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Urijah Faber Needs T.J. Dillashaw for Fourth UFC Title Shot

UFC bantamweights and Team Alpha Male fighters T.J. Dillashaw and Urijah Faber would face off with the 135-pound strap on the line.
UFC president Dana White explained Wednesday on UFC Tonight that, “Those guys have made it very clear that they wil…

UFC bantamweights and Team Alpha Male fighters T.J. Dillashaw and Urijah Faber would face off with the 135-pound strap on the line.

UFC president Dana White explained Wednesday on UFC Tonight that, “Those guys have made it very clear that they will fight each other. We’ll see what happens.”

Teammate-against-teammate fights have been brought up numerous times among some of the best mixed martial arts gyms, but making them happen is no easy task. Both Dillashaw and Faber have said that the UFC would need to make it worth their while when the time comes.

That time has come sooner than expected. Due to injuries suffered by Dominick Cruz and Raphael Assuncao, former bantamweight champion Renan Barao will be awarded the next title shot by White and rematch Dillashaw for the title.

There’s nothing currently on the table for Faber. Most recently, The California Kid choked out top-15 bantamweight Francisco Rivera at UFC 181 but not without controversy.

An eye poke that went unnoticed in the middle of the second round of the pair’s fight has caused Rivera to file an appeal with the Nevada Athletic Commission, which will be reviewed on Monday.

A potential rematch might be on the table for Rivera and Faber. Regardless of whomever White puts in front of him, should Faber win, a matchup with Dillashaw isn’t out of the question.

The former WEC featherweight champion had three cracks at the 135-pound belt in the UFC but came up short in attempts against Barao and Team Alpha Male nemesis Cruz. Faber has also gone undefeated in non-title bouts for his entire MMA career. Dillashaw is his ticket to a coveted fourth shot at UFC gold.

A Dillashaw title defense against Faber is something that White wouldn’t mind seeing.

“That’s not the plan right now here today, but it’s definitely a fight I’d like to see,” White mentioned on UFC Tonight.

Even teammate and perennial featherweight contender Chad Mendes appears confident that the pair could put aside their personal relationship. It wouldn’t be a fight filled with bad blood, but the UFC could definitely find a way to come up with an exciting promo for this teacher-against-mentor meeting.

Over the years, camps like the American Kickboxing Academy and American Top Team have produced multiple contenders in the same weight class. White’s plans for a Josh Koscheck-Jon Fitch fight went unanswered, and now it appears the same thing will happen to a potential Hector Lombard-Tyron Woodley meeting.

We also saw the path to a title shot for Tristar gym’s Rory MacDonald open up when teammate and former longtime 170-pound champion Georges St-Pierre vacated his title. MacDonald had said in November that he would move up to 185 pounds and “never stab him in the back.”

Longtime friends and AKA training partners Cain Velasquez and Daniel Cormier have vowed never to fight each other, which is part of the reason the latter dropped down a weight class.

Others, like Chael Sonnen and Dan Henderson, in the past have welcomed a potential friendly rivalry. However, as Levi Nile of Bleacher Report put it, “Being defeated (perhaps brutally and embarrassingly) by a teammate would drastically alter the mood in camp after the bout.”

A fight between Dillashaw and Faber would allow the latter another chance, perhaps his last at 35 years old, to earn that coveted UFC title. It would also answer questions as to who the better Team Alpha Male wrestler or striker is.

If both men can treat it as a lighthearted and competitive test, as opposed to an opportunity to pound leather into someone’s face, then maybe this proposed bout can happen. Faber and Dillashaw, at least, have left the door open.

Getting someone ready for a fight and actually stepping into the Octagon for an opportunity to beat them are two entirely different things to wrap your head around.

One risks life and limb when you step into the cage, so it’s fair to see why it’s difficult for a fighter to separate themselves emotionally from someone they may cause injury.

At the same time, it’s something one should prepare for when entering a sport in which everyone is constantly evolving. Fighters are also businessmen, and with talks of the UFC and their questionable pay practices front and center, they need to look out for a bout that will be the most lucrative.

If Dillashaw and Faber both win their next fight, all the speculation would become a reality. But then again, maybe Assuncao, who will have had months to heal his broken ankle, would have something to say about that.

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Parke and McGregor Prepare For Boston – BBC

Mixed martial arts fighter Norman Parke is confident ahead of his UFC Fight Night showdown against Brazilian Gleison Tibau in Boston on 18 January.Thousands of Irish fans are expected to make the trip to the United States to cheer on the 29-year-old from Bushmills, a former national champion in judo and freestyle wrestling.Dublin’s Conor McGregor tops the Boston bill in a world title eliminator against Dennis Siver.

Watch Video: http://www.bbc.co.uk/sport/0/northern-ireland/30697032 Read the Full Article Here

UFC 186 set for Montreal in April, other potential 2015 locations announced

Finally, the UFC is returning to Canada with a major event.

After two false starts in 2014, it was announced Wednesday on UFC Tonight that UFC 186 will be held in Montreal on April 25. No headliner has been announced for the pay-per-view card yet.

The UFC will also be in Canada on Aug. 23 for a Fight Night card, likely on FOX Sports 1. The city is not official for that one yet, but there will be at least two other events later in the year in Canada with Toronto, Calgary and Montreal all being considered for big shows.

UFC 178 was initially supposed to be in Toronto, but the site was changed to Las Vegas when the main event was scheduled to be Jon Jones vs. Alexander Gustafsson for the light heavyweight title. The UFC targeted Montreal for a show in December, but snubbed Canada again, bringing UFC 181 with a pair of title fights back to Vegas.

The promotion has not been to Montreal since UFC 158 on March 15, 2013 when Georges St-Pierre beat Nick Diaz in the headliner. The UFC did hold three shows in Canada last year: UFC 174 in Vancouver and Fight Nights in Halifax and Quebec City.

The UFC also announced a host of potential other target cities for 2015, including Cleveland, Philadelphia, New Orleans, Salt Lake City and Anaheim. The promotion will also be returning to Florida with the city still to be announced, likely somewhere it has never gone before.

Brazil will likely get seven shows in 2015, including two each in Rio de Janeiro and Sao Paulo. One of the Brazilian cards will be a pay-per-view event.

Also internationally, the UFC is hoping to hold shows in Japan, South Korea, the Philippines, Scotland, Poland, the Netherlands and Russia. The organization believes it will hold the most shows in Europe it ever has this year.

The UFC will likely go to Mexico twice in 2015 with events planned in Mexico City and Monterrey. The UFC heavyweight title fight between Cain Velasquez and Fabricio Werdum is targeted for a Mexico City card sometime in the first half of the year.

Also, the UFC has vowed to return to Australia for multiple events this year. One of them could be a massive stadium show in Melbourne headlined by one of the sport’s biggest stars in November.

Finally, the UFC is returning to Canada with a major event.

After two false starts in 2014, it was announced Wednesday on UFC Tonight that UFC 186 will be held in Montreal on April 25. No headliner has been announced for the pay-per-view card yet.

Brazil will likely get seven shows in 2015, including two each in Rio de Janeiro and Sao Paulo. One of the Brazilian cards will be a pay-per-view event.

Also, the UFC has vowed to return to Australia for multiple events this year. One of them could be a massive stadium show in Melbourne headlined by one of the sport’s biggest stars in November.

Dana White: T.J. Dillashaw, Urijah Faber ‘have made it very clear that they will fight each other’

T.J. Dillashaw and Urijah Faber are two of the best bantamweight fighters on the planet who just happen to be training partners with Team Alpha Male in Sacramento, Calif.

No problem, according to UFC president Dana White.

White said Wednesday on UFC Tonight that Dillashaw and Faber would be down to fight each other. Dillashaw is the current UFC bantamweight champion and Faber is one of the very best in the division, undefeated in non-title fights throughout his illustrious career.

“That’s possible,” White said. “Those guys have made it very clear that they will fight each other. We’ll see what happens.”

Dillashaw-Faber might happen one day, but it won’t be what is next for either one of them. White said last week that former champion Renan Barao will get the next title shot against Dillashaw following injuries to top contenders Dominick Cruz and Raphael Assuncao. As for Faber, White said the UFC has someone else in mind for him.

“That’s not the plan right now here today, but it’s definitely a fight I’d like to see,” White said of Faber-Dillashaw.

Both men have not been as unequivocal about an intra-Team Alpha Male fight as White is. Dillashaw considers Faber a mentor and would prefer not to fight him. Faber said Monday on The MMA Hour with Ariel Helwani that it is not his desire to compete against Dillashaw at this juncture, but left the door open for a potential bout.

Cruz was set to get the next shot at Dillashaw before getting injured and needing a third ACL surgery. That would have been far and away the most interesting fight in the 135-pound division. Assuncao has also earned his spot — he beat Dillashaw in 2013 by split decision.

Faber could end up facing a rematch with Francisco Rivera. The two met at UFC 178 in September and Faber accidentally poked Rivera in the eye, directly leading to Faber’s neck crank submission finish. Rivera is challenging the result with the Nevada Athletic Commission (NAC) and will have his case heard Monday.

T.J. Dillashaw and Urijah Faber are two of the best bantamweight fighters on the planet who just happen to be training partners with Team Alpha Male in Sacramento, Calif.

No problem, according to UFC president Dana White.

“That’s possible,” White said. “Those guys have made it very clear that they will fight each other. We’ll see what happens.”

“That’s not the plan right now here today, but it’s definitely a fight I’d like to see,” White said of Faber-Dillashaw.

Anderson Silva to Get Title Shot If He Defeats Nick Diaz at UFC 183

As it turns out, former pound-for-pound king Anderson Silva could get his hands on the middleweight champion sooner than many of us anticipated.
The former middleweight champion is only one victory away from standing across the Octagon from the 185-pou…

As it turns out, former pound-for-pound king Anderson Silva could get his hands on the middleweight champion sooner than many of us anticipated.

The former middleweight champion is only one victory away from standing across the Octagon from the 185-pound titleholder, UFC President Dana White said in an interview conducted on Fox Sports 1’s UFC Tonight (via MMAJunkie.com).

“(Nick) Diaz and Anderson Silva are fighting, and obviously if Anderson Silva wins that fight, and whether Vitor (Belfort) or (Chris) Weidman win, then you have Anderson Silva versus either one of those guys,” White said.

Keep in mind that this doesn’t necessarily “guarantee” Silva a shot at the belt (just ask Rory MacDonald and the laundry list of fighters who lost their promised title shots), particularly because the middleweight division is currently holstering several title contenders who currently author winning streaks that put Silva’s two-fight losing streak to shame.

But also keep in mind that this isn’t as similar to MacDonald’s case as we all think it may be. Like Conor McGregor is to Jose Aldo, Johny Hendricks is to Robbie Lawler and Daniel Cormier was to Jon Jones, Silva is the hottest ticket in town for the middleweight champion.

Because as plausible as it may be to see Silva return to his former glory and wreak havoc upon the upper echelon of UFC middleweights, White and Co. need to recognize that their former champion is returning to the cage as a 39-year-old legend. He could come in and do what most of us expect him to do against a game, but undersized, Diaz. But what then?

They need to cash in on Silva while he’s hot—like now.

“It’s a very interesting fight,” White said. “After the injury that Anderson Silva had, where is he going to be mentally? I think physically he’s a guy that does the right things, works hard. He’s been working since the injury happened. He’s definitely going to be in shape.”

Kristian Ibarra is a Featured Columnist at Bleacher Report MMA. He also serves as the sports editor at San Diego State University’s student-run newspaper, The Daily Aztec. Follow him on Twitter at @Kristian_Ibarra for all things MMA.

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Dana White: Anderson Silva will get middleweight title shot with win over Nick Diaz

The Chris Weidman–Anderson Silva trilogy has a significant chance of being a real thing.

UFC president Dana White said Wednesday on UFC Tonight that if Silva defeats Nick Diaz at UFC 183 on Jan. 31 in Las Vegas that Silva will get the next middleweight title shot. White said it doesn’t matter if Weidman or Vitor Belfort wins the UFC 184 championship bout; Silva will take on the winner.

That announcement comes as a surprise since there are plenty of qualified candidates for an opportunity at the belt in the middleweight division. At UFC 184, Ronaldo “Jacare” Souza and Yoel Romero, two of the top-ranked fighters in the weight class, will meet. And a fight between Luke Rockhold and Lyoto Machida is likely also on the docket for some time in the spring. The victor in either one of those fights would have a major case for being the No. 1 contender.

But that won’t be so, according to White. Silva, regarded as one of the greatest MMA fighters of all time, will get first dibs.

“The Spider” lost his middleweight belt to Chris Weidman via knockout in July 2013 after a record seven years and 10 title defenses. Silva then lost to Weidman again in December 2013 when he gruesomely broke his leg attempting a kick. That was the last time Silva stepped into the Octagon.

Silva, 39, has publicly endorsed Souza, his teammate, for a title shot and said he would step away from the title picture to let “Jacare” pursue it. Yet, the enigmatic “Spider” has also made comments about getting back “his title.”

“Look, besides returning well in 2015, my project in the UFC is only one: I won’t stop (fighting) until I get my title back,” Silva said in an interview with Brazilian outlet Veja. “I want to at least try.”

Weidman and Belfort meet in the main event of UFC 184 on Feb. 28 in Los Angeles. After beating Silva twice, Weidman defeated Lyoto Machida by unanimous decision at UFC 175 in July. Silva holds a first-round knockout victory over Belfort already on his résumé.

Weidman was asked in November about the potential of fighting Silva again, and he is not against it. He also doesn’t seem like it would be much of a challenge.

“If that’s what the people want to see, then it’ll happen,” Weidman said, according to MMAjunkie. “Easy payday? Yeah, pretty much. With all due respect.”

The Chris Weidman–Anderson Silva trilogy has a significant chance of being a real thing.

But that won’t be so, according to White. Silva, regarded as one of the greatest MMA fighters of all time, will get first dibs.

Weidman was asked in November about the potential of fighting Silva again, and he is not against it. He also doesn’t seem like it would be much of a challenge.

“If that’s what the people want to see, then it’ll happen,” Weidman said, according to MMAjunkie. “Easy payday? Yeah, pretty much. With all due respect.”