Lightweights Grant Dawson and Joe Solecki are expected to clash on June 1 at UFC 302, an event which is being targeted for Newark, N.J.
Multiple people with knowledge of the promotion’s plans confirmed the news to MMA Fighting on Tuesday. UFC has made no official announcements about the event, but the location is currently targeted for a return to New Jersey at the Prudential Center in Newark.
Dawson makes his first appearance since suffering a surprising loss to Bobby Green this past October. That setback put an end to his 12-fight unbeaten streak, which included nine fights in the UFC. Prior to that loss, Dawson worked his way up the lightweight ranks with wins over names such as Damir Ismagulov, Mark O. Madsen, and Jared Gordon.
As for Solecki, the 30-year-old New Jersey native also looks to get back on track following a loss after he was slammed to the ground in violent fashion in his most recent outing against Drakkar Klose. That put an end to Solecki’s two-fight win streak, which included a submission victory over Carl Deaton.
There have only been rumored bouts confirmed for UFC 302 thus far, although the promotion will likely made an announcement about the event in the coming weeks once a main event gets booked or tickets go on sale.
Last week the news broke that a bout between influencer-turned boxer Jake Paul and former heavyweight champion Mike Tyson was booked for July 20. Tyson will enter the ring at AT&T Stadium in Arlington, Texas 31-years older than Paul.
The 57-year old Tyson will be 58 when he takes on Paul. He retired 19 years ago in 2005 after quitting before the start of the seventh round against Kevin McBride. He had an exhibition bout against Corey Sanders in 2006, but was inactive until 2020 when he returned in an exhibition bout with Roy Jones Jr.
Former two-division UFC champion Daniel Cormier doesn’t like the matchup.
“It absolutely sucks. It absolutely sucks because while I love ‘Iron’ Mike I want Mike to make as much money as he possibly can. That (training) video right there is about three or four years old. Mike is a different person now,” Cormier said on The Good Guy & Bad Guy podcast. “I saw Mike walk into the UFC last year with a walking stick. I don’t know how they pull this off.”
“Will they let Mike just hit him? If they let Mike just go at this dude and Mike just tried to get him out there in a few minutes, maybe it works. But I don’t know if they risk it with Mike trying to go at Jake Paul in that way,” Cormier continued. “I think it absolutely sucks. I think Mike Tyson’s fighting days are over. He’ll be 58-years old by the time he steps in the ring with Jake Paul. To me it absolutely sucks.”
Marlon “Chito” Vera’s first career Ultimate Fighting Championship (UFC) title fight didn’t go as planned.
UFC 299 was a moment of truth for both Vera and his Bantamweight rival, the champion, Sean O’Malley. Since Vera’s first round technical knockout of O’Malley in August 2020, “Sugar” went on to become their division’s champion and ultimately led to a rematch this past weekend (March 9, 2024).
O’Malley, 29, got redemption for his lone career defeat (18-1, 1 no contest) when he picked apart the Ecuadorian en route to a unanimous decision title defense (watch highlights). Vera, 31, will now go back to the drawing board, and that means facing another talented opponent in the deep 135-pound ranks. Former champion, Henry Cejudo, likes the idea of that being him, should UFC offer the option.
“Sean’s f—king good, man,” Cejudo said on his Pound 4 Pound podcast (h/t MMA Junkie). “When it comes to striking, he’s got good fakes. Everything that he was doing before, now he’s a lot tighter. His distance was better. He was able to really pick Chito apart like you wouldn’t believe. I’m a bit disappointed with Chito.
“I’m thinking Chito’s going to at least fight him, at least attempt a takedown, but Chito never attempted anything,” he continued. “Flat-footed, never faked, never used all that — like, he was pretty much just missing. He kind of pulled the same card when he fought Cory Sandhagen, just fought in the last 10 seconds of the fifth round.”
Cejudo, 37, will also look to rebound in his next fight after a tough unanimous decision loss to Merab Dvalishvili at UFC 298 last month (Feb. 17, 2024). The Olympic gold medalist wrestler mentioned ahead of his defeat how his career would likely end with a second consecutive setback. However, the sour taste is just too much for him to leave in place.
When it comes to Vera, Cejudo is confused about where his current mentality is after the aforementioned Sandhagen loss that came via a one-sided split decision in March 2023.
“I don’t know where this dude’s head is, but the only thing that I could say, there could be a potential fight with me and Chito,” Cejudo said. “I think because of the ranking. I don’t mind it. I’m still trying to get that Brandon Moreno fight, but Chito, especially the way he’s performing, he just decides to fight in the last minute of every five-round fight. I just don’t know where his head’s at.
“I don’t know if it’s that pressure that gets to him,” he continued. “But either way, man, the dude had no tactical fighting, never attempted a takedown, never attempted to really cover the distance and just bring the fight, was reacting to Sean O’Malley, to all his fakes. I’d never seen somebody twitch so damn much, and that was like the biggest thing.”
For complete UFC 299 results and play-by-play, click HERE!
Jiu-jitsu legend Gabi Garcia returns to MMA on April 25 in Sao Paulo, Brazil, in a rematch with Barbara Nepomuceno, Centurion FC officials confirmed to MMA Fighting.
The event will air live and free on Caze TV on YouTube.
Garcia (6-0, 1 no contest) last fought in MMA in December 2018, submitting Nepomuceno with a keylock in just under three minutes at RIZIN 14. The heavyweight grappler fought her entire MMA career in Asia, scoring all six wins by stoppages.
“Centurion FC is coming, and coming strong,” Centurion FC CEO Roberto Gallo told MMA Fighting. “Having Gabi Garcia, it’s a privilege. A privilege that reflects Centurion FC’s direction.”
Garcia returned to grappling competitions in 2019 to make history at the ADCC, claiming her fourth gold medal. The 38-year-old jiu-jitsu ace also won double gold at the IBJJF Pans that year, winning in her division and the openweight class.
Nepomuceno (0-1), a former WGP Kickboxing champion in Brazil, returned to the ring in late 2022 to win a kickboxing match over Gabriela Mingorance. Nepomuceno added another victory to her kickboxing record in April 2023, defeating Bianca Carvalho via decision.
As if the weekend wasn’t frustrating enough with his loss at UFC 299, Marlon ‘Chito’ Vera had to deal with some “f*cking a**hole” who broke into his house on top of it.
Vera returned to the Octagon on Saturday (March 9) for his first bantamweight title opportunity, challenging reigning and defending champion Sean O’Malley. After five rounds of entertaining action, ‘Sugar’ was declared the winner decisively, outstriking ‘Chito’ by a margin of 232 to 89.
Adding insult to injury, ‘Chito’ recently revealed that his home was broken into ahead of his UFC 299 title tilt.
“The context is last night there was a robbery,” Vera wrote on Instagram. They broke into our house. Though they are material things, they are things that have been bought with a lot of effort and hard work. But hey, these types of things happen and the truth is tonight will be a good one. Tonight the gold belt (as Eli calls it) will be ours. God with us and to the person who did it. I really hope he needed the money for something important. Much love.”
Who’s next for Marlon ‘chito’ vera following UFC 299
After coming up short against O’Malley, ‘Chito’ will go back to the drawing board as he hopes to secure a trilogy fight with the current 135-pound champ down the line. Fortunately, there are plenty of options for the Ecuadorian at the top of the bantamweight division.
Climbing back into the win column at UFC 299 was former titleholder Petr Yan who delivered a stellar performance against rising contender Song Yadong in the evening’s main card opener. Following the events of Saturday night, ‘No Mercy’ expressed interest in a fight with Vera which could ultimately lead him toward his own rematch with Sean O’Malley.
There’s also former Olympic gold medalist Henry Cejudo who reneged on his promise to retire should he fail to secure a win over the bantamweight division’s top-ranked contender, Merab Dvalishvili, last month at UFC 298.
And don’t forget about former flyweight champion Deiveson Figueiredo who makes his sophomore appearance 135 on April 13 at UFC 300. ‘Deus da Guerra’ will face the No. 3 ranked Cody Garbrandt with the winner putting themself in a very good position near the top of one of MMA’s most stacked divisions. The loser, however, could be the perfect bounce-back opportunity for the opportunistic Vera.
Who would you like to see Marlon ‘Chito’ Vera fight when he returns to the Octagon later this year?
A number of fighters have been removed from the UFC roster, including Abubakar Nurmagomedov and Devin Clark.
A total of 11 fighters were confirmed by UFC officials to MMA Fighting on Tuesday, with the athletes either released from the promotion, not re-signed after their contracts expired, or retired.
In addition to Nurmagomedov and Clark, the other fighters removed from the UFC roster include Mike Breeden, Fernie Garcia, Luis Saldana, Denys Bondar, Daniel Lacerda, and Mateus Mendonca.
The three fighters who notified the UFC of their retirement are Mark O. Madsen, Jamie Pickett, and Tyson Pedro. Any bouts still remaining on a retired fighters’ contract will stay in place if they decide to make a return to action.
The eight fighters released or no longer under contract are free to sign with any promotion available.
Nurmagomedov, who is cousin to former UFC lightweight champion Khabib Nurmagomedov, ultimately spent four fights with the promotion, going 2-2 before his tenure with the company came to an end.
As for Clark, he spent nearly eight years in the UFC as part of the light heavyweight division, earning wins over names such as Jake Collier, William Knight and Alonzo Menifield. More recently, Clark suffered through a 1-3 octagon run, capped off by back-to-back losses that precipitated his exit from the UFC.
All of the fighters released or no longer under contract can also re-sign with the UFC any time.
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