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Watch this bodyguard get splashed with beer as Jake Paul’s entourage collided with Nate Diaz’s team backstage at the Jake Paul vs. Anderson Silva event.

Tempers flared backstage at the Jake Paul vs. Anderson Silva event when team Paul got into a scuffle with the crew of Nate Diaz. New footage of the incident has just surfaced, which show a bodyguard getting doused in beer, courtesy of one of the members of Diaz’s squad.

In the video you can see quite a bit of trash talk going back and forth between camps, while the actual physical altercations were surprisingly at a minimum. Before it was all said and done, one of the bodyguards that was a dressed in an all black started to jaw back and forth with team Diaz. Shortly after that, a cup full of beer was on its way. The spray from the alcohol completely covered the man, who was instantly enraged and started charging team Diaz. Other bodyguards began holding him back, preventing the situation from escalating even further.

Despite the backstage shenanigans, Jake Paul still went out there and boxed his way to a unanimous decision victory over an MMA legend in Anderson Silva. After the match, the YouTube sensation turned prizefighter had plenty of things to say about Nate Diaz, and it seems like a boxing match between the two is destined to happen. The build up has already started!

Check out this new clip of the backstage altercation, courtesy of Inside Fighting’s YouTube channel:

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Check out our live coverage of Dmitry Bivol vs Gilberto Ramirez

Following on from his suprise win over Canelo in May, Dmitry Bivol seeks to cement his place as one of the top fighters in boxing today by beating dangerous challenger Gilberto ‘Zurdo’ Ramirez.

Bivol (20-0, 11 KOs) had till that point amassed a professional resume that was impressive, but not outstanding, before launching himself into the stratosphere with that victory. Zurdo (44-0-0, 30 KOs) is currently in pretty much the position Bivol was then, and the dangerous, hard-punching challenger will be looking to grab the chance to prove himself with everything he’s got. Bivol is going to be favoured, but expect a tough test.

This page will provide live play-by-play of the main event. The card starts at 1:30 p.m. ET and can be streamed on DAZN, with the main event expected shortly after 5 p.m, but stay tuned here for updates on that time.

WBA light-heavyweight title: Dmitry Bivol vs. Gilberto Ramirez

WBC, WBA, WBO and IBF women’s super lightweight titles: Chantelle Cameron vs. Jessica McCaskill

IBF Super-featherweight title: Shavkatdzhon Rakhimov vs. Zelfa Barrett

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Flyweight: Galal Yafai vs. Gohan Rodriguez Garcia

Bantamweight: Khalid Yafai vs. Jerald Paclar

Super flyweight: Sultan Al Nuaimi vs. Jerome Baloro

Super featherweight: Aqib Fiaz vs. Diego Valiterra

Lightweight: Campbell Hatton vs. Denis Bartos

Lightweight: Fahad Al Bloushi vs. Giorgi Gotchoshvili

Super lightweight: Majid Al Naqbi vs. John Lawrence Ordonio

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‘El Pantera’ wants the reigning featherweight champion to stick around and give him his title shot. 

Yair Rodríguez wants to remind UFC featherweight champion Alexander Volkanovski of the contenders he should be facing off against before he attempts to become a two-division champion.

Following his fourth successful defense—a unanimous decision over Max Holloway at UFC 276—Volkanovski told the rest of the featherweight division that he wanted to see a ‘clear No. 1 contender’ before he returns. Fights such as Calvin Kattar vs. Josh Emmett, Yair Rodríguez vs. Brian Ortega, and Calvin Kattar vs. Arnold Allen were scheduled, but their results left much to be desired. Emmett got a controversial split decision, while Rodríguez and Allen saw their headliners end after unfortunate injuries suffered by their opponents.

With none of those fighters getting a stand-out win that would warrant a championship opportunity, the ‘Great’ has decided to pursue newly crowned UFC lightweight champion Islam Makhachev for his next Octagon appearance. However, not everyone seems very happy with his decision to move up now.

As Volkanovski and Makhachev exchanged words on social media over their potential fight, ‘El Pantera’ chimed in to call out the City Kickboxing product for UFC 284 next year.

“Hey [Alexander Volkanovski], are you a man of your word? We had a talk in Dallas. Everyone knows I’m next,” wrote Rodríguez.

The ‘talk’ Rodríguez referred to stemmed from a brief hotel run-in between him and Volkanovski when both fighters were in town for UFC 277 this past July. At the time, the champion was still dealing with the broken hand he suffered in the aforementioned fight against Holloway. Though understanding of his plight, the No. 2 featherweight was clear that he should get the first shot at Volkanovski when he recovered.

“What is in my mind right now is fighting Alexander Volkanovski,” said Rodríguez (video provided by MMA Fighting). “And that’s always in my mind.”

Unfortunately for Rodríguez, assuming the Makhachev vs. Volkanovski fight stays on track, his title shot may not come for a while.

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The UFC commentator added his two cents regarding Jake Paul’s win over Anderson Silva.

Joe Rogan has come to the defense of Jake Paul after fixed fight allegations stemming from his boxing match and unanimous decision win over Anderson Silva last weekend at Desert Diamond Arena in Glendale, Arizona.

Claims emerged that 47-year-old Silva was on the ‘payroll’ after Paul knocked him down in the final round of the fight, with fans alleging that the knockdown wasn’t legitimate and the fight was rigged.

Rogan finds those claims crazy considering Paul proved his power in previous victories over Ben Askren and Tyron Woodley where the YouTuber flattened both fighters with the same right hand he used to floor Silva in the 8th round.

“Some people are trying to say that fight was fixed because of the knockdown,” Rogan said on his Joe Rogan Experience podcast (h/t MMA Fighting). “I just want to explain to people this is what happened … Anderson moved forward to Jake Paul and Jake Paul hit him with a sort of a stepping jab and caught him right on the chin. And when he caught him on the chin, Anderson Silva was falling backwards and then he leans away from the right hand and he goes down. He was down from the punch, but it looks like the right hand doesn’t connect, but the left hand is what f***** him up.”

“That dude hits f****** hard and for anybody to say he doesn’t hit hard because he’s a YouTube Star — if this guy was not a f****** YouTube star and he was some dude who went out there and flatlined Tyron Woodley with one punch and just knocked down Anderson Silva in the f****** eighth round … Come on, son. That is legit as f***. Anybody that says that’s not legitimate is crazy. He cracked him.”

Paul beat Silva to extend his unbeaten streak to 6-0, demanding respect after outboxing a man who was formerly considered one of the best technical strikers in MMA. His next fight is expected to be against Nate Diaz after the latter got into a backstage brawl with Paul’s entourage in Arizona and alleged that the Silva bout was rigged.

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Some serious finishes and marvelous grappling highlights for your weekly dose of what’s going on outside the limelight of combat sports.

Even the bigger stages of combat sports have seen some odd events as of late, especially in the midst of a bit of a drought for star-powered events on the MMA scene. No matter the week and the strength of schedule, however, we’ll always have the weird outskirts of martial arts and combat sports to lean on.

In fact, fans could go so far as to rest easy on the absurd and bewildering this time around. Starting with our pal Jerry over at Fight Commentary Breakdowns. No oddball Kung Fu vs Aikido stuff, but back to basic self-defense techniques being put to the test. We’ve seen this before, where Jerry takes a few videos from around the internet and puts them to the test in practical live scenarios.

Starting with a simple headlock defense/escape, he moves on to ninja and pressure point techniques. Maybe not the circus-styled combat we’re used to, but great to see how these ideas get broken down.

Next up, we’re back in Nigeria for Dambé Warriors, and it’s still nuts. There’s always a quality payoff here, and this week is no different. We’ve got a blink-and-you’ll-miss-it knockdown off a quick counter that nicks the top of the head.

Bahagon Dan took one to give one, but man… it was a hell of a give. This wasn’t even a “game of inches“ situation. One guy landed with more evil intent, and it stuck.

Also, here’s a devastating finish in which white shorts decides to spam the same button over and over. Much like the most annoying E. Honda guy at the arcade, somehow it works.

This was definitely a case of ”speed kills”, and the other guy had a hard time processing what felled him.

We’re gonna follow that with some action courtesy of SAMBOFIAS, in which we get a lovely match from the European SAMBO championships in Serbia. It’s a treat with fun scrambles and grappling engagement.

And we’ll stay in the jacket graps world with a highlight vid from the always reliable Judo Highlights. Here’s the top Ippons from the recent Abu Dhabi championships:

Let’s follow that with more Judo with some Kodokan Cup middleweight highlights:

Here’s a grueling Lethwei bout that is strictly back and forth, bite-down-on-your-mouthpiece action. It’s not the easiest watch, but you have to respect what these guys put themselves through.

Finally, we’ll end with the most vicious grappling you’ll see all week, a truly reprehensible display of dismemberment. Absolutely not for the squeamish. You’ve been warned.

That’s it for today, kids. Keep your powder dry and don’t worry about VIP status on social media. Send me $ 8 directly instead, I promise you it’s a better use of your money. And remember: you might think you can fight, but there are many guys like you all over the world.

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From the sound of things, Borrachinha might be the next MMA fighter to try his hand in the boxing ring.

Middleweight contender Paulo Costa seems as though he’s counting the days until the end of his current UFC contract. Although he has a bout lined up against former champion Robert Whittaker in February 2023, ‘Borrachinha’ appears to already be considering a move to a different sport altogether in the not too distant future.

Much like Anderson Silva, Tyron Woodley, and by all indications Nate Diaz, who have taken their skills to the boxing ring, the Brazilian hinted at a potential next move in his career on his official Twitter account. In the post, Paulo also made another bold criticism of his current deal with the world’s largest MMA promotion.

The financial complaints are hardly new ground for Costa, who took to the MMA Hour back in August to expose some of the specifics of his contract.

“I’m on a high, high level, fighting the best of this division and my contract is too old,” Costa explained. “When I fought Marvin Vettori, I got $ 35,000! $ 35,000. For this one was a couple more, a couple more. I got the win bonus, and because when I fought Marvin Vettori, I got a 20% reduction.”

The 31-year-old was previously under the mistaken impression that his previous bout would be the final fight of his run with the UFC, telling media ahead of UFC 278 that he was unsure of what his next move might be, but that he and the UFC “need to talk.” Whether or not he’ll still be open to negotiations after his bout against Whittaker remains to be seen.

In his last outing, Costa (14-2) defeated former champion Luke Rockhold via unanimous decision. The victory snapped a two-fight losing skid for the fighter, with defeats at the hands of champion Israel Adesanya and top contender Marvin Vettori, in September 2020 and October 2021 respectively.

Costa is expected to take on Whittaker at UFC 284, on February 12, in Perth, Australia. So far, an official main event for the card is yet to be announced by the promotion. However, expectations are that the card will play host to Islam Makhachev’s first lightweight title defense, against featherweight champion Alexander Volkanovski.

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Fans may not have enjoyed it, but the former strawweight champion has accepted the result of her rematch with Carla Esparza. 

Rose Namajunas is at peace after losing the UFC strawweight championship to Carla Esparza at UFC 274 this past May.

For the second time in her professional career, ‘Thug’ Rose fell short against the ‘Cookie Monster’. This time, losing a split decision in what was considered one of the worst fights of the year. A five round title fight that (generously) saw a total of 67 strikes landed by both women over the duration.

Though adamant she should have won because she ‘stuck with the strategy,’ Namajunas has admitted that she could have done ‘a little bit more’ in the bout overall. However, the former champion told Mike Bohn of MMA Junkie recently that she has stopped dwelling on the past and shifted her focus towards the future.

“I definitely got what I needed out of that fight,” said Namajunas. “I know that for the fans, it was terrible. I definitely pride myself on being a very exciting fighter and I’ve always had exciting fights. But I realized that being a mixed martial artist, I am an artist and you don’t always have Mona Lisas, right? Sometimes you just have splotches and abstract art pieces. So, as much as it might’ve sucked for the fans, for myself, I got the bare minimum I needed out of whatever personal things that I was looking for, but yeah. I would have liked to obviously won and win in devastating, dominant fashion.

“Going forward, I feel pretty at peace with it,” continued Namajunas. “I mean, definitely being a martial artist and a competitor, that definitely has a little fire inside. I can still be a little salty sometimes when I think about it, but I’ve been through this before. I’ve been here and I know that’s just what I needed. So, I’m fully grateful for everything.”

Several months after her loss, Namajunas has focused on other ventures, including a soon-to-be-released documentary (Thug Rose: Mixed Martial Artist) and an ad campaign for Victoria’s Secret.

A return to the Octagon has yet to be announced, but Namajunas is aiming for some time in 2023.

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Dig into the preliminary action of UFC Vegas 64, topped by submission specialist Darrick Minner looking to put an end to his skid against upstart Shayilan Nuerdanbieke.

If you enjoy high stakes, UFC Vegas 64 prelims is short on that… unless you’re the fighters. Just about every fight in the prelims features at least one fighter who very well may be fighting for their jobs. That doesn’t mean there aren’t some prospects worth highlighting. Some would say Miranda Maverick is already a top ten flyweight in the women’s division. Mario Bautista would be highlighted as one of the better young talents in his division if he wasn’t in the impossibly deep bantamweight division. And it would be foolish to give up on Jake Hadley after the young Englishman has suffered his first loss.

• Prior to his signing to the UFC, Darrick Minner came across as the ideal gatekeeper to determine if up-and-coming prospects belonged in the UFC. However, given his kill-or-be-killed style – only 3 of his 34 career fights prior to his signing went the distance – it didn’t seem like he’d be cut out for the UFC himself. Fortunately, Minner has made the most of his time in the organization, revamping his style just enough to allow him to remain effective over 15 minutes when he would previously gas after a single round. That doesn’t mean he’s no longer aggressive looking for submissions, but he is more judicious. He’ll probably get plenty of opportunities to snatch one against Shayilan Nuerdanbieke. The Chinese native is a bowling ball of a human being who aggressively pursues takedowns, looking to overpower his opponents. Nuerdanbieke has an extensive track record, but it’s largely come against cans on the Chinese scene. Despite that, he has played it safe since dropping his UFC debut, opting for takedowns and maintaining control for long stretches. Against TJ Brown, he got caught in several submission attempts. To be fair, Nuerdanbieke did escape from all of them to hold on for a win, but Minner is a different breed. I see him latching on at some point and getting the tap. Minner via submission of RD1
• After dropping her first two UFC contests, Shanna Young looked like a completely different fighter after dropping down to the flyweight division. No longer severely undersized, she was able to fight off the takedown attempts of Gina Mazany, allowing herself to demonstrate her striking prowess that had previously been smothered by larger opposition. It’s unlikely she’ll get a similar opportunity as Miranda Maverick has proven herself to be one of the better wrestlers and grapplers in the division. If Maverick opts to drag Young to the mat, it’s hard to believe she won’t either find a submission or control her for the majority of the fight. That doesn’t mean Young is without hope. Maverick has been eager to prove she’s more than a ground fighter. She’s not wrong; she is a capable boxer with plus power. But that would also give Young the opening she needs to potentially outwork Maverick or perhaps find a finish. Even with that possibility, Maverick is tough as nails and it’s hard to believe she won’t look to utilize her wrestling at all. Maverick via submission of RD3
• Signed off the first season of DWCS, Benito Lopez received one of the biggest pushes from the organization out of anyone else from that season. He did turn in some entertaining performances, but then he just disappeared, this being his first fight in over three years. Despite coming out of Team Alpha Male, his wrestling is the weakest part of his game, preferring to stand in the pocket and trade fisticuffs, utilizing his lanky frame to his advantage. Unfortunately, he hasn’t developed much defensive craft. Then again, his opponent, Mario Bautista, isn’t much of a defensive savant either, meaning there’s a very good chance we get another back-and-forth slugfest that was becoming Lopez’s calling card. Then again, Bautista could remember that he’s pretty slick on the ground, his BJJ being his base. Plus, Bautista has proven his power and dynamism has translated into the UFC ranks. That hasn’t been the case for Lopez. It’s possible Lopez has added to his arsenal or developed power as his body has matured, but knowing what we do know about both of them, Bautista has to be the pick. Bautista via submission of RD2
• It isn’t hard to see the talent possessed by Polyana Viana. With a taller frame for the strawweight division and slick BJJ, the tools are there for her to become a major player in the division. Unfortunately, despite creeping up on five years on the UFC roster, her striking still comes across as clunky, struggling to make efficient use of her reach. That isn’t to say there hasn’t been any progress for her, but her defense is still very problematic. There isn’t anything dynamic about Jinh Yu Frey, but she has the fundamentals down pat. Her being undersized for 115 does limit her ceiling, but she is an effective boxer in the pocket and a sneaky good wrestler, though that aspect is typically utilized to turn away her opponents attempts to get her to the mat. Given Viana’s ability to secure takedowns is mediocre at best, that leads to the expectation this turns into a standup affair. Frey can be too patient for her own good, waiting too much for the counter. I like Viana’s dynamism and volume – even if It’s fake volume – to give her the edge in the judges’ eyes. Viana via decision
• UFC debuts don’t get much worse than Liudvik Sholinian. To be fair to the Ukranian native, he had the deck stacked against him, debuting on short notice against Jack Shore, so it’s not right to take too much from that contest. Regardless, Sholinian offers a toolbox that has him adequate in all areas, but excelling in none. In the case of Johnny Munoz Jr., it’s the opposite. A talented grappler who skillfully chains together submission attempts, Munoz tends to come up short in just about all other areas. That doesn’t stop him from aggressively pursuing takedowns, spending the majority of his UFC debut pressing Nate Maness against the fence, unable to complete takedowns. Neither fighter is a physical standout, but both are tough as nails and are unlikely to crack mentally. While both appear to have limited ceilings, that Munoz has at least one area in which he can hang with the best has me leaning in his direction… provided he can get the finish. That is obviously easier said than done, but Munoz’s doggedness has me believing he can get the fight to the mat enough times to find the finish, despit Sholinian’s respectable takedown defense. Munoz via submission of RD1
• Uncle Dana stuck his neck out for Jake Hadley when he signed him off DWCS despite the youngster missing weight. Hadley didn’t deliver in his UFC debut, turning in a disappointing performance against Allan Nascimento. Hadley couldn’t get his vaunted wrestling game going, having the tables turned on him by the slick Brazilian grappler. Whether he’s a better grappler than Carlos Candelario is up for debate, but you’d be hard-pressed to find anyone who has observed these two studiously who would declare Candelario as the superior wrestler. That doesn’t ensure Hadley the victory. Candelario — another one Uncle Dana stuck his neck out for as Candelario was signed off DWCS on a loss — is as scrappy as they come and likely won’t be staying on the ground for very long. Should the fight become a striking battle for a long stretch, Hadley has the power advantage and may even be the better boxer in the pocket, but he doesn’t have the range or dynamism Candelario possesses. In other words, the expectation is Candelario would outwork him in a division where KO’s are rare. Despite that, I expect Hadley will exercise enough control on the mat to sway the judges in his direction. Hadley via decision
• I hate to be disrespectful of these ladies, but the fact Ramona Pascual and Tamires Vidal are on the UFC roster is proof of just how shallow the women’s bantamweight division is. Neither appear to be ready for the big time and there’s serious doubt they ever will be. Nonetheless, they’re here. With Pascual, we at least know she has the requisite toughness to perform on the grand stage. It’s the rest that is concerning. She does have a large frame that could prove imposing if she can harness her opponent into her clinch. That’s been problematic as Pascual isn’t exactly nimble. Then again, Vidal isn’t fleet of foot either. Vidal looks like she might be able to make it to flyweight with proper diet and nutrition, but she doesn’t let that stop her from entering the pocket throwing fisticuffs. Her volume could prove to be enough to overwhelm Pascual, but there’s a decent amount of technique to Pascual’s offense that I favor her. Knowing she can take some serious punishment helps me settle into that decision. Pascual via decision

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The ‘Last Stylebender’ has bigger things on his mind than defending his UFC title in Madison Square Garden on November 12th.

The core narrative ahead of Alex Pereira’s upcoming challenge to the UFC middleweight title is entirely wrapped up in history. The Brazilian, much like Israel Adesanya not long before him, has streaked his way to the top of the division behind a series of highlight filled performances. In the case of ‘Poatan’, however, his title hopes have been expedited as well by the fact that he has two wins in the kickboxing ring over the New Zealand-based champ.

Both men have made their reputations as dangerous, exciting strikers. But, head-to-head, Pereira has been the man getting his hand raised.

It’s under those circumstances, then, that Adesanya approaches UFC 281 and the 6th defense of his belt. In a recent interview released on his YouTube channel, the City Kickboxing standout explained that avenging those losses is far more meaningful a motivator for him than keeping his piece of championship hardware.

“Beating him, that’s what matters,” Adesanya explained (transcript via MMA Junkie). “Like, the belt? F-ck the belt. Just beating him, a killer like him, that’s what matters.”

“We’ve dusted that off, we’ve cut it off, and I can see what I did wrong,” Adesanya added, speaking of his previous KO loss to Pereira in 2017. “So, it’s not gonna be like last time. This is a different fighter you’re facing, and now I’ve become another fighter. I’ve re-birthed myself. I’ve re-birthed it, and I just feel like I want to have fun. That’s the goal. But this fight, I’m gonna have fun. That’s the ultimate goal. And when I have fun, I’m the best in the world.”

For his part, Pereira seems intent on keeping Adesanya at close range where he can more easily stifle the champ’s kicking attack and counter with big hooks. As far as he’s concerned, the ‘Last Stylebender’ is on his way toward another KO loss. “He won’t make it five rounds,” Pereira said of the matchup back in August.

UFC 281 goes down November 12th at Madison Square Garden in New York, NY. Alongside the middleweight main event, the card is expected to feature a women’s strawweight title fight between current champ Carla Esparza and former belt holder Weili Zhang.

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