Category Archives: Mmamania.com

A massive lightweight boxing match between undefeated champion Devin Haney and rising star Ryan Garcia is now in limbo after the New York State Athletic Commission requested a mental health examination from “King Ry.” The two rivals are expected to meet on April 20 in Las Vegas, Nevada.

Why is the athletic commission requesting a mental health evaluation from one of the sport’s youngest stars?

That’s because Garcia has been on a social media rampage. Over the past few weeks he’s been posting cryptic and downright concerning material on his Twitter and Instagram pages. At one point, fight fans thought Garcia was dead before that was debunked as a hoax. His ex-wife still took to social media to insist that Garcia is not okay and to “pray for him.”

This is not the first time Garcia’s mental stability has been called into question.

On Friday, Garcia posted a video to his Twitter account revealing that the commission has requested a mental health evaluation ahead of his fight with Haney. The 25-year-old fighter proceeded to go on a rant about constitutional rights and how he plans to sue the commission for violating them. It was a pretty bizarre video and Garcia’s last before deleting his Twitter account.

Check it out below:

It’s unknown at this time what this means for Garcia’s upcoming boxing match with Haney. The two fighters have some serious beef to settle, but fight fans are already calling for the championship bout to be canceled in light of Garcia’s mental state. This recent request from the athletic commission could be the last straw that breaks the camel’s back, but we’ll have to wait and see.

MMAmania.com – All Posts

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

Welcome to Midnight Mania!

It’s tough to get a read on Francis Ngannou’s boxing abilities.

On one hand, he knocked down Tyson Fury and nearly won a split-decision. On the other, Anthony Joshua scored a flawless victory over “The Predator,” knocking him down three times in just two routes en route to a brutal knockout win (watch highlights). It’s difficult to know just how much of Ngannou’s success against Fury came due to the champion being ill-prepared, or it could just be that Joshua came in with the right game plan and executed perfectly.

Really, it all comes down to the relatively small amount of time in the ring for Ngannou, who never competed in the amateur ranks before that debut against Tyson Fury. Perhaps that’s why analyst Teddy Atlas is now labeling Ngannou an “amateur” boxer after his knockout loss. Unlike Fury, Joshua was able to demonstrate Ngannou’s inexperience and capitalize very quickly.

“He exposed an amateur, because he did in reality,” Atlas said on his YouTube channel (via MMA Junkie). “I know the great performance against Fury, I explained that, it was great, but that was different. Now he had to react. I even think Ngannou’s confidence hurt him because he thought he could be more aggressive, and he was ready to be more aggressive. He was right in front of him. I thought that hurt him this time because he wasn’t that guy yet.

“He was still an amateur, and we forgot that because of his brilliance performance against Fury. … (Joshua) reminded us he was an amateur, he’s not ready for prime time because he did what a top guy should do. You exposed him. You exposed the things he wasn’t yet.”

Why the massive difference in outcomes and performance? Atlas contributes Ngannou’s success in his boxing debut to the element of surprise, as well as matching up better stylistically with “The Gypsy King.”

“Styles makes fights,” Atlas explained. “Fury’s style was completely different from Joshua’s, that’s No. 1. It does influence fights. No. 2. There was something missing that was there the first time, that helped Ngannou when he fought Fury. That something is the element of surprise. That’s a big something, not a little something. Fury was ready physically, he was, I’m making no excuses. Tremendous job by Ngannou, but Fury wasn’t ready mentally.

“You couldn’t be. It’s almost not human to have really taken him seriously, where every fiber of your body and mind would be ready for what was coming. It was his first pro fight, and you’re the champion of the world.”

After the defeat, Ngannou may be returning to the MMA cage by making his Professional Fighter’s League (PFL) debut. He’s adamant, however, that his boxing career isn’t over yet, and perhaps that third matchup will prove whether or not Ngannou really has something left to offer boxing.

Insomnia

Paulo Costa has reached a new level of trolling.

I could really see this fight going either way. Nasrat Haqparast has the superior kickboxing, but Jared Gordon is an absolute gamer.

This was the exact moment I knew Jack Della Maddalena was going to give Gilbert Burns major problems. His ability to deny an almost-in back mount was so impressive!

If you haven’t seen it, watch it. If you have, enjoy the nostalgia.

Had to laugh at this one!

Merab Dvalishvili responds to Sean O’Malley’s callout and fight timeline:

Bryan Battle’s weight cut doesn’t look like a lot of fun.

Slips, rips, and Cage Warriors clips

A nice display of working an opponent to the fence, feinting, then capitalizing with a multiple-level combination.

Falling off back mount into the arm-across guillotine is a great way to threaten the neck while retaining some control. Anthony Hernandez is really good at it!

Guillotine and d’arce double threat!

Random Land

A baby platypus.

Midnight Music: I have full-on Dune brain.

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

MMAmania.com – All Posts

Contender Series continues to be an out-sized source for Ultimate Fighting Championship (UFC) newcomers, producing all three debutants set for UFC Vegas 88 this weekend (Sat., March 16, 2024) in Las Vegas, Nevada. On this edition of “New Blood,” the series where every gray ranking on Tapology’s event pages fills me with dread, we checkout a trio of Dana White’s latest prospects with a heap of knockout wins between them.

Mitch “The Fight Stalker” Ramirez

Weight Class: Lightweight
Age: 31
Record: 8-1 (5 KO, 1 SUB)
Notable Victories: Aireon Tavarres, Ayadi Majdeddine

Syndicate MMA’s Ramirez rode into Contender Series undefeated (7-0), only to get battered by Carlos Prates in little more than six minutes. He then took his talents to Legacy Fighting Alliance (LFA), where he finished Aireon Tavares in less than a half-round.

He steps in for Brad Riddell on around two weeks’ notice.

Ramirez — a slab of a Lightweight at 5’11” — has a fairly straightforward approach: walk after opponents, fire a steady diet of calf kicks, and unload with two-fisted flurries from either stance when he gets inside. Those low kicks can do some serious damage, as seen when he chopped down former Michael Page opponent Jeremie Holloway, and his hands were heavy enough to knock Tavares loopy against the fence.

Unfortunately, I’ve got more negative than positive things to say about Ramirez’s approach. His most visually obvious shortcomings revolve around his stance — he stands extremely flat-footed and square, which makes it difficult for him to cut off the cage against mobile opponents. That combines with limited head movement to make him highly vulnerable to counters, and as eager as he is to tear up his opponents’ lead legs, he’s open to the same in return.

These issues were on full display against the towering Prates. Ramirez had a bit of early success attacking Prates’ trailing leg and pressuring, but once Prates got his timing down, it was pure target practice until a straight left put Ramirez down for good. Holloway, who hadn’t fought in 2.5 years, did some damage of his own before Ramirez finally destroyed his leg.

It doesn’t help that Ramirez throws kicks without setup and isn’t particularly quick.

Grappling-wise, he’ll shoot a double-leg if the opportunity arises, but his top control isn’t great. Prates hit a quick butterfly sweep and Tavares spent less than five seconds on his back before getting to his feet and cracking Ramirez with an uppercut.

I just don’t see Ramirez getting far in the Octagon, especially not in a division this loaded with talent. He’ll start his run with a loss, at the very least, because Thiago Moises only ever loses to quality opposition and boasts decisive wins over similar come-forward sluggers like Kurt Holobaugh, Alexander Hernandez and Christos Giagos.

Danny “El Puma” Silva

Weight Class: Featherweight
Age: 27
Record: 8-1 (5 KO)
Notable Victories: Angel Pacheco

Silva battled his way to a perfect (6-0) professional start before dropping a narrow decision to Contender Series veteran, Canaan Kawaihae, in his second LFA bout. After returning to the win column with a first round finish of Alex Arteaga, Silva got his own shot on Contender Series, where he overpowered Angel Pacheco in a brutal three-round war.

Those of you saddened by Shane Burgos’ decline and departure from UFC are in luck, as Silva fills a remarkably similar niche. He’s a spitefully aggressive high-volume stalker, punishing the head and body with vicious combinations. Those hands of his are razor-sharp, but they’re far from his only weapons; he’s an artist with elbows on the inside and, like “Hurricane,” tears up opponents’ calves with aplomb.

This offensive potency is bolstered by both a rock-solid chin and an absurd gas tank that let him land more than 200 significant strikes in three rounds.

Oddly enough, Silva’s standout skill and biggest weakness stem from the same source. I regularly chide incoming fighters for being unsubtle with their stance switches and they should all be taking notes from Silva. Even when focusing entirely on what he’s doing, I rarely knew whether Silva was orthodox or southpaw because he hides those switches beautifully, both by walking after his opponents and shifting behind rear-hand punches.

The problem is that his feet stop moving in the pocket. When Silva trades heat, he plants his feet and r, who got the better of their exchanges in the first round by forcing Silva to shell up, then scored a critical takedown in the second by attacking Silva’s hips when he froze in place.

It doesn’t help that he has two or three different ideas of how to guard with his hands, all of which are wrong. Sometimes he’ll bring his right hand up like he’s answering the phone while dropping his left to his waist, which opens him up to right hands, and other times he’ll expose his body by bringing up the earmuffs. Pacheco hitting him 197 times was not a fluke.

On the grappling side, his takedown defense and scrambling are both solid. The big issue is that, as mentioned, his bad habits give opponents a free shot at his hips if they goad him into an exchange.

Despite his flaws, Silva’s one of the more entertaining fighters to join UFC in some time. Like Burgos, he’s guaranteed excitement whenever he steps into the cage. He’s in for a tough debut against the heavy hands of Josh Culibao, but I like SIlva’s chances to bury Culibao in volume and emerge victorious.

Charalampos “The Ferocious” Grigoriou

Weight Class: Bantamweight
Age: 31
Record: 8-3 (6 KO)
Notable Victories: Cameron Smotherman

Gregoriou — the first Cypriot to join UFC since Costas Philippou — put a two-fight skid behind him to win three straight. His efforts took him to Contender Series, where he smashed Cameron Smotherman in 60 seconds to earn a UFC contract.

Despite the nickname, Grigoriou is at his best when he’s methodical. He stands oddly upright and keeps a lot of his weight on his back foot as he pushes forward, flashing constant feints to set up powerful low kicks and quick combinations. He’s sharp on the counter. mixes in body shots with the rest of his offense, sets up those low kicks with left hooks, and does a great job of attacking while breaking the clinch.

Issues arise when he tries to press the attack. Grigoriou will crash forward headfirst with no regard for managing his momentum, usually with his preferred 2-3. Smotherman took advantage to crack him with some clean straight rights before Grigoriou chased him down and I’m pretty sure any opponent could just dip their head down and break Grigoriou’s nose when “The Ferocious” smashed his face into their forehead.

On top of that, Grigoriou’s gas tank looks quite poor. He was running on fumes halfway through the third round against 6-5 Chris Disonell; the only things that saved him were the damage he’d done to Disonell’s legs, some key takedowns, and Disonell’s general incompetence as a fighter.

Speaking of those takedowns, they’re Grigoriou’s go-to response when opponents try to pressure. He’s happy to grind against the fence for a while if needed, and if he does land on top, he’s very passive. Three fights ago, he laid on top of 2-5 late replacement Joey Crisostomo for the better part of two rounds and only ever threw punches at the end of the first and when he reached mount in the second, causing Crisostomo to basically give up.

On the defensive side, he shut down Crisostomo’s shots and trains out of a strong grappling camp in Longo and Weidman MMA. I do, however, want to stress that 2-5 thing again.

I’m not terribly impressed with Grigoriou. He does a few things well and does have some pop, but his litany of issues and history of can-crushing will keep him from going far in UFC’s most stacked division. He’s in for a rough debut against late replacement, Chad Anheliger, who’s sharp enough to counter Grigoriou’s blitzes and too good a scrambler for Gregoriou to smother.

Remember that MMAmania.com will deliver LIVE round-by-round, blow-by-blow coverage of the entire UFC Vegas 88 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 (also on ESPN+) at 7 p.m. ET.

To check out the latest and greatest UFC Vegas 88: “Tuivasa vs. Tybura” news and notes be sure to hit up our comprehensive event archive right here.

MMAmania.com – All Posts

“I’m just trying to do my own thing, try make my own path. Leave my own legacy.”

Undefeated WBC Silver Super Welterweight Champion Callum Walsh returns to the “sweet science” to throw hands opposite Dauren Yeleussinov at The Theatre inside Madison Square Garden in New York City. Their 10-round showdown tops a UFC Fight Pass-streamed live card that gets underway TONIGHT (Fri., March 16, 2024) at 7 p.m. ET.

We’ll have full results and LIVE blow-by-blow coverage HERE.

Just don’t call Callum “the Conor McGregor of boxing.”

“I’m very grateful to be able to do this at such a young age,” Walsh told TMZ Sports. “I’m trying to make my own path and do my own thing — I’m never trying to copy anybody or be like anyone. Everyone always says, ‘Oh you wanna be like the Conor McGregor of boxing’. I’m just trying to be Callum Walsh. I’m just trying to do my own thing, try make my own path. Leave my own legacy.”

The 23 year-old Walsh (9-0, 7 KOs) made headlines for more than just his pugilistic prowess when he became the first boxer signed by UFC CEO Dana White, working alongside world-renowned trainer Freddie Roach and longtime promoter Tom Loeffler. Tonight’s fight against Yeleussinov (11-3-1, 1 KO) marks the second time “King” headlined The Theater.

“Callum has been a pleasure to work with,” Loeffler recently told The Ring. “His talent is exceptional and it’s no accident he was a six-time Irish National Amateur champion. We always thought his style was more suited for the professional ranks. Under the guidance of Freddie Roach, he has excelled thus far as a pro. He’s not afraid to fight anyone, as was the case in fighting (Ismael) Villarreal is his last fight. The level of competition he has faced is not full of blown-up records.”

For more boxing news and notes click here.

MMAmania.com – All Posts

Ultimate Fighting Championship (UFC) once again calls upon the Heavyweights to helm tomorrow’s (Sat., March 16, 2024) ESPN+ “Fight Night” at the APEX, which sees struggling Aussie slugger Tai Tuivasa battle stalwart veteran Marcin Tybura.

Our usual main card guy ran into the desert screaming something about “Lisan al Gaib,” so prediction duty falls to me.

Before we dive into both the main event and the co-feature pitting Ultimate Fighter (TUF) winner Bryan Battle against rising Contender Series graduate Ange Loosa, take a peek at our “Prelims” breakdowns here and here, plus the odds and betting props courtesy of DraftKings here and the inimitable Andrew Richardson’s analysis of the remaining main card bouts here.

265 lbs.: Tai Tuivasa vs. Marcin Tybura

Tai “Bam Bam” Tuivasa

Record: 15-6 | Age: 30 | Betting line: -118
Wins: 14 KO/TKO, 0 SUB, 1 DEC | Losses: 3 KO/TKO, 0 SUB, 1 DEC
Height: 6’2” | Reach: 75” | Stance: Southpaw
Significant Strikes Landed Per Minute: 3.98 | Striking accuracy: 49%
Strikes Absorbed Per Minute: 4.98 | Striking Defense: 43%
Takedown Average: 0.00 (0% accuracy)| Takedown Defense: 54%
Current Ranking: No. 9 | Last fight: Submission loss to Alexander Volkov

Marcin “Tybur” Tybura

Record: 24-8 | Age: 38| Betting line: -102
Wins: 8 KO/TKO, 7 SUB, 9 DEC | Losses: 5 KO/TKO, 0 SUB, 3 DEC
Height: 6’3” | Reach: 78” | Stance: Orthodox
Significant Strikes Landed Per Minute: 3.55 | Striking accuracy: 48%
Strikes Absorbed Per Minute: 3.35 | Striking Defense: 55%
Takedown Average: 1.39 (33% accuracy) | Takedown Defense: 79%
Current Ranking: No. 10 | Last fight: Knockout loss to Tom Aspinall

Tybura’s UFC tenure is, in a lot of ways, quite laudable. He was 1-4 and on the brink of being cut at one point, but quietly clawed his way up the ranks with seven wins in eight fights before understandably falling short against Aspinall.

The keys to his success are a pair of rare qualities among Heavyweights: well-roundedness and a strong gas tank. Against the sub-elite, he strikes well enough to beat the wrestlers and wrestles well enough to beat the strikers. Beating him generally requires either capitalizing on his leaden footwork to potshot or just straight-up bulldozing him with pure power.

Assuming Tuivasa has any shred of confidence left after this string of disastrous losses, he fits the latter category. Though he’s never quite developed into the Mark Hunt 2.0 we dreamed of, his hands are as heavy if not heavier than those of Tybura’s past conquerors like Shamil Abdurakhimov and Augusto Sakai. Tybura surviving long enough to weaponize his gas tank is far easier said than done.

At the same time, Tuivasa has a history of collapsing against dogged grapplers, most notably the glacial Blagoy Ivanov and front-running Serghei Spivac. Tybura has made a career out of dragging explosive threats into deep water and drowning them, from sluggers like Greg Hardy and Walt Harris to fellow wrestler Alexandr Romanov.

These two’s strengths perfectly slot into one another’s weaknesses; it’s as much a coin flip as the odds suggest. I do, however, have to lean towards Tuivasa. Tybura lacks both the elusiveness that Ciryl Gane and Alexander Volkov used to defuse Tuivasa and the raw horsepower that Sergei Pavlovich used to blow him away, giving Tuivasa little reason not to put the pedal to the metal right off the bat.

Plus, while Tybura’s grappling is a threat, Tuivasa has given up a mere two takedowns since the Spivac debacle and successfully got out from underneath the gargantuan Derrick Lewis both times.

If Tybura can stretch things out until around the midway point of the second round, he’s golden. I just don’t see him avoiding Tuivasa’s onslaught for that long.

Prediction: Tuivasa def. Tybura by first-round knockout

170 lbs.: Bryan Battle vs. Ange Loosa

Bryan “Pooh Bear” Battle

Record: 10-2 | Age: 29 | Betting line: -185
Wins: 3 KO/TKO, 5 SUB, 2 DEC | Losses: 0 KO/TKO, 5 1 SUB, 1 DEC
Height: 6’1” | Reach: 77” | Stance: Orthodox
Significant Strikes Landed Per Minute: 4.52 | Striking accuracy: 54%
Strikes Absorbed Per Minute: 3.73 | Striking Defense: 42%
Takedown Average: 0.94 (25% accuracy) | Takedown Defense: 45%
Current Ranking: Unranked | Last fight: Submission win over AJ Fletcher

Ange “The Last Ninja” Loosa

Record: 10-3 | Age: 30 | Betting line: +154
Wins: 5 KO/TKO, 1 SUB, 4 DEC | Losses: 0 KO/TKO, 0 SUB, 3 DEC
Height: 5’10” | Reach: 74” | Stance: Orthodox
Significant Strikes Landed Per Minute: 6.32 | Striking accuracy: 46%
Strikes Absorbed Per Minute: 6.88 | Striking Defense: 51%
Takedown Average: 2.25 (45% accuracy) | Takedown Defense: 100%
Current Ranking: Unranked | Last fight: Decision win over Rhys McKee

To be frank, this shouldn’t be a co-main event. This is a main card opener or a featured Prelim at best.

Taken on its own merits, though, it’s a damn good matchup. Both of these men have feasted from the bottom of the Welterweight barrel for long enough, and having bounced back from rough defeats, it’s time to put their improvements to the test.

The bookies weren’t wrong to make Battle a moderate favorite. Loosa had all sorts of trouble with the similarly rangy Mounir Lazzez and Battle is adept at using that reach, whether by potshotting heavier hitters like Tresean Gore or punishing aggressors like Gabe Green with counters as they step in.

That said, I’m feeling the upset. Loosa’s hands are far sharper than anything Battle’s faced in the Octagon, he’s got the gas tank to land triple-digit strikes, and he’s proven inordinately difficult to finish despite the best efforts of monsters like Jack Della Maddalena. He has also become an increasingly adept wrestler of late, and though Battle did keep out-wrestle AJ Fletcher, it’s hard to forget the ease with which Rinat Fakhretdinov but him through the wringer.

Loosa’s edge in speed and firepower, combined with his output and grappling, just give him too many weapons. Battle won’t go away easy, but expect Loosa to land the heavier blows and land a few clutch takedowns to edge out a firefight.

Prediction: Loosa def. Battle by split decision

MMAmania.com will deliver LIVE round-by-round, blow-by-blow coverage of the entire UFC Vegas 88 fight card RIGHT HERE, starting with the ESPN+ preliminary card bouts at 4 p.m. ET, followed by the ESPN+ main card start time at 7 p.m. ET.

To check out the latest and greatest UFC Vegas 88 news and notes be sure to hit up our comprehensive event archive here. For the updated and finalized “Tuivasa vs. Tybura” fight card and ESPN+ line up click here.

MMAmania.com – All Posts

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

Welcome to Midnight Mania!

I feel obligated to start this post with the simple declaration that I believe Jason Parillo to be one of the best boxing coaches in MMA. He’s a big part of the reason Michael Bisping became a world champion, helped grapplers like Luke Rockhold and Mackenzie Dern shore up the technical issues in their stand up, and definitely refined Marlon Vera’s hands by a significant degree. He’s trained everyone from Cris Cyborg to BJ Penn, and I cannot remember Parillo making any absurd statements and getting embroiled in any significant controversy.

All of which makes his Instagram post from earlier today more bizarre and surprising.

“Couldn’t be prouder of my fighter [Marlon Vera]!” Parillo wrote. “He competed for the UFC world title! Representing his country Ecuador and every hard working man that doesn’t give up! Chito 1-1 now with this kid! The kid got the decision and retained the title! Chito got the knock out in the first fight. With no clock? Chito goes to jail for murder!”

For some context, Sean O’Malley dropped a master class on Marlon Vera’s face (watch highlights) over the weekend (March 9, 2024) at UFC 299.

At any rate, the first part of the post is normal, as Parillo supports his athlete and recognizes the accomplishment of fighting for a world title. Even pointing out that the record is tied is true, even if nobody is asking for any kind of rematch. Then, it goes completely off the rails with the whole “no clock” and “murder” part.

O’Malley didn’t leave the cage with a destroyed face. His hands and feet may have been sore from delivering the beating, but he didn’t seem incapable of continuing to beat the crap out of “Chito.” Even by Diaz brothers rules, it was a shutout win.

Fan reaction to the post was nearly universally negative. Fight fans wondered why Vera didn’t use his clinch and wrestling skills at all, or if anything could be done to address his slow starts. One fan also directly countered, “If there was no time clock Chito would be in a grave.”

It certainly doesn’t inspire hope that Vera will return drastically different whenever he heals up.

Insomnia

Bobby Green and Tony Ferguson appear to have settled their beef.

It’s great to have a positive update on the Mark Coleman situation. RIP Hammer!

This should be a really fun Featherweight match up, both athletes are active and skilled. I foresee scrambles!

Lot of Twitter fingers from Sean Strickland as of late. The best way to get a title shot is go win a fight …

By my count, this is the sixth time Cory Sandhagen has scored a 10-9 over Vera.

It’s a tough and unlikely road to gold for Gilbert Burns, but I’ll always watch a “Durinho” fight.

Be right back, going to take out a second mortgage and bet it on Devin Haney.

Give it a few years, and the Netflix Joshua Fabia/Diego Sanchez documentary should be both fascinating and depressing.

Slips, rips, and KO clips

This is not a clip of great fighting, but I didn’t know there was an “African games” that featured amateur MMA. Neat!

One of the best elbow KOs in recent memory.

Punches in bunches!

Random Land

Midnight Music: Country, 2007

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

MMAmania.com – All Posts

In hindsight, Cory Sandhagen believes he shouldn’t have given Marlon “Chito” Vera as much of a chance as he did against Ultimate Fighting Championship (UFC) Bantamweight champion, Sean O’Malley.

UFC 299 was a rough night for Ecuador’s Vera, who competed in his first career title tilt against his rival, O’Malley, this past weekend (March 9, 2024). Vera was battered throughout the five-round affair en route to a unanimous decision loss (watch highlights) that had all rounds in favor of “Sugar.”

Vera, 31, has raised the question of controversy since the night, but ultimately underperformed in the eyes of most, including his previous successor, Sandhagen.

“Chito obviously had no business being in the cage with O’Malley,” Sandhagen said on his YouTube channel (h/t MMA Fighting). “Really tough showing by Chito. Awesome performance by O’Malley. You’ve got to give the guy all the credit in the world even though he was fighting like a homeless-looking Chito.

“I’m going to try to spend this whole breakdown not s—tting on Chito the whole time, but it’s probably going to turn into me s—tting on Chito the whole time,” he continued. “That fight really frustrated me because it was one, unbelievably uncompetitive. Two, I feel like a dummy for thinking Chito was going to do better because that’s almost literally what all of his fights look like unless he gets some type of knockout. And three, I just think it’s not that cool that Chito even got that opportunity to begin with, because like I said, that’s what we all should have seen coming. I don’t know why I bought into the Chito hype. That was really stupid of me.”

Vera was rewarded his title shot off the heels of a unanimous decision over Pedro Munhoz at UFC 292 in August 2023. Directly prior, Vera suffered a five-round split decision defeat to Sandhagen, who has since beaten Rob Font and extended his winning streak to three.

In the immediate title picture, Sandhagen will likely have to wait behind Merab Dvalishvili before he gets his title shot. He just hopes O’Malley doesn’t hold up the division with an attempt at Featherweight gold.

“O’Malley won almost the same kind of way I beat Chito, except he hit Chito a lot harder and he hit Chito a lot more,” Sandhagen said. “So good on him for doing that. Instead of overwhelming Chito with [wrestling] shots and stuff like that, he started overwhelming Chito with a ton of feints. Didn’t give him the same look every single time. … O’Malley kept it super dynamic the entire time, didn’t give him the same look too many times in a row, and that’s why he won.”

For complete UFC 299 results and play-by-play, click HERE.

MMAmania.com – All Posts

A lot of us were laughing when Sean O’Malley teased a transition to boxing … but maybe the joke’s on us?

“Suga” is being hailed for his exceptional hands in the wake of his UFC 299 performance against Marlon Vera, a five-round drubbing that avenged a previous loss to “Chito” back in summer 2020. In fact, famed boxing trainer Teddy Atlas suggests O’Malley could hold his own — and even defeat — boxers competing on the pro circuit.

Maybe the bookies got it wrong.

“I’m not gonna call him a striker,” Atlas said on YouTube (transcribed by MMA News). “I think he would beat a lot of pro fighters… Yeah, he would beat a lot of pro boxers. He’s that good a boxer, his legs are that good, his striking ability, his combinations are that technically sound and pure, his hands are that fast, his ring IQ is that high, his vision is that clear. He’s a tremendous counter-puncher; a pure counter-puncher… He’s got a long jab and he uses that to set up punches. He knows range really well. He controls range really well, not only with his feet, but even with getting full length on his punches.”

Sounds like this assessment wasn’t that far off.

O’Malley, 29, is expected to return to the Octagon at some point later this year to defend his 135-pound title against No. 1-ranked contender Merab Dvalishvili, where takedown defense — not knockout power — is likely to be the deciding fact. “The Machine” has been known to make mincemeat out of bantamweight strikers.

There’s also that Ilia Topuria super fight; however, that seems to be fading from view as time drags on, so all we can do is sit and wait for matchmakers to do their thing.

MMAmania.com – All Posts

We knew the UFC 300 fan Q&A was bad … just not this bad.

Former PFL champion Kayla Harrison took the stage late last week alongside a handle of UFC 300 fighters, including teammate Arman Tsarukyan, while bottom-feeding MMA fans tried to make themselves famous by asking the most idiotic questions imaginable.

As one commenter wrote on social media, “Welcome to UFC.”

“At one point there was a fan who came up and spoke to Arman in Russian,” Harrison said on The MMA Hour. “Arman was getting booed the whole time, and we’ve talked about it and we’re fine. The guy asked him basically how many times would … he asked a really inappropriate question about me. Arman answered it, and I looked like an idiot. I’m up on stage laughing and Megan Olivi says ‘Would you care to translate it?’ and Arman was like ‘No, it was a stupid question, move on.’ Then the next day I’m tagged in all of these Russian outlets with the translation of what he asked.”

The translation, according to those familiar with the dialect, was “how many sticks would you throw at her” — to which Arman responded “a few.”

“It’s disheartening,” Harrison continued. “I think it’s disrespectful. I’m a two-time Olympic champion. I’m a world champion, I’m a mother, I’m an advocate for survivors of sexual abuse, I wrote a book, I have a foundation. So in that sense it was disrespectful that someone would even ask that question, but more than that, you would never hear a female get asked ‘how many times would you have sex with Alex Pereira?’ We don’t sexualize men like that. So it was disheartening.”

Harrison, a two-time Olympic gold medalist, is survivor of sexual abuse.

“At first I was super embarrassed and like shocked by it,” Harrison said. “But then I was like you know what, f*ck it, I’m just going to keep being me and I’m going to say something about it when the time is right, because I feel like that’s wrong. And I want to change the landscape of the sport not just for me but for future female fighters. It was on International Women’s Day to boot. Arman and I spoke about it. Arman and I are okay. We spoke about it, we’re good. There’s no issue with Arman. This is my point, that is wild, that that even happened.”

Harrison, 33, will make her Octagon debut opposite Holly Holm as part of the UFC 300 pay-per-view (PPV) event on Sat., April 13, 2024 at T-Mobile Arena in Las Vegas, Nevada. A victory is likely to put her in the conversation for the next 135-pound title shot.

Assuming she can maintain the weight.

MMAmania.com – All Posts

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

Welcome to Midnight Mania!

Like it or not, Jake Paul vs. Mike Tyson is happening.

Scheduled for July 20 in Arlington, Texas and airing live on Netflix, the match up is not engendering a lot of good feelings from the boxing community. Paul is facing major criticism for pursuing a bout with a 57-year-old retired boxer. Nevertheless, the bout is happening, though it’s unclear whether or not it will go down as a professional contest.

Good thing the Texas Athletic Commission is famously incompetent.

Typically, training camps for combat sports athletes begin eight or 12 weeks removed from the event. July 20th is a fair bit more than three months away (I count about 19 weeks from today), but getting ready for a fight at 57 is different! Presumably, Tyson is going to ramp up his training more slowly than an athlete in his prime.

Whatever the case, Tyson looks fast and powerful in the short clip above, which sees him cracking pads with legendary MMA coach Rafael Cordeiro, who also helped him prepare for Roy Jones Jr in 2020.

Here’s hoping one of those left hooks land flush in July.

Insomnia

Colby Covington vs. Ian Garry? I would watch it, and it’s time for “Chaos” to fight down the ladder and defend his spot.

Tyson Pedro went broke fighting MMA, so now he’s headed back to the boxing ring.

I hope Francis Ngannou’s next move is a PFL debut, but I wouldn’t fault him for accepting another huge check to fight Deontay Wilder (or something like that).

Drop seonagi in nature!

I’d love to hear some other answers in the comments, but the obvious one that pops into my head is Nick Diaz laying on the canvas in front of Anderson Silva.

Cory Sandhagen seems personally offended that Marlon Vera received a title shot before him. His critique was unusually mean!

The kind of support you want in a corner.

Slips, rips, and KO clips

“MMA fighters will never have head movement like boxers!”

Cheick Kongo talks through arguably the greatest comeback KO in UFC history.

An excellent club and sub!

Random Land

I didn’t expect how this clip ended.

Midnight Music: Punk, 1981

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

MMAmania.com – All Posts