THE PRO TEAM TRAINING WILL GO ON AS NORMAL..

Have a great weekend and if you are out on the roads be careful..

GTC will be closed today cause of the blizzard in effect..

Next month’s UFC on FUEL TV 1 event has a new addition to the lineup.

UFC officials today announced that lightweight newcomers Justin Salas (9-3 MMA, 0-0 UFC) and Anton Kuivanen (16-4 MMA, 0-0 UFC) will meet at the Feb. 15 event.

Originally, officials expected to book Kuivanen against fellow newcomer C.J. Keith (8-0 MMA, 0-0 UFC), but he was forced off the card due to a family emergency.

UFC on FUEL TV 1 takes place Feb. 15 at the 10,000-seat Omaha Civic Auditorium in Nebraska. Diego Sanchez and Jake Ellenberger clash in the welterweight headliner. The main card airs on FUEL TV, and as MMAjunkie.com(www.mmajunkie.com) recently reported, the prelims will stream on Facebook.

Salas, a former trona miner featured in our “Fight Path” series, was a standout high school wrestling career and Division I college wrestler who made his pro MMA debut in 2006. He’s currently riding a five-fight win streak, which included recent decision wins over UFC vet Rob Emerson and Bellator fighter Joe Ellenberger.

He now meets Kuivanen, a Finnish fighter who’s won nine straight fights and 12 of his past 13 fight. A veteran of promotions such as K-1 HERO’S and Fight Festival, the six-year pro has a solid grappling base with that’s led him to eight submission wins in 16 career victories.

NASHVILLE, Tenn. – Duane “Bang” Ludwig has traveled the world, chased titles, met the woman of his dreams, had kids and finally got a long-awaited UFC record he’ll someday get to tell his grandchildren about.

So for the veteran fighter, Friday’s UFC on FX 1 co-main-event slot instead offers something else.

A chance for self-discovery. And yes, some fun.

Ludwig (21-11 MMA, 4-2 UFC), a 33-year-old who’s been fighting professionally for 12 years, meets fellow welterweight Josh Neer (32-10-1 MMA, 5-6 UFC) in the co-main-event of Friday’s event, which takes place at Bridgestone Arena in Nashville, Tenn. The main card airs on FX while prelims air on FUEL TV.

While lacking some of the starpower of bigger UFC shows – and with a half-dozen fighters competing in the UFC for the first time – UFC on FX 1’s expectations are modest. But the co-headliner provides two proven names in a fight that should produce fireworks.

“I want to make sure to show my technical superiority and hit some angles and not just sit there and slug,” Ludwig told MMAjunkie.com (www.mmajunkie.com). “We’ll see what happens. Like Mike Tyson said, you always have a game plan until you get hit, and I don’t want to get hit. I’ll get upset, I’ll pull the parking brake and start chucking bombs.”

Against the tough-as-nails Neer, Ludwig knows he can’t get caught up in a sloppy volley of haymakers. But if he maintains his composure, it could be a “Fight of the Night” winner. That’s why he was quite pleased when the UFC presented him the fight.

“I thought it was great,” he said. “I thought it’d be a good matchup for sure. He likes to stand and bang, and he’s a standup fighter as well. I think it’ll make for an exciting fight. I’m up for that. I’m always down for a good war.”

Whether it’s his age or his family or his status as an early trailblazer for the sport, Ludwig has found peace in recent years. Rather than the million-dollar paydays or blue-chip sponsors and big-show belts, he’s focused on something else.

“I’m here to have fun,” he said. “I’ve chased the titles and done that. It’s about the passion and self development and finding out who Duane Ludwig is. I find it out every time I train and fight, and go through these interviews and stuff.”

Recently, Ludwig has been doing a lot more interviews. That’s due to the UFC’s decision to recognize him as the record-holder for the fastest knock in the promotion’s history. Even if the Nevada State Athletic Commission claims Todd Duffee and Chan Sung Jung’s seven-second KOs have the honor (a time-keeping error has Ludwig’s six-second KO recorded at 11 seconds), the UFC’s blessing actually provided Ludwig a boost.

When he was younger, “Bang” said he didn’t understand publicity and marketing. He didn’t realize something as seemingly innocuous as getting stiffed in the record books could actually hurt his bottomline. But now that he’s older and has the record, he’s determined to use it for good.

“I get a lot more press, which is cool because I like the press and the fame and the whole popularity contest of it because it opens a lot more doors for me, and in return, I help some people out and help out abused animals,” said the fighter, who’s worked with abused and neglected dogs. “In that aspect, it’s important for me and definitely a good story to tell the kids when they’re older.”

And admittedly, it always irked him a bit. Sure, he’s at peace, but little things have a way of eating at you. So as he prepares for his first fight as a UFC record-holder, he can put to bed that constant aggravation.

“It became a little bit infuriating,” he said of the record. “It’s like telling someone the American flag is red, white and blue, and then someone’s like, ‘It’s red, white and purple.’ When it’s so blatantly obvious, it can be a little infuriating.”

For more on the UFC on FX 1 event, stay tuned to the UFC Rumors section of the site.

Five years ago, Justin Salas (10-3) was slaving away in the trona mines of his hometown in Green River, Wyoming without any thoughts of a career in fighting. His only connection to mixed martial arts was a heralded high school wrestling career that bloomed into a spot on the University of Wyoming wrestling squad. Naturally, one would expect the transition to the sport to be seamless, but Salas’ entry took a more indirect route.

According to MMAJunkie.com’s Kyle Nagel, Salas’ introduction stemmed from a favor to an old friend:

“He (an old wrestling buddy) said, ‘I’m supposed to do this fight, but my wife’s about ready to have a kid and I don’t wanna leave the guy high and dry,’” Salas told MMAjunkie.com(www.mmajunkie.com). “I asked if it was pro or amateur, and he asked which I wanted. I said, ‘Do I get paid?’ He said, ‘If it’s a pro fight, you get paid.’

“So, I got a week-and-a-half notice before becoming a professional fighter.”

With no training beyond his standout high school wrestling career and Division I college experience in the sport, Salas competed well but was beaten by an armbar submission.

Salas has since recorded nine wins, his latest being an upset decision win over skilled wrestler Joe Ellenberger, the brother of UFC fighter Jake Ellenberger, at Victory Fighting Championships 36 in October. The victory was preceded by an unanimous decision over UFC veteran Rob Emerson nine months prior, making 2011 the best year of his five-year professional career.

Salas’ success is rooted in his wrestling skills. He specializes in ripping opponents off the cage with single and double leg takedowns from the clinch, and he’s proficient in producing offense by way of strikes or submissions on the ground.

On the feet, Salas is no slouch, utilizing a southpaw stance and possessing the know-how to throw basic combinations. He isn’t an advanced striker by any means, but his striking is good enough to compliment his grappling skills.

Combined with solid takedown defense and abundant cardio, Salas is one of the most versatile competitors on our countdown. From a technical standpoint, there are improvements to be made in both his stand-up and grappling acts, but training at the Grudge Training Center in Colorado with the likes of UFC veteransNate Marquardt, Duane Ludwig, Shane Carwin, and the enormous roster of fighters the facility houses should help him fine tune those areas. With a strong support system and an extensive background in wrestling, it shouldn’t be a surprise that Salas is close to making a splash on a larger platform.

At UFC 140, Chan Sung Jung tied the ‘official fastest KO in UFC history’ with his 0:07 second KO of Mark Hominick. The knockout tied that previous ‘official record’ of Todd Duffe’s of Tim Hague at UFC 102. But most hard core fans credit Duane ‘Bang’ Ludwig with the actual fastest KO in UFC history in his 2006 win over Jonathan Goulet, but the official time keeper marked the time 0:11 seconds, the time at which referee Mario Yamasaki intervened, although the KO had happend at the 0:04 second mark.

Rampant internet discussion aside, Duane Ludwig officially petitioned the Nevada State Athletic Commission to review the bout to determine the actual time for the end of the bout.

Today, the UFC President Dana White tweeted that indeed the record would now belong to Ludwig:

@DUANEBANGCOM @ufc and for x mas you have the fastest KO in UFC history and it will be changed ASAP

Main event: Vinny Lopez vs. Ryan Peake in a 185 lb. professional fight. Peake landed first with kicks then he shot for a takedown. Lopez sprawled, came to standing, threatened with a guillotine then took it to the mat. From back/side control Lopez worked strong GNP until Peake spun in, leaving Lopez in side control. After pinning Peake against the cage Lopez flurried with forearms and knees to the body. Finally Lopez transitioned to a crucifix and landed solid forearms to his opponent’s head to get the TKO win at 4:16 of round one.

Patrick Vallée vs. Brandon Thatch (170lbs)
Rd. 1. The fight ended almost as soon as it started. Vallée with a flying knee attempt that was met by a right uppercut from Thatch. The American then followed it up with several more punches and the referee was forced to put an end to the fight when the Frenchman went limp.
Brandon Thatch wins by TKO in Round 1, 0:15

Justin Salas and Joe Ellenberger are seen by many as the two best 155-pound fighters not yet signed to a major mixed martial arts (MMA) organization. That may have changed for one of them last night (Oct. 14, 2011) at Victory Fighting Championship (VFC) 36 at the Mid America Center in Council Bluffs, Iowa.

Salas earned a hard fought unanimous decision over Ellenberger in the main event of the evening. Both fighters knew that winning this fight could lead to more than the VFC title, which wasn’t lost on Salas during the post fight interview, during which he called for a chance to compete in Ultimate Fighting Championship (UFC).

When two fighters with such good wrestling backgrounds square off, it’s either a lay and pray snooze fest or non-stop action. This fight was definitely the latter. Both fighters showed what a true MMA fight looks like.

Salas and Ellenberger went from going for the knockout to ground-and-pound to submission attempts, with a good dose of “Holy Sh*t” moments thrown in on both sides. Whether it would be Salas’s big right hooks of Ellenberger’s flying knees, the crowd was on their feet for the entire five round affair.

In the end, Salas’s speed, footwork and, surprisingly, cardio seemed to get the best of Ellenberger.  He made a point of saying that Trevor Wittman, his coach at Grudge Training Center, put him through the hardest camp of his life for this fight, and it showed at the end of the fight when he looked like he could go five more rounds.

With both fighters saying they expect to eventually see the other in the UFC, this victory may have put Justin on the fast track. Only time will tell. But, these will both be names you will here in the future.

Submission of the Night – Alvin Robinson for his impressive display of crisp jiu jitsu, choking Adam Lorenz unconscious for the Featherweight Title.