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MMA: Mixed Martial Arts

Well, UFC Vegas 88 happened. It was definitely a thing that happened, putting us one step closer to the majesty that is UFC 300. These next few weeks will be tough, but that’s okay. Mid APEX cards build character.

Speaking of mid, some things happened on Saturday that actually are worth talking about. From the absolute nonsense of the co-main event, to the unexpected Jose Aldo comeback at UFC 301, let’s dive into the biggest topics of the weekend.

Jose Aldo

While this won’t be the thing that takes up the most time (that’s next question), undoubtedly the biggest news this weekend was that UFC Hall of Famer and featherweight GOAT Jose Aldo is coming out of retirement to fight Jonathan Martinez at UFC 301 in Brazil. This was entirely unexpected and I have a lot of feelings about it.

First, Jose Aldo rules. He’s the clear featherweight GOAT and one of my favorite fighters of all-time. So him returning from retirement at age 37 to take on a young, hungry fighter is a mixed bag. On the one hand, I love to watch him fight. On the other hand, this fight is so, so dumb.

What does this fight do for either man? If Martinez wins, he gets old, retired Aldo on the résumé, and doesn’t even get a rankings boost. If he loses, it’s to old, retired Aldo. And on the other side, a loss means little to Aldo, but what does a win mean? He’s No. 14 in the UFC bantamweight rankings? Hooray? Plus, there is a the extremely real possibility that Aldo leaves the UFC after this fight, which is the last one on his UFC deal (unless he signed a new one). I would say the most likely scenario here is that Aldo fights out his deal and then moves on to other stuff. So really, something was ventured here but nothing gained.

What would have made infinitely more sense, as Alexander points to, is a fight with Dominick Cruz. This is one of those long-theorized superfights that we never got, and was even the rumor when it began to look like Aldo was coming back. Not only would that add some much needed juice to UFC 301 (the card is rough for a pay-per-view) it’s also the sort of legend fight that doesn’t need to lead to anything. Just wish fulfillment for the fans. God love Jonathan Martinez, but the only people that care about him fighting Jose Aldo are blood relatives.

That being said, there is one aspect of this fight that I like a lot: Aldo can win it. Sure, Aldo is 37 going on 59, but the last time we saw him he was still damn good. Look at the difference between his fight with Merab Dvalishvili and Henry Cejudo’s fight with Merab. Aldo still has some tread on the tires, and Martinez is an opponent he can look good against, since Aldo is one of five MMA fighters who can check calf kicks. (Honestly, five might be overstating it.) If the time off and age don’t kill him, this could be another masterclass from the greatest defensive fighter in MMA history. Sign me up.

UFC Vegas 88 Co-Main Event

In case you didn’t watch this past Saturday (good for you, spend more time with your loved ones), the co-main event fight between Bryan Battle and Ange Loosa was a total fiasco. Battle was comfortably beating Loosa until the two clashed into each other, one of Battle’s thumbs went into Loosa’s eye, and the fight was ultimately stopped by the doctor when Loosa said he couldn’t see.

Then, in a show of elite sportsmanship, Battle berated Loosa about “looking for a way out,” called him a bunch of names, gave a post-fight interview where he said more of that, and then kept doing it after the fight. Then, in a mind-boggling bit of commentary, Dominick Cruz said he agreed with Battle questioning “where did all that energy come from” regarding the near post-fight brawl.

There’s a lot to unpack here, all of it bad, so let’s start at the top: It’s reasonable for Battle to be frustrated; after all, he was winning, and now he won’t get a post-fight bonus. That being said, it was a deeply childish response to what happened. Loosa didn’t shove his thumb into Battle’s eye (he did head-butt him, but Battle didn’t seem to notice). You did the bad thing, Bryan. That sucks, live with it. Next time don’t post off on a dude’s face.

The only way Battle’s response is even remotely acceptable (it actually never is, be a grown-up) is if Loosa is transparently lying. Battle clearly believes that’s what happened, and I guess I can understand him feeling that way in the heat of the moment, but it’s an objectively stupid idea. Yes, Battle was winning, but it wasn’t some cataclysmic ass-beating. (Statistically, it was whatever.) He won a comfortable 10-9 first round and we were 60 seconds into the second. Loosa was far from out of the fight and maybe he could have rallied. There is genuinely no reason to think Loosa was lying other than you hate him personally, hate all fighters, or have simply set aside your ability to reason. I mean, what does Loosa gain by lying? It’s not like he gets his win bonus for a no-contest, and now he doesn’t even have the opportunity to win the fight.

“Oh, but where was that ‘I’ll kill you energy’ when the doctor was talking to him, smart guy?”

I don’t know, man, have you ever been angry? It’s incredible what blind fury can do to overtake sensibility, pain, basically anything. Once, when I was a kid, I broke my collar bone, and I was playing with some friends and one of them was being super annoying and I snapped and headlocked him. It was a really bad decision and I paid for it afterward, but that’s with rage can do. If you’ve never experienced that, congratulations, you are a Vulcan. But for the rest of us, there is a world of difference between being unable to see but choosing to fight on despite the handicap, and personal vendetta.

That is BY FAR the most likely scenario of what happened. It’s is overwhelmingly more likely that Loosa got poked in the eye, legitimately could not see out of that eye, and communicated that to the doctor, not that he’s a lying coward who didn’t want to fight any more after losing one round. Seriously, if you simply operate from the assumption that Loosa isn’t lying about his injury (which should be the bare minimum set of assumptions afforded to all fighters) then this entire situation is extremely obvious.

Which brings us to the real issue, because as much as I disliked Battle’s childish reaction, I can at least put some of that down to the heat of the moment. What I cannot allow for — and what no one should be OK with — is Cruz’s commentary on the situation. When serving as a commentator, the expectation is for objective neutrality towards all fighters, because that’s what the profession demands and what the fighters deserve. Coming out and functionally saying, “Ange Loosa is a chicken and didn’t want to fight,” is an astounding error to be made by an employee of the promotion. (For what it’s worth, Bisping attempted to privately tell Battle he agreed but was caught on mic — also a bad look, but at least it was an error of execution and not a deliberate statement from a promotional entity.) Imagine Tony Romo covering a 49ers game and saying, “Chase Young is a wuss. He doesn’t want to be out there.” He’d be fired before halftime!

Not to mention that Cruz is himself a fighter and should know how insane of a position that is to take. How many times has Cruz dealt with some belligerent fan questioning his integrity without any factual basis? Hell, how many people are about to go on Twitter and call him scared for not fighting Jose Aldo in Brazil? Fans on Twitter feeling this way is one thing, but for a man who has lived it to just completely set that aside is unbelievable.

Let’s say, for the sake of argument, that Loosa was lying and was totally fine: What is gained by Cruz’s comments? Very little. Maybe a few fans feel vindicated and Battle feels supported later. But what if he’s not lying? Now you’ve increase amplified the idea that Loosa is a coward, and moreover, Loosa now knows that. He knows that the next time he’s fighting, one of the commentators might be a dude who will trash him to fans on mic. Does that sound like great business?

My biggest issue with all of this is that nonsense begets more nonsense. UFC has completely forgone any sense of professional decorum, which has created a spiral of negativity. Sure, Sean Strickland can say things we wouldn’t allow middle school children to say without recourse. Yeah, fans can hurl death threats or ask outrageously inappropriate questions at promotional events. Of course our commentators can directly question the integrity of a fighter under contract. Obviously our CEO can commit domestic violence on camera to literal zero repercussions. Who cares?

UFC isn’t some ramshackle, barely legal fight show put on eBaum’s World for cheap clicks. It’s a billion-dollar business entity and a professional sports league. It would just be nice if it could act like it.

Tai Tuivasa

In case you missed it, Tai Tuivasa lost his fourth fight in a row on Saturday when Maricn Tybura choked him out in the main event of UFC Vegas 88.

I’ll answer the other parts of this later, but for now I just wanted a brief word on Tuivasa. A couple years ago when he was on that great run, I think most of us knew that it was a bit smoke and mirrors. Even so, it’s sad to see the drop off for the King of the Shoey. Four losses in a row is almost impossible to overcome in modern MMA, even when they come against good opposition. Tuivasa is simply too limited and now may be dropping off physically. But we’ll always have the good times, and there is a clear and obvious path forward for him that should make everyone happy: BKFC.

Give me Tuivasa vs. Ben Rothwell in bare-knuckle boxing and take my $ 50.

APEX predators

I said it at the top, but the next month is a tough hang. Two more APEX cards and a very weak Fight Night offering. But that’s OK because UFC 299 was amazing and UFC 300 is the actual best card ever assembled (on paper). This is the cost of doing business and we should all be alright with that.

As for how I would run things, there are certainly aspects to APEX cards I appreciate, namely that it very clearly creates a tiering system for fans, like in golf. Some people watch golf every weekend. Others tune in for the majors and the other big events. Some just watch the Masters. UFC has recreated this with APEX cards serving as random PGA Tour events, pay-per-views as the majors, and Fight Night cards as other high-profile, non-Majors, like The Players. And of course some people will only watch UFC 300. That’s honestly not a bad set up, so I really wouldn’t change anything.

Well, that’s not entirely true. I’ve said it a lot over the years, but 42 events per year is too many. It requires the UFC to keep a huge roster, results in A LOT of subpar fights on undercards, and doesn’t allow any room for the product to breath. In 2023, if you take out the month-long break the UFC takes basically every year now between the end of December and mid January when they start back up, there were 42 events in 48 weeks. That is an insane schedule. If I was given carte blanch for a day and could make one change, it would be that the UFC moves to a 36-event schedule per year. That’s three events per month: One PPV, one Fight Night, one APEX card, one off week. That is a near perfect schedule but it will also never happen. Oh well.

Thanks for reading, and thank you for everyone who sent in tweets (Xs?)! Do you have any burning questions about things at least somewhat related to combat sports? Then you’re in luck, because you can send your tweets to me, @JedKMeshew, and I will answer my favorite ones! Doesn’t matter if they’re topical or insane, just so long as they are good. Thanks again, and see y’all next week.

MMA Fighting – All Posts

Matchmaking
| BJPenn.com

UFC

Mariya Agapova is more than ready to fight again.

The 26-year-old Kazakhstan native last fought against Gillian Robertson in Sept. 2022. Unfortunately for Agapova, she suffered a second round rear-naked choke loss (watch highlights) that made her 2-3 in her five-fight Ultimate Fighting Championship (UFC) run thus far (10-4 overall).

Although Agapova missed all of 2023, it hasn’t been without a lack of trying to rebound as soon as possible. The women’s Flyweight prospect took to Instagram today (Mon., March 18, 2024) with a now-deleted post that called for action after her extended time away.

Instagram: @mma.mashka

“I have two more fights under my contract in the UFC,” Agapova said. “Because of the contract, I can’t fight in other places and promotions to make money. I also train two-three times a day, because of this, I am not able to get a job. Thank you very much to my friends, sponsors, and tattoo clients for their help. But I urgently need a contract for the fight. My documents have been in order for a month now, and it’s still not clear when I’ll sign the contract for the fight. Let’s make some noise. Write to the UFC that you miss my fights.

“When is the fight?” she concluded. “Don’t ask me that! Let’s ask the UFC [Matchmaker] Mick Maynard. WHEN WILL MY FIGHT BE HAPPENING???”

Agapova has been a prospect to watch within the women’s Flyweight division since her mixed martial arts (MMA) debut in 2015. “Demonslayer” rapidly put together a six-fight winning streak to start, which resulted in an opportunity against Tracy Cortez on Dana White’s Contender Series in 2019. Cortez held off her fellow prospect as she won a unanimous decision and a contract with the promotion.

After two stellar first round finishes in Invicta Fighting Championship, Agapova got the call-up to UFC where she dispatched of Hannah Cifers before she fell victim to the biggest upset in UFC history, according to the odds. Agapova was a -1400 favorite in her bout with the +940 underdog, Shana Dobson, who finished her with strikes in round two at UFC Vegas 7 in Aug. 2020 (watch highlights).

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MMA: Mixed Martial Arts

Francis Ngannou has no regrets about his fight with Anthony Joshua.

Earlier this month, Ngannou made his sophomore outing in professional boxing, taking on Anthony Joshua in Riyadh, Saudi Arabia. It was a disaster – he was brutally knocked out in the second round after getting dropped twice.

In the aftermath, some suggested the outcome should have happened when Ngannou faced Tyson Fury in 2023 (when he nearly pulled off one of the most improbable upsets in boxing history).

For his part, Ngannou chalks it up to an uncharacteristically off night, but looking back, he’s OK with everything, because he knows he did everything possible to set himself up for success.

“This is one thing that also helped me to be OK with it: as far as a training camp, I had my best training camp,” Ngannou said. “I was in my best condition. The best. Even if we had to start this again, I really don’t see a thing that I should have done different. We did a good training camp in Riyadh and everything was good, except that fight day where things were very odd.”

While Ngannou may not be able to pin down exactly what happened, others have been more than willing to offer thoughts. Some suggested it was proof Ngannou’s success against Tyson Fury was down to Fury overlooking him and not Ngannou’s own ability.

Along those lines, Ngannou critics pointed to his decision to shift to southpaw in the first round, which ultimately led to the first knockdown, as a sign that “The Predator” was simply too inexperienced in the face of an elite boxer. But Ngannou disagrees.

“I do not have any regrets,” he said. “Now that I lost the fight, we can say anything that I’ve done wrong. We worked on everything, and everything was OK. This was all my [choice]. Even in southpaw, my defense is more sharp than orthodox. In the southpaw, to take a hit from the right back hand, this is something that in sparring never happened, and I’ve been there so many times practicing.

“So I really have no regrets, because that was our training and we improved everything. I really have no regrets. We worked toward that, we made that decision, and we stand by it. … With the same southpaw, I think we basically won the fight against Tyson.”

Still, the loss changed perspectives, and not just for Ngannou’s critics. Following the knockout, even some MMA luminaries suggested Ngannou could lose to Joshua in an MMA fight, while others simply wanted him to leave boxing.

For Ngannou, none of that matters. He’s going to continue to pursue his passions and remains unconcerned with the opinion of others.

“It doesn’t bother me,” he said. “I think I get to the point where, we have been here so many times talking about drama, what people think, what people say, that I think I’m at the point where I don’t really let what people say affect me. I don’t mind that much what people say, because they will always have something to say. But I also think this was exactly what was expected. I think if I was treated wrong, everything that happened was just to restore this, because regardless, I kind of disrespected the system a little bit.”

MMA Fighting – All Posts

Not even Conor McGregor’s coach John Kavanagh knows why it’s taking so long for the UFC to book his return to the Octagon.

McGregor has been sidelined ever since suffering a leg injury in the UFC 264 main event in July 2021. Last year, the former two-division champion began hyping up his quote-unquote “greatest comeback in combat sports history” — something that has been rumored for UFC 296 last December, UFC 300 on April 13, and most recently, June 29 when the promotion wraps up International Fight Week in Las Vegas.

During his appearance on The MMA Hour alongside Alta business partner Rich Chou, Kavanagh was inevitably asked for his take on the situation with Conor McGregor and why it’s taking so long for the UFC to book a fight with MMA’s biggest name.

As it turns out, Kavanaugh is just as clueless as the rest of us.

“I won’t pretend to know the politics and what’s going on with legal stuff in the background,” Kavanaugh said. “All I know is it seems odd that we’re not getting [any news]. Like I said, I really am speaking from a position of ignorance because I actually try to purposefully avoid all of that.

“[McGregor’s manager] Audie [Attar] and the team, they do all that, they go back and forth with Hunter [Campbell] and the UFC team. But yeah, it’s weird to me for someone to be the star he is and not get more opportunities” (h/t MMA Fighting).

UFC Fans can get their Conor mcGregor fix on March 21

Conor McGregor is the highest-grossing athlete in UFC history, accounting for eight of the 10 biggest pay-per-view buyrates of all time. He has played a pivotal role in the promotion’s continued growth and mainstream appeal, which will undoubtedly come in handy when the UFC heads back to the negotiating table as their broadcast deal with ESPN is set to expire at the end of 2025.

‘Mystic Mac’ is also set to make his feature film debut this week (March 21) when Amazon Prime Video releases its remake of the 1989 action classic Road House. Taking over the role originally played by the late Patrick Swayze, Road House stars Jake Gyllenhaal as a former UFC fighter who takes a job as a bouncer at a roadhouse in the Florida Keys.

McGregor plays Knox, one of the film’s antagonists.

“Look, I’m going to meet him either this evening or certainly tomorrow for the movie, and trust me, that’s why I half-jokingly say to journalists, ‘You know as much as me,’” Kavanagh said. “They all think, ‘Go on, give me the inside scoop.’ I’m seeing the same clips pop up that you guys do.

“Conor’s traveling so much and my head’s down so much with what’s happening day to day, I’m not really every day on to Conor, ‘Hey, what? I’ve seen an interview.’ He’ll come to me when the fight’s announced, but I will be asking him.”

Despite Conor McGregor and John Kavanagh’s insistence that they are both ready, UFC CEO Dana White has continued to place the blame on his cash cow, claiming that McGregor’s immense wealth is the root of his delayed absence.

McGregor disputed that claim during an appearance at the Road House premiere earlier this month, stating that his return is being “pushed back” by the UFC and that it is beginning to affect his motivation.

LowKickMMA.com

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MMA: Mixed Martial Arts

Conor McGregor’s longtime coach John Kavanagh is as in the dark as the rest of the MMA world when it comes to the fighter’s next move.

Kavanagh appeared on The MMA Hour on Monday along with Alta business partner Rich Chou to discuss the future of their company, and the discussion inevitably turned to Kavanagh’s close friend and star student McGregor. The former two-division UFC champion remains in limbo without a booking on the horizon as he targets his first fight since suffering a leg injury at UFC 264 in July 2021, but fans hoping for any insight from Kavanagh will be disappointed to know that he’s waiting for an update just like everybody else.

“I won’t pretend to know the politics and what’s going on with legal stuff in the background,” Kavanath said. “All I know is it seems odd that we’re not getting [any news]. Like I said, I really am speaking from a position of ignorance because I actually try to purposefully avoid all of that. [McGregor’s manager] Audie [Attar] and the team, they do all that, they go back and forth with Hunter [Campbell] and the UFC team. But yeah, it’s weird to me for someone to be the star he is and not get more opportunities.”

McGregor has been the UFC’s biggest box office draw for the past decade, bringing in millions of pay-per-view buys and playing a key role in elevating the promotion to a higher level of mainstream recognition. However, he has fought in MMA just four times since 2016, with inactivity related to injury, legal issues, a one-off boxing match with Floyd Mayweather Jr., and his pursuit of film roles.

The remake of Road House premieres this week on Amazon Prime and Kavanagh expects to see McGregor at an advance screening, where he hopes to get a hint of what’s next for the SBG Ireland standout.

“Look, I’m going to meet him either this evening or certainly tomorrow for the movie and trust me, that’s why I half-jokingly say to journalists, ‘You know as much as me,’” Kavanagh said. “They all think, ‘Go on, give me the inside scoop.’ I’m seeing the same clips pop up that you guys do.

“Conor’s traveling so much and my head’s down so much with what’s happening day to day, I’m not really every day on to Conor, ‘Hey, what? I’ve seen an interview.’ He’ll come to me when the fight’s announced, but I will be asking him.”

In a recent interview, UFC CEO Dana White suggested that McGregor’s wealth is one reason why he might be taking his time to return to action. However, McGregor himself said that the booking being “pushed back” is causing him to “lose interest.”

According to Kavanagh, McGregor is just waiting for a call.

“Yes,” Kavanagh said when asked if McGregor is ready to fight.

MMA Fighting – All Posts