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“Iron” wants to break his curse.

Michael Chandler makes his long-awaited Ultimate Fighting Championship (UFC) return to competition after unsuccessfully waiting for Conor McGregor as he takes on Charles Oliveira this weekend (Sat., Nov. 16, 2024) at UFC 309 from inside the iconic Madison Square Garden in New York City.

Chandler last competed inside MSG in a losing effort against Dustin Poirier and looks to right the wrong in the legendary building – in fact, he is 0-3 at MSG.

“Iron” lost to Brent Primus when he was with Bellator, the only time Bellator visited “The Garden.” Then Chandler lost to Justin Gaethje in his second UFC fight, which ended up being Fight of the Year, and, a year later, lost to Poirier.

Some might call it a curse—just like Derrick Lewis constantly losing in his home state of Texas or Chris Weidman losing in New York three times. But it’s not necessarily a curse for Chandler; rather, it’s a storyline.

“I’m defeated at MSG, 0-3,” Chandler told Ariel Helwani. “I actually just ran into a guy who had been to all three of my fights at MSG, and he’s like, ‘Hey dude, we gotta break the MSG curse.’ But I also look at this like another layer where I’m like, of course, this is how it’s supposed to be: to fight the guy who has already beat you, who also shattered your dreams to fight at the arena who has also shattered your dreams every single time. I’ve never won inside there, and now it’s time to right that wrong.”

Is Chandler superstitious about fighting in an arena where he’s lost so much?

“No, not even a little bit,” Chandler said. “I asked for this card. We wanted to fight in October but I need to do a serious legit weigh cut. I had been preparing my mind and body for 170 lbs for the last year and a half, and now I only have 10 weeks in order to get down to 155 for October. It wasn’t going to happen; it was too soon, so I wanted MSG, and we got it.”

With a win inside Madison Square Garden, Chandler believes he will snatch Oliveria’s No. 2 ranking, forcing Lightweight champion Islam Makhachev to fight him in 2025.

Good luck breaking the curse, Mike.

Remember that MMAmania.com will deliver LIVE round-by-round, blow-by-blow coverage of the entire UFC 309 fight card right here, starting with the early ESPN+ “Prelims” matches online, which are scheduled to begin at 6 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 309: “Jones vs. Miocic” news and notes be sure to hit up our comprehensive event archive right here.

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MMA: Mixed Martial Arts

There’s an old saying that everything old becomes new again, and apparently that also holds true for MMA gloves.

Ahead of this Saturday’s UFC 309, the promotion informed fighters that they will be using the old version of UFC gloves, rather than the new style implemented across events on June 1. Multiple people with knowledge of the situation confirmed the change, though no reason was given. Ariel Helwani was first to report the news.

The newer gloves were designed in an attempt to reduce eye pokes and hand injuries and featured less rigidity than the previous version, along with updates to the seams, padding, wristband, and finger holes. They debuted at UFC 302 in New Jersey and have since become a source of controversy with some fighters speaking out against them.

Fans have also suggested the new gloves may lead to fewer knockouts after an apparent drop in the knockout rate from the beginning of the year compared to after the new glove implementation. However at this point that’s purely speculative and could be explained away by a small sample size.

UFC 309 is headlined by a heavyweight title fight between Jon Jones and Stipe Miocic and takes place this Saturday at Madison Square Garden in New York City.

Guilherme Cruz contributed to this report.

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Brandon Moreno is determined to reclaim UFC gold but acknowledges that the journey back to the top may be more challenging than winning it initially. Moreno first clashed with Deiveson Figueiredo for the flyweight title at UFC 256, ending in a draw. He claimed the title in their rematch at UFC 263 in June 2021 via submission. However, he lost the belt to Figueiredo in a close decision at UFC 270. Moreno rebounded with an interim title win over Kai Kara-France at UFC 277 by TKO and unified the flyweight title in a trilogy fight with Figueiredo at UFC 283, winning via TKO.

In July 2023, Moreno lost the title to Alexandre Pantoja at UFC 290 by split decision, followed by another decision loss to Brandon Royval in February 2024. Earlier this month, he bounced back with a decision win over Amir Albazi.

In a recent interview with MMA Junkie, Moreno affirmed his commitment to reclaiming the championship and believes he has what it takes to wear the belt again. “Being very honest with myself, I think that, sporting-wise, Royval is likely the one who most deserves the opportunity,” Moreno said. “I have no problem saying that at all. He’s done a very good job, and in his last fight against Tatsuro (Taira), he looked very good. It was a great fight.”

He added, “There’s also Kai (Kara-France), but he’s in a weird position. He deserves it after his knockout against (Steve) Erceg, but I think my performance was very good, and Royval is right there, too. Kai has the most awkward position.”

Moreno acknowledged that he likely needs one more fight to earn his title shot. “As far as names, there’s Tatsuro Taira, Manel Kape, and maybe Kai Asakura, depending on his fight with Pantoja at UFC 310,” he said. “I’m just going to stay healthy and be ready for whatever comes next.”

Continue Reading Brandon Moreno Eyes Potential Fights On Path To Reclaim UFC Title at MMA News.

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MMA: Mixed Martial Arts

The Jake Paul vs. Mike Tyson open workouts will showcase Jake Paul, MIke Tyson, Amanda Serrano, Katie Taylor, and many more Tuesday night.

The open workouts will be held at the Toyota Music Factory in Irving, Texas.

Bruce Carrington, Lucas Bahdi, Shadasia Green, Whindersson Nunes, Nerraj Goyat, Abel Ramos, and Mario Barrios are also expected to appear at the event.

The Jake Paul vs. Mike Tyson open workouts are expected to begin at 6:30 p.m. ET.

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MMA: Mixed Martial Arts

Marcus Buchecha is one of the hottest free agents in all mixed martial arts after tapping out Amir Aliakbari in under four minutes at this past Friday’s ONE 169 in Thailand. He completed his deal with the Asian promotion on a high, and now he wants biggest challenges.

The 13-time jiu-jitsu world champion is now 5-1 in MMA with a 100 percent finishing rate and could have a chance to avenge his sole loss in thew sport against “Reug Reug” Oumar Kane, who captured the ONE heavyweight title on the same night, but he’s still unsure on what his next move will be.

“That was the last fight of my contract, and now I’m free, I can do anything I want,” Buchecha said in an interview with MMA Fighting. “I’m already talking to my manager Ali Abdelaziz and we will make that decision. I don’t have anything decided just yet, but we’re already talking and deciding the next steps. I really don’t know what will happen, but things are way different now compared to last week. I was coming off a loss, and now I’m coming off a good win, so I’m in a better position now to make a decision.”

Buchecha said Abdelaziz is already “in conversations with a lot of people” regarding his future, but a decision hasn’t been made.

“He’s doing his job,” Buchecha said. “I think his phone is probably ringing right now, people are reaching out to him.”

Buchecha openly complained of lack of offers for over a year before his clash with Aliakbari was made for Nov. 8, but said he won’t close doors on possibly re-signing with the organization.

“To be honest with you, I want to talk to everybody,” Buchecha said. “If [ONE] wants to have a conversation with me, we will talk, but I don’t know what I want to do yet, you know? I had six fights with ONE, my entire MMA career was at ONE, so I honestly want to think about the next step of my career with calm.”

All of Buchecha’s MMA wins came via first-round finish with four submissions and one TKO stoppage, adding to his combat sports legacy. In the grappling world, the American Top Team heavyweight has won two ADCC gold medals and six IBJJF absolute world championship titles, plus seven titles in his weight class.

About to turn 35 years old early next year, Buchecha said his decision will be based on “challenge,” not money.

“The financial aspect is always interesting, of course,” Buchecha said. “But if there’s something I don’t want to do or organization I don’t want to sign with, no money in the world would convince me to sign. I have my values and my principles, and if I have grudges with an organization or something like that, and I don’t want to sign [with them], money won’t be a reason for me to sign.”

“I’m driven by challenges,” he continued. “Many people told me during fight week that I’ve won 13 world titles [in jiu-jitsu] and didn’t need to be fighting MMA, but I’m still here, fighting. I want new challenges, I want to test myself more and more. I’m not getting any younger, so I have to do it sooner than later. I don’t want to waste any more time on the sidelines, because I’m not young anymore.”

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Mega Fight?
| BJPenn.com

Jon Jones will be wearing custom fight trunks for UFC 309.

“Bones” defends his heavyweight strap against former 265-pound titleholder Stipe Miocic atop Sat. night’s (Nov. 16, 2024) pay-per-view (PPV) card inside Madison Square Garden in New York City, a five-round showdown that could lead the winner to this impatient opponent.

Or perhaps even retirement.

“I’m so excited about these,” Jones told UFC. “It’s got the lion and my favorite bible verse, the cross, my last name. Philippians 4:13, my mom used to recite it to me all the time, my late mother. ‘I can do all things through Christ who gives me strength.’ I believe it, sincerely in my heart that with God, all things are possible. This is my superpower. My relationship, my faith, God has brought me through so many battles. Not only in the Octagon, but in life.”

God also chose Jones to be undefeated, which makes Steve Mazzagatti the Devil.

Jones, 37, is returning from a major pectoral injury, one that has kept him sidelined since defeating Ciryl Gane for the heavyweight title at UFC 285 back in early 2023. As for Miocic, 42, he’s been patiently waiting for his combat sports comeback since falling to Francis Ngannou in March 2021.

For the rest of the UFC 309 fight card and PPV lineup click here.

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