Angela Lee can’t help but wonder how she would have fared in the UFC.
Lee became the youngest fighter in MMA history to win a world title, claiming the ONE atomweight championship at 19 years old via a unanimous decision victory over Mei Yamaguchi in 2016. In the years that followed, ‘Unstoppable’ became one of the most exciting fighters on the roster, delivering a series of instant classics, including an iconic trilogy with Xiong Jing Nan and an absolute banger against her eventual successor, Stamp Fairtex, at ONE Championship’s 10th-anniversary event in Singapore.
She successfully defended her atomweight crown on five separate occasions and twice competed for the strawweight world title.
Sadly, Lee laid down her gold and her gloves at ONE Fight Night 14 in September 2023 following the tragic passing of her 18-year-old sister and ONE Championship prospect Victoria Lee.
Reflecting on her career in combat sports, Lee admits that she regularly thought about what it would have been like to step out of the ONE Championship spotlight and into the Octagon to test herself against a new crop of talent.
“I think if you ask any fighter, any champion, they wanna go out and test themselves,” Lee said in an interview with Demetrious Johnson. “That’s what it means to be a fighter. You’re always looking for the next challenge. If you ask any of them, yes, 100 percent, they would love to go and fight the best of the best and really find out who was No. 1.
“It’s come across my mind multiple times, of course, seeing the top-level fighters in other organizations. Looking back now, it’s really hard because when you’re in the organization, especially at the top, it’s such a scary thing to go out and jump ship or try” (h/t MMA Mania).
Angela Lee knew it was time to lay down her gloves
Following the death of her sister, Lee was inspired to address her own struggles with mental health and acknowledge that her passion for mixed martial arts simply wasn’t there anymore.
“I told myself, I love it, I love it, I love it, for so long,” Lee said. “After a while, I wasn’t really honest with myself about like, ‘Hey, I think I might be getting burnt out. Hey, this is not really fun anymore. I want a break.’ But I didn’t know how to or … I did voice it up to my team and my family, but there was some disagreement about, ‘Hey, this is not really the time to do that and this and that.’”
Last year, Lee launched FightStory, a non-profit mental health organization inspired by the life of Victoria Lee. “Our mission is to inspire, heal, and unite the world through the stories, struggles, and triumphs of fighters from all walks of life,” the official website reads.
Visit the official FightStory Instagram to learn more about the cause and how you can share your story with the world.
Israel Adesanya faces a new test when he returns at UFC 305 to try and reclaim the middleweight title in a fight with Dricus Du Plessis.
“The Last Stylebender” has had his rivals in the past and whilst his story with Alex Pereira has defined big parts of both men’s careers, and the likes of Marvin Vettori and Sean Strickland weren’t big fans of his, this one is different.
No opponent has been able to bring this kind of intensity out of the former champion quite like Du Plessis has. due to his comments on bringing the title back to Africa.
This opens up the debate whether Adesanya fights best when he’s relaxed or amped up.
Megan Anderson Says That Israel Adesanya’s Emotion Could Help Or Hinder Him At UFC 305
In a recent preview video of the UFC’s return to Perth on her own YouTube channel, former UFC fighter Megan Anderson spoke about the war of words between Du Plessis and Adesanya.
Things appeared to have calmed down (a little) on this front if their most recent encounter was anything to go by but there is clearly still some tension there which could come back around on fight week.
Anderson believes that Adesanya’s previous interactions with the champion don’t paint the best image for him unless, of course, he can use this dislike of Du Plessis to raise his game another level.
“If anything has shown us, anytime these two get together, Israel reacts incredibly emotionally. He is saying things that we’ve never heard him say before, he is really just going out there and just being so incredibly passionate about this. How much of that is Dricus really revving up this whole rivalry between them and this is getting under Israel’s skin, we’re going to find out. But, whether it hurts him or helps him perform, that’s the biggest question for me.”
Read also: Coach Dismisses Outcome Of Decade-Old Sparring Session Between Adesanya & Du Plessis: ‘We’ve Heard Stories Of AJ Being Knocked Out In Boxing…’
Continue Reading Former Fighter On Du Plessis Getting Under Adesanya’s Skin: ‘Reacts Incredibly Emotionally’ at MMA News.
Aljamain Sterling | Photo by Jeff Bottari/Zuffa LLC via Getty Images
Aljamain Sterling does not agree with UFC’s decision to let Muhammad Mokaev go.
In July, Mokaev picked up his seventh straight UFC win, taking a unanimous decision over Manel Kape at UFC 304. The bout was the final fight on Mokaev’s UFC deal, and following it, UFC CEO Dana White revealed the promotion will not re-sign the 24-year-old undefeated fighter. While Mokaev did have a number of unfortunate incidents with Kape prior to their fight, including sucker-punching Kape at the fighter hotel on fight week, White’s decision was still unexpected — and Sterling, for one, does not agree with it.
“If you ask me, I think it’s f*cked up,” Sterling told The MMA Hour. “I don’t think there was any real reason to cut him. You can say the piggybacking of the fight at the P.I., but that takes two to tango.
“I know Mokaev was the first one to talk shit. Manel told him, ‘When you see me, keep that same energy.’ He saw him, tried to apologize, but Manel told him to keep that same energy, they had a fight or whatever happened, the scuffle. Fast forward, they had a fight again … and then we saw what happened at the hotel, which is kind of odd to put your arm around someone to take a picture and then sucker-punch them. I think that’s a little bit too low for me. I think that one was very, very dirty.
“Then they fought the way that they fought, which was unfortunate because the whole toe thing with Manel in that fight. Then you’ve got one guy who is undefeated, gets cut, it’s weird.”
While Mokaev was not actually cut, merely not re-signed, his departure quickly became cause for speculation. With a 7-0 record in the UFC, Mokaev has unequivocally proven himself as one of the best flyweights in the world, but at his post-fight press conference, “The Punisher” revealed that UFC officials warned him about his wrestling-heavy style, saying he needed to be more exciting. And while Mokaev only landed 30 significant strikes in this fight, Sterling believes he’s getting short shrift here.
“You hear that supposedly he was told that if you don’t want to get cut, don’t keep shooting for takedowns,” Sterling said. “I don’t think he really kept shooting for takedowns in the fight against Manel. I thought he fought a really good fight. I thought both of them brought a really good fight. Outside of the animosity, I thought it was a really good fight. If you saw the animosity and thought it was going to be a crazy barnburner, these guys were going to be just throwing down, standing in the middle Max Holloway style, but that didn’t happen. It was very technical. I still thought it was a good fight.
“You always want to be exciting. I think people kind of get it a little twisted thinking that guys come out wanting to have a boring fight. We all want to have an exciting fight. Sometimes you’ve got to fight certain styles differently than you would a different style.”
UFC CEO Dana White expressly rejected the idea that anyone from the company told Mokaev how he should fight, insisting that the promotion’s issues with the prospect stemmed from “many reasons,” saying “the matchmakers aren’t big fans of his.” Whatever those reasons are, for Sterling this is just another example of the fine line you have to walk as an MMA fighter, between pleasing the promotion and doing what’s best for yourself.
“You’ve kind of got to just do what’s best for you,” Sterling said. “Mokaev is [24] years old. It’s unfortunate that he got cut for that. I don’t think that was necessary. He more than deserved another chance and I think if he goes on the regional circuit and wins one fight, or if they just bring him back right away, it gets odd.
“Because there’s another clip of Nate Maness, who was 5-2, stepped up to fight Umar even though he was a ‘25-pounder, got three bonuses, and from what he was saying, he was told he’s not an exciting guy. He’s got three bonuses! He’s got more bonuses than I have and I’m 16-4 in the UFC. It’s kind of crazy.
“It’s a very interesting spot to be in. I guess you’ve got to try and play the game a little bit because it is entertainment for the fans, but you also want to win, and sometimes it’s not easy to find that silver lining to do both; a little bit of entertainment, but also you make sure you secure the bag and get both checks. I think that’s what most people are afraid of, they don’t want to go home with one check. They want both checks.”
Canelo Alvarez | Photo by Tayfun Coskun/Anadolu via Getty Images
Canelo Alvarez’s latest fight booking has drawn the ire of some of combat sports’ most influential names.
The superstar boxer recently ruffled the feathers of UFC CEO Dana White and Conor McGregor recently, with White criticizing MGM for booking Alvarez’s upcoming Sept. 14 fight with Edgar Berlanga in Las Vegas on the same night as UFC 306 at the nearby Sphere, and McGregor targeting Alvarez himself, calling him “a cornflake.”
Saudi Arabian adviser and fight promoter Turki Alalshikh also appears to have beef with Alvarez as he recently announced that he is not pursuing a dream fight between Alvarez and Terence Crawford.
On Wednesday, Alalshikh elaborated on his reason for not wanting to work with Alvarez or his team via a social media post.
I heard what Canelo said that he respects me but doesn’t like the way we do business. As for him respecting me, it doesn’t matter to me if he does or not. As for the way I do business, I know why he doesn’t like it, because I only target big fights at fair prices, so of course…
— TURKI ALALSHIKH (@Turki_alalshikh) August 7, 2024
“I heard what Canelo said that he respects me but doesn’t like the way we do business. As for him respecting me, it doesn’t matter to me if he does or not.
“As for the way I do business, I know why he doesn’t like it, because I only target big fights at fair prices, so of course anyone who likes easy fights won’t like that. And I know how he feels after losing to Bivol, so he’s been looking for easier fights ever since. Also, I’m not the one who’s afraid of fighting [David] Benavidez or Crawford.
“Therefore, I knew he was wasting our time and making excuses with big amounts of money that can’t be paid. So I’m continuing my way to make big fights that serve the boxing world, and he’s on his way to making easy show-only fights.”
The gist of Alalshikh’s criticism is that he believes Alvarez is intentionally pricing himself out of marquee matchups to avoid difficult opponents. Alalshikh points specifically to Alvarez’s most recent loss, which came against WBA light heavyweight champion Dmitry Bivol in May 2022. Alvarez has rebounded with four consecutive victories, knocking off the likes of Gennady Golovkin, Jermell Charlo, and most recently, Jaime Munguia.
Up next for Alvarez is another defense of his super middleweight titles against Berlanga on Sept. 14. In Alvarez’s 65-fight career, he has lost just twice and also has two draws on his record.
Alalshikh has been aggressive in promoting big-name boxing bouts over the past few years. This past weekend, his Riyadh Season promotion held an event at BMO Stadium in Los Angeles, headlined by Crawford fighting Israil Madrimov. He was also a driving force behind former UFC champion and current PFL star Francis Ngannou’s fights with Tyson Fury and Anthony Joshua, and Fury’s recent championship bout with Oleksandr Usyk.
Canelo Alvarez will put his WBA, WBC and WBO super middleweight on the line on Sept. 14 at T-Mobile Arena in Las Vegas against the undefeated Edgar Berlanga. On that same night, in the same city, the Ultimate Fighting Championship will be putting on UFC 306 at the Sphere.
Alvarez recently stated that he wants $ 200 million too face David Benavidez in a future match. Former two-division UFC champion Conor McGregor took issue with Alvarez’ asking price. He also questioned the Mexican superstar’s ability to sell pay-per-views.
“Canelo is a cornflake. He has about 300k buys in him,” McGregor wrote on social media. “He does not generate nothing near what he seeks to be paid.”
McGregor believes going head-to-head with the UFC in Las Vegas wasn’t a good idea. He went as far as to say the UFC will run Canelo off the Vegas strip.
“UFC NOCHE is going to run them from the strip. Sheik Turki was right moving on. CANELO DOESN’T SELL,” McGregor wrote on X.
McGregor last fought at UFC 264 in July 2021 in a trilogy bout against Dustin Poirier. McGregor suffered a broken leg in the final seconds of the opening round. He was expected to return against Michael Chandler at UFC 303 in June, but was forced out of the fight due to a broken toe. The fight with Chandler is expected to be rebooked but no date has been officially announced.
This weekend (Sat., Aug. 10, 2024), Ultimate Fighting Championship (UFC) returns home to UFC Apex in Las Vegas, Nevada for UFC Vegas 95. What happens when an already bad card loses its co-main event? Not much, as it turns out, since the co-main event wasn’t much better than the rest of the card. Losing a second good fight the week of the event didn’t help either, but again, it’s hard to be too downtrodden when nobody was that excited in the first place.
Despite my general inclination to dunk on bad Heavyweight main events — and this one is quite bad! — I do actually believe these fights will be fun. There are genuinely interesting prospects on the card, just ones who should probably still be cutting their teeth on the undercard. Take it for what it is: UFC Vegas 95 will probably be a reasonably entertaining night of fights that don’t matter.
Let’s dig into all the main card fights leading up to the main event:
Photo by Jeff Bottari/Zuffa LLC via Getty Images
Bantamweight: Chris Gutierrez vs. Quang Le
Best Win for Gutierrez? Frankie Edgar For Le? Cody Peterson Current Streak: Gutierrez lost his last bout, while Le debuts undefeated at 8-0 X-Factor: Le accepted this fight on fight week How these two match up: Le is replacing Javid Basharat, and it probably won’t go well.
I understand Gutierrez just got mopped up by Song Yadong, but like, Song Yadong is really good! It wasn’t all that long ago that Gutierrez put together an eight-fight unbeaten streak to advance into the rankings, routinely kicking the crap out of his opponents. Le, conversely, has earned his stripes competing for LFA, which is as good as it gets in regards to regional promotions. He’s a solid kickboxer with good jiu-jitsu, but he’s facing a massive step up in competition.
This feels like one of those cost-of-entry debuts. Le wants to be on the UFC roster, so he’s basically agreeing to get his lead leg kicked to pieces on extremely short-notice against a far more experienced opponent. The odds aren’t released yet, but Le will be a huge underdog in need of a miracle.
Hopefully it pays off for “Bang” in the long run, but this Saturday night is probably going to be unpleasant.
Prediction: Gutierrez via knockout
Photo by Mike Roach/Zuffa LLC via Getty Images
Featherweight: Damon Jackson(+180) vs. Chepe Mariscal(-218)
Best Win for Jackson? Pat Sabatini For Mariscal? Jack Jenkins Current Streak: Jackson won his last bout, while Mariscal is 3-0 in the UFC X-Factor: Jackson is a crafty veteran good at playing spoiler How these two match up: See, this is a fun fight regardless of the overall card.
I very much enjoy watching “The Leech” fight. He’s not the most athletic man on the roster, but Jackson knows how to use his range well, and he’s quite excellent on the mat. 30 fights into his professional career, Jackson appears to still be at his best at 35 years of age, which is an impressive accomplishment in its own right.
Mariscal has shown a strong mix of skills as well. He was lucky to escape with the split-decision nod in his last bout versus Morgan Charriere, but even in that difficult scrap, Mariscal showed his grit and smarts to up the pressure, wrestle, and find success when the bout started out strongly in his opponent’s favor.
I’m expecting a close and competitive fight here. Both can compete everywhere, so it’s not as simple as one man taking down the other and easily winning. Jackson has small advantages in height and reach, as well as a large edge in overall high-level experience. Mariscal, however, is the younger and faster man, two attributes that could make a huge difference as well.
Ultimately, what has me leaning towards Mariscal is simple volume. He throws more strikes and does so in combination, whereas we’ve seen Jackson’s output fade late (against Billy Quarantillo, for example). In a close fight where neither man can outright dominate on the floor, volume is very often the deciding factor.
Prediction: Mariscal via decision
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Women’s Bantamweight: Yana Santos(-135) vs. Chelsea Chandler(+114)
Best Win for Santos? Ketlen Vieira For Chandler? Josiane Nunes Current Streak: Santos has lost three straight, while Chandler won her last bout X-Factor: Chandler has difficulty making the 135-pound limit How these two match up: Alright, this fight is probably going to be less good,
Santos is frustrating. She’s shown the ability to play spoiler well (Vieira) or fall apart completely after getting hit (Aldana). She’s a kicks-and-clinch fighter, one who avoids the pocket like her life depends on it … because it often does.
Chandler is now three fights into her UFC career, and all I can really remember is her face-first sprint into the cage opposite Norma Dumont. That’s not fair, seeing as she won her other two fights, but it’s how I feel. When she isn’t meeting obstacles head-on, the Southpaw is actually a reasonably well-rounded prospect with good power and solid grappling.
This is a match up of a fighter trying to halt a skid while the other aims to pick up momentum. Santos hasn’t won a fight since 2021, and she’s looked offensively inept in large portions of her losses. Chandler, conversely, is just eight fights into her pro career and hasn’t even really figured out the cut to Bantamweight yet.
Despite the uncertainty of it all, I like the (minor) upset here. At this stage of her career, Santos mostly wins fights by muscling her opponents to the floor from the clinch. Chandler is strong enough to prevent that from happening easily, and she just has a lot more confidence in the pocket.
When in doubt, size and youth win the day.
Prediction: Chandler via decision
Photo by Cooper Neill/Zuffa LLC via Getty Images
Welterweight: Danny Barlow (-375) vs. Nikolay Veretennikov (+295)
Best Win for Barlow? Josh Quinlan For Veretennikov? Ashley Reece Current Streak: Barlow recently won his UFC debut, while Veretennikov has won three straight on the regional scene X-Factor: Veretennikov accepted this fight just days ago How these two match up: A short-notice replacement debuts against a quality prospect.
Barlow is a great example of what works well in MMA. The 29-year-old has just eight pro fights to his name, but he’s athletic, big for the division, and has a great Southpaw cross. What else could a young talent need?!?
Veretennikov is a slugger himself. He actually gave rising contender Michael Morales a solid scrap in his Contenders Series appearance back in 2021, which was his only loss in the last eight years. He’s stopped nine of his 12 victories via knockout and should be able to hold his own in a firefight.
There’s the recipe for an upset here: Veretennikov is more experienced and has significant power himself. Barlow doesn’t do anything overly complicated in the cage, so perhaps the Kazakh athlete can outmaneuver him.
That feels like an unreasonable tall ask on just a few day’s notice, however. Barlow is a quality prospect with great natural instincts. He appears to have a high ceiling, which is enough of a reason to pick “Left Hand 2 God” against an unproven and short-notice opponent.
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