Tag: UFC

Bo Nickal Says He Won’t Avoid Grappling With Paul Craig To Test His Own Jiu-Jitsu

Bo Nickal is back at UFC 309 where he looks to secure his fourth win inside the Octagon against his toughest opponent to date. The undefeated middleweight super prospect will be making the walk at Madison Square Garden to face off with a fellow specialist at 185-pounds. Whilst Nickal brings a wrestling pedigree to the […]

Continue Reading Bo Nickal Says He Won’t Avoid Grappling With Paul Craig To Test His Own Jiu-Jitsu at MMA News.

Bo Nickal is back at UFC 309 where he looks to secure his fourth win inside the Octagon against his toughest opponent to date. The undefeated middleweight super prospect will be making the walk at Madison Square Garden to face off with a fellow specialist at 185-pounds.

Whilst Nickal brings a wrestling pedigree to the table that very few can match, the same can be said for the jiu-jitsu skills of Scotland’s Paul Craig. Though both men have put a lot of work into rounding out their games, it’s clear that this is where both men excel.

In 26 pro fights, Craig has finished half of them by submission and rather than having an approach like Charles Oliveira for example, many of those wins in the UFC have come off of his back when opponents try to land ground and pound from the top position.

In a recent interview with Demetrious Johnson on The MightyCast, Nickal spoke about preparing for an opponent that is so dangerous in one specific area. Though he believes he’s been able to adapt to jiu-jitsu very quickly, he’s still very young in his MMA career.

This doesn’t discourage him from wanting to test himself against a dangerous grappler Craig like who has submitted elite fighters in the Octagon in the past. In fact, it’s something that he looks forward to in this fight even though he believes he holds the striking advantage in this match-up.

“I think that I have an advantage on the feet but I also think that it would be nice to be able to show my improvements on the ground in my jiu-jitsu game and to be able to compete against a guy like that and just kind of challenge myself, you know. I think that again, there’s problems that he poses and it’s definitely an unusual maybe unorthodox type of style, you don’t see many guys pulling guard anymore. You don’t see guys throwing up triangles and throwing up armbars but I feel prepared.” 

Continue Reading Bo Nickal Says He Won’t Avoid Grappling With Paul Craig To Test His Own Jiu-Jitsu at MMA News.

Bo Nickal Says He Won’t Avoid Grappling With Paul Craig To Test His Own Jiu-Jitsu

Bo Nickal is back at UFC 309 where he looks to secure his fourth win inside the Octagon against his toughest opponent to date. The undefeated middleweight super prospect will be making the walk at Madison Square Garden to face off with a fellow specialist at 185-pounds. Whilst Nickal brings a wrestling pedigree to the […]

Continue Reading Bo Nickal Says He Won’t Avoid Grappling With Paul Craig To Test His Own Jiu-Jitsu at MMA News.

Bo Nickal is back at UFC 309 where he looks to secure his fourth win inside the Octagon against his toughest opponent to date. The undefeated middleweight super prospect will be making the walk at Madison Square Garden to face off with a fellow specialist at 185-pounds.

Whilst Nickal brings a wrestling pedigree to the table that very few can match, the same can be said for the jiu-jitsu skills of Scotland’s Paul Craig. Though both men have put a lot of work into rounding out their games, it’s clear that this is where both men excel.

In 26 pro fights, Craig has finished half of them by submission and rather than having an approach like Charles Oliveira for example, many of those wins in the UFC have come off of his back when opponents try to land ground and pound from the top position.

In a recent interview with Demetrious Johnson on The MightyCast, Nickal spoke about preparing for an opponent that is so dangerous in one specific area. Though he believes he’s been able to adapt to jiu-jitsu very quickly, he’s still very young in his MMA career.

This doesn’t discourage him from wanting to test himself against a dangerous grappler Craig like who has submitted elite fighters in the Octagon in the past. In fact, it’s something that he looks forward to in this fight even though he believes he holds the striking advantage in this match-up.

“I think that I have an advantage on the feet but I also think that it would be nice to be able to show my improvements on the ground in my jiu-jitsu game and to be able to compete against a guy like that and just kind of challenge myself, you know. I think that again, there’s problems that he poses and it’s definitely an unusual maybe unorthodox type of style, you don’t see many guys pulling guard anymore. You don’t see guys throwing up triangles and throwing up armbars but I feel prepared.” 

Continue Reading Bo Nickal Says He Won’t Avoid Grappling With Paul Craig To Test His Own Jiu-Jitsu at MMA News.

Watch: Song Yadong and Helen Yee throwdown in Table Tennis as he preps for January bout against Umar Nurmagomedov

Helen Yee Ping Pong Song Yadong Table TennisUFC athlete Song Yadong left the octagon behind and picked up the table tennis paddle as he battles interviewer…

Helen Yee Ping Pong Song Yadong Table Tennis

UFC athlete Song Yadong left the octagon behind and picked up the table tennis paddle as he battles interviewer Helen Yee at the table. The Chinese-born ‘The Kung Fu Kid’ also explained his game plan for facing Umar Nurmagomedov in January.

Song Yadong and Helen Yee in Ping Pong

Below, you can watch the full clip of Helen Yee and Song Yadong playing table tennis.

Song Yadong vs. Umar Nurmagomedov

The 26-year-old Song Yadong is competing in one of the most competitive weight classes in the UFC; bantamweight. At the top stands the champion Merab Dvalishvili who just earned UFC gold from Sean O’Malley. China’s Yadong has losses to the top-ranked Petr Yan and Cory Sandhagen but has ten wins in the organization.

Song Yadong

It was rumored that he was to be fighting Olympian and former champion Henry Cejudo next. Yadong explained why this fight was called off. Speaking with Helen Yee he said, “Henry got injured. I don’t know what happened, but he didn’t want to fight me.”

Instead, it sounds as though Yadong will face the undefeated Umar Nurmagomedov, cousin of Khabib Nurmagomedov, in January. The Chinese-born athlete explained, “I’ll fight in January, no matter who it is. I’ll make a good show for everyone … He’s a good fighter, but I believe I can beat him … I think it will be a tough fight. He’s hard to finish, but I believe I’ll win.”

Israel Adesanya, Khamzat Chimaev, & Other UFC Fighters React As Donald Trump Wins The 2024 US Presidential Election

A number of UFC fighters were vocal on social media across last night and this morning, as Donald Trump emerged victorious from the 2024 US presidential election. Republican Trump will return to the White House after defeating Democrat opponent Kamala Harris. His victory was confirmed after he surpassed 270 electoral college votes, and he looks […]

Continue Reading Israel Adesanya, Khamzat Chimaev, & Other UFC Fighters React As Donald Trump Wins The 2024 US Presidential Election at MMA News.

A number of UFC fighters were vocal on social media across last night and this morning, as Donald Trump emerged victorious from the 2024 US presidential election.

Republican Trump will return to the White House after defeating Democrat opponent Kamala Harris. His victory was confirmed after he surpassed 270 electoral college votes, and he looks set to collect all seven swing states.

The triumph has secured a second term in office for the 78-year-old, who has become only the second president in history to win a non-consecutive second term following Joe Biden’s success in the 2020 election.

While polls were predicting a tight contest, Trump comfortably beat Harris after taking a firm lead in the national poplar vote. He’ll now mark the oldest man elected to the United States’ highest office.

Despite becoming the first former president to be convicted of a criminal offense, Trump — whose first term concluded in controversy after his supporters stormed the Capitol in protest of Biden’s 2020 win — has had plenty of prominent supporters, especially in the fight game.

In addition to his friendship with UFC CEO Dana White, a number of fighters have voiced their support for the 45th and soon-to-be 47th US president. That trend largely continued on social media during election night and in the aftermath of Trump’s win being confirmed.

Active and former UFC athletes commented on the result, from former middleweight champion Israel Adesanya and Khamzat Chimaev to staunch Trump supporters Colby Covington and Jorge Masvidal.

Continue Reading Israel Adesanya, Khamzat Chimaev, & Other UFC Fighters React As Donald Trump Wins The 2024 US Presidential Election at MMA News.

Israel Adesanya, Khamzat Chimaev, & Other UFC Fighters React As Donald Trump Wins The 2024 US Presidential Election

A number of UFC fighters were vocal on social media across last night and this morning, as Donald Trump emerged victorious from the 2024 US presidential election. Republican Trump will return to the White House after defeating Democrat opponent Kamala Harris. His victory was confirmed after he surpassed 270 electoral college votes, and he looks […]

Continue Reading Israel Adesanya, Khamzat Chimaev, & Other UFC Fighters React As Donald Trump Wins The 2024 US Presidential Election at MMA News.

A number of UFC fighters were vocal on social media across last night and this morning, as Donald Trump emerged victorious from the 2024 US presidential election.

Republican Trump will return to the White House after defeating Democrat opponent Kamala Harris. His victory was confirmed after he surpassed 270 electoral college votes, and he looks set to collect all seven swing states.

The triumph has secured a second term in office for the 78-year-old, who has become only the second president in history to win a non-consecutive second term following Joe Biden’s success in the 2020 election.

While polls were predicting a tight contest, Trump comfortably beat Harris after taking a firm lead in the national poplar vote. He’ll now mark the oldest man elected to the United States’ highest office.

Despite becoming the first former president to be convicted of a criminal offense, Trump — whose first term concluded in controversy after his supporters stormed the Capitol in protest of Biden’s 2020 win — has had plenty of prominent supporters, especially in the fight game.

In addition to his friendship with UFC CEO Dana White, a number of fighters have voiced their support for the 45th and soon-to-be 47th US president. That trend largely continued on social media during election night and in the aftermath of Trump’s win being confirmed.

Active and former UFC athletes commented on the result, from former middleweight champion Israel Adesanya and Khamzat Chimaev to staunch Trump supporters Colby Covington and Jorge Masvidal.

Continue Reading Israel Adesanya, Khamzat Chimaev, & Other UFC Fighters React As Donald Trump Wins The 2024 US Presidential Election at MMA News.

Michael Chiesa Offers Advice To Struggling Fighters After Nearly Retiring Before Recent Bounce Back Win

Before his last fight inside the Octagon in August, Michael Chiesa found himself in the worst patch of form of his career. The former winner of The Ultimate Fighter has overcome losses in the past and did suffer back-to-back defeats to Kevin Lee and Anthony Pettis once before. However, in three consecutive outings, he was […]

Continue Reading Michael Chiesa Offers Advice To Struggling Fighters After Nearly Retiring Before Recent Bounce Back Win at MMA News.

Before his last fight inside the Octagon in August, Michael Chiesa found himself in the worst patch of form of his career. The former winner of The Ultimate Fighter has overcome losses in the past and did suffer back-to-back defeats to Kevin Lee and Anthony Pettis once before.

However, in three consecutive outings, he was without a win after being submitted by Vicente Luque and Kevin Holland with a decision loss to Sean Brady in between. Chiesa was able to get back in the win column in Abu Dhabi when he submitted Tony Ferguson in the first round.

He’s now set to return at UFC 310 in search of a second win when he faces Max Griffin to keep his momentum pushing forward. In the build up to this fight, the commentator and desk analyst revealed that he seriously contemplated retirement during his losing streak.

If he wasn’t able to compete at the highest level anymore, he would hang up the gloves and look to continue pursuing the avenues that he’s already started to go down in recent years. In an interview with Shakiel Mahjouri, Chiesa spoke about working with a sport psychologist and what his biggest takeaways from that were.

When asked what advice he would pass on to struggling fighters that may find themselves in a similar position to the one that he was in, he spoke about the importance of having goals but focusing on the present rather than looking too far ahead.

“I think the biggest thing that I would say is focus on being in the present moment. That is something that I struggled with. Looking too far ahead like I’m looking too far ahead at the title or I’m looking too far ahead at the fight and worrying about getting hurt or like just looking too far ahead and not being present. It’s very important to be present in the moment every single day with your training. It’s good to have goals but you don’t have to dwell on the future and what’s yet to come or what you want to happen. You set the goals and then you put them aside and just focus on being in the moment.”

Continue Reading Michael Chiesa Offers Advice To Struggling Fighters After Nearly Retiring Before Recent Bounce Back Win at MMA News.