UFC

UFC: Paulo Costa says Israel Adesanya contract is signed

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One of the more anticipated UFC title fight of 2020 looks like it’s getting closer to having a date. Top UFC middleweight contender, Paulo Costa (13-0), announced that the contract has been signed for his title fight against champion, Israel Adesanya (19-0).

Costa’s Rise

Paulo Costa has looked like a one man wrecking crew since he joined the UFC in 2017. Costa has gone 5-0 with four knockouts including finishes over Johny Hendricks and Uriah Hall. However, it was Costa’s last fight that told the world just how good he was. “Borrachinha” went head-to-head against the middleweight division’s boogieman, Yoel Romero. Costa went right after Romero with a pace that was hard to match. Costa went right into the fire with arguably the scariest guy in the division, and he came out victorious. His performance was the polar opposite of Adesanya’s against Romero. After that fight, it was clear that Costa was the top contender in the division. However, injuries have delayed his UFC title fight.

The age of Stylebender

Since making his UFC debut back in February of 2018, Israel Adesanya has gone 8-0, looking incredibly impressive along the way. “The Last Sytlebender” reminds many of former middleweight great, Anderson Silva (who Adesanya holds a win over). Despite being undefeated, many doubted Adesanya when he fought former champion, Robert Whittaker. Adesanya put on the performance of his career stopping Whittaker in the second round of their title fight. Adesanya defended his title earlier this year against Yoel Romero in a fight that drew a ton of criticism. While Costa showed no fear in going into a fire fight with Romero, Adesanya played it safe striking from distance. There was a lack of action, and a lot of boos. Romero is the kind of fighter who waits to explode, while Adesanya is a counter-striker. It resulted in a horrific fight. However, the Adesanya/Costa fight is a matchup guaranteed to generate fireworks.

Who will be UFC middleweight king?

It’s rare that you get a title fight like this in MMA. The clear two top guys in the division, going head-to-head for the title while being undefeated. This fight has a Jon Jones/Daniel Cormier feel to it. Now, the fight has not been officially announced, but I would put my money that this fight will likely take place in October. The UFC is planning on Daniel Cormier/Stipe Miocic for their big August show while Khabib/Gaethje is tentatively scheduled for September. The likely next slot will be the October PPV. I cannot wait for this fight to come together. Costa is not the kind of guy who is going to sit back like Romero did against Adesanya, and an ultra aggressive challenger is just the kind of opponent that will allow Izzy to shine. It’s a fascinating clash of styles, and I can’t wait to see who will walk out as the undisputed middleweight king.

UFC: What is next for Jorge Masvidal?

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A couple of months ago, this was an easy question to answer. Jorge Masvidal (35-13) was going to be fighting for the UFC welterweight title in his next fight. “Gamebred” won fighter of the year in 2019 after knocking out top welterweights Darren Till and Ben Askren. Masvidal capped his year off with beating Nate Diaz for the BMF title back in November. All that was left was for Masvidal to fight Kamaru Usman for the title. However, due to failed negotiations we have seen the title shot go to Gilbert Burns. Now that the title shot is gone, what is next for the BMF? Let’s take a look at four realistic options for Jorge Masvidal’s next fight.

Colby Covington

This fight would have the most personal heat, and it’s the fight that probably makes the most sense from a rankings perspective. Former teammates and roommates turned bitter rivals. A fight between Masvidal and Colby Covington (15-2) makes all the sense in the world. Masvidal has been wanting to get paid more for his next fight. A fight with Covington would be a big money maker. Love him or hate him, Colby Covington has turned into must see TV. After reinventing himself a couple of years ago, he has blown up in popularity.

The two men were once closer than brothers if you just take a look at their Instagram accounts from a few years ago. They were both constantly talking about taking over the UFC‘s welterweight division together. Fast forward to now, and both men cannot stop insulting each other in public whenever the other is mentioned. Covington has left American Top Team due to all of the tension that was in the gym. Whether it was a shoot or reality, the heat has seemingly become real between the two. This fight would be a massive seller for the UFC. A fight between Covington and Masvidal would also give a clear number one contender to challenge the winner of the Usman/Burns fight in July.

Nate Diaz

When everything started to go south with the title negotiations, Masvidal turned his attention to Nate Diaz (20-12) with one tweet.

This tweet caught a lot of people off guard considering the fact that everyone was assuming that Usman/Masvidal was opening. Of course we all learned how the negotiations went, and now Masvidal is left without a dance partner. Well, the November BMF title fight left a lot to be desired. Not because of the fight itself, but because of how the fight ended. The fight was getting ready to head into the championship rounds when a ringside doctor called it off due to a cut.

Diaz had some really good moments in the third after Masvidal had dominated most of the fight. Masvidal made more money against Diaz than he was offered to fight Usman. Well, how about running back the BMF title fight as Masvidal suggested? Have to think that the UFC would pony up a little more money considering the star that Nate Diaz is. This would give Masvidal a fight, and it would give the fans a proper conclusion to the BMF title fight that they were robbed of in November.

Winner of Usman/Burns

Probably the easiest thing for Masvidal to do at this point is wait. Kamaru Usman (16-1) and Gilbert Burns (19-3) are fighting in a couple of weeks for the UFC welterweight title. Masvidal can sit on the sidelines while these two go at it. After the fight is over, Masvidal can go back to the UFC to negotiate fighting the winner. The UFC supposedly made a last minute effort to try to get Masvidal to fight Usman on July 11th, but the money just never worked for Gamebred. After all of this fuss, maybe a second round of negotiations after July 11th will go smoother. In an ideal world, Usman would beat Burns on July 11th, and the UFC would move right back to try to book Usman/Masvidal. Realistically, I think this will be the first option considering the fight is just weeks away.

Conor McGregor

Red panty night anyone? Masvidal wants to get paid, and Conor McGregor (22-4) just wants to fight. McGregor “retired” due to the frustrations he had with the UFC for not giving him a fight. Masvidal passed up a title fight due to his frustrations with pay. Do you see where I’m going with this? A fight with Masvidal and McGregor is a win-win for everyone. Masvidal would get the paycheck that he’s searching for. McGregor would get an opponent who would stand and trade with him, and the UFC would hit it out of the park with a massive PPV. I mean imagine a fight with McGregor and Masvidal with no fans. You could hear every word that the two would say to each other. The McGregor fight is one that Masvidal has wanted for a while, and it’s a fight that makes sense for both men. For Conor, he could lose the fight, but not lose ground in the lightweight division. It’s a fight that makes a lot of sense, but I’m not confident the UFC will move to book it.

What does the UFC do?

It’s crazy, but the two biggest fights in terms of PPV money are the two least likely from the UFC‘s perspective. I just don’t see the UFC pushing to make the McGregor or the Diaz fight for Masvidal. My guess is that they will wait to see how July 11th goes. If Usman gets through Gilbert Burns, I think they start up the talks again to have Masvidal fight Usman for the title in the fall. If that fight doesn’t materialize the UFC could pivot to try and booking Masvidal with Covington. However, a roadblock there could be the UFC trying to book the rematch between Usman and Covington. I respect Masvidal for sticking to his guns, but if he gets another chance at Usman, I really hope he doesn’t pass it up. I don’t think the UFC will give him the money fights he’s looking for, so if he doesn’t get the title shot, who knows what’ll happen to him. Gamebred soared to stardom last year, and it is crazy to think that there’s a possibility that the 2019 fighter of the year will not fight in 2020.

UFC: Josh Emmett ready for the top five

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Despite having one of the best performances of his UFC career, Josh Emmett (16-2) looked incredibly frustrated after his incredibly impressive victory on Saturday night. Not frustrated with the performance, but frustrated with all of the people who doubted him going into the fight. Admittedly, I was one of the pundits who predicted him to lose to Shane Burgos. Instead, Emmett put on the performance of his career on a likely torn ACL which was suffered seconds into the fight. With his performance Saturday, you can no longer deny that Emmett is truly one of the best featherweights in the UFC.

Frustrated with being the UFC’s Gatekeeper

“I can beat anyone in the world, so I hope tonight I can start to get some push. I hope the UFC can push me, build me up, do something for me, instead of just trying to keep me as a gatekeeper and just fight all these veterans and tough prospects and up-and-comers. It’s just so frustrating to me.” Emmett said to MMA Junkie after the fight. Emmett said in his post-fight interview that he was frustrated with being the “gatekeeper”, and that he wanted to move up in his career. After Saturday night, I don’t think you can deny the man any longer.

Top Five Options for Emmett

Obviously, we are going to have to see what the status is with Emmett’s knee. Let’s say the results come back better than expected, what’s next for Emmett? I think you would have to give Emmett someone who is in the top five of the UFC‘s featherweight division. All of the top six is currently booked, but I think I have a good fight for Emmett in his next fight. Realistically, I think a good fight for Emmett would be fighting the winner of the Calvin Kattar/Dan Ige fight which takes place on July 15th. Ideally if Kattar were to win in July, you could match Emmett up with Kattar with the winner looking to jump into a title eliminator fight.

Another fight that could make sense for Emmett is taking on the loser of the Holloway/Volkanovski UFC featherweight title fight. While it might not make sense at first, think about it. Whoever loses, unless they do the trilogy, is going to need a top ten opponent in their next fight. Emmett is looking for an opponent where he could show that he’s championship caliber. It could be a perfect matchup.

There are few possibilities, but there is no questioning the fact that Josh Emmett needs a top five opponent in his next fight. The man has paid his dues, and he’s proven to everyone that he’s more than just a one shot knockout artist.

UFC: Curtis Blaydes Embraces The Heel Role After Decision Win

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Curtis Blaydes, UFC

UFC heavyweight contender Curtis Blaydes picked up his fourth straight win at UFC on ESPN 11, but not everyone is a fan of the way that win came. Blaydes, despite having a large number of TKO victories, has been accused of a “boring” fighting style thanks to his wrestling based background and the way he uses it in the octagon, and didn’t improve his reputation during his fight against Volkov where his victory came from a unanimous decision after outlasting his opponent rather than an exciting finish.

According to Dana White, the performance was underwhelming, but the criticism doesn’t seem to have gotten under Blaydes’ skin. When speaking to reporters, he seemed to embrace his spot among the UFC’s heels.

“I know who I am now. I’m the heel. You don’t like what I do? I like to make you mad. I like to win. That’s probably the best part about this win, is I predicted this, and I did it. Twenty-five minutes. Didn’t look the best, but I’m OK with having a gritty win like that, and I know a lot of fans didn’t like it, and I’m OK with that. It makes me happy,” Blaydes said.

Blaydes is one of the next contenders in line for the title but it remains to be seen who his next opponent will be. After two earlier losses to the higher ranked Francis Ngannou, it doesn’t look like a third fight is coming soon between the two.

And current champion Stipe Miocic is already set to defend his title against Daniel Cormier in a third fight, with the location having been recently confirmed as the UFC APEX facility.

It leaves Blaydes in an awkward position, but ultimately, he acknowledged that the matter of his next opponent isn’t in his own hands.

“I fought Justin Willis, ranked below me. I fought Abdurakhimov, ranked below me. I fought Junior, ranked below me. I fought Volkov, ranked below me. Like what? No. I don’t know, man. This is probably not the best time to answer that questions so I’m going to leave that alone.”

Things aren’t easy for Blaydes as a title contender right now, but as long as he continues to win, the UFC won’t be able to ignore him as a title contender regardless of popularity or style. His winning, after all, has remained fairly consistent as of recent.

UFC: Dana White on Curtis Blaydes; “How do you give him the title shot over Francis?”

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UFC, Dana White

Curtis Blaydes talked a lot of smack leading up to UFC on ESPN 11, and the boss took note of everything that Blaydes was saying. Blaydes said that he planned on ragdolling his opponent, and made comments about how he should get the next title shot. Earlier this week, I wrote about how that would be an issue considering the fact that he’s lost twice to the top contender in the division, Francis Ngannou. Dana White took to the podium after the fight, and delivered a very direct quote to Blades: “You look stupid.”

UFC title shot isn’t in the cards for Blaydes right now

White pointed out the fact that his performance did not back up the smack that Blaydes had talked all week. White also mentioned the fact that he’s lost twice to Ngannou, so waiting for a title shot makes no sense.

“He gassed out after the third round. . . If I was him I wouldn’t wait, I’d stay active.” White said in his post-fight press conference. Blaydes does not strike me as a stupid human being. There is no way that even he could watch that performance, and make the assumption that he should be fighting for the UFC heavyweight title next. Nobody would want to see Curtis Blaydes fight for the title after his win over Volkov.

Winning + Excitement = Title Shot

If history has taught us anything about the UFC, it’s taught us that you not only have to win, but you have to be exciting to get a title shot. Blaydes had a lot going for him after his last few performances, but tonight was a devastating blow to his stock even in a win. If he would have came out and finished Volkov early, White would probably have said; “Yeah, I’d probably wait for the title shot.” Look at what Dana has been telling Conor McGregor over the last few months. However, Blaydes looked horrendous in victory, and White knows that his fan base has no interested in seeing him fight for the title anytime soon.

UFC: Aspen Ladd tears ACL; Out of UFC on ESPN 12

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UFC

Next week’s UFC card just suffered a hit as top bantamweight contender, Aspen Ladd (9-1) has been forced off the card after tearing her ACL.

UFC on ESPN 12 loses a good one

One of the fights I was really looking forward to next week was Ladd taking on former title challenger, Sara McMann (12-5). McMann, a former silver medalist in Olympic wrestling, was going to pose an interesting challenge for the rising contender. Ladd has a solid game all the way around, but I was really curious to watch her against the former Olympian. There is no word on if McMann will remain on the card as of this point. As John Morgan pointed out, it will likely be anywhere from six months to a year before Ladd is able to actually compete given the recovery timeline. A win next Saturday would have put Ladd in a good position for a UFC title shot. This is a massive setback for her career.

Still a strong card

The good thing for the UFC is that the card next weekend has some really solid fights up and down. This is one of the fights that I was the most excited for, but there are plenty of solid replacement options for the main card. All we can do is hope for a speedy recovery for Ladd as she recovers from this devastating knee injury.

UFC: Anthony Smith makes his return against Aleksandar Rakic on August 29th

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Anthony Smith, UFC

The UFC will be hosting a Fight Night on August 29th, and the card will feature a contest between two top ten light heavyweights. Former title challenger, Anthony “Lionheart” Smith (33-15) will be making his return against Austrian, Aleksandar Rakic (12-2)

Smith trying to get back to a UFC title shot

We last saw Smith back at UFC Fight Night 171 in May against Glover Teixeira. After a really good start, Smith got rocked in the middle rounds and never recovered. Teixeira finished Smith off in the fifth round. Prior to that loss, Smith has been one of the top light heavyweights in the UFC over the last couple of years. Smith won three fights in a row in 2018 which gave him a shot at champion, Jon Jones. Smith was shut out by Jones, but bounced back strong defeated Alexander Gustafsson in Sweden. Smith will look to get back on track towards another UFC title shot with a win in August.

Rakic looks to climb the mountain

Rakic lost his first professional fight, then he went on a 12 fight winning streak with nine knockouts. Rakic lost an extremely close decision to Volkan Oezdemir back in December at UFC Fight Night 165 which snapped that streak. Going into that fight, Rakic had back-to-back first round stoppages over Jimi Manuwa and Devin Clark. Rakic is ranked ninth in the light heavyweight division, but a win over Smith would vault him close to the top five. It’s a big fight for both men as Smith will try to get back to title contention while Rakic will look to start climbing the mountain for the first time.

Curtis Blaydes Claims UFC Is Protecting Derrick Lewis With Alexander Volkov Matchup

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Alexander Volkov, UFC

The UFC has a competitive top half of the rankings right now in the heavyweight division and the race to the top will definitely be impacted by the matchup between Curtis Blaydes and Alexander Volkov that’s set for June 20th.

Interestingly, however, Blaydes believes that being placed against the seventh ranked heavyweight and the winner of seven of the last eight fights is actually a move that sells him short to an extent. According to Blaydes, his skills are good enough to destroy currently fourth ranked Derrick Lewis, who Blaydes says that the UFC wants to protect.

“After I beat Junior, I knew it was going to be Volkov. I knew they weren’t going to give me Derrick Lewis. They don’t want him to lose, and they know if they gave him me, I would destroy him, so I knew he was off the table. I knew it had to be Volkov, so as soon as it was offered, I said yes,” Blaydes said to MMA Junkie.

While Volkov has had an impressive run of results since entering the UFC, Blaydes also has an impressive record of his own – only two career losses and one no-contest, with both of the losses coming at the hands of Francis Ngannou. There’s no shame, of course, in losing to Ngannou. The hard hitting heavyweight is currently the number two contender and has already fought for title title himself, losing to current champion Stipe Miocic.

While Blaydes believes he deserves a fight with Lewis, he also hasn’t dismissed his current opponent.

“I respect every opponent. I know he’s got skills. I know he’s efficient in striking, but I also know he’s not the best grappler in the world. I know he’s not the caliber grappler I am, and I believe I have the better conditioning,” he continued.

Blaydes may just get the fight he’s looking for with Lewis in the future, but that defends on a win against Volkov, who is a tough challenger in his own right. It won’t take long, though, for the final result to be determined – Blaydes and Volkov are set to fight on the 20th at the UFC APEX facility, as the headliners for UFC on ESPN 11.

UFC: Matt Frevola off UFC on ESPN 11 after cornerman’s positive COVID-19 test

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UFC, Matt Frevola

One of the fights on the under card for this Saturday’s UFC on ESPN 11 has been changed. Frank Camacho (22-8) was originally scheduled to take on Matt Frevola (8-1-1), however that fight has been scrapped due to a cornerman testing positive for COVID-19.

The UFC announced today that Frevola would be pulled from Saturday’s card after cornerman and fellow fighter, Billy Quarantillo, testing positive for COVID-19. It’s a really tough break for Frevola who was going for his third straight win in the UFC. Frevola tested negative twice for COVID-19, but due to the UFC‘s strict policy, he has been pulled off the card. Frevola is the second fighter to be pulled off a card due to COVID-19.

When the UFC comes knocking, you answer the door

Stepping in for Frevola is Justin Jaynes (15-4). Jaynes will be making his UFC in his fight against Camacho. Jaynes comes into this fight 9-1 in his last 10 appearances. In looking at some tape, Jaynes has a really solid overall game. He’s got some good submission skills, and he’s got some pretty good striking. His last four fights have all ended in the first round, although one of those was by disqualification. There’s not a ton of tape out there on Jaynes, but check out the video below to get a little more background on this weekend’s replacement fighter at UFC on ESPN 11.

UFC: With the trilogy booked for August, who has more on the line between Daniel Cormier and Stipe Miocic?

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On August 15th, two of the greatest fighters that have ever stepped foot inside the UFC‘s octagon will settle their rivalry once and for all. The two champions have fought twice, and both men have secured a knockout. Daniel Cormier (22-2, 1 NC) moved up from light heavyweight and stopped Stipe Miocic (19-3) in the first round at UFC 226 to become a double champion. After waiting over a year for a rematch, Miocic got his revenge stopping Cormier in the fourth round at UFC 241 last August. Now the two men will face each other one final time. With the trilogy booked, one has to wonder, who has more on the line in this fight?

The case for Miocic

Stipe Miocic is considered by many to be the best heavyweight champion the UFC has ever seen. He holds the record for the most successful title defenses of the heavyweight title. Prior to his reign, nobody had ever defended the title successfully three times, but Miocic accomplished that with his dominant victory over top contender, Francis Ngannou. In a weird way, Miocic has been drastically underappreciated. Miocic rose through the ranks, won the heavyweight title by knockout, then had three incredible title defenses in a row before losing to Cormier. Miocic has beaten some of the greatest to ever do it, but he still doesn’t get the respect he deserves. You could make the argument that this fight is more important for him to finally get the respect he deserves. Many consider Cormier to be one of the greatest to ever do it, but two clean victories over “DC” would cement Stipe forever as the greatest heavyweight of all time.

The case for Cormier

If it wasn’t for a man named Jon Jones, Daniel Cormier might be considered the greatest of all time. Cormier has beaten the best in the sport in two different weight classes, but Jones was the one man he couldn’t beat. Cormier became the light heavyweight champion only after Jones was stripped of the title. Cormier beat all the contenders, but couldn’t get the job done against Jones either time they fought. Cormier’s light heavyweight title always had an asterisk by some pundits due to the fact that he never beat Jones.

Cormier moved up in weight to heavyweight where he had never lost in his professional career. The only reason Cormier moved down to light heavyweight to begin with was because of his close friend and teammate, Cain Velasquez. Velasquez once ruled the heavyweight division, and the teammates vowed to never fight. When Cain was out of the picture, Cormier moved up to challenge Miocic. “DC” caught Stipe with the perfect punch coming out of a clinch to secure the UFC heavyweight title. Cormier defended the title once against Derrick Lewis before losing it back to Stipe. This fight is huge for Cormier, due to the luck factor. Nobody can take away the fact that Cormier won the heavyweight title clean, but if he loses to Stipe a second time, many pundits will argue that he won the title with a lucky punch. In my opinion, you can’t contest DC’s greatness, but you know that some critics will always say that he couldn’t beat Jon Jones, and he got lucky against Miocic in their first fight if he were to lose.

Greatest UFC Heavyweight of All Time

To me, whoever wins this fight will go down as the greatest heavyweight in UFC history. Even in a loss, Miocic will have more of a resume as champion, but two wins over Stipe for Cormier would take the cake. I think the fight means more for Daniel Cormier than it does for Stipe Miocic. Miocic will always have the distinction of the first champion to defend the title three times. There are no question marks or asterisks by any of his title wins. Cormier on the other hand, has an asterisk by his light heavyweight run, and many might say he just got lucky in the first Miocic fight. If Cormier is able to defeat Miocic again, nobody can takeaway or say anything about the legendary career that he has had. I cannot wait for this trilogy fight, and I encourage fight fans to soak it all in because it might be the last time we either one of these all time greats