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Khabib Nurmagomedov remains steadfast that he’s fought his final fight.

The retired former UFC lightweight champion called it a career after stopping Justin Gaethje at UFC 254 in October 2020, ending his career with the 155-pound title, and an undefeated record to boot.

On a recent trip to Indonesia, Nurmagomedov was asked during an interview if he would ever consider returning to the octagon.

“There is no chance,” Nurmagomedov told Indonesian outlet iNews. “Not even one percent [chance], minus [percentage].”

Of course, Nurmagomedov is still in the MMA space as he’s coaching a slew of talented fighters — including now-UFC lightweight champion Islam Makhachev, along with Bellator lightweight titleholder Usman Nurmagomedov, likely No. 1 UFC bantamweight contender Umar Nurmagomedov, and more.

Because of that, Nurmagomedov says his legacy will live on as the sport of mixed martial arts continues to grow and evolve.

“If you guys need champions, I’m helping my brothers to become champions,” Nurmagomedov said. “We have Islam, champion. We have Umar, next contender. We have Usman champion [in Bellator].

“We have a lot of champions. You guys [are] never going to miss me because in our team, in our gym, we create champions. You guys [are] going to [always have] champion [from our team], don’t worry about this.”

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Matchmaking
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Ultimate Fighting Championship (UFC) Middleweight sluggers Roman Dolidze vs. Kevin Holland will this weekend (Sat., Oct. 5, 2024) at UFC 307 inside Delta Center in Salt Lake City, Utah.

At 36 years of age and having lost two of his last three, it doesn’t feel like Dolidze is going to put it all together and challenge for the title anytime soon. At the same time, the Georgian standout is an active finisher capable of fighting ranked opposition in two divisions, so there are still plenty of interesting fights available. Similarly, Holland’s Welterweight rebirth didn’t result in a title fight. Nowadays, “Trailblazer” is more interested in kicking necks and cashing checks, which explains this fairly random return to Middleweight slugfest.

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

Photo by Jeff Bottari/Zuffa LLC via Getty Images

Roman Dolidze vs. Kevin Holland Betting Odds

• Roman Dolidze victory: +136
• Roman Dolidze via TKO/KO/DQ: TBD
• Roman Dolidze via submission: TBD
• Roman Dolidze via decision: TBD
• Kevin Holland victory: -162
• Kevin Holland via TKO/KO/DQ: TBD
• Kevin Holland via submission: TBD
• Kevin Holland via decision: TBD
• Odds via DraftKings Sportsbook

Photo by Jeff Bottari/Zuffa LLC via Getty Images

How Dolidze Wins

Dolidze is unintentionally a very funny fighter. On the same evening, he’ll throw the sloppiest charging hooks you’ve ever seen, shoot a sloppy takedown, then perform the most intricate jiu-jitsu sequence of the year.

I think it’s safe to say Dolidze wants this fight on the canvas. He’s got the power to compete with Holland on the feet, but his opponent is the much cleaner boxer and will have a significant speed advantage. Fortunately, Holland was a lot easier to out-muscle at 185-pounds. That’s only likely to have grown more true since he shed some weight to make the Welterweight limit.

The focus here should be on corralling Holland to the fence using hooks and footwork. When Holland’s back foot has nowhere to go, Dolidze can look to change levels and get physical in the clinch. This is a match up of former Light Heavyweight vs. recent Welterweight, so there’s every chance that “The Caucasian” can simply overpower his opponent and dominate from top position.

Photo by Jeff Bottari/Zuffa LLC via Getty Images

How Holland Wins

I think Holland might actually be a better 185-pounder than Welterweight. In either division, his game — which consists mostly of the 1-2, random kicks, and nasty clinch work — is a little too shallow for the division’s elite. At Middleweight, however, he’s dealing with a bunch of slower, tired opponents who are less likely to be any good at wrestling.

That’s worth a size disadvantage!

Holland is going to be much faster than Dolidze, and his 1-2 stings everybody it touches, even very durable opposition like Marvin Vettori. Footwork will be key for him, as being able to move freely around the cage and stick those straight punches will be a priority. I’d also like to see Holland really aggressive with strikes when Dolidze pursues the clinch. He’s positively nasty with his elbows and knees from close quarters, and those shots could really convince Dolidze to avoid further takedown attempts.

If these two trade for three rounds, there’s little doubt who comes out on top.

Photo by Jeff Bottari/Zuffa LLC via Getty Images

Dolidze Vs. Holland Prediction

I think the betting odds are right on the money here. Though both men have clear avenues to victory, I favor Holland to successfully keep this standing by a small amount.

Obviously, it would be a big problem for “Trailblazer” to end up stuck on bottom, and we saw that happen against Marvin Vettori and Derek Brunson. Since then, however, there have been noticeable improvements to his defensive wrestling. In addition, Dolidze just isn’t that consistent of an offensive wrestler. The best fighters he’s successfully wrestled in the Octagon are … Laureano Staropoli? John Allan?

Holland (likely) has what it takes to keep this one standing, and his right hand isn’t going to miss.

Prediction: Holland via decision

Remember that MMAmania.com will deliver LIVE round-by-round, blow-by-blow coverage of the entire UFC 307 fight card right here, starting with the early ESPN+ “Prelims” matches online, which are scheduled to begin at 6:30 p.m. ET (simulcast on ESPNews at 8 p.m. ET), before the pay-per-view (PPV) main card start time at 10 p.m. ET (also on ESPN+).

To check out the latest and greatest UFC 307: “Pereira vs. Rountree” news and notes be sure to hit up our comprehensive event archive right here.

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MMA: Mixed Martial Arts

Alex Pereira and Khalil Rountree meet in the light heavyweight championship main event this Saturday at UFC 307, a fight that very few in the MMA community saw coming.

Watch MMA Fighting’s UFC 307 Timeline video for an in-depth look at how both headliners got to this weekend’s pay-per-view in Salt Lake City.

“Poatan” became the UFC middleweight champion in short order after stopping long-standing rival Israel Adesanya at UFC 281 in November 2022. After Adesanya exacted revenge five months later at UFC 287, Pereira’s journey led to the light heavyweight division, where he captured his second divisional title two fights later. His reign extended into an unforgettable 2024 campaign, where he saved the UFC to earn knockout wins on the massive UFC 300 and UFC 303 events.

Rountree gets his first shot at UFC gold, doing so as a sizable underdog. The 34-year-old has had a rollercoaster ride from season 23 of The Ultimate Fighter, to an opportunity to pull off one of the most stunning upsets in UFC history.

Will the incredible rise of Pereira continue, or does the era of Rountree begin?

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MMA: Mixed Martial Arts

Think you can figure out which UFC fighter we’re talking about? You’ll get five clues to figure him out.

We’re back for another day of the SB Nation UFC in-5 daily trivia game, and we’re switching to a system of a new article each day for the game.

We tried using a single article for the game, updated with the latest game each day, but it was creating a bit of an unwieldy experience in the comments. So, we’ll have the current day’s game plus the previous three days in each new article. That way, you can catch up if you miss a day.

Game instructions are at the bottom if you’re new to the game!

What we need from you

1. Play the game
2. Share your result in the comments and on social media
3. Provide feedback (Google Form or in comments below)

Today’s UFC in-5 game

Monday’s UFC in-5 game

Saturday’s UFC in-5 game

Friday’s UFC in-5 game

The goal of the game is to guess the correct random UFC fighter player with the help of up to five clues. We’ll mix in BOTH ACTIVE AND RETIRED FIGHTERS. It won’t be easy to figure it out in one or two guesses, but some of you might be able to nail it. It will be a mix of well-known players and some “that guys” that we haven’t thought of in some time. The game will appear in slot #3 of the MMA Fighting layout each morning, with occasional movement later in the day.

After you correctly guess the player, you can click “Share Results” to share how you did down in the comments and on social media.

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MMA: Mixed Martial Arts

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

Welcome to Midnight Mania!

This weekend (Sat. Oct. 5, 2024), UFC 307 will take place roughly 4300 feet above sea level from inside the Delta Center in Salt Lake City, Utah. That’s an important factor to consider for both athletes and sports bettors alike, because that level of altitude can severely affect an athlete’s conditioning.

In a famous example, cardio machine Cain Velasquez lost his UFC Heavyweight title to Fabricio Werdum after gassing out early in the fight. That bout took place in Mexico City at an elevation over 7300 feet, and Werdum spent over a month on location to finish his training camp.

Velasquez didn’t, and he paid the price.

There are numerous non-title fight examples. Just watch any UFC event hosted in Salt Lake City, Denver, or Mexico City, and you’ll be treated to a lot fighters fatigued midway through the second round.

Former UFC Bantamweight champion and current title challenger, Julianna Pena, is not worried, however. According to “The Venezuelan Vixen,” she’s fought at high elevation previously without any issue, because she puts in the work and shows up in shape. As such, she planned to arrive in Salt Lake City on fight week.

“I have fought in Utah before,” Peña told MMA Junkie. “I have fought in Denver before. I know that when I went out to Denver three weeks early thinking that the elevation was this gigantic thing that I had to get prepared for, I remember going out there and after I got my first cardio session done, I was like, ‘I’m not breathing hard. Nothing’s changed. What do you mean?’

“My strength coach was like, ‘I told you we didn’t need to come out here early. If you’re in shape, you’re in shape.’ I’ll be there Monday, and I’ll acclimate. I’ll have the whole week to acclimate, and if you’re in shape, you’re in shape, and you have done your work and done your job, then that’s the confidence you need. I know that I have that mat time and all of the confidence in the world as far as making sure that I’m working hard, so that’s all that matters.”

Her opponent, UFC Bantamweight strap-hanger Raquel Pennington, lives and trains in Colorado Springs, Colorado at 6000 feet. In a fight that feels likely to go all 25 minutes, could championship round cardio be the difference?

We’ll find out in just a few days.

Insomnia

Merab Dvalishvili absolutely has the support of a nation behind him. It’s cool to see!

Nothing like a fist fight on a slip-n-slide.

A quick check in on one of the most exciting prospects at 135-pounds.

Ilia Topuria working calf kicks into his game was very smart. An easy addition that makes a big difference to his range offense!

I love dunking on Heavyweights as much as anyone, but this theoretical match up ignores the simple fact that Kamaru Usman’s knee would explode on impact from the first Gane low kick.

Moises only gets wrestled by Top 10 calibre competition, so this should be an interesting test for Ogden.

I wrote several times about Renato Moicano’s excellent game plan after his BSD win — here’s proof!

Slips, rips, and KO clips

It’s real tough to win an MMA fight if you can’t see the overhand right coming.

Missing a left hook is a terrible feeling of being exposed to counter punches.

Serbia’s Marina Spasic is 6-0 over decent competition at 115-pounds with five stoppage wins. UFC soon?

Random Land

Can you hear the ocean?

Midnight Music: RIP Kris Kristofferson.

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

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