Beneil Dariush Clarifies Post-Fight Comments, Was Addressing Top-10 Fighters

DariushBeneil Dariush was not taking his frustrations out on the UFC matchmakers after all. After coming out on top against Carlos Diego Ferreira in their UFC Vegas 18 matchup last night, Dariush seemingly took aim at them for not giving him or Ferreira a top-10 opponent but instead, making them face each other. “I’ve got […]

Dariush

Beneil Dariush was not taking his frustrations out on the UFC matchmakers after all.

After coming out on top against Carlos Diego Ferreira in their UFC Vegas 18 matchup last night, Dariush seemingly took aim at them for not giving him or Ferreira a top-10 opponent but instead, making them face each other.

“I’ve got to say something, this is really bothering me,” Dariush said in his post-fight interview. “Diego should have fought a top five guy. I should have fought a top five guy. We have tough win streaks. We fought everybody. We never say no to anybody.

“But instead of giving us a top five guy, Diego I still think he deserves a top 10 guy. I’d feel a little disrespected if I was Diego. I know I feel a little disrespected.”

However, Dariush was actually addressing the top-10 rather than Sean Shelby and the rest of the matchmakers as he clarified his comments later on.

“I didn’t elaborate properly,” Dariush said (via MMA Junkie). “My issue is with these guys looking at me as high risk, low reward. These top-10 guys look at me like I’m high risk, low reward and they want nothing to do with me. That’s just a little bit disappointing.

“I appreciate Sean Shelby. He’s called me every time and he’s talked to me and he’s explained his situation. I was a little off about that, so I have to say sorry to Sean. Sorry, Sean.”

However, while Dariush wants a higher-ranked opponent, he also prefers the current system where the higher-ranked fighters can decline lower-ranked fighters — despite it not benefiting him for the moment.

“I come from a totalitarian country [Iran] and I like capitalism,” Dariush added. “I like where you get to have decisions and I get to have decisions. So I’m going to go with a no on that one. I think everyone deserves to have a voice in the matter.”

With his win over Ferreira, Dariush should enter the top 10 of the UFC lightweight rankings next week.

What do you make of his complaints?

Cory Sandhagen Wants Title Shot, Says TJ Dillashaw Skipping Him Would Be ‘Garbage’

SandhagenCory Sandhagen is only preparing to face the winner of Petr Yan and Aljamain Sterling next. Sandhagen earned arguably the biggest win of his career after knocking Frankie Edgar out in the first round of their UFC Vegas 18 co-main event clash with a flying knee. It put him on a two-fight winning streak with […]

Sandhagen

Cory Sandhagen is only preparing to face the winner of Petr Yan and Aljamain Sterling next.

Sandhagen earned arguably the biggest win of his career after knocking Frankie Edgar out in the first round of their UFC Vegas 18 co-main event clash with a flying knee.

It put him on a two-fight winning streak with seven wins in his last eight outings overall as he is more than likely to challenge for the title next.

That’s what he’s planning even with former champion TJ Dillashaw now eligible to compete.

“I’m a different monster than before I fought Aljamain Sterling,” Sandhagen said (via MMA Fighting). “He taught me some lessons. I know [Petr] Yan has been talking about fighting T.J. [Dillashaw] after [he fights Aljamain Sterling at UFC 259], and that’s if he even wins that fight. That’s garbage to me.

“Fight me, I’m the toughest guy next to Aljamain. If Aljamain wins, I owe him a nap. He’s gonna get that nap. The winner of those two gets knocked out by me in July.”

When asked to predict who comes out on top at UFC 259, Sandhagen edged towards Sterling which would be ideal for him as he gets to challenge for the title and get revenge in the process.

“Win the belt in July – defend it by the end of the year,” Sandhagen added.

As for his knockout over Edgar? Sandhagen’s height and reach advantages certainly help when it comes to landing those spectacular shots.

“I let him get a little closer,” Sandhagen explained. “I’m longer and I know that I appear long so I can kind of corral these guys into my range without them even knowing. Most of the time they’re in the range where I can hit them and sometimes I do.

“I just corral them into a range where I was able to hit him and he didn’t know that. He was just inches away from getting finished and then I just jumped.”

Should Sandhagen fight for the title? Or Dillashaw?

Alistair Overeem Releases Statement Following Alexander Volkov Defeat

Overeem VolkovAlistair Overeem didn’t have the best of nights. Overeem collided with Alexander Volkov in the UFC Vegas 18 headliner last night only to suffer a second-round TKO defeat after getting outclassed by the Russian for much of the contest. It put a halt to his two-fight winning streak as well as his hopes of challenging […]

Overeem Volkov

Alistair Overeem didn’t have the best of nights.

Overeem collided with Alexander Volkov in the UFC Vegas 18 headliner last night only to suffer a second-round TKO defeat after getting outclassed by the Russian for much of the contest.

It put a halt to his two-fight winning streak as well as his hopes of challenging for the UFC heavyweight title in his final run in the sport.

He also notably suffered a broken nose in the first round but only had good things to say about his opponent in Volkov who he proceeded to congratulate on Sunday.

Interestingly, he plans on continuing to compete as well.

“You’re a true warrior @volkov_alex Congrats on the win! Yesterday wasn’t my night. I could not recover from that punch in the first round after I broke my nose.

“My highest priority right now is to heal up and spend some well deserved time with the family. I’ll be back in the gym soon though. Thank you all for your support! I see the comments, you guys are the best.”

Overeem’s title hopes certainly took a big blow but are not vanquished yet. But it does appear he needs at least two more solid wins to stake a claim for just his second title shot.

Do you think Overeem can still challenge for the title?

Alistair Overeem Hints At Continuing Career Following Loss to Volkov

Alistair Overeem has issued a statement following his TKO loss to Alexander Volkov at UFC Vegas 18 on Saturday night. Alistair Overeem made his plans for the future crystal clear: keep fighting until winning the UFC heavyweight championship and then re…

Alistair Overeem has issued a statement following his TKO loss to Alexander Volkov at UFC Vegas 18 on Saturday night. Alistair Overeem made his plans for the future crystal clear: keep fighting until winning the UFC heavyweight championship and then retire from the sport. At UFC Vegas 18 last night, he suffered another setback when […]

Alexander Volkov: I’m Coming For the Heavyweight Belt

Alexander Volkov is not content with his TKO victory over Alistair Overeem at UFC Vegas 18 and has big plans for the future. In the main event of UFC Vegas 18, Alexander Volkov picked up his second consecutive victory when he TKOed Alistair Overeem in …

Alexander Volkov is not content with his TKO victory over Alistair Overeem at UFC Vegas 18 and has big plans for the future. In the main event of UFC Vegas 18, Alexander Volkov picked up his second consecutive victory when he TKOed Alistair Overeem in the second round. This would make for one of the […]

UFC Vegas 18 Bonuses: Alexander Volkov Among Fighters To Nab Performance Checks

The UFC Vegas 18 bonuses have been released. The event took place in Las Vegas, Nevada at the UFC Apex facility. Headlining the card was a clash between Alistair Overeem and Alexander Volkov.  This fight saw the first round of damage thanks to Vol…

The UFC Vegas 18 bonuses have been released. The event took place in Las Vegas, Nevada at the UFC Apex facility. Headlining the card was a clash between Alistair Overeem and Alexander Volkov.  This fight saw the first round of damage thanks to Volkov’s hands as he busted up Overeem thanks to his jabs and […]