Sports blog information from USA TODAY.
Check out all the facts from UFC Fight Night 236, which saw Rodolfo Vieira become the all-time octagon leader in arm-triangle choke wins.
The UFC’s lengthy stretch of events rolled on Saturday with UFC Fight Night 236 at the UFC Apex in Las Vegas.
[autotag]Jack Hermansson[/autotag] (24-8 MMA, 11-6 UFC) emerged victorious in the main event when he scored an upset of [autotag]Joe Pyfer[/autotag] (12-3 MMA, 3-1 UFC) by unanimous decision in their middleweight bout.
For more on the numbers from the headliner, as well as the rest of the card, check below for MMA Junkie’s post-event facts from UFC Fight Night 236.
UFC Fight Night 236 fighters took home UFC Promotional Guidelines Compliance pay, a program that continued after the UFC’s deal with Venum.
LAS VEGAS – Fighters from Saturday’s UFC Fight Night 236 event took home UFC Promotional Guidelines Compliance pay totaling $236,500.
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 Fight Night 236 took place at the UFC Apex. The entire card streamed on ESPN+.
The full UFC Fight Night 236 UFC Promotional Guidelines Compliance payouts included:
* * * *
[autotag]Jack Hermansson[/autotag]: $16,000
def. [autotag]Joe Pyfer[/autotag]: $4,500
[autotag]Dan Ige[/autotag]: $16,000
def. [autotag]Andre Fili[/autotag]: $21,000
[autotag]Robert Bryczek[/autotag]: $4,000
[autotag]Ihor Potieria[/autotag]: $4,500
[autotag]Gregory Rodrigues[/autotag]: $6,000
def. [autotag]Brad Tavares[/autotag]: $21,000
[autotag]Michael Johnson[/autotag]: $21,000
def. [autotag]Darrius Flowers[/autotag]: $4,000
[autotag]Rodolfo Vieira[/autotag]: $6,000
def. [autotag]Armen Petrosyan[/autotag]: $4,500
[autotag]Carlos Prates[/autotag]: $4,000
def. [autotag]Trevin Giles[/autotag]: $11,000
[autotag]Bolaji Oki[/autotag]: $4,000
def. [autotag]Tim Cuamba[/autotag]: $6,000
[autotag]Loma Lookboonmee[/autotag]: $6,000
def. [autotag]Bruna Brasil[/autotag]: $4,000
[autotag]Marcin Prachnio[/autotag]: $6,000
def. [autotag]Devin Clark[/autotag]: $16,000
[autotag]Max Griffin[/autotag]: $16,000
def. [autotag]Jeremiah Wells[/autotag]: $6,000
[autotag]Bogdan Guskov[/autotag]: $4,000
def. [autotag]Zac Pauga[/autotag]: $4,500
[autotag]Hyder Amil[/autotag]: $4,000
def. [autotag]Fernie Garcia[/autotag]: $4,500
[autotag]Daniel Marcos[/autotag]: $4,000
vs. [autotag]Aori Qileng[/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 2361 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 $42,000 while title challengers get $32,000.
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 2024 UFC Promotional Guidelines Compliance payouts:
Year-to-date total: $850,000
2023 total: $8,188,000
2022 total: $8,351,500
2021 total: $6,167,500
Program-to-date total: $23,557,000
For more on the card, visit MMA Junkie’s event hub for UFC Fight Night 236.
Darrius Flowers’ UFC debut was nothing like how he wanted it to be. Now he has some redemption on the mind – and some other drama, too.
[autotag]Darrius Flowers[/autotag]’ UFC debut was nothing like how he wanted it to be. Now he has some redemption on the mind.
Flowers won his way into the UFC with a 73-second slam TKO win on Dana White’s Contender Series in August 2022. He didn’t make his UFC debut until nearly a year later, though, and when he did, he found out the hard way about fighting at elevation.
At UFC 291 in Salt Lake City, Flowers said he went through altitude sickness that adversely affected him and contributed to his second-round submission loss to Jake Matthews. Of course, it didn’t help matters that he was itching to get in the cage, so moved up from his natural lightweight home to welterweight for the shot against Matthews.
“Obviously, I didn’t win, but I wouldn’t say that I was disappointed or it didn’t go how I would have liked it,” Flowers said at Wednesday’s media day for UFC Fight Night 236. “The fight was still a good fight. The worst part about that fight was the elevation, but I’ve learned from that. I moved to Vegas in October so I won’t have to deal with the altitude sickness that I went through for a week.”
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That may be an indicator of the level of seriousness Flowers (12-6-1 MMA, 0-1 UFC) is ready to apply to his fighting career ahead of his bout against longtime UFC lightweight Michael Johnson (21-19 MMA, 13-15 UFC). They meet on the UFC Fight Night 236 (ESPN+) main card Saturday at the UFC Apex in Las Vegas.
The Las Vegas altitude is only about half that of Salt Lake City, but it certainly is better than no altitude at all for conditioning fighter lungs.
“I’m going to be 30. I’m starting to run into realities now, that I can’t keep doing the same thing I was doing at 22 (now that I’m) 29? Now I’m getting older and realizing that sh*t is real out here. The biggest change (from the move) is just consistency. … Now I’m consistent and I don’t get tired. I can go 50 rounds. I’m very content with the move.”
But if things get a little bizarre at his face-off with Johnson on Friday, don’t be surprised. Flowers said the two had been cordial for years – to the point of even having MMA business-related reasons to hit each other up. But after Flowers signed to fight him, he said Johnson quickly blocked him.
And that’s fine with Flowers, but don’t expect him to be giving out any lowercase flowers to an opponent who throws up the ol’ social media block.
“I know Michael Johnson. We’ve hung out,” Flowers said. “… He’s called my phone numerous times, just for fight business because I was promoting shows and vice versa. And I’ll call his phone to see, ‘Hey, do you have anybody you know?’ We just kept in contact over the years. I even asked him to f*cking say, like five-six years ago, ‘Yo, could you say something to (Sean) Shelby for me?’ He’s like, ‘Bro, I’ve got you. I see Shelby.’ And then he goes and blocks me. We were cool. We had no problems. I looked up to the guy – been talking to him since like beginning of my pro career. Everything was fine. Then I f*cking went to his page …”
Flowers implied the optics, career-wise, might make it seem like Johnson should have reason to take some liberties. But whatever the reason for Johnson’s block, Flowers said some things can’t be undone.
“He’s making his 28th (UFC) walk. I’m making my second. I would think he would have a better relationship than somebody else,” Flowers said. “We didn’t have a real relationship. We were just cordial and knew each other and respectful. … It’s just business for me. I’m not trying to bring the drama into it. I’m just telling it like it is. He’s a cool guy. He just blocked me for no reason. It’s weird.
“You don’t go back from there. It’s not like after the fight, you’re going to unblock me and we’re cool again. No, we’re not cool anymore, bro. It’s, ‘F*ck you’ now, at the end of the day.”
Check out Flowers’ full media day interview in the video above.
For more on the card, visit MMA Junkie’s event hub for UFC Fight Night 236.
The best facts to come out of UFC 291, which saw Justin Gaethje add to his bonus run and Derrick Lewis retake the octagon knockout record.
UFC 291 arguably was the event of the year on paper coming in, and the fights lived up to the hype with nine finishes in 11 bouts at Delta Center in Salt Lake City.
The main event delivered perhaps the best knockout of the year so far when [autotag]Justin Gaethje[/autotag] (25-4 MMA, 8-4 UFC) got revenge on [autotag]Dustin Poirier[/autotag] (29-8 MMA, 21-7 UFC) in their lightweight “BMF” title rematch courtesy of a brutal second-round head kick finish.
A number of historic feats occurred throughout the lineup. For more on the numbers, check below for MMA Junkie’s post-event facts from UFC 291.
Fighters from Saturday’s UFC 291 took home UFC Promotional Guidelines Compliance pay totaling $271,500.
SALT LAKE CITY – Fighters from Saturday’s UFC 291 event took home UFC Promotional Guidelines Compliance pay totaling $271,500.
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 291 took place at Delta Center. The main card aired on pay-per-view following prelims on ABC, ESPN and ESPN+.
The full UFC 291 UFC Promotional Guidelines Compliance payouts included:
* * * *
[autotag]Justin Gaethje[/autotag]: $32,000
def. [autotag]Dustin Poirier[/autotag]: $32,000
[autotag]Alex Pereira[/autotag]: $6,000
def. [autotag]Jan Blachowicz[/autotag]: $16,000
[autotag]Derrick Lewis[/autotag]: $21,000
def. [autotag]Marcos Rogerio de Lima[/autotag]: $16,000
[autotag]Bobby Green[/autotag]: $21,000
def. [autotag]Tony Ferguson[/autotag]: $21,000
[autotag]Kevin Holland[/autotag]: $16,000
def. [autotag]Michael Chiesa[/autotag]: $16,000
[autotag]Gabriel Bonfim[/autotag]: $4,000
def. [autotag]Trevin Giles[/autotag]: $11,000
[autotag]CJ Vergara[/autotag]: $4,500
def. [autotag]Vinicius Salvador[/autotag]: $4,000
[autotag]Roman Kopylov[/autotag]: $4,500
def. [autotag]Claudio Ribeiro[/autotag]: $4,000
[autotag]Jake Matthews[/autotag]: $16,000
def. [autotag]Darrius Flowers[/autotag]: $4,000
[autotag]Uros Medic[/autotag]: $4,500
def. [autotag]Matthew Semelsberger[/autotag]: $6,000
[autotag]Miranda Maverick[/autotag]: $6,000
def. [autotag]Priscila Cachoeira[/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 $42,000 while title challengers get $32,000.
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 2023 UFC Promotional Guidelines Compliance payouts:
Year-to-date total: $5,051,500
2022 total: $8,351,500
2021 total: $6,167,500
Program-to-date total: $19,640,500
For more on the card, visit MMA Junkie’s event hub for UFC 291.
Jake Matthews landed a controversial low kick that folded Darrius Flowers, but ended up winning by submission on the prelims of UFC 291.
[autotag]Jake Matthews[/autotag] returned to the win column in impressive fashion, but the victory was not without some drama.
On the prelims of UFC 291 at Delta Center in Salt Lake City, Matthews (19-6 MMA, 12-6 UFC) was engaged in a hotly contested battle with Darrius Flowers (12-6-1 MMA, 0-1 UFC), who made his debut on short notice. After a controversial kick landed in the second round, Matthews ended up submitting Flowers at 2:37.
In the opening moments of Round 2, Matthews landed a front kick just above Flowers’ shorts that folded him to the canvas. The top of Matthews’ foot appeared to land clean, but the bottom half also appeared to make contact below the belt line. That’s the story Flowers told to the referee who treated the kick as a low blow.
UFC commentators Joe Rogan and Daniel Cormier believed the kick should have been legal considering where the foot first made contact. Regardless of the legality of the strike, the fight continued after Flowers was given a few minutes of time to recover. Ultimately, the contentious moment would not matter for the outcome of the fight.
Soon after the fight resumed, Matthews took top position on the canvas, transitioned to full mount, and submitted Flowers with a rear-naked choke.
THE CELTIC KID GETS THE TAP! @JakeMatthewsUFC secures the submission over Flowers in Round 2! #UFC291 pic.twitter.com/dcf9eMaQoe
— UFC (@ufc) July 30, 2023
During his post-fight interview, Matthews acknowledged the front kick he landed was lower than what he typical aims for, but had to go with how the referee ruled the strike.
The win marked a return to the win column for Matthews, who competed in his first bout of 2023 after a pair of prior cancellations. On the other side, Flowers, who made his debut on short notice, sees his four-fight win streak come to an end.
The up-to-the-minute UFC 291 results include:
For more on the card, visit MMA Junkie’s event hub for UFC 291.
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Check out the best photos from Jake Matthews’ second-round submission win over Darrius Flowers at UFC 291.
Check out the best photos from [autotag]Jake Matthews[/autotag]’ second-round submission win over [autotag]Darrius Flowers[/autotag] at UFC 291 at Delta Center in Salt Lake City. (Photos by Jeffrey Swinger, USA TODAY Sports)
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 a promotion from July 17-23
UFC fighters Kyler Phillips and Darrius Flowers each were suspended six months and fined after drug tests flagged for ostarine.
Two members of the UFC roster who tested positive for the banned substance ostarine have been suspended.
At a monthly Nevada Athletic Commission meeting Wednesday, the commission suspended featherweight [autotag]Kyler Phillips[/autotag] and lightweight [autotag]Darrius Flowers[/autotag] and fined them each $407.50 for legal fees.
The U.S. Anti-Doping Agency, which runs the UFC’s drug-testing program, defines ostarine as “the trademarked name for a Selective Androgen Receptor Modulator (SARM) that is not approved for human use or consumption in the U.S., or in any other country.”
Ostarine is prohibited by the NAC and USADA. Almost two dozen fighters have tested positive for ostarine since USADA and the UFC partnered in 2015, including Sean O’Malley and Amanda Ribas. Many of these athletes had suspensions reduced after it was confirmed that contaminated supplements were to blame.
Lance Spaude, of Iridium Sports, the agency which represents both Phillips and Flowers pointed to this in a statement Wednesday to MMA Junkie and called for change in “outdated” policy.
“Both Kyler and Darrius are unfortunate victims of an outdated policy that the Nevada commission was unable to revise. The commission understood that neither athlete intentionally took a banned substance in an effort to gain a competitive advantage but rather was likely the victim of a tainted supplement.
“However, due to existing policies no equitable relief could be granted. Simply put, if Kyler and Darrius were scheduled to compete in any state other than Nevada no suspension would have occurred. The amount of oestrone was so minimal that all experts in the field agreed the only logical conclusion was an accidental ingestion by a tainted supplement or food substance. Moreover, the single positive test was preceded and followed by two completely negative tests. The evidence is clear that Kyler and Darrius had no intention to cheat or gain an unfair advantage. Both are looking forward to getting back to competition as soon as possible.
“The only benefit of this unfortunate situation is that the commission is now aware of its outdated policy and is actively working with stakeholders to make long overdue changes to its policies.
Phillips (10-2 MMA, 4-1 UFC) tested positive during urinalysis of a sample collected ahead of a scheduled March 11 bout vs. Raphael Assuncao. Flowers (12-5-1 MMA, 0-0 UFC) tested positive during urinalysis of a sample collected around a scheduled Feb. 25 bout vs. Erick Gonzalez, which was expected to be his promotional debut.
Phillips most recently competed in February 2021 at UFC 271 where he finished Marcelo Rojo with an armbar. He was scheduled to fight Jack Shore in November and Assuncao in March, but both bouts were canceled.
Flowers defeated Amiran Gogoladze on Dana White’s Contender Series in 2022 to earn a UFC contract. The finish came due to an injury inflicted by a Flowers slam resemblant of a pro-wrestling tombstone piledriver.
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UFC fighters Kyler Phillips and Darrius Flowers face sanctions for failed drug tests, the Nevada Athletic Commission announced Tuesday.
Two members of the UFC roster have been suspended after they tested positive for ostarine.
At Tuesday’s monthly NAC meeting, rising UFC featherweight [autotag]Kyler Phillips[/autotag] and lightweight [autotag]Darrius Flowers[/autotag] had disciplinary hearings continued until a future date, which could be as soon as the commission’s April meeting.
The U.S. Anti-Doping Agency, which runs the UFC’s drug-testing program, defines ostarine as “the trademarked name for a Selective Androgen Receptor Modulator (SARM) that is not approved for human use or consumption in the U.S., or in any other country.”
Ostarine is prohibited by the commission and USADA. Almost two dozen fighters have tested positive for ostarine since USADA and the UFC partnered in 2015, including Sean O’Malley and Amanda Ribas. Many of these athletes had suspensions reduced due to confirmations contaminated supplements were to blame.
Lance Spaude of Iridium Sports Agency, which represents both Phillips and Flowers, told MMA Junkie on Tuesday the agency is cooperating with the commission and USADA with the hope that policy change will come.
“We are aware of the current suspensions of Mr. Phillips and Mr. Flowers,” Spaude said in a written statement. “We will refrain from getting into specifics of the cases as they are still pending. Both athletes have been cooperating with the Nevada State Athletic Commission, USADA and the UFC on this matter, and we hope to come to an equitable resolution soon that will allow these athletes to get back to competition.
“Unfortunately, Mr. Phillips and Mr. Flowers are victims of an outdated policy that fails to accurately achieve its intended goals. We want to thank the UFC and USADA in their support in this matter and to applaud director Mullen and the Nevada State Athletic Commission for their willingness to review their current policies and consider changes that are better in line with the goals of fair competition in combat sports.”
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Phillips (10-2 MMA, 4-1 UFC) tested positive during urinalysis of a sample collected ahead of a scheduled March 11 bout vs. Raphael Assuncao. Flowers (12-5-1 MMA, 0-0 UFC) tested positive during urinalysis of a sample collected around a scheduled Feb. 25 bout vs. Erick Gonzalez expected to be his promotional debut. Flowers was present in-person for Tuesday’s meeting.
Phillips most recently competed in February 2021 at UFC 271 where he finished Marcelo Rojo with an armbar. He was scheduled to fight Jack Shore in November and Assuncao in March, but both bouts were canceled.
Flowers defeated [autotag]Amiran Gogoladze[/autotag] on Dana White’s Contender Series in 2022 to earn a UFC contract. The finish came due to an injury inflicted by a Flowers slam resemblant of a pro-wrestling tombstone piledriver.
Additionally, pro MMA fighter [autotag]Adriano Capitulino[/autotag] (9-5) was handed a nine-month suspension with fines totaling $476 due to a positive drug test for tamoxifen. The positive test stemmed from a unanimous decision loss Nov. 20 vs. “TUF” alumnus [autotag]Ryder Newman[/autotag] at Tuff-N-Uff 130.
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