Tag: Paul Felder

Quote: Felder Would Come Back For McGregor Fight

UFC welterweight contender Sean Brady has suggested former lightweight Paul Felder is getting the itch to come out of retirement, and would certainly do so for a fight against MMA’s biggest superstar Conor McGregor.

During his career, Felder built …

Conor McGregor, Paul Felder

UFC welterweight contender Sean Brady has suggested former lightweight Paul Felder is getting the itch to come out of retirement, and would certainly do so for a fight against MMA’s biggest superstar Conor McGregor.

During his career, Felder built a reputation as one of the most entertaining and thrilling men on the UFC roster. The perennial contender fought in wars against Dan Hooker and Edson Barboza, recorded a win over current UFC Lightweight Champion Charles Oliveira, and collected six bonuses in 15 appearances on MMA’s biggest stage.

After defeating James Vick and Barboza in 2019, Felder was looking to mount a final charge towards the title. Those aspirations came to a halt when he fell on the wrong side of a tight split decision after five rounds against “The Hangman” in New Zealand last February. Despite the competitive affair, Felder admitted he was thinking about hanging up his gloves.

Nine months later, “The Irish Dragon” showed the heart and determination that made him a fan favorite. On less than a weeks’ notice, the 37-year-old replaced the injured Islam Makhachev to main event UFC Vegas 14 against Rafael dos Anjos. After a second consecutive loss, Felder announced his retirement this year while on commentary duty for a UFC Fight Night.

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Brady Reveals Felder Is Training For A Return

Despite only being months out from his decision to officially hang up his gloves, talk of a Felder return has already surfaced. During an October episode of Dana White’s Contender Series, the veteran admitted he was missing active competition “tremendously,” and revealed he’d started hitting pads again.

Now, in an exclusive interview with MMA News, Felder’s teammate Sean Brady has said “The Irish Dragon” is ready to mount a comeback. Brady, who competes at 170 pounds, is set to face top-10 contender Michael Chiesa at UFC Vegas 43 this weekend. While discussing his preparation, the undefeated welterweight said Felder has been getting back into training.

The 28-year-old believes one fight that would certainly lure Felder back to the Octagon is a clash with former two-division champion Conor McGregor.

“He’s getting back to it… he’s gotta start scratching that itch. He’s definitely talking about getting back in the room with us, he’s back with our strength and conditioning coach. So, I’d like to see him and Conor. I know that’s a fight that would make him wanna come back. Paul’s not gonna shoot no takedowns on Conor so Conor hasn’t gotta worry about that. I know that’s a fight Paul would come back for so, who knows, we’ll see.”

Catch our exclusive interview with Sean Brady ahead of UFC Vegas 43 below:

This isn’t the first mention of a clash between McGregor and Felder. While speaking to Joe Rogan following his victory over Donald Cerrone at UFC 246 last January, the Irishman claimed that “any one of these little mouthy fools can get it, even that little fool at the desk,” who was, of course, lightweight contender Paul Felder.

That, coupled with the commentator’s suggestion that McGregor should never fight in the UFC again after the threats he made to Dustin Poirier in July, means the storyline is ready-made for a Felder vs. McGregor showdown.

How do you think a fight between Paul Felder and Conor McGregor would play out?

Continue Reading Quote: Felder Would Come Back For McGregor Fight at MMA News.

Paul Felder Hints At Fighting Return: ‘I Have Missed It Tremendously’

Paul FelderFormer UFC Lightweight turned octagon-side analyst, Paul Felder could possibly be making a comeback some time in the near future. Felder announced his retirement from the UFC back in May after his split decision loss to Rafael Dos Anjos. He took that fight against ‘RDA’ on short notice and put up a decent fight against […]

Paul Felder

Former UFC Lightweight turned octagon-side analyst, Paul Felder could possibly be making a comeback some time in the near future.

Felder announced his retirement from the UFC back in May after his split decision loss to Rafael Dos Anjos. He took that fight against ‘RDA’ on short notice and put up a decent fight against him in the main event of the card. Felder retired to put his focus into being an analyst and calling some fights as well. He has done a good job in the booth as well and fills in nicely when Joe Rogan isn’t able to call a fight, and does well next to Rogan.

At the moment, Felder is only contemplating a comeback. It has only been a few months since he hung up the gloves, but being the competitor he is, he already may want to come back. It must be tough knowing you can still fight while calling the action and still being so close to the sport.

“Truthfully, for the first time in a very long time since retirement, I feel like since the triathlon season has slowed and there’s not a lot of races, that I’ve really kind of had a chance to reflect on that it’s over, that I’m not fighting anymore,” Felder said while contemplating his return. “I have missed it tremendously. I’ve started hitting pads, I’ve started doing stuff. Now, that’s not to say that I’m making some comeback. But I’m definitely going home, I want to train with Sean Brady and the guys a little bit. I want to see how I feel after a week of training with guys like Sean Brady, Jeremiah Wells, Pat Sabatini, and Andrei Petroski — these guys that are all Philly guys in the UFC now — kicking my ass, and then we’ll go from there.” (BJPenn.com)

The Philly native may be getting those competitive juices flowing while training back at the Renzo Gracie Academy in Philadelphia. Felder currently holds a record of 9-6 inside the UFC and was at one time ranked inside the top 10 of the Lightweight division.

Do you think Paul Felder should return to fighting?

Felder Misses Competing, Considering Coming Out Of Retirement

Paul Felder is thinking of ending his retirement to fight again. Back at the end of May on a UFC commentator as he was working as a commentator, Felder announced his retirement from the sport. It wasn’t a surprise to many as he hinted at retirement following his February 2020 loss to Dan Hooker, and […]

Continue Reading Felder Misses Competing, Considering Coming Out Of Retirement at MMA News.

Paul Felder is thinking of ending his retirement to fight again.

Back at the end of May on a UFC commentator as he was working as a commentator, Felder announced his retirement from the sport. It wasn’t a surprise to many as he hinted at retirement following his February 2020 loss to Dan Hooker, and mentioned it after the Rafael dos Anjos fight as well.

Now, however, as he is only four months into retirement, Felder is hinting at a return as he is getting the itch again.

“Truthfully, for the first time in a very long time since retirement, I feel like since the triathlon season has slowed and there’s not a lot of races, that I’ve really kind of had a chance to reflect on that it’s over, that I’m not fighting anymore,” Felder said to Brendan Fitzgerald after the Contender Series (h/t BJPENN). “I have missed it tremendously. I’ve started hitting pads, I’ve started doing stuff. Now, that’s not to say that I’m making some comeback. But I’m definitely going home, I want to train with Sean Brady and the guys a little bit. I want to see how I feel after a week of training with guys like Sean Brady, Jeremiah Wells, Pat Sabatini, and Andrei Petroski — these guys that are all Philly guys in the UFC now — kicking my ass, and then we’ll go from there.”

Whether or not Felder will actually make a comeback is to be seen. But, he will be back in the training room and is no doubt getting the itch to return.

Paul Felder (17-6) is on a two-fight losing streak and last fought in November of 2020 as he stepped up on five days’ notice to face Rafael dos Anjos. He lost the fight by split decision after dropping a split decision to Dan Hooker in New Zealand in a hard-fought battle. “The Irish Dragon” was a top-10 lightweight and holds notable wins over Charles Oliveira, Edson Barboza, James Vick, and Stevie Ray among others.

Would you like to see Paul Felder fight again?

Continue Reading Felder Misses Competing, Considering Coming Out Of Retirement at MMA News.

Marvin Vettori & Paul Felder Share Intense Exchange On Social Media

Marvin Vettori has ignited a heated encounter between himself and Paul Felder over the retired lightweight’s color commentary. Since his retirement from MMA, Paul Felder has been a mainstay on the UFC commentary team and was chosen to replace Joe Rogan on last weekend’s card due to the 54-year-old’s late exclusion from the card. While […]

Continue Reading Marvin Vettori & Paul Felder Share Intense Exchange On Social Media at MMA News.

Marvin Vettori has ignited a heated encounter between himself and Paul Felder over the retired lightweight’s color commentary.

Since his retirement from MMA, Paul Felder has been a mainstay on the UFC commentary team and was chosen to replace Joe Rogan on last weekend’s card due to the 54-year-old’s late exclusion from the card. While there are many who welcome Felder onto the team for his insight and past fighting experience, it seems that the #5-ranked middleweight, Marvin Vettori, isn’t the biggest fan of “The Irish Dragon”.

As we approached the latter stages of UFC 266, Vettori took to Twitter to state his frustration at Felder’s commentary, labeling him the worst commentator in the history of the sport.

“Had to mute the comment on the fights, can’t stand Felder lol worst to ever do it” claimed Vettori.

Despite being on commentary duty, Felder took time to respond to the criticism in good ol’ Paul Felder fashion.

“Am I using too many big words?” Felder joked. “I’m sorry Marvin”

The tension between the two seems to date back to Vettori’s loss to Israel Adesanya in a middleweight title fight at UFC 263, where Felder was once again on commentary.

The war of words had no signs of dying down, as the pair continued hours after the original tweet.

Marvin Vettori will be aiming to get back in the win column and recapture the form that led him to a title shot when he headlines the UFC Vegas 41 card alongside Paulo Costa on October 23.

Do you think Marvin Vettori’s criticisms of Paul Felder were fair?

Continue Reading Marvin Vettori & Paul Felder Share Intense Exchange On Social Media at MMA News.

Dana White, Conor McGregor React To Paul Felder Retirement

FelderDana White and Conor McGregor only had good things to say about Paul Felder. Felder officially announced his retirement from the sport of mixed martial arts during the broadcast of UFC Vegas 27 last night. It led to tributes from many in the combat sports world as Felder is undoubtedly one of the toughest fighters […]

Felder

Dana White and Conor McGregor only had good things to say about Paul Felder.

Felder officially announced his retirement from the sport of mixed martial arts during the broadcast of UFC Vegas 27 last night.

It led to tributes from many in the combat sports world as Felder is undoubtedly one of the toughest fighters in the promotion and was also a solid top-10 fighter in the stacked lightweight division.

As far as UFC president White is concerned, Felder had a great career which will only continue in his role as an analyst and commentator for the promotion.

“Yeah he’s had an incredible career here and now he’s starting, well I shouldn’t say starting. But, he really is starting his new career after fighting,” White said post-fight (via MMA Mania). “He’s a great commentator. He’s done an amazing job here and I am happy for him.

“Congrats on what he has done for us in the past and I look forward to working with him in the future.”

McGregor also chimed in on Felder’s retirement.

“Congrats to the “Irish Dragon” Paul Felder on his retirement! Proper Pina Colada on me fella! #Respect @felderpaul ? ?”

It seems genuine although it’s hard not to think McGregor is taking a friendly jab at Felder’s heritage with his use of quotation marks on his nickname.

The pair, of course, have gone at it in the past with McGregor claiming Felder wasn’t really Irish but rather German.

For now, things appear to be more cordial.