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PFL Finalist Admits He Nearly Retired Before Fighting For His Second World Championship Win

This Friday night in Riyadh, Brendan Loughnane looks to become a two-time PFL champion at featherweight. The Brit’s 2024 campaign comes to an end when he faces the undefeated Timur Khizriev in the main event in a fascinating match-up. Loughnane’s run in the regular season has consisted of back-to-back finishes against Pedro Carvalho and Justin […]

This Friday night in Riyadh, Brendan Loughnane looks to become a two-time PFL champion at featherweight. The Brit’s 2024 campaign comes to an end when he faces the undefeated Timur Khizriev in the main event in a fascinating match-up.

Loughnane’s run in the regular season has consisted of back-to-back finishes against Pedro Carvalho and Justin Gonzales which were followed by a split decision win over Kai Kamaka III. However, what makes his journey to the finals this year so impressive is what happened in 2023.

After defeating the likes of Bubba Jenkins and Chris Wade in 2022 to become the champion, Loughnane looked to do it again for the second time in a row. Having already beaten the top names in his division, he would have been a big favorite to do just that at the start of the next season.

After stopping Marlon Moraes in his first bout, the 35-fight veteran was finished for the first time in his career when he was knocked out by Jesus Pinedo in the opening round with Pinedo going on to win the world championship. After taking the rest of 2023 off, the former champion has since returned with a rejuvenated drive.

Ahead of his return on November 29, Loughnane revealed in a recent interview with Mirror Fighting that after his loss to Pinedo, he contemplated retirement having already set himself and his family up financially by winning the 2022 season. Now, he has the chance to double that by becoming the first of 18 men to beat Khizriev.

“It was difficult. I didn’t really want to do it again,” he said. “I thought ‘I’m done with this sport. I’ve been knocked out, I’ve got way over $1million in my account. What am I doing this for?’ I had to reassess everything, but I’ve come back and I’ve shown tenacity in the champion that I am. I’ve come back and shown everyone that sometimes you get knocked down in life, or knocked out in my case and you’ve got to come back stronger.”

What’s Next For Deiveson Figueiredo?

Photo by Jeff Bottari/Zuffa LLC

UFC Macau blew the roof off Galaxy Arena in Macau, SRA, China last Saturday (Nov. 23, 2024) leaving several fighters feeling the post-fight blues. Among them was Song Kenan, who was knocke…


UFC Fight Night: Yan v Figueiredo
Photo by Jeff Bottari/Zuffa LLC

UFC Macau blew the roof off Galaxy Arena in Macau, SRA, China last Saturday (Nov. 23, 2024) leaving several fighters feeling the post-fight blues. Among them was Song Kenan, who was knocked out cold by Muslim Salikhov and his spinning wheel kick (see it again here).

And Wang Cong, who suffered the first loss of her mixed martial arts (MMA) career after she was upset and choked out by Gabriella Fernandes (video replay here). But which fighter is suffering from the worst post-fight hangover, now a few days removed from the show?

Deiveson Figueiredo.

Coming into his headlining bout against Petr Yan, Figueiredo was one more win away from throwing his name into the hat at getting a shot at Merab Dvalishvili’s Bantamweight title. Since moving up to 135 pounds, “Daico” — the former UFC Flyweight champion of the world — had won three straight fights, good enough to bump him up all the way to the No. 5 spot on the official rankings.

Unfortunately for the Brazilian ex-champion, he ran into a former champion who wouldn’t be denied. Indeed, Yan was on fire all night, landing on all fronts with his crisp striking and devastating kicks. When they grappled, Yan surprisingly got the best of Figueiredo more often than not. But it was on the feet where “The Machine” really did his damage. In the end, the two men went a full 25 minutes, which resulted in a unanimous decision win for Yan, who called for his shot at the strap after the fight.

As for Figueiredo, it’s his first loss in the division so it won’t hurt him too bad. All it hurts is his hopes of fighting for the title in early 2025.

As far as what could be next for “Daico,” perhaps a showdown against Cory Sandhagen is in order. “Sandman” hasn’t competed since losing to current top contender, Umar Nurmagomedov, earlier this year. Prior to that, Sandhagen was making his own march toward a shot at the title after reeling off three straight wins of his own.

During their previous respective win streaks, both Sandhagen and Figueriedo defeated common opponents Rob Font and Marlon Vera. Sandhagen is currently ranked No. 4, which is one spot ahead of Figueiredo. The winner of this fight will get some much-needed confidence and avoid having a bigger drop-off in the division. As for the loser, he will dig himself a deeper hole to get out of in a stacked weight class.

For complete UFC Macau results, coverage, and highlights, click HERE.

UFC Legend Randy Couture Explains How the UFC Controls Top Talent from Speaking Out: “What the public sees isn’t the whole story.”

Randy Couture UFCFive-time UFC world champion Randy Couture is no stranger to contract issues with the UFC. Throughout his multiple title…

Randy Couture UFC

Five-time UFC world champion Randy Couture is no stranger to contract issues with the UFC. Throughout his multiple title runs, the US-born wrestler had struggled on every front with the top-brass from pay to media rights and he recognizes that overall fighters are not getting paid reasonably. In a recent interview, Couture explained how the UFC controls the big names behind the scenes.

Randy Couture Explains How the UFC Controls Top Talent

With multiple class-action lawsuits going on at the same time, it is obvious that the UFC is not paying overall fighters enough. The biggest class of fighters not getting paid are the mid-ranked fighters who feel powerless. Top-name fighters don’t campaign for change to help their fellow fighters enact any lasting impact. Randy Couture had attempted to to be a voice and speak out.

In one lawsuit, the plaintiffs claim that the UFC violated antitrust laws by using its market power to pay fighters less than they would earn in a competitive market. They argue that the UFC’s practices have allowed it to maintain a monopoly over elite MMA fighter services, thereby restricting fighters’ earning potential. The second lawsuit extends the claims of antitrust violations to cover fighters who competed from 2017 onwards. This case remains active and seeks monetary damages and changes to UFC’s business practices and contract terms.

In most professional sports, athletes are protected and represented through a union. For private contractors in boxing, athletes are protected by the Muhammad Ali Boxing Reform Act, which states that promoters must disclose all information about a boxer’s income to the fighter, ensuring boxers know exactly how much money their fights generate. Also, the Act limits fighter contracts with promoters to one year, preventing promoters from holding boxers hostage. For MMA athletes, there are no unions or Ali Act to assist them.

Randy Couture

Randy Couture, the UFC legend, sat down with former UFC champion Quinton ‘Rampage’ Jackson on his podcast to discuss these issues. ‘The Natural’ Couture explained the tactics that the UFC uses to ensure that top fighters never speak out. Randy Couture explained:

“Hopefully, fighters are getting paid better. It sounds like the top guys—like Jon Jones—are making good money. I don’t hear them complaining. But that’s one of the tactics the UFC uses: side deals for top fighters. What the public sees isn’t the whole story. There are separate agreements that aren’t disclosed publicly.

“They’re separate contracts, not part of the public purview, and they don’t go through the commission. That’s how they keep the top-tier fighters from speaking out. They might offer a monthly retainer or a separate check that comes a few days later. The commission regulates the public purse to protect fighters from getting stiffed, but the side deals aren’t part of that.”

The UFC is a billion-dollar company that trillion-dollar private equity firms partially own, they have the means to ensure fighters do not ever unionize. Being friends with the government helps with lawsuits and suppressing the Ali Act in MMA.

Jon Jones’ Coach Says They’ve Solved More Complex Problems Than Tom Aspinall Before

With Jon Jones and Tom Aspinall both recently claiming that they’ve been speaking to the UFC about what’s next, the conversation regarding the promotion’s two heavyweight champions isn’t going anywhere just yet. The debate as to whether Jones is avoiding a title unification with the interim champion dominated the talking points both before and after […]

With Jon Jones and Tom Aspinall both recently claiming that they’ve been speaking to the UFC about what’s next, the conversation regarding the promotion’s two heavyweight champions isn’t going anywhere just yet. The debate as to whether Jones is avoiding a title unification with the interim champion dominated the talking points both before and after UFC 309.

For many fans, the key reason that they want to see this fight instead of Jones against Alex Pereira, which is certainly the direction that “Bones” has been leaning, is because of the match-up itself. Whilst the heavyweight champion taking on the light heavyweight champion would be a huge fight, Aspinall presents different problems.

Pereira is an incredibly dangerous striker but as Dana White said himself, going up to heavyweight to face an elite grappler like Jones is a huge ask even for “Poatan” who has defied expectations throughout his entire run in the UFC. In a recent interview with Inside Fighting, Jones’s coach Brandon Gibson spoke about the match-up with Aspinall.

He believes that Aspinall’s greatest strength, his ability to finish fights so quickly, also creates question marks which may not have existed with previous opponents that they have beaten in the past. Those same unanswered questions aren’t there with Pereira, even if a fight between him and Jones would create other problems instead.

“He’s had a great heavyweight career so far. I think there’s still a lot of unknowns which could be a benefit to Tom but also a lot of those unknowns could be a big benefit to us like how is he going to do in deep water? How is he going to do in later rounds? There’ll probably be a lot of pressure on him to try to start fast so with all that said, Tom’s not a match-up, like we have respect for all of these great opponents and champions but I think Jon has solved a lot more complex problems.” 

Jon Jones’ Coach Says They’ve Solved More Complex Problems Than Tom Aspinall Before

With Jon Jones and Tom Aspinall both recently claiming that they’ve been speaking to the UFC about what’s next, the conversation regarding the promotion’s two heavyweight champions isn’t going anywhere just yet. The debate as to whether Jones is avoiding a title unification with the interim champion dominated the talking points both before and after […]

With Jon Jones and Tom Aspinall both recently claiming that they’ve been speaking to the UFC about what’s next, the conversation regarding the promotion’s two heavyweight champions isn’t going anywhere just yet. The debate as to whether Jones is avoiding a title unification with the interim champion dominated the talking points both before and after UFC 309.

For many fans, the key reason that they want to see this fight instead of Jones against Alex Pereira, which is certainly the direction that “Bones” has been leaning, is because of the match-up itself. Whilst the heavyweight champion taking on the light heavyweight champion would be a huge fight, Aspinall presents different problems.

Pereira is an incredibly dangerous striker but as Dana White said himself, going up to heavyweight to face an elite grappler like Jones is a huge ask even for “Poatan” who has defied expectations throughout his entire run in the UFC. In a recent interview with Inside Fighting, Jones’s coach Brandon Gibson spoke about the match-up with Aspinall.

He believes that Aspinall’s greatest strength, his ability to finish fights so quickly, also creates question marks which may not have existed with previous opponents that they have beaten in the past. Those same unanswered questions aren’t there with Pereira, even if a fight between him and Jones would create other problems instead.

“He’s had a great heavyweight career so far. I think there’s still a lot of unknowns which could be a benefit to Tom but also a lot of those unknowns could be a big benefit to us like how is he going to do in deep water? How is he going to do in later rounds? There’ll probably be a lot of pressure on him to try to start fast so with all that said, Tom’s not a match-up, like we have respect for all of these great opponents and champions but I think Jon has solved a lot more complex problems.” 

‘Rampage’ Challenges Paul To Openweight MMA Fight

Photo by Jun Sato/WireImage

After watching Paul beat up Mike Tyson and call out Conor McGregor, ‘Rampage’ Jackson wants to teach ‘The Problem Child’ a lesson in the cage. Quinton “Rampage” Jackson is past his fighting pr…


Bellator Japan Weigh-In
Photo by Jun Sato/WireImage

After watching Paul beat up Mike Tyson and call out Conor McGregor, ‘Rampage’ Jackson wants to teach ‘The Problem Child’ a lesson in the cage.

Quinton “Rampage” Jackson is past his fighting prime, but is he far enough past his fighting prime to land a bout with Jake Paul?

That’s the question we’re asking ourselves as the former PRIDE FC middleweight UFC light heavyweight champion throws his name into the hat of potential future Paul opponents. The 46-year-old took to X (formerly Twitter) and challenged the YouTuber-turned-boxer over his decision to fight Mike Tyson and … disrespect of Conor McGregor?

The day after he beat an elderly Tyson via decision in a sideshow boxing match that left everyone feeling gross, the 227 pound Paul turned his attention to the former UFC featherweight champion McGregor.

“Dear Conor, I know you told my team you would fight me at 170lbs,” Paul tweeted. “That’s never happening. But let’s run it in MMA. No weight class. Just like how it used to be done. But you won’t.”

“Yo Jake Paul, watch how you talk to MMA royalty,” Jackson replied. “I’ll fight you in MMA no weight class for no pay. That’s a great deal … but i bet YOU won’t. Stop disrespecting people in my f—in’ sport, homie. You fighting Tyson was [the] last straw. Go back to boxing wrestlers.”

“Rampage” was once one of the baddest men in the sport of MMA, but that was back in the early 2000s, over twenty years ago. He hasn’t fought in nearly five years, and showed up for his last bout looking slow and ‘hippo’ fat. He does look a lot better on his Jaxxon Podcast, but if there’s one thing the Jake Paul circus should have taught y’all by now, it’s that the clock doesn’t turn backwards.

When someone commented that Jackson didn’t have the gas tank to beat Paul, Jackson joked back that the fight would have to be three rounds, but that would be enough.

“I can get my cardio good enough to beat the f— out that kid,” he said. As for all the suggestions that Paul pays big bucks so his opponents take dives? “Not enough money in the world for me to throw a fight to that guy.”

“Dude is one of the most famous people in the states right now,” Rampage tweeted. “He doesn’t need me for s—. I’m just sick of him picking his own opponents in lopsided fights.”

We have bad news for “Rampage” — if he did happen to be the next winner of the Jake Paul Sandbagging Sweepstakes, it would be another perfect example of Paul picking a lopsided fight.

Funny enough, Quinton checks a lot of the boxes Paul looks for when picking his opponents. Former UFC champion? Check. Over the hill? Check. Questionable cardio? Check. Knockout power in his prime that is now gone? Check. Popularity? Check. If Jake Paul wasn’t coming off the biggest fight of his career against Mike Tyson, we’d say Jackson had a pretty good chance of getting a call from Most Valuable Promotions.

As it stands, Paul’s manager Nakisa Bidarian is looking for a grand slam level opponent. A Conor McGregor level opponent.

“I do believe, and I have said this on record, [McGregor] is the only fight today in the world that could garner the same kind of attention that Jake Paul and Mike Tyson did,” he said on a recent episode of The Ariel Helwani Show. “I believe there is bigger money fights for Jake Paul, like a Canelo [Alvarez], like a Gervonta Davis because the U.S. will eat that up and the pay-per-view dollars will be massive. But in terms of hitting every corner of the world, every geography, every language, every creed, every religion, that [McGregor] fight would do that.”

Unfortunately for Bidarian and Paul, McGregor is under contract with UFC for two more fights … or as Paul would call it, he’s being held ‘hostage’ for two more fights.