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• Steve DeAngelis vs. Nick Pace, ROC 30 on June 11^th – A 135-pound pairing for the promotion’s bantamweight belt, this one pits a Pellegrino MMA star against one of Team Tiger Schulmann’s best in bout that could be a stepping stone for entrance into the WEC or Strikeforce.

It’s time for George Sullivan of Pellegrino MMA to take on Rising Dragon MMA’s Tiawan Howard. Uh oh. The ring announcer has just revealed that Howard is self-trained. Get ready for a fatality. Round 1 is pretty competitive on the feet, but once it gets to the mat it’s all Sullivan, who almost gets the bent armlock at the bell. Sullivan pretty much continues where he left off in Round 2, getting Howard down, tying him up in a triangle, mounting him, and punching until ref Big Dan steps in at 2:31 of the round. Dominant showing by Sullivan. Tuan Pham of Fight Firm and Jessie Riggleman of MMAI Fight Team step up to the plate with the winner guaranteed a shot at the ROC flyweight belt down the line. Apparently Riggleman got the memo that Pham is a big puncher, as he does his best to keep this a wrestling match. Inexplicably, Pham obliges him, and despite some back and forth the Philly fighter finds himself caught in a guillotine and is put to sleep at 3:17 of Round 2. Last bout and it’s Bellmore Kickboxing star Gian Villante vs. Demetrius Richards of Elite Performance for the ROC light-heavyweight title. Richards was flown in from Nebraska for this fight - I guess they haven’t heard of Villante yet in Nebraska. Well, Villante is considered a superhero around these parts… a fact that means nothing to Richards, who eats a few low-kicks but uses a Whizzer to break Villante’s forearm (a mishap that occurs when Villante posts his hand). The official time of the TKO win is 3:27 of the first round. Richards is the new ROC 205-pound champ. And that’s all, folks.

“And now to a little Texas hold’em up!”

That’s how Tony Kornheiser introduced a short segment on Monday’s “Pardon the Interruption” regarding the heist that occurred at the European Poker Tour Berlin Main Event last Saturday. After a brief summary of what happened, Kornheiser then opened up what would amount to a 90-second discussion of the story with his co-host Michael Wilbon by posing the following question:

“Wilbon, do you see this as a serious breach of the law, or an exciting new twist to televised poker coverage?!”

Kornheiser’s tone (and grin) made it clear he was being sarcastic, but bringing up the topic this way seemed to indicate the somewhat cynical view the hosts and other sports journalists have about poker butting its way onto ESPN and the sports section. And, as it turned out, Wilbon’s answer made it sound as though he understood the question somewhat seriously.

After starting with a joke asking about Norman Chad’s whereabouts at the time of the robbery, Wilbon described his thoughts when watching the video clip from EPT Live showing the tourney suddenly getting interrupted.

“Watching from afar, I’m like… this is like a wrestling promotion!” said Wilbon. “This was like a set-up to get more attention — to get goofballs like you and me talking about this stuff — and it seems like an exciting new development. Like a car chase on CNN!”

Kornheiser agreed it was exciting stuff, suggesting that the incident “will be a movie within a year.” The conversation quickly concluded after a couple of incredulous reactions at the level of security that allowed the theft to occur. (By the way, a tip of the fedora to Gary Wise for mentioning the PTI segment earlier this week in his ESPN column.)

I guess I can’t really blame Kornheiser or Wilbon for reacting this way. For those who have never participated in, covered, or attended a real live high-stakes poker tournament, there’s a lot of mystery about what goes on. In other words, I guess I am saying I am inclined to pardon “Pardon the Interruption” here. Though I ain’t necessarily congratulating them for any special insight, either.

Given poker’s storied history in the U.S. — a history filled with cheats and thieves and other “hold’em up”-style scenes — I can see how some hearing of the EPT Berlin robbery wouldn’t necessarily appreciate how uncommon an event it really was. (Heck, I remember the first time I went out to cover the WSOP getting asked about how I’d handle being around gangsters. No shinola!)

Obviously the robbery was not “a set-up” or some sort of promotional gimmick. (And, really, to think it was would require a heckuva lot of cynicism.) Not that the EPT or any of the other professional poker tours would even desire this sort of attention, or expect it to help stimulate their growth.

I had the chance to talk with one of the players who was still in the Main Event at the time of the robbery on Saturday — Ilya Gorodetsky. In fact, he was seated at the feature table when the interruption occurred. In my interview with the Russian player, he told me how some initially thought it might have been some sort of joke. But it soon became clear it was not.

You can read the full interview over on Betfair, where it was posted this morning: “Fright at the Feature Table: EPT Berlin.” Big thanks again to Ilya for taking the time to talk with me.

Here’s to a less exciting weekend this time, eh?

Garden State welterweight stud and feared bounty hunter Tom Gallicchio is traveling north this weekend, venturing into Massachusetts to face highly-credentialed judoka Rick Hawn at World Championship Fighting 9.

The ROC welterweight title is up for grabs, and vying for it are Justin Haskins of Pellegrino MMA and Ryan LaFlare of Bellmore Kickboxing. Don’t let the gym’s name fool you: LaFlare is a skilled and aggressive grappler, so while Haskins is a wrestling stud, he might not have that much of an advantage on the ground. As if to prove that point, LaFlare comes out and nails a takedown, but Haskins gets back to his feet and scores a few takedowns of his own. LaFlare avoids trouble, and in Round 2 Haskins’ takedowns never come, as LaFlare dodges them all to land a bout-ending left hook at 1:36 into the frame. A great performance by the Bellmore Kickboxing fighter, and he’s now the man to beat. Last bout of the night and it’s Gian Villante of Bellmore Kickboxing against American Kickboxing Academy’s Mike Cook, with the ROC heavyweight championship on the line. How good is Villante? It takes him only 40 seconds to stun Cook with a punch, suplex him, and tap him out with a rear naked choke. Villante is now the ROC heavyweight champ. And that’s it.

American actor, author, comedian, voice actor, and professional TNA wrestler, Mick Foley will perform three dates of his popular Total Extreme Comedy starring Mick Foley, including a show scheduled to take place in Las Vegas the night before the 2010 NFL Super Bowl.

Foley, best known for his wrestling alter egos - Mankind, Dude Love, and Cactus Jack - will  make three stops in Baltimore, Maryland at the Baltimore Comedy Factory on February 3rd,  a show at the Las Vegas Hilton Hotel and Casino on February 6th  and a final show on March 5th in Manchester, New Hampshire at the Palace Theater

Mick Foley will bring a hilarious routine featuring “inside” jokes and stories about his experience in the wrestling industry, his personal experience with wrestling promoter Vince McMahon, and all wrestlers involved with the most popular “sports entertainment” in the world.

“So, over the next few months, I will be showing up at surprise locations, doing unbilled, free sets, just to get some work in; to see what works and what doesn’t, what I should and shouldn’t tweak, and what ideas just flat out suck,” Foley said in his personal blog.

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Noel Arcibal and Andre Bonaventa are up, and Arcibal appears to have his own cheering section. Bonaventa does not, and instead must rely on his wrestling and pure meaness - which he uses to get Arcibal down in the first. It’s all stand-up in Round 2 and Bonaventa gets the worst of it, but in the final round he scores with a slam and winds up on the bottom. When time runs out Arcibal takes the decision. Last fight and it’s Mike Galvez vs. Alex Conover. Round 1 is a grappling chessmatch, with Conover taking top position and Galvez going for a variety of subs from the bottom. Round 2 is more of the same, but with a close kimura and a head/arm choke, Conover is one move ahead. However, the doc stops the fight before Round 3 due to a cut on Galvez’s eye, giving Conover the win. Good effort by both men.

Noel Arcibal and Andre Bonaventa are up, and Arcibal appears to have his own cheering section. Bonaventa does not, and instead must rely on his wrestling and pure meaness - which he uses to get Arcibal down in the first. It’s all stand-up in Round 2 and Bonaventa gets the worst of it, but in the final round he scores with a slam and winds up on the bottom. When time runs out Arcibal takes the decision. Last fight and it’s Mike Galvez vs. Alex Conover. Round 1 is a grappling chessmatch, with Conover taking top position and Galvez going for a variety of subs from the bottom. Round 2 is more of the same, but with a close kimura and a head/arm choke, Conover is one move ahead. However, the doc stops the fight before Round 3 due to a cut on Galvez’s eye, giving Conover the win. Good effort by both men.

Organizers of the 2010 AVN Adult Entertainment Expo in Las Vegas are announcing the introduction of several new attractions and events for fan and trade attendees, including the sexy ladies of Slick Chix Female Oil Wrestling, a 7-foot mechanical penis ride, and the world’s first sex robot from TrueCompanion.

The event will run from January 8th to January 10th at the Sands Expo Center in Las Vegas, Nevada. AEE will give fans and attendees the opportunity to enjoy a series of events featuring the hottest adult film stars and celebrities, as well as product exhibits, live music shows and contests awarding products and exclusive prizes.

Some of the events running during the 2010 AVN Expo include the Slick Chix girls oil wrestling experience (booth #5059), a mechanical penis ride located in the Bucking Penis booth, #1030, and the introduction of  TrueCompanion’s  first female sex robot at AEE (booth #7031). The artificial intelligence robots are specially engineered to completely gratify the owner and fully equipped to carry a conversation or have an intimate encounter.

Attendees will also enjoy live music shows by RTO, a five-man hard-rock-funk-punk band from Denver and meet the hottest adult talent in the world, including leading adult and cross-over star Tera Patrick, Teagan Presley, Nina Hartley, Ashley Fires, Jesse Jane, Katsuni, Jannie Summers, Raven Alexis, and many more.

Contest participants will take center stage at AEE and compete in “The Kama Sutra Game,” “Famous Humper Game,” “The Balloon Game,” and “Pole Dancing” for a chance to win prizes from Temptation Resorts and other free merchandise.

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Brian Natoli of Taurus MMA and Delroy McKoy of Camp Undefeated take to the cage, and once their fight begins Natoli takes charge with crisper striking and smoother grappling. Rinse and repeat for all three rounds, with Natoli winging an overhand right and scoring with leg-kicks and clearly ahead on the scorecards, and McKoy knocking him out with only one second left in the bout. Cilio Ribiero of Gold Team and Justin Incera of Chamber MMA are next at bat. Though a much better puncher and much better grappler, Ribiero keeps butting up against the brick wall that is Incera’s wrestling, and it goes to the third round, where Ribiero punches his Incera in the head while Incera is on the ground and gets disqualified.