Tag: Breaking News

Rashad Evans vs. Daniel Cormier Officially Booked as Main Event for UFC 170

There have been rumblings for a week, but it is now official; Daniel Cormier will make his light heavyweight debut opposite former light heavyweight Rashad Evans. The announcement was made by Evans himself on the UFC Fight Night 33 Prefight Show on Fox…

There have been rumblings for a week, but it is now official; Daniel Cormier will make his light heavyweight debut opposite former light heavyweight Rashad Evans. The announcement was made by Evans himself on the UFC Fight Night 33 Prefight Show on Fox Sports 2.

The UFC also plugged it on its Twitter account:

Evans is a once-elite fighter who fell on hard times following a loss to current champion and at-the-time bitter rival Jon Jones. He followed that up with an ugly, painful decision loss to aged striker Antonio Rogerio Nogueira in what was supposed to be a squash match. He has rebounded since, however, taking a split-decision win over Dan Henderson and following that up with an impressive TKO over Chael Sonnen.

Cormier, meanwhile, is widely regarded as the third-best heavyweight in MMA, behind only champion, friend and teammate Cain Velasquez, and former champion Junior dos Santos. His Olympic-caliber wrestling has earned him victories over numerous top heavyweights including Josh Barnett, Roy Nelson and Antonio Silva. However, he refuses to face Velasquez in the cage and as such, is taking his talents to the light heavyweight division in hopes of a shot at gold.

UFC 170 will take place on February 22, 2014. The bout is expected to be a five-round main event. Thus far, no other fights have been announced for the card. 

The bout has profound title implications. Cormier was widely regarded as the next in line to face Jon Jones before fans began calling for a rematch with Alexander Gustafsson. Evans, meanwhile, has begun stringing together wins and, should he beat Cormier, would arguably be the next in line for a shot at the belt.

Stick with Bleacher Report for more UFC 170 details as they become available. 

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UFC Fight Night 33 Live Streaming Post-Fight Press Conference

At UFC Fight Night 33, top heavyweights Antonio Silva and Mark Hunt will both try to rebound and return to title contention.
Following knockouts of Alistair Overeem and Travis Browne in back-to-back fights, Silva was beaten by heavyweight champion Cain…

At UFC Fight Night 33, top heavyweights Antonio Silva and Mark Hunt will both try to rebound and return to title contention.

Following knockouts of Alistair Overeem and Travis Browne in back-to-back fights, Silva was beaten by heavyweight champion Cain Velasquez in his most recent outing. Hunt also saw a winning streak come to an end in his latest bout against Junior dos Santos.

In addition to the heavyweight headliner, UFC Fight Night 33 will feature two highly ranked light heavyweights also trying to right their ships.

Former light heavyweight champion Mauricio Rua will try to pick up his first win since August 2012 when he meets James Te Huna in the co-main event. Also, Ryan Bader will look to bounce back from a loss to Glover Teixeira by beating Anthony Perosh. 

At the conclusion of UFC Fight Night 33, several fighters will join UFC president Dana White or another UFC official for a post-fight press conference that can be viewed live on the above video player.

Below is the entire UFC Fight Night 33 fight card.

 

UFC Fight Night 33 Main Card (10 p.m. EST on Fox Sports 1)

  • Antonio Silva vs. Mark Hunt
  • Mauricio Rua vs. James Te Huna
  • Ryan Bader vs. Anthony Perosh
  • Pat Barry vs. Soa Palelei
  • Dylan Andrews vs. Clint Hester
  • Julie Kedzie vs. Bethe Correia

 

UFC Fight Night 33 Fox Sports 2 Prelims (7 p.m EST on Fox Sports 2)

  • Takeya Mizugaki vs. Nam Phan
  • Nick Ring vs. Caio Magalhaes
  • Richie Vaculik vs. Justin Scoggins
  • Bruno Santos vs. Krzysztof Jotko

 

UFC Fight Night 33 Online Prelims (6:30 p.m EST on UFC.com)

  • Ben Wall vs. Alex Garcia

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Nate Diaz Continues Twitter Feud with ‘One Fight a Year’ Anthony Pettis

Former UFC lightweight title challenger Nate Diaz is back in the title picture after a convincing TKO victory over Gray Maynard at The Ultimate Fighter Season 18 Finale last week. 
Despite a 1-2 record in his past three bouts, the Stockton ba…

Former UFC lightweight title challenger Nate Diaz is back in the title picture after a convincing TKO victory over Gray Maynard at The Ultimate Fighter Season 18 Finale last week. 

Despite a 1-2 record in his past three bouts, the Stockton bad boy already has his eyes set on a title tilt with current champ Anthony Pettis.

On the week’s edition of UFC Tonight, “Showtime” indicated he wouldn’t mind a fight with Diaz if he is able to string together a couple of more wins, per Fighters Only. 

“Nate Diaz has been talking so much. He looked pretty decent in his last fight. I hope he works his way up and we get to fight,” Pettis said. 

Diaz was less than thrilled with the statement and fired back on Twitter on Wednesday night. 

For the record, Pettis fought twice in 2011, once in 2012 and twice in 2013. Meanwhile, Diaz fought eight times during that two-year span. 

Pettis compiled a 4-1 record with three finishes, while Diaz put together a 4-4 mark and also had three wins via stoppages. 

Diaz has been calling out Pettis since September, and it doesn’t look like that’s going to change anytime soon. 

With his win over Maynard, Diaz is currently ranked the No. 5 lightweight, according to the UFC’s official rankings. 

Whom should the UFC match up against Diaz and Pettis respectively in order to make this 155-pound showdown happen in 2014?

 

John Heinis is a Featured Columnist for Bleacher Report. He is also the MMA Editor for eDraft.com.

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Michael McDonald: I’ve Been Abstinent for 3-and-a-Half Years

UFC bantamweight contender Michael McDonald is one of the best young prospects on the UFC roster, boasting a 16-2 professional record inside the cage at just 22 years old. 
What’s the Oakdale MMA fighter’s key to success? Sexual intercourse is a t…

UFC bantamweight contender Michael McDonald is one of the best young prospects on the UFC roster, boasting a 16-2 professional record inside the cage at just 22 years old. 

What’s the Oakdale MMA fighter’s key to success? Sexual intercourse is a thing of the past for him.

Check out how “Mayday” responded after being asked, “Do you cut sex out before a fight?” during an interview on KMRQ Rock 96.7 radio’s Bueller and Brent show this week, per Fighters Only.

“I’ve actually been abstinent from sex for about 3 and a half years now,” McDonald replied. Momentary silence then Bueller cried, “So he’s gonna kick some ass! This is why you’ve been on such a tear!”

“It’s very arguable,” McDonald responded.

Whatever is on the agenda to help him prepare for his fights appears to be working, as the California native has won nine of his past 10 bouts. 

His sole blemish during that roughly four-year span was a submission loss to interim bantamweight champ Renan Barao, who is undefeated in his past 32 bouts. 

McDonald rebounded with his most recent victory at UFC Fight Night 26 in August, submitting fellow Top 10 bantamweight Brad Pickett with a triangle choke in the second round. 

The win earned him both “Submission of the Night” and “Fight of the Night” honors for the event. 

Currently ranked the No. 3 bantamweight in the UFC’s official rankings, McDonald could catapult himself into another title fight with a win over perennial contender Urijah Faber at UFC on Fox 9 on Saturday. 

Will McDonald’s strict training ritual lead him toward another shot at UFC gold in 2014?

 

John Heinis is a Featured Columnist for Bleacher Report. He is also the MMA Editor for eDraft.com.

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UFC Fight Night 33: Antonio Silva vs. Mark Hunt Live Streaming Weigh-in Video

At UFC Fight Night 33, top heavyweights Antonio Silva and Mark Hunt will both try to rebound and return to title contention.
Following knockouts of Alistair Overeem and Travis Browne in back-to-back fights, Silva was beaten by heavyweight champion Cain…

At UFC Fight Night 33, top heavyweights Antonio Silva and Mark Hunt will both try to rebound and return to title contention.

Following knockouts of Alistair Overeem and Travis Browne in back-to-back fights, Silva was beaten by heavyweight champion Cain Velasquez in his most recent outing. Hunt also saw a winning streak come to an end in his latest bout against Junior dos Santos.

In addition to the heavyweight headliner, UFC Fight Night 33 will feature two highly ranked light heavyweights also trying to right their ships.

Former light heavyweight champion Mauricio Rua will try to pick up his first win since August 2012 when he meets James Te Huna in the co-main event. Also, Ryan Bader will look to bounce back from a loss to Glover Teixeira by beating Anthony Perosh. 

The UFC Fight Night 33 weigh-ins will be held on Thursday at 10 p.m. EST. At that time, live streaming video will be available on the above video player.

Below is the entire fight card for UFC Fight Night 33, which will be hosted in Brisbane, Australia.

 

UFC Fight Night 33 Main Card (10 p.m. EST on Fox Sports 1)

  • Antonio Silva vs. Mark Hunt
  • Mauricio Rua vs. James Te Huna
  • Ryan Bader vs. Anthony Perosh
  • Pat Barry vs. Soa Palelei
  • Dylan Andrews vs. Clint Hester
  • Julie Kedzie vs. Bethe Correia

 

UFC Fight Night 33 Fox Sports 2 Prelims (7 p.m EST on Fox Sports 2)

  • Takeya Mizugaki vs. Nam Phan
  • Nick Ring vs. Caio Magalhaes
  • Richie Vaculik vs. Justin Scoggins
  • Bruno Santos vs. Krzysztof Jotko

 

UFC Fight Night 33 Online Prelims (6:30 p.m EST on UFC.com)

  • Ben Wall vs. Alex Garcia

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Anthony Pettis Expected to Be Sidelined 6 to 8 Months, Hopes for Nate Diaz

On the heels of an impressive victory to capture the UFC lightweight throne, current champion Anthony Pettis has come down with the injury bug, again.
As good as Pettis is and as good as he was opposite Benson Henderson back in August, “Showtime” has o…

On the heels of an impressive victory to capture the UFC lightweight throne, current champion Anthony Pettis has come down with the injury bug, again.

As good as Pettis is and as good as he was opposite Benson Henderson back in August, “Showtime” has only fought three times since 2011.

Remember, he was scheduled to take on pound-for-pound phenom and featherweight king Jose Aldo back at UFC 163 but ultimately had to pull out because of a knee injury.

Now, after securing a first-round submission to win the belt and with worthy contenders waiting in limbo, Pettis has once again hit the sidelines.

“The doctor said six to eight months, so I’m hoping six months,” Pettis told UFC Tonight about his impending Dec. 12 surgery to repair a torn posterior cruciate ligament, originally reported by Jeff Cain of MMA Weekly.  “I want to be back by summertime.  Hope to get a July fight.”

The unfortunate news regarding surgery around the holidays wasn’t the only bomb the 26-year-old dropped.  As a matter of fact, the Duke Roufus product can’t wait to get back to defend his belt against none other than Nate Diaz.

“Nate Diaz has been talking so much,” added Pettis.  “And his last fight, he actually looked pretty decent, but it’s hard to judge against Gray Maynard.  I hope Nate works his way up, and we get to fight.”

Now it’s difficult to imagine that Diaz would leapfrog prominent contenders like TJ Grant, Gilbert Melendez and Josh Thomson, especially since Thomson knocked him out back in April, but it’s good to see the lightweight division creating buzz in the absence of its champ.

As for Pettis’ health moving forward, we can only hope that his perennial knee problems cease to exist.  He’s too young and too entertaining to fight only once a year.

Not to mention, the 155-pound crop heap has recreated itself since the departure of Frankie Edgar and Clay Guida.  This just isn’t a good time to sit out.

 

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