Did You See His Cartwheel Kick?

This reads like something from a lame modern cop show drama that everyone likes but me. But the scary or (if you are insensitive and immature) funny thing about it is that it’s real!

On Dec. 9, 2009, Howard showed up at the Toronto Star with a briefcase. He looked like a businessman, but his clothes were worn, and his knuckles were bruised and caked with dried blood. In a hoarse voice, he said there was a plot to ruin his life. He claimed he had been injected with a liquid that hardened his veins and immobilized him. He held out his shaking hands for inspection, his eyes wide in desperation. As he was escorted out of the building, he left nodding to no one but himself. “On to Plan B,” he told an editor before leaving.

What was Plan B?

Almost two weeks later, residents of a Niagara Falls street were awakened by screams. Howard was attacking his sister and nephew with the claw end of a hammer. His 21-year-old nephew fought back before Howard screeched out of the driveway.

It seems that Howard started to “lose his grip” mid 2009 largely due to his long term addiction to pain killers, which, according to the rest of the Toronto Star’s report, was an important factor in his downward spiral.

The importance of this, or at least the interest in this man, is the fact he was part of the UFC’s early history. He earned his shot at Royce Gracie with two wins at UFC 3, but instead Howard ended up facing a replacement and losing.

In early 2009, Sherdog did a piece on Howard. In it he is a little crazy, but a nice, kind, and according to the article, “colorful, memorable and honest.”

“We’ve got a saying back home that if you’re coming on,” he fumed, whipping off the shades, “come on!”

I just hope that he can turn his life around, but after reading at least the Toronto article about him, it seems his family has pretty much given up on him. What is worse is that he also seems to have given up on himself.

Sad.

[via Fightlinker]

DEEP MMA Promotion: Who Let the Hogs Out?

Looks like the Japanese MMA promotion DEEP is having a light heavy weight tournament.  I currently don’t know anything about the participants, but I hope they are up and coming talent that can one day move on to fighting at that weight in larger events. There are not many great Japanese fighters at 205 in my opinion, but I wish there were.

The first stage should take place Feb 28th at DEEP 46 Impact in Korakuen Hall, Tokyo.

Now, all I have to do is figure out why a transvestite pig has become a symbol for higher weight class fighters…

P.S. – ……… YOU CAN’T BE SERIOUS STANDING NEXT TO A PIG THAT LOOKS LIKE THAT!

[via Kakutoh]

Edit: Here’s a great Nightmare of Battle post on the event

Tiger Woods: Lose, Crappy CGI: Win

Ok, so I could care less about the Tiger Woods “scandal” that we’ve been hearing about for almost an entire week. I say leave him alone. As long as nothing illegal occurred, this is a personal matter that should remain between he and his wife and family. Of course, the media would never genuinely entertain that until they’d milked the story clean, but let’s at least thank Taiwanese news for the only ounce of win to come out of the coverage: a craptastic CGI reenactment! Just watch…

“Meggings” Are a Rising Style in Japan… Maybe Aoki Was on to Something

Japan is no stranger to “interesting” fashion choices, and this is no exception really. Leggings for men, or as some like to call them “meggings,” have apparently been circulating around European fashion, but now according to Japan Probe, they are a hot item amongst the male 20 to 30 something crowd in Tokyo.  Basically long underwear coming in a variety of patterns, they’re usually worn under shorts or capris (another thing you don’t see men wearing very much). Check out some examples in the video after the jump. Read more »