CombatSports.org

UFC

submitted by /u/rmma
[link] [comments]
MMA: Mixed Martial Arts

It’s not all beef between Nate Diaz and Conor McGregor.

Diaz and McGregor have one of the most storied rivalries in MMA history, highlighted by their two fights, which are among the highest-grossing pay-per-view events of all-time. Since their last fight back in 2016, the relationship between the two has ebbed and flowed, with both men periodically taking jabs at one another. However, on this St. Patrick’s Day, Diaz has chosen to mend fences, at least for a moment.

On Sunday, Diaz came out with a message of solidarity for McGregor, in response to the former two-division champion’s mounting frustrations with being unable to return to the octagon. McGregor recently noted that he’s made several attempts to return to the cage, but that the the fights have not ended up happening, leading to him losing interest and the cycle repeating itself. It’s a situation Diaz himself is familiar with.

“This was me for years before Conor even got here. They want [you] to die before [you] get out these contracts. It’s up to you to make something pop. No one gonna help you but you.

“Free Conor, it’s [St.] Patty’s Day in this b****.”

Diaz was in a similar situation to McGregor at the end of his UFC run. With only one fight left on his contract, Diaz wanted to complete his contract and move on from the UFC, but struggled to get his final fight booked. He eventually was booked to fight Khamzat Chimaev at UFC 279, but a last-minute weight miss and shuffle resulted in Diaz facing Tony Ferguson, and winning by fourth-round submission.

It’s unclear exactly what the hold-up is with McGregor’s return. “Notorious” previously suggested he will return at International Fight Week this summer, but UFC CEO Dana White recently said he did not expect McGregor to return until fall at the earliest. McGregor last fought at UFC 264, when he snapped his leg during his trilogy fight with Dustin Poirier.

MMA Fighting – All Posts

Clear Message
| BJPenn.com

UFC

Francis Ngannou may have nearly fell asleep during warmups for his boxing return earlier this month, but the former UFC heavyweight champion was left unconscious after Anthony Joshua delivered a knockout from hell.

Fight fans can now check out the moments immediately following Ngannou’s devastating defeat as “Predator” shared new behind-the-scenes footage on Saturday. Check it out in the above video player via Ngannou’s YouTube channel.

In case you missed it, Ngannou fell flat in his return to the boxing ring. The former UFC heavyweight king shocked the boxing world by almost defeating Tyson Fury in his boxing debut last October. Ngannou scored a knockdown in that fight and looked poised to give Joshua a real run for his money earlier this month in Saudi Arabia. Unfortunately, things did not go as planned.

Ngannou, who had never been finished in his combat career before his tilt with Joshua, was blasted with a huge knockdown in Round 1. “Predator” was completely caught off guard and almost had an outer body experience when it happened.

“Even the first time, I was quite surprised, like, ‘Damn, I can’t be falling from this punch,’” Ngannou said. “The punch was hard, but I don’t think it was the punch that usually would take me down.”

The chaos didn’t stop there. After regrouping in his corner after the first round Ngannou went back out and suffered two more knockdowns. The final punch from Joshua sent Ngannou crashing to the canvas in terrifying fashion, leaving fight fans everywhere in complete awe. It also left Ngannou thinking about all the things that went wrong.

“I think this is a knockout, this is a weird loss,” Ngannou said. “Something that I wouldn’t like to experience, but I think it will stay as a defeat only if I don’t learn from it and come back from it.

“Just life, you don’t make any excuse. That’s what we sign up for when you come to a sport like this. You always know that there is stuff like that, that could happen.”

The video also captures Ngannou being embraced by family members and teammates backstage as he was recovering from the vicious knockout.

Ngannou, who should be making his official return to mixed martial arts (MMA) later this year for his Professional Fighters League (PFL) debut, will have some time to recover from this wild knockout loss. But now that he’s seen the shadow realm firsthand will the former UFC champion ever be the same?

Let us know!

MMAmania.com – All Posts

submitted by /u/SokoudjouFan [link] [comments]

MMA: Mixed Martial Arts

UFC 300 is almost here and the UFC is pulling out all the stops to build excitement for its landmark event.

On April 13, UFC 300 takes place in Las Vegas, headlined by a light heavyweight title fight between Alex Pereira and Jamahal Hill, and featuring one of the deepest cards ever assembled on paper. In the co-main event, UFC strawweight champion Weili Zhang puts her title on the line against No. 1 contender Yan Xiaonan, the feature main card bout pits “BMF” champion Justin Gaethje against former featherweight champion Max Holloway, and the rest of the fight card features seven former UFC champions and one two-time Olympic gold medalist.

It’s a truly stacked card and in an effort to promote the upcoming card, the UFC has put out its last mega-event for free on its YouTube page.

UFC 200 was a landmark event for the promotion and took place on July 9, 2016 in Las Vegas. Headlined by a women’s bantamweight title fight between then-champion Miesha Tate and Amanda Nunes, the card also featured Brock Lesnar returning to the promotion to take on Mark Hunt, then-light heavyweight champion Daniel Cormier taking on Anderson Silva in a short-notice non-title fight, Jose Aldo and Frankie Edgar rematching for an interim featherweight belt, and a host of other marquee matchups.

You can watch a full replay of the event above.

The promotion also released a full event replay of UFC 100 last month, which you can view here.

MMA Fighting – All Posts

Up-and-coming Irish superstar Ian Garry has a challenge for Colby Covington, and it’s a little unusual for the sport of MMA, to say the least.

Riding a 14-0 streak, the undefeated Garry has now forged his way into the midst of the welterweight elite. His last outing saw him squeeze out a split-decision victory over the always-tough Geoff Neal, and now Garry’s sights are set even further up the totem pole and locked onto a potential fight with Covington.

Covington is no stranger to throwing shots, and ‘The Future’ has been an easy target for him. Most recently, ‘Chaos’ released a video in which he called Garry’s wife a “Gold-digging wh*re” and claimed since she wore the pants in the relationship, she could get down on her knees and beg Covington to accept the fight with Ian Garry.

Garry would inevitably release a comeback and add his own stipulations to the mix, including his desire for the fight to be an ‘I quit’ match in which the loser retires from MMA.

Ian Garry responds to Colby Covington’s Callout video

“Listen here, Colby ‘Chaos’ Covington,” Ian Garry began, in his own response video. “You are in no position to tell me what I should be doing in life. You’ll do what you’re told.” The video then cuts to a montage of Covington’s title fights, showcasing all the times the referee has raised the other fighter’s hand, rubbing it in that ‘Chaos’ has never been victorious in a UFC title fight.

“…You’re not America’s favorite fighter,” Garry continued. What you are is a peak underperformer. You are the only person in UFC history to lose three world title fights. And you haven’t got a single win against anybody in the (welterweight) top 15 right now. So Colby, why should I fight you?”

I can think of one reason: I challenge you to an ‘I quit’ match. One of us has to say: ‘I quit’, and whoever says the words ‘I quit’ has to retire. Gloves off, center of the octagon, sayonara, my friend. I’m going to be the final chapter in your legacy of failure. I’m going to rid the UFC of Colby Covington for good, and I’m going to make MMA great again.”

What do you make of this strange request by Ian Garry?

LowKickMMA.com

UFC