Bellator featherweight champion Patricio Freire wants to settle the score against A.J, McKee.

The Bellator featherweight champion already knows who he wants to fight next, and it’s a surprisingly familiar opponent. After defeating Adam Borics at Bellator 286, Patricio Freire believes it may be time for the to settle the score against A.J. McKee in a rubber match for the belt.

In an interview with Ag Fight, ‘Pitbull’ talked about Aaron Pico’s shoulder injury and how it stopped the prospect from scoring a win and making himself the likely next title challenger. With no other clear contenders in sight, the Brazilian sees the current situation as an opportunity for his trilogy against McKee.

“There’s the trilogy with McKee, we need to settle our unfinished business. He talks a lot of trash. We need to put an end to that big mouth of his. (The trilogy) has been gaining traction. Especially because of that (Aaron Pico’s injury). Had Pico won his fight, he would probably be the next challenger, but it wasn’t the case. It’s looking it’s going to be the McKee trilogy.”

In his last outing, Freire scored a unanimous decision win over Borics. Although he was unable to finish the fight, the Brazilian was proud of his performance, emphasizing how he could display several skills on the ground and on the feet. At the same time, the 35-year-old was also critical of the way his opponent fought.

“I put on a clinic. I fought against a guy who only had one loss in his life. That was an MMA class. I nullified his striking, took him down at the right time. I mounted him, took his back the whole thing. He acted like he was in a street fight, a bar fight. He punched my elbow, kicked my butt, hit the tip of my knee. For the love of God, he fought a horrible fight. Anyone who saw the fight knows that.”

The victory over Borics put Freire (34-5) on a two-fight winning streak, with the aforementioned decision over McKee back in April 2022. In July 2021, the 35-year-old lost the belt briefly, when he got submitted by the ‘Mercenary’ via guillotine choke, in their first encounter.

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The UFC is starting off 2023 with a banger.

It looks like the UFC is all set to open 2023 with a top flight welterweight contest. Shavkat Rakhmonov and Geoff Neal have been circling one another for several weeks now stretching back to early August, when the Kazakh fighter issued a callout via Twitter. Something that apparently irked the longtime Fortis MMA fighter.

“Right now, I’m not really worried about him,” Neal said of Rakhmonov at the time. “I’m kinda irritated that he just wanted to jump right in. I was like, ‘No, I called somebody out, I’m not talking to you right now.’ But we’ll see.”

Apparently what they saw was a fight booking with the fast rising ‘Nomad.’ MMA Junkie reports that the UFC is well on the way to booking a top-ranked welterweight bout between Neal and Rakhmonov for their first card of 2023.

The former M-1 welterweight champion, Rakhmonov will enter the bout with a perfect 16-0 record, coming off a second round stoppage of Neil Magny at UFC on ESPN Tsarukyan vs. Gamrot. That fight firmly established the 27-year-old as a top ten ranked athlete at 170 lbs within just three fights of his Octagon debut.

For Neal, the path to contention has been a bit longer and more perilous. ‘Handz of Steel’ entered the UFC off Season 1 of the Contender’s Series with a 7-2 record in MMA. He ran out five-straight victories inside the world’s largest MMA promotion, before hitting back-to-back setbacks against Stephen Thompson and Neil Magny. The 32-year-old rebounded from those losses with victories over Santiago Ponzinibbio and Vicente Luque, bringing his overall record to 15-4.

UFC Vegas 67 is set to go down on January 14th at the Apex Facility in Las Vegas, NV. The card is expected to be headlined by a middleweight bout between former TUF winner Kelvin Gastelum and Nassourdine Imavov.

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Everything you need to know about Glory Collision 4: Alistair Overeem vs Badr Hari 3.

Alistair Overeem and Badr Hari will complete their trilogy and rivalry that spans 13 years. The heavyweight kickboxers will battle to headline Glory Collision 4.

Overeem and Hari are 1-1 with each other, with their first match happening back at the end of 2008 in Japan. Overeem pulled off a huge upset in their original meeting, knocking out Hari in the very first round. Their second meeting was a year later, in the 2009 K-1 World Grand Prix semi-final round, with Hari getting revenge and badly dropping Overeem twice and securing a TKO with the two knockdown rule.

Hari is 37 and will be coming in as the favorite, while the UFC veteran is Overeem is now 42.

Join us for this third meeting, with the Glory Collision 4 event starting at 12:30 p.m. ET with a free prelims live stream on the embed below. The main card will start at 2 p.m. ET, and it can be viewed on an online PPV on Glory’s official website.

Main event walkouts for Overeem and Hari are expected to happen sometime around 4:30 p.m. ET.

The full Glory Collision fight card and results can be seen below:

Main Card:

Badr Hari vs. Alistair Overeem

Tiffany Van Soest vs. Sarah Moussaddak [Super bantamweight title]

Sergej Maslobojev vs. Tarik Khbabez [Light heavyweight title]

Tyjani Beztati vs. Stoyan Koprivlenski [Lightweight title]

Petchpanomrung vs. Abraham Vidales [Featherweight title]

Levi Rigters vs. Tariq Osaro

Prelims:

Serkan Ozcaglayan vs. Cesar Almeida

Felipe Micheletti vs. Donegi Abena

Michael Boapeah vs. Sergej Braun

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The UFC veteran will be clear to return to competition come November. 

Bobby Green has accepted a six-month sanction from the United States Anti-Doping Agency (USADA) after failing a drug test earlier this year.

Ahead of his fight against Jim Miller at UFC 276 this past July, Green was notified by the agency that he tested positive for dehydroepiandrosterone (DHEA), an ‘anabolic androgenic steroid of exogenous origin’. ‘King’ revealed he purchased and consumed it as an over-the-counter supplement after watching a YouTube video by a doctor, not knowing it was on the list of banned substances.

“I would never try to cheat,” said Green on Instagram. “I would never try to lie to my public. I’m against drugs, I’m against PEDs. I would never even think about those things. I’ve never even looked at the site to know what is banned and what is not. I don’t give a f—k because I don’t pay attention to drugs. That’s not my issue.”

Green apologized and has since received his punishment. Because of his cooperation and a minimal ‘degree of fault,’ he was given a reduced suspension retroactive to the collection date of the out-of-competition sample, which was May 2022. Green can return to competition as early as next month.

The statement from USADA is as follows:

Green, 36, tested positive for the presence of an anabolic androgenic steroid of exogenous origin as the result of a urine sample collected out-of-competition on May 16, 2022. Exogenous anabolic androgenic steroids are Non-Specified Substances in the class of Anabolic Agents and are prohibited at all times under the UFC Anti-Doping Policy and UFC Prohibited List.

During an investigation into the circumstances of the case, Green provided evidence that he purchased dehydroepiandrosterone (DHEA) as an over-the-counter supplement product at a local retailer. In the U.S., unlike other countries, DHEA can be legally sold as a dietary supplement and is different from other anabolic agents that are regulated as controlled substances. Under the Policy, USADA may also consider the degree of performance enhancement when determining the athlete’s level of fault, and in this case, considered the athlete’s brief use of the supplement.

Given these factors, USADA determined that Green’s degree of fault was diminished and that he should receive a reduced period of ineligibility. He also received a reduction for his Full and Complete Cooperation.

Green’s six-month period of ineligibility began on May 16, 2022, the date his positive sample was collected.

The UFC veteran saw a two-fight win streak snapped by Islam Makhachev in his most recent appearance. He was finished by first-round TKO.

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Adriano Martins, the only man to beat Islam Makhachev, sees his former teammate Charles Oliveira regaining the UFC lightweight title later this month.

Islam Makhachev has a single blemish on his professional MMA record, a 2015 TKO loss to Adriano Martins. Given that legacy, the former UFC lightweight talent has been asked his opinion on who will prevail when Makhachev faces Charles Oliveira in the main event of UFC 280 later this month in Abu Dhabi.

“Charles doesn’t have anything to prove to anyone,” Martins, a former teammate of Oliveira told MMA Fighting. “He’s faced everyone at featherweight and lightweight, he’s in the UFC for 11 years, and has beaten a lot of tough people. Makhachev, although he’s tough and could be a champion in the future, he still has a lot to prove.”

At the time Martins faced Makhachev, the Brazilian was 28-7. Martins was on an 8-1 run and coming off Octagon wins over Juan Puig and Rustam Khabilov. Neither fighter was ranked at the time, however Makhachev was a -160 favorite over Martins, who checked in as a +135 underdog.

Martins, who took home a “Performance of the Night” bonus for his efforts, ended the fight with a perfectly placed and immaculately timed counter right at the 1:46 mark of the first round.

The memorable victory stands as the most recent victory in Martins’ career. The now 40-year-old has gone 0-5 in the years since—with one no contest—since he stopped Makhachev. Martins, who the UFC released in 2017, has not fought since a July 2021 loss to Carlos Silva.

Despite favoring his former teammate, Martins sees a lot of upside in the Dagestani, who has a career record of 22-1 ahead of UFC 280. Makhachev was 12-0 before his loss to Martins.

“I saw his fight with Thiago Moises, a kid I also trained with at American Top Team, and he turned it into an easy fight, backing him up [against the cage],” Martins said. “I see Makhachev evolving as an athlete and a man, physically speaking, and I think he’s trouble for a lot of people, but I see Charles as the favorite because he’s on a roll as champion. He fought a lot of tough people recently and completely ran through them.”

Because this is Makhachev’s first shot at UFC gold, Martins believes the 31-year-old will fight with caution against a veteran like Oliveira. As for why he favors his ex-teammate, Martins believes the experience of the former champ, coupled with his more aggressive style, will help Oliveira regain the UFC lightweight crown.

“[Oliveira] is unpredictable and can knock him out and can submit him, and can take a beating [and come back]. I’d bet on Charles.”

UFC 280 takes place on October 22 at Etihad Arena in Abu Dhabi. The pay-per-view card streams on ESPN+, following prelims on ESPNEWS.

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Episode 198 discussion: A look at ONE Championship finances show marked losses, Kevin Holland’s retirement was but a dream, Costa says Dana is on “secret juice”

Welcome to ‘The Level Change Podcast’, our combat sports themed variety show hosted by Stephie Haynes and Victor Rodriguez. Featuring the news of the week, fight card breakdowns and analysis, a roundup of regional promotions’ cards and fights; and whatever else we decide is important enough or entertaining enough to bring to your ears. Here is a summary of the topics discussed, complete with the time stamps for when each interview or special segment begins. As always, we hope you enjoy listening to the show as much as we enjoyed recording it.

June M. Williams

EPISODE 198

Gaethje has sage words about fighting – 2:21

https://www.bloodyelbow.com/2022/10/5/23389949/justin-gaethje-talks-kamaru-usman-ko-loss-ufc-278-recovery-bounce-back-friends-training-mma-news

https://www.mmafighting.com/2022/10/5/23385102/justin-gaethje-on-conor-mcgregor-sounds-to-me-like-hes-off-taking-steroids-right-now

ONE finances leave a lot of questions – 10:56

https://www.bloodyelbow.com/2022/10/4/23379959/finances-one-championship-reports-record-high-110-million-in-losses-2021-383-million-total-mma-news

Kevin Holland clearly not retired – 20:30

https://www.bloodyelbow.com/2022/10/5/23389115/what-retirement-kevin-holland-returns-against-stephen-thompson-at-ufc-orlando-mma-news

Anthony Smith details health scares around UFC 277 – 24:15

https://www.bloodyelbow.com/2022/10/5/23388629/getting-f-d-around-every-corner-smith-details-blood-clot-recovery-struggles-ufc-277-injury-mma-news

Dana White shows ripped physique, Paulo says it’s “secret juice” – 28:46

https://www.bloodyelbow.com/2022/10/5/23388675/dana-white-shows-off-ripped-physique-paulo-costa-says-its-because-of-his-secret-juice-ufc-mma-news

WEEKLY PICKS RECAP – 32:34

Mookie – Latifi, Davis, Barcelos, Brown, Dern, Pitbull (5-1)

Stephie – Lattifi, Davis, Barcelos, Brown, Dern, Pitbull (5-1)

Victor – Latifi, Borschev, Barcelos, Trinaldo, Dern, Pitbull (3-3)

STANDINGS – 33:11

Mookie: 112-66-3

Stephie: 108-70-3

Victor: 99-79-3

Follow our Twitter accounts: Stephie Haynes and Victor Rodriguez and our show account The Level Change Podcast. If you enjoy our variety of shows, give us a shout out in the comments here on Bloody Elbow, and give us a “like”, share & subscribe on your BE Presents Podcast platform of choice: SoundCloud, YouTube, Apple Podcasts, iHeartRadio, Stitcher, Spotify, TuneIn, OverCast, Player FM, & Amazon Music – For previous episodes, check out our playlists on any of our BE Presents channels.

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Former UFC champion and future Hall of Famer Frankie Edgar will face Chris Gutierrez at UFC 281.

Back in July, former lightweight champion Frankie Edgar reportedly requested his final UFC fight. Speaking through his manager Ali Abdelaziz, “The Answer” wants his swan song to happen at UFC 281 on November 12 at Madison Square Garden.

On Thursday, ESPN’s Brett Okamoto confirmed these plans. As he noted in his recent tweet, Edgar will face bantamweight veteran Chris Gutierrez for his final bout, “unless someone gets lippy in Seaside next summer.”

The 40-year-old Edgar became a fan-favorite during his run at 155 pounds, as the smaller fighter getting the better of his bigger opponents. He holds notable wins over Gray Maynard, Sean Sherk, and B.J. Penn, from whom he won the undisputed 155-pound title in 2010.

After losing the belt, Edgar dropped down to 145 pounds in 2013, where his title bids unfortunately weren’t as successful. He once again dropped down a weight class in 2020 and has since been on a 1-2 run.

Edgar (24-10-1) last fought at UFC 268 against Marlon “Chito” Vera. He lost via a highlight reel front-kick KO in the third round.

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The earliest we can see Pico return is in 2023. 

Aaron Pico is undergoing surgery to repair the shoulder injury he suffered at Bellator 286 on Saturday.

Within the first 30 seconds of his fight against Jeremy Kennedy, Pico was clearly impaired—after his shoulder ‘popped out’ throwing a left hook. Pico and his team attempted to fix it with an ill-advised approach, to no avail. And once the physician determined he could no longer continue in such condition, the fight was waved off.

Though originally disappointed with how his fight ended, Pico admitted it was ‘probably the smartest thing’ to happen. And once the adrenaline wore off and he started to feel pain, the Bellator featherweight was even more accepting of the decision.

“It just felt stuck,” Pico told TMZ Sports recently. “I just felt stuck, like something was blocking it, but I wasn’t in pain. But then as soon as the bell rang and they said it was over, I immediately—I usually stay there and he gets his hand raised, but I’m like, ‘Guys, I got to get to the hospital.’ And then when I got to the back, the pain really set it. And then when I got into the ambulance, I can handle pain, but I started to shed a few tears because I was like this thing is the worst pain I’ve ever been in.”

In his first post-fight comments, Pico revealed he would be going to a shoulder doctor and getting an MRI done to determine the extent of the damage. Now days removed from the visit, the 26-year-old confirmed he requires surgery and expects to be out for several months.

“I’ll be having surgery soon,” said Pico. “I’m just having some numbness in my fingers right now, and they’re just waiting for the numbness to go away, and then immediate surgery.

“They say I’ll probably be out 4 to 6 months, so it’s not too long,” continued Pico.

Had Pico defeated Kennedy, a potential championship fight with Patricio ‘Pitbull’ Freire was on the horizon. The champion said as much in his post-fight interview with ‘Big’ John McCarthy, but was uncertain about when it would happen because of the injury.

Pico hopes the Freire fight is still available when he returns to competition. But if it is not, then he would welcome a rematch against Kennedy.

“If I’m being selfish, of course I would love to go straight to the title, but I believe Jeremy Kennedy deserves a rematch. My hat’s off to Kennedy, it kind of sucks for him because a lot of people are like, ‘Oh, you didn’t win.’ On paper, he won. If I need to fight him again, I will. If they want me to fight for the title, it’s all good. But I have nothing but respect for Kennedy. He didn’t know my shoulder was out and he came to fight. Tough guy, and s—t happens. There’s nothing you can really do.”

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The retired UFC fighter acted in a recent ad alongside Dutch former football player Clarence Seedorf.

Khabib Nurmagomedov has taken his first steps into the world of acting.

The former UFC champion was featured in an advertisement for Etihad Airways alongside Dutch former football player Clarence Seedorf. The pair are the latest set of athletes to feature in a video promoting the six direct flights to Qatar by the UAE’s national airline for the duration of the 2022 FIFA World Cup.

The entertaining ad shows the two retired athletes being upstaged by a falcon—the UAE’s national bird, which also happens to be allowed on Etihad flights.

“I’m flying @etihad to Doha with my friend Clarence, and another frequent flyer for the biggest football tournament of the year,” Nurmagomedov said in an Instagram post promoting the ad. “They fly six times daily from Abu Dhabi between 20th November and 18th December. Expect nothing less than extraordinary like I did!”

Nurmagomedov and Seedorf happen to be business partners. The duo started a football (soccer) management agency, as well as a football academy known as the Seedorf Khabib Performance Club, which combines “sports and social abilities with a training methodology which combines football and mixed martial arts.” The academy was founded in Dubai and boasts global partners such as the Dubai Multi Commodities Centre (DMCC), a government entity established in 2002 to enhance commodity trade flows through Dubai.

The 2022 World Cup—one of the most controversial editions of the prestigious event due to the well-documented incidences of migrant abuse, abysmal labor conditions, and other forms of human rights abuses—is scheduled to take place between Nov. 20-Dec. 18.

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Zane Simon, Connor Ruebusch, and Phil Mackenzie are back and watching the best of the worst fights in MMA history. With a focus on the UFC, WEC, Pride, and Strikeforce.

The UFC is on a brief break once again, and that means the Depressed-us is back in action. And we’ve got some make up work to do from our last show, that featured an all-too-fun main event between Luke Rockhold and Paulo Costa. Fortunately we’ve solved that conundrum with another dive into one of our favorite bad MMA genres: other brothers.

June M. Williams

While we had intended to make this an all Alex Stiebling opponent theme week (he’s fought Mark Hughes, Jason Guida, Murilo Rua, and Antonio Rogerio Nogueira), only two of those fights ended up being DU worthy. So we’re kicking things off with a bout between Ildemar Alcantara and Leandro Silva from UFC on Fuel TV: Nogueira vs. Werdum, at 6:04. Then we’re jumping to Jason Guida vs. Alex Stiebling at WEC 22, at 32:58. And finally we’re wrapping the whole thing up with Mark Hughes vs. Alex Stiebling at UFC 28, at 57:13.

As is usual, we’re watching all of this week’s fights on UFC Fight Pass. If you’d like to watch along with us, start each video from the beginning when Zane says “go.” If you’re watching these fights on another platform, Connor will try and mark the start of round 1 so you can sync your video up to that.

If you enjoy our shows, give us a shout out in the comments here on Bloody Elbow, and give us a “like”, share & subscribe on your BE Presents Podcast platform of choice: SoundCloud, YouTube, Apple Podcasts, iHeartRadio, Stitcher, Spotify, TuneIn, OverCast, Player FM, & Amazon Music – For previous episodes, check out our playlists on any of our BE Presents channels.

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