Welcome everyone to MM-Eh! — Sherdog.com’s weekly look at the Canadian MMA scene. I’ve got some nice tidbits to pass along that you may not have heard of, and of course UFC Fight Night is live on Spike TV tonight, featuring the UFC debut of two Canadian fighters, Jeff Joslin (Pictures) and Victor Valimaki.
Even though the UFC dropped him like a hot potato after his loss to Mike Swick (Pictures), judging by the amount of e-mails I get asking for information about David Loiseau (Pictures), he most definitely has not been dropped from the hearts of his fans.
Posting on his Myspace page last Sunday night, the “Crow” had this news to report:
It’s CROWTIME, ON SHOWTIME!
Hey everybody, hope all is well. Good NEWS....I just signed a fight deal with Pro Elite who is going to have MMA fights live on SHOWTIME February 10th 2007. Don’t know who the opponent will be yet, but I’m signed and back in the cage on February 10th. Yessssssssssssssssssssss!! Thank you sooooo much for the kind words and support during the past months. God Bless and happy Holidays. I’m turning 27 on Sunday Dec 17th... What a birthday present! That’s what I’m talking about!
Well tickle me pink and whip me with spaghetti, that’s fantastic news for David! He’s still a huge fan favorite and I’m sure that we’re all excited to see him in battle in February. But who will he be facing you wonder?
As of right now I don’t know, but that may not last long as SHOWTIME and Pro Elite are holding a press conference this Thursday in Los Angeles. Hopefully we’ll all find out what their grand scheme will be, as well as any signings they have besides Loiseau.
On a side note, anyone else besides me surprised to hear that he’s only 26 right now? Loiseau has shown such maturity for years that it’s easy to think of him as being older. He’s still five years away from his physical prime for crying out loud.
Salaverry to IFL
Following the unfortunate demise of the WFA, the fate of at least one of its fighters is already known, as the IFL announced that they have signed Canadian middleweight standout Ivan Salaverry (Pictures) to meet Brazilian fighter Eduardo Pamplona (Pictures) in a non-team match up in January.
Much like Loiseau, Salaverry was also dropped by the UFC to the consternation of many. When I think of Salaverry’s name alongside other top middleweights it doesn’t seem out of place at all. To have the UFC discard him after one decision loss was just plain confusing.
With UFC president Dana White saying Salaverry is one of the fighters whose contract was purchased from the WFA, it appears he’ll be back in the Octagon — but an IFL contest awaits.
Canadians in bodogFIGHT’s second season
The Fight Network reports that BodogFight: St. Petersburg will commence filming this month in Russia and three Canadians were tentatively announced as being part of the “cast.” Light heavyweight Bill Mahood (Pictures) will take on Khalil Ibrahim of Palestine, lightweight Kultar Gill (Pictures) of Vancouver will face “Tornado Song” Song Un Sik of Korea, and finally Tyler Jackson (Pictures) will square off against Petar Stoichkov of Bulgaria at welterweight.
Revolution Mixed Martial Arts & Fitness
Five-time Canadian Jiu-Jitsu Champion Joel Gerson, best known for being the first and only person to armlock Shooto Legend Rumina Sato (Pictures), has opened a new MMA academy in Thornhill, an affluent suburb north of Toronto.
Gerson, known for his takedown and submission skills, is renowned for his dynamic and engaging teaching abilities as well as his textbook knowledge of grappling.
Revolution Mixed Martial Arts & Fitness is open seven days a week and offers classes in MMA, 6th Gear Jiu-Jitsu, Combat Fitness, Israeli Street Survival and Muay Thai. Classes in MMA are also offered for children as young as 3.
For more information you can contact Revolution Mixed Martial Arts & Fitness at (905) 695-1020, or email Joel at joel@revmma.com.