Clash of the Titans

Chuck Liddell and Tito Ortiz were on their best behaviour Thursday as they met the media in advance of their UFC title bout Saturday night at the MGM Grand.

Sitting on opposite sides of the podium, the rival mixed martial arts fighters pretty much ignored each other during their pre-fight news conference. But they took part in a fierce stare down for photographers, with the two fighters' noses almost coming into contact.

There's no love lost between the two rivals, but they shook hands after a news conference that saw both men express their satisfaction that fight night was finally here.

"I'm excited. It's going to be fun. I can't wait to hit Tito again," said Liddell, the reigning UFC light-heavyweight champion.

The Iceman knocked out Ortiz in the second round in April 2004 the first time they met. The man with the shaved mohawk and tattooed skull went on to win his next five fights, picking up the UFC's 205-pound title along the way and today is arguably the most famous MMA fighter on the planet.

Unlike the loquacious Ortiz, Liddell lets his fists and feet do most of his talking — and usually the conversations are short.

"The Iceman has been knocking everybody out," UFC president Dana White said.

Ortiz is also on a roll, having won his last five fights since the Liddell loss.

"What I want is that belt back," said Ortiz. who defended the title five times when he was light-heavyweight champion before a contract dispute with the UFC and loss to Randy Couture knocked him back down the 205-pound mountain.

UFC officials expect the Liddell-Ortiz rematch to be the most lucrative in mixed martial arts history, with an anticipated record pay per view audience of 1.2 million. At C$39.99 a shot, that translates into some $48 million revenue plus a live gate that should push the night's total past $50 million — more than 20 times what the current owners paid for the UFC.

"It's huge . . . the biggest gate, the biggest pay per view," said White.

Asked if that extended to the UFC's biggest ever purse for Liddell and Ortiz, the UFC president — who does not like to talk fighter pay — said "no doubt about it," when pressed on the issue. The Las Vegas Review-Journal pegs the champion's paycheque as more than US$1 million for this fight.

Still, Liddell looked anything but excited as he sat on the podium, absently playing with his Sidekick cellphone.

"If you hadn't noticed, I get a little bored at these things," said Liddell, who is more interested in putting opponents to sleep that swapping tales with reporters. In contrast, Ortiz welcomes any chance to talk Tito.

"If you hadn't noticed, I get a little bored at these things," said Liddell, who is more interested in putting opponents to sleep that swapping tales with reporters. In contrast, Ortiz welcomes any chance to talk Tito.

The fight offers other interesting matchups in style.

The 36-year-old Liddell (whose record is 19-3 compared to Ortiz's 15-4) can knock opponents out with one punch or kick, from almost any angle or distance.

"Everybody knows what the Iceman does," said White, who once managed both Liddell and Ortiz. "There's no secret on what he's going to try to do on Saturday night.

"He's going to try to keep the fight standing and knock him out."

The 31-year-old Ortiz's forte is driving fighters into the canvas, then using fists and elbows to carve them up.

"There's nobody in this business. nobody in this business that stops people like Tito Ortiz does once he gets them down on the ground," said White. "You're in big trouble if you're on your back and up against the cage."

In the first fight, Liddell stuffed both of Ortiz's attempts to take him down in an uneventful first round that the Iceman won with a couple of telling blows late in the round. Ortiz was jarred by an unintentional thumb to the eye early in the second round and Liddell swarmed him, rocking him with a brutal barrage of blows to the head.

Ortiz finally went down, his face busted up and bleeding.

The question remains can Ortiz get find a way to take Liddell down to the canvas where he can do his worst? The champion, whose takedown defence is arguably the best in the UFC, says the challenger will have to get past his firsts first.

"He knows he's got to strike with me to get close enough to take me down. You have to."

Ortiz insists he can topple Liddell.

"I can take down anybody in the UFC . . . we're going to see Saturday night whether I can take him down. You ask me if I can? I guarantee you I can," said Ortiz, his jeans, T-shirt and backwards baseball cap accompanied by Prada sunglasses. "Just give me the chance to do it."

The back story between Ortiz and Liddell is one of betrayal, if you listen to Ortiz. The way he tells it, the two California fighters were friends and training partners who agreed never to meet in the ring unless the money was good enough to warrant it. According to Ortiz, Liddell reneged on that promise.

Liddell tells a different story, saying the two were never that close and that Ortiz used the friendship angle as an excuse to duck him.

The blood has been bad ever since.

When Liddell entered the ring after Ortiz's win over Vitor Belfort in February 2005 to talk some smack, accusing Ortiz of being afraid to fight him again, Ortiz dismissed him by saying "We can go again. You will be the last of the Mohicans."

The dislike even trickles down to the fighters' fans.

"My fans just don't like him," Liddell said Thursday. "They don't like he runs his mouth, the way he talks, the way he seems to show no one any respect."

The champion hopes a second win over Ortiz will rid him of the problem.

"I plan on getting rid of him," he said. "So I don't have to listen to his mouth any more."

Middleweight Jason MacDonald of Red Deer, Alta., looks to make it two UFC wins in a row Saturday when he takes on Chris Leben on the undercard. MacDonald, a prison guard, scored a convincing submission win over Ed Herman in his UFC debut in October.

The Colts are Back in Familiar Territory

The Indianapolis Colts are the NFL's last unbeaten team, improving to 8-0 with a 27-20 victory at New England on Sunday night. Indianapolis went 13-0 last year before losing and is the second team ever to start consecutive seasons with eight wins. Green Bay did it for three seasons, 1929-31.

A steady Peyton Manning threw for 326 yards and two touchdowns, while the Colts intercepted Tom Brady four times and allowed no touchdown passes, only two scoring runs by Corey Dillon and two field goals by rookie Stephen Gostkowski.

"We went through it last year and we know what it is like. We're used to it," coach Tony Dungy said of standing alone with a zero in the loss column. "Lovie let me down; I was hoping they would remain undefeated, too."

That would be Chicago coach Lovie Smith. The Bears also began the day 7-0, but lost 31-13 to Miami.

The Dolphins' Ronnie Brown rushed for a career-high 157 yards and Jason Taylor forced a fumble and returned an interception 20 yards for a touchdown.

"If it doesn't hurt, how important is winning?" Bears quarterback Rex Grossman said. "So it hurts bad. We're 7-1, it hurts, we're going to think about it for a couple of days, watch the tape and get better and then put everything in perspective of what's out there for us to go get."

In other games, it was: Denver 31, Pittsburgh 20; Washington 22, Dallas 19; Baltimore 26, Cincinnati 20; the New York Giants 14, Houston 10; New Orleans 31, Tampa Bay 14; San Diego 32, Cleveland 25; Kansas City 31, St. Louis 17; Detroit 30, Atlanta 14; Jacksonville 37, Tennessee 7; San Francisco 9, Minnesota 3; and Buffalo 24, Green Bay 10.

On Monday night, Oakland is at Seattle.

Idle for the final week of byes were Carolina, Philadelphia, Arizona and the New York Jets.

Now Its On...............................

In his tenure as UFC® World Light Heavyweight Champion, Chuck “The Iceman” Liddell has sent a legend into retirement (Randy Couture), avenged a defeat (Jeremy Horn), and annihilated his number one challenger (Renato Sobral). But when the man standing across the Octagon™ from Liddell is his former training partner and friend Tito Ortiz, all bets are off. When these two 205-pound stalwarts collide on December 30, the New Year's Eve fireworks are going to begin one day early this year. The Ultimate Fighting Championship® organization proudly announces UFC 66: LIDDELL vs. ORTIZ 2 live from the MGM Grand Garden Arena Saturday, Dec. 30.

“The fans demanded it, the fighters demanded it, and I'm excited to finally announce the rematch between Chuck Liddell and Tito Ortiz,” said UFC President Dana White. “A lot has changed since Liddell and Ortiz first fought in 2004, and not only in the Octagon, where both fighters have looked unbeatable in compiling a combined 10-0 record. These are two fighters who went from being MMA standouts to becoming worldwide superstars in the space of two years, and I can't think of any fight anywhere in the world that has more heat behind it than this one. I have no doubt that this will be the most watched UFC pay-per-view of all-time.”

UFC 66: LIDDELL vs. ORTIZ 2 features the championship bout between Liddell and Ortiz, the No. 1 Contender. Liddell, (19-3-0) fighting out of San Luis Obispo, Calif., is a devastating striker with an incredible takedown defense. He is the reigning UFC World Light Heavyweight Champion and has knocked out his last six opponents including Ortiz, Randy Couture (twice), Vernon White, Jeremy Horn and most recently Renato “Babalu” Sobral in August. Liddell is considered by many to be the most recognized mixed martial arts fighter in the world, earning the reputation by delivering incredible knockouts and dominating the UFC light heavyweight division. He has no fears of facing Ortiz a second time, stating that he will fight the Huntington Beach native any time, anywhere and walk away with his title intact.

“I’ll fight whoever the UFC puts in front of me,” said Liddell. “They decided it’s time for a rematch with Ortiz. I’ll knock him out just like I did last time, except this time I’ll probably do it in the first round. It’ll be fun beating him up again.”

Ortiz, (16-4-0) fighting out of Huntington Beach, Calif., is known for his strength and tenacity as a submission fighter. He returned to the UFC last April to take on rising star Forrest Griffin, winning by split decision in one of the best three-round fights ever to take place in the Octagon. Ortiz has made a swift comeback, defeating Griffin and then facing Ken Shamrock in back-to-back fights. He scored a first-round KO over the veteran fighter on both occasions. Ortiz has earned a new attempt to capture the light heavyweight crown, and has stated publicly that he will be new the champion after he faces Liddell.

“I see Liddell putting up a good fight, but at the end of the night, it will be my hand raised in the Octagon,” said Ortiz. “I can’t wait to get my belt back.”

Hall of Fame coach Red Auerbach dead at 89

WASHINGTON (AP) -- His genius was building a basketball dynasty in Boston, his gift was straight talk, his signature was the pungent cigar he lit up and savored after every victory.

Red Auerbach, the Hall of Famer who guided the Celtics to 16 championships -- first as a coach and later as general manager -- died Saturday. He was 89.

Auerbach died of a heart attack near his home in Washington, according to an NBA official, who didn't want to be identified. His last public appearance was on Wednesday, when he received the Navy's Lone Sailor Award during a ceremony in the nation's capital.

Auerbach's death was announced by the Celtics, who still employed him as team president. Next season will be dedicated to him, they said.

"He was relentless and produced the greatest basketball dynasty so far that this country has ever seen and certainly that the NBA has ever seen," said Bob Cousy, the point guard for many of Auerbach's championship teams, who referred to his coach by his given name. "This is a personal loss for me. Arnold and I have been together since 1950. I was fortunate that I was able to attend a function with him Wednesday night. ... I am so glad now that I took the time to be there and spend a few more moments with him." Tom Heinsohn, who played under Auerbach and then coached the Celtics when he was their general manager, remembered his personal side.

"He was exceptional at listening and motivating people to put out their very best," Heinsohn said. "In my playing days he once gave me a loaded cigar and six months later I gave him one. That was our relationship. We had a tremendous amount of fun and the game of basketball will never see anyone else like him."

Auerbach's 938 victories made him the winningest coach in NBA history until Lenny Wilkens overtook him during the 1994-95 season.

"Beyond his incomparable achievements, Red had come to be our basketball soul and our basketball conscience," NBA commissioner David Stern said, "the void left by his death will never be filled."

Auerbach's nine titles as a coach came in the 1950s and 1960s -- including eight straight from 1959 through 1966 -- and then through shrewd deals and foresight he became the architect of Celtics teams that won seven more championships in the 1970s and 1980s.

Phil Jackson matched those record nine championships when the Los Angeles Lakers won the title in 2001-02.

"Red was a true champion and one whose legacy transcends the Celtics and basketball," Sen. Ted Kennedy said. "He was the gold standard in coaching and in civic leadership, and he set an example that continues today. We all knew and loved Red in the Kennedy family."

Auerbach was inducted into the Basketball Hall of Fame in 1969. The jersey No. 2 was retired by the Celtics in his honor during the 1984-85 season.

"He was a unique personality, a combination of toughness and great, great caring about people," said author John Feinstein, who last year collaborated on a book with Auerbach on the coach's reflections of seven decades in basketball. "He cared about people much more than it showed in his public face, and that's why people cared about him." With the Celtics, he made deals that brought Bill Russell, Robert Parish and Kevin McHale to Boston. He drafted Larry Bird a year early when the Indiana State star was a junior to make sure Bird would come to Boston.

"Red Auerbach was one of the most influential people in my life," Bird said. "Not only was he an inspiration to me throughout my career, he became a close friend as well. There could only be one Red Auerbach and I'll always be grateful for having the opportunity to experience his genius and his dedication to winning through teamwork."

Auerbach coached championship teams that featured players such as Russell, Cousy, Heinsohn, Bill Sharman, K.C. Jones and Sam Jones, all inducted into the Hall of Fame.

After stepping down as general manager in 1984, Auerbach served as president of the Celtics and occasionally attended team practices into the mid-1990s, although his role in the draft and personnel decisions had diminished.

"Red was a guy who always introduced new things," Celtics co-owner Steve Pagliuca told The Associated Press in an interview this month. "He had some of the first black players in the league and some people didn't like that, but you've got to do what's right for the fans."

When Rick Pitino took the president's title when he became coach in 1997, Auerbach became vice chairman of the board. After Pitino resigned in 2001, Auerbach regained the title of president and remained vice chairman. When the team was sold in 2002 to a group headed by Wyc Grousbeck, Auerbach stayed on as president.

Through all those changes and titles, Auerbach didn't lose his direct manner of speaking, such as when he discussed the parquet floor of the Boston Garden shortly before the Celtics' longtime home closed in September 1995.

"The whole thing was a myth," Auerbach said. "People thought not only that there were dead spots, but that we knew where every one was and we could play accordingly.

"Now, did you ever watch a ballplayer go up and down the court at that speed and pick out a dead spot?" he asked. "If our players worried about that, thinking that's going to help them win, they're out of their cotton-picking mind. But if the other team thought that: Hey, good for us."

As Celtics president, Auerbach shuttled between Boston and his home in the nation's capital, where he led an active lifestyle that included playing racquetball and tennis into his mid-70s.

Auerbach underwent two procedures in May 1993 to clear blocked arteries. He had been bothered by chest discomfort at various times beginning in 1986.

Auerbach was also hospitalized a year ago, but he was soon active again and attended the Celtics' home opener. Asked that night what his thoughts were, he replied in his usual blunt manner: "What goes through your mind is, 'When the hell are we going to win another one? I mean, it's as simple as that." Auerbach had planned to be at the Celtics' opener this season, in Boston next Wednesday against the New Orleans Hornets.

In his 16 seasons as the Celtics' coach, Auerbach berated referees and paced the sideline with a rolled-up program in his clenched fist. The cigar came out when he was sure of another Celtic triumph.

He had a 938-479 regular-season coaching record and a 99-69 playoff mark.

Auerbach had a reputation as a keen judge of talent, seemingly always getting the best of trades with fellow coaches and general managers.

In 1956, he traded Ed Macauley and Cliff Hagan to St. Louis for the Hawks' first-round pick and ended up with Russell -- probably the greatest defensive center of all time and the heart of 11 championship teams.

In 1978, he drafted Bird in the first round even though he would have to wait a year before Bird could become a professional.

Before the 1980 draft, the Celtics traded the No. 1 overall selection to Golden State for Parish and the No. 3 pick. The Warriors took Joe Barry Carroll. The Celtics chose McHale.

In 1981, Boston chose Brigham Young guard Danny Ainge in the second round. Ainge was playing baseball in the Toronto Blue Jays organization at the time, but was freed after a court battle to play for the Celtics.

In June 1983, another one-sided deal brought guard Dennis Johnson from Phoenix for seldom-used backup center Rick Robey.

Born Arnold Auerbach in Brooklyn, N.Y. on Sept. 20, 1917, he attended Seth Low Junior College in New York and George Washington University. His playing career was undistinguished. In three seasons at George Washington he scored 334 points in 56 games. He would often attend games at GW's Smith Center, where the court is named in his honor. As a coach, he was an instant success, posting the best record of his career in his first season. He led the Washington Capitols to a 49-11 mark in 1946-47, the NBA's debut season, and took them to the playoff semifinals.

The Capitols had winning records the next two seasons under Auerbach, who moved on to the Tri-Cities Blackhawks for one season in 1949-50. They had a 28-29 mark, Auerbach's only losing record in 20 years as an NBA coach.

In the NBA's first four seasons, the Celtics never had a winning record. But Auerbach changed that dramatically when he succeeded Alvin "Doggy" Julian as Boston's coach for the 1950-51 campaign.

They went 39-30 that year, and the Celtics never had a losing record in his 16 seasons on the bench. Boston's lowest winning percentage was .611 in his last 10 seasons.

His last game as coach was on April 28, 1966, when Boston edged the Lakers 95-93 in Game 7 of the finals to win the NBA title. He was just 48 years old, but ready to move on.

On Feb. 13 of that season, Auerbach was honored at halftime of a loss to Los Angeles at Boston Garden.

"They say that losing comes easier as you grow older," he said after the game. "But losing keeps getting harder for me. I just can't take it like I used to. It's time for me to step out."

Russell became player-coach the next season, while Auerbach concentrated on his job as general manager. Russell was the first of five Boston coaches who had played for Auerbach.

Auerbach is survived by his two daughters, Nancy Auerbach Collins and Randy Auerbach; his granddaughter, Julie Auerbach Flieger, and three great-grandchildren.

Officer O'Neal present at a botched child pornography raid

Shaquille O'Neal was present during a botched child pornography raid last month while working in Virginia as a reserve sheriff's deputy, a Bedford County Sheriff's officer said.

The Miami Heat center, who pursues his interest in law enforcement during the offseason, denied Tuesday taking part in serving the search warrant at the wrong house Sept. 23. However, Bedford County Sheriff's Lt. Michael Harmony confirmed to The Associated Press that O'Neal was there.

O'Neal, in Orlando to play a preseason game Tuesday, was asked about the raid and several times somewhat playfully responded, "It wasn't me."

The 13-time All-Star has expressed an interest in becoming a Bedford deputy or sheriff somewhere else after his NBA career ends. He also works as a firearms-certified reserve police officer in Miami Beach.

"Of course, being sheriff is a seasoned political position, so we're not going to be out there knocking down the wrong doors," he said. "We just have to do the right thing."

A.J. Nuckols, who said his family has filed formal complaints, wrote in a letter published in the Chatham Star-Tribune that the raid at his Gretna, Va., home scared him and his family "beyond description."

He described being "held at gunpoint, taunted and led into the house," and said the home was ransacked by a "paramilitary search-and-seizure team" that took computers, cameras, DVDs and VHS tapes.

Nuckols said in a phone interview that he heard O'Neal was at his home, but didn't specifically see the 7-foot-1, 325-pound All-Star in all the commotion.

Authorities later realized they had been given the wrong IP address, which Internet service providers can use to identify users, leading them to the wrong physical address, Harmony said. It was the Internet company's mistake, he said.

Harmony said the sheriff's office apologized, but Nuckols mischaracterized the incident. Harmony said officers were wearing bulletproof vests and may have been in dark or camouflaged clothing, but were not carrying assault rifles or wearing helmets.

He said the sheriff's office conducted a successful search on the correct home Friday, finding child pornography and securing a statement from a man saying he knowingly distributed it.

The Bedford Sheriff's Office enlisted O'Neal to be the spokesman and public face of its anti-child pornography and child predator campaign, making him a deputy last year.

Harmony said O'Neal had been on previous search warrant executions.

They Finally Got it Right

Following nearly a quarter century of labor wars, baseball players and owners will have 16 years of peace.

They set aside their long history of bitter negotiations to reach a tentative agreement on a five-year contract, the first time the sides have achieved labor peace before their current deal expires.

The agreement was struck during bargaining in New York on Friday night and Saturday, and is subject to the sides putting the deal in writing, a person with knowledge of the negotiations told The Associated Press on Sunday. The person spoke on condition of anonymity because the agreement had not been finalized.

The current deal, set to expire Dec. 19, was agreed to on Aug. 30, 2002, just hours before players were set to strike. That contract was the first since 1970 achieved without a work stoppage, and this marks the first time the sides reached agreement before the expiration of the previous contract.

"Baseball is at an all-time high point right now," Detroit left fielder Craig Monroe said before Game 2 of the World Series. "You've got low-market teams doing well and different teams winning every year. Getting this done couldn't have come at a better time."

Lawyers were working on drafting language for the new deal Sunday, and hoped to put the finishing touches on it Monday or Tuesday. Once that happened, commissioner Bud Selig would announce it in St. Louis at the World Series.

"You've got a city like Detroit, you've got a city like St. Louis enjoying this, and it would be neat to get something finalized because it's good for the game," Chicago White Sox designated hitter Jim Thome said.

Bob DuPuy, baseball's chief operating officer, and union head Donald Fehr declined comment.

While baseball had eight work stoppages from 1972-95, the new deal guarantees labor peace through the 2011 season.

"Everybody's pretty happy with the industry. In baseball, everybody's making out pretty well," Cardinals reliever Jason Isringhausen said.

Since baseball's first labor contract in 1968, there have been strikes in 1972, 1980, 1981, 1985 and 1994-95, and management lockouts in 1973, 1976 and 1990. The last strike lasted 7 1/2 months and wiped out the World Series for the first time in 90 years, and it took years for many teams to rebuild attendance.

Most of the key provisions of the current contract will be continued with minor modifications, such as revenue sharing and the luxury tax. With the luxury tax set to expire on Dec. 19, there was pressure on management to make a deal to ensure that the 2007 season would be played with the tax in place.

"I think we're all for certainty and not going through a winter of wondering what's going to be going on," Cardinals manager Tony La Russa said. "I applaud the powers with the union and the MLB. Helps us go about our business."

Following the last work stoppage, the sides reached a landmark labor agreement in 1997 that increased revenue sharing, and their 2002 deal boosted the amount of money large-market teams give to their competitors.

Record economic success helped produce an agreement with no public rancor. Commissioner Bud Selig said last week that he estimated the sport will produce $5.2 billion in revenue this year, up from about $3.6 billion in 2001.

Major league teams drew a record 76 million fans this year.

"With the amount of fans coming out with their support," Detroit center fielder Curtis Granderson said, "a strike would've been devastating."

Granderson was 13 when players struck in 1994, and he vividly recalls the aftermath.

"Nobody really talked about baseball too much," he said.

Selig credited the changes in the 2002 agreement with making more teams competitive.

"I had dreams of things getting better but, no, in many ways this has exceeded my fondest expectations," he said last Tuesday night in St. Louis. "This sport has more parity than ever. We have more parity than any other sport."

An agreement had been anticipated by officials on both sides in recent days.

"This is a setting of success. It's a platform, a stage that's been built through very difficult times," agent Scott Boras said Sunday. "To do anything to alter that success would be something that wouldn't be in the best interests of the game."

The huge influx of money smoothed negotiations. The average player salary was $1.1 million in 1995, the first season after the 1994-95 strike. It rose to just under $2.3 million in 2002 and will be about $2.7 million this year. The average likely will top $3 million next year or in 2008.

"The force of the revenue streams basically put the collective bargaining process into a different framework than it's been in the past," Boras said.