Patryk Tolkaczewski and Krzysztof Glowacki | @KSW_MMA, Twitter
Krzysztof Glowacki scored one of the most amazing knockouts of 2023, but 2024 has already proven unkind to him.
Reuters reported Wednesday that Glowacki has received a four-year suspension from UK Anti-Doping after testing positive for anabolic steroids. The recent KSW fighter and former WBO cruiserweight boxing champion is banned from participating in any athletic competition for the duration of his suspension.
UKAD oversees anti-doping efforts for 40 Olympic, Paralympic and professional sports in the U.K. and is overseen by Parliament. The regulator is complaint with the World Anti-Doping Code, considered one of the most reputable measures of anti-doping efforts.
It’s a devastating blow for Glowacki, 37, who made a successful MMA debut this past June at KSW’s second “Colosseum” event at PGE Narodowy in Warsaw, Poland. Glowacki scored a miraculous KO from bottom position after being fully mounted, and the highlight quickly went viral, later garnering Knockout of the Year consideration.
The failed drug test is not tied to Glowacki’s KSW appearance, but rather a boxing match that took place in January 2023 in Manchester, U.K. There, Glowacki lost via fourth-round TKO to Richard Riakporhe, his third loss in four fights. His urine sample from that bout’s testing came up positive for Boldenone, an anabolic androgenic steroid banned at all times.
Glowacki holds a 32-4 (20 KOs) record in boxing. He began his career 26-0, a run that included winning the WBO cruiserweight title in August 2015; he successfully defended it once.
During his early days inside the octagon, Khamzat Chimaev was one of the most active and dominant fighters on the roster. Not only was he able to completely dismantle his opponents, but he would be doing so with very little rest in between fights.
‘Borz’ would once hold the UFC record for the quickest two wins in modern history when he won twice in just 10 days. Now, having fought once since 2022, the undefeated prodigy looks set for another spell on the sidelines.
In a now-deleted post on social media, Khamzat Chimaev posted a frightening health update for fans. According to the UFC standout, he injured his hand and was suffering from a sickness, which has ultimately kept him away from the octagon for longer than he would have liked.
“I was very sick, my hand was injured, so I couldn’t return right away. I want to tell all the fountains, I want to see myself in battle more than all of you,” Chimaev stated in a recently deleted social media post. “I love this job, I will do and prove that I am the best, as always we do, and I will be back soon to Insha’Allal training.”
Khamzat Chimaev posted and then deleted a picture of himself saying he was very sick pic.twitter.com/RDQnhmnOce
— MMA Mania (@mmamania) January 3, 2024
Chimaev last competed less than three months ago at UFC 294. The Russian battled his way to a majority decision victory over the short-notice Kamaru Usman on October 21 but is insistent on returning to his previous consistent schedule.
Related: Colby Covington details why fight against Khamzat Chimaev didn’t come to fruition
His health scare wasn’t the only update that he posted to social media. Following the deletion of his original post, Khamzat Chimaev shared a short clip of himself looking much better than he did during his illness. In the short video, the 29-year-old claimed he feels good and expects to go on a title push in 2024.
pic.twitter.com/nNq754VDx6
— Khamzat Chimaev (@KChimaev) January 3, 2024
Despite moving between weight classes, Chimaev now finds himself ranked within the top 10 at middleweight. While nothing is confirmed, the fan-favorite will likely remain at 185 lbs for the foreseeable future, which is a division that he believes he can easily become champion.
Photo by Amy Kaplan/Icon Sportswire via Getty Images
Prior to the Bellator sale to PFL, Corey Anderson thought he would have time to settle some business with Vadim Nemkov.
After their first encounter ended in anticlimactic fashion with a no-contest, the result of an accidental clash of heads in a fight Anderson was winning, the rematch went almost exactly the opposite with Nemkov getting the nod on the scorecards.
Following a win over Phil Davis in June, Anderson started speaking to the matchmakers about booking a third fight with Nemkov for late 2023. But just when it looked like the fight might happen, the Russian light heavyweight champion announced he was done competing at 205 pounds.
“I definitely wanted to get one more in this year,” Anderson told MMA Fighting. “I wanted at least two, I was hoping to get three this year. I told Bellator at the end of last year, I wanted to get more active. I wanted two or three fights and then this year, I wanted to get two and they were trying to get the [Vadim] Nemkov [trilogy] and that was supposed to happen in November in Chicago. Then Nemkov made his announcement that he didn’t want to fight at 205 anymore.
“Then it was maybe Phil [Davis] again for the belt or somebody else would step up. I think Johnny Eblen was talking about possibly coming up to 205.”
None of those matchups came together before Bellator promoted its final show under its old management in November and was acquired by PFL. While Bellator will still move forward as a separate brand, all of the fighters previously competing there are under the PFL banner.
Whether it’s in PFL or the new-look Bellator, Anderson would still love the chance to settle things with Nemkov/ But he’s essentially given up hope that fight will happen any time soon– if ever.
“I tell everybody scared money don’t make no money,” Anderson said about Nemkov. “Don’t be acting scared, bro. Just take that risk. Let’s go. You know what’s going to happen. You know I’m preparing. You know it ain’t going to happen the same [as the rematch]. I ain’t going to just wrestle this time. I’m going to put them hands on you. My thought is if you’re going to be scared, go ahead, keep on running. Go to heavyweight. All that extra people talking about ‘he don’t want to fight these people, he done beat everybody.’ No, we’re 1-1. It didn’t go to the scorecards but we’re 1-1.
“It’s a rubber match. He was scared to see what would happen and like I told people, he’d rather just relinquish the belt that actually lose it.”
Anderson expressed disappointment that he might not get the chance to run it back with Nemkov, though he’s not totally opposed to a trip to heavyweight to settle that business one day. For now, he remains committed to the light heavyweight division, where he’s effectively the last man standing.
“You can’t make him fight,” Anderson said. “If he’s going to be scared, let him tuck his tail and run. Let him run somewhere else. Let him go do what he’s going to do. If he don’t want to man up and fight that third one and see what happens, I ain’t going to put a gun to your head. But we know. That’s it.”
If Nemkov really plans to move forward as a heavyweight, that leaves the Bellator 205-pound division without a champion, and Anderson is more than ready to fill that void. If the PFL still plans to promote a champion versus champion card against Bellator, Anderson volunteered his services to replace Nemkov at that event. UFC veteran Impa Kasanganay made an improbable run to become the 2023 PFL light heavyweight champion, and Anderson would love the chance to face him in early 2024.
“The night he won the belt I tweeted sign me up,” Anderson said when addressing Kasanganay. “Because Nemkov can’t fight 205. They gave him the opportunity to fight me and defend the belt against me. He claimed he can’t make 205 anymore. It would be a dang shame if he said, ‘I can make the weight now.’ Nah, bro, it means you’re scared. You didn’t want to fight me for the third time.
“If that’s the case, it’s only right that I step in for the 205 belt or defend the 205 belt for Bellator. I’m not the champ but if there’s nobody else there, I’m the next guy up. I got it now.”
More than anything, Anderson just wants some clarity about what comes next, because he’s still awaiting word from the PFL about his plans for 2024. He’s anxious to get back to work.
“I just want to fight [and] make money,” Anderson said. “I stay ready so I don’t have to get ready. The main goal is the belt. That’s what I want. But one thing [Daniel Cormier] made me realize, that belt ain’t going to pay bills and scholarships and college tuition and everything else.
“I don’t need the money — I told my wife we’re fine if we don’t fight for another two years, we could be good — but I want to stack as much money as I can, while I can, so when I walk away, you know I didn’t do this sport for nothing.”
That means fans can expect “Gamebred” to make his combat sports return at some point in 2024. Former UFC title contender, Chael Sonnen, is hoping to see Masvidal unify the “BMF” belts against Justin Gaethje at the UFC 300 pay-per-view (PPV) event in April.
“The only way you could make up for his retirement or make up for the discrepancy in records is if you spot him the weight and move Gaethje to 170, and you make it for the BMF,” Sonnen said on YouTube (transcribed by MMA News). “The only chance to do that would be UFC 300, and Max (Holloway) currently already has dibs on Gaethje at 300. I don’t think this is going to happen… unless it’s at 300, for the belt, against Gaethje.”
That was a fight Masvidal was calling for back in August.
Longtime MMA media personality Ariel Helwani told his audience on today’s live stream that Masvidal was not in consideration for UFC 300. In fact, a new report making the rounds suggests “Gamebred” will be making his return to the bareknuckle arena against fellow UFC veteran Diego Sanchez.
BKFC is a popular destination for ex-UFC stars, where Sanchez has previously competed, but since Masvidal already owns a bareknuckle promotion, it would make more sense for “Gamebred” to compete under his own banner (and line his own pockets).
Then came the tweet-and-delete from Jake Paul, who has a history of beefing with Masvidal.
“Yeah yeah. Going to box Nate Diaz…whatever,” Paul wrote on Twitter. “Come see me when Dana [White] gives you permission.”
With Masvidal sharing the news that he’s back in the fight game, it’s only a matter of time before he reveals his next opponent. Without knowing the details of his contract status with UFC, it’s uncertain if he would need the promotion’s blessing to compete outside of the Octagon.
Expect an answer in the coming weeks, if not sooner.
Conor McGregor | Photo by Justin Setterfield/Getty Images
Michael Bisping warns Conor McGregor that bigger isn’t always better.
McGregor recently announced his plans to return from a break of almost three years for a fight with Michael Chandler at a June 29 UFC event. Strangely, McGregor declared that the bout will take place at middleweight, which neither he nor Chandler have competed at in the past. The UFC is yet to officially confirm the bout.
Former middleweight champion Michael Bisping spoke to co-host Anthony Smith about McGregor’s announcement on the Believe You Me podcast, where he questioned the current conditioning of “The Notorious.”
“No wonder it’s 185 because Conor McGregor’s arm—I only saw his arm—but it looked a little flabby gabby,” Bisping said. “I thought so. It looks thick, I’m not hating, but he looks a little soft there. He’s definitely bigger. Brendan Loughnane… he said he’s doing a little training with him out in Dubai, he said, ‘Yeah, he’s big. He’s at least 200 pounds.”
McGregor famously won titles in two weight classes, knocking out Jose Aldo in 13 seconds at UFC 194 to claim a featherweight belt and later moving up to lightweight to dethrone Eddie Alvarez at UFC 205. He has also fought several times at welterweight, including in his most recent bout in July 2021, when he broke his leg in a loss to longtime rival Dustin Poirier.
Middleweight will be new ground for McGregor should that actually be the division in which he fights Chandler. Bisping wonders if all of the added weight will have a negative effect on McGregor’s performance.
“He fought at 145, went up to 155, 185 that is not his optimal weight class,” Bisping said. “Granted, he’s fighting another lightweight in Michael Chandler. The problem is though is that, as I say, it’s not your optimal weight class, so they’re going to be carrying more weight. If you’re Conor—and I’m not hating on Conor and I’m really excited for the fight because he’s the most exciting guy because of the energy and the presence and the hype and the performances. Win or lose, and there’s been losses recently, they’re still big moments and the comeback is going to be something special. It really is, but I think with all that extra weight it’s going to be an issue.
“Because not only does making weight suck, but making weight also insists on discipline because you have to. If I was going to make 185 pounds, I had to do my road work, I had to follow a strict diet, I had to make sure I was getting my ass in the gym because I’m not going to make weight. You can be 185 pounds. When he fights at 145 or 155, there’s not that subconscious threat of missing weight, of not being successful, of having the big comeback, one of the greatest comebacks in the history of the sport being a failure. Having to make weight makes you disciplined. It makes you live that monk kind of lifestyle, that fighters enjoy and go through. On top of that, he’s not known for having the best cardio. When you’re carrying that extra weight, whether it’s muscle or fat, it’s going to tire you down, it’s going to slow you down, and it’s going to definitely affect your endurance.”
Smith agreed with Bisping’s assessment, noting that added weight could affect McGregor’s signature standup style.
“His footwork’s not going to be the same either,” Smith said. “He’s going to be a little more plodding and he’s going to have to be because he’s carrying the extra weight that he’s not used to carrying, so it’s a technique thing too. The techniques that he does and the way that he fights and the footwork that he fights with and the sliding in and sliding out, doing that 30 pounds heavier is different.
“He hasn’t done it at fight speed in a competition 30 pounds heavier. He’s never done that. It’s going to be different and it’s going to feel different when he’s in there, even if he convinces himself that it doesn’t.”
The other factor that Smith suggested should be considered is the broken leg that has taken McGregor out of action for over two years. McGregor’s injury left him unable to continue after the first round of his trilogy bout with Poirier and he was later diagnosed with a broken tibia.
Smith suffered a leg injury himself at UFC 277, and while it wasn’t as severe as McGregor’s, he still doubts that McGregor will be the same when he steps back into the cage.
“What impact and how bad of an impact it’s going to have, I don’t know,” Smith said. “But he’s different. I have no evidence of that, I haven’t seen anything that’s shown that he’s different, but he knows it. He can feel it, he moves different, it’s not the same. Leg injuries, knee injuries, that’s just how they are. Some are better than others… you can do good rehab and the injuries not as bad sometimes with knee ligament stuff you can get away with feeling pretty much 100 percent. Really, really wicked bone injuries, it’s never the same. There’s arthritis, new bone growth, it looks different, it feels different, it’s different.
“I don’t move the same. Now am I less than I was before? I don’t know that I would say that now, I think I’m probably pretty close to the same level, but it’s different. It changes the way I have to do some things for sure. … There’s just some different things you’re going to have to do and his is way worse than mine, so all those things are a lot different for him.”
Conor McGregor is always looking for a way to extend his rivalry with legendary pugilist Manny Pacquaio.
‘PacMan’ surprised fight fights on New Year’s Eve, revealing that a rematch with Floyd ‘Money’ Mayweather was in the works for 2024. Pacquiao dropped the bombshell while making an appearance at RIZIN 45 inside the iconic Saitama Super Arena in Japan. The bout has not been officially announced, but if true, it will come nearly a decade removed from their ‘Fight of the Century’ scrap in 2015.
“I will see you here in Japan again, for a big fight,” the former eight-division world champion said before turning around and seemingly asking for permission to announce his opponent “Floyd Mayweather, I thought you wouldn’t want me to say that. I am excited for that. Thank you for always supporting RIZIN promotions” (h/t DailyMail).
Manny Pacquiao announces he’s fighting Floyd Mayweather on RIZIN in 2024 pic.twitter.com/EJ485tdFhO
— Happy Punch (@HappyPunch) December 31, 2023
Conor McGregor shared the clip on Instagram whilst taking a dig at Pacquiao, writing: “A lesson in how not to make an announcement.
Conor McGregor was not a fan of Manny Pacquiao targeting a Floyd Mayweather rematch at Rizin NYE * * *#ConorMcGregor #MannyPacquia #FloydMayweather #RIZIN45 #RIZIN pic.twitter.com/Euunsgv4He
— Bowks (@DylanBowker) January 2, 2024
Conor McGregor makes his own blockbuster announcement
Of course, the Irishman offered his own big New Year’s reveal, confirming that he would make his long-awaited return to the Octagon on June 28 to headline UFC 302 as part of the promotion’s annual International Fight Week in Las Vegas. McGregor is expected to square off with former Bellator MMA champion ‘Iron’ Michael Chandler in a 185-pound showdown.
Weeks before the announcement, McGregor vented his frustration over his lengthy layoff, suggesting that if the UFC didn’t lock down a date for his “greatest comeback in combat sports history,” he would pursue a fight with Pacquiao in the Kingdom of Saudi Arabia.
“Get me back in there,” he told talkSPORT. “The Mac has lots to offer and loads to deliver. They are talking Manny here in Saudi. The lads in the UFC aren’t really talking any. So, the lads here are talking Manny, the UFC aren’t talking any. Give me something. I’m supposed to be back in April. It was supposed to be December!
“Tell Manny to grow a set of balls and fight me at a higher weight class. Why not? It’s his sport. If he wants me to come down to a smaller weight, I should be able to use more of my weapons. I should be able to kick. I should be able to grapple. Shouldn’t that be fair? Say it to him. Is he a man or a mouse? Is Manny a man or a mouse?”
pic.twitter.com/EJ485tdFhO
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