Category: Videos

UFC champ Alexandre Pantoja wanted to move up for Sean O’Malley, vows to rule flyweight ‘for a long time’

UFC flyweight champ Alexandre Pantoja once desired to move to bantamweight, but now says that was only for one specific opponent.

UFC flyweight champion [autotag]Alexandre Pantoja[/autotag] contemplated a move to bantamweight, but since Sean O’Malley is no longer the champion, he wants to continue his reign at 125 pounds.

Pantoja (28-5 MMA, 12-3 UFC) and former bantamweight champ O’Malley (18-2 MMA, 10-2 UFC) recently went back and forth over what happened in a sparring session. Pantoja, who has defended his flyweight title twice, began thinking about a move to the bantamweight division, but it turns out that was only to settle the score with O’Malley, who has since lost his title to Merab Dvalishvili.

As things currently stand, Pantoja is no longer interested in moving up to 135 pounds.

“No, I’m the flyweight champion,” Pantoja told MMA Junkie when asked if a bantamweight move was still possible. “I want to stay here for a long time. I just thought about (a move) to fight with O’Malley because we have some history before, you know, he talked something bad. I want to prove I beat him in the gym, and I can beat him in a real fight.”

Pantoja is just a few days away from headlining UFC 310 on Dec. 7 at T-Mobile Arena in Las Vegas, where he will welcome promotional newcomer and former Rizin champion [autotag]Kai Asakura[/autotag].

Should he past that test, Pantoja recognizes there are a few deserving contenders waiting for their shot at the title, including rematches against Brandon Moreno and Brandon Royval. But first things first: he must ensure Asakura doesn’t end his championship reign.

“A couple of options, good options,” Pantoja said. “I just think about Kai Asakura, make a great show for everyone. That’s what I want. Give to all my fans a great show Dec. 7. It’s going to be great.”

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UFC free fight: Vicente Luque taps former champion Tyron Woodley with slick submission

Watch Vicente Luque end Tyron Woodley’s UFC career with a slick first-round D’Arce choke.

[autotag]Vicente Luque[/autotag]’s submission victory over former UFC welterweight champion Tyron Woodley may go down as the biggest win of his career.

Luque entered UFC 260 on the heels of back-to-back stoppage victories, setting up a crossroads fight against Woodley at the UFC Apex in Las Vegas. After dropping his title to Kamaru Usman, Woodley’s career took a downturn, losing his next two bouts. The meeting with Luque was a do-or-die situation, and “The Silent Assassin” shut the door on Woodley’s UFC career with a first-round D’Arce choke.

Luque (22-10-1 MMA, 15-6 UFC) returns to the octagon at UFC 310. He takes on Themba Gorimbo (14-4 MMA, 4-1 UFC), who fills in for the originally scheduled Nick Diaz.

UFC 310 (pay-per-view, ESPN 2, ESPN+) takes at T-Mobile Arena in Las Vegas.

Check out Luque’s big win over Woodley in the video above.

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For more on the card, visit MMA Junkie’s event hub for UFC 310.

Golf instruction: Quick tips to combat golfing in cold weather

Taking time off of golf due to the winter season is every players worst nightmare.

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Taking time off of golf due to the winter season is every player’s worst nightmare.

This week, Golfweek’s fitness guru and long driver Averee Dovsek explains a few tips on how to combat the cold weather so you can keep your golf game sharp this winter.

Some of these tips may seem obvious, but as temperatures drop everyone could use a reminder. Showing up to the course prepared will make your round go much smoother and scores will be ready to drop.

If you’re interested in any of Averee’s fitness content, click here.

If you’re looking for more instruction, click here

UFC free fight: Aljamain Sterling wins third title defense in narrow split vs. Henry Cejudo

Watch Aljamain Sterling pick up his third UFC bantamweight title defense by earning a close decision over Henry Cejudo.

[autotag]Aljamain Sterling[/autotag]’s biggest win during his bantamweight title reign was arguably his victory over Henry Cejudo at UFC 288.

After stopping T.J. Dillashaw at UFC 280 to record his second title defense, Sterling would meet another former champion in Cejudo. In the headlining act of UFC 288 at Prudential Center in Newark, N.J., Sterling and Cejudo went toe-to-toe for 25 minutes, leaving the judges split in their decision.

It was a fantastic title fight with ebbs and flows, and each man left the octagon feeling as if they did enough to win the fight.

Sterling (24-4 MMA, 16-4 UFC), who now competes in the featherweight division, returns to the octagon at UFC 310. He takes on undefeated Movsar Evloev (18-0 MMA, 8-0 UFC) in an important fight with potential title implications.

UFC 310 (pay-per-view, ESPN 2, ESPN+) takes at T-Mobile Arena in Las Vegas.

Check out Sterling’s big win over Cejudo in the video above.

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For more on the card, visit MMA Junkie’s event hub for UFC 310.

Video: How can PFL improve in 2025 after challenging year?

Is Donn Davis failing in his mission to make PFL the co-leader to UFC in the MMA space? And is it too late to fix things?

The PFL schedule is nearing its conclusion for the year, with 2024 PFL Championship marking penultimate event.

It’s a significant one, too, with six new $1 million champions set to be crowned in Saudi Arabia. However, it also comes in the midst of some negative headlines for the organization, with several Bellator champions venting complaints about inactivity right around the one-year anniversary of when PFL acquired the company.

The entire situation has generated conversation about whether PFL is doing enough to be a legitimate No. 2 option to the UFC in the MMA space, or if it has come up short of co-founder Donn Davis’ mission to become a co-leader in the industry.

MMA Junkie senior reporter Mike Bohn reviewed the state of PFL and Bellator going into 2025 on his “The Bohnfire” podcast with MMA Junkie staff reporter Nolan King, and you can watch the entire conversation above.

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For more on the card, visit MMA Junkie’s event hub for 2024 PFL Championship.

Jon Anik: UFC 310 headliner Alexandre Pantoja ‘just doesn’t get his due’

Lead UFC commentator Jon Anik is pleased to see Alexandre Pantoja get another PPV main event spotlight at UFC 310.

UFC play-by-play commentator [autotag]Jon Anik[/autotag] is pleased to see flyweight champion [autotag]Alexandre Pantoja[/autotag] get another main event spotlight on the promotion’s final pay-per-view of the year.

Pantoja (28-5 MMA, 12-3 UFC) will attempt to make a third consecutive defense of his title when he takes on Kai Asakura (21-4 MMA, 0-0 UFC) in the UFC 310 headliner on Dec. 7 at T-Mobile Arena in Las Vegas (ESPN+ pay-per-view, ESPN2, ESPNews).

Pantoja vs. Asakura wasn’t originally slated to top the lineup, but when welterweight champ Belal Muhammad withdrew from his fight against Shavkat Rakhmonov due to a health issue, the matchup was elevated.

For Anik, it’s a deserved and rightful position as he views Pantoja as one of the very best in the sport.

“How do you have (the pound-for-pound conversation) without this guy? What type of human weapon is actually going to be able to put Alexandre Pantoja away?” Anik told MMA Junkie Radio. “You think about all the wars he’s been in, to have never been finished and to have never really come that close to being finishes, there is so many things to be impressed about with this man. The world ethic, the coach ability. The ability to go to that place that people like me can’t go to, athletically or otherwise. The ability to dig deep when your cardiovascular base isn’t there. I think that’s what really sets him apart. Yeah, sure, he’s got every skill. He’s got finishing ability, but I just think it’s that mental toughness that allows him to go to that place when maybe his body fails him, is maybe what sets him apart.”

Pantoja, No. 10 in the latest USA TODAY Sports/MMA Junkie pound-for-pound rankings and No. 1 at flyweight, will be tasked at UFC 310 with welcoming former RIZIN FF champion Asakura to the promotion.

Anik said he thinks highly of Asakura, but he struggles to overlook the greatness of Pantoja heading into fight night.

“Very excited to see Kai Asakura live for the first time – electric fighter,” Anik said. “I just think that Pantoja is the absolute man. He just doesn’t get his due.”

For more on the card, visit MMA Junkie’s event hub for UFC 310.

Dan Hardy: Francis Ngannou ‘way more dangerous’ in MMA than boxing

Dan Hardy wants to see Francis Ngannou focus on MMA.

[autotag]Dan Hardy[/autotag] wants to see [autotag]Francis Ngannou[/autotag] focus on MMA.

Ngannou (18-3) claimed the inaugural superfight heavyweight title by knocking out Renan Ferreira (13-4) in the first round of the PFL: Battle of the Giants main event in October.

“The Predator” is still seeking mega fights in boxing, but Hardy thinks he’s better off in the cage. He sees the winner of Friday’s heavyweight tournament final between Denis Goltsov (35-8) and Oleg Popov (19-1) at the 2024 PFL Championships being his potential next opponent.

“I think it makes the most sense to me,” Hardy told MMA Junkie Radio. “You’ve got two guys here – two impressive Russian fighters that are both at different ends of their career. Goltsov has tried this path several times. He’s not been successful, but you can’t deny that he’s got the skills to beat everybody in the division – it’s just a case of him doing it successively on the way to $1 million. He’s probably got the best jab in the heavyweight division right now, and I feel like that could be a real problem for Popov in this fight.

“But, I also expect Popov to be durable physically and mentally. Fedor (Emelianenko) in his corner, he’s going to be telling him to get his head off the center line and come over the top and around the sides and keep working his wrestling game. Popov is on the longest win streak in the heavyweight division right now – 18 fights, 19 fights. If he’s able to come through this and beat Goltsov, that’s a clear contender in my opinion because of the impressive streak that he’s on as well as the fact that he will have just won the world championship for this year. It’s the one that makes the most sense.

“I think there are other options out there, but whatever Ngannou does, I would rather him do it in mixed martial arts because I think we see the best of him. He’s more free and just way more dangerous in mixed martial arts.”

Ngannou has laced up the boxing gloves twice. He knocked down Tyson Fury and pushed him to the limit in a controversial decision loss in October 2023. However, his second appearance was finished by Anthony Joshua in a Round 2 knockout loss in March.

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For more on the card, visit MMA Junkie’s event hub for 2024 PFL Championship.

Alexandre Pantoja responds to Kai Asakura claiming UFC prefers him to lose

UFC flyweight champion Alexandre Pantoja is excited to defend his title against Kai Asakura.

UFC flyweight champion [autotag]Alexandre Pantoja[/autotag] is excited to defend his title against [autotag]Kai Asakura[/autotag].

Pantoja (28-5 MMA, 12-3 UFC) defends his 125-pound belt against former RIZIN bantamweight champ Asakura (21-4 MMA, 0-0 UFC) in the UFC 310 headliner on Dec. 7 at T-Mobile Arena in Las Vegas (ESPN+ pay-per-view, ESPN2, ESPN+).

Asakura told MMA Junkie that him dethroning Pantoja would be good business for the UFC, and if Asakura is as big of a star as he’s implying, the Brazilian sees that as beneficial for him.

“I think it’s good if he’s right because for me, it’s going to be better,” Pantoja told MMA Junkie in an interview facilitated by Stake.com. “I see he fights very well, very good entertainment for everyone, but in this high level in the UFC, it’s so hard – especially in my division. The flyweight division, the guys are so good in the cardio, striking, grappling. We don’t stop any second. It’s so hard, that division.

“He fought very good names. He fought Kyoji Horiguchi, he fought Manel Kape – (he’s fought) with very good guys. He fought Ulka Sasaki – I fought that guy, too, before … (Hiromasa) Ougikubo. He fought very good names, but in the UFC, I think it’s different.”

Michael Bisping expressed concern on whether Asakura will be able to adapt to the UFC’s cage after competing in the RIZIN ring, but Pantoja expects the Japanese star to shine bright under the big lights.

“I think for him, it’s motivation to go to the UFC and have everything like that,” Pantoja said. “(It’s) a huge motivation for him because he’s a big star. He knows how to be a star in Japan. Now he has an opportunity to be a big star in the world, and this makes me more excited to have the opportunity to fight a guy like him.”

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For more on the card, visit MMA Junkie’s event hub for UFC 310.

2024 PFL Championships faceoff highlights video, photo gallery from Saudi Arabia

The 2024 PFL finals take place Friday in Saudi Arabia. Thursday, the fighters faced off one final time.

The 2024 PFL finals take place Friday in Saudi Arabia, and Thursday, the fighters had one last chance to size each other up with $1 million on the line.

After the ceremonial weigh-ins, the fighters competing for this season’s six $1 million final prizes came face to face for staredowns. Check out the highlights in the video above and a photo gallery from the ceremonial weigh-ins below.

The 2024 PFL Championship (ESPN+) event takes place Friday at King Saud University Stadium in Riyadh, Saudi Arabia.

For more on the card, visit MMA Junkie’s event hub for 2024 PFL Championships.

Video replay: 2024 PFL Championship ceremonial weigh-ins

2024 PFL Championship ceremonial weigh-ins take place Thursday and fighters from the six $1 million title fights will have a final faceoff.

2024 PFL Championship ceremonial fighter weigh-ins take place Thursday, and you can catch a live video stream of the proceedings here on MMA Junkie at 10 a.m. ET (7 a.m. PT).

The weigh-ins take place in Riyadh, Saudi Arabia, where Friday’s event goes down from King Saud University Stadium (ESPN+). The event marks the conclusion of the 2024 PFL season, with six new $1 million champions set to be crowned.

Check out the video stream above to see the final staredowns for 2024 PFL Championship at ceremonial weigh-ins.

For more on the card, visit MMA Junkie’s event hub for 2024 PFL Championship.