Connect with us

MMA

Morning Report: UFC 309 backup Tom Aspinall hopes to convince Jon Jones or Stipe Miocic to ‘stick around’

Published

on

Morning Report: UFC 309 backup Tom Aspinall hopes to convince Jon Jones or Stipe Miocic to ‘stick around’

Tom Aspinall is set to be a backup fighter at UFC 309, but he might also put in some work as a pitch man while he’s there.

When Jon Jones returns to defend his heavyweight title against fellow legend Stipe Miocic in the Nov. 16 main event at Madison Square Garden, Aspinall will be on hand to step in should either fighter be unable to make to the cage on fight night. Regardless of the result, Aspinall—the interim heavyweight champion—would like to face the winner, assuming that this doesn’t prove to be the final fight for both headliners.

Aspinall plans to do his part to convince either Jones or Miocic to put off their retirement plans and make the walk at least one more time.

“What’s the plan?” Aspinall said on his YouTube channel. “Turn up, do some media, cause a few scenes here and there, and try and make the winner stick around and fight me, hopefully.”

Advertisement

Since Jones’ most recent fight, a dominant win over Ciryl Gane in March 2023 to capture a vacant belt, Aspinall has claimed an interim title and successfully defended it once. Despite his success, the No. 1 heavyweight in MMA Fighting’s Global Rankings enters UFC 309 with no assurance he’ll get the chance to face the undisputed champion.

Aspinall is excited to see his potential opponents in action, at the very least. Having made his UFC debut in July 2020, Aspinall hasn’t had many opportunities to see Jones or Miocic from a cageside seat with the pair having fought a combined three times since then.

“Just see what happens, really,” Aspinall said. “I’m really interested how both guys look in the fight, that’s really interesting for me, up close. Especially up close because it’s a little bit different than on the TV. I want to go up close and see what these guys look like in live action, do you know what I mean?

“How are they moving? What are they doing? You can see little differences in real life than you can on the TV and I’m looking forward to that.”

Advertisement

Out. A bone infection in his foot has forced Belal Muhammad off of UFC 310.

Happy Trails. Former UFC featherweight champion Germaine de Randamie announced her retirement after 25 years of fighting.

Thanks. Derrick Lewis signed a new UFC deal, one that may have been boosted by PFL’s interest in him for a Francis Ngannou rematch.

Intervention. Brendan Schaub looks back at the moment Joe Rogan changed his life forever.

Advertisement

Still Beefing? Derrick Lewis had strong words for Daniel Cormier… even if it’s unclear exactly what the issue is.


Between the Links.

Derrick Lewis and Mike Heck.

Alexander Volkanovski in Abu Dhabi.

Advertisement

Just bleed, obviously.


Who wants some?

Advertisement

Ian Machado Garry, that’s who.

And maybe Kamaru Usman.

And definitely Joaquin Buckley.

Advertisement

I chuckled.

Real talk: Coyote -2000


Payton Talbott (9-0) vs. Raoni Barcelos (18-5); UFC 311, Jan. 18


The UFC is back in Canada for the first time since January, and in Edmonton for the first time since July 2019. Let’s hope for the country’s sake that it’s more like UFC 289 in Vancouver (all the Canadians won!) and less like UFC 297 (Jasmine Jasudavicius and Gillian Robertson delivered, all the Canadian men lost!).

Advertisement

There are NINE fighters representing Canada on Saturday. Surely, they’ll come out with a better than .500 record, right?

Right, eh?


Poll

Who wins the UFC Edmonton main event?


If you find something you’d like to see in the Morning Report, hit up @AlexanderKlee or @JedKMeshew on Twitter and let us know about it. Also, follow MMAFighting on Twitter, Instagram, YouTube, TikTok, and like us on Facebook.

Advertisement

Source link

Continue Reading
Advertisement
Click to comment

You must be logged in to post a comment Login

Leave a Reply

MMA

T.J. Dillashaw says Max Holloway ‘got too comfortable’

Published

on

T.J. Dillashaw says Max Holloway ‘got too comfortable’

T.J. Dillashaw thinks Max Holloway wasn’t defensively responsible enough against Ilia Topuria.

Topuria (16-0 MMA, 8-0 UFC) retained his featherweight title in this past Saturday’s UFC 308 headliner by becoming the first fighter to knock out Holloway (26-8 MMA, 22-8 UFC). The power difference was evident early, but Holloway was starting to find success with his jab in Rounds 2 and 3 before Topuria landed a blistering left hook to sit him down.

Former UFC bantamweight champion Dillashaw credited Holloway for circling well in the first couple of rounds but thinks “Blessed” ultimately got too comfortable standing in front of Topuria and exchanging, which cost him.

“I think he (Holloway) got too comfortable in the second round,” Dillashaw said on the “JAXXON Podcast.” “He started piecing him (Topuria) up, right? He’s using his distance, he had a great jab, he’s hammering his jab, and Max is a volume guy.

Advertisement

“His volume’s working, he gets better and better as the fight goes on, and I think when it got into the third round, he got a little comfortable, and Topuria’s fast as f*ck. He did that slapping hook to get his hands away from his face with that overhand right and then it changed everything.”

Dillashaw heaped praise on Topuria’s boxing, calling him No. 1 the UFC’s ever had.

“He could be a boxer,” Dillashaw said of Topuria. “Legitimately I feel like he could be an actual boxer. I think he’s the best boxer that’s been in the UFC cage in my opinion, technique wise. …He makes you miss with like the littlest movements.

“He’s not dramatic. He keeps his weight underneath him. His feet are always perfectly underneath him, he can throw power at any time, and he makes you miss just by a little bit. He’s got his head motion just a little bit off the line. You throw a jab, he slips it.”

Advertisement

For more on the card, visit MMA Junkie’s event hub for UFC 308.

Be sure to visit the MMA Junkie Instagram page and YouTube channel to discuss this and more content with fans of mixed martial arts.

Source link

Advertisement
Continue Reading

MMA

Missed Fists: Fighter left twitching, taken away on stretcher after devastating knockout

Published

on

Missed Fists: Fighter left twitching, taken away on stretcher after devastating knockout

Welcome to the latest edition of Missed Fists where we shine a light on fights from across the globe that may have been overlooked in these hectic times where it seems like there’s an MMA show every other day.

Halloween has come and gone, but that doesn’t mean there aren’t frightful fights to be revisited.

In fact, our first clip of the week is guaranteed to disturb you more than any scary movie you watched last night.

(Big thanks as always to @Barrelelapierna for their weekly lists of the best KOs and submissions, and to @Grabaka_Hitman for uploading many of the clips you see here. Give them a follow and chip in on Patreon if you can.)

Advertisement

Kimbert Alintozon vs. Estrada Donga-as

If you’re reading Missed Fists, you know what you’re getting into as far as seeing a variety of knockouts and submissions that will make even the most seasoned combat sports fan squirm, so we don’t usually issue warnings for what you’re about to watch.

Still, this knockout from a Zeus Combat League show in Quezon City, Philippines, requires extra caution. Just scroll past to the next section if you’d rather not see what is, without hyperbole, the most gut-wrenching KO of the year.

OK, here it is.

Kimbert Alintozon tagged Estrada Donga-as with a combo that had Donga-as retreating. Unfortunately, he stepped right into an Alintozon power punch that violently separated him from his consciousness.

The way Donga-as fell looked plenty scary, but the grisly scene didn’t stop there. In the footage above, you get a clear view of his lower body rapidly twitching for an uncomfortable amount of time. Unsurprisingly, Donga-as needed to be stretchered out of the cage.

Nissi Icasiano, the reporter who uploaded the footage, later shared an update on Donga-as’ status.

“Donga-as was immediately taken to the hospital but managed to return before the event concluded. This journalist caught up with him in the dugout, where he shared that his CT scan and other test results were clear.”

Let’s hope Donga-as is taken care of and doesn’t return to action anytime soon.

Cam Rowston vs. Blair Bretag

With that ugliness out of the way, let’s move on to a clip featuring one of my favorite submissions: The calf slicer!

At a Stealth Fighters League show in Auckland, New Zealand, Cam Rowston showed off some sweet grappling skills, opening up a turtling Blair Bretag with the leg submission that caused an immediate tap.

Still nasty, but considerably less troubling to look at, right?

Daichi Kamiya vs. Raymart Quintana

This next submission from Eternal MMA 89 (available on UFC Fight Pass) is the stuff of nightmares, though.

Daichi Kamiya had Raymart Quintana tied up something fierce, eventually putting him away with a modified twister. At least that’s what I think that is, your guess is as good as mine. If I was Quintana, even if I wasn’t in clear danger, I’d tap just like he did because I’m not waiting to find out if the predicament was about to get a lot worse.

Hat tip to Kamiya, a 25-year-old lightweight who is now 6-0 as a pro. Kamiya has only been competing since 2022 and dreams of following in the footsteps of his idol Khabib Nurmagomedov and someday becoming UFC lightweight champion. Not a bad start to his career so far.

Advertisement

Jadon Shuey vs. Lukas Nazad

From a Flex Fight Series event in Queens, N.Y., amateur lightweight Jadon Shuey picks up the spectacular KO win and nails an even more spectacular post-fight cage flip.

No notes.

Can Hircin vs. Tom Molenaar
Barry Irausquin vs. Freek Van Iersel

Can Hircin stalked his prey like The Predator (uhh, the classic sci-fi alien, not Francis Ngannou… though this was kind of Ngannou-esque, now that I think about it) and landed a right hand wrecking ball on poor Tom Molenaar.

No setup, just load it and let it rip.

Advertisement

Speaking of which, Barry Irausquin got to slipping and ripping with this gorgeous 19-second punch-out of Freek Van Iersel.

He’s a super-Freek, super-Freek, he’s super-unconscious, yeeeoooooow.

Not my best work.

You can watch a free replay of Levels Fight League 14 from Amsterdam on the promotion’s YouTube channel.

Advertisement

Ilzat Asiev vs. Bekhruz Isroilov

There are so few positions in MMA where you are “safe,” as it were, and this definitely wasn’t one of them.

Ilzat Asiev and Bekhruz Isroilov were engaged in some spirited grappling, with Isroilov using a whizzer to block a takedown. Unfortunately for Isroilov, he never managed to free his arm, so when Asiev straightened him up, he was left wide open for that knockout knee.

Great timing, but chill on the ground-and-pound, my dude.

A replay of Octagon League 65 from Almaty, Kazakhstan is also available for free on YouTube.

Advertisement

Christopher Alvidrez was putting it on onetime Bellator fighter Albert Gonzales at a Lights Out Xtreme Fighting show in Long Beach, Calif., but the resilient Gonzales kept coming at him like a zombie.

Only one solution for that: head shot.

No reanimating after that. One of those knockouts that’s so bad, Alvidrez showed instant remorse after. Spooky stuff, for sure.

Poll

What was the scariest Missed Fists highlight this week?

  • 0%
    Kimbert Alintozon leaves opponent twitching

    (0 votes)

    Advertisement
  • 0%
    Daichi Kamiya’s mystery twister

    (0 votes)

  • 0%
    Jadon Shuey’s KO and flip

    (0 votes)

  • 0%
    Christopher Alvidrez KOs, feel instant remorse

    (0 votes)

  • 0%
    Other (leave comment below)

    (0 votes)

    Advertisement



0 votes total

Vote Now


If you know of a recent fight or event that you think may have been overlooked, or a promotion that could use some attention, please let us know on X — @AlexanderKLee — using the hashtag #MissedFists.

Source link

Advertisement
Continue Reading

Football

Lennon Miller ‘lives dream’ to captain Motherwell in cup semi-final aged 18

Published

on

Lennon Miller 'lives dream' to captain Motherwell in cup semi-final aged 18


“Because I’ve got the armband, I’m not going to change before the game. I’ll try to do my talking with my feet.”

Miller recalled that “the last time I was at Hampden, I was in the stand watching a League Cup final” – a 2-0 defeat by Celtic in 2017 – and now he hopes to lead them to a victory against the other side of the Old Firm.

“To captain this club is what dreams are made of,” he said. “It’s where I’ve been most of my life really and the fact that I came through the academy and to captain your team at Hampden is a massive thing for me.”

Advertisement

Motherwell manager Stuart Kettlewell said the decision was an “easy one”.

“He maybe not the loudest voice in there, but his level of performance I believe leads other players,” he explained. “I believe at times some of what he does on a football pitch can be an inspiration to others even at that young tender age.

“When asking that question of Lennon, you guys won’t be surprised to learn that he shrugged his shoulders and said yeah, no problem at all.”



Source link

Advertisement
Continue Reading

MMA

UFC veterans in MMA action Nov. 1-3

Published

on

UFC veterans in MMA action Nov. 1-3


This week, the UFC returns to North America for an event in Canada.

UFC Fight Night 246 takes place at Rogers Place in Edmonton and features a flyweight bout between former champion Brandon Moreno and Amir Albazi.

Elsewhere, many other combat sports events are taking place, featuring several familiar names who have competed under the UFC banner.

Check out which veterans of the global MMA leader are competing Nov. 1-3.

Advertisement

Scroll below to see how the UFC veterans fared last week, and see the names and details of this weekend’s competitors.

Upcoming event information from Tapology.

Last week’s results

  • Carl Deaton III: Oct. 25 vs. Ramiro Figueroa at BKFC c67 (bareknuckle boxing)
  • Cameron VanCamp: Split decision win vs. Brandon Girtz at BKFC 67 (bareknuckle boxing)
  • Chris Camozzi: TKO win vs. Sawyer Deep at BKFC 67 (bareknuckle boxing)
  • A.J. Fletcher: Submission loss vs. Dante Schiro at LFA 195
  • Chris Fishgold: Oct. 26 vs. Raymart Quintana at Eternal MMA 89
  • John Allan: Oct. 26 vs. Anderson Pereira at BOPE Fight – results pending
  • Luis Saldana: TKO win vs. Edward Massey at ACL 5
  • Tom Breese: Unanimous decision win vs. Renato Rangel at LFL 14
  • Rostem Akman: Oct. 27 vs. Melvin van Suijdam at LFL 14

Raulian Paiva (23-5-1 MMA, 3-4 UFC)

  • Next fight: Nov. 1 vs. Ruslan Sariev at Alash Pride 101
  • Last MMA fight: Unanimous decision win vs. Silas Lima at ExpoCOmbat 2024 on Sept. 8, 2024
  • Last UFC fight: Unanimous decision loss vs. Sergey Morozov at UFC on ESPN 38 on June 25, 2022
  • Record since UFC exit: 2-0-1

Darrell Horcher (14-7 MMA, 1-3 UFC)

  • Next fight: Nov. 1 vs. Dakota Bush at Nemesis Fighting Alliance 19
  • Last MMA fight: TKO loss vs. Shane Campbell at Unified MMA 54 on Dec. 15, 2023
  • Last UFC fight: Submission loss vs. Roosevelt Roberts at The Ultimate Fighter 28 Finale on Nov. 30, 2018
  • Record since UFC exit: 1-3

Dakota Bush (13-4 MMA, 0-2 UFC)

  • Next fight: Nov. 1 vs. Darrell Horcher at Nemesis Fighting Alliance 19
  • Last MMA fight: Submission win vs. Jhonasky Sojo at Nemesis Fighting Alliance 18 on Aug. 16, 2024
  • Last UFC fight: TKO loss vs. Viacheslav Borshchev at UFC on ESPN 32 on Jan. 15, 2022
  • Record since UFC exit: 5-1

Kazula Vargas (15-6 MMA, 1-3 UFC)

  • Next fight: Nov. 1 vs. Alejandro Cerquera at Lux Fight League 47
  • Last MMA fight: Submission win vs. Roman Cordova at Lux Fight League 44 on Aug. 2, 2024
  • Last UFC fight: Submission loss vs. Paddy Pimblett at UFC Fight Night 204 on March 19, 2022
  • Record since UFC exit: 3-1

Michel Prazeres (27-6 MMA, 10-4 UFC)

  • Next fight: Nov. 2 vs. Evgeniy Galochkin at ACA 181
  • Last MMA fight: Unanimous decision loss vs. Renat Lyatifov at ACA 175 on May 17, 2024
  • Last UFC fight: Submission loss vs. Shavkat Rakhmonov at UFC Fight Night 190 on June 26, 2021
  • Record since UFC exit: 1-2

Elias Silverio (20-10-1 MMA, 3-2 UFC)

  • Next fight: Nov. 2 vs. Alexey Shurkevich at ACA 181
  • Last MMA fight: Unanimous decision win vs. Ruslan Kolodko at ACA 173 on March 29, 2024
  • Last UFC fight: Unanimous decision loss vs. Shane Campbell at UFC Fight Night 74 on Aug. 23, 2015
  • Record since UFC exit: 9-8-1

Carlos Felipe (12-4 MMA, 3-2 UFC)

  • Next fight: Nov. 2 vs. Kirill Kornilov at ACA 181
  • Last MMA fight: Split decision loss vs. Tony Johnson Jr. at ACA 173 on March 29, 2024
  • Last UFC fight: Unanimous decision loss vs. Andrei Arlovski at UFC Fight Night 195 on Oct. 16, 2021
  • Record since UFC exit: 1-2 MMA, 1-0 caged boxing, 1-0 bareknuckle boxing, 1-0 custom rules

Anthony Hamilton (21-11 MMA, 3-7 UFC)

  • Next fight: Nov. 2 vs. Jordan Currie at COGA Combat Games 82
  • Last MMA fight: TKO win vs. Matt Howell at COGA Combat Games 75 on July 29, 2023
  • Last UFC fight: Unanimous decision loss vs. Adam Wieczorek at UFC Fight Night 121 on Nov. 18, 2017
  • Record since UFC exit: 6-2

Josh Quinlan (6-3 MMA, 1-3 UFC)

Josh Quinlan UFC 298 ceremonial weigh-ins

  • Next fight: Nov. 3 vs. Sam Kilmer at Fury FC 98
  • Last MMA fight (also last UFC bout): Split decision loss vs. Adam Fugitt at UFC on ESPN 58 on June 15, 2024
  • Record since UFC exit: 0-0
Advertisement

Be sure to visit the MMA Junkie Instagram page and YouTube channel to discuss this and more content with fans of mixed martial arts.

Source link

Continue Reading

MMA

Moreno vs. Albazi winner gets title shot?

Published

on

Moreno vs. Albazi winner gets title shot?


UFC returns this weekend with a Fight Night event in Edmonton, Alberta, Canada, which features two very important flyweight bouts.

On the men’s side, former champion Brandon Moreno returns from a short break from MMA to welcome Amir Albazi back to competition after a series of surgeries. On the women’s side, ex-UFC strawweight titleholder Rose Namajunas looks to extend her winning streak by taking on young contender Erin Blanchfield.

Who will leave UFC Fight Night 246 with their hands raised? Could the respective winners in each flyweight bout potentially get the next shot at the title in their divisions?

Advertisement

MMA Junkie’s Brian “Goze” Garcia, Dan Tom, Danny Segura, and host “Gorgeous” George preview the main and co-main event of UFC Fight Night 246 and look at the potential upside for the winners of Saturday’s card.

Watch their discussion in the video above, and don’t miss this week’s complete episode of “Spinning Back Clique” below on YouTube.

“Spinning Back Clique” is released each Monday LIVE on MMA Junkie’s YouTube channel at noon ET. You can also find each episode on your favorite podcast platforms – including Apple Podcasts, Spotify, Google Podcasts, and more – on Tuesday mornings.

Advertisement

Be sure to visit the MMA Junkie Instagram page and YouTube channel to discuss this and more content with fans of mixed martial arts.

Source link

Continue Reading

MMA

MMA world celebrates Halloween: Conor McGregor, GSP, and more

Published

on

MMA world celebrates Halloween: Conor McGregor, GSP, and more

It’s Halloween season again and that means it’s time for the stars of the MMA world to show off their spooky sides.

In a 2024 campaign that has already seen all kinds of horror-movie worthy sights, including cuts that would make Michael Myers flinch, facial disfigurements like something out of a David Cronenberg movie, and kaiju-sized fighters delivering devastating knockouts, it’s only fitting that combat sports athletes are used to embracing the darkest day of the year.

It’s not all grim and gloom, though, as there were plenty of lighthearted costumes mixed in with the usual assortment of psychos and slashers.

Check out our roundup of the MMA community’s best costumes below.


Source link

Advertisement
Continue Reading

Trending

Copyright © 2024 WordupNews.com