George Lockhart wins first fight since leaving Corps
February 28th, 2012 | Marine Corps Mixed martial arts | Posted by Phil Creed
Former Marine George Lockhart made his return to pro MMA on Friday night, winning a unanimous three-round decision over Jarome Hatch at Showdown Fights in Salt Lake City. The win — Lockhart’s first pro fight more than two years — improved his career record to 11-4.
Lockhart won despite fighting on just three weeks’ notice and taking on an opponent in a higher weight class. Lockhart — a welterweight who’s had trouble finding opponents at 170 pounds — jumped at the opportunity to fight the 185-pound Hatch when his manager gave him a call.
“It felt great [to fight again],” Lockhart said. “[The win] showed a lot of dominance. It was a good, eventful fight.”
Lockhart, 29, said he’s still focused on making it to the UFC. He’s hoping a few more wins can get him noticed, and he said he’ll try out for UFC’s “The Ultimate Fighter” TV show again if they have a season that features 170-pound fighters.
It won’t be Lockhart’s first crack at TUF, a reality show that has been the big break for many current UFC stars.
Like pretty much everybody, Brian Stann wants to fight Michael Bisping
February 24th, 2012 | Marine Corps Mixed martial arts | Posted by Phil Creed
Michael Bisping is good at fighting. But he’s lousy at making friends and winning over MMA fans.
The UFC middleweight has been described in the past as the “ultimate heel” and labeled a cheater by his own boss. After Action favorite Tim Kennedy frequently mentions his disdain for Bisping, and a quick Google search finds no shortage of fighters who have challenged the Brit.
Brian Stann, the Marine-turned-UFC fighter, is the latest to call out Bisping. The Silver Star recipient was recently asked who he’d like a shot at, and he didn’t hesitate to name “The Count.” Stann indicated that he wasn’t pleased with remarks Bisping made after Stann’s loss to Chael Sonnen. But as only Stann can, he manages to be classy and respectful while voicing his desire to pummel Bisping.
Brian Stann part of UFC on FUEL TV broadcast
February 14th, 2012 | Combatives Marine Corps Mixed martial arts UFC | Posted by Kevin Lilley
Former Marine Capt. Brian Stann won’t re-enter the octagon until April 14, but the Silver Star recipient will participate in the UFC’s next big television event.
Stann tweeted that he was heading to Omaha, Neb., to be a part of FUEL TV’s inaugural live UFC card, which airs Wednesday at 8 p.m. Eastern. His duties include sharing the post-fight set with “NFL on Fox” regular Jay Glazer and mixed martial arts journalist Ariel Helwani.
The former Marine will be back on FUEL TV for his April middleweight fight against Alessio Sakara in Stockholm, one of four fights slated for the cable station’s second live UFC card, according to our good friends at MMAJunkie.com.
(Speaking of our friends, check out their recap of XFC 16 from last weekend, which included the first pro loss for superheavyweight Army Staff Sgt. Brandon Sayles and an 83-second knockout win for former Marine Dustin West.)
UFC on FUEL TV 1 has six fights slated for broadcast, with a welterweight main event pitting Jake Ellenberger against Diego Sanchez. Never heard of FUEL TV? Check here to see whether the channel is available in your area, or whether you’re eligible for a weeklong free preview that will cover fight night.
Military MMA links: Brandon Sayles video, Herschel Walker visit, Marine boxers win
February 10th, 2012 | Army Boxing Combatives Football Marine Corps Mixed martial arts UFC | Posted by Kevin Lilley
For those of you sick of the latest service academy basketball news (either here or here), try these combatives links:
Army (Superheavyweight) Strong: Staff Sgt. Brandon Sayles gets a nice video treatment from the folks at HDNet before his fight tonight at XFC 16:
Sayles, a three-time Army Combatives Championship winner, will face Chase Gormley live on HDNet; the fights start at 10 p.m. ET. Also on the card is former Marine Dustin West — check out an XFC news release on his work with the Wounded Warrior Project here. Not sure if you get HDNet? Click the “subscribe” tab here.
Football legend stops by: Herschel Walker is known for many things — a college football career that ranks among the best ever, his time as the face of the now-defunct USFL, the famous trade that sent him to Minnesota and helped create a Dallas dynasty (How famous? This famous), and a 2-0 record as a Strikeforce heavyweight as he rushes head-on toward age 50.
He’s also known for going public with his battle against Dissociative Identity Disorder. Multiple personalities may not be at the top of the priority list for military medicine, but mental health issues are. That’s why Walker’s message during his recent visit with soldiers and families at Fort Bliss, Texas, is so important. Staff Sgt Casey J. McGeorge, who wrote this release about the visit, put it best: “There is no shame in seeking help.”
Walker, who turns 50 in March, may have one more fight left in him, according to an SB Nation report citing a recent interview in a magazine After Action only reads for the articles.
Marines take gold: OK, the arts aren’t exactly “mixed,” but it’s big news anyway — the Marine Corps ended Army’s two-decade win streak at the Armed Forces Boxing Championship at Camp Pendleton, Calif., earlier this month. Click the previous link to read about Marine Sgt. DeJesus Gardner’s gutty performance in the 201-pound weight class to clinch the overall win, and get the Army write-up here.
Marines, sailors take in Super Bowl at sea
February 6th, 2012 | Football Marine Corps Navy | Posted by Dan Lamothe
Maj. Doug Baker, a Patriots fan from Roxbury, Conn., reacts while watching the Super Bowl in the officer's wardroom aboard the USS Wasp. (Mike Morones/Staff)
ABOARD THE AMPHIBIOUS ASSAULT SHIP WASP -– If you’re going to watch your favorite NFL team lose in the Super Bowl, it may as well be somewhere interesting.
That’s the scenario I found myself in last night as I continue to cover Bold Alligator 2012, a massive amphibious exercise involving at least 14,000 personnel and 25 ships off the coast of North Carolina and Virginia. Like many of the sailors and Marines aboard this gator ship, I had accepted there was a strong possibility the game wouldn’t be on while underway –- only to find out the exact opposite.
Not only did the Wasp have the Super Bowl, the ship’s leadership went out of its way to make sure as many people as possible could see it. From the wardroom, to the barber shop, to the mess deck, several thousand personnel took a break to watch the game, in which the New York Giants beat the New England Patriots, 21-17.
The liveliest place to view the game was the hangar bay. A movie theater screen and hundreds of chairs were set up, and Marines and sailors turned it into a concert-like environment in which the game and the commercials alike received howling cheers and boos.
The crowd was polarized when it came to sports, with any close-up shot of Patriots quarterback Tom Brady or Giants quarterback Eli Manning receiving a loud, mixed response. It was less so when it came to the commercials, as the raucous response to a new ad for the Fiat 500 Abarth showed. It depicted a tall, exotic woman flirting with a short, awkward man – until he realized he was simply daydreaming. The Marines and sailors howled.
In the ward room, dozens of officers aboard gathered over chicken wings, mozzarella sticks, coffee and soda to watch the game on two big-screen TVs. Several foreign officers asked questions about the rules of American football, and U.S. personnel cheerfully explained.
As a Massachusetts native, I took all this in with a red Patriots T-shirt poking out from underneath my half-zipped fleece. A few people noticed, but no one poked fun. They understood the draw of the game.
In the hangar bay, Lance Cpl. T.J. Miller, 20, told me he found out he’d be involved in Bold Alligator two days before the ships launched earlier this month. A Patriots fan, he assumed he’d miss the game for the second year in a row.
“They told me two days before, ‘Pack your stuff. You’re going,’ and I thought it was possible I’d miss it,” the CH-53 mechanic said. “The signal has gone out twice for about 30 seconds, but if it happens again I’ll go see what happens in the mess deck.”
Ah, the signal. Late in the game, it did go out again. Shortly after Giants receiver Mario Manningham reeled in a spectacular sideline grab that put New York in position to win the game, the screens on board went dark.
“Are you kidding me!” several Marines and sailors yelled in the mess deck, frustrated with the timing.
The signal came back a few moments later, and stayed true through the end of the game. When Giants running back fell into the end zone with the game-winning score with about a minute to play, much of the hanger bay exploded into cheers.
Brady’s last desperation heave into the endzone fell to the ground a few minutes later, and Giants fans on board erupted. A sailor began blowing a whistle as though it were a musical instrument, and a group of Marines and sailors began jumping up and down in celebration.
Lance Cpl. Alex Ovide, 23, was one of the most boisterous. An amphibious assault vehicle crewman from Queens, N.Y., he’ll be involved in the amphibious unfolding over the next few days, but was glad to watch the game. He missed it last year while he was in the field, he said, and didn’t know the Wasp would have the game until it was already underway.
“I was just hoping to get a phone call out and find out the score,” Ovide said. “There was a rumor mill at first that we’d be able to see it, and then it came together.”
The result of the game, Ovide said, was “simply beautiful.” He congratulated the Patriots on a great season, knowing that I was a fan.
“This was great,” he said. “All of us came together, and all of the branches of service on board, too. It’s something you can really appreciate.”
I couldn’t agree more. Other than the final score, of course.
Report: Brian Stann’s next UFC fight slated for April
January 5th, 2012 | Marine Corps Mixed martial arts | Posted by Phil Creed
Brian Stann drops Jorge Santiago in the second round of his TKO win at UFC 130 in May 2011. (The Associated Press)
Good news, MMA fans: Former Marine and Silver Star recipient Brian Stann is returning to the Octagon in April. Stann will square off with Alessio Sakara in the headline fight at UFC on FUEL TV 2, MMAJunkie.com reported today.
The fight will take place April 14 at the Ericsson Global Arena in Stockholm, Sweden. It’s the first UFC event in that country, according to Sherdog.com.
Stann (11-4) hasn’t fought since a second-round submission loss to Chael Sonnen in October at UFC 136. Sakara (15-8) is also coming off a defeat, losing a decision to Chris Weidman in March.
Never heard of FUEL TV? Click here to find out if you cable system carries it.
Rough season ends with a bang for former Marine in NFL
January 4th, 2012 | Football Marine Corps | Posted by Phil Creed
For former Marine and current Tennessee Titans fullback Ahmard Hall, 2011 was a year to forget. Unfortunately for Hall, he literally has trouble remembering the very end of his season because of the concussion he sustained in fourth quarter of the Titans’ final game.
Hall, who served in the Corps from 1998-2002, got clocked by Houston linebacker Tim Dobbins on an outside run with less than two minutes to play. Watch the play here. The force caused Hall spin in the air and fumble, with the Texans recovering.
Hall told The Tennessean on Monday that he was “clearing up” but couldn’t remember much about the play or anything after it.
The injury ended a disappointing season for Hall. He started the year by missing the first four games due to a violation of the league’s substance abuse policy. Tennessee’s running attack never got on track during the season, finishing 31st in the NFL, despite having former 2,000-yard rusher Chris Johnson in the backfield. The Titans, playing under a new coach, finished the season 9-7, but missed the playoffs after the tiebreaker went to the Cincinnati Bengals.
Hall, set to become a free agent after finishing his sixth season with Tennessee, told The Tennessean he was not optimistic about re-signing with the Titans.
“I am just going to enjoy my time with my family and try and relax and worry about [a new contract] in March,” Hall said.
See the service assignments for the Army-Navy game seniors
December 7th, 2011 | Army Army-Air Force Game Football Marine Corps Navy | Posted by Phil Creed
Saturday’s Army-Navy game comes on the heels of another momentous day for the cadets and midshipmen, one that will affect their future much more than the outcome of a football game.
Seniors at both academies received their service assignments (Navy) or branch assignments (Army) in the few weeks, a moment long anticipated by mids and cadets. These assignments determine the path that cadets and midshipmen will be put on when the graduate and are commissioned as officers. West Point”s seniors, who will be commissioned as second lieutenants in May, get tapped to go into branches like armor, infantry, field artillery, etc. Navy seniors, who will be commissioned as either ensigns or Marine Corps second lieutenants, go into a career paths to become surface warfare officers (SWO), submariners, pilots, Marine Corps ground officers, etc.
Here’s the assignments for this year’s senior football players:
Naval Academy service assignments
Brian Ackerman – Surface Warfare (Nuclear)
Bruce Andrews — Supply Corps
Ryan Basford – Surface Warfare
Thomas Batchelder — Surface Warfare
Brian Blick — Marine Corps Ground
Max Blue — Marine Corps Ground
Alex Boddiford — Surface Warfare
Hal Bowron – Surface Warfare
Brady DeMell – Surface Warfare
Delvin Diggs – Surface Warfare (Nuclear)
Neil Doogan – Marine Corps Ground
Eric Douglass – Surface Warfare
John Dowd – Submarines
Zach Dryden – Surface Warfare
Doug Furman – Navy Pilot
Mason Graham – Marine Corps Ground
Hal Hunter – Intelligence
Caleb King – Naval Flight Officer
Jared Marks – Marine Corps Ground
John McCauley – Surface Warfare
Kwesi Mitchell – Naval Flight Officer
Gary Myers – Naval Flight Officer
Torri Preston – Marine Corps Ground
Kriss Proctor – Naval Flight Officer
Aaron Santiago – Surface Warfare (Nuclear)
Jarred Shannon – Surface Warfare
Eric Stein – Naval Flight Officer
Mike Stukel – Marine Corps Ground
David Sumrall – Intelligence
Jon Teague – Marine Corps Pilot
Alexander Teich – Special Warfare (SEAL) [Read more about Teich here]
Jabaree Tuani – Surface Warfare
David Wright – Surface Warfare
West Point’s branch assignments:
Joe Bailey – Armor
Austin Barr – Field Artillery
Davyd Brooks – Field Artillery
Alex Carlton – Engineers
Broghan Carnes – Field Artillery
Frank Ceva – Signal Corps
Steven Erzinger – Armor
Daniel Hinkson – Field Artillery
Max Jenkins – Infantry
Josh Jones– Infantry
Robert Kava– Field Artillery
Brad Kelly– Infantry
Chad Littlejohn– Engineers
Mike McDermott – Field Artillery
Jordan Pleasants – Infantry
Bill Prosko – Armor
Andrew Rodriguez – Infantry
Justin Schaaf – Field Artillery
Kolin Walk – Transportation
(Special thanks to Navy’s Scott Strasemeier and Army’s Brian Gunning for providing After Action these lists.)
Photo: Marines ‘Tebowing’ before Broncos-Jets game
November 21st, 2011 | Football Marine Corps | Posted by Phil Creed
Marines perform their version of 'Tebowing' before the Broncos-Jets game on Nov. 17. (AP Photo/Barry Gutierrez)
“Tebowing” has swept the nation since the Denver Broncos promoted former Heisman Trophy winner Tim Tebow to starting quarterback last month. The trend pokes fun at Tebow’s penchant for dropping to a knee in prayer, with his elbow on his knee and his fist under his bowed head. The pose has inspired a website and countless imitators, with the latest being a group of Marines on the field prior to the Broncos-Jets game last Thursday.
Tebow, perhaps the most divisive figure in the NFL right now, continues to win games. And after scoring a touchdown late in the fourth quarter to beat the Jets, The Man himself showed us mortals just how Tebowing is really done:
Tim Tebow bows his head on the sidelines after scoring the go-ahead touchdown in the Broncos 17-13 against the Jets. (AP Photo/Barry Gutierrez)
Video: Justin Timberlake’s Marine date dominates MMA match
October 25th, 2011 | Marine Corps Mixed martial arts | Posted by Dan Lamothe
Marine Cpl. Kelsey De Santis smiles after winning her MMA fight Saturday night. (Photo by James J. Lee/Staff)
In the blink of an eye, it was over. Justin Timberlake may want to take notice.
Cpl. Kelsey De Santis, the Marine who famously invited the singer and actor to attend the Marine Corps birthday ball with her, competed Saturday night in Operation Octagon XVI, a mixed martial arts event in Sterling, Va.
To say it was a one-sided fight would be an understatement.
De Santis, fighting in the 145-pound featherweight title fight, pummeled her opponent, Stacy Sneeringer. With a flurry of energy, De Santis took Sneeringer to the mat early, and finished her off 2:51 into the fight with a series of punches and elbows to the face. The match never made it to Round 2.
Staff photographer James J. Lee and I attended the event, held at the Dulles Sportsplex. Check out his video here:
As you can see, the 5-foot-9 De Santis had a large following in the crowd of about 300 people. She took the the microphone in the ring afterward and thanked a variety of people, including her coaches and fellow Marines at the Martial Arts Center for Excellence in Quantico, Va. She also acknowledged all the hoopla surrounding the sensation her YouTube invitation created.
“I’m looking forward,” she said, “to going to the Marine Corps birthday ball with Justin Timberlake.”
On came one of his signature songs, “SexyBack,” and the crowd cheered.