Five years after their first fight in the UFC, Nik Lentz and Thiago Tavares will meet again inside the Octagon.
The UFC announced on Tuesday that Lentz and Tavares, who fought to a majority draw in a lightweight bout at UFC Fight Night 20 on Jan. 2010, are set to collide for a second time at UFC Fight Night 60 in Broomfield, Colo., on Jan. 14.
After facing Tavares in 2010, Lentz (25-6-2, 1 no-contest) went 4-2 with one no-contest before dropping to 145 pounds. The longtime UFC veteran has won four out of five as a featherweight in the UFC, including wins over Tavares’ countrymen Diego Nunes and Hacran Dias.
Tavares (19-5-1) stayed in the lightweight division a little longer, successfully dropping to 145 pounds for the first time in 2014 with a first-round submission victory over Robbie Peralta. Tavares has gone 5-2 his first bout with Lentz.
Five years after their first fight in the UFC, Nik Lentz and Thiago Tavares will meet again inside the Octagon.
The UFC announced on Tuesday that Lentz and Tavares, who fought to a majority draw in a lightweight bout at UFC Fight Night 20 on Jan. 2010, are set to collide for a second time at UFC Fight Night 60 in Broomfield, Colo., on Jan. 14.
After facing Tavares in 2010, Lentz (25-6-2, 1 no-contest) went 4-2 with one no-contest before dropping to 145 pounds. The longtime UFC veteran has won four out of five as a featherweight in the UFC, including wins over Tavares’ countrymen Diego Nunes and Hacran Dias.
Tavares (19-5-1) stayed in the lightweight division a little longer, successfully dropping to 145 pounds for the first time in 2014 with a first-round submission victory over Robbie Peralta. Tavares has gone 5-2 his first bout with Lentz.
The UFC has found a new opponent for John Moraga.
Moraga, who was initially expected to face Jussier Formiga at the UFC on FOX 13 card in Phoenix on Dec. 13, now meets UFC newcomer Willie Gates, sources told MMAFighting.com on Tuesday. Formi…
Moraga, who was initially expected to face Jussier Formiga at the UFC on FOX 13 card in Phoenix on Dec. 13, now meets UFC newcomer Willie Gates, sources told MMAFighting.com on Tuesday. Formiga was forced out of the bout with an injured knee.
Gates (11-4) signs with the UFC fresh off an 83-second TKO victory over Hector Sandoval to earn the Tachi Palace Fights 125-pound title on Nov. 6. Gates has won five in a row in 2014 with five first-round finishes.
Moraga (15-3) scored a second-round submission over Justin Scoggins in his last appearance inside the Octagon, bouncing back to the win column following a loss to John Dodson. A former UFC title challenger, Moraga is 2-1 since losing to flyweight champion Demetrious Johnson in 2013.
The pair of flyweight contenders, who were scheduled to meet at UFC Fight Night 56 in Uberlandia, Brazil, on Nov. 8, will square off at UFC 183 in Las Vegas on Jan. 31, the promotion announced Wednesday.
Both Lineker and McCall successfully made weight on UFN 56 official weigh-ins on Nov. 7, but the UFC announced later that night that the bout was cancelled due to McCall’s last-minute illness.
“Once I weakened my immune system with my weight cut, my body completely failed me,” McCall told MMAFighting.com days after the event.
The pair of flyweight contenders, who were scheduled to meet at UFC Fight Night 56 in Uberlandia, Brazil, on Nov. 8, will square off at UFC 183 in Las Vegas on Jan. 31, the promotion announced Wednesday.
Both Lineker and McCall successfully made weight on UFN 56 official weigh-ins on Nov. 7, but the UFC announced later that night that the bout was cancelled due to McCall’s last-minute illness.
“Once I weakened my immune system with my weight cut, my body completely failed me,” McCall told MMAFighting.com days after the event.
Grappling wizard Kron Gracie has an opponent for his first MMA bout.
Kron Gracie, Son of MMA and jiu-jitsu legend Rickson Gracie, will meet Hyung Soo Kim in a lightweight bout at Real Fight Championship 1 on Dec. 23 in Japan, the promotion announced.
Both Gracie and Kim will compete for the first time under MMA rules.
Gracie, a multiple-time jiu-jitsu and grappling champion, holds wins over the likes of Shinya Aoki and Sergio Moraes. Kim makes his MMA debut after a career in wrestling.
In an interview to MMAFighting.com in October, Rickson discussed his son’s MMA debut.
“He’s focused, he wants to bring jiu-jitsu back to MMA,” Gracie said. “He’s not doing crosstraining to work on his weaknesses. He won’t start boxing, kickboxing, wrestling. He will use his jiu-jitsu to neutralize the wrestler, the striker, and work on his expertise.
“I don’t want him to learn how to knock someone out with a punch. He would need another life just to learn how to deal with fighters who come from this background. He has to learn how to avoid fighting his opponent’s game.”
Roberto Satoshi, who competed against Jake Shields at Metamoris 5’s secret match, will also compete at the event, facing Jeong Doo-Jae in a lightweight contest. BJJ champion Gabi Garcia is also expected to make her MMA debut at the event, but her opponent is still yet to be announced.
Grappling wizard Kron Gracie has an opponent for his first MMA bout.
Kron Gracie, Son of MMA and jiu-jitsu legend Rickson Gracie, will meet Hyung Soo Kim in a lightweight bout at Real Fight Championship 1 on Dec. 23 in Japan, the promotion announced.
Both Gracie and Kim will compete for the first time under MMA rules.
Gracie, a multiple-time jiu-jitsu and grappling champion, holds wins over the likes of Shinya Aoki and Sergio Moraes. Kim makes his MMA debut after a career in wrestling.
In an interview to MMAFighting.com in October, Rickson discussed his son’s MMA debut.
“He’s focused, he wants to bring jiu-jitsu back to MMA,” Gracie said. “He’s not doing crosstraining to work on his weaknesses. He won’t start boxing, kickboxing, wrestling. He will use his jiu-jitsu to neutralize the wrestler, the striker, and work on his expertise.
“I don’t want him to learn how to knock someone out with a punch. He would need another life just to learn how to deal with fighters who come from this background. He has to learn how to avoid fighting his opponent’s game.”
Roberto Satoshi, who competed against Jake Shields at Metamoris 5’s secret match, will also compete at the event, facing Jeong Doo-Jae in a lightweight contest. BJJ champion Gabi Garcia is also expected to make her MMA debut at the event, but her opponent is still yet to be announced.
The UFC has announced its full schedule of events for 2015, but there’s room for more.
Garry Cook, the former UFC executive vice president and managing director of Europe, Middle East and Africa who recently became the UFC chief global brand officer, told Ariel Helwani on Monday’s episode of The MMA Hour that oversaturation is not an issue. In fact, local markets are hungry for more UFC events.
“We’d like to be doing a lot more. I notice this in Brazil, I notice this in Asia. There’s call for another 20, 30 events,” Cook said. “If you had the capability, that’s what people are asking. That’s what people wanna see in the local markets, but we’re trying to manage our business sensibly and in a measured way. You can never be too aggressive, (but) believe me, there’s a lot to come yet.”
“My job, I believe, is to help converge not only those, but the already knowledgeable and passionate (fans), but to bring a new audience to the sport,” he continued. “I think that’s what we have to do as we look forward to the next 15, 20 years. We want to be one of the major sports in the sports landscape around the world.
“Will we change everybody’s perception (of the sport)? I don’t necessarily think that’s the goal. To try to please everybody all the time can often be a recipe for failure. I think we’ve got to make sure that people know who we are, what we do, and know about our business and know that we are serious players in the sports landscape. It is getting easier, but it’s not easy.”
With 45 events scheduled for 2015, including 13 pay-per-view cards, the UFC wants to establish itself as a global brand.
“We’re truly a global brand. We are not an American brand trying to take our product around the world. That’s very different,” Cook said. “You have to have local events in local markets, with local fighters being the focus, and actually helping the U.S. audience become fans of what’s coming from around the world.”
“We’ve continued to grow around the world,” he continued. “We’re more of just a promoter of events now. We have 340 people working in our organization and as we continue to grow, we have to make sure that we are planning and aligning our business with all we wanna get after. We make sure people know we’re in television business, we’re in the event management business, we’ve got strategic partners in the commercial space. There’s a lot going on here. It’s not just about matchmaking two fighters in the Octagon.”
Entering new markets is a tough challenge, but Cook has done a great work for the promotion in the past — and having guys like Alexander Gustafsson and Conor McGregor makes that easier.
“If you look at Gustafsson and you look at McGregor, they are byproducts if you like of having a very clear plan, of having a very clean understanding of what the responsibility is in the region, and that is develop local fighters to meet the needs of local fans and local television network,” he said. … “We’ve got to understand how they want to consume it, what they wanna see, what they need, and that’s our job. At the end of the day, we’re asking people to be part of this all the time, and we have to make sure that we’re serving their needs.”
The UFC has yet to announce which new markets are going to be explored in 2015, but they are happy to finally enter Russia with a big television deal.
“We’re just about to announce a television deal in Russia. 55 million households,” Cook said. “We’ve never done an event in Russia. The growth is all of that, a global business is how you make sure you create relevant content in the U.S., relevant content for all the other markets, (…) creating more content, creating local heroes, national fame.
“The story is two people in combat. There’s gonna be a winner, there’s gonna be a loser. There’s no more drama than that. And that sells, wherever you are in the world.”
With deals yet to be finalized, the promotion also targets shows in Scotland and Poland, Cook said.
“We’re gonna be on television in Russia. Eventually, there will be a show in Russia, but we don’t know if that will be next year. Poland, we’ve got some plans there. They have been calling us for having an event in Poland. Scotland, you can’t help but think of Joanne Calderwood, who’s becoming a starlet there. We’d like to think about doing something at Glasgow. We have some plans.”
The UFC has announced its full schedule of events for 2015, but there’s room for more.
Garry Cook, the former UFC executive vice president and managing director of Europe, Middle East and Africa who recently became the UFC chief global brand officer, told Ariel Helwani on Monday’s episode of The MMA Hour that oversaturation is not an issue. In fact, local markets are hungry for more UFC events.
“We’d like to be doing a lot more. I notice this in Brazil, I notice this in Asia. There’s call for another 20, 30 events,” Cook said. “If you had the capability, that’s what people are asking. That’s what people wanna see in the local markets, but we’re trying to manage our business sensibly and in a measured way. You can never be too aggressive, (but) believe me, there’s a lot to come yet.”
“My job, I believe, is to help converge not only those, but the already knowledgeable and passionate (fans), but to bring a new audience to the sport,” he continued. “I think that’s what we have to do as we look forward to the next 15, 20 years. We want to be one of the major sports in the sports landscape around the world.
“Will we change everybody’s perception (of the sport)? I don’t necessarily think that’s the goal. To try to please everybody all the time can often be a recipe for failure. I think we’ve got to make sure that people know who we are, what we do, and know about our business and know that we are serious players in the sports landscape. It is getting easier, but it’s not easy.”
With 45 events scheduled for 2015, including 13 pay-per-view cards, the UFC wants to establish itself as a global brand.
“We’re truly a global brand. We are not an American brand trying to take our product around the world. That’s very different,” Cook said. “You have to have local events in local markets, with local fighters being the focus, and actually helping the U.S. audience become fans of what’s coming from around the world.”
“We’ve continued to grow around the world,” he continued. “We’re more of just a promoter of events now. We have 340 people working in our organization and as we continue to grow, we have to make sure that we are planning and aligning our business with all we wanna get after. We make sure people know we’re in television business, we’re in the event management business, we’ve got strategic partners in the commercial space. There’s a lot going on here. It’s not just about matchmaking two fighters in the Octagon.”
Entering new markets is a tough challenge, but Cook has done a great work for the promotion in the past — and having guys like Alexander Gustafsson and Conor McGregor makes that easier.
“If you look at Gustafsson and you look at McGregor, they are byproducts if you like of having a very clear plan, of having a very clean understanding of what the responsibility is in the region, and that is develop local fighters to meet the needs of local fans and local television network,” he said. … “We’ve got to understand how they want to consume it, what they wanna see, what they need, and that’s our job. At the end of the day, we’re asking people to be part of this all the time, and we have to make sure that we’re serving their needs.”
The UFC has yet to announce which new markets are going to be explored in 2015, but they are happy to finally enter Russia with a big television deal.
“We’re just about to announce a television deal in Russia. 55 million households,” Cook said. “We’ve never done an event in Russia. The growth is all of that, a global business is how you make sure you create relevant content in the U.S., relevant content for all the other markets, (…) creating more content, creating local heroes, national fame.
“The story is two people in combat. There’s gonna be a winner, there’s gonna be a loser. There’s no more drama than that. And that sells, wherever you are in the world.”
With deals yet to be finalized, the promotion also targets shows in Scotland and Poland, Cook said.
“We’re gonna be on television in Russia. Eventually, there will be a show in Russia, but we don’t know if that will be next year. Poland, we’ve got some plans there. They have been calling us for having an event in Poland. Scotland, you can’t help but think of Joanne Calderwood, who’s becoming a starlet there. We’d like to think about doing something at Glasgow. We have some plans.”
Gilbert Burns’ return to the jiu-jitsu mats didn’t go as he expected.
Fresh off a first-round submission victory over Christos Giagos at UFC 179, the Brazilian lightweight returned to Copa Podio on Saturday night in Rio de Janeiro, Brazil, in a submission-only, no-time limit jiu-jitsu match against fellow BJJ world champion Leandro Lo.
Burns, who was 3-0 against Lo in grappling competition, nearly secured a leglock, but Lo was able to survive. After 20 minutes of action, Lo tapped “Durinho” with a cross collar choke.
Joao Miyao and Gianni Grippo also battled in a submission-only no time limit match, but the promotion decided to end the contest after one hour. Miyao and Grippo are expected to compete again at Copa Podio’s next edition.
In the middleweight grand prix, Felipe Preguica claimed the gold after defeating Luiz Panza in the final. In the previous matches, Preguica scored wins over Claudio Calasans, Gregor Gracie, Thiago Sa, Patrick Gaudio and Erberth Santos.
In the “Brazil vs. United States challenge,” Tim Spriggs choked out Lucas Hulk.
Gilbert Burns’ return to the jiu-jitsu mats didn’t go as he expected.
Fresh off a first-round submission victory over Christos Giagos at UFC 179, the Brazilian lightweight returned to Copa Podio on Saturday night in Rio de Janeiro, Brazil, in a submission-only, no-time limit jiu-jitsu match against fellow BJJ world champion Leandro Lo.
Burns, who was 3-0 against Lo in grappling competition, nearly secured a leglock, but Lo was able to survive. After 20 minutes of action, Lo tapped “Durinho” with a cross collar choke.
Joao Miyao and Gianni Grippo also battled in a submission-only no time limit match, but the promotion decided to end the contest after one hour. Miyao and Grippo are expected to compete again at Copa Podio’s next edition.
In the middleweight grand prix, Felipe Preguica claimed the gold after defeating Luiz Panza in the final. In the previous matches, Preguica scored wins over Claudio Calasans, Gregor Gracie, Thiago Sa, Patrick Gaudio and Erberth Santos.
In the “Brazil vs. United States challenge,” Tim Spriggs choked out Lucas Hulk.
