Paulo Costa should probably stick to throwing strikes inside the octagon.
On Tuesday night, Costa was given the honor of throwing out the ceremonial first pitch ahead of the New York Mets game against the Los Angeles Dodgers, which took place at Citi Field in Queens, N.Y. The UFC middleweight contender competes in Newark, N.J., this Saturday, when he takes on Sean Strickland in the co-main event of UFC 302.
Costa took the mound and attempted a throw to the plate, but was just a tad wild and he sent his pitch sailing to the left.
Check out video of the attempt below.
A little too much secret juice @BorrachinhaMMA ⚾️ pic.twitter.com/KLeaHbQ9u7
— José Youngs (@JoseYoungs) May 28, 2024
Costa’s overhand right might be a dangerous weapon on fight night, but the looping throw won’t have major league scouts lining up to sign him anytime soon.
“Come on, ‘What’s wrong?’” Costa said at UFC 302 media day on Wednesday when asked what happened with the pitch. “A little bit outside, yeah. It was amazing, great, I just missed the guy. I put too much power, I think. I tried to put a lot of speed on the ball and then I was not accurate, but it was funny.”
“Next time, I will try to hit the guy and I will bring better luck for the Mets,” he added.
Fortunately for Costa, he gets back to doing what he does best when he takes on Strickland at UFC 302. Costa and Strickland—No. 8 and No. 2 in the MMA Fighting Global Rankings, respectively—are both angling to stay in the title picture, with Costa having lost three of his past four fights (including a title fight loss to Israel Adesanya) and Strickland coming off of a narrow decision loss to Dricus Du Plessis that cost him his UFC championship.
See additional video and photos of Costa’s visit to Citi Field below.
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UFC 302 is headlined by lightweight champion Islam Makhachev defending his title against Dustin Poirier.
Former two-division champion Conor McGregor returns to action on June 29 in the UFC 303 main event against Michael Chandler. It will be the first time he’s stepped foot inside the octagon since July 2021.
McGregor suffered a broken leg in the final moments of the opening round in his trilogy fight with Dustin Poirier at UFC 264. In his three years away from the sport, McGregor has recovered from the injury and made his motion picture debut in the remake of the 1989 classic ‘Road House.’ He also went through a dramatic body transformation.
During most of the time outside of competition, McGregor wasn’t being tested for performance enhancing drugs. He eventually re-entered the testing pool 27 months after breaking his leg and was specifically mentioned in the very public split between the UFC and USADA.
“We can confirm that Conor McGregor has re-entered the USADA testing pool as of Sunday, October 8, 2023. We have been clear and firm with the UFC that there should be no exception given by the UFC for McGregor to fight until he has returned two negative tests and been in the pool for at least six months. The rules also allow USADA to keep someone in the testing pool longer before competing based on their declarations upon entry in the pool and testing results,” USADA CEO Travis T. Tygart said in a statement announcing the split between the fight promotion and the anti-doping agency.
Taking all of that into account, the original ‘BMF,’ Jorge Masvidal, believes McGregor was on PEDs and could be still on them.
“How much juice is Conor on too? That’s another question too because that motherf***er had to wait until USADA left to come back in this b*tch and compete with all of us,” Masvidal said on Sean O’Malley’s YouTube channel. “While all of us was training and getting tested, this motherf***er was clearly on some sh*t as we could see by the f***ing movies.”
McGregor’s return at UFC 303 at T-Mobile Arena in Las Vegas has already set records. It surpassed a $ 20 million gate over a month in advance, making it the highest gate in the promotion’s history.
Sean Strickland was fired up at media day ahead of his fight with Paulo Costa at UFC 302 this Saturday.
No topic was off limits and no subject was safe as Strickland was asked about a variety of topics at his first pre-fight scrum since losing the middleweight title to Dricus Du Plessis at UFC 297 in January.
One matter that was addressed was the topic of the new gloves that are set to debut at UFC 302. Strickland makes his 22nd appearance for the promotion this weekend so he’s as qualified as anyone to judge the equipment and he is not pleased.
“They suck,” Strickland said. “Can we talk to the person who designed these gloves? Have you ever been in a fight in your f*cking life? It’s like you get these f*cking dorks that have no idea. Like, this sounds like a good idea and they make it. Same thing with motorcycles. I’ve bought motorcycles and they put so much stupid sh*t on it. How did you assh*les think this was a good idea?
“So no, they absolutely suck. You dropped the ball on that one.”
Specifically, because the gloves are ‘more stitched’ as Strickland put it, he believes they could lead to fighters suffering more cuts. He also doubts their efficacy in preventing eye pokes, stating that those fouls are due to fighter behavior and no change in gloves will make a difference.
“If you get cut because you get hit in the f*cking head, don’t get hit in the f*cking head you don’t get cut,” Strickland said. “You get poked in the eyes because you f*cking opened opened your hand, so don’t open your hands and you won’t get poked in the eye. That’s people creating problems that aren’t there.”
Strickland was also asked about the possibility of fighting without gloves when his MMA career is over. The 33-year-old has no date in mind for a potential retirement, but one thing he can say with confidence is that he doesn’t see himself competing for the BKFC anytime soon, if ever.
“How much would I fight f*cking bare-knuckle for?” Strickland said. “Nothing they would pay me. Bare-knuckle, you want to talk about f*cking crooks, they’re paying their guys sh*t. [BKFC] is one of those organizations where you hear these numbers, it’s all bullsh*t.
“If you look at the lowest rung of the guys, they’re f*cking breaking their hands, breaking their orbitals, and they’re making a couple of thousand bucks. Bare-knuckle is f*cking trash.”
Don’t expect to see Strickland involved in influencer boxing anytime either, though he has had notable run-ins with personalities from that world in the past. In February, Strickland bloodied social media guru Sneako in a clip that went viral, and he’s also publicly butted heads with influencer boxer Bryce Hall.
Hall previously said that he’d like to spar Strickland, much to the fighter’s annoyance.
“It’s actually funny, we have people in the same circle, like, ‘No, he just wants to be your friend,’” Strickland said. “Bryce Hall, you said some stupid sh*t and I’m going to f*cking backhand you. I’m going to hit you right in the f*cking face and at that moment you can choose to be a f*cking man and take your ass-beating or you can be a little bitch, but after I’m done f*cking beating the sh*t out of you, we can be friends.”
Even returning UFC star Conor McGregor wasn’t safe from Strickland’s invective on Wednesday.
When Strickland was told about a recent online study that placed him behind “The Notorious” on a list of the most attractive men in MMA, Strickland let McGregor have it.
“Conor?” Strickland said. “No, that f*cking little leprechaun? That motherf*cker looks like he’s putting his head under f*cking urinals, my man, no f*cking way.”
Photo by Louis Grasse/PxImages/Icon Sportswire via Getty Images
The UFC Abu Dhabi card on Aug. 3 just loaded up with a couple of legends joining the card.
Former welterweight title challenger Nick Diaz makes his return to action for the first time in nearly three years when he clashes with Vicente Luque in a five-round co-main event.
Tony Ferguson also fights on the card at welterweight against Michael Chiesa.
The new fights were announced by UFC CEO Dana White on Wednesday with the main event previously confirmed as Cory Sandhagen taking on Umar Nurmagomedov. During the announcement, White declared Sandhagen vs. Nurmagomedov as a No. 1 contender fight with the winner earning a bantamweight title shot.
The main card for #UFCAbuDhabi is set!!!@VisitAbuDhabi | @InAbuDhabi | #InAbuDhabi pic.twitter.com/yUK7VdaOAc
— danawhite (@danawhite) May 29, 2024
Diaz booking a fight comes as a surprise after his last outing against Robbie Lawler in 2021 didn’t exactly inspire confidence that he was anywhere near the prime of his career. Still, the 40-year-old legend never strays too far away from the gym as he continues training and teaching while working with his brother Nate Diaz and longtime teammates such as Gilbert Melendez and Jake Shields.
Diaz’s most recent win came all the way back in 2011 against B.J. Penn. Since then, Diaz fell to Lawler, Georges St-Pierre, Carlos Condit and Anderson Silva with that final fight overturned to a no contest after the Brazilian tested positive for a banned substance.
As for Luque, he attempts to get back on track after suffering a knockout loss to Joaquin Buckley back in March, which dropped his record to 1-3 over his past four fights. Prior to that run, Luque was nearing title contention after rattling off four wins in a row including victories over former UFC champion Tyron Woodley and Randy Brown.
Meanwhile, Ferguson returns in a match that White teased as potentially the final fight of his career. The former interim lightweight champion moves to 170 pounds after losing his past seven fights in a row.
He’ll attempt to end that losing skid when he faces Chiesa, who hasn’t fought since July 2023 when he fell to Kevin Holland by submission in his third loss in a row overall.
Here’s the full main card for UFC Abu Dhabi:
MAIN EVENT: Cory Sandhagen vs. Umar Nurmagomedov
CO-MAIN EVENT: Nick Diaz vs. Vicente Luque (five rounds)
Ultimate Fighting Championship (UFC) Middleweight sluggers Kevin Holland vs. Michal Oleksiejczuk will go to war this weekend (Sat., June 1, 2024) at UFC 302 inside Prudential Center in Newark, New Jersey.
For a brief moment, there was hope that Holland’s drop to Welterweight would result in a title run. Losses to Stephen Thompson, Jack Della Maddalena and Michael Page have erased all momentum, however, so now “Big Mouth” is back in his usual role: fighting anyone, anywhere … and at any weight class.
Poland’s Oleksiejczuk is not a well-known name, but the boxer has been on UFC’s roster since 2017 and has scored some solid victories over the years. He may not be a contender at the moment, but Oleksiejczuk hunts for the knockout and rarely sees the judges’ scorecards.
Let’s take a closer look at the betting odds and strategic keys for each athlete:
Holland Vs. Oleksiejczuk Betting Odds
Kevin Holland victory: -280
Kevin Holland via TKO/KO/DQ: +225
Kevin Holland via submission: +275
Kevin Holland via decision: +300
Michal Oleksiejczuk victory: +200
Michal Oleksiejczuk via TKO/KO/DQ: +300
Michal Oleksiejczuk via submission: +2500
Michal Oleksiejczuk via decision: +800
Draw: +5000
Odds via DraftKings Sportsbook
How Holland Wins
Holland is a great finisher. The lanky “Trailblazer” has serious, snappy power in his long punches, as well as a clinch game that can create sudden stoppages. His wrestling defense has come a long way, and Holland has a sneaky jiu-jitsu game as well.
In this match up, Holland will be looking to potshot Oleksiejczuk. The Polish boxer is sharper in extended exchanges, but Holland holds significant advantages in reach and speed. Subsequently, if Holland can keep his feet moving and force Oleksiejczuk to come to him, he can look to tee off then circle away.
Generally, Holland wants to avoid the pocket. Ideally, he’ll be using his funky kicks and straight punches to out-point (and hopefully hurt) Oleksiejczuk, then evade Oleksiejczuk’s aggression. If and when Oleksiejczuk does close into his own boxing range, Holland should be looking to wrap him up in a double-collar tie, land a knee or elbow, then push him away.
How Oleksiejczuk Wins
With 14 knockout wins in 19 victories, Oleksiejczuk is a proven knockout artist. His best attributes are his speed and body punching, which have put down several opponents inside the Octagon. Admittedly, his defensive wrestling and grappling are less than elite, but that’s unlikely to be a problem in this match up.
Oleksiejczuk can certainly win this fight. On the feet, he has the power and boxing form to outwork Holland, and it’s not generally Holland’s strategy to shoot for takedowns. The key is closing distance, getting to a place where Oleksiejczuk can build combinations and land his shots.
Body work is a big part of Oleksiejczuk’s game and should be important here, seeing as Holland’s chin is made of cement. Perhaps more vital is his ability to cut the cage, however. Oleksiejczuk is going to have to walk through fire to close range, but if Holland just resets and sticks him with another 1-2, nothing is gained. Oleksiejczuk has to corner him and started roasting the ribs, which will slow Holland down and allow connections upstairs.
Holland Vs. Oleksiejczuk Prediction
This should be a lot of fun.
I actually expect a competitive kickboxing match. Despite Holland’s superior resume and credentials, I wouldn’t consider him a significantly better striker than Oleksiejczuk. However, there is a significant difference in durability here. Oleksiejczuk is a gamer, but we’ve seen him run over by more physical talent in the past.
“Big Mouth,” meanwhile, can walk through sledgehammers and make jokes about it. In a fight between offensive talents, that feels like a difference-maker.
Prediction: Holland via decision (+300)
Remember that MMAmania.com will deliver LIVE round-by-round, blow-by-blow coverage of the entire UFC 302 fight card right here, starting with the early ESPN+ “Prelims” matches online, which are scheduled to begin at 6:15 p.m. ET (simulcast on ESPN2 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 302: “Makhachev vs. Poirier” news and notes be sure to hit up our comprehensive event archive right here.
The Mixed Martial Arts Hour is back in your life! Below is a rundown of Wednesday’s show, which begins at 12 p.m. ET / 9 a.m. PT / 5 p.m. UK time.
12 p.m. ET: We kick off the show by talking about the busy combat sports weekend and discussing the latest news before answering your questions in the latest edition of On the Nose.
1:10 p.m.: Coach Mike Brown will discuss Dustin Poirier’s chances to finally win UFC gold at UFC 302.
1:35 p.m.: The parlay pals make their latest selection for UFC 302.
2 p.m.: Grappling ace Craig Jones stops by in studio to talk about the inaugural Craig Jones Invitational that’s taking the grappling world by storm.
2:30 p.m.: Welterweight standout Michael “Venom” Page joins the program to chat about his upcoming fight against Ian Machado Garry at UFC 303.
3 p.m.: Former WBC heavyweight champion Deontay Wilder joins the show to discuss his upcoming battle with Zhilei Zhang at the Queensberry vs. Matchroom 5v5 event this Saturday in Riyadh, Saudi Arabia.
3:40 p.m.: Darts wunderkind Luke Littler stops by in studio to discuss recently becoming the Premier League Darts champion at only 17 years old.
For the latest episodes of The MMA Hour, subscribe on Spotify or iTunes.
Mike Tyson appears to be all systems go for his return to the ring despite a bit of a scare earlier this week.
Tyson, who will face Jake Paul on July 20 at AT&T Stadium in Arlington, Texas, made headlines after reportedly needing medical attention before boarding a flight on Sunday in Miami. Tyson’s team stated he was “doing great” following reports, but the former heavyweight champion added his own update on Tuesday.
Now feeling 100% even though I don’t need to be to beat Jake Paul.
— Mike Tyson (@MikeTyson) May 28, 2024
“Now feeling 100 percent, even though I don’t need to be to beat Jake Paul,” Tyson said on Twitter.
According to Tyson’s team, he “became nauseous and dizzy due to an ulcer flare-up 30 minutes before landing.” While there were some that believed the early reports could lead to Tyson not competing against Paul at the mega-event that will stream on Netflix to subscribers, Paul appears to be on the same page as his opponent, as he stated on Sunday via Twitter that “nothing changed” in regards to the status of the bout.
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