Tag: Jeremy Stephens

Unfortunate circumstances: 15 unforeseen injuries that ended UFC main events

Injuries are part of the game in MMA, but there’s nothing worse than one ends a marquee UFC fight.

While the term “freak injury” might not be appropriate to use when discussing a sport that is inherently dangerous, 14 UFC main events have ended in unforeseen injuries – broken legs, separated shoulders, eye pokes, etc. – that don’t typically come in the sequence of MMA combat.

Scroll below to see a chronology of UFC main events that ended in that nature.

Note: Injuries sustained on a TKO due to strikes or tapout due to a submission are not included, nor are retirements on the stool due to extended fight damage or exhaustion. Laceration-based stoppages also are not included since they come as an intentional result of the opposition’s attack.

BKFC 56 results: Jeremy Stephens cuts Jimmie Rivera with one punch, wins by doctor’s stoppage TKO

Things weren’t exactly going Jeremy Stephens’ way against Jimmie Rivera – until he changed that with one punch at BKFC 56.

Things weren’t exactly going [autotag]Jeremy Stephens[/autotag]’ way against [autotag]Jimmie Rivera[/autotag] – until he changed that with one punch.

Making his bareknuckle boxing debut, Stephens earned a doctor’s stoppage TKO over fellow former UFC standout Rivera on Saturday night at BKFC 56 in Salt Lake City. The fight was called after the third round when Rivera suffered a nasty laceration over his left eye thanks to a Stephens uppercut.

It was a disappointing end for Rivera, who was effective through two rounds as he attacked both the head and body and appeared to be the quicker fighter. But Rivera couldn’t land a power punch that could phase Stephens.

In Round 3, Stephens turned the tide once he scored a knockdown as the clinched with Rivera once he closed distance. That one shot not only dropped Rivera but cut him open.

Once the doctor got a closer look, Rivera was deemed unfit to continue with the cut.

With the loss, Rivera is now 0-1-1 in BKFC. He drew with Howard Davis in his debut last year.

[lawrence-related id=2700263]

For more on the card, visit MMA Junkie’s event hub for BKFC 56.

Video: Watch BKFC 56 ceremonial faceoffs featuring Mike Perry vs. Eddie Alvarez, more

Check out the BKFC 56 ceremonial weigh-ins and faceoffs featuring Mike Perry vs. Eddie Alvarez, Jeremy Stephens vs. Jimmie Rivera, and more.

The world’s biggest bareknuckle boxing promotion is back with one of its most high-profile events to date.

BKFC 56 takes place Saturday at Maverik Center in West Valley City, Utah as two pairs of former UFC contenders collide and three title fights take place. Friday, all of the fighters from Saturday’s card will come face-to-face one final time ahead of their bouts.

In the main event, [autotag]Mike Perry[/autotag] and [autotag]Eddie Alvarez[/autotag] chuck knuckles to determine the “King of Violence.” Also on the card, [autotag]Jimmie Rivera[/autotag] battles [autotag]Jeremy Stephens[/autotag] in a matchup between two former UFC staples.

Three title fights are on tap, too: [autotag]Bec Rawlings[/autotag] vs. [autotag]Christine Ferea[/autotag], [autotag]Kai Stewart[/autotag] vs. [autotag]Howard Davis[/autotag], and [autotag]Arnold Adams[/autotag] vs. [autotag]Mick Terrill[/autotag].

The full BKFC 56 lineup includes:

MAIN CARD (Pay-per-view, 9 p.m. ET)

  • Mike Perry vs. Eddie Alvarez – for “King of Violence” title
  • Champion Bec Rawlings vs. Christine Ferea – for women’s flyweight title
  • Champion Kai Stewart vs. Howard Davis – for featherweight title
  • Arnold Adams vs. Mick Terrill – for vacant heavyweight title
  • Jimmie Rivera vs. Jeremy Stephens
  • Bridger Bercier vs. Ben Moa
  • Mike Jones vs. Erick Lozano

PRELIMINARY CARD (MMA Junkie, 8 p.m. ET)

  • Ernesto Rodriguez vs. Keegan Vandermeer
  • Trevor Bradshaw vs. Troy Dennison
  • Danny Hilton vs. LJ Schulz

Video: BKFC 56 fight-week press conference faceoff highlights, with Christine Ferea and Bec Rawlings locked in

Christine Ferea and Bec Rawlings couldn’t take their eyes off each other before their rematch at BKFC 56.

The BKFC 56 fight-week news conference took place Thursday in American Fork, Utah and afterward, 12 fighters from six main-card bouts came face to face.

In the main event, former UFC standouts [autotag]Mike Perry[/autotag] and [autotag]Eddie Alvarez[/autotag] meet in a middleweight bout for the “King of Violence” title. And in the co-main event, champ [autotag]Christine Ferea[/autotag] defends her women’s flyweight title in a rematch with [autotag]Bec Rawlings[/autotag].

Two other title fights are on the main card: featherweight champ [autotag]Kai Stewart[/autotag] vs. [autotag]Howard Davis[/autotag]; and [autotag]Arnold Adams[/autotag] vs. [autotag]Mick Terrill[/autotag] for the vacant heavyweight title. Another all-UFC bout takes place, as well, between [autotag]Jeremy Stephens[/autotag] and [autotag]Jimmie Rivera[/autotag].

Check out the video above to see those 10 combatants face off ahead of their bouts.

BKFC 56, one of the promotion’s biggest cards of the year, takes place Saturday at Maverik Center in Salt Lake City. The main card airs on FITE and the BKFC App.

For more on the card, visit MMA Junkie’s event hub for BKFC 56.

Video: BKFC 56 fight-week press conference live stream

Watch the final news conference ahead of BKFC 56, which features 12 fighters, including headliners Mike Perry and Eddie Alvarez.

The BKFC 56 fight-week news conference takes place Thursday, and you can watch a live stream of the festivities right here on MMA Junkie beginning at 5 p.m. ET (2 p.m. PT).

The news conference is set to go down at Bucked Up National Headquarters in American Fork, Utah with 12 fighters and BKFC president David Feldman expected to be in attendance. Former UFC champion [autotag]Eddie Alvarez[/autotag] and former UFC standout [autotag]Mike Perry[/autotag], who headline the event, will be there, as well as co-headliners [autotag]Ben Rothwell[/autotag] and [autotag]Todd Duffee[/autotag], both former UFC heavyweights. The event also features three championship bouts and another pair of former UFC standouts throwing down, [autotag]Jeremy Stephens[/autotag] vs. [autotag]Jimmie Rivera[/autotag].

BKFC 56, one of the promotion’s biggest cards of the year, takes place Saturday at Maverik Center in Salt Lake City. The main card airs on FITE and the BKFC App.

You can watch the fight-week news conference in the video above.

[lawrence-related id=2699395,2694359,2694345,2690752,2690608]

For more on the card, visit MMA Junkie’s event hub for BKFC 56.

UFC veterans in MMA and bareknuckle boxing action Nov. 30-Dec. 2

Check out which veterans of the UFC are competing in combat sports across the globe this weekend.

This week, the UFC returns to The Lone Star State’s capitol.

UFC on ESPN 52 takes place at the Moody Center in Austin, Texas is headlined by a lightweight bout between [autotag]Beneil Dariush[/autotag] and [autotag]Arman Tsarukyan[/autotag].

Elsewhere, many other combat sports events are taking place that feature a number of familiar names that have competed under the UFC banner.

Check out which veterans of the global MMA leader are competing Nov. 30-Dec. 2.

Scroll below to see how the UFC veterans fared last week, and see the names and details of this weekend’s competitors.

Upcoming event information from Tapology.

Video: BKFC 56 pre-fight press conference live stream

Watch the BKFC 56 pre-fight press conference live, featuring Eddie Alvarez, Mike Perry and many others.

The BKFC 56 pre-fight press conference takes place Thursday, and you can watch a live stream of the event right here on MMA Junkie beginning at 4 p.m. ET (1 p.m. PT).

The event features seven UFC veterans on the main card and three title fights. Expected to participate in the press conference are main eventers, former UFC champion [autotag]Eddie Alvarez[/autotag] and [autotag]Mike Perry[/autotag]. Also, at the press conference will be co-main heavyweights [autotag]Ben Rothwell[/autotag] and [autotag]Todd Duffee[/autotag], along with BKFC president David Feldman.

BKFC 56 takes place Saturday, Dec. 2 at Maverik Center in Salt Lake City. The main card airs on FITE and the BKFC App.

[lawrence-related id=2690752,2690608]

Paul vs. Diaz medical suspensions: Jake Paul, Nate Diaz get 31 days each

The Texas commission has released a list of medical suspensions following the Jake Paul vs. Nate Diaz event in Dallas.

Paul vs. Diaz took place this past Saturday at American Airlines Center in Dallas, featuring nine boxing bouts.

In the main event, YouTuber-turned-boxer [autotag]Jake Paul[/autotag] defeated former UFC title challenger, [autotag]Nate Diaz[/autotag], by winning a unanimous decision after a hard-fought 10 rounds of action.

After the event, the Texas Department of Licensing and Regulation issued medical suspensions to all 18 fighters. MMA Junkie acquired the list from the commissioning body Monday. The list included suspension duration without specifics.

One fighter, William Silva, who was the only athlete to be stopped inside the distance with his fourth-round knockout loss to Ashton Sylve, received the longest suspension of all.

Scroll below to see the medical suspensions handed out to each fighter. Fighters may return to competition sooner than the allotted suspension if they are cleared by a doctor.

[lawrence-related id=2667715,2667492,2667520]

Jake Paul vs. Nate Diaz: Live blog, results from boxing event in Dallas

MMA Junkie is on scene and reporting live from the Jake Paul vs. Nate Diaz event in Dallas, and you can follow along here.

DALLAS – MMA Junkie is on the scene and reporting live from tonight’s boxing event headlined by [autotag]Jake Paul[/autotag] vs. [autotag]Nate Diaz[/autotag].

Former UFC superstar Diaz and YouTuber-turned-boxer Paul will meet in a 185-pound boxing grudge match after a heated build that saw both camps get into a brawl during fight week. The nine-fight card at American Airlines Center also features an undisputed featherweight title bout as champion [autotag]Amanda Serrano[/autotag] meets [autotag]Heather Hardy[/autotag] for the second time. UFC veterans [autotag]Jeremy Stephens[/autotag] and [autotag]Chris Avila[/autotag] also clash on the main card.

The event begins with preliminary bouts at 6:30 p.m. ET, and the DAZN/ESPN+ pay-per-view main card kicks off at 9 p.m. ET. Keep it locked here for up-to-the-minute results and behind-the-scenes updates throughout the evening.

For complete coverage of the card, check out MMA Junkie’s event page for Paul vs. Diaz.

Jeremy Stephens not chasing KO vs. Chris Avila: ‘I’m just looking to beat this motherf*cker’s ass all rounds’

Jeremy Stephens loves a knockout, but he hopes to punish Chris Avila throughout the fight.

DALLAS – [autotag]Jeremy Stephens[/autotag] loves a knockout, but he hopes to punish [autotag]Chris Avila[/autotag] throughout the fight.

Stephens meets Avila in an eight-round bout at 168 pounds on the card headlined by Jake Paul vs. Nate Diaz on Saturday in Dallas.

“I’m just looking to beat this motherf*cker’s ass all rounds,” Stephens said during Wednesday’s open workout scrum. “I don’t want the knockout. I want to beat him up.”

Stephens, who made his boxing debut in a majority draw vs. fellow UFC alum Jose Aldo in April, isn’t sure if boxing is the direction he’ll continue to go, but is enjoying the journey.

“I’m having a lot of fun right now. I’m enjoying it,” Stephens said. “This is an opportunity on the table for me and my family. I’m a diverse fighter. I can fight martial arts, I can fight Jeet Kune Do, boxing, you name it. I’m a prize fighter. I’m just in love with this process of boxing, and the pay, the excitement, the big eyes.

“I manifested this after I fought Aldo. I was like, ‘Man, if Jake Paul or Diaz drops out, I’m going to be that guy calling every – I don’t even know who the f*ck to call, but I’m going to be calling somebody to put me on that card.’ So, I manifested this, and here I am.”

[lawrence-related id=2665354,2665561,2665553,2665548]

For more on the matchup, visit MMA Junkie’s hub for Paul vs. Diaz.