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American Kickboxing Academy (AKA) head coach Javier Mendez believes in his pupil Islam Makhachev.

Makhachev has risen up the pound-for-pound ranks (much to Dana White’s annoyance) on the strength of three title defenses, which includes two finishes. Currently, Makhachev rides a 14-fight win streak, and he’s more than lived up to expectations as the man to follow Khabib Nurmagomedov’s foot steps.

A rematch opposite Arman Tsarukyan was planned for October and is still likely the next step, but an injury to the champion’s hand delayed that Lightweight title defense. It’s unclear if Makhachev will still face Tsarukyan in 2024 or if UFC will opt to change the plan entirely. Either way, Mendez expects Makhachev to defend his title a fourth time, breaking the UFC Lightweight record.

“That’s a good reason to fight Arman or anybody else, and you get the most defenses in the lightweight history,” Mendez told Red Corner MMA (via MMA Junkie). “I can’t believe three is the record. That’s just amazing how it turns over.

“So many fighters have won titles there, but they never kept it more than three title defenses. So Islam will break the record, and I want to see him go down as one of the greatest of all time, and I believe he’s on track to do that.”

After Tsarukyan? Makhachev’s longterm goal has been to move up to Welterweight and become double champ. Belal Muhammad upsetting Leon Edwards complicated those plans, however. Makhachev and Muhammad are friends and training partners, so the Russian athlete isn’t as interested in that bout.

He’s flirted with the idea of going all the way up to Middleweight to face Dricus Du Plessis. That’s a 30 pound jump, but Mendez believes a properly prepared Makhachev could still find real success at 185-pounds.

“Then after that let’s see what happens,” Mendez said. “Maybe Islam gains weight and goes to 185. I mean, he’d have to gain weight, obviously, because that’s a little big for him. You never know. He’s that good. (He’s) pound-for-pound No. 1 for a reason.”

It really all depends on timing. By the time Makhachev takes on Tsarukyan and then is ready to fight again, Welterweight could have a new champion, rendering the two weight class jump unnecessary. Or, Dricus Du Plessis could lose the belt, creating a new theoretical match up entirely.

Insomnia

There is method to Jiri Prochazka’s madness.

Ilia Topuria’s brother Aleksandre (5-1) has officially signed to the UFC as a Featherweight.

Jose Aldo vs. Chad Mendes 2 remains one of the very best and most high-level fights in UFC history.

A new way for a face-off to go off the rails!

This clip is definitely even more legendary with just the crowd audio.

Canelo Alvarez and Renato Moicano might have the same English coach.

Taking out the base leg is a great strategy against a strong kicker.

Eagle-eyed fight fans believe Muhammad Mokaev has signed with Brave CF.

Slips, rips, and KO clips

This slick kneebar entry absolutely feels like a blast from the past.

An athletic Southpaw like Danny Barlow doesn’t need much more than a hard left hand and left kick to find major success inside the Octagon.

Running away or tactical reset?

Random Land

One of the most famous fights in anime history came across my feed in its entirety today.

Midnight Music: Prog, 1969

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

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MMA: Mixed Martial Arts

Following recent claims from former United States President, Donald Trump how former UFC lightweight champion, Khabib Nurmagomedov is his favorite all-time fighter – the former fighter’s head coach, Javier Mendez claims he’s “not surprised”.

Nurmagomedov, a former undisputed lightweight gold holder, and inductee into the Hall of Fame of the UFC, called time on his career back in 2020, following an unbeaten 29-0 fight professional career. 

Submitting then-interim lightweight champion, Justin Gaethje with a dominant second round triangle choke win, Khabib Nurmagomedov would then call time on his career, despite slews of calls for a comeback to fighting from Dana White and other promotional officials.

And reacting to Trump’s claims that Khabib Nurmagomedov is his favorite fighter of all time, the Russian’s bitter nemesis, Conor McGregor hit out at the duo.

“Campaign ending decision,” Conor McGregor posted. “A smelly fat mountain monkey from the inbred mountains of Dagestan is your favorite UFC (AMERICAN COMPANY) fighter? Wow. Abysmal. I was actually wrong. Couple hundred million he is worth. Not multi B. I would have thought USA ONLY would be the mentality here and what I would want to see out of my President, personally.”

“To pick a retired inbred fighter from Dagestan, Russia who has 3 main events only to his name is astounding,” Conor McGregor continued. “Over all the American fighters that have backed him. It’s a shocking decision. He was caught on the spot. That won’t go unnoticed on the roster. This presidential race is very tight right now. More so now.”

“Trump’s favorite fighter,” Conor McGregor wrote. “Here he is in a tiny tub with his fellow inbred pals in Dagestan. Can you spot him? Where’s Khabib? Find Khabib.”

Javier Mendez “not surprised” by Donald Trump’s admiration for Khabib Nurmagomedov

However, according to Khabib Nurmagomedov’s veteran head coach, Mendez, it’s no surprise to him that his student is the former President’s favorite combat sports athlete ever.

“No I haven’t seen it and I’m not surprised, Donald Trump has always spoken highly about Khabib (Nurmagomedov) and what a great fighter he thinks and also, Donald Trump from the very beginning back when the UFC just started and they would get into the Trump Towers, their hotels and Donald Trump was one of the few people that took a chance on them back in the day,” Mendez told Red Corner MMA. “So, Donald Trump’s an MMA fan so not surprising that he would chose ‘The Eagle’ because we all choose ‘The Eagle’ – I choose ‘The Eagle’.”

LowKickMMA.com

As the 2024 election moves closer, Dana White joined CNN to give his thoughts on some political questions.

Things turned sour when Dana was presented with a question about Donald Trump. The UFC CEO has long been a strong admirer of Trump and defends the former president of the United States at any opportunity he gets.

During an appearance on CNN with Laura Coates, Dana White gave his thoughts on the 2024 presidential race and revealed his thoughts on Kamala Harris.

“Yeah, I don’t judge people by their politics and who they vote for or any of that stuff,” Dana said. “I don’t know Kamala. She seems like she’s a nice person.”

“I have nothing against her whatsoever, and like I said, I’m not political. But do I think that she is fit for the job? I do not.”

“Politics are the most disgusting, nasty, it’s atrocious what is said in politics. And things that are being said on one side are being said on the other side, too.”

“[Similar things are being said] about Trump and, you know, his choice for vice president. It goes both ways. This isn’t like, ‘Oh my god, look what’s being said about Kamala.’ It goes both ways.”

“They’re both saying it, and like you said, it’s already heated up and gotten nasty. And like you said earlier, it’s only going to get nastier. That’s politics. It is what it is and it definitely goes both ways.”

He later defended Trump’s comments, insisting that anything said between both parties ahead of the election shouldn’t be taken too seriously.

“But either way, [Kamala Harris is] going to say other nasty stuff. It goes both ways.”

Related: Dana White’s Trump Speech at RNC Convention 2024 “Willing to Risk it All”

“As voters, what we need to do is cut through all the BS, and you have to look at who do you think is best fit to run the country for the next four years.”

“That is our job as voters. All of this stuff is a bunch of nasty BS. All of it. Who’s best fit to run the country? You as a voter, that’s what you need to decide.”

“Not, ‘Oh my god, he said this.’ And, ‘Oh my god, she said that.’ There’s going to be a lot of that over the next several months.”

Dana White then took aim at the media, insinuating that they also cause problems amongst voters.

“Especially the media. Cut through all the BS [from] the media on both sides.” 

“You guys are really bad. FOX is bad. Everybody is bad. Cut through the BS and vote for who you think is the most fit to run the country. That’s our job as voters.”

Dana White blasts CNN Host “You Guys are Really Bad” pic.twitter.com/OHhcZLsRGT

— MMAWeekly (@MMAWeeklycom) August 7, 2024

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MMA: Mixed Martial Arts

A slew of massive MMA bouts were announced for both the UFC and PFL featuring some of the sport’s biggest and rising stars. In the main event of UFC 308 in Abu Dhabi, Ilia Topuria defends the featherweight title against BMF champ Max Holloway, while Robert Whittaker and Khamzat Chimaev have been rebooked for the co-main event.

On an all-new edition of Between the Links, the panel reacts to the current UFC 308 lineup, the top-two fights, and where that now leaves UFC307 — which is slated to take place three weeks earlier. Additionally, topics include Francis Ngannou’s MMA return announced vs. Renan Ferreira at PFL’s superfight pay-per-view in October with Cris Cyborg and Larissa Pacheco serving as the co-main event, Umar Nurmagomedov defeating Cory Sandhagen in the main event of UFC Abu Dhabi, and where that puts his stock at 135 pounds, and much more.

Host Mike Heck moderates the matchup between MMA Fighting’s Jed Meshew and the Co-Main Event Podcast’s Ben Fowlkes.

Watch the show live at 12:30 p.m. ET / 9:30 a.m. PT in the video above.

If you missed the show live, you can still watch above, or listen to the podcast version, which can be found below and on Apple Podcasts, Google Podcasts, Spotify, and wherever you get your pods.

MMA Fighting – All Posts

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Dana White wasn’t kidding when he teased that UFC was breaking the bank to produce the first ever live sporting event at the Sphere in Las Vegas.

The UFC CEO disclosed recently that the promotion has already spent at least $ 17 million on production for UFC 306 — also known as Noche UFC — at the Sphere, which takes place on Sept. 14. While total cost for the event hasn’t been revealed, TKO Group Holdings chief financial officer Andrew Schleimer stated on Thursday that costs are even higher than the company expected.

That being said, Schleimer believes UFC 306, which is headlined by bantamweight champion Sean O’Malley defending his title against Merab Dvalishvili, could also end up as potentially the most successful event in history in regards to ticket sales.

“Look, we’re bullish,” Schleimer said of the event. “We’ve talked obviously about this being a cultural event and Dana has publicly stated how much more [invested UFC is] in this event, and obviously this is going to be a massive spectacle for those in the arena and for those at home. On the top side, this will be one of the largest gates if not meaningfully the largest gate that we’ve ever done, and on the cost side, it’s going to be the single largest investment that we’re making in an event. It’s even more expensive than we originally anticipated and that’s reflected in our new guide.

“We talked about some tailwinds going into the balance of the year, but if there’s one meaningful headwind that has a direct dollar-for-dollar impact on EBITA (earnings before interests, taxes and amortization), it’s the incremental expense we’re seeing at the Sphere.”

Both TKO executives and White have stated that UFC 306 at the Sphere is a “one and done” live show, which means the promotion won’t be putting on another card there again — at least not any time in the near future.

The Sphere, which cost $ 2.3 billion to construct, features a 160,000 square foot LED screen that wraps around the entire arena. Approximately 20,000 fans are able to pack into the structure when including standing room only seating. Unlike most arenas where UFC hosts events, the Sphere features a stage setting where the octagon sits at the end of the venue with the majority of seats cascading up the structure like a movie theater.

Limited seating is available closer to the octagon, but the setup for UFC 306 is vastly different from the majority of live events UFC produces.

While the astronomical cost goes far and beyond what UFC usually spends on a live event, TKO Group Holdings president Mark Shapiro believes the juice is worth the squeeze in the long run.

“[TKO Group Holdings CEO] Ari [Emanuel] and I held a dinner in Paris for the Olympics for our premiere ad partners — one of them made a comment about us being in a position and always sort of having a history, and I credit Dana with this more than anybody else, of not making every decision based on the dollar,” Shapiro said. “We are committed to growing the brand. We are committed to growing the audience, and sometimes we will make investments that short term won’t necessarily pencil out but long term, there will be a big win for us and play out tenfold.

“That’s what the Sphere is when Andrew talks about a spectacle. This event is going to be very positive for the UFC brand and business long term. If we have to spend more than we’ve ever spent on an event — and believe me, we’re doing that — it will pay off long term. We expect to use this event to grow our fan base, to increase fan engagement, and most importantly, to capitalize on the growth area that is the Latin market for us.”

As far as the live gate goes, UFC won’t get those final numbers until the event actually takes place, but the launch of ticket sales saw huge interest with prices reaching as high as $ 12,000 per seat. There are still tickets available now, with the lowest price available (not based on resell tickets) at just over $ 1,300.

MMA Fighting – All Posts

When Israel Adesanya made the walk to the octagon at UFC 287 in April 2023, he had been beaten by Alex Pereira and lost the 185-pound championship.  He had also been defeated by Pereira twice in kickboxing matches.

Late in the second round, Pereira began pressuring Adesanya looking for a finish and Adesanya connected with a perfectly timed right hand that sent “Poatan” crashing to the canvas.  “The Last Sylebender” had gotten his revenge and became a two-time middleweight titleholder.  Take a look back at devastating knockout.  

Israel Adesanya vs. Alex Pereira 2 – Full Fight Video

Adesanya returns to the octagon at UFC 305 on Aug. 18 with the opportunity to become a three-time UFC champion.  He faces middleweight titleholder Dricus Du Plessis in the fight card’s main event at RAC Arena in Perth, Australia.  The event will mark the fight promotion’s third visit to Perth.      

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