[UFC] The New Era of Combat Sports

[Pontarii]

 

 

Prelude

 

With the continuing rise of Mixed Martial Arts as a sport worldwide, more and more eyes are focused on the global phenomenon that is Ultimate Fighting Championship. Since the dark days of the sport, UFC has climbed the ladder of success without ever looking down, and when the world faced its toughest challenge in modern day – the big C – no other sport organization in the world handled the situation better than UFC. Week after week, UFC took on the challenges of the pandemic with a whole set of trials and tribulations, and set a new standard of broadcasting and handling of business during times of uncertainty, and all this under the supreme leadership of the iconic president Dana White. Love him or hate him, you can’t deny that Dana White has meant more for UFC and the sport of Mixed Martial Arts than almost anybody else in the world, without even stepping inside the Octagon and getting his hands dirty in the process. Impressive, to say the least.

 

But, as the famous idiom states; “All good things must come to an end”, and that time is now. The MMA world has long speculated about who, if any, could replace Dana White as UFC President once he decides to call it quits, which has always seemed like a fantasy scenario since no one really can picture themselves UFC and MMA itself without Dana White at the helm. That’s why it was such a bombshell to hear the announcement from the man himself during a put-together live press conference, hosted at the UFC Apex Center in Las Vegas, Nevada, which shook the Mixed Martial Arts scene to its core.

 

“Thank you all for joining me this Saturday at the awesome UFC Apex Center here in Las Vegas, Nevada, which we consider to be the home of the UFC. I’ve called this press conference today to announce to you all in the MMA Media, for the fans at home, and for the fighters and personnel working for this magnificent company that this will be the last month for me as UFC President. After careful consideration, I have made the decision to step down from my role as UFC President and retire from the sport of Mixed Martial Arts to focus more on my family, and to enjoy life as a retired old man”, said Dana White during the press conference.

 

He continued: “It’s not often you’ll get to see me this open and talkative about things outside the fighting, but you all deserve to get the news directly from the source instead of hearing it from the rumor mill. I’ve had a hell of a run with the company since joining Lorenzo and Frank [The Fertitta Brothers] back in 2001, and I’m truly proud of what the UFC has become today, and I would ideally continue as President to the day I die, but that’s not fair to my family, my friends and for all you guys. Just like there’s always a new generation of fighters on the horizon looking to knock down the old generation, the time has come for me to step aside and make way for the new generation. Don’t worry though, I’ll make sure to be at every UFC Event, but this time in the crowd and not up front. Thank you all for coming out today, I catch you all later”, said a triumphant Dana White as he walked off the stage to a lot of murmur from the press in attendance.

 

The bombshell announcement garnered a whole lot of reactions for fighters, celebrities, and many fans all around the world. Some were sad to see the charismatic enigma go, while others were far happier to see the dividing personality finally step down, with hopes of better economical and health benefits for the fighters being a hot topic as always amongst people on the MMA scene. Speculations about White’s replacement ran rampant the days after the press conference, until UFC finally announced on their website and their social media platforms that no other than commentator and personality Jon Anik would replace White as the co-President of the UFC, alongside the longtime Chief Business Officer of the UFC Hunter Campbell, who would also serve as the co-President of the company. It is understood that Hunter will be in charge of all the background stuff like negotiating, contractual talks, financial decisions and so on, while Anik will be in charge of promotion, all business related to the sport, match making together with Sean Shelby and Mick Maynard, as well as fighter relations. Widely considered a highly regarded and popular figure in the sport of Mixed Martial Arts, the choice to have Anik replace White in the highly public and demanding role has received a lot of praise from fighters, including the most popular fighter of all time, Conor McGregor.

 

Will Jon Anik, alongside Hunter Campbell, be as successful as their predecessor, or will the old saying “you don’t know what you’ve got, until it’s gone” come back to haunt the Ultimate Fighting Championship without their equally feared, equally respected spearhead Dana White? Only time will tell.

 

 

 

 

[Pontarii]

 

 

Prelude

 

With the continuing rise of Mixed Martial Arts as a sport worldwide, more and more eyes are focused on the global phenomenon that is Ultimate Fighting Championship. Since the dark days of the sport, UFC has climbed the ladder of success without ever looking down, and when the world faced its toughest challenge in modern day – the big C – no other sport organization in the world handled the situation better than UFC. Week after week, UFC took on the challenges of the pandemic with a whole set of trials and tribulations, and set a new standard of broadcasting and handling of business during times of uncertainty, and all this under the supreme leadership of the iconic president Dana White. Love him or hate him, you can’t deny that Dana White has meant more for UFC and the sport of Mixed Martial Arts than almost anybody else in the world, without even stepping inside the Octagon and getting his hands dirty in the process. Impressive, to say the least.

 

But, as the famous idiom states; “All good things must come to an end”, and that time is now. The MMA world has long speculated about who, if any, could replace Dana White as UFC President once he decides to call it quits, which has always seemed like a fantasy scenario since no one really can picture themselves UFC and MMA itself without Dana White at the helm. That’s why it was such a bombshell to hear the announcement from the man himself during a put-together live press conference, hosted at the UFC Apex Center in Las Vegas, Nevada, which shook the Mixed Martial Arts scene to its core.

 

“Thank you all for joining me this Saturday at the awesome UFC Apex Center here in Las Vegas, Nevada, which we consider to be the home of the UFC. I’ve called this press conference today to announce to you all in the MMA Media, for the fans at home, and for the fighters and personnel working for this magnificent company that this will be the last month for me as UFC President. After careful consideration, I have made the decision to step down from my role as UFC President and retire from the sport of Mixed Martial Arts to focus more on my family, and to enjoy life as a retired old man”, said Dana White during the press conference.

 

He continued: “It’s not often you’ll get to see me this open and talkative about things outside the fighting, but you all deserve to get the news directly from the source instead of hearing it from the rumor mill. I’ve had a hell of a run with the company since joining Lorenzo and Frank [The Fertitta Brothers] back in 2001, and I’m truly proud of what the UFC has become today, and I would ideally continue as President to the day I die, but that’s not fair to my family, my friends and for all you guys. Just like there’s always a new generation of fighters on the horizon looking to knock down the old generation, the time has come for me to step aside and make way for the new generation. Don’t worry though, I’ll make sure to be at every UFC Event, but this time in the crowd and not up front. Thank you all for coming out today, I catch you all later”, said a triumphant Dana White as he walked off the stage to a lot of murmur from the press in attendance.

 

The bombshell announcement garnered a whole lot of reactions for fighters, celebrities, and many fans all around the world. Some were sad to see the charismatic enigma go, while others were far happier to see the dividing personality finally step down, with hopes of better economical and health benefits for the fighters being a hot topic as always amongst people on the MMA scene. Speculations about White’s replacement ran rampant the days after the press conference, until UFC finally announced on their website and their social media platforms that no other than commentator and personality Jon Anik would replace White as the co-President of the UFC, alongside the longtime Chief Business Officer of the UFC Hunter Campbell, who would also serve as the co-President of the company. It is understood that Hunter will be in charge of all the background stuff like negotiating, contractual talks, financial decisions and so on, while Anik will be in charge of promotion, all business related to the sport, match making together with Sean Shelby and Mick Maynard, as well as fighter relations. Widely considered a highly regarded and popular figure in the sport of Mixed Martial Arts, the choice to have Anik replace White in the highly public and demanding role has received a lot of praise from fighters, including the most popular fighter of all time, Conor McGregor.

 

Will Jon Anik, alongside Hunter Campbell, be as successful as their predecessor, or will the old saying “you don’t know what you’ve got, until it’s gone” come back to haunt the Ultimate Fighting Championship without their equally feared, equally respected spearhead Dana White? Only time will tell.

 

 

 

 

[Pontarii]

RESERVED

[CageRage]

Looking forward to this.

[feltzz]

Good luck with that! Good scenario to start a diary

[Pontarii]

 

 

Introduction

Moments after the anticlimactic main event between Brian "T-City" Ortega and Yair "El Pantera" Rodriguez took place at the USB Arena in Elmont, New York, four of the now most influential people in the UFC, and in the sport of Mixed Martial Arts, sat down for a meeting in one of the office spaces on the upper levels of the arena. Newly promoted co-presidents Jon Anik and Hunter Campbell, alongside matchmakers Sean Shelby and Mick Maynard - the group known internally in the company as The Fantastic Four - sat down without the soon-to-be former President of the UFC, Dana White, for the first time in what seemed to be an eternity. Despite still officially being the President of the company, at least for two more weeks, Dana White had specifically demanded that he no longer would be included in these standard post-event meetings, which handled both the economical part of the sport, i.e., upcoming contractual negotiations and business plans, and also the match making aspect of it, in a way to distance himself from it as well as giving his successors the chance to make their own mark on the company right from the start. Jon Anik and Hunter Campbell, the soon-to-be co-Presidents of the UFC, had discussed the future of the company with Ari Emanuel, the CEO of Endeavor and therefor the owner of the biggest Mixed Martial Arts organization in the world, both in a short-term perspective, but more importantly in a long-term perspective. With Anik and Campbell presenting the business and promotion side of the company, Sean Shelby and Mick Maynard got their chance to have a say in what the match making side of the organization would look like from now on.

 

48 Ordinary Cards per year

With the rising popularity and the ever-growing roster, UFC will have to level up when it comes to the number of cards the company puts out on a yearly basis. The current standard of 42 ordinary cards a year is not enough, and therefor the decision to put on one card a week is necessary for the growth of the company and the sport in general. Twelve of these cards will be Pay-Per-View Events, i.e. numerical events, which in general will take place on the last week of every month, with every PPV Event consisting of roughly around 5 main card bouts and 7 prelim bouts. 18 of these events will be UFC Fight Night-events which will work as the primary source of market expansion when it comes to event hosting. What this means in concrete terms is that the Fight Night cards will be hosted all over the world, both inside the United States but also places like Europe, South America, Asia, as well as in Africa. 12 of the events is dedicated to the ESPN-cards, which will generally be hosted in the bigger, more traditional MMA-cities and states, and they will of course be hosted exclusively on the ESPN network. Last but certainly not least is the six ABC-cards which will be treated as special attraction-events to capitalize on the enormous reach that ABC offers us. This includes fights that are PPV-worthy, but not necessarily fights that involves regular titles.

 

Continue to develop DWCS as the primary source for recruiting fighters

As a token of appreciation, the seasonal series Dana White’s Contender Series will live on with the same name and the same structure. It has proven to be a great foundation for the company to not only scout and find new and exciting talents from all over the world, it has also become the most efficient way of recruiting talented fighter, many times early in their respective career which is a bonus for us. With the steady decline of The Ultimate Fighter, DWCS will be the primary place for new talent to make their way into the UFC. From 2023 and beyond, DWCS will be a 12-part series with one event a month featuring the most exciting fighters available on the market, both up-and-coming young talents as well as experienced fighters looking to rekindle their glory on the big scene. All fighters, except the highly popular stars, looking to sign with the company must earn a contract through the show. As for The Ultimate Fighter, the show will be revamped from over-the-top cheesy reality with fighters not really up to the standard of the organization’s main roster to a more serious talent-based show with focus on finding, scouting, training, and recruiting the most impressive, intriguing and promising young unsigned fighters on the market. A strict 29 years of age upper limit combined with a maximum of 5 professional fights, with a maximum of one loss on the fighter’s record allowed, will be implemented for the continuing of The Ultimate Fighter.

 

Strengthen the working relations between the UFC and other organizations

With the growth of the company and the influx of events, the UFC roster will need to be bigger than ever, but it doesn’t stop there. To ensure the company has a wealth of quality fighters, young prospects and all-in-all athletes ready to step up when needed, a mutual beneficial working relation between the all-female organization Invicta FC and perhaps the third best MMA organization in America, Legacy Fighting Alliance [LFA], has been agreed to. Both Invicta and LFA will be shown on the UFC Fight Pass, which in turn will give them a great exposure, and the UFC will support both organizations financially, in terms of marketing, operating cost and recruitment. In return, UFC can call up fighters from both organizations to compete on DWCS as well as fill in for short notice fights. Likewise, UFC can send contracted fighters to either organization if deemed necessary. This will be beneficial for both parties, with Invicta and LFC getting more quality and greater depth to its roster, without needing to financially risk anything, while the UFC gets a sort of feeder system in which they can groom young, exciting prospects who isn’t ready for the big time just yet. In the future, the UFC will look to broaden their horizon in this market as well, with the ultimate goal to have working relations with at least one organization in every continent.

 

Restructuring the payment situation and implement Free Health Care for every signed UFC-fighter

A hot topic for many years, and perhaps the greatest negative critique people have had for Dana White is his stance on the payment structure of the company, not least in regards to free health care for UFC-fighters. After careful consideration, the UFC will restructure the financial situation for all fighters, which in practice means that the highly criticized “win bonus” system will no longer be implemented, instead it will be a flat payment for all fighters no matter the result. The Fight of the Night bonus as well as the Performance of the Night bonuses will still be active, with the current $50k value still being the standard value, with the latter being more focused on exciting finishes or otherwise entertaining performances. A major change that will be implemented in the coming future is the Free Health Care for every currently signed UFC-fighter and employee, which is a significant step into the right direction considering the grueling, physical nature of the sport itself. It will take time, and it will be costly, but it will ultimately be worth it considering the positive reputation and high-level athletes it will attract. The current time plan for the changes is 2023 for the new payment structure and 2024 for the free heath care plan.

 

Make the weight classes fairer, as well as more outspread

Many fighters has been very vocal about wanting to have more weight classes to fight in, with the rumored 165lbs division being perhaps the most talked about of them all. As it currently stands, the current division layout is working and it's no rush to change anything in that department, but in a more long term perspective, it would be foolish not to. The aim is undoubtedly to at least look at the possibilities regarding, at the moment, three new weight classes to launch in the near future; the male Cruiserweight division [225lbs], the male Super Lightweight division [165lbs] , and the female Atomweight division [105lbs]. Perhaps it will never materialize and the idea of implementing new divisions into the UFC will die as an idea, but you'll always have to dive into all the potentially beneficial changes, and this might be one of them. Nevertheless, the ultimate aim regarding the weight classes is to have fighters minimalize the weight cutting, and fight as close to their normal weight as possible. Therefor, it will be met with a more stricter attitude regarding missing weight. If a fighter misses weight one time, he or she will be given a hefty fine alongside his or her purse penalty. The second time the fighter misses weight in the same weight class, he or she will automatically have to fight in a higher weight class, if available. Miss weight a third time, and you're either suspended one year without pay, or you'll get cut.

 

Evolve the UFC Fight Pass into a Global Network Phenomenon

Lastly, but certainly not least, is the ambition to evolve the UFC Fight Pass to a powerful PPV network accessible globally. The current TV-deals the company has ends in two years, 2024, and after that the plan is to have enough financial stability and popularity worldwide do launch our very own TV Network, which will have exclusive rights to every UFC event. The first step however is to make the UFC Fight Pass into something “can’t miss” for every UFC-fan and viewer alike in the world. With supreme content, exclusivity, quality, and availability, the goal is to make UFC Fight Pass into a network that can compete with the biggest sports networks on the market. By the end of 2023, the aim is to have Fight Pass reach an enormous range in all available markets with its current subscription format, while the PPV-based network would be targeted for the end of 2024. It’s no doubt a hefty goal, but a goal worth fighting for.

 

[cecede123]

Can't wait to follow the diary. Who knows, it might push me to get back in the game. Just for infos, which database did you used ?

Thanks

[Pontarii]

 

 

Information

So, a new UFC dynasty on WMMA5 from your old pal Pontarii, huh? Who would have thought? This will be my third ever dynasty with the game and on the forum, with my first one being the second most viewed/most read in history of the WMMA5 part of the forum, while my second and latest one garnered some attention as well with over 5000 views/reads, which of course is astonishing to me but likewise, it makes me incredibly proud. Sadly though, the two previous saves have ended prematurely for reasons not in my control. The first one ended because my hard drive went corrupt after a few rough months right inside the pandemic, while the second one ended because it coincided with the three biggest events of my life so far; the wedding ceremony with my wife, our honeymoon to Greece, and us buying our first apartment. Combined with my work and following UFC in real life during European hours (Fun fact; I’m Swedish), which many of you guys can relate with, together with my passionate following of my football team Newcastle United left me with zero time left for gaming in general. But, after every storm comes a rainbow, and that rainbow is more free time for me, and a newfound love of the game. Therefor, I’m back, hopefully for good.

 

I wanted to take this prelude chapter in the dynasty, which is non-cannon by the way, to explain the layout of my save, what database I’m using, what notable changes has been made etc. First off, I’m using my very own database, which is a mixture between my (and my good friend Daelh, who’s not active on the forum anymore) database which we made roughly around a year ago, together with the updated Modern Warriors db. However, I’ve made A LOT of changes since merging these two DB’s together, in all honesty I think I’ve spent over 50 hours in total to make the DB as good as possible for myself. This includes, but is not limited to; a total revamp of every signed UFC-fighter, including stats changes, personality traits, correct records, combat styles to mimic their real-life persona, as well as other small things that makes a lot of differences in the end. These changes have also been made for a lot of fighters outside the UFC, including the most notable fighters in all the major organizations like Bellator, ONE Championship, LFA, LFA and so on. I’ve also spent a lot of time reworking the popularity stat for over 2000+ fighters in the game, considering it’s one of the most important aspects of the game. I’ve also updated the companies in the game to make them similar to reality, with more economical stability for companies like PFL and ONE, as well as popularity and how they act with their bookings and hiring's. I’ve also made some important changes to the db, which includes the creation of Bare Knuckle FC. Granted, there’s no option to make the rules identical to Bare Knuckle fighting in the game, but I’ve made sure their contracted fighters prefer to strike and nothing more, with no kicks, as well as altered the rules to make it work alright considering the circumcises. I’ve done this because BKFC is one of the go-to places for fighters nowadays, and to have them compete with us with their rather big bank account adds another challenge to me, which is always more interesting. Another big thing for me is fighter history. I hate to see fighters with empty fighting histories, especially when I know the fighter in question is on a big winning streak, has faced some nameworthy opponents, or otherwise has something interesting in their fight history which isn’t showing up. Therefor, I’ve entered a lot of fights into the DB to make it more in depth. It’s not 100 percent accurate as it would take me months and months to add every single event, every single fight, every single result and so on for every company, but I’ve made it as good as possible without destroying myself in the process. For example, I’ve entered a lot of LFA fights as many fighters in the UFC has fought there, while fighters coming from other promotions like OKTAGON, which isn’t a lot of them, has been entered on a random event, on a random date, against their real opponents, with the real results. I just think it’s more fun this way.

 

The layout of the save, and the dynasty, is pretty simple actually. I will take control over the UFC, working as the legendary Jon Anik as my avatar, with the ultimate goal of making the UFC not only the greatest Mixed Martial Arts company in the world, but also a Global Phenomenon in the entire sports world. Dana White is still contracted to the UFC since I didn’t want to retire him or remove him from the game completely, but he will not be doing anything in my save other than earn $2 million every year, sweet deal if you ask me. With Anik in charge, he will no longer be available to work as a commentator for any events at all, instead Brendan Fitzgerald has been promoted to the role of lead commentator for the big PPV events, where he will work alongside Joe Rogan and Daniel “DC” Cormier. For the other events, such as Fight Nights, ESPN-cards and alike, John Gooden will step up and be the lead commentator for those events, together with Michael Bisping, and Paul Felder. As you already know, I’ve also added DWCS as an event series in the game to try and find new talent for the main roster, just like in real life. The trio of Dan Hellie, Laura Sanko, and Alan Jouban will take on the duties of commentating the DWCS events. Megan Olivi is still signed with the company and will work with interviewing fighters before, and after the fights, to provide some much-needed character into the dynasty. This is something I tend to focus a lot on, as I enjoy creating storylines and such with my games to make them more enjoyable. For you as the reader of the dynasty, I hope you can visualize the things I write to make the dynasty, and the story behind it, more immersive and realistic as we enter the crazy world of Mixed Martial Arts. To keep it rather realistic as well, I will not sign every popular UFC-veteran when their contracts expire, nor will I convince retired fighters like Ronda Rousey, Brendan Schaub, TJ Grant etc. to make unrealistic comebacks, because that’s just not fun at all. Instead, I’ll try to keep it as realistic as possible on only sign people who I genuinely believe could sign, or resign, with the UFC, or at least fighters the UFC would be interested in, should the opportunity arise. Starting from the day after UFC on ABC: Ortega vs. Rodriguez, I will begin to book confirmed bouts according to real life for the first events, but it will not be 100% correct compared to what happens IRL. This means that I will book an announced bout, but it may be placed on another event than it actually takes place on, just like the events will not take place in the exact order and with the exact dates as in real life. You'll see what I mean when the dynasty begins for real. Last, but certainly not least, is the fact that I have made my own UFC Rankings in an Excel document to keep track of fighter’s records, placement, momentum, booked fights etc. in a more simplistic way than the game feature. In all honest, I hate the ranking system in the game so much, I can’t even imagine using at. But enough chitter chatter, let’s get the show on the road people.

 

[Pontarii]

Can't wait to follow the diary. Who knows, it might push me to get back in the game. Just for infos, which database did you used ?

Thanks

 

Much appreciated my good man, hopefully it will live up to your expectations and even convince you as well to make a WMMA-return, just like the good ol' days. The question regarding which db I use, and a bunch more useful info, can be found in my previous update

[falling_star]

I've thought about doing a WMMA dynasty a few times, but never taken the plunge that I can remember. I'll definitely be following along with this one!

[Pontarii]

 

 

WEEK 3 - AUGUST 2022

 

 

UFC Fight Night: Blaydes vs. Aspinall

Event Preview

 

In less than 24 hours, the UFC returns to London and the 02 Arena for a second time this year, and like the previous event back in March, it once again features the rising Heavyweight prospect Tom Aspinall (12-2) in the main event spot. The Manchester-born fighter has made a quick climb through the hard-hitting division, with victories over big names, no pun intended, like Alexander Volkov, Andrei Arlovski, and Sergey Spivak, and he's ready to make his intentions of claiming gold known this Saturday, but it will not be an easy task at all. In his way stands the 6 foot 4, 260lbs behemoth that is Curtis "Razor" Blaydes (16-3-1 NC). Perhaps the greatest wrestler in the history of the Heavyweight division, the former NJCAA National Champion has been a mainstay in the Heavyweight rankings for a few years despite being only 31 years young, and not many fighters can claim to have victories over the Chicago-native, in fact only two people have won against Blaydes in his entire professional Mixed Martial Arts career; the Heavyweight Champion Francis Ngannou, twice, and "The Black Beast" Derrick Lewis. With the champion out for a couple of months due to injury, no words have yet been made of who will be the next title challenger, and with the murderous row of potential Heavyweight title contenders including the former champion Stipe Miocic, the former interim champion Ciryl Gane, the knockout machine Tai Tuivasa, as well as the Greatest of All Time-contender Jon Jones, there's every chance in the world that the winner of this highly anticipated main event will fight for the title next. According to the betting lines, the hometown boy Aspinall is a close favorite coming in at -135, while Blaydes is a small underdog at +115, but in all honesty it's really a pick'em fight between two of the brightest prospects of the next generation of Heavyweight fighters in the UFC.

 

In the Co-Main event, a Middleweight contest between the number eight ranked Jack "The Joker" Hermansson (22-7) and the DWCS alumni Chris "The Action Man" Curtis (29-8) will take place. Originally a scheduled bout between Hermansson and the enormous fan favorite Darren Till, a late injury sidelined Till which opened up a spot for the former PFL-veteran Curtis, who now steps up to the challenge of facing the former Cage Warriors Middleweight Champion Hermansson on only two weeks notice. Despite this, the betting lines heading into the fight is dead even with both fighters closing in at -110. If the charismatic Curtis can seize this opportunity, he would no doubt be in the discussion for a big fight against a top ranked opponent for his next bout, and perhaps it's the start of an unlikely road to a title shot in the near future. For the 14-fight veteran of the UFC, the Swedish native Jack Hermansson is looking for something to make him standout in the cluster of high profile fighters currently occupying the tough top 10 of the 185lbs division, with his biggest wins coming against names like Kelvin Gastelum, Jacaré Souza, and Edmen Shahbazyan while he has suffered tough losses against Sean Strickland, Marvin Vettori, and Jared Cannonier. Will it be the veteran who will prevail in the co-main event or will it be the exciting newcomer?

 

As to be expected, the rest of the card is rather stacked for the always riled up London crowd with many of the most popular fighters from the United Kingdom fighting on the card. The charismatic character Paddy "The Baddy" Pimblett (18-3) makes his third walk to the Octagon when he takes on another interesting character in Jordan "The Monkey King" Leavitt (10-1), notorious for his post-fight celebrations which normally includes dancing, twerking, and doing the splits. Pimblett has quickly become one of the most talked about fighters on the roster, but you're only as good as your last performance, and a victory for the 27-year old Brit is important to continue building him up as a future star, not only for the UK scene but for the entire Mixed Martial Arts world. Another highly popular Brit fighting tomorrow night is the Women's Flyweight fighter Molly "Meatball" McCann (12-4), who lastly fought on the previous London-card in a winning effort against Luana Carolina with a stunning spinning elbow knockout, a true contender for the prestigious Knockout of the Year-award when the year will be summarized. McCann will face the 30-year old DWCS alumni Hannah Goldy (6-2), a three fight veteran of the UFC, in an attempt to enter the 125lbs division, perhaps the most stacked Women's division of them all. Completing the six-fight main card is two big 205lbs bouts that will have some serious implications for the divisional rankings no matter how they'll end as the former three time title contender Alexander "The Mauler" Gustafsson (18-7) will return to the division many consider him to be one of the greatest of when he faces a fellow veteran in Nikita Krylov (27-9). If the comeback of Gustafsson will be a successful one or yet another failed attempt at reclaiming the glory days is still unclear, but a win against Krylov is certainly a must for the Swede. In the opening bout of the main card, the Scot Paul "Bearjew" Craig (16-4-1) takes on the former title challenger Volkan "No Time" Özdemir (17-6), which itself could main event a lot of cards for the UFC, and not only in the UK for that matter. As you can see, this event is certainly a "can't miss" one for every UFC fan all around the world. With this being the second to last event with Dana White in charge as UFC President, many fighters will look to capitalize on the many eyes tuning in to see something special, and hopefully it will live up to the hype.

 

The entire UFC Fight Night: Blaydes vs. Aspinall card looks like this;

 

Main Event

 

Heavyweight Bout: [#4] Curtis Blaydes vs. [#6] Tom Aspinall

 

Co-Main Event

 

Middleweight Bout: [#8] Jack Hermansson vs. Chris Curtis

 

Main Card

 

Lightweight Bout: Paddy Pimblett vs. Jordan Leavitt

 

Light Heavyweight Bout: [#11] Nikita Krylov vs. Alexander Gustafsson

 

Women's Flyweight Bout: Molly McCann vs. Hannah Goldy

 

Light Heavyweight Bout: [#8] Paul Craig vs. [#9] Volkan Özdemir

 

ESPN+ Prelims

 

Lightweight Bout: Marc Diakiese vs. Damir Hadzovic

 

Featherweight Bout: Nathaniel Wood vs. Charles Rosa

 

Flyweight Bout: Muhammad Mokaev vs. Charles Johnson

 

Featherweight Bout: Makwan Amirkhani vs. Jonathan Pearce

 

Fight Pass Early Prelims

 

Lightweight Bout: Jai Herbert vs. Kyle Nelson

 

Welterweight Bout: Claudio Silva vs. Nicolas Dalby

 

Lightweight Bout: Mason Jones vs. Ludovit Klein

[feltzz]

Main Event

 

Heavyweight Bout: [#4] Curtis Blaydes vs. [#6] Tom Aspinall

 

Co-Main Event

 

Middleweight Bout: [#8] Jack Hermansson vs. Chris Curtis

 

Main Card

 

Lightweight Bout: Paddy Pimblett vs. Jordan Leavitt

 

Light Heavyweight Bout: [#11] Nikita Krylov vs. Alexander Gustafsson

 

Women's Flyweight Bout: Molly McCann vs. Hannah Goldy

 

Light Heavyweight Bout: [#8] Paul Craig vs. [#9] Volkan Özdemir

 

ESPN+ Prelims

 

Lightweight Bout: Marc Diakiese vs. Damir Hadzovic

 

Featherweight Bout: Nathaniel Wood vs. Charles Rosa

 

Flyweight Bout: Muhammad Mokaev vs. Charles Johnson

 

Featherweight Bout: Makwan Amirkhani vs. Jonathan Pearce

 

Fight Pass Early Prelims

 

Lightweight Bout: Jai Herbert vs. Kyle Nelson

 

Welterweight Bout: Claudio Silva vs. Nicolas Dalby

 

Lightweight Bout: Mason Jones vs. Ludovit Klein

[CageRage]

Main Event

 

Heavyweight Bout: [#4] Curtis Blaydes vs. [#6] Tom Aspinall

 

Co-Main Event

 

Middleweight Bout: [#8] Jack Hermansson vs. Chris Curtis

 

Main Card

 

Lightweight Bout: Paddy Pimblett vs. Jordan Leavitt

 

Light Heavyweight Bout: [#11] Nikita Krylov vs. Alexander Gustafsson

 

Women's Flyweight Bout: Molly McCann vs. Hannah Goldy

 

Light Heavyweight Bout: [#8] Paul Craig vs. [#9] Volkan Özdemir

 

ESPN+ Prelims

 

Lightweight Bout: Marc Diakiese vs. Damir Hadzovic

 

Featherweight Bout: Nathaniel Wood vs. Charles Rosa

 

Flyweight Bout: Muhammad Mokaev vs. Charles Johnson

 

Featherweight Bout: Makwan Amirkhani vs. Jonathan Pearce

 

Fight Pass Early Prelims

 

Lightweight Bout: Jai Herbert vs. Kyle Nelson

 

Welterweight Bout: Claudio Silva vs. Nicolas Dalby

 

Lightweight Bout: Mason Jones vs. Ludovit Klein

[Pontarii]

 

 

WEEK 3 - AUGUST 2022

 

UFC Fight Night: Blaydes vs. Aspinall

Critical Rating: 74%

Commercial Rating: 87%

Profit/Loss: $995.493

 

Main Event

 

Tom Aspinall def. Curtis Blaydes by Submission (Armbar) in 2:31 of Round 3

 

Co-Main Event

 

Jack Hermansson def. Chris Curtis by Submission (North South Choke) in 3:33 of Round 1

 

Main Card

 

Paddy Pimblett def. Jordan Leavitt by Unanimous Decision (29-28 x3)

 

Alexander Gustafsson def. Nikita Krylov by Unanimous Decision (30-27 x3)

 

Molly McCann def. Hannah Goldy by Unanimous Decision (29-28 x3)

 

Volkan Özdemir def. Paul Craig by Knock Out (Punch) in 0:45 of Round 1

 

ESPN+ Prelims

 

Marc Diakiese def. Damir Hadzovic by TKO (Strikes) in 2:58 of Round 1

 

Nathaniel Wood def. Charles Rosa by Unanimous Decision (30-27, 29-28 x2)

 

Muhammed Mokaev def. Charles Johnson by Submission (Rear Naked Choke) by 1:45 of Round 2

 

Jonathan Pearce def. Makwan Amirkhani by Unanimous Decision (30-27, 29-28 x2)

 

Fight Pass Early Prelims

 

Jai Herbert def. Kyle Nelson by TKO (Strikes) in 1:48 of Round 2

 

Nicolas Dalby def. Claudio Silva by 4:34 of Round 2

 

Mason Jones def. Ludovit Klein by Unanimous Decision (30-27 x2, 29-28)

 

Summary

It was an electric feeling inside the 02 Arena when the UFC returned to London, England after four months. The last time around, the passionate fans witnessed one of the best UFC Fight Nights in recent memory, and the expectations for this one to be even better was oozing through the roof. The night got off to a great start when Lightweight's Mason Jones and Ludovit Klein put on a exciting, fast-paced bout with many back and forth moments, but it was the former Cage Warriors two division champion Mason Jones, a native of Blaenavon, Wales, who got the unanimous nod from the judges' with two 30-27's on the board. Jones took the opportunity to call out Drew Dober in his post-fight interview with Michael Bisping, which got the fans, who arrived for the first fight, rather excited for the prospect of that fight. Following Jones' win, two fan favorites in Nicolas Dalby and Jai Herbert earned second round TKO's against durable veterans in Claudio Silva and Kyle Nelson respectively. Earning his biggest win of his career, Jonathan "JSP" Pearce controlled the majority of his bout against the 33-year old Finish Featherweight Makwan Amirkhani, and earned a clear Unanimous Decision-victory, much to the despair of the fans in attendance who clearly cheered for the European. It was later announced that Amirkhani had been released from the UFC after his fourth loss in his last five outings, leaving the organization with a 7-6 record, but it didn't take long for Amirkhani to be signed by the French organization ARES FC. In the first of three ESPN+ Prelims, Muhammad Mokaev scored a big submission victory over the former LFA Flyweight Champion Charles Johnson when he secured an inescapable rear naked choke early in the second round, which in turn earned the 22-year old a Performance of the Night-bonus. With an already ecstatic atmosphere in the 02, the place almost erupted when Nathaniel Wood and Charles Rosa provided the fans with a fantastic bout which almost ended on multiple occasions from both sides, but in the end it was Wood who was successful in his Featherweight debut. The Brad Pickett-prodigy thanked "the insane crowd" in his post-fight interview, as well as calling out the veteran Alex Caceres for a scrap in Vegas later in the year, a callout which the former TUF-member accepted on social media shortly thereafter. Tasked with closing out the prelims in style, Marc Diakiese wasted no time in attacking the Danish-Bosnian Damir Hadzovic with a ferocious aggressiveness and high paced tempo right from the start. The Congolese-born 29-year old almost finished Hadzovic twice in the space of two minutes, before unloading some big strikes on an almost defenseless Hadzovic, which prompted referee Dan Movahedi to intervene and stop the fight. A big win for Diakiese who thanked the crowd for their support, as well as calling out his fellow countryman Jai Herbert for a "banger of a fight" next time the UFC comes to London, a fight which seems highly unlikely at this point.

 

Opening the six fight main card was Light Heavyweight contenders Paul Craig and Volkan Özdemir, a big fight for the 205lbs division in what seems to be one of the most open division's in the entire UFC at the moment. Despite having a huge amount of fan support during the weigh-ins and during his walk to the Octagon, the Scot Craig failed to deliver on his promise to demolish the Swiss knockout artist Özdemir in a rather spectacular way, as the former title challenger knocked Craig completely out in the first exchange of the fight. Aiming to pull guard, Craig closed the distance to Özdemir and engaged in the clinch, which the 32-year old from Fribourg, Switzerland saw as a golden opportunity to land a clean uppercut that sent Craig down to the canvas in a big way. With two straight losses on his record heading into this bout, this was a much needed win for the new Kill Cliff FC, formerly Stanford MMA, member, who credited his new team for the victory. In perhaps one of the most anticipated bouts of the evening, the hometown hero Molly "Meatball" McCann took on Hannah "24k" Goldy in what was the best fight of the night, even surpassing the fantastic bout between Nathaniel Wood and Charles Rosa on the prelim card. Riding the incredible wave of support from the crowd, McCann was hailed as a national hero when she entered the Octagon, and it was clear as day what her game plan was; eliminate Goldy nice and early with a barrage of fancy strikes to earn a highlight reel knockout. The Scouser dominated the first round and was close on earning a 10-8 round, but the lack of real damage was reasons enough for the judges' to unanimously see it as only a 10-9 round. She continued her aggressive, in-your-face style in the second round, displaying a great arsenal of strikes that saw Goldy look rather lost out there. It would however completely shift in the third and final round when McCann began to fade more and more, while Goldy had enough left in the tank to mount a comeback, which almost finished the 32-year old fan favorite in the last minute of the fight, but McCann showed tremendous amount of heart and durability when she ate every shot Goldy threw at her. In the end, it was a rather clear 29-28 decision on the judges' scorecards in favor of the home town hero, despite some media members scoring the third round 10-8 for Goldy which would've resulted in a draw, nevertheless it was McCann who would be victorious as she celebrated with her peers in the sold-out 02 Arena after the bout. Following that fantastic bout, a rather dull affair between the Hall of Famer and multiple time title challenger Alexander Gustafsson and the 15 UFC-fight veteran Nikita Krylov took place as "The Mauler" earned himself a convincing unanimous decision victory in his return back down to 205, a division he intends to rule. According to the now 35-year old Swede, he's in the best shape of his life, and considering he has victories over many top ranked opponents like the former champions Glover Teixeira and Jan Blachowicz, perhaps we'll see the best version of the fighter many hails as the "best fighter in history to never win a UFC-title".

 

Perhaps the most anticipated fight of them all, apart from maybe the main event, was the Lightweight bout between Paddy "The Baddy" Pimblett and Jordan "The Monkey King" Leavitt. Pimblett, who has been on a monumental roll since joining the UFC, had talked a lot before the fight, claiming that he would finish Leavitt inside the first two minutes, as well as promising to "T-bag" his unconscious body after the fight, while Leavitt had made a counter-promise to twerk over Pimblett once he finished him. Despite being hailed as a potential Fight of the Night-candidate and the fight who would steal the show, it turned out to be a close, hard-fought decision victory in which Paddy Pimblett would earn a 29-28 unanimous decision on all judges' scorecards. While the fight didn't live up to the enormous hype, the ultra-charismatic 27-year old from Liverpool certainly lived up to the hype after the fight with after-fight dance, crowd celebrations, as well as a memorable post-fight interview with Michael Bisping in which he called out every fighter in the entire Lightweight division. It's clear as day that UFC has a potential star on their hands in Paddy Pimblett, hopefully they can give him the right type of fights and continue to build him up accordingly, and not rush him which they has done before with other fighters in the same position. The Swedish-Norwegian Jack "The Joker" Hermansson was intially scheduled to face another English superstar in Darren Till this evening, but Till pulled out of the bout citing an injury, and was later replaced with one of the most interesting new fighters in the UFC; Chris "The Action Man" Curtis, a former PFL-veteran and DWCS alumni. Despite it being a close fight according to the odds before the fight, with Hermansson being a really slim favorite, it was never any doubt in the fight who was the better fighter between them, as Hermansson secured a big takedown early in the first and dominated Curtis on the ground before securing a rather rare North South Choke in three minutes and thirty-three seconds. A big win for "The Joker", who made it clear in his post-fight show that he does not intend on fighting Darren Till again, as this is the second time Till has pulled out against him, and that he instead has his eyes set on either Derek Brunson or the winner of Paulo Costa and Luke Rockhold. He also stated that he would very much like to either headline or at least co-headline the rumored UFC Sweden-card, which most likely will take place either at the end of the year or at the beginning of next year. Perhaps we'll see both Jack Hermansson and Alexander Gustafsson on that card as well? We shall see. For the main event of the evening, as Bruce Buffer announced it, the crowd was treated with a Heavyweight delight as the four ranked Curtis Blaydes took on the number sixth ranked hometown hero Tom Aspinall, in what many believes is either a "semi-final" bout to crown the next Heavyweight title challenger, with the upcoming fight between Ciryl Gane and Tai Tuivasa being the other semi-final in that case, or perhaps even a fight to determine who will face Francis Ngannou for his Heavyweight title once he's healthy and ready to defend it. The fight started out rather hesitant as both fighters undoubtedly respected their opponent's power and skills, but it was the American Blaydes who scored the first big sequence of the fight when he managed to take Aspinall down on his second attempt at the halfway point of the first round. Despite Blaydes landing some nice shots from his controlling position, Aspinall defended it well and managed to stop the 31-year old Chicago-native from landing anything damaging. With a few seconds left on the round, Aspinall managed to stand up and land some nice strikes on the feet, but the time ran out and it was most likely a 10-9 round for the man called "Razor". After a good pep talk from his coaches in-between the rounds, Tom Aspinall bounced back with a great second round in which he outstruck Curtis Blaydes on the feet, landing some beautiful chopping leg kicks, as well as securing a big takedown late in the second round, in a crystal clear 10-9 round for the Brit. With the fight being dead-even after two close, interesting rounds, it was anyone's fight entering the third round. Blaydes started the round good with a big right hook landing clean on Aspinall, but the 29-year old followed up the strike with pushing Blaydes into a clinch against the cage. Using his strength, technique and timing, Aspinall secured a great inside trip to get Blaydes down to the ground, and in a swift move, the Team Kaobon-member locked in a deadly armbar on Blaydes. Despite doing a great effort in defending the armbar, the American had no option but to tap for the first time in his career to the slick submission, which made the entire 02 erupt in utter celebratory chaos. With the crowd singing his name to the tune of KC and the Sunshine Bands "Baby Give it Up", Tom Aspinall called out Francis Ngannou for a Heavyweight showdown once "The Predator" is ready, but he also stated he was open to fight the winner of Ciryl Gane and Tai Tuivasa if it would take to long for the champion to be back. A great main event capped off what was ultimately a rather successful event for the UFC back in London, and it would be no surprise to see UFC return to the country for a third time rather soon.

 

Bonus Awards

Fight of the Night: Molly McCann vs. Hannah Goldy

Performance of the Night: Tom Aspinall, Jack Hermansson, Volkan Özdemir, Muhammad Mokaev

Ranking Changes: Tom Aspinall +3 HW, Curtis Blaydes -2 HW, Volkan Özdemir +2 LHW, Paul Craig -2 LHW, Alexander Gustafsson enters at #12 LHW, Nikita Krylov -4 LHW, Jack Hermansson +1 MW, Muhammad Mokaev enters at #13 FLW

Roster Changes: Makwan Amirkhani released

 

 

 

Prediction Table

feltzz = 12 out of 13

CageRage = 9 out of 13

 

Edited August 29, 2022 by Pontarii

[Pontarii]

 

 

WEEK 4 - AUGUST 2022

 

 

UFC 277: Peña vs. Nunes II

Event Preview

With the successful London-card in the rearview mirror, it's once again time to switch focus to a pay-per-view event which features two titles fights, emerging from the American Airlines Center in Dallas, Texas. In the main event of the evening, a highly anticipated rematch for the Women's Bantamweight title will take place when the new champ Julianna Peña (11-4) makes her first title defense against the woman she dethroned, as well as the consensus Greatest Female Fighter of All Time, Amanda Nunes (21-5). The first fight provided one of the biggest upsets in the history of the sports when the +700 underdog submitted the -1125 favorite in the second round after an all-out brawl, but the question is; was it a fluke or is Julianna Peña the new Ace of the Women's Bantamweight division? Hopefully, the rematch this Saturday will provide us the answers. It has been a rather heated atmosphere between the two rivals leading up to the fight with Peña initiating the trash talk during the pre-fight press conference, stating that she is the superior fighter and woman, and that she will show everyone why she's the kryptonite for the former Bantamweight champion and current Featherweight champion Nunes, who in turn said that this camp has been severely better than the one she had before the first bout in which she both got Covid as well as a nasty injury. According to the odds makers, Nunes is still a favorite in the rematch despite the loss as she closes at -245 while the current champ is a +220 underdog.

 

In the co-main event of the evening, an intriguing rematch for the Interim Flyweight title will be contested when the former champion Brandon Moreno (19-6-2) takes on the high-flying City Kickboxing-member Kai Kara-France (24-9-1 NC). The pairing faced each other back in 2019 on the UFC 245: Usman vs. Covington-card where Moreno took home a decisive unanimous decision, but both fighters has improved a lot since then, with Moreno becoming champ and having a superb trilogy against his biggest rival Deiveson Figueiredo and with Kara-France going 4-1, beating names like Cody Garbrandt and Askar Askarov during this time period. With Figueiredo sidelined at least until September with multiple injuries, the UFC made the decision to book the Moreno vs. Kara-France bout as an interim title fight, with the winner most likely securing a shot at the real belt against the 34-year-old Brazilian later in the year. If Moreno was to be successful against the man nicknamed “Don’t Blink”, a ultra-rare fourth bout between him and Figueiredo would be on the table, and would perhaps put a definitive end to their rivalry which currently stands at an incredible 1-1-1 record, including the draw from their first bout. But the slight underdog Kai Kara-France certainly wants to spoil those plans and bring home another title to the illustrious City Kickboxing team, in which the Middleweight king Israel Adesanya is also a part of, as well as the Featherweight king Alexander Volkanovski who is a part-time member of the 2019 Gym of the Year according to MMAJunkie.com. Will it be the former champion and the Mexican sensation Brandon “The Assassin Baby” Moreno who will leave the American Airlines Center victorious or will it be the 29-year-old Kai “Don’t Blink” Kara-France who will emerge as the new interim Flyweight champion? Tune in this Saturday to find out.

 

The rest of the card is, as the kids calls it these days, “low-key” good. As to be expected when the UFC returns to the state of Texas, Derrick “The Black Beast” Lewis (26-9-1 NC) will be a part of the show. The Cypress, Texas-native, who will be in his sixth home turf both this Saturday, takes on the former FNG Heavyweight Champion Sergei Pavlovich (15-1) in what is promised to be a firework of a fight, with knockout guarantees. Since joining the UFC back in 2018, Pavlovich has only suffered defeat once in his debut against the legend Alistair Overeem, but has since earned three straight victories against Marcelo Golm, Maurice Greene, and lastly Shamil Abdurakhimov while Lewis is a true veteran of the company with 24 fights inside the Octagon on his resume. With a knockout loss in his previous bout against the rising prospect Tai Tuivasa, Lewis will certainly look to bounce back with a big statement victory over another rising prospect in Pavlovich in front of his friends and family, while the surging Russian is looking to claim his biggest victory of his young career. We’ll also see an exciting, fast-paced bout between Flyweights Alexandre Pantoja (24-5) and the former title contender Alex Perez (24-6) take place, with the victor certainly cementing his place as a potential title challenger in the near future. The same can also be said about the main card-opener between Light Heavyweights Anthony “Lionheart” Smith (36-16) and Magomed Ankalaev (17-1). The veteran Smith is riding a three-fight win streak while many consider Ankalaev to be the dark horse of the division who hasn’t lost since his UFC-debut against Paul Craig back in 2018, this bout has all the potential to be a great showing in what will potentially determine the next title contender in the 205lbs division. While not the greatest card of the year, UFC 277: Peña vs. Nunes II is still a great-looking card and one who shouldn’t be missed.

 

 

The entire UFC 277: Peña vs. Nunes II card looks like this;

 

Main Event

 

Women's Bantamweight Championship Bout: [C] Julianna Peña vs. [FWC] Amanda Nunes

 

Co-Main Event

 

Flyweight Interim Championship Bout: [#1] Brandon Moreno vs. [#2] Kai Kara-France

 

Main Card

 

Heavyweight Bout: [#6] Derrick Lewis vs. [#11] Sergey Pavlovich

 

Flyweight Bout: [#4] Alexandre Pantoja vs. [#6] Alex Perez

 

Light Heavyweight Bout: [#4] Magomed Ankalaev vs. [#5] Anthony Smith

 

ESPN Prelims

 

Welterweight Bout: Alex Morono vs. Matthew Semelsberger

 

Lightweight Bout: Drew Dober vs. Rafael Alves

 

Heavyweight Bout: Justin Tafa vs. Don'Tale Mayes

 

Lightweight Bout: Carlos Diego Ferreira vs. Drakkar Klose

 

Fight Pass Early Prelims

 

Welterweight Bout: Ramiz Brahimaj vs. Michael Morales

 

Women's Flyweight Bout: Ji Yeon Kim vs. Mariya Agapova

 

Light Heavyweight Bout: Nicolae Negumereanu vs. Ihor Poterya

[feltzz]

Main Event

 

Women's Bantamweight Championship Bout: [C] Julianna Peña vs. [FWC] Amanda Nunes

 

Co-Main Event

 

Flyweight Interim Championship Bout: [#1] Brandon Moreno vs. [#2] Kai Kara-France

 

Main Card

 

Heavyweight Bout: [#6] Derrick Lewis vs. [#11] Sergey Pavlovich

 

Flyweight Bout: [#4] Alexandre Pantoja vs. [#6] Alex Perez

 

Light Heavyweight Bout: [#4] Magomed Ankalaev vs. [#5] Anthony Smith

 

ESPN Prelims

 

Welterweight Bout: Alex Morono vs. Matthew Semelsberger

 

Lightweight Bout: Drew Dober vs. Rafael Alves

 

Heavyweight Bout: Justin Tafa vs. Don'Tale Mayes

 

Lightweight Bout: Carlos Diego Ferreira vs. Drakkar Klose

 

Fight Pass Early Prelims

 

Welterweight Bout: Ramiz Brahimaj vs. Michael Morales

 

Women's Flyweight Bout: Ji Yeon Kim vs. Mariya Agapova

 

Light Heavyweight Bout: Nicolae Negumereanu vs. Ihor Poterya

[CageRage]

Main Event

 

Women's Bantamweight Championship Bout: [C] Julianna Peña vs. [FWC] Amanda Nunes

 

Co-Main Event

 

Flyweight Interim Championship Bout: [#1] Brandon Moreno vs. [#2] Kai Kara-France

 

Main Card

 

Heavyweight Bout: [#6] Derrick Lewis vs. [#11] Sergey Pavlovich

 

Flyweight Bout: [#4] Alexandre Pantoja vs. [#6] Alex Perez

 

Light Heavyweight Bout: [#4] Magomed Ankalaev vs. [#5] Anthony Smith

 

ESPN Prelims

 

Welterweight Bout: Alex Morono vs. Matthew Semelsberger

 

Lightweight Bout: Drew Dober vs. Rafael Alves

 

Heavyweight Bout: Justin Tafa vs. Don'Tale Mayes

 

Lightweight Bout: Carlos Diego Ferreira vs. Drakkar Klose

 

Fight Pass Early Prelims

 

Welterweight Bout: Ramiz Brahimaj vs. Michael Morales

 

Women's Flyweight Bout: Ji Yeon Kim vs. Mariya Agapova

 

Light Heavyweight Bout: Nicolae Negumereanu vs. Ihor Poterya

[Pontarii]

 

 

WEEK 4 - AUGUST 2022

 

UFC 277: Peña vs. Nunes II

Critical Rating: 70%

Commercial Rating: 95%

Profit/Loss: $6.089.896

 

Main Event
 

Amanda Nunes def. Julianna Peña by TKO (Strikes) in 1:34 of Round 2 to Win the Women's Bantamweight Championship

 

Co-Main Event
 

Brandon Moreno def. Kai Kara-France by Unanimous Decision (50-45 x3) to Win the Interim Flyweight Championship

Main Card

 

Sergey Pavlovich def. Derrick Lewis by Unanimous Decision (30-27, 29-28 x2)

 

Alexandre Pantoja def. Alex Perez by TKO (Strikes) in 0:42 of Round 1

 

Magomed Ankalaev def. Anthony Smith by Unanimous Decision (30-27, 29-28 x2)

 

ESPN Prelims
 

Matthew Semelsberger def. Alex Morono by TKO (Strikes) in 0:49 of Round 1

 

Drew Dober def. Rafael Alves by TKO (Strikes) in 1:25 of Round 1

 

Don'Tale Mayes def. Justin Tafa by Unanimous Decision (29-28 x3)

 

Carlos Diego Ferreira def. Drakkar Klose by Submission (Kimura) in 2:45 of Round 2

 

Fight Pass Early Prelims
 

Michael Morales def. Ramiz Brahimaj by Majority Decision (29-27 x2, 28-28)

 

Mariya Agapova def. Ji Yeon Kim by Unanimous Decision (29-28 x3)

 

Nicolae Negumereanu def. Ihor Poterya by TKO (Strikes) in 4:33 of Round 1

 

Summary

A capacity crowd of 19 500 was expected in the American Airlines Center in Dallas, Texas as UFC 277 kicked off with a 205lbs battle between the well-rounded Romanian Nicolae Negumereanu and the DWCS-alumni Ihor Poterya, a native of Kiev, Ukraine. Despite a good start to the contest, Poterya soon found himself in trouble as Negumereanu put on an immense pressure with his strikes and kicks, trying to overwhelm the 26-year-old early on. With only thirty seconds left of the round, it was the Romanian who knocked down his opponent and swarmed him with strikes on the ground, which forced the referee Chris Tognoni to stop the fight. A great start for the event, which promised more entertaining, fast-paced bouts through the entire card. That feeling was, however, quickly changed as Ji Yeon Kim and Mariya Agapova produced a quite boring contest which ended in a clear unanimous decision victory for the Ukrainian. This was Yeon Kim’s fourth straight loss and therefor, her time with the company would ultimately come to an end after the event. Despite being one of the more anticipated prelim bouts, the Welterweight fight between Ramiz Brahimaj and undefeated prospect Michael Morales also turned out to be rather dull, but in the end it was the Mexican Morales who earned a Majority Decision, scoring a big 10-8 on all scorecards in the first round, making him still undefeated at 14-0. In perhaps the best prelim bout of the night, the Brazilian veteran Carlos Diego Ferreira bounced back after three tough losses with a big win, handing the fellow veteran Drakkar Klose his first submission loss of his career with a second round Kimura. In no shocker at all, Ferreira earned the first of four Performance of the Night-bonuses, making him $50k richer in the process. While the Heavyweight contest between Justin Tafa and Don’Tale Mayes was a slow burner to say the least, the two second to last prelims provided the fans waiting for the main show with some quick and entertaining finishes. The always game Drew Dober rarely sees his bouts resulting in a decision, neither did he this time as he wasted no time in attacking the unpredictable Rafael Alves with a large volume of punches, knocking the Brazilian down to the floor after a nice right jab – left high kick combination, adding some extra damage with some quick punches before the referee could pull him away. Dober, one of the most entertaining fighters in the entire 155lbs division, wasted no time with his post-fight interview, inviting – not calling out - Bobby Green to a fight between the “two most entertaining fighters in the division”. While Green hasn’t responded to the invitation just yet, it’s undoubtedly an intriguing bout and one all fans would want to see. In the headlining prelim, Matthew “Semi the Jedi” Semelsberger needed only forty-nine seconds to finish Alex Morono, landing a big right hook during the first exchange of the fight. A big moment for the underdog Semelsberger, who earned the second Performance of the Night-bonus thus far.

 

While the prelims had been decent, the main event began in great fashion as the Light Heavyweight scrap between top ranked Anthony Smith and Magomed Ankalev. The 30-year-old Russian dominated early, out striking as well as taking the veteran Smith down and controlling him for the duration of the first round. The second round was the most exciting of them all with both fighters meeting in the middle of the Octagon, trading blows for the entire five minutes in a super-close round that realistically could have gone either way. With the crowd in ecstatic mood, Smith opened the third round strong with some strong leg kicks, but the Gorets Fight Team-member showed high fight IQ when he turned the tables and clinched Smith, eventually taking him down and pressuring him with strikes and constant advancing, not slowing down one bit. When the round ended, the Russian earned some big applause from the appreciated crowd as he earned the biggest victory of his career. Ankalaev, with the help of the Russian translator, called out the former champion Jan Blachowicz for a title eliminator once the UFC returns to Fight Island in Abu Dhabi later this year. Jan responded immediately on social media that he intends to fight Jiri Prochazka for the title next, but if the UFC wants the rematch between Jiri and Glover first, he would love to put his skills up against Ankalaev. Following that great fight, Alexandre Pantoja made his intentions of securing a title bout clear when he finished the former title challenger Alex Perez in just forty-two seconds of round number 1, finishing him with a flurry of punches. Despite a rather quick stoppage by the referee Jacob Montalvo, it was no question that Pantoja would unquestionably have won in the end, and with the current shallow state of the 125lbs division’s top-tier, Pantoja is a welcomed name for a potential title challenger, especially when he has a victory over Brandon Moreno on his record. Before the aforementioned Moreno would step up and compete for the Interim Flyweight Title against Kai Kara-France in the co-main event, the Dallas-crowd would witness a very average Heavyweight bout between the hometown hero Derrick Lewis and the rising prospect Sergey Pavlovich. With the Russian dominating most of the fight, the boos echoed through the arena as the dissatisfaction of seeing Lewis not being able to close the distance to the younger, faster, and more versatile Pavlovich to land his signature bombs. While “The Black Beast” might have edged the last round with a last-minute flurry of punches on the judges’ scorecards, it wasn’t enough however as Pavlovich took home an impressive, but rather dull unanimous decision.

 

For the first title bout of the evening, the crowd put away the negative feelings for the last bout as they cheered enormously for the Mexican Superstar Brandon Moreno as he made his way to the Octagon for his bout against Kai Kara-France. The bout started in a high tempo, like most Flyweight bouts tend to do, with Moreno landing a lot of strikes on Kara-France, who in turn focused mostly on leg kicks and counters, not really managing to handle the timing and power of Moreno. That scenario continued in the second round, in which Moreno outstroke Kara-France with almost double the amount of landed strikes, pushing the tempo and not slowing down one bit, securing the two first rounds in rather easy fashion. With the tremendously underrated James Krause in his corner, Moreno’s game plan was bullet proof and perfectly crafted as he continued to dominate the third and fourth round, with Kai Kara-France offering little to none danger at all, at least until the fifth and final round. With desperation mode activated, Kara-France entered the fifth round guns blazing looking for a finish against Moreno, but the Mexican was cool enough to keep the fight at a distance, scoring big moments with his counters for the remainder of the round, and the entirety of the fight. Despite not being the wild brawl many had hoped for, the bout was a great showing for Moreno and the improvements he has made during the last year, becoming one of two best 125lbs fighters in the world together with the champ Figueiredo. The new Interim Champion faced off against the current Champion inside the Octagon after the bout, seemingly agreeing to a fourth bout against each other in a surprisingly respectful way. A few moments later, it was time for the rather anticipated main event for the Women’s Bantamweight title between Julianna Peña and the consensus female GOAT Amanda Nunes. Would Peña prove that lightning can strike at the same place twice, or would Nunes prove that the first encounter was just a fluke and that she indeed is the best female fighter on the planet, and perhaps even in history? The first round was rather tentative, with both fighters seemingly nervous and careful to engage and expose themselves for big shots. The former champ had more landed strikes while Peña landed a takedown late in the round and thus earning some valuable time in top control. A tough round to score, but it wasn’t really needed as the bout would come to a decisive end in the second round, just like in their first outing against each other. While their first bout ended via submission in 3:26 of the second round, this one would end in 1:34 with a knockdown, and for you math nerds out there; if you take out 3:26 of a five minute round, you’ll end up with 1:34 left, pretty scary if you ask me. It would be Nunes who would secure the victory when she send Peña straight to the floor with a big right hook, following up with some nasty ground strikes before referee Marc Goddard could intervene. Nunes had reclaimed her 135lbs title and was once again the queen of the Women’s Bantamweight division, but the question remained; would the pairing face each other for a third fight to once and for all decide who the better fighter is or is their rivalry finished for good?

 

Bonus Awards

Fight of the Night: Magomed Ankalaev vs. Anthony Smith

Performance of the Night: Amanda Nunes, Alexandre Pantoja, Matthew Semelsberger, Carlos Diego Ferreira

Ranking Changes: Amanda Nunes C WBW, Julianna Peña -1 WBW, Brandon Moreno IC FLW, Kai Kara-France -1 FLW, Sergey Pavlovich +4 HW, Derrick Lewis -2 HW, Alexandre Pantoja +2 FLW, Alex Perez-2 FLW, Magomed Ankalaev +2 LHW, Anthony Smith -1 LHW

Roster Changes: Ji Yeon Kim released

 

 

Prediction Table

CageRage = 5 out of 12

feltzz = 4 out of 12

 

Edited August 29, 2022 by Pontarii

[feltzz]

Well, not a great prediction by me

 

Waiting for a events created 100% by you

[Pontarii]

Well, not a great prediction by me

 

Waiting for a events created 100% by you

 

Considering you smashed the first prediction, this is only a small step back for you

 

You and me both, brother. The first events will be according to real life, as I want to make it realistic, but soon enough you'll see my booking mentality on full display

[Pontarii]

 

 

END OF AUGUST 2022

 

 

News Around the World
 

Damir Hadzovic suspended by USADA, released from UFC

UFC Lightweight Damir Hadzovic (14-7), a nine fight veteran of the company, has been suspended for one year following his first USADA Violation, according to the UFC’s official website as well as USADA’s official website. The one time Performance of the Night-winner tested positive for the banned substance LGD-4033 in a post-fight drug test following his first round technical knockout loss against Marc Diakiese at UFC Fight Night: Blaydes vs. Aspinall earlier this month. The world’s leading anti-doping testing agency USADA released the following statement on its website;

 

“USADA announced today that Damir Hadzovic, of Copenhagen, Denmark., has been given a one-year sanction for a violation of the UFC Anti-Doping Policy. Hadzovic, 35, tested positive for LGD-4033 and its metabolite dihydroxy-LHD-4033 as the result of a sample collected in-competition at a UFC-event on Aug 20, 2022. LGD-4033 is a non-Specified Substance in the class of Anabolic Agents and is prohibited at all times under the UFC Anti-Doping Policy and UFC Prohibited List. Hadzovic’s one-year period of ineligibility began on August 20, 2022, the date his positive sample was collected, and will be eligible for return August 20, 2023”.

 

As a result, Damir Hadzovic, who is 1-3 in his last four outings with the company, has been released from his UFC-contract with immediate effect.

 

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Bruno Silva out of bout against Gerald Meerschaert at UFC on ESPN: Vera vs. Cruz at Week 2, Sept. Abdul Razak Alhassan steps up on short notice (two weeks)

The Middleweight clash between the Brazilian Bruno Silva (22-7) and the veteran Gerald "GM3" Meerschaert (34-15), which was scheduled to headline the prelims on the upcoming UFC on ESPN: Vera vs Cruz-event, will no longer take place. According to sources, the 33-year-old "Blindado" has pulled out of the scheduled bout, citing a rather serious Rib injury as the reason. The injury will sideline the Curitiba-native, who lastly suffered his first UFC-defeat at the hands of the future title contender Alex Pereira, for roughly around three months. The bout will not be rescheduled, instead it's the 36-year-old Abdul Razak Alhassan (11-4), a nine-fight UFC-veteran with wins over Niko Price and Alessio di Chirico, who will serve as a replacement for Meerschaert.

 

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Cameron VanCamp out of bout against Nikolas Motta at UFC Fight Night: Sandhagen vs. Song at Week 1, Oct. Chris Gruetzemacher steps up on short notice (one month)

The Lightweight bout between Nikolas Motta () and Cameron VanCamp (15-6-1-1 NC), who originally was scheduled to take place as the prelim opener for the UFC Fight Night: Sandhagen vs. Song-event in a months time, has been forced to be altered. VanCamp, who debuted earlier this year in a Welterweight bout against Andre Fialho in a losing effort, announced on social media that he has suffered an undisclosed facial injury in training, which will require surgery, and that he'll be out for a while. It didn't take long for the UFC to find a replacement for the 29-year-old with the seven-fight UFC-veteran Chris "Gritz" Gruetzemacher (15-5) will return to the Octagon after a 10-month absence, suffering a defeat against the Lightweight prospect Claudio Puelles in his last bout back in December, 2021.

 

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TUF 30 Finales postponed, will take place at UFC Fight Night: Sandhagen vs. Song

Fans of the recently finished The Ultimate Fighter: 30-season will have to wait to find out which two fighters will be victorious. Journalist Marcel Dorff broke the news on Twitter earlier today that both Mohammed Usman (7-2) and Brogan Walker-Sanchez (6-1), two of the four finalists, has both suffered injuries which has forced both finals to be rescheduled. The Heavyweight final between Usman and Zac Pauga (5-0), both members of Team Peña during the season, and The Women's Flyweight bout between Team Peña's Walker-Sanchez and Team Nunes' Juliana Miller (2-1) will take place on the UFC Fight Night: Sandhagen vs. Song-event on the 8th of October, 2022, with both eventual winners earning the much sought-after UFC-contracts.

 

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DWCS returns Week 1 of October, headlined by Taylor Lapilus and Levi Mowles

The highly anticipated return of Dana White Contender Series is edging closer and closer. Despite White's retirement from his presidency role in the company, the show will still be named after him, and it will officially return for its sixth season one month from now. Moving from five fights to four fights per show, the show that has been described as "the best job interview in the world" has provided some of the mainstays of the UFC-rankings regardless of the division, and if the first show is something to judge the new season by, it certainly does look intriguing. Headlining week one of the sixth season is Bantamweights Taylor Lapilus (18-3), who has fought four times for the UFC before going 3-1 before surprisingly getting released back in 2016, and the LFA-veteran Levi Mowles (16-4), who is riding a six-fight winning streak. A Heavyweight bout between 27-year-old Polish Kevin Szaflarski (11-1) and the current undefeated LFA Heavyweight Champion Waldo Cortes-Acosta (6-0) will also take place on the first week. The two other bouts will be announced at a later date.

Edited August 29, 2022 by Pontarii

[Pontarii]

Just a heads up; The writing-part of the stories takes a lot more time for me compared with how much it did before. I underestimated how much time it takes to write it in this style, and with my new job starting next week, I'll make some changes with the dynasty to keep it going in a more fluent way. I will continue reporting on the progress of the dynasty, but not in such elaborate, describing way as it is now, instead I'll focus on reporting the results of the events, the announcements of new cards as well as reporting on interesting things that goes on in the world. Hopefully you'll follow it anyway and continue engaging with predictions and comments.

[Pontarii]

 

 

WEEK 1 - SEPTEMBER 2022

 

 

 

UFC Fight Night: Santos vs. Hill

Event Preview

 

Main Event

 

Light Heavyweight Bout: [#5] Thiago Santos vs. [#9] Jamahal Hill

 

Co-Main Event

 

Welterweight Bout: [#6] Vicente Luque vs. [#13] Geoff Neal

 

Main Card

 

Heavyweight Bout: [#14] Augusto Sakai vs. Sergey Spivak

 

Light Heavyweight Bout: Shamil Gazmatov vs. Misha Cirkunov

 

Lightweight Bout: Terrance McKinney vs. Erick Gonzalez

 

ESPN+ Prelims

 

Light Heavyweight Bout: Michal Oleksiejczuk vs. Sam Alvey

 

Women’s Flyweight Bout: Maryna Moroz vs. Sijara Eubanks

 

Middleweight Bout: Takashi Sato vs. Bryan Battle

 

Featherweight Bout: Nate Landwehr vs. Zubaira Tukhugov

 

Fight Pass Early Prelims

 

Women’s Strawweight Bout: Miranda Granger vs. Cory McKenna

 

Welterweight Bout: Jason Witt vs. Josh Quinlan

 

Women’s Bantamweight Bout: Mayra Bueno Silva vs. Stephanie Egger

 

Edited August 29, 2022 by Pontarii

[CageRage]

UFC Fight Night: Santos vs. Hill

Event Preview

 

Main Event

 

Light Heavyweight Bout: [#5] Thiago Santos vs. [#9] Jamahal Hill

 

Co-Main Event

 

Welterweight Bout: [#6] Vicente Luque vs. [#13] Geoff Neal

 

Main Card

 

Heavyweight Bout: [#14] Augusto Sakai vs. Sergey Spivak

 

Light Heavyweight Bout: Shamil Gazmatov vs. Misha Cirkunov

 

Lightweight Bout: Terrance McKinney vs. Erick Gonzalez

 

ESPN+ Prelims

 

Light Heavyweight Bout: Michal Oleksiejczuk vs. Sam Alvey

 

Women’s Flyweight Bout: Maryna Moroz vs. Sijara Eubanks

 

Middleweight Bout: Takashi Sato vs. Bryan Battle

 

Featherweight Bout: Nate Landwehr vs. Zubaira Tukhugov

 

Fight Pass Early Prelims

 

Women’s Strawweight Bout: Miranda Granger vs. Cory McKenna

 

Welterweight Bout: Jason Witt vs. Josh Quinlan

 

Women’s Bantamweight Bout: Mayra Bueno Silva vs. Stephanie Egger

[feltzz]

Light Heavyweight Bout: [#5] Thiago Santos vs. [#9] Jamahal Hill

 

Co-Main Event

 

Welterweight Bout: [#6] Vicente Luque vs. [#13] Geoff Neal

 

Main Card

 

Heavyweight Bout: [#14] Augusto Sakai vs. Sergey Spivak

 

Light Heavyweight Bout: Shamil Gazmatov vs. Misha Cirkunov

 

Lightweight Bout: Terrance McKinney vs. Erick Gonzalez

 

ESPN+ Prelims

 

Light Heavyweight Bout: Michal Oleksiejczuk vs. Sam Alvey

 

Women’s Flyweight Bout: Maryna Moroz vs. Sijara Eubanks

 

Middleweight Bout: Takashi Sato vs. Bryan Battle

 

Featherweight Bout: Nate Landwehr vs. Zubaira Tukhugov

 

Fight Pass Early Prelims

 

Women’s Strawweight Bout: Miranda Granger vs. Cory McKenna

 

Welterweight Bout: Jason Witt vs. Josh Quinlan

 

Women’s Bantamweight Bout: Mayra Bueno Silva vs. Stephanie Egger