Tag: Gregor Gillespie

Arman Tsarukyan Reveals He’s Accepted A Fight Against “Fisher” Gillespie

UFC lightweight Arman Tsarukyan has revealed that he’s been offered a fight against wrestling ace Gregor Gillespie for early 2022. Tsarukyan took to Instagram to announce the potential matchup. After stating he’s accepted the bout, the Armenian-Russian called upon his fans to help convince Gillespie to follow suit. “UFC has offered me a fight with […]

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UFC lightweight Arman Tsarukyan has revealed that he’s been offered a fight against wrestling ace Gregor Gillespie for early 2022.

Tsarukyan took to Instagram to announce the potential matchup. After stating he’s accepted the bout, the Armenian-Russian called upon his fans to help convince Gillespie to follow suit.

“UFC has offered me a fight with Gillespie early next year. I said yes But Fisher hasn’t answered yet ! Guys help him make up his mind faster.”

Tsarukyan [17-2] was last in action at UFC Vegas 37 in September. Against the unranked Christos Giagos, the 25-year-old secured his first finish in the promotion, something matchmaker Sean Shelby had suggested he needed to do in order to progress to the next level. With a first-round TKO victory over “The Spartan,” Tsarukyan extended his win streak, which features unanimous decision wins over Matt Frevola, Davi Ramos, and Olivier Aubin-Mercier, to four.

The Georgian-born lightweight’s only defeat in the UFC, and sole loss in his last 17 MMA fights, came against top-five contender Islam Makhachev in his 2019 debut. The Dagestani is set to face Tsarukyan’s recent foe Dan Hooker at UFC 267 this month. Given their back-and-forths on social media and in interviews, many had expected Hooker and Tsarukyan to meet next following their respective successes last month.

With the New Zealander’s willingness to fight Makhachev on short notice, Tsarukyan has had to look elsewhere for his next opponent. After showing his improved striking game last time out, the surging contender may need to rely on his grappling if his current targeted clash comes to fruition.

As well as Hooker, Tsarukyan also suggested he was happy to face former interim champ Tony Ferguson in December. Nevertheless, he appears to have jumped at the chance to fight #10-ranked Gillespie [14-1] in 2022 instead. “The Gift” returned to action after nearly two years away from the cage at UFC Vegas 26 in May. Against top-15 Brazilian Carlos Diego Ferreira in what was awarded the Fight of the Night honors, the 34-year-old found his way back to the win column with a second-round TKO.

In his prior bout, Gillespie fell to the first loss of his career in brutal fashion. Against Kevin Lee at UFC 244, the elite wrestler was knocked out by a vicious head kick. Before that, the New York-born lightweight had racked up an unblemished 13-0 record that included six UFC wins over Yancy Medeiros, Vinc Pichel, Jordan Rinaldi, Jason Gonzalez, Andrew Holbrook, and Glaico França.

Given that Gillespie sits three spots above Tsarukyan, and is currently occupying the final spot in the 155-pound top 10, it’s no surprise that the 25-year-old is keen to see the matchup finalized. A victory for either man would likely secure them a top name next time out.

Who do you think will have their hand raised if this fight comes to fruition, Arman Tsarukyan or Gregor Gillespie?

Continue Reading Arman Tsarukyan Reveals He’s Accepted A Fight Against “Fisher” Gillespie at MMA News.

Renato Moicano Wants Top-15 Opponent next, Earmarks Islam Makhachev, Gregor Gillespie

MoicanoRenato Moicano is targeting a ranked opponent next. Moicano returned to the win column with an impressive and dominant victory over Jai Herbert at UFC Vegas 30 last night. Dominating the Briton on the ground, Moicano eventually sunk in the rear naked choke in the second round to get the tap and he was pleased […]

Moicano

Renato Moicano is targeting a ranked opponent next.

Moicano returned to the win column with an impressive and dominant victory over Jai Herbert at UFC Vegas 30 last night. Dominating the Briton on the ground, Moicano eventually sunk in the rear naked choke in the second round to get the tap and he was pleased to say the least.

“I felt like I had to go out strong and get a submission or a finish,” he said afterward (via MMA Junkie). “That was what I trained to do and that’s what I did, fortunately. … I was just so happy he tapped.

“I don’t even know how to explain it, what it’s like to win a fight. To me, it’s the best feeling in the world and I’m going to be feeling like this one week from now. I’m really happy.”

Now 2-1 at lightweight, the former featherweight contender wants to break into the top 15 at 155 pounds. He has two specific names in mind as well.

“My next fight will be against a top 15 (opponent), for sure,” Moicano added. “I keep asking the UFC for the best. I want the best names they can give me, and that’s what I’m looking for – guys like Islam Makhachev, (Gregor) Gillespie, all those guys.

“The best wrestler, the best striker – it’s even better for me. I want to fight the best.”

Whether he gets those names remains to be seen, but Moicano is definitely a fighter to be reckoned with at lightweight.

Who should Moicano fight next?

Gregor Gillespie Explains Emotions Following TKO Win Over Carlos Diego Ferreira

GillespieGregor Gillespie experienced many emotions following his win at UFC Vegas 26 last night. Gillespie returned to the win column with a come-from-behind second-round TKO victory over Carlos Diego Ferreira in their lightweight bout. It was all the more impressive given that Gillespie appeared to be gassed in the first round only to catch a […]

Gillespie

Gregor Gillespie experienced many emotions following his win at UFC Vegas 26 last night.

Gillespie returned to the win column with a come-from-behind second-round TKO victory over Carlos Diego Ferreira in their lightweight bout.

It was all the more impressive given that Gillespie appeared to be gassed in the first round only to catch a second win and dominate the Brazilian on his way to victory.

However, Gillespie claims he was only tired because of the pace they were both setting. The difference was he can operate even while tired.

“I was exhausted,” Gillespie said at the post-fight press conference (via MMA Junkie). “People are going to watch that and say, ‘Gillespie is out of shape.’ There is a huge difference between being tired and being out of shape. I was tired, not out of shape.

“That guy stuck with that pace and added to that pace in the first round. I don’t know if you want to call it – I baited him into that, or I forced him into that pace, but that’s how I do it. I go that hard. Sometimes I don’t have to keep going that hard. Sometimes the guy is not as good on the bottom. He can’t escape, he can’t force me off of him or reverse me, so that’s less tiring.

“Diego was able to do that a few times and he put me in danger at the end of the first round. It was exhausting and I was tired. But the difference is, I will still operate when I’m that tired and I’m OK being that tired. It was really unconformable, and I said to my coaches, but I had conceded to the fact that if it was going to have to be three rounds of that, then that’s cool. I accepted that going into the second round. If that’s what we’re going to do, that’s what we’re going to do. But he quit before we got there.”

In the process, Gillespie earned his first win since his devastating knockout loss to Kevin Lee back in November 2019. “The Gift” was emotional after the win and there were many reasons for that other than his inactivity since his setback against Lee.

“For lack of a better term, it is self doubt. And it’s not that I don’t believe in myself – those are two separate entities,” Gillespie said. “I always believe in myself. I wouldn’t do this if I didn’t think I could be the best, if I couldn’t win that fight with Diego. Why would I have taken it if I didn’t believe that I could? I took it because I think I could win it.

“But until you beat someone like that, or you beat a guy like that – I had that six-fight win streak, and then I lost to Kevin Lee and it’s been a year and a half. Until you beat another guy, the only thing that you really remember is that last fight. I got knocked out and I haven’t fought since, and you’re like, ‘Where am I now? Where do I stand? Can I beat the top 15?’ You think you can, but you have doubt. That’s not the only reason why I got emotional.

“It’s been a long road since that Kevin Lee fight. I broke my jaw, COVID happened, I’ve been tortured by trolls online telling me I’m retired. I’ve got thick skin, but I’m just so sick of hearing it. Then the whole thing with the (Brad) Riddell fight getting canceled because of COVID, that was totally out of my control. Then add another six weeks onto a fight camp that was already 10-12 weeks.”

Hopefully, Gillespie embarks on another winning run now.

Gregor Gillespie Rallies To Stop Diego Ferreira With Second Round Ground Strikes – UFC Vegas 26 Highlights

GillespieTalk about an emphatic return to the Octagon for Gregor Gillespie. Matching with Brazilian Jiu-Jitsu ace, Diego Ferreira on the main card fo UFC Vegas 26 in a catchweight contest, the wrestling maestro stopped the Brazilian with a rallying second round ground strikes effort. Making his first Octagon walk since a stunning high-kick knockout loss […]

Gillespie

Talk about an emphatic return to the Octagon for Gregor Gillespie. Matching with Brazilian Jiu-Jitsu ace, Diego Ferreira on the main card fo UFC Vegas 26 in a catchweight contest, the wrestling maestro stopped the Brazilian with a rallying second round ground strikes effort.

Making his first Octagon walk since a stunning high-kick knockout loss to former interim lightweight title challenger, Kevin Lee back in December of 2019 at UFC 245 — Gillespie survived some early opening round adversity.

Struggling to get Fortis MMA trainee, Ferreira down on cue with his takedowns, Gillespie was swept on occasion when he eventually ended up on the mat, but most notably, staggered back to his corner between rounds after eating some heavy counter strikes.

With Ferreira severely fatigued within the opening couple of minutes of the second round, Gillespie started to find his own second wind, before forcing Ferreira to his stomach, eventually forcing referee, Chris Tognoni to stop the bout amid a slew of ground strikes.

Below, catch the highlights from Gillespie’s Fight of the Night display against Ferreira.

UFC Vegas 26: Rodriguez vs. Waterson Weigh-In Results & Preview

The UFC Vegas 26 weigh-ins are complete. While the main card remains untouched, there were two fights pulled from the lineup. Although every fight on the main card remains intact, there was still a miss from Diego Ferreira, who will be competing agains…

The UFC Vegas 26 weigh-ins are complete. While the main card remains untouched, there were two fights pulled from the lineup. Although every fight on the main card remains intact, there was still a miss from Diego Ferreira, who will be competing against Gregor Gillespie. Ferreira will be fined 30% of his purse, but the […]

Gregor Gillespie vs. Diego Ferreira Booked For May 8 Fight Night

A bout between two ranked lightweights has been slated for the May 8 Fight Night lineup when Carlos Diego Ferreira locks horns with Gregor Gillespie. Gregor Gillespie was originally scheduled to fight Brad Riddell on March 20, but that bout was cancell…

A bout between two ranked lightweights has been slated for the May 8 Fight Night lineup when Carlos Diego Ferreira locks horns with Gregor Gillespie. Gregor Gillespie was originally scheduled to fight Brad Riddell on March 20, but that bout was cancelled after a team member of Riddell contracted the coronavirus. Instead the fight being […]