MMA News
Anthony Smith announces UFC Fight Night main event against Ryan Spann
Adam Martin - June 6, 2021
UFC light heavyweight contender Anthony Smith announced himself that he will next fight in a UFC Fight Night main event against Ryan Spann. Smith mentioned the fight against Spann himself during the UFC Vegas 28 pre-show on Saturday, and ESPN later confirmed the booking. The two top-15 ranked light heavyweights will meet on September 18 in the main event of a UFC Fight Night card. There is no venue or location set for the event yet, but Las Vegas seems plausible.
Francisco Trinaldo issues statement following loss at UFC Vegas 28: "I'm not ashamed of my performance"
Adam Martin - June 6, 2021
UFC lightweight Francisco Trinaldo issued a statement following his loss at UFC Vegas 28, saying that “I’m not ashamed of my performance.” Trinaldo moved up to the welterweight division for the first time in his UFC career following a three-fight losing streak at lightweight with wins over Jai Herbert, John Makdessi, and Bobby Green. At age 42, Trinaldo is one of the oldest fighters in the UFC but he has continued to have plenty of success in the Octagon even given his elder status. On Saturday night, Trinaldo made his 170lbs debut when he took on Muslim Salikhov. Although Trinaldo fought hard for the full 15 minutes, Salikhov had the upper hand in the striking and grappling and was given the unanimous decision by the judges after the fight.
Augusto Sakai releases statement following KO loss to Jairzinho Rozenstruik at UFC Vegas 28: "My heart is broken, but physically I'm okay"
Adam Martin - June 6, 2021
UFC heavyweight Augusto Sakai released a statement following his KO loss to Jairzinho Rozenstruik at Saturday night’s UFC Vegas 28 event. Sakai and Rozenstruik was a Pick ’em fight at the sportsbooks, but it turned out to be a blowout win for Rozenstruik after he knocked Sakai out with one second left to go in the first of five scheduled rounds. For Sakai, this is his second straight loss in the Octagon after getting stopped by former UFC fighter Alistair Overeem in his last outing. This loss to Rozenstruik was Sakai’s opportunity to emerge as a legitimate title contender in the UFC heavyweight division, but following the KO loss, it’s back to the drawing board for him.
Marcin Tybura "motivated to take the next step" following first-round TKO win over Walt Harris at UFC Vegas 28
Adam Martin - June 6, 2021
UFC heavyweight Marcin Tybura says he is “motivated to take the next step” following his first-round TKO win over Walt Harris at UFC Vegas 28. Tybura survived an early onslaught of strikes from Harris in the first round of their co-main event fight at UFC Vegas 28 to storm back, take Harris to the ground, and pound him out with vicious punches on the mat. It was an incredible comeback by Tybura after being badly rocked early on in the fight, and it won him $50,000 for “Performance of the Night.” It also gave Tybura a five-fight win streak in the UFC heavyweight division, and he will be moving into the top-10 of the weight class after beating the No. 8 ranked Harris.
Santiago Ponzinibbio wants Vicente Luque next after "Fight of the Night" with Miguel Baeza at UFC Vegas 28
Adam Martin - June 6, 2021
UFC welterweight Santiago Ponzinibbio wants to fight Vicente Luque next after his “Fight of the Night” with Miguel Baeza at UFC Vegas 28. Ponzinibbio and Baeza met in a three-round welterweight bout that took place on Saturday’s main card, and it was an absolute war between two fighters who chose to stand and bang for the delight of the crowd. After Baeza won the first round with a series of brutal low kicks that left Ponzinibbio hobbling around the Octagon, the second round was a different story as Ponzinibbio was able to find his range with his punches and begin to put together combinations on Baeza’s head. The third round was more of the same and Ponzinibbio was named the winner via unanimous decision at the end of the 15 minutes. Both men were also awarded $50,000 for “Fight of the Night” for their incredible brawl.
Jairzinho Rozenstruik interested in fighting Curtis Blaydes next: "If he wants it and he's ready, let's go"
Adam D Martin - June 6, 2021
UFC heavyweight contender Jairzinho Rozenstruik is interested in facing Curtis Blaydes next, saying “if he wants it and he’s ready, let’s go.” Rozenstruik knocked out Augusto Sakai at the last second of the first round in the main event of Saturday’s UFC Vegas 28 card. Rozenstruik entered the fight coming off of a lopsided loss to Ciryl Gane earlier this year, so a lot of fans were down on him heading into this matchup, but he proved the doubters wrong with another thunderous knockout win. By beating Sakai, Rozenstruik reaffirmed his spot in the UFC heavyweight top-10, but his goal is to fight for the belt, and that’s why he has his eyes on someone in the top-five next.
Yoel Romero says he wants to "kill somebody" in his Bellator debut this summer
Adam D Martin - June 6, 2021
Former UFC middleweight title challenger Yoel Romero says that he wants to “kill somebody” in his Bellator debut later this summer. Romero was released by the UFC earlier this year in a surprise decision, but he quickly landed with Bellator MMA and was poised to fight Anthony Johnson in the first round of the Bellator World Light Heavyweight Grand Prix. However, Romero was forced out of the tournament due to a medical issue, which has pushed back his Bellator debut. According to Romero, he is now feeling better and is expected to make his Bellator debut soon.
Antonio Arroyo claims Tom Breese pulled out 10 minutes before scheduled UFC Vegas 28 fight
Adam D Martin - June 6, 2021
UFC middleweight Antonio Arroyo issued a statement after Tom Breese withdrew from the pair’s fight at UFC Vegas 28 at the last minute. Arroyo and Breese were set to kick off the UFC Vegas 28 main card in an intriguing middleweight matchup, but the fight was canceled at the last minute after Breese was not able to make it to the Octagon due to medical issues. This is not the first time that Breese has had to withdraw from a fight the day of. In 2017, he was forced out of a middleweight bout against Oluwale Bamgbose. Then, in 2019, Breese was forced to pull out of a fight against Ian Heinisch after experiencing a panic attack. It’s unknown if his issues with anxiety were why the fight with Arroyo was scrapped, but it’s certainly plausible.
Israel Adesanya and Marvin Vettori get in heated war of words ahead of UFC 263 rematch (Video)
Adam D Martin - June 6, 2021
UFC middleweight champion Israel Adesanya and his rival Marvin Vettori got in a heated war of words ahead of their rematch at UFC 263. Adesanya and Vettori meet for the second time inside the Octagon next Saturday night at UFC 263 with Adesanya’s 185lbs gold up for grabs. These two previously met in April 2018, with Adesanya edging out a split decision. They meet again three years later, only this time with Adesanya entering the fight as the champion. The rematch between these two rivals is one of the most highly-anticipated fights on next weekend’s stacked pay-per-view card, and both fighters made sure to talk some smack and help get more fans interested in it.
Tanner Boser sends a message to Dana White and the UFC following split decision loss to Ilir Latifi
Adam D Martin - June 6, 2021
UFC heavyweight Tanner Boser sent a message to UFC president Dana White and the matchmakers following his split decision loss to Ilir Latifi. Boser dropped a narrow split decision to Latifi on the UFC Vegas 28 prelims. It was a competitive fight, and Boser did more damage with his strikes, but ultimately Latifi landed some key takedowns that swayed the judges to his favor. For the second straight fight, Boser has now lost a very close decision after losing on points to Andrei Arlovski in his last outing. After starting his UFC career 3-1 and looking like a potential future contender in the UFC heavyweight division, Boser is now just 3-3 in the UFC and could potentially be cut.
Anthony Smith praises Nate Diaz ahead of UFC 263: “It doesn’t matter what Nate is doing. If he’s cooking, I’m tuning in and I'm gonna watch”
Adam D Martin - June 6, 2021
Anthony Smith praised UFC star Nate Diaz, saying “It doesn’t matter what Nate is doing. If he’s cooking, I’m tuning in and I’m gonna watch.” Diaz returns to the Octagon next Saturday night at UFC 263 when he takes on Leon Edwards in the first five-round, non-title fight in UFC history. Diaz is making his comeback after having been away from the cage since November 2019, while Edwards fights again for the first time since a No Contest with Belal Muhammad earlier this year. The Diaz vs. Edwards fight is an incredible matchup on paper between two of the best welterweights in the world and the winner of the fight has a good shot of landing a title shot at 170lbs.
Walt Harris reacts following TKO loss to Marcin Tybura at UFC Vegas 28: "Spain the 'S' is silent"
Chris Taylor - June 5, 2021
Walt Harris was looking to snap a two-fight losing skid when he squared off with Marcin Tybura at tonight’s UFC Vegas 28 event. Harris (13-10 MMA) had suffered back-to-back TKO losses to Alistair Overeem and Alexander Volkov in his most previous Octagon appearances.
Pros react after Jairzinho Rozenstruik KO's Augusto Sakai at UFC Vegas 28
Chris Taylor - June 5, 2021
Tonight’s UFC Vegas 28 event was headlined by a heavyweight bout between perennial division contenders Jairzinho Rozenstruik and Augusto Sakai. Rozenstruik (12-2 MMA) had entered tonight’s headliner looking to rebound from his recent unanimous decision loss to Ciryl Gane. Prior to that setback, ‘Bigi Boy’ had earned a second round TKO victory over former UFC heavyweight champion Junior Dos Santos.
UFC Vegas 28 Results: Jairzinho Rozenstruik KO's Augusto Sakai (Video)
Chris Taylor - June 5, 2021
Tonight’s UFC Vegas 28 event is headlined by a heavyweight bout between perennial division contenders Jairzinho Rozenstruik and Augusto Sakai. Rozenstruik (11-2 MMA) will enter tonight’s headliner looking to rebound from his recent unanimous decision loss to Ciryl Gane. Prior to that setback, ‘Bigi Boy’ was coming off a second round TKO victory over former UFC heavyweight champion Junior Dos Santos.
Pros react after Marcin Tybura TKO's Walt Harris at UFC Vegas 28
Chris Taylor - June 5, 2021
Tonight’s UFC Vegas 28 event was co-headlined by a heavyweight bout featuring Walt Harris squaring off with Marcin Tybura. Harris (13-10 MMA) was looking to snap a two-fight losing skid when he took to the Octagon this evening. ‘The Big Ticket’ had suffered back-to-back TKO losses to Alistair Overeem and Alexander Volkov in his most previous efforts.
UFC Vegas 28 Results: Marcin Tybura TKO's Walt Harris (Video)
Chris Taylor - June 5, 2021
Tonight’s UFC Vegas 28 event is co-headlined by an exciting heavyweight tilt as Walt Harris will be squaring off with Marcin Tybura. Harris (13-9 MMA) will be looking to snap a two-fight losing skid when he takes to the Octagon this evening. ‘The Big Ticket’ is coming off back-to-back TKO losses to Alistair Overeem and Alexander Volkov in his most recent efforts.
Mike Perry issues an apology to absolutely everybody: "I should have been, could have been, a lot better than what I've been"
Chris Taylor - June 5, 2021
UFC welterweight standout Mike Perry (14-8 MMA) took the time to apologize to absolutely everybody on Friday afternoon during an interview with Helen Yee. Perry, who is coming off back-to-back unanimous decision losses to opponents Tim Means and Daniel Rodriguez, has been on a roller coaster ride over the past few years.
Paulo Costa explains why he is not fighting Jared Cannonier, blasts the UFC over fighter pay
Chris Taylor - June 5, 2021
Paulo Costa has issued a statement after it was announced that he will no longer be headlining a UFC event on August 21 opposite Jared Cannonier. Early last month reports surfaced suggesting that a deal was done to have Costa (13-1 MMA) and Cannonier (13-5 MMA) square off on August 21 at a location to be determined.