Dricus Du Plessis became the first fighter to submit Israel Adesanya at UFC 305. Soon after, former kingpin Alex Pereira teased his return to the middleweight division. For any of this to become reality, “Poatan” naturally needs to beat Khalil Rountree at UFC 307 first. Fans and Dana White have acknowledged Pereira’s plans to move […]
Continue Reading Chael Sonnen Exposes Alex Pereira’s ‘Condescending Big Brother Play’ Against Israel Adesanya By Calling Out Dricus Du Plessis at MMA News.
Jorge Masvidal became one of the biggest stars in the UFC in 2019. He started the year by knocking out top prospect Darren Till and then delivered one of the fastest KOs in UFC history against Ben Askren. Masvidal was then offered to fight for the BMF title against Nate Diaz, which he won via […]
Continue Reading ‘Is Star Power Enough?’ – Daniel Cormier Questions Jorge Masvidal Wanting To Fight Michael Chandler In the UFC at MMA News.
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Merab Dvalishvili recently voiced his belief that a former UFC champion is far more deserving of the next bantamweight title shot than rising star Umar Nurmagomedov. Dvalishvili is gearing up for his first title opportunity against bantamweight champion Sean O’Malley in the main event of UFC 306, which is set to go down next weekend […]
Continue Reading Merab Dvalishvili Feels Former Champ More Deserving Of Next Title Shot Than Umar Nurmagomedov at MMA News.
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Israel Adesanya may have squashed the beef with Dricus Du Plessis at UFC 305 but it hasn’t taken him long before getting back into a heated altercation.
“The Last Stylebender”, as he previously stated he would, went back to Nigeria after coming up short in Perth several weeks ago.
Though he hasn’t been back in New Zealand for long, city life in Auckland has quickly caught back up with him.
The former UFC middleweight champion hasn’t been known for getting into arguments or conflict with members of the general public but that’s exactly what was captured on video.
A recently posted video shows Adesanya standing outside his McLaren 720S Spider, having a confrontation with an aggressive man who has walked over to the car.
The clip appears to capture the end of the interaction as it immediately starts with Adesanya already standing outside the vehicle, telling the person that he isn’t going to fight him for free – because it’s his job.
Whatever happened between them before the video started clearly got to “The Last Stylebender” who is very rarely this agitated. For his part, the man does motion towards Adesanya, flexing, as though he wants to fight him.
“I get paid for this s***, f*** off you little b****. That’s right, walk away, go drive your f****** beat up f****** s***.”
Adesanya continues to curse towards the man who continues to stand across from him.
The final seconds of the video sees the person recording drive past them as Adesanya spits towards the man he is arguing with before saying “I pray for you to try me, I’d pay for you to try me”, shutting his car door at the same time.
Read also: Merab Dvalishvili Clarifies Staph Status After He Is Interrupted Mid-Interview By UFC Doctors
Continue Reading Video: Israel Adesanya Confronts Aggressive Man, Urges Him to ‘Walk Away’ in Tense Altercation at MMA News.
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Michael Bisping recently warned Alex Pereira, urging him not to underestimate the formidable threat that Khalil Rountree brings to their upcoming clash.
“Poatan” is preparing for his third light heavyweight title defense in 2024, as he is set to square off against Rountree in the main event of UFC 307, scheduled for October 5 at the Delta Center in Salt Lake City, Utah.
Pereira has been an indomitable force since storming into the 205-pound division, kicking things off with a decisive win over Jan Blachowicz at UFC 291. His meteoric rise continued as he claimed the vacant light heavyweight title with a dominant victory over Jiri Prochazka at UFC 295.
From there, the Brazilian striking phenom wasted no time solidifying his reign, successfully defending his belt twice in just two months. His most recent triumph came with a second-round knockout of Prochazka in their rematch at UFC 303.
As for Rountree, many have raised concerns about the fight, citing “The War Horse’s” suspension for the consumption of the banned substance Dehydroepiandrosterone (DHEA), which is set to end on September 18. Meanwhile, others contend that Magomed Ankalaev would have been a more deserving challenger for Pereira’s title.
However, “The Count” believes that Rountree possesses the complete arsenal needed to threaten Pereira’s striking-centric style…
In a recent video on his YouTube channel, Bisping weighed in on ‘Poatan’s’ callout of UFC middleweight champion Dricus Du Plessis. The UFC Hall of Famer was quick to point out that Pereira has a more immediate challenge looming in the form of Rountree, one he can’t afford to overlook.
“He’s the light heavyweight champion of the world,” Bisping said. “Being the light heavyweight champion comes with some responsibility. Now, as I said, first and foremost, number one, he’s got people to fight already—he’s fighting Khalil Rountree. You cannot look past killer Khalil. He’s the kickboxer killer, he really is. Think about this: he beat Gokhan Saki, a very good kickboxer who transitioned to MMA, and Dustin Jacoby, another excellent Glory kickboxer who moved to MMA. Could he do the same to Alex Pereira? I don’t know—it’s a tough ask.
Widely regarded as one of the most dangerous strikers in MMA, Pereira’s legacy as a two-division Glory Kickboxing champion strikes fear into opponents. While conventional wisdom suggests that wrestling is the blueprint to topple him, Rountree sees things differently.
Though Rountree doesn’t dispute the wrestling strategy, he’s made it clear that he wants to keep the fight standing and deliver a striking masterclass.
Continue Reading Former Champ Cautions Alex Pereira: Don’t Overlook ‘Kickboxer Killer’ Khalil Rountree at MMA News.
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When Demetrious Johnson was the UFC flyweight champion, the division suffered to some degree because of how dominant he was.
No one could knock “Mighty Mouse” off the top spot and that gave his fights a feeling of predictability, because he was levels above all challengers.
After he left the UFC following his loss to Henry Cejudo, the division became a lot more competitive and after title reigns from Cejudo, Deiveson Figueiredo and Brandon Moreno, a new champion has started to make his mark at 125 pounds.
Alexandre Pantoja has produced back-to-back title defenses since becoming champion at UFC 290 last year and the flyweight GOAT believes that the Brazilian is here to stay.
In a recent appearance on the JAXXON Podcast, Johnson gave his thoughts on the man that currently holds the title that once belonged to him.
The current flyweight king in ONE Championship is a big fan of Pantoja and said that he has been for a long time, after feeling like he was underappreciated for many years.
“I think he’s great. Alex Pantoja, I’ve always felt he’s been a dark horse at the beginning of his career in the UFC… I just felt, well to begin with, I feel like the flyweight division always had a hard time picking up any traction. This isn’t something new, I mean even when I was a champion in the UFC, it wasn’t the most popular in the whole roster of the UFC and I think Alex Pantoja, he came into The Ultimate Fighter, he didn’t win The Ultimate Fighter, Tim Elliott ended up winning it.”
As he stated, Pantoja made his way into the promotion through The Ultimate Fighter where if he had won the series, he would’ve challenged Johnson for the title.
Johnson then went on to say how in his opinion, there aren’t many contenders left for Pantoja that aren’t rematches because he beat many of them on his way to the title already.
The one exception being Muhammad Mokaev, who is no longer in the UFC after the promotion chose not to resign him at the end of July.
Due to this reason, “Mighty Mouse” doesn’t see Pantoja losing his grasp at 125 pounds anytime soon.
“It’s his [Pantoja’s] division and I think it’s his time to shine. He’s worked very hard his whole entire career and I’m very happy for him.”
Read also: Brandon Moreno Set To Return In UFC Fight Night Edmonton Main Event On Nov. 2
Continue Reading Demetrious Johnson Gives Stamp Of Approval To UFC Champion at MMA News.
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Sean O’Malley will defend his UFC bantamweight championship against Merab Dvalishvili on September 14, 2024. Riyadh Season Noche UFC is the most expensive UFC event ever and it’ll go toe-to-toe with a boxing event featuring Canelo Álvarez vs. Edgar Berlanga.
While UFC 306 is booked for the Las Vegas Sphere, Álvarez will defend one of his super middleweight titles against Berlanga at the T-Mobile Arena. The date and timings of the boxing and MMA bouts will clash, and fans can’t help but anticipate which event will be a bigger commercial success.
According to Khabib Nurmagomedov’s coach, O’Malley won’t be able to outsell Álvarez in PPV terms despite the UFC calling its event a celebration of Mexican heritage…
Nurmagomedov’s coach discussed whether O’Malley is a big enough draw to compete with Álvarez directly on the Javier Mendez Podcast recently. He outright highlighted the boxer’s massive following in Mexico and how “Suga” is yet to achieve Conor McGregor’s levels of stardom.
“That’s mexican’s day for pay-per-view, it’s always been that way for as long as I remember. And Canelo being the biggest superstar in Mexico fighting on that night, I think on a pay-per-view level, it’s going to be difficult to compete. On top of that, if you look at the prices.”
The Mexican Independence Day is September 16, and unsurprisingly, sporting events around the date have usually been headlined by the most popular Mexican athletes. Mendez called Álvarez the biggest star in Mexico and predicted that his fight could generate more revenue than Riyadh Season Noche UFC.
Mendez didn’t put all the blame on O’Malley, though. Despite the recent price drop, the cheapest tickets for Riyadh Season Noche UFC cost over $ 700. In contrast, the cheapest tickets to Canelo vs. Berlanga are $ 400 at the time of writing.
According to Nurmagomedov’s coach, unless someone’s a huge MMA fan, they would consider watching one of the biggest names in boxing history for a lesser price.
“I don’t think that O’Malley’s a huge star yet. I think he can be, and I, but I don’t think he’s Conor-ish. I don’t think he’s, honestly speaking, where he needs to be yet. I mean, he’s got all the charismatic personality. He’s got the fighting style. But I just don’t think he has that he has that, the people that can propel him into that next level.”
Mendez admitted that “Suga” has the personality and fighting style to be a much bigger star in the future. However, he’s more interested in the winner of the UFC 306 main event defending their belt against Umar Nurmagomedov, who potentially secured a title shot by defeating Cory Sandhagen recently.
As of now, around 1,700 Riyadh Season Noche UFC tickets remain to be sold and Dana White expects a sell-out and a record $ 21 million gate.
Continue Reading Khabib Nurmagomedov’s Coach Doesn’t Consider Sean O’Malley ‘A Huge Star Yet’ To Sell More PPVs Than Canelo at MMA News.
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For the first time in his pro MMA career, Gilbert Burns has two consecutive losses on his record. He lost a decision to Belal Muhammad after getting injured early in the fight, followed by a late TKO loss to Jack Della Maddalena.
Despite the losses, fans aren’t overlooking Burns as he takes on Sean Brady this weekend. Brady’s last loss came against Muhammad as well, but he bounced back by submitting Kelvin Gastelum in December 2023.
Burns is hopeful about beginning another title run at welterweight by beating Brady, and he wants Muhammad to be the champion until he reaches the belt again…
Burns talked about his ambition to get another chance at becoming the UFC welterweight kingpin in an interview with MMA Junkie recently. He naturally needs to get past Brady first and hopes that Muhammad beats Shavkat Rakhmonov to remain champion.
“Durinho” not only wants to get his rematch but also likes how Muhammad has carried himself since becoming champ. For instance, “Remember the Name” aims to move up a weight class only after fighting all top contenders at welterweight.
Burns acknowledged that he’s trained with Rakhmonov quite a few times when they share camps. However, he’ll still be backing Muhammad to win as it’s the most ideal scenario for his rematch.
“I want Belal to stay champion when I fight for the title, you know, that’s my goal and then get the rematch for the title. That would be great so I’m team Belal Muhammad, you know, I want this guy to keep winning and then whenever I’m there, that’s the guy that I’m facing.”
The former title challenger also talked about how things have changed in the UFC welterweight division after Kamaru Usman’s dominant reign ended. He praised Muhammad for wanting to fight Rakhmonov over Usman as the former kingpin has now lost three UFC fights in a row.
“I like that Belal is being a good champion, you know, he said he wants to fight, face the number one contender guys, before thinking on moving up or moving, you know, fighting another champion. I like that, that’s my, that was my go-to you know. Go over there, beat the number one fighters, keep beating these guys and especially he, you know, he need to make that fan base, you know. He needs to make the fans excited. He’s doing a great job right now the way he talks and I think he’s gonna be a great champion.
Because he’s been saying the right things and wants to give his division’s contenders opportunities, Burns totally supports Muhammad to remain the champ for at least a year or two. Unsurprisingly, he would want to fight Muhammad again at his best and grab a UFC belt for the first time in his career.
Continue Reading ‘I’m Team Belal Muhammad’ – Gilbert Burns Extends Support For UFC Welterweight Champ Against Shavkat Rakhmonov at MMA News.
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Michael Page recently voiced his opinion that MMA judges should deliver verdicts in a manner that discourages fighters from narrowly securing victories by relying on a single fighting style.
MMA judging has been a hotly debated topic within the sport for years. Many argue that certain cage-side judges occasionally stray from the sport’s established guidelines, possess limited expertise, and sometimes deliver decisions that raise eyebrows or award points that are hard to justify.
Accusations of an inconsistent scoring system and insufficient quality control in the training and selection of judges fuel the ongoing controversy, making it a persistent source of contention at numerous events. And “Venom” is pushing for a reform in how judges evaluate and score fights…
During a recent Q&A video on his YouTube channel, Page delved into the changes he believes are necessary in the MMA world, touching on topics like judging, weight cuts, and more. The 37-year-old striking sensation highlighted the recent incident involving judge Howie Booth, who was removed from his position following a controversial scorecard in the heavyweight clash between Tai Tuivasa and Jairzinho Rozenstruik at UFC 305.
“The game is slowly changing, and there have been some adjustments,” Page said. “So with the judges, I feel like we’ve had so many just random scores to the point where, even the other day, a judge got told to bounce. Yeah, so it means that there are these guys—I don’t know what’s going on—are they getting tired, or do they need to change judges like every other fight or something? But there are so many wayward decisions sometimes, so something is going wrong.”
“Venom” also stressed the importance of revamping the scoring system, calling for judges to favor fighters who actively seek to finish their opponents and take risks, rather than those who attempt to secure a victory by relying solely on one fighting style.
“I think the rule set is changing a bit to accommodate more people who want to finish a fight. I’ve always said, if it’s wrestler versus striker, I don’t mind the wrestling if you wrestle with the intention of trying to finish the fight—whether it be from a submission or, you know, ground and pound, trying to take someone’s head off. But if you’re wrestling just to survive and sneak a win, I don’t believe you should be allowed to win a fight. There should be a lot more intention in what you’re doing.”
Page had a turbulent introduction to the Octagon, earning a win against Kevin Holland in his UFC 299 debut, but later suffering a tightly contested decision loss to Ian Garry at UFC 303. As of now, there’s no official word on when “Venom” will make his return to the cage.
Continue Reading Michael ‘Venom’ Page Wants MMA Judging To Stop Fighters From ‘Sneaking’ Wins at MMA News.
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Quinton Jackson recently shared how he cleverly exposed a spy allegedly sent by Jon Jones to his fight camp by faking an injury to flush them out.
Jackson took on Jones for the light heavyweight title at UFC 135 in September 2011, but his efforts fell short as he was submitted in the fourth round. Despite being thoroughly outmatched in the bout, “Rampage” later criticized Jones for his fighting style and his tendency to extend his fingers during exchanges, a habit that has unintentionally resulted in eye pokes for several of his opponents.
However, in the lead-up to their fight, Jackson stirred the MMA world by claiming that “Bones” had planted a spy in his camp to gather intel on him. To test his suspicions, Jackson fabricated a story and let the word out that he had a hand injury…
During a recent episode of his JAXXON Podcast, “Rampage” revealed that Jones was allegedly in contact with someone from his supplement sponsor, MusclePharm, to spy on his fight camp. The former UFC light heavyweight champion recounted how he began to suspect that his every move was being monitored, so he devised a plan.
He faked an injury and shared the news only with his Team Wolfslair, yet somehow, the information still leaked to the public.
“He had a spy in my camp; it was somebody that worked for MusclePharm that was cool with him,” Jackson said. “He would come there and watch me train and stuff, and I don’t know—I can’t remember how I found out that somebody was watching me. Maybe some sh*t he was saying online, so I faked the injury, and I didn’t tell anybody. I told my tight team, ‘I think Jon Jones has a spy in my camp,’ so I faked the injury and didn’t say anything, and then it got out in the press.”
In an interview with Yahoo! Sports in August 2011, Jackson revealed that just hours after planting the fake news, his manager received a call from then-UFC matchmaker Joe Silva, who was eager to find out what had happened.
As Jackson anticipated, the response was swift and telling: Silva mentioned that Jones’ manager, Malki Kawa, had reached out. Although Jackson has never produced any concrete evidence to support his claims, “Bones” once playfully admitted to planting a spy in his opponent’s camp.
Continue Reading ‘Rampage’ Jackson On How He Smoked Out Jon Jones’ Alleged Spy In His Camp With Injury Lie at MMA News.
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