Tag: UFC 275

J?drzejczyk Discusses 3-Round Game Plan: Foot On the Pedal & Violence

UFC women’s strawweight Joanna J?drzejczyk is expecting a fast-paced and violent affair when she shares the Octagon with Zhang Weili for the second time. In March 2020, J?drzejczyk and Zhang collided for the 115-pound gold, delivering a five-round war worthy of a place on the Mount Rushmore of mixed martial arts fights. After 25 minutes…

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UFC women’s strawweight Joanna J?drzejczyk is expecting a fast-paced and violent affair when she shares the Octagon with Zhang Weili for the second time.

In March 2020, J?drzejczyk and Zhang collided for the 115-pound gold, delivering a five-round war worthy of a place on the Mount Rushmore of mixed martial arts fights. After 25 minutes of brutal and memorable action, it was the Chinese strawweight who emerged with the title still in her possession.

Now over two years on, the pair are set to run it back at UFC 275 tonight. While there’s no belt on the line this time, it seems to be the consensus opinion that the victor will go on to challenge newly crowned champion Carla Esparza.

Ahead of the rematch, much of the discussion has surrounded the length of the bout. While their Fight of the Year clash in 2020 saw five rounds of action, their second dance in Singapore will have a three-round duration.

With her calls to add 10 minutes to the contest falling on deaf ears, J?drzejczyk is set for a her first 15-minute fight since a 2018 victory over Tecia Torres.

What does that mean for the Polish star? She needs to be more violent, and quicker.

During an interview with MMA Junkie’s Mike Bohn, J?drzejczyk discussed her game plan heading into what will be a rare short night at the office for the 34-year-old.

“We have to (be quick), like in racing. I just have to put the gas pedal down and be first, violent, but smart, from the first second of the fight,” said J?drzejczyk. “There is no time to be wasted in this fight. We have to play my game from the first second of the fight.”

Having ventured into the world of motorsport racing during her lengthy period away from the Octagon, something she’s hoping to pursue professionally following her MMA career, J?drzejczyk knows all about speed.

And with a dance partner we know is willing to engage in a fast-paced scrap, perhaps the pair’s rematch will go someway to matching their first contest, or at least provide a worthy second showing. We’ll find out tonight at UFC 275.

Who do you think will have their hand raised at UFC 275, Joanna J?drzejczyk or Zhang Weili?

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Procházka Names The Key Battle In UFC 275 Main Event With Teixeira

UFC light heavyweight contender Ji?í Procházka has pinpointed the key in-fight battle that he expects to shape his title challenge at UFC 275. After just two appearances inside the Octagon, Procházka has earned a championship opportunity. And having followed his brutal knockout win against Volkan Oezdemir on debut by sleeping Dominick Reyes via spinning back…

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UFC light heavyweight contender Ji?í Procházka has pinpointed the key in-fight battle that he expects to shape his title challenge at UFC 275.

After just two appearances inside the Octagon, Procházka has earned a championship opportunity. And having followed his brutal knockout win against Volkan Oezdemir on debut by sleeping Dominick Reyes via spinning back elbow in a UFC Fight Night main event last year, it’s hard to argue against his credentials.

Now ranked at #2 in the division, “Denisa” will get his chance to challenge reigning champion Glover Teixeira in the UFC 275 headliner tonight.

While Procházka will be targeting a third straight victory in the Octagon and a 26th KO added to his illustrious record, Teixeira will be looking to continue his remarkable late resurgence, which has seen him win six consecutive outings and ascend the light heavyweight mountain at the age of 42.

In order to end the Brazilian’s storybook rise and reign, the Czech contender believes that there’s one key aspect of the fight game that he’ll have to emerge on the right side of: pressure.

During an interview with Combat Sports on Fanatics View, Procházka noted that both him and the titleholder enjoy piling the pressure on their opponents when the cage door shuts. The 29-year-old believes that whoever can use pressure to their advantage come fight night will get their hand raised.

“My prediction… He is a guy who is trying to keep the pressure in the fight, yeah? This is something what I like to do in a fight,” acknowledged Procházka. “So, that will be, in that fight, I think it will be a big thing, who will keep this pressure, or who will use that pressure for like, a counter weapon. So, I don’t want to expect (anything), but I’m just going for a win.”

With Texeira hinting that he may call it quits while on top later this year, Procházka will be looking to bring that retirement party forward a few months by securing his place on the throne. But given how the Brazilian dispatched his fellow European 205lber last October, that will be no easy task.

Who do you think will have their hand raised at UFC 275, Ji?í Procházka or Glover Teixeira?

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UFC 275 Results & Highlights: Procházka Submits Teixeira

UFC 275 took place tonight from the Singapore Indoor Stadium in Singapore, and MMA News has you covered with all the results and highlights! Two world championships were defended when Glover Teixeira faced dynamic finisher Ji?í Procházka for the light heavyweight championship. In the co-main event, the P4P queen Valentina Shevchenko aimed to defend her title…

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UFC 275 took place tonight from the Singapore Indoor Stadium in Singapore, and MMA News has you covered with all the results and highlights!

Two world championships were defended when Glover Teixeira faced dynamic finisher Ji?í Procházka for the light heavyweight championship.

In the co-main event, the P4P queen Valentina Shevchenko aimed to defend her title against Taila Santos. Additionally, the feature strawweight bout saw a rematch of the 2020 Fight of the Year between Zhang Weili and Joanna J?drzejczyk.

Catch all the UFC 275 highlights and results below!

Early Preliminary Card Highlights

Silvana Gomez Juarez def. Liang Na

Delivering the first finish of the night, Silvana Gomez earned a spectacular first-round KO of Liang Na in their strawweight bout. Catch the finish below.

Preliminary Card Highlights

Maheshate def. Steve Garcia

China’s Maheshate marked his UFC debut with a stunning walk-off KO of Steve Garcia in their lightweight bout. Catch the finish below.

Main Card Highlights

Jack Della Maddalena def. Ramazan Emeev

Aussie Jack Della Maddalena earned his second successive finish in the UFC with an impressive first-round TKO of Ramazan Emeev in their welterweight clash. Catch the finish below.

Jake Matthews def. Andre Fialho

After over a year on the sidelines, Jake Matthews marked his return to the Octagon with a KO victory over the highly-touted Andre Fialho. Taking place on the feet, round one saw both fighters trade heavy shots, with a frenetic exchange just before the end of the round. In round two, Matthews stepped it up a notch, rocking Fialho several times before putting him away in sensational fashion. Catch the end of the fight below.

Zhang Weili def. Joanna J?drzejczyk

Zhang Weili got back in the win column in the most spectacular way, earning a KO win over Joanna J?drzejczyk in their strawweight bout. A thrilling first round saw Zhang take J?drzejczyk down multiple times and dominate from on top, landing a series of brutal elbows. But J?drzejczyk got back to her feet late in the round, and landed some heavy blows on Zhang.

In round two, both fighters landed vicious blows, but almost out of nowhere Zhang landed a spinning back fist to knock J?drzejczyk out cold. Catch the highlights below.

Valentina Shevchenko def. Taila Santos

Valentina Shevchenko did just enough to defend her women’s flyweight title, earning a split decision win over Taila Santos.

In round one, Shevchenko dominated in the clinch before being taken down by Santos. In round two, Santos got an early takedown. Later, Shevchenko threw Santos to the canvas, but the Brazilian scrambled to reverse the position. Round three saw Santos get Shevchenko down, take her back and attempt a rear-naked choke.

In round four, a clash of heads resulted in Santos’ eye to swell up. Shevchenko then took advantage, landing several strikes before Santos scored a late takedown. The final round saw a back and forth grappling exchange, before Shevchenko landed a takedown and dominated from on top for the rest of the round. Catch the highlights below.

Ji?í Procházka def. Glover Teixeira

In a candidate for fight of the year, Ji?í Procházka captured the light heavyweight title with a late submission win over Glover Teixeira.

A thrilling, back-and-forth round one saw Teixeira land successive takedowns and some brutal strikes from on top, but after escaping, Procházka returned the favor. Round two saw Procházka land successive heavy strikes, before Teixeira took him down and landed some heavy elbows.

Round three saw Procházka get the takedown and land heavy ground and pound, before Teixeira returned the favor and pummeled the Czech from on top. Round four saw Teixeira land another takedown and attempt an arm triangle, but Procházka survived to turn the tables and land some strikes from on top.

The final round saw Teixeira rock Procházka several times, but with less than 30 seconds left the Czech sunk in a rear-naked choke to win the title. Catch the highlights below.

UFC 275 Main Card

Main Event – Light Heavyweight Title Bout: Ji?í Procházka def. Glover Teixeira via submission: R5, 4.32

Co-Main Event – Women’s Flyweight Title Bout: Valentina Shevchenko def. Taila Santos via split decision (48-47, 47-48, 49-46)

Women’s Strawweight Bout: Zhang Weili def. Joanna J?drzejczyk via KO: R2, 2.28

Welterweight Bout: Jake Matthews def. Andre Fialho via KO: R2, 2.24

Welterweight Bout: Jack Della Maddalena def. Ramazan Emeev via TKO: R1, 2.32

Preliminary Card

Featherweight Bout: Josh Culibao def. Seungwoo Choi via split decision (29-28×2, 28-29)

Lightweight Bout: Maheshate def. Steve Garcia via KO: R1, 1.14

Middleweight Bout: Brendan Allen def. Jacob Malkoun via unanimous decision (29-28×3)

Bantamweight Bout: Kyung Ho Kang def. Batgerel Danaa via unanimous decision (29-28×3)

Early Preliminary Card

Strawweight Bout: Silvana Gomez Juarez def. Liang Na via KO: R1, 1.22

Women’s Featherweight Bout: Joselyne Edwards def. Ramona Pascual via unanimous decision (30-27, 29-28×2)

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Robert Whittaker Talks Fighting Khamzat Chimaev: “It Would Be Tricky, I Would Be Firing Those Kicks Down the Middle”

Robert WhittakerAhead of UFC 275 in Singapore, Robert Whittaker answered a handful of questions from fans as he appeared on stage as a guest fighter, alongside former UFC light heavyweight champion Jan B?achowicz. One intrigued fan directed a question at Robert Whittaker, asking how he believes a fight would play out between himself and Khamzat Chimaev […]

Robert Whittaker

Ahead of UFC 275 in Singapore, Robert Whittaker answered a handful of questions from fans as he appeared on stage as a guest fighter, alongside former UFC light heavyweight champion Jan B?achowicz.

One intrigued fan directed a question at Robert Whittaker, asking how he believes a fight would play out between himself and Khamzat Chimaev after watching Chimaev and Gilbert Burns put on a fight of the year frontrunner.

Robert Whittaker Talks Khamzat Chimaev Fight

The former middleweight champion greeted the question with a laugh, before answering:

“It would be tricky. I would be firing those kicks down the middle like you would not believe. I do not think my right foot would touch the mat. He’s a tough guy. I’ve fought wrestlers before, though; I fought Yoel Romero. He’s a silver medallist, granted, he’s not that sort of type of grappling game, but I guess that’s something really haven’t thought about and have to try and digest when we get their sort of thing.”

It’s not the first time Whittaker has been forced to talk about the rising star that is Chimaev. After Chimaev earned a hard-fought decision against Burns at UFC 273, Whittaker had some words of advice in regards to the damage Chimaev absorbed.

“There are bigger guys. You can’t get away with certain things. You can’t take those shots Burns delivered on him as a middleweight.” Whittaker said.

For now, Whittaker and Chimaev are separated by one weight class. Still, the idea of the two colliding doesn’t seem a million miles away due to Chimaev’s goal of becoming both welterweight and middleweight champion.

Whittaker is set to face Marvin Vettori in the co-main event of the UFC’s first event in Paris, France, after failing to defeat middleweight Israel Adesanya for the second time. Vettori finds himself in the same position. A loss for either man would cause a major setback in both fighters’ title aspirations.

Chimaev is yet to have his next move confirmed. However, has verbally agreed on Twitter to face Belal Muhammad at the UFC’s next Abu Dhabi event on Oct.22.

Do you think a fight between Robert Whittaker and Chimaev will ever materialize?

Suarez Gives Harsh Take For All Flyweights Not Named “Shevchenko”

Undefeated UFC fighter Tatiana Suarez doesn’t believe that there’s anyone in the flyweight division who is capable of dethroning dominant champion Valentina Shevchenko. Shevchenko has ruled over the 125-pound weight class since a 2018 victory over former strawweight queen Joanna J?drzejczyk. Since then, the Kyrgyzstani has defended the gold six times, including against Jessica Eye,…

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Undefeated UFC fighter Tatiana Suarez doesn’t believe that there’s anyone in the flyweight division who is capable of dethroning dominant champion Valentina Shevchenko.

Shevchenko has ruled over the 125-pound weight class since a 2018 victory over former strawweight queen Joanna J?drzejczyk. Since then, the Kyrgyzstani has defended the gold six times, including against Jessica Eye, Katlyn Chookagian, Jennifer Maia, and Jéssica Andrade.

Having established herself as perhaps the most dominant titleholder in the UFC and risen to #1 on the women’s pound-for-pound list, Shevchenko is looking to tighten her stranglehold on the flyweight division even further at UFC 275 this weekend, where she’ll face #4-ranked contender Taila Santos.

As expected, Shevchenko will enter her seventh championship defense in Singapore as a significant favorite. But nonetheless, her Brazilian challenger is expecting to shock the world on June 11.

But for one fellow member of the UFC’s female roster, that is unlikely.

During a recent appearance on The Schmozone podcast, Tatiana Suarez who has been out of action herself since 2019, gave her thoughts on Saturday’s co-main event. As well as not giving Santos a chance at having her hand raised, the 31-year-old suggested that there’s no 125lber capable of unseating the flyweight queen.

“I think that Valentina will beat her (Santos). I don’t know if it’s just that she’s (Shevchenko) very skilled, obviously, in the striking department, but then she’s very strong, so she gets the body lock and she does that very well,” said Suarez. “She does position-grappling very well. She stays really heavy on top and she’s very patient. I just don’t think that anybody in the flyweight division has the jiu-jitsu, grappling, or anything like that to beat her.

“If you look at the division, I don’t know any — It’s kinda similar to when Ronda (Rousey) was champion. There was nobody who could beat her in the grappling department,” added Suarez. “It’s going to take somebody who’s a little bit better on the ground or wrestling, and know how to strike enough to survive there, too.”

Suarez might be hoping that the woman to end the rule of Shevchenko will be herself. At 8-0 in the Octagon, the TUF 23 winner established herself as a legitimate threat at strawweight before injuries stalled her progress, leaving her on the sidelines for three years.

Now nearing the end of what’s been a long road to recovery, Suarez is looking to re-book her flyweight debut for later this year. Should she feel strong at the weight, perhaps a title charge at 125 pounds rather than a return to 115 isn’t out of the question.

Do you agree with Tatiana Suarez? Is there anyone in the flyweight division capable of beating Valentina Shevchenko?

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Road to UFC Fighter Top Noi Kiwram Smokes Cigarette Before Entering The Octagon

Top Noi KiwramRoad to UFC competitor Top Noi Kiwram created a bit of controversy this week when the fighter admitted to smoking a cigarette just moments before his first-round bout against Yuma Horiuchi.   Kiwram moved one step closer to becoming the first fighter from Thailand to sign with the promotion after his win over Horiuchi to advance […]

Top Noi Kiwram

Road to UFC competitor Top Noi Kiwram created a bit of controversy this week when the fighter admitted to smoking a cigarette just moments before his first-round bout against Yuma Horiuchi.  

Kiwram moved one step closer to becoming the first fighter from Thailand to sign with the promotion after his win over Horiuchi to advance to the semi-finals of the tournament. In the third episode of the series which aired live from Singapore, Kiwram put on a show for the fans that saw him dance his way to the Octagon. However, what he did before entering the cage is garnering some unwanted attention. 

When asked if he smoked a cigarette before his bout, Kiwram confirmed without hesitation. “For sure, I also do every day,” said Kiwram speaking to the media following his bout.

“Why not smoke cigarettes, why not do some bad things in your life? “Why do you care? Who cares? It makes no difference on the 20 or so years of my life. Now I will have a cigarette after this, yes after this press conference I will go and smoke a cigarette.”

Top Noi Kiwram Moves Onto The Road to UFC Semi-Finals

In the first round of their contest, Kiwram showed off his proficient striking skills, knocking down his opponent in the process. Kiwram put on a show in the opening round but found himself fighting off a rear-naked choke attempt from Horiuchi in the second after being dragged down to the canvas. 

Top Noi Kiwram won the third handily with his striking and celebrated the victory before the final buzzer sounded. With the victory, Kiwram moves onto the next round of the Road to UFC. At this time no date or matchups have been announced for the semi-final portion of the tournament.