Tag: Breaking News

Demian Maia’s Wants Rory MacDonald or Ben Askren Next If He Signs with UFC

Demian Maia is coming off the first loss of his welterweight run in the UFC, and he’s already on the road back to competing.
The one-time middleweight title challenger saw his three-fight winning streak come to an end when former Strikeforce middleweig…

Demian Maia is coming off the first loss of his welterweight run in the UFC, and he’s already on the road back to competing.

The one-time middleweight title challenger saw his three-fight winning streak come to an end when former Strikeforce middleweight champion Jake Shields edged him out via split decision at UFC Fight Night 29 in October.

While the loss knocked the Brazilian submission ace out of the immediate title picture, he’s hungry to get back into the mix and wants to face another fighter in the divisional upper tier in his next outing.

During Wednesday’s UFC Tonight, Ariel Helwani reported Maia’s manager would like to get either Rory MacDonald or Bellator welterweight champion Ben Askren, who is currently a free agent.

If “Funky” signs with the UFC, Maia would love to welcome him to the Octagon. Yet if the Askren signing doesn’t materialize, the 36-year-old grappling guru would like to face the talented young Canadian in MacDonald.

“Ares” is coming off a recent setback against Robbie Lawler this past weekend at UFC 167. The Tristar product came out on the losing end of a split decision, which was his first loss in the last six outings. Before running into the resurgent Lawler, the 24-year-old had collected five consecutive victories inside the Octagon and was building a solid case for a title shot.

With UFC president Dana White recently stating he has no interest in signing Askren, a potential matchup between Maia and MacDonald would seem the likelier of the two. Despite both Maia and MacDonald coming off recent losses, both fighters are still very much in the title hunt.

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Rashad Evans Believes His Next Fight Will Come Against Daniel Cormier

Rashad Evans is back on track and hunting down a shot at the light heavyweight title.
He erased any doubt that lingered about his heart being in the game when he steamrolled former two-divisional title challenger Chael Sonnen at UFC 167 on Saturday. It…

Rashad Evans is back on track and hunting down a shot at the light heavyweight title.

He erased any doubt that lingered about his heart being in the game when he steamrolled former two-divisional title challenger Chael Sonnen at UFC 167 on Saturday. It took the former light heavyweight champion less than a full round to pound out the “Gangster from West Linn,” as Evans picked up the TKO victory to give him back-to-back wins.

By defeating Sonnen, the former Michigan State University wrestling standout joins a crowded title picture in the 205-pound division that includes Alexander Gustafsson, Phil Davis and former heavyweight contender-turned-light-heavyweight-title-hopeful Daniel Cormier.

With “The Mauler” slated to face Jimi Manuwa at UFC Fight Night: London in March, the remaining three fighters are in a unique position. While rumors swirled of a Davis vs. Cormier bout for early 2014, those plans seem to be going in a different direction, according to Evans.

During an interview on UFC Tonight on Wednesday, Evans said he believes his next fight will come against Cormier. The former The Ultimate Fighter winner reiterated nothing is remotely official, but he’s been hearing talk that his next outing will come against the former Olympian.

While the matchup makes sense in the big picture, it seems to be the most unlikely pairing of the bunch. Evans and Cormier are friends outside of the cage and trained together in the early stages of “D.C.’s” career. Evans was once sidetracked by putting his personal relationships before fighting, but it appears those days are behind him.

There is still no official announcement on Evans vs. Cormier, but it seems to be the avenue the UFC is looking to travel, according to Evans anyway.

 

Duane Finley is a featured columnist for Bleacher Report.

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GSP: Forget All Rumors, I’m Happy and Well

The Georges St-Pierre news feed has been a heightened Watergate of epic mixed martial arts proportion.
It’s been a he-said, she-said saga of bombastic rumors surrounding GSP’s personal life and professional prognosis heading into the future.
Now while …

The Georges St-Pierre news feed has been a heightened Watergate of epic mixed martial arts proportion.

It’s been a he-said, she-said saga of bombastic rumors surrounding GSP’s personal life and professional prognosis heading into the future.

Now while Dana White put many of the rumors to rest in a recent telephone interview with Los Angeles Times reporter Lance Pugmire, the overall sense of wonder remains exponentially greater than usual due to St-Pierre’s legendary status and role as “UFC Golden Child.”

But if there’s anything we, as journalists and ill-informed fans, can do about the news that has piled upon itself like an uncontrollable weed, it’s to take each and every rumor with a grain of salt.

Obviously this is a situation that needs to be covered and revealed through respectable media outlets, but there’s never a good time to take a personal stance on something until the person involved actually speaks on his or her behalf.

St-Pierre did just on Wednesday on Twitter as he put to rest any questions we had about his personal progression.

Whether the champ’s tweet suggests a somewhat immediate return to the Octagon or not, it’s good to see he’s looking better and remains in good spirits.

Now as far as that immediate return to the cage is concerned, White seemed to think the promotion’s biggest pay-per-view draw would be back sooner than expected. He told Pugmire, “As far as a rematch, we’re on schedule and I’ll have a date within a couple weeks.”

White also added that a rematch at the UFC’s annual Memorial Day card in Las Vegas next year is a potential target date, but nothing is set in stone.

In any case, despite the unwarranted spiral of St-Pierre’s career in the public spotlight over the past few days, it’s reassuring to know he’s much better than expected.

Not only for UFC fans and media hounds alike, but obviously Johny Hendricks.

 

For more UFC news and coverage,

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Top Flyweights Josh Sampo, Ryan Benoit Meet at TUF 18 Finale

The UFC continues to bolster its flyweight division with top-level talent, as The Ultimate Fighter 18 Finale plays host to two newcomers at 125.
It was announced that Josh Sampo (10-2) and Ryan Benoit (7-2) have signed with the company and wi…

The UFC continues to bolster its flyweight division with top-level talent, as The Ultimate Fighter 18 Finale plays host to two newcomers at 125.

It was announced that Josh Sampo (10-2) and Ryan Benoit (7-2) have signed with the company and will be fighting on the undercard of the upcoming TUF Finale. That card, of course, takes place on November 30 from Las Vegas and will be headlined by a rubber match between Gray Maynard and Nate Diaz.

Both Benoit and Sampo are top-level fighters who will greatly bolster the 125-pound division. Sampo has spent his recent time as champion in the CFA organization in Florida, while Benoit has been a veteran of the Legacy FC promotion in Texas.

Sampo is a collegiate wrestler training out of St. Charles MMA in Missouri with fellow flyweight and prospective UFC fighter Alp Ozkilic. He has burst on the scene as of late, winning the CFA Flyweight Championship in the process.

The ground fighters resume includes wins over Olympic medalist and Bellator vet Alexis Vila, UFC and WEC vet Antonio Banuelos and respected striker Sam Thao. Five of his 10 career wins come by way of tapout.

Benoit is a striker who has added a nice ground game to his arsenal. He has a wrestling background, but as of late has shown off fast, powerful hands that have put down several opponents.

He is a finisher himself, as “Baby Face” has put down all of his opponents. Six of those seven finishes come by way of stoppage due to strikes.

This will be a very interesting fight, as Sampo is a grappler and Benoit is more of a striker. This will be just Benoit’s second outing at 125, as he resided in the bantamweight division previously.

If Sampo gets a takedown, which he will look for early and often, Benoit could be in a world of trouble. Sampo‘s top game is suffocating and his submission game is fierce.

However, Benoit does have solid takedown defense and dangerous hands. He has the ability to put anybody out if he connects, so obviously he wants to keep this bout vertical. 

For more updates and news, stick with Bleacher Report.

 

Follow me on Twitter for MMA news and other random thoughts (@RileyKontekMMA). Or don’t that’s cool too.

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Vitor Belfort Says His Testosterone Levels Were Low for Fight Against Henderson

Heading into his UFC Fight Night 32 bout with Dan Henderson, much was made of Vitor Belfort’s usage of testosterone replacement therapy.
Many attributed Belfort’s string of first-round knockout wins—over Michael Bisping, Luke Rockholt and then He…

Heading into his UFC Fight Night 32 bout with Dan Henderson, much was made of Vitor Belfort‘s usage of testosterone replacement therapy.

Many attributed Belfort‘s string of first-round knockout wins—over Michael Bisping, Luke Rockholt and then Henderson—to his testosterone regime. And perhaps Belfort‘s late-career resurgence is due, at least in part, to his legal usage of testosterone.

But Belfort didn’t step in the cage with Henderson juiced out of his mind. In fact, Belfort told MMAFighting.com that his T-levels were actually low for the fight:

“My (testosterone) levels were low in my last fight”, Belfort told MMAFighting.com during a media scrum in his gym in Rio de Janeiro, Brazil. “I have all the exams to prove that I have a disease. It’s simple.”

The medical director for Brazil’s MMA Athletic Commission said that pre-fight medical exams indeed showed that Belfort‘s testosterone levels were low.

Brazilian MMA Athletic Commission’s medical director Dr. Marcio Tannure explained to MMAFighting.com that one of Belfort‘s pre-fight tests were below the normal limits, but that’s “legal.”

Unless something major happens, Belfort‘s next fight will come against the winner of the UFC 168 bout between Chris Weidman and Anderson Silva, scheduled for next month in Las Vegas.

Many believe that it will be difficult for Belfort to obtain a therapeutic use exemption for testosterone in Nevada after he failed a 2006 post-fight drug test in the state, but Belfort said he’s confident he’ll be able to secure the exemption:

“Chael Sonnen has a license to fight in Vegas, and I’m doing everything by the book,” Belfort told MMAFighting.com. “I have all the exams to prove it.”

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UFC’s Brian Melancon Forced to Retire After Discovering Kidney Issue

UFC welterweight Brian Melancon announced on Wednesday that he’s retiring from mixed martial arts after doctors discovered an issue with his kidneys.
Melancon announced the news via a Facebook post:

It has been announced, I am sad to say that my fight…

UFC welterweight Brian Melancon announced on Wednesday that he’s retiring from mixed martial arts after doctors discovered an issue with his kidneys.

Melancon announced the news via a Facebook post:

It has been announced, I am sad to say that my fight career is over. I have been having kidney problems that have gotten much worse recently and just found out that my kidney function has dropped to 47%. If I continue to train, fight, and cut weight then I run the risk of permanent damage. I have been advised by my Specialist to retire and move on and that is what I will be doing. This is not how I wanted to go out, but I have to believe that God has another path for me. Thanks to all of you who supported me throughout my career.

Melancon (7-3, 1-1 UFC) competed for Legacy Fighting Championships, Bellator and Strikeforce before signing with the Ultimate Fighting Championship earlier this year. He made his debut with the promotion at UFC 162, where he earned an emphatic knockout win over Seth Baczynski with just one second left in the first round. It was the biggest and most important win of his career.

Melancon returned a little more than a month later, losing to TUF 17 winner Kelvin Gastelum.

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