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The OAC has released the fighter payouts for WEC 47 “Bowles vs. Cruz.” Keep in mind, these figures represent the base contracted pay the fighter receives from the promotion. These figures do not include any additional undisclosed bonuses or sponsorship money, which in many cases exceeds a fighter’s base pay. These numbers also do not account for taxes, insurance, and license fees.

Josh Barnett’s steroid appeal was pushed back for the fourth consecutive time yesterday when he failed to show up for a hearing with the CSAC. His attorney, who was present, was “shocked” when the commission said they couldn’t proceed without him.

“We’ve been diligently preparing to present Mr. Barnett’s case and his defense, and he was unable to be here today and we are extremely shocked and disappointed that the commission ruled that they would not go forward with the hearing without Mr. Barnett being present,” said Michael J. DiMaggio, an attorney representing Barnett. “It’s particularly surprising in light of the fact that we’re not aware of any rule or regulation that insists that he be here. Obviously, even criminal cases go forward without the accused present in some instances.”

What DiMaggio apparently didn’t know was the CSAC made it perfectly clear ahead of time that Barnett’s attendance was required.

Again Dodd countered by stating the original letter sent to Barnett outlined the manner in which he would have to proceed to regain his license to fight.

“The letter is very clear that you must appear before the commission,” Dodd said. “It doesn’t say anything else besides appear. You can bring counsel, but it says the word ‘appear’ in there.”

So where was Josh Barnett in all of this? Oh, he was in Japan wrestling Bob Sapp. And he wonders why the mega-contract offers aren’t rolling in.

His appeal has been rescheduled for April 20.

The Florida State Boxing Commission has officially rejected Yohan Banks as Bobby Lashley’s opponent for Strikeforce “Miami.” What’s crazier is why.

MMAjunkie.com (www.mmajunkie.com) has learned from sources close to the event that heavyweight Yohan Banks (2-1 MMA, 2-0 SF) was not approved by the Florida State Boxing Commission as an opponent for Bobby Lashley (4-0 MMA, 0-0 SF), and the former WWE star is still without an opponent for the event.

An FSBC representative said the decision to decline Banks as an opponent for Lashley was made based on a review of the fighters’ records, at which point the commission “determined that the bout was not competitive.”

Okay, I’ll bite. Taking a quick look at Lashley’s and Banks’ records, Lashley has only had one more professional fight than Banks. Just one. Lashley is 4-0 with wins against Bob Sapp, Mike Cook, Jason Guida, and Joshua Franklin. Not exactly top tier competition. Meanwhile, Banks is 2-1 with wins over Joey Beltran and Michael Diaz and a loss to Joey Devine. If Banks’ record isn’t good enough for Lashley, then whose is? Did the FSBC confuse Lashley with Brock Lesnar or something? Seriously, I don’t get it.

Image via Esther Lin for Showtime

Update: WKR reminds everyone that Yohan Banks would have been coming off a 17-month layoff so perhaps that had something to do with it?

Update 2: Five Oz. is reporting that Jimmy Ambriz has been selected to fight Bobby Lashley pending FSBC approval. Ambriz is a 14-12-1 super heavyweight who has losses to Sergei Kharitonov, Jeff Monson and even TUF 10’s Scott Junk. He’s a very beatable opponent for Lashley, but at least has the experience to convince the FSBC to approve him…I would think.

Update 3: Scratch Jimmy Ambriz’s name off the list. Ariel Helwani doesn’t say why, but he says Ambriz is definitely not fighting Lashley.

The CSAC has released the fighter payouts for WEC 46 “Varner vs Henderson.” Keep in mind, these figures represent the base contracted pay the fighter receives from the promotion. These figures do not include any additional undisclosed bonuses or sponsorship money, which in many cases exceeds a fighter’s base pay. These numbers also do not account for taxes, insurance, and license fees.

No, sorry, this isn’t the post that finally clears up when Brock Lesnar will get back in the cage, but it should lay to rest any speculation that Lesnar’s leaky intestine was caused by any suspected steroid usage. MMA Junkie’s Dr. Johnny Benjamin has the word.

Dana White talks about the insane string of injuries that have hit the UFC lately, Keith Kizer and his criticism of Steve Mazzagatti.

Lyoto Machida’s victory over Mauricio “Shogun” Rua was easily one of the most, if not the most, controversial decision of the year. Seemingly everyone who watched it live thought Shogun slayed the Dragon at UFC 104 except for the three people whose opinions actually counted for the official record. Well, make that two people because Nelson “Doc” Hamilton now realizes he made a mistake giving Machida round four.

No luck for Jon Jones with the NSAC.

Jones filed a formal appeal with the NSAC over his disqualification from the Matt Hamill fight at the TUF 10 Finale. Jones’ argument was Hamill couldn’t continue because he injured his shoulder, not because of the illegal elbow strikes. Considering that news originated from Hamill’s camp, it seemed like he actually had a pretty good case.

It didn’t matter though. According to this Heavy.com report, they wouldn’t even issue an official ruling on the appeal.

Jon Jones’ appeal to the Nevada State Athletic Commission to overturn referee Steve Mazagatti’s decision in his bout against Matt Hamill earlier this month has been denied. The NSAC stated that they don’t overturn decisions and decided against ruling on the appeal.

Heavy.com confirmed the news with Jason Genet, the manager of Jones, Shane Carwin and other fighters.

I know, shocking right?

Image via Sherdog

The CSAC has released the fighter payouts for Strikeforce “Evolution.” Keep in mind, these figures represent the base contracted pay the fighter receives from the promotion. These figures do not include any additional undisclosed bonuses or sponsorship money, which in many cases exceeds a fighter’s base pay. These numbers also do not account for taxes, insurance, and license fees.