MMA News

Author: Kyle Dimond

  • Chael Sonnen Feels Kamaru Usman Can Hijack Title Shot: UFC Not Ready For Muhammad vs Rakhmonov Presser

    Chael Sonnen Feels Kamaru Usman Can Hijack Title Shot: UFC Not Ready For Muhammad vs Rakhmonov Presser

    When Belal Muhammad defeated Leon Edwards to become the welterweight champion at UFC 304, there was a common consensus for who his first challenger would be.

    At 18-0 with all finishes, Shavkat Rakhmonov currently holds the #3-ranking at 170-pounds and is a huge threat to anyone in the division.

    There is, however, another contender that is still ranked above Rakhmonov despite the fact that he has lost his last three fights.

    Former welterweight champion Kamaru Usman was beaten by Edwards in consecutive fights before taking a short notice opportunity against Khamzat Chimaev up at middleweight.

    Though he may be lacking some momentum right now, Usman was a dominant champion whose name still carries a lot of weight, which could be enough to see him jump back into the title picture.

    Chael Sonnen Says Kamaru Usman Needs To Push For Welterweight Title Shot Because He’s So Close

    In a recent YouTube video, Chael Sonnen was very keen to push just how close Usman is to the title shot for a number of reasons.

    He said that he needed to come out and say this after “The Nigerian Nightmare” had called out Rakhmonov when in reality, he should be trying to get the title shot instead because it’s possible.

    Sonnen made reference to how despite both men having fanbases away from the usual US audience of the UFC, the promotion might have some doubts about having Muhammad and Rakhmonov headline an event – which Usman can use to better his case.

    With Usman being a much more familiar face, he could jump in front of Rakhmonov thanks to his name and pedigree even if his fellow contender is much more deserving based on current form.

    “He is right there about to get Belal, I mean he is right there. There is only one guy even in discussion that might nudge him out and that is Rakhmonov and it’s wildly important that they get this figured out. If Rakhmonov nudges him out, there’s probably not going to be another time that Kamaru’s going to be needed.

    “This is the time, he’s got to beat him. Rakhmonov has got to shine himself up just a little bit more. The UFC, no matter how big it is and no matter what the fan base is, is not ready for a press conference with Muhammad and Rakhmonov and Kamaru Usman has got to push that narrative. I’m only sharing that because he is this close and at one point he didn’t know it.”

    Read also: Former Opponent Reveals He Perfectly Predicted ‘Randy Couture Style’ Welterweight Title Win For Belal Muhammad At UFC 304

  • Classy Khabib Nurmagomedov Sets Record Straight After Tony Ferguson Aims Vulgar Taunts At Him: ‘Enjoy Your Life & Your Family’

    Classy Khabib Nurmagomedov Sets Record Straight After Tony Ferguson Aims Vulgar Taunts At Him: ‘Enjoy Your Life & Your Family’

    Khabib Nurmagomedov facing Tony Ferguson inside the Octagon will always be one of the biggest fights that fans never got to watch happen.

    The two men were at the top of the lightweight division at the same time and whilst their paths never crossed, they beat nearly every other top contender between them.

    Ferguson and Khabib both had incredible winning streaks but the fight simply wouldn’t happen, despite getting close on multiple occasions.

    Though “The Eagle” appeared to move on from this, especially after he announced his retirement, “El Cucuy” doesn’t seem to have ever let this one go even after their careers have gone in completely different directions.

    A recent post from the former interim lightweight champion appeared to hit back at comments that he had seen which were allegedly made by his former rival, claiming that Ferguson’s only chance of beating him was to land a lucky shot.

    Ferguson responded via his usual style of cryptic posting on social media.

    Khabib Nurmagomedov Clears The Air With Tony Ferguson, Tells Him To Enjoy Life

    Rather than just ignoring these kinds of posts from Ferguson, which were once a common occurrence, Nurmagomedov responded to this one via his X profile.

    The undefeated former lightweight king replied underneath Ferguson’s pinned post on his account and offered a classy response.

    Rather than biting back and saying how he would have beaten “El Cucuy” if they did ever face off with one another, Nurmagomedov clarified that these comments weren’t made by him.

    He ended his statement by telling Ferguson to go and appreciate his loved ones, insinuating that he should walk away from the sport for good after he appeared to half-retire following his eighth consecutive UFC loss earlier this month.

    “You know what’s interesting, i didn’t say anything about you, people just post whatever they want on the internet and write that it’s Khabib. Enjoy your life and your family, leave this sport for the young fighters.”

    Read also: Dan Hooker On Learning His Lessons From Initial Top Five Stint, Vows Not To ‘Sell His Title Shot Again’

  • Israel Adesanya’s Coach Honest About UFC 305 Loss: ‘I Prefer The Way He Loses Than The Way He Wins…’

    Israel Adesanya’s Coach Honest About UFC 305 Loss: ‘I Prefer The Way He Loses Than The Way He Wins…’

    Israel Adesanya suffered a defeat on his return at UFC 305 but as always, he was incredibly respectful and humble in defeat.

    Fight fans have seen “The Last Stylebender” come up short on four occasions during his time in the promotion.

    Which each loss, he has always continued to represent himself and his team incredibly well and this is something that his coach takes a lot of pride in.

    The only slight exception to this was his loss to Sean Strickland at UFC 293, where Adesanya decided to not speak to the media but this was understandable after the amount of time he had spent doing his media duties throughout his UFC career.

    In fact, the former middleweight champion’s character after a defeat is so strong that his coach prefers this side of him to the celebratory one after a win.

    Eugene Bareman Says Israel Adesanya Is Better At Handling Losses Than Anyone Else In MMA

    Though City Kickboxing head coach Eugene Bareman would obviously rather that Adesanya wins each and every one of his fights, he does like seeing the man that his fighter is in the difficult moments where he lets his opponent have their moment without stepping in the way.

    There was a lot of tension between Adesanya and Dricus Du Plessis heading into this fight but any beef was squashed after the two men faced off in Perth.

    During a recent appearance on the ‘Who The Fook Are These Guys?’ podcast, Bareman spoke about how great “The Last Stylebender” is after a defeat.

    He also referenced how the shock upset loss to Strickland is an exception because they weren’t able to take positives or lessons from that particular setback.

    “Yeah he keeps handling it well and you’re right, I love the way he loses. I actually prefer the way he loses than the way he wins. I’m not a big fan of some of the ways he win but I’m definitely a big fan of the way he loses. I think he does it better than anyone in the sport. In a sport that’s proliferated with a bunch of idiots that make up all sorts of the most ridiculous things I’ve seen over the years, especially at that level it’s just crazy, and I think he does it the best but I mean the Strickland loss, he’ll never get over. You just fought badly and it was unexplainable.”

    Read also: Dan Hooker’s Coach Feels Unlucky Mateusz Gamrot Let Down By ‘The Machine’: ‘That Should Have Been His Opportunity…’

  • Jon Jones Has NSFW Response To Tom Aspinall Labeling Him The ‘Champion Of Fight Dodging’: ‘I Absolutely Guarantee He Will Not Win…’

    Jon Jones Has NSFW Response To Tom Aspinall Labeling Him The ‘Champion Of Fight Dodging’: ‘I Absolutely Guarantee He Will Not Win…’

    The war of words between UFC heavyweight champions Jon Jones and Tom Aspinall is still going on. despite the fact that it seems unlikely that they will fight one another.

    Interim champ Aspinall has previously said that he is no longer focused on fighting “Bones” before he calls time on his career.

    Many expect that Jones will retire after fighting former champ Stipe Miocic later this year. following a long recovery process from the injury that forced him out of his title defense at UFC 295 last year.

    While the Brit may be ready to move on, he has become more vocal when taking little digs at Jones which, in fairness, is only a response to some of the comments that Jones has been making.

    In a recent social media clip that was posted by Sport Bible, Aspinall was asked who the champion of ducking fights is and obviously, he had an answer already in mind.

    “Fight dodging? That would have to be Jon Jones wouldn’t it. We know he’s trying to fight old man Stipe, well he’s going to fight old man Stipe so he’s the fight dodger around here.”

    Jon Jones Hits Back At Tom Aspinall’s ‘Fight Dodger’ Comment With Fiery Response

    Jones responded to their particular statement from Aspinall directly via a reply underneath the post.

    Most of his comments about the interim champion have come from interactions with MMA fans on X but this time, he fired straight back at the interim titleholder and didn’t hold back either.

    In a NSFW post, the consensus greatest of all time reminded his fellow heavyweight and the fans just what he has accomplished in his career.

    He also referenced how Aspinall won’t stop talking about him which appears to be true on both sides, despite Jones being lined up to fight Miocic next.

    “This dude literally has my large black c*** in his mouth every week. I’m flattered. I absolutely guarantee he will not win more world championships than me. That’s truly all that matters at the end of the day. There’s been good champions, no one like me. I sleep good at night.”

    Read also: Tom Aspinall Sneakily Reveals Why He Looks Up To Stipe Miocic More Than Jon Jones: ‘Don’t Make Me Say It!’

  • Dan Hooker On Learning His Lessons From Initial Top Five Stint, Vows Not To ‘Sell His Title Shot Again’

    Dan Hooker On Learning His Lessons From Initial Top Five Stint, Vows Not To ‘Sell His Title Shot Again’

    It has been a long journey full of ups and downs for Dan Hooker to work his back into the top five of the lightweight division.

    After defeating Mateusz Gamrot at UFC 305, he’s riding a three-fight winning streak which has seen him bounce back from consecutive losses.

    Hooker, at one stage, had just one win in his last five Octagon outings and that came after he made it into the top five for the first time in his career. And in his opinion, that skid was caused by a few crucial mistakes he made.

    He has learned a lot in this four-year-period and is now confident that he won’t make the same mistakes that he did last time.

    Dan Hooker Says That Fighting Michael Chandler At UFC 257 Was A Mistake On His Part

    Hooker is now seemingly on the verge of what could be a title eliminator against the likes of Charles Oliveira or Justin Gaethje.

    Though he took big fights against Dustin Poirier and the debuting Michael Chandler the last time he was in this position, he believes that the latter in particular was a mistake.

    “Iron” Mike would hit the ground running in the promotion by stopping the Kiwi fighter in the opening round in Abu Dhabi.

    Hooker didn’t need to risk his ranking against a new arrival like Chandler, even if competing in the co-main event of a Conor McGregor card was a big opportunity for him.

    The major issue with taking this fight is that it took place during the COVID-19 pandemic where New Zealand had very strict regulations, which compromised his preparations.

    Having admitted in an interview with ESPN Australia that he has a whole new level of respect for the team around him, Hooker said that he has learned from the missteps that he has made in his career and isn’t going to waste this opportunity.

    “I kind of have learnt that from my first rodeo, is to just kind of not do anything dumb this time around. I mean the last time I was number five, I agreed to fight Michael Chandler. Gave Michael Chandler a shot, it was his first fight in the UFC, I flew to Abu Dhabi so other side of the world with absolutely no coaches and went and fought him with a guy I’d been training for six months in my corner. so it was not the smartest of decisions so I guess this time around, I’m just not gonna do anything dumb or sell my title shot again.”

    Read also: Israel Adesanya’s Coach Says Du Plessis Defeat Better Than ‘Unexplainable’ Strickland Upset: ‘It Was A Good Loss…’

  • Aljamain Sterling’s Cornerman Clarifies Any Doubt Over Faking Petr Yan Disqualification & Title Win

    Aljamain Sterling’s Cornerman Clarifies Any Doubt Over Faking Petr Yan Disqualification & Title Win

    Former UFC bantamweight champion Aljamain Sterling has always had a somewhat rocky relationship with certain parts of the MMA fanbase.

    “Funkmaster” has an awkward striking style and a strong grappling game which means that his fights aren’t always the most exciting to watch, even if he’s incredibly effective at what he does.

    Aside from this, another point that saw some of the UFC’s audience take a dislike to Sterling was what happened at UFC 259, where he challenged Petr Yan for the 135-pound title.

    Yan landed an illegal knee to Sterling’s head whilst he was a downed opponent in the fourth round which the challenger couldn’t recover from.

    As a result, Yan was disqualified, meaning that the title changed hands in disappointing fashion.

    Eric Nicksick Recalls How Aljamain Sterling Had No Memory Of UFC 259 On His Journey Home

    Despite the knee strike being a clear and obvious foul on Yan’s side, some fans didn’t like the way Sterling won the title as a result, and questioned whether he actually couldn’t continue or if he was looking for a way out because the fight wasn’t going his way.

    This was cleared up during a recent episode of the Verse Us podcast where Sterling joined Xtreme Couture head coach Eric Nicksick, who was in his corner on that night.

    Nicksick provided more details about how that decision was made to not continue and what the aftermath of that knee landing was like.

    He recalled how, after nominating himself to stay with Sterling and take him back home from the hospital, it was clear that he had no memory of what had just happened.

    “I said to Ray [Longo], I’ll go to the hospital with him and I had to sit in the f****** parking lot. You didn’t get to sit in the waiting room, this is COVID era so I get a text from him or whoever was kind of there, one of the nurses or UFC personnel, ‘Hey, he’s ready, you can come around the back, you can pick him up.’

    “We get in the car and what, 30-minute ride home and this is why I know, from a personal level, that this dude wasn’t faking. 30-minutes of him asking round after round after round. I say this because guys that I know that have been knocked out or have had head trauma have asked the same questions. ‘What happened in round one? What happened in round two?’ Going through everything in their head.”

    Sterling returns at UFC 307 where he faces Movsar Evloev in search of his second consecutive win at featherweight.

    Read also: Aljamain Sterling Accuses Sean O’Malley Of Being Given The ‘Jake Paul Route’ By The UFC: “Stacking The Deck Against His Opponent”

  • Aljamain Sterling Accuses Sean O’Malley Of Being Given The ‘Jake Paul Route’ By The UFC: ‘Stacking The Deck Against His Opponent’

    Aljamain Sterling Accuses Sean O’Malley Of Being Given The ‘Jake Paul Route’ By The UFC: ‘Stacking The Deck Against His Opponent’

    Aljamain Sterling believes that UFC bantamweight champion Sean O’Malley has had assistance from the promotion to help build him into a star.

    Though “Suga” still has to beat the opponents that are put in front of him, and has done so in spectacular fashion, his former opponent thinks that this has been aided to some degree.

    The previous titleholder compared O’Malley’s run in the bantamweight division to Jake Paul’s career in boxing, where at a face level, he’s delivering inside the ring by producing huge fights and big knockouts.

    Where a lot of people have issues with Paul’s victories is where the odds are heavily weighted in his favor by things like weight discrepancies and big differentials in both activity and experience.

    Aljamain Sterling Says UFC Always Planned To Talk Him Into Quick Turnaround For Sean O’Malley Title Defense

    Sterling recently appeared on the Verse Us podcast with Xtreme Couture head coach Eric Nicksick where he spoke about O’Malley’s upcoming title defense against his friend and training partner, Merab Dvalishvili.

    “Funkmaster” used his own experiences of fighting “Suga” at UFC 292 to explain why he believes there is a comparison that can be made to “The Problem Child”.

    Sterling says that not only was O’Malley fast-tracked into a title shot, he was made to defend his belt against the returning Henry Cejudo first and claims that the promotion were always going to push him towards making a quick turnaround for UFC 292, which would hinder his preparations and recovery.

    The current featherweight contender, who is back in action at UFC 307, has been very outspoken about this decision and how he was eventually talked into fighting O’Malley in Boston shortly after beating Cejudo.

    “I want to see the best of the best compete, no excuses. Now, enter O’Malley, he fights one ranked guy, gets a title shot, split decision albeit and this is not me hating, this is just calling a spade a spade. He’s supposed to fight me next which would give me enough time to prepare but instead, they say, ‘Oh Cejudo’s coming back, we want you to fight him.’ In the back of their mind, they’re like whoever wins this, we’re gonna turn them around for August.

    “So he knows all this, I’m pretty sure he knows all this and only O’Malley can disclose all this. Or at least, the UFC knew for sure that this is what they wanted to do. Give him the best opportunity that they could to become a world champion by hindering and stacking the deck against his opponent. It’s like the Jake Paul route. Stacking the deck so that you get these highlights or you get these favorable match ups and these wins to look as good as you do.”

    Read also: Sean O’Malley’s Coach Calls Merab Dvalishvili ‘Scary’ But Highlights Major Flaw In His Game: ‘Too Close To The Fight Now To Fix’

  • Dan Hooker’s Coach Feels Unlucky Mateusz Gamrot Let Down By ‘The Machine’: ‘That Should Have Been His Opportunity…’

    Dan Hooker’s Coach Feels Unlucky Mateusz Gamrot Let Down By ‘The Machine’: ‘That Should Have Been His Opportunity…’

    Dan Hooker secured one of his biggest career victories at UFC 305 in Perth when he upset Mateusz Gamrot to earn a top five ranking spot.

    It was a back-and-forth battle between the two lightweight contenders that ended in a split decision, after Gamrot started the fight well but faded over time.

    All of the credit went to “The Hangman” who, after suffering some tough defeats, has been able to build his way back into contention at 155 pounds.

    His display of heart and toughness pushed this bout towards winning the fight of the night bonus but of course, his Polish opponent also played his part and that’s something that Hooker’s coach wanted to highlight.

    Eugene Bareman Praises Mateusz Gamrot And Says He Has Veen Unlucky Because Of His Fighting Style

    In an interview with Combat TV, Hooker’s coach at City Kickboxing, Eugene Bareman, took a moment to show his appreciation for Gamrot as a fighter and competitor.

    He referenced how “Gamer” was locked in to be the back-up fighter for UFC 294 in case anything happened to the main event between Islam Makhachev and Charles Oliveira.

    When “Do Bronx” withdrew due to an injury, the UFC went with Alexander Volkanovski as the replacement instead despite Gamrot being ready to go, likely because it made for a bigger fight.

    Bareman, after praising Gamrot’s performance at UFC 305, said that he has been unlucky due to his fighting style which isn’t the most fan-friendly, even if he is extremely talented.

    “For a start, I got a lot of respect for Gamrot and his team. I thought it was very unfair what happened to him in Abu Dhabi, you know, when Volk stepped in when he was already the person that was there waiting to be the replacement and instead of choosing him, they chose Volk who was in no shape to fight.

    “I thought that should have been his opportunity and it was taken away by the machine, you know. The machine that is the UFC and I just thought he was a guy that has suffered a little bit because he doesn’t have the stereotypical fights that the fans necessarily want to see but I love watching the guy fight. The people that know about the sport, they appreciate his work and although it may not be a fan friendly kind of style of fight, the people that know really appreciate the way that he fights.”

    Read also: Kamaru Usman Compares Career To Israel Adesanya & Alexander Volkanovski Ahead Of Rumored Return Against Belal Muhammad: ‘How Disrespectful Are MMA Fans’

  • Israel Adesanya’s Coach Says Du Plessis Defeat Better Than ‘Unexplainable’ Strickland Upset: ‘It Was A Good Loss…’

    Israel Adesanya’s Coach Says Du Plessis Defeat Better Than ‘Unexplainable’ Strickland Upset: ‘It Was A Good Loss…’

    For the first time in his MMA career, Israel Adesanya finds himself coming off the back of consecutive defeats inside the Octagon.

    This doesn’t tell the story of both the fights that took place a year apart, because though he didn’t get his hand raised on either occasion, the story of the fights were completely different.

    “The Last Stylebender” didn’t look himself at UFC 293 where he was shockingly upset by Sean Strickland before taking a year off to return at UFC 305.

    Despite not reclaiming the title against Dricus Du Plessis, Adesanya appeared somewhat back to where he was before and looked to be gaining momentum in the fight until Du Plessis was able to capitalize on a few mistakes to earn a submission win in the fourth round.

    Adesanya’s head coach at City Kickboxing, Eugene Bareman, gave his thoughts on the fight during a recent interview with Combat TV.

    He came away feeling a lot more positive after this loss compared to the one from last year because they were able to learn from clear and obvious mistakes that will only lead to improvements, unlike UFC 293 which left the team scratching their heads.

    “He made some mistakes which you can only, in my opinion, put down to fatigue and the fatigue, you can put down to the work that Dricus was able to do so you can’t do nothing but applaud that. It was a loss but you know, it was a good loss. Me and Israel can walk away from that loss and it’s measurable, it’s tangible. You can put that down, this is why this happened, this is why that happened. The Strickland fight is just a bit unexplainable to us. That’s much harder to get over cuz it’s like well what happened there.”

    Eugene Bareman Gives Credit To Dricus Du Plessis For An Aspect Of His Game That They ‘Didn’t Anticipate’

    Bareman agrees with the common consensus that heading into the fourth round, it looked like the momentum was swinging towards Adesanya in the later rounds.

    However, it was Du Plessis’ finishing ability that ended up deciding the fight after he was able to wobble the former champion on the feet and take his back for the rear-naked choke win.

    As he previously stated above, Bareman puts these crucial mistakes down to Adesanya being fatigued and while this is something they worked on during his training camp, the City Kickboxing boss revealed that he was surprised by how effectively the champion is able to weaponize his conditioning.

    He said that Du Plessis may not be a perfect fighter but he’s always making his opponents work hard to try and capitalize on his weaknesses.

    “It looks like he has some holes in his defense, he also makes you work to take advantage of those holes, you know what I mean. It’s tough work out there. Yeah, the holes are there but it’s tough work to find them and it just fatigued Israel and fatigued Israel and fatigued Israel and it slowly, slowly got to Israel to the point where he was so fatigued, Dricus was able to take advantage of it. That was probably something I didn’t anticipate happening as much as it did and I just had an expectation that Israel would be able to push through that.”

    Read also: Sean Strickland Responds To Machine Gun Kelly’s ‘Big Bro Advice’ As Rapper Wanted UFC Star To Not Talk About Him Anymore

  • Dan Hardy Reacts To UFC Erasing Francis Ngannou, Compares With Own Experience

    Dan Hardy Reacts To UFC Erasing Francis Ngannou, Compares With Own Experience

    Francis Ngannou found himself in the news without doing anything the week before the press conference for his PFL debut.

    “The Predator” may be gearing up for his long awaited MMA return where he will face Renan Ferreira on October 19 but the legacy he left behind in the UFC will never be forgotten.

    The MMA leader found themselves receiving some criticism during fight week for UFC 305, after claims that they had tried to erase Ngannou from the promotion’s history books due to his name being edited out during the Countdown episode preview.

    Though Dana White did apologise for this and put it down to a miscommunication, it certainly wasn’t the first time that the UFC have tailored things to better suit the promotion.

    Dan Hardy Says Francis Ngannou’s UFC Erasure Was Sad But Not Surprising Based On Track Record

    During a recent interview with Sportskeeda MMA, PFL commentator Dan Hardy gave his thoughts on the discourse regarding the UFC’s conduct around the career of their former heavyweight champion, who left the promotion on less than stellar terms.

    “The Outlaw” spoke about the comparisons between Ngannou’s treatment and that of Randy Couture, who also left to sign with another promotion and wasn’t remembered fondly by the UFC as a result.

    “It was sad to see and it didn’t surprise me unfortunately and I did see what Dana’s reply was about the fact that the editors had assumed that’s what he would have chosen and what he would have wanted and look, they were probably right because it’s happened so many times in history. Ngannou and Randy, they’re two fantastically credible names in the sport.”

    Hardy was also able to draw from his own experiences, even if his was on a smaller scale.

    The current Head of Fighter Operations for PFL Europe left the promotion in 2021 after some disagreements with the UFC, both publicly and privately.

    He recalled how he was seemingly wiped from the history of UK MMA during an event in London where his wife, Veronica, was in action.

    Despite being the first Brit to challenge for a UFC title when he faced Georges St-Pierre for the welterweight belt, “The Outlaw” was nowhere to be seen across the celebrations of the sport in this region.

    “My history in the UFC is far more mediocre in comparison but even so, at UFC London when Veronica was on the card, there’s posters of all the UK fighters on all of the underground tubes and everything and of course, I’m not there. It does happen, they do it a lot.

    “It makes no difference to me, I can dye my hair red and walk down the street and people will remember my fights. It’s just kind of a weird thing to see and for people like Randy and Ngannou, they need to be celebrated because they’ve inspired so many people, myself included. They shouldn’t be omitted, they’re part of the fabric of the sport and I think the fans will always remember that.”  

    Read also: PFL CEO Contradicts President’s Rejection Of Muhammad Mokaev: ‘He Could Absolutely Be The Future Face Of Flyweights Within PFL’

  • PFL Executive Says Tom Aspinall vs. Ngannou & Ferreira Winner Determines Best Heavyweight In The World

    PFL Executive Says Tom Aspinall vs. Ngannou & Ferreira Winner Determines Best Heavyweight In The World

    The heavyweight division in MMA has gone through a lot of changes over the last few years.

    From Francis Ngannou leaving the UFC and vacating his heavyweight title, to Jon Jones debuting in the weight class and becoming champion, to the ongoing situation regrading him, Stipe Miocic and interim champ Tom Aspinall.

    Ngannou is set to make his long awaited return to MMA when he debuts in the PFL on October 19 against PFL champion, Renan Ferreira.

    The fight will see the winner claim the PFL Super Fights belt but with Ngannou never losing his UFC title, he has to be in the conversation for still being the best out there and therefore, Ferreira can also enter that discussion with a win.

    Dan Hardy On Who The Best Heavyweight In The World Is

    In a recent interview with Sportskeeda MMA, PFL commentator Dan Hardy gave his thoughts on the magnitude of the fight that is billed as “Battle of the Giants”.

    The Head of Fighter Operations for PFL Europe believes that Ngannou versus Ferreira is the very highest level in the heavyweight division.

    For what it’s worth, he also weighed in on the current Jones, Miocic, and Aspinall debate, making it clear who his pick is for the best of the bunch.

    “We’re potentially going to find out who the best heavyweight is on the planet. There’s a lot of conversation on the other side around Tom Aspinall, Jon Jones, Miocic, etc. Right now for me, Tom Aspinall is head & shoulders above Jon Jones and Stipe just based on his activity.”

    With Aspinall being his pick for the best heavyweight in the UFC, Hardy said that a fight between the Brit and the winner of Ngannou vs. Ferreira may be the very pinnacle of the weight class.

    “But, then you compare Tom Aspinall to Ngannou and Ferreira and that might be the fight to determine who the best heavyweight is on the planet, the winner of the Ngannou-Ferreira fight and then Tom Aspinall. It’s exciting. As an MMA fan, I love speculating about these things, it’s very rare that we get to match a current PFL champion against the heavyweight king of the world, Francis Ngannou.”

    Read also: Glover Teixeira Gives His Verdict On Alex Pereira Weight Class Move

  • Glover Teixeira Gives His Verdict On Alex Pereira Weight Class Move

    Glover Teixeira Gives His Verdict On Alex Pereira Weight Class Move

    UFC light heavyweight champion Alex Pereira hasn’t been able to miss as of late and this wave of momentum doesn’t appear to be slowing down.

    From headlining UFC 300 to stepping in as the replacement main event for UFC 303, “Poatan” has become a leading figure in MMA but there’s potentially one more thing he can do to take his star level up another notch.

    Pereira isn’t short on challengers in the light heavyweight division but the prospect of seeing him move up to heavyweight to put his power to the test against the biggest and baddest men on the roster, would be must-see.

    It certainly seems to be on the table in the near future, which is crazy when you consider that he entered the promotion as a middleweight contender.

    First, he will be defending his title against Khalil Rountree Jr. at UFC 307 but the champion was never intending to be in MMA for a long time.

    Pereira has effortlessly made the jump to 205 pounds and his coach, who knows a thing or two about winning titles, believes he can do the same at heavyweight when the time is right.

    Glover Teixeira Says Alex Pereira Fighting At Heavyweight Would Be ‘No Problem’

    Glover Teixeira never intended to be a coach but said that being in Pereira’s corner was something that naturally happened over time.

    The former light heavyweight champion has become very close with the former GLORY kickboxer and during that time, he’s been so impressed with how great of a student Pereira is.

    Having spent so much time alongside him, Teixeira knew that moving up the weights was only a matter of time.

    In a recent interview with RG.org, he spoke about how he warned Pereira that middleweight would only last him so long and how the prospect of seeing his fighter at heavyweight is something he looks forward to, rather than worries about.

    “We talked about it since the beginning. I said to him, ‘You’re going to get bigger because of the wrestling training, and eventually you’re going to have to move up,’

    “I think I feel comfortable now with 205 [pounds], happy with the weight cuts,” Teixeira said. “But also I’ll be happy if he moves up. I think he has the potential to beat anyone at heavyweight. The guy is a beast, man. His strength is like a heavyweight, he hits like a heavyweight. So it’ll be no problem.”

    Read also: Jiří Procházka Reiterates Plan To Move Down To Middleweight Following Dricus Du Plessis’ Title Defense

  • Conor McGregor Appeals To Mick Maynard For Irish Fighter Who Didn’t Receive A Contract Despite Impressive Road To UFC Win

    Conor McGregor Appeals To Mick Maynard For Irish Fighter Who Didn’t Receive A Contract Despite Impressive Road To UFC Win

    Conor McGregor has always been a great advocate for his fellow Irish fighters when it comes to supporting them and giving them exposure, thanks to his huge following.

    “The Notorious” recently couldn’t help but show his appreciation for a UFC hopeful that somehow, despite ticking a lot of boxes, wasn’t offered a spot on the roster.

    Ireland’s Danni McCormack is the Invicta strawweight champion and was given the chance to step into a fight on the Road to UFC Series this past weekend.

    Whilst it was a tough encounter, McCormack rallied in the third round to show what she is made of before winning a unanimous decision, up at flyweight it’s worth adding.

    Her post-fight interview caught the eye of McGregor who gave his seal of approval, which means a lot coming from the man that delivered several of the most iconic moments on the mic in the sport’s history.

    “THIS IS A PROMO! In at the drop of a hat to beat and maul the much bigger girl. Finishing with a call out of the UFC’s current strawweight champion who is from the same region as her just beaten opponent. Magic! IRISH GOER WAR CRY! @danawhite announce her signing brother this is magic! @dannimccormack! FORGED ARMY!”

    Conor McGregor Continues To Push For Danni McCormack’s UFC Signing

    McCormack’s story has been closely linked with McGregor’s for her entire journey in mixed martial arts.

    She met McGregor’s coach, John Kavanagh, whilst being out in Las Vegas for UFC 189 where “The Mac” faced Chad Mendes for the interim featherweight title.

    After promising Kavanagh that she’d go on to be one of his fighters, she kept her word and trains out of SBG Dublin to this day.

    On the week after the fight, McCormack revealed that she had not been offered a contract by the UFC though she has been told to stay ready in case they come calling on short notice.

    McGregor once again stood in McCormack’s corner and pushed for her to get a contract regardless of needing to step in on short notice.

    “Mick Maynard my man what’s the craic, we have a story and a journey to witness here! Irish Warrior Woman! Tough as it gets! Let’s roll, @Mickmaynard2 @ufc“

    Read also: ‘Free From What? Rehab?’ – Fans React To Conor McGregor’s Cryptic ‘When I Get Free’ Message Amid UFC Return Uncertainty

  • Former Opponent Reveals He Perfectly Predicted ‘Randy Couture Style’ Welterweight Title Win For Belal Muhammad At UFC 304

    Former Opponent Reveals He Perfectly Predicted ‘Randy Couture Style’ Welterweight Title Win For Belal Muhammad At UFC 304

    Belal Muhammad came into UFC 304 as the underdog but he certainly didn’t look like it in the early hours of the morning in Manchester.

    The welterweight title challenger largely dominated Leon Edwards to become the champion via a unanimous decision verdict.

    After Edwards had already beaten top grapplers in Kamaru Usman and Colby Covington, many assumed that he would have no problem thwarting the heavy wrestling approach of Muhammad, but this wasn’t the case.

    Having been inside the Octagon with him for 25 minutes, a former opponent of the current champion saw this performance coming from him and successfully predicted it ahead of time.

    Gilbert Burns Reveals Correct Pre-Fight Prediction & Breakdown For UFC 304

    During a recent episode of the Believe You Me Podcast, Michael Bisping was joined by former welterweight title challenger Gilbert Burns.

    Burns is looking to bounce back from consecutive defeats next time out when he faces Sean Brady, both of whom whom were beaten by Muhammad during his undefeated run to the title.

    “Durinho” revealed during the interview that he wasn’t surprised by what went down in Manchester and had in fact, told Bisping ahead of time.

    After going through his messages, the former middleweight champion was able to find the message which correctly called that “Remember The Name” would get his hand raised on July 27 and how he would do it.

    Bisping read the message aloud having asked Burns for his prediction, only to then forget to mention it during the live broadcast.

    “Tough fight but I believe Belal’s going to make it a dog fight. I think that’s the only way for him to win and I believe he will do that. Randy Couture style dog fight. Inside dirty boxing mixed up with the wrestling.” 

    Read also: Stephen Thompson On Welterweight Star He Wants To Fight Instead Of Michael ‘Venom’ Page: ‘I Think People Would Boo That Fight’

  • Stephen Thompson On Welterweight Star He Wants To Fight Instead Of Michael ‘Venom’ Page: ‘I Think People Would Boo That Fight’

    Stephen Thompson On Welterweight Star He Wants To Fight Instead Of Michael ‘Venom’ Page: ‘I Think People Would Boo That Fight’

    At 41-years-old, Stephen Thompson knows that he is much closer to the end of his run in mixed martial arts than the start of it.

    Whilst he has been more than happy to take on the new blood at the top of the welterweight division, like his next clash against Joaquin Buckley at UFC 307, there are still some big fights for “Wonderboy” before he walks away.

    Two names stand out the most at 170-pounds due to their striking pedigree which would allow Thompson to do what he does best, rather than spending his final fights defending takedowns.

    Ian Garry met Michael “Venom” Page at UFC 303 where the undefeated Irishman continued his ascent up the rankings by relying on his takedowns to get the win.

    Both opponents are fights that many would like to see Thompson step into but he only agrees with one of the two options.

    Stephen Thompson Explains Why He’s Open To Fighting Ian Garry But Not Michael ‘Venom’ Page

    During a recent interview with Michael Bisping on the Believe You Me Podcast, Thompson gave his thoughts on facing Garry and Page before he hangs up the gloves.

    Garry, who is ranked higher than “Wonderboy” at #7, is a fight that he’s certainly up for but he can understand why the Irishman may not be so keen on it given his undefeated run.

    “I think it would be great, especially Ian Garry but at this point in time, I kind of see where he’s at like he’s just looking for the gold. I don’t think he would even want to give me a chance. I’m ranked #9, he’s close to the title, I think he’s looking for that next.”

    From the moment that “MVP” signed to the UFC, seeing Page and Thompson square off was a potential match-up that got fans excited because they’re both such specialist strikers.

    However, both men took an early stance that the fight probably wouldn’t deliver because they’re too similar to one another, which would create a stand-off.

    “And MVP, I think it would be, I think the fans would love that fight but…”

    After Bisping jokes that it would be nothing but both men keeping their hands down and circling one another, Thompson expanded on why he isn’t that interested in that fight even if it appears to be something that the fans want to see.

    “That’s the thing, I think it would just be that. Just moving around and staring at each other the whole time. We’re both counter strikers, you know, we got that karate background, we want guys to come forward so they run into our techniques, so we can work our angles, so we can blitz but when you have another counter striker on the other side of the Octagon with you, it could possibly be one of the most boring fights ever and I think people would boo it. I think people would boo that fight, I really do man.”

    Thompson also made reference to Garry’s fight against Page where he looked to press the action rather than counterstriking with “MVP”.

    He gave this as his reasoning for why the Garry match-up wouldn’t have the same outcome as the one against Page.

    Read also: Kamaru Usman Compares Career To Israel Adesanya & Alexander Volkanovski Ahead Of Rumored Return Against Belal Muhammad: ‘How Disrespectful Are MMA Fans’

  • PFL Star Touted For Ronda Rousey-esque Growth: ‘She Knows Exactly When To Switch Off The Savage & Become The Sweetheart…’

    PFL Star Touted For Ronda Rousey-esque Growth: ‘She Knows Exactly When To Switch Off The Savage & Become The Sweetheart…’

    Ronda Rousey will always be a massive part of the history of MMA and whilst she was a pioneer in many ways, no female fighter has been able to reach that same level of star power.

    There have been many athletes that come along with elements of star potential but the PFL’s Dakota Ditcheva appears to have everything.

    It was clear that she had a special quality about her when talking to the media but of course, none of that matters if you can’t back it up in the cage.

    Despite detractors regarding her quality of opponents, Ditcheva has beaten everyone that the PFL has put in front of her to go from winning the PFL Europe tournament last year to advancing to the finals of the regular season this year, where she will take on former UFC title challenger Taila Santos in a must-see bout.

    Sean O’Connell Says Dakota Ditcheva Has Everything She Needs To Be A Huge Star

    Ditcheva appeared on stage moments before the press conference for Francis Ngannou’s PFL debut, where she was joined by Jake Paul who compared her to Rousey.

    PFL commentator Sean O’Connell believes that whilst she might be doing it in a different way, he can understand the comparisons between the former face of women’s MMA and one of the most exciting contenders around right now.

    He spoke in an interview with TalkSPORT about how Ditcheva has the world at her feet because she ticks every box to become a huge star.

    “She has the potential to be a superstar but not for the same reasons as Ronda Rousey. Ronda was the pioneer, Ronda was the one that broke the barrier and got women into the UFC and unfortunately, that’s a milestone that can never be reached again even for someone with the star caliber of Dakota Ditcheva. You could make the argument that it’s going to be harder for Dakota to reach those heights of celebrity but she absolutely is capable of it.

    “First of all, because of how incredible she is as a fighter but also she understands the media game, right. She knows exactly when to switch off that savage and become the sweetheart again. She’s got the look, she’s got the charisma and when you have that plus the ability to knock women out like she does, the sky is the limit.”

    Read also: 2024 PFL 9 Playoffs: Brendan Loughnane vs. Kai Kamaka III Results & Highlights (7 PM ET)

  • St-Pierre’s Coach Feels Du Plessis Breaking ‘Old School’ BJJ Principles Led To UFC 305 Win

    St-Pierre’s Coach Feels Du Plessis Breaking ‘Old School’ BJJ Principles Led To UFC 305 Win

    Dricus Du Plessis retained the middleweight title at UFC 305 by submitting Israel Adesanya in the fourth round.

    Considering the styles of both fighters, it’s not necessarily surprising to see the champion get the victory in this fashion but the result doesn’t tell the full story.

    “Stillknocks” was able to get the tap by hurting Adesanya on the feet, jumping on his back and quickly locking in the choke which his opponent admitted was caused by a simple mistake that he made in defending it.

    Du Plessis has always been a very effective finisher with 20 of his 22 pro wins ending inside the distance but what impressed one of the top minds in the sport was how he circumnavigates a basic rule of Jiu-Jitsu to threaten with submissions.

    Firas Zahabi Breaks Down How Dricus Du Plessis Ignores Jiu-Jitsu Fundamentals When Finishing Fights

    Firas Zahabi gave his thoughts on the main event during a recent YouTube video on the Tristar Gym channel where he pointed out an interesting element of Du Plessis’ game which may have been overlooked.

    The head coach of Georges St-Pierre referenced how one of the first things you’re taught in Jiu-Jitsu is that you go position over submission.

    Especially in MMA where strikes are involved, going for an attack and losing your position as a result can be incredibly costly, but the middleweight champion ignores this altogether.

    Rather than looking to control Adesanya first, he went right for the choke which caught his opponent off guard and gave him insufficient time to regain his bearings.

    Zahabi highlighted this after seeing the South African champ pull off his first title defense.

    “He choked him and I realized something about Du Plessis. When Du Plessis gets somebody down, he jumps immediately on the choke, he doesn’t solidify position you know and in Jiu-Jitsu, we’re always taught, the old school mentality was like position, position, position, and then submission. It was like always burnt into our minds. You take the guy down, you stabilize him, you stabilize him, you stabilize him and then you submit him. Well Du Plessis doesn’t do that, he flies in the face of everything everybody ever told us.”

    Read also: Jared Cannonier Dismisses Caio Borralho’s Grappling Superiority Ahead Of UFC Fight Night Main Event: ‘I Fought Glover Teixeira!’

  • Sean O’Malley Feels Defeating Coach Khabib Nurmagomedov Would Be All-Time Career Highlight: ‘It Would Be Hard To Top That…’

    Sean O’Malley Feels Defeating Coach Khabib Nurmagomedov Would Be All-Time Career Highlight: ‘It Would Be Hard To Top That…’

    Should Sean O’Malley successfully defend his bantamweight title against Merab Dvalishvili at UFC 306, another big fight awaits the champion.

    Umar Nurmagomedov will look to become the second fighter in his family to win UFC gold following his win over Cory Sandhagen.

    Alongside the fact that it’s a great clash of styles, this fight is huge because of Umar’s family bond with the great Khabib Nurmagomedov.

    The former UFC lightweight champion is sure to be in his corner for that fight and that’s something that adds extra incentive for “Suga”.

    Getting the chance to test himself against one of the best minds in the sport makes this one even more significant for his legacy.

    Sean O’Malley Says Even Two-Weight Success Would Struggle To Top Going Up Against Umar & Khabib Nurmagomedov

    Having Khabib in the mix with his cousin is going to make the fight feel bigger and that suits O’Malley well if it does end up happening.

    Since retiring from MMA with his undefeated record intact, “The Eagle” has earned a phenomenal reputation as a coach and cornerman.

    In many ways, he stepped into the role that was left behind after his father, Abdulmanap, passed away.

    O’Malley spoke in a recent interview with Red Corner MMA about how getting the chance to go up against this Nurmagomedov family team would be a career-high moment for him.

    “I never really thought about it but just kind of off the top of my head right now if I think about it, that would be cool. Khabib’s a legend, 29-0 and very disciplined, serious guy which would make it even more fun.

    “It’d be hard to top that, like I guess beating Ilia or Max after that, like there’s guys you could top that with but it’d be hard to get too excited for. I don’t know, I’m thinking out loud right now. It would be cool.”

    Read also: Sean O’Malley ‘Annoyed-ish’ At Noche UFC Fight Promotion After Getting Nod To Headline Over Holloway vs. Topuria, Conor McGregor

  • Dan Hardy Highlights Difficulty For Francis Ngannou In Renan Ferreira Fight: ‘I Might Wrestle But Then I’ve Got Five Rounds…’

    Dan Hardy Highlights Difficulty For Francis Ngannou In Renan Ferreira Fight: ‘I Might Wrestle But Then I’ve Got Five Rounds…’

    Francis Ngannou is set to make his return to MMA on October 19 where his PFL debut comes with some big unknowns.

    Earlier this year, in his second venture into pro boxing, he was stopped for the first time in his career by Anthony Joshua.

    It was a devastating finish after being dropped several times in the early stages of the fight and we don’t know how Ngannou will bounce back from such a tough loss.

    In Renan Ferreira, he meets a fellow super-athlete who has proven his ability to connect with massive power at an unmatched range.

    We have seen Ngannou use his grappling to secure the win when he defeated fellow-striker Ciryl Gane but will this be the same version that we see in Riyadh later this year?

    Dan Hardy Breaks Down What Version Of Francis Ngannou We Will See On His Return

    If there’s one area that is a weakness on Ferreira’s side, it’s his wrestling ability which has been an issue for him during his PFL career.

    PFL commentator and analyst Dan Hardy isn’t convinced that even with this in mind, we will see Ngannou lace up his wrestling shoes because it’s not his usual game.

    He spoke in an interview with talkSPORT shortly after the first meeting between Ngannou and Ferreira about how coming in with a grappling approach may not be the best idea for “The Predator”.

    “It certainly could, especially the psychology around it right. Especially that first round where I mean, it’s not like he’s stepping back in against another heavyweight, like this guy is a legit phenom. He’s a freak, he’s tall, he’s fast, he can do backflips off of one leg, it’s ridiculous. So then you’ve got to think, if I’m Francis Ngannou and I’m standing across from this guy, I’m thinking to myself, ‘Well, I might wrestle but then I’ve got five rounds. If I start to slow down over five rounds, this guy could beat me up with a jab from a distance.’

    “So for me, the confident but reckless Ngannou is the real danger on the feet in this one and we might see him go back to his wrestling again but ultimately, I think that the work that Ferreira has done at ATT [American top Team] has really shored up his wrestling and his grappling so even that’s not a foregone conclusion. I think we’re going to get a striking extravaganza and really, honestly, it’s the first one to land clean.”

    Read also: 2024 PFL 9 Playoffs: Brendan Loughnane vs. Kai Kamaka III Results & Highlights (7 PM ET)

  • ‘Cain Looks Like He Was Holding Back Tears’ – MMA Fans React To Khabib Nurmagomedov Reminiscing With Cain Velasquez

    ‘Cain Looks Like He Was Holding Back Tears’ – MMA Fans React To Khabib Nurmagomedov Reminiscing With Cain Velasquez

    In a recent video posted on Instagram by AKA head coach Javier Mendez, two of the gym’s greatest fighters shared a touching moment.

    Khabib Nurmagomedov may have defined this stable for many years but before him, there was heavyweight champion Cain Velasquez flying the AKA flag alongside Luke Rockhold and Daniel Cormier.

    Velasquez competed in one of the biggest fights in the history of the gym when he faced Brock Lesnar at UFC 121 and brought the heavyweight title back with him.

    In the video, Nurmagomedov is watching the fight on his phone whilst stood next to his former teammate, speaking about the impact this fight had on him, recalling how he watched it hundreds of times.

    It’s a warm exchange as “The Eagle” gives deserved props to one of the heavyweight division’s greatest fighters.

    MMA Fans React To Khabib Nurmagomedov Taking A Second To Recognise Cain Velasquez

    The fans reacted on social media to Nurmagomedov celebrating one of the biggest nights in the history of AKA.

    Velasquez will always be a legend of the sport but what he did that night against Lesnar put him into a whole new level of recognition and in turn, this brought a lot of credibility to AKA, where Nurmagomedov would go on to spend his years.

    “Cain look like he was holding back tears”

    “Feels so good to watch khabib fanboying”

    “My goat knows how to respect your elders esp when they’re going through tuff times”

    “Khabib has respect for him, he was a champion before Khabib was and treated him like family and He still remembers that”

    “Team AKA produced the best UFC champions out of every camp in the USA.”

    https://twitter.com/KhabibsRightEar/status/1826789276933091668

    “Guys like Khabib are the best kind of people to have in your corner”

    “Perfect time to go rewatch that fight.”

    Read also: Battle Of The Giants: Francis Ngannou vs. Renan Ferreira Press Conference Highlights & Faceoff

  • Sean Strickland’s Coach Points Out Weakness In Dricus Du Plessis Ahead Of Potential Rematch: ‘If The Wrestling Does Happen…’

    Sean Strickland’s Coach Points Out Weakness In Dricus Du Plessis Ahead Of Potential Rematch: ‘If The Wrestling Does Happen…’

    Sean Strickland’s coach Eric Nicksick has already spoken about how a rematch with Dricus Du Plessis won’t need big changes from them.

    Their first encounter at UFC 297 where Du Plessis came away with a split decision to become the middleweight champion, was a closely contested affair over five rounds.

    Making small adjustments before running it back will be key because, as we saw in the first fight, there isn’t much to separate these two.

    The fight was predominantly a striking exchange between them but the occasional takedown attempts from Du Plessis opened up some moments that they could capitalize on in the rematch, in Nicksick’s opinion.

    Eric Nicksick Says Sean Strickland Can Use Transitional Grappling Against Dricus Du Plessis

    Nicksick knows better than to expect his fighter to go out there in a title fight and start shooting for takedowns.

    Strickland’s style is very set in its ways and we saw that when he faced elite strikers in Alex Pereira and Israel Adesanya, and didn’t once try to take the fight to the ground.

    Where Nicksick feels they can have success after watching the first fight play out is in the transitions after Du Plessis attempts takedowns.

    The Xtreme Couture head coach was able to take lessons from UFC 297 and the time he cornered Brad Tavares against “Stillknocks”, to find this one area.

    “The one thing I will bring up that I feel like Sean doesn’t give himself enough credit for – so when Dricus took Sean down, there was some transitional grappling, things that I want to see Sean implement a little bit more. Sean never was really held down, we were never like taken down and laid on our back but there, Sean’s really good at hitting the switch and Sean’s really good at counterbalancing and taking the back to where I think Sean could implement a little ground and pound and top pressure himself.

    “Anecdotally looking back at what Brad did, when Brad fought Dricus, Brad got on top and Brad rode Dricus all the first round so I think Dricus is a very good topside grappler, I don’t think he’s that great off his back so I’m not saying we need to go and initiate the wrestling but if the wrestling does happen, I think Sean can reverse those positions and get on top and create some havoc up there.”

    Read also: Jared Cannonier Dismisses Caio Borralho’s Grappling Superiority Ahead Of UFC Fight Night Main Event: ‘I Fought Glover Teixeira!’

  • Jared Cannonier Dismisses Caio Borralho’s Grappling Superiority Ahead Of UFC Fight Night Main Event: ‘I Fought Glover Teixeira!’

    Jared Cannonier Dismisses Caio Borralho’s Grappling Superiority Ahead Of UFC Fight Night Main Event: ‘I Fought Glover Teixeira!’

    Jared Cannonier looks to return to the win column this weekend by turning back a UFC middleweight contender on the rise.

    Caio Borralho has won six in a row to find himself in this position, but in Cannonier, he faces by far his toughest test to date.

    Despite what fans saw from him last time out at UFC 301, where he stopped Paul Craig in devastating fashion, the Brazilian is better known for his grappling skills.

    Given the high-level opposition that he has faced during his time competing at both middleweight and several other weight classes in the UFC, this isn’t something that is going to faze “The Killa Gorilla.”

    Jared Cannonier Doesn’t Understand Why People Underestimate His Grappling

    In a recent interview with MMA Junkie ahead of this weekend’s middleweight main event, Cannonier was asked whether, in his mind, this fight boils down to if he can stop Borralho from having success with his takedowns.

    The 185-pound stalwart doesn’t have this point of view and isn’t afraid to let his opponent test his grappling if that’s the way things end up going. He believes that his ground game is slept on by the rest of the division, potentially because you very rarely see opponents try to take him down.

    “If he ends up on the bottom, it’s not going to be too good for him down there either, so I got all the confidence in my ground game,” Cannonier said. “I don’t know why people think my ground game isn’t good. I haven’t been submitted in the UFC, I haven’t been submitted in my career.

    “When I was green, I fought Glover Teixeira. I spent a lot of time underneath him and didn’t get tapped, and I was green as far as my grappling goes back then,” Cannonier continued. “I’m much better now. I’m attacking you guys. If you guys think you want to take me down, you’re more than welcome to try.”

    Cannonier believes Borralho and the rest of the middleweight division could be in for a shock if the ground is where they think his weakness is.

  • Chael Sonnen Tells Fans To Hold Their Horses On Seeing Magomed Ankalaev As Top Light Heavyweight Contender: ‘Rakić Is That Damn Good!’

    Chael Sonnen Tells Fans To Hold Their Horses On Seeing Magomed Ankalaev As Top Light Heavyweight Contender: ‘Rakić Is That Damn Good!’

    The UFC’s light heavyweight division has been unpredictable as of late after two big matchups were put together that left some questions.

    Magomed Ankalaev has been pushing to face champion Alex Pereira for a long time now, but in order to get his second shot at the title, he will need to get past Aleksandar Rakić at UFC 308.

    Meanwhile, Khalil Rountree will leapfrog both him and the majority of the top 10 to face “Poatan” at UFC 307 in an exciting clash of styles that plenty have suggested is premature.

    Many will be expecting Ankalaev to come through yet another light heavyweight contender and continue to call for his shot, but Chael Sonnen believes some may be getting carried away…

    Sonnen Warns Fans Not To Underestimate Rakić’s Chances Against Ankalaev

    During a recent YouTube video, Sonnen spoke about what appears to be a number one contenders’ clash at 205 pounds that is set for October 26.

    Not only were fans surprised to see Ankalaev not securing his date with the champion, many were puzzled by the decision to book him against Rakić. Whilst he is a top five contender in the division, he’s coming off of a loss in another title eliminator when he was stopped by Jiří Procházka at UFC 300.

    Sonnen stated that although this could be the final hurdle for Ankalaev to overcome, it can’t be overlooked how big of an opportunity this is for his opponent.

    “Ankalaev, clearly the number one contender, at least according to you guys. And you know what? I do have a little bit of a problem with that. I’s not a huge problem but I do have just a little one,” Sonnen said. “Which is Rakić is that damn good. You got to understand, Rakić did not get a world title fight — well neither did Ankalaev, but Rakić did find himself in the next best thing.

    “He’s in a number one contenders’ match. That is quite literally the next best thing that you could get to a title fight and he found himself there coming off of a loss. As a matter of fact, he found himself there coming off of a stoppage loss. As a matter of fact, finding himself in this spot actually moves him in front of the guy that he suffered the loss to in Procházka,” Sonnen continued. “I’m only telling you this because that’s how good Rakić is and a lot of people have forgot.”

  • Recently Retired UFC Vet Suggests Israel Adesanya’s Time May Be Up After UFC 305: ‘Maybe 5 Years Ago That Was An Easy Fight For Him’

    Recently Retired UFC Vet Suggests Israel Adesanya’s Time May Be Up After UFC 305: ‘Maybe 5 Years Ago That Was An Easy Fight For Him’

    Israel Adesanya was unable to recapture the UFC middleweight title at UFC 305, meaning that for the first time in his MMA career, he’s coming off of back-to-back losses.

    “The Last Stylebender” made it clear in his post-fight interview that he’s not leaving the Octagon for good just yet despite his defeat to Dricus Du Plessis in Perth, Australia.

    In fact, even though he did show some weaknesses, there were a lot of positives to take away from his main event display. Up until he was hurt by a big looping shot, it appeared that he was on his way to swinging the contest his way in the fourth round.

    The big question to answer after he put in a good performance but was ultimately defeated is whether Du Plessis was simply the better man on the night, or is Adesanya not as good as he once was?

    Matt Brown Questions Whether Israel Adesanya Is On A Clear Decline

    There were certainly shades of the Adesanya that blew everyone away with his rise up the middleweight ladder and subsequent title reign.

    His accuracy and shot selection was a work of art but his defense did appear to suffer, and he took some big shots from “Stillknocks.” That eventually led to a mistake on the ground which cost him the fight.

    During the latest episode of Fighter vs. Writer on MMA Fighting, UFC veteran Matt Brown weighed in with his thoughts on this past weekend’s title clash.

    Like many, he liked what he saw from the former champion but he did address some concerns over whether at 35, things aren’t getting any easier for “The Last Stylebender.”

    “I’ve had the question, Izzy is 35, he’s got a lot of miles on him from kickboxing and MMA, is his peak just ending? Is that what happened over the weekend? Is his peak just ending? When he fought [Sean] Strickland, maybe he just had an off night, but maybe he’s slowing down too. Maybe five years ago that was an easy fight for him, and he’s just not in peak form anymore.

    “The way he looked against Dricus, I thought he looked really good, but that could have been him still slowing down a little bit. I thought his defense didn’t look as good as it had in the past, which was kind of the unique thing because he relies so much on reactions. He’s not necessarily a hands tight, high guard, really defensive guy in that sense, really technical. He kind of relies on reactions. When those start slowing down, that’s when guys like Dricus start hitting you. That’s when guys like Strickland start hitting you a lot more. If he’s slowing down a little bit, maybe his time is up?”

    It remains to be seen what lies ahead in the career of Adesanya. In terms of the title picture, it would appear a clash of his former opponents is to come, with Du Plessis expected to run it back with former champ Sean Strickland.

  • Paddy Pimblett On Dan Hooker’s Upset Win Over Mateusz Gamrot At UFC 305: ‘Could Be A Nice Fight For Me…’

    Paddy Pimblett On Dan Hooker’s Upset Win Over Mateusz Gamrot At UFC 305: ‘Could Be A Nice Fight For Me…’

    One of the clear highlights of the UFC 305 pay-per-view this past weekend was the lightweight contest between Mateusz Gamrot and Dan Hooker.

    Given Gamrot’s position in the division and recent wins, many expected him to get this victory to take one more step closer to a title shot. However, “The Hangman” had other plans.

    He managed to win a split decision and a top five ranking spot following a great clash between them, which sent the Perth crowd crazy after witnessing the Fight of the Night bonus winner.

    One fellow lightweight contender who had his eye on this clash was Paddy Pimblett. “The Baddy” recently entered the top 15 at 155 pounds with a submission win over King Green at UFC 304.

    He gave his live reaction to the fight on his YouTube channel, where before the first bell sounded, he teed up the idea of meeting either man down the line.

    “I could end up fighting one of these couldn’t I?”

    Paddy Pimblett Agreed With Decision, Tees Up Dan Hooker Encounter In The Future

    Like many, Pimblett agreed that Gamrot was the favorite going in. He did, however, make a point of stating that Hooker shouldn’t have been such a big underdog due to the caliber of opponents he has faced.

    “The Baddy” wasn’t surprised to see “Gamer” get takedowns, but over the course of the fight, he watched as “The Hangman” kept pouring on the pressure with his forward momentum.

    The fight was a close one, which the scorecards and Pimblett’s reaction seconded. But the former Cage Warriors champion did agree that Hooker did enough to get his hand raised.

    While there may be 10 ranking spots between them, “The Baddy” would be open to testing himself against the fan favorite in the future.

    “Fight of the night so far of what I’ve watched. Let’s see the decision anyway. I reckon Hooker, lad, to be honest. 29-28 Gamrot. 29-28 Hooker, upset, Dan Hooker back in the top five,” Pimblett said. “Could be a nice fight for me in the future.”