The UFC made a successful return to Brazil on Wednesday night for the promotion’s third Fight Night event on Fox Sports 1.
The UFC Fight Night 28 card was headlined by a light-heavyweight scrap between surging contender Glover Teixeira and former …
The UFC made a successful return to Brazil on Wednesday night for the promotion’s third Fight Night event on Fox Sports 1.
The UFC Fight Night 28 card was headlined by a light-heavyweight scrap between surging contender Glover Teixeira and former The Ultimate Fighter winner Ryan Bader.
The Brazilian, despite being rocked in the opening round, battled back to finish Bader with strikes in the first frame, earning himself the next shot at the belt in the process.
While Teixeira’s fate is pretty much decided, let’s take a look at what’s next for Wednesday night’s main card winners.
It’s been almost three years since Anthony Pettis stole Benson Henderson’s lightweight crown with the ‘kick heard around the world’ at WEC 53. However, both men find themselves in an eerily similar situation leading into this weekend’s rematch at UFC 1…
It’s been almost three years since Anthony Pettis stole Benson Henderson’s lightweight crown with the ‘kick heard around the world’ at WEC 53. However, both men find themselves in an eerily similar situation leading into this weekend’s rematch at UFC 164.
Despite suffering a close decision loss to “Showtime” in the WEC‘s final show in 2010, “Smooth” has rebounded emphatically since joining the world’s largest MMA promotion en route to his current reign as the 155-pound UFC champion.
On the flip side, Pettis once again finds in the position as the hungry challenger, having strung together a series of impressive wins following a rough debut inside the Octagon.
While both men find themselves in familiar territory, albeit under a different Zuffa banner this time, there are a few other that have changed for them going into Saturday night’s fights.
Looking at Henderson’s time with the UFC, it’s clear that “Smooth” has stepped it up a notch as a fighter.
Having faced a who’s who list of top lightweight fighters, from Gilbert Melendez to Frankie Edgar, Henderson has risen to the occasion each time to solidify his status as the division’s top dog.
The champ has looked faster and stronger in his UFC outings compared to his days in the WEC, appearing more athletic and more on point with his attacks.
While Henderson hasn’t been able to put away opponents, that’s because he’s facing the highest level of lightweight competition in the sport’s history right now.
Some may call “Smooth’s” recent wins a product of good luck or playing to the judges’ preferences, but his close decision wins can really be attributed to a more focused game plan. No longer is Henderson getting caught in deep chokes or bad positions, but rather, he’s edging out close calls by avoiding these things while turning up the intensity when he needs to.
As for Pettis, the thrill of being a world champion may have been short lived, but he too has proven himself to be a world class fighter in MMA’s deepest division.
After a wrestling heavy loss to Clay Guida in his Octagon debut, Pettis showed much improvement in his takedown defense against Jeremy Stephens and otherworldly KO power with his kicks in his latest two performances against Donald Cerrone and Joe Lauzon.
The flashiness that earned Pettis his moniker is still present, but it’s clear that “Showtime” has taken his game to another level as well.
Even in his sole UFC loss, Pettis showed great attacks from his guard and a feistiness for the finish that few others can contend with.
Both men, in terms of their tenacity and thirst for victory, haven’t really changed much since their first meeting in December of 2010. However, both Henderson and Pettis are better all around in their MMA games and have taken themselves to new heights as athletes and martial artists.
I’m not sure if this fight will end the same way as the their first meeting, but you can be sure that it will be just as exciting, if not more so.
As the UFC rolled into Indianapolis for its second event ever on Fox Sports 1, the world’s largest MMA promotion did not disappoint with Wednesday’s Fight Night 27.
Headlining the event was a rematch between welterweight contenders Carlos Condit and Ma…
As the UFC rolled into Indianapolis for its second event ever on Fox Sports 1, the world’s largest MMA promotion did not disappoint with Wednesday’s Fight Night 27.
Headlining the event was a rematch between welterweight contenders Carlos Condit and Martin Kampmann, and boy did this fight deliver, taking home Fight of the Night honors in the process.
The former interim champion had trouble stopping the “Hitman’s” takedowns in the opening frame, but “The Natural Born Killer” started finding his groove with his striking in Round 2 and just kept turning up the heat from there. After a few more rounds of Condit picking him apart, the Greg Jackson product finally finished Kampmann with punches and knees for the TKO in the fourth round.
The entertaining performance turned in by Condit was just one of many exciting moments inside the Octagon Wednesday night. Here are three stars from UFC Fight Night 27.
Carlos Condit
As previously stated, the former interim welterweight champ turned in a masterful striking performance last night.
After two straight wrestling heavy losses to Georges St-Pierre and Johny Hendricks, Condit showed a lot of improvements on the mats and was able to stop Kampmann‘s takedowns after the first round.
Even more impressive is how thoroughly “The Natural Born Killer” picked apart such a skilled kickboxer standing up.
Now that he’s back in the win column, I fully expect to see Condit make another run at the title as long as his takedown defense keeps improving.
Kelvin Gastelum
Winner of last season’s The Ultimate Fighter, Gastelum proved all the doubters wrong by upsetting heavy favorite Uriah Hall to take the show’s finale.
Moving down to welterweight for his sophomore appearance inside the Octagon, Gastelum put on an even more impressive performance by finishing Strikeforce vet Brian Melancon in the first round.
The TUFalum showed enormous power with his hands, rocking Melancon against the cage before sinking in the rear-naked choke for the win.
Gastelum appears to be even faster and stronger in his new weight class, and I expect his solid wrestling and heavy hands to pose a problem for many others in the welterweight division.
I’d like to see him take a step up in competition for his next fight as Gastelum has the potential to be a true rising star in the UFC.
TakeyaMizugaki
One of the unsung veterans to emerge victorious from Wednesday’s fights, WEC veteran TakeyaMizugaki extended his winning streak to three by defeating the heavily hyped Erik Perez.
The Japanese star impressed me with his willingness to trade hands with the powerful “Goyito,” as Mizugaki‘s more technical strikes and ability to stuff many of Perez’s takedown‘s earned him the nod. Despite eating some heavy shots from the Mexican bantamweight, the former Shooto rookie of the year kept his composure and utilized an excellent and patient game plan to take the win.
Winning four of his last five fights, Mizugaki may finally be hitting his stride as a mixed martial artist and may be on the verge of making a run in the talent-filled 135-pound division.
In one of the biggest rematches in the lightweight division’s history, UFC champion Benson Henderson will get a chance to take on former WEC champ Anthony Pettis once again at this weekend’s UFC 164.
When these two fighters first faced off, “Showtime” …
In one of the biggest rematches in the lightweight division’s history, UFC champion Benson Henderson will get a chance to take on former WEC champ Anthony Pettis once again at this weekend’s UFC 164.
When these two fighters first faced off, “Showtime” emphatically decisioned “Smooth” to take the WEC belt with his famous, fifth round off-the-cage kick in the promotion’s final show at WEC 53.
Since then, the careers of both men have taken some twists and turns, as Henderson has risen to become the defending UFC lightweight champ while Pettis has been on a roller coaster ride en route to his current shot at the belt.
Let’s take a deeper look into how two of MMA‘s best 155ers stack up against each other in this rematch with this head-to-toe breakdown.
The UFC is set to finish an action packed month of MMA with a bang when the promotion heads to Milwaukee for UFC 164.
The Aug. 31 card will be held at the BMO Harris Bradley Center and feature one of the biggest rematches in the history of the l…
The UFC is set to finish an action packed month of MMA with a bang when the promotion heads to Milwaukee for UFC 164.
The Aug. 31 card will be held at the BMO Harris Bradley Center and feature one of the biggest rematches in the history of the lightweight division as UFC champion Benson Henderson looks to avenge his WEC 53 title fight loss to hometown hero Anthony “Showtime” Pettis.
Get an extended look at the event in the video embedded above.
The Milwaukee native famously took the WEC crown from Henderson in the promotion’s final event in December 2010. Living up to his moniker, Pettis emphatically ended the fifth round by landing an off-the-cage kick—which fans have dubbed the “Showtime Kick”—in order to seal the decision win.
Since the loss, Henderson has comeback in a huge way, going a perfect 7-0 with the UFC en route to becoming the defending lightweight champion.
While an early loss to Clay Guida was a brief setback for Pettis in his debut with the UFC, Showtime has gone 3-0 since, with back-to-back Knockout of the Night winning performances against Donald Cerrone and Joe Lauzon in his most recent two victories.
In the night’s co-main event, former UFC heavyweight champ Frank Mir will look to end a two-fight losing streak as he welcomes the legendary Josh Barnett back to the Octagon.
The UFC will be bringing a stacked card full of can’t-miss bouts when the promotion rolls into Boston next weekend for the launch of the new Fox Sports 1 network.
Headlining the upcoming Fight Night event will be a light heavyweight battle between form…
The UFC will be bringing a stacked card full of can’t-miss bouts when the promotion rolls into Boston next weekend for the launch of the new Fox Sports 1 network.
Headlining the upcoming Fight Night event will be a light heavyweight battle between former champ Mauricio “Shogun” Rua and the always talkative, ex-top contender ChaelSonnen.
The night will also feature a heavyweight scrap between knockout artists Alistair Overeem and Travis Browne.
As the world’s largest MMA promotion continues to fill up its Fox Sports 1 cards, let’s take at the 10 fights you can’t miss on the new network.
It’s been almost three years since