Video! Pros Predict Paul Vs. Woodley Winner

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It may seem crazy but one of the biggest combat events of the year will unfold this Sunday night when former UFC welterweight champion Tyron Woodley makes his professional boxing debut…


Jake Paul vs Tyron Woodley - Media Availability boxing news
Photo by Cliff Hawkins/Getty Images

It may seem crazy but one of the biggest combat events of the year will unfold this Sunday night when former UFC welterweight champion Tyron Woodley makes his professional boxing debut against social media influencer and self-proclaimed fighter Jake Paul. The two will lock horns in a main event set to take place live on pay-per-view (PPV) from inside Rocket Mortgage FieldHouse in Cleveland, Ohio.

This is a massive fight for both men. For Woodley, this is his first action since parting ways with UFC this past April. The former welterweight champion has lost his last four Octagon appearances so this is a big opportunity to prove his combat career isn’t over at the age of 39. For Paul, he’s trying to solidify himself as a true boxer capable of fighting some of the best in the world. Woodley obviously doesn’t represent that when it comes to the sport of boxing, but “Chosen One” is still one hell of a test for the young social media star.

As you may have guessed, the combat community has had a lot to say about this matchup. Paul has looked better and better every time he steps inside of the ring, but he has never fought someone like Woodley. “Chosen One” sports some serious power in his hands, but he’s never been the most technical striker in MMA. It’s going to be one heck of a matchup and an event that should be a box office hit if everything goes as planned.

Headed into Sunday’s massive main event MMA Fighting caught up with some of the biggest stars in combat sports to get their prediction for Paul vs. Woodley. Check it out below:

For the complete Jake Paul vs. Tyron Woodley fight card click here. For more news and notes on their upcoming grudge match click here.

Video! Shredded ‘Phenom’ Shows Off Boxing Skills

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Former UFC light heavyweight champion Vitor Belfort looks primed for his return to professional boxing against legendary boxer Oscar De La Hoya next month. The two combat stars will c…


Vitor Belfort Media Workout
Photo by Michael Reaves/Getty Images

Former UFC light heavyweight champion Vitor Belfort looks primed for his return to professional boxing against legendary boxer Oscar De La Hoya next month. The two combat stars will collide on Sept. 11 in a main event produced by Triller Fight Club on pay-per-view (PPV).

Belfort, 44, hasn’t competed professionally since stepping away from UFC all the way back in 2018 after a knockout loss to Lyoto Machida. “Phenom” has teased a return ever since but now fight fans will get to see him compete inside of the boxing ring once again against one of the most accomplished boxers of the past 30 years.

While some people might think Belfort is fighting an uphill battle against someone as experienced as De La Hoya you wouldn’t notice it by his recent training videos. The former UFC champion is looking absolutely shredded ahead of his fight next month and seems to have picked up some extra punching speed since his MMA departure three years ago.

Luckily, MMA Junkie caught Belfort in action earlier this week. You can check out his full training session below:

As of now Belfort is a +135 underdog against De La Hoya. Those are reasonable odds considering “Golden Boy” is a former champion who destroyed just about everyone he faced, but De La Hoya is 48 years of age and hasn’t competed since a loss to Manny Pacquiao back in 2008.

What do you think, Maniacs? Does this training video give you hope that Belfort can knock off De La Hoya next month?

Let us know in the comments below!

Paul: Team Was ‘Wrong’ For Woodley Fiasco, But Not Sorry

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The upcoming boxing match between Jake Paul and Tyron Woodley took an ugly turn during yesterday’s pre-fight press conference when Paul’s team started to mix it up with Woodley’s mother…


Jake Paul v Tyron Woodley - Media Workout
Photo by Jason Miller/Getty Images

The upcoming boxing match between Jake Paul and Tyron Woodley took an ugly turn during yesterday’s pre-fight press conference when Paul’s team started to mix it up with Woodley’s mother. Chaos ensued and both sides had to be separated before inciting an all-out brawl (watch it HERE).

Luckily, cooler heads prevailed and nobody was injured during the fiasco. Woodley didn’t take too kindly to the involvement of his mother and has vowed to take it out on Paul come Sunday night. The former UFC welterweight champion already had a point to prove in his first professional boxing match against a former YouTube star, but now things are personal for “Chosen One.”

Paul, who says just about anything he can to promote his obscure boxing matches, didn’t agree with his team’s involvement. The social media influencer wishes Woodley’s mom was never brought up heading into the fight.

“Like I said earlier, this is Women’s Equality Day. So it’s like, if there’s literally anything else… I’m just sitting here talking about how much I love my mom, how much I love my girlfriend. And of course, there has to be (an) altercation involving females. It sucks,” Paul told MMA Junkie’s Mike Bohn after the incident.

“And just everything about it just looks messy. We’re trying to have a professional event here, and now things are more personal. We’ll probably need more security in all these places, and things just aren’t cordial anymore. So tensions will definitely be higher going into this fight.”

In turn, Paul is feeling more emotionally-charged heading into the fight. While his team ultimately started the incident during Thursday’s press conference there was a lot of jawing back and forth between both parties.

“It’s more personal for me, too,” he said. “Just seeing his team act the way they did. And by the way, they’re probably sitting there saying the same thing. Cool, he wants to get all gangster. But they were also being super disrespectful.

“My team is professional. Were they in the wrong? Yeah. But they’re never just gonna come out of pocket and just act up like that. So there had to be something that built it up, and then, boom. It explodes. So everything’s more personal and I’ll make him and his team pay for that.”

As far as an apology goes, Paul isn’t in the business of saying sorry for his team. Even though they may have started the entire thing it’s not something he’s worried about heading into Sunday’s massive tilt with Woodley.

“Hell no. We’re not sorry. Not sorry at all. Should we not have done it? Maybe. But we’re not sorry,” said Paul.

For the complete Jake Paul vs. Tyron Woodley fight card click here. For more news and notes on their upcoming grudge match click here.

Edgar Set To Meet ‘Chito’ At MSG

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Former UFC lightweight champion Frankie Edgar will return to action when he meets bantamweight contender Marlon Vera at UFC 268 on Nov. 6 live on ESPN+ pay-per-view (PPV) from inside Madiso…


UFC Fight Night: Sandhagen v Edgar
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Former UFC lightweight champion Frankie Edgar will return to action when he meets bantamweight contender Marlon Vera at UFC 268 on Nov. 6 live on ESPN+ pay-per-view (PPV) from inside Madison Square Garden in New York City. This is according to a recent report by ESPN.

UFC officials have yet to announce the booking, but both bantamweights have agreed on the matchup. It is likely to take place as part of the ESPN+ PPV main card.

Edgar, 39, is coming off a brutal knockout loss to Cory Sandhagen this past February. “The Answer” had won his bantamweight debut over Pedro Munoz this time last year so he’s still alive in the 135-pound division. A win over Vera would be a massive victory for Edgar as he tries to forge one final run at UFC gold.

Vera, 28, just captured an impressive win over surging veteran Davey Grant back in June. “Chito” is 7-1 in his last eight bantamweight fights including a TKO win over Sean O’Malley one year ago. If he’s able to knock off Edgar then Vera could land himself in the top 10 heading into 2021.

UFC 268 will be headlined by a welterweight rematch between current UFC champion Kamaru Usman and rival Colby Covington. The event is also expected to showcase a lightweight clash featuring top contenders Michael Chandler and Justin Gaethje, but “Iron” may been forced to bow out pending a COVID-19 vaccination.

Stick with Mania for more UFC 268 fight card news.

UFC Vegas 34 Bonuses! Bahamondes Leads $50K Winners With Insane KO

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Jared Cannonier delivered the goods last night (Sat., Aug. 21, 2021) at UFC Vegas 34 live on ESPN/ESPN+ from inside UFC Apex in Las Vegas, Nevada, as “Killa Gorilla” outlasted Kelvin Gastelu…


UFC Fight Night: Cannonier v Gastelum
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Jared Cannonier delivered the goods last night (Sat., Aug. 21, 2021) at UFC Vegas 34 live on ESPN/ESPN+ from inside UFC Apex in Las Vegas, Nevada, as “Killa Gorilla” outlasted Kelvin Gastelum to claim a crucial main event win (highlights HERE).

In addition to the middleweight headliner, an array of bouts produced memorable action from the “Prelims” undercard to the ESPN main course. Check them out below and let us know your favorite:

  • Flyweight contender Alexandre Pantoja likely earned his first UFC title shot with an impressive submission finish over rising youngster Brandon Royval (see it HERE)
  • Josiane Nunes made good on her UFC debut with a blistering one-punch knockout finish over women’s bantamweight prospect Bea Malecki
  • Light heavyweight powerhouse William Knight landed an improbable counter punch that left Fabio Cherant knocked unconscious (highlights HERE)
  • Ignacio Bahamondes recorded one of the sickest knockouts of the year when he stopped lightweight fighter Roosevelt Roberts with a third-round spinning back kick
  • Lightweight prospect Ramiz Brahimaj made quick work of Sasha Palatnikov with a first-round submission to spark the “Prelims” undercard (replay HERE)

In order to sift through the action and see which fighters took home an extra $50,000, we take a closer look at the official UFC Vegas 34 bonus winners below:

  • Performance of the Night: Alexandre Pantoja
  • Performance of the Night: Ignacio Bahamondes
  • Performance of the Night: William Knight
  • Performance of the Night: Josiane Nunes

For complete UFC Vegas 34 results and coverage click here.

Highlights! Cannonier Too Much For Gastelum In Main Event

Photo by Chris Unger/Zuffa LLC

Jared Cannonier proved his middleweight chops last night (Sat., Aug. 21, 2021) at UFC Vegas 34 live on ESPN/ESPN+ from inside UFC Apex in Las Vegas, Nevada, when “Killa Gorilla” scored a ha…


UFC Fight Night: Cannonier v Gastelum
Photo by Chris Unger/Zuffa LLC

Jared Cannonier proved his middleweight chops last night (Sat., Aug. 21, 2021) at UFC Vegas 34 live on ESPN/ESPN+ from inside UFC Apex in Las Vegas, Nevada, when “Killa Gorilla” scored a hard-fought unanimous decision win over veteran contender Kelvin Gastelum in the main event.

Both middleweights moved around well to begin the fight. Gastelum landed a few good inside leg kicks on the go while Cannonier timed some outside leg attacks. Cannonier also landed a big left hand along the way. In Round 3, Cannonier landed a huge right hand that nearly tool Gastelum’s head off, but the veteran kept his composure.

Gastelum recovered and went toe-to-toe with Cannonier in the fourth, although “Killa Gorilla” seemed to score a brief knockdown in the center of the cage. Cannonier kept busy in the fifth as Gastelum had a hard time figuring out his movement. Gastelum did land a quick takedown but nothing that really separated him in the fight. In the end, it was Cannonier who did more damage and walked away with the win.

Check out the video highlights below courtesy of UFC/ESPN:

For complete UFC Vegas 34 results and coverage click here.