It appears undefeated lightweight prospect Max Rohskopf is UFC-bound.
It appears undefeated lightweight prospect [autotag]Max Rohskopf[/autotag] is UFC-bound.
MMA Junkie today learned from multiple people with knowledge of the agreement that Rohskopf (5-0 MMA, 0-0 UFC) has agreed to face [autotag]Austin Hubbard[/autotag] (11-4 MMA, 1-2 UFC) at Saturday’s UFC on ESPN 11 event at UFC Apex in Las Vegas. Those people requested anonymity because the UFC has yet to make an official announcement.
Bout agreements are expected to be finalized shortly.
A Las Vegas resident, Rohskopf trains under grappling legend Robert Drysdale at Zenith Jiu-Jitsu. A former standout wrestler at North Carolina State University, Rohskopf made his professional MMA debut in February 2018 and has since kept his record unblemished through five outings, most recently with a 53-second submission win over Paulo Silva earlier this year under the Titan FC banner.
Meanwhile, Hubbard fights for the fourth time under the UFC banner, suffering decision losses to world-class grapplers Mark Madsen and Davi Ramos on either side of a decision win over Canadian lightweight Kyle Prepolec. Prior to his UFC run, Hubbard was the LFA lightweight champion.
[autotag]Joe Solecki[/autotag] won’t be fighting at UFC on ESPN 11.
In an Instagram post Saturday, Solecki (9-2 MMA, 1-0 UFC), a UFC lightweight, announced his removal from his scheduled fight June 20 against [autotag]Austin Hubbard[/autotag] at UFC Apex in Las Vegas.
Solecki, 26, did not specify the exact reason he won’t be fighting. However, Solecki indicated the reason is one that was outside of his control.
“I am beyond disappointed to announce that, due to reasons beyond my control, I have been forced to (withdraw) from next week’s fight,” Solecki wrote. “I hopped in a fight camp at the end of March to be ready for a fight when it came up and was beyond prepared for the 20th. Unfortunately, it isn’t our plans that prevail sometimes. All I can do is recover, get back in the gym as soon as I am able to, and work harder to get back in the UFC octagon as soon as possible.”
No replacement opponent has been announced for Hubbard at this time.
With Solecki out, the UFC on ESPN 11 lineup now includes:
The UFC has added a fight between Austin Hubbard and Joe Solecki for its upcoming event on June 20, expected to take place in Las Vegas.
Lightweights are the latest addition to the UFC’s June 20 schedule.
The promotion has added a fight between [autotag]Austin Hubbard[/autotag] and [autotag]Joe Solecki[/autotag] for the event later this month.
Two people with knowledge of the situation informed MMA Junkie of the booking Thursday, but asked to remain anonymous since the promotion has yet to make an official announcement.
The event is expected to take place at the UFC Apex in Las Vegas pending Nevada Athletic Commission approval at a meeting scheduled for Monday.
Hubbard (11-4 MMA, 1-2 UFC) has bookended his lone UFC win with two losses. After losing his short-notice debut to Davi Ramos, Hubbard defeated Kyle Prepolec at UFC on ESPN+ 16 this past September. In March, Hubbard lost a unanimous decision to Mark Madsen at UFC 248.
After earning a UFC contract, Solecki (9-2 MMA, 1-0 UFC) won his promotional debut this past December against Matt Wiman. In nine career wins, Solecki has seven finishes. He is currently riding a four-fight winning streak.
Israel Adesanya is one of six fighters in need of further evaluation after UFC 248.
[autotag]Israel Adesanya[/autotag] is one of six fighters in need of further evaluation after UFC 248.
The UFC middleweight champion Adesanya (19-0 MMA, 8-0 UFC), who defended his title in a unanimous decision over Yoel Romero (13-5 MMA, 9-4 UFC) in Saturday’s headliner at T-Mobile Arena in Las Vegas, needs X-rays on both of his feet before obtaining clearance to fight again.
Monday, MMA Junkie acquired a list of medical suspensions from the Nevada Athletic Commission, the body that oversaw the event.
Complete UFC 248 medical suspensions include:
* * * *
Israel Adesanya: Needs X-rays of both feet. If injury discovered, must have doctor’s clearance or no contact until April 9; minimum suspension no contact until April 29.
[autotag]Zhang Weili[/autotag]: Suspended until May 5; no contact until April 22.
[autotag]Joanna Jedrzejczyk[/autotag]: Suspended until May 5; no contact until April 22.
[autotag]Beneil Dariush[/autotag]: Needs MRI on right knee. If injury discovered, must have doctor’s clearance or no contact until April 9.
[autotag]Drakkar Klose[/autotag]: Suspended until April 22; no contact until April 7.
[autotag]Li Jingliang[/autotag]: Suspended until April 22; no contact until April 7.
[autotag]Alex Oliveira[/autotag]: Suspended until April 22; no contact until April 7.
[autotag]Max Griffin[/autotag]: Needs MRI on left shoulder. If injury discovered, must have doctor’s clearance or no contact until Sept. 4; minimum suspension with no contact until April 7.
[autotag]Sean O’Malley[/autotag]: Needs X-ray on left foot. If injury discovered, must have doctor’s clearance or no contact until Sept. 4; minimum suspension with no contact until April 7.
[autotag]Jose Quinonez[/autotag]: Suspended until April 22; no contact until April 7.
[autotag]Mark Madsen[/autotag]: Needs X-ray on left foot. If injury discovered, must have doctor’s clearance or no contact until Sept. 4; minimum suspension with no contact until April 7.
[autotag]Rodolfo Vieira[/autotag]: Suspended until April 22; no contact until April 7.
[autotag]Gerald Meerschaert[/autotag]: Needs X-ray on left ankle. If injury discovered, must have doctor’s clearance or no contact until Sept. 4; minimum suspension with no contact until April 7.
[autotag]Deron Winn[/autotag]: Suspended until April 7; no contact until March 29.
[autotag]Giga Chikadze[/autotag]: Suspended until April 22; no contact until April 7.
[autotag]Danaa Batgerel[/autotag]: Needs X-ray on right foot. If injury discovered, must have doctor’s clearance or no contact until Sept. 4; minimum suspension with no contact until April 7.
[autotag]Guido Cannetti[/autotag]: Suspended until April 22; no contact until April 7.
UFC middleweight champion Israel Adesanya was the highest earner at UFC 248, taking home more than double that of the card’s other champ.
Middleweight champion [autotag]Israel Adesanya[/autotag] was the highest earner at UFC 248, taking home more than twice as much disclosed pay as the card’s other defending champ.
Adesanya (19-0 MMA, 8-0 UFC) made $500,000 with no win bonus for his main event title defense against challenger [autotag]Yoel Romero[/autotag] (13-5 MMA, 9-4 UFC) on Saturday at T-Mobile Arena in Las Vegas. Romero made $350,000 in defeat.
The other defending champion on the card, Zhang Weili (21-1 MMA, 5-0 UFC) netted $200,000 for beating [autotag]Joanna Jedrzejczyk[/autotag] (16-4 MMA, 10-4 UFC), who got $106,000 in the memorable title contest.
The total disclosed payroll for the event was $2.086 million.
[lawrence-related id=498140,498112,498098]
Complete disclosed salaries for UFC 248:
Israel Adesanya: $500,000 (no win bonus)
def. Yoel Romero: $350,000
The figures do not include deductions for items such as insurance, licenses and taxes. Additionally, the figures do not include money paid by sponsors, including the official UFC 248 Promotional Guidelines Compliance pay. They also do not include any other “locker room” or special discretionary bonuses the UFC sometimes pays. They also do not include pay-per-view cuts that some top-level fighters receive.
For example, UFC officials handed out additional $50,000 UFC 248 fight-night bonuses to Dariush and O’Malley for “Performance of the Night,” and Weili and Jedrzejczyk for “Fight of the Night.”
In other words, the above figures are simply base salaries reported to the commission and do not reflect entire compensation packages for the event.
The best facts and figures to come out of UFC 248, which saw Israel Adesanya beat Yoel Romero in the main event.
The UFC returned to Las Vegas for the second time this year on Saturday with UFC 248, which took place at T-Mobile Arena with a main card that aired on pay-per-view following prelims on ESPN and ESPN+/UFC Fight Pass.
Two title fights sat atop the card, and neither champion was unseated. [autotag]Israel Adesanya[/autotag] (19-0 MMA, 8-0 UFC) kept ahold of his middleweight strap with a unanimous decision win over [autotag]Yoel Romero[/autotag] (13-5 MMA, 9-4 UFC) in the main event, while [autotag]Zhang Weili[/autotag] (21-1 MMA, 5-0 UFC) managed retain her strawweight title by edging out [autotag]Joanna Jedrzejczyk[/autotag] (16-4 MMA, 10-4 UFC) in a split decision.
For more on the numbers to come out of the title bouts, as well as the rest of the card, check below for 40 post-event facts from UFC 248.
Betting favorites improved to 5-2 in UFC headliners this year.
Total fight time for the 11-bout card was 2:16:14.
Main card
Israel Adesanya
Adesanya’s 19-fight winning streak is third longest among active UFC fighters behind Khabib Nurmagomedov (28) and Zhang (21).
Adesanya’s 19-fight winning streak is the longest among active UFC middleweights.
Adesanya’s eight-fight UFC winning streak at middleweight competition is the longest active streak in the division.
Romero’s three-fight losing skid is the longest of his career. He hasn’t earned a victory since February 2018.
Romero fell to 1-4 in his past five fights dating back to July 2017.
Romero has suffered all four of his UFC losses by decision.
Zhang Weili
Weili extended her winning streak to 21 fights. She hasn’t suffered a defeat since her MMA debut in November 2013.
Weili’s 21-fight winning streak is the second longest among all fighters on the UFC roster behind Nurmagomedov (28).
Weili’s five-fight UFC winning streak at strawweight is with Tatiana Suarez and Yan Xiaonan for the longest active streak in the division.
Weili and Jedrzejczyk combined for 351 significant strikes landed, the third most in UFC title-fight history. Max Holloway vs. Brian Ortega hold the record with 400 total at UFC 231.
Jedrzejczyk fell to 2-4 in her past six fights dating back to when she lost the UFC strawweight title in November 2017.
Jedrzejczyk is one of two fighters UFC history to land 100 or more significant strikes in eight separate fights. Max Holloway also accomplished the feat.
Jedrzejczyk has suffered three of her four career losses by decision.
Dariush’s (18-4-1 MMA, 12-4-1 UFC) 12 UFC lightweight victories since 2014 are the most in the division.
[autotag]Drakkar Klose[/autotag] (11-2-1 MMA, 5-2 UFC) suffered the first knockout loss of his career.
Neil Magny
[autotag]Neil Magny[/autotag]’s (22-7 MMA, 15-6 UFC) 15 victories in UFC welterweight competition are tied for third most in divisional history behind Georges St-Pierre (19) and Matt Hughes (16).
Magny’s 15 victories since 2013 in UFC competition are second most among active fighters in the company behind Donald Cerrone (17).
Magny has earned nine of his 15 UFC victories by decision.
[autotag]Li Jingliang[/autotag] (17-6 MMA, 9-4 UFC) has suffered five of his six career losses by decision.
[autotag]Alex Oliveira[/autotag] (20-8-1 MMA, 10-6 UFC) improved to 8-5 (with one no contest) in UFC welterweight competition.
[autotag]Max Griffin[/autotag] (15-8 MMA, 3-6 UFC) fell to 1-4 in his past five UFC appearances dating back to July 2018.
Griffin has suffered seven of his eight career losses by decision.
Preliminary card
Sean O’Malley
O’Malley (11-0 MMA, 3-0 UFC) has earned eight of 11 career victories by stoppage.
[autotag]Austin Hubbard[/autotag] (11-4 MMA, 1-2 UFC) has suffered three of his four career losses by decision. That includes both of his UFC defeats.
[autotag]Rodolfo Vieira[/autotag] (7-0 MMA, 2-0 UFC) has earned all seven of his career victories by stoppage. He’s finished both of his UFC wins by submission.
[autotag]Saparbek Safarov[/autotag] (9-3 MMA, 1-3 UFC) was unsuccessful in his middleweight debut.
Safarov has suffered all of his career losses by stoppage.
[autotag]Gerald Meerschaert[/autotag] (30-12 MMA, 6-4 UFC) has earned 28 of his 30 carer victories by stoppage. That includes all six of his UFC wins.
[autotag]Deron Winn[/autotag] (6-2 MMA, 1-2 UFC) has suffered consecutive losses after starting his career 6-0.
Winn suffered the first submission loss of his career.
[autotag]Giga Chikadze[/autotag] (9-2 MMA, 2-0 UFC) has earned both of his UFC victories by (split) decision.
[autotag]Guido Cannetti[/autotag] (8-5 MMA, 2-4 UFC) suffered the first knockout loss of his career.
UFC research analyst and live statistics producer Michael Carroll contributed to this story. Follow him on Twitter @MJCflipdascript.
Fighters from Saturday’s UFC 248 took home UFC Promotional Guidelines Compliance pay totaling $257,000.
LAS VEGAS – Fighters from Saturday’s UFC 248 event took home event took home UFC Promotional Guidelines Compliance pay totaling $257,000.
The program, a comprehensive plan that includes outfitting requirements, media obligations and other items under the fighter code of conduct, replaces the previous payments made under the UFC Athlete Outfitting Policy.
UFC 248 took place at T-Mobile Arena in Las Vegas. The main card aired on pay-per-view following prelims on ESPN and ESPN+/UFC Fight Pass.
The full UFC 248 UFC Promotional Guidelines Compliance payouts included:
Under the UFC Promotional Guidelines Compliance program’s payout tiers, which appropriate the money generated by Reebok’s multi-year sponsorship with the UFC, fighters are paid based on their total number of UFC bouts, as well as Zuffa-era WEC fights (January 2007 and later) and Zuffa-era Strikeforce bouts (April 2011 and later). Fighters with 1-3 bouts receive $3,500 per appearance; 4-5 bouts get $4,000; 6-10 bouts get $5,000; 11-15 bouts earn $10,000; 16-20 bouts pocket $15,000; and 21 bouts and more get $20,000. Additionally, champions earn $40,000 while title challengers get $30,000.
In addition to experience-based pay, UFC fighters will receive in perpetuity royalty payments amounting to 20-30 percent of any UFC merchandise sold that bears their likeness, according to officials.
Full 2020 UFC Promotional Guidelines Compliance payouts:
Check out all the fighter walkout songs from Saturday’s UFC 248 event.
While it takes intense training, world-class skills and maybe even a bit of luck to register a UFC win, picking the right song to accompany you to the cage is a key talent, as well.
Inside, see what the fighters from UFC 248 went with as their backing tracks in Las Vegas.
The lineup has been set for what promises to be an explosive night of action in Las Vegas.
UFC 248 will feature a championship doubleheader showcasing four elite competitors from all over the world.
Middleweight champion Israel Adesanya of New Zealand will put his title on the line against Yoel Romero, from South Florida by way of Cuba, in the main event.
The melting pot that is UFC 248 takes place March 7 at T-Mobile Arena in Las Vegas. The main card airs on pay-per-view following prelims on ESPN and UFC Fight Pass/ESPN+.
Both Adesanya (18-0 MMA, 7-0 UFC) and Zhang (20-1 MMA, 4-0 UFC) will look to remain undefeated in the UFC.
The finalized UFC 248 lineup includes:
MAIN CARD (Pay-per-view, 10 p.m. ET)
Champ Israel Adesanya vs. Yoel Romero – for middleweight title
Champ Zhang Weili vs. Joanna Jedrzejczyk – for strawweight title
[autotag]Beneil Dariush[/autotag] vs. [autotag]Drakkar Klose[/autotag]
[autotag]Li Jingliang[/autotag] vs. [autotag]Neil Magny[/autotag]
[autotag]Max Griffin[/autotag] vs. [autotag]Alex Oliveira[/autotag]
PRELIMINARY CARD (ESPN/ESPN+, 8 p.m. ET)
[autotag]Shane O’Malley[/autotag] vs. [autotag]Jose Quinonez[/autotag]
[autotag]Austin Hubbard[/autotag] vs. [autotag]Mark Madsen[/autotag]
[autotag]Saparbek Safarov[/autotag] vs. [autotag]Rodolfo Vieira[/autotag]
[autotag]Gerald Meerschaert[/autotag] vs. [autotag]Deron Winn[/autotag]
PRELIMINARY CARD (ESPN/ESPN+, 6:15 p.m. ET)
[autotag]Polyana Viana[/autotag] vs. [autotag]Emily Whitmire[/autotag]
[autotag]Jamall Emmers[/autotag] vs. [autotag]Movsar Evloev[/autotag]
[autotag]Danaa Batgerel[/autotag] vs. [autotag]Guido Cannetti[/autotag]
Olympic wrestling silver medalist Mark Madsen is set to make his second octagon appearance in March.
[autotag]Mark Madsen[/autotag] is set to make his second octagon appearance in March.
Madsen (9-0 MMA, 1-0 UFC) will take on [autotag]Austin Hubbard[/autotag] (11-3 MMA, 1-1 UFC) at UFC 248, two sources with knowledge informed MMA Junkie on Thursday. They asked to remain anonymous, as the promotion has yet to make an official announcement.
Madsen, a three-time Olympian and the 2016 silver medalist in Greco-Roman wrestling, made good in his promotional debut with a dominant first-round TKO of Danilo Belluardo at UFC on ESPN+ 18 in his home country of Denmark.
He will look to remain undefeated when he takes on Elevation Fight Team’s Hubbard. The former LFA lightweight champion rebounded from his UFC debut loss to Davi Ramos, with a unanimous decision win over Kyle Prepolec at UFC on ESPN+ 16 in September. After the fight, Hubbard was rushed to the hospital due to enormous swelling to his leg, and had to undergo surgery to relieve the pain.
UFC 248 takes place March 7 at T-Mobile Arena in Las Vegas. The main card airs on pay-per-view following prelims on ESPN and early prelims on UFC Fight Pass/ESPN+.
With the addition, the UFC 248 lineup now includes:
Champ Zhang Weili vs. Joanna Jedrzejczyk – for women’s strawweight title
