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In what he claims to be true, Phil Baroni talks about a former job which included him moving money that he implies is illegal. The job resulted in him being cut with a box cutter along his scalp.

With the cancellation of UFC 151, One Fighting Championships took center stage this weekend, as ONE FC 5: Pride of a Nation streamed live early Friday morning from the Philippines.

In the main event, Bibiano Fernandes scored a decision victory over Gustavo Falciroli. Fernandes was the last DREAM bantamweight champion and turned down an offer to fight in the UFC to sign with ONE FC.

One of the featured bouts ended in a no-contest after Andrei Arlovski delivered an illegal kick to Tim Sylvia. The two former UFC heavyweights were doing battle for the fourth time.

Soccer kicks are legal in ONE FC, but the referee must first make the call for an “open attack” to occur. The referee had not made that call when Arlovski kicked Sylvia, forcing the bout to be called.

In other action, Rolles Gracie and Gregor Gracie each earned wins, while Igor Gracie was defeated. Phil Baroni earned a first round stoppage victory over Rodrigo Ribeiro.

ONE FC 5: PRIDE OF A NATION RESULTS

Bibiano Fernandes def. Gustavo Falciroli via unanimous decision

Eduard Folayang def. Felipe Enomoto via unanimous decision

Andrei Arlovski vs. Tim Sylvia ruled a no-contest (illegal kick to the head by Arlovski)

Eric Kelly def. Jens Pulver via TKO (strikes) at 1:46 of Round 2

Rolles Gracie def. Tony Bonello via submission (rear-naked choke) at 1:33 of Round 3

Jung Hwan Cha def. Igor Gracie via TKO (elbows) at 1:03 of Round 3

Soo Chul Kim def. Kevin Belingon via unanimous decision

Gregor Gracie def. Nicholas Mann via submission (armbar) at 3:38 of Round 1

Phil Baroni def. Rodrigo Ribeiro via TKO (strikes) at 1:00 of Round 1

Shannon Wiratchai def. Mitch Chilson via KO (soccer kick) at 2:03 of Round 2

Honorio Banario def. Andrew Benibe via KO (strikes) at 3:43 of Round 3

Some say MMA is a crazy sport populated by crazy folk.  Well, for God’s sake, don’t show those people any of the bouts on the following list, ‘cause then they’re really going to think we’re lunatics.  Of course, the reality of any endeavor that involves choking an opponent unconscious or knocking them silly is that strange stuff is bound to happen, whether it be someone losing their cool, losing their bearings, or just straight up losing their mind.  But at least we don’t have to deal with idiots running onto the baseball field, nude chicks sprinting across the putty green or goofy mascots, right?  Anyway, here are some of MMA’s top mid-fight freakouts.  If any of your non-MMA friends read this, ask them not to judge us too harshly.

-Rousimar Palhares vs. Dan Miller, UFC 134 – The inspiration for this article occurred this past weekend, when the UFC returned to Brazil so a bunch of native fighters could slaughter a bunch of foreigners.  The particular bout in question: Palhares versus Miller.  In an opening round that saw more back-and-forth action than a ping pong match staged on a seesaw, Palhares dropped Miller with a perfectly-timed kick to the head, and he followed it up with some hellacious ground and pound.  However, not content to wait for referee Herb Dean to call it, “Toquino” decided the fight was over himself, and he turned and jumped on top of the cage and began celebrating.  The ensuing dialogue went something like this:

            Dean: “I didn’t stop the fight.  Get down from there and keep fighting.”

            Palhares: “Que disse?”

            Dean: “I didn’t stop the fight.  You have to keep fighting.”

            Palhares: *Makes indecipherable grunting noises*

            Miller: “This sucks.”

Thankfully, order was restored and the fighters resumed bashing each other.

-Chael Sonnen vs. Paulo Filho, WEC 36 – Brazilian Top Team black belt Filho was hell on wheels for the longest time, defeating all comers to earn his status as reigning WEC 185-pound champ and one of the best middleweights around.  He even defeated Sonnen in his first title defense.  But when the American earned another crack at the Brazilian, Filho was – to put it bluntly – coming apart at the mental seams.  First, the bout had to be rescheduled when Filho abruptly checked into a substance-abuse rehab facility.  Then, when the match finally did come together, he failed to make weight, rendering their WEC 36 bout a non-title affair.  To make matter worse, during their fight Filho looked like had no desire to be in the cage, and allegedly whispered to Sonnen suggestions that they go to the ground and just rest there.  Sonnen did not oblige him, went on to win the decision, and that was the last we Americans saw of Filho.

-Mike Kyle vs. Brian Olsen, WEC 20 – Kyle may be a rock-solid Strikeforce competitor nowadays, but back in 2006 he was fighting Olsen for the WEC heavyweight title when he decided mid-fight that the Unified Rules were actually just suggestions and not really something you had to adhere to.  Our first clue that something was amiss?  The soccer kick Kyle landed to Olsen’s head when Olsen was down.  Then, when the referee tried to jump in and Kyle pushed him away to keep hitting his clearly stunned opponent, well, that cinched it.  Kyle had lost his marbles.  Thankfully, Kyle got roughly a two-year timeout for his disgraceful behavior, and by all appearances he has since pledged his allegiance to the Unified Rules.  Still, a soccer kick and punches after the ref says “stop”… naughty.  Very naughty.

-Phil Baroni vs. Evan Tanner, UFC 45 – Hard-hitting Baroni came oh-so-close to knocking Tanner out in a standing exchange, but then found himself sucking wind, mounted and absorbed elbows from above.  He was far from done, though.  After all, if anything, the “New York Bad Ass” is tough as nails.  Unfortunately, referee Larry Landless thought the best way to gauge Baroni’s desire to continue was via conversation, which, given that the fighter had 185-pounds of angry Texan on top of him, was probably a poor choice.  The ensuing dialogue went something like this:

            Landless: “Okay, I’m going to ask you a question and I want you to be perfectly honest.  Do you want to continue?”

            Baroni: “Que disse?”

            Landless: “Because if you don’t tell me right now that you’re okay and want to continue, I’m going to stop this exciting back-and-forth fight, thereby giving Mr. Tanner the win by TKO.”

            Baroni: *Makes indecipherable grunting noises*

            Tanner: “This sucks.”

Sadly, when Landless stepped in to call the bout, Baroni disagreed with the call, so he began punching up at the referee.  I’d say that counts as a freakout, right?

-Wes Sims vs. Frank Mir, UFC 43 – Tall, lanky and inexplicably impossible to submit, Sims earned himself a berth in the UFC by smashing Marcus “Conan” Silveira at a HooknShoot event.  His first opponent in the Octagon, however, was none other than Mir, who was a submission machine.  As predicted, Mir got Sims down and worked him over.  But nothing the future heavyweight champ did could elicit a tap out, and when Sims eventually slammed his way out of an armbar, what followed was ugly.  And by “ugly”, I mean Sims grabbing the cage and stomping on Mir’s face with his foot.  Which, uh, is sort of a no-no as per the Unified Rules.  As a bonus, when the referee promptly disqualified Sims for the infraction, Sims acted as if he was somehow wronged by the call.  Oh Wes, you so crazy.

Someone asked the other day where Mike Swick has been. Well, he’s off in SE Asia with Phil Baroni and Roger Huerta taking shots of cobra blood… obviously. #tigerbloodisforsissies

Video via OfficialSwick & Cage Today

As expected, Phil Baroni received his walking papers from the UFC following his loss to Brad Tavares at UFC 125. Baroni was clearly upset after the fight, but said he expected to be cut and is already planning to fight again in March.

Baroni commented on the fight with Tavares earlier today and said he lost “because I forgot to duck two times.”

“That pretty much is it, case closed. I should have ducked the kick and the right hand after it. That about sums up why I lost. I was doing pretty good before the break. I had a lapse in concentration and got clipped for it two times,” he posted on The Underground.

“Enough with the threads and dumb talk. I have already got back on the diet and road work again. I should be fighting again in March.”

Who he’ll fight for is anyone’s guess, but MMA Junkie says he’s already received offers from “at least five” smaller promotions, so he’ll definitely land somewhere.

No other cuts have been confirmed yet, but I’m guessing Brandon Vera will be the next big name to go. His loss to Thiago Silva was his third in a row and his price tag isn’t cheap at $60k/$60k.

Image via Esther Lin for Strikeforce/Showtime

MMA Fighting’s Ariel Helwani caught up with Dana White, Anthony Pettis, Clay Guida, Thiago Silva, Phil Baroni, Brad Tavares, Jacob Volkmann, Diego Nunes and Playboy’s Holly Madison to get their thoughts on UFC 125 following last night’s event. Heavy.com’s Megan Olivi spoke with Brian Stann.

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UFC 125 is currently underway at the MGM Grand Garden Arena in Las Vegas, Nevada.

In the main event, Frankie Edgar puts his lightweight title on the line against Gray Maynard.

In the co-main event, Chris Leben takes on Brian Stann in a middleweight match-up.

Nate Diaz faces Dong Hyun Kim in a welterweight bout.

Clay Guida and Takanori Gomi look to take another step up the ladder in the lightweight division.

Brandon Vera and Thiago Silva fight for a much-needed win in the light heavyweight division.

Results, thoughts, bonuses and live gate (when available) after the jump.

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Haha, some of these skits from the 2010 World MMA awards are so bad they’re good. My favorites are Dear Wandy and NYBA’s Used Cars.

The 2010 World MMA Awards replays tonight on Versus at 10PM ET/7PM PT.

HT: WKR

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First off, I really want to fight. It’s a big show — first one in Boston. It would have been great. The card is huge, and maybe I could have a good fight and get on TV. Get some exposure. I need it now badly. I’m left out of a lot of sh** nowadays. I’m forgotten at the expos and appearances. Just everything with the UFC. I wanted to win a big fight, look impressive and get considered again. I wanted to say, ‘Hey Dana, I’m still f**king here. I still can fight.’ I wanted to say it to everyone: the fans, the media. I’m still Phil f**king Baroni. That used to mean something. I want it to mean something again. I want to say, ‘Hey Strikeforce, you made a big mistake letting me go. You f**ked up. You blew it. I’m still somebody, and I still bring things to the table that not many fighters do.’ I just want to be a contender. I want respect from my peers, the fans, media and the promotions. I wanted to say, ‘I’m still here, don’t f**king forget about me. I’m not dead yet. I want to be a contender — I want to matter again. I want to be the biggest comeback story ever — a Cinderella Man. It’s not depression, but I’m going through my share of problems like a lot of people in Vegas and across the country with foreclosure, money … everything. I’m almost in the same position I was 10 years ago, but now the window of opportunity is closing. I don’t want to be here when it shuts with none of my goals accomplished and all my dreams dead. I still have a little time, and I want to shove them all through the window with me. It’s a million-to-one shot, but, hey, Rocky did it.

—Phil Baroni telling MMA Fighting’s Ariel Helwani that he wants to matter again

As he reveals in the interview, Phil Baroni was going through a tough time before the collarbone injury knocked him out of UFC 118, and that only made it worse. He’s taken a job outside of fighting and his wife’s taken a second job just so they can pay the bills. That’s how it’s supposed to be when you’re starting out, not when you’re 10 years into your career. (Take note, young fighters, manage your money) As Baroni says though, his window of opportunity is rapidly closing. His says his left shoulder is dead and he just doesn’t have the fast hands that helped him win fights earlier in his career. I’m all about “Cinderella” stories as Baroni puts it, but the odds are heavily stacked against him.

Image via Sherdog

A pair of injuries has forced two notable fighters off the UFC’s August pay-per-view cards.

According to multiple reports, Thiago Silva’s back has betrayed him again, forcing him to pull out of his UFC 117 fight against Tim Boetsch.

Thiago Silva (14-2 MMA, 5-2 UFC) reinjured his back and is unable to fight Tim Boetsch (11-3 MMA, 2-2 UFC) at UFC 117.

Multiple sources close to the event today confirmed with MMAjunkie.com (www.mmajunkie.com) that Silva is benched and that a search for a replacement opponent is underway.

Word is Todd Brown will be stepping in for Silva.

UFC 118 also lost a fighter due to injury. MMA Fighting is reporting that Phil Baroni has somehow injured his collarbone and won’t be able to fight John Salter. Baroni isn’t taking it too well, as seen on his Twitter feed:

I cant take it anymore. Im freaking out. anxiety im shot. beaten.

Despite his apparent mental struggles with the injury, Baroni’s manager, Ken Pavia, says it’s only a “minor injury” and won’t be a “long-term problem.” Baroni will fight on a fall UFC card. The UFC is currently searching for a replacement to fight John Salter.

Image via Sherdog

Update: Dan Miller replaces Phil Baroni at UFC 118.