MMA News

Tag: UFC 272

  • Jorge Masvidal Thinks Donald Trump Favors Him Over Colby Covington

    Jorge Masvidal thinks he has the support of former U.S. President Donald Trump ahead of his grudge match with Colby Covington at UFC 272.

    Masvidal is set to face his former American Top Team teammate and friend Covington in the UFC 272 main event. It’s arguably one of the most highly anticipated welterweight fights in recent memory.

    Masvidal and Covington may not have a lot in common anymore, but both of them have a history with former president Trump leading up to their fight. Trump attended Masvidal’s win over Nate Diaz for the BMF belt at UFC 244, and Masvidal was a big supporter of his 2020 re-election campaign.

    Masvidal also has a strong relationship with the Trump family as a whole and teamed up with Donald Trump Jr. to host a “Fighters Against Socialism” bus tour leading up to the election.

    Image via Covington’s Twitter account

    Covington has also been a vocal supporter of Trump over the years, especially after his win over Rafael dos Anjos at UFC 225. Just weeks after the fight, Covington was invited to the White House to meet with Trump alongside UFC President Dana White.

    Covington also attended one of the presidential debates between Trump and Joe Biden in 2020.

    Nevertheless, Masvidal believes he gets more love from the former president. During a recent interview with Ariel Helwani, Masvidal gave his opinion on who the 45th president will be rooting for on March 5.

    “There’s only one. Gamebred…for a fact, man,” Masvidal said. “Ask this dude. He knows what a fighter looks like. He was around boxing forever. He knows what a nuthugger, ass-kissing machine like Colby looks like. Colby tried to kiss his hand and Trump was weirded out. He tried to pull that shit back. That’s on video, man….

    “It’s me all day. Did Trump FaceTime with Colby’s ass and his kids? No. Trump did that with me.”

    The buildup to UFC 272 is expected to be drama-filled leading up to the fight between Masvidal and Covington. It’s unknown whether or not Trump plans to attend the fight in Las Vegas, but he’s likely to be a fixture of the pre-fight trash talk.

    What is your prediction for Jorge Masvidal vs. Colby Covington?

  • O’Malley: Masvidal Can Piece Up Covington If He Defends The Takedowns

    UFC bantamweight Sean O’Malley has given his take on the upcoming UFC 272 main event between former title challengers Colby Covington and Jorge Masvidal.

    After Alexander Volkanovski’s trilogy fight with Max Holloway collapsed and his next defense was pushed back to UFC 273, the March pay-per-view was left needing a new headliner. What better replacement than one of the most highly-anticipated grudge matches in the UFC right now?

    Former friends and teammates Covington and Masvidal will settle their differences inside the Octagon on March 5. While predictions will differ for the contest, one thing that isn’t up for debate is that fans are in store for a heated and entertaining build-up.

    https://www.instagram.com/p/CYr6znYsr42/

    O’Malley Reveals His “Gut Feeling”

    Both Covington and Masvidal are coming off losses to reigning welterweight king Kamaru Usman. “Gamebred” fell to back-to-back setbacks against the champion at UFC 251 and 261. “Chaos,” meanwhile, failed in his attempts to reach the 170-pound mountaintop at UFC 245 and UFC 268.

    But despite failing to dethrone “The Nigerian Nightmare,” Covington undoubtedly came closer to doing so than Masvidal, who was knocked out cold by Usman last April.

    Nevertheless, the Miami native had been in fine form before colliding with Usman, securing finishes against Darren Till, Ben Askren, and Nate Diaz in 2019. Rising bantamweight star O’Malley believes Masvidal could return to that level of form when he enters the Octagon with Covington in March.

    “Jorge has never really been taken down and just beaten up for 25 minutes, ever in his career,” O’Malley said on an episode of his YouTube podcast. “If anyone was going to do it, you think it would have been Usman. Usman didn’t go out there, take him down, and maul him. He did knock him out but I don’t know.

    “That’s a sick fight. I just get a gut feeling right now that Masvidal could definitely piece up Colby if he shuts down the striking or shuts down the takedowns,” added O’Malley. “Colby brings an insane pace, but Masvidal, that’s going to be such a sick fight. This is the fight I’m most hyped about out of all the big ones.” (h/t Pundit Arena)

    https://www.instagram.com/p/CZAOICSOQmF/

    While the fight announcement is still fresh and the clash weeks away, the trash talk and social media exchanges have already begun.

    Given Covington’s antics prior to his rematch with Usman, we can expect an even more bitter build-up this time around, especially given the former interim champ’s history with former ATT teammate Masvidal.

    How do you see the UFC 272 main event between Jorge Masvidal and Colby Covington playing out?

  • Yan: UFC Delayed Rematch To Avoid Sterling Headlining PPV

    Petr Yan has his theory on why the UFC opted to move his scheduled rematch with Aljamain Sterling from UFC 272 to the UFC 273 co-main.

    Yan lost his bantamweight title to Sterling at UFC 259 after landing an illegal knee to a grounded Sterling late in the fight. Sterling would earn the title via disqualification and the saga began regarding rematch talks.

    Sterling and Yan were originally scheduled to square off at UFC 267, but Sterling pulled out due to lingering health issues. Yan would go on to fight and defeat Cory Sandhagen for the interim belt at UFC 267.

    After they were originally scheduled once again to battle at UFC 272, the fight has now been pushed back to UFC 273. The two sides have gone at it on social media regarding the reasoning for the delay, with Sterling accusing Yan of being responsible for it.

    The two went at it on Twitter regarding the situation, with Yan citing Sterling as the reasoning.

    “Pathetic liar desperately trying to look good and control the narrative but it won’t work. I’m vaccinated and ready to bash you anywhere even tomorrow. UFC simply doesn’t want fake champion to headline the event,” Yan tweeted.

    The UFC and president Dana White haven’t come out publically and explained the fight getting pushed back. Yan’s attack prompted a brutal response from Sterling.

    “Lmao I’m only repeating what I was told from the bosses. Don’t get your potato tits in a twist! I’d happily fuck you up tmw too. That can easily be arranged.”

    The bantamweight title picture has been searching for clarity ever since Sterling controversially earned the belt. The UFC’s feelings about the situation can be attributed to Yan being on the pound-for-pound list while the champion Sterling is notably absent.

    For now, it appears that the Sterling-Yan rematch is set to happen at UFC 273, and fans will need to keep their fingers crossed regarding any potential shakeups between now and then.

    What is your prediction for the Petr Yan-Aljamain Sterling rematch?