An Instagram user has pleaded with UFC middleweight, Julian Marquez to refrain from exposing abusive direct messages he had issued to the Octagon feature following his UFC Austin knockout defeat against Gregory Rodrigues last weekend, claiming that he has now himself received backlash for his comments. Julian Marquez, a five-fight Octagon veteran and product of […]
Julian Marquez, a five-fight Octagon veteran and product of Dana White’s Contender Series, featuring opposite grappling standout, Rodrigues at UFC Austin last weekend at the Moody Center, suffering a first round knockout defeat.
Julian Marquez landed in the UFC following a high kick KO win against Phil Hawes at DWCS
Following the loss, the Missouri native revealed a slew of derogatory and abusive messages aimed at him by an Instagram user.
“This is part of being a fighter,” Julian Marquez tweeted, accompanied by a series of direct messages sent to him. “This kid lost money betting on me and is super upset.”
This is part of being a fighter. This kid lost money betting on me and is super upset pic.twitter.com/shfdtpz4b5
“Wake up sleepy head,” The Instagram user messaged Marquez. “You num you just got pieced to the shadow realm. Ur dead. Na ur not good ur f*cking dosh*t and u sold the lay so hard.Go to hell you f*cking bum. F*ck you. Miley Cyrus doesn’t want your c*ck. You made Greg rich tonight good sh*t. He’s laughing that 50k to the bank after 4 knockdowns in the first round. Gregory knocked any last brain cells u had into another dimension my boy.”
“They are threatening me and my family. And what I’ve sent today, is an apology, so if you want something to post you can post that or just posting about me. Please, I regret what I have said to you and I am dealing with my ranking being sent threats. So please understand that and just please stop posting about me, I’m asking very nicely.”
“It’s one thing for people to threaten me, I can take it. But my family? It’s not right, just please leave it be and move on and just forget about posting about me please. … C’mon man, you already did enough you have it on your Twitter feed forever, can you please just be done posting about me.”
UFC bantamweight Tony Kelley has spoken out following his knockout loss to Adrian Yanez at UFC Austin this past weekend. Kelley made himself an adversary of many UFC fans following his controversial remarks while cornering UFC flyweight Andrea Lee last month. He was overheard referring to Lee’s opponent, Viviane Araújo, and her kind as “dirty…
UFC bantamweight Tony Kelley has spoken out following his knockout loss to Adrian Yanez at UFC Austin this past weekend.
Kelley made himself an adversary of many UFC fans following his controversial remarks while cornering UFC flyweight Andrea Lee last month. He was overheard referring to Lee’s opponent, Viviane Araújo, and her kind as “dirty f**king Brazilians”.
Kelley’s remarks caused quite the uproar from the fans as well as some of his UFC fighting colleagues. But, he denied any wrongdoing, citing ‘cancel culture’ as the reason for people being upset about his comments.
Despite his disappointing loss to Yanez, Kelley remains unaffected by his recently-grown base of haters.
In a recent Instagram post, Kelley hit back at his detractors following the first-round knockout loss.
“At the end of the day….it’s still F*** youuuu haterrsss Who’s next ?!” Kelley posted. “Lot of context for what happened last night.. but shit it is what it is, you simple mfers couldn’t begin to understand.”
Before his loss to Yanez, Kelley earned back-to-back wins over Randy Costa and Ali AlQaisi. He made his UFC debut against Kai Kamaka III at UFC 252 following brief stints in Legacy FC and WFF.
Kelley will look to get back in the win column in his expected return to the Octagon later this year. While he’s rubbed a good portion of the UFC faithful the wrong way, he appears to be embracing the role of a heel following his recent comments.
What are your thoughts on Tony Kelley’s post-UFC Austin comments?
Welcome to this week’s edition of MMA News’ Top 10 Finishes of the week! Every week there’s highlight-reel finishes all across the MMA world, and we’ve found some of the absolute best ones to showcase. The UFC’s card in Austin tied a promotional record for the most KO/TKO stoppages at a single event, but only…
Welcome to this week’s edition of MMA News’ Top 10 Finishes of the week! Every week there’s highlight-reel finishes all across the MMA world, and we’ve found some of the absolute best ones to showcase.
The UFC’s card in Austin tied a promotional record for the most KO/TKO stoppages at a single event, but only a few of those managed to make the cut in a week full of impressive finishes.
The return of the PFL provided several candidates, but promotions from Europe and Mexico also managed to produce everything from head kicks to one-shot counters for this week’s list.
#10: Roman Dolidze Sets The Tone In Austin
The first of 9 stoppage victories at UFC Austin also serves as the first finish for this week’s list, courtesy of Georgian middleweight Roman Dolidze.
Dolidze pressed Kyle Daukaus to the fence just over a minute into their fight before throwing up a knee that dropped “The D’Arce Knight” and had the ref jumping in after a few follow-up punches.
#9: Itzel Padilla Impresses In Pro Debut
Debuting atomweights opened the night at Lux Fight League 23 where Itzel Padilla set a high bar for the rest of her career.
High kicks are definitely trending. Itzel Padilla just scored another in her pro debut on the LUX prelims earlier. pic.twitter.com/nJhfhLynfG
Padilla landed a head kick that sat Tania Tapia down on the canvas and provided the first of three head kick finishes included on this week’s list.
#8: Adrian Yanez Puts On A Show
The bad blood between bantamweights Adrian Yanez and Tony Kelley was a major talking point ahead of UFC Austin, and Yanez rose to the occasion in his home state of Texas.
Yanez pushed the pace for as long as the fight lasted before finally dropping Kelley with a series of punches that had the fans in Austin roaring.
#7: Omari Akhmedov Books A Playoff Spot
Omari Akhmedov put in an impressive performance that guaranteed him a spot in the 2022 PFL playoffs, but he also got a little help from the referee to earn a place on this week’s list.
Akhmedov locked up an arm triangle choke on Teodoras Aukštuolis that put the Lithuanian unconscious as the PFL’s “Ref Cam” gave fans a close-up of Aukštuolis’s face.
#6: Kacper Formela Defends FEN Title
This week’s second head kick finish comes from featherweight Kacper Formela’s main event victory at FEN 40 in Poland.
And if you wanted more, this head kick by Kacper Formela. The hell is going on https://t.co/cF1QxmPybT
Making the first defense of his FEN featherweight title against Aleksandr Gorshechnik, Formela landed a head kick just before the end of the first round and followed-up with a few brutal hammer fists for good measure.
#5: Jeremiah Wells Flatlines “The Crusher”
Jeremiah Wells managed to deliver a highlight-reel KO on a night where the crowd at UFC Austin had already witnessed several fantastic finishes.
The 35-year-old welterweight flattened Court McGee with a left hook and handed the longtime veteran just the second stoppage loss of his MMA career.
#4: Joseil Silva Counters Off The Back Foot
Time was winding down in a flyweight bout at ACA 140 until Josiel Silva turned defense into offense with just over a minute remaining.
After a 14 minute beatdown, Josiel Silva faceplants Goga Shamatava with a left hook in the final minute of R3. Vicious KO#ACA140pic.twitter.com/Hx6mLBaf73
The Croatian claimed the FNC heavyweight title when he dropped Oli Thompson and walked away before his opponent even hit the mat.
#2: Alan Castro Refuses To Let Go
Mexican flyweights Alan Castro and Osovaldo Gonzalez managed to fit an entire bout’s worth of action into just over a minute of fight time at Naciones 7.
Alan Castro chokes Osvaldo Gonzalez unconscious in R1. He didn't go easy. Castro was COMMITTED to that triangle. #Naciones7pic.twitter.com/ubwerWQkbL
After the two traded on the feet and engaged in several scrambles on the ground, Castro locked up a triangle choke that eventually put Gonzalez unconscious.
#1: Ricardo Ramos Flashes Back To 2017
On a night where the UFC handed out bonuses to every fighter that earned a finish, Ricardo Ramos stole the spotlight be recreating a knockout he scored nearly 5 years ago.
The 26-year-old landed a spinning elbow that had Danny Chavez slumped against the cage just over a minute into their bantamweight bout on the UFC Austin prelims.
What do you think of this week’s list? Are there any finishes you think should have made the cut that didn’t? What about ones you think should have been ranked higher or lower?
Undisputed UFC bantamweight champion, Aljamain Sterling has backed UFC Austin main event victor, Josh Emmett to possibly land a featherweight title shot off the back of his close, split decision (47-48, 48-47, 48-47) win against Calvin Kattar over the weekend, insisting the Sacramento native may have struck gold with the timing of his victory. Headlining […]
Undisputed UFC bantamweight champion, Aljamain Sterling has backed UFC Austin main event victor, Josh Emmett to possibly land a featherweight title shot off the back of his close, split decision (47-48, 48-47, 48-47) win against Calvin Kattar over the weekend, insisting the Sacramento native may have struck gold with the timing of his victory.
Headlining the Moody Center event in the ‘Lone Star State’, Emmett managed to squeak out a close, split decision against Kattar, surviving a late fourth and fifth round rally from the Massachusetts native en route to his fifth consecutive win.
Following the judging success, Emmett called for a title shot of his own – insisting that he wants to be present front row for next weekend’s UFC 276 co-headliner between featherweight champion, Alexander Volkanovski, and former titleholder, Max Holloway’s trilogy title fight.
“I got one more thing to say, there’s a huge title fight in two weeks,” Josh Emmett said during his post-fight interview with Daniel Cormier. “I want to be sitting cagseside to see who I’m fighting next. Dana (White), give me my shot. (Max) Holloway and (Alexander) Volkanovski are arguably some of the best featherweights of all time. So much respect for them but they need some new blood in the division, and I can get it done.”
Aljamain Sterling backs Josh Emmett to potentially land a title challenge
Receiving backing from bantamweight champion, Sterling, the Uniondale native theorized that the timing regarding Emmett’s victory over Kattar may aline him for his premier title shot during his Octagon stint.
“(Josh) Emmett, tough dude, I mean, I do think him getting the next shot – split decision, but I still think he’s the guy that’s right there,” Aljamain Sterling said of Josh Emmett on his YouTube channel. “Zabit (Magomedsharipov) just retired, so I don’t know who else would be in that title conversation after Max Holloway (vs.) Alexander Volkanovski 3. It’s a very tricky situation for the featherweight division. …”
“I don’t know what’s going to happen next, but I think Emmett has to be a shoo-in for the next title shot, just in my personal opinion,” Aljamain Sterling explained. “I don’t think that was his best performance, but then what is a best performance in comparison to fighting one of the top guys in the world, you know.”
After the excitement of the promotion’s first Singapore-held PPV, the UFC returned to US soil on Saturday for another on-the-road fight night in the form of UFC Austin. The second of a still-rare two-week trip away from the Apex facility saw the MMA leader land in Texas, where the Moody Center played host to a…
After the excitement of the promotion’s first Singapore-held PPV, the UFC returned to US soil on Saturday for another on-the-road fight night in the form of UFC Austin.
The second of a still-rare two-week trip away from the Apex facility saw the MMA leader land in Texas, where the Moody Center played host to a 13-fight card. While the event didn’t pose the immediate title implications and drama that UFC 275 did, the headliner did promise to shake things up at the top of the featherweight division.
While top-five contender Calvin Kattar battled #7-ranked Josh Emmett at the top of the slate, exciting welterweights Kevin Holland and Tim Means provided the appetizer. Elsewhere, the likes of Adrian Yanez, Joaquin Buckley, Guram Kutateladze, and Gregory Rodrigues all took to the Octagon on the main card.
With entertaining fighters like Cody Stamann, Roman Dolidze, and Ricardo Ramos also in action on the prelims, the event looked to be one of the stronger UFC Fight Night cards in recent memory, on paper at least.
So, did it deliver? Let’s find out with the positives and negatives from UFC Austin.
Carlos Candelario vs. Tatsuro Taira – UFC Vegas 53
Donald Cerrone vs. Joe Lauzon – UFC 274
Manel Kape vs. Rogério Bontorin – UFC 275
It’s safe to say we’ve had our fair share of disappointing fight cancelations in recent weeks and months. And not just any cancelations, fight week/day disappointments. In a case of déjà vu, we can add Cerrone vs. Lauzon to that list again, this time for UFC Austin.
Like last month in Arizona, the pair made it to the event location, completed their media duties, and successfully weighed in. But once again, Saturday’s event went down without the presence of the the two veterans inside the Octagon.
If Tony Ferguson’s ruptured LCL, which was caused by him tripping over an electrical cable prior to one of many planned matchups with Khabib Nurmagomedov, taught us anything, it’s that freak incidents like this usually means a matchup is cursed.
With that said, it doesn’t seem that the MMA gods want to see Cerrone vs. Lauzon. While the UFC hasn’t addressed whether or not a third attempt at pitting the two vets against each other will be made, it wouldn’t be surprising to see the promotion move both men on to other things.
The tone was set nicely at UFC Austin courtesy of Roman Dolidze, who was making his first appearance since a June 2021 victory over Laureano Staropoli. Against Kyle Daukaus, the Georgian was looking to return to a win streak having had his initial 2-0 start in the Octagon blemished by Trevin Giles last March.
Dolidze accomplished his goal about as viciously as he could have, finishing Daukaus with a truly brutal knee to the head against the cage. Having debuted in the UFC by stopping Khadis Ibragimov with a knee, it’s clear that Dolidze knows how to put the dangerous weapon to good use.
The only negative here was that more people weren’t in attendance to see it. Perhaps my expectations are too high, but the arena seemed remarkably empty, even for the opening bout of the night, which was actually one of the more intriguing matchups on the card.
Nevertheless, that certainly didn’t take away from Dolidze’s performance and brutal finish. Violence, violence, violence!
In the second fight of the night, Phil Hawes delivered one of the most one-sided beatdowns in recent memory, piecing Deron Winn up right from the word go. From effective jabs and cutting lead-in elbows to flush high kicks and cross-rights, everything “Megatron” threw, he did so with vicious intent, and usually landed.
Given Hawes’ striking talent, which was evident last time out before he got caught by Chris Curtis, Winn’s gameplan was a confusing one. Despite being thoroughly dominated, the elite wrestler didn’t even feint a takedown once.
The aesthetic of Winn bloody and beaten in his corner after round one made it pretty clear where the bout was headed. And despite some resistance in the form of a few overhand rights, it remained one-way traffic right up until a standing TKO stoppage. The “standing” is credence to the Missouri native’s toughness.
The beatdown maybe went on longer than it should have, with referee Herb Dean stepping in as the contest had gone beyond the ‘yep, this is done’ stage, something that was clear when Winn’s swings went from low power to no power.
When the UFC heads to Texas, one narrative is inevitable, and it surrounds the expectation for some horrific judging catastrophes.
While not a total disaster given that it had no influence on the result, the first-round scoring for Hawes’ utter demolition of Winn was concerning. If that five minutes of action, which included a knockdown and a host of wobbly moments for Winn, as well as practically nothing in return, wasn’t worthy of a 10-8, then quite frankly, I don’t know what is.
Sal D’Amato awarded Hawes a 10-8, but judges Joel Ojeda and Jason Stafin did not. D’Amato gets a lot of stick, much of it unnecessary, but what does it say that he, the one experienced and renowned judge on that fight’s selection, got an obvious call correct, while two local officials somehow missed it?
I wrote the above section expecting something else to crop up throughout the night, and that it did.
On the main card, Damir Ismagulov and Guram Kutateladze battled in a highly technical and highly entertaining lightweight contest. While it was undoubtedly a close fight with a few acceptable scorecards, Jason Stafin’s 30-27 certainly wasn’t one of them.
Once again, the seasoned judges scoring this fight, Chris Lee and Doug Crosby, turned in opposing 29-28s that were certainly acceptable. The dissenting, and clearly incorrect scorecard, once again came from the mind of Stafin, a local judge.
Given that Stafin’s experience amounts to two UFC Fight Nights and one Bellator event since 2016, his presence cageside can certainly be questioned.
The group of 2022 Knockout of the Year contenders is beginning to get a little crowded, and a little dizzy.
While the standout is perhaps Michael Chandler’s front-kick knockout of Tony Ferguson, Molly McCann and Weili Zhang have both span to disable their latest opponents, the former via elbow and the latter with a backfist. Joining good company, then, is Ricardo Ramos.
UFC Austin had already started fantastically, but the featherweight contest between Ramos and Danny Chavez brought a new level of violence. Just over a minute into the fight, “Carcacinha” shut the lights out in some style.
As Chavez backed up towards the fence, Ramos dipped to his right and feinted a left jab. When “The Colombian Warrior” bit and dropped his hands to parry, the Brazilian threw a remarkably quick spinning back elbow up top, connecting clean with Chavez’s temple.
The 35-year-old was propped up by the cage, staring into space. Ramos quickly changed that, completing the knockout with a left hook that slumped his rival to the ground.
Having delivered a similarly brutal spinning back elbow against Aiemann Zahabi at UFC 217 in 2017, it’s clear that Ramos has nailed the art of eccentric and unique striking. When he returns to the Octagon, there’ll be no prizes for guessing what move most will be waiting for, including his opponent…
DJ Khaled references are cliché and overused when it comes to instances of repetition, but I’d estimate that it came to the minds of at least half the fans watching UFC Austin.
No sooner had the echo of Ricardo Ramos’ elbow stopped ringing around the Moody Center, Jeremiah Wells gave the Brazilian a run for his money on the brutality meter. The victim this time was Court McGee. Given that “The Crusher” had only been finished once in the UFC prior to Saturday night, the image of him unconscious on the canvas wouldn’t have been in many prediction pieces.
So how did he get there? A highlight-reel left hook from hell. After having a right hand parried, Wells threw a looping left hand that came from so far back, it’s understandable it went unnoticed from McGee.
After a sickening thud to the ground and some savage ground-and-pound shots, the fight was over, and Wells had followed up his memorable stoppages of Warlley Alves and “Blood Diamond” with a third equally devastating finish.
It’s safe to say that Natália Silva’s fanbase got a whole lot bigger on Saturday.
It’s hard to recall a debut as technically sound, impressive, and dominant as Silva’s. Closing out the UFC Austin prelims, the Brazilian faced Jasmine Jasudavicius. While the Canadian’s walkout and song choice cemented her as the fan favorite early on in this one, that didn’t last long at all.
Who’d have thought a Brazilian debutant would have a Texas crowd chanting her name? Silva earned that acclaim with a flawless performance.
From her fluid movement and takedown defense to her lightening-fast kicks, both to the head and body, and including spins, everything that the 25-year-old attempted came off, and ended up making Jasudavicius look rather amateur, and even like a punching bag at times.
To make the performance that much more impressive, it marked Silva’s first outing since 2019. With the display, Silva has made an immediate impact in the Octagon, and will likely find herself with an elevated rise towards the rankings.
A new flyweight threat has emerged, and her name is Natália Silva.
The biggest takeaway from UFC Austin was that bigots get their comeuppance, and in MMA, that means they get knocked out.
Opening the main card was Tony Kelley (not a bad position for someone who was supposedly ‘canceled’) and rising prospect Adrian Yanez. Delivering a finish for himself, his home state, the Moody Center crowd, and the country of Brazil, Yanez showed his class, and the gulf in it between himself and Kelley.
It took just minutes to see which of the two was sharper and slicker with their movement. And after surviving one hairy moment, Kelley met his end to the clearly superior Yanez less than four minutes into the opening round.
The ferocious KO brought a rowdy reaction from the crowd, as well as a big response from all corners of social media.
As it turns out Kerry Hatley might not be the biggest Kelley fan either. The ref decided against stepping in as the dazed 35-year-old sat clueless on the ground, resulting in three more shots that ensured Kelley went all the way to sleep.
Hatley also gave him an inadvertent kick to the head as he leapt over him in what was certainly a messy stoppage. Although you’d be hard-pressed to find too many complaints about it online.
I think most acknowledged that Yanez had earned a better opponent with his impressive run, but it seems many were okay with this matchup so that, well, what happened could happen…
With that out the way, though, it’s time for Yanez to fight a more notable name and begin facing bantamweights with numbers next to their names.
Positive – Main Card Violence Continues
When the prelims deliver such an entertaining set of fights, the main card often struggles to reach the same heights. At UFC Austin, that wasn’t the case.
After Adrian Yanez set the tone, the rest of the main card fighters took up the mantle and matched the efforts of their predecessors.
The first to do so was Gregory Rodrigues, whose fists did a surreal amount of damage to Julian Marquez. From the moment he rocked “The Cuban Missile Crisis,” the Brazilian smelt blood and went to work, consistently knocking down and wobbling Marquez. Eventually, a stiff right hand penetrated the Missouri native’s defense and ended his night.
After “Robocop” added a seventh finish of the night, Damir Ismagulov and Guram Kutateladze delivered their own dose of violence, but in the form of a technical and enthralling three-round battle. In the boxer vs. kickboxer contest, it was the former who came out victorious, with Ismagulov extending his win streak to 16.
The action certainly wasn’t done there.
Next up to have his Austin moment was Joaquin Buckley, who put in a striking clinic en route to a TKO victory in-between rounds two and three. The doctor’s stoppage came when it was clear that Albert Duraev couldn’t see out of a massively swollen left eye.
Giving us another look on the violence front was Kevin Holland in the co-main. Giving further evidence that his decision to drop to welterweight was a good one, “Trailblazer” moved closer to the 170-pound top 15 by snapping the three-fight win streak of Tim Means.
After showing his slick striking game on the feet, Holland capitalized on an opportunity to lock in his second UFC submission, forcing Means to tap-out to a tight D’Arce choke in the second round.
A submission was perhaps the only thing left on our UFC Austin bingo cards heading into the top-two bouts on the card. That was quickly rectified courtesy of Holland’s handiwork.
Positive – A FW Title Contender Emerges
Not many sentences get MMA fans as excited as, “ranked featherweights fighting.” The UFC Austin headliner showed why.
For five rounds, Calvin Kattar and Josh Emmett went toe-to-toe, with both looking to secure their place opposite the Alexander Volkanovski vs. Max Holloway 3 victor. In the end, after a remarkably-close fight, it was the #7-ranked contender who secured his ascension into the top five and into the championship conversation via split decision.
With Brian Ortega, who has lost to both Holloway and Volkanovski, and Yair Rodriguez, who fell to “Blessed” last November, set to collide next month, it seems that Emmett represents the kind of fresh blood that the champion will be looking for, whoever that may be after UFC 276.
At 37 years old, UFC Austin was a crucial moment for Emmett’s title charge. And against one of the division’s best, the 145-pound powerhouse shone bright.
UFC welterweight Kevin Holland is known to verbally challenge his opponents during his fights, and Tim Means wasn’t an exception. Holland earned a second-straight impressive win at welterweight by submitting Means in the UFC Austin co-headliner. He and Means shared a mutual respect for one another during the buildup, but that didn’t stop the two…
UFC welterweight Kevin Holland is known to verbally challenge his opponents during his fights, and Tim Means wasn’t an exception.
Holland earned a second-straight impressive win at welterweight by submitting Means in the UFC Austin co-headliner. He and Means shared a mutual respect for one another during the buildup, but that didn’t stop the two of them from trying to engage in mental warfare during the fight.
During his UFC Austin post-fight press conference, Holland shared what was said between him and Means as they went to battle in the Octagon.
“I hit him with a good shot and I was like, ‘Damn, you’re freakin’ tough.’ And he was like, ‘Yeah, I can do this all night.’ So then I started thinking about the Captain America movie where he was like, ‘I can do this all night!’” Holland revealed.
“So it’s just little things, you know? I went to stomp on the thigh. Usually, I try to hit the knee. And I told him I would avoid the knee, and he said he would do the same. So overall, just good stuff. I got up one time and was like, ‘Pretty good, huh?’ And he was like, ‘Not bad, kid.”
Holland has made the move from middleweight to welterweight with relative ease, as evidenced by recent wins over Means and Alex Oliveira. He made the move to 170lbs after his planned middleweight rematch with Kyle Daukaus was canceled after he suffered an injury.
Holland made a name for himself following five-straight wins in 2020. He would go on to lose back-to-back decisions to Derek Brunson and Marvin Vettori in a pair of main events.
Holland has quickly become one of the most entertaining up-and-coming fighters in the UFC and he’ll look to move closer to potential title contention in his next appearance.
What was your reaction to Kevin Holland’s win over Tim Means?
pic.twitter.com/shfdtpz4b5
Undisputed UFC bantamweight champion, Aljamain Sterling has backed UFC Austin main event victor, Josh Emmett to possibly land a featherweight title shot off the back of his close, split decision (47-48, 48-47, 48-47) win against Calvin Kattar over the weekend, insisting the Sacramento native may have struck gold with the timing of his victory. Headlining […]
Amazing performance by Natalia Silva! 
