Carrying the weight of expectation can be a difficult task for any fighter, and Rose Namajunas’ experience with hype and the spotlight wasn’t a pleasant one.
The 23-year-old Wisconsin native rocketed to the forefront of the emerging women’s straw…
Carrying the weight of expectation can be a difficult task for any fighter, and Rose Namajunas‘ experience with hype and the spotlight wasn’t a pleasant one.
The 23-year-old Wisconsin native rocketed to the forefront of the emerging women’s strawweight division under the UFC banner on the strength of three-straight submission finishes, which earned her a place in the finals of The Ultimate Fighter Season 20 tournament.
With each consecutive victory, the buzz surrounding Thug Rose amplified, and her bout against Carla Esparza for the inaugural women’s 115-pound title seemed to be the perfect setting for her ascension into stardom.
The only thing she had to do was put Esparza away and continue her streak of impressive victories, but that’s not how the fight would play out.
The Cookie Monster dominated the fight from the opening bell, as her wrestling and forward pressure proved too much for the Grudge Training Center representative to handle. She would eventually succumb to a rear-naked choke in the third round of the bout, and a new strawweight champion was crowned.
Her loss in the TUF 20 Finale was undoubtedly frustrating, but Namajunas was eager to get back into the Octagon and put herself back into the win column. The next opportunity to do so was supposed to come against Nina Ansaroff at UFC 187 back in May, but after coming in four pounds over the weight limit at the official weigh-ins, Ansaroff pulled out of the fight hours before they were set to hit the cage on fight night.
For Namajunas, that turn of events was difficult to handle in the short term, but the experience in the long term is something she believes she can learn from. And for a fighter in the midst of the early stages of her career, it’s experience of all varieties that matters most to her.
Namajunas told Bleacher Report:
It was really weird for me especially since I had never felt so ready for a fight in my life. To have it pulled was pretty devastating, whereas other fights you might go through some times where you aren’t so confident and wouldn’t mind if that fight got cancelled. I was frustrated for awhile afterwards, but I’m better now. I’ve had enough time to really think it over and realize the benefits of that experience. All of those things go into my growth and maturity, and that’s positive.
Whether people are watching or not I’m always motivated. I’ve been that way my entire life. Being a fighter now and having people know who I am doesn’t make that any different. Obviously it’s a little embarrassing to lose when there are a lot of people watching, but at the other end you are doing it because you love it.
While there is nothing officially locked down for her next bout inside the Octagon, Namajunas‘ process to make progress hasn’t halted in the slightest. She’s continued to work diligently inside the gym and sharpen an already dangerous and versatile skill set to ensure she will be absolutely prepared when the next challenge materializes. That said, growth in areas beyond the physical is also a primary focus for Namajunas as well.
Even though she is still in the early stages of her professional career, competing at the highest level of the sport has allowed her to gain ground in the experience department.
While Namajunas admits she’s naturally tenacious towards the goals she sets out to accomplish, there is also something to be found in taking her foot off the gas pedal from time to time and soaking in those things learned along the way.
“Youth is a great advantage to have in this game, but I definitely have to slow myself down from time to time,” Namajunas said. “I find myself worrying about sh** that really doesn’t matter. When I do that, I really have to slow myself down because I naturally put too much pressure on myself. I’m kind of a control freak, and I’m a perfectionist as well so I’ve learned to pull it back. I also have a great support system and good people around me that help.
“There is also a great advantage that comes with having time in. I’m trying to take every experience and use it to my fullest ability.”
Duane Finley is a featured columnist for Bleacher Report. All quotes were obtained firsthand unless noted otherwise.
There was a different Ben Rothwell that existed prior to September 5, 2014.
In the 13 years and 42 bouts that preceded his fight against Alistair Overeem at Fight Night 50, Big Ben had amassed a reputation for being a game opponent inside the cage. The…
There was a different Ben Rothwell that existed prior to September 5, 2014.
In the 13 years and 42 bouts that preceded his fight against Alistair Overeem at Fight Night 50, Big Ben had amassed a reputation for being a game opponent inside the cage. The Wisconsin native had competed on a multitude of stages around the globe and consistently held rank as one of the better heavyweights on the planet. That said, even with solid streaks of success he’d never been the best, and alternating wins and losses since arriving to the UFC in 2009 was a strong sign that reaching the top of the heavyweight mountain would never happen.
He seemed to finally be finding his footing inside the Octagon, but a nine-month suspension for elevated levels of testosterone following his third-round destruction of Brandon Vera at UFC 164 in Milwaukee erased any momentum he had. It was yet another case of one step forward, one step back for the Kenosha-based fighter, and slipping off into obscurity was absolutely there for the taking.
Rothwell told Bleacher Report:
“I don’t blame anyone for anything. Look at my first three performances in the UFC. I won only one of those three fights. It is what it is. I’m real big on facts and dues paid. Even if you look at my one win coming out of the gates it wasn’t even a good looking one. I had a lot of things that were weighing on me at that time. I was going through different training camps and trying to find a home. I was trying to figure out what to do, and it was a very confusing time for me.
“Even when I started to establish myself I still had a few trips and setbacks. I lost down in Brazil. I had the mishaps in my Milwaukee fight with the TRT business. All of those things that brought me down and held me down forced my back against the wall. That situation gave me one of two options. I was either going to get cut and be done fighting, or I was going to be resurrected into this man you see now.”
The bout against the former Strikeforce and K-1 heavyweight king appeared to be one that was set to usher him out of the upper ranks and boost the Dutch powerhouse back into title contention. All Rothwell had to do was show up and get it over with, but the man who walked into the Octagon that night in Connecticut wasn’t the same fighter.
Something remarkable happened in his time away, as if a long-lost piece of the puzzle had suddenly been found. What he discovered was a place to call his own, a team and gym he could settle into. In doing so, he found the confidence and peace of mind that had long been absent in his life and career. The results were shocking as he blasted through Overeem in a one-round display of fury and violence.
Most fighters Overeem had faced wanted nothing to do with his power, but Rothwell welcomed it and walked through it like a man possessed.
His victory at Fight Night 50 would turn heads in the MMA community, and when he choked out a surging Matt Mitrione via go-go choke in the first round of their tilt at Fight Night 68, the new version of the man stood tall. A veteran capitalizing on a small window of opportunity to get the finish, the maniacal laugh in the post-fight interview, a resurgence in full bloom for all to see; it was clear this Ben Rothwell is nothing to take lightly.
This Ben Rothwell believes he can be the UFC heavyweight champion, and he’s willing to dismantle the divisional upper tier brick by brick in order to get what he’s after. He told Bleacher Report:
“I just believe in myself so much that when I came back I came out hard. I established my gym and I have a family around me. I found a permanent base, and that was something I’d never had before. That training and foundation started to create a different version of me and I think that has been visible. I’m getting more confident each and every time and becoming more powerful. When I told people they haven’t seen nothing yet, that really means something. Just wait until my next fight.
“I’ve always been a big heavyweight from a physical standpoint. I’ve had skills and I’ve sparred and trained with some of the best in the world. I just didn’t believe in myself and I didn’t believe in my skills. When the coaches I have now first started training me they told me I have everything it takes to be a world champion, but I had to believe it.
“And it’s not just about being intense because I’ve always been intense. I’ve always fought hard and brought everything I have, but I’m at this level of confidence now where I know when I walk in I’m going to beat that mutherf–ker’s ass. I know what I’m about and I know who I am. And when you know you’re one of the best in the world this is what you sound like.”
Back-to-back victories have put Rothwell within striking distance of a potential title opportunity, but their are a few sizable obstacles remaining in his path toward gold. Rothwell has set his sights on two possible targets for his next outing and believes a victory over either will catapult him to the front of the title picture in the heavyweight ranks.
Former champion Junior dos Santos put himself back on the title radar after edging out Stipe Miocic via split-decision at UFC on Fox 13 last December, but lingering injuries have kept Cigano from setting a projected date to return to action. That would make resurgent former two-time champion Andrei Arlovski the more likely option, and it’s one Rothwell is eager to jump into.
With the Pit Bull’s current five-fight winning streak inside the Octagon and recent knockout over highly touted contender Travis Browne, the MMA community has once again rallied behind a fighter most wrote off several years prior. That type of attention has upped the Belarus native’s stock in Rothwell’s eyes, and with a loss to Arlovski earlier in his career, it also puts Rothwell in a place where he feels few will give him the chance to find victory.
That scenario only fuels his motivations. Rothwell is supremely confident he will walk right through Arlovski en route to a title opportunity in 2016. Rothwell said:
“Junior dos Santos is the No. 1 contender, so to speak, and that fight would be great because taking him on and beating him would project me toward where I want to be. But if the guy is injured and won’t be ready for a while it doesn’t make sense to wait around. If it’s not a title fight there is no reason to sit on the sidelines when Andrei Arlovski is right there.
“He’s put himself right next to dos Santos as far as what he’s worth. He’s in a huge resurgence and people are really getting behind him. Also, a lot of people doubt me being able to beat him, so that fight is worth just as much to me. Crushing Andrei Arlovski is going to silence a lot of doubters. It’s going to project me into that No. 1 contender spot. It’s going to leave zero doubt in anyone’s mind that I am fighting for that title next year.”
Duane Finley is a featured columnist for Bleacher Report. All quotes are obtained firsthand unless noted otherwise.
The race for title contention in the ranks of the UFC’s middleweight division is more competitive than it’s been in years, and Fight Night 72 on Saturday was set to play a major role in how the upper tier would look heading into the second half of 2015…
The race for title contention in the ranks of the UFC’s middleweight division is more competitive than it’s been in years, and Fight Night 72 on Saturday was set to play a major role in how the upper tier would look heading into the second half of 2015.
With dominant champion Chris Weidman figured to face No. 1 contender Luke Rockhold sometime before the end of the year, the opportunity to move up the divisional ladder is there for the taking. Perennial title threat Michael Bisping and resurgent Brazilian finishing machine Thales Leites have both set their sights on claiming the 185-pound crown, but the state of affairs in the middleweight fold have left little room for error.
While The Count has never been out of striking distance from earning his long-awaited title opportunity, he has alternated wins and losses for the past two years. Setbacks in three of his past six outings have jeopardized his elite-level status, and the Manchester native came into his tilt with the former title challenger in need of a victory to keep his future championship hopes alive.
Where Bisping came into the UFC’s debut in Scotland looking to hang onto his place in the divisional hierarchy, Leites has been trying to regain a place he once held in the 185-pound collective.
Six years ago the Nova Uniao standout faced former middleweight king Anderson Silva, but a rough showing against The Spider and a loss in his next outing would cost Leites his spot on the UFC roster. He would not only earn his way back to the UFC by winning all but one of his seven showings outside the Octagon, but he returned to title contention by notching five consecutive victories in his second run under the UFC banner.
Both men came into Glasgow determined to take the next step toward a title shot, but it was Bisping who wanted it more. The 36-year-old Englishman worked his signature high-volume striking attack and weathered powerful flurries from Leites en route to picking up the split-decision victory.
With the win, Bisping will remain a major player in the crowded middleweight title picture as he notched back-to-back victories for the first time since 2011.
Let’s take a look at the good, bad and strange from Fight Night 72 on Saturday.
The Good
Going into Fight Night 72, Bisping knew more than just a notch in the win or loss column was on the line in Glasgow.
The savvy veteran has spent the past seven years as a major player in the middleweight division and has been on the verge of title contention at several points over his time in the 185-pound mix. Yet, he’s come up short in critical moments, and his foothold in the upper tier of the weight class has started to slip.
That was certainly the case when he suffered a setback against Luke Rockhold last November, but he was stopped his slide by defeating CB Dollaway in his next outing five months later at UFC 186 in Montreal. Nevertheless, the top level of the middleweight division is cluttered, and a fighter in Bisping’s position could not another misstep.
Those circumstances painted a pressure-filled situation for the outspoken Brit coming into his bout on Saturday, and he absolutely stepped up to answer the challenge in front of him in Leites. The Nova Uniao product has evolved from his days of being a single-dimension ground fighter, adding a power striking game that gave Bisping fits at times.
Even though he was wobbled in multiple exchanges, Bisping’s big-fight experience allowed him to persevere through rough patches and use his high-paced striking attack to wear his opponent down. It was anyone’s fight going into the final frame, and Bisping’s accuracy and output sealed the deal on the judges’ scorecards.
While a hard-fought split-decision victory over Leites won’t launch him into a title shot, it will keep him holding strong in the upper portion of the middleweight class. It will also guarantee he will face another top-ranked opponent in his next outing.
Granted, there are no easy fights on the top shelf of the 185-pound collective, but his championship hopes are still alive, and that will be enough for Bisping.
*** Evan Dunham’s time competing in the UFC has come with plenty of ups and downs, but the veteran lightweight is in the midst of an upswing. The once highly touted grappler has bounced back from a career-low three-fight skid against a collection of the division’s best, earning back-to-back victories. The 33-year-old ground out British knockout artist Ross Pearson in the co-main event on Saturday en route to taking the unanimous decision.
Where Dunham had shown a penchant for being baited into wild exchanges in the past, the current version of the Oregon native is an efficient one. He set out to grapple Pearson from start to finish, and that’s exactly what he did every step of the 15-minute affair. The end result was another victory for Dunham as he once again proved he’s one of the toughest outs in the lightweight fold.
*** There is a ton of hype surrounding “Irish” Joe Duffy, and it is absolutely for real. While the Tristar fighter has garnered attention for being the last man to beat fellow countryman Conor McGregor, the 27-year-old lightweight is making a different type of noise as he climbs the 155-pound ranks.
On Saturday in Glasgow, Duffy picked up another first-round finish, submitting Ivan Jorge via triangle choke to cap off another outstanding showing.
The Dublin native has now closed out both of his fights inside the Octagon in quick and dominant fashion, and the excitement surrounding him will only amplify in the aftermath of Fight Night 72. Duffy will be a talent to keep an eye as he continues his run under the UFC banner.
*** There was a lot on the line for Joanne Calderwood coming into Fight Night 72. Not only was she returning to compete in front of her hometown crowd in Glasgow for the first time in two years, but after a loss in her last fight knocked her out of talk of a title shot, the Scottish strawweight’s bout against Cortney Casey was a high-risk affair. That said, Calderwood answered the challenge, going toe-to-toe with the promotional newcomer for three rounds and winning a unanimous decision.
*** While his teammate Conor McGregor has commanded the majority of the spotlight during the Irish invasion of the UFC, Paddy Holohan has done enough to earn some acclaim of his own. The Hooligan has developed a knack of dropping quality banter, and his scrappy fighting style has led him to success in three of his four showings inside the Octagon.
The most recent came at the expense of Vaughan Lee at Fight Night 72, where Holohan put forth a dominant performance to secure another win in the flyweight ranks.
*** The light heavyweight division is wide open, and Ilir Latifi took another big step up the 205-pound ranks on Saturday. The Sledgehammer starched Hans Stringer with a blistering right hand to pick up his third victory in the UFC. While getting the highlight-reel finish will be a nice addition to his resume, Latifi’s victory in Glasgow was crucial since he suffered a setback against Jan Blachowicz in his previous outing.
With his wrestling skills and proven knockout power, the Swedish powerhouse could be an interesting addition to the upper tier of the light heavyweight fold. If Latifi keeps winning the way he did in Scotland, then he could be a fight or two away from facing one of the bigger names in his weight class.
*** It was a triumphant homecoming for proud Scotsman Robert Whiteford at Fight Night 72. The Glasgow-based featherweight electrified the hometown crowd with a first-round knockout victory over Paul Redmond to kick off the televised portion of Saturday’s card.
Not only did The Hammer live up to his name by battering his Irish opponent in the stand-up game, but he gathered a bit of momentum in the process, notching his second consecutive victory inside the Octagon.
The Bad
For as gritty a fighter as he’s proved to be, the idea of Pearson ever becoming a championship contender in the UFC may have finally evaporated at Fight Night 72.
After winning the ninth installment of The Ultimate Fighter, The Real Deal appeared poised to do big things inside the Octagon. Yet, six years and two weight class shifts later, the British slugger has never shown any type of consistency inside the cage. He’s had stellar performances against tough competition, but alternating wins and losses is never going to produce an elite-level fighter.
The 30-year-old Team Alliance member suffered his most recent setback on Saturday when Evan Dunham outgrappled and outclassed him at Fight Night 72. The Scottish crowd may have booed the Oregon native’s wrestling-heavy game plan, but that didn’t stop Dunham from exploiting Pearson’s greatest weakness.
Pearson did show a tremendous amount of heart when he battled his way out of a deep armbar attempt from Dunham in the opening frame, but the heavy-handed striker still found himself in the loss column after the final bell. With the loss, he has now been defeated in two of his last three bouts, and any momentum he had in the lightweight ranks has vanished.
Yet, just because he may never be a title contender, that doesn’t take away from Pearson’s ability to put on exciting and entertaining fights. He has proven knockout power and crisp boxing skills that will allow him to trade with anyone in the 155-pound division, and his willingness to engage makes him a fun fighter to watch.
*** There is no definitive formula for how a fighter loses his spot on the UFC roster, but Marcus Brimage could have run out of real estate on Saturday. The veteran bantamweight was finished in the first round of his bout against Jimmie Rivera to notch his second consecutive loss, which makes him unsuccessful in four of his past five showings.
To make matters worse, Brimage has been put away by his opposition in three of those fights, which never reflects well with the UFC brass.
*** Another thing that won’t bode well is the type of performance Vaughan Lee put on at Fight Night 72. The veteran Brit came into his flyweight debut against Paddy Holohan having lost two of his past three showings, and he desperately needed to turn things around against the scrappy Irishman. What transpired was anything but, as Lee showed zero sense of urgency as The Hooligan cruised to a clean sweep on the scorecards.
Even worse, it wasn’t so much that Holohan dominated the fight but that Lee exerted little effort to thwart The Hooligan. The 32-year-old refused to battle out of ground exchanges, and even though he came into the final frame down two rounds to nil, Lee was hesitant to go after the victory during the last five minutes of the fight.
With a showing that went far beyond lackluster, and his inability to find success at a constant clip, it’s safe to say Fight Night 72 will be Lee’s last Octagon appearance for the foreseeable future.
The Strange
With the breakneck pace the UFC has been hosting events over the past three years, fight fans are conditioned to set aside their Saturday nights to get their fill of face-punching goodness. Therefore, when the biggest promotion in MMA heads into international waters and throws down the occasional Saturday morning card, it serves as a nice change of pace.
This rang especially true for Fight Night 72, as bodies were hitting the deck at a solid clip in Glasgow. Three of the initial four bouts ended in brutal stoppages in the opening round, with six in total ending by finish. There are few things that MMA fans love more than seeing fights end in violently abrupt fashion, and when they get plenty of that flavor, it’s never going to be a bad day of viewing.
When said viewing comes early in the day and leaves the evening open to actually enjoy a weekend away from the ruckus, it’s a welcome break from the normal routine the MMA world has fallen into.
While the action inside the Octagon went off without a hitch on Saturday, the performance delivered by longtime commentator Mike Goldberg didn’t take long to go flying off the rails. Granted, Goldie has been knocking it out on a regular basis for more than a decade, but any time the promotion heads into a new market, things have the potential to get interesting.
It was linguistic warfare for Goldberg in Glasgow as he took liberties with fighter names early and often and even flexed his creative muscles by flat-out creating a moniker or two along the way.
By no means is play-by-play commentary an easy field. Furthermore, it is a thankless and nearly invisible job when done correctly. Yet, when bumps in the road are hit the way Goldberg cruised into guardrails on Saturday afternoon, it is going to stand out.
In addition to the rapid-fire violence that unfolded at Fight Night 72, the event also marked yet another appearance of the enigma more commonly known as Ilir Latifi. The Sledgehammer has developed a feverish following since his UFC debut back in 2013—one that has continued to grow with each rung he climbs up the ladder of the light heavyweight fold.
And why wouldn’t it? The Swedish powerhouse is in the express lane to legendary status in the MMA realm, and the picture below stands as proof of Latifi being in a class all his own.
Duane Finley is a featured columnist for Bleacher Report. All quotes are obtained firsthand unless noted otherwise.
Fortunes can change rapidly in mixed martial arts, and Desmond Green is no stranger to this reality.
The 25-year-old New York native ended his 2014 campaign with everything firing at full force and standing in the best position of his young career. The…
Fortunes can change rapidly in mixed martial arts, and Desmond Green is no stranger to this reality.
The 25-year-old New York native ended his 2014 campaign with everything firing at full force and standing in the best position of his young career. The Predator stamped his place on the larger MMA radar by defeating former WEC standout and renown veteran Miguel Torres in his promotional debut for Titan FC in October 2014, then followed up that performance by working over another former UFC veteran in Steven Siler to become the Titan FC featherweight champion by year’s end.
Those wins, and the performances Green doled out in obtaining them, earned the surging talent acclaim and moved him one step closer to a getting the call to compete in the UFC. The highly touted prospect entered 2015 determined to secure that final step to achieving his dream of competing inside the Octagon, and his first order of business was to defend his featherweight title against Kurt Holobaugh at Titan FC 33 in Mobile, Alabama.
It was a fight Green was confident he could win, and when the final bell sounded was certain he did, but when the judges’ scorecards were read, the reality of the moment began to set in. To say Green was shocked would be an understatement, and the sting of coming out on the short end of that split decision is one that has fueled every step toward his bout against Vince Eazelle at Titan FC 34 this Saturday night.
“That was a really controversial loss, and I’m not going to sit here and lie and act like I’m over it,” Green told Bleacher Report. “That s–t hurt. I felt like I was robbed. As a fighter you are supposed to have a short memory, but I still keep it in the front of my mind just to make sure it never happens again from here on out. I need to go in there every time I fight and leave no questions on the table by getting the finish or winning in convincing fashion.
“That fight has been my motivation throughout this entire camp, especially with me not being granted the immediate rematch. That made it sting even more, but I know this is a business. I have faith in Jeff and the entire Titan organization. They know what they are doing and it is what it is.”
On top of the disdain Green is feeling in the aftermath of losing his title, issues in his life outside of competition have demanded his attention as well. At the midway point of his training camp to face Eazelle at Titan FC 34, Green’s daughter Dahlia was born three months premature, and the fighter had to deal with the harrowing reality of watching his newborn fight for her life inside of an Intensive Care Unit.
Those circumstances would bring anyone’s world to a halt, but Green never lost faith in his daughter’s ability to pull through. He watched every day as her tiny body continued to fight for survival, and it inspired him to pour every bit of frustration and emotion into a positive realm as he drew closer to stepping in for his family’s livelihood inside the cage.
In the lead up to Titan FC 34 his daughter would claim a clean bill of health, and now Green is ready to show her just what kind of fighter her daddy is at Titan FC 34.
“This camp has been a little bit weird because I just had a daughter a few weeks ago and she was born prematurely,” Green said. “She was delivered at 23 weeks, so that means she was three months early. She was born the size of my hand, but I’m a Christian and sent up a lot of prayers to God. Thankfully, she was able to come out of it all completely healthy and I truly feel blessed. She has to stay in the hospital for the next three months, but she’s doing good.
“It’s been hard having to train while having my daughter in ICU, but it’s also provided a different form of motivation. At the end of the day, without me fighting and doing what I do there is no way for me to provide for my family. It’s hard but it’s necessary. This is what I have to do, and those circumstances create a will to win most people will never understand.
“I’m dedicating this win I’m about to get to my little baby girl,” he added. “She’s a fighter and came out strong so I have to show her that daddy is the same way. I’ll be happy to get this win and get back home to her.”
As the fight with Eazelle draws closer, the rest of Green’s world beyond fighting has begun to fade away, and the pursuit of victory has become the primary focus. The former featherweight champion knows he’s facing a fellow highly touted prospect with a solid amount of buzz surrounding him, but in Green’s mind none of that matters.
After going through the loss to Holobaugh and coming out on the positive end of what could have been a devastating family tragedy, a different type of animal has emerged. Green is ready to show the world what he’s made of, and with Titan FC’s recent partnership with the UFC to broadcast all future events on Fight Pass, he knows his biggest moment to shine is about to come front and center.
In Green’s mind, that is the perfect situation to make a definitive statement, and that’s precisely what he intends to do on Saturday night.
“Vince is a tough guy, but he’s honestly at the wrong place at the wrong time,” Green said. “I have a ton of things going on in my life and I need to expend that energy on somebody. It’s all going to come out on him. With what I’ve gone through with my daughter and all the anger built up from my last fight, there aren’t going to be anymore games in there. This fight won’t go to the judges.
“With everything I have on my mind and losing the belt because I got robbed in my last fight, I’m flipping all of that into positive energy heading into this fight. I’m focused, and nothing outside of the cage is distracting me at all. It’s been almost four months since my last fight and that’s a lot of time to have things built up like they are. I have a lot of energy and steam to get off my shoulders. I plan on using him to make a statement. Best of luck to him, but I’m bringing everything I have inside that cage.”
Duane Finley is a featured columnist for Bleacher Report. All quotes are obtained firsthand unless noted otherwise.
Stipe Miocic has his mind set on getting a shot at the UFC heavyweight title. So much in fact, it’s the only thing he’s willing to think about for his next step.
“I want to fight for the title,” Miocic told Bleacher Report. “It want to fight Fabricio W…
StipeMiocic has his mind set on getting a shot at the UFC heavyweight title. So much in fact, it’s the only thing he’s willing to think about for his next step.
“I want to fight for the title,” Miocic told Bleacher Report. “It want to fight Fabricio Werdum in my next fight, and I think I deserve it. I’ve fought the best guys in the world, and I’ve beat the best guys in the world. The fight with Junior [dos Santos] didn’t go my way, but there were a lot of people who thought I won. I’m sure plenty of people also thought I lost, and you can’t let fights go to the judges, but I came back in my next fight and beat the guy ranked fifth in our division and broke the record for strikes landed doing it.
“Beating a tough guy like I did in the fashion I did it says something. And it says that it’s my time now. I want to fight for that title and I’ll wait for it if I have to. I think I deserve it.”
While newly minted champion Fabricio Werdum has publicly addressed the situation and shown little interest in facing the hard-hitting Ohio native, that won’t stop Miocic‘s campaign for his cause in the slightest. He understands resurgent contender Andrei Arlovski is also up for consideration as well, but the Cleveland representative is adamant the former champion from Belarus hasn’t done what he’s done to earn the next shot at the heavyweight crown.
“Listen man, Andrei Arlovski is a tough guy, but he hasn’t fought the caliber of opponents I’ve been fighting,” Miocic said. “My last five fights have all come against top-10-ranked opponents, with three of them being ranked in the top five. Fabio Maldonado jumped up to heavyweight for our fight, and while he wasn’t ranked, he is a super-tough dude and had never been knocked out before. I knocked him out quick, but the challenges I’ve faced seem never-ending.
“I fought one former champion and two title contenders. I think I have a good resume to earn a title shot, and I’m going to plead my case for it. That’s what I want.”
The 32-year-old former standout wrestler and baseball player from Cleveland State University has won four of his past five showings, with his only setback coming against recent titleholder Junior dos Santos in a five-round war at UFC on Fox 13. Miocic went toe-to-toe with Cigano throughout the 25-minute affair only to come out on the losing end of a hard-fought unanimous decision against the Brazilian knockout artist in a fight widely regarded to be one of the best scraps in heavyweight history.
He wasted no time getting back on track in his next fight as he put a lopsided beating on former interim title challenger Mark Hunt at Fight Night 65. It had been years since anyone manhandled The Super Samoan in such fashion, and Miocic made it look effortless. Where the UFC heavyweight division once struggled to find talent, the current landscape reflects a divisional picture arguably stronger than any time previously in UFC history.
This is something Miocic knows all too well, as he’s squared off with some of the most dangerous strikers and grapplers in the upper tier of his weight class.
“Doesn’t that suck?” Miocic laughed. “Either they are great fighters or they have amazing chins. I’ve hit some of these guys with huge shots, and they are still standing there. In the fight with Junior both of us came out of that one looking rough. In the fight with Hunt, all I can say is it was a good night for me. I’m happy to get out of there without taking too much damage, and I’d take that every time.”
With a solid track record behind him, Miocic wants to face Werdum for the heavyweight strap. The Team Strong Style fighter wants to prove he has what it takes to become a UFC champion because that’s been the goal long before he ever stepped foot inside the Octagon for the first time back in 2011.
His dream of winning a world title has been his biggest source of motivation during his climb up the heavyweight ranks, and it has kept him working diligently to ensure he’ll be ready when the opportunity comes his way.
“There is still so much room for me to get better. Everyone in this sport evolves so quickly. You could take six months off and come back to a totally different game. That’s why I’m always in the gym working. Even if I don’t have a fight lined up I’m still in there working to improve my overall game. That’s how you have to be in this sport right now.
“You have to put in the work every day to make sure you are a better fighter than you were the last time out. That’s been my mentality this entire time, and it’s always going to be that way.”
Duane Finley is a featured columnist for Bleacher Report. All quotes are obtained firsthand unless noted otherwise.
When a fighter carries the amount of credentials and name recognition that Frank Mir has, there are going to be fighters taking aim at the target on his back.
After more than a decade spent as one of the elite heavyweights in the sport, that’s cer…
When a fighter carries the amount of credentials and name recognition that Frank Mir has, there are going to be fighters taking aim at the target on his back.
After more than a decade spent as one of the elite heavyweights in the sport, that’s certainly nothing new to the former two-time champion, but it also doesn’t mean he has to pay attention to it either.
While that’s typically the case for the 36-year-old Las Vegas native, something different occurred when Todd Duffee started calling him out several months back. The heavyweight staple had just snapped a career-worst four-fight losing streak in spectacular fashion, as he scored a devastating knockout victory over Antonio “Bigfoot” Silva in the first round of their tilt at UFC Fight Night 61.
Defeating the former title challenger not only put Mir back into the win column and more than likely salvaged his roster spot in the UFC heavyweight fold, but it served to recharge his relevance in the division as well.
His resurgent profile once again shining caught the attention of the heavy-handed knockout artist looking to make up for ground lost by injury and time away from the cage.
That’s all fine and good where Mir is concerned, but he’s never been anyone’s stepping stone to bigger things, and he certainly doesn’t plan to be anytime soon.
Mir and Duffee will square off in the main event at Fight Night 71 on Wednesday, and the man widely regarded as one of the best submission aces in heavyweight history believes he has a harsh lesson to hand out to his opponent in San Diego.
“Hearing him call me out irritated me and it actually got me motivated,” Mir told Bleacher Report. “That got me up and training hard and to accept the fight. I’m sure he has his up-and-down moments right now where I think he regrets what he did. Even with that, it still makes sense—and probably why his corner never talked him out of it—because he goes out there and gets finished by me real quick in the first round, he still gets to say he was out there against Frank Mir and it boosts his experience level.
“Losing to me is not going to hurt his career, where losing to someone else who wasn’t ranked would do a lot of damage, and that was more than likely who he would have been lined up with next had this not happened.”
Going toe-to-toe with Duffee will be the immediate challenge in his quest to get back into title contention, and getting another chance to fight for the heavyweight title is exactly where Mir is looking to go.
Granted, there have been plenty of ups and downs for the perennial contender in recent years, but the arm-snapping specialist is certainly no stranger to adversity, as the triumphant comeback has become somewhat of a calling card for Mir throughout his career.
It’s in the wealth of his experiences competing at the highest level of the sport where he’s found his ability to lock in the objective at hand. All the hovering circumstances of what could or couldn’t happen in the aftermath of the fight are all things he drowns out as he keeps his attention fixed on his upcoming opponent.
And while he was certainly aware of what was on the table heading into his last fight—and he will be for every fight going forward—it’s always going to be the actual fight that matters most.
“After winning my last fight, it felt great,” Mir said. “It was very much a relief for my family to know that I could still go out there and perform and get the win. Leading up to the fight, I was really able to block out all the noise around me and focus on the task at hand. I’ve been in the UFC so long and have been in so many big fights that it has allowed me to really lock in my focus on objects. The win was very rewarding, but leading up to it, things weren’t as distracting as people may have thought it was. It is always about the fight and nothing else really matters to me.”
Duane Finley is a featured columnist for Bleacher Report. All quotes are obtained firsthand unless noted otherwise.
Carrying the weight of expectation can be a difficult task for any fighter, and Rose Namajunas‘ experience with hype and the spotlight wasn’t a pleasant one.