Paul Felder evened the score with Edson Barboza at UFC 242. The two were rematching from a fight from 2015 where it was the Brazilian who got it done. But, at 242, Felder edged out a razor–close split-decision, which Barboza did not agree with. Now, he said he plans on appealing the loss, which doesn’t […]
“I know he’s upset and I know that he has not had the best winning record lately, so I feel for him, I feel for his family and I know how much the money means to him,” Felder said to MMA Fighting on their EuroBash Podcast. “I know his wife even came out and said something like, ‘I have all these other opportunities, why can’t I go take them?’ With emotions and financial stuff, when you think you won the fight…we both thought we won that fight so I get it.
“Is it upsetting me, did it leave a bad taste in my mouth that these guys who I thought I was really cool with are basically saying that it was robbery? That’s what’s upsetting me most. If you just admitted that it was razor close and you felt you should’ve got the nod…yeah the judges are all over the place,” he continued. “But two of them scored it for me, not you. It sucks, I’ve been on the end of other split decisions, I’ve lost two split decisions in the UFC, so going into that decision I was nervous as hell. Look at his face, so was he. I know his guys were confident and they were yelling, ‘You’ve got this,’ but so was Duke [Roufus].
“We were all just trying to stay positive out there to keep guys from losing their minds in those situations. There is so much tension when you’re awaiting decisions, especially after a war like that. We beat the crap out of each other, I think that’s what upsets me most out of all of it: I just had this epic rematch with Edson Barboza—the No. 7 guys versus the No. 10 guy—and we go at it and it should’ve been Fight of the Night,” he added. “We put on an even better battle than we did the first time and what are we all talking about? [We’re] arguing back and forth over who should’ve won and that’s really unfortunate.”
Paul Felder believes the best way to end the debate if he beat Edson Barboza is by running things back a third time. Felder defeated Barboza in a razor-close split decision in the co-main event of UFC 242 this past weekend. However, Barboza, his team and many fans believe the decision was wrong. This was […]
Paul Felder believes the best way to end the debate if he beat Edson Barboza is by running things back a third time.
Felder defeated Barboza in a razor-close split decision in the co-main event of UFC 242 this past weekend. However, Barboza, his team and many fans believe the decision was wrong. This was all the more the case when one factors that one of the judges scored all three rounds to Barboza while another scored all three to Felder.
Barboza and his team will be appealing the loss but Felder believes the decision was correct, especially as he was walking down the Brazilian. However, he is open to a trilogy fight provided it’s five rounds:
“As for my fight and what seems to have turned into a controversial decision amongst fans.. It was a war… a close fight between 2 skilled people that wanted to finish each other,” Felder wrote on Instagram. “I have nothing but respect for Edson. We both go out and put on fights to entertain the fans… With that said, I will say this… I walked him down the entire fight, I threw at him the entire fight, I never stalled the entire fight, if he landed, I landed… the entire fight. When he took me down, he took the damage… the entire fight. I never gassed or slowed my pace the entire fight. I got cut due to a head butt, Edson got cut due to strikes.
“Both of us put our bodies through so much during that fight that whoever came out with the loss would understandably be upset but the numbers don’t lie. If we need to run it back I would be happy to, but this trilogy needs to be 5 rounds because someone was about to break and that someone was not me. If the fans and Edson need a clear ending to this then it’s main event or bust.”
This past weekend (Sat. September 7, 2019) at UFC 242 in Abu Dhabi, we had a great morning and afternoon of fights that showcased all sorts of talent. The event featured 13 fights, seven of which went to decision with one of those being a draw, four knockouts, and two submissions. The show was headlined […]
This past weekend (Sat. September 7, 2019) at UFC 242 in Abu Dhabi, we had a great morning and afternoon of fights that showcased all sorts of talent. The event featured 13 fights, seven of which went to decision with one of those being a draw, four knockouts, and two submissions.
The show was headlined by undefeated and undisputed UFC lightweight champion Khabib “The Eagle” Nurmagomedov and now former interim UFC lightweight champion Dustin “The Diamond” Poirier. This fight saw Nurmagomedov literally run right through the No. 1 ranked lightweight, as he scored seven of the attempted eight takedowns and landed 54 of his 77 total strikes.
We at LowKickMMA have compiled a list of five fights to make after their showings. Where do the winners go from here? Where do the losers go from here? Continue reading to see our five matchups:
Curtis Blaydes (12-2) 1 NC vs. Junior dos Santos (21-6)
Curtis Blaydes had a vintage trademark performance last night, as he cruised his way to a TKO victory after absolutely mauling Shamil Abdurakhimov, what a dominant showing that was. His performance over Abdurakhimov may have been just as dominant as Nurmagomedov’s win over Poirier was.
Blaydes has got to be one of the very best wrestlers in this entire sport, and that’s really something considering the highest level of wrestling he ever competed in was NJCAA. His ground and pound is quite vicious as well. “Razor” is going to continue to give the majority of heavyweights fits, maybe all of them at some point. At 28-years-old, pretty much growing up and evolving in the UFC, and coming from a wrestling background, he’s going to be even more of a problem than he is now in the coming years.
A fight with Junior dos Santos makes sense strictly because dos Santos is the only guy above him that makes sense. Blaydes lost to Francis Ngannou twice, Daniel Cormier is about to retire and will probably get an immediate rematch against the champion Stipe Miocic in his last one. Those are the only guys in front of him. Derrick Lewis is right behind him, but has lost his last two, rather than dos Santos’ last one, “Razor” versus “Cigano” is the fight to make.
Islam Makhachev (18-1) vs. Gregor Gillespie (13-0)
We’ve gotten to see Islam Makhachev fight two stud grapplers in a row now. One of which was against the debuting Arman Tsarukyan in April, and the other of which was on Saturday against Davi Ramos. Many people say Gregor Gillespie is the one to dethrone Nurmagomedov because of how good he is at wrestling, but there’s one problem, he simply isn’t in the position to get that fight. However, a fight with ‘Mini Khabib’ makes perfect sense.
Makhachev is about as elite as they get, he’s like a 27-year-old version of the champion. His grappling is some of the best in the sport, and his striking is quite technical as well. The way these Dagestani fighters do such a stellar job of mixing freestyle wrestling, Greco-roman wrestling, BJJ, and judo to make the perfect MMA grappling style is a beautiful thing to observe, especially the ones trained by Khabib’s father.
This is the perfect fight to see where each should go from here, and it’s the perfect fight that if it happens, it’d be easier to gauge and predict how a fight with Nurmagomedov would go for Gillespie. This could also get Gillespie into the top 15, which is something we’ve all talked about for some time now. What will come out on top? An NCAA Division I Freestyle Wrestling National Champion or a World Combat Sambo gold medalist?
Paul Felder (17-4) vs. Al Iaquinta (14-5-1)/Dan Hooker (19-8) winner
Paul Felder looked good in his rematch with Edson Barboza, and like their first fight, it was incredibly close. This one may have even been closer than the first fight. Though the scoring was atrocious, there really wasn’t much of a way to mess this one up, because either could’ve gotten the nod without much controversy.
Felder has been scheduled to fight Al Iaquinta twice at this point. Once when Felder fought Charles Oliveira, Iaquinta pulled out due to being unhappy with his contract. The other was when Iaquinta was scheduled to fight Felder, but instead fought Nurmagomedov on a day’s notice for the title. Maybe the third time could be a charm for these two.
Now if Dan Hooker wins, himself versus Felder is a great fight too. Hooker comes from a kickboxing background, so that against Felder’s karate and taekwondo would be very fun to watch. Same with Iaquinta, though he comes from a wrestling background, he’s mostly a boxer that has a few good kicks he likes to use. Iaquinta is ranked above Felder, and with a win, Hooker will most likely be right next to him. Either of these fights make a great deal of sense and would be fun to watch.
Dustin Poirier (25-6) 1 NC vs. Conor McGregor (21-4) II
This would be a great rematch that everyone would love. Firstly, there aren’t too many options for Poirier right now as the division is. Most guys in the top ten are booked, one just fought but has lost four of his last five, and two of lightweight’s top ten are at welterweight now. That leaves us with Conor McGregor.
Many of us have wanted this rematch for a long time, especially since they’ve both been at 155 pounds. McGregor has stated that he’d like to make his return as well, and the next best guy aside from the champion and the No. 1 contender is Dustin Poirier. Of course, McGregor quickly knocked Poirier out in their first fight together, but a rematch may go quite differently.
McGregor’s precision and timing are impeccable, and that’s what got him the knockout win over Poirier in their first fight, but Poirier can take a much better shot at lightweight. He used to get hurt all the time at featherweight; Jonathan Brookins, Akira Corassani, and Diego Brandao all hurt him on the feet, only one of which is a guy that regularly knocks his opponents out, or even has high level striking for that matter. That doesn’t happen anymore, Poirier did get knocked out by Michael Johnson, but that fight is where he learned that he needs patience in order to be the best.
McGregor needs a fight, and he’s not going to fight anyone that isn’t ranked highly either. Tony Ferguson’s going to be booked, the champion’s going to be booked, the next best bet may be the winner of Donald Cerrone and Justin Gaethje. However, if Gaethje wins that fight, he should probably be next in line after Ferguson. Both McGregor and Poirier were climbing the featherweight rankings during their first fight, now they’re both at the very top of lightweight. How would this rematch go?
Khabib Nurmagomedov (28-0) vs. Tony Ferguson (25-3)
Is it time for this fight to come together yet or what? As everyone knows, these two have been scheduled to fight each other four times, of course, none of which did they actually make the walk to the cage opposite one another. Each pulled out twice, resulting in each of them taking a fight with a lesser opponent once, and each of them taking a fight with another fellow ranked opponent once. Nurmagomedov had to fight UFC newcomer Darrell Horcher because of this, and Tony Ferguson had to fight UFC newcomer Lando Vannata.
Also, Ferguson ended up fighting Edson Barboza after Nurmagomedov pulled out, and Nurmagomedov had to fight Al Iaquinta after Ferguson pulled out. At least all four times the healthy party was still able to fight, but four times these two have been scheduled to fight each other and it hasn’t happened. They were even scheduled to fight on the same night at UFC 229, and both made it to the fight with no issues, but if they’re fighting each other, it doesn’t seem to pan out. What bad luck they’ve had.
Hopefully, the fifth time’s a charm for this fight. Both are on a 12-fight win streak in MMA’s most stacked division, not even the UFC’s most stacked division, but the entirety of MMA. Each time these two end up not fighting each other, they both just keep continuing to win and this fight gets more and more important to make each time. The UFC has been trying to make this fight for four years, it’s time to see who really is the best lightweight in the world.
Lightweight contender Edson Barboza believes without a doubt that he defeated Paul Felder this past weekend. Barboza and Felder fought the full 15 minutes in a back-and-forth rematch at UFC 242 in Abu Dhabi. The Brazilian celebrated afterwards as he felt he had done enough to win the bout. However, Felder would end up winning […]
Lightweight contender Edson Barboza believes without a doubt that he defeated Paul Felder this past weekend.
Barboza and Felder fought the full 15 minutes in a back-and-forth rematch at UFC 242 in Abu Dhabi. The Brazilian celebrated afterwards as he felt he had done enough to win the bout.
However, Felder would end up winning a split decision much to Barboza’s astonishment. What was more astonishing was the fact that one of the judges scored all three rounds to Barboza while another scored all three to Felder.
It was because of this judging that Barboza’s team decided to appeal the result. As for Barboza himself, he finally released a statement following the loss:
“Hey guys, first of all I want to thank you for all the messages, they absolutely comforted my heart,” Barboza wrote on Instagram. “After this Saturday, everyone knows that I won that fight! I have watched it again and I was the winner without no doubt, but unfortunately they gave the result to my opponent. Nothing against my opponent, he went there and did his job, but everyone knows that I won that fight.
“I will keep [working] for justice to be done. I hope they give this victory to me in some way, or maybe through the UFC, if they pronounce about the fight saying that this fight was mine, or maybe through the Athletic Commission. I’ve been working for the UFC for so long, and what they did with me this Saturday was not right. I will keep fighting for something to be done. Once again thank you very much for the support, for the messages, I will give my best to change it.“
Edson Barboza and his team will be appealing his loss to Paul Felder. Barboza and Felder fought in a back-and-forth rematch in the co-main event of UFC 242 in Abu Dhabi on Saturday. After the final bell, Barboza was celebrating as he felt he had done enough to win on the judges’ scorecards. One judge […]
Barboza and Felder fought in a back-and-forth rematch in the co-main event of UFC 242 in Abu Dhabi on Saturday. After the final bell, Barboza was celebrating as he felt he had done enough to win on the judges’ scorecards.
One judge even scored the bout 30-27 to the Brazilian. Oddly enough, another scored it 30-27 to Felder while the third scored it 29-28 to give “The Irish Dragon” the split decision victory.
Barboza and his team will now be appealing the loss as they feel the bout was judged inaccurately — highlighted by two scorecards giving all three rounds to each fighter:
“We think that the fight was judged inaccurately,” Barboza’s manager Alex Davis told MMA Fighting. “The fact that one judge gave it 30-27 Junior and one have it 30-27 Felder is a big indicator of their confusion.
“Our perception—and to everyone we spoke with, everyone in the arena, every journalist and media—the fight was 29-28 for Junior, who won the first two rounds.”
Barboza Did Enough To Win
Appealing a loss usually never results in anything. And while Davis is fine with Felder winning with a 29-28 scorecard, he feels a 30-27 scorecard for either fighter is something that must be reviewed:
“We can’t let this happen,” Davis added. “These fighters put a lot of effort and invest their time to get up there to do what they do so we have judges making these type of mistakes and not being reviewed.
“We think Junior won two rounds to one, but we wouldn’t complain if it was 29-28 Felder. Nothing against Paul Felder, he’s a great fighter, a great person, his whole team, but I think Junior did a great fight and we’ll contest this.”
It is time to play matchmaker once again. UFC 242 saw the most dominant champion in the sport successfully defend his lightweight strap at The Arena on Yas Island in Abu Dhabi…
It is time to play matchmaker once again. UFC 242 saw the most dominant champion in the sport successfully defend his lightweight strap at The Arena on Yas Island in Abu Dhabi…
