Tag: Ricky Simon

Tim Elliott, Ricky Simon Among Those Vying for Sean O’Malley Fight

Tim ElliottUFC bantamweight Sean O’Malley is searching for a new opponent for the upcoming UFC 264 card after his original opponent Louis Smolka had to pull out due to an injury. After the news broke; flyweight contender Tim Elliott and fellow bantamweight Ricky Simon were among those who threw their names in the hat for a […]

Tim Elliott

UFC bantamweight Sean O’Malley is searching for a new opponent for the upcoming UFC 264 card after his original opponent Louis Smolka had to pull out due to an injury. After the news broke; flyweight contender Tim Elliott and fellow bantamweight Ricky Simon were among those who threw their names in the hat for a fight with the rising star.

ESPN’s Ariel Helwani was the first to break the news that Smolka had to pull out of the upcoming July main card fight with O’Malley. Specifics on the injury weren’t revealed, but it was apparently severe enough that Smolka had to withdraw from the fight with just weeks to go from fight night.

UFC flyweight contender Tim Elliott was among the first to express his interest to fight on short notice against O’Malley on social media.

“I’ll take that! My opponent was injured!” Elliott tweeted.

Elliott was originally slated to fight Su Mudaerji at UFC Vegas 30 this past weekend before the fight was called off at the last minute. He is coming off of back-to-back wins over Ryan Benoit and Jordan Espinosa and is back in the thick of things in the flyweight title conversation.

Elliott wasn’t the only one who seemed ecstatic about a potential O’Malley fight, as Simon called for a matchup against his UFC bantamweight colleague.

“Less than 2 weeks? I accept,” Simon posted in a tweet.

Simon has won three straight including his recent featherweight debut win over Brian Kelleher at UFC 258. Before that, he had recorded back-to-back wins over tough bantamweight opponents Ray Borg and Gaetano Pirrello. Other names who called for a fight on social media with O’Malley include Merab Dvalishvili and Cody Stamann.

It’s a bit of a good news/bad news situation when it comes to O’Malley and the upcoming UFC 264 pay-per-view. The bad news is he’s currently without a fight, but the good news is there are a plethora of fighters willing to step in on weeks’ notice and fight one of the rising stars in the UFC.

Who do you think should get the Sean O’Malley fight on short notice?

PHOTO | Brian Kelleher Shows Nasty Cut Suffered At UFC 258

One of the standout matchups from UFC 258 was between bantamweights Brian Kelleher and Ricky Simon. The two natural 135ers both meet at 145lbs, in an exciting back and forth war. Simon was eventually crowned the victor, as his relentless wrestling secured him the unanimous decision. During the first round, Kelleher received a brutal cut, […]

One of the standout matchups from UFC 258 was between bantamweights Brian Kelleher and Ricky Simon. The two natural 135ers both meet at 145lbs, in an exciting back and forth war. Simon was eventually crowned the victor, as his relentless wrestling secured him the unanimous decision.

During the first round, Kelleher received a brutal cut, that the commentators initially believed to be due to the power of Simon’s triangle choke attempt. However, it was later revealed to be the result of a series of brutal strikes delivered by Simon. The cut was not deemed so bad as to stop the fight, although a post-fight Twitter post from Kelleher indicates differently. The graphic image of Kelleher receiving treatment was partnered with the caption “Scar too deep for a bandaid solution”.

Kelleher appears to have taken the loss well. The cut will likely lead to a lengthy lay off for him, however there is not doubt we will see him in the UFC octagon again.

Alternatively, Ricky Simon is going from strength to strength. He is currently riding a three-fight win streak, having also defeated Ray Borg and Gaetano Pirrello. He also holds a submission victory over Merab Dvalishvili, who is currently one of the biggest bantamweight prospects. It stands to reason that he is deserving of a fight that would see him break into the rankings next.

What were your thoughts on the matchup between Brian Kelleher and Ricky Simon? Let us know in the comments.

Ricky Simon Dominates Brian Kelleher – UFC 258 Results

SimonNext up on the UFC 258 main card is a bantamweight bout between Ricky Simon and Brian Kelleher. Round 1: After some left hooks from both, Simon level changes and takes Kelleher down in the center of the Octagon. Kelleher scrambles to the side of the cage but is still controlled by Simon. Kelleher appears […]

Simon

Next up on the UFC 258 main card is a bantamweight bout between Ricky Simon and Brian Kelleher.

Round 1: After some left hooks from both, Simon level changes and takes Kelleher down in the center of the Octagon. Kelleher scrambles to the side of the cage but is still controlled by Simon. Kelleher appears to be bleeding badly on his face but it’s not known how it happened. Simon takes him down soon after he gets up and is in half guard now. Simon appears to be going for an arm triangle choke but Kelleher escapes. Joe Rogan reveals it was an elbow that led to Kelleher’s cut. Simon takes his back but Kelleher escapes and the fight is standing again. Simon gets another takedown and goes for another arm triangle choke. Kelleher escapes but he is breathing heavy this time as he does it. The fight returns to striking. Both fighters exchange leg kicks. Simon ducks a left hook as the round ends.

Round 2: Simon lands a nice leg kick. He’s putting the pressure on Kelleher. Kelleher lands a body kick. Kelleher just about misses a high kick. Kelleher lands a huge front kick to the head. Simon counters by taking him down. Simon lands some hammer fists as he gets up from a leg lock attempt from Kelleher. Kelleher lands a leg kick but Simon is still pressuring forward. Simon lands a big right and follows it with a left. Kelleher sees his leg kick checked. Simon blitzes forward and lands a couple of leg kicks. Simon goes for another takedown and lands it. Kelleher attempts a guillotine but to no avail as he’s controlled by Simon. Kelleher gets to his feet and eventually separates as they return to striking. Kelleher lands a front kick to the body just as the round ends.

Round 3: Simon connects with a leg kick. Kelleher blocks a high kick and then misses his own. Simon throws a number of up elbows while striking. Kelleher misses a spinning elbow and sees himself controlled by Simon again who has his back up against the fence. Simon takes him down. Kelleher seems to be going for a kimura but is countered by a kimura attempt of Simon’s which causes him to scramble. Kelleher gets up but is controlled by Simon again who takes his back. They separate. Kelleher lands a front kick to the body. The fight ends.

Official result: Ricky Simon defeats Brian Kelleher via unanimous decision ().

Ricky Simon vs. Brian Kelleher Planned For UFC’s September 5 Event

SimonRicky Simon and Brian Kelleher are set to collide next month. According to MMA Fighting, a bantamweight bout between the pair is in the works for the UFC’s upcoming September 5 event. The event will be headlined by a heavyweight bout between Alistair Overeem and Augusto Sakai and is expected to take place at the […]

Simon

Ricky Simon and Brian Kelleher are set to collide next month.

According to MMA Fighting, a bantamweight bout between the pair is in the works for the UFC’s upcoming September 5 event.

The event will be headlined by a heavyweight bout between Alistair Overeem and Augusto Sakai and is expected to take place at the Apex facility in Las Vegas.

Simon returned to the win column with a split decision victory over Ray Borg back in May. That win snapped a two-fight losing skid that saw Simon lose to Urijah Faber and Rob Font. Before that, the 27-year-old started his UFC career with a 3-0 run including victories over Merab Dvalishvili, Montel Jackson and Rani Yahya.

Kelleher, meanwhile, suffered defeat in his most recent outing after a unanimous decision loss to Cody Stamann at UFC 250 in June. That setback stopped a two-fight winning run that saw him submit Ode Osbourne in January and knock out Hunter Azure in May.

Both fighters will be looking for a decisive win that inserts them into the top 15 of the bantamweight division, which at the moment, may be the most stacked weight class in the UFC today.

Who do you have winning that fight?

UFC Jacksonville Highlights: Ricky Simon Edges Out Ray Borg

Ray Borg vs. Ricky Simon continued the action on the UFC Jacksonville card. The two fighters met in a bantamweight bout at the UFC Jacksonville event on Wednesday night from Jacksonville, Florida at the VyStar Veterans Memorial Arena on ESPN+. The figh…

Ray Borg vs. Ricky Simon continued the action on the UFC Jacksonville card. The two fighters met in a bantamweight bout at the UFC Jacksonville event on Wednesday night from Jacksonville, Florida at the VyStar Veterans Memorial Arena on ESPN+. The fight went all three rounds with Simon getting the split decision win. The story […]

The post UFC Jacksonville Highlights: Ricky Simon Edges Out Ray Borg appeared first on MMA News.

Ricky Simon Edges Ray Borg – UFC Jacksonville Results

Simon BorgNext up on the UFC Jacksonville main card is a bantamweight tilt between Ricky Simon and Ray Borg. Round 1: Both fighters begin swinging. Simon lands a big takedown in response and starts digging Borg’s body. Borg gets up and looks for his own takedown but Simon defends well and reverses with Borg up against […]

Simon Borg

Next up on the UFC Jacksonville main card is a bantamweight tilt between Ricky Simon and Ray Borg.

Round 1: Both fighters begin swinging. Simon lands a big takedown in response and starts digging Borg’s body. Borg gets up and looks for his own takedown but Simon defends well and reverses with Borg up against the fence. Borg goes down but gets up soon after and they return to striking. They exchange leg kicks. Simon gets another takedown soon after and remains on top for much longer as the round comes to an end.

Round 2: They strike again before Simon goes for the takedown yet again. Borg goes down but gets up soon after. Simon attempts another takedown soon after but Borg defends it this time. Simon is the more active and comfortable fighter in this fight so far. Borg lands a nice combination. Simon goes for a takedown. Borg rolls but remains controlled by Simon. Borg scrambles and they’re back to their feet. Borg lands another big combo with a nice body shot. The round comes to an end.

Round 3: We return to the bantamweights striking. Borg is looking much more comfortable and lands two big liver shots. Simon times a takedown well and keeps Borg down for some time. Borg gets up but Simon continues to control him. Simon lands an elbow which gets a smile out of Borg as they separate. Borg lands a big head kick but Simon eats it. They end the round swinging but this looks like a win for Simon.

Official result: Ricky Simon defeats Ray Borg via split decision (29-28, 28-29, 29-28).