Tag: UFC 189

Video: Crazy Fight Ends With Incredible Knockout In Vegas

It’s finally UFC 198 fight day, as we await what could easily be the best pay-per-view card of the year, and that’s quite a statement considering UFC 200 is just around the corner. That bold statement is backed up by a huge line up of some of the promotion’s biggest stars, including a stacked line up

The post Video: Crazy Fight Ends With Incredible Knockout In Vegas appeared first on LowKick MMA.

It’s finally UFC 198 fight day, as we await what could easily be the best pay-per-view card of the year, and that’s quite a statement considering UFC 200 is just around the corner. That bold statement is backed up by a huge line up of some of the promotion’s biggest stars, including a stacked line up of Brazilian MMA legends. Fabricio Wedum defends the heavyweight strap in the main event, Vitor Belfort battles Jacare Souza in the co-main event and, among many other great fights, Cris Cyborg debuts against Leslie Smith.

One young Brazilian prospect who hopes to one day get mentioned in the elite few to go down as all time Brazilian greats is Thomas Almeida.

Almeida 1

‘Thominhas’ is an undefeated UFC bantamweight who trains in the renowned Chute Boxe Academy, and he’s been making mincemeat of the competition so far. With a stellar 21-0 record, Almeida fights with destruction of his opponents in the forefront of his gameplan. Some of his knockouts are instant classics, such as his most recent finish of Anthony Birchak in late 2015.

During his four fight UFC streak, the former Legacy FC bantamweight champion has won fight night bonuses in every appearance, with three wins coming by way of stoppage. He’s being pegged for a very bright future in the UFC, and it’s no surprise.

Almeida Knee

The free fight video we’ll be looking at today is the thoroughly exciting showdown with Brad Pickett at UFC 189. For obvious reasons this fight flew under the radar to an extent, although Almeida did win a performance bonus for the brutal flying knee KO.

The scrap was a back-and-forth exciting war that provided one of the most memorable knockouts of the year, but was a little overshadowed by the co-main and main event that featured a crazy battle between Rory MacDonald and Robbie Lawler, and Conor McGregor’s interim title win against Chad Mendes.

Watch the awesome Thomas Almeida vs. Brad Pickett video and get in the mood for tonight’s UFC 198 madness!

The post Video: Crazy Fight Ends With Incredible Knockout In Vegas appeared first on LowKick MMA.

Robbie Lawler vs. Tyron Woodley Potentially Headed For UFC 201 Main Event

It appears that welterweight champion Robbie Lawler will be headed for a title tilt with top contender Tyron Woodley in the main event of July 30’s UFC 201 pay-per-view (PPV) as was previously rumored. Updating a prior statement from UFC President Dana White that said Lawler would ‘probably’ defend his title against Woodley at either

The post Robbie Lawler vs. Tyron Woodley Potentially Headed For UFC 201 Main Event appeared first on LowKick MMA.

It appears that welterweight champion Robbie Lawler will be headed for a title tilt with top contender Tyron Woodley in the main event of July 30’s UFC 201 pay-per-view (PPV) as was previously rumored.

Updating a prior statement from UFC President Dana White that said Lawler would ‘probably’ defend his title against Woodley at either UFC 201 or 202, who has been out of action since a closely-contested decision win over Kelvin Gastelum at UFC 183 in January 2015, word came on Wednesday’s (May 4, 2016) edition of UFC Tonight that “Ruthless” will potentially headline 201.

Fan favorite slugger Lawler has won five straight bouts in the UFC, including back-to-back “Fight of the Year” candidates against Rory MacDonald and Carlos Condit at UFC 189 and UFC 195, respectively, improving his record to an impressive 8-1 since he returned to the promotion in early 2013. Before moving down to welterweight, Lawler had lost five out of eight bouts fighting some of the top middleweight talent on the planet in Strikeforce.

Woodley, meanwhile, was supposed to face former champion and Lawler rival Johny Hendricks in the co-main event of UFC 192, but “Bigg Rigg” was forced out of the bout the day of weigh-ins due to complications with his highly-publicized and drastic weight cut. “The Chosen One” has won four out of his last five UFC matches, with the one defeat in that span an extremely lopsided decision loss to MacDonald at UFC 174.

White promised Woodley a title shot for the strange circumstances, and it looks like he’ll deliver on that promise if “Ruthess” vs. “The Chosen One” does indeed became UFC 201’s headliner.

The post Robbie Lawler vs. Tyron Woodley Potentially Headed For UFC 201 Main Event appeared first on LowKick MMA.

Quote: F*ck Conor McGregor, I’ll Beat Him With One Hand

It seems everyone is keen to jump on the subject of Conor McGregor at the moment, and Tony Ferguson isn’t impressed by the UFC featherweight champion… UFC featherweight champion Conor McGregor experienced deja vu in the lead up to next weekend’s (Saturday March 5) UFC 196 main event. With almost identical timing as Jose Aldo

The post Quote: F*ck Conor McGregor, I’ll Beat Him With One Hand appeared first on LowKick MMA.

It seems everyone is keen to jump on the subject of Conor McGregor at the moment, and Tony Ferguson isn’t impressed by the UFC featherweight champion…

UFC featherweight champion Conor McGregor experienced deja vu in the lead up to next weekend’s (Saturday March 5) UFC 196 main event. With almost identical timing as Jose Aldo with his injured rib before UFC 189, lightweight champion Rafael dos Anjos backed out of the UFC 196 pay-per-view with a broken foot. The lottery of who would fight McGregor in the big money spot was underway.

Eventually it would be Stockton bad boy Nate Diaz that got the nod to fight Conor McGregor, but the rabble surrounding ‘The Notorious’ continues. UFC lightweight contender Tony Ferguson recently called McGregor a ‘turtle’ and a ‘bitch,’ claiming he’d make it ‘red panty night’ for the outspoken Irishman if they ever fought.

USATSI_8990645

‘El Cucuy’ is riding a red hot seven fight win streak at present, and most recently submitted Edson Barboza in a classic brawl last December. Scheduled to face Khabib Nurmagomedov in a UFC on FOX 19 clash, Ferguson took to periscope to answer some fan questions last night, and it wasn’t long before the inevitable subject of McGregor was raised. Here’s how Ferguson responded:

The truth is that nobody knows what’s next for McGregor if he beats Diaz, and that pretty much puts the top end of two weight divisions on hold. Would he face dos Anjos for the lightweight belt, or perhaps the featherweight strap he won against Jose Aldo needs to be defended at some point in the coming months? Don’t even get started on the fact McGregor called out Robbie Lawler at UFC 200.

Whatever the case, ‘The Notorious’ continues to be hot property in multiple weight classes in the UFC, but for how long? Is it only a matter of time before his alleged weakness of wrestling and submission defense is exposed, or will McGregor continue his meteoric rise unbeaten?

diaz

The post Quote: F*ck Conor McGregor, I’ll Beat Him With One Hand appeared first on LowKick MMA.

Quote: F*ck Conor McGregor, I’ll Beat Him With One Hand

It seems everyone is keen to jump on the subject of Conor McGregor at the moment, and Tony Ferguson isn’t impressed by the UFC featherweight champion… UFC featherweight champion Conor McGregor experienced deja vu in the lead up to next weekend’s (Saturday March 5) UFC 196 main event. With almost identical timing as Jose Aldo

The post Quote: F*ck Conor McGregor, I’ll Beat Him With One Hand appeared first on LowKick MMA.

It seems everyone is keen to jump on the subject of Conor McGregor at the moment, and Tony Ferguson isn’t impressed by the UFC featherweight champion…

UFC featherweight champion Conor McGregor experienced deja vu in the lead up to next weekend’s (Saturday March 5) UFC 196 main event. With almost identical timing as Jose Aldo with his injured rib before UFC 189, lightweight champion Rafael dos Anjos backed out of the UFC 196 pay-per-view with a broken foot. The lottery of who would fight McGregor in the big money spot was underway.

Eventually it would be Stockton bad boy Nate Diaz that got the nod to fight Conor McGregor, but the rabble surrounding ‘The Notorious’ continues. UFC lightweight contender Tony Ferguson recently called McGregor a ‘turtle’ and a ‘bitch,’ claiming he’d make it ‘red panty night’ for the outspoken Irishman if they ever fought.

USATSI_8990645

‘El Cucuy’ is riding a red hot seven fight win streak at present, and most recently submitted Edson Barboza in a classic brawl last December. Scheduled to face Khabib Nurmagomedov in a UFC on FOX 19 clash, Ferguson took to periscope to answer some fan questions last night, and it wasn’t long before the inevitable subject of McGregor was raised. Here’s how Ferguson responded:

The truth is that nobody knows what’s next for McGregor if he beats Diaz, and that pretty much puts the top end of two weight divisions on hold. Would he face dos Anjos for the lightweight belt, or perhaps the featherweight strap he won against Jose Aldo needs to be defended at some point in the coming months? Don’t even get started on the fact McGregor called out Robbie Lawler at UFC 200.

Whatever the case, ‘The Notorious’ continues to be hot property in multiple weight classes in the UFC, but for how long? Is it only a matter of time before his alleged weakness of wrestling and submission defense is exposed, or will McGregor continue his meteoric rise unbeaten?

diaz

The post Quote: F*ck Conor McGregor, I’ll Beat Him With One Hand appeared first on LowKick MMA.

Does Conor McGregor Need Wrestling to Remain Atop the Featherweight Division?

UFC 189 became the largest mixed martial arts pay-per-view on U.S. soil of all time. It made a live gate of over $7 million and catapulted the now-interim featherweight champion Conor McGregor into the stratosphere, subsequently naming himself and Rond…

UFC 189 became the largest mixed martial arts pay-per-view on U.S. soil of all time. It made a live gate of over $7 million and catapulted the now-interim featherweight champion Conor McGregor into the stratosphere, subsequently naming himself and Ronda Rousey as the two biggest stars in MMA today. The 27-year-old made $500,000 for his second-round stoppage of Chad Mendes and is expected to face the longtime featherweight champion, Jose Aldo, later on this year.

However, at UFC 189, McGregor was taken down almost at will by his former NCAA Division I All-American wrestling opponent. The latter fighter dominated the first round with his ability to control the action on the ground. The second round gave way to more of the same, as McGregor spent most of the time on his back.

After fighting his way back to his feet with little time left, the Irishman viciously attacked Mendes and knocked him out soon thereafter. However, McGregor had no response for his opponent’s takedowns and more than likely would have lost the bout had Mendes not gotten tired at the end of the second round.

Despite his loss, however, many thought that Mendes created the blueprint to beating the new interim champion. 

In fact, due to a knee injury, McGregor hadn’t done one round of live wrestling prior to his matchup against Mendes. According to Marc Raimondi of MMA Fighting, the Irishman’s coach, John Kavanagh, stated:

…when we were walking out to this fight it was in the back of my mind that we haven’t done a single round of live wrestling…

… Really the first round of full wrestling was done in that fight…

…That was the first full test on the knee and he flew through it. He (McGregor) was able to deal with some oppositions.

Given his wrestling deficiencies, if McGregor significantly improved his takedown defense, perhaps performing at the highest levels could be sustained over a longer period of time. The Irishman’s nemesis, Aldo, is one of the most successful takedown defensive practitioners in the UFC today. Coach Mike R of Bloody Elbow said:

[Aldo’s] take downs reveals a level of defensive wrestling skill which should give pause to any potential Aldo opponents who want to defeat him by taking him to the mat…

…there is no doubt that he also possesses a scary level of skill in defensive wrestling…

In fact, throughout his 11-year MMA career, Aldo’s elite wrestling defense has allowed him to remain on his feet, having rarely been taken down and remaining undefeated for the last nine years. When Aldo and McGregor meet to unify the UFC featherweight title, as they both specialize in the stand-up art of fighting, their bout will most likely represent one of epic proportions.

At the same time, irrespective of the Aldo/McGregor outcome, the Irishman may not have to learn how to wrestle, per se, but it would behoove the interim champion to develop takedown defense skills, akin to those of Aldo, in an effort to remain atop the featherweight division for years to come.

Read more MMA news on BleacherReport.com

Here Comes A New Challenger: Matches to Make – UFC 189


(via Getty)

By Sam Stilson

UFC 189 was a glorious night of MMA. Attendance records, gate receipts and noses were shattered. Old favourites reclaimed their relevance while new prospects proved their hype. Flying knee knockouts seemed commonplace. Dana White’s never ending use of hyperbole actually rang true. To paraphrase Frank Mir, it was the greatest UFC card since UFC 100.

Now that the glow has faded and we’ve all had some time to decompress, let’s look forward to what might be next for the main card competitors.

The post Here Comes A New Challenger: Matches to Make – UFC 189 appeared first on Cagepotato.


(via Getty)

By Sam Stilson

UFC 189 was a glorious night of MMA. Attendance records, gate receipts and noses were shattered. Old favourites reclaimed their relevance while new prospects proved their hype. Flying knee knockouts seemed commonplace. Dana White’s never ending use of hyperbole actually rang true. To paraphrase Frank Mir, it was the greatest UFC card since UFC 100.

Now that the glow has faded and we’ve all had some time to decompress, let’s look forward to what might be next for the main card competitors.

Conor McGregor should fight: Jose Aldo (UH-DOI!)

It almost feels likes the UFC panicked and made McGregor the next coach of The Ultimate Fighter the moment Frankie Edgar ran to the cage and challenged Conor for the belt. This way McGregor is kept busy, the Aldo mega-fight can be rebooked in the fall, and Frankie can’t exploit the fact that Conor has the takedown defense of a domino. Jose vs. Conor is the fight we all want to see, now more than ever, and there’s no way the UFC books anything else for their golden boy.

Chad Mendes should fight: Dennis Siver

‘Money’ Mendes got a raw deal this weekend (well, other than the $500,000+ payday). He obviously has the skills to defeat McGregor, but with only two weeks to prepare, he tired quickly and made a couple mistakes that cost him dearly. If he ever hopes to fight for gold again he’s going to need to take the Jon Fitch route and build a lengthy win streak. Dennis Siver is still a ranked featherweight and a fight with the German seems like a good way for Chad to regroup.

Robbie Lawler should fight: Johny Hendricks/Carlos Condit/Tyron Woodley

Hi kids, do you like violence? Robbie Lawler is perhaps the only true embodiment of the overused phrase ‘warrior spirit’.  His demonstration of sublime technical skill and raw, guttural aggression at UFC 189 was absolutely breathtaking. The pecking order at 170 is now starting to come into place and Robbie’s standing at the top is looking more and more sturdy. Lawler deserves some time off to heal after his Fight of the Year performance, therefore any combination of Condit-Hendricks-Woodley in a number one contender match makes sense to find his next challenger.

Rory MacDonald should fight: Thiago Alves

It’s astonishing to think that if Rory could have held on for another four minutes, he would have won the belt, considering this gif and this photo. While Macdonald didn’t assume his place as the heir apparent to GSP, he certainly proved his toughness and heart. He’ll be on the shelf for some time but so will fellow rhinoplasty patient Thiago Alves. This matchup would result in an exciting striking affair and the winner could add another ranked opponent to their resume.

Jeremy Stephens should fight: Dennis Bermudez

If Dennis Bermudez is to be believed, he was offered an immediate rematch with Stephens by Dana White. Considering Jeremy missed weight badly and Bermudez was likely winning the fight before the late knockout, a rematch makes a lot of sense. If not, Hacran Dias or Tatsuya Kawajiri would both make for fun top 15 matchups.

Dennis Bermudez should fight: Jeremy Stephens

Dennis looked absolutely fantastic in his bout with Stephens and  seemed to  have turned a corner in his progression as a top ten featherweight. Then the next thing you know, ‘tiger!’ and he’s asleep on the canvas. I hope the UFC gives him the mulligan they offered and Bermudez can try and snatch back the win he was so close to nabbing this weekend.

Gunnar Nelson should fight: Stephen Thompson

‘Gunni’ looked incredible in his fight against Brandon Thatch and appears to have learned a lot from his first career loss. Pairing him with another heralded striker will allow us to see whether he truly has improved his hands to elite level or if the Thatch knockdown was just a lucky punch.  Stephen Thompson fits the description and with his recent destruction of Jake Ellenberger this bout could easily headline a Fight Pass show.

Brandon Thatch should fight: Loser of Patrick Cote vs. Josh Burkman

In a battle of prospects usually somebody comes out looking like a dud. The hype train was at full speed when Thatch took on Benson Henderson in February and even in defeat many were still impressed by his showing against the former champ. Now we all need to take a step back, Thatch included, and temper our expectations.  The loser of the upcoming Patrick Cote vs. Josh Burkman fight would make a great next opponent as they both have name value, solid veteran skills and savvy, but both represent a return to the mid-tier were Brandon has likely been relegated.

Thomas Almeida should fight: Johnny Eduardo

Despite an extremely rocky first round, Almeida managed to hold on to the title of ‘next big thing at bantamweight’ with an insane flying knee knockout of Brad Pickett. After such a dicey showing against veteran competition it might be better to pump the brakes with Almeida rather than feed him to the top 5.  Johnny Eduardo will be returning from injury shortly and would make for a great battle of top-ranked heavy-handed Brazilians.

Brad Pickett should fight: Alex Caceres

The move back to bantamweight was looking like a wise decision for Pickett until he took that knee to the face. Now 1-4 in his last five, the long-time British standout is looking to be in a downward spiral. Bruce Leroy has not found much success in the Octagon lately either. A loser leaves town (or at least relevancy) tilt between these two could round out any card in need of a fun action fight.

The post Here Comes A New Challenger: Matches to Make – UFC 189 appeared first on Cagepotato.