UFC Vegas 95 Preview
The UFC is heading back to the Apex in Las Vegas, Nevada on Saturday, August 10th for UFC Vegas 95. The main event will be a rematch in the heavyweight division between #8 Marcin Tybura and #9 Sergey Spivak. The two first fought in 2020 where Tybura won by unanimous decision.
The victory against Spivak sparked a five-fight winning streak for Tybura and he is 8-2 in his last 10 fights. He most recently defeated Tai Tuivasa by first round submission in March. That win was a big rebound from a first round TKO loss to current interim champion Tom Aspinall in 2023.
The Polish fighter discussed why he accepted a rematch with Spivak. "It's always excitement when the UFC calls, offers you a fight," Tybura said. "I've been here long and have lots of fights but is still the same. I know how UFC was a big dream for me, so when I get the call, I'm always excited. Sure, I rather fight somebody that gets me closer to the top, but I feel like you can gain something in every fight."
Even with a win on Saturday, Tybura is not thinking about title contention yet. "I've been in fights where I've been really close to getting there, and I didn't manage to do it, so right now I'm just trying to focus on the fight," Tybura said. "That's what I'm doing. It's like my fight with Tom Aspinall, which was two fights ago. Right now, it's like looking for some answers that I don't know yet and look to see to be a top five fighter."
Tybura talked about what will be different this time around against Spivak. “He for sure (improved),” Tybura said. “I saw a couple of his fights, and he had a very good performance using his skills, throwing his takedowns, making submissions. I can see he gained some weight, muscles mostly, so he’s more power, more strong. For sure, he’s a different fighter.”
The 38-year-old has been fighting in the UFC since 2016 and will be fighting for the 20th time since his debut. Aside from Spivak and Tuivasa, he has key victories over Blagoy Ivanov, Alexander Romanov, Walt Harris, Ben Rothwell, Stefan Struve and Andrei Arlovksi. A win on Saturday will position him nicely for a top five fight.
Spivak is trying to rebound from a second round TKO loss to Ciryl Gane last September. He is 7-3 in his last 10 fights and like Tybura could be 4-1 in his last five fights with a win on Saturday.
How does he feel about rematching with Tybura? “This is actually the first rematch of my career, so it’s not like I’ve felt this before. But I don’t think about it in any certain way. We’re just close to each other in the rankings, so it is just set for us to fight again. I’m going to come out, I’m going to fight. It’s just a sport. That’s the way I feel,” Spivak said.
He continued, “I wasn’t as experienced back then as I was now. I was very, very young. but I don’t want to look for excuses. He won. He won fair and square, and he did a great job back then. I think he still does a good job now. He’s a great fighter, so we’ll see what happens. But yeah, obviously it’s going to be a very different fight.”
The 29-year-old has been fighting in the UFC since 2019 and has key wins over Tai Tuivasa, Augusto Sakai and Derrick Lewis. If he emerges victorious from the rematch with Tybura he can look forward to another top five fight and prove he belongs in the title contention conversation.
The rest of the main card:
Bantamweight - Chris Gutiérrez vs. Quang Le
Welterweight - Danny Barlow vs. Nikolay Veretennikov
Featherweight - Damon Jackson vs. Chepe Mariscal
Women's Bantamweight - #12 Yana Santos vs. #14 Chelsea Chandler
Bantamweight - Toshiomi Kazama vs. Charalampos Grigoriou
ESPN+ Prelims:
Women's Bantamweight - #8 Karol Rosa vs. #11 Pannie Kianzad
Heavyweight - Jhonata Diniz vs. Karl Williams
Featherweight - Youssef Zalal vs. Jarno Errens
Women's Strawweight - Stephanie Luciano vs. Talita Alencar
Lopez vs. Leo Preview
The Tingley Coliseum in Albuquerque, New Mexico will host a dynamic title fight on Saturday, August 10th. IBF featherweight champion Luis Alberto Lopez will defend his title against former WBO junior featherweight champion Angelo Leo.
Lopez (30-2, 17 KO) has won 13 straight fights and won the IBF title in 2022 with a majority decision victory over Josh Warrington. He has defended the title three times and most recently defeated Reiya Abe in March by 8th round TKO.
The champion is ready for a battle with Leo. “We’ve been training hard as we get ready to finish camp. This has been one of my best training camps, and we will finish strong.” Lopez said. “Like all Mexicans, I do my job in the ring, and I like to throw punches. I don’t mind getting hit in order to hit. We work to be able to do all of that in the ring. If we have to move around, we’ll do that. If we have to brawl, we can brawl. If the fight ends early, we can end it early. I do my job. I prepare for that. And I’m happy that people like my work.”
Lopez talked about his opponent and the challenge he brings to the fight. “We know that Angelo Leo is a good fighter who comes forward throwing lots of punches. He doesn’t stop in there. So, I think we’re going to need a lot of stamina, and we’re going to need to throw a lot of punches. We’re going to be smart but also aggressive. It’s going to be a good fight. It will be a good test for both of us. I don’t plan on letting go of my title. It’s going to be a great clash.”
He continued, “Making the fourth defense of my title is a great achievement for me. I never imagined it, but here we are. And we’re looking forward to big challenges because big fights are coming. Perhaps unifications. Maybe Naoya Inoue? Definitely something big.”
Leo has won four straight fights since losing the WBO junior featherweight title by unanimous decision to Stephen Fulton in 2021. He most recently defeated Eduardo Baez by unanimous decision in April. Leo will have the advantage and added pressure of fighting in his hometown of Albuquerque.
“World title fight here in my hometown of Albuquerque,” Leo stated on social media. “I couldn’t ask for more.”
The 30-year-old talked about the importance of this fight. “I want to make history and win another title in another division. Winning, I will be one of three to win multiple titles in different weights,” Leo said.
Leo confidently talked about what type of fight he will have with the champion. “I know he can box a little and then will come forward to try to turn fight into slugfest, we have prepped for him and know what to expect and make the adjustments if needed. “Says Leo. “I also know he hasn’t faced a fighter like me before.”
The main card can be seen on ESPN+ starting at 6:30 p.m. ET
Crawford vs. Madrimov Preview
For the first time ever BMO stadium in Los Angeles, California will host a boxing event on Saturday, August 3rd. The main event will feature the best pound for pound boxer in the world Terence Crawford as he challenges Israil Madrimov for the WBA “super” junior middleweight title and for the vacant WBO interim junior middleweight title.
Crawford (40-0, 31 KO) has held multiple world championships in three weight classes and is one of only three boxers in history to become an undisputed champion in two weight classes during the four-belt era. He most recently defeated Errol Spence Jr. by ninth round TKO to retain the WBO welterweight title and win the WBA “super”, WBC and IBF titles.
Despite being the favorite in this fight, many pundits are commenting on how much bigger Madrimov is than Crawford. The challenger commented, “He bigger than me. Everybody bigger than me, but come fight time I always had the ability to show that I was stronger. Bigger don’t mean stronger. It’s just his body type. I’m very lean, my muscle is very compact. That don’t have nothing to do with the ability and skills come fight time,” said Crawford.
At 36 years old, Crawford has continued to silence his critics. How does he feel heading into this fight? “I’m feeling great. I’m ready to fight but all my people always try to remind me to enjoy the moment because one day it’s all going to be gone, so embrace it while you can,” Crawford said.
He continued, “Like I always say everything happens for a reason,” Crawford continues, “and for that reason God didn’t bless me then, but he blessed me now when I’m more mature and can handle everything that comes my way. Who knows where I would have been had I got everything that I wanted when he was younger and immature.”
In his career, Crawford has had 15 title defenses and he has not had a fight go to a decision since 2016. Aside from Spence, he has had key victories over Shawn Porter, Kell Brook, Amir Khan, Jose Benavidez Jr, Julius Indongo, Felix Diaz, Viktor Postol, Thomas Dulorme, Ray Beltran, Yuriorkis Gamboa and Ricky Burns. There is a reported super-fight in the works with all-time great Canelo Alvarez, but Crawford will need to stay focused on Madrimov and not look ahead to a seven-figure payday.
Madrimov (10-0-1, 7 KO) is coming off a fifth round TKO in March over Magomed Kurbanov to win the vacant WBA “super” junior middleweight title. The 29-year-old has ignored the hype about size heading into this fight and knows he has to be at the top of his game against Crawford.
“Our training has been good and I’m feeling great,” Madrimov said. “I want to make a good game plan and it will be a great fight on Saturday. I don’t think this fight is about the size, it’s about the experience and knowledge he can use. This division is my division and I’m the champion, I have to defend the belt.”
The champion he has prepared well to defend a title in this weight class, even if it is against an all-timer like Crawford. "This is my weight and I was fighting at an even higher weight class than 154 pounds as an amateur, so I feel comfortable and strong at this weight," Madrimov said. "People can say whatever they want [about experience], but I'm not paying too much attention to it. I've had good fights against the right opponents to prepare me for this fight versus Crawford. Also, with all the international experience as an amateur, along with the professional fights, I'm well prepared for this moment. I'm at my peak."]
He concluded, "In one moment I can change my life and my family's life, and my friends' lives," Madrimov said. "I will be ready because it is an opportunity for me, my family and my country."
The main event can be seen on ESPN+ PPV
UFC Abu Dhabi Preview
The UFC is heading back to the Etihad Arena in Abu Dhabi on Saturday, August 3rd for UFC on ABC 7. The main event will be a bantamweight title eliminator between #2 Corey Sandhagen vs. #10 Umar Nurmagomedov.
The two fighters were originally scheduled to fight a year ago in a headliner, but Nurmagomedov withdrew from the event due to a shoulder injury. Rob Font stepped in for Nurmagomedov and Sandhagen won the fight by unanimous decision.
Sandhagen has won three straight since unsuccessfully challenging for the interim title against Petr Yan at UFC 267. The 32-year-old has waited patiently for his title shot and has been a top contender at 135 pounds since 2019. A win on Saturday will make him undeniably the next challenger for the bantamweight title. He would face the winner of champion Sean O ‘Malley and #1 contender Merab Dvalishvili who are scheduled to fight in September at UFC 306.
Despite his recent winning streak, Sandhagen felt he had to go through an evolution before this fight with Nurmagomedov. “Umar brought the best out of me in this fight camp,” Sandhagen said. “I've never worked so many hours to learn more and more and more and more. Of course, that, paired with the physical piece and then the mental piece and just all of it, I've already pushed myself harder than I've ever had to push myself, which is great. (I’m) super grateful for that.
“I feel like I unlocked some new things inside of myself.”
Sandhagen has responded as of late to the criticism of his last fight being accused of fighting a “safe fight.”
“I feel like the sport has gotten really big in the last few years, and there's still so much beauty that isn't like tapped into and understood by the fan base,” he said. “Instead of just complaining about people bitching online and just being s**tty online or whatever, I'll help them understand a little bit better of how awesome this art can be and how it is an art. It's not just full drama and two chimpanzees fighting each other. It's not that. It's a beautiful piece of art that these guys spend their entire lives trying to do.”
After putting in the work during his fight camp, Sandhagen feels he is going to surprise everyone on Saturday, including Nurmagomedov. “One of my favorite pieces of martial arts is just solving the puzzle,” he said. “I find a lot of joy and a lot of fun with that, and fans find it interesting to watch. I think it's going to be very impressive on my end, and it's going to catch you off guard with the way that I feel like I've learned to dismantle that style.”
He concluded, “I'm really grateful that I get to fight with Umar,” he said. “(He) pushed me to be better than I feel like I've ever been.”
Aside from Front, Sandhagen has key wins over Marlon Vera, Song Yadong, Frankie Edgar, Marlon Moraes, Raphael Assuncao and John Lineker. His only losses in the UFC have come to former champions Aljamain Sterling, T.J. Dillashaw and Petr Yan. If he can defeat Nurmagomedov on Saturday, a fight with either O’Malley or Dvalishvili will be an exciting title fight for Sandhagen and UFC fans.
Nurmagomedov is undefeated and is 5-0 in the UFC. He most recently defeated Bezkat Almakhan in March. Sandhagen represents a step up in challenge for the 28-year-old but also a golden opportunity to jump the line and fight for a title.
The 28-year-old has confirmed this is in fact a title eliminator fight for him. "In one moment I can change my life and my family's life, and my friends' lives," Madrimov said. "I will be ready because it is an opportunity for me, my family and my country."
Nurmagomedov commented on current bantamweight champion Sean O’Malley. “I just want to beat him. I just want to take his belt. But personally, for him, I don’t know nothing.”
For Sandhagen a shot at the undisputed title will have been a long time coming should it happen. For Nurmagomedov, if he wins on Saturday, he will have beaten the contender his critics say are missing from his resume.
The rest of the main card:
Middleweight - Sharabutdin Magomedov vs. Michał Oleksiejczuk
Bantamweight - #4 Marlon Vera vs. #6 Deiveson Figueiredo
Welterweight - Tony Ferguson vs. Michael Chiesa
Women's Strawweight - #7 Mackenzie Dern vs. #10 Loopy Godinez
Lightweight - Joel Álvarez vs. Elves Brener
Prelims on ESPN+:
Light Heavyweight - Azamat Murzakanov vs. Alonzo Menifield
Lightweight - Mohammad Yahya vs. Kauê Fernandes
Heavyweight - Shamil Gaziev vs. Don'Tale Mayes
Lightweight - Guram Kutateladze vs. Jordan Vucenic
Women's Strawweight - Victoria Dudakova vs. Sam Hughes
Lightweight - Jai Herbert vs. Rolando Bedoya
Middleweight - Sedriques Dumas vs. Denis Tiuliulin
UFC 304 Preview
The UFC will be invading the Co Op Arena in Manchester, England for UFC 304 on a night that features two title fights and a list of native heroes. The main event will be a rematch for the welterweight title between English champion Leon Edwards and #2 Belal Muhammad.
The two originally fought in 2021 but after just 18 seconds into the second round the fight was ruled a no contest due to an accidental eye poke leaving Muhammad not able to continue. Since then, Edwards has won four straight including becoming champion and two successful title defenses.
The champion most recently defended the belt at UFC 296 with a unanimous decision victory over three-time title challenger Colby Covington. Edwards won the title at UFC 278 with one of the most devastating knockouts and come from behind wins in championship history against Kamaru Usman.
Is Edwards feeling the pressure of having the home field advantage? 'I feel like [fighting on home soil] helps my confidence a lot,' says Edwards. 'I like being around my friends and my family, especially fight week. So to be able to have them all there as normal. Like when I'm fighting in Vegas, not everyone can come, you know? So to be just an hour away from my house and have all my friends and everyone there, I think it's extra motivation.”
After a feeling out process in the firs round of their first fight, Edwards feels he is prepared for the type of pressure Muhammad will bring a second time around. “It's just about my experience, you know. I fight at a high level, and have done for a long time now. And going off the back to back camps, I fought Usman twice, and then Colby, and then him, and they're all wrestlers, you know? So I feel like going off the back of those camps has helped me to go into this camp. You know how to approach it and the game plan.”
Edwards addressed the rumors of moving up to middleweight to become a double champion. “I wanna become double champ. I love to move up. I wanna defend my belt as many times as possible first and then look to move up. I wanna go down one of the best welterweights to ever do it. So if I had to do that, you need to get a second belt and beat all the records, you know?”
While Edwards knows there are big fights if he moves up, he is focused on defending his title. “I don’t think there’s really any big money fights right now in the welterweight division,” Edwards said. “Just tough opponents in the division, but there’s no big star that would add more value. Shavkat [Rakhmonov] obviously is a good talent. Everyone’s going on about him. Obviously, Ian Garry, we trained together before. So, there’s a story behind that as well.
“I’m focused on Belal right now. Go out there, take care of business next weekend and after that let’s see where the cookie crumbles.”
The last time Edwards lost a fight was in his first meeting with Usman back in 2015. Since then, he has gone 12-0-1 and is in the prime of his career at 32 years old. The first fight with Muhammad did not tell much of a story, but Edwards had good first round in the fight. However, both fighters have improved since that meeting so Edwards will need to be at the top of his game if he wants to remain the champion.
Is he confident?
“I’m gonna definitely finish,” Edwards said. “I feel like he’s there for it. I feel like he’s tailor-made for me, the way he fights. I’m going for the finish, for sure.
“[Vicente] Luque ain’t the Luque from back in the day, you know? [Stephen] ‘Wonderboy’ [Thompson] ain’t the ‘Wonderboy’ — ‘Wonderboy’s’ 41 now? 40 years old. These are not me. I’m a young 32-year-old and going into my prime, full of confidence, just became champion by knocking out the pound-for-pound No. 1. It’s two different mentalities and two different kind of guys you’re going against. He has improved a little bit, but they’re not me. I feel that is the difference. He knows it, and when we go out there, I’ll show it.”
Since the no contest against Edwards, Muhammad has won five straight fights including wins over former title challengers Gilbert Burns, Stephen Thompson and Demian Maia. He has been calling for a rematch with Edwards and the 36-year-old will finally get his wish under the brightest lights and in hostile territory.
Muhammad has not had anything positive to say about Edwards and it has continued into the fight on Saturday. “Yeah I don’t think Leon has any fans if I’m being honest. Like how can you be a fan of the guy? He’s not loud, he doesn’t talk, he doesn’t tweet, he doesn’t promote himself, he just has the belt,” Muhammad said.
Despite Edwards’ criticism of his opponents since their fight, Muhammad believes he has improved. “I fought the striker, the grappler, the wrestler, the knockout artists,” Muhammad said. “Every single one of those camps, I’ve learned something new from each guy and I've gotten better every single camp, so I've just been nothing but in the gym, grinding hard every single day for this one moment, for this one match.”
Muhammad explained how taking the title from Edwards would be an added bonus to becoming champion. “But now that it's Leon Edwards, it just makes it that much better because it's the guy that I disliked, the guy that I hate, and a guy that, when we were supposed to fight back then, it was supposed to be a small show on the (UFC) Apex,” Muhammad said. “Nobody was there. Now we're fighting on the biggest stage in his home country in front of a huge crowd, and it's going to be that much more epic when I beat him.”
Edwards responded to Muhammad’s large claims of what he will do in the fight. “I feel like that’s why he’s been talking a lot of s*** since the fight got made about what he's going to do and how easy the fight's going to be and blah, blah, blah,” Edwards said. “I don't know what he's doing. The way he talks, like he's going to take me down and look at my coach and then let me back up. It's like, mate, shut up. Everything that you say you’re going to do, you’ve never done. None of it has ever happened in your career. So I feel like, let him talk. He has to back it up on fight night, and I think we both know what's going to happen now. I’m excited to finish him and put an end to it.”
The challenger has gained considerable confidence since training with former lightweight champion Khabib Nurmagomedov. “It benefits me everywhere,” Muhammad said. “Physically, mentally, spiritually, it just puts me on another level. I said it before and people were making fun of me like, ‘Oh, get off his jock blah blah blah.’ Training with him and getting advice from him is worth 20-30-40-50 days with anybody else. Just being able to feel his strength, feel his pressure, feel his knowledge too that he gives you. And to have him give me advice and what he thinks I should be doing for this fight and breaking down Leon. And telling me what he thinks the game plan should be. The knowledge is endless. Because to me I think he is the GOAT of the MMA world and the UFC. And just like a brother that could message and ask. And anytime I send a question he’ll respond. It’s just literally priceless to have that guy in my life.”
The Chicago native continued, “There’s no hidden juice, no secret with them. Their team is just all about hard work,” Muhammad said. “It’s just about overworking. When Khabib gets there, it’s twice the overwork and twice the push. It’s a different level. And I think that’s why you see a lot of those guys mentally strong because they’ve been through the hardest things in their camps, they’ve been through the hardest parts, the hardest scenarios in all their practices. And then he continues to push you on and if you don’t like it, he’ll just tell you to leave. You’re not strong enough to be a part of it, then you can just leave. There’s no sugarcoating. There’s no, ‘Let me give you a couple of softballs,’ in their gym. They’re all killers, they’re all beasts. And anytime I get a chance to work with them or train with them, I level up.”
If Muhammad can emerge victorious it will certainly shake things up in the welterweight division as there are several contenders who all believe they have earned their title shot. However, it would be difficult to deny Edwards his rematch after two dominant title defenses prior to this fight.
The co-main event will also be for a title as English champion Tom Aspinall will defend his interim heavyweight title in a rematch #4 Curtis Blaydes. The two originally met in a headliner in 2022 but the fight only lasted 15 seconds after Aspinall suffered a knee injury giving Blaydes the TKO win.
Aspinall won the interim title in his last fight with a quick KO of Sergei Pavlovich at UFC 295 in November. The unfortunate loss to Blaydes has been his only loss in his last 11 fights. The 31-year-old believes the winner of the rematch determines who the best heavyweight in the world truly is.
"Let's make no mistake, this fight is for the best heavyweight - the #1 heavyweight in the world," Aspinall said. "Regardless of titles, which one's the undisputed, and which one's the interim, and all that kind of stuff.... the real people, the real fans, the real guys know this fight defines who is the best heavyweight in the world."
"Jon Jones and Stipe are doing their thing. They've got a title, fair play, whatever. But, this is the number one guy in the world fight," Aspinall added.
While Aspinall believes this fight is for the title of the best, he does not believe a fight with undisputed champion Jon Jones will materialize. "No. It's not gonna happen, mate," Aspinall said. "It's not happening. I'm not bothered about it.
"I'm not saying that I wouldn't like it and absolutely love that fight. I think I made it pretty obvious that that's the fight that I wanted. That's the one, of course, but I don't know. Can I swear on this thing? I'm shooting in the dark with that one. I was gonna say something else, but I'm shooting in the dark. There's nothing going on with that."
Blaydes is known as one of the best wrestlers in the heavyweight division, but Aspinall has prepared for the grappling if the fight makes it there this time around. That’s probably where I spent the most of this camp is on my back with guys on top of me,” Aspinall said. “It’s not been a very, Curtis Blaydes is not a very comfortable guy to train for. Do you know what I mean, you’re getting up off your back. See the way I work it is I work it with multiple training partners so I’ll be starting on bottom, I get them off, the energy that it takes to get a big guy off is, you know, you expend a lot of energy.
“Then I restart on my back with a fresh partner, like it’s exhausting man, it’s just exhausting training for this guy and I’ve done everything I can so we’ll see on Saturday how it goes.”
Since joining the UFC Blaydes has had a long road to his first title shot. That journey has included impressive win streaks that were halted by devastating losses. He most recently defeated rising contender Jailton Almeida by second round KO in March rebounding well from a bad TKO loss to Pavlovich close to a year earlier.
The 33-year-old has arguably been one win away from a title shot three different times in his career, he can erase the heartbreak with a win over Aspinall on Saturday. He commented on the criticism he has faced after suffering bad KO losses.
“I wish people would take that into account when they judge or critique heavyweight,” Blaydes said. “Like, ‘Oh, he got knocked out! He’s a bum!’ No, it’s heavyweight. If you watch [Sean] O’Malley against [Chito] Vera on [UFC] 299, if that was heavyweight, it wouldn’t have went five rounds. I promise you. The way O’Malley was hitting Vera, that’s not going past two rounds. Just because they don’t hit as hard.
“It’s not that we’re not as skilled. It’s that we have to be a little more skilled, I think, in order to strike. That’s why I like to wrestle. This is a dangerous game at heavyweight.”
Blaydes has kept a positive mindset about his losses in the UFC. “People are like, ‘Blaydes has a glass jaw.’ I got knocked out by Derrick Lewis, Sergei caught me but I wasn’t asleep, and [Francis] Ngannou, but again, I wasn’t asleep,” Blaydes said. “Three heavy, heavy hitters. And I ate one from Mark Hunt, a real overhand — I ate that. I don’t think I have a glass jaw. I just think it’s heavyweight and we all hit hard.
“It’s almost a different sport when you compare it to other weight classes, the things you can get away with. You can flick out a lazy, inside leg kick [at other weight classes] and if you get hit with a hook, it’s not the end of the world. Not at heavyweight. That’s what happened to [Alexander] Volkov. He flicked out a lazy one with Derrick [Lewis] at the end of the fight, gets knocked out.”
While remaining positive, Blaydes has been able to recognize his mistakes but see the success he was having in fights he has lost. “People at home are like, ‘Blaydes is a bum, his hands are ass.’ I’m like, did you watch the first round?” Blaydes said. “I was piecing him up. Yeah, he caught me. He knew, ‘This guy is way too fast, I’m just going to stand here and if I get him, I get him,’ and he got me. I hate that.
“People probably view him as a better striker than me just because he got me with an uppercut. It wasn’t the most skillful thing in the world. I almost view it as I knocked myself out because I shot into an uppercut, which only makes it worse.”
Blaydes knows what his strongest asset is. “I wear it like a badge of honor,” Blaydes said. “A lot of people want to talk smack, ‘Oh, he wants to wrestle.’ You get in there, you stand in there with a heavy-hitting heavyweight and you know you only get one ‘you zigged where you should have zagged’ and it’s over. Let’s see if you wrestle or not, at least for a little bit.”
Both Blaydes and Aspinall are going to bring a fight, and one will leave Manchester with a belt. However, whether either of them want to admit it, they are waiting on the champion Jon Jones who is expected to defend the undisputed belt against former two-time champion Stipe Miocic. Does Blaydes agree with Aspinall that their fight is for the best heavyweight in the world?
“Yes, this is the real belt in my mind. In my mind, Jones vs. Stipe is just their retirement fight,” Blaydes said. “Not to be rude, but they’re both one or two fights away (from retirement). More than likely, this is their get-the-bag-get-out fight, which is fine. That’s how I view it.”
A Blaydes win will shake up things in the heavyweight division, but it is unlikely he or the UFC will want him to wait around on the winner of Jones and Miocic. Could there be a rematch with Pavlovich looming?
The rest of the main card:
Lightweight - #15 Bobby Green vs. Paddy Pimblett
Middleweight - Christian Leroy Duncan vs. Gregory Rodrigues
Featherweight - #6 Arnold Allen vs. #10 Giga Chikadze
ESPN+ Prelims:
Featherweight - Nathaniel Wood vs. Daniel Pineda
Women's Strawweight - Molly McCann vs. Bruna Brasil
Bantamweight - Jake Hadley vs. Caolan Loughran
Light Heavyweight - Modestas Bukauskas vs. Marcin Prachnio
Early Prelims on ESPN+ and UFC Fight Pass
Welterweight - Oban Elliott vs. Preston Parsons
Flyweight - Muhammad Mokaev vs. Manel Kape
Welterweight - Sam Patterson vs. Kiefer Crosbie
Heavyweight - Mick Parkin vs. Lukasz Brzeski
Women's Straweight - Shauna Bannon vs. Alice Ardelean
Joyce vs. Chisora Preview
The O2 Arena in London, England will host a dynamic heavyweight fight on Saturday, July 27. Former WBO interim heavyweight champion Joe Joyce will face battle tested veteran and former title challenger Derek Chisora.
Joyce (16-2, 15 KO) will be battling in his hometown to prove he is worthy of another shot at a title. He defeated Kash Ali by 10th round KO in his last fight which was a big rebound after losing badly by TKO in his two previous fights to Zhilei Zhang.
The London native knows he cannot take title contention for granted. "I've been so, so close two times," Joyce said. "Once with the WBA, then with the WBO. Only in heavyweight boxing [that] Dubois got elevated straight away with the IBF and I was like, 'What's going on?' I just have to beat whoever is in front of me now and pray I will get the opportunities I deserve."
The 38-year-old talked about what could be next with a defeat of Chisora. “Get through Chisora, and I’m still up there, I’m still ready, and I’m coming for everybody,” Joyce said. “Parker, that would be a good fight, a rematch. Any of the top boys really. Joshua can get it. Dubois can get it. All of them can get it. Fury and Usyk! I’m coming for everyone. Getting that heavyweight title that’s what I’m still in the sport for. I got to the top level in the amateurs and got a silver medal [at the Olympics], and arguably – this is in the past – it should have been gold. I’ve had my setbacks, but I’m still here, I’m still live, and I’m still ‘The Juggernaut.”
Joyce has wins over former WBO champion Joseph Parker and former title challenger Daniel Dubois. Both victories give him great marks on his resume so despite two bad losses recently and his age, he can solidify his place in the title picture with a win on Saturday.
Chisora (34-13, 23 KO) is coming off a unanimous decision victory over Gerald Washington last August. He is 5-5 in his last 10 fights but at 40 years old has fought a who’s who of the heavyweight division. Will Saturday be his last fight?
“It’s a sad day for me that on Saturday. It’s hard to explain because I love the O2 so much and what a way to go out, at the O2 fighting Joe Joyce,” said Chisora.
He continued, “It’s going to be unbelievable. Don’t even sit down, just stay stand up because I’m going to come and find my man,” he said.
Joyce is just about the only heavyweight Chisora has not fought. “It’s been a long time. It’s been a lot of years. I was going to fight him a lot earlier,” he said.
“I was very surprised when the fight was announced for me to actually fight Chisora so I jumped at the opportunity. I think our styles will mesh very well. I’m coming for all the action and all the glory.”
Chisora is not going out quietly and had choice words for Joyce. ‘Compared to everybody I’ve boxed, I don’t lose sleep over you bro, so I’m not bothered. You’re nothing.”
Chisora is also a British fighter who has had many memorable battles in the country he grew up in. In his storied career he has fought the likes of Tyson Fury (thrice), Joseph Parker (twice), Oleksandr Usyk, Dillian Whyte, David Haye and Vitali Klitschko. He has key victories over Kubrat Pulev, Artur Szpilka, Carlos Takam, Kevin Johnson and Danny Williams. Despite the key wins thus far, Joyce could represent the biggest win of his long career.
UFC Denver Preview
The UFC is invading the Ball Arena in Denver, Colorado on Saturday July 13 for an action-packed card of fights. The main event will be in the women’s flyweight division between former two-time strawweight champion Rose Namajunas and #11 Tracy Cortez. Namajunas was originally scheduled to battle rising contender Maycee Barber, but Barber had to withdraw from the fight due to ongoing health issues.
Namajunas is coming off a unanimous decision victory over Amanda Ribas in March. The win was a big rebound after losing two straight fights in which she lost the strawweight title and her flyweight debut. Namajunas was excited to fight Barber after a not so friendly back and forth on social media.
“It’s just been a few interactions that I’ve had with her, or on social media a long time ago, just like silly stuff,” Namajunas said. “She posted a picture of me with my training partners and X’d out all of their faces and then circled my face and was like, ‘I’m coming for you next.’ I’m just like, ‘OK.’
The 32-year-old continued, “She always tries to say that by beating my training partners, [she thinks], ‘I know that broke her.’ You don’t know what could break me, because there’s a lot more that has to break me. I don’t have anything personal against her, but the competitor inside of me, it’s like, yeah, I really wanted to show her what’s up.”
Despite her intrigue in fighting Barber, she knows Cortez will not be an easy fight. “Definitely, fighting Maycee was super exciting at the time,” Namajunas said. “I was a little disappointed to find out the news, but now that it’s Tracy, it’s just different. I’m just as excited.
“I went through that process of being like, ‘Oh, man,’ and then as soon as they were working on Tracy, it took me a second, but once I made that transition, it took me a day to process it, and it was like, ‘Alright, this is what we’re doing.”
The former champion believes that a win over Cortez puts her in the title conversation at 125 pounds. “I’d say I’m right in that title contention talks [with a win],” Namajunas said. “God willing, I’m healthy, I’m in shape and I’m ready to go with a win and whatever opportunities they want to give me. I could see myself fighting for the belt really soon. So it’s just a matter of doing my job and fighting to the best of my abilities. And anything’s possible.”
Namajunas has already had a hall of fame worthy career, but a title in a second weight class can solidify her position as one of the greatest women’s fighters of all-time. In her storied career she has key victories over Zhang Weili (twice), Jessica Andrade, Joanna Jędrzejczyk (twice), Michelle Waterson, Tecia Torres, Paige VanZant, and Angela Hill.
Cortez has won 11 straight fights since losing her pro debut and is 5-0 in the UFC. She most recently defeated Jasmine Jasudavicius by unanimous decision in September. She will undoubtedly be facing the toughest test of her career on Saturday.
The 30-year-old talked about why she took this fight with Namajunas. “I’m a gamer,” Cortez said. “I’m not one to ever shy down from a challenge. I’m not ever one to say no to great opportunities. This is how the greats are made. This is how legends are made. To fight a former world champ, and have a call – I felt extremely blessed and jumped on it.”
Cortez continued, “I’m going to be blunt: It’s just a learning experience for me, this is all new to me. I’ve never taken a short-notice (fight), let alone against a former world champ. But I’m confident within myself and my skills. It was just everything else around me that I had to figure out. Everything went really smooth, actually incredibly smooth. I think I stressed myself out more than I should have.”
Despite the respect she has for Namajunas, Cortez believes she is the toughest fight Namajunas could have had at flyweight. “Who doesn’t love Rose? She’s an incredible person, but unfortunately, we are in the fighting business,” Cortez said. “She wants to move up to 125 and we’re going to face each other. Whether it’s now or down the road, it just happens to be now. I have nothing bad to say about Rose and if anything, I’m excited for this challenge and I’m grateful she took this fight with me.
“I want to say I’m a true 125er. Sh*t, I could even fight at 135 but I’m a real flyweight and I don’t think she’s yet to face someone like myself, and vice versa. I’ve never faced a former world champion, so it’s putting both of us in a good test.”
If Cortez wins on Saturday what is next for Cortez? “I really want to fight for the belt,” Cortez said. “I know there’s a lot of people ahead of me still. I know winning this fight, where it could move me to. And the performance I put on Saturday, I know everything that comes with it. If I get the opportunity and they grant me the opportunity to fight at the Sphere, I think it would be incredible history. Two Mexican women on Mexican Independence Day fighting on the biggest sport event ever. I think that would just be incredible. That’s something I never imaged and I feel like it’s just arm’s length. That is what I’m striving for, but at the end of the day, long-term goal, I am fighting for the belt.”
The rest of the main card:
170 lbs.: Santiago Ponzinibbio vs. Muslim Salikhov
155 lbs.: Drew Dober vs. Jean Silva
170 lbs.: Gabriel Bonfim vs. Ange Loosa
145 lbs.: Julian Erosa vs. Christian Rodriguez
185 lbs.: Abdul Razak Alhassan vs. Cody Brundage
ESPN+ Prelims:
125 lbs.: Charles Johnson vs. Joshua Van
125 lbs.: Fatima Kline vs. Jasmine Jasudavicius
135 lbs.: Da’Mon Blackshear vs. Montel Jackson
125 lbs.: Luana Santos vs. Mariya Agapova
185 lbs.: Josh Fremd vs. Andre Petroski
170 lbs.: Evan Elder vs. Darrius Flowers
UFC on ABC 6 Preview
The UFC is invading the Kingdom Arena in Riyadh, Saudi Arabia on Saturday, June 22 for UFC on ABC 6. The main event will be in the middleweight division between former champion #3 Robert Whittaker and rising prospect Ikram Aliskerov.
Whittaker was originally scheduled to face heavily hyped contender Khamzat Chimaev, but Chimaev withdrew from the fight due to illness. The winner of the fight was expected to be on the short list to challenge for the middleweight title, but what can be expected now? Does a win over an unranked opponent gain Whittaker a title shot or does it merely win the respect of the fans?
After rebounding well in his last fight against Paulo Costa, Whittaker reminded the middleweight division that he is still a threat to win back the title he once held. Whittaker won the title in 2017 with an impressive win over Yoel Romero, but he technically never defended the title after Romero missed weight in their rematch, making it a non-title fight. Whittaker won a disputed split decision in the non-title fight. He would then go on to lose the belt to Israel Adesanya in 2019.
Whittaker discussed not fighting Chimaev and preparing Aliskerov. “It was a stressful couple of hours while we were trying to find a new opponent, but once we got that locked in, it’s much the same,” Whittaker said.
“It’s another fight week, he brings the same level of threat as anybody else that I’ve had to fight. Let’s see what happens.”
The New Zealander continued, “As soon as I found out my opponent, I watched some fights to get an idea of what he’s going to bring to the table. In a lot of respects, he’s more dangerous than Chimaev, especially mentally wise because he has nothing to lose and everything to gain really. It’s a dangerous fight.
“He’s a strong, tough guy and he was ready to fight last week, so I expect nothing but a test, a war, a slugfest.”
Will Whittaker call for another scheduled fight with Chimaev? “I don’t really have a wish list of fights. They just happen. I just wish him all the best with his health.
“What we do is a job, a career, a sport. Outside of the octagon we’re just people and I wish him only the best.”
Whittaker discussed where he is at in his career in relation to another title shot. “You know what, I’m really enjoying my career thus far,” Whittaker said.
“It’s an exciting time to be a middleweight. I feel like I’m making a lot of ground and I’m really starting to hit my best strides now. Every day is a treat.”
While Chimaev is considered the most dangerous fighter in the middleweight division, Whittaker knows he will not have an easy fight on Saturday. “He wants to take my head off no less than Chimaev did,” Whittaker said.
“I train to beat everyone. Chimaev, Ikram, it doesn’t matter. I’m going to get in there and put on my best fight. I’m going to leave it all there.
“I’m going to go in there and hunt Ikram for 25 minutes, got to war, put on a slugfest and try and take his head off, then go home and spend time with my family. That’s all that matters for me.
“I having geared up ready to go make it an absolute slugfest, a war of a fight for 25 minutes.
“I know that with the approach of being the hunter in this fight, it’s not going to last that long. I’m going to hurt him and I’m going to hurt him until he can’t take anymore.”
With a win Whittaker will cement his place in the top three of the division for now. Ahead of him in the line is a fight between champion Dricus du Plessis and former champion Adesanya. Former champ Sean Strickland is coming off a win and expected to be in line ahead of Whittaker as well.
Aside from Costa and Romero, Whittaker has key wins in his career over Marvin Vettori, Kelvin Gastelum, Jared Connonier, Darren Till, Ronaldo Souza, Derek Brunson, Uriah Hall and Brad Tavares.
Aliskerov is 2-0 in the UFC and is coming off an impressive first round TKO victory over Warlley Alves at UFC 294. He will be facing the toughest test of his career on Saturday but could send a shockwave through the middleweight division with a win.
The Dagestani fighter commented on accepting this fight on short notice. "This is what we do,We’re fighters. This is our sport. This is our life. I even put it on my Instagram, ‘Anyone, anywhere, at any time.’ It’s the type of motto I live by and you have to live by it if you want to fight on the top level. I was ready for this. I don’t care if it was five rounds or 10 rounds, you have to be ready for anything being thrown your way and that’s what I live by,” Aliskerov said.
He believes he was meant to have this fight. "The way I was speaking to Ali, my manager, is the way it sounded is the UFC kind of expected me to have this fight. They think I’m ready, that I’m that level of an opponent that I should be accepting this fight. I think that’s great. It makes me think that the UFC values me. They know what I’m worth. They know what I’m capable of, so I think it’s right that I’m a tougher matchup.”
The 31-year-old commented on Whittaker’s claim that he did not know who he was until saying yes to the fight. “I think he was lying,” Aliskerov said. “I’m sure he rewatched my fight with Khamzat a million times because he was preparing for him. I think [he’ll remember my name]. He’ll have to fight me for five rounds. After I took the fight, I called Khabib [Nurmagomedov]. He said, ‘You can’t miss these chances. You have to fly here, sweat for two-three days.’ We discussed [the fight], but I won’t get into it.”
While he accepted the fight on short notice, Aliskerov was already in camp expecting to fight Atonio Trocolio on June 15. Despite the step up in competition, physically speaking Aliskerov should not be impacted by saying yes to a big fight on short notice. A convincing win could catapult Aliskerov into the top 10 and put him in position to be fighting in a title eliminator.
The rest of the main card:
Heavyweight - #3 Sergei Pavlovich vs. #5 Alexander Volkov
Middleweight - Kelvin Gastelum vs. Daniel Rodriguez
Middleweight - Sharabutdin Magomedov vs. Antonio Trocoli
Light Heavyweight - #7 Johnny Walker vs. #9 Volkan Oezdemir
ESPN + Prelims:
Lightweight - Nasrat Haqparast vs. Jared Gordon
Featherweight - Muhammad Naimov vs. Felipe Lima
Welterweight - Rinat Fakhretdinov vs. Nicolas Dalby
Bantamweight - Kang Kyung-ho vs. Muin Gafurov
Light Heavyweight - Magomed Gadzhiyasulov vs. Brendson Ribeiro
Bantamweight - Xiao Long vs. Lee Chang-ho
UFC 302 Preview
The UFC will be returning to the Prudential Center in Newark, New Jersey on Saturday, June 1 for UFC 302. The main event will be for the lightweight title as champion Islam Makhachev will defend against former interim champion #4 Dustin Poirier.
Makhachev has won 13 straight fights and is coming off two successful title defenses against former featherweight champion Alexander Volkanovski. He most recently defeated Volkanovski by a devastating first round KO at UFC 294 in October.
The champion confidently reflected on Poirier’s first title shot back in 2019 against his mentor Khabib Nurmagomedov. “Honestly, he’s the same,” Makhachev said. “Maybe [he’s older]. He doesn’t believe he can beat me. His coach doesn’t believe he can beat me. I know I can make this fight easy.
“I will finish him. Because I am on a different level. I am the best fighter in the world right now.”
Makhachev does not believe Poirier has the skills to defeat him. “Honestly, my style is the worst style for him,” Makhachev said. “He can beat some strikers. He’s one of the best strikers in this game, but we’re not strikers. We’re MMA fighters. My skills are on a different level.
“I can strike with him, but I told you guys, if I want to make this fight easy, I know the way and everybody [else] know the way. Always when his opponent pressure him, take him down, he has the same problems always.”
Despite the confidence, Makhachev does have respect for the legacy that Poirier has built. “I hope he [doesn’t] retire after this fight,” Makhachev said of Poirier. “I think he’s one of the biggest names in the sport. That’s why I respect him. I respect him because he has a lot of crazy fights in this sport. Just happy to beat someone who has a big name like Dustin. For the legacy, it’s going to be maybe the biggest name on my list.”
The 32-year-old commented on the rumors that he will be moving to welterweight with a win on Saturday. “Honestly, I think it's my opinion, (I’m) almost done with my division because who is going to be next? Just Arman (Tsarukyan),” he said. “I already beat (him), and, in my division, I don't have some interesting fight (or) too exciting fights for me. We have Dustin right now. This guy is a legend. It's a very good fight for my legacy. I will finish him, and I just will wait for the next go.”
Makhachev wants to put on a show in Newark. “Fans always want to see the finish,” he said. “It's what I will try to do in beating Dustin Poirier.”
Poirier is coming off a second round KO of Benoit Saint Denis at UFC 299 in March. The win was a big rebound after being KO’d in a rematch with Justin Gaethje for the BMF belt in 2023. The 35-year-old has twice challenged for the lightweight title but lost by third round submission in both attempts.
Does he believe the third time’s the charm? "I can definitely win this fight," Poirier said. "If I touch his chin, he'll go down. He'll find that out on Saturday. Maybe that's something he doesn't need to believe. Maybe he needs to be positive and confident walking into this, which he should be, but if you don't think I have a chance to win you're lying to yourself."
"Over the years, if there's anything I've learned fighting is like the media, my opponents, their camps, the critics don't matter. It's in my hands," Poirier continued. "I'm the only guy who has the opportunity to make this happen, or whatever decisions I make under those lights on Saturday, I'm the guy in the driver's seat. All these other guys talking are passengers, or in the backseat. I steer where this goes."
Poirier commented on the rumors that this could be his final fight. "It could be (my last fight). It could be. I haven't made like an official decision yet, but it could be," he said. "I've said this over and over again. I still have a lot of tread on the tired. I can beat these guys. I can beat these young guys. I just did it. I still feel good. My body feels good, but it's just like how much do I want to give to this sport because you don't ride for free."
The only thing missing from Poirier’s resume is being undisputed champion. He commented,
“I have a UFC title, that says ‘world champion’ with my name on it, in my living room,” Poirier said. “I hold that belt up high because Max [Holloway], when I beat him for that belt, was on a 12-fight win streak. He was the current featherweight champion at the time. So it’s not like I pulled the name out of a hat and beat somebody for an interim title because the champ couldn’t fight.”
“It’s up there, but it’s not undisputed,” Poirier adds. “That’s the last spot. What else can I do in this sport?”
He concluded, “It’s not about the money. It’s not about the Hall of Fame, any records. It’s about me accomplishing something,” said Poirier of his motivation. “It’s not about business; it’s a personal thing that, I think if I can get it done, I can look back and say, ‘You know, I’m content. I’m proud of everything I did. I set a goal out as a kid that knew nothing about what I was walking into, but I kept walking about picking myself up, and I got it done.”
Poirier has been fighting in the UFC since 2011 and has key victories over Micheal Chandler, Conor McGregor (twice), Dan Hooker, Max Holloway (twice), Eddie Alvarez, Justin Gaethje, Anthony Pettis, Jim Miller and Bobby Green. Despite all of the success, a win over Makhachev who is heavily favored would be the biggest victory of his hall of fame career.
The co-main event of the evening will be in the middleweight division between former champion #1 Sean Strickland and former title challenger #7 Paulo Costa.
Strickland is trying to rebound from a loss in his first title defense against Dricus du Plessis at UFC 297 in January. Strickland lost a controversial split decision in a fight that many people thought he won. Strickland won the title with a unanimous decision victory over middleweight great Israel Adesanya in the biggest upset of 2023.
The former champion commented on his last fight and why he took a fight with Costa. At the end of the day, I know I won my last fight,” he said. “I got f***ed… I mean, obviously, I want the title fight, but, at the end of the day, I'm a fighter. I'm a prize fighter. So, you give me money, I fight, but that's what I want. That needs to happen.”
Strickland expects a brutal battle with Costa. “I think we're in a war,” Strickland said. “I think it's going to be a five-round war. We'll see how his cardio holds up. I know he has an issue with that. Hopefully he f***ing trained hard and he's doing the right things and preparing for our death match.”
With a win at UFC 302 it would be fair to say Strickland’s next fight should be for the title. There have been talks of du Plessis making his first title defense against Adesanya, but with a convincing win over Costa it would be difficult to deny Strickland his shot.
Costa is trying to rebound from a unanimous decision loss to former champion Robert Whittaker at UFC 298 in February. The Brazilian is 1-2 since losing a title fight to Adesanya back in 2020, but he feels the best he has felt in recent years.
“After (my last) fight, I was feeling good with no injuries. I didn’t hurt, so why not?” Costa said. “Why not keep the process, not lose all the work I did for that fight and just keep the progress, keep the work? So we did that and we had a great match. First, it was against Cannonier and then it changed for Strickland. So why not? I’m feeling good, in shape and we’ve got this great opportunity.”
The 33-year-old talked about the title picture and where a win over Strickland puts him. “I think once he already beat (Israel) Adesanya, if Adesanya beat Dricus (Du Plessis), I think and if Sean beats me, he’s going to be the next. But let’s see. You never know. I have a beef with Adesanya, as well, and against Chimaev. Anything can happen. Let’s see Saturday. I think who delivers better is going to step in front. It depends how the fight is going to be. If I knock out him in great style Saturday. If the fight in Saudi Arabia is not so good, we can be in front. It depends on how we’re going to perform.”
A victory over Strickland will remind the middleweight division and the MMA world why Costa was once the most hyped fighter at 185 pounds and challenged for the middleweight title.
The rest of the main card:
Middleweight - #15 Kevin Holland vs. Michał Oleksiejczuk
Welterweight - Niko Price vs. Alex Morono
Welterweight - Randy Brown vs. Elizeu Zaleski dos Santos
ESPN+ Prelims:
Middleweight - César Almeida vs. Roman Kopylov
Heavyweight - #7 Jailton Almeida vs. #13 Alexander Romanov
Lightweight - Grant Dawson vs. Joe Solecki
Welterweight - Philip Rowe vs. Jake Matthews
ESPN+/UFC Fight Pass Early Prelims:
Welterweight - Mickey Gall vs. Bassil Hafez
Women's Bantamweight - Ailín Pérez vs. Joselyne Edwards
Flyweight - Mitch Raposo vs. André Lima
Navarrete vs. Berinchyk Preview
The vacant WBO lightweight title will be on the line at the Pechanga Arena in San Diego, California on Saturday May 18. Former three division champion Emanuel Navarrete will battle undefeated Denys Berinchyk.
Navarrete (38-1-1, 31 KO) is trying to win a title in his fourth weight class after scoring a majority draw to defend the WBO junior lightweight title in his last fight against Robson Conceicao. He is also the former WBO featherweight and WBO junior featherweight champion. The 29-year-old has already achieved plenty with nine total title defenses, but a win on Saturday will put him in pound for pound status.
The Mexican fighter had to have hand surgery after his last fight but is ready to prove he has recovered and is ready for big fights at 135 pounds. “We've worked hard to get here,” Navarrete said. “We'll be looking for those fights, without a doubt. There is a desire for those high-level fights. I feel like I need that in my career and that last vote of confidence and acceptance. Those fights will give me that. My work speaks for itself. I feel good, calm, strong, and confident.”
Navarrete commented on his last fight. “We know that I have some deficiencies in my last fight. My hand did hurt, and that's a fact, but that's OK,” said Navarrete. “Some things held me back, but it's OK. I am 100 percent now. And I am going to be like before, only a new Vaquero, and a new hand. With a more ferocious mentality, I am going to put myself in the best position at 135 pounds.”
Despite his confidence, Navarrete knows he is in for a tough fight on Saturday. “He's dangerous,” said Navarrete. “He's going to come with a lot of hunger and we are going to have to try and take care of that.”
Berinchyk (18-0, 9 KO) is coming off a unanimous decision win over Anthony Yigit last August. The 35-year-old Ukrainian had an extensive amateur career, winning a silver medal in the 2011 World Championships and silver in the 2012 Olympic games.
Amid his first major title fight, Berinchyk is fighting for more than himself. “[Navarrete] is a strong and experienced opponent,” Berinchyk said. “We are highly motivated and working hard to bring the title to Ukraine. The world can’t forget about our country’s struggle, so our victory in the ring is of great importance not just for my career and Ukrainian boxing, but also for the people of Ukraine. We do our best to make the world stand with Ukraine!”
He is excited to be joining his fellow Ukrainian Oleksandr Usyk in a title fight on the same night. “It’s the first time in Ukrainian history when two compatriots, two brothers are fighting for the world titles,” he said proudly. “Big day for Ukrainian boxing.”
Berinchyk is grateful for the opportunity to fight for a title. “I’m here and I have a possibility to fight for the world title first of all because of Ukrainian defenders,” clearly appreciative of his fellow Ukrainian’s efforts. “These are the one’s who gave me an opportunity to arrange a safe training camp and prepare myself for the upcoming fight.”
The main card can be seen at 9:00pm ET on ESPN+
Fury vs. Usyk Preview
For the first time since 1999 the undisputed heavyweight championship will be on the line at the Kingdom Arena in Riyadh, Saudi Arabia on Saturday May 18. Tyson Fury and Oleksandr Usyk will battle for heavyweight boxing supremacy.
Fury (34-0-1, 24 KO) is the WBC and Lineal champion, and he most recently won a controversial split decision over former MMA champion Francis Ngannou. He managed to outbox Ngannou after being knocked down in the third round, but many pundits believe he did not do enough to win.
Even though many critics did not see the upside of a fight with Ngannou, Fury is not one to run from a challenge. With a win on Saturday, a rematch with Ngannou would have been coveted by the fans, but Ngannou was knocked out by Anthony Joshua in March. So a rematch between Fury and Ngannou is unlikely. Which means the only options are Usyk again or finally a fight with fellow Brit Anthony Joshua.
The fight with Usyk was originally scheduled in February, but Fury had to withdraw due to a bad cut from sparring. How does he feel about the fight now? "It's the fight of the century," said Fury. "[An undisputed heavyweight championship fight] has never happened this century before, and we're looking forward to putting on a fantastic show."
Boxing analysts argued that Fury was out of shape for the Ngannou fight. Is he focused on the fight of the century? "I'm always focused, up for a fight," Fury said, "and it's the reason I've been undefeated in 16 years."
Will Fury be the best heavyweight of all-time with a win over Usyk? "I'm not really interested in all that," Fury said. "[It will] establish me as a mega, uber-rich heavyweight who can feed his family and give them whatever they want for breakfast, dinner and tea."
How does Fury feel about Usyk? “I respect Usyk as a man,” said Fury.
“I respect his career as well. I’m fighting the real deal. He’s got good footwork, good boxing ability, technically sound.
“He’s proved he can mix it with the big heavyweights because he’s beat Anthony Joshua and Daniel Dubois. I’m messing with an elite fighter.”
The 35-year-old British fighter has key wins in his career over Derek Chisora (twice), Dillian Whyte, Deontay Wilder (twice), Otto Wallin, Wladimir Klitschko and Christian Hammer. He is widely considered the best heavyweight of his era and despite what he thinks he could be considered the best heavyweight of all-time with a win over Usyk. The greatest of all-time conversation sparks a great debate, but if Fury is to be considered in the conversation, even with a win over Usyk I believe he needs to fight Anthony Joshua to complete his legacy.
Usyk (21-0, 14 KO) is the WBA (Super), IBF, WBO and IBO champion and he most recently defeated Daniel Dubois by ninth round KO last August. The win came after being knocked down and unable to get to his feet for a few minutes after Dubois landed what seemed like a legal body shot, but shortly after was ruled a low blow by the referee. Usyk was able to recover and dominate the fight, but it did once again bring to light what seems to be his one weakness, shots to the body.
The Ukrainian fighter knows he is in for a tough fight with Fury. “To win this, I don’t need to be heavy, I need to be fast, and quick,” Usyk said.
“You never see a fat wolf in the forest.”
Usyk explained what motivates him. “I fight for legacy, not money,” he said.
“Heavyweight boxing has not had this kind of fight since 1999. I know the history.”
Fury is known for trash talking his opponents, but Usyk does think it has worked on him. “I sit in his head like a little tractor driver.”
The 37-year-old will be fighting for an entire nation on Saturday. Promoter Alexander Krassyuk explained, “Usyk is the real inspiration for Ukraine, for the guys on the front line”.
“When he speaks, these words inspire the Ukrainian people and the soldiers to fight the enemy and to have courage.”
“Usyk is not fighting for himself any more.”
The champion returned to his home country after the Russian invasion and spent time on the front lines. He explained it was his fellow soldiers that convinced him to return to the ring. “The guys from the armed forces convinced me that I need to prepare and fight to help my country on the international stage, talk about it and bring opportunities to Ukraine to restore my country,” Usyk said.
Usyk was a unified cruiserweight champion, and his critics still believe he is too small for heavyweight, despite having two wins over Anthony Joshua. He gives up a ton of size to Fury, but he has proven that does not impact his ability to strategically break down his opponents. Fury’s gameplan could be to punish Usyk to the body, but at what cost?
An Usyk win would put him in the best heavyweight of his era conversation and would set up a highly anticipated rematch with Fury. Fury has always responded well following a questionable performance. Media coverage leading up to the fight has proven that he is in much better shape than he was against Ngannou. Usyk’s sample size at heavyweight is small, but he has proven that as a boxer he could be Fury’s match.
The main card can be seen 12:00pm ET on PPV
UFC Vegas 92 Preview
The UFC is returning to the Apex in Las Vegas, Nevada for UFC Vegas 92 on Saturday May 18. The main event will be in the featherweight division between veteran #12 Edson Barboza and undefeated contender #14 Lerone Murphy.
Barboza has won two straight fights having most recently defeated Sodiq Yusuff by unanimous decision in October. The Brazilian has become known by UFC fans as a dangerous knockout artist, but the 38-year-old is 5-5 in his last 10 fights. Despite his recent inconsistencies, he has been fighting in the UFC since 2010 and has won 18 fights with nine coming by TKO.
With a win on Saturday, Barboza has big plans. “If one guy deserves to fight for the BMF title, it’s me,” Barboza said. “Who has better highlight knockouts than me? Bro, imagine. I love Max Holloway, he’s one of my favorite fighters ever. I love to watch him fight, and he’s a very nice guy, very family guy, but imagine a fight against him for the BMF belt.”
He continued, “It’s going to be very, very good for me and him and the company. Like I said, I have 30 fights in the UFC. I think I deserve that. Of course, my focus is 100 percent on the next one, but I think it’s going to be good.”
Barboza explained it is his appreciation for BMF champion Max Holloway that is driving him to want the fight. “Bro, like I said, I love him,” Barboza said. “I loved to watch the whole fight. He showed heart. He’s a great striker. He played everywhere. He’s definitely one of my favorite fighters ever to watch. I think that he’s one of the best ever, and it’s going to be a pleasure sharing the octagon with him.”
When Holloway won the BMF belt it opened exciting options at both featherweight and lightweight with higher ranked fighters. Perhaps he will entertain the idea of a fight with Barboza if the Brazilian gets another massive knockout win over Murphy. Barboza must stay focused on Saturday’s opponent and not look ahead to Holloway, because Murphy has proven he is incredibly dangerous.
Barboza has key wins in his extensive career over Shane Burgos, Dan Hooker, Beneil Dariush, Gilbert Melendez, Anthony Pettis, Paul Felder and Bobby Green. Another win over a rising contender will remind the featherweight division that even at 38 years old, Barboza is not a steppingstone.
Murphy has won five straight fights since scoring a split draw against Zubaira Tukhugov at UFC 242 in 2019. He most recently won a unanimous decision over Joshua Culibao last July. The 32-year-old was excited to be offered a fight with Barboza.
"My first thoughts were, ‘wow, this is my opportunity, this is my breakthrough'," said Murphy.
"It was literally a text from the matchmaker wanting me to fight Barboza - five rounds. I thought, 'this is my time to shine now'.”
Murphy has dealt with near death experiences which have helped him prepare for the biggest fight of his life. In 2013 he almost lost his life after being shot in the face outside a barbers in Manchester, England and then in 2022 he was nearly killed again after being hit by a car while on his bicycle.
“Everything happens for a reason to put you on to a better path, and I feel like now is the time," he said.
"If I got this fight three years ago, maybe I wouldn't have been ready, but now I feel ready."
The English fighter knows what a win over Barboza will do for him. "I have to put on a performance, there's no two ways about it," said Murphy.
"One, for my own safety. And two, they've put me in the main event now, so there's no messing about. You can't be in no boring fights. I want this opportunity again.
"The big thing is fighting Edson Barbosa. He’s a legend of the sport and a dangerous fighter. That's what excites me and that's going to bring the best out of me."
The rest of the main event:
Welterweight - Khaos Williams vs. Carlston Harris
Welterweight - Themba Gorimbo vs. Ramiz Brahimaj
Bantamweight - Adrian Yanez vs. Vinicius Salvador
Women's Strawweight - #9 Luana Pinheiro vs. #12 Angela Hill
ESPN+ Prelims:
Light Heavyweight - Oumar Sy vs. Tuco Tokkos
Lightweight - Victor Martinez vs. Tom Nolan
Women's Bantamweight - Tamires Vidal vs. Melissa Gatto
Middleweight - Abus Magomedov vs. Warlley Alves
Women's Strawweight - Piera Rodriguez vs. Ariane Carnelossi
Flyweight - Alateng Heili vs. Kleydson Rodrigues
Women's Strawweight - Vanessa Demopoulos vs. Emily Ducote
UFC St. Louis Preview
The UFC will be heading back to the Enterprise Center in St. Louis, MO for just the second time in history on Saturday, March 11. The main event will be in the heavyweight division between fan-favorite #12 Derrick Lewis and surging prospect #15 Rodrigo Nascimento.
Since challenging for the heavyweight title in 2018, Lewis has gone 6-6 and most recently lost to Jailton Almeida by unanimous decision in November. The 39-year-old has learned to rebound from losses by completing highlight reel KO’s which makes him being a must-see fighter to fans, even if his title contender days may have passed him by.
However, Lewis does not think his best days are behind him. “I’m more excited about this fight than any other fight I’ve ever had,” Lewis said. “I trained my butt off for this one, and I don’t have no injuries coming into this fight. I’m feeling healthy. I’m less than 10 pounds away from making my weight already. And usually I’m like 15 pounds, 20 pounds before weigh-ins. I’m less than 10 pounds right now from making weight.
“I’m feeling great right now. I actually really feel like this is my prime. Whenever I was in my 20s, early 30s, I didn’t feel this good. Now I’m feeling fantastic right now.”
The Houston native says he has a surprise in store for the St. Louis crowd. “I want to do something special. I’ve been working on it on my in my garage. My coach don’t know nothing about this. So, what I’m about to throw out the first minute of my fight, my coach don’t have nothing to do with it. So, if you all see me throw something crazy, just know it wasn’t my coaches idea. It’s my idea. That’s how good I’m feeling right now.”
Lewis may have something planned for the fight on Saturday, but he also has plans on something more outside of the octagon. He answered online rumors swirling around the idea of him joining the WWE. “Yeah, we are actually in talks right now and we’ve been talking for a few months now. I was supposed to go down there in February to check everything out,” Lewis said.
While he has never become a champion, Lewis has had a storied career in the UFC. His start for the company dates back to 2014 and he has collected key victories over Gabriel Gonzaga, Roy Nelson, Travis Browne, Marcin Tybura, Francis Ngannou, Alexander Volkov, Blagoy Ivanov, Aleksei Oleinik, Curtis Blaydes, and Marcos Rogerio de Lima. He already has the UFC record for knockouts with 14, another KO on Saturday will solidify his position as the greatest knockout artist in UFC heavyweight division history.
Nascimento has won three straight fights and most recently defeated Don’Tale Mayes by unanimous decision in November. Since making his debut in 2020 he has gone 4-1-1 in the UFC. The Brazilian is confident heading into the fight with Lewis on Saturday.
“I have many ways to beat him,” Nascimento said. “Putting him on the ground is just one more way. I can strike, I can knock him out. I can finish him, or I can fight all five rounds.”
He continued, “For sure, he has a big name,” Nascimento said. “He has a good name and good hype on him, but after this Saturday, everyone is going to know my name because I will beat him.”
The 31-year-old is ready to perform in his first main event. “This is my first main event, that’s too different. Too different for sure. The preparation is hard. I’m gonna fight five rounds. I am ready, I am excited you know. I am ready for Saturday. For sure, it will be a big win,” he said.
Nascimento knows what a win over a name such as Lewis does for him. “This fight is super important for me. I always see that your next fight is always the most important fight. This guy is the next step to enter the top 10 for me. Everything I think now is him & Everything I know now is him. I will beat him.”
This fight will be a step up in challenge for Nascimento. Even though he is fighting a 39-year-old version of Derrick Lewis, he cannot underestimate the power, or it could be a short night for him. For Lewis, if he can minimize the grappling exchanges and stay off his back, he has the clear advantage on the feet.
The co-main event of the evening will be in the welterweight division between St. Louis native #11 Joaquin Buckley and Nursulton Ruziboev.
Buckley campaigned hard for a main event spot on the card in his hometown. He even crashed the UFC 300 press conference last month begging to be on the card from the stands. His viral moment even made UFC president Dana White smile. While he was added to the card late and did not get the main event spot, Buckley gets his wish to perform in front of his people in St. Louis.
The 30-year-old has won three straight having most recently defeated long-time contender Vicente Luque by second round TKO in March. He expressed his excitement to be fighting in St. Louis.
“I haven't fought here since 2018, and now to be fighting on the biggest promotion on the planet right at home and getting exactly what I asked for,” Buckley said. “We didn't get the main event, but still, co-main is just as nice and I'm excited to get this knockout.”
Buckley is ready to put on a show. “I feel like I'm bringing the fans out for this one,” Buckley said. “I think a lot of people, even though they're excited to see Derrick Lewis and excited to see all the other fighters, I think I'm kind of boosting up the numbers a little bit for this one.”
While Luque represents his biggest win and a spot in the rankings, he is taking things one fight at a time. “It means a lot to me that I'm able to be a ranked fighter now, and it gets me closer to that title,” Buckley said. “Every fight has its own rewards to it. I’m not looking back in the past with having that fight with Vicente; I'm blessed with it, and I'm blessed with that win. Now we're looking at Nursulton, who's now trying to take my spot, and I just got it. We're going to stop him from doing that.”
How does he feel about his opponent? “He's a big boy, 6'5, could have been an NBA player if he wanted to be,” Buckley said. “I don't know how his game is on the court, but regardless, though, I got to respect him. He has a lot of finishes in his career, and, of course, me, I'm a knockout artist as well, so this fight is not going to the judges, obviously.”
The St. Louis native knows how important a win in this fight could be for his career. “I think this is going to be the one that kind of blows me up,” Buckley said. “I think this is the one that actually takes my career to the next level and makes me skip some spots. A good performance over Nursulton and what he brings and what he has to offer, I feel like the UFC is definitely going to reward me after this.”
Ruziboev is 2-0 in the UFC and is coming off a first round TKO of Sedrique Dumas in March. The Uzbekistan native has fought his most recent fights at middleweight and has the clear size advantage over Buckley.
The 30-year-old talked about dropping down to welterweight for a big fight with Buckley. “Welterweight is my natural weight and I see myself going far in this division,” said Ruziboev. “I cut almost no weight at middleweight, so when the opportunity came, it was a no brainer for me to go down a weight class and take this fight.
“I want to fight in both weight classes,” he added, sharing his ideal vision for how things will work going forward. “If they need a short notice fight at middleweight, I will take it for sure, but for now I want to focus on welterweight.”
Ruziboev talked about his opponent. “Buckley is a very good fighter,” began the divisional debutant. “Fundamentally he is a striker, but we have seen him wrestle in fights before. I will be ready for all situations for this fight. I like this matchup because it’s at welterweight, both of us are strikers, and I like striking fights; they are exciting for the fans.”
He continued by addressing fighting in hostile territory against Buckley. “I have fought in my opponent’s hometown before and this is nothing new to me,” he added when asked about going from having tremendous support in Atlantic City to battling Buckley on his home turf this weekend. “Of course, I like when I have people who come and support me, but if not, then no problem, because inside the Octagon there is only two people.”
Despite fighting in the biggest fight of his career, Ruziboev has big plans for the night and beyond. “I’m prepared for three rounds, but I know I will finish this guy in the first round, Inshallah,” he said confidently. “Now I will finish my next opponent and crack the Top 15 rankings, (and) from Top 15, the title is not too far away. I have big plans in this company.
"After this fight, I want to fight at UFC 302 (on) June 1 in Newark.”
The rest of the main card:
Light Heavyweight - #11 Alonzo Menifield vs. Carlos Ulberg
Lightweight - Carlos Diego Ferreira vs. Mateusz Rębecki
Featherweight - #15 Alex Caceres vs. Sean Woodson
Heavyweight Waldo Cortes-Acosta vs. Robelis Despaigne
ESPN + prelims:
Lightweight - Chase Hooper vs. Viacheslav Borshchev
Lightweight - Terrance McKinney vs. Esteban Ribovics
Women's Strawweight - Tabatha Ricci vs. Tecia Pennington
Welterweight - Billy Goff vs. Trey Waters
Flyweight - Charles Johnson vs. Jake Hadley
Welterweight - Jared Gooden vs. Kevin Jousset
Women's Flyweight - JJ Aldrich vs. Veronica Hardy
Canelo vs. Munguia Preview
The T-Mobile Arena in Las Vegas, Nevada will host a night of dynamic fights on Saturday, May 4th. Two title fights and two interim title fights will be on a card headlined by a showdown for the undisputed super middleweight championship between champion Canelo Alvarez and former light middleweight champion Jaime Munguia.
Alvarez (60-2-2, 39 KO) has won three straight fights since unsuccessfully challenging for the WBA (Super) light heavyweight title against Dmitry Bivol in 2022. He most recently defeated Jermell Charlo by unanimous decision in September to retain his super middleweight titles.
The Mexican fighter has found himself embroiled in a conflict with former promoter Oscar De La Hoya. The two had a heated back and forth at Wednesday’s press conference where De La Hoya was supposed to be promoting Munguia, but instead used the opportunity to take shots at Alvarez.
Alvarez said of De La Hoya, "If I hadn't involved my lawyers, you would steal [money] from me," Alvarez told De La Hoya. "The only thing this man does is be a scourge of boxing. Steal from boxers. For whoever is with him, please contact your lawyers, because he is surely stealing from you. It's the only thing he comes to do in boxing,” he said.
"And the only thing he comes to do is steal attention from Jaime Munguia," Alvarez said, "he doesn't come to promote him."
As far as how Alvarez feels about the fight. "I'm so anxious to come Saturday night and just win in a fashionable way," Alvarez said.
The press conference was the first time Canelo and De La Hoya have been on a stage together, despite Alvarez having fought eight times since parting ways with the promotion. Is this the type of energy Canelo needs before a big fight with a younger proven champion?
Alvarez is in the top 10 pound for pound fighters in the world, a list where he once found himself at the top. The 33-year-old has already had an illustrious career with key victories over Gennady Golovkin (twice), Caleb Plant, Billy Joe Saunders, Sergey Kovalev, Daniel Jacobs, Miguel Cotto, Austin Trout, Shane Mosley and Kermit Cintron.
With a win Canelo will have plenty of options as far as his next fight goes. Names such as David Benavidez and Jermall Charlo have been thrown around. But what the boxing world truly needs to see is a showdown with pound for pound number one, Terence Crawford. Alvarez will not have an easy fight with Munguia, so he cannot overlook his fellow countrymen.
Munguia (43-0, 34 KO) is coming off a ninth round TKO over John Ryder in January. He is the former WBO light middleweight champion having won the belt at just 21 years of age. He defended the belt five times with key wins over Dennis Hogan, Takeshi Inoue and Liam Smith. He will without a doubt be facing the toughest test of his career on Saturday.
The Mexican fighter has shown Alvarez plenty of respect leading up to the fight. “I have nothing against Canelo; he has never done anything to me,” Munguia said. “I think we’re both categorized as two very respectful fighters.
“You’re going to get to see the action inside the ring, that’s the most important thing. It will be a great, exciting fight. It’s a fight where you’re going to see a lot of punches landed, and there will be great action for the fans.”
Munguia continued to talk about Alvarez and fighting at super middleweight. “Canelo is a very experienced fighter who has fought in many world championship bouts,” he said. “You have to watch out for everything. He can box, he can fight inside, he can fight in the middle of the ring.
“I feel great at 168. To be honest with you, I was having trouble making 160, and now, at 168, I feel right at home — fits like a glove. I’m using my youth and my vigor to get stronger every day. I’m training as hard as I can to be ready for May 4.”
Is he ready for a battle? “It’s going to be something great, something momentous for my career and for the fans who will be watching” said Munguia. “I can’t wait and I’m really excited.”
Also on the card is a fight for the WBC interim featherweight title between champion Brandon Figueroa and challenger Jesse Magdaleno.
Figueroa (24-1-1, 18 KO) won the belt in his last fight by unanimous decision over Mark Magsayo last March.
The 27-year-old is the former WBA (regular) and WBC super bantamweight champion, and he defended the WBA belt five times. Aside from Magsayo, he has key victories over Luis Nery and Moises Flores. He will have the opportunity to prove his championship value with a win over another former champion on Saturday.
Magdaleno (29-2, 18 KO) is trying to rebound from a loss by unanimous decision to Raymond Ford last April. He is the former WBO junior featherweight champion and defended the belt once. The 32-year-old can now can be a champion once again but will have his hands full with Figueroa.
A third title fight will be highlighted as Mario Barrios will defend his WBC interim welterweight title against Fabian Andres Maidana.
Barrios (28-2, 18 KO) won the belt in his last fight with a unanimous decision victory over Yordenis Ugas in September. He is also the WBA (Regular) super lightweight champion.
Maidana (18-1, 13 KO) will be fighting for the first time since 2021 where he won by unanimous decision victory over Carlos Cordoba. The 31-year-old has been sidelined by injuries and Covid, but will be fighting for his first major title on Saturday.
The fourth and final title fight will be for the WBA (Regular) welterweight title between champion Eimantas Stanionis and challenger Gabriel Maestre.
Stanionis (14-0-1, 9 KO) has not fought since April of 2022, but he won the belt with a split decision over Radzhab Butaev. The Lithuanian scored the biggest victory of his career in his last fight but will now face a different challenge in Maestre who is on a mission to win a title while he still has time.
Maestre (6-0-1, 5 KO) is coming off a second round TKO over Travon Marshall last August. The 37-year-old had an extensive amateur career where he represented Venezuela in two Olympic games. He will now have the chance to prove he is a championship caliber professional boxer.
UFC 301 Preview
The UFC will be invading the Farmasi Arena in Rio de Janeiro, Brazil for UFC 301 on Saturday May 4th. The main event will be for the flyweight title between Brazilian champion Alexandre Pantoja and #10 Steve Erceg.
Pantoja defended the belt for the first time in his last fight where he won by unanimous decision victory over Brandon Royval at UFC 296. The Brazilian has won five straight fights and is looking to make his home country proud against a surging contender.
Pantoja is ready to defend the belt once again. “This is my time,” said Pantoja. “I want to beat the best. That’s what I’m doing.”
The 34-year-old is fighting for more than just himself. “I fight for my family, and I fight to represent the entire division,” said Pantoja. “I want to support my division. Flyweights are so much better than people realize. This division deserves the main event.”
How does Pantoja see the fight going? “Kill or die, that’s how I’m approaching this fight,” said Pantoja. “He is good enough to beat me. He’s going to fight with his heart and soul. But I’m still hungry.”
Pantoja won the belt after a hard-fought battle with two-time champion Brandon Moreno at UFC 290. The MMA world saw the fight as his arrival as not only a skilled fighter, but one that can withstand a war inside the octagon.
The champion believes he still has something to prove. “Fighting makes me feel free,” said Pantoja. “I keep telling myself I’m not the champion. I need to go out there and earn it. This is my chance to prove I’m the best in the world.”
Aside from wins over Royval (twice) and Moreno (twice), Pantoja has key wins over Alex Perez, Manel Kape, Matt Schnell, and Wilson Reis. He will have his hands full with Erceg who is big for the flyweight division and has proven he has one-punch knockout power.
After just three fights in the UFC, Erceg will be fighting for a title. He proved to the division that he is one to be feared after a one-punch second round knockout over Matt Schnell in his last fight in March.
How does the Australian feel about getting a title shot so quickly? “I know I wasn’t at the top of everyone’s mind when it came to a title shot,” Ergec said. “But just the way the division was with Pantoja already beating all the challengers, people are injured and the only other guy up for the shot was (Muhammad) Mokaev, I was on the same card as him, and I had a more exciting fight than him, (so) UFC decided to give me the shot.
“I’m here to be the best guy in the world, so whether I’m an underdog or favorite, it doesn’t matter to me. I’m going in there to fight another dude in a cage, and whoever is best is going to come out on top.”
Does Erceg feel the pressure of traveling to Brazil to face the Brazilian champion? “Honestly, I believe there’s just as much pressure on me as there is on Pantoja,” Erceg said. “I know that, yeah, technically he’s the champ, and he’s the favorite and all that, but I’ve been working for this dream my whole life, and this is the culmination of all my hard work. To lose here would be devastating. I have all the pressure on my shoulders, and I’m confident in the work I’ve done over the years. I’ve worked very hard for a very long time.”
The co-main event will be in the bantamweight division between #12 Jonathan Martinez and Brazilian legend Jose Aldo.
Martinez is coming off an impressive TKO victory over Adrian Yanez in October. The win was his sixth straight and his arrival into the top 15. The 30-year-old made his UFC debut in 2018 and he has gone 10-3. The Los Angeles native had plenty to say about Aldo’s return to Brazil.
“They got him back because they needed someone on this card, so they called on him,” Martinez said. “He was already retired, doing boxing, and I just think they paid him more to get him on this card.
“Also, in every interview, he says he wants to box and wants to get on that Jake Paul vs. Mike Tyson card. I think he thinks this fight is going to be easy because that’s like a month and a half away. I hope he’s not sleeping on me because something can happen.”
Despite what he thinks of Aldo, Martinez knows he is in for a battle on Saturday. “Getting a win over him will put me close to that top five, and that’s what I’m looking for,” Martinez said. “I know this is a tough fight, and I’m training hard for it, and I’m confident. I know I prepared well, and you guys will see on Saturday.”
Aldo is a UFC legend and the former UFC featherweight champion. He is one of the most dominant fighters of his era and he scored seven title defenses. At one point he went undefeated for nine years with 18 straight wins. He is a solidified hall-of-famer but he has business to settle in his home country at UFC 301.
The former champion talked about what is rumored to be his last fight in the UFC and potential retirement. “When we started talking to Dana, they wanted to give me a new deal, but I really wanted to have this fight, which is what I’m focused on right now, to see where I’m at, and then we can take it from there,” Aldo said. “When I stopped fighting, when I retired, I had a lot of offers, a lot of money, but it’s never been about that. So that’s what we’re doing right now. We’re going to see where I’m at,” said Aldo.
The legend is ready for his return to Brazil. “Rio is where I got my start,” Aldo said. “It’s where I live. It’s where I train. It’s where my friends are. So, obviously, very meaningful to be fighting here. But in the end, I want to get in there and do my best and show everyone what I’ve been doing… “When we started talking to the UFC about this, the possibility was doing a new contract, a new agreement. But what I really want to do right now is just show everyone where I’m at, how I’m doing, do this fight, and then we can sit down with the UFC and see how it’s gonna go.”
The rest of the main card:
Light Heavyweight - #11 Anthony Smith vs. #15 Vitor Petrino
Middleweight - Michel Pereira vs. Ihor Potieria
Middleweight - #13 Paul Craig vs. #14 Caio Borralho
ESPN+ PRELIMS:
Featherweight - Jack Shore vs. Joanderson Brito
Strawweight - Karolina Kowalkiewicz vs. Lasmin Lucindo
Lightweight - Elves Brener vs. Myktybek orolbai
Lightweight - Joaquim Silva vs. Drakkar Klose
ESPN+ and ESPN 2 Early Prelims:
Lightweight - Mauricio Ruffy vs. Jamie Mullarkey
Women’s Flyweight - Dione Barbosa vs. Ernesta Kareckaite
Lightweight - Ismail Bonfim vs. Vinc Pichel
Flyweight- Alessandro Costa vs. Kevin Borjas
UFC 300 Preview
The UFC is making history at the T-Mobile Arena in Las Vegas on Saturday, April 13th for UFC 300. The event is loaded with three championship fights,10 former champions, and several top contender battles. The main event will be for the light heavyweight belt between current champion Alex Pereira and former champion Jamahal Hill.
Pereira won the vacant belt in his last fight with a second round TKO of Jiri Prochazka at UFC 295. He will be fighting in just his eighth UFC event, but it will be his fourth time battling in a title fight during his short time with the UFC. He is the former middleweight champion but is now looking for his first successful title defense in the UFC.
The Brazilian’s rise in the UFC has been unlike any we have seen in history. It only took him three fights in the UFC to earn his first title shot and just one win at light heavyweight before being granted a shot at the belt. Pereira’s legacy will be solidified if he can successfully defend the title on Saturday.
Pundits are still questioning whether Hill will be 100 percent for this fight after rupturing his Achilles tendon in July which caused him to vacate the title. Pereira is not making that a major concern. “I’m not really thinking too much about his time off and injury,” Pereira said. “I’d like to think that if he’s here, and he accepted the fight, it’s because he’s 100 percent. He knows what kind of responsibility this is, and he knows who he’ll be fighting. In my mind, he’s good, and I’m going to do my part.”
Pereira knows the importance of defending the title. “That’s my job, and I tried to do it the best I could,” Pereira said of his middleweight title defense loss. “I tried to defend the belt, but I lost. I’m not the first person this happens to. I’m changing my mentality, and I’m someone that’s very realistic. I know I can lose, but in my mind, I’m here to fight and win.”
Is Pereira feeling the pressure of headlining such a historical event? "If you stop and think about it, some fighters come from the regional circuit, they're fighting in their own countries on a smaller scale, then they go to the big shows and they feel a difference," he said. "I fought in front of more than 30,000 people when I was in Glory, which is the biggest kickboxing organization in the world. I don't think I've fought in front of that many people in the UFC, and the level of opponents I fought in Glory, I fought the all-time bests in my weight classes.
"Putting all of that together made me very, very seasoned when I got to the UFC. There were no jitters—nothing. I was prepared."
Pereira respects Hill’s abilities. "He's a former champion," Pereira said of his UFC 300 opponent. "He's well-rounded. In terms of striking, I think our levels are a bit far apart, but he's a very strong guy, and he hits hard.”
The champion is optimistic about fighting again soon if everything goes according to plan on Saturday. "I can definitely, absolutely fight at UFC 301," he said. "Everything will be fine, as long as I don't have injuries. If I leave this fight [with Hill] injury free, I'll use this training camp to fight on that card against anybody the UFC puts in front of me."
You would think at 36 years old Pereira would show signs of slowing down, but he continues to defy the odds. How long does he plan on fighting? "What motivates me is to keep writing history," he said. "That motivation never ends.
"People say, 'When will it end?' It will end when I can't fight anymore. As long as I can keep fighting, I'll keep going."
Hill has not fought since the beginning of 2023 where he won the vacant title at UFC 283 by unanimous decision over former champion Glover Texeira. The 32-year-old is 6-1-1 in the UFC and will now have the chance to win back the belt that he never defended.
Despite being a former champion, Hill has noticed a level of disrespect at his chances of winning from the MMA world. "There's some annoyance, there's a chip there. I want to go in and show who I truly am at my peak form. I believe at my peak form, there's nobody close to me. I'm not going to talk you to death, I'm not going to try and convince you of anything. I'll just show it,” Hill said.
He continued, "That's the reason why I stepped aside, for business to continue as usual. The show must go on, and I'm not exempt from that. I'm not a hater. I want to see people accomplish their goals. I want to see everybody make it, fulfilling their dreams.
"The division progressing only benefits me. I'm excited to see these new guys coming in, I'm excited to see these guys reinventing themselves. We're in for some great times: 205 hit the lottery. We have very solid talents and very solid fights upcoming in this division."
What is Hill’s prediction? "Domination. It's what I come with every time. One thing I've stood for the entire time I've stepped in this game, the entire time I've been active fighting, is domination."
The co-main event will be an all China battle for the strawweight title between champion Zhang Weili and #1 contender Yan Xiaonan.
Weili is a two-time champion and has defended the belt twice. She first won the belt back in 2019 with a first round TKO over Jessica Andrade in China. She would successfully defend the belt one time in one of the greatest fights of all-time against Joanna Jedrzejczyk at UFC 248. After losing the belt at UFC 261 in 2021, Weili would work her way back to another title shot at UFC 281, where she became a two-time champion via a second-round submission of Carla Esparza. She has already solidified her position as one of the greatest female champions of all-time and a win on Saturday gets her closer to Hall of Fame status.
How does the champion feel about an all China title fight? “This is another fight for me, but on the other hand, this also means so much for the MMA sport’s development and growth in China,” Weili said.
Weili has respect for her opponent on Saturday. “I see that Xiaonan has grown a lot,” Weili said. “especially in her strength, as well as her grappling, on the ground, everything.”
Xiaonan is 8-2 in the UFC and most recently defeated former champion Jessica Andrade by first round KO last May at UFC 288. Since making her UFC debut in 2017, she has gained wins over Angela Hill, Karolina Kowalkiewicz, Claudia Gadelha, and Mackenzie Dern. She can now shock the world with her biggest win on Saturday.
How does Xiaonan feel about fighting her fellow Chinese fighter? “There are still more people supporting her,” Xiaonan said. “But I have my family, my friends and my coaching team supporting me. All my people will support me. To me, that’s enough.”
The 34-year-old knows she has to be at her best against Weili. “Weili is a great fighter. Every fight, she shows that to everybody,” Xiaonan said. “But I also believe I’m a good fighter. I think I will show you guys the best version of myself.”
A third title fight will be featured at UFC 300. BMF champion Justin Gaethje will defend his BMF title against former featherweight champion and all-time great Max Holloway. The fight will be fought at lightweight where Gaethje has fought most of his career. For Holloway out of his 32 fights will only be fighting at lightweight for the sixth time as he spent most of his career fighting at 145 pounds.
Gaethje won the title last July at UFC 291 with a second-round knockout in a rematch with lightweight contender Dustoin Poirier. The former interim lightweight champion has won two straight fights since unsuccessfully challenging for the lightweight title at UFC 274 in 2022.
The 35-year-old instantly became a fan-favorite with his calculated brawling style and he showcased his skills in key victories over Rafael Fiziev, Michael Chandler, Tony Ferguson, Donald Cerrone and Edson Barboza.
Gaethje has big plans if he wins on Saturday. “I know with a win here, I fight for the (lightweight) belt,” Gaethje said. “I know with a loss here, that all goes away. That’s what I’m fighting for.”
He continued, “I’m a quarter-mile at a time kind of guy,” Gaethje said. “I do not look too far ahead. Honestly, I have no clue what the future holds. I don’t usually plan on being alive the day after my fights, so hopefully I’m there on Sunday.
“… I don’t play what-ifs, but you don’t pass up a championship opportunity. I do want my time (off). I do think June would probably be impossible for me, as every time I fight is a traumatic life experience. I need to go home and unwind, take care of my body, take care of my head. But I have coaches and a manager who ultimately make those decisions, so if they say, ‘Go,’ I go.”
Max Holloway has won two straight fights having most recently defeated Chan Sung Jung via third round KO in August. The former champion defended the featherweight title three times and had three epic battles with Alexander Volkanovski, however coming up short in all three. He challenged for the interim lightweight title back in 2019 but lost a unanimous decision to Dustin Poirier.
The MMA world is wondering if Holloway will stay at lightweight or bid for another featherweight title shot. “We’ll see what happens,” Holloway said. “In this sport, having options is always good. First thing’s first is Justin Gaethje. But there is a fun fight down there, and that man keeps talking, and I keep hearing him. My only advice to (Topuria) is when the contract comes up, sign the dotted line. Don’t make any excuses.”
While Holloway is keeping his options open, it seems he has his eyes set on a featherweight title fight with newly crowned champion Ilia Topuria. “Questionable, I’d say,” Holloway said when asked about his opinion on Topuria. “Questionable. That guy, everyone keeps asking me what do I think of Topuria – and I think he’s questionable.
“I’d fight him, but you go ask him that question about me. At the end of the day, UFC, I always want to fight for that title. I always want to do this. A lot of contenders they gave me. They gave me a lot of up-and-coming contenders, and there’s one that didn’t come up toward my way. You can ask UFC about that. You can ask him the question.”
Holloway made his UFC debut in 2012 and since then he has collected key victories over Cub Swanson, Charles Oliveira, Jeremy Stephens, Ricardo Lamas, Anthony Pettis, Jose Aldo (twice), Brian Ortega, Frankie Edgar, Calvin Kattar, Yair Rodriguez and Arnold Allen. He is already a hall of famer, so with a win over Gaethje what else is left other than one more title shot?
The rest of the main card:
Lightweight - #1 Charles Oliveira vs. #4 Arman Tsarukyan
Middleweight - Bo Nickal vs. Cody Brundage
ESPN/ESPN+ Prelims:
Light Heavyweight - #2 Jiří Procházka vs. #5 Aleksandar Rakić
Featherweight - #8 Calvin Kattar vs. #2 (BW) Aljamain Sterling
Women's Bantamweight - #5 Holly Holm vs. Kayla Harrison
Featherweight - #13 Sodiq Yusuff vs. Diego Lopes
ESPN/ESPN+ Early Prelims:
Lightweight- #10 Jalin Turner vs. #13 Renato Moicano
Women's Strawweight - #4 Jéssica Andrade vs. #6 Marina Rodriguez
Lightweight #14 Bobby Green vs. Jim Miller
Bantamweight - #8 Deiveson Figueiredo vs. Cody Garbrandt
UFC On ESPN 54 Preview
The UFC is invading the Boardwalk Hall in Atlantic City on Saturday March 30th. The main event will be in the women’s flyweight division between #2 Erin Blanchfiled and #3 Manon Fiorot, with the winner most likely being the next to challenge for the flyweight title.
Blanchfield is 6-0 in the UFC and she most recently defeated former title challenger Taila Santos by unanimous decision in August. The only loss of her career came back in 2019 by split decision before she entered the UFC.
Does Blanchfield feel this fight will earn her a title shot? “I feel like it definitely should be (a title eliminator),” Blanchfield said. “I’m No. 2, she’s No. 3. The only two girls ahead of us are the girls that have been fighting for the title. So when I win Saturday, I feel like I’m definitely a lock for the title.
“I think you could definitely argue this is like my third No. 1 contender fight. I’m just gaining experience every time. I’m 24 years old fighting super tough girls. I feel like I’m getting so much better from it, and when I do get that title shot, and win that championship, I’ll definitely be a champ.”
How does Blanchfield feel she matches up with Fiorot? “I don’t know (if she’s my toughest test),” Blanchfield said. Every fight is obviously super tough. Everyone in the top five is super tough. We’ve both beat former champions. My last fight was with Taila Santos who some people thought beat Valentina (Shevchenko). We’ve both had tough fights. I think my road’s been a little bit tougher.
“Our records are very similar. She’s long and rangy. I’ve had months to strategize for that and I feel super prepared for this fight and I’m excited to show it off on Saturday.”
Fiorot is also 6-0 in the UFC and most recently defeated former champion Rose Namajunas by unanimous decision in September. She also has win sover former title challengers Katlyn Chookagian, Jennifer Maia, and Mayra Bueno Silva.
Does the French Fighter believe she is next in line for a title shot with a win on Saturday? “You know, obviously, I already deserve two times the title shot, but you know life goes on, sometimes injuries [happen.] That’s the way it is. Of course, I know and I believe the next fight will be the title and I know they have to make the trilogy for the third fight before. I’ll wait: no problem; but the next one is [for] the title,” Fiorot said.
What does Fiorot think of Blanchfield? “No, to be honest it’s not the roughest and the hardest fight for me in my MMA career,” said Fiorot. “Because she didn’t have the same kind of opponents that I had. I had very rough opponent[s], these three last ones were very strong. I have beaten a [former] champ, Rose, who is an amazing fighter so I don’t think it’ll be the hardest.”
While Fiorot is confident, Blanchfield cannot be taken lightly. She has shown in her last two fights that she not only durable, but fully capable of keeping the same frenetic pace for five rounds. Fiorot has proven she has finishing ability, but in order to defeat Blanchfield she will need to be able to deal with constant pressure, something she has not seen in her last five fights.
The Rest of the main card:
Welterweight - #11Vicente Luquevs.Joaquin Buckley
Middleweight - Chris Weidmanvs.Bruno Silva
Middleweight - Nursulton Ruziboevvs.Sedriques Dumas
Featherweight - Bill Algeovs.Kyle Nelson
Welterweight - Chidi Njokuanivs.Rhys McKee
ESPN + Prelims:
Featherweight - Nate Landwehrvs.Jamall Emmers
Women's Strawweight - Virna Jandirobavs.Loopy Godinez
Catchweight - (147.25 lb)Julio Arcevs.Herbert Burns
Featherweight - Dennis Buzukjavs.Connor Matthews
Light HeavyweightIbo - Aslanvs.Anton Turkalj
Women's Flyweight - Viktoriia Dudakovavs.Melissa Gatto
Middleweight - Andre Petroskivs.Jacob Malkoun
Bantamweight - Angel Pachecovs.Caolán Loughran
Tszyu vs. Fundora Preview
The T-Mobile Arena in Las Vegas, Nevada will host a quintet of title fights on Saturday, March 30th. In the main event, WBO junior middleweight champion Tim Tszyu will defend his title against former WBC interim champion Sebastian Fundora. The fight will also be for the vacant WBC title.
The main event was originally scheduled to be Tszyu to face former champion Keith Thurman at a catchweight of 155 pounds, but Thurman was forced to withdraw due to injury. Fundora will step in on short notice to fight for the titles.
Tsyzyu (24-0, 17 KO) retained the title for the first time in his last fight against with a unanimous decision victory over Brian Mendoza in October. Tszyu became interim champion last March with a ninth round TKO of former champion Tony Harrison and then defended that title in June with a first round KO of Carlos Ocampo. He was promoted to regular champion shortly before the fight with Mendoza.
The Australian fighter is motivated by the change in opponent. "It's a different feel, this fight. I wouldn't say it's a feeling of anger but it has just been built up and it's time to prove," Tszyu said. "I'm literally firing right now and I feel different. I think it just came from the news that Thurman is out.
"Before, I was too relaxed. Now, I'm not. I haven't felt this way in a long time."
The 29-year-old continued, "A lot of growth is happening. I'm going from training camp to training camp to training camp," Tszyu said. "Four fights in 12 months and that pays off. I'm getting better and better each time. I'm learning new things in the game. I'm just willing to test myself out every time.
"I think it's quite obvious -- [Fundora] is tall. But he uses his uppercuts to his advantage and they are quite long. A lot of people have the same gameplan to just get inside because he is so tall. But they also underestimate my skills."
Tszyu was prepared for Thurman but feels like he knows how to defeat Fundora. "Compared to Thurman, of course, it's a completely different gameplan," Tszyu said. "I know what to do with southpaws and I know how to fight tall guys. It's all about adjustments and even though we haven't had much time, they have been made. In one day, two hours. It was one session.
"I'm going to hurt him bad. That's the plan. Someone in the crowd is going to catch a head flying. That's the plan."
The champion has only fought outside of Australia once and he will be taking his talents under the bright lights of Las Vegas for the first time. There have been talks that with a win, he could be matched up with pound for pound great Terence Crawford. What does he think?
"[Crawford] is an opportunity to become a great, for sure," Tszyu said. "This is the first opportunity to do things that no one else does and to save the show [and] to still start this historic card. Once the opportunity arises for Crawford, that's going to be a war.”
He concluded, "I guess you could say I feel right at home [fighting in Las Vegas for the first time]. This is business, I get to relax later."
Fundora will be trying to rebound from a seventh round KO loss to Brian Mendoza last April, where he lost the WBC junior middleweight title. The 26-year-old commented on his first career loss. “I got a reminder – you can’t play boxing. You cannot play boxing,” Fundora said.
He continued, “You cannot make these mistakes. Small, little mistakes, you cannot make ’em because if you do, you pay for it, and that’s what I got in that fight.”
Fundora has an aggressive style that is fan pleasing, but he must fight a smarter fight against Tszyu. He believes he has made the necessary changes in his training. “What I like the most about myself right now is using my brain more,” he said. “I’m a smarter fighter. I’ve gone back to the basics.”
While he has taken the fight on short notice, Fundora believes he is ready to shock the world. “This opportunity is a big surprise, but it is a good surprise. The way I was training we would be ready for what I would say anybody. The fast that we get this fight now, I would say everything is lined up right.”
Tszyu is considered by many in the boxing world to be a future star, but Fundora can spoil that on Saturday. Fundora poses a new threat unlike any Tszyu has seen thus far, standing at 6’5. He was using his range well in the earlier part of the Mendoza fight but like he said, he got sloppy. If he can keep Tszyu from getting inside and avoid his power shots, he could cause problems for the champion.
Also on the main card is a fight for the WBA junior welterweight title. Champion Rolando Romero will defend against former title challenger Isaac Cruz.
Romero won the vacant title in his last fight with a ninth round TKO of Ismael Barroso last May. The victory was a big rebound from the first loss of his career where he suffered a sixth round TKO at the hands of Gervonta Davis.
Romero is not impressed with his challenger. “He’s not that unique,” Romero said. “I fight guys like him all the time. This has probably been the easiest time I’ve ever had finding sparring in my life. He can be replicated; I can’t. My style goes hand in hand with my personality – it’s unique.”
The talk of this fight has been how will Romero handle the pressure of Cruz. Romero responded to Cruz and his critics. “If you want to come right at me and get cracked, go for it,” Romero said. “He can do all that stuff with the small guys he fights, but I’m a big fighter and I hit harder than anyone at the weight class. I’m always here to go for the knockout and to go for the kill. I’m not here to just touch you – I want to pop you.
“I’m gonna knock him out. He’s gonna come forward and I’m gonna stop him. He gets hit with everything, so it could be any kind of punch.”
Cruz battled Davis to hard fought decision loss back in 2021. Many pundits believe he has more valuable experience than Romero. The champion is ready to put an end to the talk. “All I am doing right now is getting ready to shut his mouth, punch by punch,” Cruz said. “With every punch, he is going to talk a little less.”
Since losing to Davis, Cruz has won three straight fights. He most recently defeated Giovanni Cabrera by split decision in July. The Mexican fighter knows he has something to prove on Saturday. “All I can do is prove to everyone why I am deserving of this shot to be a world champion and why I should be in the biggest fights,” Cruz said.
Cruz will be fighting at 140 pounds for the first time in his career. How does he feel? “This is huge motivation,” he said. “It’s a great source of happiness for me. I’m channeling that into really training hard so I can make a great impression at 140 pounds.”
“All I can do is prove to everyone why I am deserving of this shot to be a world champion and why I should be in the biggest fights.”
While Cruz has predicted a knockout, he is ready for any kind of fight. “I’m ready for all 12 rounds, for whatever is going to happen,” he said. “… I’m really happy to be part of the first ever broadcast of Prime Video with PBC. It’s going to be really exciting.”
Two other title fights will be on the undercard on Saturday. Erislandy Lara will defend his WBA middleweight title against Michael Zerafa and Brian Mendoza will defend his interim WBC junior middleweight title against Serhii Bohachuck.
UFC Vegas 89 Preview
The UFC is returning to the Apex in Las Vegas, Nevada on Saturday, March 23rd for UFC Vegas 89. The main event will be in the women’s flyweight division between #8 Amanda Ribas and former two-time strawweight champion Rose Namajunas.
Since the beginning of 2021 Ribas has gone 3-3 but most recently defeated Luana Pinheiro by TKO in November for one of the best knockouts of 2023. The Brazilian has struggled to call a weight class home but will once again make the return to flyweight after an impressive victory at strawweight in her last fight.
Ribas is prepared to put on a show in her first main event. “Since the first time that I signed a UFC poster, I was imaging my face there,” Ribas said. “Yesterday I signed with my face, and since the first day at camp I was like, ‘OK, the time is now. You are doing the main event. So let’s go.’
“I’m prepared for all – to do five rounds, to the end or the beginning. I’m training to do a war and do a really good fight for the fans to enjoy and say this is worth being a main event.”
The 30-year-old expects to fight a championship level Namajunas. “I always put in my mind that I will fight the best Rose Namajunas ever,” Ribas said. “I’m training for the best in her. If something comes not like this, I’m prepared.”
While Ribas has traded fights at strawweight and flyweight, she wants to continue to look for the best opportunities regardless of weight class. “I really enjoyed last year where I did three fights,” Ribas said. “I hope I can do three fights this year, too, inside the octagon, and I hope if I win, God will bless me with that, I can do a top five and maybe go to the belt.”
What is missing from Ribas’ record is a marquee victory, and that is exactly what Namajunas represents. If she wants to continue to look for the best opportunities, a win over Namajunas will create a path for Ribas to go on a title run, at flyweight or strawweight.
Namajunas is trying to rebound from two straight losses. She made her flyweight debut in September but lost a unanimous decision to Manon Fiorot. That fight followed a split decision loss to Carla Esparza at UFC 274 where she lost the strawweight title.
The 31-year-old believes fighting at flyweight is the best weight class for her moving forward. “I just think health-wise, to me, it is just not a healthy thing to do at this point,” Namajunas said. “I know that I could keep pushing through it, my mind got a lot stronger with cutting the weight but I could tell my body was not liking that as much. I could tell from my last strawweight fight, my eyes were sunken in and it’s hard to see myself like that. Even though the will gets stronger, the flesh gets weaker so to me, I’m all about health and wellness, even though we are about to go and fight, I want to preserve as much as possible.”
Namajunas has goals of adding even more to her championship resume. “Becoming two-division champion this year would be awesome. But I know that’s a very steep mountain to climb, and I know I have had some setbacks so I obviously I got to be realistic, but I do believe that is very realistic, and anything, God willing that is what is going to happen. I just have to take care business of this weekend,” Namajunas said.
Despite her current losing streak, Namajunas is one of the greatest women’s fighters of all-time. She has two wins over current strawweight champion Zhang Weili, two wins over former champion and hall of famer Joanna Jedrzejczyk, Jessica Andrade, Michelle Waterson, Tecia Torres and Paige VanZant. With a win over Ribas, she could be just one more win away from a flyweight title shot.
The rest of the main card:
Heavyweight - Justin Tafa vs. Karl Williams
Middleweight - Edmen Shahbazyan vs. A.J. Dobson
Bantamweight - Payton Talbott vs. Cameron Saaiman
Featherweight - Billy Quarantillo vs. Youssef Zalal
Featherweight - Fernando Padilla vs. Luis Pajuelo
ESPN+ Prelims:
Lightweight - Kurt Holobaugh vs. Trey Ogden
Featherweight - Ricardo Ramos vs. Julian Erosa
Bantamweight - Miles Johns vs. Cody Gibson
Featherweight - Jarno Errens vs. Steven Nguyen
Women's Bantamweight - Montserrat Rendon vs. Darya Zheleznyakova
Flyweight - Igor Severino vs. André Lima
Heavyweight - Mohammed Usman vs. Mick Parkin
UFC Vegas 88 Preview
The UFC is returning to the Apex in Las Vegas, Nevada on Saturday March 16th for UFC Vegas 88. The main event will be in the heavyweight division between fan-favorite #9 Tai Tuivasa vs. battle-tested veteran #10 Marcin Tybura.
Tuivasa is trying to rebound from three straight losses having most recently lost by second round submission to Alexander Volkov in September at UFC 293. Prior to the losing streak he won five straight and was on the verge of a title shot. His title shot hopes were halted when he lost a main event to Ciryl Gane by third round KO in one of the best fights of 2022.
While no fight is ever easy, the 30-year-old will not have a new set of challenges against Tybura. They were originally scheduled to fight at UFC 298, but the fight was moved because Tuivasa had to have surgery due to a torn meniscus. Does this put added pressure on him as he tries to end his losing streak?
“There’s always pressure, but it’s no pressure I haven’t seen before. I’ve been here before in my life and infighting. My preparation has been good, so I’m relying on that. Marcin has been around for a long time – I’ve watched him for many years. He’s very experienced. I’m not going to be able to bring anything that he hasn’t seen before. I know his plan is to try to drag me through the rounds and then try to wear me down, I suppose. But this is the heavyweight division and I want to come down and come hard and try to get this job done,” said Tuivasa.
Has Tuivasa had enough time to recover from surgery? “Yeah, it feels good, I’ve got a good team around me and we’ve been doing everything we can to get it sweet, so I’m confident and confident in my team. The knee’s all good it just is what it is, I’m getting old and fat but get better looking every day. Like I said I feel good, I’m confident in my team I’ve got a good team around me, a lot of old school mixed with new school, and just everyone from the area so it’s good to be home training at home around familiar faces and I get to do my daddy duties as well.”
This is not new ground for Tuivasa as he has been on a three-fight losing streak before. After the first losing streak he then reeled off five straight victories with the biggest win coming against Derrick Lewis. The Australian had a promising start in the UFC and while he is still 8-6, he needs to make a statement on Saturday. Tuivasa is known as a stand-and-bang fighter and in his 20-fight career, has only been to a decision twice. It is unlikely he goes 25 minutes with Tybura, but his best chance at scoring a signature knockout will come earlier in the fight.
Tybura is 7-2 in his last nine fights but is trying to rebound from a first round TKO loss to Tom Aspinall in July. How does he feel about the fight being moved? “When the fight was moving it was a little bit hard because you already the camp and you’re just a little bit tired and you’re waiting for the final days, and it’s rescheduled,” Tybura said. “So that’s a little bit damaged to the camp schedule. But it was cool. It’s always nice to see your face on the fight posters. I agreed because I know there was some problems with Tai there.”
The 38-year-old respects the power of Tuivasa. “I think Tai is an exciting fighter,” Tybura said. “Fans love him. For sure the first thing that comes to mind is his heavy hands. He’s strong. He tries to finish. He’s dangerous every second of the fight. That’s pretty much it. That’s how I would describe him.”
Does Tybura think cardio will come into play, which is not Tuivasa’s strongest asset? “I don’t mind the cardio-wise going 25 minutes. I’ve been doing this before and I’m pretty sure about my cardio. But my approach is always go for the finish. Try to finish the fight. I’m hoping to get that done.”
Tybura has proven that he can go 25 minutes but does he have the ability to finish the fight? If he chooses to test the power of Tuivasa for longer than the first two minutes of the fight, this battle has the potential to be fight of the year.
The rest of the main card:
Welterweight - Bryan Battle vs. Ange Loosa
Light Heavyweight - Ovince Saint Preux vs. Kennedy Nzechukwu
Women's Bantamweight - #6 Pannie Kianzad vs. #10 Macy Chiasson
Middleweight - Gerald Meerschaert vs. Bryan Barberena
Featherweight - Christian Rodriguez vs. Isaac Dulgarian
ESPN + Prelims:
Lightweight - Thiago Moisés vs. Mitch Ramirez
Lightweight - Natan Levy vs. Mike Davis
Women's Bantamweight - #13 Josiane Nunes vs. #14 Chelsea Chandler
Flyweight - Jafel Filho vs. Ode' Osbourne
Featherweight - Joshua Culibao vs. Danny Silva
Women's Strawweight - Cory McKenna vs. Jaqueline Amorin
Bantamweight - Charalampos Grigoriou vs. Chad Anheliger