The back and forth between Aspen Ladd and Miesha Tate continues. Aspen Ladd is preparing for her main event fight against Norma Dumont at UFC Vegas 40. This is the second fight Ladd has been scheduled for in the past month. She was forced out of her initial bout against Macy Chiasson after a bad […]
The back and forth between Aspen Ladd and Miesha Tate continues.
Aspen Ladd is preparing for her main event fight against Norma Dumont at UFC Vegas 40. This is the second fight Ladd has been scheduled for in the past month. She was forced out of her initial bout against Macy Chiasson after a bad weight cut, and now she moves up in weight to face Dumont. Despite the actual fights Ladd has been scheduled, her biggest feud right now might be with former bantamweight champion Miesha Tate.
“I respect her very much as a fighter, and I’ve wanted to fight her since she came back,” she said (via Fansided). “She’s probably one of the biggest names in women’s MMA besides Ronda Rousey and Cris Cyborg. There’s just a thing that when something’s going through something that’s not pleasant, I’d rather never make them feel worse.”
Ladd and Tate were at one time pretty amicable to each other in trying to set up a fight between them. Since then this animosity has turned into bad blood. If Ladd wins this weekend over Dumont, she has expressed her desire to return to bantamweight instead of continuing on at featherweight. If she is successful, perhaps a date with Tate could be next.
“We’ll see, maybe we’ll meet down the road,” she added.
Ladd is currently sitting in the number three spot of the UFC rankings. Even though the fight this weekend is at featherweight, a win can only help her move closer to a title shot. Now that Tate has returned from retirement, she is looking to make her way back to the top. A fight with Ladd and a win over her would be just the thing Tate needs.
Do you think Miesha Tate would accept a fight with Aspen Ladd after her weight-cutting issues?
The weigh-in results for UFC Vegas 40: Ladd vs. Dumont are in! Unfortunately, there was one fight cancellation, but the rest of the card is ready to proceed, including the main event! The main card bout between Julian Marquez and Jordan Wright is off after Marquez was pulled from the card due to what was […]
Unfortunately, there was one fight cancellation, but the rest of the card is ready to proceed, including the main event! The main card bout between Julian Marquez and Jordan Wright is off after Marquez was pulled from the card due to what was classified as “non-COVID health issues.”
The rest of the card remains intact, however, including the main event between Aspen Ladd and Norma Dumont. Ladd had issues on the scale two weeks ago when she was scheduled to compete at UFC Vegas 38 against Macy Chiasson. The issues were bad enough to lead to the cancellation of that bout, but everything was smooth sailing today.
Norma Dumont also did not get the fight she was hoping for. The 31-year-old expected to face former bantamweight champion Holly Holm and has expressed skepticism at the legitimacy of the injury that forced Holm to withdraw from the bout. Dumont made it clear that she would still like to stand across from Holm at some point. But for the time being, all her attention is on Aspen Ladd.
Our own Doug Murray gave this fight his full attention in his preview and prediction for this bout. And tomorrow night, we will learn the final outcome!
The co-main event for the card will feature legendary Andrei Arlovski taking on Carlos Felipe. Arlovski has won three of his last four fights, most recently defeating Chase Sherman in April. The 26-year-old Felipe is experiencing a three-fight win streak, defeating Jake Collier in his most recent bout at UFC 263. Will Arlovski show that he is ready to continue battling next-generation superstars? Or will Felipe make it four consecutive wins at the expense of a former UFC champion?
UFC Vegas 40 takes place live tomorrow night, October 16, 2021, from the UFC APEX in Las Vegas, Nevada. The entire card will stream on ESPN+. The main card begins at 7 PM ET, with the prelims kicking off at 4:30.
Aspen Ladd will make her featherweight debut against Norma Dumont at UFC Vegas 40. Ladd and Dumont will mix it up at 145-pounds and look to keep the division moving. After four canceled fights in a row, the once-bantamweight Ladd will look to reinstate herself as a contender in a brand-new weight class. Ladd’s opponent […]
Aspen Ladd will make her featherweight debut against Norma Dumont at UFC Vegas 40.
Ladd and Dumont will mix it up at 145-pounds and look to keep the division moving. After four canceled fights in a row, the once-bantamweight Ladd will look to reinstate herself as a contender in a brand-new weight class.
Ladd’s opponent changed after an injury forced Holly Holm out of their scheduled fight. Earlier this month at UFC Vegas 38, the dehydrated 26-year-old took to the scale and missed her mark as she weighed in at 137 pounds, one pound above the bantamweight limit.
Following the weight miss, former bantamweight champion Miesha Tate was not short on criticism for the young contender. The former titleholder called Ladd a cheater following the weight miss at UFC Vegas 38. Even Ladd’s coach Jim West got involved following Miesha Tate’s comments.
Despite all of the outside noise, Ladd comes to fight and the former bantamweight showed as much in her last performance. The American was paired with Yana Kunitskaya and the two fought a relatively close battle.
However, after some encouragement from her coach after round two, Ladd sat down on a left-cross that sent Kunitskaya to the canvas. Once Ladd began the ground and pound, the fight was over and Ladd cemented herself as one of the top contenders at 135-pounds, or so it seemed.
Following the UFC Vegas 38 weigh-in results, it was clear Ladd was ill and unable to compete at the 136-pound limit required in her fight against her rescheduled foe, Macy Chiasson. Despite weighing in on the scale, Ladd could barely maintain her balance and the fight was called off after Chiasson refused to accept the terms.
Ladd has only lost once inside of the UFC. In 2019, the former bantamweight was tasked with fighting former 145-pound titleholder Germaine de Randamie, a decorated kickboxer with a wealth of experience. The contest ended in a flash, and Randamie landed a swift right cross that knocked Ladd to the mat.
Similar to Aspen Ladd, Dumont has only lost once under the UFC banner. The featherweight lost to Megan Anderson in her debut with the organization. In particular, the 31-year-old lost by knockout after being caught by a right cross. Meanwhile, Dumont has steadied her focus and began to put together some solid wins inside of the Octagon.
First, Dumont was tasked with fighting Ashlee Evans-Smith and won the bout handily by unanimous decision victory. The fight that put her on the 145-pound map was her decision win over former title challenger Felicia Spencer. Despite the decision being split, most expected Spencer to take out the relatively unknown commodity in Dumont.
Norma Dumont, Zuffa LLC
Of Dumont’s six professional wins, a quarter of them has been submissions. Since grappling appears to be the featherweight’s Modus Apprendi, perhaps she intends to implore a more wrestling-centric approach when fight night rolls around. As Ladd will most likely enjoy an advantage in the striking department, it will be up to Dumont to control the tempo of the action.
Unlike Dumont, even with Ladd’s short sample size, the 26-year-old’s finishing rate is outstanding. Of nine professional fights, six victories have come courtesy of the power in her hands. Dumont will need to utilize evasive footwork so Ladd is unable to predict her position when throwing the harder shots.
Since Ladd has shown that she is unable to make the bantamweight limit, this will be a fresh start for the California native. Certainly, if Ladd had power at 135-pounds, the snap on her punches should ring even louder going forward. With less focus on the weight and more attention on strategical forethought, featherweight Ladd may look better than her lighter form.
At UFC Vegas 40, these two featherweights are looking for a commanding performance. With “The Lioness” set for a bantamweight title defense on Dec. 11 at UFC 269, her next target will likely be at 145-pounds if she intends to continue holding two different gold belts.
Prediction: Aspen Ladd def. Norma Dumont via unanimous decision
Aspen Ladd believes the UFC must sign dominant PFL star Kayla Harrison in order to bring more “substance” to the lacklustre women’s featherweight division. Ladd’s planned return to MMA’s biggest stage hasn’t gone to plan in 2021 so far. The #3-ranked women’s bantamweight was initially scheduled to face Macy Chiasson at UFC Vegas 32 in […]
Aspen Ladd believes the UFC must sign dominant PFL star Kayla Harrison in order to bring more “substance” to the lacklustre women’s featherweight division.
Ladd’s planned return to MMA’s biggest stage hasn’t gone to plan in 2021 so far. The #3-ranked women’s bantamweight was initially scheduled to face Macy Chiasson at UFC Vegas 32 in July. Following a late an injury to her opponent, Ladd’s comeback was delayed.
After the matchup was kept together, the pair were set to collide at UFC Vegas 38 earlier this month. In a situation we’ve previously seen in her career, Ladd experienced issues with the weight cut. Despite officially coming in one pound over the limit, the 26-year-old’s state on the scale was enough for the fight to be pulled yet again.
As many had called for, Ladd will now be making the move up to 145 pounds. After Holly Holm withdrew from her scheduled main event bout with Norma Dumont, Ladd has stepped up and will look to secure a meeting with Amanda Nunes in a different weight class than she’d originally planned.
Featherweight main event this Saturday at #UFCVegas40!
Ahead of her featherweight debut, Ladd spoke with TSN’s Aaron Bronsteter. The Californian admitted that she sees less opportunities for herself at 145 pounds. However, she knows the move is necessary for her career, and is hoping the signing of one star currently outside of the promotion will breathe life into the weight class.
“Well, that’s part of the problem. Yes, it’s the same woman at the top of all heaps, but there’s so many less opportunities to fight at 145 right now. We’ll see in like a year, year and a half, because I highly expect for them to bring Kayla [Harrison] and try to start building the division. But basically, it’s for opportunity. Because I’d like to fight more. And in order to do that, I can’t do ‘35 all that often. It takes a lot of effort, a lot of time, and it’s gotta be exact. ‘45, I can, as you see, take on a 10-day-notice fight.”
When asked if the future of the women’s featherweight division depends on the signing of Harrison, Ladd suggested it would progress the division to more than just Amanda Nunes’ playground.
“Absolutely. They just haven’t put the time or the effort into it. Right now, it’s kinda just here for Amanda, (when) she wants to fight.”
Harrison is scheduled to fight Taylor Guardado in the final of the PFL Women’s Lightweight Tournament on October 27. Following that, Ladd expects the two-time Olympic gold medalist to test herself in the UFC.
“They need stars. They need, basically, more substance. And Kayla’s the obvious answer, and I think they’ve been angling for her for a while. And her last fight in PFL’s coming up, so I fully expect her to be signed and then them to start building the 145 division.”
In recent years, Harrison has been one of the most dominant women in MMA. Since making her debut in 2018, the 31-year-old has built a perfect 11-0 professional record that includes five knockouts and four submissions. Having won the 2019 PFL Women’s Lightweight Championship, Harrison is looking to replicate the $1 million success later this month.
UFC President Dana White has insisted that the promotion isn’t “rewarding” Aspen Ladd for missing weight by placing her in this weekend’s main event fight. Ladd’s return to action this year has hit a number of roadblocks. The 26-year-old, who hasn’t competed since a 2019 victory over Yana Kunitskaya, was initially set to face Macy […]
UFC President Dana White has insisted that the promotion isn’t “rewarding” Aspen Ladd for missing weight by placing her in this weekend’s main event fight.
Ladd’s return to action this year has hit a number of roadblocks. The 26-year-old, who hasn’t competed since a 2019 victory over Yana Kunitskaya, was initially set to face Macy Chiasson at UFC Vegas 32. After a late injury for her opponent, Ladd’s comeback was delayed.
The matchup was kept together and the pair were slated for a second go at meeting in the Octagon at UFC Vegas 38. This time, it was Ladd’s own issues that saw the clash canceled. In an all too familiar situation, the Californian struggled to make weight and her state on the scale was enough for the co-main event bout to be pulled from another card.
Ladd received widespread criticism in the aftermath, including accusations of cheating from former UFC Women’s Bantamweight Champion Miesha Tate. The consistent conclusion throughout the MMA community was that Ladd had to begin fighting at 145 pounds. However, not many would have expected that to come to fruition just two weeks later in a main event clash.
The UFC Vegas 40 card was originally set to be topped by a women’s featherweight matchup between Holly Holm and Norma Dumont. After “The Preacher’s Daughter” was forced to withdraw, the UFC granted Ladd her 145-pound debut. This weekend, she’ll look to put her weight-cutting issues behind her as she aims to secure a meeting with champion Amanda Nunes at a different weight.
While many have questioned the decision to give Ladd her first main event after yet another issue on the scale, Dana White sees it differently. Speaking at the press conference that followed this week’s episode of Dana White’s Contender Series, the promotion’s kingpin asserted that the booking isn’t a reward for Ladd.
“We’re not rewarding her. She’s moving up in a weight class. She’s moving up to ‘45. If we kept her at ‘35 and gave her a main event, that would make sense. The girl’s in shape; she’s here to fight. She didn’t make weight, but she’s gonna move up a weight class now. So I don’t think we’re rewarding her.”
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