Combat-Hooligans.com is here

We'll have a grand-opening on down the road a bit, but we've decided that we're far enough along that we're going to start posting to Combat-Hooligans.com

Change your bookmarks and RSS readers accordingly.

I will have one final post here to close out this era appropriately.

Continue Reading!

Some Site News

There's a lot of stuff that will be of interest to readers and even I suspect authors of this site which I am putting behind the cut.



Firstly, observant readers will note that the URL to this page is now archives.combat-hooligans.com which is where this page will reside perminently. When the new site is ready to go, this blog will not be updated but it will remain where it is as a reminder of where we've been. Plus, it will also be available should we want to retrieve old posts such as DVD or show reviews for C-H.com

Secondly, Combat-Hooligans.com is on MySpace.com and can be accessed here so check it out and add us as a friend. The page is kind of bland but that will change as time passes.

Third, my status on this particular site. You will not see a lot of posts from me on this blog for the time being. The reason for this is I am directing all creative energy to working on the new site. The fact is that this has sort of renewed my interest in all of this and I want to give it my all. So, if I post to the Times it will likely be to update progress on the new site.
However, I intend to do live coverage of the following shows and of course do all of the required roundtables until the site is ready.

1. SHOWXC: July 27, 2007
   
2. WEC 29: August 5, 2007
   
3. TNA Wrestling's 'Hard Justice' 08/12/2007

I believe Euan, the torchured soul that he is will be covering the Great American Bash this Sunday.
As for the frequency of posts from other members of the team, I'll leave it up to them to decide where to focus their attention.

So, when is this all going to launch official? The short answer is it will launch when we're ready.
The fact is, that there's a lot of potential here and while we're all pretty much novices as creating sites, we do have some sources to help us out.
So, when we've got everything how everyone likes it or at least where we can live with it, all new content will be going over there.
Ideally, as I've said I'd like to have it ready by 08/13 but that's a date written in pencil. Once it is launched we will probably still tinker with the look and add features as time passes but I think we're all in agreement we wish to put best-foot-forward when we go live. If you looked at Combat-Hooligans.com a few days ago and look at it now, you'll note it is still in flux and looks quite different. The way it looks now will not be how it looks in a week and that will not be how it looks when it is ready to go.

When content starts going up over there, from me personally you'll get a lot more opinion in edition to the news. In fact, I will make one announcement concerning new content for combat-hooligans right now. The first post I make at Combat-Hooligans when it is ready to go, will be a complete review of the Pride FC 2000 Grand Prix DVD.

There are other things in store for the site that will really put us on the map especially when it comes to audio I believe, but I will not get in to that right now.

If you want to know where to get your news in my absense, I suggest:
CanvasChronicle
as Ric says he's going back to work monday. Yeah, that could last until Tuesday but lets not get tied up in minor details.

Continue Reading!

Announcing: combat-hooligans.com

You may have noticed my lack of posting lately. It is because I've been working on a new project. The project is not yet complete, but it is to the point where I am ready to announce it.

www.combat-hooligans.com the site is a mess and is still under construction but feel free to take a peak at what a mess looks like.

So, the question now becomes why did we do this?

You'll have to click the cut for that answer and a few more.



The reason for the change is quite simple. It is for the purposes of branding ourselves as something. The Old Country Times or Old Country Corner was sort of my project and Euan and Art came aboard. So it was sort of built in my image although really it didn't have an image of its own. Add to that the fact that at a glance it is so vague that you don't really know what it is all about.

Sure, I came up with the name Combat Hooligans but unless they're lying to me, both Art and Euan have given it their approval.

It is a chance for a new start, a fresh start and a redefining of ourselves.

What can you expect on Combat-hooligans.com?

One thing you can expect is more interactivity including an on-site bulleton board which doesn't need registration, as well as the ability to vote in polls. You are also going to get some new featured columns and generally you're going to get more of our take on things, not just the news itself.

We intend to offer more audio content on Combat-Hooligans.com and will work on that as time passes. I should note, that this also includes interviews with names in the wrestling and MMA industry which as of now we've not offered.

So what becomes of the Old Country Times?

When the new site is ready to launch I am going to point this site towards it. You'll be able to see this blog as an archive but it will not be updated, all of the updates will be on the main Combat-Hooligans.com page.

So when will this change go into effect?

It all depends on when Euan Art and I think that the site is cleaned up and ready to go. My personal target deadline is 08/13 which would mark the 1-year anniversary of my personal blogging life, and I can't think of a better time to launch a new venture.

So take your sneak peak at www.Combat-Hooligans.com vote in the poll that is up and let us know what you think.

Anymore feedback can be left in the comments section of this post or Email me directly

More information about site content/official launch will be available in the near future.

Continue Reading!

Quick Site Note and Roundtable reminders

The roundtable reminders are for Cage Rage 22 and Mark Danger's wacky picks are already in for that show...more wackiness is coming.

Also Victory Road is up and ready.

As for the site note my apologies for the updates today, I'm having computer issues that have prevented me from being as complete as I'd like with my updates and am breaking in new web browsers and am still getting used to them.

So, I had to fix a couple of posts from earlier and if there's anything else I should know: let me know

Continue Reading!

New Podcast

Euan did not link this yesterday, but we have a new audio show for your enjoyment and I warn you now, Euan is drunk and very offensive. Art and I are also offensive but less so than Euan by a considerable amount.

Speaking of the podcast, look for an announcement in the coming days.

Continue Reading!

Final Roundtable Reminder: UFC 73 'Stacked'

This is the last reminder for the UFC 73 roundtable preview and predictions.

The thread you need to access is Here and as of now: Art, Scott, myself and Mark Danger have submitted picks. All readers are able to do so by registering for the forum. All picks lock at the start of the event.

Want more insentive?

The words of Mark Danger:

They are chicken. They know that I Mark Danger will beat them and make the humble

The Dangerman is calling all of you...out!

Continue Reading!

What's up at the forum? 07/03

I know this may be hard to believe, but we actually have a forum and sometimes post in it. Outside of the roundtable forum there are all kinds of things being posted by myself, Mark Danger and Art.

A sample of new threads...
IFL Battleground
The official make fun of Phil Baroni thread
Fatal Femmes Fighting
is the WWE desperate to deflect attention?
Chris Benoit hall-of-famer?

and non-wrestling or MMA threads like:
A hardy bite me to Dominic Rhodes

So, now that you've seen some of what our board has to offer, why not sign up and join in?

I'll be highlighting topics from time to time.

Continue Reading!

Vote at Podcast Alley

It is July which means it is time once again to vote for us at podcast alley.

Voting helps us get exposure and all tat fun stuff. June was a down month for votes and for our doing shows. We'll be rectifying that shortly and will hopefully have some new and improved features for our show.

Expect to hear more on this in the coming days.

In the meantime, rock the vote~!

Continue Reading!

Roundtable Reminder: UFC 73 'Stacked'

thread here

Another month, another series of Pay Per Views and big events. Another series of big events, and more predictions to be made. We kick off the month with UFC 73 'Stacked', on Saturday 07/07.

You can see the card, view our predictions and after registering make your own.

Thread locks when the show starts.

Enjoy

Continue Reading!

Discussion of Benoit family tragety

Here is a discussion thread for all your thoughts and comments or whatever.

I apologize for not being as vigilent as other sites on the net with coverage of this story, but my thoughts are really scattered right now and to be honest I trust my words more than I do my writings. So if it were up to me and to be honest, it isn't entirely...there would be a podcast at some point dealing with this issue.

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Roundtable Recap: Nightmare June is over...

Yes, the nightmare of June which saw 9 Predictions contests is over.

Congratulations go out to myself, Art and Euan for being the only ones in the group to pick all 9 of them. Welcome to Mark Danger who joined the club on the last day, thus ensuring heel status for time to come, however not by me as his comments about the D&D tag title match made me laugh hard.

Scott just missed picking all of them...he picked 8 of 9 events. He only missed WEC.
Wade picked in 6 of 9 events.
Ric picked 5 of 9 events.

Everyone's updated statistics are behind the cut:



Casey Trowbridge: 12 contest wins in 30 events
EXC: 3 E, 22 W, 11 L, 66.7%
Pride: 2 E, 6 W, 10 L,, 1 NC 37.5%
UFC: 10 E, 56 W, 32 L, 1 NC 62.9%
WEC: 1 Event, 6 W, 3 L, 66.7%
MMA: 16 E, 90 W, 56 L, 2 NC 60.8%
TNA: 6 E, 32 W, 22 L, 59.3%
WWE: 8 E, 37 W, 21 L, 1 NC 62.7%
Wrestling: 14 E, 69 W, 43 L, 1NC 61.1%
Overall: 30 E, 159 W, 99 L, 3 NC 60.9%

Contests Won/Tied: New Year’s Revolution, No Way Out, Pride 33, Destination X, UFC 69, Sacrifice, UFC 71, One Night Stand, WEC 28 on Versus, Strikeforce/EXC, TUF 5 Finale, Vengeance

I'm on a hot streak, with 3 in a row!

Art Shimko: 5 contest wins in 27 events
EXC: 3 E, 22 W, 11 L, 66.7%
Pride: 0 E, 0 W, 0 L, 0%
UFC: 10 E, 50 W, 38 L, 1 NC 56.2%
WEC: 1 e, 6 W, 3 L, 66.7%
MMA: 14 E, 78 W, 52 L, 1 NC 59.5%
TNA: 5 E, 23 W, 21 L, 52.3%
WWE: 8 E, 32 W, 24 L, 1 NC 56.1%
Wrestling: 13 E, 55 W, 45 L, 1 NC 54.5%
Overall: 27 E, 133 W, 97 L, 2 NC 57.3%

Contests Won/Tied: UFC 71, Dynamite USA, One Night Stand, WEC 28 on Versus, Vengeance

Art had a good month in some respects, and not so good in others.

Ric Gillespie: 7 contest wins in 21 events
EXC: 2 events, 11 W, 12 L, 47.8%
Pride: 1 event, 4 W, 4 L,, 1 NC 44.4%
UFC: 9 E, 51 W, 23 L, 1NC 68.0%
WEC: 0 E, 0 W, 0 L, 0%
MMA: 12 E, 66 W, 39 L, 2 NC 61.7%
TNA: 2 E, 9 W, 8 L, 52.9%
WWE: 7 E, 30 W, 19 L, 61.2%
Wrestling: 9 E, 39 W, 27 L, 59.1%
Overall: 21 E, 105 W, 66 L,, 2 NC 60.7%

Contests Won/Tied: Fight Night 8, No Way Out, Pride 33, Fight Night 9, Backlash, UFC 71, UFC 72

Just a ponk little gay.

Euan Taylor: 7 contest wins in 29 events
EXC: 3 E, 18 W, 15 L, 54.5%
Pride: 2 E, 9 W, 7 L, 1, NC 52.9%
UFC: 10 E, 49 W, 39 L, 1NC 55.1%
WEC: 1 event, 6 W, 3 L, 66.7%
MMA: 16 E, 82 W, 64 L,, 2 NC 55.4%
TNA: 6 E, 30 W, 23 L, 56.6%
WWE: 7 E, 25 W, 24 L, 1 NC 50.0%
Wrestling: 13 E, 55 W, 47 L, 1 NC 53.4%
Overall: 29 E, 137 W, 111 L, 3 NC 54.6%

Contests Won/Tied: EXC Destany, Destination X, Wrestlemania 23, Pride 34, UFC 70, Sacrifice, WEC 28 on Versus.

Strikeforce was a disaster for Euan, but he still managed to pick every show even while on holiday.

Scott Liedle: 5 contest wins in 28 events
EXC: 3 events, 17 W, 16 L, 51.5%
Pride: 2 E, 5 W, 11 L,, 1 NC 29.4%
UFC: 10 E, 48 W, 40 L,1NC 53.9%
WEC: 0 E, 0 W, 0 L, 0%
MMA: 15 E, 70 W, 67 L, 2 NC 50.4%
TNA: 6 E, 29 W, 25 L, 53.7%
WWE: 7 E, 35 W, 16 L, 1 NC 67.3%
Wrestling: 13 E, 64 W, 41 L, 1 NC 60.4%
Overall: 28 E, 134 W, 108 L, 3 NC 54.7%

Contests Won/Tied: No Way Out, Wrestlemania 23, Fight Night 10, TNA Slammiversary, Vengeance

Nobody has a greater disparity between Wrestling success and MMA success than Scott.

Wade Wallenstein: 9 Contest wins in 22 events
EXC: 2 events, 12 W, 11 L, 52.2%
Pride: 1 event, 2 W, 6 L,, 1 NC 22.2%
UFC: 6 E, 34 W, 18 L, 65.4%
WEC: 0 E, 0 W, 0 L, 0%
MMA: 9 E, 48 W, 35 L,, 1 NC 57.1%
TNA: 6 E, 35 W, 19 L, 64.8%
WWE: 7 E, 35 W, 16 L, 1 NC 67.3%
Wrestling: 13 E, 70 W, 35 L, 1 NC 66.0%
Overall: 22 E, 118 W, 70 L,, 2 NC 62.1%

Contests Won/Tied: Royal Rumble, UFC 67, Against All Odds, Destination X, Lockdown, Sacrifice, Judgment Day, One Night Stand, Vengeance

As soon as my bout of laziness ends, I'm killing him. He does well in everything and it drives me mad.

Marcus Erickson: 4 contest wins in 9 events
EXC: 1 event, 7 W, 3 L, 70.0%
Pride: 0 E, 0 W, 0 L, 0%
UFC: 3 E, 17 W, 9 L, 65.4%
WEC: 0 E, 0 W, 0 L, 0%
MMA: 4 E, 24 W, 12 L, 66.7%
TNA: 3 E, 16 W, 10 L, 61.5%
WWE: 2 E, 7 W, 6 L, 53.8%
Wrestling: 5 E, 23 W, 16 L, 59.0%
Overall: 9 E, 47 W, 28 L, 62.7%

Contests Won/Tied: Final Resolution, No Way Out, UFC 68, Destination X.

Hasn't picked a show in forever but I'm too lazy to remove him from the chart.

Mark Danger: 1 Contest Wins in 1 Events
EXC: 0 E, 0 W, 0 L, 0%
Pride: 0 E, 0 W, 0 L, 0%
UFC: 0 E, 0 W, 0 L, 0%
WEC: 0 E, 0 W, 0 L, 0%
MMA: 0 E, 0 W, 0 L, 0%
TNA: 0 E, 0 W, 0 L, 0%
WWE: 1 E, 6 W, 2 L, 1 NC 66.7%
Wrestling: 1 E, 6 W, 2 L, 1 NC 67.7%
Overall: 1 E, 6 W, 2 L, 1 NC 66.7%

Contests Won/Tied: Vengeance

1 contest, 1 tied victory, several people wanting to hunt him down. All in all it is a win-win.

Relatively speaking unless events spring up suddenly, July is quiet with a mere 3 events.

Thank God, Jesus and the Late Mr. McMahon for that.

Continue Reading!

Roundtable Reminder 'Vengeance'

Predictions, here

We welcome Mark Danger to the fold.


I have news on Deuce and Dominos opponents who may have you racing to edit your picks. It is kind of a spoiler, so I'll put it behind the cut.

Everyone has until the show starts to make and or edit their predictions.



PwInsider.com reported that the opponents are Sgt. Slaughter and Superfly Jimmy Snuka.

Hey Mark, if you're still going to the Braves and Tigers game, could you boo Kyle Davys extra hard just for me?

He sucks!

Continue Reading!

Roundtable Reminder: The Ultimate Fighter 5 Finale

The show is tonight, the thread is here and as I write this, Ric, Scott, Art and myself have made our picks. You know how to join by now.

Ric's picks are especially creative, and if you read them after waking up it might take you awhile to figure it out. Second roundtable of the weekend where I wasn't the funniest...I may be slipping.

Of course, Jay Glazer's submission advice led to me getting choked out by my sleeping dog earlier this morning so it is kind of understandable.

Continue Reading!

News, Notes and Quotes from the Strikeforce/EXC Press Conference

...here...

As a Reminder, I'll have live round-by-round of the PPV portion of this event starting at 10:00 PM ET. As for the Pro Elite portion of the event, I'm hoping that either Ric or I will have something. Those remembering my saga last time will know that me seeing that portion is anything but a certainty.

Continue Reading!

This week's Roundtables

Its a busy week ahead for Roundtables with 3 events in 3 days.

Friday: June 22, 2007
Strikeforce/EXC
You can see the card, our picks and make your own at that link.

Then we move to Saturday: June 23, 2007
The Ultimate Fighter 5 Finale
Card, predictions, and all that at that link.

Sunday we conclude June with:
WWE 'Vengeance'
It is the night of champions.

I'll not update the standings again until after Vengeance. There's just too much to do it after each show.

Speaking of Standings...

Slammiversary 2007

1. Scott Liedle: (8-2)
   
2. Casey Trowbridge: (7-3)
   
3. Wade Wallenstein: (6-4)
   
4. Euan Taylor: (4-5)
   
5. Art Shimko: (3-6)

Continue Reading!

TNA Wrestling's 'Slammiversary' Roundtable Preview

See the card, read our picks and make your own here

If you act now you can see my picks along with those of Art and Euan.

Continue Reading!

Roundtable Reminder

We've got 2 this weekend.

The card for UFC 72 'Victory' is finalized. Wade and I have already made ours. You may predict this and edit them up until show time at 2:00 PM Saturday.

TNA Wrestling's 'Slammiversary' 2007 is here and you may make predictions on this show as well, but the card is not yet final.

Continue Reading!

Roundtable Preview reminder

This week features some events that need to be predicted.

First up is Tuesday, 06/12
Fight Night 10
and if you're not excited for this...well, neither is anyone else.

Then on Saturday, 06/16
UFC 72 'Victory'
and if you're not excited for this event...neither is anyone else.

Then on Sunday, 06/17
TNA Wrestling's 'Slammiversary'
and if you're not excited for this show...neither is anyone else. I was, sort of, until Team 3D and the Steiners was canceled.

All threads are open and all picks are free to be added and edited right up until the respective show starts.

Continue Reading!

Thanks...

I want to take this moment to thank the following people.

Art Shimko: I don't know about Art but I noticed how our combining forces made my life a lot easier and even more enjoyable, and I think we're a pretty good team. Art posts a lot of stuff from promotions that maybe people aren't as familiar with or invested in and thus maybe don't get noticed as much, but I notice and am thankful for the work he does. Plus, if you've ever talked to him he's a pretty cool and nice guy and these compliments are coming free of charge so no need to send a check Art...at least not this month.

Ric Gillespie: Ric has become a more regular poster even if that takes away some time from CanvasChronicle.com and has been if nothing else, a good sounding board for me in talks we've had behind the scenes here.

Wade Wallenstein: Unfortunately Wade doesn't post as much news anymore and hasn't reviewed a DVD in awhile, but he's the most dedicated to doing show recaps out of all of us. He recaps Raw pretty much every week and has traded with me on weeks when I've needed it or he has, but he's always thinking about his recaps. He's getting more comfortable with them as time passes and will only continue to do so with more practice. He's probably the least visible member of the team but I notice what he's doing.

Euan Taylor: Euan is a source of great enjoyment for me because whether he's planning to or not he can almost always make me laugh. Euan doesn't post as often as he used to and I know that he feels bad about that, but there's something that a lot of people don't know. Euan does all of the post-show editing and uploading of our podcast. This has even included being called to action because I needed to rant about a terrible program or because I wanted him to read Smackdown spoilers on the air.
Hopefully, as some of us become more familiar with the podcast process, he'll be able to devote more time to posting owing to the fact he's not always going to be stuck editing.

Mark Danger: His comments always make me laugh and honestly if you know me in real life that's not as easy to do as you might think if you only read my work. Mark was the first non-anonimous person to leave feedback on this site that wasn't from someone who worked on it. For many that might not seem that big a deal but the timing was great because it came at about the time I wondered if myself, Art, Euan, Wade and Scott Liedle were the only one's reading.


Anyone who reads this: even if you don't leave a comment, I do appreciate you taking time to read the news on this blog even if you could theoretically find it somewhere else. Time is the most valuable thing we have and the fact that I take up some of yours is a bit hard to believe. For those who read this because of my links over at The Home Theater Forum thanks for the feedback you've given me over there and my constant linking to this site.

Why am I writing this? Truthfully, I'm not entirely sure other than to let those who I appreciate for being along with me on this ride know I appreciate them being there with me. Better to say it now while I've got the chance to do so.

Also, I've got another reason which I will put behind the cut.



I love this blog, and I will never walk away from it. I've said for awhile now my goal is to cover Combat sports for a living and actually make some sort of a living doing so and it would be hard for me to do that if I've walked away.

So, I'm not going anywhere now or any time in the near future. Fact is though that I'm very tired. I'm warn out by a personal life that is stressful under normal circumstances but has started to amount lately. I see my foundation cracking and want to deal with it while I still have the ability to do so.

I'm not sure what this means though. It doesn't mean that I'm going on a break from the blog, truthfully I've thought about that and honestly I don't even know how to do it. Its not that I don't think that it would be in good hands if I were to do so because I know it would, its just not an easy thing for me to do because this has become a prominent part of my life these past nearly 10 months.

I guess I'm saying that if for the next few weeks it seems like you don't hear from me as much as your accustomed don't be alarmed. I can't promise you the type of massive updates that I gave during UFC 71 with multiple posts a day with multiple links. However, I can't also say that you'll not see those things either. It will largely depend on how I feel on a given day.

Basically, I'm going to recharge the gas tank. I'm not sure how that will happen really, and the gas tank I'm referring to is the one that makes me get up in the morning and ready for each given day. I have a passion for the things I write on this blog and a passion for our show and our work. I lack that same kind of passion in a lot of other areas of my life just because I've spent all of my reserves and it has been too long since I've gotten a refueling.

Perhaps I will go camping for a week and get out of the house and away from technology and distractions and just try as best I can to relax. Maybe tomorrow I'll wake up and feel like posting 10 different things before the end of the day, but if that happens tomorrow it doesn't mean I've beaten the problem...just that I'm more energetic than I've been these past 3 or 4 days.

I'm glad to know that whatever I decide to do I've got friends and family who will help me through this. I've got to shake some of the bad vibes that seem to have surrounded me lately and really the biggest problem is not doing it but figuring out how.

So thanks to everyone that read this. Please don't worry about me, I feel as though I've been knocked down a lot lately but I've still got the desire to get up and I still know there's people who will help.

I'll end this, for most it probably seems like nonsensicle ramblings and unfortunately even though I'm careful in choosing my words right now it still sort of seems nonsensicle to me also.

So, I'll see you when I see you.

Continue Reading!

To CARE or not to CARE

We're working on a more perminent title for these, but it is what we've got for now. Anyway, our news show format debuts with the episode taped Wednesday but uploaded this morning for you enjoyment, no matter how much mypodcast.com wants to suppress it.

You can download it here.

You can also stream the show if you wish not to download it. As Art and I have said we think this might be the best, if not the funniest show we've recorded.

Give us feedback and vote at Podcast alley.

Continue Reading!