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MMA: Mixed Martial Arts

Anthony Joshua and Deontay Wilder are set for their respective Day of Reckoning fights Saturday evening.

Joshua (251.0 pounds) has over a 12-pound edge over Otto Wallin (238.6 pounds) for their main event clash.

“I’m a serious fighter and a serious businessman as well. Without Saturday night, there is no future. Saturday night has been my main focus. I need to get this win. I hope everyone is supporting me, putting me in their prayers, and let’s go out and handle business,” Joshua said.

Meanwhile, Deontay Wilder will be giving up serious weight for his co-main event clash against Joseph Parker. Wilder will be giving up more than 32 pounds for his fight, 213.0 pounds to 245.3 pounds for Parker.

“My new nickname is Dr. Sleep, and I’ve adopted that name. I have NyQuil in my right hand and I told him to bring a blanket and a pillow because it gets chilly over here,” Wilder said.

After his weigh-in, Parker shared some advice from his training partner Tyson Fury about the Wilder fight: “Don’t get hit with the right hand.”

Check out Day of Reckoning weigh-in results below.

Main card (DAZN/PPV.com at 11 a.m. ET)

Anthony Joshua (251.0) vs. Otto Wallin (238.6)

Deontay Wilder (213.0) vs. Joseph Parker (245.3)

Daniel Dubois (239.0) vs. Jarrell Miller (333.0)

Dmitry Bivol (174.6) vs. Lyndon Arthur (174.2)

Arslanbek Makhmudov (262.0) vs. Agit Kabayel (241.3)

Jai Opetaia (198.4) vs. Ellis Zorro (197.4)

Filip Hrgovic (246) vs. Mark De Mori (242.6)

Frank Sanchez (238.0) vs. Junior Fa (278.9)

MMA Fighting – All Posts

UFC

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MMA: Mixed Martial Arts

Welcome to the latest edition of Missed Fists where we shine a light on fights from across the globe that may have been overlooked in these hectic times where it seems like there’s an MMA show every other day.

With so much MMA (and, regrettably, influencer/freak show boxing) to cover this year, some other combat sports often get the short end of the stick, first and foremost kickboxing. This week, there was no way we couldn’t lead with in-ring action as a Rise World Series event in Tokyo gave us a one-punch knockout that might have topped Josh Emmett disintegrating Bryce Mitchell.

See for yourself.

(Big thanks as always to @Barrelelapierna for their weekly lists of the best KOs and submissions, and to @Grabaka_Hitman for uploading many of the clips you see here. Give them a follow and chip in on Patreon if you can.)

Kan Nakamura vs. Ahmed Akoudad

From a Rise World Series event in Tokyo, we have exhibit No. 390851096 why I’ll always lean in favor of early stoppages:

Look, I get it, that first knockdown is pretty standard in kickboxing, so there was no reason to wave it off. The referee did nothing wrong. At the same time, from this short clip you can tell Ahmed Akoudad is badly hurt already and sure enough, seconds later, that happened.

Slow the action down and you can actually see Kan Nakamura place one glove below Akoudad’s chin to tee him up for the hellacious haymaker that ends the fight. Wham, face-plant. Almost a head-plant, really, which is super scary.

It looks like Nakamura could have picked any number of ways to end this one and he chose to just rear back with his left hand and hit dude as hard as humanly possible. Not a fighter to be messed with.

Jordan Jones vs. Kieran Baines

It’s hard to beat that last visual, but Jordan Jones came close.

From Full Contact Contender 36 (available on UFC Fight Pass) in Liverpool, England:

That’s amateur bantamweight Jordan Jones zapping Kieran Baines with an arm-triangle choke that starts with Jones hanging off of his side. We’re all familiar with backpack position in grappling, but what would you call that?

The European Carry-All, perhaps?

Manuel Medina vs. Enrique Montalvo

While we’re on the topic of choke-outs, they don’t come more vicious than Manuel Medina’s effort at Cage Warriors 165 (also available on Fight Pass) in San Diego.

Not satisfied with delivering a clubbering, Medina finished Enrique Montalvo off with a rear-naked choke that guaranteed Montalvo would be counting sheep one way or another.

William Kirk vs. Jaquan Butler

And while we’re still talking submissions, let’s check out another amateur effort, a gorgeous calf slicer by William Kirk at Cagezilla FC 76 in Manassas, Va.

There’s levels to grappling and seeing Kirk methodically outwork Butler as they tangle on the ground is a reminder of that.

A replay of Cagezilla FC 76 is available on demand via pay-per-view.

Jake Craig vs. Terrence Jeffers
Shane Campbell vs. Darrell Horcher

Back to Fight Pass, Unified MMA held a event in Enoch, Alberta, Canada, and it featured a light heavyweight bout between Jake “Bronson” Craig and Terrence Jeffers (not to be confused with Brooklyn Nine-Nine’s Terrence “Terry” Jeffords).

With that out of the way, check out this absolute whalloping.

That’s a heck of a 1-2 sequence for Craig and while I don’t approve of the post-KO shenanigans, I can’t knock him too much for being a little jacked up after that finish.

Amazingly, that might not have even been the best finish of the card as Shane Campbell took out fellow former UFC fighter Darrell Horcher with a head kick followed by a knee right up the middle as Horcher reactively shot in.

Look how quick Campbell was to stand up and raise his hand in victory. He knew his work was done.

Ji Yong Yang vs. Jae Sung Park
Jung Hyun Lee vs. Gil Soo Lee

At Road FC 67 in Seoul, Ji Yong Yang needed just eight seconds to bully Jae Sung Park and sit him down against the fence.

I don’t know if Yang threw a single clean punch in there, but he threw with a lot of heart and that’s apparently all that matters.

More technically sound? This head kick from Jung Hyun Lee:

After making excellent use of a Thai clinch, Lee ducks a Gil Soo Lee punch, answers with two of his own, and then lets his leg fly high. The sequence is so fast, Gil Soo can’t possibly see it coming and that’s bad news for him.

Mateus Araujo vs. Jhon Sodre

Contrast that last finish with this one from Iron Man MMA 27 in Marituba, Brazil, where Jhon Sondre seemed to have Mateus Araujo’s kick game scouted.

Nope.

Sodre keeps his left hand high, brings it closer to his head as Araujo fires, but fails to deflect the strike. I actually think he tilted his head at just the wrong angle, which led to the end of Araujo’s foot catching him close to the temple. That’s a no-no if you’re objective is to stay conscious.

Araujo pump fakes, pulls back, and then nails the excited toddler celebration.

Alex Keogh vs. Hugo Leimanis

From the “If at first you don’t succeed, try, try again” department:

At a Cage Legacy event in Tallaght, Ireland, amateur Alex Keogh had one thing in mind: Head kick.

Didn’t land the first time? No problem, head kick.

And then head kick. And then head kick.

Rinse, repeat, revel in a highlight-reel knockout.

Alfonso Leyva vs. Sarek Shields
Jordan Harris vs. Aupuni Pagaoa

The LFA wisely took advantage of the UFC’s last pay-per-view of the year, setting up at Pearl Theater in Las Vegas to host an event that featured a handful of devastating finishes.

First and foremost, this flying knee from Alfonso Leyva that sent Sarek Shields out on his shield.

Leyva, 30, made his pro debut in 2020 and has established himself as an exciting prospect at 170 pounds. He’s won seven of his first eight fights, all by way of knockout.

One fight prior, flyweight Jordan Harris improved to 4-0 with a front kick right to Aupuni Pagaoa’s guts.

You have to wonder if Harris knew that damage he’d do when he flicked that foot out there. Pagaoa goes down immediately and despite his best attempts to recover, his body decides that discretion is the better part of valor.

LFA 173 is available to replay on UFC Fight Pass.

Alibi Idiris vs. Erisson Ferreira
Magomed Bartikhanov vs. Erkebulan Sissenbaev

Speaking of UFC 296, Shavkat Rakhmonov was one of the event’s big winners with his second-round decimation of Stephen “Wonderboy” Thompson. It’s no secret that Rakhmonov’s native Kazakhstan has been pumping out some of the brightest talents this decade and more continue to be showcased at Naiza FC.

At an event in Almaty, flyweight Alibi Idiris improved to 9-0 with a beautiful display of striking capped off by this spin kick:

I don’t know if Erisson Ferreira was going to recover from that, but a precise follow-up punch made sure he didn’t.

It wasn’t all good news for Kazakh fighters. Let’s dip back into the submission well one more time for this classic Ezekiel choke executed from full mount (not in full mount à la Aleksei Oleinik) by Russia’s Magomed Bartikhanov.

Look at how Bartikhanov controlled the legs there. Just gave Erkebulan Sissenbaev no leverage to maneuver, turning him into a turtle on its shell.

A free replay of Naiza FC 56 is available on YouTube.

Federico Fasciano vs. Jose De La Cavada

‘Tis the season for spinning and winning.

Who am I kidding? It’s ALWAYS the season for spinning and winning.

This fast first-round battle between Federico Fasciano and Jose De La Cavada at Way of Warrior FC 11 in Madrid was fairly even until Fasciano decided to let his backfist fly with very, very pleasing results. That was a full-on “I don’t know exactly where this strike is going to land, but if it’s anywhere near your head, you’re in trouble, bro.” And he was.

Ramiro Jimenez vs. Mauricio Eguiluz

Surprise! Here’s one more head kick you’ve got to see, from a Combate Global event in Miami.

It’s a little difficult to see exactly how that shot landed there, so let’s go to the Caposa Cam:

Mauricio Eguiluz picked the exact wrong time to reach for a leg and ended up catching one right across his face instead. The slow motion replay really shows how badly Eguiluz got smacked there.

You ever been flicked in the nose and felt kind of annoyed? Imagine how Eguiluz felt after having his nostrils filled with shinbone.

Happy holidays, everyone.

If you know of a recent fight or event that you think may have been overlooked, or a promotion that could use some attention, please let us know on Twitter — @AlexanderKLee — using the hashtag #MissedFists.

MMA Fighting – All Posts

Thoughts
| BJPenn.com

Nickal revealed that he took his first fight after four weeks of MMA training, and signed onto Dana White’s Contender Series with less than a year of experience.

UFC welterweight prospect Bo Nickal has been speedrunning through the early stages of his mixed martial arts career. The three-time NCAA Division 1 champion was scouted onto Dana White’s Contender Series in 2022 for his second pro fight. Two fast wins later, and he graduated into the UFC.

He’s since gone 2-0 with the promotion, and is now set to face Cody Brundage at UFC 300. As if his success in the sport hasn’t been impressive enough, Nickal just revealed that he’d been training MMA for less than a year when he signed up for the Contender Series.

“It’s been so interesting, my journey,” he said on a recent episode of The Joe Rogan Experience. “I feel like I always try to look for people to compare and see how they did things, and maybe take the positives and negatives and apply those to what I’m doing. But there really hasn’t been that many people that have done what what I’ve done. I’m 5-0 right now. I started training in August of 2021 MMA.”

Wrestling is one of the best bases for mixed martial arts, but few collegiate cross-overs have arrived with the deadly level of striking Nickal has displayed. He’s already won three fights via first round KO/TKO.

“I started training, and four weeks later I was like ‘Yo, I’m freaking, let’s get a fight,’ Nickal said. “So I took an amateur fight against some poor dude that didn’t know what he was doing. He was 0-0 or 1-0, amateur. I was 0-0, and he took the flight. A lot of people had a lot of question marks [about me]. People were like, ‘Alright, I don’t know, let’s see what’s up.’”

“I choked the guy out, and was like, ‘Let’s go again.’ Four weeks later, I fought my second amateur fight, knocked the dude out cold. I had trained another six months, seven months, and was like let’s do a pro debut. And that was in June of 2022. So I’m coming out against another poor guy who thought he was gonna knock me out or something. And I knock him out in 30 seconds on UFC Fight Pass. It did, like, the most views in UFC Fight Pass history, more than any other promotion. It was something like three or four million views in the week.”

“My initial plan, before any of this happened, was I’m gonna get ten fights on the regional scene, and then I’m gonna go UFC,” he continued. “Be the champ by like thirteen, fourteen fights. That’s what the plan was. But after that it was like everybody kinda knows what’s up, everybody’s trying to sign me. I talked with my manager and I said ‘Dude, am I even gonna be able to get a fight? Who’s gonna fight me in these regional promotions?”

“He’s like, ‘I’ll be honest with you. Nobody’s gonna fight you.’ And I’m like okay then, in my mind, I was always going to UFC. These other organizations, I think they they do a good job and stuff, but that’s not really me. I’m a UFC guy.”

Thus far the lack of experience in the cage hasn’t been an issue for Nickal. Despite his clear skill, the UFC isn’t rushing him into bouts against ranked fighters just yet. Cody Brundage is a tough guy on a two fight win streak, but prior to that he went 0-3 against middle of the pack opposition.

We expect the betting line on this one to be heavily in Bo’s favor. Any juice fans want to squeeze out of Nickal may have to come on whether he pulls off a sixth first round stoppage in a row.

MMAmania.com – All Posts

Mine is seeing Khabib bleed for the first time. I feel like if anyone wouldve done it it would be prime tony. When leon took usman down i was jumping up and down in excitement. It was so unexpected may not be crazy to casual viewers but it definitely was for hardcores. submitted by /u/Crafty_Preparation32 [link] [comments]

MMA: Mixed Martial Arts

Dricus Du Plessis’ first time sitting cageside at a UFC event was a memorable experience.

Business expectedly picked up last Friday during the UFC’s seasonal press conference. Building hype for the upcoming trio of PPV headliners in 2024, the promotion got all six pairs of champions and challengers together, including Du Plessis’ and middleweight’s filterless current king Sean Strickland. At UFC 297 on Jan. 20, the pair of aggressive strikers go toe-to-toe in Toronto, Ontario, Canada.

Strickland, 32, has become notorious for his outspoken nature, never shy to unleash unwarranted opinions on anything or anyone and anything. When Du Plessis mentioned Strickland’s previously revealed mentions of child abuse from his father growing up, it got to the champion more than anticipated.

“Obviously, you know, this is a big mental game,” Du Plessis told The Coach and The Casual (h/t MMA Mania). “This whole fight thing is a mental game for me. [Pressers are] all fun and games. But at the end of the day, that’s part of it. That’s part of the fight, what happens in that press conference. That’s a fight before the fight just like the weigh-in is. There’s nothing you could possibly say to throw me off. And I said, ‘Cool. I’m gonna start chipping away and see where when I get this.’

“He looks like a guy that he’s not gonna be easy to freak because he dishes it out. The first thing I said [did it], and that was only the beginning. He’s so glad it was the end, I had so much more to go. Oh my God, I was so ready, and that was the first thing I said to this guy! I thought, ‘Oh, he’s acting,’ and then I saw like, ‘I really got him.’ Okay. I did all this homework, and I did all this preparation for this, and now the first thing I say [got him].”

The seasonal press conference set the tone for the type of interactions to expect in the coming weeks before UFC 297 and boiled over early just one day later. UFC 296 closed out the 2023 calendar for the promotion and resulted in a preview of Strickland vs. Du Plessis in the crowd after they were sat next to each other front row.

UFC CEO Dana White came out later that night and took the blame for his foolish placement of the fighters in the crowd. With such a coincidence, Strickland and Du Plessis’ fellow middleweight Robert Whittaker speculated that the decision was intentional to set up the incident that occurred. Du Plessis doubts that was the case, however.

“No,” Du Plessis said when asked if he thought the scuffle was set up. “Well, I mean, I don’t think so.

“We walk in, and I look at my ticket,” Du Plessis said. “This is my first time sitting cageside. I live in South Africa, I don’t come to all the events. ‘This is your row, row C, Seat number 4 or 5,’ whatever. And I go, ‘Okay.’ And I see that’s Sean Strickland over there. I’m assuming they’re gonna [put me on the other side]. And the guy goes, ‘No. You’re on that side.’ I immediately realized, like, he’s in row A, then it’s B, and C, meaning we are sitting two rows apart. We even had the same seat number. So he’s literally sitting right in front of me.

“They tell me the cameras are gonna be on you guys now, and I obviously know this is his domain. They’re definitely booing me. And I just went, ‘Cool.’ I’m just gonna join them with the boos and boo him. I’m like, cool, I’m with you guys, I’m booing him too. And as I did it, I could see him on the screen, I just saw that he was so irritated.

“Then he turned around, and he did the whole gun thing,” he continued. “He was just so frustrated, and I said, ‘Listen, even with that gun you’re missing.’ And he kinda looked around, and I said, ‘Yeah, look in front of you before I beat your ass.’”

After Strickland’s gesture, the UFC cut to a promo on the broadcast as social media quickly began stirring and sharing what immediately transpired.

“We were looking at each other, he said something, I said something,” Du Plessis said. “And it was almost like, okay, that’s the end of the storm. And I turned, still looking at him, and he turned … and then he just jumped. I thought it was over, and he just jumped. Here we go.

“It was crazy because we were in between a lot of fighters. It was so crazy, the vibe after the whole thing happened. Usually, if you’re in a social setting like that and something like that happens, some people are crying. But you just see all the fighters like ‘Yeah! Yeah!’”

Thankfully, before Strickland began unloading punches atop his next opponent, he asked Gilbert Burns’ children to get out of the way, which was fuel for the previous speculation. Ultimately, Du Plessis will be Strickland’s first title defense as the recently minted champion and they’ll soon get their hands on each other legally.

Due to the incident’s nature, legal action could be applicable, but for the South African, it was nothing in the grand scheme as he seeks his ninth straight win (20-2) in his first UFC title fight.

“I mean, when people sue each other in South Africa, that’s for, like, real stuff, not little stuff,” Du Plessis said. “If he hit me with a chair from behind or whatever, that is causes for some concern. But it was a good old-fashioned scrap. It was mutual combat. Yeah.”

TOP STORIES

Aftermath. Colby Covington claims he broke his foot in ‘the first 30 seconds’ of Leon Edwards fight at UFC 296

Contention. Belal Muhammad slams Leon Edwards’ claim he doesn’t deserve title shot: ’That’s what pisses me off the most about him’

Gnarly. Josh Emmett describes feeling of ‘brutal knockout’ of Bryce Mitchell, responds to criticism for his celebration

Departure. UFC releases veteran heavyweight Parker Porter

Homecoming. Nobuyuki Sakakibara confirms past talks with Anderson Silva, ‘doors open’ for legends’ retirement fights in RIZIN

Booked. Aljamain Sterling vs. Chase Hooper, Terrance McKinney vs. Sidney Outlaw set for grappling matches at ADXC 2

Negotiations. Deontay Wilder explains what he needs from PFL in order to fight Francis Ngannou in ‘mixed rules’ bout

VIDEO STEW

Between the Links.

UFC Records That Were Broken in 2023.

Matchmaker for a day.

PFL 2023 Certified Stars.

Tawanchai vs. Superbon preview.

Muay Thai violence.

Zombie Trip 3.

Fancy armbar setup.

LISTEN UP

Heck of a Morning. MMA Fighting’s Mike Heck discusses whether or not Belal Muhammad will get his chance at UFC gold against Leon Edwards.

MORNING MUSIC

SOCIAL MEDIA BOUILLABAISSE

Takada’s farewell.

Games.

PFL Africa.

Response.

Coming up.

Praise.

Canadian Superman.

Reactions.

FIGHT ANNOUNCEMENTS

Robert Whittaker (24-7) vs. Paulo Costa (14-2); UFC 298, Feb. 17

Geoff Neal (15-5) vs. Ian Machado Garry (13-0); UFC 298, Feb. 17

Yair Rodriguez (18-4) vs. Brian Ortega (15-3); UFC Mexico City, Feb. 24

Erin Blanchfield (12-1) vs. Manon Fiorot (11-1); UFC Atlantic City, March 30

Jiri Prochazka (29-4-1) vs. Aleksandar Rakic (14-3); UFC 300, April 13

Aljamain Sterling (23-4) vs. Calvin Kattar(23-7); UFC 300, April 13

Bo Nickal (5-0) vs. Cody Brundage (10-5); UFC 300, April 13

FINAL THOUGHTS

Happy holidays, gang! I’ll see you after the festivities. Until then, enjoy the time of year, kick back and relax. Thanks for reading!

EXIT POLL

If you find something you’d like to see in the Morning Report, hit up @DrakeRiggs_ on Twitter and let him know about it. Also, follow MMAFighting on Instagram and like us on Facebook.

MMA Fighting – All Posts

Former interim welterweight champion, Colby Covington claims he is still dumbfounded by the UFC’s decision to pay his an apparently lucrative payday in his victory over former two-time title chaser, Jorge Masvidal back in March of last year – describing his long-time rival as a “backstabbing bum”.

Covington, who headlined UFC 296 over the course of last weekend, suffered a one-sided unanimous decision loss to incumbent undisputed champion, Leon Edwards in the pair’s championship fight.

The one-sided loss came as Covington’s third in an undisputed title fight, following a pair of defeats to former pound-for-pound number one, Kamaru Usman.

Prior to his return over the course of last weekend, outspoken Clovis native, Covington recorded a decision shutout victory over former American Top Team stablemate, Masvidal, turning in a dominant win over the Floridian.

Colby Covington reflects on 2022 win over Jorge Masvidal

And reflecting on his decision success in the immediate aftermath of his loss to Birmingham technician, Edwards, Covington claimed he earned a massive payday in his most recent success.

“I beat him (Jorge Masvidal) up,” Colby Covington said on the PBD podcast. “I gave him the 50-43 with a soda. It was the easiest fight of my career. I can’t believe what they [the UFC] paid me to beat that backstabbing bum up. He’s a backstabber. He’s a guy that as soon as I started rising up in the ranks, that’s when it was an issue.”

“That’s when his ego came in,” Colby Covington explained. “He’s like, No, f*ck you, Colby. I’d fight my mom for money, so I’m for sure gonna fight you. We’re gonna fight one day.’ He just started throwing me under the bus for no reason.” 

What’s next for Colby Covington after UFC 296?

LowKickMMA.com