Tag: jiu-jitsu

Gegard Mousasi Fighting For Money, Not Love Of The Sport

Gegard Mousasi still has some lofty goals for his Bellator run, but they’re more financially driven than anything else. Speaking to MMA Fighting ahead of his return at Bellator 223 tomorrow (Sat. June 21, 2019), Mousasi explained that he’s fighting for money at this point in his career, not the love of the sport: “I’m […]

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Gegard Mousasi still has some lofty goals for his Bellator run, but they’re more financially driven than anything else.

Speaking to MMA Fighting ahead of his return at Bellator 223 tomorrow (Sat. June 21, 2019), Mousasi explained that he’s fighting for money at this point in his career, not the love of the sport:

“I’m fighting to get paid,” Mousasi said. “I’m not doing this because I love the sport so much. I’m not a crazy person. The motivation if I beat these guys, if I keep winning, my paycheck will go up eventually after my contract is done. That’s the motivation for me. It’s my job.

“The better you do, the more you make. It’s the same for a doctor or lawyer. If you’re a better lawyer, you’re going to make more money. That’s what I’m trying to do. I want to be the best fighter that I can be to beat these guys and then I get a better contract. That’s the whole thing that keeps me going. Fighting is not my life.”

Mousasi will be defending his Bellator middleweight championship against Rafael Lovato Jr. in tomorrow night’s main event. The show goes down from the SSE Arena in London, England.

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UFC Set For Newark Return In August

The UFC has officially announced they’ll be making their return to Newark, New Jersey: The Las Vegas-based fight promotion takes place from the Prudential Center on August 3. It will be the promotion’s eight-ever stop in Newark. No bouts have been announced for the card as of this writing. The last time the UFC has […]

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The UFC has officially announced they’ll be making their return to Newark, New Jersey:

The Las Vegas-based fight promotion takes place from the Prudential Center on August 3. It will be the promotion’s eight-ever stop in Newark. No bouts have been announced for the card as of this writing. The last time the UFC has been in Newark took place in January of 2016. The UFC on FOX event saw Anthony “Rumble” Johnson knockout Ryan Bader in the main event.

Plenty of high-profile main events have taken place from the Prudential Center; including Jon Jones vs. Chael Sonnen at UFC 159, Jon Jones vs. Mauricio “Shogun” Rua at UFC 128, and Georges St-Pierre vs. Dan Hardy at UFC 111.

Tickets go on sale for UFC Newark on June 28, and the main card is expected to broadcast on ESPN. We’ll keep you updated as bouts for the card begin to be announced.

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Quote: Sage Northcutt Has Potential To Be Three-Sport World Champion

Sage Northcutt’s debut in ONE Championship did not go according to plan. Northcutt was destroyed by Cosmo Alexandre in the first round of their welterweight meeting. As a result, Northcutt suffered eight fractures from the knockout. Northcutt has received a lot of criticism for his mixed martial arts (MMA) ability since the loss. However, one […]

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Sage Northcutt’s debut in ONE Championship did not go according to plan.

Northcutt was destroyed by Cosmo Alexandre in the first round of their welterweight meeting. As a result, Northcutt suffered eight fractures from the knockout. Northcutt has received a lot of criticism for his mixed martial arts (MMA) ability since the loss. However, one man who hasn’t lost faith in the former UFC star is ONE Championship CEO Chatri Sityodtong.

Speaking to MMA Junkie recently, Sityodtong maintained that he still believes Northcutt has the potential to be a three-sport World Champion:

“My plan is the same,” Sityodtong said. “I really believe that Sage has the talent, has the potential, to be a three-sport world champion.

“Sage’s dream is to be an MMA, kickboxing and a Muay Thai world champion, all within ONE Championship, and because we showcase all the martial arts, not just MMA, I still believe he can do it.”

Despite the rough start in the Singapore-based promotion, Sityodtong claims the 23-year-old still has all the tools to be extremely successful in ONE:

“He might have had a rough start, but anybody on any given day can lose, because there’s no margin for error at the highest levels of martial arts,” Sityodtong said. “I still believe Sage can pull it off. He’s so young and he’s so talented.

“He’s been doing martial arts his whole life. His cardio is insane, his strength is insane, his technique is unbelievable. I think people are going to be surprised three years from now when they see all that Sage has accomplished.”

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Francis Ngannou Thinks Junior dos Santos’ Jiu-Jitsu Black Belt Is Bogus

When Francis Ngannou meets Junior dos Santos inside the Octagon, he’ll have no problem going to the ground with the Brazilian. Ngannou spoke to MMA Junkie recently ahead of his UFC on ESPN 3 main event matchup with “JDS.” The Frenchman revealed that he isn’t buying that “JDS” is a black belt in Brazilian jiu-jitsu: […]

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When Francis Ngannou meets Junior dos Santos inside the Octagon, he’ll have no problem going to the ground with the Brazilian.

Ngannou spoke to MMA Junkie recently ahead of his UFC on ESPN 3 main event matchup with “JDS.” The Frenchman revealed that he isn’t buying that “JDS” is a black belt in Brazilian jiu-jitsu:

“First of all, I don’t believe that jiu-jitsu black belt,” Ngannou said. “I don’t believe that Dos Santos jiu-jitsu black belt. I don’t know where he’s from, but I don’t believe that. And I don’t mind that at all.

“But you never know what some fighter is going to come out with. I always keep thinking maybe he’ll try some wrestling or a takedown, but it’s not his comfort zone. I don’t know. He might try everything. But the most important is I’m prepared for every little thing.”

Currently, Ngannou is on a two-fight win streak, having finished both Curtis Blaydes and Cain Velasquez via first-round knockouts. Now, with another big knockout win over a huge name in the division, “The Predator” could line himself up for a heavyweight title opportunity.

“Cigano” is on a three-fight win streak and has finished his last two fights via second round TKOs. He finished Tai Tuivasa back in December, and followed that up with a second-round TKO win over Derrick Lewis in the main event of UFC Wichita in March. Now, they’ll headline UFC on ESPN 3 from the Target Center in Minneapolis, Minnesota on June 29.

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UFC Greenville’s Chan Sung Jung Finds Peace After Embarrassing KO Loss

Chan Sung Jung had to find some peace before he made his return to the Octagon for his next fight. Jung was just about to win his return fight in a five-round war with Yair Rodriguez at UFC Denver. However, with one second to go, he lost it all. During a recent interview, he elaborated […]

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Chan Sung Jung had to find some peace before he made his return to the Octagon for his next fight.

Jung was just about to win his return fight in a five-round war with Yair Rodriguez at UFC Denver. However, with one second to go, he lost it all. During a recent interview, he elaborated on how this fight haunted him more than fight fans know:

“Post-fight, it was devastating for me, but I came to accept it because everything went according to my plan,” Jung told MMA Junkie. “I did gut it out at the end. I pushed it until the end. For athletes, it’s either you win or you lose. It’s the outcome that really matters. The post-fight was a loss for me. Back then I did feel embarrassed, but after a while, it’s more like an accomplishment, I feel. I don’t feel embarrassed anymore.”

Rodriguez was able to score an amazing knockout on Jung at the Pepsi Center in Denver, Colorado on FOX Sports 1. As seen in the UFC Denver headliner, there was just one second left in the fifth round. This is when Rodriguez landed an elbow to the chin of Jung that put him to sleep.

After the fight, it was revealed that had the fight lasted one more second and went to the judges’ scorecards, then Jung would’ve won. He won the fight at the minimum by split decision. Jung meets Renato Moicano in a featherweight bout that will serve as the headliner of the upcoming UFC Greenville event.

This is set to take place on Saturday, June 22, 2019, at Bon Secours Wellness Arena in Greenville, South Carolina. The main card will air on ESPN+ at 7 p.m. ET. The preliminary card will air on ESPN+ 4 p.m. ET.

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Bellator Announces Dublin Return For Later This Year

Bellator MMA is making moves as they recently announced their return to the 3 Arena in Dublin, Ireland. On Thursday, the promotion revealed that they’re taking a second trip to the Irish capital in 2019 on September 27. Head of Bellator Europe, Dave Green, announced the news during Thursday’s Bellator London press conference. This marks […]

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Bellator MMA is making moves as they recently announced their return to the 3 Arena in Dublin, Ireland. On Thursday, the promotion revealed that they’re taking a second trip to the Irish capital in 2019 on September 27.

Head of Bellator Europe, Dave Green, announced the news during Thursday’s Bellator London press conference. This marks the fourth installment of the promotion’s European Series.

Bellator Announces

Here is a list of dates and locations for the rest of the Bellator schedule for 2019:

  • Bellator London – June 22, 2019 – SSE Arena – London, England
  • Bellator 224 – July 12, 2019 – WinStar World Casino – Thackerville, Oklahoma, U.S.
  • Bellator 225 – August 24, 2019 – Webster Bank Arena – Bridgeport, Connecticut
  • Bellator European Series – September 27, 2019 – 3 Arena – Dublin, Ireland
  • Bellator Milan – October 12, 2019 – Ex Palalido (Allianz Cloud) – Milan, Italy

The last event in the city took place February 23, 2019, that aired on Paramount Network, DAZN, and Sky Sports in the UK and Ireland.

The event featured a bantamweight bout between James Gallagher and Steven Graham in the main event. Gallagher managed to take the back of Steven Graham in their 135-pound showdown and lock in the rear-naked choke for the win.

Their first event in Ireland took place at Bellator 169 that was a co-promoted event with BAMMA. The main event saw Muhammed Lawal defeat Satoshi Ishii via unanimous decision.

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