Former PFL champion and upcoming finalist Brendan Loughnane has been around the UK MMA scene for a long time. The veteran has long been considered one of the most talented fighters in the region and he finally got his breakthrough when he signed with the PFL after fighting all over the world before that. During […]
Former PFL champion and upcoming finalist Brendan Loughnane has been around the UK MMA scene for a long time. The veteran has long been considered one of the most talented fighters in the region and he finally got his breakthrough when he signed with the PFL after fighting all over the world before that.
During a recent episode of Uncaged by talkSPORT, Loughnane used his knowledge of the wide range of competitors to pick out a fighter that is set to return to the Octagon this weekend as his most underrated fighter from the UK. Wales’ Jack Shore is back in action on Saturday night when he heads to Edmonton, Alberta, Canada.
“The Tank” will make his third appearance as a featherweight by taking on Youssef Zalal in a fight that has gone totally under the radar for most fight fans. Shore is looking to bounce back from a controversial loss last time out at UFC 301 where his fight with Joanderson Brito was stopped due to a cut on his shin.
The 29-year old was 16-0 before being stopped by Ricky Simón in his final fight at 135-pounds and was attracting some hype off of his five fight win streak. Though Loughnane is reserving judgement on whether he can replicate that same level of success in the featherweight division, he believes Shore has all the skills he needs to compete at the highest level.
“I think he’s the most underrated UK fighter right now, I really do, Jack Shore. I think he’s had a bit of bad luck but I think when he puts it together mate, like I don’t know about this move to featherweight…let’s just see, let’s just make an assumption after this fight but I really rate Jack and his team and I think he flies under the radar.”
Khamzat Chimaev or Sean Strickland are set to challenge Dricus du Plessis for his UFC middleweight title. Imagine you’re…
Khamzat Chimaev or Sean Strickland are set to challenge Dricus du Plessis for his UFC middleweight title. Imagine you’re sitting down for dinner at a restaurant. Before you sit two options; a freshly cooked steak, or an unspiced pile of stale bread. Which would you choose?
Khamzat Chimaev or Sean Strickland
South Africa’s Dricus du Plessis (22-2) was able to capture the UFC middleweight crown in a close split decision against the US-born Sean Strickland. Afterward, ‘Stillknocks’ defended this title against former champion Israel Adesanya by submission. Now, du Plessis is ready for a fight and has two potential opponents in front of him.
Sean Strickland (29-6), former titleholder, is option A. Or, the UFC can choose ‘The Wolf’ Khamzat Chimaev (14-0) is option B.
‘Tarzan’ Strickland believes that he is entitled to a rematch for the title due to his status as a former champion. The US-born athlete believes that his title shot is already agreed to for early 2025. But based on what Dricus du Plessis has said, it is not set in stone just yet.
ABU DHABI, UNITED ARAB EMIRATES – OCTOBER 26: Khamzat Chimaev of Russia reacts after a submission victory against Robert Whittaker of New Zealand in a middleweight fight during the UFC 308 event at Etihad Arena on October 26, 2024 in Abu Dhabi, United Arab Emirates. (Photo by Chris Unger/Zuffa LLC)
Khamzat Chimaev
‘Borz’ Khamzat Chimaev is a fan-favorite fighter known for his aggressive fighting style. He looks to finish his opponents whether on the feet or on the ground. Of his 14 wins, 12 have come by way of KO/TKO or submission, giving him an 85% finishing rate. Compared to Strickland’s 51%.
For what the UFC likes to see, Chimaev has to be their pick. He is popular among fans around the world and has exciting fighting capabilities. Strickland has neither of these skills. The US-born athlete is known for his trash talk outside the ring, aggressive fighting in sparring, and boring fights inside the octagon. His highlight reel leaves much to be desired.
Sean Strickland
Let’s compare recent wins. Strickland struggled to defeat Paulo Costa. Over five rounds, he landed 182 strikes. This means he performed worse than Marvin Vettori did against the same opponent, who landed 190. Despite having a close match against the du Plessis, no one is clamoring to see Strickland fight the South African once again. It was a plain fight. And in Strickland’s match right afterward, against Costa, he showed nothing new. So why would a rematch go any different?
Conversely, ‘Borz’ earned a quick first-round submission against the former champion Robert Whittaker. It only took him less than four minutes to put ‘The Reaper’ away. Skilled fighters such as Adesanya, Dricus du Plessis, and Yoel Romero, could not perform this feat. That was the fastest anyone has put Whittaker away in his UFC career.
ABU DHABI, UNITED ARAB EMIRATES – OCTOBER 26: (L-R) Khamzat Chimaev of Russia secures a submission against Robert Whittaker of New Zealand in a middleweight fight during the UFC 308 event at Etihad Arena on October 26, 2024 in Abu Dhabi, United Arab Emirates. (Photo by Chris Unger/Zuffa LLC)
Of course, ‘The Wolf’ is not without his flaws. He has bounced between middleweight and welterweight due to weight issues. At middleweight, he has hardly defeated any career middleweight aside from Whittaker. Plus, illnesses seem to plague his career.
ABU DHABI, UNITED ARAB EMIRATES – OCTOBER 21: Khamzat Chimaev of the United Arab Emirates prepares to face Kamaru Usman of Nigeria in a middleweight fight during the UFC 294 event at Etihad Arena on October 21, 2023 in Abu Dhabi, United Arab Emirates. (Photo by Chris Unger/Zuffa LLC via Getty Images)
The popular Khamzat Chimaev is a breath of fresh air with an exciting style. To add insult to Strickland, Joe Rogan, Daniel Cormier, and Dricus du Plessis, have all said that ‘Borz’ should get the title shot ahead of him. For a good fight, Chimaev is your guy. But if you need a sensitive man to throw a fit over gay people or women, Sean Strickland is your guy.
NEWARK, NEW JERSEY – JUNE 01: Sean Strickland reacts after his victory against Paulo Costa of Brazil in a middleweight fight during the UFC 302 event at Prudential Center on June 01, 2024 in Newark, New Jersey. (Photo by Jeff Bottari/Zuffa LLC via Getty Images)
Dricus Du Plessis is not backing down from the new big challenge that awaits him in the middleweight division. At UFC 308, Khamzat Chimaev delivered a statement performance to put himself into the title picture. The undefeated contender submitted former champion Robert Whittaker in the first round and in many people’s eyes, including Du Plessis’, […]
The undefeated contender submitted former champion Robert Whittaker in the first round and in many people’s eyes, including Du Plessis’, he’s the most exciting option as the next title challenger.
Many believe that based on some of his previous fights, “Borz” is extremely dangerous in the opening round but his aggression and intensive grappling quickly drains his gas tank. In a recent interview with ESPN MMA, Du Plessis was asked whether surviving the early stages of a fight with Chimaev would be his focus for a game plan.
He made the point that fighters would often say the same thing about him until he proved in his last two title fights that he can maintain a consistent pace in the championship rounds. The South African champion said that approaching Chimaev with this mindset would put him at a disadvantage from the very start.
“Yeah, I’ll be very careful in that sense. I think a lot of guys made that same mistake. I think Sean Strickland made that mistake with me, maybe even Israel. Saying, ‘Listen, get past round one and two with this guy and he’s going to be tired and that’s where you start gaining,’ but if you have a defensive mindset, you’re going to be on the back foot the whole time, especially with a offensive heavy fighter like Khamzat in the offensive wrestling stage and myself in the offensive everything stage.”
Dricus Du Plessis is not backing down from the new big challenge that awaits him in the middleweight division. At UFC 308, Khamzat Chimaev delivered a statement performance to put himself into the title picture. The undefeated contender submitted former champion Robert Whittaker in the first round and in many people’s eyes, including Du Plessis’, […]
The undefeated contender submitted former champion Robert Whittaker in the first round and in many people’s eyes, including Du Plessis’, he’s the most exciting option as the next title challenger.
Many believe that based on some of his previous fights, “Borz” is extremely dangerous in the opening round but his aggression and intensive grappling quickly drains his gas tank. In a recent interview with ESPN MMA, Du Plessis was asked whether surviving the early stages of a fight with Chimaev would be his focus for a game plan.
He made the point that fighters would often say the same thing about him until he proved in his last two title fights that he can maintain a consistent pace in the championship rounds. The South African champion said that approaching Chimaev with this mindset would put him at a disadvantage from the very start.
“Yeah, I’ll be very careful in that sense. I think a lot of guys made that same mistake. I think Sean Strickland made that mistake with me, maybe even Israel. Saying, ‘Listen, get past round one and two with this guy and he’s going to be tired and that’s where you start gaining,’ but if you have a defensive mindset, you’re going to be on the back foot the whole time, especially with a offensive heavy fighter like Khamzat in the offensive wrestling stage and myself in the offensive everything stage.”
Germaine de Randamie has announced her retirement from mixed martial arts, bringing an 11-year stint in the UFC to an end. After establishing her name under the Strikeforce banner, a strong start to life inside the Octagon peaked with de Randamie becoming the inaugural UFC women’s featherweight champion in 2017. Having beaten Holly Holm to […]
Germaine de Randamie has announced her retirement from mixed martial arts, bringing an 11-year stint in the UFC to an end.
After establishing her name under the Strikeforce banner, a strong start to life inside the Octagon peaked with de Randamie becoming the inaugural UFC women’s featherweight champion in 2017.
The Dutchwoman returned to 135 pounds in 2018 and reeled off wins over then-future champ Raquel Pennington and Aspen Ladd before a failed title bid opposite Amanda Nunes in December 2019.
Despite being booked to face Jacqueline Cavalcanti next January following the cancellation of her scheduled clash against Nora Cornolle in Paris last month, de Randamie has ultimately decided to hang up her gloves after being denied a final farewell fight before the close of this calendar year.
“Hey guys, with so many mixed feelings I’m sharing this message with you guys,” de Randamie wrote. “I definitely didn’t plan or envision/dream it this way, but hey it is what it is sometimes. I begged the UFC for 1 more fight. But it had to be this year. I promised myself I would retire from fighting December 31, 2024. Unfortunately the UFC told me all cards are fully booked.
“That’s why I decided that the time is now. I really wished I could have walked the walk one more time. But I guess it was not meant to be. To many people to thank personally so thank you all for being a part of my journey Thank you for all the amazing memories. I’m forever grateful for all of them,” de Randamie continued. “Like I always say, ‘DIE WITH MEMORIES, NOT DREAMS’”
In addition to her 15-fight career inside the cage, de Randamie also enjoyed a successful stint in the kickboxing realm, where she amassed an undefeated record of 46-0.
Germaine de Randamie has announced her retirement from mixed martial arts, bringing an 11-year stint in the UFC to an end. After establishing her name under the Strikeforce banner, a strong start to life inside the Octagon peaked with de Randamie becoming the inaugural UFC women’s featherweight champion in 2017. Having beaten Holly Holm to […]
Germaine de Randamie has announced her retirement from mixed martial arts, bringing an 11-year stint in the UFC to an end.
After establishing her name under the Strikeforce banner, a strong start to life inside the Octagon peaked with de Randamie becoming the inaugural UFC women’s featherweight champion in 2017.
The Dutchwoman returned to 135 pounds in 2018 and reeled off wins over then-future champ Raquel Pennington and Aspen Ladd before a failed title bid opposite Amanda Nunes in December 2019.
Despite being booked to face Jacqueline Cavalcanti next January following the cancellation of her scheduled clash against Nora Cornolle in Paris last month, de Randamie has ultimately decided to hang up her gloves after being denied a final farewell fight before the close of this calendar year.
“Hey guys, with so many mixed feelings I’m sharing this message with you guys,” de Randamie wrote. “I definitely didn’t plan or envision/dream it this way, but hey it is what it is sometimes. I begged the UFC for 1 more fight. But it had to be this year. I promised myself I would retire from fighting December 31, 2024. Unfortunately the UFC told me all cards are fully booked.
“That’s why I decided that the time is now. I really wished I could have walked the walk one more time. But I guess it was not meant to be. To many people to thank personally so thank you all for being a part of my journey Thank you for all the amazing memories. I’m forever grateful for all of them,” de Randamie continued. “Like I always say, ‘DIE WITH MEMORIES, NOT DREAMS’”
In addition to her 15-fight career inside the cage, de Randamie also enjoyed a successful stint in the kickboxing realm, where she amassed an undefeated record of 46-0.
Khamzat Chimaev or Sean Strickland are set to challenge Dricus du Plessis for his UFC middleweight title. Imagine you’re…
Thank you for all the amazing memories. I’m forever grateful for all of them,” de Randamie continued. “Like I always say, ‘DIE WITH MEMORIES, NOT DREAMS’”