Luke Rockhold almost put his hands on Brock Lesnar at UFC 226.
“The Beast” entered the Octagon after Daniel Cormier called him out following his first round starching of Stipe Miocic for the heavyweight title. Lesnar shoved Cormier immediately and the pair needed to be separated by UFC security personnel and Dana White himself in a scene that many called scripted like Lesnar’s WWE matches.
Also inside the Octagon during the debacle was former UFC middleweight champion and “DC’s” American Kickboxing Academy (AKA) teammate and training partner, Luke Rockhold.
The Californian spoke about the incident on a recent appearance on Submission Radio and revealed that he very nearly went full-out ‘Diaz brother’ on “The Beast” after he shoved Cormier. Had the new “champ champ” not maintained his composure during the situation we might have seen some absolute madness (quotes via MMA Mania):
“I was trying to judge Brock,” Rockhold said. “Brock was coming in hot and pushing ‘DC’ but ‘DC’ kept his composure and he was trying to laugh it off, so… I was trying to judge the situation because I was about to pull a Diaz brother and jump on his back and kick Brock in the head.”
It’s no secret that the Diaz brothers have a tendency to get involved in some public scuffles outside of the parameters of their professional work environment inside the Octagon.
As for Rockhold, he’s currently nursing a brutally grotesque shin injury as he prepares to make the jump up to 205 pounds after a failed bid at reclaiming the UFC middleweight title that once rested so comfortably around his waist.
Hulking No. 8 UFC middleweight Paulo Costa recently picked up arguably his biggest win by knocking out veteran Uriah Hall on the preliminary card of July 7’s UFC 226 from Vegas.
With it came a decent amount of speculation – and criticism – due to the 12-0 rising star’s unreal physique.
One such critic was surfing legend Kelly Slater, of all people, who recently commented on an Instagram post from the UFC that Costa was similar to former UFC fighter Cung Le, who was drug tested and eventually falsely busted for Human Growth Hormone (HGH) after a photo of him looking especially ripped before his fight with Michael Bisping surfaced online.
If you ask Slater, Costa makes even “The Soldier of God” look small:
Costa replied to Slater about his slight to MMA Fighting, saying that Slater simply didn’t know how the UFC’s anti-doping policy with USADA works, as he’s been tested 19 times since 2017 and has passed each one:
“Kelly Slater talked too much, said stupid things. He doesn’t understand how the anti-doping system works in the UFC, he doesn’t know how USADA works, doesn’t understand the USADA policy of testing any fighter at any moment anywhere in the world, blood and urine.
”We do random tests all the time, so if someone says a UFC fighter is fighting on the juice, to me that someone is completely ignorant about MMA, UFC, antidoping and USADA.”
The fearsome knockout artist dove into detail about the public perception of him just based on his looks, adding that they suggested he cheated instead of putting in the work for his achievements:
“It does bother me because people talk without knowing,” Costa said. “They judge me because I have a good physique, an excellent condition, and think I got this by cheating instead of hard work, diet, effort and sacrifice. I keep working really hard, so it bothers me because they diminish my work and effort. But I know where my results come from, so my conscience is clear.”
A big fight almost certainly on the horizon for him, “The Eraser” recently shot down fellow rising star Israel Adesanya’s callout after “The Last Stylebender” beat Brad Tavares in the TUF 27 Finale headliner. He’d rather have a fight with former champ Chris Weidman, however, as it would raise his ranking higher.
But in his eyes, both Weidman and Adesanya would most likely be knocked out, as he believes he’s the most powerful striker at middleweight – and perhaps even light heavy:
“I asked for a fight with Weidman because he’s ranked higher,” Costa said. “Fans might wanna see me fight Adesanya because we’re two exciting fighters. Adesanya is a striker and so am I, and that’s what fans like. We’re both undefeated. If I were a fan I would also like to see that fight, but the best scenario possible is a fight with Weidman. Not because it’s the easier fight, but because it takes me higher.
“I still believe I’m the most powerful striker in my division. Dare I say, even at light heavyweight,” Costa continued, adding that he’s open to moving up to 205 pounds one day in the future. “I’m sure that if I fought Adesanya he would get knocked out, I believe in the first round. Weidman has good chances of being knocked out as well.”
At UFC 226, Paul Felder would suffer a loss to Mike Perry via split decision, but would earn quite the moral victory by gutting out three rounds with a broken arm and even getting the nod on one judge’s scorecard. Appearing on Ariel Helwani’s MMA Show …
At UFC 226, Paul Felder would suffer a loss to Mike Perry via split decision, but would earn quite the moral victory by gutting out three rounds with a broken arm and even getting the nod on one judge’s scorecard. Appearing on Ariel Helwani’s MMA Show Monday, Paul Felder put his analyst hat back on […]
Daniel Cormier knows exactly when he will call it a career.
The UFC heavyweight and light heavyweight champion has often said he would fight twice more before retiring in the time after his title-winning knockout over Stipe Miocic at July 7’s UFC 226, with one of those bouts being a title fight against returning former champion Brock Lesnar.
The fight was all but confirmed when the WWE champion stormed the Octagon when “DC” called him out with Miocic still recovering, inciting a circus-like scene that was maligned by many MMA fans and media members. But Cormier is trying to cash in in his final fights, and as one of the finest prizefighters the sport has ever seen, it’s tough to blame him.
Cormier has teased defending his 205-pound belt one more time before fighting Lesnar due to the hulking pro wrestler’s suspension with USADA not expiring until January next year. The all-time MMA great hope Lesnar will be his next fight, but regardless of what happens, “DC” recently confirmed to Damon Martin of MMAnytt (via MMA News) that Lesnar would be his last fight:
“He’ll be the last one. He’ll be the last fight of my career,” Cormier said about Lesnar. “Will he be next? I don’t know. I hope so but I’ve still got a belt to defend at 205 [pounds] to think about.”
Cormier tabbed former champion Mauricio ‘Shogun’ Rua for his next title defense if Rua can get past Anthony Smith in the UFC Hamburg main event this Sunday, a proposition that has many wondering if he’s merely trolling perceived top contender Alexander Gustafsson. To that suggestion, Cormier played it coy:
“I’ll let you guys figure that one out.”
If he does cut back down to 205 pounds to defend his first UFC title, the possibility to his focus wavering to the huge spectacle of a monster payday against Lesnar. The two-division king said it was a concern, but as the consummate pro, he had to fulfill his duty as champion no matter the name he fought next:
“It’s going to be difficult but as a professional, you have to approach every fight the same exact way,” Cormier said about being excited to face a light heavyweight contender first before fighting Lesnar. “I would prepare myself to win and to defend the title. Any time you’re in a UFC title fight it’s a big deal and for anybody to say they didn’t up for it is crazy.
“You’re a professional. You’re a fighter. You have to get up for these events.”
Israel Adesanya wants a fight with Paulo Costa next, but the 27-year-old Brazilian has his eyes on a bigger stage.
Adesanya recently scored a dominant victory over Brad Tavares at The Ultimate Fighter (TUF) 27 Finale last week. After the fight, he said he wanted the winner of Paulo Costa vs. Uriah Hall the following night at UFC 226. Costa won that fight via second-round TKO.
The victory extended his undefeated mixed martial arts (MMA) record to 12-0. Adesanya said he’d like to fight Costa next, but UFC President Dana White said he’d like to avoid that for the time being.
Instead, Costa told MMA Junkie that he’s much more focused on a fight with former UFC middleweight champion Chris Weidman (quotes via Bloody Elbow):
“The first time I heard his name was on Friday when he fought,” said Costa. “People asked me about this fight, and I said I don’t know this guy. But if the people want this fight, let’s make this fight.
“My priority is Chris Weidman. He’s a former champion, he’s very famous in the world, and he’s higher ranked. But I’m a fighter, and the UFC decides. (UFC President) Dana White decides. I’m here to make the biggest and the greatest fights. So if he wants it and everybody wants it, I’ll fight Israel.”
Weidman hasn’t fought in a year since submitting Kelvin Gastelum at UFC on FOX 25. During that win, Weidman suffered an injury and has been sidelined ever since.
Gastelum has since earned his way into a middleweight title fight by defeating Jacare Souza, leaving Weidman without a dance partner for his return to the Octagon. Perhaps Costa will get his wish after all, but will the former champ want a more well-known foe?
N’Gannou has been largely criticized for his less-than-stellar performance against Derrick Lewis at UFC 226 earlier this year (July 7, 2018). Dana White went so far as to say that N’Gannou’s ego was “out of control,” and thus one of the reasons for the poor performance by the Cameroonian.
N’Gannou admits to having an ego but thinks his unwillingness to pull the trigger in the Lewis fight was his eventual downfall:
“If someone has an issue with you and doesn’t tell you, how would you (react) – if you haven’t seen him or talked with (him)?” N”Gannou said. “If you have an issue, tell me.”
“We are all human. I don’t necessarily agree I have an ego. I’m never one to stay down when I fell down. You have to have that ego when you’re a fighter. You have to stand there and believe you’re No. 1. That’s ego. But not the one to hurt the people around me.”
A match-up against Junior dos Santos is what the Cameroonian is hoping for next; however, N’Gannou’s immediate plans will be to open an MMA gym in his home village, where he could cultivate a deeper understanding of the sport.
“I have no injuries,” N”Gannou said. This year I want to fight. Who I want to fight exactly? I was supposed to fight Junior almost a year, 10 months ago. He just came back. Great win. So, maybe that one.”
