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UFC Rankings for Monday, Week 2 of March 2021

UFC on ESPN 13: Esparza vs. Jedrzejczyk II UFC on ESPN 13: Esparza vs. Jedrzejczyk II Date: Saturday of Week 1 of March 2021 Location: Arkansas Attendance: 8,040 Gate: $1,809,000 Critical Rating: 80% Commercial Rating: 96% Commentary Team: Jon Anik, Joe Rogan and Dan Hardy Preliminary Card Welterweight: Alvaro Herrera (9-7) vs. Zelim Imadev (8-3) The first fight of the night was a great one, a very competitive bout in the welterweight division between Alvaro Herrera and Zelim Imadev. It was a total stand-up affair in the first round, with both fighters showing crowd-pleasing aggression. The second round seemed to be starting out in a similar vein, then Imadev took Herrera down with a single leg. This was to prove to be a costly mistake because Herrera secured the arm of Imadev from the bottom and managed to lock on an armbar and get the submission. Herrera used his post-fight interview to call for a fight with Emil Meek. Herrera said that he has respect for the skills of Meeek and he welcomed the challenge of what he felt would be a tough fight. Result: Alvaro ‘El Chango’ Herrera beat Zelim Imadaev by submission due to an armbar in 2:57 of Round 2 Middleweight: Alen Amedovski (9-2) vs. Markus Perez (12-3) The second fight of the night was another competitive one with Amedovski, the betting underdog, giving Perez a heck of fight in the first round. But Amedovski couldn’t keep up the pace and, in the second round, Perez dropped Amedovski with a head kick and then destroyed him with punches to get the TKO. Result: Markus ‘Maluko’ Perez beat Alen Amedovski by TKO due to strikes in 2:25 of Round 2 Bantamweight: Iuri Alcantara (36-10, 1NC) vs. Joe Soto (19-7) The fans were treated to a fantastic outing in this bantamweight encounter as Iuri Alcantara and Joe Soto battled it out in a contender for Fight of the Year. It was a stand-up war right from the beginning with Alcantara and Soto coming forward hard and fast and not letting up. Late in the first round, Alcantara dropped Soto with a fantastic left cross but he could only deliver a few heavy shots before the round ended and Soto had managed to survive. The second round saw Soto rock Alcantara early on,but Soto’s attempts to get the finish with a guillotine choke were unsuccessful. Alcantara recovered, and continue to bring the fight to Soto, even opening him up under the eye after landing a nice straight left, and the rounded ended with Alcantara firmly in the driver’s seat. The third round opened up with Alcantara rocking Soto, who was wobbled after a left cross and proceeded to take a series of heavy blows that he somehow survived. After this barrage, Alcantara was taking a few heavy breaths and, taking note of this, Soto shot in for a takedown and he was able to get a single leg and take Alcantara to the mat and force him to pull guard. Soto worked to pass the guard of Alcantara, who allowed the move and used it to scramble free and end up behind Soto, who was turtle up on the mat. Alcantara landed some big punches on Soto, who didn’t take many before Alcantara elected to let Soto go, clearly feeling that his best work came in a straight stand-up exchange. But this was a miscalculation and Soto suddenly clinched up with Alcantara and pressed him back up against the cage; Soto went for a Muay Thai clinch but Alcantara broke free. Yet Alcantara wasn’t free for long, with Soto once again going for takedown and then pushing Alcantara back up against the cage. This time, Soto was able to get Muay Thai clinch that he was looking for and with a sudden and brutal finality, Soto delivered a hard knee to the face of Alcantara, who dropped to the mat, out cold. Joe Soto had battled back from adversity, twice, and delivered a comeback victory that had the fans standing and cheering. Result: Joe ‘One Bad Mofo’ Soto beat ‘Marajó’ Iuri Alcantara by knockout (knee) in 4:58 of Round 3 Bantamweight: Frankie Saenz (12-6) vs. Song Yadong (#20, 15-5-1, 1NC) Song bloodied up Saenz early on and that was a sigh of things to come with Song thoroughly dominating Saenz in the first round, Song even managing to re-open the cut a few minutes later. Things didn’t get any better for Saenz in the second round and, after getting dropped with a beautiful right uppercut, Saenz was hammered with punches; when he tried to fend off blows, Song secured the arm of Saenz and locked on a tight kimura to forced a submission. Result: Song ‘The Terminator’ Yadong beat Frankie Saenz by submission due to a kimura in 2:38 of Round 2 Welterweight: Michel Prazeres (26-3) vs. Stephen Thompson (15-5-1) Thompson came into this with both a weight advantage and a desire (need?) to put in a performance that would keep him near the forefront of the welterweight division. For much of the first round, though, Prezeres wasn’t making it easy for Thompson to do that, with Prazeres showing no signs of being awed by his more well-known opponent. But late in the first round, Thompson landed a stinging right high kick that clearly rocked Prazeres, who was fortunate to be saved by the bell. Prazeres came out ready to fight in the second round and appeared to have recovered from the kick that Thompson had landed in the first round. But there was no recovering from the powerful right head kick Thompson landed three minutes into the second round, and Prazeres was out before he hit the mat. Thompson had an opponent in mind for his next fight and, not one to shy from a challenge, Thompson said that he’d like to face the dangerous Neil Magny, with Thompson expressing respect for Magny and a belief that they would have a great fight. Result: Stephen ‘Wonderboy’ Thompson beat Michel ‘Trator’ Prazeres by knockout (kick) in 3:00 of Round 2 Featherweight: Guido Cannetti (8-6) vs. Chase Hooper (9-0) The rising young featherweight Chase Hooper once again showed why a lot of people are touting him as a future standout of the division, with Hooper needing barely over a minute to put away his more experienced opponent, Hooper dropping Cannetti with a vicious right cross and then finishing with a series of right hands. In the post-fight interview, Hooper didn’t exactly shine; he was rather bland. But when you’re that good looking, people tend to overlook such flaws. There was also a post-fight comment from Cannetti, who announced that he was retiring from MMA. Result: Chase ‘The Teenage Dream’ Hooper beat Guido ‘Ninja’ Cannetti by TKO due to strikes in 1:12 of Round 1 Light Heavyweight: Aleksa Camur (7-0) vs. Mike Rodriguez (10-5-1) In a running theme for the night, this was yet another competitive fight, this time in the light heavyweight division. The first round was evenly-matched until late on when Rodriguez rocked Camur with a right cross, with Camur doing well to survive the resultant barrage of punches that followed, and even scoring a desperation takedown that helped him hang on until the end of the round. Camur opened up the second round with another takedown and, after almost getting the tap with an armbar, Camur managed to lock in a second armbar; Rodriguez was unable to escape and this time had no choice but to tap. Result: Aleksa Camur beat ‘Slow’ Mike Rodriguez by submission due to an armbar in 2:32 of Round 2 Welterweight: Rafael dos Anjos (#23, 29-14) vs. Gunnar Nelson (#21, 18-6-1) Although dos Anjos and Nelson are both known for their ground game, this was almost entirely fought in the stand-up, as both fighters seemed intent to show that they were more than just ground fighters. The early aggressor was dos Anjos, and he put Nelson on the defensive for much of the first round and, whilst Nelson did show good defence, it made the first round one that easily scored for dos Anjos. The second round saw dos Anjos mix up his punches and kick; this seemed to throw Nelson off his game as he started to miss a lot more and then, just past the half-way mark, Nelson got caught with a massive left hook to the jaw and hit the mat. The Brazilian pounced and began hammering away on Nelson before looking in a tight kimura. Yet, somehow, Nelson managed to escape what seemed to be certain defeat. Nelson had to fend off more submissions for the remainder of the round and, whilst he was in trouble, Nelson had at least seen the round out, which seemed to be a minor miracle based on what had happened. Nelson came out for the third round looking as calm as ever, even though he was way behind on the scorecards and needed to find a finish from somewhere. Mindful of that need, Nelson shot in early for a takedown; he’d had no success in the stand-up thus far, so a new approach was called for. It seemed to work as dos Anjos was taken down and forced to pull guard. Nelson tried to work for a leglock but dos Anjos kept the guard tight; dos Anjos reached up to try and hook the arm of Nelson but Nelson was having none of that. As Nelson smothered dos Anjos, the Brazilian unable to shift him, Nelson once again attempted to loosen the guard, and this time he was successful; before dos Anjos knew it, Nelson had isolated his leg and trapped him in a leglock, with dos Anjos only able to make cursory attempt to escape before tapping out. Nelson had weathered quite the storm, but the Icelander had prevailed and gained a major win, becoming the first person to ever make Rafael dos Anjos tap out. Result: Gunnar ‘Gunni’ Nelson beat Rafael dos Anjos by submission due to a leglock in 2:55 of Round 3 Women’s Flyweight: Lauren Murphy (#9,13-5) vs. Gillian Robertson (#11, 8-5) This was a solid, competitive fight between two well-matched opponents. Murphy drew first blood, literally, inside of a minute, with a well-placed punch that caught Robertson just above the eye. It was indicative of a round that was dominated by Murphy. In the second round, Robertson started to come into the fight more but, late in the round, Murphy landed a right head kick that had Robertson on unsteady feet, but Robertson somehow managed to stay standing and see out the round. But the real, well, not highlight, but the most noteworthy incident of the fight came early in the third round when Murphy grabbed the cage to stop from being taken down. The referee caught the cheating and stopped the fight for a moment and immediately deducted a point from Murphy. This could prove pivotal because it meant that if Robertson could win this round as a 10-9 round, the point deduction would make it a 10-8 round, and, with Murphy having certainly won the first two rounds 10-9, it would make the fight a draw. After the restart, Robertson had Murphy in trouble with a tight guillotine and, whilst Murphy escaped, it was clear that Robertson wasn’t about to settle for the draw and that she wanted a finish. Yet despite her best efforts, Murphy was just too good on defence and she was able to survive a tough third and final round. The judging came and it went the way everyone expected it to and, for the first time in a long time, we had a draw, with all three judges scoring the fight 28-28. When she was interviewed after the fight, Lauren Murphy surprised everyone by announcing her retirement, saying that the time had come to move on to the next chapter in her life. Result: Lauren ‘The Pirate’ Murphy vs. Gillian ‘The Savage’ Robertson was a draw (28-28, 28-28 and 28-28) Flyweight: Askar Askarov (#17, 12-1-1) vs. Tagir Ulanbekov (#16, 12-1) This was the UFC debut of Tagir Ulanbekov and he couldn’t have made a better impression, with not only a great fight but an equally stellar performance as well. Askarov was no doubt a worthy foe, putting up a great fight, but this contest was one dominated by the UFC newcomer. Ulanbekov was just that little bit faster on his feet, more precise with his punches; he busted Askarov open in the second round as he continued to pile on the punishment. In the second round, Askarov had his only real success of the fight, but it was merely in being able to get a hold of Ulanbekov and smother him against the cage for a prolonged period; he could inflict no real damage. Yet Ulanbekov was able to land his punches, and it was more than enough to offset what Askarov had done, because, when the fight went the distance and the scores were read out, all three judges had not only given all three rounds to Ulanbekov, but they had all scored the fight 30-26. Ulanbekov’s post-fight interview was another highlight, with Ulanbekov being lively and charismatic despite having to speak through an interpreter; Ulanbekov was the total package, and, in one night, had made himself a new standout in the flyweight division. Result: Tagir Ulanbekov beat Askar ‘Bullet’ Askarov by unanimous decision (30-26, 30-26 and 30-26) Main Card Featherweight: Shane Burgos (#10, 14-2) vs. Brian Ortega (#9, 14-3, 1NC) The first thing of note about the main card opener was the fact that Ortega was noticeably heaver than Burgos, and it seemed to help Ortega out when he managed to break Burgos’s resistant to begin taken down with a sharp sweep. Ortega was aggressive in his attack but when he went to deliver a knee to the head of Burgos, it allowed Burgos to escape and get back to his feet. Ortega was quickly going for another takedown, but Burgos sprawled and blocked it, so Ortega changed tack and he managed to lock Burgos up in a Muay Thai clinch. Ortega landed a crunching knee to the chest of Burgos, who was quickly trying to break the grip of Ortega but remained trapped. A second knee lacked any power, but the third had all the power in the world because Ortega caught Burgos flush in the face and knocked him out cold. Result: Brian ‘T-City’ Ortega beat ‘Hurricane’ Shane Burgos by knockout (knee) in 4:32 of Round 1 Women’s Strawweight: Nina Ansaroff (#5, 11-6) vs. Cortney Casey (#8, 9-7) Ansaroff was able to use great head movement and footwork to avoid the punches of Casey in the early stages of the fight, and it took Casey a while to start landing with any consistency. But once Casey was able to get a better read on her opponent, it became a much more competitive fight, a very hard-hitting one that had the fans cheering loudly, and, when the first round ended, the fans couldn’t wait for more action from these two strawweights. The fans got more of the same great action in the second round, but they didn’t have time see too much because just over a minute in, Casey, after missing with some set-up strikes, landed a fantastic right cross that knock Ansaroff out cold, and Casey had picked up a highlight-reel finish. Result: Cortney ‘Cast Iron’ Casey beat Nina ‘The Strina’ Ansaroff by knockout (punch) in 1:09 of Round 2 Women’s Flyweight: Mara Romero Borella (#10, 14-7, 2NC) vs. Jessica Eye (#3, 17-7, 1NC) This wasn’t the most exciting of fights as Borella’s strategy was to keep Eye pressed up against the cage and grind her down, and it was a strategy she was able to employ for virtually the entire fight. There were a few strikes landed by Eye, and at one point Boralla took Eye down and was actively looking for submissions. But otherwise this was a fight that was, as they say, one for the purist. The highlight of this encounter, by far, was a post-fight interview where Borella, whilst challenging Maycee Barber to a fight, showed the looks and charisma that exude ‘superstar’. Result: Mara Romero Borella beat Jessica ‘Evil’ Eye by unanimous decision (30-27, 30-27 and 30-27) Bantamweight: Ricky Simon (#5, 17-3) vs. Petr Yan (#3, 6-2) Yan opened up with big body shot, but Simon avoided it and countered by shooting in for a takedown; Yan was able to block Simon from taking him down but he couldn’t throw Simon off of him and Yan was pushed back up against the cage. With the cage effectively trapping Yan, Simon took double underhooks on Yan and took him down to the mat with a big Greco-Roman slam. Yan landed in a most unfortunate position, sat up against the cage and with his legs trapped under Simon. Simon landed a few strikes, but they didn’t trouble Yan, however Yan couldn’t seem to escape from his predicament. And this was to prove pivotal as Simon, in a great position, began working for a guillotine choke; Yan was trapped against the cage, with no room to escape or even try to manoeuvre his way free. Simon was able to sink in the guillotine, the hold on very tight; Yan had no escape and was forced to tap out! Ricky Simon had made quite the statement with his first-round submission win over Petr Yan, a victory that had come in just over two-minutes, and it may have been enough to put him in pole position for a title shot. In his post-fight interview, Simon noted that the submission was one that he had worked on heavily during training and that he was glad that the training had paid off. Result: Ricky Simon beat Petr ‘No Mercy’ Yan by submission due to a guillotine choke in 2:08 of Round 1 Heavyweight: Curtis Blaydes (#2, 15-3, 1NC) vs. Aleksei Olenik (#8, 59-13-1) Curtis Blaydes came into the fight a good 30lbs heavier than Aleksei Olenik, and it took him less than 30 seconds to put the fight, and his opponent to sleep. In fact, it only took Blaydes 11 seconds to put Aleksei Olenik to sleep, with Blaydes knocking him out cold with the second punch he threw, a beautiful right uppercut. Blaydes had made a major statement, and he made another one in his post-fight interview when he challenged the new UFC Heavyweight Champion Derrick Lewis to a fight. Aleksei Olenik had his own statement to make, as he used the spotlight to announce his retirement from MMA. Result: Curtis ‘Razor’ Blaydes beat Aleksei ‘The Boa Constrictor’ Oleinik by knockout (punch) in 0:11 of Round 1 Women’s Strawweight: Carla Esparza (#6, 17-6) vs. Joanna Jedrzejczyk (#2, 18-5) The main event of the evening had arrived, a fight that was, for one of the participants, a long-awaited one. Carla Esparza was the first ever UFC Women’s Strawweight Champion, and had been predicted to reign for quite some time. But her first title defence was her only title defence, as Joanna Jedrzejczyk wrested the title from her in devastating fashion. Now, six years later, Esparza finally had the chance to avenge that bitter defeat. The fight started with both fighters throwing leather and both Esparza and Jedrzejczyk were able to tag each other. Jedrzejczyk started to walk Esparza down, forcing her into making almost a complete circuit of the octagon. When Jedrzejczyk landed a particular crunching right hook, Esparza made her first takedown attempt of the fight, which Jedrzejczyk was only partially able to block and she ended up hopping on one leg and being pressed back up against the cage. Esparza couldn’t keep Jedrzejczyk trapped against the cage for too long though, and Jedrzejczyk actually managed to reverse their positions and have Esparza trapped up against the cage instead. Jedrzejczyk landed some knees to the thigh of Esparza before taking her down, with Esparza pulling half-guard, yet Jedrzejczyk seemed disinclined to advance her position and she settled for landing small strikes for the remainder of the round, the former champion perhaps saving energy for the later rounds. It seemed like both fighters had saved energy for the second round because Esparza and Jedrzejczyk started the second round coming forward. Jedrzejczyk landed a few blows early, but an errant strike saw the Pole slip up, literally, and end up on the canvas. Esparza kicked at the legs of her opponent before making an attempt to get on top of Jedrzejczyk, but Jedrzejczyk was too quick and slipped away from Esparza and began scrambling to her feet, which Esparza was unable to prevent. Esparza also couldn’t prevent Jedrzejczyk from getting hold of her and wrestling her back up against the cage. Jedrzejczyk smothered Esparza against the cage, keeping her trapped despite Esparza’s attempts to escape. Jedrzejczyk locked Esparza into a Muay Thai clinch, a move that was familiar to both of them, especially from their first fight. But Esparza wouldn’t have much time to reminisce because, grabbing hold of Esparza’s head, Jedrzejczyk landed a vicious elbow strike that landed at just the right spot and Esparza flopped to the canvas like a marionette that suddenly had all its string cut. The fans erupted at a sudden and quite brutal end to what had been a fantastic fight. Joanna Jedrzejczyk had once again put away Carla Esparza in devastating fashion, and had established herself as the top contender to Zhang Zhang and the UFC Women’s Strawweight Championship. Something that Jedrzejczyk wasted no time in asserting in her post-fight interview, Jedrzejczyk demandeding a fight with Zhang, which got a big reaction from the fans, who remembered the first meeting between Jedrzejczyk and Zhang, a fight that is regarded by virtually everyone as the greatest fight in female combat sports history. Result: Joanna Jedrzejczyk beat Carla ‘Cookie Monster’ Esparza by knockout (elbow) in 3:53 of Round 2 Post-Fight Bonuses Fight of the Night: Carla Esparza vs. Joanna Jedrzejczyk Performance of the Night: Gunnar Nelson Knockout of the Night: Curtis Blaydes Submission of the Night: Ricky Simon Predictions CageRage: (10/16) CageRage (Overall): (208/343; 60.64%) McDojoDelux: (10/16) McDojoDelux (Overall): (18/26; 69.23%) Majster_93: (9/16) Majster_93 (overall): (61/90; 67.77%)

News Blast Wednesday of Week 1 of March 2021 Thursday of Week 1 of March 2021 Friday of Week 1 of March 2021 Steven Ray will now face Devonte Smith Lightweight: Steven Ray (24-9) vs. Devonte Smith (11-2) Women’s Featherweight: Audrey Whitworth (1-0) vs. Kathleen Caraway (1-0) Audrey Whitworth (1-0) vs. Kathleen Caraway (1-0) has been added to the preliminary card of UFC 261.

News Blast Saturday of Week 4 of February 2021 Sunday of Week 4 of February 2021 Monday of Week 1 of March 2021 Tuesday of Week 1 of March 2021

Nate Diaz to defend welterweight crown against Santiago Ponzinibbio at UFC 261 Nate Diaz to defend welterweight crown against Santiago Ponzinibbio at UFC 261 Saturday of Week 4 of February 2021 The UFC heads to Florida for the Sunshine State Showdown, a PPV that will be headlined by Nate Diaz making his first defence of the UFC Welterweight Championship, with Diaz defending his title against top contender Santiago Ponzinibbio. Diaz stunned the world at UFC 256 with his victory over Kamaru Usman, Diaz catching Usman off-guard with a guillotine choke to force a submission and capture the UFC Welterweight Championship. It was a major upset, yet one the self-assured Diaz was confident would happen. But Diaz must carry that confidence into his first title defence, a defence that sees him taking on an opponent with both momentum and the hopes of an entire country behind him. Santiago Ponzinibbio will be vying to become the first Argentinean UFC champion at UFC 261, so you know that the country of Argentina will be behind him, yet Ponzinibbio also comes into this fight with the momentum of a nine-fight winning streak, with Ponzinibbio’s last two wins coming over Stephen Thompson and Tyron Woodley. Ponzinibbio goes into UFC 261 as red hot as a fighter can be, but will it be enough to overcome a champion who has proven that he must not be underestimated? In the co-main event, Michael Chiesa will face his toughest challenge to date as he continues to build his stock when he faces former welterweight champion Kamaru Usman. After losing to current champion Nate Diaz last year, Chiesa bounced back with a dominant win over Neil Magny and, not one to shy away from competition Chiesa now takes on an opponent who knows that if he earns his own dominant win, then a chance to reclaim the welterweight title could be just around the corner. It was a shocking upset when Kamaru Usman lost the welterweight title to Nate Diaz, and the former champion now finds himself in the unfamiliar position of having to bounce back from a loss and the loss of his championship. Yet Usman’s domination as champion means that an especially decisive win over someone like Michael Chiesa could be enough to see Usman bounce right back and into a quick return to the championship title picture. Can Chiesa continue his climb up the ladder, or will Usman stop him in his tracks en route to his return to the top of the welterweight division? Paulo Costa returns to action after losing his unbeaten streak in an unsuccessful challenge of the middleweight title, but he faces the tough test of Ian Heinisch, who is on a great run of form, having won three in a row. Angela Lee makes her highly anticipated UFC debut and she’ll taking on Amanda Ribas. Lee is Asia’s hottest MMA star and she’ll be looking to translate her success in Asia to the UFC, but Ribas has back-to-back wins heading into UFC 261, and a win over a name like Lee could put her right in the forefront of the women’s strawweight division. Two top-ten bantamweight’s will face off when Cory Sandhagen meets Aljamain Sterling, and the main card kicks off with a fight in the women’s featherweight divison, with Alexis Dufresne, who is returning to the UFC, taking on Leah Letson. Sunshine State Showdown, and a unique preliminary card comprised of all-female featherweight fights, takes place on Saturday of Week of 4 of April in Florida. Main Card UFC Welterweight Champion: Nate Diaz © (#1, 22-12) vs. Santiago Ponzinibbio (#3, 29-3) for the UFC Welterweight Championship Welterweight: Michael Chiesa (#9, 18-5) vs. Kamaru Usman (#6, 17-2) Middleweight: Paulo Costa (#9, 13-1) vs. Ian Heinisch (#8, 15-3) Women’s Strawweight: Angela Lee (11-3 vs. Amanda Ribas (#17, 11-1) Bantamweight: Cory Sandhagen (#5, 19-4) vs. Aljamain Sterling (#7, 13-2) Women’s Featherweight: Alexis Dufresne (#4, 8-3) vs. Leah Letson (#3, 7-1) Preliminary Card Women’s Featherweight: Ailbhe Krauss (23-7) vs. Amari Penton (26-6) Women’s Featherweight: Ariella Albright (27-8) vs. Alesha Delcastillo (26-3) Women’s Featherweight: Londyn Ochs (18-2) vs. Ariya Watts (26-4) Women’s Featherweight: Sadbh Kuehn (9-2) vs. Everly Runge (8-2) Women’s Featherweight: Elaina Nipper (12-4) vs. Jaida Odling (20-4) Women’s Featherweight: Beatrice Farr (3-0) vs. Janay Harding (#7, 6-5) Women’s Featherweight: Norma Dumont (#14, 4-2) vs. Reina Miura (#11, 12-4) Women’s Featherweight: Julia Budd (#5, 13-5) vs. Larissa Pacheco (15-4) Women’s Featherweight: Amanda Lemos (#12, 7-2-1) vs. Iony Razafiarison (#13, 6-4)

UFC Rankings for Sunday of Week 4 of February 2021

UFC 259: Repeat or Revenge UFC 259: Repeat or Revenge Date: Saturday of Week 4 of February 2021 Location: New York Attendance: 22,177 Gate: $6,147,464 PPV Revenue: $459,113 Critical Rating: 74% Commercial Rating: 100% Commentary Team: Jon Anik, Joe Rogan and Dan Hardy Preliminary Card Women’s Strawweight: Nadia Kassem (8-2) vs. Ashley Yoder (7-6) The night got off an explosive start with Nadia Kassem dropping Yoder almost right off the bat, with a jab/right cross combination, Kassem then pounding Yoder out to get the stoppage in just 40 seconds, a finish that had the fans cheering loudly. Kassem gave a good post-fight interview; she was very engaging, and the crowd loved her. Result: Nadia ‘187’ Kassem beat Ashley Yoder by TKO due to strikes in 0:40 of Round 1 Women’s Strawweight: Karolina Kowalkiewicz (#13, 12-7) vs. Jessica Penne (12-5) Jessica Penne was making her return to action after suspension and she wasted no time in making her mark, Penne dropping Kowalkiewicz with a three-strike combination that ended with a right cross. Penne then unloaded on Kowalkiewicz and, when one shot saw Kowalkiewicz go limp, the referee jumped in and the fight was over in only 33 seconds. In her post-fight interview, Pennne shocked everyone again by announcing her retirement. Result: Jessica Penne beat Karolina Kowalkiewicz by knockout (punch) in 0:33 of Round 1 Women’s Flyweight: Poliana Bothelo (#24, 8-3) vs. Wu Yanan (#17, 11-4) Wu Yanan dominated Poliana Botelho, combining some precise striking and great footwork and headwork to keep her opponent off-balance, with Botelho getting hit on the counter quite often, and never able land anything of note . Result: Wu Yanan beat Poliana Botelho by unanimous decision (30-27, 30-27 and 30-27) Women’s Bantamweight: Julia Avila (#18, 7-2) vs. Juliana Pena (#17, 9-4) The women were wasting no time tonight as Julianna Penne needed just 55 seconds to blow Julia Avila out of the octagon, Penne rocking Avila early and not letting up until the referee, several shots too late, finally stepped in to halt the carnage. Pena’s post-fight interview wasn’t the greatest, but she’s so photogenic that just being on camera boosts her profile. Result: Julianna ‘The Venezuelan Vixen’ Pena beat Julia ‘Raging Panda’ Avila by TKO due to strikes in 0:55 of Round 1 Bantamweight: Benito Lopez (11-1) vs. Matheus Mattos (14-1-1) Benito Lopez was replacing Chris Gutierrez and he was able to give a good accounting of himself, forcing Mattos into making a few errors. But Mattos weathered the early storm,and, part-way into the second round, he was able to isolate a leg of Lopez and secure a leglock get the tap. In his post-fight interview, Mattos challenged Movsar Evloev. Result: Matheus ‘Adamas’ Mattos beat Benito ‘Golden Boy’ Lopez by submission due to a leglock in 2:37 of Round 2 Bantamweight: Miles Johns (11-1) vs. Luis Rafael Laurentino (36-3) This was a great fight with lots of hard-hitting action, a pure stand-up affair. Johns dropped Laurentino late in the first round with a beautiful right uppercut and Laurentino played great defence to see the round out. The same thing happened in the second round, Johns dropping Laurentino with right uppercut and Laurentino playing defence to see the round out. But Johns was made to pay for not being able to finish his opponent when, just over a minute into the third round, Laurentino dropped with a powerful straight right, and Laurentino pounced and was able to unleash enough of a barrage that the referee jumped in to stop the fight, Laurentino delivering a big comeback victory. And Laurentino was keen to get back into the fight, as he stated a desire to take on Davey Grant. Result: Luis ‘Japa’ Rafael Laurentino beat Miles ‘Chapo’ Johns by TKO due to strikes in 1:32 of Round 3 Bantamweight: Darrion Caldwell (#24, 17-3) vs. Joey Gomez (7-2) The much heralded Darrion Caldwell was making his UFC debut here and he made quite the impact on his opponent, Joey Gomez, with Caldwell managing to pull off a German suplex en route to a decisive victory, with Caldwell capping off his dominance with a kimura in the second round. Result: Darrion ‘The Wolf’ Caldwell beat Joey ‘The KO King’ Gomez by submission due to a kimura in 3:39 of Round 2 Featherweight: Martin Buschkamp (9-1-1) vs. Yutaka Saito (19-4-2) Yutaka Saito was making his UFC debut and he showed some great speed and head movement to make a good first impression. His opponent, Martin Buschkamp, was a worthy competitor, and the two produced a good competitive fight. But as each round progressed, it was Saito who was able to edge ahead and, when the fight went to the judges, Saito had won by unanimous decision. Result: Yutaka Saito beat Martin Buschkamp by unanimous decision (30-27, 29-28 and 29-28) Featherweight: Shuya Kamikubo (12-1-1) vs. Luis Pena (9-2) The size and reach of Pena was just too much for ‘Stealth’ to deal with, as he had trouble landing anything of note, a problem Pena certainly didn’t have, and he ended things with a powerful head kick. Result: ‘Violent Bob Ross’ Luis Pena beat Shuya ‘Stealth’ Kamikubo by knockout (kick) in 3:20 of Round 1 Welterweight: Michael Hill (11-4) vs. Luigi Vendramini (9-1) We had another UFC debut, this time Michael Hill; Hill had been on TUF, but had never officially competed in the UFC. Hill would be taking on Luigi Vendramini, and, like the earlier fight featuring a UFC debutant, this was a competitive affair. The fight saw the striking of Hill putted against the grappling of Vendramini, who was constantly looking to grapple with Hill and take the fight to the ground, making it almost a battle of wills. Although Vendramini was able to take Hill down in the first two rounds, it was late on when it happened, and he had no time to do anything, not that that Hill was making it easy for him to even try. Vendramini got Hill down early in the third round, and Hill was very much on the defensive. There was a stand-up late on, but Vendramini was quickly taking Hill back down, but he was again unable to get the finish that most felt he needed. Indeed, when the scores were read out, nobody was surprised that all three judges scored the fight 29-28 in favour of Hill. Result: Michael Hill beat Luigi ‘The Italian Stallion’ Vendramini by unanimous decision (29-28, 29-28 and 29-28) Main Card Women’s Featherweight: Sheila Blakey (33-0) vs. Caoimhe Vizcarra (27-3) in the TUF 29 Tournament Final The main card to this huge event began with the anticipated finale to the 29th season of The Ultimate Fighter, with Team Ferguson’s Sheila Blakey taking on Team McGregor’s Caoimhe Vizcarra. Both women had earned their spot in the finals with a series of strong victories, and Blakey and Vizcarra werew both backed by their respective coaches, and Tony Ferguson and Conor McGregor both cageside to cheer on their respective team members. For Ferguson, it would be a chance to gain a small measure of retribution over the man who had wrested the UFC Lightweight Championship away from him, while McGregor would be hoping to pour more salt in the wound from his won over Ferguson at UFC 257. Things started well for Blakey, who dropped Vizcarra very early on with a stunning left hook. Blakey moved in for the kill, raining down punches on Vizcarra, but Vizcarra was able to avoid the worst of it and weather the storm before transitioning in the full guard. Vizcarra, a national-calibre jujitsu competitor, began working for submissions from the bottom, and Blakey, a national-calibre kickboxer, was able to defend and, in a great display of her ever improving ground game, she was also able to manoeuvre her way into side-control. Blakey tried to fire off some punches, but Vizcarra blocked them all and, as if to remind us that she was the ground expert, Vizcarra pulled Blakey back into the guard. Blakey kept very tight to Vizcarra, very aware of the danger she was in; Blakey tried to fire off some punches but Vizcarra got double-underhooks and pulled Blakey close, showing great control, and, although Blakey delivered the occasional strike, and even a shoulder smash, the action slowed to a crawl for the final few seconds of the round. In between rounds, as well as getting instructions from their respective corner, both Blakey and Vizcarra were being shouted advice by their respective coaches, and it looked this advice was being passed along to the fighters by their corners. Vizcarra opened up the second round with an immediate takedown attempted, and she was able to not only take Blakey down, but quickly take side-control as well. Before Blakey had a chance to start defending, Vizcarra was securing the arm of Blakey and swing her legs over to lock in a tight armbar, and Blakey was forced to tap, Blakey not only losing, but suffering the first loss of her career. As a frustrated and somewhat disheartened Blakey was being consoled by her corner, Vizcarra was celebrating with hers; Conor McGregor was applauding as well, the current lightweight champion also taking the chance to rub the success of his fighter in the face of Tony Ferguson, who was looking almost as disappointed as Sheila Blakey, Ferguson clearly feeling badly for his charge. But there can be only one winner of The Ultimate Fighter and, for the 29th season, the winner was Caoimhe Vizcarra, and, with her post-fight interview being lively and charismatic, it seemed that we had a new name to watch out for in the UFC. Result: Caoimhe ‘Twinkle Toes’ Vizcarra beat Sheila Blakey by submission due to an armbar in 0:40 of Round 2 to win the TUF 29 Tournament Final Heavyweight: Anthony Johnson (#12, 23-7) vs. Alexander Volkov (#2, 33-7) In a night of explosive finishes, Anthony Johnson gave us one that reminded us why he’s got a reputation for being one of the most dangerous strikers in all of combat sports, as he rocked Volkov with a quick head kick, before dropping him with a right hand and then delivering a short but brutal beating that forced the referee to intercede and stop the fight at the 47-second mark. Result: Anthony ‘Rumble’ Johnson beat Alexander ‘Drago’ Volkov by TKO due to strikes in 0:47 of Round 1 Light Heavyweight: Volkan Oezedemir (#5, 19-4) vs. Ovince St. Preux (#10, 25-12) Next up was a big clash in the light heavyweight division, a fight that could very well determine the next person to challenge for the UFC Light Heavyweight Championship. Victory for either man would, if a title shot followed, secure them their second chance at gold, with Oezedemir having previously challenged Daniel Cormier for the official title, and St. Preux having faced Jon Jones for the interim version. The first round was almost a total kickboxing bout with both Oezedemir and St. Preux showcasing a variety of punches and kicks, to great effect. It appeared that St. Preux was getting the better of this, but at the half-way mark of the round Oezedemir landed a right head kick that had St. Preux on unsteady feet, with a big right hand from Oezedemir putting him down. Oezedemir moved in to try and finish the job, but Oezedemir was a little too heavy-handed and he was seen to noticeably wince before trying to transition in the guard of St. Preux, and not much happened for the remainder of the round. In the second round, whilst Oezedemir showed no overt signs of damage, it was very telling that he changed tactics and now looking to grapple with St. Preux. Eventually, Oezedemir succeeded and he was able to get hold of St. Preux and muscle him back up against the cage, although he could only keep him there for about a minute before St. Preux was able to work enough space and break free and circle out. But Oezedemir soon had the fight back on the ground, and, whilst it wasn’t necessarily the most exciting of tactics, not only was it effective, but allowed Oezedemir to rest a hand that most observers felt had to be hurting. Oezedemir again went with the grappling approach in the third round, and St. Preux again seemed either content to stay pressed against the cage or was just otherwise reluctant to fight his way free. After almost two minutes of this, the referee ordered a separation, but, after a few tentative strikes, Oezedemir once again had St. Preux back up against the cage, and it was only in the last minute of the round that St. Preux was able or willing to fight his way free, and little happened for the rest of the round. As expected, Oezedemir took the unanimous decision victory, but it wasn’t the most gripping of fights, and Oezedemir may also have a suffered a potentially serious injury. Result: Volkan ‘No Time’ Oezdemir beat Ovince St. Preux by unanimous decision (29-28, 29-28 and 29-28) Middleweight: Ronaldo Souza (#2, 28-8, 1NC) vs. Brad Tavares (#7, 18-6) It didn’t take long for Souza to try and take the fight to the ground, which he was successful in doing, and Tavares had to work hard to keep Souza in guard and prevent him from working for submissions. And whilst he was forced to do this for virtually the entire round, Tavares was successful, so his defensiveness paid off in that he was still in the fight. In the second round, Souza was again quick to take the fight to the ground, with Tavares once more forced to play defence. But Tavares was better prepared this time, and when Souza tried to pass to side-control, Tavares seized the opening to scramble free and get back to his feet. Tavares landed some nice punches and kicks, really working Souza over before Souza managed to get the back down to the ground. Yet again, though, Tavares’ defence was on point, and when Souza tried to pass the guard Tavares scrambled out from under Souza and ended up on top of him in the north-south position. However, Tavares couldn’t do much; he landed a few decent elbows, before Souza was showing his scrambling ability and escaped and got back to his feet. Souza swiftly took Tavares back down, but he couldn’t do much before the round ended. You know how the third round started; Souza took Tavares down. Yet Tavares, who was obviously used to being on the ground by now, kept a tight guard and was able to keep Souza from effectively working for submissions. Souza was able to pass the guard of Tavares, but he could only get to half-guard. Souza made a concerted effort to pass the half-guard, but, whilst he was successful in his effort, Tavares was again able to scramble out from under Souza. Yet Souza was the one ready this time, and he was able to keep hold of Tavares and press him back up against the fence. Souza swept Tavares to take him back down, and took side-control in the process. Souza grabbed the leg of Tavares in preparation for kneebar, but Tavares blocked it. Undaunted, Souza went for an armbar, but again was thwarted, and the round soon ended, with the outcome of the fight up in the air. There wasn’t a lot of surprise when it soon became clear that we were headed for a split decision, although there was a murmur of puzzlement when one judge was revealed to have given all three rounds to Tavares. It would come down to the third judge, and they would give the fight to Tavares, 29-28, who was the fortunate one on this particular split decision. Whether it was unhappiness over the result or a decision made ahead of time, when Souza was interviewed about the result, he announced that was retiring from MMA. Result: Brad Tavares beat Ronaldo ‘Jacare’ Souza by split decision (30-27, 29-28 and 29-28) UFC Flyweight Champion: Alexandre Pantoja © (#1, 23-4) vs. Demetrious Johnson (#4, 30-3-1) for the UFC Flyweight Championship It was time for the first of two title fights this evening, with this particular title fight featuring the UFC return of the fighter widely considered to be the best flyweight of all time, and one of the best fighters of all time, Demetrious Johnson. Johnson would be returning to challenge for the title he lost in a close fight to Henry Cejudo, and he’d be taking on Alexandre Pantoja, who had claimed the vacant flyweight title with a win over Kai Kara-France at UFC 253. Pantoja showed no signs of being intimated by his more vaunted foe, capably handling the pressure of Johnson’s aggressive attack. The two exchanged punches in close quarters, both of them landing some nice combinations, but nothing that, as best as we could tell, was leaving lasting damage. Johnson picked up the pace, in both terms of forward movement and offensive output, as the round rolled on, forcing Pantoja to play counter-fighter, although Johnson also had to play that role at times, and the fans were buzzing when an exciting first round concluded. Johnson opened up the second round coming forward, once more forcing Pantoja to play counter-fighter, but Pantoja again came back hard and forced Johnson into that role as well. Both fighters continued to exchange in close quarters, but good head movement meant that neither fighter landed flush with anything. Late in the round, Johnson landed a crunching combination, but it may have done more harm than good, as Johnson, albeit briefly, started favouring the hand, and, heading into the break, it was entirely possible that Pantoja, if he was aware, was now in a position to take control of the fight. Whatever the problem was, if it was even a lingering one, didn’t seem to affect Johnson, who was still throwing punches with the same power as in the first two rounds. But his pace was a little slower, so maybe the hand was bothering him after all. In any event, both Johnson and Pantoja were keeping up a steady output of punches, with a few solid kicks thrown in for good measure. Later in the round, Johnson drew first blood when a well-placed punch opened up a cut above the eye of Pantoja, and it may have been enough to sway the judges when it came to scoring a round that otherwise seemed very even. The fourth round saw Pantoja start out the aggressor, coming forward with volume and putting Johnson on the backfoot early on. Perhaps because of that, Johnson started to slow down; maybe he was ‘taking the round off’, or there was some other reason for it, but Johnson was clearly slowing down, and it was looking noticeable as the round went on. Johnson, who was starting to breathe more heavily, looked to slow things down even more and worked for a clinch, Johnson then using a trip takedown to get Pantoja down to the mat. Johnson ended up on top of Pantoja and facing him, with Pantoja turtled up. Johnson found the energy to take the back of Pantoja, although Johnson couldn’t stop him from standing up. Johnson went for a suplex, but Pantoja blocked it; Johnson persisted and despite Pantjoja’s best efforts to block it, the champion found himself getting suplexed to the canvas. Yet Pantoja immediately broke free of Johnson’s grip and forced the challenger to pull guard, with Pantoja smothering Johnson for what remained of the round. Pantoja and Johnson opened up the fifth round by meeting in the centre of the octagon, neither one willing to back down. Johnson was looking tired, and Pantoja was now also look like he was starting to tire, but not nearly to the degree that Johnson was. Because of what the fight had taken out of both fighters, neither was able to land with the kind of blistering power that would likely have, if not turned the tide of the fight, ended it in an instant. So it wasn’t unexpected that Johnson, who appeared to be fighting exhaustion, grappled with Pantoja and managed to take him down to the ground. Pantoja pulled guard, and tried to sweep Johnson, but ‘Mighty Mouse’ kept him in place. But Johnson, either because he was wary or just too tired to do much else, was content to stay tight on Pantoja and the fight, which had been rather good up until this point, petered out for the final minute. The fight still ended on something of a high note because it had been very competitive and hard-fought, and there was a real sense of intrigue as we waited to hear the judges’ scorecards. Yet the scores was more unanimous, and more decisive than most observers expected, and Demetrious Johnson would reclaim the his flyweight crown with a unanimous decision, with two judges giving him four of the five rounds. Result: Demetrious ‘Mighty Mouse’ Johnson beat Alexandre ‘The Cannibal’ Pantoja by unanimous decision (48-47, 49-46 and 49-46) to win the UFC Flyweight Championship UFC Bantamweight Champion: Dominick Cruz © (#1, 24-2) vs. Cody Garbrandt (#3, 14-3) for the UFC Bantamweight Championship Our second title fight of the night was next, and it was not only a rematch but it was a genuine grudge match, as Dominick Cruz defended the bantamweight title against a familiar foe in Cody Garbrandt, with Garbrandt having beaten Cruz for the bantamweight title back at UFC 207. Given the bad blood between the two fighters, it wasn’t surprise that neither of them offered the usual touch of gloves at the start of the fight, although both men were soon putting their fists to good use, coming forward and throwing punches. Garbrandt had initial success in terms of landing and countering punches, but Cruz was soon coming into his own in that regard, and the first round developed very evenly. Garbrandt was landing punches-in-bunches, whilst Cruz was sticking to singular strikes, and, when the round ended, the fight seemed finely poised. Cruz began throwing more kicks in the second round, the champion going both high and low to target the head and body of the challenger. Yet, as was the case in the first round, Garbrandt was consistently landing counterpunches, and it was beginning to look increasingly like Garbrandt had the edge when it came to speed and reaction time. As with the first round, neither fighter delivered serious damage, yet the performance of Garbrandt seemed to suggest that he was slowly slipping ahead of his bitter rival. And that’s how the third round played out, with Garbrandt edging ahead of Cruz, both in terms of strikes and the counterstriking that he was using to great effect. However, Garbrandt wasn’t having it all his own way, and it was starting to look like the pace and workrate of Garbrandt was slowing him down. This gave Cruz the chance to get back into the fight and the commentary team wondered if Cruz hadn’t deliberately let Garbrandt punch himself out in the first two rounds, which they noted was a risky strategy. With just under a minute to go, Cruz clinched up with Garbrandt and pinned him back up against, and, whilst Cruz couldn’t take Garbrandt down, it was still the move he needed to seal the third round, a round he likely needed to win. But it wouldn’t ultimately matter because, early in the fourth round, Garbrandt landed a quick head kick that had Cruz wobbled and fighting hard to stay upright. Cruz did manage to stay upright, somehow, but was backed up and trapped against the cage. A big right hand from Garbrandt snapped Cruz’s head back and, before the champion could defend himself from the follow up, Garbrandt landed a big right hook and Cruz was out before he hit the ground! The fans erupted at the brutal finish to what had been great fight. Cody Garbrandt had succeeded in regaining the bantamweight title, and he had just one person on his mind, the man who had taken the title from him, T.J. Dillashaw, who had recently returned to action; Garbrandt used his post-fight interview to demand a fight with Dillashaw, with Garbrandt forcefully asserting that Dillashaw better get prepared. Result: Cody ‘No Love’ Garbrandt beat Dominick Cruz by knockout (punch) in 0:37 of Round 4 to win the UFC Bantamweight Championship Women’s Bantamweight: Ronda Rousey (#11, 12-2) vs. Holly Holm (#3, 14-5) It was now time for the main event of the evening, a fight that was if not the most anticipated main event in female combat sports history, then certainly the most anticipated rematch in female combat sports history, as Ronda Rousey came out of retirement to seek revenge against the woman who had ended her undefeated strike when she scored what is widely considered to be the most shocking upset in MMA history. Indeed, it was Holly Holm, who herself had come out of retirement for this fight, who made her entrance first, and Holm had a look of pure determination of her face. Holm was looking to prove that her first win over Rousey was no fluke, and that it had not been the proverbial ‘lightning in a bottle’, that she truly had Rousey’s number. As Holm was getting ready in the preparation centre, it was noted on commentary that Holm had been training for the first Ronda fight since before she had even started MMA, that it had been the fight Holm had known would always come, and that that was how Holm had been able to execute the perfect gameplan to beat the seemingly unbeatable Rousey. And, as Holm circled the octagon, getting ready for the biggest fight of her life, it was speculated that Holm would perhaps need another perfect gameplan if she was going to spoil the return of one of the biggest stars in female sports history. The roof came unglued for the return of the ‘Rowdy’ one, and Ronda Rousey came out with the same steely glare that she had always been known for, and if she was at all concerned about facing the first opponent to ever beat her, and in devastating fashion, then Rousey wasn’t showing it. As Rousey was getting ready in the preparation centre, the commentary team noted that a lot had changed with Rousey since the first fight with Holm; she had lost to Amanda Nunes, retired, entered the world of professional wrestling, and had now come back to MMA try and erase one of the two black marks she had on her record. Rousey entered the cage, going straight to her corner, and it was quickly noted that Rousey made the move to American Top Team for this fight, and the commentators wondered how this would change things for Rousey, and whether she would be able to adapt to an entirely new set of training methods. There was a massive roar when Rousey was introduced and, when both women were brought to the centre of the octagon, there was an electricity in the air, an incredible atmosphere that filled the building, as Rousey and Holm stared at each other, neither woman blinking as the referee gave his final instruction, and, when both women went back to their corners, you could feel the excitement begin to rise. Rousey came out looking for the takedown and, whilst Holm fended the attempt off with some strikes and a fast leg kick, Rousey took them well, and wasn’t shaken at all. Again Rousey tried to initiate a takedown, and Holm again fended it off, yet the third was the charm, sort of, and Rousey managed to get a hold of the leg of Holm and was able to force her back up against the cage. It didn’t take long for Rousey to get Holm down, Rousey using a leg sweep to trip Holm up and take her down to the mat. Not only that, Rousey, showing a new trick she had picked up from ATT, had managed to take the back of Holm off the takedown, and the ‘Preachers’ Daughter’ was in trouble, having someone like Rousey on her back. Rousey was quick to get both hooks in and Holm was in serious trouble as she began trying to escape the tight grip of her opponent. But it was about get worse for Holm as Rousey, with great control of her opponent’s body, was able to flatten Holm out and began working for a rear naked choke. Holm struggled to break the grip of Rousey, which was iron-like intense, and a pained Holm briefly resisted before tapping out and the fans went crazy, yet again, for Rousey, as she had not only made a successful return to MMA, she had gained the revenge she had come out of retirement for, and she had done it in less than two-minutes! Ronda Rousey, once lauded as the greatest female fighter of all time, had, in less than two minutes, firmly established herself as a threat to the women’s bantamweight division. Was Rousey now ready to challenge for the right to once more be called the greatest female fighter of all time, and, in the process, erase the lone remaining black mark on her record? Joe Rogan said it best on commentary; “I can’t begin to fathom a rematch between Ronda Rousey and Amanda Nunes.” Result: ‘Rowdy’ Ronda Rousey beat ‘The Preacher’s Daughter’ Holly Holm by submission due to a rear naked choke in 1:46 of Round 1 Post-Fight Bonuses Fight of the Night: Alexandre Pantoja vs. Demetrious Johnson Performance of the Night: Juliana Pena Knockout of the Night: Cody Garbrandt Submission of the Night: Ronda Rousey Predictions McDojoDelux: (9/15) McDojoDelux (overall): (9/15; 60%) Majster_93: (11/17) Majster_93 (overall): (52/74; 70.27%)

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<p>News Blast</p><p> </p><p> </p><div style="text-align:center;"><p><strong><em>Saturday of Week 2 of February 2021</em></strong></p><p> <img alt="zZbPd2a.png" data-src="https://i.imgur.com/zZbPd2a.png" src="<___base_url___>/applications/core/interface/js/spacer.png" /><img alt="cR9YFWn.png" data-src="https://i.imgur.com/cR9YFWn.png" src="<___base_url___>/applications/core/interface/js/spacer.png" /></p><p> </p><p> <strong><em>Sunday of Week 2 of February 2021</em></strong></p><p> </p><p> <img alt="jittKrg.png" data-src="https://i.imgur.com/jittKrg.png" src="<___base_url___>/applications/core/interface/js/spacer.png" /><img alt="gglUTVx.png" data-src="https://i.imgur.com/gglUTVx.png" src="<___base_url___>/applications/core/interface/js/spacer.png" /></p><p> <img alt="iIzNQ5L.png" data-src="https://i.imgur.com/iIzNQ5L.png" src="<___base_url___>/applications/core/interface/js/spacer.png" /><img alt="y1iSiNj.png" data-src="https://i.imgur.com/y1iSiNj.png" src="<___base_url___>/applications/core/interface/js/spacer.png" /></p><p> <img alt="MK1E9y2.png" data-src="https://i.imgur.com/MK1E9y2.png" src="<___base_url___>/applications/core/interface/js/spacer.png" /></p><p> </p><p> <strong><em>Monday of Week 3 of February 2021</em></strong></p><p> </p><p> <img alt="fjZa3bt.png" data-src="https://i.imgur.com/fjZa3bt.png" src="<___base_url___>/applications/core/interface/js/spacer.png" /><img alt="HrLModt.png" data-src="https://i.imgur.com/HrLModt.png" src="<___base_url___>/applications/core/interface/js/spacer.png" /></p></div><p></p><p></p>

UFC on Fight Pass series travels to England UFC on Fight Pass series travels to England Saturday of Week 2 of February 2021 The UFC today announced that the fourth of their UFC on Fight Pass series of events will take place in the Midlands, in England, and it’s the heavyweights who will provide the main event with undefeated heavyweight Ciryl Gane taking on veteran Stefan Struve. The co-main event sees Arnold Allen take on Kevin Aguilar. The returning Sarah Kaufmann faces Line Lansberg, and Bryce Mitchell is tasked with welcoming the hottest young name on the UK MMA scene makes to the UFC, when Mitchell takes on Paddy Pimblett. UFC on Fight Pass 4 takes place on Saturday of Week 2 of April in the Midlands. Main Card Heavyweight: Ciryl Gane (#17, 10-0) vs. Stefan Struve (#21, 30-12, 1NC) Featherweight: Arnold Allen (#5, 18-1) vs. Kevin Aguilar (#18, 18-3) Women’s Bantamweight: Sarah Kaufmann (#16, 24-5, 1NC) vs. Lina Lansberg (#9, 11-6) Lightweight: Renato Carnerio (#9, 15-4-1) vs. Carlos Diego Ferreira (#13, 18-3) Featherweight: Bryce Mitchell (13-0) vs. Paddy Pimblett (18-3) Preliminary Card Light Heavyweight: Dalcha Lungiambula (10-3) vs. Adam Yandiev (9-2) Bantamweight: Kwan Ho Kwak (9-3) vs. Cole Smith (7-2) Bantamweight: Liu Pingyuan (16-6) vs. Matt Schnell (15-5) Women’s Bantamweight: Justine Kish (7-3) vs. Mallory Martin (6-5)

News Blast Tuesday of Week 2 of February 2021 Wednesday of Week 2 of February 2021 Thursday of Week 2 of February 2021 Friday of Week 2 of February 2021

<p>News Blast</p><p> </p><p> </p><div style="text-align:center;"><p><strong><em>Saturday of Week 1 of February 2021</em></strong></p><p> </p><p> <img alt="EQHguLy.png" data-src="https://i.imgur.com/EQHguLy.png" src="<___base_url___>/applications/core/interface/js/spacer.png" /><img alt="X8sRqjj.png" data-src="https://i.imgur.com/X8sRqjj.png" src="<___base_url___>/applications/core/interface/js/spacer.png" /></p><p> <img alt="ZRjuOEZ.png" data-src="https://i.imgur.com/ZRjuOEZ.png" src="<___base_url___>/applications/core/interface/js/spacer.png" /></p><p> </p><p> <img alt="QrQcwE0.png" data-src="https://i.imgur.com/QrQcwE0.png" src="<___base_url___>/applications/core/interface/js/spacer.png" /></p><p> </p><p> <strong><em>Sunday of Week 1 of February 2021</em></strong></p><p> </p><p> <img alt="NG3HrtL.png" data-src="https://i.imgur.com/NG3HrtL.png" src="<___base_url___>/applications/core/interface/js/spacer.png" /><img alt="x8HJ5Tm.png" data-src="https://i.imgur.com/x8HJ5Tm.png" src="<___base_url___>/applications/core/interface/js/spacer.png" /></p><p> <img alt="cAjjJ1D.png" data-src="https://i.imgur.com/cAjjJ1D.png" src="<___base_url___>/applications/core/interface/js/spacer.png" /><img alt="vQPzfmW.png" data-src="https://i.imgur.com/vQPzfmW.png" src="<___base_url___>/applications/core/interface/js/spacer.png" /></p><p> </p><p> <strong><em>Monday of Week 2 of February 2021</em></strong></p><p> </p><p> <img alt="eKX4y7w.png" data-src="https://i.imgur.com/eKX4y7w.png" src="<___base_url___>/applications/core/interface/js/spacer.png" /><img alt="rce0GQT.png" data-src="https://i.imgur.com/rce0GQT.png" src="<___base_url___>/applications/core/interface/js/spacer.png" /></p><p> <img alt="KtJAGD5.png" data-src="https://i.imgur.com/KtJAGD5.png" src="<___base_url___>/applications/core/interface/js/spacer.png" /><img alt="wbTso5A.png" data-src="https://i.imgur.com/wbTso5A.png" src="<___base_url___>/applications/core/interface/js/spacer.png" /></p><p> <img alt="VNuRA9P.png" data-src="https://i.imgur.com/VNuRA9P.png" src="<___base_url___>/applications/core/interface/js/spacer.png" /></p></div><p></p><p></p>

<p>UFC already set for second HBO special; another major rematch to headline</p><p> </p><p> </p><div style="text-align:center;"><img alt="cG1mhfY.png" data-src="https://i.imgur.com/cG1mhfY.png" src="<___base_url___>/applications/core/interface/js/spacer.png" /><p> </p><p> <span style="font-size:18px;"><strong><span style="text-decoration:underline;">UFC already set for second HBO special; another major rematch to headline</span></strong></span></p><p> </p><p> <em>Saturday of Week 1 of February 2021</em></p><p> </p><p> The UFC and HBO have wasted no time in announcing the second show of their deal and, like the first show, it will be headlined by a rematch that many have been clamouring for as the main event of UFC Fight Night on HBO 2 will see Carlos Condit take on Nick Diaz.</p><p> </p><p> These two first met back at UFC 143, when they squared off for the interim UFC Welterweight Championship. With Georges St. Pierre sidelined by injury, the UFC decided to create an interim championship to fill the void until GSP was able to come back, at which point GSP would face the interim champion to determine the undisputed UFC Welterweight Champion. </p><p> </p><p> Condit won the fight by unanimous decision and, whilst the stats backed up his win, many felt Condit’s strategy of backpeddling to let Diaz come to him, a strategy he maintained throughout the fight, shouldn’t have been enough to offset Diaz’s constant forward pressure, no matter what the numbers said. Diaz was upset by the decision, decrying Condit’s approach to their fight, and the Stockton native has long wanted to face Condit again. Now, at the UFC’s next major event on HBO, Diaz will get the chance to right what he feels was an injustice, with a victory over Condit perhaps being enough to gain Diaz another chance at UFC gold.</p><p> </p><p> In the co-main event, fireworks are guaranteed when Justin Gaethje returns to action, with Gaethje taking on former interim lightweight title challenger Kevin Lee. Gaethje is coming off a loss to the current lightweight champion Conor McGregor, with Conor’s victory over Gaethje propelling Conor to the fight that would see him reclaim the lightweight title. For Lee, his last fight was also a loss, with Lee losing by split decision to Khabib Nurmagomedov; it was a controversial loss as Nurmagomedov showed virtually no aggressive offense, Nurmagomedov electing to smother and hold Lee down. It was effective in winning the fight, but Nurmagomedov’s strategy did nothing to make people feel like he had ‘won’, ending the fight on a flat note.</p><p> </p><p> A fight between Gaethje and Lee is the perfect opportunity for two men who both need to re-establish themselves in the lightweight division, their styles assuring action and excitement, and allowing them to fully showcase their skills. Who will be left standing when the fireworks are over?</p><p> </p><p> There will be a big middleweight collision when Rafael Carvalho takes on the undefeated Edmen Shahbazyan. Carvalho looked great in his UFC debut in January, with a decisive TKO win over Uriah Hall, but Shahbazyan is the hottest rising name in the middleweight division, and this collision will undoubtedly determine the direction that the division will take as the year unfolds.</p><p> </p><p> Kicking the main card off is an exciting fight in the women’s flyweight division and it will see Ji ‘Fire Fist’ Yeon Kim take in Jennifer Maia. Kim is surging up the ranks, whilst Maia needs to bounce back from a devastating loss to Molly McCann, and the outcome of this fight will decide if Kim maintains her course, or Maia bounces back at the expense of an explosive opponent.</p><p> </p><p> It’s a loaded card for the UFC’s second show on HBO, with the preliminary action headlined by Dan Hooker facing Steven Ray, and it all takes place on Saturday of Week 1 of April in Connecticut.</p><p> </p><p> <span style="font-size:18px;"><strong><span style="text-decoration:underline;"><span style="color:#708090;">Main Card</span></span></strong></span></p><p> </p><p> <img alt="4xxXwHe.jpg" data-src="https://i.imgur.com/4xxXwHe.jpg" src="<___base_url___>/applications/core/interface/js/spacer.png" /><img alt="jd3Ws5b.jpg" data-src="https://i.imgur.com/jd3Ws5b.jpg" src="<___base_url___>/applications/core/interface/js/spacer.png" /><img alt="XT4mJv9.jpg" data-src="https://i.imgur.com/XT4mJv9.jpg" src="<___base_url___>/applications/core/interface/js/spacer.png" /></p><p> </p><p> <span style="font-family:Tahoma;"><strong>Welterweight:</strong></span> Carlos Condit <em>(#25, 32-13)</em> <span style="color:#A0522D;"><strong>vs.</strong></span> Nick Diaz <em>(#7, 28-9, 2NC)</em></p><p> </p><p> <img alt="K2qZc9E.jpg" data-src="https://i.imgur.com/K2qZc9E.jpg" src="<___base_url___>/applications/core/interface/js/spacer.png" /><img alt="jd3Ws5b.jpg" data-src="https://i.imgur.com/jd3Ws5b.jpg" src="<___base_url___>/applications/core/interface/js/spacer.png" /><img alt="1MoQeW8.jpg" data-src="https://i.imgur.com/1MoQeW8.jpg" src="<___base_url___>/applications/core/interface/js/spacer.png" /></p><p> </p><p> <span style="font-family:Tahoma;"><strong>Lightweight:</strong></span> Justin Gaethje <em>(#11, 21-3)</em> <span style="color:#A0522D;"><strong>vs.</strong></span> Kevin Lee <em>(#4, 19-7)</em></p><p> </p><p> <img alt="3ztDG6Z.jpg" data-src="https://i.imgur.com/3ztDG6Z.jpg" src="<___base_url___>/applications/core/interface/js/spacer.png" /><img alt="jd3Ws5b.jpg" data-src="https://i.imgur.com/jd3Ws5b.jpg" src="<___base_url___>/applications/core/interface/js/spacer.png" /><img alt="w2iclJL.jpg" data-src="https://i.imgur.com/w2iclJL.jpg" src="<___base_url___>/applications/core/interface/js/spacer.png" /></p><p> </p><p> <span style="font-family:Tahoma;"><strong>Middleweight:</strong></span> Rafael Carvalho <em>(#6, 19-4)</em> <span style="color:#A0522D;"><strong>vs.</strong></span> Edmen Shahbazyan <em>(#3, 14-0)</em></p><p> </p><p> <img alt="tFfr0Ve.jpg" data-src="https://i.imgur.com/tFfr0Ve.jpg" src="<___base_url___>/applications/core/interface/js/spacer.png" /><img alt="jd3Ws5b.jpg" data-src="https://i.imgur.com/jd3Ws5b.jpg" src="<___base_url___>/applications/core/interface/js/spacer.png" /><img alt="Xc2DPE0.jpg" data-src="https://i.imgur.com/Xc2DPE0.jpg" src="<___base_url___>/applications/core/interface/js/spacer.png" /></p><p> </p><p> <span style="font-family:Tahoma;"><strong>Women’s Flyweight:</strong></span> Ji Yeon Kim <em>(#18, 11-2-2)</em> <span style="color:#A0522D;"><strong>vs.</strong></span> Jennifer Maia <em>(#13, 18-7-1)</em></p><p> </p><p> <span style="font-size:18px;"><strong><span style="text-decoration:underline;"><span style="color:#708090;">Preliminary Card</span></span></strong></span></p><p> </p><p> <img alt="28qeQLr.jpg" data-src="https://i.imgur.com/28qeQLr.jpg" src="<___base_url___>/applications/core/interface/js/spacer.png" /><img alt="jd3Ws5b.jpg" data-src="https://i.imgur.com/jd3Ws5b.jpg" src="<___base_url___>/applications/core/interface/js/spacer.png" /><img alt="6NsN6cF.jpg" data-src="https://i.imgur.com/6NsN6cF.jpg" src="<___base_url___>/applications/core/interface/js/spacer.png" /></p><p> </p><p> <span style="font-family:Tahoma;"><strong>Lightweight:</strong></span> Dan Hooker <em>(#8, 20-9)</em> <span style="color:#A0522D;"><strong>vs.</strong></span> Steven Ray <em>(24-9)</em></p><p> </p><p> <img alt="YMhiwCe.jpg" data-src="https://i.imgur.com/YMhiwCe.jpg" src="<___base_url___>/applications/core/interface/js/spacer.png" /><img alt="jd3Ws5b.jpg" data-src="https://i.imgur.com/jd3Ws5b.jpg" src="<___base_url___>/applications/core/interface/js/spacer.png" /><img alt="SuyikXh.jpg" data-src="https://i.imgur.com/SuyikXh.jpg" src="<___base_url___>/applications/core/interface/js/spacer.png" /></p><p> </p><p> <span style="font-family:Tahoma;"><strong>Light Heavyweight:</strong></span> Roman Dolidze <em>(6-1)</em> <span style="color:#A0522D;"><strong>vs.</strong></span> Kennedy Nzechukwu <em>(8-1)</em></p><p> </p><p> <img alt="Q0foppd.jpg" data-src="https://i.imgur.com/Q0foppd.jpg" src="<___base_url___>/applications/core/interface/js/spacer.png" /><img alt="jd3Ws5b.jpg" data-src="https://i.imgur.com/jd3Ws5b.jpg" src="<___base_url___>/applications/core/interface/js/spacer.png" /><img alt="t5DLqCw.jpg" data-src="https://i.imgur.com/t5DLqCw.jpg" src="<___base_url___>/applications/core/interface/js/spacer.png" /></p><p> </p><p> <span style="font-family:Tahoma;"><strong>Welterweight:</strong></span> Jake Matthews <em>(17-4)</em> <span style="color:#A0522D;"><strong>vs.</strong></span> Abubakar Nurmagomedov <em>(16-3-1)</em></p><p> </p><p> <img alt="W1oldAX.jpg" data-src="https://i.imgur.com/W1oldAX.jpg" src="<___base_url___>/applications/core/interface/js/spacer.png" /><img alt="jd3Ws5b.jpg" data-src="https://i.imgur.com/jd3Ws5b.jpg" src="<___base_url___>/applications/core/interface/js/spacer.png" /><img alt="kJmRHyR.jpg" data-src="https://i.imgur.com/kJmRHyR.jpg" src="<___base_url___>/applications/core/interface/js/spacer.png" /></p><p> </p><p> <span style="font-family:Tahoma;"><strong>Featherweight:</strong></span> Giga Chikadze <em>(9-2)</em> <span style="color:#A0522D;"><strong>vs.</strong></span> Teruto Ishihara <em>(11-7-2)</em></p></div><p></p><p></p>

UFC Rankings for Sunday of Week 1 of February 2021

UFC Fight Night on HBO 1: Askren vs. Lawler II UFC Fight Night on HBO 1: Askren vs. Lawler II Date: Saturday of Week 1 of February 2021 Location: Colorado Attendance: 7,231 Gate: $1,724,594 Critical Rating: 70% Commercial Rating: 93% Commentary Team: Jon Anik, Joe Rogan and Dan Hardy Preliminary Card Featherweight: Suman Mokhtarian (8-3) vs. Chas Skelly (19-4) It didn’t take long for Mokhtarian to make his mark on the fight, and Skelly, with Mokhtarian opening up a cut above the eye of Skelly in less than a minute. And this told the story of the fight with Mokhtarian pretty much dominating Skelly throughout, Skelly offering little offence of his own before being tapped out with a guillotine choke in the third round; Skelly had gone for a takedown early in the round but, in doing, had left his neck wide open. Result: Suman Mokhtarian beat Chas ‘Scrapper’ Skelly by submission due to a guillotine choke in 1:13 of Round 3 Women’s Featherweight: Megan Anderson (#2, 10-4) vs. Olga Rubin (#6, 6-3) A combination of this being her UFC debut and being the major underdog saw Olga Rubin start off the aggressor, taking the fight to Anderson, who was equal to the task. And if anyone was expecting Anderson to make light work of her opponent, they were sorely mistaken as Rubin gave Anderson all she could handle and then some, with Rubin even surviving getting rocked in the first round to hang on and see the round out. Not only that, Rubin shocked everyone by dropping Anderson in the second round, connecting with a powerful left hook that dropped the betting favourite. Rubin went for the kill but Anderson showed tremendous tenacity to hang in there and, not only survive, but get back to her feet. And, with less than a minute to go in the round, Anderson dropped Rubin with a powerful straight right. Anderson, knowing what her opponent could do, unleashed everything she had and knocked Rubin out with a series of punches. Megan Anderson had survived a major scare to get the victory, but Olga Rubin had come out of this fight having proven that she more than belonged in the UFC. Result: Megan Anderson beat ‘Big Bad’ Olga Rubin by knockout (punch) in 4:44 of Round 2 Women’s Flyweight: Mackenzie Dern (#20, 9-1) vs. Talia Santos (#24, 15-2) Santos had some early success against Dern, with Santos hurting Dern with a right hand that forced Dern to play avoidance for a while in order to properly recover. And recover she did, with Dern soon taking Santos down and smoothly taking the mount before swiftly transitioning into an armbar to get the tap. In her post-fight interview, Dern said that she has confidence in her submission game, which she feels is at an all-time high; Dern was a charismatic talker, with looks to match, and she showed a real star quality. Result: Mackenzie Dern beat Talia Santos by submission due to an armbar in 3:56 of Round 1 Women’s Strawweight: Felice Herrig (#20, 14-10) vs. Syuri Kondo (#23, 9-3) It took a while for the fight to get going, but once it did, the fight was somewhat competitive before Kondo started establishing her dominance, and, with just under two minutes left in the first round, Kondo landed a stiff head kick that floored Herrig, and Kondo pounded her out get the stoppage. Kondo’s post-fight interview might not have been the best, but the camera clearly loved her, so it still got Kondo over. Result: Syuri Kondo beat Felice ‘Lil' Bulldog’ Herrig by TKO due to strikes in 3:47 of Round 1 Middleweight: Abu Azaitar (15-2-1, 1NC) vs. Andre Muniz (20-4) Andre Muniz looked great in this fight, forcefully taking Azaitar down early on and then immediately taking his back, Azaitar was somehow able to reverse position and end up in the guard of Muniz, but that was the beginning of the end, and Muniz managed to secure the arm of Azaitar and spin around to secure a tight armbar and force a quick tap Emboldened by his victory, Muniz used his mic time to challenge Trevin Giles. Result: ‘Sergipano’ Andre Muniz beat Abu ‘Gladiator’ Azaitar by submission due to an armbar in 2:06 of Round 1 Main Card Light Heavyweight: Luke Rockhold (16-5) vs. Anthony Smith (#6, 33-15) The main card of the UFC’s debut event on HBO would see the highly anticipated return to action of Luke Rockhold, who had taken a lengthy sabbatical after a knockout loss to the current top contender to the light heavyweight title, Jan Błachowicz. In front of Rockhold was an opponent who had, not only challenged for the light heavyweight title, but had taken champion Jon Jones the distance, an accomplishment that few could lay claim to Right off the bat, Rockhold showed that his time off had done nothing to diminish his skill, with Rockhold deftly avoiding a right hook from Smith and countering with a brace of a jabs that connected, and then throwing a head kick that Smith only just avoided. As Smith pressed forward, he found himself getting hit on the counter, so he started to play a more defensive game, but with Rockhold unwilling to press too hard, the pace of the fight slowed down. Until, that is, right near the end of the first round when Smith landed a head kick that had Rockhold looking rocked and dazed, but, before Smith could follow up, the round ended. The second round saw Rockhold really find his groove, pressing forward more and countering more, and, just before the two-minute mark, Rock landed a left high kick counter that had Smith staggering backwards. Rockhold tried to finish the job with another let high kick, but Smith brought up his forearm to deflect the worse of the blow and Smith was able to recover enough to keep going. Late in the round, Rockhold was able to shoot in close and take Smith down, but the round ended before Rockhold was able to do anything. It was familiar story in the third round, with Smith getting countered and offering little to trouble Rockhold, and, just past the half-way mark, Rockhold landed a nice high roundhouse kick that had Smith in serious trouble and a quick and brutal left hand finished the job, Rockhold knocking Smith out cold and capping off his return to action with a spectacular finish. Eager to make the most of what was sure to be very sizeable spotlight, Rockhold, when interviewed afterwards, declared his intention to fight Khadis Ibragimov, although whilst Rockhold said he hoped Ibragimov had the guts the face him, the cocky Rockhold was quick to add that he doubted Ibragimov did. Result: Luke Rockhold beat Anthony ‘Lionheart’ Smith by knockout (punch) in 2:35 of Round 3 The fight was rated as being Great. Light Heavyweight: Sam Alvey (#17, 34-14, 1NC) vs. Dominick Reyes (#7, 12-2) If Dominick Reyes was hoping to rebound from his unsuccessful challenge of the light heavyweight title, he couldn’t have done any better here tonight because Reyes destroyed the normally durable Sam Alvey in less than a minute. Reyes came out hard and fast, dropping Alves with a vicious head kick before pasting him with a series of big punches that saw the referee stop the fight after just 45 seconds. And Reyes wasn’t about to rest on his laurels, as he challenged Jan Blachowicz, with Reyes hoping to finally secure a fight he’s long wanted. Result: Dominick 'The Devastator' Reyes beat 'Smile'n' Sam Alvey by TKO due to strikes in 0:45 of Round 1 Women’s Bantamweight: Irena Aldana (#2, 14-5) vs. Pannie Kianzad (#18, 14-6) This fight was far more competitive than the scorecards suggest; Kianzad deserved the decision, but Aldana was no pushover, and she really brought the fight to Kianzad. It was a good, all-action fight, neither woman making any attempt to take the fight to the ground, with both of them content to keep it standing and showcase their striking skills. There was plenty of good action throughout, and, whilst neither woman delivered any major blows; nobody was rocked or left reeling. This was still a fight that both women would be feeling in the morning. Result: Pannie ‘Banzai’ Kianzad beat Irene ‘Robles’ Aldana by unanimous decision (30-27, 30-27 and 30-27) Bantamweight: Jose Aldo (#7, 28-6) vs. T.J. Dillashaw (#4, 16-4) This was the fight that, for some, had the most interest, because it was the return to action of T.J. Dillashaw after a suspension due to failed drug test. And Dillashaw wasn’t coming back to face just anyone, as he’d be taking on the former featherweight champion, and future Hall of Fame occupant, Jose Aldo. It was soon clear that Dillashaw hadn’t lost a step during his enforced absence as he was immediately taking the fight to Aldo, forcing the Brazilian into a fast start. And Aldo was giving as good as he got, the former champion clearly not about to take a backseat to his somewhat controversial opponent, and it made for a very competitive, hard-hitting fight. Late in the first round, Dillashaw started trash talking Aldo, a new tactic for Dillashaw, and, whether or not this had any effect, it definitely didn’t hurt because, with less than thirty seconds to go, Dillashaw avoided a big right hand from Aldo and landed a powerful straight right that caught Aldo right on the button and knocked him out cold! The fans erupted at the spectacular finish and T.J. Dillashaw had announced his return in stunning fashion, and had reminded everyone that he was still one of the best in the sport. Result: T.J. Dillashaw beat Jose Aldo by knockout (punch) in 4:42 of Round 1 Welterweight: Ben Askren (#8, 20-2, 1NC) vs. Robbie Lawler (#9, 29-14, 1NC) The main event of the first UFC show on HBO was here, and it was the highly anticipated rematch between Ben Askren and Robbie Lawler. Their first fight at UFC 235, which was Askren’s long-awaited UFC debut, saw a controversial ending, with the fight called off when Askren had Lawler in a bulldog choke; Lawler was appeared to be unconscious, but as soon as the fight was stopped, Lawler jumped to his feet, seemingly fine and upset over what he felt was a bad stoppage. The controversial nature of that fight meant that, at some point, a rematch between the two seemed destined to happen, and now, finally, Askren and Lawler would once more face off, and, this time, there would hopefully be a more conclusive ending. Sometimes, fights don’t live up to expectations, and this, sadly, was one such fight, because, boy did it suck. Askren would grapple with Lawler and either smother him up against the cage or take him down and smother him on the mat, and there was nothing that Lawler could do about it. That was virtually the entirety of the fight for 25 uninspiring minutes. Lawler got a few good punches in here and there, but such moments of excitement were few and far between, and you would only enjoy this fight if you were a major aficionado of amateur wrestling, or were otherwise a fighting purist. It failed to win fans over, and you had to think that UFC management were furious at seeing their HBO debut end in such poor fashion. Ben Askren had won the fight, but the way he won meant that he did little to win over the fans. Askren got over better when, in his post-fight interview, said that he wanted to fight Santiago Ponzinibbio and that it would be a pleasure to smack him around for a bit. Result: ‘Funky’ Ben Askren beat ‘Ruthless’ Robbie Lawler by unanimous decision (49-46, 50-45 and 50-45) Post-Fight Bonuses Fight of the Night: Luke Rockhold] vs. Anthony Smith Performance of the Night: Megan Anderson Knockout of the Night: T.J. Dillashaw Submission of the Night: Suman Mokhtarian Predictions Majster_93: (8/10) Majster_93 (overall): (41/57; 71.92%) CageRage: (8/10) CageRage (Overall): (198/327; 60.55%) McDojoDelux: (8/10) McDojoDelux (Overall): (8/10; 80%)

News Blast Wednesday of Week 1 of February 2021 Thursday of Week 1 of February 2021 Friday of Week 1 of February 2021

News Blast Saturday of Week 4 of January 2021 Junior Dos Santos today announced that he is launching an appeal over the one-year suspension he received for failing a drug test earlier in the month. Dos Santos tested positive for PEDs after UFC on ESPN 12, where he lost in the main event to Daniel Cormier. Sunday of Week 4 of January 2021 Monday of Week 1 of February 2021 Tuesday of Week 1 of February 2021

UFC returns to Ohio for UFC 260; Jon Jones title to defend against Jan Błachowicz UFC returns to Ohio for UFC 260; Jon Jones title to defend against Jan Błachowicz. Zhang defends against Suarez in co-main event Saturday of Week 4 of January 2021 The UFC returns to Ohio in March for The Buckeye Brawl, a PPV that will see Jon Jones aim to make the fifth defence of his UFC Light Heavyweight Championship when he takes on Jan Błachowicz, Błachowicz the next fighter tasked with taking on a champion who is widely considered the best fighter of all time. Jones, fresh off a rematch with Dominick Reyes at UFC 253, now looks to continue his run of dominance, and further establish himself as the greatest fighter of all time, as he heads to Ohio and another title defence, and it’s apropos about this this being his fifth title defence because his challenger is on a five fight winning streak. Jan Błachowicz started his streak with a sensational knockout of Luke Rockhold, with Błachowicz then racking up wins over Ronaldo Souza, Corey Anderson, Glover Texeira, and the legendary Antônio Rogério Nogueira. Now, Błachowicz stands atop the rank of contenders in the light heavyweight division, with the only step remaining for him to take being the one that would put him atop the entire division, and that’s beating Jon Jones become UFC Light Heavyweight Champion. Yet standing in front of him is a champion who has been dominant against virtually every challenger who has stood before him, and even against those who have pushed him to the limit, Jones has still emerged victorious, but there may have been no more dangerous challenger than the one he will face at UFC 260. In the co-main event of UFC 260, the reigning UFC Women’s Strawweight Champion, Zhang Weili, coming off a success title defence against Rose Namajunas, puts her title on the line against a challenger that nobody has been able to figure out yet, with Zhang facing the undefeated Tatiana Suarez. Zhang has been through some tough battles, including her legendry Fight of the Decade against Joanna Jedrzejczyk. But there is no tougher battle than one against an opponent who has beaten everyone they’ve faced, because you must find a way to do that which nobody has been able to do before. Tatiana Suarez is a world-class calibre wrestler, at one point being the number one ranked freestyle wrestler in the US (121lbs), her Olympic aspirations only being derailed not by an opponent, but by injury and cancer. With injuries and cancer behind her, Suarez entered MMA, wowing on the regional scene before bursting onto the national stage by winning the 23rd season of The Ultimate Fighter. Suarez then put together a series of impressive wins, her most notable coming at UFC 228 when she dominated and battered former champion Carla Esparza en route to a TKO victory. Suarez is now one win away from MMA immortality and joining the rare cadre of fighters who have become UFC champion whilst being undefeated. Yet that win would have to be over a champion who has shown mettle and fire the likes of which has rarely been seen in MMA. However, Suarez is no stranger to taking on a foe that most would find daunting, and at UFC 260, she has the chance to make history and become the next UFC Women’s Strawweight Champion. Elsewhere on the card, Corey Anderson faces Alexander Gustafsson. Gustafsson emerged from retirement late last year to beat Mauricio Rua, and a strong showing by Gustafsson against Anderson may be enough to put him in contention for a shot at the winner of the main event. Similarly, when Angela Hill takes on Rose Namajunas, a victory for Hill could be enough to see the former TUF standout steak her claim to challenge the winner of the Zhang/Suarez contest. Namajunas will have other ideas, and, after coming up short in her own challenge for the strawweight title, the last thing she will want to see happen is a loss that would plunge her far down the ranks of the strawweight division. Bitter enemies collide in the welterweight division when loudmouthed clown Colby Covington takes on former champion Tyron Woodley. And the main card kicks off with a heavy-handed heavyweight affair between Walt Harris and Alistair Overeem. This great PPV, and a loaded preliminary card that includes potential title challengers, rising contenders, and undefeated standouts, takes place on Saturday of Week of 4 of March in Ohio. Main Card UFC Light Heavyweight Champion: Jon Jones © (#1, 27-1, 1NC) vs. Jan Błachowicz (28-8) for the UFC Light Heavyweight Championship UFC Women’s Strawweight Champion: Zhang Weili © (#1, 23-1) vs. Tatiana Suarez (10-0) for the UFC Women’s Strawweight Championship Light Heavyweight: Corey Anderson (#9, 14-6) vs. Alexander Gustafsson (#4, 19-6) Women’s Strawweight: Angela Hill (#8, 14-7) vs. Rose Namajunas (#6, 9-5) Welterweight: Colby Covington (#7, 16-3) vs. Tyron Woodley (#2, 20-5-1) Heavyweight: Walt Harris (#3, 15-7, 1NC) vs. Alistair Overeem (#12, 45-19, 1NC) Preliminary Card Women’s Strawweight: Hannah Cifers (#22, 12-4) vs. Virna Jandiroba (#17, 17-2) Women’s Flyweight: Maycee Barber (#6, 10-1) vs. Ariane Lipski (#11, 14-5) Women’s Bantamweight: Macy Chaisson (#2, 8-1) vs. Ketlen Viera (#12, 11-2) Bantamweight: Merab Dvalishvili (10-5) vs. Sean O’Malley (12-0) Featherweight: Khalid Taha (#21, 15-1) vs. Sodiq Yussuf (#16, 13-1) Featherweight: Ricardo Lamas (#12, 19-9) vs. Cub Swanson (#19, 26-12) Featherweight: Doo Ho Choi (#20, 16-4) vs. Darren Elkins (#23, 24-9) Lightweight: Mark Madsen (11-0) vs. Omar Morales (10-0) Lightweight: Bobby Green (25-11-1) vs. James Vick (14-5) Lightweight: Paul Felder (#16, 18-7) vs. Arman Tsarukyan (#14, 17-2)

UFC Rankings for Sunday, Week 4 of January 2021

UFC 258: Merseyside Mayhem UFC 258: Merseyside Mayhem Date: Saturday of Week 4 of January 2021 Location: North of England Attendance: 11,053 Gate: $2,039,278 PPV Revenue: $183,083 Critical Rating: 72% Commercial Rating: 96% Commentary Team: Jon Anik, Joe Rogan and Dan Hardy Preliminary Card Women’s Bantamweight: Tracy Cortez (#22, 8-1) vs. Liana Jouja (#21, 7-4) The night got off to a great start with a short but exciting fight that ended when Jouja cracked Cortez with a right hook, Cortez hitting the mat before being pounded out with some sickeningly heavy shots to the face. Although her post-fight interview wasn’t the best, the camera still loved Jouja, who made quite the impression. Result: Liana ‘Mgeli’ Jojua beat Tracy Cortez by TKO due to strikes in 2:04 of Round 1 Women’s Flyweight: Shana Dobson (5-5) vs. Ashlee Evans-Smith (#19, 6-5) Coming off a controversial loss, a loss that was overturned and ruled a no-contest due to her opponent failing a drug test, Shana Dobson got back into the groove with a fairly commanding performance here, Dobson using a bruising series of strikes to set up brutal looking kimura that forced a hurried submission from Ashlee Evans-Smith. Result: Shana ‘Danger’ Dobson beat ‘Rebel Gir’ Ashlee Evans-Smith by submission due to a kimura in 3:11 of Round 2 Heavyweight: Carlos Felipe (8-1) vs. Raphael Pessoa (10-3) This fight was rather average, and it pitted the ground control of Bebezao against the striking of Felipe. Bebezao controlled large portions of the fight but Felipe landed the most significant strike, a right head kick that had Bebezao wobbled and then falling. But Felipe couldn’t get the finish and was too tired to keep up the pressure, and he faded from there. It was a surprise to see the fight go to a split-decision, but at least the right man won. Result: Raphael Pessoa beat Carlos ‘Boi’ Felipe by split decision (29-28, 29-28 and 28-29) Lightweight: Jai Herbert (10-2) vs. Thiago Moises (12-4) The takedowns and grappling of Thiago Moises allowed him to dominate this fight. Jai Herbet resorted to grabbing the cage to block a takedown at one point, an action which got him verbally warned by the referee. It didn’t affect the outcome of fight, though, with Moises in complete control throughout. Result: Thiago Moises beat ‘The Black Country Banger’ Jai Herbert by unanimous decision (30-27, 30-27 and 30-27) Middleweight: Keith Berrish (5-2, 1NC) vs. Darren Stewart (11-6) It didn’t take long for ‘The Dentist’ to extract a finish in this fight, with Stewart rocking Berish early on with a right hand and then dropping him with a head kick and pounding away until the referee jumped in to stop the fight in just 81 seconds. Stewart didn’t mince words in his post-fight interview, the charismatic ‘Dentist’ issuing a challenger to Deron Winn. Result: Darren ‘The Dentist’ Stewart beat ‘Sha Bang Bang’ Keith Berish by TKO due to strikes in 1:21 of Round 1 Heavyweight: Francis Ngannou (#12, 14-5) vs. Tai Tuivasa (#18, 8-4) It was as if being the heavy underdog (-500 to +350) lit a fire under Tai Tuivasa because he really took the fight to his more favoured opponent. In fact, Francis Ngannou was shockingly dropped in the first thirty seconds of the first round, Ngannou having to hold on tight to get the time to recover his senses. Ngannou was at least able to get Tuivasa in half-guard, a move which eventually set up a scramble that allowed Ngannou to take top position and slow the fight down for the rest of the round. And it didn’t take long for Tuivasa to pick up where he left of in the previous round, Tuivasa dropping Nganou in just over ten seconds before unloading a barrage of massive right hands that forced the referee to step in and stop the fight, Tuivasa delivering a massive upset, and you had to wonder where Ngannou was going to go from here, the hype train having been well and truly derailed over the past year. In his post-fight interview, Tuivasa admitted the result was a shock but he attributed it to what happens when you believe in yourself. Result: Tai ‘Bam Bam’ Tuivasa beat Francis ‘The Predator’ Ngannou by TKO due to strikes in 0:27 of Round 2 Welterweight: Jessin Ayari (17-5) vs. Emil Meek (9-6-1) This was a solid if unremarkable fight, one that was dominated by Meek from beginning to end. Result: Emil ‘Valhalla’ Meek beat Jessin ‘Abacus’ Ayari by unanimous decision (30-27, 30-27 and 30-27) Heavyweight: Ciryl Gane (#17, 9-0) vs. Alexander Romanov (11-2) The fistic fury of Frenchman Cyril Gane was a-gane on display, with Gane displaying a great sprawl before knocking Romanov out cold with a vicious right cross. Gane’s post-fight interview saw him express happiness at the finish, with Gane, who exuded all the qualities to be a superstar, saying that the finish was a testament to his training. Result: Ciryl ‘Bon Gamin’ Gane beat Alexander ‘King Kong’ Romanov by knockout (punch) in 1:41 of Round 1 Welterweight: Alberto Mina (13-2) vs. Danny Roberts (17-6) Danny Roberts got a big reaction from his home fans but that was, unfortunately, as good as it got for ‘Hot Chocolate’, who simply had no answer for the takedowns and ground game of Mina, and, late in the third round, Mina secured a rear naked choke to get the submission. In his post-fight interview, Mina challenged Romazan Emeev. Result: Alberto ‘Soldier of God’ Mina beat Danny ‘Hot Chocolate’ Roberts by submission due to a raer naked choke in 3:55 of Round . Bantamweight: Montel Jackson (#22, 10-1) vs. Brett Johns (#19, 18-2) Although this fight saw Johns put in a great performance, it wasn’t a great fight to watch in terms of excitement because Jackson offered little the way of defence to the ground game of Johns, and no real offence to speak off of his own. Oftentimes it was as if Johns could do whatever he felt like doing, and Jackson was having to work hard just to avoid being submitted, so the fight also lacked drama in that regard. Perhaps looking for a tougher challenger, Johns called for a fight with Nathanial Wood in his post-fight interview, with Johns openly admitting that it would be a tough challenge for him. Result: Brett ‘The Pikey’ Johns beat Montel ‘Quik’ Jackson by unanimous decision (30-27, 30-27 and 30-27) Main Card Flyweight: Aleksander Doskalchuk (#13, 11-2) vs. Joseph Morales (#9, 12-2) The main card kicked off with a flyweight contest, where one fighter, Doskalchuk, was looking to continue establishing himself in UFC, while the other, Morales, was looking to prove he deserved a second chance, with this being Morales return to the UFC after spending time away from the promotion. It didn’t take long for Morales so stamp his authority on the fight, swiftly taking Doskalchuk down and immediately threatening him with a series of submissions; Morales locked on a tight armbar, and it looked nasty, but Doskalchuk somehow managed to resist and pop his arm free. Doskalchuk then tried to scramble free but Morales was too quick and he quickly secured side-control. Morales once gain threatened with submissions, but Doskalchuk defended well enough to slow the action to where the referee ordered a stand-up, although it didn’t take long for Morales to take Doskalchuk back down and the round ended with Morales in complete control. The second round seemed to start out well for Doskalchuk, who landed some nice punches, but Morales was soon able to take Doskalchuk down, with a single leg, forcing Doskalchuk to pull guard. Morales soon improved his position and again began to threaten Doskalchuk with submissions and Doskalchuk was on the defensive for the rest of the round. Heading into the third round, it was clear that Doskalchuk was in need of a finish, having been thoroughly dominated so far. And Doskalchuk came out very aggressively for the third round, knowing full well that he needed to get a finish and eager to get it. But with only a minute gone, Morales once again took Doskalchuk down, although this time he was content to play it safe and simply neutralise Doskalchuk on the ground, Morales perhaps not wanting to risk leaving himself open for anything when he obviously had the fight in the bag and merely need to see the round out. Morales did try to improve his position near the end of the round, and Doskalchuk was able to try and scramble free, but Morales kept a tight hold of Doskalchuk and forced him back up against the cage before taking him back down as he round ended. To no surprise, Morales scored the unanimous decision victory, yet, for some reason, one judge, Marcos Rosales, gave Doskalchuk a round; the other two scored it 30-27 for Morales. Quite how Rosales saw Doskalchuk winning a round was hard to fathom. Result: Joseph ‘Bopo’ Morales beat Aleksander Doskalchuk by unanimous decision (30-27, 30-27 and 29-28) Middleweight: Chris Weidman (#10, 15-5) vs. Robert Whittaker (#8, 20-6) It was crunch-time for Robert Whittaker who, after losing the middleweight title, had lost his first fight back; another loss here would surely put him way at the back of the line when it came to being a possible title contender. Conversely, Weidman was coming off putting to rest the ghost of his rivalry with Anderson Silva, with Weidman having finally scored a decisive win over ‘The Spider and now looking to get back in the contender mix to regain the title he too had once held, and a win over Whittaker may be enough to put the ‘All American’ in the conversation for a title shot at the winner of our main event. Weidman seemed to have an advantage before the fight had even begun, with the former amateur wrestling standout coming into the fight with a significant size edge over Whittaker. Weidman came out with a confidence that was quickly tested because Whittaker landed a nice roundhouse kick, one of his trademark moves, a blow that seemed to have Weidman on somewhat unsteady feet. Whittaker moved in to capitalize with a big right hand, but missed, giving Weidman time to back off and recover. Whittaker kept pressing forward, determined to maintain the momentum he was building up, and the Australian avoided a right from Weidman to fire back with a jab and then a left kick to the ribs. Weidman wasn’t one to back down and he responded with some big punches, going for the body of Whittaker, but Whittaker was too fast, and, when Weidman missed with a particularly powerful right hand, Whittaker landed a left jab and right hand that landed cleanly. The action seemed to slow as we moved past the halfway mark of the round, both fighters seemingly pacing themselves for a long contest. Then, Whittaker came forward, looking to force an exchange of strikes; as he bobbed and weaved, Whittaker landed a left hand but couldn’t seem connect to with anything else...and then scored with a fantastic right cross and Weidman hit the canvas in an unconsciousness heap, and the fans erupted as this contest came to a sudden but decisive conclusion! Robert Whittaker had finally scored the big win he needed, and it was as big a win as he could get, a decisive knockout finish, and the former champion was now back in the hunt in the middleweight division. When asked about the finish in his post-fight interview, Whittaker said that being able to rely on his punches is a big advantage for him. Result: Robert ‘The Reaper’ Whittaker beat ‘The All American’ Chris Weidman by knockout (punch) in 3:51 of Round 1 Women’s Flyweight: Joanne Calderwood (#10, 14-5) vs. Paige VanZant (#15, 18-5) Up next was the fight of the night, and a serious contender for Fight of the Year as Joanne Calderwood and Paige VanZant engaged in a fantastic all-action brawl. Calderwood and VanZant were all-offensive, both women coming forward with a variety of punches and kicks. In fact, Calderwood was bleeding from a cut under her eye inside of ten seconds, which was a portent of things to come in a fight that harkened back to the classic fight earlier in the year between Zhang Weili and Joanna Jędrzejczyk. It took until near the end of the round for the action to slow enough for the referee to pause the fight so that the ringside doctor could check Calderwood’s cut, but the action was soon underway as the doctor was fine to have the fight carry on, much to the delight of the fans, with the rest of round playing out in the same frantic fashion it had started in. As both warriors went back to their respective corners, although you couldn’t say that either fighter had won the round decisively, with VanZant having busted Calderwood open so soon into the fight, it seemed probable that she would have the edge with the judges. The second round was more of the same aggressive, high-action action we saw in the first, with Calderwood and VanZant coming forward and throwing leather. At the half-way mark, VanZant, out of nowhere, went for a takedown, and she managed to catch Calderwood off-guard and get her down to the mat. VanZant was soon trying to pass the guard of Calderwood, who allowed the pass so that she could use the transition to try and scramble free, and the result was that VanZan ended up turtle up on her back, with Calderwood looming over in a kneeling position. Calderwood delivered some big right hands, but VanZant took them well. Calderwood then landed a short knee to the head of VanZant before delivering some more punches, and whilst VanZant didn’t take too much damage, handling the punches well, it was still positional dominance for Calderwood, and it was perhaps she who now ended the round having the edge with the judges. The third round saw the action immediately pick up here it left off, both fighters swinging, both fighters hitting but also missing, with their defence being as good as their offence, either woman giving the other any surcease. But then, seemingly out of nowhere, after a wild exchange of punches, Calderwood landed a vicious right high kick that caught VanZant flush on the side of the head, and ’12 Gauge’ collapsed to mat, completely unconscious, and the fans erupted into wild cheers and this thrilling and brutal contest came to a stunning yet decisive conclusion. Result: Joanne ‘JoJo’ Calderwood beat Paige ‘12 Gauge’ VanZant by knockout (high kick) in 2:00 of Round 3 Welterweight: Leon Edwards (#7, 19-4) vs. Dong Hyun Kim (#11, 24-4-1, 1NC) Leon Edwards and Dong Hyun Kim had a good fight, one that was almost entirely a pure stand-up battle with both fighters showcasing their punching and striking skill. Both fighters went for some big kicks in the first round, although none of the more spectacular ones landed, but it was a big right hand from Edwards, delivered late on that was most significant strike of the round, because it wobbled Kim. However, Edwards didn’t quite land the flying knee he went for as the follow up, and it gave Kim the time he needed to recover enough to survive until the end of the round. The second round was more punching-orientated, with Edwards and Kim holding back on their more spectacular kicks this time around, and it seemed like both men were a little more cautious in the second stanza. Not that either of them stopped coming forward, as both Edwards and Kim were able to leave their mark on each other, and the fans were eating up the action. Neither fighter dominated the other or landed that really telling blow, so it was unclear who had won the round when it ended. The pace slowed down in the third round, and it was clear that both Edwards and Kim were feeling the effects of a gruelling pace. But that didn’t stop either man from still trying to win, both of them knowing that, if nothing else, they needed to at least win the round to be assured of victory, and maybe even get a finish. Because of the tiredness both fighters were feeling, we got our first clinching in the third round, with Edwards practically stumbling into a clinch from Kim, who was able to press Edwards back up against the cage. Yet Kim couldn’t keep Edwards there for long, with Edwards waiting for Kim to try a foot stomp and then using the space created to escape. The action continued, but at a much slower pace now, and neither fighter threatened the other, or really hurt him, although Kim did execute a nice judo throw at the end of the round. The fight had gone the distance, and, when the scores were announced, there was a huge cheer when Edwards was declared the winner, by unanimous decision, having won all three rounds on all three scorecards. Result: Leon ‘Rocky’ Edwards beat Dong ‘Stun Gun’ Hyun Kim by unanimous decision (30-27, 30-27 and 30-27) UFC Women’s Flyweight Champion: Valentina Shevchenko © (#1, 20-3) vs. Molly McCann (#4, 12-2) for the UFC Women’s Flyweight Championship Molly McCann got a tremendous ovation from the fans upon making her entrance, ‘Meatball’ being a home favourite who was sure to have total fan support as she looked to wrest the UFC Women’s Flyweight Championship from a champion, Valentina Shevchenko, who has looked supremely dominant throughout her title reign, a reign that has included some devastating performances and highlight-reel finishes. McCann clearly wasn’t feeling any pressure as she moved forward confidently to start the first round, although she was soon given reason to be more cautious, Shevchenko landed a crunching kick to the body of McCann, the champion then following up on that with a right hook that was also delivered to the body of the challenger. Yet McCann continued to move forward, and, while the challenger was able to evade some of the shots that Shevchenko threw, the champion was starting to land more of the steady stream of strikes that she was throwing out. Although the champion wasn’t having it all her own way as McCann landed a great looking right hook, a blow that gave McCann a much needed confidence boost and she kept coming forward to trade with a champion who was not backing down at all, and who was having the better of things as the round came to an end. The second round started out with a bang, as Shevchenko landed a violent roundhouse kick to the body that had McCann collapsing to the canvas. The champion jumped at the chance to finish the fight, Shevchenko landed several clean blows, but the challenger survived, albeit with the champion now in side-control. McMann tried to shift Shevchenko into the guard, but Shevchenko was having none of that, and the action slowed down to where the referee ordered a stand-up. Within seconds of the stand-up, Shevchenko took advantage of an opening and landed a powerful straight left that dropped McCann hard. Shevchenko was to the side of McCann like a shot, landing a series of hammering punches that were brutalising McCann; the referee give ‘Meatball’ every chance to hold on, but with the challenger taking a pasting, the referee was left with no choice but to step in and Valentina Shevchenko had once more retained the UFC Women’s Flyweight Championship. Result: Valentina ‘The Bullet’ Shevchenko beat ‘Meatball’ Molly McCann by TKO due to strikes in 3:47 of Round 2 to retain the UFC Women’s Flyweight Championship UFC Middleweight Champion: Israel Adesanya © (#1, 20-0) vs. Darren Till (#4, 20-2-1) for the UFC Middleweight Championship It was now time for the highly anticipated main event of the evening, the fight that the fans at home and, most assuredly, the fans in the arena had been waiting for. The home favourite, Darren Till, was getting his second chance at glory, this time in the middleweight division, as he challenged the undefeated Israel Adesanya, regarded as the premier striker in combat sports, for the UFC Middleweight Championship. Till, as the challenger, came out first, as is custom, and he got a typically raucous response from the Merseyside fans, who were eager to see one of their own make history and become first Merseysider to become a UFC champion; the reception from the fans got even louder when Till’s traditional walk-in music, “Sweet Caroline”, hit its chorus. Till looked quietly confident, but you could see that he was well aware of the task that lay ahead of him, and it was as if he was already fighting the fight in his head, going over what he could expect when he took on the reigning champion. Adesanya got a mixed reaction as, whilst the fans didn’t really hate him, they were loath to support a fighter, albeit a supremely talented one, who was going against one of their own. For his part, Adesanya seemed completely unfazed, very calm and relaxed, and it was clear that he wasn’t affected by defending his title in what was effectively ‘hostile territory’. The introductions saw Till get a monster cheer when he was announced, while Adesanya, as when he made his entrance, got a mixed response, with plenty of both cheers and boos. The fight started with Adesanya coming forward, and his eagerness left the champion open to a spin kick to the ribs from the challenger. Undeterred, Adesanya kept coming, but was once more hit with a kick to the ribs, as the kick became a favoured weapon of Till in this round. Adesanya responded with a flurry of punches as he looked to establish himself in this fight. Perhaps as part of that, Adesanya began throwing a little trash talk towards Till, who shook his head and almost smirked, as if to let Adesanya know that he was wasting his time trying to get rattle him. As the round wound down, both fighters continued to throw, mixing up punches and kicks, although neither fighter landed anything of note, and when the round ended, the fight was finely balanced. Till opened up the second round looking to grapple, but was kept at bay by Adesanya, who resumed his trash talking. Till landed a good kick to the leg, but Adesanya responded with a trio of rapid-fired punches and a right hook, the champion starting to find his groove. Adesanya missed a right hook, and, while Till landed a counter jab, a spin kick was wide of the mark, and it was a miss that resulted in a slight smile on the face of the champion, who was perhaps starting to feel more confident. Suddenly, both fighters came forward in a burst of strikes, but neither fighter landed a blow. As the action slowed down, Adesanya once again began trash talking Till, an unusual move from the usually calm champion, but, as before, it didn’t appear to be getting to Till at all. In fact, it appeared to giving Till more confidence, a little swagger in his step, the challenger perhaps of the belief that the champion was starting to doubt himself. But if that was the case, Adesanya wasn’t letting that affect his work as he began throwing more kicks, a lot of them landing, with Adesanya landing a counter jab and a right cross as the round ended, and it was now looking like the champion was slowly taking control of this championship contest. Indeed, the third round opened with Adesanya landed a series of punches, and, although Till threw his own strikes, Adesanya was deftly able to block them. The round was less than a minute old, though, when Till missed a jab and then landed a powerful right head kick that dropped Adesanya to the mat. The fans erupted as Till seized this opportunity to finish the job, Till raining down punches on a stunned champion; Till landed a series of punches, and, when one of them saw Adesanya go out, the referee jumped in and the fans went absolutely crazy as Darren Till, the home favourite, had made history and had become the UFC Middleweight Champion!. Till looked beyond thrilled as he celebrated with his corner and his family, and the new champion cut a terrific picture, lights and flashes going off throughout the arena as everyone rushed to take their pictures of the new UFC Middleweight Champion, Darren Till. Result: Darren ‘The Gorilla’ Till beat ‘The Last Style Bender’ Israel Adesanya by knockout (punch) in 1:12 of Round 3 to win the UFC Middleweight Championship Post-Fight Bonuses Fight of the Night: Joanne Calderwood vs. Paige VanZant Performance of the Night: Tai Tuivasa Knockout of the Night: Darren Till Submission of the Night: Shana Dobson Predictions Majster_93: (13/16) Majster_93 (overall): (33/47; 70.21%) CageRage: (11/16) CageRage (Overall): (190/317; 59.93%)

News Blast Friday of Week 4 of January 2021 Women’s Featherweight: Sheila Blakey (33-0) vs. Audrey Whitworth (1-0) Result: Sheila Blakey beat Audrey ‘Crossbones’ Whitworth by knockout Women’s Featherweight: Sheila Blakey (Team Ferguson, 33-0) vs. Caoimhe Vizcarra (Team McGregor, 27-3) – TUF 29 Tournament Final

News Blast Tuesday of Week 4 of January 2021 Wednesday of Week 4 of January 2021 Thursday of Week 4 of January 2021