Tag: UFC 296

Leon Edwards uninterested in motorcycle gift from Jon Jones after UFC 296: ‘I’ll take a Rollie though’

Leon Edwards uninterested in motorcycle gift from Jon Jones asks for Rolex after UFC 296After his UFC 296 victory over rival, Colby Covington at UFC 296 over the course of last weekend, Leon…

Leon Edwards uninterested in motorcycle gift from Jon Jones asks for Rolex after UFC 296

After his UFC 296 victory over rival, Colby Covington at UFC 296 over the course of last weekend, Leon Edwards has expressed his lack of interest in the gift of a new motorcycle from heavyweight champion, Jon Jones – instead claiming he would love to receive the gift of a new Rolex watch from the former pound-for-pound number one. 

Headlining UFC 296 over the course of the weekend in Las Vegas, Edwards defended his welterweight crown for the second time consecutively, turning in a lopsided unanimous decision win over Covington – which came following a March judging win over common-foe and former champion, Kamaru Usman. 

And off the back of his dominant victory over former interim champion, Covington, Birmingham native Edwards was praised for his win by the above-mentioned, Jones, who offered to buy him a motorcycle as a gift of appreciation. 

“Leon Edwards, I couldn’t be more happy for you,” Jon Jones posted on his official X account. “As an American champion in this game, I salute you, that was truly a job well done. Let me know if I can gift you a motorcycle or something for Christmas. Feel like I owe you one.”

Leon Edwards campaigns for Rolex from Jon Jones after UFC 296

However, appearing to turn down the gift of a new motorcycle, Edwards instead questioned Jones if he would buy him a new Rolex wristwatch.

“Respect G.O.A.T it was easy work,” Leon Edwards replied to Jon Jones. “Means a lot coming from you. I don’t ride bikes but I will take a rollie tho.” 

As far as his return to the Octagon is concerned, Edwards has shutdown a potential rematch with surging welterweight contender, Belal Muhammad, questioning if the Illinois native actually is deserving of a re-run. 

Sean Strickland ready to go on ‘All Vegan Diet’ after exploring his sensitive side during recent podcast

Sean StricklandReigning UFC middleweight champion Sean Strickland is ready to make some major life changes after an emotional appearance on…

Sean Strickland

Reigning UFC middleweight champion Sean Strickland is ready to make some major life changes after an emotional appearance on comedian Theo Von’s podcast.

‘Tarzan’ had a pretty busy weekend, picking fights with Sean O’Malley and Dricus Du Plessis at the UFC Seasonal Press Conference on Friday before getting into a full-blown fistfight with the latter while sitting in the crowd at UFC 296 in Las Vegas.

Sean Strickland hasn’t said much of the incident with ‘Stillknocks’ at T-Mobile Arena, but he made it pretty clear that his sudden attack on the No. 2 ranked contender was in retaliation for some over-the-line comments the South African made regarding Strickland’s abusive childhood.

From what it sounds like, that can of worms was busted open during Strickland’s appearance on Theo Von’s popular podcast, This Past Weekend. The episode has not yet been released, but ‘Tarzan’ offered a little tease, letting fans know that his towering walls came crashing down during their conversation.

“So I did a podcast with Theo… goddamn wall broke a little bit, allergies started to act up,” Strickland wrote. “It wasn’t my finest moment… damn demons lol Idk what to do now… I think I need to go buy an iPhone and a tesla, adopt a cat, all vegan diet… maybe start f*cking dudes IDK.. LMAO”

“It was bad,” he said on a follow-up post. “That little b*tch cry, you know the one were you prep talk yourself the whole time in your head… “stop it you p*ssy” “what the f*ck is wrong with you” “man up” lmao Think I almost bit a hole through my lip trying to stop haha…“

Sean Strickland and Dricus Du Plessis Get Their World Title Fight Started Early

Known for his often hilarious and sometimes vile hot takes on a variety of topics, Sean Strickland recently revealed that there are lines even he won’t cross. On Friday, he delivered a scathing response to Colby Covington’s disgusting comments about Leon Edwards’ father before lambasting both Sean O’Malley and Dricus Du Plessis for using his traumatic childhood against him during their verbal confrontations.

24 hours later, Strickland decided to exact some revenge after someone foolishly decided to sit him and Dricus Du Plessis within reach of one another at the promotion’s final pay-per-view of the year.

Sean Strickland and Dricus Du Plessis are scheduled to headline UFC 297 in January when the promotion returns to Toronto. It will be Strickland’s first time defending the 185-pound crown since scoring a stunning unanimous decision victory over two-time titleholder Israel Adesanya in September.

Jorge Masvidal Shares Video of Donald Trump Bailing on Colby Covington’s Post-Fight Speech at UFC 296

Donald Trump bails on Colby CovingtonColby Covington dedicated most of his post-fight speech to his beloved former U.S. President, Donald Trump. Unfortunately, ol’ 45…

Donald Trump bails on Colby Covington

Colby Covington dedicated most of his post-fight speech to his beloved former U.S. President, Donald Trump. Unfortunately, ol’ 45 didn’t stick around to hear it.

With his hero sitting cageside, Covington stepped into the Octagon at UFC 296 determined to finally break through and claim his first world championship. Instead, ‘Chaos’ was once again put in his place courtesy of reigning and defending welterweight titleholder Leon Edwards. ‘Rocky’ delivered a dominant performance, walking away with a 49-46 score on all three judge’s cards.

Taking a page out of Trump’s book of excuses, Covington claimed that bias had stolen the win from him in Sin City. He then proceeded to praise the Mastermind of MAGA for the next couple of minutes… Just as Trump was leaving the building.

It was a burn so severe that Covington’s most heated rival, Jorge Masvidal, had to share it on social media.

‘Gamebred’ Predicted that Covington would ‘Fumble the Bag’ in front of Trump

The rivalry between Covington and Masvidal is the stuff of MMA legend. The two welterweight stars stepped inside the Octagon at UFC 272 for a grudge match that ultimately saw ‘Chaos’ emerge as the winner via a grinding five-round decision. However, the fight was far from done for Masvidal.

Weeks later, ‘Gamebred’ sneak-attacked Covington outside of a Miami steakhouse, fracturing his tooth in the process. Masvidal has since pleaded guilty to a misdemeanor battery charge and was sentenced to time served.

Weeks before Covington vs. Edwards went down at UFC 296, ‘Gamebred’ predicted that ‘Chaos’ would “fumble the bag” in front of Trump and the free world. Masvidal also made it clear that his business with Covington is still far from over.

“I’m going to beat his ass again somewhere at some point, somewhere…at some point yeah, I’m going to train my — and beat the living brakes out of that little b*tch,” he said (h/t Brobible).

Fans Condemn Joe Rogan’s Criticism of Leon Edwards Despite Dominating Colby Covington at UFC 296

Leon EdwardsLeon Edwards delivered a dominant performance against Colby Covington at UFC 296. ‘Rocky’ scored a decisive decision over the…

Leon Edwards

Leon Edwards delivered a dominant performance against Colby Covington at UFC 296.

‘Rocky’ scored a decisive decision over the outspoken welterweight contender at the promotion’s final pay-per-view event of the year, solidifying his status as the top dog at 170 and earning some well-deserved revenge after a series of vile comments Covington made in the days leading up to their clash in Sin City.

However, that didn’t stop Joe Rogan from throwing some shade at Edwards’ nearly perfect execution.

“What was interesting is that he made choices tonight that were not the best choices to win the fight, but almost like to prove a point,” Rogan said during the broadcast. “Like, he chose to engage Colby in grappling in moments where he did not have to, where he could have defended and got back up to his feet. I think that would be a better path to victory, where he could have completely dominated the fight, absolutely dominated it” (h/t MMA Mania).

Edwards ran away with the victory, earning a 49-46 scorecard from all three judges, but all Rogan seemed interested in talking about was the brief portion of the bout where Covington gained top control after ‘Rocky’ chose to grapple with the All-American in the final half of the fifth round.

“(Edwards) found himself on the bottom at the end of the fight getting punched by Colby, which really didn’t have to happen,” Rogan continued. “That’s not the way you wanna see a guy who’s as good as Leon Edwards fight. You don’t want to seem him make ego-based decisions when you don’t have to, especially when he’s so superior standing up.”

Fight fans were quick to lambaste Rogan’s comments on YouTube, suggesting that his disrespect toward Edwards’ performance and his lack of focus on anything, but the final minutes of the fight were due to his blatant bias toward Covington.

“Joe was sooo negative because his co-Trumper didn’t win! He only mentioned the last 30 seconds of round 5 rather than the other 24.30 minutes.”

“Rogan’s criticism is kinda weird and he was a wet blanket commentating that fifth round. Leon dominated the match from start to finish and it’s weird to try so hard to find something to criticize.”

“Imagine the only faults you have for a fighter is that he switched and fought fire with fire.”

“Leon does it and “it’s not a good decision.” (Charles) Oliveira did it in each and every one of his defenses and was praised for bringing the fight always as if he was the underdog.”

“Joe def wanted to see Colby win. Hated on Leon as if he lost when he dominated the fight lol he was visually pissed.”

“Joe is being rather critical. Leon dominated in every way. Tried to finish him in the fifth which is what joe and “DC” were telling him to do and he ends up on the bottom. They weren’t this critical towards similar fights like Vettori vs. Izzy or Santos vs. Jones. It just shows how Leon is still disrespected in America media due to him not being a big personality.”

MMA Fans Left Dumbfounded by Rogan’s ‘Hilarious’ Commentary of Edwards vs. Covington

Fight fans on X (formerly Twitter) were also unforgiving of Rogan’s ridiculous commentary during and immediately following the fight.

In all likelihood, Leon Edwards’ next welterweight title defense will be against Belal Muhammad, but many fans are already calling for Shavkat Rakhmonov to get the nod following his impressive win over Stephen ‘Wonderboy’ Thompson at UFC 296.

Islam Makhachev calls for title fight with rival Leon Edwards after UFC 296: ‘He has to be next’

Islam Makhachev calls for title fight with Leon Edwards after UFC 296 he has to be nextUndisputed lightweight champion and pound-for-pound number one, Islam Makhachev is campaigning for his own chance to become a two-division…

Islam Makhachev calls for title fight with Leon Edwards after UFC 296 he has to be next

Undisputed lightweight champion and pound-for-pound number one, Islam Makhachev is campaigning for his own chance to become a two-division titleholder, calling for a siege of the welterweight crown against Leon Edwards after taking front-row viewing at UFC 296 over the weekend.

Makhachev, the current lightweight champion, headlined UFC 294 back in October most recently, landing a successful defense of his title in a blistering first round high-kick knockout win over two-time foe, Alexander Volkanovski in the pair’s rematch in Abu Dhabi, UAE.

As for Edwards, the Birmingham native continued his run as welterweight crown holder following UFC 296 over the weekend, turning in a comprehensive and comfortable unanimous decision win over former interim champion, Colby Covington in the duo’s grudge match in Las Vegas.

Making his intentions to strike gold a division higher in a bid to become a two-weight champion, Makhachev unleashed a scathing review of Edwards’ performance against Covington in the immediate aftermath of UFC 296 – as well as the latter’s underwhelming challenge.

“I will finish both this guy,” Islam Makhachev posted on his official X account.

Islam Makhachev sets sights on Leon Edwards

And in a brief video recorded backstage after UFC 296, Makhachev claimed he should fight Edwards for welterweight gold immediately – before urging the Dana White-led promotion to find a new division gold holder. 

“Leon (Edwards) has to be next,” Islam Makhachev said. “And also, this fight [Edwards vs. Covington} was bullsh*t, man. You have to change the champion.” 

Recently shooting down a title fight rematch with former champion, Charles Oliveira off the back of their cancelled re-run at UFC 294 back in October, Makhachev welcomed the possibility of fighting former interim champion turned symbolic BMF champion, Justin Gaethje next.

“To be honest, I’ve already told I’m not that interested in rematches,” Islam Makhachev said. “Because if you want to win someone in a good way, you have to add new names.”

“There is (Justin) Gaethje, who I would say deserved a fight,” Islam Makhachev continued. “I think it would be more interesting to fight him. I think in March, maybe – most likely, yes, at the number event [UFC 299].”

Who wins in a future title fight: Islam Makhachev or Leon Edwards?

Cody Garbrandt chomps for UFC 300 fight with Deiveson Figueiredo, vows to ‘Trailblaze’ through ex-Champion

Cody Garbrandt vows to trailblaze through Deiveson Figueiredo calls for fight at UFC 300Turning in a devastating first round KO win over Brian Kelleher in his return to the Octagon at UFC…

Cody Garbrandt vows to trailblaze through Deiveson Figueiredo calls for fight at UFC 300

Turning in a devastating first round KO win over Brian Kelleher in his return to the Octagon at UFC 296 over the course of the weekend, former undisputed bantamweight champion, Cody Garbrandt remains committed to fighting former flyweight titleholder, Deiveson Figueiredo next – suggesting a showdown at UFC 300 next April.

Garbrandt, a former undisputed bantamweight gold holder, featured on the preliminary card of UFC 296 over the course of the weekend, landing a two-fight winning run for the first time since his championship coronation back in 2016 via a blistering opening round knockout of Kelleher at the bantamweight limit.

The victory came as Garbrandt’s second this year, with the Ohio native returning to 135 pounds back in March with a one-sided unanimous decision win over short-notice foe, Trevin Jones. 

For Figueiredo, the former undisputed flyweight champion made his bantamweight divisional bow earlier this month at UFC Austin, landing an impressive unanimous judging win of his own over common-foe, Rob Font in his return to the Octagon for the first time since January.

Cody Garbrandt eyes Deiveson Figueiredo fight next

And targeting a future title charge against the incumbent, Sean O’Malley, Brazilian phenom, Figueiredo has been offered a path to a title fight at bantamweight with knockout ace, Garbrandt, who echoed calls for a rescheduled bout – as soon as UFC 300 next year.

“I would love to fight Deiveson Figueiredo,” Cody Garbrandt told assembled media after UFC 296. “I think that’s a great fight – two former world champions. He’s now at the bantamweight division. That’s a fight that should have happened years ago. I was obviously taken out from COVID, but flyweight is not my weight – bantamweight is. I feel really good here, I love that fight. I talked to Sean (Shelby) about it. He’s all for it. UFC 300 – I think that would be an amazing, amazing card to put us on.”

“It gets me hungry, it gets me motivated and driven to go in there and face one of the best flyweights that came up with the bantamweight former world champion,” Cody Garbrandt continued. “We’re both on our way back to the top. That’s what we want. That’s why we’re in this sport to be the best. I think trailblazing through him puts me right to the top.” 

Who wins in a future fight: Deiveson Figueiredo or Cody Garbrandt?