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Many former foes, rivals and contemporaries quickly compounded the frustrations felt by his main event defeat – as expected – but now former UFC bantamweight champion Sean O’Malley won’t have a chance to stay active in attempting at reclaiming gold as he awaits surgery on a torn labrum in his left hip next month, an injury potentially sidelining him for a full calendar year.
Continue reading “O’Malley set for surgery on torn hip injury in October, now sidelined for most of 2025”
He’s found himself on the outside looking in – largely for reasons out of his control – but former UFC interim title challenger Cory Sandhagen is looking forward to the prospect of a title eliminator with considerable proportions on a third trip to Saudi Arabia this summer against highly-regarded contender Umar Nurmagomedov [10] at 135lbs. Naturally, it won’t be an easy task either… Continue reading “Sandhagen declares Nurmagomedov headliner on Aug. 3 a 135lb title eliminator”
On a night where Jairzinho Rozenstruik jabbed his way into retaining his top-15 ranking in the heavyweight main event against Shamil Gaziev, the biggest stories unfolded elsewhere in another Apex fight card which saw prospects rise – two in particular – given the existing logjam across fly and bantamweight. Continue reading “Making their case: Mokaev and Umar earn contrasting decision wins at UFC Vegas 87”
Aljamain Sterling makes the fourth defence of his UFC bantamweight title overnight, and has said plenty in the build-up about how Sean O’Malley – a growing star within the promotion – has purposely been matched up in a way allowing him to fast-track his way to a championship shot. So now, only he stands between Suga Show becoming the second DWCS alum to seize gold…
Continue reading “UFC 292: Sterling says the onus is on him to humble O’Malley tonight, and he’s right”
Perennial bantamweight contender Cory Sandhagen is now riding a three-fight win streak for the first time since 2019, but completed the achievement with an underwhelming albeit comfy decision win over short-notice replacement Rob Font in their catchweight clash at 140lbs. Should he be rewarded with a title shot next – depending on how UFC 292 unfolds – or does he need another scalp?
Continue reading “UFC Nashville: Sandhagen nullifies Font to dominant decision win in drab main event”
Song Yadong produced a statement showing against Ricky Simon, snapping the fellow top-10 contender’s five-fight win streak in Saturday’s main event before calling out Sean O’Malley [1] and former foe Marlon Vera [5]. The Chinese talent is still only 25 and a firm fixture at bantamweight, so who should be next? Continue reading “UFC Vegas 72: What’s next at 135lbs, after Song Yadong’s TKO5 win vs. Ricky Simon?”
He apologised to the fans, aware they would’ve been underwhelmed by what they saw: but it wasn’t his fault. Cory Sandhagen scored a decision win over Marlon Vera – split scorecards notwithstanding – before calling out Merab Dvalishvili after the Georgian’s impressive win over former champion Petr Yan two weeks prior. The bantamweight division is bubbling up nicely again… Continue reading “UFC’s 135lb division shuffles once more, after Cory Sandhagen punishes lethargic Marlon Vera”
With no UFC event taking place last weekend, and Saturday’s UFC Vegas 61 card not attracting much buzz, I take a look back at the promotion’s most recent headliner: Cory Sandhagen’s return to the win column at bantamweight against rising young contender Song Yadong. Continue reading “Rewind: Cory Sandhagen’s R4 TKO – doctor stoppage – vs. Song Yadong at UFC Vegas 60 on Sept. 17”
Despite absorbing a record-breaking amount of damage on Saturday night, Marlon Vera – armed with multiple knockdowns – comprehensively outpointed Rob Font over 25 minutes in the evening’s main event, a result that has seen his bantamweight ranking rise to #5 in this week’s update and will undoubtedly and attract attention of other budding title contenders. Continue reading “UFC Vegas 53: Vera vaults up at bantamweight, as knockdowns help him outpoint Font”
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”
On an evening where multiple divisional contenders’ stock rose exponentially, a new champion was crowned. Before then, Petr Yan’s slow start vs. Cory Sandhagen didn’t deter him from having bantamweight gold wrapped around his waist again, albeit of the interim kind this time. Then Glover Teixeira made history in the main event matchup, submitting Jan Blachowicz with a R2 rear-naked choke to become the new 205lb titleholder at 42 years and two days old. Continue reading “UFC 267: New LHW champion Glover Teixeira teaches a valuable lesson in persistence”
With six more promotional events to round out an eventful year after tonight’s card from Abu Dhabi, the fanfare surrounding future matchups should not detract from an overseas event featuring a compelling title fight without the unsavoury trash talk at 205lbs, alongside a rightful interim belt and more intriguing bouts that promise to move the needle ahead of 2022. Continue reading “Are you watching? UFC 267 a sleeper PPV card setting up 2021’s big finish in style”
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