Jakks Pacific has released prototype pics of Wave 5 of their UFC Deluxe action figures on Wrestlingfigs.com. This line includes UFC Light Heavyweight Champ Lyoto Machida, Kenny Florian, Matt Serra, Matt Hamill, Stephan Bonnar, Nate Diaz and one classic figure in the form of Dan “The Beast” Severn, pictured above.

UFC Deluxe Wave 5 is set to be released some time in August, so you have time to save your pennies for these figures. Personally, I hope they fix up Hamill’s face since it just looks nothing like him. I am also hopeful that Dan Severn will come with his classic grey sweatshirt as part of his entrance wear.

Hit the jump for the rest of the pics!

Kenny Florian VS Takanori Gomi conference call – 3/22/10

Matt Kaplowitz’s Podcast

The Fight Nerd delivers you another conference call, this time with Kenny Florian and Takanori Gomi, who took questions regarding their match-up on “Ultimate Fight Night 21″ on March 31 in Charlotte, North Carolina. Questions included what brought Gomi to UFC, Kenny’s thoughts on Gomi’s style, and what both fighters like the most about America. Real reporters asking real questions.

The call clocks in at around 25 minutes so take a listen and get on board the hype train! So, who do you think will take this fight? And what do you like most about America?

The Fight Nerd returns with 10 more fights you have never seen before (or maybe you have, but that makes you as big of a loser as me)! We keep the countdown going but this time with more of the big names you might know from the UFC and Strikeforce, so see how many of these fights you’ve seen and how many you never even knew about.

Canadian based MMA toy company, Round 5, has announced their next wave of UFC figures, which will include a few familiar faces to the line and some new ones. BJ Penn, Michael Bisping, Forrest Griffin and Kimbo Slice round out the newcomers to the line up and Randy Couture and Tito Ortiz, who were part of the debut line a few years back, return with all new sculpts.

These figures should be available sometime in Spring of this year, and coming out in stores next month will be the first wave of the UFC figures, which includes Chuck “The Iceman” Liddell, George “Rush” St. Pierre, “Suga” Rashad Evans, Kenny “KenFlo” Florian, Clay “The Carpenter” Guida and Lyoto “The Dragon” Machida.

Read the official press release after the jump!

MARKHAM, Ontario, Canada, January 26, 2010 – With its first series of collectible UFC-branded figurines due to hit shelves throughout North America by next month, Round 5 today unveiled the members of its UFC Series 2, as announced by Barron Lau, Round 5 CEO and co-founder and Damon Lau, president and co-founder. Figurines for UFC stars Randy “The Natural” Couture, Tito “The Huntington Beach Bad Boy” Ortiz, B.J. “The Prodigy” Penn, Forrest Griffin, Michael “The Count” Bisping and Kevin “Kimbo Slice” Ferguson are scheduled to be available at retail in the second quarter of 2010.

As with UFC Series 1, the six Series 2 collectibles will be presented in a UFC-themed packaging that includes action photos of each respective fighter’s memorable moments as well as a short biography.

Round 5 collectible figures may be purchased at leading North American retailers; a list can be found at www.Round5MMA.com.

“We wanted to follow up our initial UFC Series with another set of names that spread across the spectrum of the sport,” said Damon Lau. “We’re excited to include some of the most popular fighters ever in guys like Randy Couture, Tito Ortiz and B.J. Penn, as well as Kimbo, who has attracted a whole new set of fans to the sport.”

“We have taken great care in selecting this important UFC Series 2,” said Barron Lau. “In addition to the standard figurines, we are planning some Limited Editions and other versions of these athletes that we think collectors will really enjoy.”

Couture is one of the sport’s most enduring and popular figures, having begun his career more than a decade ago. His imprint on the UFC is indelible, not just through his multiple Heavyweight and Light Heavyweight Championships but the many fighters who he has influenced and the legions of fans who continue to follow him. He is scheduled to face another MMA pioneer, Mark Coleman, on Feb. 6 at UFC 109.

Penn has won titles at both lightweight and welterweight and has headlined some of the most-anticipated cards ever. The Brazilian Jiu-Jitsu champion is the current UFC lightweight beltholder, and has victories over some of the biggest names in the sport’s history. Hugely popular, Penn was a quick study in Jiu Jitsu, earning his black belt in just three years, and rose through the UFC ranks quickly, earning a title shot in his fourth pro fight and winning the belt in his ninth.

Known for his exciting, explosive fighting style and high-profile lifestyle, Ortiz held the UFC light heavyweight championship for more than three years, successfully defending it five times. He continues to compete, and it was recently confirmed that he will be a coach in The Ultimate Fighter 11 and will fight Chuck Liddell at the end of the season.

The MMA world was first introduced to the personality and punching power of Griffin in the first season of The Ultimate Fighter, beginning a road that led to a light heavyweight championship at UFC 86 and appearances at the top of cards. He has forged a 17-6 MMA record, and his patented “sprawl and brawl” style has led to numerous UFC “Fight of the Night” honors.

Once the “hope of British MMA,” Bisping dominated the competition on the way to The Ultimate Fighter 3 light heavyweight championship, then showed he’ll be a force in the UFC middleweight division for years to come. Sometimes controversial, often polarizing but always exciting, the brawler has an 18-2 record, solidifying his stature as a notable fighter in the States as well.

Slice burst on the fight scene in 2007, bringing the reputation he gained from millions of Internet viewings of his backyard brawls into the cage. He hit the big stage with nationally televised, prime-time broadcasts, then earned a UFC bout by competing in the latest edition of The Ultimate Fighter, winning his debut in the promotion last month.

UFC Series 1, which includes figures of Chuck “The Iceman” Liddell, George “Rush” St. Pierre, “Suga” Rashad Evans, Kenny “KenFlo” Florian, Clay “The Carpenter” Guida and Lyoto “The Dragon” Machida, will be available in stores across North America by February

Have you seen the trailer for the new “Karate Kid” remake starring spawn of Will Smith’s sack, Jaden Smith, and martial arts god Jackie Chan? If not, enjoy as much as one humanly can while they are being force fed excrement. Check out the trailer and Florian’s comments after the jump!

EMBED-The Karate Kid (2010) – Watch more free videos

Did you make it through the whole trailer without laughing your ass off? I know I didn’t! This just looks wrong in every way. What age group is this targeting exactly? Fans of nostalgia are not going to want to see a movie about a middle school aged kid (if not younger) wandering around in China and learning Kung Fu, NOT karate, from Jackie Chan. I will give credit to the end of the trailer though, I did chuckle there quite a bit.

Luckily, I was not the only person to be disgusted by this atrocity to the senses. Kenny Florian, host of Inside MMA and UFC fighter, also managed to sit through the video and did not like what he saw. At around 2 PM EST today, KenFlo put on his critic pants and began with this comment –

“So in the new “Karate Kid” the kid moves to China, learns Kung Fu & is taught by Jackie Chan. Shouldn’t it be called Kung Fu kid?!”

Which has since been rapidly followed up with the following excellent quotes:

It’s like when my mom used to clean my Bjj gi’s for me & tell me my karate clothes are ready. Know ur martial arts people. Karate = japan.

Another thing Hollywood, go ahead & try to out do the Halloween scene where cobrakai dresses up as skeletons & beats up Daniel-San. I dare u!

You can read his comments at http://twitter.com/Kenny_Florian, which carry onto his facebook as well. I completely agree and support every statement that Florian has made regarding this movie, and it really makes me wonder what drugs are they doing in Hollywood and why are they not testing producers over there and bugging Sean Sherk and Nick Diaz to name a few.

Florian also posed this deep thinking question which I ask you, fellow fight nerds – “Ok serious question. Who wins in the cage? Ralph Macchio or Jaden Smith.” So who takes it, the original Karate Kid, or the prepubescent son of The Fresh Prince of Bel-Air?

PS I apologize on behalf of this post – it is a slow news week and KenFlo is the man so this needs to be posted for posterity!

Fight Nerd Radio 9/2/2009 with Jon Anik of ESPN MMA Live

Fight Nerd Radio

The Fight Nerd breaks down UFC 102 and discusses the aftermath of the event, including Randy’s new contract. We also discuss Five Rounds in non-title fights and Alistair Overeem’s lack of defending his Strikeforce Heavyweight Title. Joining us later in the show, Jon Anik, host of ESPN’s MMA Live show and commentator for Bellator Fighting Championship, joins us to discuss his thoughts on UFC 102, his history in broadcasting, what hooked him into MMA and his ESPN show.

Fight Nerd Radio 8/4/09 – with Bas Rutten!

Fight Nerd Radio

Fight Nerd Radio returns with a quick discussion of the NY MMA Expo, the aftermath of Afflictions contracts and where Fedor is headed, and Sengoku Ninth Battle.
Bas Rutten joins us to talk about some current events and his many pursuits in acting, video games, tv, exercise equipment and what he does when he finds spare time! Plus his world famous ScarFace impression!
After that quick UFC 101 and WEC 42 predictions!