It’s taken longer than expected, but as the saying goes: good things come to those who wait. So, will April 9 prove another successful title defence for Alexander Volkanovski? What about the eagerly-anticipated bantamweight unification battle between Aljamain Sterling and interim titlist Petr Yan, a rivalry left to fester after their controversial ending last March? We will see. Continue reading “UFC 273 Preview: Two title fights, bad blood and compelling matchups to settle”
Tag: Brian Ortega
Staying ready: Calvin Kattar keen for UFC 273 back-up role ahead of Volk-Zombie title fight
Fresh from his impressive decision win over rising contender Giga Chikadze last month, the #5 ranked featherweight has revealed he is staying ready as he looks to secure a reserve role, which could see him potentially fight for gold at UFC 273 on April 9 after former champion Max Holloway withdrew from his proposed Alexander Volkanovski trilogy with an undisclosed injury. Continue reading “Staying ready: Calvin Kattar keen for UFC 273 back-up role ahead of Volk-Zombie title fight”
UFC 272: Volkanovski-Holloway 3, Sterling-Yan 2 title fights to headline March 5 PPV
A pair of compelling championship fights are scheduled to headline the UFC 272 PPV card from the T-Mobile Arena on March 5, when Alexander Volkanovski prepares to make the third defence of his featherweight title vs. former champ Max Holloway in their trilogy, while Aljamain Sterling faces interim titlist Petr Yan in a long-awaited rematch for the bantamweight strap. Continue reading “UFC 272: Volkanovski-Holloway 3, Sterling-Yan 2 title fights to headline March 5 PPV”
UFC Vegas 42: Max Holloway outworks Yair Rodriguez in featherweight war
Former UFC featherweight champion Max Holloway (#1) added another victory to his ever-increasing pile in the 145lb division (18) but needed to dig deep, recovering from a shaky start to eventually outstrike the returning Yair Rodriguez (#3) and earn a hard-fought decision win.
Continue reading “UFC Vegas 42: Max Holloway outworks Yair Rodriguez in featherweight war”
Time to think: Volkanovski happy to have won gruelling Ortega war, discusses future
After more than 400 days out of the Octagon, Alexander Volkanovski successfully defended his UFC featherweight title with a UD win over Brian Ortega in a memorable thriller over the weekend. The 32-year-old is eager to return soon – and didn’t rule out the possibility of a move to 155lbs, with former champ Max Holloway (#1) vs. Yair Rodriguez (#3) set for mid-November. Continue reading “Time to think: Volkanovski happy to have won gruelling Ortega war, discusses future”
UFC 266: Volkanovski outlasts Ortega, retaining featherweight title in frenetic thriller
Alexander Volkanovski survived a R3 frenzy, where he was knocked down with a bullet left-hand and recovered from two tight submission manoevures before outlasting Brian Ortega (#2) via UD to retain his featherweight title: 49-46, 50-45, 50-44. Valentina Shevchenko made the sixth defence of her flyweight crown against Lauren Murphy, while there were other big winners too.
Continue reading “UFC 266: Volkanovski outlasts Ortega, retaining featherweight title in frenetic thriller”
UFC 266: Alexander Volkanovski insists Brian Ortega doesn’t deserve featherweight strap
Ahead of an overdue second title defence this weekend, UFC featherweight champion Alexander Volkanovski insists Brian Ortega (#2) isn’t deserving of the 145lb title and guaranteed he won’t lose it after witnessing the 30-year-old’s sloppy conduct on the Ultimate Fighter. Continue reading “UFC 266: Alexander Volkanovski insists Brian Ortega doesn’t deserve featherweight strap”
UFC Vegas 35: Giga Chikadze produces statement finish, dismantles Edson Barboza
Giga Chikadze earned another key victory, knocking out perennial contender Edson Barboza in three rounds to reaffirm his standing among the promotion’s best featherweights – before calling out former champion Max Holloway afterwards. Prior, two TUF winners were crowned while Daniel Rodriguez gave Kevin Lee a rude welcome back to the UFC in a new weight class.
Continue reading “UFC Vegas 35: Giga Chikadze produces statement finish, dismantles Edson Barboza”
UFC Vegas 33: Sean Strickland keen to solve the Uriah Hall puzzle in main event
On a rare weekend overshadowed by Bellator’s featherweight title main event, this is far from a sexy main event on paper but Uriah Hall (#9) vs Sean Strickland (#11) feels like a middleweight matchup with implications aplenty for both – especially considering the latter has won four straight and will be targeting the top guns should he pass this latest acid test at 185lbs. Will he? Continue reading “UFC Vegas 33: Sean Strickland keen to solve the Uriah Hall puzzle in main event”
UFC 266: Volkanovski-Ortega, Shevchenko-Murphy and Nick Diaz’s return on Sept. 25
After more than a 400-day absence, UFC featherweight champion Alexander Volkanovski defends his title vs. Brian Ortega (#2) at the UFC 266 PPV in September. Elsewhere, Lauren Murphy challenges Valentina Shevchenko for women’s flyweight gold, after Nick Diaz’s welcome return after a six-year hiatus to rematch Robbie Lawler, 17 years on from their first meeting. Continue reading “UFC 266: Volkanovski-Ortega, Shevchenko-Murphy and Nick Diaz’s return on Sept. 25”
UFC Vegas 29: Korean Zombie patiently mixes it up, eventually outworks Dan Ige
The Korean Zombie rebounded from his humbling defeat by title challenger Brian Ortega, with a shrewd show of ringcraft and timely tactics to stifle Dan Ige’s stand-up skills while retaining his #4 spot in the promotion’s featherweight rankings. Elsewhere, there were credible wins for welterweight prospect Khaos Williams and bantamweight Marlon Vera (#15) among others. Continue reading “UFC Vegas 29: Korean Zombie patiently mixes it up, eventually outworks Dan Ige”
UFC Vegas 29: Dan Ige vows to impress in main event slot against Korean Zombie
Ahead of his main event matchup vs. Chan Sung Jung (#4) this weekend, #8 ranked featherweight contender Dan Ige has a chance to surge up the rankings but is under no illusions about the task at hand – even though he’s confident about producing a similarly powerful display to the one that saw him blast beyond Gavin Tucker in 22 seconds three months ago. Continue reading “UFC Vegas 29: Dan Ige vows to impress in main event slot against Korean Zombie”
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