The Dark Side of the Outlaw

An outlaw is a criminal who lurks in the dark waiting to strike. Covering the lower part of his face with a bandanna, the outlaw represents the ghost like elusiveness of the dangerous underworld. British Mixed Martial Artist Dan Hardy nicknamed the ‘Outlaw’ is none of the above. He stands muscular, tattooed, with a large red Mohawk attached to the top of his cranium, not exactly a man willing to blend into the darkness. His stand up approach to fighting makes him easy to hit, his loud mouth that spouts trash talk makes him a bull’s-eye target for others.




In the height of his UFC career, Hardy was on a four match winning streak that earned him a title shot against pound for pound King George St Pierre. In a match that maybe came to soon for the gun slinging Brit, the ‘outlaw’ was utterly dominated, being taken down countlessly by the champ at will. Since then Hardy is on his worst run as a fighter, losing four straight bouts in a row, which would usually mean a direct exit out of the ranks of the Ultimate Fighting Championship.

However, Dan Hardy remains in the top MMA Corporation, the question is WHY?

In my opinion it comes down to a couple of major national and stylistic factors. Firstly, MMA is still relatively new in the United Kingdom, and Hardy is one of the most popular athletes to grace the sport from our shores. At UFC 120, the packed o2 arena in London filled with a British crowd, erupted when he entered the octagon to the theme tune ‘I rule England tonight’. This captivating and rapturing entrance enhanced his status as not just a popular fighter, but also as a pin up for MMA in Britain. Cutting ‘the outlaw’ from the ranks of the UFC would hinder the progression and marketability of MMA in the United Kingdom, something that Dana White will not consider as he tries to increase the sports coverage around the world.

More importantly fans will travel to fights to watch Fighting, I mean brutal fighting, fighting that involves two men willing stand in the centre of the cage and trade punches. Hardy offers this in abundance. His willingness to take punches as he lands his own is worrying, but at the end of the day that’s why we love to watch him.

I hope Hardy continues to evolve as a mixed martial artist, but I hope he never loses the core reason why we love to watch him fight.

Anderson Silva Rock Rio

In the main event at UFC 134, Anderson Silva cemented his dominance on the MMA world, with a second round stoppage over top middle weight contender Yushin Okami. From the moment the fight commenced, the ‘spider’ looked leagues above his opponent. Quicker, stronger, and more elusive; Silva rocked the static challenger with a high kick to the back of the cranium at the end of the end of the round, only seconds later to be saved by the bell.




Following on his dominance, Silva’s punches took more of a brutal affect in the second round, dropping his opponent with a barrage of punches that was followed by a sickening ground and pound, that forced referee Herb Dean to stop the bout.



Silva has 14 wins and no losses in the UFC; making him an all time MMA great, and an icon in the world of Brazilian fighting.


Can anyone beat the spider, on this performance not in our life time?

Short Scream 4 Film Review

In 1997 Kevin Williamson's original 'Scream' script burst on the scene with a blistering brutality, changing the modern horror film forever. By systematically disecting the rules and cliches of previous horror greats, Scream blessed are screens with a disturbing originality that rocked the audiences view point on the slasher genre. Roll on over a decade and two sequals later, Wes Craven and Williamson have bought us the ill advised and uncalled for Scream 4.


Synopsis: As Sidney Prescott returns back to her home town of Woodsboro, so too does the fanatic ghost face killer hellbent on revenge. This brings mass violence, scary phone calls, and the ever increasing body count of the local teen population. Very predictable.


Cast: Returning are the familar cast of Neve Campbell as celebrity victim Sidney Prescott, David Arquette as the newely promoted Sheriff Riley, and the ever present gunning reporter Gale Weathers played by Courney Cox. Added to this cast are the new eye candy who might as well have bullseye's attached to their chests. These come in the form of 'Hero's' cheerleader Hayden Panettiere, Emma Roberts, Rory Colkin and Kristen Bell.


Review: Overlong and treading very well worn ground, Scream 4 is as unessacrey as every 'Saw' sequal ever made, mixing almost slapstick humour with blood splattering violence. Its failure to echo the dejavu quality of the 1997 original leaves the audience with very few scares or suspenceful moments in this new generational flop.


Final Say: How many more times can we watch a masked killer stumble around a house chasing after a very attractive but stupid young lady. Hopefully this will be the last, as Wes Craven offers yet another cliched driven mess to his woefully dated Scream franchise.


2/5