Sports blog information from USA TODAY.
Check out the best social media posts from fighters and other members of the MMA community on Halloween 2021.
Today is Halloween, and plenty of fighters and other MMA notables are embracing the opportunity to dress up and celebrate the holiday.
Costumes from the past five years set the bar quite high, but the challenge was certainly met with all kinds of creative costumes.
Check below for the top Halloween costumes shared on social media.
Check out the top Twitter reactions to Claressa Shields’ first career combat sports loss against Abigail Montes at PFL Championship.
[autotag]Claressa Shields[/autotag]’ sophomore MMA venture did not go according to plan on Wednesday. The boxing world champion suffered his first career loss at 2021 PFL Championship.
Shields (1-1) suffered a split decision loss to Abigail Montes (3-0) in their women’s lightweight bout. She had some moments, but ultimately couldn’t thwart the grappling of her opponent and was edged out on the scorecards.
Although there were improvements shown by Shields from her debut, the end result was her first defeat in any combat sports venture as a professional.
ONE Championship is taking no risks for one of the biggest events in company history.
ONE Championship is taking no risks for one of the biggest events in company history.
The Singapore-based promotion has postponed its landmark “ONE: X” 10th anniversary event, originally scheduled for Dec. 5, due to rising COVID-19 cases in the island city-state.
ONE Championship CEO Chatri Sityodtong announced the news in a statement on Wednesday (via Facebook):
https://www.facebook.com/ChatriSityodtong/posts/4630710700324388?__cft__[0]=AZULzEoPZIp4ftUNSwWAE9Lbf0j9I1BHOYu8-q7naFVuYD3U9tXq4mokeNinegjKpmL1LBrQoJNELylCdjY_NWaehcgFsZruWyG3iqAV3CrTCD8MTw6sKU0DaQ8wkv8kO70&__tn__=%2CO%2CP-R
BREAKING NEWS: Due to the record high viral outbreak in Singapore, ONE: X will now take place early next year instead of December 5. The Singapore Government continues to do an extraordinary job in managing the situation for the country. I am full of gratitude and appreciation for its incredible leadership and excellence. Please note that our regular shows for November and December are expected to continue as per usual. It is a tricky time for everyone in Singapore, but I am confident that we will all get through these times by working together with compassion, resilience, creativity, and patience. Majulah Singapura!
ONE: X is not only a celebration of our tenth year anniversary, but it is also going to be the biggest event in our history. DJ vs Rodtang, Fernandes vs Lineker, and Le vs Tonon are just a few of the fights on this mega card. I cannot wait to unveil what else we have in store for fans with ONE: X. Stay tuned for more exciting news!
Prior to the announcement, the latest lineup for “ONE: X” included:
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Here’s what you need to know to watch “ONE Championship: NEXTGEN” on Friday in Singapore.
ONE Championship is back Friday nearing the finish line of the promotion’s latest tournament.
Here’s how to watch the “ONE Championship: NEXTGEN” card from Singapore, where the atomweight grand prix semifinals will take place.
Here’s what you need to know to watch ONE Championship’s all-kickboxing card on Friday.
ONE Championship is back Friday with an all-kickboxing lineup in which a new champion will be crowned.
Here’s how to watch the “ONE Championship: First Strike” card from Singapore,
Check out the results from Friday’s ONE Championship: Revolution event in Singapore, which featured an upset in the main event title fight.
In a stunner at Singapore Indoor Stadium, [autotag]Rae Yoon Ok[/autotag] pulled off his third straight upset and took the lightweight title from [autotag]Christian Lee[/autotag] in the ONE Championship: Revolution main event.
Ok took a unanimous decision from the champion, who called the result “bullsh*t” and said he wanted an instant rematch and would challenge the judges’ result with ONE’s board.
There was no change of title in the co-feature when [autotag]Joshua Pacio[/autotag] won his trilogy fight with [autotag]Yosuke Saruta[/autotag] handily.
Check out all the ONE Championship: Revolution MMA results and highlights below.
ONE Championship returns Friday with a pair of title fights atop the MMA portion of the card. Check out the faceoffs for the key fights.
ONE Championship returns Friday with a pair of title fights atop the MMA portion of the card.
[autotag]Christian Lee[/autotag] (15-3), ONE’s 23-year-old lightweight (170 pounds) champion, puts his title on the line against South Korea’s [autotag]Rae Yoon Ok[/autotag] (15-3) in the headliner. Strawweight champ [autotag]Joshua Pacio[/autotag] (19-3) will put his belt up against Japan’s [autotag]Yosuke Saruta[/autotag] (21-9-3).
Lee has six straight wins, including five by stoppage, including title defenses over Timofey Nastyukhin in April and Iuri Lapicus in October 2020. Ok debuted with ONE earlier this year and beat former champ Marat Gafurov, then outworked former UFC and Bellator champ Eddie Alvarez for a unanimous decision in April. Now he has the biggest opportunity of his short ONE tenure against Lee.
In the video above, check out highlights from the ONE Championship: Revolution pre-fight press conference, as well as the key fighter faceoffs.
“ONE Championship: Revolution” takes place at Singapore Indoor Stadium in Singapore. The main card streams on the B/R Live app Friday at 8:30 a.m. ET. Prelims also stream on the app beginning at 6:30 a.m. ET.
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While the light heavyweight division appeared primed for a shake-up on a busy weekend, a couple of perennial contenders held serve.
While the light heavyweight division appeared primed for a shake-up on a busy weekend, a couple of perennial contenders held serve.
At UFC Fight Night 192, it was [autotag]Anthony Smith[/autotag] making quick work of upstart contender Ryan Spann, while at Bellator 266, former champ [autotag]Phil Davis[/autotag] spoiled the promotional debut of Yoel Romero.
With Smith (36-16 MMA, 11-6 UFC) sitting just behind Aleksandar Rakic, the man who most recently defeated “Lionheart,” there’s really no room for the veteran to move up past his current No. 11 spot in the USA TODAY Sports/MMA Junkie light heavyweight rankings. Meanwhile, Davis (23-6 MMA, 10-3 BMMA) started the week at No. 12, and while his decision was clear, it wasn’t the type of result to see him make a major move up, so he also stays in his current position.
Similar scenarios played out in other divisions, as well, leaving the list relatively unchanged this week. That said, with a blockbuster UFC 266 event set for the weekend, the same isn’t likely to be the case one week from now.
Following this past weekend’s dual events, check out the latest updates using the dropdown menu above.
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Former UFC champion Demetrious Johnson assures that he will strike with muay Thai champion Rodtang Jitmuangnon from the get-go.
If you think [autotag]Demetrious Johnson[/autotag] is going to avoid striking with Rodtang Jitmuangnon, think again.
Johnson, the former UFC flyweight champion, promises he will exchange with Jitmuangnon and test his striking against the ONE flyweight muay Thai champion when two compete in a special rules bout at ONE X on Dec. 5.
The contest is set for four, three-minute rounds alternating between muay Thai and MMA rules. The first round will be under muay Thai rules.
During the two muay Thai rounds, Johnson (30-4-1) has no intention of running from Jitmuangnon and simply looking to survive until the MMA rounds. The 35-year-old says he is out to fight fire with fire.
“I know he’s going to come out guns a-blazing. You know your boy is going to come out guns a-blazing,” Johnson told MMA Junkie Radio. “Now, is there a strategic way I’m going to about it, maybe I should avoid him in the first round? No, f*ck that. I’m going to test my skills.
“I’ve seen him get hit, and nothing faces this man – hence his nick name ‘Ironman.’ I’ve seen him get kicked clean in the neck. … Rodtang is as tough as it gets when it comes to standup. I think me taking this fight just shows I’m ready to put on a show for the fans.”
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This is the first time Johnson will step outside of the MMA rule set to compete in a professional fight. Johnson, who held the UFC flyweight title from 2012 to 2018, is just focused on having fun and trying new things in his career. He believes he’s past the stage of worrying too much about the trajectory of his career and wants to simply test himself.
“At the end of the day, I’m at the point of my career that it’s just about having fun and enjoying my journey instead of putting stress on myself like, ‘OK, we have to do this right, we have to win this fight, and this and that,'” Johnson said.
“I’ve done that for a long time in my career since 2011. Now we’re 10 years into my professional career and it’s like, ‘Hey, you want to fight Rodtang? Sure, why not? Send the contract. Boom.’ Why stress myself? F*ck all that. I’m way too old for that.”
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Demetrious Johnson reacts to former opponent Joseph Benavidez’s retirement from MMA.
[autotag]Demetrious Johnson[/autotag]’s career forever will be intertwined with [autotag]Joseph Benavidez[/autotag]’s.
The flyweights fought twice in UFC title fights and were responsible for building the men’s 125-pound division in the UFC as two of the original four fighters in the weight class for the promotion.
It’s been almost a decade since the birth of flyweight in the UFC and Johnson now is the only active fighter left from the first four. Benavidez announced his retirement from the sport this past week, leaving behind a 15-year career in professional fighting.
Benavidez never became UFC champion. He was unable to beat Johnson in the two UFC title fights he part took in. Despite not getting his hands on UFC gold, Johnson still tips his hat to Benavidez and says being champion is not everything.
“(He had) an amazing career,” Johnson told MMA Junkie Radio. “Me and Joseph Benavidez shared a lot of time together throughout our career – going to see Coldplay before UFC 152, where me and him competed for the first flyweight title in the UFC; me and him fighting at UFC on FOX 8 in Sacramento, (Calif.); and just sharing the octagon with him has been a pleasure of mine.
“I remember watching him fight when I used to work full time. He’s had a great career, and I always told him there’s more to fighting than being a world champion. All of the sudden when he has kids, it’s going to change his whole perspective about life. For me, to be able to take my daughter to school this morning, pick her up, come home, cook her lunch, and her sitting on my lap now – this is why I fight, to be able to provide for my family. So for him, I sent him a message on Instagram saying, ‘Congrats on an amazing career. Enjoy the next phase of your life.’ We can’t fight forever. There’s going to be a point in time where I’m going to do the same thing.”
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Even though Johnson and Benavidez were longtime rivals, being the two best flyweights for many years, Johnson said he likes him the most out of any opponent he’s ever had. After all, the two were responsible for helping build an entire weight class – something that in many ways was a team effort and had them share a lot of experiences.
“Me and Joseph spent a lot of time together,” Johnson said. “I would say out of all my opponents, he’s the one I probably enjoyed spending the time with the most. I remember doing a tour in Australia and going to Brisbane and just traveling all over Australia and going to the zoo together. We did a lot of sh*t together that I wouldn’t have done with any other opponent. But me and him were trying to build a division that started in 2012.
“I wish Joseph and Megan (Olivi) nothing but the best. I’m sure they’re going to have beautiful babies and the next phase of their lives is going to be amazing. They’re both positive people. They’ve never been negative, so nothing but the best. What a successful career. Even though he never became a champion, still an amazing career. People are going to look back at his fights and see how good he was, how he fought in both divisions. I mean – legend.”
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