dana white

UFC: Jon Jones isn’t planning on fighting anytime soon

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UFC, Jon Jones

Former UFC light heavyweight champion Jon Jones (26-1, 1 NC) isn’t planning on making his way back into the octagon anytime soon. Jones took to Twitter yesterday and made it clear that he’s in no rush to come back.

Last week, Dana White said that the UFC was moving on from Jon Jones in terms of the heavyweight title picture. White told TMZ that Jones’ fighting future is strictly up to Jon Jones.

Heading into 2021, it was clear that Jones would get a crack at the heavyweight title this year. At UFC 260, Francis Ngannou (16-3) knocked out Stipe Miocic (20-4) to become the heavyweight champion.

Immediately fans started getting excited about the possibility of a matchup between Jones and Ngannou. However, immediately after the fight was over, Jones and the UFC were at odds in terms of compensation.

After some back-and-forth both over social media and behind closed doors, the two sides couldn’t come to terms. As a result, Derrick Lewis (25-7, 1 NC) is going to be getting the next shot at the title. The UFC is trying to finalize the matchup for August.

Jones’ UFC Future

With Lewis being granted the shot at Ngannou, Dana White suggested that Jon Jones fights Stipe Miocic. This would be a fun matchup between arguably the greatest of all time and the greatest heavyweight of all time.

White’s logic was that this fight would truly establish a number one contender after the UFC title fight in August. However, Jones came out and said that the only fight he wants is the heavyweight title fight.

Since then, White has said that Stipe Miocic would be getting the winner of the matchup between Ngannou and Lewis. Stipe will likely get his shot at the end of the year or in early 2022.

With that, it will be another year where we don’t see Jon Jones in the UFC. His last fight came back in February of 2020 so we are likely looking at a two-year layoff for the all time great. Jones said on Twitter he doesn’t mind the wait, and thinks it might actually be a good thing.

UFC recently attempted to make Khabib Nurmagomedov – Georges St. Pierre per Ali Abdelaziz

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The UFC recently attempted to make a fight between two of the greatest to ever do it. At least, that’s according to the manager of one of those men, Ali Abdelaziz.

Abdelaziz said on his appearance of Hotboxin’ with Mike Tyson that the UFC wanted to make Khabib Nurmagomedov (29-0) – Georges St. Pierre (26-2). This potential dream fight almost became a reality in the last couple of weeks.

For the last year or so, Dana White hadn’t expressed any interest in having GSP fight Khabib. However, that apparently changed in the last couple of weeks. Abdelaziz said that the UFC got in touch with him about his client, Khabib Nurmagomedov.

Abdelaziz said, “Two weeks ago ago, Dana White called me. He said, ‘Georges St-Pierre said he’ll fight Khabib in a non-title fight at 165 pounds.’ In a way, we’ve been waiting for Georges.”

Of course, Khabib Nurmagomedov relinquished the UFC lightweight title officially earlier this year when his retirement was confirmed. Nurmagomedov had announced at UFC 254 that he was walking away from the sport.

The UFC dream match that never happened

Khabib said that he promised his mother that UFC 254 was his last fight and he plans to honor that promise. According to Abdelaziz, the former UFC lightweight champion also turned down $100 million to box Floyd Mayweather.

For years, Daniel Cormier has said that Khabib wouldn’t take any fight because of money. It’s pretty obvious now there’s truth to what Cormier was saying. You have to imagine the UFC’s offer was massive to have him fight GSP.

A matchup between GSP and Khabib is a fight fans dream. Of course, it would have been better if GSP was in his prime, but still, UFC fans all around the world would be glued to their televisions for that one.

It’s a matchup that will stay in the barbershop for now. Who would win? We will never know, but it will be a fun topic to debate. It’s just pretty remarkable that the UFC was pushing to make this fight happen just in the last few weeks. You can see Abdelaziz’s appearance on Hotboxin’ Here. 

UFC President on Jon Jones situation: ‘We’re Moving On’

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UFC, Dana White

The UFC doesn’t have Jon Jones (26-1, 1 NC) in their plans anytime soon. The former light heavyweight champion and all time great has been in a public spat with the promotion about his pay.

Jones was seeking a bump in his pay to move up and fight the UFC heavyweight champion Francis Ngannou (16-3). The fight with Jones and Ngannou is the biggest fight the promotion can make outside of a fight that features Conor McGregor.

Ngannou became the heavyweight champion at UFC 260 when he knocked out Stipe Miocic (20-4). For the months leading up to that event, it was understood that Jon Jones would be fighting the winner.

However, immediately after the fight was over, Jones started requesting a bump in his pay. While the numbers are not publicly known, it’s obvious that the gap between Jones and the UFC is wide.

White has been vocal in that Derrick Lewis (25-7, 1 NC) would likely get the next shot at Ngannou. However, with that fight not being finalized yet, there has been some outside hope that Jones would still get the shot.

UFC has moved on

Dana White spoke to TMZ Sports this week and he made it clear that the UFC has moved on from this situation with Jones. He also said that Jones will make the call on whether or not he wants to fight again.

“I have absolutely moved on. Listen, I put on fights every Saturday. We have a window on when we try to build some fights and make things happen. If the fights don’t happen within that window, we move on,” White said.

When asked about Jones’ UFC future, White said, “That’s up to Jon. I was saying that night (UFC 260), that he could absolutely fight again at 205. He said he wouldn’t fight Stipe…Listen, there’s nothing wrong with going out on top.”

With the UFC moving towards booking the rematch between Ngannou and Lewis, White had previously suggested Jones fight Stipe Miocic in a title eliminator. However, Jones said last week that he had no interest in fighting the former heavyweight champion.

After UFC fallout, Diego Sanchez has cut ties with Joshua Fabia

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Unless you’ve been living under a rock over the past month, you’ve probably heard about the fallout between the UFC and Diego Sanchez (30-13). Sanchez is one of the original Ultimate Fighter winners and he’s spent the vast majority of his career with the UFC.

The Nightmare was gearing up to fight Donald Cerrone at UFC Vegas 26. The fight with Cowboy was supposed to be Sanchez’s retirement fight. However, shortly before the fight, it was announced that Sanchez was off the card. 

This news sparked a series of events that gave us an insight as to what was going on. It all started when Sanchez’s coach Joshua Fabia requested all of Sanchez’s medical records since he made his debut with the promotion.

Fabia stated that he wanted them to be able to see the impact to Sanchez’s health after a career in the UFC. Keep in mind that the medical records and medical tests that are passed before the fights run through the athletic commissions.

The situation didn’t feel right to the UFC and as a result, they just decided to cut ties with Sanchez. They released him, but they paid him his full purse for UFC Vegas 26 despite the fact that Sanchez was no longer going to be competing.

After this, Sanchez and Fabia released footage of a confrontation from Fight Island where Fabia confronted the UFC commentators. After that, they released audio of a phone call with the UFC‘s lawyer Hunter Campbell.

UFC’s Sanchez cuts Fabia

The MMA community and specifically fighters in the UFC have begged Sanchez publicly to get rid of Joshua Fabia. Fabia is the ‘Founder’ of the School of Self-Awareness and he’s shown off some bizarre training methods with Sanchez. 

In reality, it’s almost looked like Sanchez was brainwashed. UFC President Dana White has openly said that he supports Diego Sanchez and will always answer if he calls. However, he will never give Joshua Fabia the time of day.

Throughout everything, Sanchez had stuck by Joshua Fabia. Well, that changed today when the former Ultimate Fighter told MMA Fighting that he’s cut all ties with Joshua Fabia. Sanchez also said he’d be making a statement next week after having some time to gather his thoughts.

If I’m being transparent, I’m extremely happy that Diego Sanchez got rid of Joshua Fabia. Perhaps this can assist in mending his relationship with the UFC. Either way, it appears we’ve seen the end of this Diego Sanchez – Joshua Fabia drama.

PFL’s Kayla Harrison has her eyes set on GOAT status in the final year of her contract

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MMA, PFL

Make no mistake about it, the best female fighter in PFL is Kayla Harrison (9-0). The two-time Olympic Gold Medalist in Judo is an extremely special talent and she’s completely destroyed every opponent that’s been put in front of her.

In her nine professional wins, only two of them have gone the distance. Both of those fights were against arguably the second best PFL female fighter Larissa Pacheco (14-4). Pacheco and Harrison are likely going to meet again during this PFL season.

Harrison made a statement after her last performance and she said after the fight that she’s the baddest woman in any room. She wants the world to see her as the greatest of all time once she’s done competing.

Harrison’s contract with PFL is set to expire after this season. PFL is already having a dream scenario where Harrison ultimately fights Claressa Shields, but that probably will not play itself out.

Assuming Harrison runs through the other PFL lightweights this season and captures another title, she’s going to be the hottest free agent on the market. Harrison will have the UFC and Bellator knocking at her door to take her away.

PFL, Bellator, or the UFC?

The Olympian has been vocal that she does actually believe in the PFL format with seasons and rankings. However, she does recognize that there are big fights out there outside of PFL that could cement her legacy.

Of course, the biggest show in town is the UFC which is the home of the greatest of all time in Amanda Nunes (21-4). Nunes is the UFC’s two-division champion and she’s actually a teammate of Harrison’s at American Top Team.

Dana White recently commented about the PFL champion saying, “I don’t know if she’s ready. I just don’t know if her people think she’s ready. It’s a whole other level when you get here (the UFC).”

The PFL champion fired back on Ariel Helwani’s MMA Show stating, “I think that if Dana is ready to pay me a lot of money, I’ll make him a lot of money. I’m ready to face the best in the world.”

Harrison is likely going to win her third PFL championship this year. After the year is over, The Pro Fight League, Bellator, and the UFC will all be calling. My guess is that she ultimately winds up in the UFC especially considering her ability to make 145 pounds. This will definitely be a story to follow at the end of the year.

After another loss at UFC Vegas 26, Donald Cerrone to get one more chance

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Donald Cerrone

This past Saturday in the co-main event of UFC Vegas 26, Donald “Cowboy” Cerrone (36-16, 2 NC) took on Alex Morono (19-7, 1 NC). Morono stepped up as a short-notice replacement for Diego Sanchez who was released by the UFC before the fight.

This was a very dangerous fight for Cowboy to take. Heading into UFC Vegas 26, Cerrone had lost essentially five fights in a row. His last fight against Niko Price was a No Contest, but if a point wouldn’t have been taken away from Price, Cerrone would’ve lost.

Prior to the NC, he was defeated four straight times including getting finished three times in the first round. Cerrone needed a win in the worst way at UFC Vegas 26, but Alex Morono wasn’t going to be an easy fight.

Morono is a hungry welterweight who wanted to take advantage of the moment and that’s what he did. With about a minute left in the opening round, Morono cracked Cerrone with huge right hand that wobbled him.

Cowboy backed to the fence and tried to fend him off, but there was nothing he could do. Morono continued to pour on the shots until the referee stopped in and it was another first round loss for Cerrone. His fourth first round loss in his last six UFC appearances.

One more chance in the UFC

If you ask Dana White who his favorite fighters have been to deal with in the UFC, Donald Cerrone is likely near the top of the list. For years, Cowboy has been the one guy who was always willing to step in and fight anyone at anytime.

However, at 38 years old, Cowboy is starting to show the signs of all those fights. In 2019, Cerrone looked like he was closing in on a UFC title shot. Having won three fights in a row at 155, the promotion gave him Tony Ferguson.

Ferguson dominated the fight and after that Cerrone fought Justin Gaethje. Gaethje knocked him out in the first round and then Cerrone suffered the same fate at UFC 246 when he fought Conor McGregor.

Dana White said the UFC would give Cerrone one more chance, but it’s a must-win. With that, who should he fight? Well, I’m thinking someone along the lines of Bobby Green (27-11-1) or Clay Guida (36-20).

Both of those guys have been around for a long time and have recognizable names. Also, both of those are winnable fights for Cowboy. Someone cut of that cloth should be next and win or lose, Cowboy should strongly consider hanging it up afterwards.

Diego Sanchez fears that the UFC will come to take his life

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This fall out between Diego Sanchez (30-13) and the UFC is something that’s concerning and extremely sad. The story continues to turn and everyday it seems like there is something new that comes out or is said that makes this story even more alarming.

Let’s start at the beginning. Diego Sanchez was set to fight Donald Cerrone this weekend at UFC Vegas 26. The fight was supposed to be Sanchez’s last fight and he would retire after it was over.

Sanchez’s manager/coach Joshua Fabia called the UFC a couple of weeks ago and asked for detailed medical records over the course of Sanchez’s career. The way it was worded is that Fabia wanted to see the impact that fighting has had on Sanchez’s life now that he’s transitioning out.

Of course, this sounded off to the UFC. The promotion’s matchmaker and lead attorney called Fabia to ask if Sanchez was okay and if he was feeling any effects from fighting. The concern was that they didn’t want Sanchez to fight if he’s feeling long-term effects from fighting.

To me, it sounded like Fabia was trying to lay the ground work for some kind of lawsuit after the fact. Nevertheless, Fabia told the UFC that they were just wanting his medical records for potential medical treatments after he leaves the organization.

After some email exchanges back-and-forth, the UFC pulled Sanchez from the fight. In addition, they also released the former Ultimate Fighter winner from his contract. That said, they paid Diego Sanchez his full show and win money for Saturday night.

Sanchez is worried the UFC will come after his life

After Sanchez was released, the story continued to spiral. Sanchez posted on his Instagram a video of a fighter meeting from Fight Island. The UFC commentators were just talking with Sanchez about his upcoming fight and his career.

Fabia stormed in at the end and started going off about bias commentary against Sanchez. Following that video, Sanchez also posted the recorded phone call between Fabia and the UFC’s legal team.

Sanchez appeared on MMA Today where he talked about the situation. He stated that he is fearful of his life for speaking out against the UFC. Here is his quote:

“I’m going to tell you guys frankly, right now, I’m fearful for my motherf*cking life. I’m fearful that this company, this billion-dollar monopoly company worldwide is going to come after me. Something might happen to me in two years, maybe in a couple years. Maybe I wreck my truck. Maybe, ‘Oh, Diego overdosed, some suicide sh*t.’ I don’t know, but I would not put anything past the level of evil that is within this corporation.”

Sanchez on Dana White

In addition to those comments, Sanchez also talked about UFC President Dana White. White has been very vocal about how much he cares about Sanchez, but Sanchez doesn’t seem to feel the love from White.

“I’m going to say this to Dana White: Dana, what’s up, Dana? What’s up, Dana? Man, I tried for two years to get a meeting with you. Oh sh*t. I was the first ‘Ultimate Fighter.’ Didn’t that show do something for the company when it was $60 million in debt? Oh, all those ‘Fight of the Night’ (bonuses). All that TV time (on) Spike TV, Fox TV, ESPN, all of them, and you can’t meet with your boy? I’m there in Vegas training. I’m going to Vegas, and I’m training there weeks on weeks on weeks. I put 60 to 70 weeks in the UFC PI, just to try to get a meeting with you, Dana. Just to try to meet you in crossing.

This situation is incredibly sad and honestly, I feel like the one person to blame here is Joshua Fabia. Anyone you talk to in the business has nothing but horrible things to say about the guy. I believe the UFC wanted the best for Diego Sanchez, but at the end of the day, he’s a grown man who makes his own decisions.

The UFC has terminated the contract of Diego Sanchez

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The last remaining fighter from the first season of The Ultimate Fighter is no longer with the UFC. Dana White told ESPN’s Brett Okamoto that the promotion has officially terminated the contract of Diego Sanchez (30-13).

Sanchez was set to take on Donald “Cowboy” Cerrone (36-15-1, 1 NC) next weekend at UFC Vegas 26. However, we learned earlier this week that Sanchez was out of the fight, but we were not given a clear reason as to why.

After that announcement, a string of odd events occurred. Sanchez took to his Instagram to show his fighter meeting with the UFC commentary and production team from UFC 253.

The Nightmare’s controversial coach Joshua Fabia is seen in the video criticizing the commentary for being disrespectful. There was some back and forth before the video ended.

After that post, Sanchez posted a number of stories including stating that he was forced out of next weekend’s fight by the UFC. Last night, he posted another story with the caption of ‘Free at last’ while tagging other MMA promotions.

What happened with the UFC?

Per Okamoto’s story this morning, it all started out when Fabia requested all of Sanchez’s medical records that the UFC had spanning over the last fifteen years. Seeing how out of character this is, the UFC started their own investigation.

They went to Sanchez’s team and asked about the current state of Sanchez’s health. The UFC pressed on if there are any pressing medical issues regarding his health whether they be short-term or long-term.

Sanchez’s team came back to the UFC and said they couldn’t confirm that and he hasn’t gone through any kind of neurological evaluations recently. When receiving that information, the promotion decided to cancel next weekend’s fight and release Sanchez from his contract.

The release ends and incredible run for Diego Sanchez in the UFC. He won the first season of TUF and had been under the promotion for the last sixteen years. This fight next weekend was set to be his final show, but it looks like he will close his career elsewhere.

After dominant win at UFC 261, what’s next for Valentina Shevchenko?

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This past Saturday at UFC 261 we got to see a flyweight title fight that the world was intrigued by. The undisputed flyweight queen Valentina Shevchenko (21-3) defended her title against former strawweight champion Jessica Andrade (21-9).

Heading into the fight, the UFC and Dana White really hyped up the former strawweight champion to build interest. The thought was that the power and pure strength of Andrade could give Valentina Shevchenko problems she has yet to deal with.

However, let’s not forget that Shevchenko has fought 40 minutes with Amanda Nunes (21-4). Nevertheless, the UFC was building up Andrade was a truly formattable challenger for the title.

Well, on Saturday night, Valentina Shevchenko made a massive statement to everyone. Dana White said that Shevchenko fought like a demon at UFC 261 who was pissed off at everyone.

Shevchenko did what everyone said Andrade needed to do at UFC 261. She engaged Andrade in the clinch and in close quarters. However, Andrade couldn’t do anything and Shevchenko showed just how strong she is.

Shevchenko ragdolled the former UFC strawweight champion on Saturday night. There wasn’t one aspect of the fight that she didn’t dominate. In the second round, she secured the crucifix position off of a powerful takedown and got the TKO win.

What’s next after UFC 261?

At UFC 261, Valentina Shevchenko once again proved that there are levels to this game and nobody is even close to hers at 125 pounds. She’s so far ahead of the rest of these ladies it’s not even funny.

The thing that makes her so special is how well-rounded she is as a martial artist. She has elite striking, elite grappling and she’s stronger than most of the bantamweights on the roster.

The only person on the entire UFC roster that can compete with Shevchenko is Amanda Nunes. This is not an exaggeration or being a victim of the moment, but I truly believe that Shevchenko is the second greatest female mixed martial artist we’ve ever seen.

She is inches behind Nunes and if you have a hard time believing that, watch their second fight from UFC 215. Personally, I scored that fight for Shevchenko and if she would’ve won that split decision, she would be called the greatest.

In my perfect world, I would love to see the trilogy between these two ladies, but Dana White has dismissed that. In terms of the next contender at flyweight, there are a couple of upcoming UFC matchups to watch.

A few weeks from now, Katlyn Chookagian (15-4) takes on Viviane Araujo (10-2) at UFC 262. Then, in June, Lauren Murphy (14-4) takes on JoJo Calderwood (15-5). One of these four ladies will get the next crack at the champion. My only advice to whoever gets that shot is good luck because you’re going to need it.

After UFC 261, the table is set for Kamaru Usman – Colby Covington 2

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This past Saturday at UFC 261, Kamaru Usman (19-1) defended his title against Jorge Masvidal (35-15). The fight was a rematch from last July when Kamaru Usman defeated Masvidal by decision on Fight Island.

That fight was put together on short notice and due to the way the fight went, both men wanted to run things back with a full camp. UFC 261 had a drastically different outcome but with the same winner.

To the surprise of many, Kamaru Usman knocked Masvidal out cold on the feet. Heading into UFC 261, everyone thought that Masvidal would have the striking advantage. However, Usman put him away doing what Masvidal does best.

With the Gamebred chapter closed, it’s on to another rematch for Kamaru Usman. Before last weekend’s PPV, Dana White said that Colby Covington (16-2) would be next in line for the UFC welterweight title. 

White reiterated these comments in his post-fight press conference. While Usman talked around the rematch, it’s clear that the fight between the two top welterweight is what’s next for the UFC.

When will the UFC make it happen?

White didn’t have a timeline for the UFC welterweight title fight, but Colby Covington has come out and said there is no reason to delay it. Usman came out of the fight last Saturday unscathed and Covington is ready to go.

Realistically, I think the UFC will put this fight together in either August or September and you can expect a heated buildup. In my opinion, these are the two best welterweights in the world and there first fight was extremely competitive.

Back at UFC 245 in December of 2019, these two met in the headliner. The fight was extremely close and watching it back, I had it 2-2 going into the fifth round. The judges had it 2-2, 3-1 Usman, 3-1 Covington.

The fifth round was going to decide the winner and Usman got the TKO to retain his welterweight title. Even if that stoppage doesn’t happen and Covington survives, Usman would have won a split decision at UFC 245.

I’m expecting the rematch to be just as competitive. Colby Covington and Gilbert Burns are really the only welterweights that I see giving Usman trouble. I don’t want to include Leon Edwards yet until I see him a bit more active. That said, the rematch between these two is going to be something to behold whenever the UFC gets it finalized.