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Conor McGregor cruises around the Mediterranean as UFC boss Dana White casts doubt on fighting future

Former two-weight champion, Conor McGregor has taken his family on a cruise around the Mediterranean this week – taking in the scenery around the Basin after UFC president, Dana White appeared less than committal on a date for the Dubliner’s return to the Octagon. McGregor, a former undisputed lightweight and featherweight champion under the banner […]

McGregor, a former undisputed lightweight and featherweight champion under the banner of the UFC, recently returned to television last week, as the premiere of The Ultimate Fighter 31 aired on ESPN – with the 34-year-old featuring as an opposing coach on the reality television show against former lightweight title chaser, Michael Chandler.

Sidelined from the Octagon since July 2021, Conor McGregor suffered a fractured left tibia and fibula en route to a first round doctor’s stoppage TKO loss against former interim lightweight champion, Dustin Poirier at the T-Mobile Arena in Las Vegas, Nevada.

And while the counter striker had outlined a return to active competition by December of this year, Conor McGregor’s expected date for a return fight with Chandler at the welterweight limit, has been cast into further uncertainty, with UFC leader, White claiming it has been difficult to “reel” the ex-champion in.

“We have a massive roster fo people that want to come in and people that are ready to fight and people that want to be Conor McGregor,” Dana White told assembled media following UFC Vegas 74. “And be at that level. It’s like for the last 20 years everybody said, ‘Oh my God, what are you guys going to do when Chuck Liddell retires? You guys are f*cked. Oh my God. GSP. Anderson Silva. This and that.’”

“First of all, Conor called me a couple of days ago and loved the first episode of ‘The Ultimate Fighter’ and saying how happy he was to be a part of it,” White explained. “And I think being here and part of the environment and everything else, he felt it again and felt like he wants to get back to fight. The one thing you guys have to understand is this kid has so much money. It’s like Khabib now. These guys got sh*tloads of money and it’s hard to reel these guys in and get them to get in and fight.”

Conor McGregor parties with American musician Rick Ross during family holiday

In the wake of White’s comments, McGregor – who recently attended a Formula One Grand Prix in Monte Carlo, shared footage of him cruising around the Mediterranean with members of his family, with fans and members of the mixed martial arts community again distancing the Dubliner from a comeback to fighting. (H/T TalkSPORT)

pic.twitter.com/SVSkiIrCNv

— Conor McGregor (@TheNotoriousMMA) June 5, 2023

Charles Oliveira laughs off Beneil Dariush’s prediction for UFC 289: ‘If he thinks he’ll dominate me, he’s wrong’

Former undisputed lightweight champion, Charles Oliveira has laughed off predictions of a dominant display from Beneil Dariush en route to a victory at UFC 289 this weekend, denying the Iranian will find it all his own way in their co-main event slot. Oliveira, the current #1 ranked lightweight contender, has been sidelined since October of […]

Oliveira, the current #1 ranked lightweight contender, has been sidelined since October of last year, most recently headlining UFC 280 in Abu Dhabi, UAE – seeing his 12-fight winning run halted against Islam Makhachev in the pair’s vacant lightweight title fight.

On the same card, Kings MMA staple, Dariush managed to secure his seventh consecutive victory – landing himself a one-sided unanimous decision success against former two-weight KSW champion, Mateusz Gamrot in the Middle East – earning this weekend’s title-eliminator against former gold holder, Oliveira.

And breaking down this weekend’s showdown with Oliveira, Dariush has predicted a one-sided success against the Brazilian – in rather dominant fashion to boot, citing a lack of “hunger” for the former.

“I think he (Charles Oliveira) didn’t start his camp when he should have,” Beneil Dariush said. “And then tried to catch up and probably overtrained, and that’s how he got injured.”

“I just think comfort is an enemy for athletes like us, and I think he’s (Charles Oliveira) gotten really comfortable. Obviously, he’s a wealthy guy now and he’s living good. I think those are things that can cause you some problems – cause you to lack desire, basically. I think that’s something that could take place in his life.”

Charles Oliveira laughs off Beneil Dariush’s prediction for their UFC 289 fight

Laughing off Dariush’s prediction of a one-sided victory this weekend, Oliveira has insisted he will be the one leaving Vancouver, British Columbia with a win in tow.

“(Beneil) Dariush is a great fighter,” Charles Oliveira said during a recent interview with Sports Illustrated. “He’s one of the best in the world. If he thinks he will dominate me, he is wrong. I will be the one leaving with my hand raised.”

Without a victory since May of last year, Oliveira managed to submit former interim gold holder, Justin Gaethje with a one-sided opening round rear-naked choke in the main event of UFC 274 in Phoenix, Arizona.

Amanda Nunes urged to embrace retirement ahead of UFC 289 headliner: ‘Stop doing all this sh*t’

Slated to headline UFC 289 this weekend in a bantamweight title fight against Irene Aldana, two-weight promotional champion, Amanda Nunes has been urged to embrace a potential impending retirement from active competition, from one-time light heavyweight title challenger, Anthony Smith. Nunes, the current undisputed featherweight and bantamweight champion, is slated to headline UFC 289 this […]

Nunes, the current undisputed featherweight and bantamweight champion, is slated to headline UFC 289 this weekend in the promotion’s return to Vancouver, British Columbia, Canada – taking main event honors against Mexican replacement, Aldana in a reworked main event clash.

Yet to feature since July of last year, Bahia native, Nunes managed to reclaim the bantamweight throne with a largely one-sided unanimous decision victory over Julianna Peña in the pair’s championship rematch in Dallas, Texas.

Amanda Nunes urged to embrace a potential retirement from MMA

Revealing recently how she had weighed up the prospect of retirement following her stunning December 2021 title submission loss to Peña, Nunes has been urged to make peace with a potential retirement from the sport, by Nebraska native Smith.

“Is it weird that, at times, I look forward to Amanda Nunes’ retirement,” Anthony Smith told Ariel Helwani on The MMA Hour. “It’s a very weird sentiment I have. Sometimes when I see her in these fight weeks, in these interviews, and she’s dragged her whole family there, and then she gets in and she fights – sometimes I almost feel bad for her.”

“Like, just go enjoy your life, and just go have fun,” Smith explained. “Like, stop doing all this sh*t. Because a lot of times, she [Amanda Nunes] doesn’t seem to always enjoy it that much.”

A decorated two-weight champion, over the course of her professional career, Nunes has landed spectacular triumphs over the likes of Valentina Shevchenko, Miesha Tate, Ronda Rousey, Cris Cyborg, Holly Holm, Germaine de Randamie, Felicia Spencer, Megan Anderson, and the aforenoted, Julianna Peña.

New Rankings! Albazi Replaces Kara-France At No. 3

Photo by Chris Unger/Zuffa LLC via Getty Images

Amir Albazi picked up his sixth straight victory after winning a split decision over Kai Kara-France last Saturday (June 3, 2023) at UFC Vegas 74 inside UFC Apex in Las Veg…

UFC Fight Night: Kara-France v Albazi — Photo by Chris Unger/Zuffa LLC via Getty Images

Amir Albazi picked up his sixth straight victory after winning a split decision over Kai Kara-France last Saturday (June 3, 2023) at UFC Vegas 74 inside UFC Apex in Las Vegas, Nevada, which had several people calling robbery in more ways than one. With the win, Albazi took France’s No. 3 ranking in the men’s Flyweight division.

As for France, he was bumped down to No. 5 and kicked in the groin, too.

There wasn’t any other movement, including Alex Caceres, who didn’t get a bump and remains at No. 15 at Featherweight despite winning his seventh fight in his last eight tries after beating Daniel Pineda.

Here’s how UFC compiles its official rankings:

Rankings were generated by a voting panel made up of media members. The media members were asked to vote for who they feel are the top fighters in the UFC by weight-class and pound-for-pound. A fighter is only eligible to be voted on if they are in active status in the UFC. A fighter can appear in more than one weight division at a time. The champion and interim champion are considered to be in the top positions of their respective divisions and therefore are not eligible for voting by weight-class. However, the champions can be voted on for the pound-for-pound rankings.

Take a look at what the latest rankings field looks like courtesy of UFC.com. Note: (+/- = movement in rankings, T = tie, *NR = Not previously ranked).

MEN’S POUND-FOR-POUND

1. Jon Jones
2. Alexander Volkanovski
3. Islam Makhachev
4. Leon Edwards
5. Israel Adesanya
6. Aljamain Sterling
7. Kamaru Usman
8. Charles Oliveira
9. Brandon Moreno
10. Alex Pereira
11. Jiri Prochazka
12. Max Holloway
13. Dustin Poirier
14. Jamahal Hill
15. Robert Whittaker

FLYWEIGHT

Champion: Brandon Moreno

1. Deiveson Figueiredo
2. Alexandre Pantoja
3. Amir Albazi + 4
4. Brandon Royval
5. Kai Kara-France -2
6. Matheus Nicolau -1
7. Alex Perez -1
8. Matt Schnell
9. Manel Kape
10. David Dvorak
11. Tim Elliott
12. Muhammad Mokaev
13. Su Mudaerji
14. Tagir Ulanbekov
14. Bruno Silva

BANTAMWEIGHT

Champion: Aljamain Sterling

1. Merab Dvalishvili
2. Sean O’Malley
3. Henry Cejudo
4. Cory Sandhagen
5. Petr Yan
6. Marlon Vera
7. Rob Font
8. Song Yadong
9. Dominick Cruz
10. Pedro Munhoz
11. Umar Nurmagomedov
12. Ricky Simon
13. Adrian Yanez
14. Chris Gutierrez
15. Jonathan Martinez

FEATHERWEIGHT

Champion: Alexander Volkanovski

1. Interim Champion Yair Rodriguez
2. Max Holloway
3. Brian Ortega
4. Arnold Allen
5. Josh Emmett
6. Calvin Kattar
7. Chan Sung Jung
8. Giga Chikadze
9. Ilia Topuria
10. Movsar Evloev
11. Bryce Mitchell
12. Sodiq Yusuff
13. Dan Ige
14. Edson Barboza
15. Alex Caceres

LIGHTWEIGHT

Champion: Islam Makhachev

1. Charles Oliveira
2. Dustin Poirier
3. Justin Gaethje
4. Beneil Dariush
5. Michael Chandler
6. Rafael Fiziev
7. Mateusz Gamrot
8. Arman Tsarukyan
9. Rafael dos Anjos
10. Jalin Turner
11. Dan Hooker
12. Damir Ismagulov
13. Renato Moicano
14. Matt Frevola
15. Grant Dawson

WELTERWEIGHT

Champion: Leon Edwards

1. Kamaru Usman
2. Colby Covington
3. Belal Muhammed
4. Khamzat Chimaev
5. Gilbert Burns
6. Shavkat Rakhmonov
7. Stephen Thompson
8. Geoff Neal
9. Sean Brady
10. Vicente Luque
11. Neil Magny
12. Michael Chiesa
13. Ian Machado Garry
14. Jack Della Maddalena
15. Michel Pereira

MIDDLEWEIGHT

Champion: Israel Adesanya

1. Alex Pereira
2. Robert Whittaker
3. Marvin Vettori
4. Jared Cannonier
5. Paulo Costa
6. Dricus Du Plessis
7. Sean Strickland
8. Derek Brunson
9. Roman Dolidze
10. Jack Hermansson
11. Kelvin Gastelum
12. Nassourdine Imavov
13. Brendan Allen
14. Chris Curtis
15. Andre Muniz

LIGHT HEAVYWEIGHT

Champion: Jamahal Hill

1. Jiri Prochazka
2. Magomed Ankalaev
3. Jan Blachowicz
4. Aleksandar Rakic
5. (T) Nikita Krylov
5. (T) Johnny Walker
7. Anthony Smith
8. Volkan Oezdemir
9. Paul Craig
10. Ryan Spann
11. Azamat Murzakanov
12. Dominick Reyes
13. Khalil Rountree
14. Jim Crute
15. Dustin Jacoby

HEAVYWEIGHT

Champion: Jon Jones

1. Ciryl Gane
2. Sergei Pavlovich
3. Stipe Miocic
4. Curtis Blaydes
5. Tom Aspinall
6. Tai Tuivasa
7. Alexander Volkov
8. Serghei Spivac
9. Jailton Almeida
10. Marcin Tybura
11. Derrick Lewis
12. Jairzinho Rozenstruik
13. Chris Daukaus
14. Alexandr Romanov
15. Blagoy Ivanov

WOMEN’S POUND-FOR-POUND

1. Amanda Nunes
2. Alexa Grasso
3. Valentina Shevchenko
4. Weili Zhang
5. Rose Namajunas
6. Julianna Pena
7. Carla Esparza
8. Erin Blanchfield
9. Jessica Andrade
10. Yan Xiaonan
11. Manon Fiorot
12. Amanda Lemos
13. Taila Santos
14. Holly Holm
15. Raquel Pennington

WOMEN’S STRAWWEIGHT

Champion: Zhang Weili

1. Carla Esparza
2. Rose Namajunas
3. Yan Xiaonan
4. Amanda Lemos
5. Jessica Andrade
6. Virna Jandiroba
7. Mackenzie Dern
8. Marina Rodriguez
9. Tecia Torres
10. Tatiana Suarez
11. Amanda Ribas
12. Michelle Waterson
13. Luana Pinheiro
14. Angela Hill
15. Tabatha Ricci

WOMEN’S FLYWEIGHT

Champion: Alexa Grasso

1. Valentina Shevchenko
2. Manon Fiorot
3. Talia Santos
4. Erin Blanchfield
5. Jessica Andrade
6. Katlyn Chookagian
7. Lauren Murphy
8. Jennifer Maia
9. Amanda Ribas
10. Viviane Araújo
11. Maycee Barber
12. Casey O’Neill
13. Andrea Lee
14. Tracy Cortez
15. Miranda Maverick

WOMEN’S BANTAMWEIGHT

Champion: Amanda Nunes

1. Julianna Pena
2. Raquel Pennington
3. Holly Holm
4. Ketlen Vieira
5. Irene Aldana
6. Yana Kunitskaya
7. Pannie Kianzad
8. Macy Chiasson
9. Karol Rosa
10. Mayra Bueno Silva
11. Miesha Tate
12. Julia Avila
13. Norma Dumont
14. (T) Josiane Nunes
14. (T) Chelsea Chandler

There you have it.

You can expect these rankings to change next week, particularly in the women’s Bantamweight division, following the UFC 289 mixed martial arts (MMA) event on ESPN+ pay-per-view (PPV) going down Sat. night (June 10, 2023) featuring Amanda Nunes defending her belt against Irene Aldana.

For much more on that upcoming fight card click here.

Francis Ngannou tipped to win in fight with Deontay Wilder: ‘If there’s anybody he could beat, it’s him’

UFC heavyweight Tom Aspinall backs Francis Ngannou to beat Deontay Wilder should they meet in the boxing ring. Since leaving the UFC and signing his monumental deal with PFL, Ngannou is not only set up financially, but also free to explore other fighting opportunities out with the promotion such as boxing. ‘The Predator’ has previously […]

UFC heavyweight Tom Aspinall backs Francis Ngannou to beat Deontay Wilder should they meet in the boxing ring.

Since leaving the UFC and signing his monumental deal with PFL, Ngannou is not only set up financially, but also free to explore other fighting opportunities out with the promotion such as boxing. ‘The Predator’ has previously expressed his interest in getting a big boxing fight, and has been pursuing a fight with reigning WBC champion, Tyson Fury.

Tom Aspinall backs Francis Ngannou in fight with Deontay Wilder

While a fight against one of the big name heavyweights may be hard to pin down for Francis Ngannou, it hasn’t stopped people fantasising about how he may get on. A lot of MMA fighters who have made the switch to the squared circle have come up short, but when talking with JNMediaUK, fellow big man, Aspinall liked his chances against one of the heavyweight elites.

“I would love to see him against Wilder, because it’s just two f—ing massive guys who can punch holes through walls,” Aspinall began. “It’s ridiculous. I’d love to see that. If there’s anybody he could beat, it would be Wilder,” Aspinall added. “Because Wilder is … and I don’t want to slag the guy off, because he’s one of the hardest punchers ever. But as far as actual boxing ability, his level is way lower than an Usyk or Tyson Fury or someone like that.

“The guy’s punching power is off the charts, absolutely ridiculous, out of this world, “ Aspinall continued. “But I think he’s quite hittable and his fight IQ doesn’t see to be, like, great. I think if there’s any of em who [Ngannou] could beat, it would be Wilder.” (H/T MMA Mania)

Tom Aspinall talking with JN Media UK about Francis Ngannou’s boxing chances

What do you think of Tom Aspinall’s comments?

Results! Recap! Ep. 2 Of TUF 31 TONIGHT!

TUF 31

One down, 11 more to go.
Season 31 of The Ultimate Fighter (TUF) returns TONIGHT (Tues., June 6, 2023) at 10 p.m. ET on ESPN for Ep. 2 of the long-running combat sports reality show, featuring head coaches Conor M…

One down, 11 more to go.

Season 31 of The Ultimate Fighter (TUF) returns TONIGHT (Tues., June 6, 2023) at 10 p.m. ET on ESPN for Ep. 2 of the long-running combat sports reality show, featuring head coaches Conor McGregor and Michael Chandler leading respective squads of lightweight and bantamweight contenders. Remember, immediate replays of TUF 31 are available on ESPN+ (sign up here) starting at 11 p.m. ET, which is the same time we’ll have our full results and recap videos of Ep. 2 RIGHT HERE in the post below.

Missed Ep. 1? No problem! Get full results and recap videos right here.

Here’s where we stand heading into Episode 2:

Team McGregor:

135 lbs.: Mando Gutierrez (No. 1)
135 lbs.: Trevor Wells (No. 2)
135 lbs.: Carlos Vera (No. 3)
135 lbs.: Rico DiSciullo (No. 4)

155 lbs.: Lee Hammond (No. 1)
~~155 lbs.: Nate Jennerman (No. 2)~~
155 lbs.: Aaron McKenzie (No. 3)
155 lbs.: Landon Quinones Stewart (No. 4)

Team Chandler:

135 lbs.: Hunter Azure (No. 1)
135 lbs.: Brad Katona (No. 2)
135 lbs.: Timur Valiev (No. 3)
135 lbs.: Cody Gibson (No. 4)

155 lbs.: Jason Knight (No. 1)
155 lbs.: Austin Hubbard (No. 2)
155 lbs.: Roosevelt Roberts (No. 3)
155 lbs.: Kurt Holobaugh (No. 4)

With Roosevelt Roberts eliminating Nate Jennerman in rather quick fashion on Ep. 1 — leading to this unforgiving take — Team McGregor will look to rebound by sending Trevor Wells into battle opposite Timur Valiev for the next spot in the bantamweight semifinals.

All that and more TUF 31 hijinks tonight on ESPN!

For more on TUF 31 and other recent McGregor-related bits, click here.