UFN 11 Card Looking Good

Tis is a shaping up to be a great little card, especially for the price.

Kenny Florian vs. Din Thomas (main event)
Jonathan Goulet vs. Mike Swick
Junior Assuncao vs. Nate Diaz
Chris Leben vs. Terry Martin
Nate Quarry vs. Pete Sell
Leonard Garcia vs. Cole Miler
Gray Maynard vs. Joe Veres
Thiago Alves vs. Kuniyoshi Hironaka

Morning Droppings

- Chris Leben will, in fact, be fighting on the September 19 UFC Fight Night 11 card after all. Leben will face the powerful Terry Martin, who most recently defeated Ivan Salaverry by dropping him on his head.

- UFC lightweight chump Sean Sherk has appealed the 365-day suspension and $2,500 fine from the CSAC after testing positive for banned substances. The hearing is set for August 6, after which the UFC will decide whether Sherk keeps his belt.

- Yesterday, Sherdog.com senior editor Josh Gross composed an open letter to UFC president Dana White regarding the Sherk/Franca/steroid debacle. Apparently, White read the letter and decided to answer with a letter of his own. Check it out. There's no verifying that the response letter is, in fact, from White himself, but the UFC president has been very vocal before about his disdain for Sherdog.com, and the language of the letter is very similar to that which Dana uses. You be the judge.

Swick: Leben “Backed Out” of Fight

Mike Swick has gone on record to say that Chris Leben has "backed out" of their September 19 fight, which was scheduled to headline UFC’s Fight Night 11 card.

"He backed out. He didn’t take it. It kind of sucks with how tough he talks about fighting anyone, anywhere. He kept saying we could rematch anytime," Swick griped. "It’s disrespectful to back out now."

Swick explained that he will probably remain on the televised part of the Fight Night 11 card, but the Houston native doubts that he’ll be in the main event. The UFC is currently looking for an opponent for the popular Swick.

Swick seemed particularly upset, and with good reason. Leben holds a win 2004 KO win over Swick (at WEC 9), and Swick has been looking to avenge that loss.

"What it comes down to is that [Leben’s] got a win over me, and he’s been blabbing about it since the show," Swick told UFCJunkie. "And he can’t give me the respect to let me avenge that loss? All that talk he talks, and this is how it goes? I think he lost that warrior spirit."

I haven’t heard anything as to why Leben has decided against this fight (injury, management issues, contractual difficulties???), but I’ll do some investigative work and let you know as soon as I can.

Morning Droppings

- The next UFC Fight Night card has been booked for Thursday, September 20, and will air live on Spike TV (free) as a lead-in for The Ultimate Fighter 6 debut episode. In the main event of the Fight Night event, Miletich Fighting Systems' Spencer "The King" Fisher will face American Top team fighter Din Thomas in what promises to be a very exciting lightweight showdown. Also rumored for the card is a Chris Leben-Mike Swick showdown, presumably at middleweight.

- A member of Rashad Evans' camp has confirmed to UFCJunkie.com that Rashad Evans-Tito Ortiz II has been booked for UFC 77 on October 20 in Cincinnati.

- Speaking of draws and rematches, Charles "Krazy Horse" Bennett-Victor "Joe Boxer" Valenzuela II is rumored to take place on the September 1 EliteXC card. The two were scheduled to fight last month as part of the Baroni-Shamrock event, but due to Krazy Horse's legal woes and an inability to make his flight out to Vegas for the fight, Valenzuela fought (and lost to) James Edson Berto. Bennett-Valenzuela is a rematch I'd love to see. Their first fight (2005) ended in a draw after brutal, non-stop action that left Krazy Horse lying exhausted in the middle of the cage. These fighters cgenuinely dislike one another, and I expect another war from these two.