Jon Jones and Stipe Miocic have accomplished a lot in their UFC careers, which is a pivotal feature of the UFC 309 poster.
The UFC dropped the new poster on Monday, which features headliners Jones, the heavyweight champion, and former titleholder and challenger Stipe Miocic. The event takes place Nov. 16 at Madison Square Garden in New York City.
The matchup was initially set for UFC 295 this past November, but Jones withdrew due to injury. “Bones” makes his first appearance in 20 months since capturing the heavyweight strap with a first-round submission of Ciryl Gane in the main event of UFC 285 in March 2023.
The layoff is even longer for Miocic, who returns to the octagon for the first time since losing the heavyweight title to Francis Ngannou at UFC 260 in March 2021. Miocic seeks his first win in over four years.
Francis Ngannou reminded the MMA world he’s still a dangerous man.
After more than two years away from the sport, the former UFC heavyweight champion returned to the cage this past Saturday in the main event of PFL: Battle of the Giants, where he stopped Renan Ferreira in the first round of their contest. Remember, although out of the UFC, Ngannou left as champion. His successful comeback certainly makes things interesting, not only for the PFL, but for the heavyweight landscape in general.
So, is it safe to say that Ngannou is still the beat heavyweight in MMA today? What should be next for him?
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MMA Junkie’s Brian “Goze” Garcia, Dan Tom, Mike Bohn, Danny Segura, and host “Gorgeous” George react to Ngannou’s big win in his PFL debut.
Watch their discussion in the video above, and don’t miss this week’s complete episode of “Spinning Back Clique” below on YouTube.
Be sure to visit the MMA Junkie Instagram page and YouTube channel to discuss this and more content with fans of mixed martial arts.
Samuel attempted to play through his illness but left the game in the second quarter due to the breathing issues.
Shanahan told reporters on Monday he was not sure how long the 28-year-old will be out.
Samuel is just the latest in a string of injury woes plaguing the Niners.
Tight end George Kittle has a sprained foot and is considered day to day, while wide receiver Brandon Aiyuk is out for the remainder of the season with a torn ACL and MCL. Reigning NFL Offensive Player of the Year Christian McCaffrey has yet to play this season due to Achilles tendinitis, though he should return soon:
LAS VEGAS – Asu Almabayev beat Matheus Nicolau with a unanimous decision Saturday to close out the preliminary card at UFC Fight Night 245 at the UFC Apex in Las Vegas.
Take a look inside the fight with Almabayev, who won for the 17th straight time.
Asu Almabayev def. Matheus Nicolau
Asu Almabayev
Result:Asu Almabayev def. Matheus Nicolau via unanimous decision (29-28, 29-28, 29-28) Updated records: Almabayev (21-2 MMA, 4-0 UFC), Nicolau (19-6-1 MMA, 7-4 UFC) Key stats: Almabayev has had more than 26 minutes of total control time over the 45 minutes of his past three decision wins. But after landing 15 combined takedowns his past two fights, he had just one against Nicolau.
“I’m happy. It’s not easy to win the fight. Every opponent’s doing hard work and coming here to fight and to win, so I’m very happy that I won. (The game plan) was just to win. I wanted to wrestle, but (Nicolau) is tough – he’s No. 7 in the rankings. During the fight, I changed the game plan a little.”
Almabayev on Nicoalu’s takedown defense
LAS VEGAS, NEVADA – OCTOBER 19: (L-R) Matheus Nicolau of Brazil punches Asu Almabayev of Kazakstan in a flyweight fight during the UFC Fight Night event at UFC APEX on October 19, 2024 in Las Vegas, Nevada. (Photo by Jeff Bottari/Zuffa LLC)
“I was not surprised (at his takedown defense) because every fighter knows that I’ll try to take them down. After the first and second, I saw that (he was good at stopping me). What can I do? So I tried to improve the positions all the time.”
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Almabayev on what he wants next
May 4, 2024; Rio de Janeiro, RJ, BRAZIL; Alexandre Pantoja (red gloves) fights against Steve Erceg (blue gloves) during UFC 301 at Rio Arena. Mandatory Credit: Jason Silva-USA TODAY Sports
“I will come back home and we’ll watch the fight again. We need to learn all the time. Give me one chance for the belt (against champion Alexandre Pantoja).”
To hear more from Almabayev, check out the video of the full post-fight interview above.
Francis Ngannou left no doubt that he’s still one of the best heavyweights in the world. The question is what will he do for his next act?
After a resounding knockout of Renan Ferreira in the PFL Battle of the Giants main event, Ngannou appears to have numerous options ahead of him once again, with the MMA community welcoming him back with open arms and the boxing world still beckoning. Whatever the former UFC champion decides to do for his next fight, you can be sure everyone will be watching.
On an all-new edition of On To the Next One, MMA Fighting’s Mike Heck and Alexander K. Lee discuss the possibilities for Ngannou after his emotional return to the cage. Additionally, future matchups are discussed for UFC Vegas 99 winner Anthony Hernandez following a dominant win over Michel Pereira, bantamweight veteran Rob Font after a streak-busting performance, plus main card winners Charles Johnson, Cameron Smotherman, Darren Elkins, and more.
LAS VEGAS – Melissa Martinez beat Alice Ardelean with a unanimous decision Saturday on the preliminary card at UFC Fight Night 245 at the UFC Apex in Las Vegas.
Take a look inside the fight with Martinez, who returned after more than two years away to pick up her first UFC win.
LAS VEGAS, NEVADA – OCTOBER 19: (L-R) Melissa Martinez of Mexico punches Alice Ardelean of Romania in a strawweight fight during the UFC Fight Night event at UFC APEX on October 19, 2024 in Las Vegas, Nevada. (Photo by Jeff Bottari/Zuffa LLC)
“I was happy to actually to put it into practice, everything that I can do. I wasn’t able to do it in my first (UFC) fight because the nerves got in the way. … I knew she was a tough fighter. I think when you get to this level, every fighter is tough. This is an organization that whoever, her or anyone else, is going to be a tough fighter. I knew it was going to be a tough challenge and I think when you’re up here, you have to be ready to face everyone.”
Martinez on a phantom low blow
Melissa Martinez def. Alice Ardelean, UFC Fight Night 245 phantom low blow
“I felt that the shot was legal, and (the ref missed it), … but I didn’t let that distract me from the fight because the focus is actually to come out with the win. I would love for that to be a different result (and it was a TKO), but I think the referees are doing their job and I think that it was the correct procedure because they were not sure whether it was legal. The only thing was not to let myself get distracted and continue to fight.”
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Martinez on what she wants next
Melissa Martinez def. Alice Ardelean, UFC Fight Night 245 (via UFC)
“I’m going to rest a little bit, but I’m going to go back into the gym – not with the same intensity as usual, but I’m going to be right there and continue to support all my my other teammates because they have their fights coming.”
To hear more from Martinez, check out the video of the full post-fight interview above.
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