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Showing posts from March, 2010

UFC sorts out differences with Vancouver, UFC 115 is a go

UFC sorts out differences with Vancouver, UFC 115 is a go The on-again, off-again UFC show in Vancouver is a go. UFC president Dana White confirmed to The Canadian Press that the mixed martial arts card will take place as scheduled June 12 at GM Place. With insurance a major sticking point, the UFC played hardball and the MMA juggernaut appears to have won the day.

Edmonton Oilers clinch last place in NHL

Edmonton Oilers lose 5-4 to Detroit Red Wings, clinch last place in NHL We're #30! We're #30!

The TNA death pool starts now

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Last night's ratings: Raw: 3.7 TNA: 0.6 I've already locked up "first week of July" in the pool.

Report: Vancouver no longer hosting UFC 115?

Report: Vancouver no longer hosting UFC 115, Cincinnati under consideration | MMAjunkie.com The Ultimate Fighting Championship's first trip to Vancouver may have to wait a little longer. The Canadian Press today issued a report citing a UFC source who said the Canadian city will no longer host UFC 115 on June 12 and that Cincinnati is now under consideration as a replacement site. Messages MMAjunkie.com (www.mmajunkie.com) left with the UFC and Ohio Athletic Commission were not immediately returned.

Wrestlemania 26 results - Shawn Michaels vs Undertaker

Taker wins. Fantastic match.

Wrestlemania 26 results - John Cena vs Batista

Cena won the title clean with the STF. Good match. Cena celebrated next to a bunch of fans wearing homemade anti-Cena shirts, which was really funny. Shawn-Taker main events.

Wrestlemania 26 results - Divas tag match

The heels won. It was terrible. Kelly and Vicky botched the finish at least twice.

Wrestlemania 26 results - Chris Jericho vs Edge

Jericho retained with a belt shot and a code breaker. Edge went nuts after the match and speared Jericho off the announcers table and through the barricade. Excellent match. These two Canadians have stolen the show, so far.

Wrestlemania 26 results - Bret Hart vs Vince McMahon

Well, that was weird. The psychology of the entire Hart family vs Vince was all wrong and took the crowd out of the match. I really wanted to enjoy this. Disappointing. Oh and Bret won.

The Amazing Race - Episode 7

Sorry, no Amazing Race recap tonight. I'm off watching Wrestlemania right now. I'll try to update the post on Monday when I find out who was eliminated. EDIT: The Cowboys finished last but it was a non-elimination leg, so I really didn't miss anything.

Wrestlemania 26 results - Rey Mysterio vs CM Punk

Rey won a really good, fast-paced match. Not sure where this goes in the storyline, but doesn't take away from a fun match. Bret-Vince next!

Wrestlemania 26 results - HHH vs Sheamus

Hunter won clean with the pedigree. Bizarre booking decision. Hunter carried Sheamus to a good match and Sheamus more than held his own. The crowd in Phoenix is molten hot tonight.

Wrestlemania 26 results - Money in the Bank Ladder Match

Wow. Jack Swagger won. Guess he's out of the dog house. Kofi and Evan Bourne were the stars. Very good match.

Wrestlemania 26 results - Randy Orton vs Cody Rhodes vs Ted Dibiase

Orton pinned Dibiase with RKO to win after punting Rhodes. Crowd was really into it despite the brutal build. Match was fine.

Wrestlemania 26 results - Tag Title match

MizShow win in 5 minutes. Fine for what it was.

Blogging Wrestlemania!

So here's the deal... Because I'm not blogging from my iPod Touch I don't have the ability to edit my post over the course of the evening. Accordingly, each match will get it's own short post. We're almost 75 minutes from bell time and there's already a couple dozen folks at the WEM theatre. Including me. I'm such a geek.

Sunday afternoon humor

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Testing! Testing!

This is just a test from BlackBerry Gmail. If this works, I'll post live Wrestlemania 26 results tonight from WEM's movie theatre.

The Ultimate Fighter Season 11 preview video

You Ready? UltimateFighter.com See More:  TUF 11 • middleweights • Dana White • Chuck Liddell

UFC 111 results thread

Placeholder thread for the PPV tonight. I plan ... hope ... to update this fairly regularly over the course of the evening from my Ipod Touch with at least who won and lost. OK here we go with the Spike prelims. Matt Brown vs Ricardo Almeida: Ricardo by rear-naked choke in Round 2. Brown taps. Nate Diaz vs Rory Markham: Diaz destroyed Markham in under a round. Pretty impressive. On to the PPV! Jim Miller vs Mark Bocek: Great fight. Miller won. Slightly questionable decision. Jon Fitch vs Ben Saunders: This is not the most exciting fight. Fitch by unanimous decision. Crowd booed lots of the fight. Kurt Pellegrino vs Fabricio Camoes: Pellegrino by rear-naked choke. Good fight. Frank Mir vs Shane Carwin: Carwin destroyed Mir. Holy cow! What a slaughter. Carwin could cause some real problems for Brock. Georges St. Pierre vs Dan Hardy: First 2 rounds are all GSP. Four rounds done and it's a GSP clinic. Total dominating performance by GSP. Scores were 50-43,44,45.

My vacation is watching UFC 111 and Wrestlemania 26

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I've been a little snippy of late because it's spring break here in Edmonton, and for the last two days, my work email has been filling up with "I'm on vacation!" emails from co-workers. I admit that vacation envy quickly set in as I saw all the stories of co-workers jetting off to Florida and Phoenix and elsewhere warmer and sunnier than Edmonton. However, it's not all bad. UFC 111 is on tonight, and I'm looking forward to watching GSP squash Dan Hardy and for the Frank Mir-Shane Carwin tilt for the interim heavyweight title. I'm really torn on that fight. I love to hate Frank Mir, and I want to see him beat really badly. On the other hand, Brock Lesnar vs. Frank Mir III would be many buys, and I want to see that, too. But for the first time in a long time, I'm actually more excited about a WWE card than a UFC card. WWE had done an excellent job of building tomorrow's Wrestlemania and I'm really looking forward to tomorrow's show.

Bret Hart Survival of the Hitman

First of four parts of the very good new Bret Hart documentary from the Fight Network. It's a quick skim over his career, and you won't learn a whole lot new about him, but it's still well done and worth watching if you're a fan. The other parts are linked off this video on YouTube.

The Undertaker's high school graduation photo

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The Undertaker. No, really.

Survivor: Heroes vs. Villains - Episode 6

Oooohh, we got a good one tonight! Russell proved once again why he's the best Survivor player in history by manipulating what should have been his sure doom into a total blindside of Tyson by getting Tyson to change his vote in a Boston Rob complex plan of force-a-tie-get-Russell-to-play-his-immunity idol-take-out-Russell-or-Parvarti. The result was Russell giving his idol to Pavarti (it's probably spelled wrong, I don't care) and the Tyson going home. The look on Boston Rob's face was priceless. And it was double elimination night and the Heroes tribe finally voted out Big James, the Mass Made of Glass. Next week on Thursday: Rob decides that Russell has to go. Hmmm.... I've heard that before. It's never turned out that well for the person targeting Russell.

Where to watch UFC 111 in Edmonton and Calgary

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There's another UFC PPV this weekend, and it should be a pretty good one (that's code for "I'm buying it"). Here's the usual link on where to find a bar to watch it .

The Amazing Race - Episode 6

Sorry for the late post, but TAR was delayed due to basketball, and my cable package only offers me east coast feeds on American channels, not Canadian ones, so I had to wait until my "local" CBS channel from Detroit showed this. At any rate ... So, did you know Joan of Arc saved all the animals on the earth during the flood? Yeah. And people in France don't speak very good English? And half the teams ended up in the wrong town - the Cowboys doing it twice. An episode that didn't exactly showcase anything terribly positive about Americans in the world. But it was fun to watch and mock. The Detectives finished first. Again. Team Big Brother ended up going home, which was a minor surprise as Caite and Brent got the "going home" edit, as all they did was bicker and fight and blame each other the entire episode. But, all is not lost, as in next week's episode, Brent threatens to quit the race.

UFC on Versus tonight!

There's a UFC card on Versus tonight that's also going to be shown in Canada on Rogers SportNet. Don't expect a review from me anytime soon, though, because the SportNet West feed isn't showing the card until 11 p.m. this evening(!), and that's long past my bed-time. I'd get into another rant about SportsNet's ridiculous scheduling decisions, but I just can't work up the vitriol right now.

Sunday afternoon humor

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Seeing as my worship team was up today in church, I thought this would be appropriate: see more Lolcats and funny pictures

Liam Gallagher rips U2

CANOE-- JAM! Music: Liam Gallagher rips U2 So ... as the owner of a few U2 albums ... shouldn't I have received a cheque by now?

Survivor: Heroes vs. Villains

Reminder: Survivor isn't on tonight. It's back next Wednesday.

Tito Ortiz denies rumors, reports of injury

Tito Ortiz denies rumors, reports of injury - SI.com - Mixed Martial Arts Will former UFC light heavyweight champions Tito Ortiz and Chuck Liddell fight for a third time following the 11th season of Spike TV's The Ultimate Fighter? "Yes, I am," Ortiz told SI.com via text message late Wednesday. "Unless Chuck gets hurt." Reports surfaced this week that Ortiz injured his neck during the taping of TUF 11 and, as a result, would be replaced by Rich Franklin at UFC 115 on June 12 in Vancouver, B.C., this despite UFC president Dana White tweeting Sunday that "nothing happened to Tito." White also declared Franklin was scheduled to fight Randy Couture, yet on Wednesday a source close to Couture told SI.com that nothing was finalized. Was Ortiz's appearance on TUF 11 cut short? "Nope," said the 34-year-old fighter, who returned to the UFC last November with a new contract and dropped a split decision against Forrest Griffin. R

My 30 seconds with an Olympic gold medal!

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Marc Kennedy's Olympic gold medal Marc Kennedy, a member of Canada's gold medal winning curling team, along with his wife Nicole, stopped by the Alberta Legislature today to meet Premier Stelmach and be introduced in the Legislature. He graciously let me (and really anyone who wanted to) hold his medal and get a picture with it. Marc and Nicole were very lovely people and it was a real treat to get to meet them. And needless to say, holding a real Olympic gold medal was a real thrill.

Watch UFC 111 on the Big Screen!

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The WWE has long shown their PPVs in movie theaters in Canada, and it's a pretty cool way to watch a show, particularly now that they're shown in HD. UFC is getting in on the action, too, with the upcoming UFC 111. Click here (opens a PDF) for a list of the theatres in Canada that will have the show and here for ticket information.

The Amazing Race - Episode 5

A tremendously fun episode because a) the teams were taken totally out of their element in the First World War re-enactment and b) there was no airport bunching or "luck of the cab driver." So ... Team Detectives came in first, while Team Gimpy Knee (Joe and Heidi) were the unfortunate recipients of a blind U-Turn courtesy of the detectives, and their inability to do Morse Code finished their race. That's despite the fact that Team Big Brother spent approximately 2 days trying to navigate a traffic circle.

Sunday afternoon humor

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Randy Couture (not Chuck Liddell) vs Rich Franklin (not Tito Ortiz) at UFC 115 in Vancouver

Dana White: Randy Couture (not Chuck Liddell) vs Rich Franklin at UFC 115 in Vancouver - MMA Mania Former UFC middleweight champion Rich Franklin (25-5) will not face Chuck Liddell (21-7) at UFC 115 on June 12 in Vancouver despite numerous reports that surfaced earlier today. On the contrary, "Ace" will headline the show opposite former heavyweight and light heavyweight champion, Randy Couture, in a 205-pound showdown, according to UFC President Dana White . This is just too bizarre - a double-substitution in a main event. So we're going to have an Ultimate Fighter season featuring Chuck and Tito building up not only a match that won't happen, but neither coach fighting ... anyone?

Canadians really, really, really, really like their hockey. Really.

CANADA'S OLYMPIC BROADCAST MEDIA CONSORTIUM - OLYMPIC WINTER GAMES - ENGLISH | 2010 Gold Medal Game Is the Apex of TV Viewing in Canada as Legend of '72 Summit Series Finally Laid to Rest TORONTO , March 12 /CNW/ - It's official. Just released final data from BBM Canada confirms that last month's Team Canada gold medal win is, without a doubt, the most-watched television broadcast in Canadian history, with a final audience of 16.7 million viewers. It was also confirmed today by Nielsen that, contrary to popular Canadian legend, the recent game delivered far more viewers than Game 8 of the classic Summit Series between Canada and U.S.S.R. on September 28, 1972 , which had a reported television audience of 4.26 million viewers.

Survivor: Heroes vs. Villains - Episode 5

Warning: It's been a long day and I'm very tired. So like 2 weeks ago , I may end up giving this episode short-shrift. James proves that he's the most fragile Survivor in show history, going down with a knee injury during the reward challenge that leaves him in a giant knee brace for the rest of the show. Despite that, having lost yet another immunity challenge, the Heroes tribe votes out Tom instead of James The Mass Made of Glass. Apparently, HEROES is an anagram of MORONS or something. Next week: Basketball, apparently. Two weeks from now on a Wednesday: The big showdown between Russell and Boston Rob. Given that Russell found the immunity idol, Rob may end up back in Boston.

The Amazing Race - Episode 4

It was parejas increibles night on TAR as teams were split up in Hamburg at an Intersection and forced to work with someone from another team to go bungee jumping. Which, incidentally, was the first task tonight that you'd never catch me doing in a million years - the others being the tasks of eating sauerkraut and drinking beer. Team Detectives came in first in a big comeback, while Team Big Brother finished last. But, in a miracle worthy of CBS scripting, the CBS team on a CBS show were spared elimination because it was a non-elimination leg. What a coincidence. Next week: the teams fight in the First World War in what I can only assume is the series first ever time-travel episode.

Sunday afternoon humor

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How To Ride Your Bike To Work

How To Ride Your Bike To Work Some good tips here on how to get started on riding your bike to work. I did it last summer as often as I could and can't wait to get back to it this year.

Share any page from Safari on your iPhone with AddThis

User Experience Design: Share any page from Safari on your iPhone with AddThis Hey! This really works!

Chocolate hazelnut tea is T-riffic

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OK, that was a brutal pun. I’ve never been a big tea drinker. It’s not that I dislike tea so much as I prefer coffee. Last week, I decided that tea would be a nice change a little more often but I wanted something more than regular tea. So I went shopping. And I quickly found decaf chocolate hazelnut tea by Stash . It’s really good. The flavour does take a bit of getting used to, particularly if you’re like me and you like chocolate flavoured coffees. And best of all, it’s really tea – black tea to be precise, not herbal … which isn’t really tea at all so much as water strained through lawn clippings. I found mine at Sobeys, but your mileage may vary.

Survivor: Heroes vs. Villains - Episode 4

Apparently, I didn't give enough love to last week's episode and, to be fair to me, I was tired and grumpy last Thursday, and that undoubtedly affected my review. I still think it was only "fine" but I don't think I properly conveyed my enjoyment of the one-sided beating in the immunity/reward challenge. So, that part was great. The rest of the show was still only fine. Tonight's show, on the other hand, was a big whole bag of fun - the Villains cleaned up in both the reward and immunity challenges, Coach was entirely full of himself, and tribal council was one of those nail-biters thanks to Tom's hidden immunity idol. In the end, Cirie got blindsided and ended up going home. Next week: Candice realizes she's now on the losing end of the alliances on the Heroes tribe, and someone else ends up needing medical care in a challenge. Oh, and Russell continues to look for the immunity idol on the Villains camp.

WEC secures June 20 date for Canadian debut in Calgary

WEC secures June 20 date for Canadian debut in Calgary - MMA Mania WEC General Manager Reed Harris recently confirmed the good news for Canadian fight fans that the UFC sister-promotion will be bringing its unique brand of cagefighting across the border in the next few months. June 20, to be exact. The WEC has already requested and received the date from the Calgary Combative Sports Commission, according to our friends over at Top MMA News .

NHL back. Oilers still in last place.

Edmonton Oilers fans might just want to go back to their DVR recording of Sunday's game and ignore the NHL for the rest of the season.

Olympic Hockey Finale Drew Huge Ratings

Olympic Hockey Finale Drew Huge Ratings - Media Decoder Blog - NYTimes.com So, half of Canada watched the hockey game yesterday, and upwards of 80% of the country viewed part of it. That's unsurprising, but still amazing.