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Islam Makhachev raced through short-notice replacement Renato Moicano to stand on the brink of history, after his proposed Arman Tsarukyan rematch was dramatically shelved late. Prior in the co-main, Merab Dvalishvili was defiant and diligent en route to a successful first championship defence against the anointed one in Umar Nurmagomedov. The Georgian didn’t read the memo.
Continue reading “UFC 311: Merab thrives in Umar firefight, Makhachev makes quick work of Moicano”
Alex Pereira sent Jiri Prochazka into another pressing phase of self-reflection after a definitive head kick knockout finish in their rematch, as the light-heavyweight champion made defence #2 of his 205lb title to headline a second UFC PPV in 11 weeks – after Las Vegas resident Dan Ige stepped up on four hours’ notice and produced a spirited effort vs. Diego Lopes in the co-main. Continue reading “UFC 303: Pereira’s switch kick sends Prochazka packing, Lopes-Ige saves card”
Conor McGregor vs. Michael Chandler was set to headline UFC 303 this weekend, before the former withdrew with a broken toe injury earlier this month. Two-division champion Alex Pereira has again stepped into the breach to save the card and is aware time isn’t on his side, another motivating factor for his refreshing activity as he prepares for a short-notice Jiri Prochazka rematch. Continue reading “UFC 303: Alex Pereira aware of his activity timeline, adds another short-notice save”
Magomed Ankalaev in another title defence? Going up another division to challenge Tom Aspinall at heavyweight? There are options aplenty for reigning UFC light-heavyweight champion Alex Pereira, after making quick work of Jamahal Hill at a historic UFC 300 card earlier this month. If you ask the 36-year-old though, he’s not too fussed on who or when – but wants continuity. Continue reading “Alex Pereira open to various possibilities, wants activity after early night at UFC 300”
Alex Pereira made the first defence of his light-heavyweight title, avenging teammate and close friend Glover Teixeira’s punishing five-round defeat vs. former titlist Jamahal Hill in the UFC 300 headliner to cap an unforgettable night’s action from Las Vegas after contrasting championship victories for strawweight queen Zhang Weili and new BMF titleholder Max Holloway.
Continue reading “UFC 300: Pereira flattens Hill to retain 205lb title as Weili and Holloway win big”
Relive my live fight-by-fight commentary as UFC 295 unfolded from New York’s Madison Square Garden overnight, with Manchester’s Tom Aspinall looking to score interim heavyweight gold – on short-notice no less – against the fearsome finisher Sergei Pavlovich in the night’s co-main event before former champions Jiri Prochazka and Alex Pereira did battle for the vacant light-heavyweight title.
Continue reading “UFC 295: Relive live commentary as Pereira becomes two-division champion, after Aspinall wins interim HW gold”
Magomed Ankalaev thought he was the new light-heavyweight champion. Jared Gordon felt he did enough to derail Paddy Pimblett’s hype train in the co-main event. Yet both left empty-handed, albeit in contrasting circumstances, as the UFC’s final PPV of 2022 ended with drama and anger after dubious judging scorecards soured an excellent night at the T-Mobile Arena. Continue reading “UFC 282: Blachowicz-Ankalaev title fight, Pimblett-Gordon co-main both surrounded by controversy”
Jiri Prochazka’s serious shoulder injury saw the Czech vacate his 205lb title, keen not to hold the division up in his absence. While unfortunate, Jan Blachowicz called the news an early Christmas gift, and now the former light-heavyweight champion suddenly has an opportunity to regain the strap he lost against Glover Teixeira 14 months ago. Up against a clearly favoured Magomed Ankalaev though, which man will have the last laugh in the early hours on Sunday? Continue reading “UFC 282: Blachowicz juggles underdog tag and Ankalaev’s ascent, but will he claim gold again?”
Assuming he gets past former title challenger Marvin Vettori this weekend, you can’t help but think former UFC middleweight champion Robert Whittaker wants an upset at UFC 281 on Nov. 12 when former foe Israel Adesanya defends his strap against kickboxing adversary Alex Pereira next. Judging by his recent comments, that could determine his immediate future…
Continue reading “UFC FN Paris: Whittaker ponders move up to 205lbs, ahead of co-main event matchup with Vettori”
Down on the scorecards, Jiri Prochazka recovered from sustained periods of danger to reign supreme as the new light-heavyweight titlist in his third UFC appearance – submitting Glover Teixeira with 28 seconds left in R5. Valentina Shevchenko looked human against a determined Taila Santos display after former foe Joanna Jedrzejczyk announced her retirement following a thunderous R2 KO loss during a highly-anticipated rematch with former champ Zhang Weili.
Continue reading “UFC 275: Prochazka pips Teixeira to LHW title with R5 sub after Shevchenko’s razor-thin defence”
Ahead of next month’s PPV event in Singapore, with two championship fights and a highly-anticipated title eliminator at strawweight, the six headline fighters spoke on a virtual press conference with a variety of answers – from what’s to come for them respectively in June and potentially beyond, like double-champ status and one fighter eyeing another title rematch. Continue reading “UFC 275 Virtual Presser: Santos keen to wrestle, Joanna targeting revenge and more”
Rising light-heavyweight Jiri Prochazka (#5) handed two-time title challenger Dominick Reyes (#3) his third straight loss with a second-round spinning back elbow knockout – the third in UFC history – asserting his credentials as a genuine title contender at 205lbs. Before a chaotic main event, there were big wins for Georgian duo Giga Chikadze and Merab Dvalishvili among others.
Continue reading “UFC Vegas 25: Jiri Prochazka viciously flattens Dominick Reyes in title eliminator”
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