MMA News And UFC 72 Preview

So once again, the world of MMA is shocked by steroid scandals.

Johnnie Morton, NFL player extraordinaire tested positive for Anabolic Steroids (what a surprise). Armando Garcia, a representative of the California state athletic commission, commented that Morton had a "very elevated T/E ratio, which is testosterone. And that is 83.9 -- the normal industry standard for an athlete is 6.0.

Morton is now facing a revocation of his license, as well as his $100,000 purse withheld (Which, incidentally, is far too much for someone of his stature.).

How in the hell do steroid abusers think they are going to get away with it? As a former pro wrestling fan, I know that Steroids are used heavily in that industry, and it's little more than frowned upon. However, in an industry where you know your livelihood depends on passing drugs tests, the question is, how stupid do you have to be to have a count that is THAT elevated? To be more than 1200% over the normal level is absolutely ridiculous, and this man deserves nothing but a lifetime ban.

In a more shocking scandal, however, Royce Gracie, fresh off his win against Kazushi Sakuraba, has also tested positive for an anabolic agent in his system.

Royce does not strike me as a "steroid type". His slender physique, coupled with his near 15 year career in this sport tells me that he isn't someone who regularly abuses drugs. Is this a situation where Royce felt the need to take steroids to boost his performance, or is this a reflection of his advanced age finally catching up on his body, forcing him to turn to the dark side for bodily improvement?

Why are Steroids even needed? Legendary steroid abusers such as Kimo and Tim Sylvia have proved that they aren't the "performance enhancers" that they are in other sports. Muscle growth does not equal fighting performance, and the sooner this is realized, the better.

UFC 72 this weekend comes from Belfast, Northern Ireland (Yes, another UK show!) but isn't exactly what many fans wanted it to be.

Weak does not even describe how this card looks. The UFC's first offering from Ireland is laden with fights that are either heavy mismatches, fighters with no name value or fights that have the potential to be boring.

So let's break down the main event.

Yushin Okami is a rising star, no doubt about it. His 4-0 UFC record against some of the better fighters that the reality show has produced proves that this guy has the potential to make it big in the UFC.

Now though, it looks like they are just looking for Okami to be another "can" fed to Franklin on his rise back to Anderson Silva's title.

Stylistically, Okami has all the skills to beat Franklin. His ground game is excellent, and his striking has been improving. The pressure is on Franklin, and this is a must-win fight for him if he ever hopes to get a rematch with Anderson Silva, the current middleweight champion.

This is a test of Franklin's ability to cope in a pressurized situation once again, something he hasn't felt since the days of his title reign. My prediction for this fight is an Okami 2nd round TKO.

Franklin may have the skills, but as we all saw in the Silva fight, the pressure gets to him.

In the supporting match… well, it's looking bad. Once again, the UFC seems to want to just display their talent overseas in squash matches, rather than put on competitive fights that we see on almost every American offering.

Hector Ramirez is 6-2-1, a former King of the Cage competitor with his biggest win coming from Ultimate Fighter winner Kendall Grove. He is facing 13-4-0 Forrest Griffin, an excellent fighter who in the long-term is a title prospect for the UFC.

Unless Ramirez can pull out a Serra-esque upset, I think the result of this match is clear cut. Forrest Griffin, first round TKO.

I am not expecting a big buyrate for this UFC; it's on during the middle of the day in the USA, and it's main purpose is solely to prove that they are successful as an international company.

My advice: Skip this, and with the money, get the Strikeforce Baroni vs Shamrock show; the main event is much more intriuguing, and the undercard is actually interesting.

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