Clay Guida always wanted to be in the movie ‘300,’ but UFC 300 would be next best thing

Clay Guida would love to be a part of the promotion’s historic UFC 300 card.

AUSTIN, Texas – [autotag]Clay Guida[/autotag] would love to be a part of the promotion’s historic UFC 300 card.

One of the most long-tenured fighters on the roster, Guida (38-20 MMA, 18-17 UFC) makes his 36th octagon appearance when he takes on Joaquim Silva (12-5 MMA, 5-4 UFC) on Saturday’s UFC on ESPN 52 main card at Moody Center in Austin, Texas. The main card airs on ESPN following prelims on ESPN+.

Guida hopes to turn around in time for UFC 300, which takes place in April.

“Tell you what: The movie ‘300,’ I’ve always wanted to be part of that,” Guida told MMA Junkie and other reporters at a pre-fight news conference Wednesday. “But I think the next best thing would be fighting at UFC 300.

“We started at UFC 64. I don’t think there’s too many people that can say they’ve been through 200 pay-per-views, not to mention all of the Fight Nights, all of the TUF Finales, all the other events. That would be a milestone in our career.”

Guida, 41, isn’t planning on slowing down anytime soon. He plans to continue competing as long as his body holds up.

“Forever is a long time,” Guida laughed. “I definitely don’t want to be doing this into my 50s because there’s a lot of water out there that I’ve got to fish and a lot of places I want to visit. But we’re still staying on the gas pedal. We’re going to keep on trucking, and as long as I’m having fun and able bodied and I’m competing at the highest level, you’re going to see us in the octagon.”

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For more on the card, visit MMA Junkie’s event hub for UFC on ESPN 52.

Joaquim Silva is a Clay Guida fan, but that doesn’t mean he won’t try to put him away at UFC Austin

Joaquim Silva predicts a late finish of Clay Guida.

AUSTIN, Texas – [autotag]Joaquim Silva[/autotag] predicts a late finish of [autotag]Clay Guida[/autotag].

Silva (12-5 MMA, 5-4 UFC) meets Guida (38-20 MMA, 18-17 UFC) on Saturday’s UFC on ESPN 52 main card at Moody Center in Austin, Texas. The main card airs on ESPN following prelims on ESPN+.

“Netto BJJ” acknowledges Guida’s strength of cardio, and is honored to share the cage with the longtime UFC veteran.

“Clay Guida is a very tough guy,” Silva told MMA Junkie and other reporters at a pre-fight news conference Wednesday. “It’s very difficult to fight him because he moves a lot and uses a lot of energy to fight.

“He’s 41, he has good conditioning and it’s hard to fight him. But I’m prepared for this fight. I love this guy. I’ve watched this guy my whole life, and I’m very excited for Saturday night.”

Silva, who’s finished three of his past four octagon wins, plans on outlasting Guida and scoring the eventual finish.

“I prepared for three rounds,” Silva said. “But I think second round, I hit him and I use my condition for this fight. I think the second or the last round, I finish the fight. This is my plan.”

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For more on the card, visit MMA Junkie’s event hub for UFC on ESPN 52.

UFC on ESPN 52 pre-event facts: Deiveson Figueiredo brings record resume to new division

The best facts about UFC on ESPN 52, which features a loaded lineup with multiple former champions who own key octagon records.

The UFC travels to Austin, Texas for the fifth time in its history Saturday with UFC on ESPN 52, which takes place at Moody Center with a main card that airs on ESPN following prelims on ESPN+.

Elite lightweights will meet in the main event of the card, with [autotag]Beneil Dariush[/autotag] (22-5-1 MMA, 16-5-1 UFC) looking to start a new winning streak against the surging [autotag]Arman Tsarukyan[/autotag] (20-3 MMA, 7-2 UFC) in a five-round bout that will have significant implications on the divisional rankings.

For more on the numbers behind the headliner, as well as the rest of the card, check below for MMA Junkie’s pre-event facts about UFC on ESPN 52.

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Matchup Roundup: New UFC and Bellator fights announced in the past week (Sept. 18-24)

All the UFC and Bellator fight announcements that were first reported or confirmed by MMA Junkie in the past week.

MMA fight announcements are hard to follow. With so many outlets and channels available, it’s nearly impossible to organize.

But here at MMA Junkie, we’ve got your back.

Each week, we’ll compile all the newly surfaced fights in one spot. Every Monday, expect a feature listing everything you might have missed from the UFC or Bellator.

Here are the fight announcements that were broken or confirmed by MMA Junkie or officially announced by the promotions from Sept. 18-24.

UFC on ESPN 44 medical suspensions: Three fighters get 60 days after KO losses

The Missouri commission issued medical suspensions after UFC on ESPN 44, the longest of which went to fighters who were knocked out.

Three fighters face 60-day medical suspensions as a result of stoppage losses by strikes at UFC on ESPN 44.

The event took place this past Saturday at T-Mobile Center in Kansas City, Mo. The event was overseen by the Missouri Division of Professional Regulation, which suspended 13 of 28 fighters from the card for medical reasons after their bouts, according to a list published Wednesday by the commission.

It’s important to note fighters can return sooner than the expiration date of their medical suspension should they receive proper medical clearance from a doctor. In addition, the commission does not list reasons for medical suspensions – just durations.

Scroll below to see the full list of UFC on ESPN 44 medical suspensions.

Rafa Garcia explains why UFC on ESPN 44 win over Clay Guida ‘a little bittersweet’

Rafa Garcia says of Clay Guida that “he was one of my heroes growing up,” which made it difficult to fight him at UFC on ESPN 44.

KANSAS CITY, Mo. – [autotag]Rafa Garcia[/autotag] admits it was hard to fight [autotag]Clay Guida[/autotag] at UFC on ESPN 44.

Garcia (16-3 MMA, 4-3 UFC) swept the judges’ scorecards in a unanimous decision win over Guida (38-23 MMA, 18-17 UFC) this past Saturday at T-Mobile Center.

While it was special to fight a veteran such as Guida, Garcia has a lot of admiration for him.

“A little bittersweet,” Garcia told reporters, including MMA Junkie, backstage. “It wasn’t like my decision where I was really excited to fight someone like Clay because it’s someone I admire. I had to prepare myself mentally for three months and be like, he’s somebody you look up to – he was one of my heroes growing up.

“When I met him for the first time, I went to a grappler’s quest and a few fighters denied me and my brother a picture. I went up to Clay before he was competing and he gave us a hug, was super nice to us too. We took a picture. It was me, Cub (Swanson) and my brother, and Clay. So, just to have that mentality, going in there and having to be like, ‘I’m going to have to go in there and try to hurt this guy’ was kind of hard.”

After their fight, Guida took off his gloves and faked a retirement announcement, which had Garcia worried for a second.

“Please don’t do this to me, Clay, I told him,” Garcia said. “I was super happy and super emotional that I won, but I also was just kind of like sad because that’s someone I look up to.”

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For more on the card, visit MMA Junkie’s event hub for UFC on ESPN 44.

5 biggest takeaways from UFC on ESPN 44: Max Holloway’s perfect navigation of title purgatory

Thoughts and analysis of the biggest storylines coming out of UFC on ESPN 44, including Max Holloway’s title hopes and much more.

What mattered most at UFC on ESPN 44 in Kansas City, Mo.? Here are a few post-fight musings …

UFC on ESPN 44 post-event facts: Max Holloway joins 20-win club, sets other records

Check out the numbers from UFC on ESPN 44, where Max Holloway hit more milestones – including being the first to land 3,000 octagon strikes.

The UFC returned to Missouri after six years Saturday at UFC on ESPN 44, and the card delivered with half the fights ending by stoppage.

One of the bouts to go the distance was the main event, where former champion [autotag]Max Holloway[/autotag] (24-7 MMA, 20-7 UFC) once again displayed his greatness in ending the winning streak of [autotag]Arnold Allen[/autotag] (19-2 MMA, 10-1 UFC) with a unanimous decision. In the process, “Blessed” made more history to add to his one-of-a-kind octagon resume.

For more on the numbers to come out of the main event, as well as the rest of the card, check below for MMA Junkie’s post-event facts from UFC on ESPN 44.

Dana White: Clay Guida ‘pissed me off’ with fake retirement at UFC on ESPN 44

UFC president Dana White was not impressed with Clay Guida’s fake retirement at UFC on ESPN 44.

KANSAS CITY, Mo. – UFC president [autotag]Dana White[/autotag] was not impressed with [autotag]Clay Guida[/autotag]’s fake retirement at UFC on ESPN 44.

Following his unanimous decision loss to Rafa Garcia (16-3 MMA, 4-3 UFC) on Saturday’s card at T-Mobile Center, longtime octagon veteran Guida (38-23 MMA, 18-17 UFC) took off his gloves and was approached for an in-cage interview with Daniel Cormier.

Guida started his speech as though he was going to hang up the gloves, but then said he wasn’t done and proceeded to wish his mother a happy birthday. That did not please the UFC boss.

“That pissed me off, actually,” White told reporters, including MMA Junkie, at the UFC on ESPN 44 post-fight news conference. “That pissed me off. I like him. He’s a nice guy. But you faking your retirement so you can say f*cking happy birthday to somebody? We’re running a live event here. I was not happy about that. … Yeah, that was not good.”

Guida has been one of the longest-tenured fighters on the UFC roster dating back to his octagon debut in August 2006. “The Carpenter” ranks in the top five for most takedowns landed in promotional history.

For more on the card, visit MMA Junkie’s event hub for UFC on ESPN 44.

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UFC on ESPN 44 Promotional Guidelines Compliance pay: Four fighters get max non-title payout

UFC on ESPN 44 fighters took home UFC Promotional Guidelines Compliance pay, a program that continued after the UFC’s deal with Venum.

KANSAS CITY, Mo. – Fighters from Saturday’s UFC on ESPN 44 event took home UFC Promotional Guidelines Compliance pay totaling $254,500.

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 on ESPN 44 took place at T-Mobile Center. The card aired on ESPN and streamed on ESPN+.

The full UFC on ESPN 44 UFC Promotional Guidelines Compliance payouts included:

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[autotag]Max Holloway[/autotag]: $21,000
def. [autotag]Arnold Allen[/autotag]: $11,000

[autotag]Edson Barboza[/autotag]: $21,000
def. [autotag]Billy Quarantillo[/autotag]: $6,000

[autotag]Azamat Murzakanov[/autotag]: $4,000
def. [autotag]Dustin Jacoby[/autotag]: $11,000

[autotag]Ion Cutelaba[/autotag]: $11,000
def. [autotag]Tanner Boser[/autotag]: $6,000

[autotag]Pedro Munhoz[/autotag]: $16,000
def. [autotag]Chris Gutierrez[/autotag]: $6,000

[autotag]Rafa Garcia[/autotag]: $6,000
def. [autotag]Clay Guida[/autotag]: $21,000

[autotag]Bill Algeo[/autotag]: $6,000
def. [autotag]T.J. Brown[/autotag]: $6,000

[autotag]Brandon Royval[/autotag]: $6,000
def. [autotag]Matheus Nicolau[/autotag]: $6,000

[autotag]Zak Cummings[/autotag]: $11,000
def. [autotag]Ed Herman[/autotag]: $21,000

[autotag]Gillian Robertson[/autotag]: $11,000
def. [autotag]Piera Rodriguez[/autotag]: $4,000

[autotag]Daniel Zellhuber[/autotag]: $4,000
def. [autotag]Lando Vannata[/autotag]: $11,000

[autotag]Denise Gomes[/autotag]: $4,000
def. [autotag]Bruna Brasil[/autotag]: $4,000

[autotag]Gaston Bolanos[/autotag]: $4,000
def. [autotag]Aaron Phillips[/autotag]: $4,500

[autotag]Joselyne Edwards[/autotag]: $6,000
def. [autotag]Lucie Pudilova[/autotag]: $6,000

Under the UFC Promotional Guidelines Compliance program’s payout tiers, which appropriate the money generated by Venum’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 $4,000 per appearance; 4-5 bouts get $4,500; 6-10 bouts get $6,000; 11-15 bouts earn $11,000; 16-20 bouts pocket $16,000; and 21 bouts and more get $21,000. Additionally, champions earn $44,000 while title challengers get $44,000.

In addition to experience-based pay, UFC fighters will receive in perpetuity royalty payments amounting to 20-44 percent of any UFC merchandise sold that bears their likeness, according to officials.

Full 2023 UFC Promotional Guidelines Compliance payouts:

Year-to-date total: $2,230,000
2022 total: $8,351,500
2021 total: $6,167,500
Program-to-date total: $16,819,000

For more on the card, visit MMA Junkie’s event hub for UFC on ESPN 44.