Check out this amazing photo essay of the World Cagefighting Alliance's inaugural event by photographer Loreto Caceres.  Loreta is a talented photographer, who made her first foray into the gritty world of MMA photography last Friday night in Atlantic City. I think she captured the drama and intensity of the event perfectly.

Call off the cadaver dogs!  No, I'm not dead nor have I fallen off the face of the Earth.  I was down in AC for the premier card of the new WCA organization (the show kicked ass).  Then last night I was in Newark for the return of Macaco. I intended to live blog from the events, but my wi-fi router crapped out and there was no wired connection.  Bummer, huh? The good news is I've got tons of stuff to put up now, including exclusive interviews with Thiago Alves and Frank Shamrock.  I'll also provide full coverage of the WCA show, which is going to be the big promotion on the East Coast. And of course I will talk about Danny Miller's amazing victory last night. So sit back, pop open an ice cold Shabazz Cola and get ready to enjoy some MMA coverage. Right after I spend a little time with my family, that is. I'm a human being, after all, aren't I? Don't answer that!

In this video, Rickson slaps his son Kron, but not because Kron was a bad boy.  It's actually how Rickson warms up his kid before a BJJ match. Observe:

Jim Lampley is at it again. He never misses an opportunity to bash MMA. In an interview with Toro Magazine, Lampley basically accused Joe Rogan and Mike Goldberg of being "company men" who only say what the UFC bosses want them to say. I find this kind of interesting coming from Lampley, who is a major shill for HBO boxing. I remember HBO refusing to recognize the WBO on their broadcasts until there was a HBO PPV fight involving them. Then all of a sudden it was WBO this and WBO that. Lampley has proven time and again that he is nothing but a shill, so I guess it takes one to know one. But I think that Rogan and Goldy do a fine job and shill far less than Lampley does. Here's the quote from Toro:

"People who watch MMA, a lot of them pay attention only to UFC. Now what does that mean? UFC hires their own announcers – they don’t deal with a Larry Merchant and a Jim Lampley picking them apart from a perspective of legitimate honesty and saying whatever they want to say. We’re talking about an organization where the promoter has hired the commentators. Now that’s an entirely different kind of broadcast than what we do or what anybody in boxing does. That’s really a lot more like pro wrestling. Because then they tell the story that they want to tell."

Legitimate honesty? Please. Lampley will say or do anything his HBO overlords tell him too. Pretending to be honest is not quite the same thing as actually being honest, Jim.  But nice try.

Joe "J-Lau" Lauzon prepares for battle at UFN 17.  Check out his video blog.

In an interview with mma.fanhouse.com, Dana White blasted GSP's corner when asked about the Vaseline situation. Dana had this to say:

It's one of those things. His corner man -- you can clearly see -- when he puts the Vaseline on his face, he rubs his hands on his shoulders and rubs his chest and back. You cannot do that. You can't do that. It's illegal. You have to wipe your hands off. It is what it is. I'm sure the commission looks at that. In no way shape or form do i think Georges St. Pierre went out to cheat. I think his cornerman f**ked up. That's what I think. Do I think it had a huge impact on the fight? No, I don't. But it's illegal. You cannot do it. And I think the cornerman's in trouble. That's what I think.

Dana went on to say that he believes corner men should know the rules, which is very true. The investigation by the NSAC is still ongoing, and I'll be sure to report here whatever they find.

Nate Diaz believes he should have won his UFC 94 fight with Clay Guida. He said to Graciemag:

"I know I lost the decision in the minds of the judges but I really felt I was whooping his ass the whole fight and he was just holding me. Before the fight people were asking me about his pace and if I would be able to keep up with it. I felt he couldn't keep up with my pace and that's why he was trying to slow things down by holding on and not trying anything. I even gave him my back so he would try to do something besides hugging me. A couple of times I looked at the ref to ask him if he wanted us to fight or what? Sorry I didn't listen to my corner and stand with him more but I never thought he would be so happy to just stall like that."

I actually thought Nate was going to get the decision, but it was a very close fight. Tough break for Nate, but he'll be back.

Main Card Light Heavyweight bout: Quinton Jackson vs. Keith Jardine Heavyweight bout: Shane Carwin vs. Gabriel Gonzaga Light Heavyweight bout: Matt Hamill vs. Mark Munoz Lightweight bout: Gray Maynard vs. Jim Miller Middleweight bout: Kendall Grove vs. Jason Day Preliminary Card Light Heavyweight bout: Brandon Vera vs. Mike Patt Welterweight bout: Tamdan McCrory vs. Ryan Madigan Welterweight bout: Matt Brown vs. Pete Sell Light Heavyweight bout: Tim Boetsch vs. Jason Brilz Lightweight bout: Aaron Riley vs. Shane Nelson