Tag: UFC Toronto

Michael Bisping Calls Out Nick Diaz For UFC 206

Following UFC 204, the hunt for the next contender to the UFC middleweight title will continue. With four from the top five contenders currently tied up in bookings against each other, current champion Michael Bisping has been looking elsewhere. After winning the belt from Luke Rockhold at UFC 199, ‘The Count’ toyed with the idea

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Following UFC 204, the hunt for the next contender to the UFC middleweight title will continue. With four from the top five contenders currently tied up in bookings against each other, current champion Michael Bisping has been looking elsewhere. After winning the belt from Luke Rockhold at UFC 199, ‘The Count’ toyed with the idea of fighting Georges St-Pierre, before being offered the fight with Dan Henderson. Considering the harrowing KO ‘Hendo’ planted Bisping with in 2009, it’s no wonder the Englishman wanted some revenge. That being said, the decision to make Bisping vs. Henderson 2 led to many sour grapes.

Understandably, the rest of the division was upset that Henderson, ranked at number 14, would receive a title fight. Now that grudge match is complete, ‘The Count’ has been vocal about facing Georges St-Pierre. Shooting down those reports this week were both ‘GSP’ and UFC president Dana White. With UFC 206 in Toronto just begging for one more huge fight, Bisping has called out another fighting legend. Exactly the route Tyron Woodley took after UFC 201, Bisping has called for Nick Diaz to sign the contract.

Credit: Steve Flynn USA Today Sports

Bisping vs. Diaz?

Calling out former Strikeforce and WEC champion Nick Diaz, Michael Bisping has asked the returning cult hero to sign the contract for a fight at UFC 206. As quoted by MMAFighting.com:

“I’m down to fight ASAP because Dana and the UFC put this in my mind, fighting at 206. So now in my mind I want to fight at 206. I was ready to take the rest of the year off and do nothing and enjoy being the champion and have some time with my kids and go away for Thanksgiving. But then this was put in my mind again and now I want to fight in Toronto. So yeah, if it’s not gonna be GSP, I don’t mind being on the card against somebody else and Nick Diaz is somebody else that moves the needle… His last fight was against Anderson Silvaso he’s fought at 185, and if Nick Diaz wants to do it, I’ll fight Nick Diaz. If anybody wants to do it, I’ll do it.”

“I’ll fight anybody as long as it makes sense business-wise. I’m not gonna risk my reputation and my title against some chump, but if there’s a lot of money on the line, then I’ll do it. And if Nick Diaz wants to go at UFC 206, formally, officially, I invite you to sign the bout agreement. Let’s do it. And then after that, whoever wins more impressively of the top four middleweights- Rockhold, Weidman, Yoel, and Souza, I’ll fight after this. That will happen. 100%. Believe you me, I want to fight Chris Weidman. Out of the four of them – I’ve already beat Rockhold – Weidman is the one I want to fight.”

Credit: Jayne Kamin Oncea USA Today Sports

Should It Happen?

Asking the rest of the 185-pound contenders this question will likely get you one clear response. Insisting he’s not looking for ‘easy fights,’ Bisping says it’s not up to him to watch over the rest of the division:

“All the other middleweights [are] basically saying I’m looking for easy fights, which is pissing me off because of course Henderson wasn’t the rightful No. 1 contender, the UFC offered me that fight. And Georges St-Pierre isn’t the rightful No. 1 contender but he was the one talking to me for the fight. I’m not out here looking for easy pickings,”

“It ain’t my responsibility to look after the entire UFC roster. I’m looking after Michael Bisping and Michael Bisping’s family.”

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Fans Threaten To Boycott UFC 206 In Backlash Over GSP

Former UFC welterweight champion Georges St-Pierre seemed destined to return this year. After vacating the title in 2013, ‘GSP’ remained inactive, citing personal issues and the problems with the lack of drug testing. St-Pierre’s departure was met with shock from the fans, and with outrage from UFC president Dana White. The promotion reportedly had St-Pierre’s

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Former UFC welterweight champion Georges St-Pierre seemed destined to return this year. After vacating the title in 2013, ‘GSP’ remained inactive, citing personal issues and the problems with the lack of drug testing. St-Pierre’s departure was met with shock from the fans, and with outrage from UFC president Dana White. The promotion reportedly had St-Pierre’s belt taken from his locker room and denied him access to the post-fight presser. ‘Rush’ then showed up half way through the conference before discussions with White and Lorenzo Fertitta ensued.

That was the last we’d see of ‘GSP’ during a UFC broadcast. Teasing a comeback frequently during his hiatus, it seemed 2016 would finally be the year of the former champ’s big return. With UFC 206 coming up in St-Pierre’s backyard, the stars appeared to be aligning. ‘Rush’ had expressed interest in fighting both middleweight champion Michael Bisping and his old foe Nick Diaz. All signs were pointing to a big return for ‘GSP’ in 2016, until things just fell apart, quite simply.

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Dana White In No Rush

Announcing free agency this past week, ‘GSP’ claimed negotiations with the UFC had broken down. Apparently the controversial Reebok apparel deal was too much of a sticking point, and the Canadian’s lawyer had got the former champion out of his contract. The UFC disputed these claims, stating St-Pierre was indeed still under contract. Dana White once again said ‘Rush’ did not want to fight, to which the all-time great responded by saying only he knew what he wanted. With Rory MacDonald jumping ship to Bellator in 2016 too, sects of fans in Canada have banded together for a boycott of UFC 206.

The UFC enjoys healthy attendances when visiting Canada. The last time the promotion put on a show in Toronto, UFC 165, they scored a 15,000 strong crowd for Jones vs. Gustafsson. Taking to Twitter to voice their displeasure, Canadian fans of Georges St-Pierre have started a ‘Free GSP’ campaign, with the aim of boycotting UFC 206 if the promotion doesn’t release St-Pierre:

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#FreeGSP

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USADA Results Are In For Jon Jones’ Tainted Supplement Defense…

Former undisputed light-heavyweight and current UFC interim champion Jon Jones again found himself in the boiling pot this year. Following his removal from the UFC 200 main event due to a flagged USADA test, ‘Bones’ had to face the music in a big way. After being scratched from the milestone card on three days notice,

The post USADA Results Are In For Jon Jones’ Tainted Supplement Defense… appeared first on LowKick MMA.

Former undisputed light-heavyweight and current UFC interim champion Jon Jones again found himself in the boiling pot this year. Following his removal from the UFC 200 main event due to a flagged USADA test, ‘Bones’ had to face the music in a big way. After being scratched from the milestone card on three days notice, Jones addressed fans and media during an emotional presser. The record-breaking UFC champion claimed he was unaware of the substance in his system, stating he must have consumed a tainted supplement.

Having heard this defense many times in the past, some fans were quick to jump on ‘Bones’ while he was down. Similarly to Jones, UFC middleweight contender Yoel Romero claimed his failed test was due to dirty supplements. After some back-and-forth Romero was cleared to fight again after just six months. Romero’s positive test was for a growth hormone, whereas Jones got popped for estrogen blockers, typically used by body builders after a steroid cycle.

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USADA Results

During his time on the sidelines, Jones has been typically vocal towards his fellow light-heavyweights. Last fighting against Ovince St-Preux at UFC 197, ‘Bones’ has remained confident in the five months since that he’ll be back soon. If Luke Thomas’ report last night is anything to go by, Jones could well be looking at a comeback within the year. Sounds like Jones is indeed innocent, as the supplement he claimed he took has been confirmed by USADA as containing a banned substance.

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Via Luke Thomas on Twitter

Current champion Daniel Cormier faces Anthony Johnson in the UFC 206 main event in Toronto on December 10. Whether or not ‘Bones’ will be cleared by then remains unconfirmed at this stage, but a unification bout will clearly be on the table upon his return. The fierce rivalry with ‘DC’ or the intrigue around a bout with ‘Rumble’ will make fun viewing for Jones’ comeback in either scenario.

The question is, yet again, will Jon Jones be able to hold it together long enough?

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Georges St. Pierre Not “Necessarily” Needed To Headline UFC 206

Former longtime UFC welterweight champion and Canadian superstar Georges “Rush” St. Pierre has made it clear in recent months that he’s ready to return to fighting after nearly three years away from the cage. He also said on a previous edition of UFC Tonight that fighting at December 10, 2016’s UFC 206 from Toronto, Canada

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Former longtime UFC welterweight champion and Canadian superstar Georges “Rush” St. Pierre has made it clear in recent months that he’s ready to return to fighting after nearly three years away from the cage. He also said on a previous edition of UFC Tonight that fighting at December 10, 2016’s UFC 206 from Toronto, Canada would be ideal.

St. Pierre competing at this event is far from a done deal, however.

Tom Wright, General Manager of Operations in Canada, Australia, and New Zealand, recently said that the promotion doesn’t ‘necessarily’ need a Canadian to headline the event. He also said that the a main event for November 12’s UFC 205 from New York must be secured before the focus shifts to UFC 206:

“We don’t need a Canadian necessarily to headline the event,” Wright told Submission Radio. “The last event that we had in Canada did not feature around a Canadian, so frankly it’s no different than here (in Australia). Our fans are sophisticated fans in Canada and they’re knowledgeable and sophisticated here in Australia. They want to see great fights, they want to see great competition and they’ll see it in Toronto.”

“It’s still a little bit early. We’re trying to figure out the main event for UFC 205, obviously that’s going to be a seminal event in Madison Square Garden in New York. So once that’s sort of cleared up, and that will happen in the next week or so, then we’ll start to bring more closely into focus what’s going to happen in Toronto.” 

That doesn’t mean that the promotion wouldn’t like St. Pierre to headline the event as he’s obviously one of the promotion’s biggest-ever stars. Wright added that the two parties have been in talks, and that he would like to see GSP do ‘what he wants to do’:

“Well personally I’d love to see Georges come back, but I have been asked this question before and what I really want is for Georges to do what he wants to do. He made the decision to walk away from this sport back in 2013, and should he decide to come back, I’d be the first person to welcome him back with open arms. Should he decide to continue hanging them up, then I’ll salute that as well. It’s completely up to Georges. We’re trying to see if there’s a contract that can be pulled together and his team are talking with our team, and if it’s going to work out, it will work out.”

Do you still expect to see “Rush” make a return to fighting?

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