Israel Adesanya will try to get his belt back against Dricus du Plessis at UFC 305. | Photo by Jeff Bottari/Zuffa LLC via Getty Images
The UFC 305 fight card has the much anticipated clash between Dricus du Plessis and Israel Adesanya in the main event.
UFC middleweight champion du Plessis put his belt on the line against former champion Adesanya in a contest that already has plenty of bad blood. Adesanya got the title shot despite coming off a loss to Sean Strickland via unanimous decision in his last outing at UFC 293.
Kai Kara-France and Steve Erceg battle in the co-main event in a pivotal flyweight contest.
On the third episode of UFC 305 Embedded, defending champion Dricus du Plessis stays sharp in the gym, former two-time champion Israel Adesanya and the rest of City Kickboxing set up camp in an Australian Football team’s facility, Mateusz Gamrot has lunch, Steve Erceg gives back to the kids, the fighters begin their media and have a special welcoming ceremony, and more.
Israel Adesanya | Photo by Chris Unger/Zuffa LLC via Getty Images
UFC 305 takes place this Saturday in Perth, Australia headlined by a middleweight title matchup between Dricus du Plessis and Israel Adesanya, so the No Bets Barred boys are back with a full breakdown of the event.
Co-hosts Conner Burks and Jed Meshew kick things off with a wide-ranging discussion on the Olympics, UFC Vegas 95, and some other topics before diving into UFC 305. Can du Plessis defend his title or will Adensanya become only the second person in history to win a title three times in the UFC? Will Steve Erceg or Kai Kara-France reinsert themselves in the flyweight title picture? Can Tai Tuivasa finally bring back the shoey celebration?
All that and more on this week’s episode.
Tune in for episode 98 of No Bets Barred.
New episodes of the No Bets Barred podcast drop every Wednesday and are available on Apple Podcasts, Google Podcasts, Spotify, or wherever else you find your favorite podcasts. The latest episode can be heard below.
Photo by Kari Hubert/Forza LLC/Forza LLC via Getty Images
Strikeforce and BKFC veteran Lumumba Sayers has been arrested on murder charges after he allegedly gunned down a man to avenge his son’s death.
According to an arrest affidavit first obtained by Denver7 on Monday, Sayers was arrested this past Saturday after he allegedly approached a man at a child’s birthday party and shot him in the head. The incident took place at Pioneer Park in Commerce City.
Sayers is currently in custody in Adams County, Colo. on first-degree murder and felony menacing charges and he’s being held on $ 1 million bond, per court records obtained by MMA Fighting. His next court hearing is scheduled on Thursday at 8:30 a.m. local time.
The victim later identified as Malcolm Watson, 28, is believed to be a friend of a man who was previously accused of killing Sayers’ son in a shooting that took place in August 2023. A suspect named Tyrell Braxton was later arrested in connection with the killing of Sayers’ son but charges were eventually dismissed.
The arrest affidavit involving Sayers states that “this murder was probably in retaliation or revenge” but doesn’t detail a further connection between Watson and Braxton.
According to the report, Watson was at a birthday party when a witness claimed that Sayers walked up and shot him “in the head at close range.” Sayers allegedly went back to Watson’s body and attempted to shoot him a second time but his gun “jammed.”
Witnesses claimed that Sayers then took some keys from Watson’s pocket and allegedly attempted to plant a gun near his body.
Sayers was reportedly despondent following the death of his son after they both worked tirelessly together on a program to help at-risk youths to avoid violence in the community.
The now 46-year-old veteran fought as recently as March when he competed at a BKFC event in Denver. In his MMA career, Sayers is best known for his time spent with Strikeforce where he fought a number of notable names including Anthony Smith, Derek Brunson and Scott Smith.
Dana White officially raised the stakes for Dricus du Plessis at UFC 305.
The UFC CEO revealed Tuesday night that if du Plessis successfully defends his UFC middleweight title against Israel Adesanya on Saturday at UFC 305, the promotion will take its next 185-pound title fight to du Plessis’ home country of South Africa.
“You have one of these situations where, both guys, everything is on the line, especially because they dislike each other so much,” White said. “And if [du Plessus] can beat Izzy and bring that belt back to South Africa, obviously we’ll do an event there. And if Izzy can retain and win the title, it’s huge for him and his legacy — not retain, but regain.”
UFC 305 takes place August 18 at the RAC Arena in Perth, Australia.
Du Plessis, 30, captured the UFC middleweight title in January with a split decision win over Sean Strickland at UFC 297. The first South African champion in promotional history, du Plessis holds a perfect 7-0 record in the octagon, earning stoppage wins over the likes of Robert Whittaker, Darren Till, and Derek Brunson, among others.
Adesanya, 35, is a two-time former UFC middleweight champion. “The Last Stylebender” was expected to face du Plessis in late 2023, however du Plessis was unable to make the date and Adesanya instead fought Strickland, losing in a shocking and one-sided upset. Adesanya’s 12-fight win streak at 185 pounds to kick off his UFC career was the second-longest streak in UFC middleweight history, second only to MMA legend Anderson Silva.
Du Plessis and Adesanya have traded barbs for more than a year at this point, becoming fierce rivals over du Plessis’ argument over what constitutes a “true African champion.”
Given the history between the two men, White expects a rocky week in Perth.
“I’m sure [there’s tension]. [It’s a] big fight,” White said. “Every time guys hate each other like this, the fight usually ends up sucking, but I have a really good feeling this one won’t. You’re talking about, if you’re looking at what Israel Adesanya has achieved in his life, not just here but in kickboxing too, and Dricus, he brings it, man. He comes.”
Gabi Garcia faces off with Craig Jones | Photo via Gabi Garcia’s Instagram
One of the greatest jiu-jitsu competitors of all-time is attempting a unique challenge when Gabi Garcia battles Craig Jones in an intergender grappling match Saturday at the inaugural Craig Jones Invitational in Las Vegas.
Garcia, a four-time ADCC gold medalist and six-time IBJJF world champion, has teased the idea of battling a decorated male grappler for many years now, but the reward was never worth the risk. Now, Garcia says she’s banking good money to enter the match for the first time against a male competitor.
“He’s revolutionizing the game with this idea,” Garcia told MMA Fighting of Jones. “And for me, it’s good marketing. It’s more than fighting a man. The American audience has never really liked me, you know? I’ve always dealt with hate. And for the first time in my career, I feel 99 percent of the people are on my side. [Laughs.] This is entertainment. If my mom, my grandmother, my aunt sits down to watch a jiu-jitsu tournament, they won’t understand the rules. But if you put Gabi against a man, people want to watch that.”
Garcia expects to be lighter than Jones on Saturday — she said she was standing on a chair when she faced off with Jones for a face-to-face interview that recently went viral in the grappling community. Garcia has a great relationship with Jones, but won’t go easy on him.
“I’ve trained with Craig a few times and he hasn’t submitted me,” Garcia said. “I’m lighter now because I was cutting weight for a MMA fight [in May], so he’s probably heavier than me, but I’m strong. And I’ve told him already, ‘Craig, I have no responsibilities here. I’m going there to beat you and shock the world.’ But reality is, men are stronger.”
The “superfight” will be contested over three five-minute rounds, which Garcia feels favors her opponent. She would’ve rather met in a 15-minute contests with no breaks, but is down for whatever on Saturday.
“The truth is, I don’t think I’ll submit him because he’s really good, but don’t expect me to go easy on him,” Garcia said. “It’s been a long time. … He’s pissing me off for so long I want to smash him. He calls me all the time, he posts about me all the time. Give me a break, Craig! [Laughs.] If I get to a good position, I’ll control the match instead of exposing myself [to a submission] for nothing, of course.
“But I’ll fight as I was taught by my master,” she continued. “Unlike the way Americans grapple, jiu-jitsu was made for us to dominate the opponent. That’s why we pass the guard, we sweep, we get to side control and mount. There’s nothing an opponent can do with me on the mount, he’s completely dominated. I’ll go like a snake, slowly move to get the position and not let him escape. It’s hard to catch him, but I’ll give him a hard time. He’s saying he’ll secure the submission and let me go. That won’t happen, honey. I’ll smash you. I’ll try my best, and we’ll fight for real.”
Garcia said she and Jones received offers from Asia and the United States to face off before, but she only truly considered the idea when Jones mentioned his intentions behind CJI. On top of the money paid to all competitors — on the same weekend ADCC holds it’s traditional show in Las Vegas — Craig told Garcia he’ll be making donations to Rio Grande do Sul, her home state in Brazil that has struggled for months due to floods.
“Craig is one of the most genuine people I know,” Garcia said. “He texted me saying he would donate out of his pocket to Rio Grande do Sul. I agreed as soon as he told me the profits would be donated to charity.”
Garcia said she will give her entire purse to her parents and family members who were affected by the floods, and that’s a lot considering the rumors surrounding her purse.
“I’ve seen people post all kinds of numbers, from $ 100,000 to $ 1 million,” Garcia said with a laugh. “I can’t say how much it is because my contract doesn’t allow me to, but it’s more than $ 200,000. But I’ve already doubled that with sponsors — or tripled, I think.
“This match is going out of the grappling bubble. All of my sponsors are unrelated to jiu-jitsu. The only sponsor I gave from the fight world is Nate Diaz’s Represent. And I was scared that my [clothing] line wouldn’t do well, but it almost sold out in two days.”
According to Garcia, the decision to be on CJI instead of competing at the 2024 ADCC cost her an induction to the promotion’s Hall of Fame. A member of the IBJJF Hall of Fame, Garcia still plans on competing on the ADCC mat again in the future, but stands by her call.
“It wasn’t an easy decision because this is the first time the ADCC has an absolute division for women, which was a dream of mine,” Garcia said. “That and the Hall of Fame, which they took from me, but I never fought for medals in my career. I love challenges. I was always judged throughout my career, I was always the circus clown. The ADCC will be there, I want to fight the absolute champion one day, but we’ll see what happens.”
Sean O’Malley believes he’ll steal the headlines from Canelo Alvarez after their respective Sept. 14 battles.
O’Malley defends his bantamweight title against Merab Dvalishvili in the main event of UFC 306 at Sphere in Las Vegas, while Alvarez faces Edgar Berlanga on his own Mexican Independence Day card just down the road at T-Mobile Arena.
Although there’s a lot of emphasis on the head-to-head between UFC and one of boxing’s big stars, O’Malley sees it as a fun challenge — and plans to let his performance make the waves throughout the following week.
“I say this every fight, and I’ll probably continue to say it, but I’m so f*cking excited for this fight,” O’Malley said on his YouTube channel. “I wasn’t actually excited for the [Aljamain Sterling] fight, I was f*cking stressed about that fight — just because of my rib, my training camp wasn’t the best, it was good for what we had.
“This fight, I feel good as f*ck. I feel like I love this matchup, he’s got a 10-fight win streak, it’s a big fight, at the Sphere, in competition with boxing.
“I don’t know, it adds a little layer of … when it comes to Sunday, Monday, Tuesday, Wednesday, who are they talking about? Are they talking about Canelo? Are they talking about the boxing fight? Or are they talking about the absolute dominating, beautiful, masterful, masterclass performance I put on Merab — and the viral knockout that came with it? Or are they talking about a 36-minute Canelo boxing fight that was kind of fire?”
O’Malley stopped Sterling in the second round at UFC 292 in August 2023 to win the belt, and put on a clinic in his first title defense against the extremely durable Marlon Vera at UFC 299 in March.
After beating former champ Henry Cejudo at UFC 298 in February, Dvalishvili finally gets his shot at UFC gold for the first time in one of UFC’s most heavily promoted event at Sphere — a location UFC CEO Dana White says he’ll only go to just one time.
O’Malley is ready for the opponent and the spotlight.
“That’s what excites me, like the competition of who are they talking about Sunday, Monday, Tuesday,” O’Malley said. “Who stole the headlines? [It’ll be] me.
Dana White and Conor McGregor | Photo by Chris Unger/Zuffa LLC via Getty Images
UFC CEO Dana White says Conor McGregor will not be back this year.
After suffering a catastrophic leg injury at UFC 264, McGregor was supposed to make his long-awaited return to the octagon earlier this year at UFC 303 against Michael Chandler. The two served opposite each other as coaches on The Ultimate Fighter and the matchup figured to be the one of the biggest events of the year. But a few weeks out of the event, McGregor suffered a toe injury that led him to withdraw from the bout, and now, it looks like “The Notorious” won’t be returning to the octagon until 2025.
At his Contender Series media scrum on Tuesday, Dana White told reporters that he’s been in contact with McGregor, and that while the former two-division champion is still set on returning, it won’t happen this year.
“We talked. We talked,” White said. “We didn’t meet up but we talked, and yeah, he wants to fight. So we’ll figure it out.
“[But] not this year. He won’t fight this year.”
White’s announcement runs counter to McGregor’s previous statements on his return, where “The Notorious” repeatedly suggested the injury would not keep him out long. This has been a recurring theme, as in 2023 and at the beginning of 2024, McGregor announced multiple different return dates, only for White to dismiss them later on.
White’s announcement once again puts Chandler in a difficult situation as the former Bellator lightweight champion has not competed since 2022 while he’s been waiting on McGregor’s return.
UPDATE: It didn’t take long for McGregor to respond.
Ah Dana, December is the date! Bring the calendar year home with a winning event! Come on now, what’s this? I am off to altitude next month to prepare. DECEMBER! Tell Dana and UFC WE WANT DECEMBER! WE DESERVE DECEMBER!
Ah Dana, December is the date! Bring the calendar year home with a winning event! Come on now, what’s this? I am off to altitude next month to prepare. DECEMBER! Tell Dana and UFC WE WANT DECEMBER! WE DESERVE DECEMBER! https://t.co/ZTVO4wDBuQ
— Conor McGregor (@TheNotoriousMMA) August 14, 2024
Alexa Grasso and Valentina Shevchenko | Photo by Chris Unger/Zuffa LLC via Getty Images
Alexa Grasso and Valentina Shevchenko both have a finalist.
Team Bullet’s Robert Valentin (10-3) scored his second quick finish of the season, forcing Team Grasso’s Paddy McCorry (4-1) to tap out to a leg trap Americana in the first round. The finish came after Valentin caught McCorry with a head-and-arm throw out of nowhere before smoothly transitioning to the fight-ending submission.
The Ultimate Fighter 32 middleweight finals are now set, with Valentin moving on to fight Team Bullet’s Ryan Loder for a UFC contract and a TUF tournament crown.
Switzerland’s Valentin was one of the most experienced fighters coming into the season and he was the first middleweight fighter drafted by Grasso to join her team. The pick slightly irked Shevchenko, with whom Valentin had previously trained.
When it came time to fight, Valentin lived up to the hype. He needed less than 30 seconds to knock out Giannis Bachar with a monster elbow, and then he made short work of teammate and friend McCorry in the semifinals.
Loder, representing U.S.A., also impressed on his side of the bracket, having submitted Tom Theocharis in the quarterfinals before cementing his TUF 32 finale spot with a gutsy decision win over Omran Chaaban.
Next week, we find out who Team Grasso’s Kaan Ofli meets in the featherweight finals. His teammate Mairon Santos is supposed to fight Team Bullet’s Zygimantas Ramaska, but lingering injuries threaten to cost him the opportunity.
Should Ramaska be unable to compete, the opportunity will go to either Team Grasso’s Guillermo Torres or Team Shevchenko’s Edwin Cooper Jr.
Another Shevchenko fighter, Nathan Fletcher, learned on this week’s episode that he is unable to step in as a replacement after suffering a fractured fibula in his quarterfinal loss to Ofli.
The Ultimate Fighter 32 airs live every Tuesday at 10 p.m. ET on ESPN+.
Following the season finale, Alexa Grasso and Valentina Shevchenko are set to face off in a flyweight championship trilogy bout at UFC 306 on Sept. 14 at Sphere in Las Vegas.
The finalists of the TUF 32 middleweight and featherweight tournaments will also compete for a six-figure UFC contract at the show’s live finale. A date for that event is yet to be announced.
Here are the TUF 32 rosters divided by team:
Team Grasso
Featherweights
Guillermo Torres (Mexico) (7-1)
Kaan Ofli (Australia) (10-2-1)
Bekhzod Usmonov (Tajikistan) (11-4)
Mairon Santos (Brazil) (13-1)
Featherweights
Robert Valentin (Switzerland) (10-3)
Paddy McCorry (Ireland) (4-1)
Omran Chaaban (Finland) (6-1)
Tom Theocharis (Canada) (9-5)
Team Shevchenko
Featherweights
Roedie Roets (South Africa) (7-1)
Zygimantas Ramaska (Lithuania) (9-2)
Nathan Fletcher (England) (8-1)
Edwin Cooper Jr. (USA) (6-1)
Middleweights
Shamidkhan Magomedov (Russia) (7-1)
Mark Hulme (South Africa) (12-3)
Ryan Loder (USA) (6-1)
Giannis Bachar (Greece) (9-2)
See the semifinal results below:
Middleweight
Ryan Loder def. Omran Chaaban via decision
Paddy McCorry def. Robert Valentin via submission (leg trap Americana) (R1)
Featherweight
Kaan Ofli def. Roedie Roets via submission (guillotine choke) (R1)
Zygimantas Ramaska vs. Mairon Santos
See quarterfinal results below:
Roedie Roets def. Guillermo Torres via decision
Robert Valentin def. Giannis Bachar via KO (strikes) (R1)
A new season of Contender Series is underway and UFC already has four new fighters under contract.
On Tuesday night, season eight of Contender Series kicked off in Las Vegas, and after five fights, UFC CEO Dana White awarded contracts to Mansour Abdul-Malik, Bruno Lopes, Jose Delgado, and Lone’er Kavanagh, who all picked up big finishes at the UFC APEX.
Abdul-Malik brutalizes Schultz
Abdul-Malik showed why the Xtreme Couture gym is so high on him, as the 26-year-old prospect moved to 6-0 in his career with a brutal stoppage of Wes Schultz in the night’s main event.
Abdul-Malik landed big power punches right from the opening bell, but Schultz’s gameness kept him in the bout and even led to Schultz having impressive moments in the second as he poured out some unorthodox offense that had Abdul-Malik reeling.
Unfortunately, that explosion was the last of his gas tank, and after Abdul-Malik weathered the storm, he turned things around, took the mount, and then finished the bout with some nasty elbows, which earned him a UFC contract.
Closed out the show
Mansur Abdul-Malik dropped huge elbows on his way to victory on #DWCS! pic.twitter.com/owY4lEQCQh
— UFC (@ufc) August 14, 2024
Hamed outpoints Ding
A former kickboxer, Rami Hamed stepped in on short notice against the most experienced fighter in Contender Series history, Meng Ding, and though he didn’t blow anyone’s socks off, the Lebanese fighter did pick up an important win. Showing shades of Stephen Thompson, Hamed bounced around the cage and outpointed Ding, who couldn’t ever find a rhythm, and even had a point deducted for repeated low blows as he struggled to get to Hamed.
Unfortunately for Hamed, his performance didn’t sway Dana White and he missed out on a contract.
Got it done!
Rami Hamed wins by Unanimous Decision!
Watch NOW on @ESPNPlus pic.twitter.com/mVwGHvvWoS
— UFC (@ufc) August 14, 2024
Lopes stops Sazhiniani
Last season, Bruno Lopes entered Contender Series as an undefeated fighter, but less than four minutes later, the Brazilian light heavyweight suffered his first loss against contract winner Brendson Ribeiro. Things were different this time around though, as Lopes overcame a rough start to stop Mikhail Sazhiniani with nasty body shots in the second round of their contest.
Sazhiniani came out strong to start with wild, looping shots that dropped Lopes and put him on the defensive. But in the second round, Lopes hurt Sazhiniani with a knee to the body, and the follow-up shots forced referee Herb Dean to stop the bout and for White to give him a contract.
The body work paid off
Bruno Lopes takes care of business!
Watch #DWCS NOW on @ESPNPlus pic.twitter.com/hvwYys9zZ1
— UFC (@ufc) August 14, 2024
Jose Delgado ices Ernie Juarez
UFC matchmaker Sean Shelby was high on Jose Delgado as a prospect and everyone saw why on Tuesday night.
Despite taking the fight on short notice, Delgado came out aggressively, putting a strong pace on Juarez with punches, knees, and ground-and-pound. Then, in the second round, Delgado backed Juarez up to the cage and landing a gorgeous stepping knee as Juarez ducked down, immediately slumping his opponent and earning his UFC contract.
What a knee ‼️
Jose Delgado gets it done in style!
Watch #DWCS NOW on @ESPNPlus pic.twitter.com/C89haM78A7
— UFC (@ufc) August 13, 2024
Kavanagh delivers dazzling knockout over Ho
Hyped up by Laura Sanko as one of the best prospects she’s ever seen on Contender Series, expectations were sky high for Lone’er Kavanagh, and he somehow exceeded them, scoring a brutal knockout in the first round over fellow undefeated prospect An Tuan Ho.
After a few minutes of feeling each other out, Kavanagh stepped in with a vicious left hook that floored Ho and left him on the canvas for several minutes after the bout. Fortunately, Ho was able to eventually come around and walk out of the cage under his own power, and Kavanagh punched his ticket to the UFC.
THIS IS WHY WE LOVE #DWCS!
Lone’er Kavanagh delivers a stunning KO in our first fight of Season 8!
Watch NOW on @ESPNPlus pic.twitter.com/Gwb0rgCbFy
— UFC (@ufc) August 13, 2024
Check out DWCS results below.
Mansur Abdul-Malik def. Wes Schultz via TKO (punches) — Round 2, 3:55
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