MMA News Today: Conor McGregor Has ‘Eyes On’ BKFC Move After Seeing Out UFC Contract, Magomed Ankalaev Talks Neutralising ‘Aggressive’ Francis Ngannou During Sparring, & More | UFC Betting Sites

Welcome to MMA News Today, a daily feature running down the most interesting stories in the world of mixed martial arts. For July 18, 2024, we’re taking a look at:

McGregor teases BKFC future
Ankalaev was forced to shut Ngannou down
Curtis doubles down on Costa call-out

Conor McGregor Says Competing In BKFC Could Be An Option After UFC Run

Conor McGregor has completed his first press conference for BKFC since becoming a part-owner of the promotion in April.

He spoke ahead of BKFC 67 where “The Notorious” seemed to suggest that part of his investment in this company could see him take off the gloves and jump in the ring.

McGregor, who is still expected to make his long-awaited UFC return later this year against Michael Chandler, told the media that he has two fights left on his current deal.

Referring to the fighters that are set to compete on October 12 in Marbella, he said that he’s not just here to talk about these athletes but potentially mix it up with them also.

“For me, I’ve a bit of business left with the Ultimate Fighting Championship, two fights left on my contract but for sure, we’ve got three lightweights up here on the deas and you know I have my eye on all of this. I’m not up here just as an owner, player-manager I’ll title myself on this one.”

Magomed Ankalaev Recalls Heated Sparring Session With Francis Ngannou

During a recent appearance on the Badaev Podcast, light heavyweight contender Magomed Ankalaev told a story about an encounter that he had with Francis Ngannou.

Ankalaev claims that the two men sparred with one another some time ago until the former UFC heavyweight champion started to become overly aggressive towards him.

He was left with no option but to try and avoid any danger by grabbing hold of his sparring partner until the end of the round.

Ankalaev also states that he believes the reason Ngannou was going so hard at him in sparring was because he had knocked out one of his friends back in 2019.

“I saw that [Ngannou] wanted to drop me. He was generally aggressive. I quickly went to his feet, put him down and held him. I was waiting for the time to run out so I could say ‘don’t come near me again’. Then we found out the reason – it turns out he is a friend of [Dalcha] Lungiambula whom I had knocked out before.”

Chris Curtis Calls To Fight Paulo Costa And Says It Will Be Much More Entertaining Than Costa’s Fight With Sean Strickland

Chris Curtis is continuing to call for a fight with former middleweight title challenger Paulo Costa for his next outing.

In a recent interview on MMA Junkie Radio, “Action Man” said that a match-up between himself and Costa would be a much more entertaining affair than Costa’s last outing against Curtis’s friend and teammate, Sean Strickland.

Curtis reflected how he studied “Borrachinha” extensively for that fight but the styles simply didn’t gel well in the co-main event of UFC 302.

He believes that he and Costa would make for a far better watch because unlike Strickland, he will be willing to stand in front of the Brazilian to trade strikes.

“I cornered Sean that fight. When he took that fight…I literally went back, watched all of the Costa fights, and I had like a freakin’ four-page bulletin report on what to do…everything that Costa does, when he does it, why I think he does it,” Curtis said. “I just think it’s a fight that I match up well with.

“Costa’s usually a really fun guy to watch but the Strickland fight was just weird for him because Sean’s a weird guy to fight,” Curtis continued. “I think me and Costa, I think we can just sit there and beat on each other until somebody falls, and I’m okay with that. Sean doesn’t want to fight that way. He’s not trying to get his head bust in. I will gladly stand in front of you and we will just swing at each other.”

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