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Cris Cyborg will finally get her chance to make her long-awaited Professional Fighters League (PFL) debut on Oct. 29, 2024 when she goes toe-to-toe with the promotion’s reigning women’s featherweight champion, Larissa Pacheco, in Riyadh, Saudi Arabia.

It will by Cyborg’s first-fight since dismantling Cat Zingano at Bellator 300 in Oct. 2023 (see it again here), while Pacheco was last seen defeating Marina Mokhnatkina at the finals of the 2023 PFL tournament.

For Pacheco — who is on a 10-fight win streak — facing Cyborg is a huge challenge and would catapult her career, but admits that facing her was never exactly a “dream” because she knew the chances of them ever facing one another were slim since they could never really get in the same organization.

“[This fight] is not a dream for me, it’s not something I’ve looked up to my entire career because she wasn’t even in the PFL until this year,” Pacheco said in an interview with MMA Fighting. “But a friend of mine reminded me that she told me, seven years ago, that she was a fan of Cyborg, and I told her we’d be fighting one day. And it’s happening now.”

Pacheco — who has two big wins over Kayla Harrison — says she knows if she defeats Cyborg the excuses are sure to come up, but it’s something she says won’t bother her since opinions are everywhere. All she knows is that fight fans are in for a treat when the two aggressive strikers throw down.

“We have an idea of how the fight will play out, but we never know for sure,” she continued. “We have a similar style, we’re both aggressive and walk forward the entire time, no turning back. For some people, it’s like a lottery. Who goes down first? I don’t know, it’s hard to say, but all I know is that we’ll both give our all in there. Cris has an unique style and will do everything she can to win, so it’s going to be a historic fight.”

Headlining the “Battle of the Giants” pay-per-view (PPV) fight card will be a heavyweight showdown between PFL champion, Renan Ferreira, and former UFC 265-pound title holder, Francis Ngannou, who will also be making his debut for the promotion.

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MMA: Mixed Martial Arts

Khabib Nurmagomedov isn’t a fighter who lives with regrets.

As much as he accomplished on his way to retiring as the undefeated, undisputed UFC lightweight champion with a perfect 29-0 record, there were always fights Nurmagomedov wanted that just didn’t happen. Perhaps the name at the top of that list is former UFC welterweight king George St-Pierre, who was always someone Nurmagomedov admired and considered a legitimate challenge.

The name that probably comes up the most, however, is Tony Ferguson because he was scheduled to face Nurmagomedov a total five times while both were competing near the top of the lightweight division. While there’s a part of Nurmagomedov that wishes he got the chance to face Ferguson, he also considered that fight a mismatch in his favor, so it doesn’t carry the same weight with him that it does with fans.

“I feel a little bit sad, but at the same time, I always understand my game it’s the worst for him,” Nurmagomedov told the Inspire Me podcast. “He don’t have wrestling. He don’t have grappling. What’s he going to do with me? How is he going to stop me? Only chance how he can stop me, it was only a lucky punch.

“Like with everybody, like with Conor [McGregor], with [Dustin] Poirier, with Justin Gaethje, everybody talks about, ‘Oh, they can stop him if Khabib [going to get caught with] a lucky punch.’ But other stuff, how’s he going to stop me?”

While Ferguson was definitely the most accomplished 155-pound contender that he never fought, Nurmagomedov always felt confident he would handle that challenge like all of the others in his career.

Nurmagomedov only lost a couple of rounds throughout his entire UFC run and he just doesn’t believe Ferguson had the weapons to beat him.

“When he fought with Danny Castllo, [Beneil] Dariush, Justin Gaethje, Charles Oliveira, all these guys mauled him,” Nurmagomedov said. “He didn’t have wrestling defense. He didn’t have good grappling. My fighting game, it was the worst for him.”

It’s wildly unusual for any fight to get booked five times and never actually happen, but Nurmagomedov knows he and Ferguson both wield some responsibility for those cancellations.

That’s another reason why Nurmagomedov can’t look back with regret, because ultimately it just wasn’t meant to be when it comes to this particular rivalry.

“I’m a little bit sad, but what can we do?” Nurmagomedov said. “If God has some plan, nobody can change this. We were supposed to fight five times. He pulled out, I have injuries, this is not under my control.

“I feel a little bit sad, but at the same time, [I] showed who had what level.”

While Nurmagomedov retired after his third title defense in 2020, Ferguson remained active but has fallen on harder times of late. He’s now suffered eight consecutive losses in a row, and all signs point toward his time with UFC coming to an end.

Ferguson has hinted that he plans to continue fighting outside UFC, but his struggles didn’t stop him from firing back at Nurmagomedov’s suggestion that his only hope in that potential matchup was a lucky punch.

“Lucky punch now … [I] was going to leave you alone but ew,” Ferguson wrote on Instagram. “Just couldn’t help it. Ya [fat f*ck]. What a f*cking p*ssy, coward like chicken. Keep hiding Khabieber 29-1.

“Until further notice, let ol’ fathead know what time it is crew.”

MMA Fighting – All Posts

Ahead of next month’s title fight at Noche UFC, former two-weight champion, Daniel Cormier claims it’s clear as day to see the incumbent, Sean O’Malley is playing “mind games” with his incoming foe, Merab Dvalishvili.

O’Malley, the current undisputed bantamweight gold holder, is slated to headline UFC 306 next month at the Las Vegas Sphere, taking on surging number one ranked contender, Merab Dvalishvili — in his second defense of his divisional crown.

Last time out, Montana striker, O’Malley turned in a dominant unanimous decision win over Marlon Vera — avenging his sole professional defeat in a stunning judging win over the Ecuadorian challenger.

As for Tbilisi native, Dvalishvili most recently added to his lengthy winning spree with a unanimous decision shutout win over former two-division champion and Olympic gold medal winner, Henry Cejudo.

Daniel Cormier breaks down Sean O’Malley – Merab Dvalishvili

And according to Hall of Fame inductee, Cormier, the undisputed gold holder, O’Malley is playing some major “mind games” with Georgian challenger, Merab Dvalishvili ahead of Noche UFC.

“This young man has managed to not only become a champion but to become a star,” Daniel Cormier said on his YouTube channel. “So when (Sean) O’Malley says things like that, I’m pretty sure he’s stewing. But he (Merab Dvalishvili) also has to recognize that these are the games that guys that understand fighting.”

They want to play the mind game with you, that really are like O’Malley or Conor McGregor,” Cormier explained. “Them being able to frustrate you is a win for them. Because if you get frustrated. and you start to make a mistake.”

Vowing to steal the proverbial thunder of super middleweight boxing star, Canelo Alvarez who defends his crown on the same night as his fight at the Sphere against Edgar Berlanga, O’Malley also vowed to land a stunning knockout of Dvalishvili.

“This fight, I’m feeling good as f*ck,” Sean O’Malley said. “I love this matchup. He’s got a ten fight win streak. It’s a big fight. It’s at The Sphere. It’s in competition with boxing, which is just kinda an extra little layer. 

“When it comes to Sunday, Monday, Tuesday, Wednesday, who are they talking about?” Sean O’Malley explained. “Are they talking about Canelo? Are they talking about the boxing fight? Or are they talking about the absolute dominating, beautiful, masterful, masterclass performance that I put on Merab and the viral knockout that came with it? Or are they talking about a 36 minutes Canelo boxing fight, that was kinda fire?”

LowKickMMA.com

Ahead of next month’s title fight at Noche UFC, former two-weight champion, Daniel Cormier claims it’s clear as day to see the incumbent, Sean O’Malley is playing “mind games” with his incoming foe, Merab Dvalishvili.

O’Malley, the current undisputed bantamweight gold holder, is slated to headline UFC 306 next month at the Las Vegas Sphere, taking on surging number one ranked contender, Merab Dvalishvili — in his second defense of his divisional crown.

Last time out, Montana striker, O’Malley turned in a dominant unanimous decision win over Marlon Vera — avenging his sole professional defeat in a stunning judging win over the Ecuadorian challenger.

As for Tbilisi native, Dvalishvili most recently added to his lengthy winning spree with a unanimous decision shutout win over former two-division champion and Olympic gold medal winner, Henry Cejudo.

Daniel Cormier breaks down Sean O’Malley – Merab Dvalishvili

And according to Hall of Fame inductee, Cormier, the undisputed gold holder, O’Malley is playing some major “mind games” with Georgian challenger, Merab Dvalishvili ahead of Noche UFC.

“This young man has managed to not only become a champion but to become a star,” Daniel Cormier said on his YouTube channel. “So when (Sean) O’Malley says things like that, I’m pretty sure he’s stewing. But he (Merab Dvalishvili) also has to recognize that these are the games that guys that understand fighting.”

They want to play the mind game with you, that really are like O’Malley or Conor McGregor,” Cormier explained. “Them being able to frustrate you is a win for them. Because if you get frustrated. and you start to make a mistake.”

Vowing to steal the proverbial thunder of super middleweight boxing star, Canelo Alvarez who defends his crown on the same night as his fight at the Sphere against Edgar Berlanga, O’Malley also vowed to land a stunning knockout of Dvalishvili.

“This fight, I’m feeling good as f*ck,” Sean O’Malley said. “I love this matchup. He’s got a ten fight win streak. It’s a big fight. It’s at The Sphere. It’s in competition with boxing, which is just kinda an extra little layer. 

“When it comes to Sunday, Monday, Tuesday, Wednesday, who are they talking about?” Sean O’Malley explained. “Are they talking about Canelo? Are they talking about the boxing fight? Or are they talking about the absolute dominating, beautiful, masterful, masterclass performance that I put on Merab and the viral knockout that came with it? Or are they talking about a 36 minutes Canelo boxing fight, that was kinda fire?”

LowKickMMA.com

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MMA: Mixed Martial Arts

Michael Aswell has a brand new scar to go along with his additional $ 15,000 and a promise of a future UFC contract.

On Tuesday night on the latest episode of Contender Series, Aswell faced off with Bogdan Grad in a co-main event featherweight matchup, that turned out to be one of the best fights in Contender Series history. Though Bogdan ultimately won a split decision and a UFC contract, Dana White was so impressed with both men’s performances that he awarded them both their win and show purses, along with an additional $ 5,000 bonus. And that was before he even saw the extent of the damage Aswell suffered.

Late on Tuesday evening, White took to Instagram to show off a gruesome gash over Aswell’s eye, along with the ensuing stitches required to repair it.

Dana White Instagram

Dana White Instagram

While the loss mean Aswell did not receive a UFC contract that evening, White did announce that he spoke with UFC matchmaker Sean Shelby and, once he’s fully healed up, the UFC intends to offer Aswell a short notice opportunity the next time a fighter is forced out of about. But judging on those pictures, it could be a while before we see Aswell inside the octagon.

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MMA: Mixed Martial Arts

Cris Cyborg is one of the greatest fighters in women’s MMA history, but Larissa Pacheco still expects some fans and experts to downplay her feat if she beats her fellow Brazilian countrywoman in the co-main event of PFL’s Oct. 19 pay-per-view in Riyadh, Saudi Arabia.

Pacheco enters the match riding 10 straight victories, a run that includes PFL championship wins in two different weight classes and a 2022 decision win over Kayla Harrison.

“I think this [Cyborg fight] gives a gigantic push to my career,” Pacheco told MMA Fighting. “Beating her, when I beat her, they’ll still say, ‘Oh, it’s easy now, Larissa is nine years younger than Cris.’ They’ll always have excuses for my wins. But I couldn’t care less. What matters is to go there and win and prove it to myself. I have nothing to prove to anyone else. No one pays my bills and I don’t owe anyone anything.”

Harrison, who’s likely one win away from a shot at the UFC bantamweight title after dominating Holly Holm in her octagon debut, has only lost once in MMA. That loss came at the hands of Pacheco, though the two-time PFL champion still went 1-2 over three contests against Harrison under the PFL banner. She hopes Harrison never loses again.

“I want her to be champion, to continue to grow, and everything goes well in her life, and she only has one [loss] there. ‘Larissa! Larissa!’ Echoing forever in her head,” Pacheco said with a laugh.

Cyborg has won six straight MMA bouts since leaving UFC in 2019, and has also picked up four wins in boxing. Pacheco admits she wondered if PFL would ever get this fight done after some delays, but kept training for months hoping it would eventually materialize.

“[This fight] is not a dream for me, it’s not something I’ve looked up to my entire career because she wasn’t even in the PFL until this year,” Pacheco said. “But a friend of mine reminded me that she told me, seven years ago, that she was a fan of Cyborg, and I told her we’d be fighting one day. And it’s happening now.”

“We have an idea of how the fight will play out, but we never know for sure,” she continued. “We have a similar style, we’re both aggressive and walk forward the entire time, no turning back. For some people, it’s like a lottery. Who goes down first? I don’t know, it’s hard to say, but all I know is that we’ll both give our all in there. Cris has an unique style and will do everything she can to win, so it’s going to be a historic fight.”

MMA Fighting – All Posts