Category Archives: Mmamania.com

Dan Hooker was looking to score some revenge against Michael Chandler.

Since the 34 year-old “Hangman” is unlikely to avenge his UFC 257 loss to the former Bellator MMA lightweight champion, the next best thing is to steal his red panty night against the biggest draw in the sport, former two-division champion Conor McGregor.

Hooker called for “Notorious” after beating Mateusz Gamrot at UFC 305 last weekend in Perth.

“How you like me now? Woo! Grapple these nuts!” Hooker shouted after the fight. “I don’t think I fought that well but hey bubba, you get in a fight and get your hand raised, that’s all that counts. Look at me now! I want them all brother! I want the BMF, I want Conor McGregor, I want a title eliminator, I want everything brother! I want it all Sean [Shelby], I want it all Hunter [Campbell]!”

McGregor has been keeping Chandler on the sidelines since late 2022, thanks to a never-ending series of injuries, delays, and setbacks. Their “Ultimate Fighter” payoff is now rumored for later this year, presumably at UFC 309 in Las Vegas, though nothing is official at this time.

“I didn’t necessarily call him out, I just said like, because I am absolute troll, so it’s like the biggest troll move you could do of all time is to snake that fight off Chandler,” Hooker told The Mac Life. “Like he waits all that time and then Conor just fights me anyway, like that would be gold. Like, I would feel like the biggest snake troll of all time. I would get my black belt in trolling.”

Maybe he can have his belt presented by Master Henry Cejudo.

MMAmania.com – All Posts

The more things change, the more they stay the same.

UFC middleweight champion Dricus Du Plessis defended his 185-pound crown with an exclamation point, submitting former division titleholder Israel Adesanya atop the UFC 305 pay-per-view (PPV) event last weekend at RAC Arena in Perth, Western Australia.

Relive the madness here.

Du Plessis (22-2) is expected to make his next title defense against former division champion Sean Strickland, a rematch from the UFC 297 headliner earlier this year in Toronto that had “Stillknocks” squeaking by “Tarzan” with a super close split decision.

More on that (mild) controversy here.

That said, current light heavyweight champion Alex Pereira was also teasing a return to 185 pounds, where he once held the middleweight strap. In addition, the winner of Robert Whittaker vs. Khamzat Chimaev — who collide at UFC 308 — is also in the mix.

Here’s what the bookies at SportsBetting.ag set as the opening odds.

Dricus Du Plessis -130
Sean Strickland +110

Dricus Du Plessis -200
Alex Pereira +170

Dricus Du Plessis -185
Robert Whittaker +160

Dricus Du Plessis +170
Khamzat Chimaev -200

Maybe they missed that third round of the Chimaev-Usman fight.

With the current UFC schedule quickly filling up and just one PPV event remaining without a headlining act, we probably won’t see Du Plessis back inside the cage until early 2025. It may be worth the wait if “Stillknocks” gets to headline the promotion’s first-ever fight card in Africa.

For more results and fallout from last weekend’s UFC 305 event click here.

MMAmania.com – All Posts

‘Gordo’ scored plenty of points against Simoes in a crushing performance that makes us wonder who will dethrone ‘King Ryan?’

Gordon Ryan won his second ADCC Superfight of the weekend on Sunday, dominating Yuri Simoes en route to a 21-0 victory on points.

This was a much better performance from Ryan, who went to overtime against Felipe Pena in Saturday’s Superfight, eeking out a 2-0 win off a close scramble (see video highlights here). Against Simoes, Gordo racked up points by improving position, going from mount back to half-guard repeatedly.

There was a fair amount of action on this one, with Ryan attacking Simoes’ arm repeatedly during the bout. Simoes finished the fight trying to force a tap from an ankle lock, but it’s unclear if he’d have been able to get it even if the clock didn’t run out.

The win makes Gordon Ryan a seven time ADCC champion and it’s hard to imagine who could emerge to beat him in the future. Even Kaynan Duarte, who won this year’s Absolute and -99kg division, has already fallen to Ryan in past matches. Would the Ryan that showed up this weekend be able to beat the Kaynan who hit seven submissions in eight wins? We may have to wait until ADCC 2026 to find out.

There is also Nicky Rod, who challenged Ryan to a $ 1 million grappling match. Check out what the CJI tournament winner told MMA Mania about a potential match with Gordo here.

For now it really seems like the biggest opponent for Ryan is his own body, which continues to force him out of competition for lengthy stretches. Check out the highlights from Ryan’s victory over Simoes below:

MMAmania.com – All Posts

Drake doesn’t exactly have the best record betting on mixed martial arts, which is why Du Plessis was happy to see the Canadian rapper supporting Adesanya in Australia.

The Drake curse was in full effect on Saturday night at UFC 305 after Drizzy bet a whopping $ 450,000 on Israel Adesanya to beat Dricus Du Plessis in Perth, Australia.

A win would have paid the Canadian rapper out $ 855,000, but that’s neither here nor there because Du Plessis walked away with a fourth round submission win (see the finish here), banishing “The Last Stylebender” from the title fight circle he’s existed in for the past 12 fights over five years.

Following the win, Du Plessis took to the internet to thank Drake for his non-support.

“From the bottom of my heart once again, THANK YOU DRAKE,” the middleweight champion wrote on X (formerly Twitter).

Drake is now 1-3 betting on Adesanya. He won $ 900,000 when Izzy beat Jared Cannoniner back in July 2022, but lost big with a $ 2 million bet on Adesanya beating Alex Pereira in their first UFC fight. He also placed a $ 500,000 bet on Adesanya to beat Sean Strickland. That puts him $ 2.05 million in the red betting on “Stylebender.”

He’s not complete betting poison, as some would have you think. A comprehensive analysis of all Drake’s public bets was made at the start of August 2024. His record: 16-23, which isn’t great. But after winning roughly $ 18 million and losing $ 11 million, the musician is still ahead by $ 6.5 million.

It’s also worth keeping in mind that all these bets are through Stake, a betting company which Drake now co-owns. We doubt he’s even playing with his own money. Most likely they pay him to play, and he bets with house money. Not a bad gig, being a rich superstar, huh?

MMAmania.com – All Posts

Paradigm Sports will walk away from it’s failed deal with Manny Pacquiao $ 3 million poorer after head Audie Attar failed to keep his California manager’s license current.

Make sure your manager’s license is filed, paid for, and up to date, kids. Otherwise you too could find yourself out several million dollars in a failed deal with a boxing legend.

That’s what’s happened in the case of Conor McGregor’s Paradigm Sports Management company and Manny Pacquiao, who have been embroiled in a bitter lawsuit since 2020. Paradigm paid Pacquiao a $ 3.3 million dollar advance when they signed the aging boxer to a deal, only for “Pac-Man” to keep the money, walk away from the deal, and continue organizing his own fights.

An initial court decision went Paradigm’s way to the tune of $ 5 million, but a more recent filing on August 12th from State of California Superior Court judge Walter Schwarm reversed that, dubbing the deal ‘illegal.’

The ruling hinged on Paradigm manager Audie Attar not having a manager’s license in the state of California during a key period between 2019 and 2021. Whoops.

“The court finds for Mr. Pacquiao on the declaratory relief cause of action and declares the contract void due to illegality,” the court decision read.

“This decision negates the jury’s findings back in May of 2023,” Pacquiao’s lawyer Jason Aniel wrote in a statement (via the Philadelphia Star). “We thank the court’s time and effort in this matter. Mr. Pacquiao thanks his fans for their patience while the court fully resolved all the legal issues.”

Manny Pacquiao has fought three times since the lawsuit was brought against him: he suffered a decision loss boxing Yordenis Ugas in November 2021, and fought two exhibition bouts in South Korea and Japan respectively. His most recent bout, a custom rules affair against kickboxer Rukiya Anpo, saw Manny get picked apart by his much larger opponent at Super Rizin 3. Due to the specific ruleset, the bout was declared a draw.

What the future holds for Pacquiao is uncertain, but Paradigm part-owner Conor McGregor has expressed interest in fighting the Filipino boxer in Saudi Arabia, and so has Manny’s (legal) management team. So perhaps we could get one more round of Pacquiao vs. Paradigm, sorted out in the ring instead of a courtroom.

But first McGregor needs to get two more fights out of the UFC, fights the promotion is in no rush to deliver.

MMAmania.com – All Posts

Dricus Du Plessis does not think “Poatan” should go back to Middleweight.

Du Plessis scored a massive win at UFC 305 last night (Sat., Aug. 17, 2024) when he submitted former two-time Middleweight champion Israel Adesanya in the fourth round to defend his title from inside RAC Arena in Perth, Australia (watch highlights).

Immediately after the UFC 305 main event, former Middleweight champion and current Light Heavyweight kingpin Alex Pereira posted on social media that he is planning a move down to 185 lbs one more time.

Du Plessis caught wind of Pereira’s future move and warned him to backtrack.

“I honestly don’t think Alex Pereira should drop down to 185 lbs. If he wants to, great, perfect,” Du Plessis told the media during the UFC 305 post-fight press conference (watch here). “But then we’re going to get the excuses. We saw Izzy stiff that man in the first round. I felt Izzy’s punching power tonight. You know, Izzy has great timing. He’s fast, he’s long, and he has great combinations, but I felt the power. If Izzy stiffens you like that, you do not want to be in there with me. Especially when you’re going to come in there with excuses like I cut too much weight, everyone is going to say that.”

“Stillknocks” instead recommended Pereira stay at Light Heavyweight, saying he would come up after he fights Sean Strickland.

While Pereira’s move back to Middleweight to avenge his biggest rival is fun in thought, “DDP” is completely correct. “Poatan” is healthy at Light Heavyweight and is currently the biggest star in UFC.

However, Du Plessis’ coach hopes UFC gives Pereira the shot.

For complete UFC 305 results, coverage, and highlights, click HERE.

MMAmania.com – All Posts

Last night (Sat., Aug. 17, 2024), Ultimate Fighting Championship (UFC) ventured forth to the RAC Arena in Perth, Australia for UFC 305. Fittingly, the fight card was built to satisfy Australian fight fans, as local talent was highlighted from top-to-bottom. For the rest of the world, however, the bulk of the interest was vested in the main event Middleweight grudge match between Dricus Du Plessis and Israel Adesanya. All told, it was a much better event than last week, and there’s plenty to talk about!

Let’s take a look back over at UFC 305’s best performances and techniques:

Photo by Jeff Bottari/Zuffa LLC

DDP Cannot Be Denied

Dricus Du Plessis faced an Israel Adesanya well-prepared to recapture his title.

“Stylebender” attacked this fight correctly in many ways. He attacked the body ruthlessly. Every body kick he threw from the open engagement looked really painful, and his combination punching was at its best in years. He torched Du Plessis’ liver, ribs, and kidney, which really destroyed the champion’s cardio.

The problem for Adesanya is that Du Plessis is a gorilla. He has inhuman levels of toughness, strength, and grit. Somehow, he kept pushing the pace despite the brutal body shots. Anyone else would’ve hit the floor — “DDP” responded with lunging power punches and charging double leg takedowns.

He’s downright unreasonable.

Unfortunately for Adesanya, his defensive footwork issues reappeared when heavy fatigue was introduced. In addition, his defense to takedowns has always been just turning away and standing back up. Du Plessis is the rare Middleweight who was a genuine submission threat to Adesanya and could punish that trait. The South African nearly sunk in a rear naked choke in the second then sealed the deal for real in the fourth in a very similar sequence.

All in all, it’s yet another great win for Du Plessis and respectable performance from Adesanya. Send that man to South Africa for his next title defense!

Photo by Jeff Bottari/Zuffa LLC

DON’T BLINK!

A few months ago, Steve Erceg was one round away from being world champion. Last night, Kai Kara-France shut off his lights in the very first round. This sport will come at ya quick!

In the early exchanges, Kara-France was having difficulty touching Erceg, whereas Erceg’s jab was starting to find a home. However, “Astroboy” made a key mistake: he started punching down at Kara-France. Kara-France was already the shorter man, and he stands more squat too. It’s tempting to aim down towards his chin, when in fact it’s up to the longer, taller man in Erceg to bend his own knees and meet Kara-France’s level.

Punching down is dangerous. It leaves the chin exposed. A couple times, Kara-France’s big overhand swings came up just short. When his looping left did connect on a fully upright Erceg near the end of the round, Erceg hit the floor stiff. He popped back up, but he was on wobbly legs, and a second knockdown sealed the deal.

Kara-France now has the best case at Flyweight for a title shot. Sure, he technically lost to Amir Albazi in his bout before this, but many scored that fight for him anyway. There are no rules with UFC title fight matchmaking nowadays, so just book him versus Alexandre Pantoja!

If nothing else, it’s at least a fresh match up at 125-pounds.

Photo by Jeff Bottari/Zuffa LLC

Lightweight Provides The Goods

Dan Hooker vs. Mateusz Gamrot was awesome.

Gamrot started the fight with shockingly sharp kickboxing. He was moving really well, scored a brief takedown, and then floored Hooker with a nasty counter punch. He chewed up Hooker from top position too, carving “The Hangman” with punches and elbows from within the guard.

Fortunately, Dan Hooker has never been deterred by a bad start or bloodied face. When he returned to his feet with short time remaining in the first, he upped the pressure and floored Gamrot with a clubbing left hook!

Once more, Gamrot started the second strong. This time, he did so with the wrestling, controlling the first half of the round. When Hooker got back to his feet, he pressed hard and ate a lot of counters. His pressure was wearing Gamrot down, however, and Hooker started to land late in the round. Those connections prompted some bad shots from Gamrot, and Hooker brutally punished them with heavy elbows and tight guillotine attempts.

Seriously, the elbows were downright nasty. Any time Gamrot’s movement slowed down in a wrestling position, Hooker was dropping sledgehammers into the side of his head. Those blows definitely took something out of the notoriously well-conditioned wrestler and shifted the momentum into Hooker’s corner.

It was all up for grabs with five minutes remaining. Gamrot largely abandoned the wrestling — those elbows!!! — but still found success in cracking Hooker with counter punches and sharp jabs. Hooker’s power and grit in a brawl would not be denied though. He just kept pushing, confident that when his punches did land, they would take a bigger impact.

Hooker was right! He ripped the liver well, shut Gamrot’s eye, and had him stumbling in the closing minute of the fight. It was close from start-to-finish, but this time around, Hooker’s veteran grit and offensive savvy swayed the judges in his favor.

Do I think Hooker 2.0 is going on a title run at 34 years of age? I do not. But, “The Hangman” really might be better than ever, and he’s certainly must-watch even at this stage of the game.

Photo by Jeff Bottari/Zuffa LLC

Heavyweight Differences

Tai Tuivasa vs. Jairzinho Rozenstruik proved a good explanation of each man’s career direction.

Tuivasa, despite being five years younger, looks the same as ever. He has the same few tools (overhand right, clinch elbows, right low kick) and the same belly. For all the talk of dedicating himself in camp and improving, it’s hard to argue that “Bam Bam” is any better than he was during his would-be rise in 2018.

“Bigi Boy,” meanwhile, is improving. Maybe not dramatically, but this was one of Rozenstruik’s more active and rounded showings. He played his usual jab, inside low kick, and counter game plan well at distance, but he also showed off a bit of combination punching and generally solid defensive movement. He’s still relatively stuck in the same position, but Rozenstruik’s professionalism has now won him three of his last four. He’s not going anywhere.

After losing five straight, Tuivasa might be gone. The judge who somehow scored the fight for him certainly should be, because Rozenstruik kicked his ass for 15 full minutes!

Photo by Jeff Bottari/Zuffa LLC

The Nightmare Arrives!

It’s such a joy to watch Carlos Prates strike.

The Brazilian has more than 100 Muay Thai bouts on his record, and it shows! He is absolutely comfortable exchanging with his opponents. Li Jingliang has monstrous power in his hands, but you didn’t see Prates pulling away from his punches with big movements. No, the Southpaw stayed in the pocket, slipped, and angled off with small motions. He remained in position to attack, and subsequently, he was able to really pick apart “The Leech” between his big swings.

Because of his comfort, Prates has great presence. He pressures without getting wild, always staying in his opponent’s face. While doing so, he’s offering up a lot of different offense: left kicks, different angles on his left hand, stepping knees, and more. If Jingliang overreacted at all, Prates stayed on top of him and kept firing. Jingliang has a historically iron chin, but all those left hands added up and put him on the floor in a bad way.

Prates’ third straight UFC win is by far the biggest of his career. His wrestling and grappling defense are still somewhat in question, but if he can continue to keep fights standing, he’s a problem with anyone at 170 pounds.

Photo by Paul Kane/Getty Images

Additional Thoughts

• Valter Walker defeats Junior Tafa via first-round heel hook (highlights): Wrestler vs. striker at Heavyweight! Contrary to the expectations of nobody, Tafa started the fight by touching Walker up and putting him in danger, but the momentum shifted as soon as Walker latched onto Tafa’s leg. A high crotch put him down once then a mat return kept Tafa on the floor. Walker was in control when he opted to fall back on a leg lock, which rarely pays off. It worked here, however, as Tafa screamed in pain then acted surprised when the referee intervened. According to the unified rules — and every rules meeting I’ve ever attended as an athlete or corner — screaming in pain will always cause the referee to intervene, meaning Tafa has nobody to be upset with outside of himself.
• Jack Jenkins defeats Herbert Burns via third-round knockout (highlights): This has to be the end of the line for Burns. He’s looked so offensively inept in each of his recent defeats, and this was no exception. For most of the fight, he was just getting battered by Jenkins. Jenkins has a reputation for his low kicking — that happens when you break the legs of multiple opponents! — but his boxing actually got the job done in this match up. He did a great job showing the low kick feint to load up a left hook, either upstairs or to the liver. Before long, he was following that left hook with a crushing overhand right. All told, he smashed Burns for most of three rounds, forcing the Brazilian to quit in a punished heap midway through the third.
• Jesus Aguilar defeats Stewart Nicoll via first-round guillotine (highlights): It was a fun grappling match for as long as it lasted! Nicoll started the bout strong, using a kimura to flip Aguilar over and take the back in a brilliant scramble. When Aguilar scrambled to freedom, however, Nicoll made the costly mistake of trying to retain control against a man with four recent guillotine wins on his record. Aguilar jumped on his neck and put the Aussie prospect to sleep, extending his UFC win streak to three in the process.

For complete UFC 305: “Du Plessis vs. Adesanya” results and play-by-play, click HERE!

MMAmania.com – All Posts

UFC 305 results, live streaming updates for “Du Plessis vs. Adesanya”-led pay-per-view (PPV) TONIGHT (Sat., Aug. 17, 2024) on ESPN+ from inside RAC Arena in Perth, Australia.

Ultimate Fighting Championship (UFC) is “Down Under” tonight (Sat., Aug. 17, 2024) with UFC 305 from inside RAC Arena in Perth, western Australia, streaming LIVE on ESPN+ pay-per-view (PPV). The main event has Middleweight champion, Dricus Du Plessis, defending his belt against former 185-pound kingpin, Israel Adesanya (in a bout that has plenty of bad blood). UFC 305’s PPV co-main event has recent Flyweight title challenger, Steve Erceg, against top-ranked mainstay, Kai Kara-France. The PPV main card also boasts Mateusz Gamrot vs. Dan Hooker, Tai Tuivasa vs. Jairzinho Rozenstruik and Li Jingliang vs. Carlos Prates.

UFC 305’s late “Prelims” will headlined by Junior Tafa vs. Valter Walker, while the early portion features Tom Nolan vs. Alex Reyes. You can checkout everything that happened on UFC 305’s “Prelims” undercard right here.

UFC 305 START TIME AND DATE

MMAmania.com will deliver LIVE round-by-round, blow-by-blow coverage of the entire UFC 305 fight card below, starting with the ESPN+ early “Prelims” undercard bouts, which air at 6:30 p.m. ET right here, followed by the late “Prelims” on ESPN/ESPN+ at 8 p.m. ET. UFC 305’s PPV main card will start at 10 p.m ET on ESPN+ PPV. You can bet on all the UFC 305 action right here.

Keep in mind that we will also be the spot for the latest news, recaps, and post-fight analysis following “Du Plessis vs. Adesanya.” Without further delay, see below for the updated UFC 305 results. (Note: This will go from the top down; therefore, the newest information will at the top of the stream).

UFC 305 QUICK RESULTS

185 lbs.: Dricus Du Plessis vs. Israel Adesanya
125 lbs.: Kai Kara-France vs. Steve Erceg
155 lbs.: Mateusz Gamrot vs. Dan Hooker
265 lbs.: Tai Tuivasa vs. Jairzinho Rozenstruik
170 lbs.: Li Jingliang vs. Carlos Prates
265 lbs.: Junior Tafa vs. Valter Walker — Walker def. Tafa via technical submission (leg lock), round 1 (4:56)
145 lbs.: Josh Culibao vs. Ricardo Ramos — Ramos def. Josh Culibao via split decision (29-28, 28-29, 29-28)
125 lbs.: Casey O’Neill vs. Luana Santos: O’Neill def. Luana Santos via unanimous decision (30-27, 30-27, 30-26)
145 lbs.: Jack Jenkins vs. Herbert Burns — Jenkins def. Burns via TKO (leg kicks), round 3 (0:48)
155 lbs.: Tom Nolan vs. Alex Reyes — Nolan def. Reyes via unanimous decision (30-27, 30-27, 29-28)
170 lbs.: Song Kenan vs. Ricky Glenn — Song def. Glenn via unanimous decision (30-27, 30-26, 29-28)
125 lbs.: Stewart Nicoll vs. Jesus Aguilar — Aguilar def. Nicoll via submission (guillotine), round 1 (2:29) — HIGHLIGHTS!

UFC 305 PPV MAIN CARD PLAY-BY-PLAY UPDATES

To check out the latest and greatest UFC 305: “Du Plessis vs. Adesanya” news and notes be sure to hit up our comprehensive event archive right here.

MMAmania.com – All Posts

Jake Paul and Mike Tyson will come face-to-face for a special press conference Sunday afternoon (Aug. 18, 2024) LIVE and FREE on Netflix’s YouTube. The press conference will be hosted by Ryan Clark and take place at the Inaugural Fanatics Fest in New York City.

This is according to a recent announcement by Most Valuable Promotions (MVP), which confirms the press conference will go live at 2 p.m. ET tomorrow. See below:

Remember, Paul and Tyson were expected to meet inside of the boxing ring last month before “Iron Mike” suffered a medical scare and was forced to withdraw from the fight. Most fight fans were happy to see the Netflix spectacle canceled because a 58-year-old Tyson should not be stepping in the ring with a 27-year-old Paul.

Tyson was replaced by former UFC fighter and current bareknuckle boxer, Mike Perry, who was dropped three times by Paul for an eventual TKO loss (highlights HERE).

Unfortunately, the Paul vs. Tyson matchup has already been re-booked for another Netflix-charged event on Nov. 15 from inside AT&T Stadium in Arlington, Texas. There’s a chance that Tyson is able to channel his former self and put a beatdown on “Problem Child,” but the consensus is that Paul will take it to the former boxing champion and pad his already questionable boxing record.

Even if one of them has to die.

MMAmania.com – All Posts

Brendan Allen and Marvin Vettori got into an all-out fist fight last night (Fri., Aug. 16, 2024) while in attendance for PFL Hollywood from inside Hard Rock Casino in Hollywood, Casino.

Friday night also saw UFC bantamweight contender Merab Dvalishvili confront a heckler in the stands at the Craig Jones Invitational in Las Vegas, Nevada, and nearly take his head off. All the way across the country, UFC middleweights were locking horns on a casino floor outside of PFL Hollywood.

Allen and Vettori were scheduled to fight at UFC Vegas 90 back in April, but Vettori withdrew due to injury and was replaced by Chris Curtis. That didn’t stop Allen from capturing a dominant decision over Curtis to extend his current UFC win streak to seven, but the bad blood with Vettori did not go away.

Outside of PFL Hollywood, Vettori reportedly approached Allen’s teammate, Tuco Tokkos, and tried to swing on him. That’s when Allen stepped in, decided to take matters into his own hands, and rushed Vettori into a roulette table. The two quickly started to throw heavy punches as the crowded casino floor broke out in commotion. It was a wild scene to say the last and an exchange that seemed to favor Allen.

Check out the melee below:

After the incident, UFC CEO, Dana White, took to social media to throw some shade at PFL. White suggested that the brawl between Allen and Vettori must have been Fight of the Night since it was at a PFL event. Check it out below:

“Had to be fight of the night if it was at PFL.”

MMAmania.com – All Posts