• Top UFC welterweight contender Thiago Alves told the Sherdog Radio Network’s “Savage Dog Show” this week that his title fight against Georges St. Pierre is set for UFC 100 in July.
• Urijah Faber earned the highest payday at WEC 38 last Sunday, pocketing $48,000 for his submission win in a rematch with Jens Pulver, who earned $35,000. The payouts were significantly more than those received by the two principals in the main event, as WEC lightweight champion Jamie Varner earned $34,000 in disclosed pay for his successful title defense against Donald Cerrone, listed as making $9,000. The card from the San Diego Sports Arena, the promotion's debut in the city, drew 10,201 fans for a $486,324 gate.
• Though all fans' eyes were on the UFC 94 main event, tens of millions more were on another fighter for a few seconds this week. Gina Carano made an appearance in a Pepsi ad that played during the Super Bowl. The ad, which drew visual parallels between pop culture figures of the 1960s and 70s and the present day, featured a clip of Carano throwing a kick right after a clip of Bruce Lee from a movie.
• The hearing that will decide whether the California fighting license of former EliteXC heavyweight champion Antonio Silva will be revoked has been postponed until April. The hearing, called because Silva fought in Japan while under a one-year suspension for failing a steroid test, was originally scheduled for Feb. 10.
• A planned Dustin Hazelett-Ben Saunders fight at UFC 96 on March 7 has disintegrated after both fighters pulled out due to injury. Saunders, who was matched with kickboxer Ryan Madigan after Hazelett pulled out, bowed out of the fight this week due a foot injury, MMAWeekly.com reported. Madigan will now face Tamdan McCrory.
• Mike Ciesnolevicz, an International Fight League veteran and Pat Miletich product, will make his Octagon debut at UFC 95 on Feb. 21 facing Neil Grove at heavyweight as a late replacement, according to an interview Ciesnolevicz did with MMWeekly.com.
• The Dream promotion in Japan announced 12 of 16 names for the featherweight tournament that will kick of its calendar year on March 8. In addition to Japanese standouts like Masakazu Imanari, Hideo Tokoro and Hiroyuki Takaya, the bracket will also feature western names like Chase Beebe, Micah Miller and Bibano Fernandes. The tournament will also mark the debuts of 2006 Greco-Roman wrestling world champion Joe Warren, according to a report by Sherdog.com’s Jordan Breen. Top star Norifumi “Kid” Yamamoto has yet to be slotted in the tournament, and is expected to get a bye into the second round in May. Both cards will air on HDNet.