Tag: UFC 273

Watch: When Alexander Volkanovski Beat Up Two Social Media Stars Ahead Of UFC 273

Alexander VolkanovskiUFC featherweight champion Alexander Volkanovski trained with comedy duo The Inspired Unemployed ahead of his clinical performance against The Korean Zombie at UFC 273. Alexander Volkanovski is on a dominant run to cement his place as the GOAT in the sport. In his most recent outing, ‘The Great’ extended his win streak to 21 when […]

Alexander Volkanovski

UFC featherweight champion Alexander Volkanovski trained with comedy duo The Inspired Unemployed ahead of his clinical performance against The Korean Zombie at UFC 273.

Alexander Volkanovski is on a dominant run to cement his place as the GOAT in the sport. In his most recent outing, ‘The Great’ extended his win streak to 21 when he dispatched Chan Sung Jung earlier this month at UFC 273. After three lopsided rounds in the champ’s favor, referee Herb Dean had seen enough and called off the contest in the fourth round as ‘The Korean Zombie’ wobbled back to the middle of the cage.

Although he was originally scheduled to fight Max Holloway, Volkanovski impressed most fans with a show for the ages.

In new footage that recently surfaced, the 33-year-old fighter can be seen practicing with social media stars Jack Steele and Matt Ford just days out from the event. As the Aussie fighter worked the pads, he was interrupted by the former tradies who offered him advice for his face-off against ‘The Korean Zombie’.

Ford recommended Volkanovski catch his opponent off guard from the very beginning, and then strike when he least expects it.

Volkanovski improvised a different game plan for the moment as he landed a flurry of punches in response to Ford’s genius suggestion. He even landed a crunching leg kick that saw Steele crumble down to the ground.

Alexander Volkanovski talks UFC 273 performance

Alexander Volkanovski reconnected with the social media sensations in New York following UFC 273 in Florida. The champ explained his thought process during the savage beatdown he put on ‘The Korean Zombie’. Talking about his commanding display, Volkanovski said, “It is crazy, I always believed I was capable of this. No one has ever done that to Zombie. I’m not just the champion, I am absolutely smashing these guys.”

He believes Zombie was not up to match his speed and seemed confused by the featherweight king’s tactics inside the octagon.

“He was a lot slower than I was, I could see he was puzzled by what I was doing. I started feeling bad towards the end, he was just too tough for his own good. He was eating some big shots and I remember punching thinking ‘ow this is hurting my hands’ and his face was getting worse and worse.” (h/t Daily Mail)

It looks like Volkanovski was worried for Zombie in the fourth round as he saw him walk back to the middle of the cage for the fourth round/ 

“In the fourth round, you can see on the footage he sort of wobbled as he came to the middle and I was just like stop the fight, I ended up saying to him ‘are you alright?’ and he was like ‘yeah’ and it obviously wasn’t long before I took him out.”

Is Alexander Volkanovski the featherweight GOAT?

T.J. Dillashaw Expects ‘Easy’ Title Fight Against Aljamain Sterling: ‘He’s Not Championship Calibre’

T.J. DillashawFormer two-time UFC bantamweight champion, T.J. Dillashaw has claimed that a future championship challenge against current division titleholder, Aljamain Sterling would be “easy” for him from a stylistic viewpoint, claiming that the Uniondale gold holder is not “championships calibre”. Dillashaw, a former two-time undisputed bantamweight champion, most recently featured back in July in his return […]

T.J. Dillashaw

Former two-time UFC bantamweight champion, T.J. Dillashaw has claimed that a future championship challenge against current division titleholder, Aljamain Sterling would be “easy” for him from a stylistic viewpoint, claiming that the Uniondale gold holder is not “championships calibre”.

Dillashaw, a former two-time undisputed bantamweight champion, most recently featured back in July in his return from a two-year retroactive USADA suspension – headlining UFC Vegas 32 in a close, debated split decision win over common-opponent, Cory Sandhagen.

The victory returned Dillashaw to the winner’s enclosure after he suffered a one-sided first round knockout loss to former flyweight champion, Henry Cejudo in the main event of UFC Fight Night Brooklyn in January 2019.

In the time since his victory over Sandhagen, Dillashaw has been recovering and rehabilitating after suffering a knee injury against the Colorado native, but is still expecting to challenge for Octagon gold in his immediate return to active competition.

T.J. Dillashaw received a call out from Aljamain Sterling after UFC 273 this month

Appearing at UFC 273 earlier month in Jacksonville, Florida – Dillashaw was the subject of a call out from undisputed bantamweight best, Sterling, who welcomed a title defense against the Angels Camp native next.

Sharing his thoughts on a fight with Sterling in his return to the Octagon, Dillashaw claimed that a title affair with the New York native would be relatively easy work for him from a stylistic viewpoint.

“I’m not too worried about (Aljamain) Sterling, that call out, (it’s) a pretty easy fight for me to be honest,” T.J. Dillashaw said during a recent interview with ESPN MMA. “And maybe I’ll just to my training camp here on the beach with drink in hand and get the job done, you know.” 

“I think it’s gonna be real good,” T.J. Dillashaw explained. “Congratulations to him (Aljamain Sterling) in implementing his game plan in the fight, and he showed some weaknesses in (Petr) Yan. But, yeah, stylistically that fights perfect for me. He can say anything he wants, but he ain’t gonna be champion for much longer.”

Dillashaw then claimed that Sterling offers no real danger to him, and whilst he complimented the attributes he possessed to land him a championship, all-in-all, he does not believe Sterling is of a championship calibre.

“I mean, he’s good – don’t get me wrong,” T.J. Dillashaw said. “He’s got some attributes. He wouldn’t be were he is if he wasn’t good, but he’s definitely not champion calibre. The guys that I’ve fought already in the past – much better than he is, more dangerous. There’s no danger fighting Sterling… there’s no way he’s going to be out-grappling me, his striking is straight pathetic. I’m surprised he is where he is. And stylistically, it’s a good fight for me.”

Aljamain Sterling Says He’d Get A Beer With Rival Petr Yan

UFC Bantamweight Champion Aljamain Sterling says his beef with Petr Yan is strictly based on competitiveness inside the Octagon. Sterling edged out Yan via split decision in their rematch at UFC 273. Their rematch took more than a year after their first fight ended in disqualification after Yan landed an illegal knee late in the…

Continue Reading Aljamain Sterling Says He’d Get A Beer With Rival Petr Yan at MMA News.

UFC Bantamweight Champion Aljamain Sterling says his beef with Petr Yan is strictly based on competitiveness inside the Octagon.

Sterling edged out Yan via split decision in their rematch at UFC 273. Their rematch took more than a year after their first fight ended in disqualification after Yan landed an illegal knee late in the fight.

Similar to their first fight, there was plenty of tension between Yan and Sterling before their UFC 273 matchup. The two went at it on social media for months before finally getting the chance to settle the score in the Octagon.

During a recent interview with Ariel Helwani on The MMA Hour, Sterling explained why he doesn’t wish any ill-will toward Yan after their two heated clashes.

“It was never personal in the sense of, ‘Oh my god, I can’t stand this guy’,” Sterling clarified. “I would have a beer with the guy. We would probably be talking shit to each other the entire time, but I think the competitiveness between us is just we just believe that both of us are the best. When you have two guys that believe that, it’s only natural for guys to butt heads.”

Sterling is expected to face former bantamweight champion TJ Dillashaw next instead of an immediate trilogy with Yan. Despite the disappointing result, Yan seems motivated to eventually get his belt back and revenge against Sterling.

Sterling vs. Yan was perceived by some to be one of the most heated rivalries in UFC bantamweight history. But according to Sterling, it’s not as personal as many fans have been led to believe.

Would you be surprised if Aljamain Sterling and Petr Yan became friends?

Continue Reading Aljamain Sterling Says He’d Get A Beer With Rival Petr Yan at MMA News.

Muhammad: Sterling Win Motivated Me To Prove The Haters Wrong

UFC welterweight contender Belal Muhammad has revealed how Aljamain Sterling’s successful title defense at UFC 273 motivated him ahead of his main event this past weekend. At UFC Vegas 51, Muhammad continued his charge towards the title by extending his win streak to three and his unbeaten run to eight straight fights. “Remember The Name”…

Continue Reading Muhammad: Sterling Win Motivated Me To Prove The Haters Wrong at MMA News.

UFC welterweight contender Belal Muhammad has revealed how Aljamain Sterling’s successful title defense at UFC 273 motivated him ahead of his main event this past weekend.

At UFC Vegas 51, Muhammad continued his charge towards the title by extending his win streak to three and his unbeaten run to eight straight fights. “Remember The Name” did so by avenging his 2016 knockout loss to Vicente Luque.

The victory, which marked his first headline triumph in MMA’s premier promotion, secured Muhammad a place inside the welterweight top five, meaning he’s likely just one more win away from a shot at gold.

Despite his 2021 triumphs over Demian Maia and Stephen Thompson, Muhammad had his fair share of detractors heading into his first appearance of 2022. By dispatching Luque, who was in hot form and tipped by many to earn a title shot soon, the Chicago native certainly scored a point over his doubters.

His scenario is certainly similar to that of 135-pound king Sterling, who, like Muhammad, recently achieved the feat of silencing his doubters. “Funk Master” proved his naysayers wrong in the UFC 273 co-main event on April 9, earning a split decision win against heavy favorite Petr Yan.

In an interview with ESPN MMA’s Marc Raimondi, Muhammad compared the hate he and Sterling have received and expressed joy at seeing the New York native have the gold wrapped around his waist without the controversy of a disqualification.

“Aljamain got illegally kneed, and people hate him for that. I got poked, and that’s when it like, swings at me that I’m a crybaby now. I’m like, bro, the stuff happened to us. We didn’t go out there and illegally do the stuff,” reminded Muhammad. “It’s weird how it just changes. It’s funny and it’s great seeing it. He was doubted by so many people and hated by so many people before (UFC 273)… It felt good seeing them actually put (the title) around his waist.”

Muhammad went on to state that Sterling’s against-the-odds success in Jacksonville inspired him to stick it to his own doubters a week later in Las Vegas.

“He proved a lot of haters and doubters wrong, and it motivated me to prove the haters and doubters wrong. Everybody told me I’m gonna get knocked out, I’m gonna go out there and I’m gonna lose,” continued Muhammad. “The same way as, ‘Oh, Yan was killing Aljamain the first fight,’ I got, ‘You got knocked out the first fight, you’re gonna get knocked out again.’ So, it felt good to get that one up over all of them.”

Muhammad will now be hoping to go even further by reaching the top of the welterweight mountaintop. For his remaining doubters, the presence of gold around his waist would certainly damage their line of argument.

Were you impressed by Belal Muhammad’s performance against Vicente Luque at UFC Vegas 51?

Continue Reading Muhammad: Sterling Win Motivated Me To Prove The Haters Wrong at MMA News.

Muhammad: Sterling Win Motivated Me To Prove The Haters Wrong

UFC welterweight contender Belal Muhammad has revealed how Aljamain Sterling’s successful title defense at UFC 273 motivated him ahead of his main event this past weekend. At UFC Vegas 51, Muhammad continued his charge towards the title by extending his win streak to three and his unbeaten run to eight straight fights. “Remember The Name”…

Continue Reading Muhammad: Sterling Win Motivated Me To Prove The Haters Wrong at MMA News.

UFC welterweight contender Belal Muhammad has revealed how Aljamain Sterling’s successful title defense at UFC 273 motivated him ahead of his main event this past weekend.

At UFC Vegas 51, Muhammad continued his charge towards the title by extending his win streak to three and his unbeaten run to eight straight fights. “Remember The Name” did so by avenging his 2016 knockout loss to Vicente Luque.

The victory, which marked his first headline triumph in MMA’s premier promotion, secured Muhammad a place inside the welterweight top five, meaning he’s likely just one more win away from a shot at gold.

Despite his 2021 triumphs over Demian Maia and Stephen Thompson, Muhammad had his fair share of detractors heading into his first appearance of 2022. By dispatching Luque, who was in hot form and tipped by many to earn a title shot soon, the Chicago native certainly scored a point over his doubters.

His scenario is certainly similar to that of 135-pound king Sterling, who, like Muhammad, recently achieved the feat of silencing his doubters. “Funk Master” proved his naysayers wrong in the UFC 273 co-main event on April 9, earning a split decision win against heavy favorite Petr Yan.

In an interview with ESPN MMA’s Marc Raimondi, Muhammad compared the hate he and Sterling have received and expressed joy at seeing the New York native have the gold wrapped around his waist without the controversy of a disqualification.

“Aljamain got illegally kneed, and people hate him for that. I got poked, and that’s when it like, swings at me that I’m a crybaby now. I’m like, bro, the stuff happened to us. We didn’t go out there and illegally do the stuff,” reminded Muhammad. “It’s weird how it just changes. It’s funny and it’s great seeing it. He was doubted by so many people and hated by so many people before (UFC 273)… It felt good seeing them actually put (the title) around his waist.”

Muhammad went on to state that Sterling’s against-the-odds success in Jacksonville inspired him to stick it to his own doubters a week later in Las Vegas.

“He proved a lot of haters and doubters wrong, and it motivated me to prove the haters and doubters wrong. Everybody told me I’m gonna get knocked out, I’m gonna go out there and I’m gonna lose,” continued Muhammad. “The same way as, ‘Oh, Yan was killing Aljamain the first fight,’ I got, ‘You got knocked out the first fight, you’re gonna get knocked out again.’ So, it felt good to get that one up over all of them.”

Muhammad will now be hoping to go even further by reaching the top of the welterweight mountaintop. For his remaining doubters, the presence of gold around his waist would certainly damage their line of argument.

Were you impressed by Belal Muhammad’s performance against Vicente Luque at UFC Vegas 51?

Continue Reading Muhammad: Sterling Win Motivated Me To Prove The Haters Wrong at MMA News.

Stephens: Watching Chimaev/Burns Fired Me Up For Collard War At PFL 1

PFL lightweight Jeremy Stephens has named the war between Khamzat Chimaev and Gilbert Burns as a motivation behind his own barnburner against Clay Collard. If fans thought the Fight of the Year conversation came to a close at UFC 273 earlier this month, they were sorely mistaken. At the opening event of this year’s Professional…

Continue Reading Stephens: Watching Chimaev/Burns Fired Me Up For Collard War At PFL 1 at MMA News.

PFL lightweight Jeremy Stephens has named the war between Khamzat Chimaev and Gilbert Burns as a motivation behind his own barnburner against Clay Collard.

If fans thought the Fight of the Year conversation came to a close at UFC 273 earlier this month, they were sorely mistaken. At the opening event of this year’s Professional Fighters League season, former UFC mainstay Stephens reminded fans why he’s been an ever-present in the cage since 2005.

In his promotional debut, “Lil Heathen” opened his 2022 campaign against 2021 semifinalist Collard. Despite falling short on the scorecards, Stephens certainly played his part in an entertaining and memorable brawl.

Following the contest, Stephens credited the work of two UFC welterweight stars for firing him up ahead of PFL 1 on Wednesday.

Stephens Credits Chimaev & Burns For ‘Pumping’ Him Up

During his post-fight interaction with the media, Stephens pointed to the April 9 welterweight clash between elite UFC contenders Khamzat Chimaev and Gilbert Burns. The pair threw down for three rounds inside the Octagon at the VyStar Veterans Memorial Arena in Jacksonville.

Having seen that FOTY-worthy bout, “Lil Heathen” said he was fired up to debut in the PFL with a similarly “insane” matchup. To say he did just that would certainly be an understatement.

“He was getting tired, we were banging, who wouldn’t want to see another two rounds of that, right? … That was a sick-ass fight dude,” said Stephens. “You know, I watched that Chimaev and Burns fight, and that fight really pumped me up. I was like, ‘Dude, I wanna get into a f*ckin’ fight like that.’ And coming here tonight, you know, I’ve been watching Formula One, I was ready to die tonight.

“It’s been a long f*ckin’ layoff, so it was good to come in here and have that type of scrap, have a guy with a set of balls on him to fight me like that,” added Stephens. “I think I clipped him like seven, eight times dude. That was an insane fight.”

Taking the similarities beyond just the action, Stephens followed in the footsteps of Burns, who fell short at UFC 273, by admitting his frustration at not having another two rounds inside the cage with Collard. Like “Durinho,” Stephens is targeting a five-round rematch down the line.

The PFL environment makes that a big possibility. If both Stephens and Collard qualify for the lightweight playoffs at the end of the year, they could well get some more time to exchange leather.

What did you make of Jeremy Stephens’ PFL debut?

Continue Reading Stephens: Watching Chimaev/Burns Fired Me Up For Collard War At PFL 1 at MMA News.