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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”
Khamzat Chimaev has been inactive, endured health struggles but you just never know what you’re about to get: he praised former welterweight champion Kamaru Usman before warning Robert Whittaker that if a decorated wrestler couldn’t stuff his takedowns during their short-notice contest last October, the former middleweight titleholder wouldn’t have more success. Continue reading “Chimaev: If Usman couldn’t manage it, then Whittaker won’t stop my wrestling”
Erin Blanchfield’s boxing deficiencies were painfully laid bare under the lights over 25 minutes against an economical Manon Fiorot display in their main event title eliminator, while Joaquin Buckley’s move down a weight class continues to pay off as he’ll have a number next to his name at 170lbs this coming week after making longtime contender Vicente Luque look ordinary en route to a R2 finish.
Continue reading “UFC Atlantic City: Blanchfield has a big problem, Buckley boosted by Luque scalp”
Sean O’Malley’s star rose another notch after boxing beautifully en route to a successful maiden defence of his bantamweight title, avenging the only loss on his record against Marlon Vera. Elsewhere, Dustin Poirier and Petr Yan returned to winning ways with contrasting displays while former women’s flyweight champion Joanna Jedrzejczyk became the latest UFC Hall of Fame inductee.
Continue reading “UFC 299: O’Malley avenges Vera loss in style, Poirier powers beyond Saint-Denis”
With his back to the wall and in danger, Israel Adesanya produced a second-round KO win over long-time rival Alex Pereira to regain his UFC middleweight title, after Gilbert Burns beat Jorge Masvidal into submission over 15 minutes before the two-time welterweight title challenger retired in his hometown. Continue reading “UFC 287: Adesanya regains title with R2 KO in Pereira rematch, after Burns retires Masvidal”
UFC welterweight champion Leon Edwards believes unbeaten contender Khamzat Chimaev has been overvalued by the promotion, and in a recent interview with Michael Bisping, said as much as he prepares for his first title defence against former titlist Kamaru Usman in March.
Continue reading “Leon Edwards: Khamzat Chimaev is not the untouchable monster UFC built him to be”
Stephen ‘Wonderboy’ Thompson danced with some first-round danger before rolling back the years en route to a R4 TKO victory during a fun battle against Kevin Holland in last weekend’s UFC Orlando main event, while there were big main card stoppage wins for Rafael dos Anjos, Matheus Nicolau and Roman Dolidze – a newcomer in the middleweight rankings this week. Continue reading “UFC Orlando: Wonderboy outworks Holland in crazy headliner – after RDA, Nicolau and Dolidze win big”
UFC welterweight contender Stephen Thompson (#6) may be on a two-fight losing streak, but the two-time title challenger has responded to speculation that he’ll soon retire – so long as his body holds up – with his father the only man who can influence his decision to call it a day.
Continue reading “UFC Orlando: Stephen Thompson refutes retirement talk before Kevin Holland main event matchup”
They were originally scheduled to face one another in a serious mismatch, but instead Nate Diaz ended his existing UFC deal with a memorable win over a fellow legendary veteran while Khamzat Chimaev leaned into a villainous role – one he carved out for himself after a massive weight miss – easing to another emphatic first-round victory during the night’s co-main event. Continue reading “Wacky, weird and wild: Unpacking UFC 279 as Nate Diaz and villain Khamzat Chimaev win big”
Colby Covington’s wrestling proved key en route to a dominant decision win against Jorge Masvidal, in a grudge match between friends turned foes. Elsewhere, there were big wins for surging featherweight contender Bryce Mitchell and Kevin Holland on his debut at 170lbs, while Marina Rodriguez (#3) asserted her case for a shot at Rose Namajunas’ strawweight strap.
Continue reading “UFC 272: Covington mauls Masvidal, after big victories for Mitchell and Holland”
It wasn’t a vintage performance, but former light-heavyweight title challenger Thiago Santos produced a vitally important decision win (48-47 x 3) over Johnny Walker in the main event on the final fight of his existing contract. Afterwards, he called out Jiri Prochazka (#2) – who is the alternate for this month’s championship fight between Jan Blachowicz and Glover Teixeira.
Continue reading “UFC Vegas 38: Santos outlasts Walker in five-round clash, calls out Prochazka”
Armed with welterweight champion Kamaru Usman among his circles, confidence brewing on a five-fight win streak and a maiden UFC middleweight title shot in the offing, Derek Brunson has plenty to be happy about after earning a third-round submission win over Darren Till overnight.
Continue reading “UFC Vegas 36: Derek Brunson submits Darren Till in R3, on a five-fight win streak”
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