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MMA: Mixed Martial Arts

Unlike a lot of fighters, UFC featherweight Sodiq Yusuff answers his DMs – provided they stay respectful.

“As long as it’s cool – you’re not, like, a troll – I’ll hold a conversation if I have the time,” Yusuff said on The MMA Hour.

That openness paid off in a big way recently when Yusuff struck up an online conversation with an animator that said they were working on a project about a futuristic Nigerian.

One of several octagon combatants with Nigerian blood, and a self-described “nerd,” Yusuff’s ears perked up. The more the animator described the project, the more he realized it was a real opportunity. Then he learned of the animator’s client – Disney – and went into high gear.

“I tell people all the time, especially athletes growing up, people don’t realize how many no’s you get,” said Yusuff, who did the interview from his kitchen while preparing a post-fight meal. “You only need one good yes for it to mean something.”

Yusuff pursued his yes with a DM of his own to the owner of the animation company, who, as it turned out, was a UFC fan.

“He was a Nigerian UFC fan, so I checked off all the boxes,” Yusuff said. “I was like, I’ve always been a big nerd, and I would love to be a part of your project, no matter how small the role is.”

That led to a voiceover session where Yusuff got three lines. Producers liked him so much they called him back for more work – six episodes in total.

The other part of staying open to DMs for Yusuff is sending them – it’s his way of hustling to new opportunities.

“Now I’m in a Disney show,” he said with a laugh. “My DMs are full of me shooting my shot at a million different things. And yes, I get no’s all the time. But it doesn’t matter how many no’s you get – you just need a yes every once in a while.”

The animation project, Iwájú, is set in Lagos, Nigeria, and follows best friends Tola and Kole ”as they discover the secrets and dangers hidden in their different worlds.” It debuted on Disney+ on Feb. 28.

“In Yoruba [Yusuff’s native language], Iwájú means ‘in the future,’” Yusuff said. “It’s about a futuristic Nigeria, and I play a character [Sunday Adelekan].”

Fighters are not exactly known as natural thespians on camera, but Yusuff took the whole experience in stride, just like he did when he play-fought Paul Felder on the HBO series “Hacks.”

“I fight people in my underwear for a living,” he said. “Even when I was in acting classes, people would be getting nervous. I feel like I’ve broken my nervous-meter.”

Yusuff recently got another yes, one related to his primary career, when he got a fight with Diego Lopes at the banner UFC 300 event on April 13 in Las Vegas. He hopes to rebound from a disappointing loss to Edson Barboza at UFC Vegas 81 this past October.

Of course, Yusuff is training hard to bounce back. But in the meantime, he’ll be monitoring his social media. You never know what might pop up.

MMA Fighting – All Posts

Jon Jones saw a routine drug test turn sour when he was accused of assault and death threats on one of the visiting testers. Despite showing proof of a friendly exchange, Jones was arrested and remains in police custody.

‘Bones’ has been sidelined with an injury and hasn’t competed since his iconic heavyweight title win over Ciryl Gane at UFC 285 last year. All reports are suggesting that the long-awaited Jon Jones vs. Stipe Miocic clash will take place next.

As confirmed by NBC News earlier today, Jon Jones has been arrested for his involvement in an incident at his home. At this point, it’s unclear if the UFC Hall-of-Famer will be charged with any of the accusations.

UFC heavyweight champion Jon Jones is arrested based on allegations that he assaulted and threatened to kill a drug testing agent, police say. https://t.co/5IBLWhRPt5

— NBC News (@NBCNews) April 7, 2024

According to the apparent victim Crystal Martinez, Jon Jones directed a worrying comment at her as she and her colleague turned up at Jones’ house to conduct a routine drug test.

The 36-year-old was deemed to be intoxicated before allegedly hinting at taking her life and assaulting her. While the accusations are worrisome, footage surfaced of Jones and Martinez sharing a high-five—initiated by the anti-doping officer—as the test came to an end.

Fans have been divided since seeing the video, with some believing Jones’ innocence and others still pointing fingers at the UFC standout.

Related: Jon Jones releases video response to assault allegations

Jon Jones was scheduled to defend his heavyweight throne against Stipe Miocic at UFC 295 but was forced to withdraw with a torn pec.

The Albuquerque native remains set on competing in the legacy fight against Miocic, but what comes next for him hasn’t been discussed.

If he wins and isn’t ready to retire, Jones could find himself putting his championship on the line against the surging Brit, Tom Aspinall. Aspinall has been angling for a fight against Jones for some time and would love nothing more than to face a man considered by many to be the greatest of all time.

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UFC

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MMA: Mixed Martial Arts

Jon Jones may have his day in court over accusations that he allegedly assaulted a drug-testing agent that came to his home to collect a sample, but the UFC heavyweight champion has not been arrested nor taken into custody over the incident.

On Sunday, a report from NBC News erroneously stated that Jones was arrested Saturday after a police report surfaced from a Drug Free Sport agent who claimed that she left the fighter’s home “terrified” after he allegedly took her phone, intimidated her during the visit, and threatened to kill her. As a result, a summons with two separate charges — assault and interference with communications for allegedly taking the phone — was issued.

Representatives from the Bernalillo County in New Mexico as well as the Albuquerque Police confirmed to MMA Fighting on Sunday that Jones was never arrested nor taken into custody over the incident.

Jones also stated as much with a separate post on social media, within which he responded to those rumors and also vehemently stated that he plans to fight the charges against him.

“I wanted to address some misinformation that has been circulating this morning,” Jones wrote on Twitter. “I woke up to false reports that I had been arrested . I have not been arrested. In fact, I am currently in Texas with my daughters at a volleyball tournament. I must admit, it’s disappointing to have to clarify these things again, but I understand that I may be an easy target given some of my past issues. it’s important to set the record straight and make sure the truth is told.

“I was recently visited by testers while I was celebrating a birthday and taking a nap. Upon waking up, I was caught off guard by the unprofessionalism and protocol by one of the testers which caused frustration leading me to use some profanity I regret. However, I want to emphasize that at no point did I threaten , get in anyone’s face , raise my voice to anyone or engage in any form of assault. It’s unfortunate that false news has been spread without proper fact-checking. I want to assure you that I will vigorously defend myself against these baseless accusations. The truth is, the incident simply did not occur.”

Albuquerque Police also issued an updated version of the report initially filed by the drug-testing agent seeking to press charges against Jones over the alleged incident. In the report, a police officer was able to speak to Jones over the phone and took notes regarding his response to the allegations.

Jones claimed that he was “bothered a little because he had been hungover from the night before” and he had already read the report that the drug-testing agent gave to the UFC and “she was a liar.” Jones stated that “he never made any threats of harming anyone or killing them.”

In the original report, the drug-testing agent, identified as Crystal Martinez, stated that Jones told her “why you f****** people come so early, do you know what happens to people who come to my house … they end up dead.”

Jones claimed he never said that but did tell the agents, “tell everyone at headquarters not to send people to my home so early because it could be a dangerous environment.” Jones told police he said that when the drug-testing agent asked if he wanted to add any quotes to the report she would file about the drug test. The report states that Jones clarified that he meant that “a party could be occurring” at his house or “multiple people could be there.”

Jones admitted that the did use profanities toward the drug-testing agent but claimed he later apologized for swearing at them. He also denied taking Martinez’s phone or putting in his pocket as she alleged in her initial report to police. Jones said he did pick up her phone at one point believing it was his, but then he claims he set it back down on the counter. Jones told police he believes Martinez “was pissed off at him for using profanity” and thus “she fabricated a story.”

Before leaving, Jones claimed that it seemed like the situation was over after he high-fived Martinez and hugged her co-worker who came along to collect his urine sample. Jones posted security camera footage from his home along with his original statement on Saturday, and he was provided a link by police to upload that footage for the case files.

As of Sunday, there are still no official charges showing against Jones in the online records available for Bernalillo County in New Mexico. UFC officials acknowledged a request for comment from MMA Fighting regarding the situation involving Jones but have not responded as of this publication.

MMA Fighting – All Posts

Trilogy?
| BJPenn.com

Katie Taylor vs. Amanda Serrano 2 is rumored for June at the Sphere, three months before Noche UFC in September.

Move over, Dana White. Jake Paul may beat you to be the first major sporting event to be held at the much-hyped Las Vegas Sphere.

The Sphere is a wild 20,000 seat venue equipped with a 16K resolution wraparound interior LED screen. It opened in September 2023 and has mainly been used thus far to host demo shows and concert residencies for bands like U2, Phish, and Grateful Dead carry-on Dead & Company.

UFC CEO Dana White has booked the Sphere for his second Mexican Independence Day show on September 14th, and it was expected that this would be the venue’s first major live sports event. But now Irish news outlet RTE reports that a women’s boxing rematch between Katie Taylor and Amanda Serrano may beat them to the punch with a June date. An official announcement is expected sometime over the next few days.

Taylor is promoted by Matchroom Boxing’s Eddie Hearn, while Serrano has teamed up with Jake Paul’s Most Valuable Promotions. If this fight goes through, Paul will promote an event at the Sphere before the UFC, which we’re sure Dana White would love.

White was an outspoken critic of Jake Paul for years before realizing he was just giving the YouTuber-turned-boxer more attention every time he battled “The Problem Child” on social media. Not only is White not a fan of Paul, he also hates MVP co-founder Nakisa Bidarian. Bidarian was a former UFC CFO who struck out on his own after the Endeavor sale. White has since referred to his former senior executive as an “accountant,” “scumbag,” and “warlock.”

The first Katie Taylor vs. Amanda Serrano fight in April 2022 can credibly be described as the biggest fight in women’s boxing history. It headlined a sold out Madison Square Garden and featured Taylor winning a thrilling come-from-behind decision victory over Serrano.

Since then Taylor has successfully defended her many titles three more times. Serrano has gone 4-0 in the same stretch, most recently having a homecoming fight in Puerto Rico canceled over a bad hair dye job.

MMAmania.com – All Posts

Jon Jones is once again attempting to set the record straight after being accused of physically threatening an anti-doping agent who visited his home last month.

On Friday, news broke that DFSI agent Crystal Martinez had filed a report with Albuquerque police stating that the UFC heavyweight champion had threatened to “kill” her and had briefly stolen her cell phone while she was attempting to collect a urine sample. According to Martinez, Jones was initially compliant with the request but then quickly became frustrated. At one point, he reportedly picked up Martinez’s phone and filmed a video complaining about the drug testers in his garage before putting the phone in his pocket and refusing to return it.

Martinez also alleges that Jones told her and another tester in tow, “Why you f*cking people come so early, do you know what happens to people who come to my house, they end up dead.”

As a result, Jones has been charged with assault and was issued a court summons at his home. Shortly after, reports began to emerge claiming that ‘Bones’ had been arrested. Taking to social media, the MMA icon confirmed that he was not taken into custody, and once again denied the accusations of assault.

Jon Jones releases security cam footage

Before his latest statement on the subject, Jones shared security camera footage of the drug tester leaving his home and giving ‘Bones’ a high-five on her way out.

According to the police report, Jones suggested that Martinez was “unhappy because of offensive language he used in his garage.” As far as the alleged death threat, ‘Bones’ offered up a slightly different version of what he said: “Tell everyone at [DFSI] headquarters not to send people to my home so early because it could be a dangerous environment.”

Ultimate Fighting Championship has not yet released a statement regarding the matter.

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