By Rich Hansen, MMA Torch Columnist:

Dan Downes didn't need to fight last night, but he wanted to stay sharp. That decision almost cost him dearly, as little known Tory Bogguess locked in two very tight chokes early in the first round of their main event fight for the NAFC event in Milwaukee. Ultimately Downes was able to escape both submission attempts before submitting Bogguess at the 3:24 mark of round 1.

Downes (8-1) accepted this fight outside of the UFC while still under UFC contract in order to stay sharp. That gamble almost blew up in his face as the undersized Bogguess came out like a ball of fire. Bogguess came out charging from the opening bell, landing a flying superman punch within the first two seconds of the fight. After knocking the larger Downes against the cage, Bogguess was able to get Downes down and sunk in a tight rear naked choke.

After Downes managed to escape that choke, he found himself in an even more dire predicament as Bogguess managed to slap on an even tighter guillotine choke. After several seconds that seemed much longer to the partisan Milwaukee crowd, Downes managed to pop his head out and was able to turn the tables on his smaller opponent.

After controlling Bogguess up against the cage from side control, Bogguess tried escaping by walking the cage. Instead of escaping, Bogguess walked into the waiting legs of Downes and was forced to tap to a triangle choke.

Having fought for a smaller organization while under UFC contract, Downes told MMA Torch after the fight that he wants his next fight to be in the UFC, and that there's a 99 percent chance that his next fight will indeed be for the Zuffa owned company.

In the co-main event of the evening, Duke Roufus' newest up and coming star Joe Cason made quick work of veteran Sean Salmon. Cason needed a mere 74 seconds to dispatch the overwhelmed Salmon. After landing an uppercut early, Cason flattened Salmon with a standing knee. From there, Cason swarmed Salmon who had no way to stop the ground and pound attack of the much larger Cason. Referee Al Weickhardt stopped the fight, giving Cason his first victory since joining Duke Roufus' team last month. Cason, a college wrestling teammate of UFC Light Heavyweight Champion Jon "Bones" Jones, looks to have to skills to make a name for himself in the sport's light heavyweight division.

Complete results from NAFC: Mayhem below.

Dan Downes defeated Tory Bogguess via submission (triangle choke) at 3:24 of Round 1

Joe Cason defeated Sean Salmon via TKO at 1:14 of Round 1

Matt Brown defeated John Hosman via split decision (29-28, 28-29, 29-28)

Matt Masterson defeated Kyle Weickardt via submission (side choke)at 3:33 of Round 2

Jose Pacheco defeated David Rhoads via submission (rear naked choke)at 4:33 of Round 1

Thiago Veiga defeated Donald Ceri via submission (arm bar)at 2:50 of Round 2

Mike Santiago def Zach Underwood via unanimous decision (30-27, 30-27, 30-27)

Jeff Golden def Jim Bleau via submission (rear naked choke) at 4:35 of Round 1

411's Shawn Lealos provides his thoughts on Marvel Studio's latest comic book film Thor! Plus, a look at the death of the Human Torch in Fantastic Four, a preview of the new Green Lantern trailer and more!

Is Marvel's latest offering mighty enough to wield the power of Thor? See what I did there?

Thoughts on Christian's brief World Heavyweight Title reign, Tommy Dreamer turning heel, Jim Ross announcing Raw instead of Michael Cole, the Holy Trinity of Lucha Libre, Wes Kirk shoots on Pat Patterson and more!

Sunny takes on Dawn Marie in Vs, the WWE plays it safe, TNA makes a change, a look ahead at the weekend’s ROH cards, Chris Jericho makes waves on Twitter, a look at evil twin referees, Lacey is your “and 1” Model of the Week and more!

Susan Coffey takes on Dionne Daniels in and Tammy Torres battles Erica Durance in Vs, Paris Hilton takes a swipe at Lindsay Lohan, Janine Lindemulder's tell-all book about Jesse James, Elisabetta Canalis strips down for PETA and is Charlie Sheen’s image improving? Plus, Jayonna Fabro is our “and 1” Model of the Week and more!

Smith to play Django Unchained?

Not bad at all

Very nice

Seve Ballesteros, a five-time major champion whose passion and gift for imaginative shot-making invigorated European golf and the Ryder Cup, has died from complications of a cancerous brain tumor. He was 54.

Tachi Palace Fights 9 went down in Lemoore, Calif. on Friday night with Ian McCall making a strong case to be considered the top flyweight in the sport after his victory over Dustin Ortiz. Read More >>

Yes, I'm doing it: A top 10 rankings list of the pound-for-pound best fighters in the world today. 

It's a daunting undertaking. After all, what good can come of this? Spirited discussion, I hope, at the very least. That and a better appreciation for the elite fighters in the sport we know and love.

A comprehensive listing of the USA Today/SB Nation consensus rankings can be found here. Comprised of some of the top MMA sites on the Internet, it's a rather informative rankings list of the top seven weight classes in MMA today.

But it doesn't venture into the dreaded "pound-for-pound" waters.

That's what I'll do here. Each month, likely the Friday night following a major event, I will attempt to make sense of how the best in the game stack up against each other.

Or course, any rankings list is highly subjective and up for debate. So don't hold back if you disagree.

In we go.

10. Lyoto "The Dragon" Machida (17-2)

I can already hear it. "What?!?!? Machida?!?!?!? Just because he blasted through Randy Couture in his retirement fight with a Karate Kid style Crane kick?" Partially, yes. Not just because of who he did it to, nor the situation in which he executed it within, but because he's such a special fighter that he has the capabilities to do such a thing to some of the best fighters on Earth. That kind of special doesn't come along often. It's unclear what's next for Machida but he has risen from the ashes of his first career slump and he could be better than ever. That's a scary thought.

9. Jon Fitch (23-3-1)

Considering this is an inaugural rankings list, I can think of no man that deserves a spot more based on past accomplishments than the Fitchster. Argue if you will that he failed so monumentally once he reached the top of the food chain, his unabashed drubbing of every other challenger, save B.J. Penn, has been nothing short of staggering. And I fully expect he'll win the rematch against "The Prodigy" and he'll do so handily.

8. Cain Velasquez (9-0)

The Heavyweight Champion of the world is currently riding the pine while he rehabs a shoulder injury that will keep him out until a likely October return against the winner of Junior dos Santos vs. Brock Lesnar. Simply put, Velasquez earns his spot because not only has he cruised to nine wins in as many outings, he's done so with shocking efficiency. His utter and complete destruction of the aforementioned Lesnar, no matter your feelings on Sir Brockness, was especially impressive considering the circumstances. His skill-set is built for a long run at the top.

7. Gray "The Bully" Maynard (10-0-1)

It pains me to place him one spot beneath his arch nemesis, seeing as he is the only man to have ever defeated Edgar and I actually scored him the win in the rematch. His record is spotless and his abilities stretch beyond that of one hit wonder. Maynard is bred to hit the big time and never look back, at least as far as his in-ring talents are concerned. The third, and likely final, bout against Edgar is set for UFC 130 on May 28 and it's in that bout that he shall make his move up the list.

6. Frankie "The Answer" Edgar (13-1-1)

The quintessential underdog, Edgar, even by me and on this list, can't get no respect. Despite his status as the champion in one of the deepest of all weight divisions, and his impressive list of victories, he's still getting counted out on a larger scale. In many ways, it's unfair, but by the same token, he can dispense of all that talk with a definitive victory over his own personal "Bully" on May 28 in Las Vegas. Can he do it? I'm not so sure.

5. Dominick "The Dominator" Cruz (17-1)

Fight fans that follow the UFC and the UFC alone, have yet to be introduced to this man but make no mistake, he is one of the greatest fighters in the world today. Much like Lyoto Machida, the 135-pound division has yet to figure out an effective way to handle his spastic style. His lone loss came at the hands of Urijah Faber in a weight class he no longer resides within. However, he'll get the chance to avenge that defeat on July 2 and if he does, the bantamweight division belongs to him for as long as he would like it to.

4. Jose "Junior" Aldo (19-1)

The man that chased Faber off to the bantamweight division, Jose Aldo, makes his appearance the highest I could possibly rank him and still sleep at night. His abilities are unquestionable, as he possesses a rare mixture of speed, power and agility, along with near impeccable timing and technique. However, I can't seem to get past the fact that he's plying his craft in one of the weakest divisions of the seven major weight classes. In fact, he's defended his title all of three times and there is already talk that he's cleaned out his division. That's just absurd. He'll get the chance to continue his reign of terror against Chad Mendes on Aug. 6 in Philadelphia at UFC 133.

3. Jon "Bones" Jones (13-1)

What this man is able to do when he steps inside the Octagon, against the martial artists he has been able to do it against, is astonishing. His size, combined with his rising skills, make for one of the most dangerous fighters in the world. Ask Mauricio "Shogun" Rua what it's like to get in the cage with this beast. Jones, 23, is on the shelf for a while to heal up an ailing hand but he'll be looking at his first light heavyweight title defense upon his return, possibly against the winner of Rashad Evans vs. Phil Davis. No matter which, it's difficult to imagine his coming up on the short end in either hypothetical contest.

2. Georges "Rush" St. Pierre (22-2)

Ah, the welterweight king, still sitting atop his throne after a gutsy performance this past Saturday night at UFC 129 against Jake Shields. Fighting through the adversity he did was admirable but there are those calling into question exactly how impressive it is that St. Pierre has been able to win so many fights without putting a stamp on them. Sure, he's beating the top welterweights in the world, but he's not doing so in the fashion one has come to expect with the otherworldly expectations placed upon him. Is that fair? I would say it is, and it is for that reason, and that reason alone, that he is number two instead of number one. His chance to redeem himself might come in the form of a superfight against Nick Diaz. Or maybe, as much of a stretch as it may be, the man that occupies the top slot on this list.

1. Anderson "The Spider" Silva (28-4)

I defy you to find a flaw in his resume bigger than a flash submission loss to Ryo Chonan. And that was damn near seven years ago. His UFC career is the most impressive in the history of the entire promotion. 13 fights, 13 wins. 11 finishes, including seven (T)KO's and three submissions. Eight title defenses at middleweight and two displays of mastery at light heavyweight. This man has basically done everything there is to do in the UFC, short of taking on a fellow champion and defeating him, as well. That might be the future, if the organization can manage to put the fight together before time runs out. Silva is, after all, 36 years-old. All the more impressive when considering what he's accomplished. Up next is title defense number nine against former foe Yushin Okami. There is no reason to think he won't run away in that fight, as well. Bow down to the king.

It was reported last week that Japanese submission ace Shinya Aoki would indeed be competing on Dream 17: Fight For Japan card on May 29th. His original opponent was supposed to be Willamy "Chiquerim" Friere, but Chiquerim had to withdraw due to visa issues. MMAWeekly is reporting that Aoki will stay on the card, and his two possible opponents each offer interesting stylistic challenges:

MMAWeekly.com initially reported that a fight between he and former MFC lightweight champion Antonio McKee was on tap, as long as McKee could finalize his travel details. While that fight is very much still in play, our sources indicate that Dream is also negotiating with former WEC lightweight champion Jamie Varner.

It seems that both potential opponents have been issued bout agreements, due to the fact that McKee might have the same sort of visa issues that Friere had.  If the former MFC lightweight champion is good to go, he'll get the fight.  If not, it will fall to Varner.  Varner is scheduled to compete against Tyler Combs in his first post-Zuffa matchup in Chicago at XFO 39 one week from today.  It is unclear if he will still participate in that fight after being offered this one.  In typical Dream fashion, this should all be cleared up in the 10-or-so days leading up to the May 29th event in Saitama.

And Anna Paquin is in talks

Randy Orton challenged Christian for the World Heavyweight Title, Sheamus wrestled Daniel Bryan, Ezekiel Jackson battled Big Show and more! Check out 411’s full WWE Smackdown Report for all the details!

Talking Randy Orton’s title win, making new stars, and more!

The movie-zone feedback continues. Share your opinion with 411!

Boxing promoter Don Chagrin has made a deal to put Nick Diaz in the boxing ring with former IBF super-middleweight champion Jeff Lacy and hopes to avoid a contractual confrontation over MMA.

Today's announcement that Diaz and Lacy will box this fall was met by a caveat from Diaz manager Cesar Gracie, who said the fight could be shelved if the UFC offered the Strikeforce welterweight champ a fight with UFC welterweight champion Georges St-Pierre.

"I don't want to get into a thing," Chagrin today told MMAjunkie.com. "I've got a contract. If the UFC fight comes up, then we can talk.

Bellator 43 takes place at the First Council Casino in Newkirk, Okla., on Saturday night. The official weigh-ins and pre-fight press conference were conducted at the casino late Friday afternoon. Read More >>

Jay Hieron and Rick Hawn successfully weighed in on Friday for the final of Bellator's season four welterweight tournament, which headlines Saturday's Bellator 43 event on MTV 2.

Only 3 months into the partnership, Malki Kawa, agent for Jon Jones and other UFC stars is leaving Florida-based Authentic Sports Management (ASM). From the press release, it appears that this will be an amicable breakup. Via Authentic Sports Management: This move was a mutual decision that both parties amicably agree is in the best interests of [...]

She feels bad

What does Gaga have to say?

Spencer Baum's wrestling novel is back for a fourth installment, giving some history of Joey Mayhem's character and some backstage maneuvering at a house show.

In a game between teams short on cash, Jason Pridie came up with the money hit.

Jaime Garcia had so much movement on his fastball, teammate Ryan Theriot said he could have beaten any team with just that pitch.

Derek Lowe took a no-hitter into the seventh inning and the Atlanta Braves won their sixth straight game, beating Philadelphia 5-0 on Friday night despite Cliff Lee's 16 strikeouts for the Phillies.

Darren Helm scored with 1:27 left in the third period, lifting the Detroit Red Wings to an elimination-avoiding 4-3 win over the San Jose Sharks in Game 4 of the Western Conference semifinal series on Friday night.

Mixed Martial Arts commentators are, at least in my mind, as big an asset to an MMA promotion as tight camera angles or a good production crew. The best play-by-play men and color commentators are almost instantly recognizable: Bas Rutten, Mike Goldberg, Joe Rogan, and Michael Schiavello are all well-known and, for the most part, [...]

The thirteenth season of “The Ultimate Fighter” has been plagued with up-and-down ratings, and that’s not a hyperbole. Many fans and insiders anticipated that the show would make at least one big splash and pull at least one huge rating thanks to Brock Lesnar’s involvement, since Lesnar remains one of the most controversial and highest-drawing [...]

What does the future hold for Strikeforce Welterweight Champion Nick Diaz? We may finally have official word on just that. Rumors have been running wild since Diaz TKO’d Paul Daley in early April: Diaz will fight as a professional boxer in his next bout, Diaz is retiring from MMA to become a professional boxer, Diaz [...]

The pound-for-pound greatest boxer in the world, Manny Pacquiao, tipped the scales at 145-pounds while his opponent, Shane Mosley, came in at 147-pounds.

Their WBO welterweight title fight will take place tomorrow night, Saturday, May 7, 2011, from the MGM Grand Garden Arena in Las Vegas, Nevada.

Complete photo gallery after the jump.

(Aoki is not impressed by DREAM's choices of opponents) DREAM lightweight champion Shinya Aoki will reportedly take on either former World Extreme Cagefighting lightweight champion Jamie Varner or former Maximum Fighting Championship lightweight champion Antonio McKee at DREAM's "Fight for Japan" disaster relief benefit show on May 29 in Tokyo. According to MMAWeekly, Aoki's original opponent, UFC and Shooto veteran Williamy Freire, was unable to secure a visa to fight in Japan, so the promotion offered the bout to McKee, who was inexplicably stripped of his MFC belt earlier this month and learned of the news from a press release put out by the Edmonton, Alberta-based promotion announcing that Drew Fickett and Hermes Franca would be competing in its next show for "Mandingo's" strap. His opportunity to contend for DREAM gold, however has hit a snag as he too does not have a visa to fight in Asia. As a precaution, DREAM has now offered Varner the bout, but it is unclear at this point which of the two former champions will be taking on Aoki in three weeks.

(Video courtesy of YouTube/ncaasteve) - 8 mothers who don't deserve Mother's Day (ModernMan) - The 7 Least Intimidating MMA Nicknames (Clutch.MTV) - 2011 summer movie preview (Bullz-Eye) - Interview with UFC 129 doctor Jason Su (Sportsnet) - Infographic: superhero movies, by the numbers (BamKapow) - Car accident forces Del Rosario off of Strikeforce: Overeem vs. Werdum card (MMAJunkie) - 7 sports “feats” any average guy could do (Guyism) - Wanderlei Silva wants 10 more fights (MiddleEasy) - Man of the moment: Shane Mosley (MadeMan) - Coach says lil' Nog' happy to fight Franklin and Big Nog' will join him on the UFC Rio card if he's healthy (Tatame) - Dexter going back to the basics (ScreenJunkies) - Rashad Evans talks Jones, Shogun and new camp (FightersOnly) - Midnight gifs (HolyTaco)

…a boxer, at least barring a last-minute deal from the UFC to fight Georges St. Pierre later this year. According to a press release from former IBF middleweight champ Jeff Lacy’s management team he has signed to fight Nick Diaz at a yet-to-be announced event this fall. A bout between the two had been rumored [...]

After a brief break Bellator is back and ready to crown it’s first tournament champion tomorrow night in Oklahoma as welterweight finalists Jay Hieron and Rick Hawn square off in headlining action. Also set for the show, UFC/Strikeforce veteran Joe Riggs will make his promotional debut against Bellator veteran Bryan Baker while former WEC bantamweight [...]

Fight Network chats with the major players in the new documentary "Fightville" showcasing Dustin Poirier's quick rise in the MMA ranks and featuring UFC vet Tim Credeur and film director Michael Tucker.

What's happening in the sweet science?

-Floyd Mayweather Jr. facing more harassment charges in Las Vegas (Credit: ESPN.com)

-Jeff Lacy vs. Nick Diaz: contract signed for fall showdown (Credit: TheFightNetwork.com)

-Yuriorkis Gamboa arrested for domestic violence (Credit: FightNews.com)

-Bob Arum "Pacquiao will never face a Golden Boy fighter!" (Credit: BoxingScene.com)

-WBC female tripleheader taking place May 8 in Japan (Credit: TheFightNetwork.com)

Headlines making news around the mixed martial arts world...

-FN Video: Minotauro talks recovery, coming back at UFC Rio (Credit: TheFightNetwork.com)

-Report: Gina Carano agrees to face Sarah D'Alelio in June return (Credit: MMAFighting.com)

-2011 Asian M-1 Selection tournament's opening round results (Credit: TheFightNetwork.com)

-Gleison Tibau replaces Cody McKenzie, will face Bart Palaszewski at UFC 130 (Credit: MMAFighting.com)

-MMA Mahyem: tomorrow night at Palace of Auburn Hills (Credit: TheFightNetwork.com)

A proposed fight between Shinya Aoki and Willamy Freire appears to be off for Dream’s “Fight for Japan” event on May 29. The Dream lightweight champion will remain on the card, but in an interesting twist to the situation, it is unclear whom he will face. MMAWeekly.com initially reported that a fight between he and former MFC lightweight champion Antonio McKee was on tap, as long as McKee could finalize his travel details. While that fight is very much still in play, our sources indicate that Dream is also negotiating with former WEC lightweight champion Jamie Varner. Sources close to the situation told MMAWeekly.com that the fight between Aoki and McKee had been verbally agreed to, at least from McKee’s side, and that a bout agreement had been issued. McKee, though, must first renew his passport and get a visa to gain entry into Japan, the same sort of issues that reportedly kept Freire out of the fight.

UFC welterweight champion Georges St. Pierre has been the subject of much discussion and ridicule since his UFC 129 decision win over Jake Shields. Fans and media alike have been harsh in their criticism, but one of the major game-changers in the fight was Shields inadvertently poking GSP in the eye in the third round. GSP came back to his corner and said he couldn't see out of his eye, and had considerable trouble finding his range for the rest of the fight. There has been much speculation about the severity of his injury since the fight, so St. Pierre turned to twitter today to give his fans an update on his condition: "I am so lucky my BJJ instructor Bruno Fernandes is an ophtamologist!!! I'll be in good hands!!!" "My medical condition is called Hyphema. My vision is still blurry and my eye sensitive but the blood in my eye has now been absorbed..." "My retina is find as well and my vision will come back to 100%!!! Can't be more happy!!"

It's no surprise that early estimate have UFC 129 pushing one million PPV buys. It was the first UFC event in the province of Ontario, the first UFC stadium show. It was headlined by Georges St. Pierre, backed by a three-part Primetime series, and featured two title fights at the top of the show. Then Randy Couture announced he would retire after the event, win or lose.

Yahoo! Sports writer and Wrestling Observer editor Dave Meltzer brings more tidbits on the financial and attendancenumbers from the show (subscription required):

• The 55,724 fans at the Rogers Centre more than doubled the previous attendance record of 23,152 set at UFC 124, headlined by St. Pierre and Josh Koscheck. Pride Shockwave 2002 (headlined by Kazushi Sakuraba and Mirko Filipovic) remains the number one attended MMA fight of all-time at 71,000. (Meltzer notes that other Pride and K-1 events listed above 55,000 are exaggerated.)
• The final gate number is $12,075,000. Shockwave 2002 held the previous record at $7,400,000. UFC 100 held the previous North American gate record at $5,441,290.
• The final gate number increased by more than half a million dollars due to a devaluation in the US dollar versus the Canadian dollar between the sale of tickets and the actual event.
• UFC 129 holds the record for largest gate in the history of Toronto for any event. The show may hold the record for the entire country of Canada, but no gates were reported for the opening and closing ceremonies at the 2010 Winter Olympics.
• UFC 129 is expected to be on of the two largest PPV buys in Canada with UFC 100 holding the previous record. UFC 124 and UFC 94 currently hold the number 2 and 3 spots. (See a pattern?)
• The US numbers do not show the same level of interest as St. Pierre's prior defenses against Penn, Koscheck, or even Dan Hardy. Ratings for the Primetime show dropped "significantly" each week. Makes the focus on Shields as a threat even more regrettable in hindsight.

"The Face of Women's MMA" Gina Carano is almost officially set to get back into the cage, according to MMAFighting. After spending almost two years away from the sport  pursuing an acting career, Carano had resumed training at Xtreme Couture for a few weeks, then switched over to Greg Jackson's camp in Albuquerque, NM. It's taken a while to find her an opponent, but it appears the search is over:

Gina Carano's opponent for her long-awaited return fight will be Sarah D'Alelio, a Washington-based fighter with a 4-1 record who goes by the nickname "The Monster."

Sources with knowledge of the situation confirmed that both fighters have agreed to the bout, which will take place on June 18 in Dallas. Over the last week, D'Alelio's name had been rumored as a possibility, but sources tell MMA Fighting that it's now essentially a done deal, and that the matchup may be officially announced as early as next week.

Strikeforce had originally planned to match Carano up with Belgian fighter Cindy Dandois but it was recently discovered that Dandois is pregnant, which obviously ended any discussions. D'Alelio is certainly a different fighter than Dandois is, using more of a submission game as opposed to Dandois' strong striking. Carano had feasted on grapplers in the past before meeting Cristiane "Cyborg" Santos in 2009 and getting finished late in the first round. 

Her return to the cage will bring added interest to an already strong June 18th card in the American Airlines Center in Dallas, TX, joining the two Strikeforce Heavyweight Grand Prix quarter-final matchups featuring Alistair Overeem vs. Fabricio Werdum and Josh Barnett vs. Brett Rogers.

The Manny Pacquiao Express motors on as Bloody Elbow will cover today's weigh-in for his fight with "Sugar" Shane Mosley. The weigh-ins will stream live on Top Rank Boxing's website at 6 p.m. ET. Check it out on Showtime Extreme as well. [Update] Bad Left Hook's Scott Christ recommends using ESPN or Yahoo!'s stream, or flipping on SportsCenter, which will air the weigh-ins live.

[Update] We are live. James Brown of The NFL Today of CBS is emceeing the event. 

Brown running through the career accomplishments of both fighters. Cut to Ines Sainz interviewing Mosley. No clue why she's doing English-language work. Her cadence reminds me of Tyler Hansbrough reading to kids. She asks Shane how he plans to pretend to stop Manny's speed. So. There you have that.

Back to J.B., who is running through the Pacquiao press packet. Oh god, Bob Arum crawls on stage, looking a couple years away from Al Davis. Brent Brookhouse notes that Arum said compared Pacquiao's ability to punch with both hands to an MLB pitcher throwing left- and right-handed. My stream is godawful right now, and I'm not watching ESPN's coverage on SportsCenter.

Teddy Atlas says Mosley has a shot if he hurts Pacquiao early. Good luck with that. 

We're on Jimmy Lennon Jr. now. He calls up Shane Mosley to the stage. Mosley wearing a powder blue Adidas track suit, looking like an extra from a Run-DMC video or some sort of Russian coke dealer. Pacquiao comes to the stage now. Yellow logo t-shirt with a red sweat suit. They begin to undress.

Mosley to the scale first. Smattering of applause and jeers. Looks good. Lennon announces Shane Mosley weighs in at 147 pounds.

Pacquiao up now. Good reaction. He flexes for the crowd, which gets a pop. Manny Pacquiao weighs in at 145 pounds. Big "Man-ny!" cheer goes up.

Gentle staredown. They shake and embrace. 

Atlas notes that Mosley's "skin looks good" and that he isn't "ashy." Also noted that Mosley didn't grab immediately for liquids, so he thinks the cut went well. 

 

The weigh-ins (and tomorrow night's fight) are taking place at the MGM Grand Garden Arena in Las Vegas, Nevada. Pacquiao and Mosley will fight at the welterweight (147 lb.) limit, with Pacquiao's WBO welterweight title up for grabs.

Pacquiao is 52-3-2 and the current WBC Super Welterweight World Champion and the WBO Welterweight World Champion. He is the first boxer to win the lineal title in four separate weight classes. He hasn't lost since Erik Morales took a unanimous decision over him in March of 2005, and he obliterated Antonio Margarito over twelve rounds in Cowboys Stadium in November.

Mosley is 46-6-1 with 1 no contest. He drew with Sergio Mora in his last fight in September. He dropped an uncompetitive decision to Floyd Mayweather Jr. in May of 2010, with his last victory coming over Antonio Margarito by TKO in January of 2009.

Brett Okamoto of ESPN.com authored an article today covering the last few years of Bellator 43 welterweight tournament finalist Jay Hieron's professional life. From his scheduled fight with Paul Daley in Affliction falling apart right up to the end of his frustrating Strikeforce run, Hieron has seemingly been held back by a string of bad luck, promotional misuse, and frankly, some bad decisions. He feels like it's all coming together now in Bellator though:

"But I believe the man upstairs has a bigger path for me. He’s just making me take the long road. I’m a fighter that’s been through everything negative you can go through in a career and I’m still here."

The story of redemption in the face of adversity is nice, sure. But the narrative of Jay Hieron goes back much, much further than that. Personally and professionally, Hieron has faced an uphill battle since his childhood in Freeport, NY. Did you know his last name isn't even Hieron? It's Hieronymous. He shortened it because he didn't want ring announcers calling him "hairy mouse", which is the common mispronunciation. This is just one of the many things I learned about Jay way back in late 2007 when he helped pen a five-part story on the Xtreme Couture blog about his life. It's called The Life and Times of Jay Hieron. And it's worth a few minutes of your time.

He pulls no punches in these stories. Growing up in a dangerous neighborhood, Jay took up boxing briefly, then eventually wrestling as a means of defending himself. He almost gave up on wrestling at 16 after falling in with a "bad crowd", but his coach wrangled him back in. He struggled through senior year, and didn't have the grades to get into university right away. The plan was to go to a junior college in Iowa and focus on nothing but wrestling. Homesickness dragged him back to NY and Nassau Community College after one semester though. And back into trouble. Part two picks up there:

Even though wrestling was going well for me, I was getting into problems in the off season. I was getting into sh*t whenever wrestling didn’t occupy my time. I was hanging out in the streets all night on Pearsall Avenue back in Freeport. Getting into fights, smoking weed, just basically up to no good. I was driving back and forth to Brooklyn, 3, 4 times a day buying weed. I would buy it, sell most of it and smoke the rest.

Despite this, Hieron won a junior college national championship at 158 lbs the next season, and moved onto Hofstra University:

I did well for myself going there. Junior year of college, which was my first year at Hofstra, I went to Nationals and lost to the guy who won it by a couple points.

Senior year I was ranked #3 in the country at 158lbs going into the season. I knew this was my season. I was going to go out and win the NCAA D-I championship. I could feel it. My workouts were incredible. My determination was incredible. There would be no stopping me.

But it all fell apart soon afterward for Jay:

Hofstra started a new rule my senior year. The school said if you failed any drug tests you’re out for the season. I ended up failing a drug test for smoking weed a couple weeks before the start of the season. It blew my mind. This was my last year or wrestling. I was trying to do everything I could to see if I could get back on the team and get my suspension cut to a half season. Hofstra wasn’t having any of it.

And it didn't take long to spiral completely out of control:

Coach Ryan told me that even though I couldn’t wrestle, I could keep going to school on my scholarship. I only had a 15 credits needed to graduate, but I wasn’t really interested in that. I was really depressed. I suppressed all of my competitive drive. I took all of my wrestling gear and threw it out. I decided it was time to start making money.

I was done making sacrifices for wrestling and all I could think about was making money. That’s when I really started selling drugs. I had been messing around picking up some weed from Brooklyn but now I was serious. I put all my attention and effort into selling drugs.

The rest of part 2 describes his double life as a drug dealer and the facade he put on for his family.  After two years making big money and living the high life, Hieron started feeling the need to get out of the game and invest in a legitimate business.  The police took care of that for him though.  He was arrested and all that money went toward lawyer fees:

I had a good lawyer who had represented me after I got in a couple of street fights in high school. He told me to relax, that he’d call the cops and find out what’s going on. He called me back and said they had me on an A-2 felony. I said what’s that? He told me the worst is an A-1 felony. I had an A-2 which carried 3-years to life. Mandatory 3 years with life parole.

His mom put up her house to bail him out, and a long string of court hearings ended with Hieron getting the best news possible for him at the time:

I waited for the verdict. My future was up to the judge and God blessed me that day. The judge ended up giving me 5 years of probation and no time behind bars.

Part two ends with how Phil Baroni got him into the MMA game.  The other parts of the series discuss how he flirted with violating his probation by moving to Las Vegas to fight, losing vision in his eye in a fight and fearing permanent injury (sound familiar?), his time in the UFC and IFL, joining up with Xtreme Couture, his father's passing, and much more.  This is one of the most detailed and honest portraits of a fighter you'll ever come across, and I encourage you to read all of it.  It'll be tough not to have some level of emotional investment while watching his Bellator 43 matchup with Rick Hawn if you do.

The Life and Times of Jay Hieron, Part 1

Part 2

Part 3

Part 4

Part 5