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Max Holloway is a rare breed.

The Hawaiian all-time great looked like all hope was lost to regain his once-held Ultimate Fighting Championship (UFC) Featherweight title after three losses to his fellow former champion, Alexander Volkanovski. That all changed at UFC 300 when Holloway returned to the Lightweight division and dispatched Justin Gaethje with arguably his greatest career performance.

Holloway, 32, picked apart the perennial 155-pound contender and former interim champion over five rounds before a maddening last-second knockout to gain the Baddest Motherf*cker (BMF) championship (watch highlights). The upset win has led Holloway back to a chance for Featherweight gold as he’ll challenge the champion, Ilia Topuria, at UFC 308 on Oct. 26, 2024. Once again, “Blessed” promises to deliver fireworks.

“Everybody thought UFC 300 was amazing. Wait until they get to see the outcome of UFC 308, it’s going to be a good one,” Holloway said on his YouTube channel (h/t MMA Fighting).

“I can’t wait,” he continued. “I’ve been going hard over the last few years trying to regain my throne. A lot of people laughed, but we’ll see who gets the last laugh come October 26.”

Should Holloway get the job done at UFC 308, not only would he become a two-time UFC champion, but he’d add the first blemish to the resume of the flawless 15-0 “Matador” Topuria. Despite having accomplished as much as he already has in his 33-fight career (26-7), the legend is taking things as seriously as ever going forward.

“Never, ever give up,” Holloway said. “A lot of people said I wouldn’t be in this position, I wouldn’t be able to be fighting for the Featherweight title again. And I’m here, and I can’t wait to get it going. Camp is just starting, we’re buckling down, and I’m excited.

“I think this fight is the most anticipated fight in all of this year,” he continued. “A lot of people were looking forward to UFC 300, especially because of with who was on that card, but being [on] UFC 308, me and Ilia, main-eventing, I think this is one of the most anticipated fights of this year and I can’t wait to go out there and show the world.”

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MMA: Mixed Martial Arts

Mariya Agapova is removing her gloves and she’s taking her talents to BKFC.

The promotion announced via Instagram stories on Tuesday that Agapova has signed with the bare-knuckle outfit following a six-fight run in the UFC. No information in regards to a debut date, or opponent was revealed.

Agapova hopes a change of scenery can get her fighting career back on track.

The 27-year-old was highly touted as a prospect entering the UFC, and delivered a first-round submission of Hannah Cifers in her octagon debut. From there, things began to fall off, as Agapova was on the receiving end of one of the biggest upsets in UFC history in a loss to Shana Dobson in August 2020.

“Money Mashka” ended her UFC tenure going 1-3 in her past four outings, getting submitted in her final three promotional appearances.

BKFC also announced the signing of one-time UFC heavyweight Braxton Smith, who was finished in the first round by Parker Porter in his only UFC fight at UFC 288 in May 2023.

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After jumping up seven spots to take his place in the middleweight top five, Caio Borralho believes a fight against former two-time titleholder Israel Adesanya should be next.

On Saturday night, ‘The Natural’ extended his unbeaten streak to 16 and surged up towards the top of the 185-pound rankings with an exceptional performance against Jared Cannonier in the UFC Vegas 96 headliner.

With the win, Borralho now finds himself surrounded by some seriously talented company, including fellow top-fivers Nassourdine Imavov, Robert Whittaker, Israel Adesanya, and Sean Strickland.

Already looking ahead to his next challenge inside the Octagon, Borralho thinks that a scrap with ‘The Last Stylebender’ could be his best route to an eventual title fight with reigning middleweight world champion Dricus Du Plessis.

“I think Adesanya might be the best fight for me right now,” Borralho told Laerte Viana. “If I had to choose one more before the title, I think it would be Adesanya and then the title.”

Caio Borralho suggests lack of focus may be the cause of Adesanya’s recent struggles

However, Borralho isn’t sure that he’d get the same ‘Stylebender’ he watched dominate the division for so many years.

After winning 12-straight at middleweight, Adesanya has lost two of his last three, including back-to-back losses against Sean Strickland and Du Plessis. Now 35 years old, it’s not unreasonable to think that father time is beginning to catch up with the City Kickboxing star.

Still, Borralho knows that even if the ‘Stylebender’ has lost a step, he’s still a dangerous man to trifle with inside the Octagon.

“Maybe [Adesanya’s] not the same focused guy he was before, but he’s still the same guy with the same technique, skill and dominance,”

Is Caio Borralho vs. Israel Adesanya the fight to make following last weekend’s fight card at The APEX?

LowKickMMA.com

It is common knowledge in MMA circles that Sean Strickland has a rocky relationship with Colson Baker, a.k.a. Machine Gun Kelly. Back in February 2024, the former UFC champ ran into the rapper during a Power Slap event where he commented about MGK’s outfit.

The interaction went south quickly and Strickland had to be escorted out of the venue. Since then, he’s frequently talked about Kelly’s clothes and lifestyle. Megan Fox, who’s currently dating Baker, even reached out to Strickland via Instagram DMs regarding some of these remarks.

MGK finally broke the silence on Strickland and advised the fighter to not talk about him anymore. Unsurprisingly, the former UFC middleweight kingpin already has a response…

Machine Gun Kelly Asks Sean Strickland To ‘Shut The F** Up’ After Calling Him Racist And Homophobic

Baker opened up about his interactions with Strickland on the latest episode of IMPAULSIVE podcast, hosted by Logal Paul and Mike Majlak. The hip-hop artist claimed that he would’ve avoided meeting the UFC star in the first place if he had been aware of the latter’s racist and homophobic statements.

“I don’t know this guy from a crumb of bread, Right, I didn’t know who he was when I met him. I got hip afterward that he’s like, insanely racist and homophobic and just not my type of guy so I would have never even wanted to shake hands him with him in the first place. But, he also is just a representative of every person who’s too scared to just be themselves because if you’re comfortable as yourself, you don’t care who anybody else is.”

Kelly then suggested Strickland to live his life and stop commenting on him. The rapper called the UFC fighter insecure for caring about other people’s appearance and verbally bashing them for it.

Baker stated that Strickland would most likely respond to his aforementioned remarks which would be more detrimental to the fighter.

“He’s so dumb that I’m going to tell him right now. You should not keep saying stuff because it just makes me look better but you’re going to keep saying stuff so I know that you’ll react and say more things but you’re, you just shouldn’t. As a person who’s just giving you big bro advice, learn this, shut the f**k up! And don’t speak on me anymore. And live your life, but you won’t, and I’m going to continue laughing at you because you’re a f*****g idiot.”

MGK wasn’t wrong as Strickland has already replied to him on X. Yet again, he has targeted the rapper for his tattoos and accused him of drinking blood. He also claimed to be more comfortable hanging out with online trolls instead of the singer.

All in all, it is safe to assume that the beef between Strickland and MGK is far from over. Fans of both celebrities are already engaging in heated online debates and it is unlikely that the two sides will find common ground soon.

• READ MORE: Sean O’Malley’s Coach Calls Merab Dvalishvili ‘Scary’ But Highlights Major Flaw In His Game: ‘Too Close To The Fight Now To Fix’

Continue Reading Sean Strickland Responds To Machine Gun Kelly’s ‘Big Bro Advice’ As Rapper Wanted UFC Star To Not Talk About Him Anymore at MMA News.

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MMA: Mixed Martial Arts

Demetrious Johnson isn’t officially done with his MMA career, but he might be close.

One of the most accomplished fighters in MMA history, Johnson holds a number of UFC records, including most consecutive title defenses (11), amassed when he ruled the flyweight division from 2012 to 2018. After losing the title to Henry Cejudo at UFC 227, Johnson then got traded to ONE Championship, where he’s spent the past six years and is the current flyweight champion. However, Johnson has not competed since winning his trilogy fight against Adriano Moraes back in May of 2023, and apparently “Mighty Mouse” isn’t focused on returning any time soon either.

“I always like to leave that door open,” Johnson told the JAXXON podcast. “… You’re always going to have that love for mixed martial arts… I’m not officially retired. I’m just saying mixed martial arts is not on my mind right now.”

Johnson has been open over the past few years about wanting to pursue other opportunities outside of just MMA, including other combat sports disciplines and special one-offs. But Johnson says that doesn’t mean he’s done with MMA. For the ONE flyweight champion, it’s a matter of the right fight.

“It doesn’t mean if something came through, ‘Hey man, you want to do this fight?’ Sure, why not?” Johnson said. “I still train every day. My weight is still good…

“I don’t train MMA. I train martial arts. It’s jiu-jitsu. I haven’t hit pads in, what – (yesterday) was the second time I hit pads in a year and a half. I can still move. I still have it. I feel like people think when you don’t train mixed martial arts you can’t do it. It might not be to the highest level, but I can get back to the highest level. So for me, I think when the time does come and I do officially retire, then I’ll be more open about, these are the reasons why, I set goals for myself.”

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MMA: Mixed Martial Arts

Robert Whittaker has some words of caution for Alex Pereira.

At UFC 305, Dricus du Plessis made the first successful defense of his middleweight title by stopping former two-time champion Israel Adesanya. It was an impressive win that caught the attention of former middleweight champion and current light heavyweight champion Pereira, who suggested post-fight that he might make a return to 185 pounds to square off with du Plessis. But Whittaker says Pereira shouldn’t view du Plessis as an easy mark.

“Well, I hope not,” Whittaker said on Submission Radio when asked if he believes Pereira will go back down to middleweight. “Honestly, I don’t think that’s a good fight for him. I don’t think that’s a good fight for him. But also, when you move up to light heavyweight, moving back down is tricky. And it’s not like you move up for one fight. He stayed up there. He’s been fighting up there for a while now. So it’s it would be it would take a lot out of him to get down, and Dricus is so strong there.”

Pereira began his UFC career as a middleweight and won the title over Adesanya at UFC 281. After losing the belt in their UFC 287 rematch, “Poatan” moved up to light heavyweight, where he won the title and has defended it twice.

But despite those recent successes, Whittaker still questions how a depleted Pereira would do against the power and aggression of du Plessis.

“Alex gets hit,” Whittaker said. “OK? And Dricus likes getting hit.

“It’s hard to see someone with the amount of power to stop Dricus from walking forward into you, and Dricus hits hard. You saw that in the fight against Adesanya. Adesanya has got a really good chin, and Dricus was still hurting him enough to, you know, to to make him uncomfortable. So yeah.”

Whittaker, of course, knows plenty about du Plessis. The former middleweight champion faced off with “Stillknocks” back at UFC 290, where he was stopped in the second round. And like he believes Pereira might be doing now, Whittaker says he didn’t give du Plessis the credit he deserved heading into that fight.

“I’d like to think that I never underestimate my opponents, but I probably did [with] him,” Whittaker said. “Maybe, it’s hard to say. The prep wasn’t ideal. Everybody says it. You look at him fight, and the guy looks like a pub fighter, right? But he just keeps smashing people.

“Like I said, in that first fight with him, I saw the punches coming. I moved out of the way. I felt good in there. I was like, ‘I got this.’ And then I got punched in the face. It’s not a pretty style, but it’s effective. Super effective. And I think the biggest thing is the mentality behind his shots. If you’re not at that level, if you’re not on the same plane of offering as he is, then he’s going to run away with it.”

If Pereira does make good on his warning and return to 185 pounds, it won’t be for awhile. The UFC light heavyweight champ is currently scheduled to defend his belt against Khalil Rountree Jr. in the main event of UFC 307 on Oct. 5 in Salt Lake City.

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