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Tag: Ricky Simon

  • “Yanez Won That First Round” – Yanez vs. Simon Ends In Draw

    “Yanez Won That First Round” – Yanez vs. Simon Ends In Draw

    Adrian Yanez looked to be seconds away from scoring a TKO victory over Ricky Simon; however, the time ran out, and the UFC Seattle prelim bout was ultimately ruled a majority draw.

    Yanez seemed to be in control for most of the fight, working with sharp boxing and landing the quicker, more effective shots on Simon. Simon would find his own success, however, especially with takedowns and power punches landed in round two.

    Yanez had strong defensive work, and that helped him avoid more damage from Simon. And then, in a heavy-hitting round three, Yanez opened up a cut on Simon. Then, a series of right hands in the closing seconds could have helped Yanez score the finish.

    Simon, however, managed to survive and even take a 29-28 total on one scorecard. The other two judges, however, ruled a 10-8 round for Yanez in round three, bringing their totals to 28-28 for a controversial draw.

    Adrian Yanez Nearly Scores Finish, Ends Up With Controversial Draw Vs. Ricky Simon At UFC Seattle

    Simon entered this fight with four losses in his previous six fights. Prior to tonight, he had most recently fought at UFC Vegas 111 in November, losing to Raoni Barcelos.

    Yanez was at one point on a nine-fight win streak; however, he entered this fight with three losses in his previous four. This marked Yanez’s first fight since dropping a split decision to Daniel Marcos at UFC Tampa in December 2024.

  • VIDEO: Ricky Simon Flatlines Javid Basharat In Knockout Of The Year Contender At UFC Seattle

    VIDEO: Ricky Simon Flatlines Javid Basharat In Knockout Of The Year Contender At UFC Seattle

    After three losses and two and a half years, Ricky Simon finally re-entered the win column in grand fashion against Javid Basharat during the UFC Seattle preliminary card.

    The formerly ranked contender looked to get on the attack right away, and he managed to do so with a strong start that included a takedown. When Basharat started to counter the veteran’s grappling focus, however, Simon switched things up and started to make great use of his striking.

    Late in the first round, Simon landed a right hand that connected flush with the jaw, that rocked and dropped Basharat.

    Ricky Simon Starches Javid Basharat At UFC Seattle

    UFC Seattle marked Simon’s first win in the Octagon since defeating Jack Shore at UFC Long Island in July 2022. He has since suffered losses against Song Yadong, Mario Bautista, and Vinicius Oliveira.

    Basharat, meanwhile, is now winless in three straight after breaking into the UFC as an unbeaten fighter on Dana White’s Contender Series. His UFC 294 bout with Victor Henry went to a no contest, and he dropped a decision to Aiemann Zahabi almost exactly one year ago.

  • Ricky Simon: I Doubt Sean O’Malley Wants To Fight Me

    Ranked bantamweight Ricky Simon thinks Sean O’Malley doesn’t want to face him despite a recent call-out.

    Simon has expressed interest before in facing O’Malley. He likes the idea of the matchup, as “people want to see him tested against a wrestler,” and he also believes he has the striking to go along with it.

    With that being said, Simon has given up hope on getting a fight against O’Malley. In a recent interview with MMA Fighting, Simon was asked how good of a chance he thought he has of getting a fight against O’Malley. Here’s how he responded.

    “I don’t think there’s a very good chance … I don’t think he wants to fight. I said his name after the interview, said everything, then he goes and tweets to [Adrian] Yanez. So I’m moving on.”

    Simon Doesn’t Understand Why O’Malley Got Ranked Over Him

    Ricky Simon
    Image Credit: Mike Roach/Zuffa LLC/Zuffa LLC via Getty Images

    Simon has previously been interested in fighting O’Malley. When the bantamweight star lost his original opponent for UFC 264, there was a brief moment in time where Simon was seemingly being lined up as the short-notice opponent. That matchup ended up not coming to fruition.

    Simon is currently sitting right next to O’Malley on UFC’s official rankings, giving further justification for booking the two. However, this ranking puzzles Simon, who doesn’t understand why the rankings are that way.

    Simon expected his recent victory over Raphael Assuncao to make him enter the rankings at #12. But in the end, it was O’Malley who took that spot, leaving Simon down at rank #13.

    “I beat the #12-ranked guy in the world and they moved him to #12 … I know there’s a lot that kind of goes into [the rankings], but it just feels like someone was messing with me at that point,” he said.

    Are you be interested in a hypothetical fight between Ricky Simon and Sean O’Malley?

  • Ricky Simon Reacts To Michael Bisping Interview Criticism

    UFC bantamweight Ricky Simon has responded to Michael Bisping calling him a ‘little s**t’ after their uncomfortable UFC Vegas 45 interview.

    Simon most recently earned a big win over bantamweight veteran Raphael Assuncao at UFC Vegas 45, knocking him out in the second round. After the bout, Bisping falsely stated that this was Simon’s first win over a ranked opponent, which seemed to irk Simon.

    Bisping appeared to set up Simon for another callout of Sean O’Malley after the two had exchanged words and expressed interest in a fight in the past. While Simon ended up calling out O’Malley, the setup didn’t go as planned.

    In a recent YouTube Q+A, Bisping explained his interview with Simon.

    “He goes, ‘I’ve beaten ranked guys before,’” Bisping said. “I said, ‘Well, you definitely weren’t ranked,’ because he wasn’t ranked. He was trying to make me look silly. I’m literally relaying the information that I was told to say [by the producer].

    “So how about you direct your venom at him and tell him not to be such a little sh*t.”

    Bisping’s response raised eyebrows on social media, with many feeling that he didn’t take responsibility for the minor blunder. During a recent interview with MMA Fighting, Simon reacted to Bisping’s latest comments regarding their awkward post-fight encounter.

    Ricky Simon Responds To Michael Bisping’s ‘Little S**t’ Comment

    “Maybe he didn’t want to be corrected,” Simon said. “I mean, is there a rule that I’m not allowed to correct him on-air or something? I don’t know if there is, maybe I should’ve said something after, but this is my life. This is what I put everything into. Everything that I do is to wake up in the morning and get better at this specific sport.

    “And I have the receipts: I’ve fought a ranked guy before. I beat a ranked guy. I was ranked before. I just thought that I would clear that up.”

    Simon has now won four-straight fights and is quickly rising in the stacked bantamweight division. Following back-to-back losses to Rob Font and Urijah Faber, he has rebounded nicely and appears set to possibly earn a big-name opponent for his next fight.

    There were plenty of off-kilter post-fight interviews in the UFC in 2021, but Simon and Bisping’s odd moment is probably near the top of the list. Regardless, it’ll be interesting to see if Simon and Bisping bury the hatchet at some point.

    What was your reaction to the awkward Ricky Simon/Michael Bisping interview?