jamie Varner. This rematch of one of the fight of the year candidates from 2010 became a fight of the year candidate for 2011, and Fight of the Night for WEC 51. Both Cerrone and Varner hate each other and were not going hold anything back. Cerrone came out strong right out of the gate. Cowboy came out throwing kicks, knees, and hard punches. Cerrone’s striking has improved even more and was bringing it to Varner. Varner came forward and hard right back at Cerrone who dropped and took Varner down hard. The first fight Cowboy never had a desire to do this because of Varner’s great wrestling ability, but not this time. Cowboy had numerous takedowns throughout the fight, which you could see got to Varner right away, he never had expected that to happen. For three rounds Cowboy Cerrone pushed the pace and brought it Varner. Although Varner did bring it back at Cerrone and clipped him a couple good times he could finish Cerrone. Cerrone picked apart Varner on the feet and on the ground, winning all three rounds. After the decision Cerrone offered Varner the rubber match, and stated he is not looking for a title fight right away and he just wants to have fun exciting fights. Cerrone is working his way back up the ladder and is going to be a strong contender once again soon.
The main event of the card Manny ‘The Anvil’ Gamburyan squared off with the champion Jose Aldo Junior. Manny is an Ultimate Fighter Season 5 finalist at 155 pounds, who is now fighting at 145 pounds, and coming off a huge knock out over former champion Mike Brown was focus and ready to bring it 110 percent at Jose Aldo Junior. When it was time for the champion to make his way to the cage Jose Aldo Junior came out just radiating confidence. Aldo had this swagger to him, like he knew something that no one else did. Walking out with some pep in his step and ready to win he made his way into the cage. Personally wanting to see Manny have a big upset, I knew at that point it wasn’t going to happen. Aldo standing in a traditional Muay Thai stance met Gamburyan in the center of the cage. Gamburyan wasted no time to start throwing some hard punch and a stiff jab, as Aldo counters with one of his mean low kicks. Gamburyan kept moving and throwing while Aldo just kept slipping the punches and countering and hit Manny with a hard right hand and poked him in the eye. Manny took a minute to recover and came back out and finished the round strong. Coming out in round two Aldo opened up more and throwing more kicks and hard punches and connected a couple times. This drives Gamburyan to shoot in on Aldo who used his great takedown defense and with Gamburyan being stunned from a hard uppercut on his way in turtles up as Aldo takes his back and starts throwing hard punches under Manny arms and knocked him out as Manny collapsed on his face.
Jose Aldo Junior is building his case as being one of the top pound for pound fighters in the world. Tearing through all of his opponents. Aldo is looking at fighting in the 155 lightweight class as well as 145. I don’t think anyone would not want to see Aldo fighting in both weight classes and you cannot assume he isn’t going to do well. He is quiet and cerebral, and just wants to fight the best. Could Cerrone be his welcome to the lightweight class? Cerrone sure welcomes that idea, and Reed Harris, the Dana White of the WEC, isn’t counting out that option. Jose Aldo Junior has already taken out two former champions and numerous other top fighters, can he be stopped? Who will be the guy to stop him if he can? These questions are on everyone’s mind and I know I will be tuning in to see, and I will not be counting out Aldo again anytime soon.
Photo Courtesy of MMAJunkie.com
Is Cro-Cop still the same from Pride?
Following UFC 119 some of the fighters were getting flak for their performances. Spearheading much of these discussions has been Mirko Cro-Cop. Many people feel that Cro-Cop has lost his killer instinct. He is not the same fighter that he was in Pride. I try to think that this is not what has happened.
MMA has evolved drastically since the Pride days. Fighters have evolved. The game has evolved. Star fighters like Mirko Cro-Cop and Wanderlei Silva had to change their game. They cannot just run out to the center or the ring and start throwing head kicks or clinching up to throw knees. The game is much more technical and methodical.
I don’t think Cro-Cop has lost his killer instinct because he isn’t throwing as many head kicks or because he apologized for the low blow to Frank Mir. The hug and touching gloves in the Pat Berry fight, was not exactly normal, but that is the type of fight Cro-Cop wants, and he was having a great time during it. He wants to stand and bang and not just try to avoid the takedown.
It’s no secret that Frank Mir wanted to take Cro-Cop down and that was the last place Cro-Cop wanted to be. Yes, he submitted Pat Berry, but come on. Cro-Cop was doing everything he could to stay on his feet and when he felt comfortable in the third round he went for the kill and tried to take out Mir. Unfortunately he took a hard knee on his way in, and was finished rather than finishing Mir.
Cro-Cop isn’t the same fighter he used to be, but MMA isn’t the same sport it used to be. He is still a killer, and anyone who is willing to stand in front of him and take one of his head kicks can start making comments when they wake back up. Till then, Mirko Cro-Cop is still someone to watch out for.
UFC 119 Fan Perspective
I wrote this to post on http://www.cagewarfare.com and it is poster there but I am trying to keep this going more often and keep directing people to cagewarfare and support them and connect to here.
After UFC 119 concluded, and my first live UFC was over, there were many thoughts going through my head. On this occasion I got the chance to meet numerous fighters and other MMA notables that I see online and on podcasts. Along with these people I also met MMA hardcore fans along with a few people who couldn’t name 5 submissions. Although I got my fill of Tapout and Affliction apparel there is so much more about the evening I cannot wait to see again.
First off I cannot wait until the UFC comes back to Indianapolis. The feeling in the arena was electrifying. Seeing the hometown guys like Sean McCorkle, Matt Mitrione, and Chris Lytle take home big wins made the experience even better. Afterwards discovering they also took home some big bonus checks added to that great feeling and experience from the evening.
With all the good things I took away, there were some bad things that I would like to see changed. I understand the UFC is a Pay-Per-View programmed show and they have a time limit. After the Jeremy Stephens versus Melvin Guillard fight no one was given the chance to speak with Joe Rogan. Anyone who has watched more than one UFC pay-per-view knows that whoever wins the bout speaks with Rogan about their win. It may not always be shown on the broadcast but they get to for the arena crowd. At times even the loser gets to talk also. When a fighter gets interviewed and gets the chance to talk about their fight they always finish with a plug for their sponsor. This plug is what helps the fighters continue to be able to fight. Fighters have their walkout shirts, logos on their shorts, and the banner they display while they are being introduced by Bruce Buffer. That is what pays fighters. They get something from showing and more for winning, but the rest of their income is from sponsors. The plug at the end while getting interviewed is their last chance to get the sponsor’s name out and thank their camp. Just like they make more money if they are on Spike TV or the Pay-Per-View they make more when mentioning the sponsor and denying them that opportunity is taking money out of the fighter’s pocket.
After UFC 113 Machida versus Shogun II, Paul “Semtex” Daley took a cheap shot at Josh “KOS” Koscheck after the final bell and he was released by the UFC. Dana White came out and said he would never fight for Zuffa again. Sportsmanship is held high in MMA. At the same time so is the respect that fighters show for each other. Fighters always say they want to beat the crap out of each other. In the end usually a mutual respect is shown and fighters always touch gloves before the fight and usually finish it with a hug regardless of the result.
If the fighters hold respect to such a high degree so should the promotion. It is no secret that Dana White is very outspoken and will let everyone know how he feels. During the Guillard fight he was posting on his twitter that he was not impressed with the fight. I have to agree with that. It was not the most exciting fight, but it was also not the worst. Melvin Guillard stepped into the cage against a very tough guy in Jeremy Stephens and put his body and well-being on the line and that deserves the same respect that someone who goes out and finished the fight in the by submission or knockout gets.
In the main event of the evening Frank Mir squared off with Mirko Cro-Cop. The first two rounds of the fight were very show and technical. Neither fighter really wanted to let go and go for the win. This was very unsettling to the Indianapolis fans. The boo’s started and still nothing started to happen. This was when many people started getting up and walking out of the arena. People had been streaming out of the arena when about halfway through the third and final round Cro-Cop went for a flurry of punches and what looked like a takedown and was caught with a huge knee that brought him down followed up by 3 punches. Cro-Cops night was ended there. He was knocked out and was not getting up.
Unfortunately for so many fans that got up and left, they missed it. You would think MMA fans would know better. Lessons should have been learned earlier in UFC history. In UFC 117 Silva versus Sonnen, Sonnen dominated for four and a half rounds and then got caught in a triangle. Another example was when Carlos Condit knocked out Rory MacDonald at UFC 115 with only seconds left in the fight, after being down the whole fight. This is not the NFL where someone is able to take a knee and run the clock out at the end. This is MMA and it’s not over till it’s over.
Overall I loved the experience of going to UFC 119. I am already looking forward to the next time I am able to go to a UFC event. The experience was everything I could have hoped for and getting to meet the people I did was amazing. Yes, some UFC fans are uneducated and fickle, but just as many if not more are just the exact opposite. Those are the fans that will keep this great sport growing and keep it moving forward to become the biggest sport in the world.
This article can also been seen at http://www.cagewarfare.com/blog/?p=77 check out the site and other blogs and fighter bios.
UFC Search and Win
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