Anthony Johnson Now Slated to Fight Jimi Manuwa at UFC 191

Those scratching their heads at the odd pairing of Anthony Johnson and Jan Blachowicz at UFC 191 can stop worrying because the UFC has apparently had a change of heart.
According to a report from ESPN’s Brett Okamoto, Blachowicz has been pulled f…

Those scratching their heads at the odd pairing of Anthony Johnson and Jan Blachowicz at UFC 191 can stop worrying because the UFC has apparently had a change of heart.

According to a report from ESPN’s Brett Okamoto, Blachowicz has been pulled from the fight, and Johnson will now face top-10 light heavyweight fighter Jimi Manuwa on the September 5 Las Vegas fight card.

There hasn’t been any official word from the UFC of why the bout was changed, but Okamoto is reporting that Blachowicz is expected to remain in the UFC 191 lineup.

Johnson had his nine-fight win streak snapped in May by Daniel Cormier in a bout for the vacant light heavyweight title.

He had Cormier in trouble early in the first round when he dropped the former Olympian with a massive overhand right, but Cormier’s tenacious wrestling and suffocating top control kept him in the fight.

Johnson was taken apart piece by piece in a grinding effort, before succumbing to a rear naked choke in the third round. Since the loss, Johnson has made serious adjustments to his training camp.

When speaking with MMAFighting’s Shaun Al-Shatti, he said he is now working with Neil Melanson, a longtime grappling coach who has worked with Randy Couture, Dominick Cruz and Michael Chandler.  

Manuwa will enter this fight coming off a unanimous decision win over Blachowicz in April. The 35-year-old UK star has shown plenty of promise during his three-year UFC tenure. His only loss came to current No. 1 contender Alexander Gustafsson.

UFC 191 features the flyweight championship rematch between Demetrious Johnson and John Dodson. A heavyweight tilt between former champions Andrei Arlovski and Frank Mir is also expected to be on the card.

 

Jordy McElroy is a featured columnist for Bleacher Report. He also is the MMA writer for FanRag Sports and co-founder of The MMA Bros.

Read more MMA news on BleacherReport.com

UFC 190 media day face-offs

RIO DE JANEIRO, Brazil — UFC women’s bantamweight champion Ronda Rousey and Bethe Correia and others including Claudio Gadelha, Jessica Aguilar, Antonio Silva, Soa Palelei and more face off during the UFC 190 media day in Brazil.

RIO DE JANEIRO, Brazil — UFC women’s bantamweight champion Ronda Rousey and Bethe Correia and others including Claudio Gadelha, Jessica Aguilar, Antonio Silva, Soa Palelei and more face off during the UFC 190 media day in Brazil.

VIDEO: Is Ronda Rousey vs. Bethe Correia The Biggest Title Fight Mismatch Ever? CagePotato Weighs In


(“Well, in my professional opinion…*fart sounds* *hums Batman theme*”)

Once again, our friends at Owned Sports have called upon us, as well as Zane Simon, Sydnie Jones, Erik Fontanez, and Tommy Messano, to answer the tough questions surrounding UFC 190. On today’s agenda: Is Ronda Rousey vs. Bethe Correia the biggest mismatch ever?

While undeniably a squash match, we argued that Rousey vs. Correia lies in the Jon Jones vs. Chael Sonnen territory of title fight mismatches — a fight between an ultra dominant champion and a brazen, yet almost completely outgunned challenger which has been (underwhelmingly) sold using the classic “grudge match” storyline. That was until yesterday, however, when new evidence surfaced and proved outright that, yes, this is in fact the biggest mismatch of all time.

Check out the video after the jump, then head over to OwnedSports.com for more videos on daily fantasy sports.

The post VIDEO: Is Ronda Rousey vs. Bethe Correia The Biggest Title Fight Mismatch Ever? CagePotato Weighs In appeared first on Cagepotato.


(“Well, in my professional opinion…*fart sounds* *hums Batman theme*”)

Once again, our friends at Owned Sports have called upon us, as well as Zane Simon, Sydnie Jones, Erik Fontanez, and Tommy Messano, to answer the tough questions surrounding UFC 190. On today’s agenda: Is Ronda Rousey vs. Bethe Correia the biggest mismatch ever?

While undeniably a squash match, we argued that Rousey vs. Correia lies in the Jon Jones vs. Chael Sonnen territory of title fight mismatches — a fight between an ultra dominant champion and a brazen, yet almost completely outgunned challenger which has been (underwhelmingly) sold using the classic “grudge match” storyline. That was until yesterday, however, when new evidence surfaced and proved outright that, yes, this is in fact the biggest mismatch of all time.

Check out the video after the jump, then head over to OwnedSports.com for more videos on daily fantasy sports.

The post VIDEO: Is Ronda Rousey vs. Bethe Correia The Biggest Title Fight Mismatch Ever? CagePotato Weighs In appeared first on Cagepotato.

Ronda Rousey UFC 190 media day scrum

RIO DE JANEIRO — UFC bantamweight champion Ronda Rousey discusses the upcoming bout with Bethe Correia, why she’s planning on leaving the belt in Brazil after UFC 190, retirement, movies, Holly Holm and Miesha Tate recent victories, and much more….

RIO DE JANEIRO — UFC bantamweight champion Ronda Rousey discusses the upcoming bout with Bethe Correia, why she’s planning on leaving the belt in Brazil after UFC 190, retirement, movies, Holly Holm and Miesha Tate recent victories, and much more.

Anthony Johnson now faces Jimi Manuwa at UFC 191

Anthony Johnson has a new opponent at UFC 191.
“Rumble” was expected to meet the tough but unheralded Jan Blachowicz on the Sept. 5 card in Las Vegas. But ESPN.com reported on Thursday that Johnson will instead meet Britain’s Jimi Manuw…

Anthony Johnson has a new opponent at UFC 191.

“Rumble” was expected to meet the tough but unheralded Jan Blachowicz on the Sept. 5 card in Las Vegas. But ESPN.com reported on Thursday that Johnson will instead meet Britain’s Jimi Manuwa.

The bout isn’t likely to go the distance, as 26 of the duo’s combined 37 wins are via knockout.

Manuwa (18-4), has been out of action for much of the past two years due to injuries, most recently a broken hand. According to the ESPN report, Manuwa was recently cleared to resume fighting, so UFC officials opted to place him against Johnson.

Johnson (19-5) is looking to rebound to his third-round submission loss to Daniel Cormier at UFC 187 in the bout to fill the vacant light heavyweight title. The loss ended a nine-fight win streak.

Blachowicz is expected to remain on the card against an opponent to be named.