Tag: UFC 196

Jon Jones Willing To Fight Stipe Miocic At UFC 196 – With A Catch

It seems that everyone is throwing their name into the hat to fight Stipe Miocic for the interim heavyweight title at UFC 196. As noted, Cain Velasquez and Fabricio Werdum were scheduled to fight for the title at the event, but Velasquez pulled out of the fight on Sunday. Then, the UFC announced that Miocic

The post Jon Jones Willing To Fight Stipe Miocic At UFC 196 – With A Catch appeared first on LowKick MMA.

It seems that everyone is throwing their name into the hat to fight Stipe Miocic for the interim heavyweight title at UFC 196.

As noted, Cain Velasquez and Fabricio Werdum were scheduled to fight for the title at the event, but Velasquez pulled out of the fight on Sunday. Then, the UFC announced that Miocic would fight Werdum for the title at the event. On Monday, the UFC’s plan blew up when Werdum pulled out of the fight with injuries as well.

Former UFC light heavyweight champion Jon Jones is one of those names that is interested in fighting Miocic at UFC 196. He told a fan on Twitter that if the title is on the line, then he would fight at the event.

“If it was for the actual title I would totally do it.”

The possibility of Jones fighting at the event is slim as he is rumored to fight Daniel Cormier for the UFC light heavyweight title sometime in 2016. Jones is in great shape right now, but it’s hard to believe that the UFC would give up the opportunity to do a rematch with Jones and Cormier that would surely do big business.

UFC 196 takes place on Saturday, February 6th, 2016 from Las Vegas, Nevada at the MGM Grand Garden Arena with the main card airing on pay-per-view at 10 p.m. ET and the prelims airing on FOX Sports 1 at 8 p.m. ET and UFC Fight Pass at 6 p.m. ET.

The post Jon Jones Willing To Fight Stipe Miocic At UFC 196 – With A Catch appeared first on LowKick MMA.

The UFC Gambled Big, Lost Big With Cain Velasquez & Anthony Pettis

Today the MMA world is still digesting the fallout of this week’s unfortunate news that former heavyweight champion Cain Velasquez was forced out of his UFC 196 rematch with Fabricio Werdum due to a back injury, although it shouldn’t come as much of a surprise at this point. Werdum was originally slated to face No.

The post The UFC Gambled Big, Lost Big With Cain Velasquez & Anthony Pettis appeared first on LowKick MMA.

Today the MMA world is still digesting the fallout of this week’s unfortunate news that former heavyweight champion Cain Velasquez was forced out of his UFC 196 rematch with Fabricio Werdum due to a back injury, although it shouldn’t come as much of a surprise at this point.

Werdum was originally slated to face No. 2-ranked late replacement Stipe Miocic for the interim belt, but that bout also fell apart yesterday afternoon when ‘Vai Cavalo’ bowed out with another back injury after stating he would have fought through it in order to face Velasquez. Regardless of that tenuous situation, it was obviously the former champ that set this ultimately messy windfall into motion.

Long thought to be the UFC’s meal ticket to the largely untapped but fight-crazed Latin American market, Velasquez was forced out of yet another high-profile pay-per-view title fight, calling his career into question while simultaneously doing the same thing for the UFC’s insistence to basically let the entire direction of the heavyweight division be dictated by the frequently injured fighter’s scant availability.

It’s also called into question the training practices at Velasquez’ heralded American Kickboxing Academy (AKA); at least even more so than the already intense scrutiny they’ve had to absorb after both Velasquez and absent lightweight contender Khabib Nurmagomedov have missed a huge chunk of their prime due to injuries supposedly suffered because of AKA’s rough-and-tumble training methods.

Whatever the reason, the UFC gambled big on Velasquez, and he isn’t the first expectedly marketable former champion that they’ve done this with to devastating results.

The promotion also has egg on its face in the huge hype and promotion of former lightweight champion Anthony Pettis, another oft-injured and unreliable ‘superstar’ that gained his reputation in no small part thanks to one highlight reel move that will forever be etched into MMA history – his ‘Showtime Kick’ on Benson Henderson that helped him win the WEC title back in 2010.

While the obviously talented, handsome, articulated, and flashy ‘Showtime’ undoubtedly had many of the pieces to become a unique superstar in the UFC, ultimately he has, to this point, proved to be both injury prone and ineffective against the smothering wrestlers populating his division, and that’s lead to another absence of payoff in another proposed star that just didn’t pan out.

And the UFC could have avoided both of those scenarios, but this is what happens when you put too many of your proverbial eggs in one (or two) baskets. Let’s take a look at where things went wrong for Dana White and company, starting with the case of Velasquez….

The post The UFC Gambled Big, Lost Big With Cain Velasquez & Anthony Pettis appeared first on LowKick MMA.

Fabricio Werdum Pulls Out Of Miocic Fight, UFC 196 Left Without Main Event

fabricio-werdum-3

It looks like UFC Heavyweight Champion Fabricio Werdum was only interested in proving that he is better than Cain Velasquez on February 6th.

After it became clear that Velasquez was out of the scheduled rematch with Werdum on 2/6, Werdum was informed that he would instead be defending his title against highly regarded contender Stipe Miocic.

Unfortunately for the UFC, that was apparently not a good enough replacement for the Brazilian champ.

Werdum announced on Monday afternoon that he was already dealing with an injury, and because Velasquez is out of the fight due to injury, he is going to pull out as well.

“I was already injured,” Werdum said. “I have a foot injury, and haven’t been able to throw kicks in training for two weeks. I would still fight Cain because I was injured the last time, but I also hurt my back last Friday. I went to the doctor, tried to continue training, but couldn’t spar as I should spar.

“I decided not to fight because I’m not 100 percent,” he continued. “If Cain was the opponent, I would go on. It’s not his fault, it’s nobody’s fault. Injuries happen. You can’t avoid them. I have no option. I made this decision because I’m not feeling 100 percent.”

Werdum says he’s “still confused” about everything that happened.

“I made this decision together with my team,” he said. “We decided not to fight. Cain can’t fight. I was going to hide the injury one more time, like I always did. I tried to hide it, but couldn’t this time. I can’t fight if I’m not 100 percent to put on a show like I always did.”

fabricio-werdum-3

It looks like UFC Heavyweight Champion Fabricio Werdum was only interested in proving that he is better than Cain Velasquez on February 6th.

After it became clear that Velasquez was out of the scheduled rematch with Werdum on 2/6, Werdum was informed that he would instead be defending his title against highly regarded contender Stipe Miocic.

Unfortunately for the UFC, that was apparently not a good enough replacement for the Brazilian champ.

Werdum announced on Monday afternoon that he was already dealing with an injury, and because Velasquez is out of the fight due to injury, he is going to pull out as well.

“I was already injured,” Werdum said. “I have a foot injury, and haven’t been able to throw kicks in training for two weeks. I would still fight Cain because I was injured the last time, but I also hurt my back last Friday. I went to the doctor, tried to continue training, but couldn’t spar as I should spar.

“I decided not to fight because I’m not 100 percent,” he continued. “If Cain was the opponent, I would go on. It’s not his fault, it’s nobody’s fault. Injuries happen. You can’t avoid them. I have no option. I made this decision because I’m not feeling 100 percent.”

Werdum says he’s “still confused” about everything that happened.

“I made this decision together with my team,” he said. “We decided not to fight. Cain can’t fight. I was going to hide the injury one more time, like I always did. I tried to hide it, but couldn’t this time. I can’t fight if I’m not 100 percent to put on a show like I always did.”

Josh Barnett Offers To Fight Stipe Miocic For Heavyweight Title

The UFC’s heavyweight division has been thrown for quite the loop in the past two days. Yesterday (January 24, 2015) it was announced that former champion Cain Velasquez was out of his scheduled rematch with champion Fabricio Werdum at February 6’s UFC 196 due to injury. No. 2-ranked Stipe Miocic quickly stepped in to take

The post Josh Barnett Offers To Fight Stipe Miocic For Heavyweight Title appeared first on LowKick MMA.

The UFC’s heavyweight division has been thrown for quite the loop in the past two days.

Yesterday (January 24, 2015) it was announced that former champion Cain Velasquez was out of his scheduled rematch with champion Fabricio Werdum at February 6’s UFC 196 due to injury. No. 2-ranked Stipe Miocic quickly stepped in to take on “Vai Cavalo”, but it was reported earlier today that the Brazilian was also pulling out of the bout due to an injury, leaving the promotion and Miocic in a limbo.

In the midst of all of the commotion, No. 8-ranked former divisional king Josh “The Warmaster” Barnett, who’s slated to meet Ben Rothwell at this weekend’s UFC on FOX 18, offered to take on Miocic for the title if need be:

“If they page me 911, if they send me the number, I will absolutely take the fight,” Barnett told MMAFighting. “If they want a heavyweight championship main event, I’m your man. I’ll go in. I’ll take care of business and I’ll give them what they want. I’ll give them what they need, which is a healthy, motivated championship fighter. That’s what they’ll get.”

“Interim title,” Barnett said. “It’s set up for a title match. Let’s keep it going. That’s what they need on Super Bowl weekend. They need a title fight. They need a heavyweight title fight. That’s what we can provide. Former champ and a No. 1 contender. That’s what people want to see.  They want to see championship level fights. They want to see the top guys go at it. We can do it.”

“The Warmaster” continued on, saying that he’s completely healthy, and if it were up to him he would go five rounds for the title right now:

“I’m ready,” Barnett said. “I’m willing. I’m capable. I’ll fight Stipe. I’ll go five rounds for a heavyweight title right now. We’re good.”

“For whatever reason, Werdum is hurt, Cain is hurt,” Barnett said, “Stipe stepped up and now Stipe doesn’t have a partner to dance with. I’ll dance with him. And then we’ll fight. And then maybe I’ll dance with him again afterwards. A nice slow one. When we’re all beat up and bruised and battered. When we’re vulnerable. That’s the time to go cheek to cheek on the dance floor.”

Although an interesting proposition, the idea is quite unlikely given Barnett’s upcoming fight, and the fact that Werdum should only be out for a few months.

“The Warmaster’s” opponent, Rothwell, also took to his official twitter account to voice his displeasure towards the idea:

What should the UFC do regarding not only UFC 196, but the heavyweight division in general?

The post Josh Barnett Offers To Fight Stipe Miocic For Heavyweight Title appeared first on LowKick MMA.

Werdum Would’ve Fought Velasquez Injured, Miocic’s Manager Blasts Champ

Reigning UFC heavyweight champion Fabricio “Vai Cavalo” Werdum was supposed to defend his title for the very first time at February 6, 2016’s UFC 196 in a rematch against former boss Cain Velasquez. Things were shaken up, however, when Velasquez was forced out of the bout yesterday (January 24, 2015) due to a back injury

The post Werdum Would’ve Fought Velasquez Injured, Miocic’s Manager Blasts Champ appeared first on LowKick MMA.

Reigning UFC heavyweight champion Fabricio “Vai Cavalo” Werdum was supposed to defend his title for the very first time at February 6, 2016’s UFC 196 in a rematch against former boss Cain Velasquez.

Things were shaken up, however, when Velasquez was forced out of the bout yesterday (January 24, 2015) due to a back injury suffered in training. The UFC quickly announced that No. 2-ranked Stipe Miocic would step up on short notice to battle Werdum for the title, which is why fans were so shocked to hear today (January 25, 2016) that Werdum will also be pulling out of the fight due to an injury.

Speaking with MMAFighting.com, “Vai Cavalo” elaborated on his injury, adding in that if Velasquez hadn’t pulled out that he would’ve still fought:

“I was already injured,” Werdum told Brazilian journalists on Monday. “I have a foot injury, and haven’t been able to throw kicks in training for two weeks. I would still fight Cain because I was injured the last time, but I also hurt my back last Friday. I went to the doctor, tried to continue training, but couldn’t spar as I should spar.

“I decided not to fight because I’m not 100 percent,” he continued. “If Cain was the opponent, I would go on. It’s not his fault, it’s nobody’s fault. Injuries happen. You can’t avoid them. I have no option. I made this decision because I’m not feeling 100 percent.”

Team Miocic wasn’t too pleased with this, as the Croatian’s manger said a champion shouldn’t “pick and choose opponents”:

“We’re extremely disappointed to hear that Werdum is pulling out of the fight,” Miocic’s manager, Greg Kalikas, told MMAFighting.com via text message. “If he’s [Werdum is] healthy enough to defend against Cain, we can’t understand why he’s not healthy enough to fight Stipe, who would only have 12 days to prepare for him as it stands.

“A champion shouldn’t pick and choose opponents. A true champion fights all comers. If he won’t fight Stipe with a short camp, are we supposed to believe he’d fight Stipe coming off a full training camp? No, he wouldn’t… and that’s a bad look for the supposed best heavyweight on the planet. All we can hope is that Werdum ‘heals’ up quick and will agree to fight Stipe sooner rather than later.”

Do you agree with Miocic’s manager, or should Werdum heal up and fight at his best?

The post Werdum Would’ve Fought Velasquez Injured, Miocic’s Manager Blasts Champ appeared first on LowKick MMA.

Fabricio Werdum Joins Cain Velasquez, Pulls out of UFC’s Super Bowl Fight Card

When it rains, it pours for the UFC.
Less than 24 hours after UFC President Dana White announced heavyweight top contender Cain Velasquez was pulling out of the UFC 196 main event due to a back injury, MMAFighting.com’s Guilherme Cruz revealed heavywei…

When it rains, it pours for the UFC.

Less than 24 hours after UFC President Dana White announced heavyweight top contender Cain Velasquez was pulling out of the UFC 196 main event due to a back injury, MMAFighting.com‘s Guilherme Cruz revealed heavyweight champion Fabricio Werdum is joining him.

“I was already injured,” Werdum told the Brazilian media (h/t MMAFighting.com’s Cruz). “I have a foot injury, and haven’t been able to throw kicks in training for two weeks. I would still fight Cain because I was injured the last time, but I also hurt my back last Friday. I went to the doctor, tried to continue training, but couldn’t spar as I should spar.”

Just two weeks removed from the event, the UFC’s annual Super Bowl Weekend card now lacks a proper main event, and it’s unclear if that can be remedied. 

Most of the UFC’s other champions are indisposed at the moment, with Conor McGregor and Holly Holm both booked for UFC 197, Dominick Cruz still recovering from his win over TJ Dillashaw two weeks ago and other champions like Luke Rockhold and Daniel Cormier likely unable to make weight in time for the event. While the UFC is still looking for a way to keep Werdum on the card, per Ariel Helwani of MMAFighting.com, it feels unlikely things will change.

The card’s co-main event, Johny Hendricks vs. Stephen Thompson, lacks the star power to assume top billing, and none of the other fights on the card feature current contenders. 

Making matters more complicated, in the hours between Velasquez’s withdrawal and Werdum’s, the UFC had announced hard-hitting Cleveland native Stipe Miocic was the new heavyweight title challenger. It is not yet known if the UFC intends to pull him from the card, leave him in the main event spot or simply call mulligan on his contender status.

The UFC is undoubtedly scrambling to come up with a makeshift solution, but it’s unclear if they’ll be able to sort everything out in time. 

Read more MMA news on BleacherReport.com