Pirate Galaxy » $3 outsiders with the bookies du

Seven years ago, a heavyweight by the name of Daniel Cormier made his professional fighting debut on a Strikeforce Challengers event in Bixby, Oklahoma.Early in the broadcast, commentators relayed a story about Cormiers manager, Bob Cook, literally laughing at his fighters attempts to throw kicks in the gym -- his skills were that raw.What Cormier had going for him, however, was an Olympic-caliber wrestling background. Within three years of that debut, Cormier had won the Strikeforce Heavyweight Grand Prix tournament. Today, hes a UFC champion and one of the most recognizable stars in a sport that is constantly in search of them.And it all started with then-Strikeforce CEO Scott Coker signing a heavyweight with no experience.When we signed him, Daniel really had no skill in mixed martial arts other than wrestling, Coker chuckled. But he turned into a phenomenal fighter. When you look at the disciplines of this sport, if you have a good wrestling background, youre usually at a pretty decent advantage.Coker, now the president of Bellator MMA, is quietly applying the same strategy he used to find Cormier to his current promotion.Bellator has made a big splash with several free-agent signings in recent years, which include established names like Chael Sonnen, Rory MacDonald, Benson Henderson and Phil Davis. But in addition, the company has also invested in five standout amateur wrestlers who have never professionally competed in MMA.We call them the Fab Five, Coker said.Their names are Aaron Pico, Ed Ruth, Tyrel Fortune, Jarod Trice and Joey Davis. The first four attempted to qualify for the 2016 U.S. Olympic wrestling team, each falling just short at trials. Davis, an undefeated four-time NCAA Division II national wrestling champion, made his MMA debut for Bellator in August. He won by unanimous decision.Ruth, 26, is scheduled to make his debut on Friday at Bellator 163 in Uncasville, Connecticut. Hes a former three-time NCAA Division I champion at Penn State and trains out of MMA veteran Josh Koschecks gym in Fresno, California. Hes also represented by Zinkin Entertainment -- the same management group of Cormier.Whether or not Ruth, a middleweight, comes close to duplicating Cormiers success no one knows. But as he was with Cormier, Coker is in on the ground floor of his career. And in the business of MMA promotion, its always nice to hold a potential lotto ticket.I feel like the sky is the limit in this sport, Ruth said. You look at Conor McGregor, and Im not gonna lie, I love that guy. He was confident, knew how to talk and now hes making lots of money. I feel like every fighter comes into this sport thinking they can make astronomical amounts of money, and I feel the same. I feel my chances are great, given that Ive already done the hard work Im going to put in.Scott has a good relationship with my management team, and I really couldnt go wrong with Bellator. They are putting me in a position where I can take off.Fortune, a heavyweight and close friend of Ruths, also makes his debut at Bellator 163. His involvement in MMA began when he flew to South Florida to help former UFC champion Rashad Evans prepare for a fight. Bellator moved quick in signing Fortune, as he agreed to a deal with the promotion within a few weeks of Ruth introducing him to some of its executives.Even though Fortune has no record, he has already been courted by fight camps and promotions. He now trains out of Arizona but says his confidence grew during his time with the Blackzilians in Florida.Guys like [striking coach] Henri Hooft pulled me aside and said, Listen, I really think you have endless potential to be a champion in this sport if thats what you want, Fortune said. Hearing it from guys like that -- [UFC light heavyweight] Anthony Johnson, Rashad, [grappling coach] Neil Melanson -- I fell in love with it right away.One of the first things Rashad did was say, OK, wait, we have to make sure you have a chin, first. There are some people who, for whatever genetic reason, cant take a punch. So, he hit me in the face, kind of by surprise, and I took it OK. Thats when he said, OK, you got a future in this sport!Neither Ruth nor Fortune is scheduled to appear on the televised main card this weekend, which is by Bellator design. Coker said he wanted to book both to a real fight but spare them the additional pressure of fighting on live television. Both fighters understood the decision and said its in line with the relationship theyve had with Bellator to this point.When Ed was telling me about signing with Bellator and what they had to offer, he said, Theyre not throwing us to the wolves, Fortune said. Its very personal. Theyre not looking at us as an assembly line of athletes coming through the organization. I have a relationship with this promotion.Since Coker took over as Bellators president in 2014, the promotion has faced its share of criticism for circus fights, mostly those involving retired greats who are past their prime or a heavyweight bout between the late Kimbo Slice and Dhafir Dada 5000 Harris in February.But two years in, Cokers imprint on Bellators roster is finally taking shape and a focus on amateur wrestlers is proving to be a major piece of it. Time will tell if it produces another Cormier.I always feel the roster has to be built from the ground up and the top down, Coker said. Ten years ago with Strikeforce, there were more free agents floating around. We signed Fedor Emelianenko, [Antonio] Bigfoot Silva, Fabricio Werdum -- now free agents are few and far between, but were signing our share of them, as youve seen.We also have to build from the ground up, and thats how we built Strikeforce, and I think were doing that here with the wrestling group weve brought in.Cheap Custom Jerseys . -- The Sacramento Kings are set to become the first major professional sports franchise to accept Bitcoin virtual currency for ticket and merchandise purchases. Cheap Nike Jerseys . Wall made the comment in a speech to a Regina business crowd that included Lesnar. The U.S. wrestler and retired mixed martial artist says he was visiting his brothers farm in Saskatchewan and decided he wanted to hear what the premier had to say. https://www.fakejerseyswholesale.com/ . -- Ty Montgomery had 290 all-purpose yards and two touchdowns, and fifth-ranked Stanford held on to beat No. Wholesale China Jerseys . Any real chance at payback wont come until the playoff. Still, Pittsburgh knows its taut 3-2 win over the Bruins on Wednesday night is a pretty good place to start laying the groundwork. "They are a very good defensive team," Penguins forward Brandon Sutter said. Fake Jerseys For Sale . PETERSBURG, Fla.Penrith can move into the top eight by breaking Cronullas record-setting winning NRL run but they insist it cant be used as a gauge of their finals credentials.The Panthers are wedged in a logjam of teams jostling for a spot on the outskirts of the top eight and in a stroke of good luck have been drawn to play the table-topping Sharks without their State of Origin stars at Pepper Stadium on Sunday.The Sharks last week recorded their 12th straight win - a club record - however have been rated $3 outsiders with the bookies due to Paul Gallen, James Maloney, Jack Bird, Wade Graham and Andrew Fifita being in camp with NSW preparing for next weeks game three.While happy to take on the premiership co-favourites minus their stars, baackrower Trent Merrin questioned whether they would get a true measure on where they stand.ddddddddddddd actually love to play them with all their players in, thats when you get a true test of character and you want to play against the best players, Merrin said.But well take them on without their guns.Theyre still going to be a handful. Players step up when the leaders are out.The Panthers go into the round in ninth spot, behind the eighth-placed Warriors on points differential.If they can beat the Sharks by four points or more, they will jump into the eight ahead of the Warriors, who have the bye. ' ' '