UFC 257

UFC 257 loses Matt Frevola – Ottman Azaitar

by
UFC, Matt Frevola

This morning we had the weight-ins for UFC 257 and the PPV lost one of the fights on the main card. While reasons are still unknown at this time, Jon Anik announced that the main card bout between Matt Frevola (8-1-1) and Ottman Azaitar (13-0) was off.

It’s worth noting that Frevola did successfully weigh-in at 155.5 pounds for UFC 257. However, we never saw Azaitar this morning. The word is that Frevola will now serve as a backup for one of the other lightweight bouts on the card should someone else fall out.

This was a fight that I was very intrigued by. Azaitar has looked sensational since he made his UFC debut back in 2019. He’s scored two devastating first round knockouts including one over Khama Worthy.

The Bulldozer looks like he can be a force at 155 pounds. Matt Frevola is riding a two-fight winning streak of his own. “The Steamrolla” was supposed to be a really good test for Azaitar to see just where he’s at in the lightweight division.

Frevola last fought in October of 2019 when he defeated Luis Pena. Frevola had a couple of UFC fights fall through in 2020 and that kept him out. After a year off, you can imagine that Frevola is very frustrated with the developments this morning.

The UFC’s Plan

As mentioned, the UFC’s plan is for Frevola to stick around. There are several lightweight bouts on the card and should someone fallout, he would be there to step in. It’s hard to say what the promotion will do when it comes to the original Azaitar – Frevola fight.

We still don’t know what exactly happened with Azaitar, however, we can likely assume it was a weight cutting issue. This is a really good matchup on paper and I wouldn’t be shocked to see the UFC put this together again soon should Frevola not compete tomorrow night.

 

UFC: Conor McGregor issues response to Jake Paul

by
Conor McGregor, UFC

Conor McGregor (22-4) is getting prepared for his return at UFC 257 against Dustin Poirier (26-6, 1 NC). McGregor appears to be as focused as he’s ever been. He also looks like he’s in incredible shape ahead of his return this Saturday.

One thing that McGregor hasn’t addressed in the past couple of weeks is the callout from Jake Paul. It doesn’t seem that really any reporter has asked the question, but that changed when he was interviewed by BT Sport.

Towards the end of his interview, McGregor was asked about YouTubers calling him out. The former UFC champion made it clear that he really doesn’t take it seriously and he believes that Jake Paul is a little confused.

“He seems like a confused little kid to me. Now, he’s willing to get in there so I don’t know what’s going to happen. You never know,” McGregor said to BT Sport. While his tone seemed to indicate he doesn’t take it seriously, he at least left the door open for the potential fight.

UFC’s McGregor – Jake Paul

McGregor has made it clear that his focus is on another UFC run at lightweight. However, he does have interest in boxing. He’s openly talked about his desire to box Manny Pacquiao and he alluded to that in this interview.

It was announced yesterday that Paul would be headlining a boxing card on April 17th. However, we do not know the opponent of that bout just yet. Paul has made it clear that he wants to box an MMA fighter in his next bout.

I think it’s safe to say that he’s not going to be boxing the former UFC champion next. I’m very curious to see who Paul ends up boxing in April, and if he wants to be taken seriously, he needs to box someone from a combat sports background.

Conor McGregor hit with multimillion-dollar lawsuit to kick off UFC 257’s Fight Week

by
Conor McGregor, UFC

This upcoming Saturday at UFC 257, Conor McGregor (22-4) will be making his return to the octagon. McGregor is headlining the first PPV of 2021 against Dustin Poirier (26-6, 1 NC) in a rematch from their original fight that took place over six years ago.

It seems that everything has gone smooth in McGregor’s preparation for his UFC return. He seems more focused than ever and he seems to be in the best shape he’s ever been in leading up to the fight.

McGregor has been through a lot over the past few years. In reality, he’s brought a lot of negative attention onto himself with his actions. Whether it was throwing a dolly threw a bus window or punching an old man in a pub in Dublin, McGregor has made some questionable decisions.

That said, the last year has been smooth for McGregor. He fought at UFC 246 to kickoff 2020 and won in 40 seconds. After that, he had some public spats with the UFC that caused a brief retirement. However, nothing extremely negative happened outside the cage.

Instead, McGregor appeared to still be training despite his self-proclaimed retirement. Just when you thought we were in the clear of all the outside drama, news broke today that McGregor has been hit with a multimillion-dollar law suit over events that took place in 2018.

Will this impact UFC 257?

ESPN reported today that a suit was filed against McGregor in the High Court of Dublin. The lawsuit is a personal injury lawsuit that has been filed by a woman in Dublin. McGregor and an associate are both listed as defendants in the case.

It is worth noting that the UFC star was already investigated for this alleged incident. After collecting evidence and doing a series of interviews, the UFC star was not charged of any crime.

Of course, just because McGregor wasn’t charged doesn’t mean that the woman cannot pursue damages. That said, it appears that it will be an uphill battle for the woman and her mother who have filed the lawsuits against McGregor.

You already know that there is a high-level legal team that will start to handle this. However, one has to wonder if it will be in the back of his mind as he prepares this week. Then again, maybe McGregor will be able to block it out and just focus on the fight in front of him.

Khabib and Dana White to meet one final time after UFC 257 in Las Vegas

by

This weekend, Dana White and UFC lightweight champion, Khabib Nurmagomedov (29-0), had their much anticipated meeting. The world was expecting a final resolution after the meeting. White teased that an announcement would be made at UFC Fight Island 7.

Well, White did announce the results of that conversation yesterday. However, in the end, nothing new came of it. According to White, Khabib is going to sit back and watch UFC 257 and see if any of the four top lightweights competing entices him to come back.

Khabib has apparently told White that he doesn’t want to tie up the division. He apparently has been very impressed with Charles Oliveira (30-8, 1 NC) as of late, but he’s still not 100% sure he will come back. He’s looking for something that excites him to make him come back.

While that’s certainly not a yes, the more important thing is that it’s not a no. With Khabib telling White that he’ll sit back and wait, you can tell that the UFC lightweight champion is still interested in competing. Otherwise, he wouldn’t think twice about UFC 257 next weekend.

UFC’s plan with Khabib

Dana White told the media at the UFC Fight Island 7 post-fight press conference that Khabib is leaving Fight Island after the Wednesday card. However, he’s not flying home to Russia, but instead, he’s flying to Las Vegas.

After the UFC’s current stint on Fight Island wraps up, White will be returning to Las Vegas as well. White said that the current plan is for him and Khabib to meet up for dinner after he returns home from Fight Island.

Apparently, that is the meeting where the final decision will be made. After next weekend, Khabib will decide whether there are any challenges left for him in the UFC that interest him. If so, he’ll come back to defend the title. If not, he will vacate the title for the division to move on.

It’s not a secret, but the desire for the UFC is to have Khabib defend his title in a rematch against Conor McGregor (22-4). McGregor of course headlines UFC 257 against Dustin Poirier (26-6, 1 NC). Should McGregor win, that will be the fight the UFC pushes for. It’ll be interesting to see if Khabib is interested.

UFC: Conor McGregor wants to have a run at lightweight

by
Conor McGregor, UFC

The biggest combat sports star in the world will make his return next Saturday. The UFC‘s first champ-champ, Conor McGregor (22-4), will be fighting for the first time since he knocked out Donald Cerrone in 40 seconds at UFC 246.

McGregor will be taking on Dustin Poirier (26-6, 1 NC) in a rematch from UFC 178. That night, McGregor stopped Poirier in the first few minutes in a fight that showed the world that Conor McGregor was the real deal.

Fast forward more than six years later and both men are in drastically different spots. McGregor became a two-division world champion and he’s even boxed Floyd Mayweather. Meanwhile Poirier rose to the top of lightweight and became the interim champion.

Going into UFC 257, it’s safe to say that both men are at their peaks. I think we are probably going to see the best versions of Conor McGregor and Dustin Poirier when they fight next weekend.

The one thing that’s been pointed out about McGregor leading up to this fight is his mentality. When McGregor appears fully focused, he might be the best fighter in the world. However, outside distractions have sometimes hindered his performance in the cage.

There has been a lot of speculation about what will be next for McGregor should he win at UFC 257. Will he box Manny Pacquiao? Will he stay at lightweight? Or will he pursue welterweight superfights? McGregor told The Mac Life his plans earlier this morning.

McGregor wants a UFC title run at lightweight

“I never got a good stint at 155 pounds. A consecutive stint as I did in the featherweight division. I would like to do it the same in the lightweight division as I did in the featherweight division. Give it a good run and tear through the division,” McGregor said.

This has to be music to the ears to everyone at the UFC. There would be nothing better for their business than having McGregor go on a run in the lightweight division. McGregor appears to be fully committed to that or at least he’s appearing that way as of now.

Conor McGregor also discussed his fellow competitors at lightweight and said that there’s many great competitors that he wants to fight. He also mentioned being very interested in the trilogy with Nate Diaz (20-12) at some point in the lightweight division.

Dustin Poirier wants a war with Conor McGregor at UFC 257

by

We are just about a week away from UFC 257. The highly anticipated PPV is being headlined by the rematch between Conor McGregor (22-4) and Dustin Poirier (26-6, 1 NC). The first fight took place at UFC 178 back in 2014.

That night, McGregor knocked out Poirier in the first few minutes of their fight. It was a massive statement on McGregor’s meteoric rise to the top of the combat sports world. Both men are in much different places six years later.

McGregor is fighting for the first time since UFC 246 last January. That night, McGregor stopped Donald Cerrone in 40 seconds. The former two-division UFC champion is promising another finish in under a minute at UFC 257.

However, Dustin Poirier has different plans. The Diamond is not wanting this fight to end with a clean knockout one way or the other. Instead, Poirier is wanting both of them to be badly hurt so they have to dig down deep.

Poirier told Theo Von recently, “What I want is for both of us to be dripping blood and hurting early in the fight. I want both of us to be bleeding and really have to dig down deep to see who’s the better fighter.”

Will UFC 257 be a war?

Words cannot express how excited I am for this rematch. Both of these men are so much better than they were six years ago when they fought the first time. It’ll be very interesting to see if Poirier’s improvements can push him past McGregor.

Based on what Poirier’s saying, you can tell he’s taking a slight jab at McGregor. Poirier has been in real trouble in fights and has had to dig down deep to win. That’s why he later said he beats McGregor ten times out of ten if the fight gets tough.

However, it is worth noting that the UFC’s first champ-champ hasn’t always had it easy. McGregor was hurt by both Khabib Nurmagomedov and Nate Diaz in their fights. McGregor did better than anyone in terms of fighting Khabib going off recent history which includes Poirier.

Conor McGregor’s biggest test came at UFC 202 when he fought Diaz for the second time. McGregor is a very fast starter and dropped Diaz a number of times early. However, Diaz didn’t go away and stormed back into the fight.

When it appeared that McGregor was on his way to losing again, he dug down deep and won the crucial fourth round. That round secured the decision for Conor McGregor in a fight he desperately needed to win.

We’ve seen Poirier come back from adversity more times than McGregor, but we know McGregor is capable. If this fight is truly a war, I think both are capable of digging down deep to find a win. I can’t wait to find out what happens next Saturday night.

Michael Chandler believes he will be the UFC lightweight champ this year

by
Michael Chandler

One of the biggest storylines for the UFC that came outside the actual octagon in 2020 was the promotion’s signing of Michael Chandler (21-5). The former Bellator lightweight champion finished his contract back in August.

After he knocked out Benson Henderson, Chandler was the hottest free agent in MMA. All of the big promotion’s were throwing money at him, however, there was one place he knew he wanted to be at.

Despite the UFC not offering the most money, Chandler signed with the biggest MMA promotion in the world. For Michael Chandler, signing with the UFC was more about his legacy and the competition over the money.

Chandler has made it very clear that he wants to prove that he’s one of the very best in the world. He served at the backup at UFC 254 if Khabib Nurmagomedov or Justin Gaethje would have fallen out of the main event.

Chandler showed up and made weight despite not being officially booked for a fight. He wanted to get the feel of being in the UFC and he wanted to meet everyone behind the scenes to get a sense of what it’s like.

After initially struggling to get him a fight, the promotion has booked Chandler for his debut at UFC 257. Chandler will be taking on top lightweight contender, Dan Hooker (20-9), in the co-main event of the evening.

Will Chandler become a UFC champion?

Michael Chandler recently sat down with MMA On Point where he talked about his journey in getting to UFC 257. He made it clear that he believes he will prove he’s the best in the world saying, “I truly believe I’m going to be the UFC Lightweight Champion this year.”

Defeating Dan Hooker would be a great first step for the former Bellator champion. However, even beating Dan Hooker isn’t likely to net Chandler a title fight right away. More than likely, he will have to win twice to get that shot at the title.

Granted, starting in January is a great thing for Michael Chandler and the UFC. Chandler has a desire to be active in 2021 and if he’s going to be champion, he’s going to have to fight three times this year.

Michael Chandler does have the skills to become a champion in the UFC. However, it’s going to be far from easy, but that’s his prime motivation. Chandler’s addition made the best division in the promotion even more exciting in 2021.

Dustin Poirier has signed a new eight-fight deal with the UFC

by
dustin poirier, ufc

Next weekend at UFC 257, Dustin Poirier (26-6, 1 NC) will get the opportunity to avenge one of his biggest losses. In the headliner, Poirier will be taking on Conor McGregor (22-4) in a rematch from UFC 178.

The first fight that took place back in 2014 did not go well for Poirier. After a heated buildup, McGregor stopped Poirier in the first round. However, since that moment, Poirier has surged in his career.

Since the first loss to McGregor, Poirier has gone 10-2,1 NC in thirteen fights. The pinnacle of his rise came at UFC 236 when he defeated Max Holloway (21-6) to become the interim lightweight champion.

However, his interim reign didn’t last long as he was dominated by Khabib Nurmagomedov (29-0) at UFC 242 later that year. Still, Poirier is one of the very best in the world and he plans to show his improvement next Saturday.

Getting Poirier to this fight hasn’t been an easy thing. Originally, the promotion wanted Poirier to fight at UFC 254 in the co-headliner against Tony Ferguson (25-5). However, Poirier and the UFC couldn’t come to an agreement.

After they couldn’t come to an agreement on the money for the Ferguson fight, the promotion tried offering Poirier a fight with Michael Chandler (21-5). However, Poirier was still not good with the UFC‘s financial offer.

As a result, the talks fell apart and Poirier didn’t end up fighting. During this time, Conor McGregor was having his own issues with the promotion. With both men upset at the UFC, they talked online about having a charity match. That’s where things turned.

Charity Match to a New UFC Contract

McGregor and Poirier both agreed to an exhibition MMA match for charity that had nothing to do with the UFC. Of course, that is when the promotion decided to engage both men about fighting each other.

After a long negotiation, both sides came to a deal and the two are headlining UFC 257. However, it wasn’t just a one-off for Poirier. The Diamond revealed to Theo Von in a recent interview that he’s signed a new eight-fight deal with the promotion.

After all of the issues that Poirier was having with the promotion, it seems that everything has been ironed out. In the interview, Poirier even talked about a willingness to move up to welterweight eventually.

Poirier told Von, “I just signed an eight-fight contract with the UFC. My plan is to fight eight more times. I want to finish this contract I’m on, fight eight more times. Then we’ll see where we’re at there. But I’m not looking past that or before that.”

You can watch the entire interview below.

Charles Oliveira wants a UFC title shot next, not Justin Gaethje

by

A UFC lightweight who saw his stock soar in 2020 was “Do Bronx” Charles Oliveira (30-8, 1 NC). Oliveira has flown under the radar in the premium division in the promotion despite the winning streak he’s on.

Heading into 2020, Oliveira was riding a six-fight winning streak. Not only that, but he had finished all six opponents in those UFC contests. He started out 2020 by taking on Kevin Lee (18-6) back in March.

This event was actually the UFC‘s last event before they shut down due to the pandemic. Oliveira impressed again as he was able to score a third round submission victory over Kevin Lee. His seventh straight stoppage win in the lightweight division.

Then, Oliveira got the biggest fight of his career. A co-main event slot against El Cucuy, Tony Ferguson (25-5) at UFC 256. Ferguson was looking to bounce back after he had lost to Justin Gaethje (22-3) back in May.

Oliveira completely dominated the former UFC interim lightweight champion. Had Ferguson not been so tough, Oliveira would have scored another first round stoppage. He locked in a deep armbar that had me tapping from my chair at home.

Instead, Ferguson gutted it out and fought through it. However, Oliveira still dominated every second of the fight to make it eight straight. Last week, Dana White said that the UFC was looking to book Oliveira against Gaethje. Well, Oliveira is not a fan of that.

Do Bronx isn’t down with the UFC’s plan

Oliveira’s manager told MMA Fighting, “With all due respect, Khabib ran over (Gaethje). That must count, and a lot. I believe Charles’ next fight has to be for the belt against the winner of Poirier and McGregor, not Justin Gaethje.”

It was also revealed that Oliveira’s next fight will be the final fight in his UFC contract. However, Oliveira’s manager made it clear that Do Bronx isn’t going anywhere and that they are working towards a new deal with the promotion.

I completely understand where Oliveira is coming from. He’s won eight fights in a row and seven have been stoppages in the toughest division in the sport. However, that still might not matter at the end of the day.

Conor McGregor (22-4) and Dustin Poirier (26-6, 1 NC) are fighting at UFC 257. The winner of that fight will be fighting for the lightweight title no matter what in their next fight. Should McGregor win, the UFC is going to push for the rematch with Khabib Nurmagomedov (29-0).

Khabib is retired, but Dana White is going to try and convince him to fight one more time in the UFC this week. However, even if Khabib stays retired and McGregor wins, Oliveira will likely need to get one more win to get a UFC title shot.

While he’s certainly deserving, the promotion is also going to look at what’s the biggest fight they can make. McGregor – Oliveira doesn’t sell the way McGregor – Gaethje would. That said, I think Oliveira is going to have to settle for the UFC giving him Justin Gaethje.

If Do Bronx runs through Justin Gaethje, there’s no denying him. It’s a very tough position to be in, however, I don’t think he’s going to have another choice.

McGregor – Poirier 2 will be for the UFC lightweight title per Khabib Nurmagomedov

by
Conor McGregor, UFC

A bit of breaking news this afternoon. UFC lightweight champion, Khabib Nurmagomedov (29-0), has told Match TV that the rematch between Conor McGregor (22-4) and Dustin Poirier (26-6, 1 NC) will be for the lightweight title.

Nurmagomedov said that he was retiring after his title defense at UFC 254 over Justin Gaethje. It is worth noting that this news has not been confirmed by the UFC and there has been no official announcement regarding the UFC 257 main event.

Nurmagomedov told Match TV, “My belt will be taken by the winner of Dustin and Conor.” Khabib also said that he does not like the prospect of returning to the octagon insinuating that he’s happy with retiring as is.

Dana White has said that he plans on meeting with the lightweight champion when they are in Abu Dhabi. There have been whispers surrounding the McGregor – Poirier fight and the potential vacant UFC lightweight championship.

McGregor’s head coach recently stated that he didn’t see why the belt wasn’t on the line if Nurmagomedov was retired. Honestly, I completely agree with him. If Nurmagomedov is truly done for good, UFC 257 should be for the vacant lightweight championship.

UFC lightweight title up for grabs

The lightweight division in the UFC is in an interesting position. The promotion doesn’t to take away the title from Nurmagomedov after all he’s done for the promotion. Not too mention that he just fought and Dana White is hoping he will fight again.

However, it’s clear that Nurmagomedov is not going to be fighting lightweight contenders anytime soon. The only fight that would make sense for Nurmagomedov at this stage is a fight with UFC legend, Georges St. Pierre.

However, that fight doesn’t appear likely. In terms of the active lightweight division, UFC 257 would make for the perfect event to crown a new champion. The UFC wanted McGregor to fight for the title after he knocked out Donald Cerrone in January.

That is one of the reasons the promotion held him out. Dustin Poirier holds a knockout win over Justin Gaethje and he’s coming off of a win over Dan Hooker. McGregor and Poirier make for the perfect pairing to crown a new UFC lightweight champion.

This has been a possibility ever since this fight was made. Again, nothing has been confirmed by officials so I would take this news with a grain of salt. Still, it appears even more likely that UFC 257 will crown a new lightweight champion.