Tag: Johnny Walker

Johnny Walker: ‘My errors won’t be repeated’ at UFC on ESPN+ 28

A crushing TKO loss in his last fight might’ve put things into perspective for Johnny Walker.

[autotag]Johnny Walker[/autotag] is looking to get back to his finishing ways.

Walker made a statement early in his UFC career by picking up three straight first-round knockouts over Khalil Rountree, Justin Ledet and Misha Cirkunov.

But Walker (17-4 MMA, 3-1 UFC) ran into a humbling experience last November at UFC 244 when he was stopped in the first round by Corey Anderson, putting a halt to his momentum. Now Walker will look to rebound against [autotag]Nikita Krylov[/autotag] (25-7 MMA, 7-5 UFC) on Saturday at UFC on ESPN+ 28, looking to recreate some of his magical moments in the octagon.

“It’s a very important fight for me,” Walker told MMA Junkie. “My goal is to resume my journey towards the top of the division. I’m much more focused and prepared this time. Regardless of what Nikita Krylov brings on fight night, I’ll be ready for him. If he wants to bang it out, which is his preference, that’s fine. In the end, I see my hand raised.

“I don’t care if I have to knock him out or submit him to do it. It’s going to happen in the first round. My errors won’t be repeated. Each day is a new learning experience. I’ll use that knowledge in my future fights. I’m striving for perfection.”

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Walker’s loss to Anderson was a wake-up call, and while Walker doesn’t want to make any excuses, he said he was carrying a little extra baggage going into the fight.

“That fight was a big learning experience for me,” Walker said. “My mistake was bringing personal problems into the octagon. It’s something I’ll never do again. There are some stresses during fight week – things that had been bothering me for months. I fought without any focus. I don’t want to take anything away from Corey Anderson, of course. He’s a great fighter. I’m confident I could have had a much better performance. I know I’ll keep climbing the rankings, so I expect we’ll run into each other again. Things will be very different.”

Walker made a major change ahead of his fight with Krylov, moving to the famed Tristar Gym in Montreal to working with coach Firas Zahabi and former UFC two-division champion Georges St-Pierre.

“We’ve been training with a lot of big guys with great wrestling,” Walker said. “My striking, jiu-jitsu and wrestling are all improved. I’m always looking to get better in all areas of martial arts. Anything I can already do, I want to be able to do even better. I’ll be very aggressive, and I’ll be inflicting a lot of damage. There will be no errors. My coaches are giving me a lot of attention. Plus, I have a coach helping me with the mental side.

“I want to keep climbing the rankings until I’m No. 1. I’m glad to be No. 11 in the (official UFC rankings). But I’m not about to stop. I’m going to make my country proud.”

Had he beaten Anderson, Walker could have found himself challenging UFC light heavyweight champ Jon Jones for the title. But despite the loss, the goal remains the same for the Brazilian.

And he’s willing to make the necessary changes to reach it.

“With another win, I might consider moving to Las Vegas, so I can have access to the UFC Performance Institute,” Walker said. “Everything I need is there. Plus, the cost of living isn’t too high. I will work very hard to hopefully get a title shot no later than next year. The entirety of my focus is on this. I know fighting careers are short. So I’m 100 percent dedicated and invested in becoming the best in the sport.”

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UFC on ESPN+ 28: Make your predictions for Kevin Lee vs. Charles Oliveira in Brasilia

We want your predictions for Saturday’s UFC on ESPN+ 28 event in Brasilia, Brazil, featuring Kevin Lee vs. Charles Oliveira.

We want your predictions for Saturday’s UFC on ESPN+ 28 event in Brasilia, Brazil.

Our staff picks feature includes the consensus picks from MMA Junkie readers. Simply cast your vote for each bout below, and we’ll use the official tallies that are registered by Thursday at noon ET (9 a.m. PT).

Those MMA Junkie reader consensus picks will be part of the UFC on ESPN+ 28 event staff predictions we release Friday ahead of the event. UFC on ESPN+ 28 takes place Saturday at Ginasio Nilson Nelson in Brasilia, Brazil. The card streams on ESPN+.

Make your picks for all five main card fights inside:

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UFC in 2019: A ridiculously robust look at the stats, streaks, skids and record-setters

A full recap of 2019’s most significant footnotes and milestones from the events, the fights and individual performances.

Now that the year has come to a close, and with a major assist from UFC research analyst and live statistics producers Michael Carroll, here are some of 2019’s most significant milestones from the events, the fights and individual performances.

* * * *

EVENTS

Octagon girls at UFC 238

The UFC held 42 events in 39 different cities across 15 countries and five continents.

Within those events, there were 516 fights across 13 different weight classes (including catchweight bouts).

Those 516 fights combined for a total cage time of 94:59:04.

The longest event of the year was “UFC on ESPN+ 19: Joanna vs. Waterson” in Tampa, Fla., at 2:57:27. It was the second longest in company history behind “UFC Fight Night 121: Werdum vs. Tybura” (3:04:18).

The shortest event of the year was “UFC on ESPN 3: Ngannou vs. Dos Santos” in Minneapolis at 1:38:12.

“UFC on ESPN+ 13: de Randamie vs. Ladd” featured 62 seconds of total fight time in the main and co-main event, the single-event record in company history.

At those events, the UFC drew an announced total attendance of 548,023 for a live gate total of $61,050,133.74 (Note: Live gate was not announced for 11 events; no attendance was revealed for one event).

The highest reported attended event of the year was “UFC 243: Whittaker vs. Adesanya” in Melbourne (57,127), which was the all-time company record, while the lowest attended event was “UFC on ESPN+ 20: Maia vs. Askren” in Singapore (7,155).

The highest reported income gate of the year was “UFC 244: Masvidal vs. Diaz” in New York ($6,575,996.19) while the lowest reported income gate of the year went to “UFC on ESPN+ 4: Lewis vs. Dos Santos” in Wichita, Kan. ($636,417.26).

In 2019, 168 fight-night bonuses were given out for a sum of $8.4 million.

In 2019, athletes were paid $7,370,500 in Promotional Guidelines Compliance money.

The most knockouts at a single event went to “UFC on ESPN 3: Ngannou vs. Dos Santos,” “UFC 244: Masvidal vs. Diaz” and “UFC 245: Usman vs. Covington” with seven each.

Henry Cejudo vs. Marlon Moraes

“UFC 238: Cejudo vs. Moraes” featured a total of 1,818 significant strikes landed, a new single-event record. UFC 231 held the previous high with 1,647.

The most submissions at a single event went to “UFC on ESPN 5: Covington vs. Lawler” with five.

The most fights to go to a decision at a single event went to “UFC on ESPN 4: Dos Anjos vs. Edwards” with 10.

“UFC on ESPN 4: Dos Anjos vs. Edwards” featured nine consecutive decision results, tied for the single-event UFC record.

“UFC on ESPN 4: Dos Anjos vs. Edwards” started with nine consecutive decision results, the single-event record.

“UFC on ESPN 7: Overeem vs. Rozenstruik” marked the third event in company history to feature two draws. UFC 22 and UFC 216 were the others.

Betting favorites went 319-182. Fifteen fights ended in a draw, no contest or had even odds.

Betting favorites went 22-18 in event headliners. Two fights ended in a no contest or had even odds.

“UFC on ESPN 3: Ngannou vs. Dos Santos” and “UFC on ESPN+ 22: Blachowicz vs. Jacare” had the most favorites come through victorious, with 10 each. On the flip side, seven underdogs won at three separate events.

Aspen Ladd

A total of 30 fighters officially missed weight for their respective contests. The 28 fighters in that group to compete went 10-17-1 in their respective bouts.

A total of 135 fighters made their UFC debut in 2019. Those fighters went 57-74-2 with two no contests. Debuting fighters who faced an opponent with at least one bout of UFC experience went 43-58-2 with two no contests.

A variety of circumstances caused a total of 19 UFC main event or co-main event fights to be adjusted, postponed or canceled entirely.

One entire event was canceled (UFC 233 in January in Anaheim, Calif.)

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Johnny Walker to prepare for Nikita Krylov fight at Montreal’s Tristar, hoping for very active 2020

Johnny Walker will be preparing for his upcoming fight vs. Nikita Krylov at UFC Brasilia at Tristar Gym in Montreal.

After suffering his first UFC loss, [autotag]Johnny Walker[/autotag] will be making some changes.

Walker (17-4 MMA, 3-1 UFC) is scheduled to take on [autotag]Nikita Krylov[/autotag] (25-7 MMA, 7-5 UFC) at UFC Brasilia on March 14, and will be preparing for the fight at the renowned Tristar Gym in Montreal, as he looks for another active year.

“I am doing my next camp at Tristar MMA under Firas Zahabi, so I am very excited to learn as much as possible there and get the ‘W,'” Walker told MMA Junkie. “Then, I want to ideally fight as much as possible – every month if the UFC lets me.”

After storming onto the UFC scene, picking up three straight first-round finishes – and three performance bonuses – Walker drew his sternest test to date in Corey Anderson at UFC 244 last month.

But in an unexpected outcome, Walker was the one taken out in the first round, and he was showered with criticism after the bout for his antics in and out of the cage.

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Don’t expect the wild dance moves and energy to change, though, as Walker insists that his fun character does not mean he underestimates his opponents.

“I am not disappointed, but I disagree,” Walker said of his critics. “I take everything very seriously. I am light-hearted, but I am not a guy who plays in the fights. I took Corey very seriously, as I took all my other fights.”

“Corey definitely keeps improving; all merit goes to him. He is becoming better and better as time goes by. That being said, I definitely underperformed. I had a lot of stress in my camp and in the week of the fight due to personal issues. Thankfully, it is all gone now, and I am ready to go back into focusing fully on my next opponent.”

Walker was quickly booked for his next fight in March, but he says if it were up to him, he would have fought even sooner.

“I love to fight, so I had actually asked to fight even earlier,” Walker said. “The UFC wanted me to fight in Brazil next, and I love fighting in my home country, so I took it as well.”

He takes on Krylov, who is coming off a split-decision loss to Glover Teixeira in September. Although ranked slightly below him, Walker expects an entertaining matchup against a guy who matches his incredible finish rate, having earned a stoppage in every single one of his wins.

“I am happy with the matchup,” Walker said. “Krylov is an exciting guy who has some nice fanbase, but I am not a guy to complain about matchups. I want to fight as much as possible against anyone and everyone. Nikita is a tough guy. He has a great chin and loves to strike. I am sure he has the style that I love to fight against. It’s going to be very fun.”

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Nikita Krylov vs. Johnny Walker in the works for UFC Brasilia

Johnny Walker will look to rebound from his first-round TKO loss to Corey Anderson.

A light heavyweight clash is in the works for the UFC’s March return to Brazil.

MMA Junkie today confirmed the promotion is targeting a fight between [autotag]Johnny Walker[/autotag] and [autotag]Nikita Krylov[/autotag] for March 14 on a Fight Night card at Ginasio Nilson Nelson in Brasilia.

A person with knowledge of the situation confirmed the targeted bout to MMA Junkie following an initial report by ESPN.

Walker burst into the spotlight in 2018 when he knocked out Khalil Rountree with brutal elbows in his UFC debut. Continuing to add to his highlight reel, Walker followed up that performance with quick TKO victories against Justin Ledet and Misha Cirkunov.

At UFC 244 in early November, Walker was upset by surging contender Corey Anderson. New Jersey’s Anderson finished Walker with punches just 127 seconds into the opening round. Walker still sits at No. 11 in the latest USA TODAY Sports/MMA Junkie light heavyweight rankings.

As for Krylov, the Ukrainian light heavyweight has dropped two out of his last three appearances. In September, Krylov dropped a split decision to former UFC title challenger Glover Teixeira in Vancouver. A victory over Ovince Saint Preux in April was preceded by a loss to Jan Blachowicz.

UFC Brasilia is expected to stream on ESPN+.

With the addition to the card, the UFC Brasilia lineup now includes:

  • Amanda Ribas vs. Paige VanZant
  • Antonio Carlos Junior vs. Brad Tavares
  • Nikita Krylov vs. Johnny Walker

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Johnny Walker calls out Chris Weidman for early 2020 showdown

Johnny Walker calls out former UFC middleweight champion Chris Weidman for an early 2020 showdown.

[autotag]Johnny Walker[/autotag] has called out a former UFC champion in hopes to climb back up the 205-pound ladder.

After hearing that ex-UFC middleweight champ [autotag]Chris Weidman[/autotag] is targeting a quick turnaround in the first quarter of 2020, Walker issued a challenge, stating that he, too, is looking to return around the same date.

And it didn’t take long for Weidman to respond, though he didn’t exactly accept or turn down the offer.

After a 3-0 start to his UFC tenure, running right through his opponents, Walker (17-4 MMA, 3-1 UFC) took on light heavyweight contender Corey Anderson earlier this month at UFC 244 in hopes of potentially securing a title shot. But things didn’t go his way, and Walker suffered a first-round stoppage loss, putting a halt to his run.

Meanwhile, Weidman (14-5 MMA, 10-5 UFC) got a sour welcome to the light heavyweight division, when he was stopped by Dominick Reyes in the first round of their October clash. Weidman has now lost five of his last six outings, with all five losses coming by the way of stoppage, but he insists that he still has a lot of fight left in him.

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