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Heavyweight veteran Derrick Lewis will have his hands full with Brazilian contender Rodrigo Nascimento tomorrow night (Sat., May 11, 2024) at UFC St. Louis live on ESPN from inside Enterprise Center in St. Louis, Missouri, but “Black Beast” is also eying down a potential crossover into professional wrestling.

Lewis, who is one of the most recognizable heavyweights on the UFC roster today, has become quite a favorite among both casual and hardcore fans. His knockout ability and hilarious post-fight interviews have nearly made him a household name. If he’s able to earn another Octagon win in yet another UFC main event this weekend his stock will be on the rise yet again.

With more success comes more opportunities, which could eventually lead Lewis into the World Wrestling Entertainment (WWE) ring. Now that UFC and WWE are under the same corporate umbrella, “Black Beast” might find a way to take his talents to pro wrestling. In fact, the UFC heavyweight claims he’s already had talks about a potential WWE crossover.

“We [WWE and Lewis] are actually in talks right now,” said Lewis earlier this week during UFC St. Louis’ media day. “We’ve been talking for a few months. I was supposed to go down there in February to check everything out.”

As far as a potential WWE finishing move, Lewis would like to take a page out of Rikishi’s book and continue to take his shorts off.

“It’d have to be something like Rikishi,” added Lewis, “You might see it. I like taking down my shorts. You might see something like that.”

What do you think, Maniacs? Would you want to see Lewis inside of the WWE ring anytime soon?

Let us know!

MMAmania.com will deliver LIVE round-by-round, blow-by-blow coverage of the entire UFC St. Louis fight card RIGHT HERE, starting with the ESPN/ESPN+ preliminary card bouts at 4 p.m. ET, followed by the ESPN/ESPN+ main card start time at 7 p.m. ET.

To check out the latest and greatest UFC St. Louis news and notes be sure to hit up our comprehensive event archives here and here. For the updated and finalized “Lewis vs. Nascimento” fight card and ESPN/ESPN+ lineup click here.

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PFL MENA will go down later TODAY (Fri., May 10, 2024) in Riyadh, Saudi Arabia, the first-ever event for the promotion’s second European League. Headlining the event is a Featherweight fight between Abdullah Al-Qahtani vs. Yazeed Hasanain. In the Bantamweight co-main event, Ali Taleb will face Nawras Abzakh, while Xavier Alaoui will tangle with Rachid El Hazoume one fight prior.

The event is not viewable stateside, but checkout all the viewing options for other countries below. In addition, if you can’t stream the event live, don’t fret because MMAmania.com will deliver live results and highlights of all the action below, beginning at 11 a.m. ET.

PFL MENA QUICK RESULTS:

145 lbs.: Abdullah Al-Qahtani vs. Yazeed Hasanain
135 lbs.: Ali Taleb vs. Nawras Abzakh – Taleb via unanimous decision
135 lbs.: Xavier Alaoui vs. Rachid El Hazoume — El Hazoume via second-round submission
145 lbs.: Islam Reda vs. Adam Meskini – Reda via unanimous decision
135 lbs.: Tariq Ismail Vs. Jalal Al Daaja – Majority draw
135 lbs.: Elias Boudegzdame vs. Hassan Mandour – Boudegzdame via second-round submission (guillotine)
105 lbs.: Hattan Alsaif vs. Nada Faheem – Alsaif via second-round knockout
145 lbs.: Maraoune Bellagouit vs. Mido Mohamed -Bellagouit via third round knockout
145 lbs.: Ahmed Tarek vs. Abdelrahman Alhyasat – Alhyasat via unanimous decision
125 lbs.: Malik Basahel vs. Harsh Pandya – Basahel via unanimous decision

PFL MENA Highlights:

For all the latest PFL news and notes click here.

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Ultimate Fighting Championship (UFC) Welterweight sluggers Joaquin Buckley vs. Nursulton Ruziboev will go to war this weekend (Sat., May 11, 2024) inside Enterprise Center in St. Louis, Mo., for UFC St. Louis.

Buckley is taking a massive risk here. Fresh off the biggest win of his career over Vicente Luque (watch it), Buckley’s eagerness to jump right back into action and get booked in his home town has earned him a showdown against a dangerous and unranked foe. Ruziboev has been crushing his opposition at Middleweight and rides a massive win streak into this step up in competition. The 6’5” prospect has fought at Welterweight in the past, but it’s been a couple years, so that’s an interesting angle to this match up as well.

Let’s take a closer look at the betting odds and strategic keys for each athlete:

Photo by Cooper Neill/Zuffa LLC via Getty Images

Buckley vs. Ruziboev Betting Odds

• Joaquin Buckley victory: -148
• Joaquin Buckley via TKO/KO/DQ: +140
• Joaquin Buckley via submission: +2000
• Joaquin Buckley via decision: +400
• Nursulton Ruziboev victory: +124
• Nursulton Ruziboev via TKO/KO/DQ: +330
• Nursulton Ruziboev via submission: +450
• Nursulton Ruziboev via decision: +650
• Odds via DraftKings Sportsbook

Photo by Michelle Farsi/Getty Images

How Buckley Wins

Joaquin Buckley is a combination puncher with serious power. He likes to explode forward with power shots, attacking the head and body. He’s definitely vulnerable to counters in the process, but Buckley mitigates that by feinting actively and scoring angles before charging. On the whole, his wrestling has come a long way too, particularly since dropping to 170 pounds.

This is hardly the first fight in which Buckley has really needed to close the distance. That was the whole story of his Middleweight career! The fortunate part here is that while Ruziboev may still have the length advantage that troubled Buckley up at 185-pounds, he’s going to be leaner and/or diminishing himself to make the weight.

Two factors are going to determine whether or not Buckley can get close to Ruziboev: feints and his ability to cut the cage. Frequent and convincing feints and false starts are going to be absolutely essential in preventing Ruziboev from picking him off on the way in with counters. If Buckley can use his movement to work Ruziboev towards the fence, that will help ensure his combinations actually land as well.

Photo by Jeff Bottari/Zuffa LLC via Getty Images

How Ruziboev Wins

Ruziboev is still relatively new to UFC, having won just two fights inside the Octagon, but he’s a veteran with 46 total professional bouts to his credit. One way or another, the man is a finisher, having stopped 32 opponents before the final bell. Lately, he’s proven himself a sniper, timing his opponents with huge shots at distance.

And that sounds like a great plan here.

In his last fight, Ruziboev played the double threat of the right hand and right uppercut really well. That should work really well here, given the height and general range difference between the two men. If Ruziboev can establish his cross, he stands a fair shot at catching Buckley off-guard by going uppercut instead, which could create a massive collision.

To time Buckley’s advances, I’d like to see Ruziboev touching and pull. A quick jab could convince Buckley to charge, while the pull keeps Ruziboev at his preferred range, ready to counter.

Photo by Cooper Neill/Zuffa LLC via Getty Images

Buckley Vs. Ruziboev Prediction

It’s hard to have a lot of confidence here.

On one hand, Ruziboev appears to have a lot of the traits that give Buckley trouble. He could find similar success to Kevin Holland, who repeatedly dropped “New Mansa” by stranding him at distance and scoring counter punches on his way in (watch highlights). Buckley has refined his game since then, but the overall issue of closing forward on longer strikers will always exist for him.

Conversely, Ruziboev doesn’t have a lot of Octagon time. We haven’t really seen him tested, and to my eyes, he looks like too big for Welterweight. Even if he makes the weight, there’s concern that the 30-year-old will fatigue easily or be more prone to getting rocked.

Ultimately, Ruziboev is a fighter who tends to finish quickly or lose late. Buckley is a gamer, and at 170 pounds, I think he’ll be durable enough to survive a rough patch or two and get his game going as the fight wears on.

Prediction: Buckley via decision (+400)

Remember that MMAmania.com will deliver LIVE round-by-round, blow-by-blow coverage of the entire UFC St. Louis fight card right here, starting with the ESPN+ “Prelims” matches, which are scheduled to begin at 4 p.m. ET, then the remaining main card balance on ESPN (also on ESPN+) at 7 p.m. ET.

To check out the latest and greatest UFC St. Louis: “Lewis vs. Nascimento” news and notes be sure to hit up our comprehensive event archive right here.

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Bringing you the weird and wild from the world of MMA each and every weeknight!

Welcome to Midnight Mania!

Jon Jones’ status as one of the greatest of all time means that everyone wants a piece of “Bones.” He reigned over the Light Heavyweight division for most of a decade before finally taking a chance on his Heavyweight aspirations. That risk was rewarded with a shot at the vacant belt opposite Ciryl Gane, who Jones submitted inside a round to become champion.

Since then, Jones has dealt with injury and delay to his planned Stipe Miocic title defense. There’s some controversy there regarding whether or not interim kingpin Tom Aspinall deserves a chance at gold rather than the aging former champion, but back when Jones finally announced his intentions to vacate the 205-pound crown, there was no issue. Everyone agreed it was time … or at least, almost everyone agreed!

Former (and, at the time, future) champion Jan Blachowicz wanted to square off with “Bones” and was next-in-line when Jones vacated his belt. He was immediately displeased at losing the chance to fight Jones, and he apparently has never really let go of those feelings. Recent quotes from Blachowicz still allege that Jones “escaped to Heavyweight” to avoid losing to Blachowicz, and “Bones” reacted online.

“I swear I have a spy in my camp, how else would he had known this?” Jones pondered. “Over here, scratching my head.” Jones also listed Blachowicz as an example of a flash-in-the-pan match up, writing him off as “Perfect example, here today, gone tomorrow. Legendary Polish power now nonexistent.”

Blachowicz responded to Jones’ remark, claiming “I didn’t need to put any spies on your team. I could smell your fear even across ocean.”

At the moment, both men are recovering from injury. Jones tore his pec muscle preparing for Stipe Miocic back in October 2023, whereas Jan Blachowicz underwent surgery on both shoulders in December 2023. While they may be returning at roughly the same time later this year, they will most assuredly not be doing so against one another.

Insomnia

Why does UFC insist on giving its most tired soldier so many 25-minute fights?

Nothing like a hard-earned battle wound.

Tito Ortiz, absolute champion of unintentional comedy.

A pair of Brazilian greats over the years:

This is a really sweet sequence.

An interesting look at the BKFC weigh-ins. Mike Perry really doesn’t seem to have any business fighting at 185 pounds!

Nothing like the love and support of fans.

Slips, rips, and KO clips

Minoru Kimura apparently competed in Mortal Kombat and win via fatality.

If you throw three incredibly slow kicks in a row, you cannot be surprised when your opponent comes down the middle with a counter.

Blood Diamond is a cool name and all, but the man is on a rough skid.

Random Land

Cleaning up the mean streets.

Midnight Music: The last time I wrote MM last Friday evening, I picked a Big Black song. Sadly, Big Black guitarist (and several other bands) and legendary producer, Steve Albini, passed on Tuesday at the age of 61. If you like Nirvana, The Pixies, Bush, PJ Harvey … Albini is a name to know!

Sleep well Maniacs! More martial arts madness is always on the way.

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Michael Chandler isn’t the only fighter Conor McGregor has to worry about.

UFC 303 will see the return of “The Notorious” in Las Vegas on June 29, 2024. Before he finally collides with Chandler, McGregor will have to continue his legal battle with old friend and teammate, Artem Lobov.

McGregor, 35, started his now-famous whiskey brand, Proper No. Twelve, with Lobov in 2018. Since then, the duo have fallen out and a majority brand stake was sold for $ 600 million to Proximo Sport in 2021. Lobov has claimed to have been promised five percent of the stake but never received any money. He’s suing for that percentage while McGregor reportedly offered Lobov $ 1 million which was rejected.

The former UFC Featherweight and Lightweight champion, McGregor, is forced to comply with a High Court order by tomorrow, requiring the disclosure of his personal benefits from the sale, according to The Irish Sun. On top of the percentage lawsuit, Lobov had a second case against his former teammate and business partner for defamation. McGregor labeled Lobov a “rat” on his Twitter account in late 2022. However, the Dublin High Court closed that case and cleared McGregor of any wrongdoing.

When McGregor enters the Octagon against Chandler next month, it will be his first time competing since a first round technical knockout loss to Dustin Poirier in July 2021 (watch highlights). Lobov, 37, hasn’t fought in the same amount of time as his last appearance came in a bare-knuckle boxing (BKB) match against Denys Berinchyk. “The Russian Hammer” lost the Mahatch Fighting Championship bout via fourth round retirement (watch highlights).

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Art “One Glove” Jimmerson died on Wednesday at age 60.

The former professional boxer, who amassed a record of 33-18 with 17 knockouts, was perhaps best known for kicking off UFC 1 opposite jiu-jitsu phenom Royce Gracie. Jimmerson became the first person in UFC history to lose by submission after tapping to the Brazilian at 2:18 of the opening frame.

“Dear Friends and Family, It is with heavy hearts that we announce the passing of our beloved Art Jimmerson,” his family wrote on Facebook. “Art was known for his love of God, family, and boxing. He will be deeply missed by all who knew him.”

“A funeral service to celebrate Art’s life will be announced. We are grateful for the outpouring of love and support during this difficult time. Please keep Art and his family in your thoughts and prayers.”

According to former UFC executive producer Campbell McLaren, Jimmerson only wore one glove so that referee “Big” John McCarthy could see him tap. The Missourian was afraid that not tapping would have resulted in a broken arm … or worse. Gracie went on to defeat Ken Shamrock and Gerard Gordeau to win the UFC 1 tournament.

A Gracie vs. Jimmerson rematch was rumored for Aug. 2011 but never materialized.

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But won’t rule out a jump to NFL.

Olympic gold medalist Gable Steveson has been released from WWE.

According to longtime wrestling reporter, Dave Meltzer, Steveson was unable to make the transition from amateur wrestler to professional showman while competing in the promotion’s developmental program and was sent packing earlier this week.

“Gable Steveson is very grateful for the opportunities he had with WWE and would like to thank everybody in the organization who helped him get there,” manager Dave Martin wrote in a statement provided to The MMA Hour.

“He would also like to thank all the fans who have supported him on his professional wrestling journey. Now, Gable is ready to resume competing against elite-level competition and looks forward to sharing big news with you all very soon.”

Steveson, 23, has been training with Henry Hooft and Robbie Lawler at MMA gym Kill Cliff FC in South Florida, according to Martin, and multiple NFL teams have also expressed interest in meeting with the Minnesota Gopher. An announcement on his athletic future is expected in the coming days.

Keep an eye on Twitter.

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Bringing you the weird and wild from the world of MMA each and every weeknight!

Welcome to Midnight Mania!

Conor McGregor’s massive return to the Octagon has been building up for nearly three years, but you wouldn’t have known it by the lackluster fight poster Ultimate Fighting Championship (UFC) released for the Irishman’s upcoming clash with Michael Chandler.

McGregor, who has been sidelined since suffering a broken leg at the hands of Dustin Poirier all the way back in July 2021, is scheduled to fight Chandler at UFC 303 on June 29 from inside T-Mobile Arena in Las Vegas, Nevada. The event is expected to be one of the highest grossing gates in UFC history as the biggest MMA superstar of all time returns from a three-year layoff.

All things considered, you would think that the UFC marketing and design team would come up with a better poster for UFC 303 than the garbage that spilled onto social media on Wednesday night. McGregor’s comeback fight will be one of the biggest moments in UFC history, let alone in 2024. It deserves a more memorable fight poster than something you’d see for an Alex Perez vs. Matheus Nicolau UFC Apex card.

The shocking results can be seen above. Let us know what you think of the official McGregor vs. Chandler fight poster.

Insomnia

Ryan Garcia is halfway there!

Sean O’Malley wants all the smoke Conor McGregor can dish out.

This has to be one of the most ridiculous fight posters of all time. Check the bottom right section for Adrien “If I Show Up” Broner.

A huge flyweight clash has been booked for UFC 304. Thoughts?

This is a pretty one-sided breakdown…

Do you think Chael Sonnen was really asked to be the backup fighter for Jorge Masvidal vs. Nate Diaz 2?

Anthony Smith continues to callout Alex Pereira to a $ 50K grappling match.

Is this the next matchup to make in the UFC’s flyweight division?

Fair game?

It’s crazy to think that at one time Frankie Edgar could have fought at the same weight as Islam Makhachev.

Do you think Olympic gold medalist Gable Steveson will ever compete in MMA?

Dustin Poirier wasn’t impressed with Islam Makhachev’s punching machine power.

Sean O’Malley won’t let anyone forget that he KO’d Aljamain Sterling.

And Sterling quickly fired back…

Did Mike Perry miss out on a prime opportunity?

Slips, rips, and KO clips

This was a wild KO from the world of boxing.

Here’s another MMA fan edit for the win!

Check out Robelis Despaigne’s last four fights wrapped into a 50-second clip.

Does this count as a slip, rip, or neither?

Random Land

No way this is as good as the original, right?

Take your base!

Until next time, sleep well Maniacs!

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Robelis Despaigne might be the most intriguing prospect in the Heavyweight division.

After a lengthy and successful career as a Taekwondo black belt, including the acquisition of an Olympic bronze medal, Cuba’s Despaigne made the transition to mixed martial arts (MMA) in June 2022. “The Big Boy” has had an absurdly quick career thus far, racking up five wins with no losses and his last four fights lasting a combined 37 seconds with knockout finishes.

Despaigne, 35, targets victory No. 6 when he fights Waldo Cortes-Acosta at UFC St. Louis this weekend (Sat., May 11, 2024). The Cuban believes the win will continue his quick momentum and ultimately culminate in a title fight sooner rather than later.

“Look, if all goes according to plan, I think that by the beginning of next year, I’ll be fighting for the UFC Heavyweight title, or at least the interim,” Despaigne told MMA Junkie.

Before Despaigne can challenge for gold, he’ll have to, obviously, get past Cortes-Acosta, but the top of the heap still needs sorting. Undisputed champion, Jon Jones, has yet to defend his title and is expected to do so against former titlist, Stipe Miocic, upon his return later this year. Meanwhile, Tom Aspinall holds the interim strap, which presumably will grant him a shot at the winner.

From Despaigne’s viewpoint, he expects Aspinall to be the one who comes out on top at the end of the day. That’s until he gets his shot, of course.

“That is a close fight, but if it’s a matter of momentum, I think that Aspinall can pull it off and win the crown,” Despaigne said. “But we know the quality that Jon Jones has, so he can always surprise.

“For me, that would be a dream to be champion of the UFC, and it would make me proud,” he concluded.

MMAmania.com will deliver LIVE round-by-round, blow-by-blow coverage of the entire UFC St. Louis fight card RIGHT HERE, starting with the ESPN/ESPN+ preliminary card bouts at 4 p.m. ET, followed by the ESPN/ESPN+ main card start time at 7 p.m. ET.

To check out the latest and greatest UFC St. Louis news and notes be sure to hit up our comprehensive event archives here and here. For the updated and finalized “Lewis vs. Nascimento” fight card and ESPN/ESPN+ lineup click here.

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With UFC 302 just around the corner, the promotion will make one last stop at the APEX facility in Las Vegas for the UFC Vegas 92 event, topped by an important featherweight battle between No. 11-ranked Edson Barboza and undefeated English sensation Lerone Murphy.

Event: UFC Vegas 92: “Barboza vs. Murphy”
Date: Sat., May 18, 2024
Location: UFC APEX in Las Vegas, Nevada
Broadcast: ESPN+
Start Time: 4 p.m. ET “Prelims” | 7 p.m. ET Main Card

UFC Vegas 92 Main Event On ESPN+:

145 lbs.: Edson Barboza vs. Lerone Murphy

UFC Vegas 92 Main Card on ESPN+ (7 p.m. ET):

170 lbs.: Khaos Williams vs. Carlston Harris
205 lbs.: Oumar Sy vs. Antonio Trocoli
135 lbs.: Adrian Yanez vs. Vinicius Salvador
115 lbs.: Angela Hill vs. Luana Pinheiro

UFC Vegas 92 ‘Prelims’ Card on ESPN+ (4 p.m. ET):

170 lbs.: Themba Gorimbo vs. Ramiz Brahimaj
185 lbs.: Abus Magomedov vs. Warlley Alves
155 lbs.: Victor Martinez vs. Tom Nolan
135 lbs.: Melissa Gatto vs. Tamires Vidal
115 lbs.: Piera Rodriguez vs. Ariane Carnelossi
115 lbs.: Vanessa Demopoulos vs. Emily Ducote

*Fight card, bout order and number of fights remain subject to change.*

To check out the latest and greatest UFC Vegas 92 news and notes be sure to hit up our comprehensive event archive here. For more upcoming UFC events click here.

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