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If you’ve been paying any attention to the MMA headlines lately, you’ve probably seen the name Khamzat Chimaev…
If you’ve been paying any attention to the MMA headlines lately, you’ve probably seen the name Khamzat Chimaev…
UFC Fight Night 43 will get underway on Saturday from Auckland, New Zealand, and it features one of the least talked-about must-watch fights of 2014.
Hatsu Hioki vs. Charles Oliveira.
The featherweight clash has flown under the radar since being booked…
UFC Fight Night 43 will get underway on Saturday from Auckland, New Zealand, and it features one of the least talked-about must-watch fights of 2014.
Hatsu Hioki vs. Charles Oliveira.
The featherweight clash has flown under the radar since being booked, but it is one that MMA fans should be clamoring to watch. It is worth the subscription price for UFC Fight Pass by itself. These are two high-level grapplers who also love to strike.
The featherweight clash will not have much significance for the rankings, as neither fighter is currently ranked in the top 15 of the division.
Hioki joined the UFC in 2011 with plenty of fanfare, but he was unable to put together a strong run. His UFC debut was a split-decision win over George Roop, and he followed that up with a victory over Bart Palaszewski. What happened next was three straight losses to Ricardo Lamas, Clay Guida and Darren Elkins. Hioki got back into the win column against Ivan Menjivar in March.
Hioki has fought a consistently high level of competition inside the Octagon, but he has not been rewarded. A win against Oliveira should put him back in the mix at 145 pounds.
Oliveira burst onto the scene as a lightweight but dropped to 145 in early 2012. His featherweight debut was stellar. A calf slicer to Eric Wisely moved him right into the meat of the division.
“Do Bronx” picked up his second straight against Jonathan Brookins before losing back-to-back fights to elite competition—Cub Swanson and Frankie Edgar. Oliveira would pick up a win in his latest bout against Andy Ogle.
These two fantastic fighters will try to put on a show on Saturday, and the winner should leap back into the rankings. It would be a travesty if they do not. There is little doubt that these are two of the most talented featherweights on the planet.
The matchup between Hioki and Oliveira could easily take Fight of the Night at UFC Fight Night 43, and it could top all of the bouts at UFC Fight Night 44 as well.
It could end up as a stand-up exchange, and stand-up battles can be fun. Oftentimes they are sloppy brawls. That is not likely to happen in this battle. If they exchange strikes, it will be a fun technical display, but not two guys winging haymakers.
The real fun with this fight is if the two grapplers hit the canvas. That is where the gold is. We could be in for a real treat come Saturday.
If you have UFC Fight Pass, you will not want to miss this fight. If you do not have UFC Fight Pass, I stress to you that you need to subscribe just for this bout. It will be well worth the price of admission. Hioki vs. Oliveira is the diamond in the rough—very rough—slate of fights on Saturday.
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(Photo via Getty)
The UFC’s first TUF season in China is over. Zhang Lipeng defeated Wang Sai to become the first-ever Chinese Ultimate Fighter winner.
But I’m sure most of you don’t really care too much about that. After all, TUF china was a show with a recruitment policy so lax that an 0-0 yoga instructor somehow made it into the cast.
Despite the questionable levels of talent present, there were a few important fights on the card—relevant matches and interesting clashes of styles. Which fights were those? We’re gonna recap them for you.
(Photo via Getty)
The UFC’s first TUF season in China is over. Zhang Lipeng defeated Wang Sai to become the first-ever Chinese Ultimate Fighter winner.
But I’m sure most of you don’t really care too much about that. After all, TUF china was a show with a recruitment policy so lax that an 0-0 yoga instructor somehow made it into the cast.
Despite the questionable levels of talent present, there were a few important fights on the card—relevant matches and interesting clashes of styles. Which fights were those? We’re gonna recap them for you.
Only three fighters on the prelims had a Wikipedia page (I mean even WE have one): Vaughan Lee, Nam Phan, and Kazuki Tokudome.
Vaughan Lee decisioned Nam Phan. It was a fight in which Lee never lost control. His striking was too accurate and too quick for Phan to counter. Lee was able to shrug off Phan’s takedown attempts as well.
Kazuki Tokudome was on the wrong side of a split decision against Yui Chul Nam in what was a barn-burner. Nam nearly finished Tokudome in the first round, but punched himself out. This enabled a stunning comeback from Tokudome in the second round, where he returned the favor and nearly finished Nam. The match was decided in the third round, where Nam wobbled Tokudome with a right hand and landed two takedowns.
Hatsu Hioki vs. Ivan Menjivar kicked off the four-fight main card. This fight was pretty straightforward. Hioki was the superior grappler, and he let Menjivar know it throughout the first two rounds, taking him down and working for a variety of submissions. Menjivar had a glimmer of hope in the third round when he landed a right hand that had Hioki hurt, but Menjivar couldn’t capitalize on it. Hioki took home a unanimous decision win for his efforts.
The heavyweights came in for the next fight. Matt Mitrione and Shawn Jordan met in the center of the cage and threw leather. Mitrione managed to throw a bit more, however, and ultimately knocked out Jordan at the 4:59 mark of the first round. Here’s the GIF (via @ZProphet_MMA).
The co-main event featured TUF: China welterweight finalists Zhang Lipeng and Wang Sai. In a closely contested fight, Lipeng managed to edge past Sai by less than a hair’s width.
The night’s main event (or morning’s main event since the card began at around 6:30 am EST) was worth the price of UFC Fight Pass admission. John Hathaway and Dong Hyun Kim put on a show. Kim decided to abandon his grappling in favor of brawling. Hathaway was happy to oblige, which for him was a poor decision—a gorgeous spinning back elbow from Kim left him staring at the ceiling. Kim won the fight via KO at 1:02 of round 3. Check out the GIF (again via @ZProphet_MMA).
Here are the complete results:
Main Card
Dong Hyun Kim def. John Hathaway via knockout (elbow) – Round 3, 1:02
Zhang Lipeng def. Wang Sai via split decision (29-28, 27-30, 29-28)
Matt Mitrione def. Shawn Jordan via knockout (punches) – Round 1, 4:59
Hatsu Hioki def. Ivan Menjivar via unanimous decision (29-28, 29-28, 29-28)
Preliminary Card
Yui Chul Nam def. Kazuki Tokudome via split decision (29-27, 27-28, 29-28)
Vaughan Lee def. Nam Phan via unanimous decision (30-27, 30-27, 30-26)
Anying Wang def. Albert Cheng via TKO (doctor’s stoppage) – Round 1, 5:00
Mark Eddiva def. Jumabieke Tuerxun via unanimous decision (30-27, 30-27, 30-27)
(Kim’s Knockout of the Night-winning comeback KO of Erick Silva at UFC Fight Night 29 in October. / Video via FoxSports)
Coming off three consecutive victories against Paulo Thiago, Siyar Bahadurzada, and Erick Silva, South Korean welterweight Dong Hyun Kim is one of the most successful Asian fighters currently competing in the UFC. Naturally, the UFC has booked him to headline the TUF China Finale, which goes down March 1st at the CotaiArena in Macau. Kim will face British vet John Hathaway, who is riding his own three-fight win streak, although against somewhat weaker competition. Plus, Hathaway was inactive for all of 2013 due to ulcerative colitis, so yeah, this kind of feels like a squash match. The fight will be scheduled for five rounds; neither Kim nor Hathaway has ever competed in a five-rounder before.
Meanwhile, on the other end of the contender spectrum, TopMMANews is reporting that Hatsu Hioki and Ivan Menjivar will face off in a featherweight bout at the TUF China Finale that could end with the loser getting the axe. Once considered to be one of the greatest featherweights in the world, Hioki has struggled to find his footing in the UFC, and has lost three consecutive decisions to Ricardo Lamas, Clay Guida, and Darren Elkins. As for Menjivar, the “Pride of El Salvador” went 0-2 in 2013, dropping fights against Urijah Faber and Wilson Reis.
The TUF China Finale will stream live on UFC Fight Pass, that online subscription thing that the promotion has been hawking lately, which means that most of you probably won’t see these fights anyway. Personally, we’re going to hold off on signing up until we’re sure that the shy yoga instructor has been added to the card, hopefully in a match against Bobby Ologun. Make it happen, Mark.
(Kim’s Knockout of the Night-winning comeback KO of Erick Silva at UFC Fight Night 29 in October. / Video via FoxSports)
Coming off three consecutive victories against Paulo Thiago, Siyar Bahadurzada, and Erick Silva, South Korean welterweight Dong Hyun Kim is one of the most successful Asian fighters currently competing in the UFC. Naturally, the UFC has booked him to headline the TUF China Finale, which goes down March 1st at the CotaiArena in Macau. Kim will face British vet John Hathaway, who is riding his own three-fight win streak, although against somewhat weaker competition. Plus, Hathaway was inactive for all of 2013 due to ulcerative colitis, so yeah, this kind of feels like a squash match. The fight will be scheduled for five rounds; neither Kim nor Hathaway has ever competed in a five-rounder before.
Meanwhile, on the other end of the contender spectrum, TopMMANews is reporting that Hatsu Hioki and Ivan Menjivar will face off in a featherweight bout at the TUF China Finale that could end with the loser getting the axe. Once considered to be one of the greatest featherweights in the world, Hioki has struggled to find his footing in the UFC, and has lost three consecutive decisions to Ricardo Lamas, Clay Guida, and Darren Elkins. As for Menjivar, the “Pride of El Salvador” went 0-2 in 2013, dropping fights against Urijah Faber and Wilson Reis.
The TUF China Finale will stream live on UFC Fight Pass, that online subscription thing that the promotion has been hawking lately, which means that most of you probably won’t see these fights anyway. Personally, we’re going to hold off on signing up until we’re sure that the shy yoga instructor has been added to the card, hopefully in a match against Bobby Ologun. Make it happen, Mark.
(Remember winning matches in Mortal Kombat when your guy has one sliver of health left? That’s what happened here. Photo via Getty Images.)
By Matt Saccaro
The Indiana Gaming Commission handed seven UFC Fight Night 27 fighters medical suspensions. Two of these fighters, Court McGee and Dylan Andrews, fared worse than the others. They both received indefinite medical suspensions, meaning they’ll need to be cleared by a physician before they can do anything meaningful.
Court McGee won a grueling split decision over TUF: Smashes winner Robert Whittaker. And Dylan Andrews, after getting thrown around for two rounds, knocked out Papy Abedi in the third round but claimed in the post-fight interview to have damaged his shoulder. Attentive viewers might have noticed that Andrews couldn’t put his arm through the sleeve of his shirt after the fight— never a good sign. But, officially, the Commission has yet to disclose any specific injuries he may have suffered.
There were other medical suspensions, though they were not as severe:
(Remember winning matches in Mortal Kombat when your guy has one sliver of health left? That’s what happened here. Photo via Getty Images.)
By Matt Saccaro
The Indiana Gaming Commission handed seven UFC Fight Night 27 fighters medical suspensions. Two of these fighters, Court McGee and Dylan Andrews, fared worse than the others. They both received indefinite medical suspensions, meaning they’ll need to be cleared by a physician before they can do anything meaningful.
Court McGee won a grueling split decision over TUF: Smashes winner Robert Whittaker. And Dylan Andrews, after getting thrown around for two rounds, knocked out Papy Abedi in the third round but claimed in the post-fight interview to have damaged his shoulder. Attentive viewers might have noticed that Andrews couldn’t put his arm through the sleeve of his shirt after the fight— never a good sign. But, officially, the Commission has yet to disclose any specific injuries he may have suffered.
There were other medical suspensions, though they were not as severe:
Getting his face run through the deli slicer that is Carlos Condit earned Martin Kampmann a 30-day suspension with no contact during training for 14 days.
Papy Abedi will have a 60-day suspension (with no contact during 30 of those days) to contemplate his knockout loss to Dylan Andrews. Ironically, Abedi lost the fight but received a shorter suspension than Andrews.
Justin Edwards got a 30-day suspension with no contact for the entire duration of the suspension, which is remarkably short for the ass-kicking Brandon Thatch inflicted on him.
Hatsu Hioki received a two week suspension with no contact for two weeks. Fortunately, the myth of Hioki ever being a top-echelon fighter has received an indefinite suspension with his loss to Darren Elkins.
Finishing out the medical suspensions, Roger Bowling was suspended for 60 days on account of those totally legal knees he ate. Something tells me that he won’t be receiving a win bonus like his opponent Abel Trujillo did.
It has been a drastic turn of fortune for UFC featherweight Hatsu Hioki.
In less than two years’ time, the Japanese veteran has gone from being considered one of the top 145-pound fighters in the world, to hanging on to the fringes of employment with t…
It has been a drastic turn of fortune for UFC featherweight Hatsu Hioki.
In less than two years’ time, the Japanese veteran has gone from being considered one of the top 145-pound fighters in the world, to hanging on to the fringes of employment with the UFC.
The former Shooto and Sengoku featherweight champion jumped off to a solid start under the UFC banner as he collected victories in his first two showings inside the Octagon. After defeating former WEC veteran Bart Palaszewski at UFC 144 in February of 2012, there was talk of the 30-year-old challenging featherweight king Jose Aldo for the 145-pound title.
While the opportunity was there for the taking, Hioki didn’t feel he was ready to face Aldo and decided to travel a different route. That decision has proved to be a costly one as Hioki has come out on the losing end of his past three outings.
His most recent defeat came against Darren Elkins at Fight Night 27, as the Indiana native bounced back from early adversity to dominate the final two frames. When the judge’s scorecards were read, Elkins earned the unanimous-decision victory, and Hioki was handed his third consecutive defeat.
In the competitive ranks of the UFC, three is typically the magic number where losses are concerned. That being said, with Hioki‘s losses coming in hard-fought affairs against top-level competition in Ricardo Lamas, Clay Guida and Elkins respectively, the UFC will face a difficult decision in what to do with the Tokyo-based fighter.
On Wednesday night at the post-fight press conference for Fight Night 27, UFC President Dana White addressed the matter regarding Hioki‘s future with the UFC.
“It’s never good when you lose three,” White said. “He’s a tough guy. Normally you’ll see it with a lot of guys who come to bring it and fight, you don’t fight a couple of fights and get cut. But I don’t know, we’ll see what happens.”
Whether Hioki will keep his job in the UFC remains to be seen, but the buzz surrounding his status as one of MMA‘s top 145-pound fighters has certainly taken severe damage. While he has proven to be a game competitor in his five showings inside the Octagon, three consecutive losses will bump him out of the heated race for position in the upper tier of the featherweight fold.
Duane Finley is a featured columnist for Bleacher Report. All quotes are obtained firsthand unless noted otherwise.
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