Month: June 2022

Khobi Price: Mo Bamba’s celebrating his …

Justin Gaethje schedules nose surgery before ‘one last run toward the title’

Justin Gaethje isn’t done chasing the UFC lightweight championship, but is taking care of a lingering issue first.

LAS VEGAS – [autotag]Justin Gaethje[/autotag] isn’t done chasing the UFC lightweight championship.

Gaethje (23-4 MMA, 6-4 UFC) has fallen short of undisputed gold on two occasions against Khabib Nurmagomedov, and more recently, Charles Oliveira at UFC 274 in April. He’s remained silent in the fallout of his second title loss, but now he’s ready to speak about his future.

The former interim UFC titleholder said he’s going to be out of action for several more months as he prepared for an upcoming nose surgery, which is a nuisance he’s been dealing with for well over a decade, he said. Once he’s healthy and ready to start a training camp, Gaethje said he intends to make a final push toward the top.

I’m going to get nose surgery July 14,” Gaethje told MMA Junkie and other reporters Thursday on the UFC Hall of Fame red carpet. “Take a good month to recover, and get back to work. I think end of the year, most likely early next year (I’ll be back). There’s a few fights that are going to happen, so I’ll let those happen. I want to clear a two or three-fight path back to the title fight. I want to earn it, like I should, but I have a great manager so I’m not worried about it too much. I’ll be ready to fight.

“I’ve been waiting for 13 years for someone in MMA to break my nose and it hasn’t happened. I broke it in wrestling practice 13 years ago, and life’s been hell since then. I have to wear a nose drip tonight, every night to bed every single night. Eating, sleeping, living, training, fighting. I’m not sure. I don’t even know what my f*cking voice sounds like. I’ve been waiting a long time to get this broken. No one has done it, so I’m going to do it myself and give it one last run toward the title.”

Gaethje was on the verge of capturing the title from Oliveira during a wild fight at UFC 274. He knocked the Brazilian down in the early going, but said he got too wild and made some costly errors en route to being submitted.

Fighting in front of a home-state crowd in Phoenix, Gaethje said the moment overcame him, and it resulted in his downfall.

“It’s a crazy game we play,” Gaethje said. “It’s the reason I love it. It’s a game of inches. At the end of the day, being at home in front of my crowd – sometimes you lose control of your emotions. I’m not exactly sure what happened. I had the time of my life. It’s a crazy game.”

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49ers offseason roster: DE group the deepest of Shanahan era

The #49ers DE group might be the best its been since Kyle Shanahan arrived. (via @nicholasmcgee24)

Having depth on the defensive line has been one of the tenets of the 49ers’ team-building approach under John Lynch and Kyle Shanahan, and they reaffirmed their commitment to strength in numbers on the defensive side of the trenches with their moves in the offseason.

San Francisco spent its top pick in the draft on an edge rusher in USC’s Drake Jackson and signed two players at the position in free agency, bringing back Kerry Hyder Jr. and acquiring former Indianapolis Colts pass rusher Kemoko Turay.

The Niners appear set to eventually bid farewell to Dee Ford and end his injury-plagued tenure with the team. However, following the additions they made this offseason and with Arik Armstead able to play off the edge as well as on the interior, the Niners’ group of outside pass rushers might be the deepest they have had under Lynch and Shanahan.

Not all of those players can remain on the active roster, though. Just over a month out from training camp, let’s look at the edge rushers the 49ers have signed and the role they could play in 2022.

UFC Hall of Famer Khabib Nurmagomedov names Conor McGregor win as top career moment

Khabib Nurmagomedov thinks his victory over Conor McGregor in their grudge match was the best moment of his legendary MMA career.

LAS VEGAS – [autotag]Khabib Nurmagomedov[/autotag] thinks his victory over [autotag]Conor McGregor[/autotag] in their anticipated grudge match was the best moment of his legendary MMA career.

Nurmagomedov (29-0 MMA, 13-0 UFC), who landed a spot in the UFC Hall of Fame as part of the 2022 class on Saturday at T-Mobile Arena, retired from the sport in October 2020 with a flawless career record, had a lot memorable high points.

However, to him, nothing was more monumental than when he submitted McGregor in the main event of UFC 229 in October 2018. The heated grudge match still stands as the highest-selling pay-per-view in company history, and Nurmagomedov said none of his 28 other wins compared

“It was here – this arena – Oct. 6, 2018,” Nurmagomedov told MMA Junkie and other reporters on the UFC Hall of Fame red carpet. “Biggest fight in MMA history. I’m very happy I win this fight. I can lose any of my fights. But no way this fight.”

The fight between Nurmagomedov and McGregor was one of the most anticipated in company history. McGregor made things extremely personal with his infamous bus attack that set up the bout, then committed verbal warfare on his rival at every turn.

Nurmagomedov ultimately got the last laugh with a fourth-round submission, which prompted a brawl in the octagon that led to suspensions for both athletes.

Even though there was a stain on the fight in the aftermath, Nurmagomedov still remembers it fondly.

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PODCAST: What Does UCLA, USC Going To Big Ten Mean For Mountain West?

PODCAST: What Does UCLA, USC Going To Big Ten Mean For Mountain West? More realignment! Contact/Follow @MWCwire What happens to the Mountain West? Jeremy and Matt have an emergency podcast to discuss how the massive news about USC and UCLA packing …

PODCAST: What Does UCLA, USC Going To Big Ten Mean For Mountain West?

More realignment!

Contact/Follow @MWCwire

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What happens to the Mountain West?

Jeremy and Matt have an emergency podcast to discuss how the massive news about USC and UCLA packing up their bags and going to the Big Ten for the 2024 season. This clearly makes the Pac-12 lesser of a league with the biggest brand of USC leaving town and a big market team in UCLA. The Mountain West has options and it might be best to just stand pat and not be extremely aggressive.

If the conference is going to add teams, it likely would come from Pac-12 and/or Big 12 leftovers. Those two leagues are likely to be fighting it out for survival, so the Mountain West could see what is left over, or perhaps just not make a move.

This also has a shift in college football with super league coming together sooner than later as this is a big money grab for UCLA and USC.

You can find the Mountain West Wire podcast below or subscribe to the show via Stitcher Radio, TuneIn, Spotify, iTunes, and more. Listen in, subscribe and rate it and let us know what you think!

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Joe Joyce vs. Chrisitan Hammer: date, time, how to watch, background

Joe Joyce vs. Chrisitan Hammer: date, time, how to watch, background.

Unbeaten heavyweight contender Joe Joyce will face Christian Hammer in a stay-busy fight Saturday night in London.

JOE JOYCE (13-0, 12 KOS) VS. CHRISTIAN HAMMER (27-9, 17 KOS)

  • Date: Saturday, July 2
  • Time: 2 p.m. ET / 11 a.m.. PT (main event later in show)
  • Where: OVO Arena Wembley, London
  • TV/Stream: ESPN+
  • Cost: $6.99 per month or $69.99 annually
  • Division: Heavyweight (unlimited)
  • Rounds: 12
  • At stake: No major titles
  • Pound-for-pound ranking: None
  • Odds: NA
  • Also on the card: Jason Cunningham vs. Zolani Tete, junior featherweights; Callum Johnson vs. Igor Mikhalkin, light heavyweights; Mark Chamberlain vs. Marc Vidal, lightweights; Nathan Heaney vs. Nizar Trimech, middleweights
  • Prediction: Joyce KO 5
  • Background: Heavyweight contender Joe Joyce was scheduled to face former titleholder Joseph Parker in what would’ve been an important fight but Parker pulled out because trainer Andy Lee, whose wife recently gave birth, was unavailable. Thus, the 2016 Olympic silver medalist from London will face journeyman Christian Hammer in what amounts to a stay-busy fight as he awaits bigger opportunities. Joyce, 36, recorded a break-through victory when he stopped Daniel Dubois in November 2020. He followed that with a sixth-round stoppage of veteran Carlos Takam in July of last year, his most-recent fight. Joyce has already set a date for his next fight, Sept. 24. And he’s pushing Parker to face him then. Hammer, a 34-year-old Romanian-born German, is 5-5 in last 10 fights, although he’s coming off first-round knockout victory over journeyman Drazan Janjanin on May 28. He has been a stepping stone for a number of elite opponents, including Tyson Fury, Alexander Povetkin, Luis Ortiz, Tony Yoka and Frank Sanchez.

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Joe Joyce vs. Chrisitan Hammer: date, time, how to watch, background

Joe Joyce vs. Chrisitan Hammer: date, time, how to watch, background.

Unbeaten heavyweight contender Joe Joyce will face Christian Hammer in a stay-busy fight Saturday night in London.

JOE JOYCE (13-0, 12 KOS) VS. CHRISTIAN HAMMER (27-9, 17 KOS)

  • Date: Saturday, July 2
  • Time: 2 p.m. ET / 11 a.m.. PT (main event later in show)
  • Where: OVO Arena Wembley, London
  • TV/Stream: ESPN+
  • Cost: $6.99 per month or $69.99 annually
  • Division: Heavyweight (unlimited)
  • Rounds: 12
  • At stake: No major titles
  • Pound-for-pound ranking: None
  • Odds: NA
  • Also on the card: Jason Cunningham vs. Zolani Tete, junior featherweights; Callum Johnson vs. Igor Mikhalkin, light heavyweights; Mark Chamberlain vs. Marc Vidal, lightweights; Nathan Heaney vs. Nizar Trimech, middleweights
  • Prediction: Joyce KO 5
  • Background: Heavyweight contender Joe Joyce was scheduled to face former titleholder Joseph Parker in what would’ve been an important fight but Parker pulled out because trainer Andy Lee, whose wife recently gave birth, was unavailable. Thus, the 2016 Olympic silver medalist from London will face journeyman Christian Hammer in what amounts to a stay-busy fight as he awaits bigger opportunities. Joyce, 36, recorded a break-through victory when he stopped Daniel Dubois in November 2020. He followed that with a sixth-round stoppage of veteran Carlos Takam in July of last year, his most-recent fight. Joyce has already set a date for his next fight, Sept. 24. And he’s pushing Parker to face him then. Hammer, a 34-year-old Romanian-born German, is 5-5 in last 10 fights, although he’s coming off first-round knockout victory over journeyman Drazan Janjanin on May 28. He has been a stepping stone for a number of elite opponents, including Tyson Fury, Alexander Povetkin, Luis Ortiz, Tony Yoka and Frank Sanchez.

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LIV Golf is already looking to expand in 2023 with 14 events and a new name

Get ready for the LIV Golf League.

NORTH PLAINS, Ore. — The LIV Golf Invitational Series will include more events and a name change in 2023.

The series will transition to the LIV Golf League next year and the events will grow from eight this year to 14 in future years with 48 contracted players on 12 teams. The number of events will be capped at 14.

The Saudi-backed series has grown faster than expected with eight of the top 50 players, and 20 of the top 100, in the current World Golf Ranking joining LIV to date.

The fields for this year’s eight events are fluid as more players defect from the PGA Tour. This week’s field at Pumpkin Ridge Golf Club outside of Portland has nine players not in the inaugural event held outside of London, including Brooks Koepka, Bryson DeChambeau, Patrick Reed, Matthew Wolff, Abraham Ancer and Carlos Ortiz.

The plan for 2023 is to open the season in March with 48 contracted players. The four-man teams will be set before the season, with the  players being selected and recruited by the 12 captains.

The contracts for each player varies with the longest being four years. Phil Mickelson is reported to have signed the largest contract, $200 million, followed by Dustin Johnson at $125 million.

The list of venues has not been finalized. What is known is the number of international sites will expand. This year, the series has stops in England, Bangkok and Saudi Arabia along with five United States sites: Portland; Bedminster, New Jersey; Boston; Chicago; and Miami.

After the first round of this week’s event, Ortiz is the leader of the 54-hole tournament at 5-under, one shot ahead of Johnson.

LIV is receiving $250 million from Saudi Arabia’s Public Investment Fund and offering purses of $25 million – including $5 million for the top three finishers in the team competition – for the first seven events and $50 million for the series finale in Doral.

The individual winner receives $4 million.

Tom D’Angelo is a journalist at the Palm Beach Post. You can reach him at tdangelo@pbpost.com. 

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