UFC Fight Night: Bisping vs. Leites took place July 18, 2015 at the The SSE Hydro in Glasgow, Scotland. UFC middleweight contenders Michael Bisping (27-7) and Thales Leites (25-5) collided in the night’s main event, which aired live on FOX Sports 1. Catch the video highlights above.
UFC Fight Night: Bisping vs. Leites took place July 18, 2015 at the The SSE Hydro in Glasgow, Scotland. UFC middleweight contenders Michael Bisping (27-7) and Thales Leites (25-5) collided in the night’s main event, which aired live on FOX Sports 1. Catch the video highlights above.
The UFC’s marathon week finally came to a close on Saturday afternoon in Scotland, and it was Michael Bisping who did the honors. Bisping edged Thales Leites in the closely contested main event of UFC Fight Night 72, surviving early danger to pick up a spit decision over his free-swinging foe.
The victory put Bisping on his first two-fight win streak since 2011, inching the 36-year-old closer to the middleweight title shot that has eluded him over his UFC career. Check out reaction from Bisping’s win below, plus much more from Saturday’s entire main card.
Funny story….a lady asked @bisping to sign a picture for her and it was a picture of me.
The UFC’s marathon week finally came to a close on Saturday afternoon in Scotland, and it was Michael Bisping who did the honors. Bisping edged Thales Leites in the closely contested main event of UFC Fight Night 72, surviving early danger to pick up a spit decision over his free-swinging foe.
The victory put Bisping on his first two-fight win streak since 2011, inching the 36-year-old closer to the middleweight title shot that has eluded him over his UFC career. Check out reaction from Bisping’s win below, plus much more from Saturday’s entire main card.
Funny story….a lady asked @bisping to sign a picture for her and it was a picture of me.
Douglas Lima knows he’s one of the most destructive forces on the planet at 170 pounds, he just hasn’t gotten much of a chance to prove it. Injuries and circumstance have waylaid the reigning Bellator welterweight champion for much of the past 21 months, allowing him just one fight over that span and plenty of time to daydream about the comeback that’s now at his front door.
“It’s gratifying (to be back), man,” Lima told MMAFighting.com ahead of Bellator 140, where puts his welterweight title on the line against Andrey Koreshkov. “It’s really depressing being gone for this time, more than a year.
“It’s very frustrating. I won that fight with Ben Saunders (at Bellator 100), I think that was one of my best fights. I think that’s when I looked the best, and that’s how I plan on looking this next weekend. I feel like I’m the best and I train like I’m the best. I just want to perform the same way, just bring violence, hit hard, and hopefully get the finish again.”
Like his contemporaries in the UFC’s 170-pound division, Lima (26-5) is violence incarnate once he steps foot inside the cage, a born striker who’s all knees and elbows and head kicks when the time comes to bite down on his mouthpiece and sling it. All seven of his Bellator wins since late-2011 have ended by way of knockout, culminating last year in a vicious second-round TKO over Rick Hawn that won Lima the vacant Bellator title.
He’s also one of the promotion’s few remaining originals, a homegrown terror who’s been with Bellator since winning its fifth-season tournament. So while he admits the worry of his constant injury threat is “scary” at times, he can’t help but marvel at the sweeping changes that have reshaped Bellator’s image during his absence.
“Man, I absolutely love it,” Lima said. “I love it. I hope five million people watch us this time. It’s very exciting, man. I love what Scott Coker is doing. The big shows, the stage he’s gotten, I love all of that stuff, man.
“It’s just fun. It’s fun to see that big change in such a short period of time. Everything changed for the best and I’m just happy to be part of it now. It’s exciting.”
Now that he’s finally healthy, Lima hopes to use Bellator 140 as a “launching point” to show Scott Coker how he can become a major player in what Bellator is trying to build, a new era which revolves around violence and spectacle rather than the purist sensibilities of the previous regime.
In that vein, Lima fits perfectly. His ferocious striking abilities make him the very definition of a Coker guy, same as Koreshkov, Paul Daley, Michael Page, and many of Lima’s other welterweight stablemates.
The collection of talent strewn throughout the division is actually fairly impressive, and Lima believes that for all of the slights that get thrown at Bellator’s roster, the reality rests closer to past examples like Strikeforce and the WEC — where people didn’t realize how good divisions were until those same fighters wrecked shop in the UFC years later.
“Just like it was with Strikeforce, Pride, and everything else. They’re going to look back and they’re going to realize that we’re for real,” Lima said. “We’re not just a B-league, like a lot of people call it. We’ve got a lot of good fighters, man.
“Bring me the best guy (at 170). I’ll fight him, and I believe in myself I can beat him. I can beat anybody. I’m just very confident in my training. We’ll see, but I think we’re really solid, man. Bellator has got a really deep welterweight division, and people are going to see.”
The ‘B-league’ moniker is one that’s chased Bellator throughout its existence. It’s chased leagues like Strikeforce and WEC as well, which is obviously silly in retrospect considering what we now know about those fighters.
And frankly, Lima is sick of hearing it.
“I get mad, man,” Lima said. “I see that all the time, and man, it doesn’t make any sense. B-league, what are you talking about? I don’t know, I just don’t know what to say to that. I stopped reading (media), because that’s all I see, that’s all I read. We’ve gotta find a way to make people realize that they’re wrong.
“Go in there and get solid finishes. That’s all we can do. Fight the best guys, fight the badasses on top of the division, just go there and destroy them. That’s the idea. Show everybody out there, from the fans to the fighters. Everybody.”
Douglas Lima knows he’s one of the most destructive forces on the planet at 170 pounds, he just hasn’t gotten much of a chance to prove it. Injuries and circumstance have waylaid the reigning Bellator welterweight champion for much of the past 21 months, allowing him just one fight over that span and plenty of time to daydream about the comeback that’s now at his front door.
“It’s gratifying (to be back), man,” Lima told MMAFighting.com ahead of Bellator 140, where puts his welterweight title on the line against Andrey Koreshkov. “It’s really depressing being gone for this time, more than a year.
“It’s very frustrating. I won that fight with Ben Saunders (at Bellator 100), I think that was one of my best fights. I think that’s when I looked the best, and that’s how I plan on looking this next weekend. I feel like I’m the best and I train like I’m the best. I just want to perform the same way, just bring violence, hit hard, and hopefully get the finish again.”
Like his contemporaries in the UFC’s 170-pound division, Lima (26-5) is violence incarnate once he steps foot inside the cage, a born striker who’s all knees and elbows and head kicks when the time comes to bite down on his mouthpiece and sling it. All seven of his Bellator wins since late-2011 have ended by way of knockout, culminating last year in a vicious second-round TKO over Rick Hawn that won Lima the vacant Bellator title.
He’s also one of the promotion’s few remaining originals, a homegrown terror who’s been with Bellator since winning its fifth-season tournament. So while he admits the worry of his constant injury threat is “scary” at times, he can’t help but marvel at the sweeping changes that have reshaped Bellator’s image during his absence.
“Man, I absolutely love it,” Lima said. “I love it. I hope five million people watch us this time. It’s very exciting, man. I love what Scott Coker is doing. The big shows, the stage he’s gotten, I love all of that stuff, man.
“It’s just fun. It’s fun to see that big change in such a short period of time. Everything changed for the best and I’m just happy to be part of it now. It’s exciting.”
Now that he’s finally healthy, Lima hopes to use Bellator 140 as a “launching point” to show Scott Coker how he can become a major player in what Bellator is trying to build, a new era which revolves around violence and spectacle rather than the purist sensibilities of the previous regime.
In that vein, Lima fits perfectly. His ferocious striking abilities make him the very definition of a Coker guy, same as Koreshkov, Paul Daley, Michael Page, and many of Lima’s other welterweight stablemates.
The collection of talent strewn throughout the division is actually fairly impressive, and Lima believes that for all of the slights that get thrown at Bellator’s roster, the reality rests closer to past examples like Strikeforce and the WEC — where people didn’t realize how good divisions were until those same fighters wrecked shop in the UFC years later.
“Just like it was with Strikeforce, Pride, and everything else. They’re going to look back and they’re going to realize that we’re for real,” Lima said. “We’re not just a B-league, like a lot of people call it. We’ve got a lot of good fighters, man.
“Bring me the best guy (at 170). I’ll fight him, and I believe in myself I can beat him. I can beat anybody. I’m just very confident in my training. We’ll see, but I think we’re really solid, man. Bellator has got a really deep welterweight division, and people are going to see.”
The ‘B-league’ moniker is one that’s chased Bellator throughout its existence. It’s chased leagues like Strikeforce and WEC as well, which is obviously silly in retrospect considering what we now know about those fighters.
And frankly, Lima is sick of hearing it.
“I get mad, man,” Lima said. “I see that all the time, and man, it doesn’t make any sense. B-league, what are you talking about? I don’t know, I just don’t know what to say to that. I stopped reading (media), because that’s all I see, that’s all I read. We’ve gotta find a way to make people realize that they’re wrong.
“Go in there and get solid finishes. That’s all we can do. Fight the best guys, fight the badasses on top of the division, just go there and destroy them. That’s the idea. Show everybody out there, from the fans to the fighters. Everybody.”
One of the last remaining cast members of ‘The Ultimate Fighter 1,’ Mike Swick, announced his official retirement from mixed martial arts on Thursday.
Swick (15-6) exits the sport at 36 years of age, less than a week after losing a listless decision to Alex Garcia at UFC 189. That fight was Swick’s first in nearly three years, and ultimately it proved to be his last.
A native of Texas and longtime member of the American Kickboxing Academy, Swick made his professional debut with a submission victory over Victor Bell in 1998. He went on to vie for the WEC middleweight title, but it wasn’t until 2005, when he appeared on the inaugural season of ‘The Ultimate Fighter,’ that he found his big break.
Swick competed as a light heavyweight on the landmark show, falling short to eventual runner-up Stephan Bonnar in the season’s semifinals. He made his post-TUF run count though.
Swick racked up nine victories across two weight classes over the course of his first 10 UFC fights, including a trio of knockouts in 33 seconds or less.
His run of success finally screeched to a halt in 2009, when Swick dropped a No. 1 contender match against Dan Hardy. Hardy went on to challenge then-champion Georges St-Pierre, while Swick lost three of his final four bouts while dealing with a myriad of injuries plus a crippling bout with an esophageal spasm.
Though Swick ultimately overcame his illness to return against Garcia after 945 days on the shelf, the time off proved to be too much and Swick dropped a tepid decision to the up-and-comer. Days later, he posted the following statement on his Facebook page.
July 11th 2015 at UFC 189 was officially my final fight. I was healthy and injury free for the first time in 8 years but still couldn’t put my game together. There comes a time when every fighter realizes he is older and not what he use to be and I want to acknowledge this and stay true and honest to what I have always said, that I will leave when I know I am done. It’s a hard thing to do considering everyone wants to go out on top, unfortunately when your actually on top, you never wanna go out.
It’s unfair to the UFC, the fans and to my family and friends for me to keep chasing this career while giving performances that I am not proud of.
I remember sitting in class during high school(’98) watching UFC’s with the football team during off season and telling them I will be there one day. Now at 36 years old, I have been contracted with the UFC going on 11 years and it has completely changed my life. I am very proud to have fought and been a part of this organization for so long.
Though I am retiring from fighting, I will stay a big part of this sport as I continue to build fighters and grow my dream gym AKA Thailand. This gym is a massive project that has taken us 5 years to put together and once we are done, it will be the largest and most unique fight gym in the world. I am so proud to have such a great team of people behind it and I will now give my full effort towards its progress and the business surrounding it.
I want to thank everyone out there who has helped me over the years… My family and friends, Javier Mendez/Team AKA/AKA Thailand and all the coaches and fighters that have been a part of them, the UFC, all my sponsors, and finally the wonderful fans that have made this sport so great! It is because of all of you, that I was allowed to live my dream and that I will now be able to continue living it after my fighting career.
I also want to thank the haters and negative people who have entered my life from time to time. The fire that you guys created inside me is what has maybe helped me the most in my attempts to prove you wrong and succeed through your doubts. Thanks for being that fuel when I was running low on gas. 😉
Thanks for all the support and I love you all!
One of the last remaining cast members of ‘The Ultimate Fighter 1,’ Mike Swick, announced his official retirement from mixed martial arts on Thursday.
Swick (15-6) exits the sport at 36 years of age, less than a week after losing a listless decision to Alex Garcia at UFC 189. That fight was Swick’s first in nearly three years, and ultimately it proved to be his last.
A native of Texas and longtime member of the American Kickboxing Academy, Swick made his professional debut with a submission victory over Victor Bell in 1998. He went on to vie for the WEC middleweight title, but it wasn’t until 2005, when he appeared on the inaugural season of ‘The Ultimate Fighter,’ that he found his big break.
Swick competed as a light heavyweight on the landmark show, falling short to eventual runner-up Stephan Bonnar in the season’s semifinals. He made his post-TUF run count though.
Swick racked up nine victories across two weight classes over the course of his first 10 UFC fights, including a trio of knockouts in 33 seconds or less.
His run of success finally screeched to a halt in 2009, when Swick dropped a No. 1 contender match against Dan Hardy. Hardy went on to challenge then-champion Georges St-Pierre, while Swick lost three of his final four bouts while dealing with a myriad of injuries plus a crippling bout with an esophageal spasm.
Though Swick ultimately overcame his illness to return against Garcia after 945 days on the shelf, the time off proved to be too much and Swick dropped a tepid decision to the up-and-comer. Days later, he posted the following statement on his Facebook page.
July 11th 2015 at UFC 189 was officially my final fight. I was healthy and injury free for the first time in 8 years but still couldn’t put my game together. There comes a time when every fighter realizes he is older and not what he use to be and I want to acknowledge this and stay true and honest to what I have always said, that I will leave when I know I am done. It’s a hard thing to do considering everyone wants to go out on top, unfortunately when your actually on top, you never wanna go out.
It’s unfair to the UFC, the fans and to my family and friends for me to keep chasing this career while giving performances that I am not proud of.
I remember sitting in class during high school(’98) watching UFC’s with the football team during off season and telling them I will be there one day. Now at 36 years old, I have been contracted with the UFC going on 11 years and it has completely changed my life. I am very proud to have fought and been a part of this organization for so long.
Though I am retiring from fighting, I will stay a big part of this sport as I continue to build fighters and grow my dream gym AKA Thailand. This gym is a massive project that has taken us 5 years to put together and once we are done, it will be the largest and most unique fight gym in the world. I am so proud to have such a great team of people behind it and I will now give my full effort towards its progress and the business surrounding it.
I want to thank everyone out there who has helped me over the years… My family and friends, Javier Mendez/Team AKA/AKA Thailand and all the coaches and fighters that have been a part of them, the UFC, all my sponsors, and finally the wonderful fans that have made this sport so great! It is because of all of you, that I was allowed to live my dream and that I will now be able to continue living it after my fighting career.
I also want to thank the haters and negative people who have entered my life from time to time. The fire that you guys created inside me is what has maybe helped me the most in my attempts to prove you wrong and succeed through your doubts. Thanks for being that fuel when I was running low on gas. 😉
Abubaker Nurmagomedov, the highly-touted younger brother of UFC contender Khabib Nurmagomedov, is slated to make his World Series of Fighting debut against welterweight prospect Jorge Moreno on Aug. 1 at WSOF 22, promotion officials told MMAFighting.com.
Nurmagomedov (9-1) is a 23-year-old sambo specialist who, like his brother Khabib, came up under the tutelage of his father Abdulmanap Nurmagomedov at Russia’s FightSpirit Team. He has finished all nine of his professional victories, most recently defeating Vladimir Gunzu via first-round TKO.
Nurmagomedov’s lone loss came in the form of a doctor’s stoppage against Magomed Mustafaev during the second fight of a one-night tournament in Sept. 2014, but prior to that setback he won eight straight fights. He was formerly named Bloody Elbow’s third-best welterweight prospect in the world.
Moreno (4-1) is a 19-year-old prospect looking to make the drop to welterweight after beginning his career as a middleweight. He rides a three-fight win streak into his WSOF debut, topped by a second-round submission over Mike Devose this past February.
WSOF 22 takes place at the Planet Hollywood Resort & Casino in Las Vegas, NV, and airs live on NBC Sports Network. The event is headlined by two title fights, as Rousimar Palhares puts his welterweight belt on the line against Jake Shields and bantamweight champion Marlon Moraes takes on undefeated challenger Sheymon Moraes.
Abubaker Nurmagomedov, the highly-touted younger brother of UFC contender Khabib Nurmagomedov, is slated to make his World Series of Fighting debut against welterweight prospect Jorge Moreno on Aug. 1 at WSOF 22, promotion officials told MMAFighting.com.
Nurmagomedov (9-1) is a 23-year-old sambo specialist who, like his brother Khabib, came up under the tutelage of his father Abdulmanap Nurmagomedov at Russia’s FightSpirit Team. He has finished all nine of his professional victories, most recently defeating Vladimir Gunzu via first-round TKO.
Nurmagomedov’s lone loss came in the form of a doctor’s stoppage against Magomed Mustafaev during the second fight of a one-night tournament in Sept. 2014, but prior to that setback he won eight straight fights. He was formerly named Bloody Elbow’s third-best welterweight prospect in the world.
Moreno (4-1) is a 19-year-old prospect looking to make the drop to welterweight after beginning his career as a middleweight. He rides a three-fight win streak into his WSOF debut, topped by a second-round submission over Mike Devose this past February.
WSOF 22 takes place at the Planet Hollywood Resort & Casino in Las Vegas, NV, and airs live on NBC Sports Network. The event is headlined by two title fights, as Rousimar Palhares puts his welterweight belt on the line against Jake Shields and bantamweight champion Marlon Moraes takes on undefeated challenger Sheymon Moraes.
Watch Holly Holm vs. Marion Reneau full fight video highlights from UFC Fight Night 71’s main card above, courtesy of FOX Sports.
UFC Fight Night: Duffee vs. Mir took place July 15, 2015 at the Valley View Casino Center in San Diego, California. Surging bantamweight contenders Holly Holm (9-0) and Marion Reneau (6-2) met in a key main card battle, which aired live on FOX Sports 1. Catch the video highlights above.
For more on Holm vs. Reneau, catch the recap by MMAFighting.com’s own Dave Doyle.
Watch Holly Holm vs. Marion Reneau full fight video highlights from UFC Fight Night 71’s main card above, courtesy of FOX Sports.
UFC Fight Night: Duffee vs. Mir took place July 15, 2015 at the Valley View Casino Center in San Diego, California. Surging bantamweight contenders Holly Holm (9-0) and Marion Reneau (6-2) met in a key main card battle, which aired live on FOX Sports 1. Catch the video highlights above.
