Each week, ESPN.com writer Brett Okamoto provides his take on the hottest topics in the world of mixed martial arts. This week, Okamoto squares off with former UFC and current Bellator heavyweight Matt Mitrione?to debate the latest news and trends. Mitrione (11-5), 38, is unbeaten in two fights since making his Bellator MMA debut in June.?1.?Will Georges St-Pierre?ever fight again? If so, will it take place in the UFC?Mitrione:?My belief is yes. I believe he really wants to fight again. Ive actually spoken to him about it. I feel theres a chance hell fight for another organization, but the thing is, St-Pierre is a competitor, and he wants to fight against the best competition in the world. So I think if another organization can get somebody who is worth his time, who is not locked up by the UFC, St-Pierre would be interested. I dont think St-Pierre is going to wait another year to fight. If he does fight, I think its going to be soon. I think his recent comments are a lot of posturing, which is intelligent. He just put a lot of pressure on the UFC, publicly, and I think thats something [UFC president] Dana White has done to try and humiliate and embarrass fighters for a long time. So good for GSP for taking a page out of Danas book. The new UFC is only interested in putting on fights that bring in heavy dough. GSP is the key to Canada. I think by GSP doing that, letting the world know he wants to fight but theyre not giving him what he wants, then he put a lot of pressure on them.Okamoto:?Yes, I think St-Pierre will fight again. I think his desire to fight has been pretty obvious for a while now. And I do think that fight takes place in the UFC. Whether hes legally a free agent at this exact moment or not, I believe the overall outcome of this situation is the same, and that is he will fight in the Octagon again. Ive said it before and Ill say it again: 2016 was the year in which UFC fighter negotiations went public. Athletes have more leverage in this sport than theyve ever had and theyre more willing to use it. Not every single athlete can say that, but the ones who have found themselves in a position of strength have been generally willing to use it to their advantage. This could turn into one of the most interesting legal battles in the history of this sport. As of right now, I define it more as ongoing negotiations and, as Mitrione put it, posturing. At the end of the day, it would still be easier on everyone involved to come to an agreement, rather than hash this out in court.2.?With St-Pierre ruled out of UFC 206 on Dec. 10 in Toronto, will that pay-per-view event get lost in the shuffle of a busy end of the year?Mitrione:?I cant even think of whos on UFC 206, so to me its already lost. Oh, AJ [Anthony Johnson]. Thats in Toronto? Anthony versus Daniel Cormier. It could get lost, man. AJ is an animal. DCs an animal. But I think GSP is kind of a needed commodity for that market right now. Especially with the business trading hands and now the bad business of the UFC not having him on that card, I do think UFC 206 could get lost, yes.Okamoto:?I agree. It absolutely could. From a pay-per-view standpoint, sandwiching it in between New Yorks UFC 205 and Ronda Rouseys UFC 207, it already was in a perilous spot. Its similar to UFC 201, which was sandwiched between the landmark UFC 200 and the Conor McGregor-Nate Diaz rematch at UFC 202. The return of St-Pierre would have been enough to combat that. Without him, I dont know that a rematch between Cormier and Johnson is enough to support PPV numbers. Cormier himself has expressed concern on this, as his payday is directly linked to PPV. The Toronto market has produced big crowds at Air Canada Centre in the past, and it has been three years since the UFC has been in that building. So Canadian fans might still show up at the gate, but as far as a PPV draw, it certainly could suffer.3.?Ronda Rousey returns at UFC 207 on Dec. 30 against bantamweight champion Amanda Nunes. Was this the right fight for her to return to?Mitrione:?I think Ronda got exposed and is going to have a really difficult time fighting anybody, because a lot of people are going to have a different game plan for her now. Is it the right fight for her, though? Yeah. I think Julianna Pena would be highly aggressive and a difficult fight for Ronda. I think everyone knows what would happen if Ronda fought Cyborg [Cris Justino]. I think she wanted nothing to do with a rematch against Holly Holm. So it was either Miesha Tate or Amanda Nunes. She got what she needed. The UFC knows what Ronda needs to be successful, and they need her to be successful. I just feel the blueprint is there for Nunes, but Ronda will be able to close distance, and her ability in close proximity is still the best in that division, especially when it goes to the ground. If you get a striker she cant close on, shes going to have a difficult time, but I think she can close on Nunes.Okamoto:?Its not the worst fight for her to return to. Oddsmakers still see Rousey as the favorite. Asking her to come back to a superfight against Justino or a rematch against Holm, whom youd think would have a psychological advantage, would have been tough. Ill admit it though: If I were the UFC, I would have booked her to the most tuneup-type fight possible. And I wouldnt have felt ashamed about it one bit. Haters would hate and accuse the UFC of pampering Rousey. OK, fine. If Im the UFC, I want Rousey to return, for UFC 207 and beyond, and I want her to be confident. Its not like weve never seen this before. Tuneup fights have been around as long as combat sports. Let your star get her legs under her in a matchup that favors her -- heavily. Nunes hits hard. Shes a finisher. I would have found a pillow-fisted bantamweight with poor takedown defense. That, to me, would have been the right fight for Rousey, but, I guess, credit her and the UFC for jumping straight back into the fire.4.?After being fined $150,000 by the Nevada State Athletic Commission, Conor McGregor says hell never fight in Las Vegas again. Do you believe him?Mitrione:?I think Conor is a very astute young man and that he understands the power he has with his name and marketability. If youre going to get fined like that and that makes you never want to fight in Vegas again, he knows he has the power to do so. Itll hurt Vegas and their pockets, which is obviously his intent if he doesnt fight there again. I think Conor does a lot of posturing, but this is something hes probably pretty legit about. Yes or no, does Conor ever fight in Las Vegas again? Id guess no.Okamoto:?Not really. Mitriones right, McGregor has never been one to misunderstand the value in his name. Saying hell never fight in Las Vegas again, he knows what impact that has on the individuals who fined him. Las Vegas wont go bankrupt if it never hosts another McGregor fight, but the man has been in the headliner of four of the top five mixed martial arts gates in Nevada history. Not to mention, hes responsible for bringing a very large amount of Irish money into the city during the last two years. His words on never fighting in Nevada again carry plenty of weight, but I personally dont expect him to hold that grudge forever. The UFC likes to host its big events in Las Vegas. No income tax in Nevada equals a happy face on McGregors record-setting paychecks. Well see what the future holds, but my guess is McGregor will be back in Vegas before his career is over.5.?Who wins the Bellator MMA light heavyweight fight on Jan. 21: Chael Sonnen or Tito Ortiz?Mitrione:?Chael, all day long. I just feel that Chael has youth on his side. I feel Chael is quick, slick, works on his hands. Tito is kind of past his prime a wee bit. He knows hes the draw that he is. Hes more of a businessman at this point where I think Chael is still a grinder.Okamoto:?Yeah, Ive got to lean Sonnen as well. I do think, however, a lot of people will completely write Ortiz off in this matchup, which I think might be a mistake. The general perception seems to be Ortiz is finished, which I wouldnt even completely argue with. However, he will be the bigger man in this contest, and although he has forfeited plenty of athleticism to age and injury, he still has size and enough power to make this fight interesting. But ultimately, Sonnen is younger, comes in shape and is the best wrestler Ortiz has fought in years. The early pick is Sonnen. Cheap San Francisco Giants Jerseys .ca. Kerry, Just watched the shootout in the Coyotes/Leafs game and I have to ask, why was the James van Riemsdyk goal allowed to count? All of the video replays we were shown on TV were inconclusive about whether the puck had entirely crossed the line or not. Cheap Baltimore Orioles Jerseys .C. at the helm of the top team in the Eastern Conference. His tenure as the GM in Vancouver was all too brief. Though he led the Canucks to what was then a franchise record-shattering campaign in just his second season, Nonis was gone and replaced one year later. http://www.cheapworldseriesjerseys.com/ .5 seconds to play in the game, Kevin Love never stopped believing that they would come out of there with a win. Cheap Baseball Jerseys .com) - The Calgary Flames aim to bounce back from their first regulation home loss of the campaign on Friday night when they host a Detroit Red Wings club that they swept in three meetings a season ago. Cheap Colorado Rockies Jerseys . -- Peyton Manning will have all of his wide receivers available for the first time in a month when the Denver Broncos begin their playoff run Jan. 1. Ryder Cup talkThere was a time when a U.S. Ryder Cup team was decided only on points, with no captains picks. As recently as two years ago, the core of the team was determined following the PGA Championship, with the picks coming a few weeks later.Now, with the help of a task force, the United States has pushed back the eight who automatically qualify to following this weeks Barclays -- or two weeks after the PGA Championship is played. And then captain Davis Love III has another two weeks to pick three players after the BMW Championship. Two weeks after that, following the Tour Championship, he will make the last selection.What does it all mean?Not much.Certainly pushing back the selection of the team and the captains picks closer to the actual playing of the Ryder Cup is a good idea. It was always silly to have the entire team decided six weeks prior to the competition, when form has much time to change.Love can only hope that some of the players on the bubble such as Bubba Watson, Rickie Fowler and Matt Kuchar at least show some spark during the first three playoff events to make the selections an easy call.Kuchar won the bronze medal at the Olympic golf tournament and played some solid golf to even make the field, but he hasnt won this year. Watson and Fowler have done little in the past six months.Neither has Zach Johnson, who is in good shape to make the team on his own, based mostly on last year, including winning The Open.And then there is Jim Furyk, who has played well recently, but has the most losses in U.S. Ryder Cup history.Furyk is really the only player outside of the top 8 automatics who has distinguished himself of late, shooting 58 at the Travelers Championship and posting some high finishes.2. Why does last year count?When the U.S. Ryder Cup Task Force was formed following the 2014 disaster at Gleneagles, it came up with Love as the captain and instituted change in the points structure. It eliminated points for the fall PGA Tour events that start the new season -- a move that caught PGA Tour commissioner Tim Finchem by surprise -- but still gave them for the major championships.Zach Johnson is basically on the team because of his Open win at St. Andrews more than a year ago. Justin Thomas is not because his win at the CIMB Classic didnt count.The PGA of America prefers points be given out to keep the Ryder Cup out front as much as possible. But wouldnt it make more sense to start the process six months out? Or even at the beginning of the year? If the idea is to get players who are most in form, counting anything from the previous year makes little sense.3. The case for FurykFuryk, 46, the newly-crowned Mr. 58, will be a polarizing decision. Hes already a vice captain, so hes part of the team regardless. That makes the decision even tougher for Love, who knows Furyk will be there anyway. He has played in nine Ryder Cups and hes in good form, so those are positives. But he is 10-20-4 and has lost the most matches in U.S. Ryder Cup history, including his past three in singles.One of those losses was the blown 1-up lead with two holes to go against Sergio Garcia in 2012 -- lossing to two pars for a point that was crucial.dddddddddddd Some of Furyks poor record can be attributed to multiple partners during the years. And hes had a nearly reverse record in the Presidents Cup. You can argue for or against him and not be wrong.4. And the European team is set ... save for the picksWith one week to go, the European Ryder Cup team is set: Rory McIlroy, Danny Willett, Henrik Stenson, Chris Wood, Sergio Garcia, Rafael Cabrera-Bello, Justin Rose, Andy Sullivan and Matthew Fitzpatrick. With five rookies, it is understood that captain Darren Clarke is leaning toward veterans in his three remaining picks, which will be made Tuesday. Conventional wisdom has him taking Lee Westwood and Martin Kaymer.But then things get interesting. Does he take Scotlands Russell Knox, who would have made the team on points had he been a member of the European Tour when he won last year in China? What about long-hitting Thomas Pieters, who nearly defended his title last week at the Czech Open? Clarkes decisions wont be easy.5. Padraigs Olympic sojournNot only did Padraig Harrington play for Ireland in the mens Olympic tournament, he stuck around with his family for the second week, never touched his clubs and seemingly enjoyed the experience immensely.6. A year without TigerTuesday marked the one-year anniversary of Tiger Woods last competitive round. He shot 70 at the Wyndham Championship to tie for 10th after contending for most of the event. At the time, it was seen as a positive step after what had been his worst year as a pro.Of course, it turned out to be nothing to build on. A few weeks later he had the first of two back surgeries. His agent, Mark Steinberg, said he continues to make progress but there is no timetable for a return. In retrospect, this story from a year ago had a lot more meaning.7. Making his first Ryder Cup teamFitzpatrick did it Sunday with a top-5 finish at the Czech Masters.8. No excusesOne of the benefits to the Olympic golf tournament standing between the PGA Championship and the start of the FedEx Cup playoffs is it offered a three-week break to those who did not go to Rio. The likes of Jason Day, Dustin Johnson, Rory Mcilroy and Jordan Spieth have had far more time off at this point in the season than has ever been the case in the FedEx Cup era.It should cut down a good bit of the malaise that typically affects the playoffs, as the long season takes its toll. Not even a huge pot of money can shake some guys out of a funk if their golf game is off. A three-week run of playoff events begins Thursday at the Barclays before another week off prior to the Tour Championship. It will be interesting to see the level of play.9. The ageless Gary PlayerAt age 80, Gary Player was everywhere in Rio. Watching other sports. Serving as team leader for both the men and women golfers from South Africa. Even hitting balls on the range one day to keep his game in shape. Its hard to think of anyone who served as a more positive influence on golf in the Olympics. Wholesale Jerseys Wholesale Jerseys cheap jerseys Cheap Jersyes Cheap Basketball Jerseys Cheap NHL Jerseys cheap jerseys Cheap Jerseys Cheap Jerseys Cheap Jerseys From China Cheap NFL Jerseys ' ' '