Eddie Alvarez beats Eduard Folayang at ONE Championship “Dawn Of Heroes” in 2019. | Photo by George Calvelo/NurPhoto via Getty Images
Former lightweight champion Eddie Alvarez is no longer with ONE Championship and will now explore other options, which includes a possible boxing run.
After a short three-year stint, former lightweight champion Eddie Alvarez is parting ways with ONE Championship. “The Underground King” himself announced this piece of news via Twitter, stating his departure with the Singapore-based promotion was done “amicably.”
Confirmed ,I am no longer with ONE. We parted ways amicably and I remain on good terms with the ONE team. I want to thank Chatri for the opportunity and I look forward to watching their continued success. I’m officially a free agent and Ready to Hunt Tell me whose next ?UGK
— Eddie Alvarez (@Ealvarezfight) September 21, 2022
Close sources from team Alvarez also got in touch with ESPN, stating that the 38-year-old veteran “will explore all options.” And just like a number of his peers, it may include a potential boxing run.
Alvarez inked a deal with ONE Championship in 2018. He made his ONE debut in March 2019 against Timofey Nastyukhinin a 170-pound bout and lost via first-round TKO. Alvarez got back in the win column five months later against Eduard Folayang, whom he defeated via first-round submission. It would be his only victory in the promotion.
Alvarez (30-8, with 2 NC) last fought in April 2021, losing a unanimous decision against future ONE champ Ok Rae Yoon. A trilogy with Shinya Aoki that fans expected during his signing never materialized.
Kamaru Usman is the former UFC welterweight champion. | Photo by Chris Unger/Zuffa LLC
“He knows there’s a lot of Nigerians and Jamaicans. But I think I will be well represented in England.”
Kamaru Usman believes he will have the crowd advantage over Leon Edwards if their proposed trilogy bout takes place in the U.K.
Edwards, born in Jamaica, immigrated to the U.K. when he was four years old—becoming the second British fighter to win a UFC title after Michael Bisping. He knocked out Usman with less than a minute on the clock in their welterweight title fight at UFC 278, marking one of the greatest comebacks in UFC history, a real ‘Rocky’ moment.
However Usman is confident of his chances in the rematch and believes he will be represented well in the U.K., better than Edwards, due to his Nigerian heritage.
“Now you’re in their country, which honestly, I think imma have more fans his country than he will,” Usman told UFC color commentator Joe Rogan in a recent interview (h/t MMA News). “That’s no knock on Leon. I like Leon; I really do. Half of England is Africa. There’s a lot of Nigerians in England, a lot of Nigerians. He knows there’s a lot of Nigerians and Jamaicans. But I think I will be well represented in England.”
Edwards vs. Usman III is expected to take place next year, although the matchup has yet to be confirmed by the UFC.
Eddie Hearn talks Jake Paul vs. Anderson Silva, and what a win would mean for Paul’s career.
Eddie Hearn thinks it’s Jake Paul vs. the world as the YouTuber turned boxer prepares to fight Anderson Silva in a boxing match on Oct. 29 at the Gila River Arena in Phoenix, Arizona.
Paul is looking to establish himself as a legitimate talent with a win over Silva but fight promoter Hearn thinks the 25-year-old has picked the wrong opponent to silence his detractors.
Hearn admittedly doesn’t know much about Silva but thinks a win over the 47-year-old UFC legend does nothing to advance Paul’s career or legitimize him in the eyes of those who claim he doesn’t belong on the pro-circuit.
Hearn is picking Paul to win but doesn’t think the 25-year-old is doing himself any favors by fighting another former MMA champion with limited experience in the boxing ring.
“I don’t know enough about Anderson Silva — Anderson is [47], but he can box a bit by the sound of things,” Hearn told Ariel Helwani during a recent appearance on The MMA Hour (h/t MMA News). “I just think that Jake’s been a bit unlucky because he was trying to fight Tommy Fury, he was trying to fight Hasim Rahman Jr., and that would have actually given him the ability to say, ‘Actually, you have to respect me now as a boxer.’”
“To defeat Anderson Silva, while boxing is still a very impressive part of his repertoire, he’s still not a boxer, and he’s 47 years of age,” Hearn continued. “But he’s a tough guy, he has a huge profile, he can box, and I think he’ll be competitive. I don’t think he beats Jake, because I think Jake is young, and I think he can punch a bit, and I’m intrigued to watch, and I like what Jake’s doing. It’s kind of him against the world.”
To Paul’s credit, he did try to make a name for himself against Tommy Fury and Hasim Rahman Jr., but neither of those pro-fighters made the walk to the ring.
Paul is 5-0 in boxing with standout victories over former welterweight titleholders Ben Askren and Tyron Woodley, with his most recent win being a sixth-round knockout of ‘T-Wood’ at the Amalie Arena in Tampa, Florida, in Dec. 2021.
Another round of bright young talents are looking to hit it big this week.
2022 continues to be a good year for UFC recruitment. This week, we have an honest-to-god interesting middleweight fight at the top, and some odd—and hopefully exciting—matchups to fill the rest of the card.
Leon Aliu (10-1) vs Brunno Ferreira (8-0)
The main fight is the beauty here. Italy’s Leon Aliu has six wins by finish, four of those being submissions. His choke game is terrifying for how strong his squeeze can get. While his stance isn’t great, he’s got dynamite in his hands as well. His leg kicks don’t look amazing; he seems to prioritize getting his weight back on his legs to keep punching. His striking defense could use some work as well, but his offense is heavy all the way. His only notable wins are against UFC vet Amilcar Alves (who remains in a career freefall) former prospect Chase Gamble, and his recent win over James Webb in Cage Warriors. What he does has worked great for him in the past and will carry him for a while, but he’s got some work to do to get ahead, win or lose.
Brunno (yes, that’s two “Ns” there) is a very athletic fighter. Big takedowns, big punches from top position, and excellent positional awareness with his grappling. His striking game is also strong, even if he could also use some help with his defense. His resume isn’t extensive, but he’s been fighting more experienced fighters and seems to be the more ready, between these two men, for the rigors of the proper UFC roster. Being a 6-0 fighter and defeating an opponent that is 33-18 with one draw is a pretty good look, and the way he wins fights is going to do him a lot of favors.
Raul Rosas Jr. (5-0) vs Mando Gutierrez (7-1)
One of the most notable talents this week is the 17-year-old Raul Rosas. Get used to that, because UFC shoulder programming has been driving his young age into the ground. After a pair of wins at the amateur level, he turned pro and has all finishes on his sterling record. Given his relative inexperience, there’s no real notable opposition and all of his past opponents had two fights or less at the pro level when he fought them.
Adding all of this up leaves us with too many questions as to how well-equipped he is for this particular step. But he’s got a fantastic highlight reel and clearly the matchmakers/scouts are seeing a lot of upside here. And they should. His grappling game is tight and methodical while he runs a consistent and strong pace. This kid is great, has room to grow, and comes in with a ton of talent. His ceiling isn’t defined at all yet, and there’s a lot to like here.
Gutierrez has six submission wins, five of them are rear naked chokes. He might struggle a bit dealing with the reach of Rosas, but he’s a very capable striker and can hold his own on the ground. He can be pressured with striking, but also has great submission defense and some very heavy ground strikes.
Austen Lane (11-3) vs Richard Jacobi (6-0-1)
Lane is a former NFL player that was previously on Contender Series back in 2018, where he suffered a loss to Greg Hardy. Here’s what I said about him then:
As for Lane? He’s quietly pursued MMA for some time with his first fight being in 2015. During this time, he’s earned himself a nice 5-1 record on the amateur level and moved on to 4-0 as a pro. Four of those amateur wins were knockouts, one a TKO. His amateur career has been mostly against fighters making their amateur debut, as were his first two professional opponents. The last two fighters he’s faced were 6-13 and 4-0. Lane’s got some good straight punches he can fire down the middle and he’s not afraid to get hit. His reactions are a bit slow and his movement is a bit clunky, but he’s got discipline and can be quite spry when he smells blood.
He lost to Frank Tate via strikes as well after that. Since that setback, however? 7-1 and all of them were finishes except for his last bout, where his opponent suffered a leg injury. He’s still a hard-hitter that blitzes opponents and has speed in his feet and hands. It’s defense and ability to take a shot against the heavier guys that are a problem.
But he can probably take this if he’s smart about it. He’s up against Richard Jacobi, a Brazilian heavyweight that has only two of his fights going to a decision. One was a win, the other a draw. While he’s beating the brakes off the opposition, we need to examine that opposition. Some of it ain’t good. Despite being 6-0, he’s got an opponent that was 0-1 and another that was 0-3.
Still, there’s only so much you can ask for a fighter coming up in the heavyweight ranks anywhere in the world. His most experienced opponent was 22-22 when they fought, and in the midst of a four fight losing streak. That guy’s only fought once since, and lost that one. No disrespect to any parties involved, it’s just tough to get a read on the potential for a prospect when he’s dusting husky dudes with iffy records. Jacobi definitely has the firepower to put Lane away, but if Lane keeps his head off the center line and mixes things up while controlling the clinch and outworking Jacobi, it’s his fight to win. This really could go either way.
Nurullo Aliev (6-0) vs Josh Wick (12-5)
Aliev is the rare Contender Series participant that doesn’t have a ton of finishes on his record, but smothers with grappling control and has calculated and smart striking. He’s got all the tools to be a tough test for anyone at this level, and could continue to expand his skills to become a very good addition to the UFC roster.
Wick as suffered some losses to more experienced opposition in the past, but might make still make it very difficult for Aliev to earn his way into the big show. Not to be confused with John Wick or Josh Wink, he brings his own brand of violence to the game. His only notable wins are against former UFC fighter Cain Carrizosa and current UFC talent Vince Morales. While he might spend a chunk of this fight on his back, things should go way smoother for him if he keeps it standing and keeps pivoting to deter takedown attempts.
Jafel Filho (13-2) vs Roybert Echeverria (7-0)
Filho was a mainstay for Shooto Brazil, and racked up most of his wins there and even challenging for the title once. While he wasn’t successful then, he’s continued to use his flypaper grappling approach to fights. That often ends up with him forcing fighters into worse and worse situations on the ground until he gets the opening he wants for his submission attempts. He’s currently got a hot hand with a four-fight win streak that includes a win over Vinicius Salvador, who defeated Shannon Ross earlier this year on Contender Series.
Echeverria may be undefeated, but there’s a lot of holes to poke at here. For starters, he has a past opponent that was 2-5. Not egregious when you’re coming up and have little experience. But then fought Earnest Walls when Walls was 2-15, only to fight him again when Walls was 2-17. That second win against Walls was followed by a win against a fighter that was 0-2 while Echeverria was 5-0. He managed to eke out a split decision against the very tough Wascar Cruz in Titan FC this past December. He does a lot of things right, but has too many question marks around him to trust him fully against an aggressive and precise submission grappler.
You can check out the weigh-ins here, courtesy of the crew at MMAJunkie:
Full card is as follows:
Leon Aliu (186.0) vs. Brunno Ferreira (184.0) – Middleweight Raul Rosas Jr. (134.0) vs. Mando Gutierrez (135.5) – Bantamweight Austen Lane (240.5) vs. Richard Jacobi (244.5) – Heavyweight Nurullo Aliev (155.5) vs. Josh Wick (156) – Lightweight Roybert Echeverria (125.0) vs. Jafel Cavalcante Filho (125.5) – Flyweight
Dana White’s Contender Series takes place this Tuesday night starting at the usual start time of 8:00pm EST. This event streams live and exclusively on ESPN+.
Francis Ngannou during the UFC 270 ceremonial weigh-ins in January. | Photo by Cooper Neill/Zuffa LLC
Heavyweight champion Francis Ngannou says he has yet to sign a new contract with the UFC, but has no sense of urgency to do so.
The last time Francis Ngannou stepped inside the UFC Octagon was in January, when he successfully defended the undisputed heavyweight title against Ciryl Gane. At the time, “The Predator” revealed that his future with the organization was unclear.
“I’m not here to chase ghosts. I’m chasing what is real, what is possible. But at this point, I don’t know what is the stage of my situation with the UFC. So we’re gonna see how this plays out and see what is on the table. Then we can deal with what is on the table. As of now, I can’t allow myself to speculate about anything.”
The 36-year-old Ngannou had since undergone successful knee surgery and is currently “making great strides” in recovery, according to his coach Eric Nicksick. But as far as his contract situation goes, that remains up in the air.
“My contract status right now is still the same. I haven’t received any offer. It’s the same,” he told Jimmy Smith for MMA on SiriusXM.
“My contract status right now is still the same.”
Though he’s ‘not in a rush either’ @francis_ngannou says he hasn’t received a new offer from the UFC & shares what being able to box means to the new deal @jimmysmithmma
FULL Interview on the podcasthttps://t.co/JWZcD8hrq4 pic.twitter.com/Uww5L0WRdb
— MMA on SiriusXM (@MMAonSiriusXM) September 16, 2022
“I hope, like, in the next two to three months, we get to deal with that. To solve that.”
Ngannou has been in a public feud with the UFC for a while now, and for him, the recent non-developments are no longer a surprise. At this point, there is no longer a sense of urgency.
“It’s not surprising to me. I think we’re not in a rush. I’m not in a rush, either. I’m not going anywhere, so I’m not rushing. At the end of the day, we have (a lot) of time,” said Ngannou, who previously revealed his intentions to return to action before the year ends.
In the same interview, Ngannou reiterated his plans for a possible clash against boxing heavyweight champion Tyson Fury, which he once again said should be part of his new UFC deal.
Jake Paul answers questions at a press conference for his upcoming bout with Anderson Silva. | Photo by Christian Petersen/Getty Images
The noted celebrity boxer has been looking for a fight with ‘Iron’ Mike for a while now, and Tyson has been receptive in the past.
Back in July Jake Paul talked about one of his long standing dream fights, a potential bout against former heavyweight boxing champion Mike Tyson. The two men have been floating the idea since 2021 and, at one point, Tyson even called the bout “really interesting”—adding that it has “gotta happen this year [2022],” if ever.
To date, there’s been no movement on that front, with Paul positing that ‘Iron Mike’, “wants to avoid maybe knocking me out and hurting me.” The ex-Disney actor added that if only Tyson knew how good Paul really was, “maybe the fight would happen.”
If the YouTuber-turned-pugilist had hoped that a closer examination of his boxing prowess would bring his 56-year-old idol around to the idea, a recent revelation from longtime boxing trainer Freddie Roach may have thrown some cold water on that dream. In an interview with FightHype.com, Roach revealed that Tyson was on hand for one of Paul’s sparring sessions, but left after just 30 seconds.
Whether Paul was aware of that possible snub or not, in a press conference for his upcoming bout against former UFC legend Anderson Silva, the 25-year-old was unequivocal when asked if there were any other combat sports greats he’d like to face in the ring. Once again, one name sprang immediately to mind.
“Mike Tyson,” Paul enthused when asked about other “legendary fighters” he’d like take on in a boxing match. “That would be crazy, yeah. And I have so much respect for him. He’s another one of my idols. And I think he said he wanted to do the fight. Mike, where you at, bro? Let’s make it happen.”
However, 2022 is closing fast if Paul wants to make Tyson a priority, or even a possibility. Earlier this year, Tyson was briefly connected to an exhibition bout with Jake’s brother, Logan Paul, but that fight fell apart shortly after rumors of its booking—with Tyson even teasing that he was done taking exhibition fights altogether.
The other bout, then, on Paul’s horizon is a possible fight against Nate Diaz—now that the former UFC star and one-time title contender is out from under his contract with the world’s largest MMA promotion. In another July interview, Paul told TMZ that Diaz was “first and foremost” on his priorities list.
“That’s the one that everyone’s been wanting,” Paul said of the Diaz fight. “Everyone knows he only has one or two fights left with the UFC.”
Before any of that can happen, though, he has to get through Silva.
“All the fun of it aside, when we got into the face-off you see a different Anderson Silva than the one who is there up onstage having a jolly time.” Paul said in a recent interview with ESPN (transcript via The Mirror). “That’s ‘The Spider’ Anderson that I saw in that face-off and you can tell he’s got that killer in him, 100%. It was weird but it felt right, it was felt like this was destined to happen. It was a surreal moment for sure, I never thought I’d be here and I’d be fighting one of my idols.”
Paul vs. Silva takes place on October 29th at the Desert Diamond Arena in Glendale, AZ. As of yet, no other bouts have been announced for the card.
Gregory Rodrigues after his TKO win over Chidi Njokuani. | Photo by Chris Unger/Zuffa LLC
‘Robocop’ is finding the humor in his “third eyebrow” after suffering a gnarly cut on Saturday.
Gregory Rodrigues opened his third eye against Chidi Njokuani at UFC Vegas 60 this past Saturday.
Njokuani connected with a knee in the first round that busted open the Brazilian, causing him to bleed profusely from the cut between his eyes. The wound was bad, and ‘Robocop’ knew his time in the Octagon could be limited if there was an intervention from the referee or doctor. Fortunately, Rodrigues was allowed to continue and delivered a ‘Comeback of the Year’ contender after getting Njokuani down and finishing him with ground-and-pound for the second-round TKO.
Though he got the win, Rodrigues admitted he was in some serious trouble after that knee. Fortunately he for him, he weathered the storm after hearing his corner shout instructions to calm him down.
“I was dizzy, it was very hard,” said Rodrigues (video provided by MMA Junkie). “I fell, I was a little like, ‘Man, what happened?’ And then the blood started to come down and I was kind of blind, trying to figure out what I’m going to do. But, like I said, I want to say thank you to my corner, my trainers. They did an amazing job.
They started talking with me, and I was like, ‘No, no, no. Let me calm down.’ And I started hearing, ‘Move the legs!’ And stuff like that. And then I tried and then I [went] back, then I thought, ‘Man, I need to start something. I need to start throwing my bombs, throw my hands to stop him a little bit.’ Because after that cut, everybody is going to be confident, try to finish the fight. And then I started to throw my hands to show him I was there. I’m still there and that’s what happened.”
The Brazilian also recounted when he felt Njokuani fading. Once ‘Chidi Bang Bang’ slowed down and began breathing heavily in the second round, Rodrigues poured on the pressure and, as they say, the rest was history.
“When I finished the first round and came back to my corner, I was worried about the cut,” Rodrigues admitted. “My corner started [saying], ‘Let’s move, let’s start touching him. He already felt your hands.’ And when we started the second round, he was going the same, trying to pressure me, but I said, ‘Man, I need to pressure him more’.
And in one part of the fight, I felt he was tired. I felt his breath and it was different, and I said, ‘Oh man. I’m the ‘Robocop’ and I’m here, so now I’m going to kill you.’ And then I started to feel him, so when I grabbed him against the cage with the clinch—the takedown I did—I felt his body was a little bit weak and then I took him down and said, ‘Now, I’m going to finish the fight’. And then I did.”
Rodrigues and Njokuani were awarded ‘Fight of the Night’ honors and an extra $ 50k, which the 30-year-old says was worth being sliced open. His wife, on the other hand, feels differently.
“I [have] three eyebrows,” joked Rodrigues. “But I’m OK. I’m happy. Better now because of the win. My wife is just a little mad, ‘Tell the doctor to do a great job. I will come back there.’ But he did a great job, man, so I will look OK.”
With the win over Njokuani, Rodrigues is now 4-1 in the UFC.
Henry Cejudo is the former UFC flyweight and bantamweight champion. | Photo by Jeff Bottari/Zuffa LLC/Zuffa LLC via Getty Images
Henry Cejudo offers Khamzat Chimaev some harsh words of advice.
Henry Cejudo has advised Khamzat Chimaev to get his sh-t together if he wants to return to welterweight and win the 170-pound championship.
Khamzat’s UFC 279 headliner with Nate Diaz was scrapped after ‘Borz’ missed weight by a considerable margin, hitting the scales at 178.5 pounds, a full seven and a half pounds over the non-title fight welterweight limit.
The card was reshuffled, and Khamzat was relegated to the co-main event, where he took on Kevin Holland at a catchweight of 180 pounds, submitting ‘Trailblazer’ with a D’Arce choke in the first round.
Question marks loom over Khamzat’s future at welterweight after he was reportedly vomiting and feinting while trying to make weight, with UFC president Dana White hinting that his next fight could be at middleweight.
Cejudo thinks Chimaev (12-0 MMA, 6-0 UFC) can make 170 again but only if he makes serious tweaks to his training and stops overexerting himself in the gym, which ‘Triple C’ thinks could be the culprit to his failed UFC 279 weight cut.
“You won’t come back, if you don’t get your s*** together, you won’t come back and ever make that weight again,” Cejudo, the former UFC flyweight and bantamweight champion, told Helen Yee in a recent interview (h/t Sportskeeda). “Trust me, even if you have big balls, you won’t make it because when you’re off that much, just imagine him at 170. He’s struggling to probably make 178. Like you know, he gave everything he had. His coach said his tongue was white, vomiting all that other stuff, throwing up fluid.”
“I’ve been there before,” Cejudo added. “He’s gonna have to really tweak his training. He’s probably training too much and probably allowing more of his metabolism to eat more and there’s a way of doing it, where you can still make weight, still feel good while you’re not overworking your body.”
Khamzat is currently #3 in the UFC welterweight rankings and undefeated at middleweight with two stoppage victories over John Phillips and Gerald Meerschaert. He has ambitions of becoming the next UFC champ-champ and destroying anybody that stands in his way, making him a serious force to be reckoned with at welterweight and middleweight.
Kamaru Usman gets propped up after being knocked out by Leon Edwards at UFC 278. | Photo by Josh Hedges/Zuffa LLC
Former UFC champion and pound-for-pound king Kamaru Usman isn’t a fan of the Carla Esparza-Zhang Weili title fight at UFC 281.
Former UFC welterweight champion and top pound-for-pound fighter Kamaru Usman isn’t looking forward to the upcoming strawweight title fight between Carla Esparza and Zhang Weili at UFC 281.
“To this day, I still think that Rose, some of the things that she can do is amazing,” Usman said in a recent appearance on the JRE MMA Show (quotes via MMA News). “(Last fight was) not her best, obviously… I think she’s in a place where she’s made peace with it… I would love to see her get that one back.
“But they already announced that Carla’s fighting Zhang Weili, which is — I mean, that would be sad to watch. Let’s say Zhang Weili goes and takes the title from Carla, that would be sad to watch her walk around with the title when Rose has bested her twice.”
Namajunas and Esparza faced each other in a rematch at UFC 274 in May in an uneventful fight that ended with the latter getting the nod on the judges’ scorecards. “Thug Rose,” however, insisted she was the rightful winner because she “stuck to the strategy” and “controlled the fight.”
UFC 281 takes place on November 12 at Madison Square Garden, where Esparza vs. Zhang will serve as the co-headliner. The main event will feature a middleweight title fight between champion Israel Adesanya and Alex Pereira.
Headlining ADCC 2022 was Gordon Ryan vs Andre Galvao.
In a super-fight years in the making, Gordon Ryan and Andre Galvao faced each other to cap off the ADCC 2022 event. After all the talk online — and even a few slaps and altercations — it finally happened.
Galvao, who is turning 40 this month, is one of the all-time greats, with five IBJJF world championships and six ADCC titles. He faced a much younger opponent that’s in his prime, in the 27-year-old Ryan, who has been unbeaten in the last four years. The brash and loud American came in as a four-time ADCC champion, after winning the +99 kg division earlier in the day.
It was a legend vs today’s most dominant grappler, and it was the latter who came up on top.
Ryan held top control early, and immediately moved to a more dominant position right at the halfway mark of the match, once points started to count. Ryan eventually took the back, and once he got there, he kept switching the body lock from side to side, making sure to rack up points. He was up 12-0, and had Galvao’s arm trapped for several minutes as he kept hunting for the rear naked choke.
With four minutes left to go, Ryan sunk it in deeper, completed the choke and forced Galvao to tap.
With the victory, Ryan capped his incredible run this week with two titles, for his fifth in ADCC championship.
Check here for full results from the ADCC 2022 event. Any and all highlight clips from the match will be updated and put below.
Gordon Ryan submits Andre Galvao in the superfight!!!
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