Tag: Robelis Despaigne

UFC Cuts Robelis Despaigne Seven Months On From 18-Second Debut KO

Things have only gone downhill for heavyweight Robelis Despaigne since his victorious UFC debut this past April, culminating in his release from the promotion this week. Despaigne arrived on mixed martial arts’ biggest stage this year with plenty of hype around him. That was owing to both his Olympic medal-winning success in taekwondo and violent […]

Continue Reading UFC Cuts Robelis Despaigne Seven Months On From 18-Second Debut KO at MMA News.

Things have only gone downhill for heavyweight Robelis Despaigne since his victorious UFC debut this past April, culminating in his release from the promotion this week.

Despaigne arrived on mixed martial arts’ biggest stage this year with plenty of hype around him. That was owing to both his Olympic medal-winning success in taekwondo and violent start to his MMA career.

Off the back of four straight first-round knockouts that totaled just 37 seconds of cage time, the Cuban powerhouse debuted in the Octagon at UFC 299 in Miami this past March. He made an immediate impact, continuing his brutal run by stopping Josh Parisian in just 18 seconds.

Unfortunately for Despaigne, he peaked early. Two convincing defeats to Waldo Cortes-Acosta and Austen Lane followed, with “The Big Boy’s” expected grappling deficiencies being exposed in both.

And his recent setback opposite Lane at the Apex turned out to be all she wrote for his brief stint in MMA’s leading organization.

The promotion has parted ways with Despaigne, as first reported by @UFCRosterWatch on X and later confirmed by MMA Fighting’s Guilherme Cruz.

The UFC roster has been getting frequent purges as of late, seemingly to make room for the 42 fighters who earned contracts on this year’s edition of Dana White’s Contender Series.

And the latest saw Despaigne join six others outside of the organization, the most high-profile of which being top-10 flyweight Matheus Nicolau. The longtime contender had competed in the UFC since 2015, defeating the likes of Louis Smolka, Tim Elliott, Matt Schnell, and Manel Kape.

Elsewhere, Jessica Penna, Tamires Vidal, Vinicius Salvador, Charalampos Grigoriou, and Jesse Butler have all entered free agency.

Continue Reading UFC Cuts Robelis Despaigne Seven Months On From 18-Second Debut KO at MMA News.

Hype train derailed! Robelis Despaigne suffers decisive loss against Waldo Cortes-Acosta – UFC St. Louis Highlights

Hype train derailed! Robelis Despaigne suffers decisive loss against Waldo Cortes-Acosta - UFC St. Louis HighlightsCuban MMA standout Robelis Despaigne suffered the first setback of his mixed martial arts career following a lackluster performance…

Hype train derailed! Robelis Despaigne suffers decisive loss against Waldo Cortes-Acosta - UFC St. Louis Highlights

Cuban MMA standout Robelis Despaigne suffered the first setback of his mixed martial arts career following a lackluster performance at UFC St. Louis.

‘The Big Boy’ entered his Saturday night clash with ‘Salsa Boy’ Waldo Cortes-Acosta with a perfect 5-0 record with all of those wins coming by way of knockout in the opening round. Unfortunately, Despaigne could not deliver another highlight-reel knockout — or much of anything else for that matter.

Looking for another quick finish, Despaigne instead found himself taken down and put on his back for much of the bout. Cortes-Acosta offered little in the way of offense, but his nearly 10 minutes of control time was more than enough to earn him the win on all three judges’ scorecards.

Robelis Despaigne

Official Result: Waldo Cortes-Acosta def. Robelis Despaigne via unanimous decision (30-27, 30-27, 30-26)

Robelis Despaigne

Cortes-Acosta moved to 12-1 in his mixed martial arts career and is 5-1 under the UFC banner.

Check Out Highlights From Robelis Despaigne vs. Waldo Cortes-Acosta at UFC St. Louis:

Hype train derailed! Robelis Despaigne suffers decisive loss against Waldo Cortes-Acosta – UFC St. Louis Highlights

Hype train derailed! Robelis Despaigne suffers decisive loss against Waldo Cortes-Acosta - UFC St. Louis HighlightsCuban MMA standout Robelis Despaigne suffered the first setback of his mixed martial arts career following a lackluster performance…

Hype train derailed! Robelis Despaigne suffers decisive loss against Waldo Cortes-Acosta - UFC St. Louis Highlights

Cuban MMA standout Robelis Despaigne suffered the first setback of his mixed martial arts career following a lackluster performance at UFC St. Louis.

‘The Big Boy’ entered his Saturday night clash with ‘Salsa Boy’ Waldo Cortes-Acosta with a perfect 5-0 record with all of those wins coming by way of knockout in the opening round. Unfortunately, Despaigne could not deliver another highlight-reel knockout — or much of anything else for that matter.

Looking for another quick finish, Despaigne instead found himself taken down and put on his back for much of the bout. Cortes-Acosta offered little in the way of offense, but his nearly 10 minutes of control time was more than enough to earn him the win on all three judges’ scorecards.

Robelis Despaigne

Official Result: Waldo Cortes-Acosta def. Robelis Despaigne via unanimous decision (30-27, 30-27, 30-26)

Robelis Despaigne

Cortes-Acosta moved to 12-1 in his mixed martial arts career and is 5-1 under the UFC banner.

Check Out Highlights From Robelis Despaigne vs. Waldo Cortes-Acosta at UFC St. Louis:

Robelis Despaigne plans title siege as soon as 2025 ahead of UFC St. Louis return: ‘It would make me proud’

Robelis Despaigne plans to fight for title in 2025 ahead of UFC return that would make me proudRobelis Despaigne is set for his second UFC appearance on Saturday at UFC St. Louis and he already has…

Robelis Despaigne plans to fight for title in 2025 ahead of UFC return that would make me proud

Robelis Despaigne is set for his second UFC appearance on Saturday at UFC St. Louis and he already has his eyes on the heavyweight title.

Despaigne is coming off an 18-second knockout win at UFC 299 in his promotional debut, as the Cuban is just 5-0 with all five wins by first-round KO, and four of the five coming in 18 seconds or less.

Robelis Despaigne UFC 299 Sam Navarro USA .webp

Heading into his second UFC fight at UFC St. Louis against Waldo Cortes-Acosta, he already has his eyes on the title and believes he could fight for the belt in 2025.

Robelis Despaigne UFC 299 Sam Navarro USA 2 webp

“Look, if all goes according to plan, I think that by the beginning of next year I’ll be fighting for the UFC heavyweight title, or at least the interim,” Robelis Despaigne told MMA Junkie in Spanish… “For me, that would be a dream to be champion of the UFC, and it would make me proud.”

If Despiagne is going to fight for the heavyweight title in 2025, he will need to get multiple fights this year and likely get a ranked opponent next. But, if he beats Cortes-Acosta it could put him in line for just that.

Robelis Despaigne Shares Prediction For Jon Jones vs. Tom Aspinall

The next heavyweight title fight could very well be Jon Jones vs. Tom Aspinall for the undisputed heavyweight title.

It’s a fight many fans have wanted to see for quite some time and if it does come to fruition, Robelis Despaigne believes Aspinall would get his hand raised.

Jon Jones confirms verbal agreement in place to make UFC return I'll let Dana White announce the date
Mandatory Credit: Jeff Bottari – Zuffa LLC

“That is a close fight, but if it’s a matter of momentum, I think that Aspinall can pull it off and win the crown,” Despaigne said. “But we know the quality that Jon Jones has, so he can always surprise.”

Regardless of who wins, the goal for Despaigne is to fight for the belt in 2025 and become the UFC heavyweight champion.

Heavyweight prospect Robelis Despaigne scores brutal 18-second knockout of Josh Parisian – UFC 299 Highlights

Robelis Despaigne scores brutal 18-Second knockout of Josh Parsian - UFC 299 HighlightsOlympic bronze medalist Robelis Despaigne delivered a memorable performance in his Octagon debut, smashing through heavyweight standout Josh Parisian…

Robelis Despaigne scores brutal 18-Second knockout of Josh Parsian - UFC 299 Highlights

Olympic bronze medalist Robelis Despaigne delivered a memorable performance in his Octagon debut, smashing through heavyweight standout Josh Parisian in just 18 seconds.

After making a name for himself on the regional scene with four straight first-round finishes, ‘The Big Boy’ continued the trend in his promotional debut at UFC 299 on Saturday night. In the opening seconds, Despaigne threw a thunderous head kick that took him off his own feet. Scrambling back up, Despaigne met the approaching Parisian with a booming right hand that immediately sent his opponent crashing to the canvas.

Parisian ate two more right hands on the canvas before the referee could step in and bring a stop to the bout.

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Official Result: Robelis Despaigne def. Josh Parisian via TKO (strikes) at 0:18 of Round 1.

It goes down as the second-fastest knockout for a debuting heavyweight in UFC history. Despaigne is now 5-0 in his mixed martial arts career and has only needed a combined 37 seconds to dispatch his last four opponents by way of knockout.

Check Out Highlights From Robelis Despaigne vs. Josh Parisian at UFC 299:

UFC Matchmaking Bulletin (7/29-8/4): Geoff Neal, Rob Font, Robelis Despaigne, & More Get Next Fights

MMA News has you covered with this week’s UFC matchmaking bulletin, featuring all the additions to the upcoming cards. With UFC events being held most weekends, Mick Maynard and Sean Shelby have their matchmaking work cut out if they’re to fill them, meaning new bouts are confirmed each and every week. In recent days, a […]

Continue Reading UFC Matchmaking Bulletin (7/29-8/4): Geoff Neal, Rob Font, Robelis Despaigne, & More Get Next Fights at MMA News.

MMA News has you covered with this week’s UFC matchmaking bulletin, featuring all the additions to the upcoming cards.

With UFC events being held most weekends, Mick Maynard and Sean Shelby have their matchmaking work cut out if they’re to fill them, meaning new bouts are confirmed each and every week.

In recent days, a few notable fights were made official by the UFC or reported by reputable sources. For more information on those matchups, check out the links below:

A number of lower-profile matchups also came together. For those, check out this week’s quick hits:

But it wasn’t all positive, with two fights falling through or being adjusted. For those, see below:

Continue Reading UFC Matchmaking Bulletin (7/29-8/4): Geoff Neal, Rob Font, Robelis Despaigne, & More Get Next Fights at MMA News.