Gast-Ecke » shot. Hendricks, a former two-time NCAA cham

Its been a long and, at times, bumpy road back to the UFC for Andrei Arlovski. Following a seven-plus year stint that saw the dangerous striker capture the UFC heavyweight championship, Arlovski opted to part ways with the worlds largest MMA organization after fulfilling his contract in early 2008. His strategy was simple in theory, but tough in execution: dispatch the top heavyweights outside the UFC and return to the negotiating table with increased bargaining power. Arlovskis new beginning got off to a hot start when he picked up consecutive knockout victories over Ben Rothwell and Roy Nelson. Unfortunately for the Belarus native, his plan soon took a sharp nose dive. After a disastrous outing against Fedor Emelianenko in 2009 that saw him swatted out of mid-air like a fly during an ill-fated flying-knee attempt, Arlovski went on to lose his next three fights. In MMA youre often only as good as your last fight and Arlovski had now dropped four straight for the first time in his career. In the eyes of many, The Pit Bull was done. But Arlovskis fortunes would change once more, as he returned to the win column with a TKO victory over Ray Lopez in mid-2011. Since his skid ended hes now netted an impressive 6-1 (1 NC) record and subsequently earned his way back onto the UFC roster. On the cusp of his promotional return, Arlovski said his slump was an important learning experience. “I think everything happens for a reason,” Arlovski said. “Right now I have a lot of energy and fire in my eyes. Im just ready to fight hard and train hard. “If youre on top of the world, you have to train even harder than before because you can lose it in one minute. It was definitely a good life experience for me. Like I said, I have a lot of energy, Im still young and Im ready to start everything from the beginning again. “I knew I was going to be back in the UFC sooner or later. Im very excited its happened now.” Arlovski gets to reintroduce himself to UFC fans when he battles Brendan Schaub on the main card of UFC 174 in Vancouver Saturday. The show will be headlined by a flyweight championship bout between Demetrious Johnson and Ali Bagautinov. Not only does Arlovski have the opportunity to pick up his first win inside the octagon since UFC 82 over six years ago, he also aims to knock off a top-15 ranked heavyweight. With Schaub currently sitting in the No. 14 spot, Arlovski is determined to send a message to the rest of the weight class. “Its very important for me to have a very good start in my second debut in the UFC and I will do everything possible to beat Brendan,” Arlovski said. “The best thing about Brendan is that hes in front of me. Hes top 15 and Im not even top 25. So everybody whos in front of me is a very important fight for me.” A win over Schaub will certainly put Arlovski back on track in the ultra-competitive heavyweight division. Though he once wore UFC gold around his waist, hes not about to get ahead of himself. As much as Arlovski would love to fight for a belt again, he admits he has his work cut out for him before he can re-enter the title picture. “One step at a time,” Arlovski said. “I have to face Brendan Schaub and then afterwards its definitely going to be up to the UFC (who I fight next). “(The heavyweight division) was tough then and now its even tougher. Definitely the UFC has the best heavyweights in the world. Its awesome.” As with most heavyweight tilts, Arlovskis bout with Schaub carries the potential for a thrilling finish. In 45 combined fights, the two have only reached the judges scorecards a total of eight times. Though both fighters have excelled at putting opponents away, theyve also suffered their share of knockout losses over the years, causing some to question the strength of their respective chins. Arlovski immediately dismissed the notion, stating that one top fighter can put another to sleep on any given night. “If you land a good right, a good kick, or a good punch in the right place, anybody can be knocked out,” Arlovski said. “I think its all b------- about a weak chin or a glass chin. Its all about landing a hard punch in the right place. Definitely, I wont count on Brendan having a weak chin. “Brendan, hes definitely a very tough fighter. He has good jiu jitsu and is very dangerous on the ground. I just need to be ready.” Though Arlovski carries no illusions about how quickly a fight can turn sour, hes also no stranger to dishing out highlight-reel knockouts. If things go according to plan, hell be adding another to his resume this weekend. “I think its going to be a very exciting fight for the fans,” he said. “Especially for Arlovski fans.” Cheap Jordan 13 Free Shipping ." Argos general manager Jim Barker uttered those words during an interview with TSN 1050 radio just prior to the CFLs annual free agent frenzy. Cheap Air Jordan Retro 13 . - The Seattle Sounders busy off-season continues with the team acquiring defender Chad Marshall from the Columbus Crew in exchange for a 2015 third-round pick and allocation money. http://www.wholesaleairjordan13.com/. -- The Sacramento Kings have signed first-round pick Nik Stauskas to his rookie contract. Cheap Jordan 13 Wholesale . His fellow Finn, 21 years his junior, had just arrived in Anaheim and was hoping to stick with the Ducks. Jordan 13 Shoes China . Sopoaga hit the upright with his first shot at goal from 15 metres. He then kicked nine goals in succession -- two conversions and seven penalties -- before being replaced in the 62nd minute, three points short of the Highlanders record for most points in a match.TORONTO -- Just 13 weeks after walking away from his title, Georges St-Pierre is not forgotten. But he is devalued. Once ranked among mixed martial arts pound-for-pound elite, the former UFC welterweight champion from Montreal is finding past glory doesnt last long. Fighters have short memories. So do fans. "I cant think backwards," said top 170-pound contender Johny (Bigg Rigg) Hendricks. "Ive got to think forwards. "Look at our division. Its a pretty stacked division. Very talented people in the top 10 and now that Georges has walked away, its time for one of us to make our own mark." Hendricks, who lost a controversial split decision to St-Pierre at UFC 167 last November, gets another shot at the welterweight crown March 15 when he faces veteran (Ruthless) Robbie Lawler at UFC 171 to decide St-Pierres successor. The 32-year-old St-Pierre vacated the title in December, saying he needed time away from the sport. St-Pierre (25-2) left a 12-fight winning streak and a string of UFC records behind him. But his last seven victories came by decision. And in a sport that celebrates sudden, violent finishes to fights, going the distance is not a plus. While some saw only St-Pierres ability to blunt his opponents strengths, others criticized the champion for not taking risks. Facing St-Pierre was death by a thousand cuts. Fighters like Hendricks and Lawler offer one-blow blunt force trauma. In MMA, youre only as good as your last fight. And St-Pierres last offering was gritty but unconvincing. Hendricks (15-2) told a media conference call Thursday that he sees Lawler (22-9 with one no contest) as a more dangerous opponent that St-Pierre. "Georges, you knew that he was going to throw a jab, a high kick, a low kick and try to take you down," he said. "Thats his game plan. "Robbie, if you make a mistake, weve seen it time and time again that he can knock you out. So you really have to make sure that you stay focused, cross all your Ts and dot all your Is, and make sure that you stay solid. And thats a lot more dangerous fight. "With guys who can knock people out, youre one punch away from losing. But those are also the more fun fights for me. You dont know whats going to happen. All you know is youre going to step into an Octagon and hopeefully you get your hand raised.dddddddddddd" Carlos (The Natural Born Killer) Condit, one of the more thoughtful fighters in the UFC, said GSP leaves "some big shoes to fill in one respect." Then Condit (29-7), who lost a decision to St-Pierre at UFC 154, agreed with Hendricks on GSP. "I think people have wanted to see a little bit of excitement," said Condit, who dragged St-Pierre into rare deep waters with a head kick when they fought. "And I think Georges, from time to time, later in his career he had some spurts of excitement. But for the most part people kind of knew what was going to happen. "And now the division has been infused with some energy. Theres a lot of buzz -- you know, whats going to happen? Theres a lot of really really tough guys bottlenecking at the top spots of welterweight. "I think its an exciting time. We all get the opportunity to get in there and try to put that welterweight belt around our waists. Its just a perfect storm. The fans ultimately are going to be the ones that benefit with some really really exciting fights." The 30-year-old Hendricks is the top-ranked contender in the 170-pound division while Lawler is No. 3. No. 2 Condit, who lost to Hendricks at UFC 158, takes on No. 11 Tyron Woodley (12-2) in the UFC 171 co-main event. Condit says he has been told a win will earn him another title shot. Hendricks, a former two-time NCAA champion wrestler, is currently No. 10 in the UFCs pound-for-pound rankings. Lawler does not figure in the top 15. St-Pierre seems to deserve better. The decision over Hendricks was a record 19th win in the UFC for the Canadian, moving him past former welterweight champion Matt Hughes at 18. The Hendricks victory also moved GSP past former middleweight champion Anderson Silva for most wins in UFC title bouts at 12. St-Pierre holds the record for career fight time in the UFC at five hours 28 minutes 12 seconds. And he owns the UFC mark for most championship rounds fought (52). UFC 167 was St-Pierres 14th championship fight, one behind Randy (The Natural) Couture. St-Pierre also leads the UFC records in total strikes landed (2,523), significant strikes landed (1,254), takedowns landed (87) and takedown accuracy rate (73.7 per cent), according to FightMetric. ' ' '