Henry Cejudo finally made his UFC debut and looked fantastic in earning a unanimous decision win over Dustin Kimura.
Fighting at bantamweight, the former Olympic gold medalist pleaded for one more opportunity to make the flyweight limit. Whether C…
Henry Cejudo finally made his UFC debut and looked fantastic in earning a unanimous decision win over Dustin Kimura.
Fighting at bantamweight, the former Olympic gold medalist pleaded for one more opportunity to make the flyweight limit. Whether Cejudo fights at 125 or 135 pounds, the UFC has an interesting new prospect who showed he can compete in the biggest promotion in mixed martial arts.
Here are five potential fights, three at bantamweight and two at flyweight, that would be captivating matchups for Cejudo‘s next bout.
Alistair Overeem was able to get the job done at UFC on Fox 13. The former Strikeforce champion was in need of a win to avoid going 2-4 in the Octagon. His win over Stefan Struve will keep him employed for the time being, but he still has a long way to…
Alistair Overeem was able to get the job done at UFC on Fox 13. The former Strikeforce champion was in need of a win to avoid going 2-4 in the Octagon. His win over Stefan Struve will keep him employed for the time being, but he still has a long way to go before being able to make his way towards a shot at the UFC heavyweight strap. With that goal in mind, here is a look at five men who Overeem should be paired with next.
LAS VEGAS — It’s possible Rose Namajunas got a little bit ahead of herself leading into her historic bout with Carla Esparza on Friday night.
Namajunas fell to Esparza by third-round submission (rear-naked choke) in the UFC’s inaugural wome…
LAS VEGAS — It’s possible Rose Namajunas got a little bit ahead of herself leading into her historic bout with Carla Esparza on Friday night.
Namajunas fell to Esparza by third-round submission (rear-naked choke) in the UFC’s inaugural women’s strawweight title fight at The Ultimate Fighter 20 Finale here at the Pearl at the Palms. Namajunas was the chic pick to win the fight and become the face of the new division.
“I was very excited to go in there and win it and take it all,” Namajunas said in the post-fight press conference. “I just gotta go back and really just ponder everything and try to evolve and learn from this and grow as a woman. I kind of felt like a kid in there. I just gotta take that and grow from this just like my last loss.”
Esparza used her wrestling to essentially dominate the second and third rounds. Namajunas came out extremely aggressive in the first and landed big punches and knees. Esparza ate all of them, stayed composed and executed her game plan perfectly.
Namajunas, 22, is still extremely young. This was only her fifth career pro fight and her first was just last year. Maybe all the hype surrounding her — like UFC president Dana White saying she was the next Ronda Rousey — will one day come to fruition. It just won’t be this weekend.
“This is just an investment in my future,” Namajunas said. “I’m gonna tweak some things, I’m gonna work harder and I’m gonna be back.”
Namajunas rolled through the competition on The Ultimate Fighter 20 relatively easily, submitting Alex Chambers, Joanne Calderwood and Randa Markos en route to the finals. As the victories, all impressive, piled up, so did the hype. Even though Esparza was the former Invicta FC 115-pound champion, Namajunas spent a long time as a favorite in this fight at the sportsbooks here in Vegas.
Did Namajunas feel any of the pressure of all those headlines about her? Maybe. She wouldn’t give that a straight answer.
“It always adds pressure,” Namajunas sad. “It’s just a matter of when you get in there, is it gonna be too much or is it just enough? I found out tonight that I just gotta be patient and take my time with this. I got a lot of time.”
LAS VEGAS — For the second straight UFC event, a fight ended as the direct result of an eye-poke.
On Friday night, K.J. Noons caught Daron Cruickshank with a finger to the eye in the second round of their The Ultimate Fighter 20 Finale bout. Cruickshank was blinded and unable to continue. The fight, which was shaping up to be one of the most exciting of the night, was called a no contest.
Just six days ago, Urijah Faber poked Francisco Rivera in the eye on the prelims of UFC 181, also in Vegas. Rivera couldn’t see and Faber pounced, leading to a neck crank submission victory in the second round. Rivera, who was performing well in the fight, has appealed the result with the Nevada Athletic Commission (NAC).
“I don’t know what to do about eye-pokes other than the refs telling them to close their hands and there has to be harsher penalties,” UFC president Dana White said Friday at the post-fight press conference. “If you poke a guy in the eye, you have to lose the round or something. There has to be harsher penalties and it will make guys and girls keep their hands closed.”
Cruickshank tweeted afterward that he had a torn tear duct and posted a photo of the cut. White said doctors told Cruickshank that there didn’t appear to be any damage done to the eyeball, but he will need further tests and surgery on the tear duct.
Rivera will also need surgery to repair a cracked retina. It’s unclear when either Rivera or Cruickshank will be able to return to the Octagon. Both are clamoring for rematches. White said he would consider granting one to Cruickshank, who won the first round on all three judges’ cards.
“That was a fun fight,” White said. “I was excited for that fight, actually.”
LAS VEGAS — For the second straight UFC event, a fight ended as the direct result of an eye-poke.
On Friday night, K.J. Noons caught Daron Cruickshank with a finger to the eye in the second round of their The Ultimate Fighter 20 Finale bout. Cruickshank was blinded and unable to continue. The fight, which was shaping up to be one of the most exciting of the night, was called a no contest.
Just six days ago, Urijah Faber poked Francisco Rivera in the eye on the prelims of UFC 181, also in Vegas. Rivera couldn’t see and Faber pounced, leading to a neck crank submission victory in the second round. Rivera, who was performing well in the fight, has appealed the result with the Nevada Athletic Commission (NAC).
“I don’t know what to do about eye-pokes other than the refs telling them to close their hands and there has to be harsher penalties,” UFC president Dana White said Friday at the post-fight press conference. “If you poke a guy in the eye, you have to lose the round or something. There has to be harsher penalties and it will make guys and girls keep their hands closed.”
Cruickshank tweeted afterward that he had a torn tear duct and posted a photo of the cut. White said doctors told Cruickshank that there didn’t appear to be any damage done to the eyeball, but he will need further tests and surgery on the tear duct.
Rivera will also need surgery to repair a cracked retina. It’s unclear when either Rivera or Cruickshank will be able to return to the Octagon. Both are clamoring for rematches. White said he would consider granting one to Cruickshank, who won the first round on all three judges’ cards.
“That was a fun fight,” White said. “I was excited for that fight, actually.”
LAS VEGAS — All everyone wanted to talk about heading into Friday night was Rose Namajunas and how she has a chance to be a crossover star for the UFC. UFC president Dana White even alluded to her as the next Ronda Rousey over the summer.
B…
LAS VEGAS — All everyone wanted to talk about heading into Friday night was Rose Namajunas and how she has a chance to be a crossover star for the UFC. UFC president Dana White even alluded to her as the next Ronda Rousey over the summer.
Both of those things could turn out to be true. But right now, there’s no doubting Carla Esparza is the best 115-pound woman in the organization.
Esparza dominated Namajunas with wrestling en route to a rear-naked choke submission victory at 1:26 of the third round at The Ultimate Fighter 20 Finale here at the Pearl at the Palms. With the victory, Esparza became the first women’s strawweight champion in UFC history.
“This is the most amazing, unreal feeling I’ve ever had in my life,” Esparza said.
The first round was close. Namajunas landed the more powerful strikes and maybe did more damage. But Esparza converted on four takedowns and that was foreshadowing for the rest of the fight. “Cookie Monster” controlled the entire second round from top position and did the same in the third, until she took Namajunas’ back and finished her with the choke.
Afterward, Esparza said she had dedicated the fight to her late Team Oyama teammate Shane Del Rosario, who died almost exactly one year ago to the day due to a heart ailment.
“This is for you,” Esparza said. “I’m so glad to bring one back for the team.”
Esparza and Namajunas each won all three of their fights on The Ultimate Fighter 20 with relative ease. Next up for Esparza will likely be the winner of Saturday’s fight between Claudia Gadelha and Joanna Jedrzejczyk at UFC on FOX on Phoenix. Esparza and Gadelha were supposed to meet last December in Invicta FC, but Gadelha fell ill after a steep weight cut and was forced to withdraw.
In the co-main event Friday night, Charles Oliveira beat Jeremy Stephens by unanimous decision (29-28, 30-27, 29-28) in a strange fight. Stephens got caught in multiple submission attempts in the first and second rounds. He seemed gassed early on. Oliveira then closed the fight out in the third with stall tactics that drew boos from the small crowd.
Speaking of odd, Daron Cruickshank and K.J. Noons fought to a no contest when Noons unintentionally poked Cruickshank in the eye at 0:25 of the second round. Cruickshank, who won the first round on all three judges’ scorecards, was unable to continue and later wrote on Twitter that he had a torn tear duct.
Also on the main card, Yancy Medeiros submitted Joe Proctor with a guillotine choke at 4:37 of the first round and Jessica Penne defeated Randa Markos by split decision (28-29, 29-28, 30-27) in what was arguably the night’s best fight.
In prelim grudge matches from TUF 20, Felice Herrig tapped out rival Lisa Ellis at 3:05 of the second round with an armbar and Heather Jo Clark took out Bec Rawlings by unanimous decision (29-28, 29-28, 29-28, 29-28). Clark won the fight despite a torn ACL. She’ll have surgery to repair it Dec. 17 and will be out six-to-eight months.
LAS VEGAS — UFC heavyweight Shane Del Rosario died almost exactly one year ago on Dec. 9, 2013. His presence is still felt perpetually at his beloved gym, Team Oyama in Irvine, Calif.
The program’s patriarch, Colin Oyama, just spoke with De…
LAS VEGAS — UFC heavyweight Shane Del Rosario died almost exactly one year ago on Dec. 9, 2013. His presence is still felt perpetually at his beloved gym, Team Oyama in Irvine, Calif.
The program’s patriarch, Colin Oyama, just spoke with Del Rosario’s father this week. And Carla Esparza said she thought of her former teammate often while she was in The Ultimate Fighter house over the summer, leading into her just-completed training camp.
“I definitely had Shane a lot in my mind in these last couple of fights that I’ve had on the show, especially with it being kind of close to the time he passed away last year,” Esparza told MMA Fighting. “Definitely I feel it wearing on my gym and wearing on my coach, who was very close to him.”
Esparza will get the chance to bring gold back to Team Oyama at The Ultimate Fighter 20 Finale on Friday night here at Palms Casino Resort. She’ll meet Rose Namajunas in the UFC’s inaugural women’s strawweight title bout after winning all three of her fights this season on the reality series.
After Del Rosario went into cardiac arrest, Esparza dedicated her fight against Claudia Gadelha at Invicta FC 7 to him. At the time, Esparza was Invicta’s women’s strawweight champion. But the bout never happened when Gadelha fell ill after weigh-ins and had to withdraw.
“She’s saved up all that pent-up frustration,” Oyama told MMA Fighting. “She’s kept it all in, bottled up for the last year. I think it will definitely motivate her.”
Del Rosario died two days after the Invicta event due to complications from a heart ailment no one knew he had. It was a rough time for Team Oyama, especially for the coach and Ian McCall, Del Rosario’s training partner and best friend.
McCall is on the verge of furhter success himself with a UFC flyweight No. 1 contender fight against John Lineker coming up at UFC 184 on Feb. 28. Could Team Oyama have a pair of champions in 2015? Esparza has a solid chance to be the first.
“Carla has overcome a lot of things,” Oyama said. “The death of her grandparents. Dealing with personal issues. She’s done a great job of separating what she has to do as a professional fighter and the things she has to deal with in her personal life. Some people have a difficult time making that separation.”
Esparza, 27, is all business and maybe that’s why she’s not getting as much attention as Namajunas, who is already being billed by UFC president Dana White as the next Ronda Rousey.
“I don’t want to base it on sexuality or anything, but you’ve got your Ronda Rousey ‘who’s sexiest?’ contest, which is not what this is about,” McCall said. “We always tell Carla, this isn’t a f—ing fashion show. This isn’t a modeling contest. You’re a fighter. You act like a fighter, you work like a fighter, you get treated like a fighter. You do girly s— on the side. I’m not here to play dolls with you. I’m here to beat you up.”
For her part, Esparza doesn’t mind not getting all the hype. She’d prefer to just get all the wins.
“I enjoy being the underdog,” Esparza said. “It kind of gives me less pressure and more to live up to.”
Esparza’s wrestling skills are unquestioned and her striking is underrated. But also, the way Oyama sees it, her mental strength and experience in five-round championship fights will give her the edge against Namajunas.
The loss to Del Rosario helped teach Esparza a lesson and maybe that’s why her thoughts drifted toward her friend during those tough times in TUF house.
“I definitely don’t want to live with any regret and I want to do everything I set out to,” Esparza said.
