Sports blog information from USA TODAY.
Check out these photos from Houston Alexander vs. Jeremy Smith at BKFC 43 in Omaha.
Check out these photos from Houston Alexander’s victory over Jeremy Smith at BKFC 43 at Liberty First Arena in Omaha, Neb. (Photos courtesy of Phil Lambert/BKFC)
Check out these photos from the fights at BKFC 43 in Omaha, which featured a main event between Houston Alexander and Jeremy Smith.
Check out these photos from the fights at BKFC 43, which took place at Liberty First Arena in Omaha, Neb., and featured a main event between Houston Alexander and Jeremy Smith. (Photos courtesy of Phil Lambert/BKFC)
Check out which UFC veterans impressed outside of MMA competition in 2022.
Throughout the year, we have seen a number of UFC veterans compete in other combat sports across the world.
Since MMA encompasses a variety of martial arts, it is always interesting when MMA fighters who have competed on the largest stage try their hand at a specific combat sports discipline.
From bareknuckle boxing, traditional gloved boxing, to mixed rules contests, these UFC vets turned in impressive performances outside of MMA competition.
Scroll below to see who got our attention away from the cage in 2022 with impressive wins.
Check out these photos highlighting the action at BKFC 33, where Houston Alexander defeated Joey Beltran by TKO in the main event.
Check out these photos highlighting the action at BKFC 33 from Liberty First Arena in Omaha, Neb., where [autotag]Houston Alexander[/autotag] defeated [autotag]Joey Beltran[/autotag] by TKO in the night’s main event. (Photos courtesy of Bare Knuckle FC)
Check out these photos from the BKFC 33 weigh-ins in Nebraska.
Check out these photos from the BKFC 33 weigh-ins and fighter faceoffs ahead of the event at Liberty First Arena in Omaha, Neb. (Photos courtesy of BKFC)
Check out which veterans of the UFC are in action this week.
This week, the UFC is heading back to home base at the UFC Apex for a top 15 heavyweight clash following the epic UFC 281 pay-per-view in New York.
In addition to UFC Fight Night 215, there are a number of MMA, boxing, and bareknuckle events taking place that feature familiar names that have competed under the UFC banner.
These 20 veterans of the global MMA leader are competing in MMA and boxing this week from Nov. 16-20.
Check out the names and details about their bouts below.
Upcoming event information from Tapology.
Check out these photos from BKFC Fight Night: Omaha, which took place at Liberty First Credit Union Arena in Omaha, Neb
Check out these photos from BKFC Fight Night: Omaha, which took place at Liberty First Credit Union Arena in Omaha, Neb. (Photos courtesy of Phil Lambert, BKFC)
A professional fighter since the early 2000s, Houston Alexander sees no reason why he should stop competing just yet.
Age is just a number if you ask [autotag]Houston Alexander[/autotag].
A fighter who started his professional career in the early 2000s, Alexander is still going strong at 50 years old, and in an unlikely arena at that. MMA fans who have been around since the early days will likely remember Alexander’s UFC debut against Keith Jardine in 2007. It was a vicious performance in which Alexander finished the fight in just 48 seconds.
Fast forward nearly 15 years later, and “The Assassin” is still letting his hands fly, but now without gloves.
“At 50 years old, I feel pretty good,” Alexander told MMA Junkie. “You know, you take care of your body and I think I’m just as competitive as I was when I first started. So, I’m feeling pretty good. I’m excited about the bareknuckle deal.”
Last September, Alexander made his bareknuckle debut at BKFC 21 and scored a quick knockout against Wes Combs. In just 34 seconds, Alexander floored his opponent, but he nearly ruined the moment when his MMA instincts kicked in, and went in for follow-up shots after Combs hit the canvas. Luckily, he wasn’t disqualified and walked away with his hands raised after over 45 months away from competition.
“I’ve been doing a lot of things over the years besides fighting,” Alexander said. “I was working on the foundation, my Houston Alexander foundation, I’ve been doing speaking engagements, I’ve been doing seminars – I’ve been doing a little bit of everything, man. … Throughout these couple of years, I was just doing other things other than MMA. In between all that, I was training. I was sparring with some of the young guns that are coming up, and I’ve always kept my knives sharp.”
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Staying active is one thing, but returning to compete in bareknuckle fights is another thing. Alexander has fought in a number of promotions throughout his career, including UFC and Bellator, but each time his hands were shielded with gloves.
“Fortunate for me, I’ve got all these calluses, rough skin, and all these broken bones.,” Alexander said. “My hands are already broken, but they’re broken in. … Even during pad rounds, we’ve been doing pad rounds with no gloves. So, my hands are equipped for this particular situation. Bareknuckle is something I’ve always done, and like coach says, it’s right up my alley.”
“The Assassin” plans to keep fighting as long as his body holds up and the success continues – and without having to worry about the wear and tear from grappling in MMA, he expects to last even longer. It’s not a tough conclusion for Alexander, who still spars in training often, so he might as well get paid for it.
“If I’m winning at this level, with people in my age group, why not?” Alexander questioned. “Why not continue to fight, and why not continue to do what I enjoy?”
At BKFC Fight Night: Omaha, Alexander will compete in his second professional bareknuckle about to toe the line against his opponent Jason Fish. The event takes place at Liberty First Credit Union Arena in Omaha, Neb. on Friday, May 13.
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Monday’s edition of MMA Junkie Radio with hosts “Gorgeous” George and “Goze” is here.
Monday’s edition of MMA Junkie Radio with hosts “Gorgeous” George and “Goze” is here.
On Episode 3,192, the guys react to [autotag]Conor McGregor[/autotag]’s latest outside-the-cage incident: a near-scuffle with rapper Machine Gun Kelly at the MTV Video Music Awards. Plus, they look back at the Triller Fight Club event and discuss [autotag]Vitor Belfort[/autotag], [autotag]Anderson Silva[/autotag] and [autotag]Tito Ortiz[/autotag]. They’ll also hit on Gable Steveson going to the WWE, Jason “Mayhem” Miller’s latest arrest, [autotag]Houston Alexander[/autotag] and more. Tune in!
Stream or download this and all episodes of MMA Junkie Radio over at OmnyStudio. You can also catch it on Apple Podcasts, Spotify, Stitcher, and more. A new episode of the podcast is released every Monday and Thursday.
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UFC veteran Houston Alexander almost ruined his spectacular BKFC debut knockout.
Former UFC fighter [autotag]Houston Alexander[/autotag]’s debut was almost picture-perfect.
At BKFC 21 on Friday evening, Alexander made his bare-knuckle boxing debut against Wes Combs on the main card. An MMA veteran of over 30 professional fights with impressive names on his resume, some old tendencies followed Alexander into the BKFC ring.
When the referee signaled for the bout to begin, Alexander showed a calculated approach as he looked for openings. It didn’t take long for him to identify his opportunity, because out of nowhere he landed a hard right hand to send Combs crashing to the canvas.
Woah!#BKFC21
Live on #FITE: https://t.co/3iubvfTHW1 pic.twitter.com/Ih2ArFj7ta
— FITE (@FiteTV) September 11, 2021
However, Alexander’s MMA fighting instincts kicked in at that moment and followed up with another punch as his opponent laid on the canvas staring at the ceiling.
In what should have been an act that would have resulted in a disqualification, the officials in Nebraska did not penalize Alexander for the extra punch and declared him the winner by knockout just 34 seconds into the first round.
Alexander, 49, who had not competed since December 2017, looked very sharp with his hands, but his old habits almost ruined a spectacular moment in his career.
Up-to-the-moment BKFC 21 results include:
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