No. 3-ranked Brazilian jiu-jitsu ace Demian Maia has quietly become a force to be reckoned with at 170-pounds as he’s won six straight bouts, most recently submitting former title challenger Carlos Condit in the first round of their UFC on FOX 21 main event. Maia’s resume should land him dangerously close to a title shot,
No. 3-ranked Brazilian jiu-jitsu ace Demian Maia has quietly become a force to be reckoned with at 170-pounds as he’s won six straight bouts, most recently submitting former title challenger Carlos Condit in the first round of their UFC on FOX 21 main event. Maia’s resume should land him dangerously close to a title shot, but the welterweight division is currently in a state of limbo.
Newly minted titleholder Tyron Woodley, who won the belt with a brutal knockout victory over Robbie Lawler at July 30’s UFC 201, has expressed interest in bouts with big names like Georges St. Pierre and Nick Diaz, neither of which have been active in recent memory. No. 2-ranked Stephen “Wonderboy” Thompson is also well-deserving of a title shot.
No matter what lies ahead for the champion, however, Woodley doesn’t seem to be too concerned with Maia. “The Chosen One” recently said that when the two scrap Maia will not get a hold of his back (Via Bloody Elbow):
“Let me tell you something, Maia, you’re ass ain’t getting on my back when we get ready to scrap,” Woodley said. “You can write that shit all day, you ain’t getting back there, bro.”
Woodley fighting St. Pierre has appeared as a very realistic possibility given the fact that GSP has all but confirmed a return to action in recent memory. If that turns out to be the case, perhaps a bout between Maia and Thompson would make sense next.
Either way, Maia appears to be gunning for Woodley’s neck while “The Chosen One” seems confident that the strap will remain around his waist.
Former UFC welterweight title challenger Rory MacDonald has recently made headlines around MMA for a variety of topics, with most of them centering on his potentially ground-breaking deal with Bellator MMA following a 0-2 stint to close out his UFC career. Not surprisingly, “The Red King” has since called out his former employers on a
Former UFC welterweight title challenger Rory MacDonald has recently made headlines around MMA for a variety of topics, with most of them centering on his potentially ground-breaking deal with Bellator MMA following a 0-2 stint to close out his UFC career.
Not surprisingly, “The Red King” has since called out his former employers on a litany of topics such as fighter pay and treatment that are currently at the forefront of MMA’s most heated discussions.
Unfortunately, however, those headlines are going to be the extent of what we’re going to hear from this new, outspoken version of MacDonald for now, as the broken nose he suffered at against Robbie Lawler at UFC 189 and re-broke against Stephen Thompson this June will keep him out of the Bellator cage until sometime in summer 2017.
When he does begin training to return, MacDonald will make some changes to his camp. He told Ariel Helwani on ‘The MMA Hour‘ that he was going to follow the many elite fighters who have eliminated hard sparring from their training:
“I want to make sure my nose is completely healed. I didn’t do that last year after the Robbie fight. I just kind of was too hungry to get back in there and start punching people, and getting into sparring matches and stuff. I didn’t go about it smart, so this time I’ve got to take the proper (approach).
“I don’t know if it’ll be summer, but I really have to be smart about it and I have to lay off sparring. I’m really going to tone that down in my career, in general, because I’ve been doing this since I was 14 years old sparring full-grown men, so I’ve done thousands upon thousands of rounds. I’ve really just got to cool that down at this point in my career.”
When he does finally step into a Bellator cage, MacDonald plans to bring the house down with performances, where he predicts he’ll be running through opponents with dominating ease, especially in his native Canada:
“One-hundred percent, we’re coming to Canada. And like I was tweeting [Sunday], these shows are going to be big. This is going to be a legit show. You’re going to go there and it’s going to be an experience. You’re going to be talking about it on the car ride home and the next day, saying ‘oh wow, that was an amazing show, I can’t wait for the next one.’
“And I can guarantee you, I’m going to be putting on a strong fight game when I come out there for Bellator. I’m going to be dropping people like flies out there. I’m going to be coming forward and bringing the action. Without a doubt, people are going to be going crazy.”
One week after the record-breaking UFC 202 pay-per-view where Conor McGregor outlasted Nate Diaz in a back-and-forth war, Demian Maia made a thunderous statement with a sub-two-minute submission win over Carlos Condit (watch full highlights here) in the main event of last night’s (Sat., August 27, 2016) UFC on FOX 21 from Vancouver, although it may
One week after the record-breaking UFC 202 pay-per-view where Conor McGregor outlasted Nate Diaz in a back-and-forth war, Demian Maia made a thunderous statement with a sub-two-minute submission win over Carlos Condit (watch full highlights here) in the main event of last night’s (Sat., August 27, 2016) UFC on FOX 21 from Vancouver, although it may not have drummed up much attention.
Maia’s style, as perhaps the finest Brazilian jiu-jitsu practitioner in MMA today, has never been the most fan-friendly. He’s often been known to smother opponents in the early-going of bouts only to gas out later while still maintaining an irreversible top control due to the massive gap in skill he possesses over even most elite MMA fighters on the ground.
But that shouldn’t matter at all, because Maia has won six straight fights in arguably the most competitive and deep division in the UFC. Since returning to his roots of jiu-jitsu following his failed title bid at middleweight where he inexplicably got away from his most natural skillset in an attempt to out-strike his opponents, Maia has never looked more at home. That has him on the cusp of another title shot, this time at 170 pounds versus new champion Tyron Woodley, yet that’s been promised to No. 2 contender Stephen “Wonderboy” Thompson.
Speaking up at the FOX Sports 1 post-fight show following his statement victory over Condit, Maia said he could see why the UFC may pass Thompson over for him due to his age. If that ends up not the case, then Maia just hopes they sign Woodley vs. “Wonderboy” soon:
“I think so. I respect very much Thompson, he’s a great guy. Of course, I’m much older than him so if they could give it to me first, that would be great.
“If not, I hope they give (it) to him really fast and they decide and I wait to see who wins the fight.”
Maia knows that realistically, however, the fight is most likely going to go to Thompson after UFC President Dana White recently made it clear that Woodley wouldn’t get the “money fights” he wanted with Georges St-Pierre or Nick Diaz that he called out for when he snubbed Thompson mere minutes after winning the belt with a title-clinching first round knockout over Robbie Lawler in the main event of July 30’s UFC 201.
With that being the direction the promotion will probably take, Maia said he’s willing to wait for the winner of Woodley vs. Thompson, because he feels like in Condit, he just beat the man who should have been champion based on his controversial split decision loss to Lawler at January 2’s UFC 195:
“I’ll wait. I can stay active in training and doing my teaching, doing what I do everyday. The guy I fought today is not just a former champion, but he is also a guy that many people including me and I was watching Octagon-side his fight against (Robbie) Lawler and many people including me thought he won and he was supposed to be the champ.
“So what else should I do? I have six wins in a row and that’s it.”
The welterweight division got a massive shakeup after UFC 201. Tyron Woodley ascended to the top spot with a brutal first round knockout against Robbie Lawler in the main event. Since that epic win on July 30 though, things have been a lot different for the top contenders at 170. Stephen Thompson would ca out
The welterweight division got a massive shakeup after UFC 201. Tyron Woodley ascended to the top spot with a brutal first round knockout against Robbie Lawler in the main event. Since that epic win on July 30 though, things have been a lot different for the top contenders at 170. Stephen Thompson would ca out ‘The Chosen One’ moments after his epic title win, but the new champion had very different plans. Mentioning Georges St-Pierre and Nick Diaz, Woodley went well outside the lines of the divisional rankings.
‘Money fights’ were what Woodley called his next options, and unfortunately ‘Wonderboy’ was not included on this list. Following the current trend among UFC superstars, Woodley also sparked massive debate with his refusal to fight Thompson. Many pointed out ‘The Chosen One’ refusing to fight unless it was for the title in the 18 months prior to UFC 201. It seems what was good for the goose was not so good for the gander.
Wonderboy Snub
Suddenly the official rankings were even more pointless than they’d proven in the past. Thompson’s seven fight win streak that included a stunning TO over former champ Johny Hendricks was playing second fiddle to two inactive and unranked fighters. Although both GSP and Diaz are huge draws, the line between sports and entertainment was clearly being erased in this saga.
Who would Thompson ft next if not Woodley? Outside the champ there are two top five contenders squaring off in Vancouver tonight (Saturday August 27). Former interim boss Carlos Condit battles dangerous BJJ ace Demian Maia n the UFC on FOX 21 main event. Although Thompson could arguably sit out and wait for a title shot, he tells MMAJunkie that he’s willing to face the winner of tonight’s main event.
Wonderboy vs. Condit/Maia?
“I very respectfully called him out. I did not expect him to say, ‘No, I want a money fight,’” Thompson said. “Defend the title a few times. That’s how I look at it. That’s what Robbie Lawler did. That’s what the champions did before him before they started asking for money fights. Tyron was definitely preaching the other way around when he didn’t get his shot, now that he’s got the title for him to do that to me is kind of hypocritical. But whatever. it’s going to happen, it’s going to happen soon.”
“Condit has been at the top of the game for as long as he’s been in the UFC – Demian has been in the game longer than I have as well,” Thompson said at a UFC on FOX 21 fan Q&A. “I mean, yeah, if (the title shot) doesn’t happen, who else am I going to fight, to be honest? … Those are potential bouts and I want to throw down with either one of them.”
UFC welterweight champion Tyron Woodley is pumping the breaks on a Stephen ‘Wonderboy’ Thompson matchup for his first title defense. Earlier today UFC President Dana White revealed in an interview with UFC.com that the No. 2-ranked ‘Wonderboy’ will get the first shot at the new 170-pound champ, and Thompson was ecstatic to hear the news.
UFC welterweight champion Tyron Woodley is pumping the breaks on a Stephen ‘Wonderboy’ Thompson matchup for his first title defense.
Earlier today UFC President Dana White revealed in an interview with UFC.com that the No. 2-ranked ‘Wonderboy’ will get the first shot at the new 170-pound champ, and Thompson was ecstatic to hear the news.
“BOOYAH!!!!! Thank you Dana White! Thank you UFC! Extreme Thank you to all the fans that supported me and this title shot! Time to get to work and bring that belt home!!!!!”
This is apparently news to Woodley, who claims he has yet to agree to fight anyone for his first title defense, and has yet to hear from the UFC on a bout with Thompson:
Funny how there is an official fight announced and I 1) Havent spoken to anyone 2) Agreed on opponent or date 3) Signed a bout agreement. ????????
Woodley (16-3) is coming off of a thunderous first round knockout of former champion Robbie Lawler in the main event of UFC 201, in which he secured the first UFC title in his seven-year mixed martial arts (MMA) career.
Following the bout ‘The Chosen One’ began to heavily campaign for ‘super-fights’ against proven commodities such as former 170-pound kingpin Georges St-Pierre and the trash-talking Stockton Native Nick Diaz.
No official confirmation of a contest between Woodley and Thompson has yet been made, but keep in locked with LowKick and we’ll keep you updated as we learn more…
Stephen ‘Wonderboy’ Thompson is finally getting his shot at UFC gold, and he couldn’t be happier about it. Earlier today we reported that UFC President Dana White revealed in an interview with UFC.com that the No. 2-ranked welterweight will get the first shot at newly crowned 170-pound king Tyron Woodley: “Stephen ‘Wonderboy’ Thompson is going
Stephen ‘Wonderboy’ Thompson is finally getting his shot at UFC gold, and he couldn’t be happier about it.
Earlier today we reported that UFC President Dana White revealedin an interview with UFC.com that the No. 2-ranked welterweight will get the first shot at newly crowned 170-pound king Tyron Woodley:
“Stephen ‘Wonderboy’ Thompson is going to fight for the 170-pound title and then we’ll see what happens with Nick and Nate.”
Thompson didn’t waste any time to take to his official Facebook page to thank the UFC President for his long-awaited shot at UFC glory:
“BOOYAH!!!!! Thank you Dana White! Thank you UFC! Extreme Thank you to all the fans that supported me and this title shot! Time to get to work and bring that belt home!!!!!”
Thompson (13-1) is riding an extremely impressive seven-fight win streak, most recently taking home a unanimous decision victory over former title challenger Rory MacDonald at UFC Fight Night 89 after a five round war with the Canadian star.
It seems ‘Wonderboy’s’ efforts have been enough to earn him the nod for the next shot at the gold, rather than Woodley taking the ‘money fight’ against Georges St-Pierre or Nick Diaz that he’s been heavily campaigning for over the past few weeks.
No date has yet been given for the contest, but stay with LowKick for the latest on Thompson and Woodley, as well as the potential clash between the two welterweight studs.
