The heavyweight division is heating up leading into summer, and No. 4-ranked contender Ben Rothwell and No. 5-ranked Junior Dos Santos will meet in the main event of UFC Fight Night 86.
This five-round affair will play a key role in deciding who is nex…
The heavyweight division is heating up leading into summer, and No. 4-ranked contender Ben Rothwell and No. 5-ranked Junior Dos Santos will meet in the main event of UFC Fight Night 86.
This five-round affair will play a key role in deciding who is next in line for a shot at the coveted UFC championship.
Rothwell (36-9) is riding a four-fight win streak into battle with wins over Alistair Overeem and Josh Barnett. Things have not been as rosy for the former champion. Dos Santos (17-4) dropped his last bout to Overeem by TKO.
JDS needs a victory to get back into the title picture, but another victorious outing from Rothwell may garner him the title shot he has long been after. This is just the first bout in a string of important heavyweight tilts that will make the murky waters much more clear.
Who will come out on top in Zagreb, Croatia?
This is your look at the head-to-toe breakdown for Rothwell vs. JDS.
Early evening on Wednesday, the UFC announced several bouts for the long-awaited UFC 200. Topping the announcements was the main event: a rematch between Nate Diaz and Conor McGregor. Also announced was an interim featherweight title tilt between …
Early evening on Wednesday, the UFC announced several bouts for the long-awaited UFC 200. Topping the announcements was the main event: a rematch between Nate Diaz and Conor McGregor. Also announced was an interim featherweight title tilt between Jose Aldo and Frankie Edgar.
Did you think Aldo vs. Edgar II would be the co-main event? Well, start pumping those breaks.
Late Wednesday night, Dave Deibert of the Saskatoon StarPhoenix reported that the co-main event has yet to be confirmed. UFC president Dana White texted Postmedia, “When this card is finished being announced … minds will be blown.”
For now, it is merely a guessing game as to what could slide into the co-main event slot ahead of the interim featherweight contest. Most of the championships are already in play and can likely be ruled out. Of those champions available to compete—Miesha Tate (bantamweight) and Robbie Lawler (middleweight)—the smart money would be on Lawler defending his welterweight title.
There were rumblings that UFC 200 was going to play host to McGregor vs. Lawler, but McGregor’s loss to Diaz put that on hold. After UFC 196, both White and UFC CEO Lorenzo Fertitta liked the idea of Diaz assuming that role against the 170-pound champion. It seems to have always been the plan for Lawler to defend his belt in Las Vegas on July 9.
The names at the top of the contenders list have to be No. 3-ranked contender Tyron Woodley and No. 4-ranked Carlos Condit. Yet, there will no doubt be some speculation that it could be a returning Georges St. Pierre. The flames of GSP’s return were stoked most recently by Rory MacDonald during his appearance on The MMA Hour.
Whatever the co-main event ends up being, one thing is for sure: UFC 200 is going to be loaded from top to bottom with great fights. It is the can’t-miss event of the summer.
A good rematch is something special, but it doesn’t come with a set formula for being great and/or memorable.
Take UFC 200 for example. The promotion just booked two rematches in the form of Nate Diaz versus Conor McGregor and Jose Aldo versus Frankie …
A good rematch is something special, but it doesn’t come with a set formula for being great and/or memorable.
The first is an immediate rematch that’s being booked because the first fight was a high-action affair between two marketable fighters. Oh and because it sold a ridiculous amount of PPV’s and they’re banking that the rematch will too.
The second is a rematch of Aldo and Edgar’s 2013 title fight which saw then champ Aldo edging out Edgar in a close decision. This booking has more to do with the state of affairs in the featherweight division.
The aforementioned McGregor, the champ, is holding the featherweight division up with his obsession to get back his loss to Diaz. So Aldo and Edgar will fight for the interim belt. Either McGregor will face the winner in a few months, or, if he vacates his belt, the winner will be promoted to the outright champ.
Reaction to Diaz versus McGregor was met with mixed reviews by fans. A vocal majority wanted to see McGregor versus Edgar in a featherweight title fight. And nobody was specifically clamoring for Aldo versus Edgar, but it makes sense given the circumstances.
Perhaps the fights will be letdowns. Or they may deliver in ways we couldn’t have expected and become part of MMA lore.
Some rematches are memorable because of the storylines.
A good story can give a fight deeper meaning and more anticipation leading into the bout. A rematch can also be special because the action on display captures our attention in a way that makes us take pause. Whatever it may be, rematches play a pivotal role in combat sports.
Rematches can connect with fans on a more personal level than any singular fight can. There is a deeper engagement involved that generates excitement.
Fighters can build their legacies through rematches and trilogies.
When two peers step inside the cage or ring to do battle on multiple occasions, there is a sense that magic is happening. Sometimes, that magic is realized through a back-and-forth battle or occasionally through an individual performance that stands by itself.
Over the years, MMA has given us many outstanding rematches. Picking our favorites was no easy task. After careful consideration, here are the favorite rematches of the Bleacher Report MMA staff.
Junior Dos Santos (17-4) tore through the UFC’s heavyweight division en route to the UFC Heavyweight Championship. He has struggled to put together back-to-back victories since his time as champion came to an end at December 2012 and has not rega…
Junior Dos Santos (17-4) tore through the UFC’s heavyweight division en route to the UFC Heavyweight Championship. He has struggled to put together back-to-back victories since his time as champion came to an end at December 2012 and has not regained his previous form.
On April 10, Dos Santos is set to step inside the cage with Ben Rothwell (36-9). It could be the start of his redemption story, or it could send him spiraling further down the ranks at heavyweight.
Dos Santos burst onto the scene with a stunning 80-second knockout over Fabricio Werdum at UFC 90 in October 2008 and kept right on rolling.
Until December 29, 2012.
On that day, Cain Velasquez got his vengeance in a rematch for the gold and battered Dos Santos for five full rounds. It wasn’t close. It wasn’t competitive. But Cigano rebounded against Mark Hunt five months later, although he took his fair share of punishment in that outing as well.
The win earned him a rubber match against Velasquez, but the result was the same. Another vicious beating left some wondering how it would affect his fighting future. Given his performances since that date in October 2013, it has proved to be a valid concern. He has never looked the same, and that includes his performance in the December 2014 win over Stipe Miocic.
Dos Santos is a man who wears his heart on his sleeve in victory or defeat. It is an admirable quality that gives fans an insight into who he is as a person. However, that vulnerability also brings into question what another loss would do to him.
In a recent interview with Ariel Helwani on The MMA Hour, Dos Santos discussed falling on hard times after losing the championship belt.
“To deal with this negative moment for me has been very tough because since my debut in the UFC in 2008, I just had victories, victories and victories until I became champion of the world,” said Dos Santos (h/t MMA Fighting). “Then I lost to Cain Velasquez, I started to live bad, bad moments, including with injuries, and I’m trying to go out of those moments and start living the winning moments again.”
Cigano knows this is a must-win situation, and he admitted how crucial this upcoming bout is after his recent losses.
“The moment that I’m living now is not that good,” Dos Santos told Helwani. “I’m coming from negative results, so I want to change these things and get back to my winning streak.”
His upcoming high-stakes heavyweight tilt has possible title implications but also has a storyline of a fallen champion struggling to make his way back to the peak of the mountain top.
The former champion will try to turn those bad moments to good against Rothwell in Zagreb, Croatia, on April 10.
UFC Fight Night 85 got off to a slow start Saturday, but the main card delivered with five straight finishes to cap off the night.
In the main event, Mark Hunt scored yet another walkaway knockout when he caught Frank Mir with a right hand. The former …
UFC Fight Night 85 got off to a slow start Saturday, but the main card delivered with five straight finishes to cap off the night.
In the main event, Mark Hunt scored yet another walkaway knockout when he caught Frank Mir with a right hand. The former heavyweight champion crumpled to the mat, and Hunt just walked away, knowing his work was done.
Hunt is a KO artist who knows when his latest masterpiece is finished. He doesn’t need to put the additional brush strokes on his painting.
Earlier in the night, Neil Magny survived an early onslaught by Hector Lombard to become the first fighter to finish him inside the distance.
After all the results are in, one wonders what is next for the fighters who competed at UFC Fight Night 85. Pen meets paper to give you the matches to make following the action in Brisbane, Australia. These are the fights to look for next.
Kaboom.
You know exactly what that means in a Mark Hunt (12-10-1) fight. It means he once again leveled his opponent with masterful striking at UFC Fight Night 85 on Saturday night in Brisbane, Queensland, Australia.
Hunt, ranked as the No. 9 heavyweig…
Kaboom.
You know exactly what that means in a Mark Hunt (12-10-1) fight. It means he once again leveled his opponent with masterful striking at UFC Fight Night 85 on Saturday night in Brisbane, Queensland, Australia.
Hunt, ranked as the No. 9 heavyweight contender, opened up with a strong low-leg kick. It was clear early No. 10-ranked Frank Mir (18-11) was not interested in standing with Hunt and was only seeking an opportunity to get the fight to the floor. Hunt feinted a lot to figure out how Mir was going to move on his strikes; that movement and timing would be key to landing the one-shot knockout. Mir is one of the smartest fighters in the game and picked his spots well in the first half of the first round.
But Hunt would land the walk-off KO. The official call would be at 3:01 of the first round.
The “Super Samoan” baited Mir to drop levels with his jab and uncorked a clean right hand behind the ear. The referee wasn’t quick to stop the fight, but Hunt had already started walking off knowing his work was done.
After the ref saw the stars in Mir’s eyes, he called an official stop to the contest.
In the post-fight interview with Jon Anik, Hunt showed respect to his fallen opponent. There was no call-out, but there are going to be plenty of high-profile options for Hunt’s next bout.
As for Mir, the former champion is in a quandary. He is aging and in the back half of the heavyweight field. Although, to his credit, the knockout on Saturday night was not a factor of a failing chin. It was a factor of Hunt’s incredible striking acumen. Mir showed his intelligence; he just was not able to execute his game plan.
A great opponent for Mir would be Jared Rosholt. The former collegiate wrestling standout isn’t as much of a threat on the feet, and his bread and butter is on the ground. From a matchmaking standpoint, the UFC would benefit from Rosholt improving his all-around game or Mir getting back in the win column. Brent Brookhouse of MMAJunkie and Suzanne Davis had these observations:
On the post-fight show, Brian Stann called for Mir to hang up the gloves. Also on the telecast, Dan Hardy seemed to echo that sentiment, but he felt that Mir will not call it a career just yet.
In the coming months, the heavyweight division will work itself out as most of the top 10 faces each other, none more important than the heavyweight title fight between Fabricio Werdum and Stipe Miocic. Hunt will have to wait to see who wins, who loses and what chances await. Fox Sports quoted Hunt:
The best chance for Hunt is to stay ready in case someone happens to fall out of a fight. Hunt could be a quality replacement for anyone, and another win would put him back in title contention.
The heavyweight landscape will work itself out in the near future. The present is all about marveling over another Hunt walk-off KO. He is an artist painting with his fists. Hunt is a treasure we have to cherish, and one we will be eagerly anticipating returning to the Octagon in short order.
Early evening on Wednesday, the UFC announced several bouts for the long-awaited UFC 200. Topping the announcements was the main event: a rematch between Nate Diaz and Conor McGregor. Also announced was an interim featherweight title tilt between Jose Aldo and Frankie Edgar.