MMA News

Author: Robert Gullo

  • Gillespie Has Reached Peak Frustration With Ferguson, UFC Booking

    After an impressive victory over Carlos Diego Ferreira last May, Gregor, “The Gift” Gillespie is still without a fight booked to start 2022.

    After Gillespie’s victory over Ferreira, he was offered fights, but none of them interested him due to his hopes of climbing the ladder to a title shot. The 35-year-old wanted a fight with Ferguson because he said everyone else in the division at the time was already booked.

    In an interview with MMAJunkie, Gillespie addressed his frustration regarding this fight not coming together and him remaining without an opponent.

    “Yeah, super frustrating. I’ve been radio silent for the last five or six years. I don’t call people out. I’ve been pretty adamant about not doing that,” said Gillespie.

    Gillespie also addressed his frustration via a video posted to his Instagram a few days ago about how Tony Ferguson turned down a fight with him. Gillespie had previously challenged Ferguson on December 14th with a friendly call-out on his Instagram page. Yet, Ferguson never responded.

    Gillespie is especially frustrated about Ferguson eying a fight against Michael Chandler instead of him.

    “He doesn’t want the fight and then I see him calling out Chandler and that really pissed me off,” Gillespie said. “Like you know, the ‘wrestler-wrestling season.’ Come on, give me a break. Chandler’s a great wrestler, but he doesn’t wrestle in his fights. In my last fight, I wrestled more than Mike Chandler has done in his last 10 fights.”

    Gillespie has a valid opinion when it comes to wrestling, as he’s a former D-1 NCAA champion. Gillespie even defeated Michael Chandler in the 2009 NCAA Championship wrestling tournament.

    “I’m the wrestler in that division. I did beat Mike Chandler. Not a lot of people know that it wasn’t a really close match,” Gillespie said, regarding his MD 10-2 victory over Chandler.

    Who do you think Gregor Gillespie should fight next?

  • Ngannou: Israel Adesanya Is A Better Version Of Ciryl Gane

    Undisputed UFC Heavyweight Champion Francis Ngannou and interim champ Ciryl Gane are continuing to talk about each other’s fighting style leading up to their main event.

    The two seem to have mutual respect for one another, as they’ve each given the other praise. Gane stated Ngannou is the “most powerful and athletic human” he’s ever seen. Ngannou returned the compliment and admired Gane for possessing the best kickboxing style in MMA.

    Thursday on his YouTube channel, Ngannou was asked about middleweight champion Israel Adesanya’s fighting style, to which Ngannou responded by taking a jab at Gane. Ngannou compared the two’s similar kickboxing styles and stated that Adesanya is a better version of Gane.

    “He’s (Adesanya) a great guy, the best striker in the game, definitely,” said Ngannou. “Because when you look at his style, he just does everything that Ciryl does but in a better way.”

    Ngannou stated that he even tried to get Adesanya to come help train with him in preparations of facing a kick-boxing-styled heavyweight in Gane. Ngannou claims that the reason he couldn’t get “The Last Stylebender” over was due to the strict travel restrictions where Adesanya resides in New Zealand.

    “By the way, I (tried) to get him for this training camp, but travel restrictions with New Zealand wasn’t really helpful for us,” said Ngannou “But he would have loved to come here and help me for the striking part of the game, the footwork and everything.”

    Gane and Adesanya are some of the highest-leveled kickboxers in the UFC, with names like Stephen Thompson, Joanna Jędrzejczyk, Valentina Schevchenko, and many others being up there with them.

    Ngannou and Gane are just a few weeks away from finally fighting for the heavyweight championship, which will be held on January 22nd. Ngannou (16-3) will be looking to make his first title defense since securing UFC gold when he KO’d Stipe Miocic at UFC 260. As for Gane, he will be looking to take the word “interim” off of his current title and become the undisputed heavyweight king with a win over Ngannou.

    Who do you think has the better kickboxing style between Ciryl Gane and Israel Adesanya?

  • O’Malley Understands Why Fighters Who Don’t Draw Aren’t Paid Well

    Sean O’Malley understands why some fighters aren’t getting the money they’d like.

    The UFC’s fighter pay has been a hot topic for quite some time. Recently, it’s gained more traction since Jake Paul has called out UFC President Dana White multiple times about how he and the company underpay their fighters.

    While each fighter has their own opinion, it seems as though many fighters stand by Paul’s opinions in thinking that they are underpaid. Some fighters get paid as little as $10,000 to $30,000 while a select few make around or a little north of $500,000 per fight.

    #12-ranked bantamweight Sean O’Malley addressed the topic yesterday on his YouTube channel during his most recent episode of TimboSugarShow. O’Malley seems to support White based on the numbers.

    “Dude, like I don’t even blame Dana. It’s like some of these f*cking people have zero following. They’re not making the UFC one hundred thousand. I mean, they’re not making the UFC fifty thousand. They’re not making the UFC any money really. But that’s from a business perspective, from Dana’s business perspective, I can see that,” said O’Malley.

    Jake Paul, on the other hand, thinks fighters are underpaid, they don’t receive the right medical attention, and that the fighter’s minimum should be increased. Paul made a proposal to Dana White that he’d retire from the sport of boxing if was granted permission from the UFC to box Jorge Masvidal. In the proposal, White would pay his fighters $50,000 minimum per fight, 50% revenue for the first five years, and long-term healthcare.

    At the end of the day, the UFC is a business and operates as such. They would probably agree with O’Malley’s take in regards to how the majority of the fighters don’t generate that much revenue for the company.

    Do you think fighters are currently underpaid in the UFC?

  • Derrick Lewis Vs. Tai Tuivasa Booked For UFC 271 In Houston

    Heavyweights bangers Derrick Lewis and Tai Tuivasa have a fight in the works for UFC 271.

    For Tuivasa, he gets his wish; and for Lewis, he gets a chance at redemption The news was reported early Friday afternoon by MMAJunkie’s Farah Hannoun. This event will be headlined by Israel Adesanya vs. Robert Whittaker 2 for the middleweight championship.

    Lewis (26-8-1) is currently the #3-ranked heavyweight and is looking to build off of his most recent win against Chris Daukaus last month, where he KO’d Daukaus in just over three and a half minutes at UFC Vegas 45. Tuivasa (13-3), the #11-ranked heavyweight, is riding a four-fight win streak that includes three first-round knockouts.

    As much potential this fight has to produce fireworks, it’s more than just that. For Lewis, he gets a chance to show out and put on the performance that his hometown Houston fans deserve. Lewis was disappointed the last time he fought in Houston, where he lost to Ciryl Gane at UFC 265 in an interim heavyweight title fight.

    And “Bam Bam” gets what he wished for. Tuivasa recently stated in an interview with Ariel Helwani on The MMA Hour that he’d like a potential fight with Derrick Lewis.

    “I’d love to step in the cage with him one day. I think he’s a bit up from me at the moment, especially coming off his last win,” said Tuivasa. “But definitely, I would love to fight Derrick Lewis. We both have good personalities, we are the fun of the division,”

    Who do you have winning between Derrick Lewis and Tai Tuivasa at UFC 271?

  • Rose Namajunas Says She Needed To Lose To Carla Esparza In 2014

    Strawweight champion Rose Namajunas recently reflected on her loss to former champion Carla Esparza in an interview with UFC’s “Run It Back” series on Youtube.

    In 2014, Namajunas and Esparaza made it to the final round of the TUF 20 finale, where they held the inaugural strawweight championship. There, Esparza became the first strawweight champion in the company’s history, submitting Namajunas in the third round via rear-naked choke.

    This was just the 22-year-old’s second loss in her fourth professional fight, but with it being on the biggest stage, she has learned a lot from the loss and reflected on it again recently.

    “Man, I just had to stop being an a**hole. No I mean, not that, but just like be, have self-awareness you know what I mean like, I was just kinda floating through life and just no direction with anything. I needed a piece of the humble pie, ya know,” said Namajunas.

    Since her title loss to Esparza in 2014, Namajunas went on to win six of her next seven fights, while capturing the strawweight title in 2017 as she TKO’d Joanna Jędrzejczyk in dramatic fashion at UFC 217. Her first title defense would be another rematch victory over Jędrzejczyk via unanimous decision at UFC 223.

    Namajunas would taste defeat for the first time nearly three years later from her last loss as she was slammed unconscious by former champion, Jéssica Andrade. Again, Rose was victorious in their rematch over a year later at UFC 251.

    The Zhang Weili Chapter

    Rose Namajunas Zhang Weili
    Photo via Instagram @espnmma

    Zhang Weili secured the strawweight title as she made quick work of Andrade for what would have been Andrade’s first and only title defense as she TKO’d Andrade in under a minute in her home country of China. Weili’s first title defense would be a fight against Namajunas.

    Namajunas showed improvements in her game again and rose to the occasion, as she TKO’d Weili in the first round at UFC 261, securing the title for her second time. Namajunas would then defeat Zhang again at UFC 268 and is a perfect 3-0 in rematches.

    The next rematch for Namajunas is the one with Esparza, which is what Namajunas and the UFC are eyeing as they are working on making that fight official. Esparza is currently on a five-fight win streak and boasts an impressive 18-6 record. And she, too, would of course love to secure UFC gold again.

    Who do you think will win the rematch between Rose Namajunas and Carla Esparza?

  • Ciryl Gane: Ngannou Is Most Powerful & Athletic Person I’ve Ever Seen

    Ciryl Gane has high praise for future opponent Francis Ngannou.

    At UFC 270, former sparring partners Gane and Ngannou will face in a heavyweight championship unification bout. In an interview with La Suer Clips (French MMA News Outlet) posted on Youtube Monday, Ciryl Gane labeled Francis Ngannou as the most athletic and powerful person he has ever seen.

    “Till today, I’ve never seen anyone as powerful, as athletic, with such knockout power, I’ve never seen it. In terms of strength, he might be the most impressive guy in UFC’s history,” said Gane.

    Gane’s assessment of Ngannou’s power is not an overstatement. Gane is very familiar with Nganou’s power as the two used to be training and sparring partners at MMA Factory in France before Ngannou had a fallout with the management and moved to the States. Ngannou currently trains at Xtreme Couture in Las Vegas.

    In 2017, Ngannou visited the UFC Performance Institute, where he set the world record for the hardest punch ever. Ngannou recorded a punch of 129,161 units, breaking Tyrone Spong’s previous record. His speed power was measured at 51,064-foot pounds/per second, which is equivalent to the horsepower of a small car.

    https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=LC_t7h1JTls&feature=emb_title
    Video of Ngannou’s record-setting punch

    Ngannou has scored 12 knockout victories of his 16, with eight of them coming in the first round. Gane, on the other hand, doesn’t pack the punch as powerful as Ngannou, only having four career wins by knockout with just one in the first round. Cautious of Ngannou’s power, Gane knows that he has to play it safe and strategic when the two lock horns in the Octagon.

    “You know, we’re coming into this fight with our own strengths. We’re not here to try and counter his strengths. We don’t want to try and be stronger than him,” said Gane. “I’m not gonna try to become stronger than him in three months, it wouldn’t make sense.”

    Do you think there is a person in MMA more powerful than Francis Ngannou?

  • Francis Ngannou Makes His Pick For Best Striker In MMA

    UFC Heavyweight champion Francis Ngannou packs a heavy punch and knows a thing or two about striking.

    In a Youtube video posted to his channel last Thursday, Ngannou came out and labeled potential foe Jon Jones as the best striker in MMA. Ngannou also talked about his most challenging fight, which was his first fight against Stipe Miocic; who the #1 trash talker in the sport is; the state of boxing; and who he thinks is the best striker in the sport. You can hear his explanation behind his best striker pick below.

    “If I’m about to say the best striker for MMA striking it would still be Jon Jones,” said Ngannou. “For MMA striking, I would give it to Jon Jones. Because, like, with his elbow and all of that stuff he does.. the oblique kick, all those stuff. For MMA, it’s the perfect striking.”

    https://www.instagram.com/p/CWO_uKev9ru/
    Jon Jones training via his Instagram

    Ngannou and Jones have had a little history with one another. The two were in talks of fighting in a blockbuster mega-fight before it got shut down due to failed contract negotiations between Jones and the UFC.

    Ngannou also said that Gane, who he will be fighting on January 22nd is the best kickboxer in MMA.

    “But if we go kickboxing style, then I think it will be Gane,” Ngannou said.

    Ngannou and interim heavyweight champion Gane used to be former teammates and sparring partners. When the two step foot in the Octagon in a few weeks, the undisputed heavyweight champion will be crowned. This will be the first title fight of 2022 and Ngannou’s first title defense since becoming the champion last March when he KO’d Stipe Miocic.

    You can hear Ngannou’s thoughts on the other range of topics he covered in the video below.

    Who do you think is the best striker in the UFC?

  • Johnny Walker vs. Jamahal Hill Set To Fight Feb. 19

    Light heavyweights Johnny Walker and Jamahal Hill are set to clash on Feb. 19 at UFC Fight Night 202 in Las Vegas. 

    MMAFighting.com broke the news today that the two would be added to the February fight night, which will be the fifth event of the 2022 year.

    Walker, the 10th ranked light heavyweight, only fought once last year in a bout where he lost to former title challenger Thiago Santos via unanimous decision. Walker will be looking to get in the victory column for the first time in over a year. His last victory came on September 19, 2020, against Ryan Spann by KO.

    It was also reported that Walker has signed a new six-fight contract with the UFC. 

    As for Hill, the #12-ranked light heavyweight, he will be looking to pick up his second win in a three-month span as he was victorious in his last fight against Jimmy Crute, who he knocked out in less than a minute at UFC on ESPN: Font vs. Aldo. Prior to his last victory, Hill tasted defeat for the first time in his career as he was submitted by Paul Craig.  

    A victory for either fighter should put them a step closer to a title shot, and this fight has the potential to be a fight of the night candidate. 

    Who do you think will win between Johnny Walker and Jamahal Hill?

  • Derrick Lewis Reveals Favorite KO After Record-Breaking Performance

    Derrick Lewis now holds the record for the ‘most knockouts in UFC history’ following his first-round KO victory over Chris Daukaus last weekend at UFC Vegas 45.

    Prior to the event, Lewis shared the record with Matt Brown and Vitor Belfort with 12 TKO/KO finishes.

    Lewis earned his 13th KO victory in the promotion last weekend, a streak that began back in 2014 at UFC on Fox: Werdum vs. Browne, where he TKO’d Jack May in the first round. Lewis would also win his next five victories by KO/TKO before earning a split-decision victory over Roy Nelson.

    The knockouts would continue after his fight with Nelson, as Lewis would only have three fights go the distance in his next 14 bouts. Along the way, Lewis earned memorable KO victories over fighters such as Travis Browne, Alexander Volkov, Curtis Blaydes, among others.

    Derrick Lewis KO's Travis Browne, calls him out for beating women - video Dailymotion
    Derrick Lewis KOs Travis Browne

    At UFC Vegas 45, Derrick Lewis wasted no time in breaking the record. He finished Daukaus in under four minutes and left the fight almost unscathed, absorbing just 10 total strikes. Surprisingly enough, this was just Lewis’ fourth KO victory that came in the first round.

    After his victory, Lewis was asked in the post-fight press conference which of his 13 knockouts was his favorite (h/t MMA Fighting). Here’s how “The Black Beast” responded.

    “I like the [Alexander] Volkov knockout,” Lewis said. “That was pretty clutch because I was getting my cheeks clapped that whole fight, and it was good that I came in the last round — and it was a Russian guy, so it was an American going against a Russian, and I love all the Rocky movies. So basically that’s how Rocky used to fight, where he’d get whooped — damn near the whole fight he’d get whooped — then the music starts playing, then his wife starts screaming, then he’d get the knockout.”

    You can catch the full UFC Vegas 45 post-fight press conference below.

    Which was your favorite Derrick Lewis KO?

  • Priscila Cachoeira Adresses Eye-Gogue Incident At UFC 269

    Priscila Cachoeira headlined some news following her loss last Saturday night to Gillian Robertson at UFC 269, and it wasn’t for good reasoning.

    Cachoeira found herself back in the losing column after she got submitted by Robertson in the last second of the first round to open up the prelims.

    Her loss wasn’t controversial, but it was what she did inside the Octagon that caused some backlash and scrutiny. As Robertson secured her rear-naked choke on Cachoeira, Cachoeira tried to escape by eye-gouging Robertson.

    https://twitter.com/jedigoodman/status/1469807640540712962?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw%7Ctwcamp%5Etweetembed%7Ctwterm%5E1469807640540712962%7Ctwgr%5E%7Ctwcon%5Es1_c10&ref_url=https%3A%2F%2Fcalfkicker.com%2Fpriscilla-cachoeira-claims-eye-gouge-wasnt-intentional%2F

    Cachoeira claimed she didn’t eye-gouge on purpose and didn’t know she did so when it happened.

    “It wasn’t my intention to [gouge] her eye when she was on my back. I didn’t know it was going in the direction of her eye,” Cachoeira said. “My intention was to go for her neck and push it. That was my intention, but I was desperate, almost snoring, and it’s a matter of survival, right? I want to get it off. But it wasn’t my intention to hit her eyes. Never.” Cachoeira told MMA Fighting.

    Cachoeira has received a lot of negative backlash following her actions. Joe Rogan called her out on the broadcast while Robertson was more stunned by the officiating.

    Cachoeira could be on the brink of being released from the UFC following her actions Saturday night and also losing four out of her last six fights. Cachoeira also missed weight by three pounds and forfeited 30% of her purse. Cachoeira says she is regretful of her actions and vows it won’t happen again.

    “I’ll fix my mistakes,” Cachoeira said. “I apologize once again for what happened. It won’t happen again. It was a matter of survival, right? But I didn’t know I was gouging her eyes. She was on my back, how would I know? If I had to suffer any punishment, it would come at that moment.”

    Do you believe Priscila Cachoeira should be punished for eye-gouging Gillian Robertson at UFC 269?

  • Thompson: GSP Is The Welterweight GOAT Unless Usman Beats Me

    Stephen Thompson believes Kamaru Usman needs to get past him in order to surpass Georges St-Pierre as being the greatest UFC welterweight of all time.

    There has been a growing debate over who is the greatest welterweight of all time, Georges St-Pierre or Kamaru Usman? Thompson states GSP is the current GOAT but can think of one way that Usman can surpass him.

    “I think he can. I think he’s there. I think if he keeps doing what he’s doing, and gets past me, he will definitely be there. He’s gotta get past me,” said Thompson in an interview with RT Sport.

    Thompson, now 38 years old, is not losing hope for another title run and a chance to fight Usman. Thompson fought Tyron Woodley in back-to-back title fights in 2016 at UFC 205 and then four months later at UFC 209. Thompson fell short in both fights but was very close to touching gold the first time, as Woodley retained the belt with a majority draw.

    UFC 205 results: Tyron Woodley retains title in majority draw with Stephen Thompson | MMA Junkie
    Credit: Adam Hunger-USA TODAY Sports

    Thompson was on the brink of a potential third title shot, but that slipped away as he lost to Gilbert Burns this past July at UFC 264. Prior to his loss, Thompson was on a two-fight win streak over Geoff Neal and Vicente Luque.

    A win over the 10th-ranked welterweight in Belal Muhammad in this Saturday night’s co-main event could get Thompson a step closer to one final title shot. Usman has already beaten three out of the top five welterweights (Colby Covington twice, Gilbert Burns, Leon Edwards), so the only other fighters that he would need to beat are Vicente Luque, who lost to Thompson before, and Thompson.

    Thompson believes a win this weekend can warrant enough for a title shot and that until Usman is able to be victorious over him, GSP is still the GOAT.

    “He’s running out of guys,” Thompson said. “They’re running out of guys to put up against him, and I know if I go out there and do what I need to do against Belal Muhammad, then I’ll be able to get that shot very soon. But until then, GSP will always be number one, for sure.”

    Georges St-Pierre currently has the most title wins in welterweight history with 12 compared to Usman’s 6. GSP also has the most wins in the division (19) while Usman has the record for most consecutive wins (15). Additionally, GSP has five finishes out of his 12 title-fight victories compared to Usman’s three finishes out of his six title-fight victories.

    Do you think Kamaru Usman can surpass GSP as the welterweight GOAT?

  • Derrick Lewis Admits To Succumbing To Pressure At UFC 265

    Derrick Lewis came up short in his fight for the interim heavyweight belt in his loss to Ciryl Gane via 3rd-round TKO, partly because of the magnitude of the moment.

    In 2018, Derrick Lewis faced an enormous amount of pressure as he was preparing to challenge for the heavyweight title against Daniel Cormier at UFC 230. In that bout, Lewis got submitted in the second round and lost his chance at becoming champion.

    His last fight against Gane was different, as he was getting ready to fight in his hometown of Houston in front of thousands of Lewis fans. This put a lot of overwhelming pressure on the Black Beast.

    “Man, it was just overwhelming fighting in my hometown, all that pressure I had on me,” Lewis told MMA Junkie at Wednesday’s media day at the UFC Apex. “I put all that pressure on myself, you know? It would have been 13 years since the day I got out of prison, and winning the title for the UFC heavyweight champion, it would have just – I put so much pressure on myself. It was just very nerve-racking.”

    Despite feeling the nerves and unlike himself leading up to the fight, Lewis welcomes the idea of fighting in his hometown again in the future.

    “I would like to keep fighting in Houston,” Lewis said. “I love fighting in Houston. It was just that day. I just put so much pressure on myself, you know, so it is what it is.”

    Lewis has fought in his hometown two other times in his UFC career: UFC 247 against Ilir Latifi and UFC 192 against Viktor Pesta. Lewis was victorious in both fights.

    Ahead of his fight this weekend against Chris Daukaus, Lewis has the experience advantage between the two fighters. Lewis has fought a total of 34 times professionally to Daukaus’ 15 pro fights. Lewis has been fighting with the UFC for over seven years dating back to 2014, while Daukaus made his debut in the promotion just 16 months ago.

    “Experience don’t mean anything,” Lewis said. “Most fighters go into a fight really just focused on one thing: just winning. So all the outside and noise really doesn’t matter. We’re heavyweights, so anything can happen. Anything, any slip-up or anything can happen.”

    Who do you think will win between Derrick Lewis and Chris Daukaus at UFC Vegas 45?