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in Diamondcraft - Registration Mon Dec 23, 2019 7:45 am
by Cl11234566 • 420 Posts

LAS VEGAS -- The diagonal scar on the bridge of Alexis Daviss nose seems par for the course for a UFC fighter. The story behind the mark predates cage-fighting, however. "It was from when I was a kid, actually," the Canadian bantamweight admitted with a smile. "I was playing around with my sister. I say she pushed me, but she says I tripped." The 29-year-old from Port Colborne, Ont., who fights out of San Jose, has had her share of fight cuts that have morphed into scars. But they are hidden nicely by her eyebrows. The other good news is blood does not bother Davis. In fact, it can spur her into action as in a November 2013 win over Liz Carmouche when she turned it up a notch after being cut over her eye. "It kind of wakes you up a little bit more. Youre like, Yup, that was a good shot. Now its my turn," said Davis. Suffice to say, theres more to the soft-spoken Davis than meets the eye. That seems to have escaped the bookmakers, who have made unbeaten champion (Rowdy) Ronda Rousey a prohibitive favourite to dispatch Davis -- ranked No. 2 among 135-pound contenders -- in the co-main event of UFC 175 on Saturday night at the Mandalay Bay Events Center. Middleweight champion Chris Weidman takes on former light-heavyweight title-holder Lyoto (The Dragon) Machida in the main event. Rousey (9-0) ranged from a 9-1 to 14-1 favourite as of Friday. The UFC had her as a 10-1 favourite. The bookies clearly havent been to Daviss home, which comes complete with fold-up wrestling mats stashed in the living room. When youre an elite UFC fighter and married to a fellow black belt in jiu-jitsu, you like to be able to put a theory in action when something new and exciting pops into your mind. Davis (16-5) met husband-to-be Flavio Meier three years ago at his gym in California. An accomplished black belt in Brazilian jiu-jitsu (his titles include the 2011 Pan-American championship for black belts) and taekwondo, he is a head instructor at the Institute of Martial Arts in San Jose. Meier, who moved to the U.S. from Brazil in 1999, says it was love at first sight -- for him. "But I had to work a little bit for her," he said. That was three years ago. They married a year ago, with Meiers three boys -- now aged four, 10 and 13 -- from a previous marriage coming as part of the package. "Its another side of her that a lot of people dont know," he said. "How caring and what a great person she is. The kids love her." The 39-year-old Meier says Daviss healthy lifestyle and work ethic are great examples for the kids. The whole family trains at the gym -- even the four-year-old takes a kids class. "Hes got a dangerous armbar," joked Davis. Meier says he finds it a lot easier competing himself than watching his wife fight. "I get nervous. I dont show her but I do get nerves a lot," he said. When it comes to jiu-jitsu, both say the other is better. "He always says that I beat him up but he beats me up all the time," said Davis, who has a black belt in both Brazilian and Japanese jiu-jitsu. "Im not saying this in bias because shes my wife, but to me she is the best in the world in jiu-jitsu," said Meier. "In MMA, for sure." The 27-year-old Rousey, however, is the UFCs resident rock star. At the UFCs media day Thursday, more than a dozen reporters and four cameras were waiting in front of Rouseys chair in advance of the start. There was one Canadian reporter in front of Daviss station. Davis has no complaints. The spotlight is new to her and, while not averse to it, she is still getting used to it. "Im just a girl from a small town," she said. "Its crazy the different steps Ive taken in my life and how far Ive come. All the way to California now. Im in a video game. How cool is that? Its incredible, its almost like unreal to me. But its great. I love it." Davis has enjoyed every stop of her MMA journey. "Lifes an adventure," she said. "Its taken me to a lot of places and Ive met great people." In Rousey, she is meeting a finisher. The champion has never gone the distance and her average fight time over her night-fight career is just two minutes 44 seconds. Rousey has used her judo takedown successfully in 12 of 17 attempts in the UFC for a 70.6 per cent success rate (the average UFC takedown rate is 41 per cent.) On the Davis side of the balance, the Canadian has never been submitted in 21 fights. She has outlanded her five previous opponents and scores well in the clinch. Asked about the showdown, former UFC lightweight and welterweight champion B.J. Penn lists off Rouseys strengths and successes. "What Alexis should have is a lot of hunger to be that woman and thats how she can get the job done," he said. A veteran of the sport, Davis had compiled a 9-4 record before Rousey made her pro MMA debut in March 2011. Davis made her pro debut in April 2007, losing by TKO to fellow Canadian Sarah Kaufman. Davis lost again to Kaufman, now ranked fifth among UFC bantamweight contenders, by majority decision in Strikeforce in March 2012. She says the second Kaufman showcased the old Alexis Davis -- "Im just going out there and Im just going to bang and I dont care what happens. You kind of take a lot of shots that way." Davis has won five fights in a row since, coinciding with her move to California and ability to take advantage of a larger and more diverse pool of training partners. She worked with Cesar Gracie before settling at the Institute of Martial Arts, owned by eight-time jiu-jitsu world champion Caio Terra who will be in her corner Saturday along with Meier. Davis added two-hour trips twice a week to Sacramento to her training camp this time, to work on her wrestling with Uriah Fabers Team Alpha Male. The thought is wrestling may help control the explosive throws of Rousey, who won Olympic bronze in judo. "They always say that wrestling is like the anti-judo," said Davis. But Davis, who speaks of Rousey with real respect, says its hard to prepare for the champion because Rousey evolves every time she fights. "Its like a whole new Ronda were seeing every time," said Davis. While Rousey is known for her armbar, she has good standup and stopped Sara McMann with a knee to the body. "I want the fight to go to the ground," said Davis. "I just want it to go on my terms." But she says she is comfortable wherever the fight goes. Davis has worked hard on her standup game and has good kicks, although she says she sometimes forgets to use them. The five-foot-six Canadian believes the fight will either end in the first round or go five rounds. The two women have shown plenty of mutual respect, exchanging a warm handshake after posing in front of the media Thursday. Rousey and Davis are the only female fighters to go 3-0 in the UFC. But while Rousey has made movies ("The Expendables 3," "Entourage" and "Fast and Furious 7"), earned ESPY Award nominations and appeared on the cover of ESPN The Magazine, Davis has flown under the radar. Asked whether she has treated herself with any of her UFC fight paycheques, Davis admits only to buying a new TV. "Were kind of saving up," she said. "Id like to eventually buy a house." A win Saturday would make Davis only the third Canadian to hold a UFC title, following Carlos (Ronin) Newton and Georges St-Pierre. It would also change her world. Despite the lopsided odds, Meier says bet on it. "Saturday shes going to shock the world," he said. "I know this for sure." Kobe Bryant Shoes Outlet . -- Jaye Marie Green shot a course-record 10-under 62 on Wednesday to take the first-round lead in the LPGA Tours qualifying tournament. Cheap Kd Shoes China . has left the San Jose Sharks to become the Boston Bruins director of player personnel. http://www.wholesalenikeshoesclearance.c...x-97-shoes.html. We wonder if the price of a Roberts rookie card has at least gone up a few cents? Tribute Tweets #Padres Tony Gwynn had 287 career plate appearances against #Braves trio of Maddux, Glavine, & Smoltz, he hit . Outlet Air Max 1 .ca NHL Power Rankings, ahead of the Chicago Blackhawks, St. Louis Blues and Anaheim Ducks. Moving up, from 10 to seven this week, the Pittsburgh Penguins have won seven straight despite a depleted lineup. Cheap Nike Shoes Online Paypal .Y. - Geno Smith shouted a couple of mighty expensive expletives.VOORHEES, N.J. -- Steve Mason kept the Philadelphia Flyers afloat when they struggled early in the season. Now they may have to start the playoffs without their No. 1 goalie. Mason practiced for 15 minutes before leaving the ice Tuesday, three days after he sustained an upper-body injury during a collision against Pittsburgh. Coach Craig Berube was uncertain whether Mason will play against the New York Rangers on Thursday night in Game 1 of their playoff series. "I thought he looked decent," Berube said, adding that Masons brief appearance at practice was planned. "He came out there for a little bit and got some work in, and I thought he looked pretty good." General manager Paul Holmgren refused to discuss specifics about Masons injury. He also declined to rule out whether it was a concussion. "Were at a critical time of our season and I dont feel I need to divulge whats wrong with a player," Holmgren said. Mason was 33-18-7 with a 2.50 goals-against average and .917 save percentage this season. He helped the Flyers overcome a 1-7 start and coaching change to make the playoffs. The former NHL Rookie of the Year solidified a position thats been a major problem area for the Flyers, especially in the playoffs. They started two goalies during their run to the Stanley Cup Finals in 2010 and dumped Ilya Bryzgalov last summer just two seasons into a $51 million, nine-year deal. Mason didnt speak to reporters after practice because he was having treatment for his injury. "I feel better each day and well see how I feel tomorrow," Mason told the public relations staff in a text. If Mason cant play, Ray Emery will start. Emery was 9-12-2 withh a 2.dddddddddddd96 goals-against average and .903 save percentage this season. He was 17-1 as a backup for the Stanley Cup champion Chicago Blackhawks last year. Asked how much confidence he has in Emery, Berube turned the question around. "How confident did I look all year with him?" Berube said. Mason has played in only one career playoff series as a rookie for Columbus in 2009. He allowed 17 goals and the Blue Jackets were swept by Detroit in four games. Meanwhile, the Rangers have eight-time All-Star and former Vezina Trophy winner Henrik Lundqvist in net. Lundqvist is 27-13-3 in his career against Philadelphia. But the Flyers are up for the challenge. "This time of year you want to be playing and playing your best," captain Claude Giroux said. "Were a young team with a lot of energy and attitude. We have to bring that to New York. We had momentum at the end of the season and feeling good about our game. Were aware that New York is a really good team, one of the best in the league. If were going to win the series, we have to bring our best game." NOTES: The Flyers signed defenceman Andrew MacDonald to a six-year contract reportedly worth $30 million. MacDonald was acquired from the New York Islanders before the trade deadline and wouldve become an unrestricted free agent after the season. "Before I got traded here, I had identified this as a place that I would like to look into if I went to free agency," MacDonald said. "The Flyers are a team that will always compete and spend the money. They go for it every year. That is important to any player. You want to be competitive and try to win it all every year." ' ' '

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