Tag: UFC 309

Jon Jones Touts ‘Scary’ Training Partner From UFC 309 Camp As A Future Champion

Jon Jones has always surrounded himself with some of the best of the best in their chosen fields to help him in his career. During the time that he has spent at heavyweight, this means bringing in big bodies that can really push him physically day-in and day-out. The heavyweight champion’s preparations in Albuquerque clearly […]

Jon Jones has always surrounded himself with some of the best of the best in their chosen fields to help him in his career. During the time that he has spent at heavyweight, this means bringing in big bodies that can really push him physically day-in and day-out.

The heavyweight champion’s preparations in Albuquerque clearly paid off for him in his second fight in the weight class this past weekend. In the main event of UFC 309, he stopped the returning Stipe Miocic in the third round to defend his heavyweight title for the first time.

As seen in social media videos or the fight week build-up, two elite grapplers joined Jones for this camp, along with some of the boxers that he trained with. Standing side-by-side on the mats with Jones and elite grappler Gordon Ryan was the former Olympic gold medallist wrestler, Gable Steveson.

After becoming the youngest freestyle wrestler in his weight class to ever win Olympic gold having only recently turned 21-years old at the time, Steveson left Tokyo in 2021 with the world at his feet. There was a lot of talk as to whether he would move into MMA or professional wrestling and after brief stints in WWE and the NFL that didn’t work out, it looks like the Octagon could be in his future.

Jones spoke in his post-fight press conference about how Steveson showed that he had the passion and mentality to learn after offering to step-in for one of Jones’ injured sparring partners during a training session. He also referenced a video that caught the attention of fans on social media where Steveson shot in for a takedown and was hit by a knee from “Bones”.

“I kneed him in the face at one of his very first practices. He ate it, and he looked like a little kid who had just found a new toy.”

Jones believes that his teammate for this recent fight camp has all the tools he needs to succeed in MMA if he chooses to stay the course and develop his overall game. At just 24-years old, Steveson still has a lot of time to develop into a serious threat in MMA.

“He’s gonna be scary, he’s gonna be very scary when he decides to do MMA. He knows how to make men appear very weak, me being one of them. When he learns how to box and learns a little about jiu-jitsu, it’s a matter of if he’ll become a UFC champion, it’s when he’ll be a UFC champion. Whether he trains in Albuquerque with our family or finds a different team, whoever has him are going to be really blessed to have him.”

Chael Sonnen Blames Bo Nickal’s Team For Frustrating UFC 309 Performance: ‘Somebody Got A Hold Of Him!’

Bo Nickal remained undefeated at UFC 309 and earned his biggest win to date but these stats alone do not tell the full story of his performance at Madison Square Garden. The undefeated 185-pounder faced off with Scotland’s Paul Craig in a fight that many believed would be Nickal’s toughest test to date. The biggest […]

Bo Nickal remained undefeated at UFC 309 and earned his biggest win to date but these stats alone do not tell the full story of his performance at Madison Square Garden. The undefeated 185-pounder faced off with Scotland’s Paul Craig in a fight that many believed would be Nickal’s toughest test to date.

The biggest talking point heading into this match-up was whether the wrestling specialist would attempt to play to his strengths against Scotland’s Craig who is an incredibly dangerous submission artist. In the end, we didn’t get to find out how they would have matched up in this area because fight fans instead got a fairly uneventful striking match over three rounds which Nickal won without landing too many significant shots.

In a recent video on his YouTube channel in the aftermath of the UFC’s return to New York, Chael Sonnen voiced his frustrations about the fight and Nickal’s approach in particular. He believes that someone must have told the 28-year old to stay clear of Craig’s grappling and though he ended up winning the striking battle and therefore the fight, Sonnen took a lot of issue with this considering his wrestling credentials.

“My problem with it and my gripe is that you have a four-time world champion… doesn’t do one damn bit of wrestling because somebody got a hold of him. One of his trainers or his training partners sat him down and said, ‘You’re not ready to go to the ground with the guy.’ Well how the F would we know? How in the F we would know that now?”

Sonnen went on to reference Georges St-Pierre and how he would game plan for opponents in comparison. He said that the former welterweight and middleweight champion would look at his three best skill sets and rank them in order to strategize how he would approach the fight and what his back-up plans would be.

“The Bad Guy” believes that Nickal gave Craig too much respect by not sticking to what he does best, stating that this isn’t something that the middleweight prospect did when he faced elite wrestlers so would he start doing it now.

“That is nothing that Bo has ever done. He didn’t show Gabe Dean that respect, he didn’t show Miles Martin that respect, he did not show David Taylor that respect and he refuses to take down, a four-time world champion refuses to use one bit of wrestling against a guy that’s never had a wrestling match. That is because of somebody in his trusted inner circle.”

Eryk Anders Reveals Reason For Fight-Day Cancellation Of UFC 309 Matchup With Chris Weidman

Former UFC middleweight champion Chris Weidman looked to finally break his run of bad luck in New York in his scheduled bout against Eryk Anders on the UFC 309 prelims this past weekend. Unfortunately, it wasn’t to be following an announcement that happened during the broadcast of the early prelims at Madison Square Garden. Jon […]

Former UFC middleweight champion Chris Weidman looked to finally break his run of bad luck in New York in his scheduled bout against Eryk Anders on the UFC 309 prelims this past weekend. Unfortunately, it wasn’t to be following an announcement that happened during the broadcast of the early prelims at Madison Square Garden.

Jon Anik stated once the card went live that Anders had been forced out of the fight due to a medical issue. As a result, the card continued with 12-bouts with Weidman releasing a video on social media to give his reaction to the news shortly after the fans found out.

The day after the promotion’s return to Madison Square Garden, Anders also posted a video on social media where he explained why he was forced to withdraw on such short notice. Anders states that he was suffering from food poisoning throughout Saturday so couldn’t make the walk on fight night.

Weidman was obviously looking forward to fighting in New York for what could have been the last time in his career but Anders was also incredibly disappointed to miss out on a huge opportunity for his career also. He secured a decision win over Jamie Pickett in March to return to the win column but beating Weidman would have been a big scalp for him.

“Status update- got food poisoning Friday night and there was no way I would have been able to go out there and compete,” Anders wrote. “Super upset I didn’t get to compete at MSG against a former champ. I seriously doubt that opportunity will come around again, but it is what it is. Hopefully we can get that matchup rebooked ASAP. Thank you all for the messages of concern.”

Former Fighter Blasts ‘Cheating Steroid Rat’ Jon Jones In Reaction To UFC 309 Win: ‘Lance Armstrong Of MMA’

Jon Jones may be considered to be the greatest of all time in mixed martial arts but his incredible accomplishments inside the Octagon don’t come without come controversy along the way. For everything that “Bones” has done during his UFC tenure which is worth highlighting, there are plenty of other talking points that don’t color […]

Jon Jones may be considered to be the greatest of all time in mixed martial arts but his incredible accomplishments inside the Octagon don’t come without come controversy along the way. For everything that “Bones” has done during his UFC tenure which is worth highlighting, there are plenty of other talking points that don’t color the heavyweight champion in the best light.

Some of these examples from the past are unavoidable when reflecting on Jones’ career like his previous suspensions from the UFC whilst others, like his run-ins with the law, are more of a reflection of his public image rather than his professional achievements. Despite all of this, UFC 309 was built up as the return of the GOAT who would be defending his belt for the first and possibly last time.

Jones was able to dominate Stipe Miocic in the main event at Madison Square Garden before going on to suggest that he will be sticking around for one more fight before calling time on one of the sport’s greatest careers. One former member of the roster that didn’t take the moment to celebrate another win on Jones’ record was Mark Hunt.

Since departing the UFC, “The Super Samoan” has been incredibly critical of his former home, particularly when talking about athletes that have either been accused or found guilty of taking performance enhancing drugs. This stems from Hunt’s fight against the returning Brock Lesnar at UFC 200 where he later attempted to sue the promotion, claiming that they knew Lesnar had failed a pre-fight test but withheld the information until after the bout.

He posted on social media and referenced Jones’ somewhat murky past with the UFC’s drug-testing procedures.

“The ufc heavyweight champion of the world ladies and gentlemen there u have it a cheating steroid rat who runs into pregnant women and runs off a rat that hides under the octagon for 10 hours hiding from being tested for drugs this is your ufc heavyweight champion this is the rat u need to look upto this is the rat we promote please be upstanding and raise your glass to a company that has zero credibility worthless belt worthless champion and even more worthless rip off company any other sport this loser wouldn’t be here that’s why ufc have no credibility because they promote this garbage.”

Dan Hooker Criticizes Michael Chandler Calling For BMF Title Fight: ‘It’s Not Our Title’

Following his loss to Charles Oliveira in the co-main event of UFC 309, Michael Chandler called for two potential fights in the near future. “Iron” Mike admitted that he planned to push for the winner of the upcoming lightweight title fight between Islam Makhachev and Arman Tsarukyan which is expected to take place early next […]

Following his loss to Charles Oliveira in the co-main event of UFC 309, Michael Chandler called for two potential fights in the near future. “Iron” Mike admitted that he planned to push for the winner of the upcoming lightweight title fight between Islam Makhachev and Arman Tsarukyan which is expected to take place early next year.

After losing the first four rounds in his rematch with “Do Bronx”, which he nearly produced an all-time great comeback in during the fifth round, Chandler pivoted towards two huge match-ups that are still out there for him in the lightweight division. The most obvious of those two options is his long-awaited fight with Conor McGregor that somehow seems less likely than his other call out.

Chandler said that with Max Holloway committing to lightweight following his UFC 308 loss, he’d love the opportunity to fight for the BMF title that currently belongs to “Blessed”. Another name that is also in the mix for huge bouts at 155-pounds is Dan Hooker who commented on his former opponent’s BMF desires during a recent interview with Submission Radio.

“The Hangman” believes that contenders need to stop trying to decide who should fight for the BMF title because it’s a belt that is purely for the fans. He’s likely to be in that conversation as someone who always puts on great fights but Hooker isn’t going to start saying that this is what he wants next.

“I don’t see like Chandler calling for the BMF like why does everyone keep throwing their hands up for the BMF, it’s not up to us. It’s not our title, the BMF title is for the fans. It’s for the fans to kind of get the steam and get it together. People need to stop calling out for the BMF title brother. That’s the fans’ title, it’s their fun.”

Charles Oliveira Addresses Myriad Of Fouls From Michael Chandler At UFC 309

Former UFC lightweight champion Charles Oliveira was left frustrated by referee Keith Peterson’s officiating of this past weekend’s co-main event. Oliveira delivered one of the performances of the night at Saturday’s UFC 309 pay-per-view, where he added a second victory over former three-time Bellator champion Michael Chandler to his record. First time around, “Do Bronx” […]

Former UFC lightweight champion Charles Oliveira was left frustrated by referee Keith Peterson’s officiating of this past weekend’s co-main event.

Oliveira delivered one of the performances of the night at Saturday’s UFC 309 pay-per-view, where he added a second victory over former three-time Bellator champion Michael Chandler to his record.

First time around, “Do Bronx” was swarmed early and had to mount an incredible comeback to finish “Iron” in round two and have the 155-pound gold wrapped around his waist.

In the rematch three and a half years later at Madison Square Garden, things were simpler for the Brazilian for the most part and it was instead Chandler tasked with coming from behind.

The fifth and final frame saw the American come close to doing so after he rocked Oliveira on the feet and established a dominant position on the ground. The onslaught of strikes that followed, however, caused controversy as they largely appeared to cannon into the back of the eventual victor’s head.

And that was just the latest instance of apparent fouling, with fans highlighting fence grabs during the fight and “Do Bronx” complaining of eye pokes and glove grabbing.

During his post-fight press conference at MSG, Oliveira shed light on the multitude of fouls dealt his way at UFC 309, questioning why referee Peterson didn’t intervene a single time.

“I’m not here to criticize,” Oliveira said. “But I wanna tell you something: there were a lot of blows to the back of the head, a lot of fence grabbing. There was also some eye pokes. And I was telling the ref what was going on, I was calling for his attention and nothing would happen. I hoped that he would intervene, but nothing happened.”

This is far from the first time Chandler has been accused of deliberate fouling. He notably caught the wrath of Dustin Poirier in the aftermath of their fight after appearing to fishhook “The Diamond” during a grappling exchange.

Oliveira thankfully didn’t have to deal with that kind of foul, and he ultimately recovered from some egregious back-of-the-head blows to have his hand raised by way of a convincing unanimous decision.

He’ll now turn his attention to the expected lightweight title clash between champ Islam Makhachev and challenger Arman Tsarukyan next month in Los Angeles, as he gears up to potentially battle the winner later in the year.