Tag: MMA Free Agency

Coach: Marlon Moraes Would ‘Definitely’ Beat Dominick Cruz

Reigning World Series Of Fighting (WSOF) bantamweight champion Marlon Moraes recently fought out the last fight on his current contract and has suddenly become the hottest free agent in the sport of mixed martial arts (MMA). Having defended his 135-pound strap four consecutive times in addition to owning 12 straight wins, Moraes could potentially be

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Reigning World Series Of Fighting (WSOF) bantamweight champion Marlon Moraes recently fought out the last fight on his current contract and has suddenly become the hottest free agent in the sport of mixed martial arts (MMA). Having defended his 135-pound strap four consecutive times in addition to owning 12 straight wins, Moraes could potentially be headed to the shark tank that is the UFC bantamweight division, although his coach, Mark Henry, recently said that the decision will likely focus around money:

“Show me the money,” Henry said Monday on The MMA Hour. “Who’s going to show what we believe Marlon is worth? Marlon, man, he’s amazing fighter, but it also has to do with, WSOF has been so great to him. They’re such a great group over there. Ray Sefo and those guys have treated Marlon and the rest of us so well. I’m sure he’ll have to listen to them, what they have to say, because they’ve just treated him great.

“But at the end of it all, maybe five, six, seven years ago when [Moraes] was a single kid, UFC would probably be the thing. But now he has the wife and kids, and what’s the difference between WSOF and UFC? It’s what, maybe 20,000 more Instagram followers and maybe your name on MMA Fighting a little more, and that’s about it at the end. Other than that, the kid needs to take care of his family first.”

The UFC 135-pound class is currently led by a man many consider to be the best bantamweight of all-time in Dominick Cruz. Henry, however, feels that Moraes, who trains with the likes of Frankie Edgar, Eddie Alvarez, and Edson Barboza, would ‘definitely’ beat “The Dominator”:

“I’m usually cautious and like to get your wet a little, but in this case I’m not,” Henry said. “And I have so much respect for Dominick. I think Dominick is amazing. But I do not think that Dominick could hang with Marlon, in my opinion. Dominick is amazing. I have so much respect for Dominick, and I do, I love his game to death. But man, I just think Marlon would beat him. I just really, truly in my heart think that Marlon would definitely win. And I usually don’t like to talk smack unless they’re in person, but I have that much confidence in Marlon.”

Do you feel as if Moraes could compete with the UFC elite?

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Report: Bellator Has Begun Talks With Free Agent Rory MacDonald

A few months back, former UFC welterweight title challenger Rory “Red King” MacDonald, a man who has loomed atop the promotion’s 170-pound division for years now, made it clear that he was interested in testing free agency after fighting out the last fight on his contract in hopes of finding the best deal possible. Well,

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A few months back, former UFC welterweight title challenger Rory “Red King” MacDonald, a man who has loomed atop the promotion’s 170-pound division for years now, made it clear that he was interested in testing free agency after fighting out the last fight on his contract in hopes of finding the best deal possible.

Well, that last fight has come and gone, and it didn’t end particularly well for MacDonald, as the Canadian dropped a very one-sided decision to surging contender Stephen “Wonderboy” Thompson last month in Ottawa.

Now, the 26-year-old MacDonald is free to test the free agency waters and according to a tweet from MMAJunkie’s Chamatkar Sandhu, the “Red King” has already received interest from Bellator President Scott Coker:

We have seen multiple former UFC fighters jump ship and head to Bellator in recent memory including veterans Josh Koscheck and Josh Thomson as well as former lightweight champion Benson Henderson.

Prior to his loss to “Wonderboy” MacDonald had won three of his last four with the only loss in that stretch coming in a five round war for the ages against reigning UFC king Robbie Lawler in July 2015. Those three victories came opposite the likes of Demian Maia, current title challenger Tyron Woodley, and Tarec Saffiedine. MacDonald also owns wins over Nate Diaz, B.J Penn, and Jake Ellenberger.

Already an established star at the young age of 26, MacDonald undoubtedly has room to grow, and obviously has a long career ahead of him. Do you see Bellator luring in the “Red King”, or will MacDonald remain with the world’s largest mixed martial arts organization?

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UFC Exec ‘Encourages’ Rory MacDonald To Test Free Agency

The last time we saw Rory MacDonald in the Octagon was last July at UFC 189 when he took on champion Robbie Lawler in a brutal five round war that saw the “Red King” suffer a devastating loss early on in the final frame. Months after the bout, MacDonald told Ariel Helwani that he had

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The last time we saw Rory MacDonald in the Octagon was last July at UFC 189 when he took on champion Robbie Lawler in a brutal five round war that saw the “Red King” suffer a devastating loss early on in the final frame.

Months after the bout, MacDonald told Ariel Helwani that he had one fight left on his UFC contract, and that he planned to test free agency after fighting out his deal, indicating that he was in search of the most money he could earn. Well, that fight will take place tomorrow night (June 18, 2016) in the main event of UFC Fight Night 89 as MacDonald takes on surging No. 2-ranked Stephen “Wonderboy” Thompson.

With a win, MacDonald could very well be right in line for another shot at divisional supremacy, and it’s unclear how the outcome of tomorrow’s clash will affect the “Red King’s” free agency aspirations.

Free agency has become a more common trend in the last year, and the UFC hasn’t seemed too fond of it, although Tom Wright, Executive VP and General Manager of UFC Operations in Canada recently told MMAJunkie that he ‘encourages’ MacDonald to test free agency:

 “I think we’re all about making sure we’ve got as many great Rory MacDonald’s in every part of the world because clearly he’s a great fighter, he’s a great competitor, he’s a great representative of our sport,” Wright said. “But in the end, it’s Rory’s decision, and we encourage him to go into the open market. That’s something he’s certainly entitled to do, and we would encourage him to do so.”

“In the end we’re just looking forward to sitting down with him after and having a good conversation,” Wright said. “He wants to put on a big performance and then fight for the UFC championship belt. So, we’ll wait and see what happens. But what Rory does is up to him, and we’ll support whatever he decides.”

Could you really see the UFC letting a young, established star like MacDonald walk away?

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Scott Coker: Bellator Would Be Interested In Rory MacDonald

Since taking over as President of Bellator MMA in 2014, Scott Coker has turned the promotion into a serious player – or at least somewhat of a competitor to the UFC in terms of luring in high profile fighters. In recent memory, notable UFC fighters such as Josh Thomson, Josh Koscheck, Phil Davis, Matt Mitrione

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Since taking over as President of Bellator MMA in 2014, Scott Coker has turned the promotion into a serious player – or at least somewhat of a competitor to the UFC in terms of luring in high profile fighters.

In recent memory, notable UFC fighters such as Josh Thomson, Josh Koscheck, Phil Davis, Matt Mitrione and even former champion Benson Henderson have jumped ship to Bellator in regards for better conditions, or better pay.

Speaking on the matter at a recent Bellator press conference (Via MMAJunkie), Coker advised fighters to test free agency, claiming that Bellator emerging as a contender is good for MMA as a whole:

“You should fight your fights out, because we’re here too. “Now, there’s more than one buyer, which is good for the market, which is good for individuals, which is good for the league, which is good for the industry,” he said.

As far as future endeavors go, Bellator will continue their efforts to bring in the best fighters in the world according to Coker.

One name that stands out as a possible target could be 26 year old UFC welterweight contender and former title challenger Rory “Red King” MacDonald.

MacDonald, although young in age, has become a veteran of the fight game, and he’s currently gearing up to fight the last fight on his current contract with the UFC, as he’ll take on surging contender Stephen “Wonderboy” Thompson in the main event of June’s UFC Fight Night 89 from his home of Canada.

The “Red King” recently stated that he’d be willing to test free agency in search of the most lucrative deal offered, and it appears as if Coker and Company will attempt to be at the forefront of those negotiations:

“He’s a guy that we’d be interested in talking to, if the time is right,” Coker said.

Could you see a young star like MacDonald making the jump to Bellator in the future?

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Aljamain Sterling Announces New UFC Contract

Well, the free agency saga regarding No. 5-ranked bantamweight Aljamain “The Funk Master” Sterling has now come to an end. Appearing on today’s (February 15, 2016) edition of the MMA Hour with Ariel Helwani, Sterling announced that he had indeed resigned with the UFC, the world’s largest MMA promotion, after tons of speculation that he

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Well, the free agency saga regarding No. 5-ranked bantamweight Aljamain “The Funk Master” Sterling has now come to an end.

Appearing on today’s (February 15, 2016) edition of the MMA Hour with Ariel Helwani, Sterling announced that he had indeed resigned with the UFC, the world’s largest MMA promotion, after tons of speculation that he would be heading to Bellator or even World Series of Fighting (WSOF).

At 26 years old, Sterling is undoubtedly one of the bantamweight division’s brightest prospects, but apparently he had felt as if he wasn’t offered a fair deal ahead of his most recent fight, a submission victory over Johnny Eduardo last December in Las Vegas.

That being said, he fought out his contract and tested the waters.

After nearly two months of dealing with free agency, Sterling appears to have received what he wanted from the UFC, and the Serra-Longo product will now be spending the foreseeable future inside of the Octagon.

“I’m 100 percent happy with my decision,” Sterling said. “I think I got a better deal for myself than I would have had.”

“The Funk Master” is currently undefeated at 12-0 in his professional career, and has won all four of his Octagon bouts including three by way of finish.

Possibly one fight away from a shot at gold in the contender scarce bantamweight division, Sterling’s next fight will be pivotal to his title hopes.

Who would you like to see “The Funk Master” meet next?

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Alistair Overeem Inks New Deal With UFC

Despite recent speculation that he may be headed to Bellator, it looks as if Alistair “The Reem” Overeem will be remaining with the UFC after testing the free agency waters. “The Reem” announced the news via his official twitter account: Just signed my new @ufc contract! pic.twitter.com/lUQZO0ptLJ — Alistair Overeem (@Alistairovereem) February 15, 2016 A

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Despite recent speculation that he may be headed to Bellator, it looks as if Alistair “The Reem” Overeem will be remaining with the UFC after testing the free agency waters.

“The Reem” announced the news via his official twitter account:

A former DREAM and Strikeforce champion, Overeem is currently ranked No. 3 in the official UFC heavyweight rankings, sitting dangerously close to a title shot.

After losing three out of four fights between 2013 and 2014, “The Reem” has now rattled off three straight victories including two by way of stoppage.

Overeem scored a knockout over Stefan Struve in December 2014 before picking up a one-sided decision victory over Roy “Big County” Nelson last March. Most recently, the Dutch Kickboxer scored a massive TKO win over highly ranked former champion Junior “Cigano” Dos Santos.

Now back in the Octagon for the foreseeable future, “The Reem” should be in line for a huge fight in the cloudy yet ultra-exciting heavyweight division.

Who would you like to see him face off with next?

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