Josh Emmett – Syndication Server

Josh Emmett won’t give up on UFC title run, wants Ilia Topuria rematch ‘more than anything’

Josh Emmett wants to work his way to a position where he can run things back with Ilia Topuria.

LAS VEGAS – UFC featherweight contender [autotag]Josh Emmett[/autotag] hit the reset button on his career and is now ready to get going again.

After taking a year away from fighting, Emmett is ready to pick up the gloves once again and start building toward title contention. Emmett, who was last seen in action in December 2023 when he viciously knocked out Bryce Mitchell, is itching to get back in the octagon and hopes to fight again in the beginning of 2025.

“It’s a question everyone has been asking me, but over the last handful of years I have not been my best, and this year I took the whole year off to get back to 100 percent,” Emmett told MMA Junkie when asked about his inactivity. “I feel like I owe it to my family, friends and coaches. I’m 100 percent now, so I want to make a run at that title, and I’m excited to get back in there. I’m feeling great, and I can’t wait for people to see me perform in (first quarter) of next year.”

Emmett, 39, didn’t specify, but said he’d been dealing with injuries that have now been addressed. These physical issues made it hard for him to compete at his full potential.

“In the last few years, I’ve been a fraction of myself, but you get these opportunities, and you have to take them, and here we are,” Emmett said. “2025 is right around the corner and everyone will see the progression that I’ve made in this year lay off.”

There’s no particular opponent ideal for his return, but Emmett does want a fight that’s meaningful in the rankings. He’s determined to make another title run and get his rematch against now UFC featherweight champion [autotag]Ilia Topuria[/autotag].

“If it’s my choice, I’m going Ilia rematch, but it doesn’t work that way,” Emmett said. “So whoever is going to get me closer to that rematch with Topuria.”

Emmett added,

“(Topuria) is a great fighter, he’s a great champion, but I want that fight back more than anything.”

[lawrence-auto-related count=3 category=420030788]

24 fights on our 2024 MMA wish list: Francis Ngannou vs. Jon Jones (still), Conor McGregor vs. Nate Diaz 3, more

Here’s MMA Junkie’s 24-fight wishlist for the new year.

2023 didn’t disappoint in terms of great MMA action, and 2024 looks just as promising, if not more.

With 2024 underway, there’s a new year of fresh possibilities for dream matchups across the MMA landscape, from the UFC to Bellator, PFL, RIZIN FF, ONE Championship and more.

For 2023, unfortunately, only four of the 23 dream fights MMA Junkie wished for came to fruition. We’re not deterred, however, and are back with another slate of 24 matchups we aspire to see in 2024.

Below, we present MMA Junkie’s wish list of 24 fights we’d like to see in 2024.

Josh Emmett on Alexander Volkanovski vs. Ilia Topuria: ‘It’s hard for me to bet against such a dominant champion’

Josh Emmett is conflicted in his pick between UFC featherweight champion Alexander Volkanovski and Ilia Topuria.

[autotag]Josh Emmett[/autotag] is conflicted in his pick between UFC featherweight champion [autotag]Alexander Volkanovski[/autotag] and [autotag]Ilia Topuria[/autotag].

Volkanovski (26-3 MMA, 13-2 UFC) defends his title against Topuria (14-0 MMA, 6-0 UFC) in the UFC 298 headliner Feb. 17 at Honda Center in Anaheim, Calif.

Emmett (19-4 MMA, 10-4 UFC) recently suffered a lopsided decision loss to Topuria but was able to rebound with a Knockout of the Year contender against Bryce Mitchell at UFC 296. He has a hard time picking a definitive winner between Volkanovski and Topuria but sees the five-time defending champion as a safer pick.

“It’s hard for me to predict fights, but I can argue how both guys get it done,” Emmett said on the JAXXON PODCAST with Quinton “Rampage” Jackson. “Volk is one of the pound-for-pound best. He continues to improve and kind of prove people wrong, as well. It’s always like the fight, like OK, ‘He’s going to lose now.’ But then he finally got to the point where he’s earned people’s respect.

“But Ilia’s young, he’s hungry, he’s talented. I know he’s been saying a lot of stuff, like how he’s going to go out there and finish him in the first round and stuff like that. Hopefully he’s not overlooking him. I don’t think he is. I think that’s just kind of a part of his persona. I don’t know. It’s hard for me to bet against such a dominant champion.”

Emmett had his opportunity at gold when he was submitted by Yair Rodriguez for the interim featherweight title at UFC 284. Two of Volkanovski’s past three fights were for the lightweight belt, but Emmett doesn’t think he held up the division.

“I don’t at all,” Emmett said on having an issue with Volkanovski fighting at lightweight. “He was a pound-for-pound No. 1. The guy’s earned his respect. Let him do whatever the hell he wants to do. He’s bouncing back and forth. He’s super active. He’s the one that was campaigning for Yair and I to fight for the interim title.

“I have no bad taste in my mouth. He’s a good dude. Like, he’s a great, great champion, and he’s a good person, as well. When I was fighting Yair in Perth earlier this year, he brought his belt and he’s like, ‘Hey, you want to hold this? This is what you’re fighting for.’ He’s a good dude.”

[lawrence-related id=2703682,2702919,2701467,2698222]

For more on the card, visit MMA Junkie’s event hub for UFC 298.

Eyeing title contention, Josh Emmett calls out Max Holloway: ‘It’s the right fight at the right time’

Looking for a title shot, Josh Emmett wants to fight former UFC champ Max Holloway.

Go big or go home. That’s what [autotag]Josh Emmett[/autotag] is looking to do for his next career move.

Emmett, an aging, long-time contender in the UFC’s featherweight division, is looking to waste no time and go for the biggest threat in his weight class outside the champion, as he’s looking to get himself a shot at the UFC belt.

The 38-year-old Emmett wants a crack at former champion [autotag]Max Holloway[/autotag], a name few call out.

“I want to get back to that title, that’s my goal,” Emmett said on the JAXXON PODCAST. “I’m going to do whatever it takes to become a world champion, and I want to fight someone in front of me.

“In my opinion, the clearest shot to the title – and it would be the toughest fight as well – give me Max Holloway. He’s the No. 1 contender. I think it’s the right fight at the right time. That’s what I want. He was a phenomenal champion in and out of the octagon. He’s a huge name, and he’s cleared out the entire division. He’s fought everyone but me. Let’s do it.”

Emmett recently got himself back to winning ways by putting away Bryce Mitchell at last month’s UFC 296 in Las Vegas with one of the most brutal knockouts of 2023.

The victory, which earned him a $50,000 Performance of the Night bonus, snapped a two-fight skid, which included losses to Yair Rodriguez and Ilia Topuria.

It was a key win for Emmett, and one that he wasn’t going to drop.

“I don’t care who was in front of me, I was going in there to put someone away and get my hand raised and end 2023 on a high note,” Emmett said. “I had a tough year. I fought for the interim title earlier this year, then I had a tough fight (and lost to Ilia Topuria) and he’s fighting for the title. I just wanted to get back in the win column. I didn’t give a damn who was in front of me.”

[lawrence-auto-related count=3 category=420030788]

MMA Junkie’s 2023 Knockout of the Year: Israel Adesanya def. Alex Pereira

Here are the top four honorable mentions and winner of MMA Junkie’s “Knockout of the Year” award for 2023.

With another action-packed year of MMA in the books, MMA Junkie takes a look at the best knockouts from January to December. Here are the top five and winner of MMA Junkie’s “Knockout of the Year” award for 2023.

At the bottom of the post, let us know if we got it right by voting on your choice for “Knockout of the Year.”

* * * *

Honorable mentions

MMA Junkie’s Knockout of the Month for December: Josh Emmett flattens Bryce Mitchell

With another action-packed month of MMA in the books, MMA Junkie looks at the best knockouts from December 2023.

With another action-packed month of MMA in the books, MMA Junkie looks at the best knockouts from December 2023: Here are the five nominees, listed in chronological order, and winner of MMA Junkie’s Knockout of the Month award for December.

At the bottom of the post, let us know if we got it right by voting for your choice.

Nominees

Josh Emmett hopes Bryce Mitchell KO win gets him back to title contention: ‘This is going to be my last run’

Josh Emmett is not going to give up on his UFC title dreams.

LAS VEGAS – [autotag]Josh Emmett[/autotag] feels he can get back in the title race, having snapped his two-fight losing streak in devastating fashion.

This past Saturday, Emmett (19-4 MMA, 10-4 UFC) put the lights out on Bryce Mitchell (16-2 MMA, 7-2 UFC) in devastating fashion in the opening bout of the pay-per-view main card of UFC 296. Emmett connected with a brutal right hand that immediately knocked out Mitchell and needed no follow-up punches.

“It feels good,” Emmett said regarding his win at the uFC 296 post-fight press conference. “This was the first time in my career that I was on a two-fight skid. I needed to get back to the winning column. I just needed to remind people who I am. I had a tough 2023. I fought super tough opponents.

“My goal is to fight for that world title, so there’s nothing that was stopping me from fighting tonight. I didn’t care who was in front of me. There was nothing stopping me from winning.”

Earlier this year, Emmett was knocking on the door of a title shot on a five-fight winning streak with victories over names including Calvin Kattar, Dan Ige and Shane Burgos.

However, in February, he was submitted by Yair Rodriguez in a fight for the interim featherweight title and then was outpointed by top contender Ilia Topuria in June

At 38, Emmett knows there’s not a ton of time left for him. However, he does feel he has another title run in him and wants to get a big name next.

“I want to get back to the title fight,” Emmett said. “Fighting these guys behind me is high, high risk for not a lot of reward. It does nothing for me. It’s just a risky fight.

“I want to fight someone that gets me back to the title fight. This is going to be my last run at the title. I think I have a long career ahead of me, but realistically I want to make a run at that title and I want to be 100 percent all in. We’ve been working on a bunch of things, and I’m back to my roots, back to what got me to the UFC.”

[lawrence-auto-related count=3 category=420030788]

For more on the card, visit MMA Junkie’s event hub for UFC 296.

UFC 296 post-event facts: Colby Covington joins rare company with 0-3 title fight record

The best facts to come out of UFC 296, which saw Colby Covington and Tony Ferguson join exclusive and unfortunate clubs in defeat.

The UFC’s final event of the 2023 started with a bang, but ended somewhat slow as UFC 296 unfolded at T-Mobile Arena in Las Vegas.

The two championship fights to close out the calendar year saw both belts stay put. [autotag]Leon Edwards[/autotag] (21-3 MMA, 13-2 UFC) defeated [autotag]Colby Covington[/autotag] (17-4 MMA, 12-4 UFC) by unanimous decision to defend welterweight gold in the headliner, while [autotag]Alexandre Pantoja[/autotag] (27-5 MMA, 11-3 UFC) also got the nod on the scorecards over [autotag]Brandon Royval[/autotag] (15-7 MMA, 5-3 UFC) to retain flyweight gold.

For more on the numbers behind the card, check below for MMA Junkie’s post-event facts from UFC 296.

UFC 296 Promotional Guidelines Compliance pay: 2023 total closes at $8.1 million

Fighters from Saturday’s UFC 296 took home UFC Promotional Guidelines Compliance pay totaling $339,500.

LAS VEGAS – Fighters from Saturday’s UFC 296 event took home UFC Promotional Guidelines Compliance pay totaling $339,500.

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 296 took place at T-Mobile Arena. The main card aired on pay-per-view following prelims on ESPN2 and ESPN+.

The full UFC 296 UFC Promotional Guidelines Compliance payouts included:

* * * *

[autotag]Leon Edwards[/autotag]: $42,000
def. [autotag]Colby Covington[/autotag]: $32,000

[autotag]Alexandre Pantoja[/autotag]: $42,000
def. [autotag]Brandon Royval[/autotag]: $32,000

[autotag]Shavkat Rakhmonov[/autotag]: $6,000
def. [autotag]Stephen Thompson[/autotag]: $16,000

[autotag]Paddy Pimblett[/autotag]: $4,500
def. [autotag]Tony Ferguson[/autotag]: $21,000

[autotag]Josh Emmett[/autotag]: $11,000
def. [autotag]Bryce Mitchell[/autotag]: $6,000

[autotag]Alonzo Menifield[/autotag]: $11,000
def. [autotag]Dustin Jacoby[/autotag]: $11,000

[autotag]Irene Aldana[/autotag]: $11,000
def. [autotag]Karol Rosa[/autotag]: $6,000

[autotag]Cody Garbrandt[/autotag]: $11,000
def. [autotag]Brian Kelleher[/autotag]: $16,000

[autotag]Ariane Lipski[/autotag]: $11,000
def. [autotag]Casey O’Neill[/autotag]: $6,000

[autotag]Tagir Ulanbekov[/autotag]: $4,500
def. [autotag]Cody Durden[/autotag]: $6,000

[autotag]Andre Fili[/autotag]: $21,000
def. [autotag]Lucas Almeida[/autotag]: $4,000

[autotag]Shamil Gaziev[/autotag]: $4,000
def. [autotag]Martin Buday[/autotag]: $4,500

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:

“UFC 296: Edwards vs. Covington” – $339,500
“UFC Fight Night 233: Song vs. Gutierrez” – $159,500
“UFC on ESPN 52: Dariush vs. Tsarukyan” – $225,000
“UFC Fight Night 232: Allen vs. Craig” – $158,500
“UFC 295: Prochazka vs. Pereira” – $272,500
“UFC Fight Night 231: Almeida v. Lewis” – $145,000
“UFC 294: Makhachev vs. Volkanovski 2” – $237,000
“UFC Fight Night 230: Yusuff vs. Barboza” – $167,000
“UFC Fight Night 229: Dawson vs. Green” – $206,000
“UFC Fight Night 228: Fiziev vs. Gamrot” – $164,500
“Noche UFC: Grasso vs. Shevchenko 2” – $185,500
“UFC 293: Adesanya vs. Strickland” – $209,000
“UFC Fight Night 226: Gane vs. Spivac” – $128,500
“UFC Fight Night 225: Holloway vs. Korean Zombie” – $196,000
“UFC 292: Sterling vs. O’Malley” – $340,500
“UFC on ESPN 50: Luque vs. dos Anjos” – $173,000
“UFC on ESPN 50: Sandhagen vs. Font” – $170,500
“UFC 291: Poirier vs. Gaethje 2” – $271,500
“UFC Fight Night 224: Aspinall vs. Tybura” – $225,000
“UFC on ESPN 49: Holm vs. Bueno Silva” – $126,500
“UFC 290: Volkanovski vs. Rodriguez” – $319,500
“UFC on ESPN 47: Strickland vs. Magomedov” – $144,500
“UFC on ABC 5: Emmett vs. Topuria” – $174,000
“UFC on ESPN 46: Vettori vs. Cannonier” – $140,000
“UFC 289: Nunes vs. Aldana” – $236,500
“UFC on ESPN 45: Kara-France vs. Albazi” – $199,500
“UFC Fight Night 224: Dern vs. Hill” – $179,500
“UFC on ABC 4: Rozenstruik vs. Almeida” – $267,500
“UFC 288: Sterling vs. Cejudo” – $267,500
“UFC Fight Night 223: Song vs. Simon” – $144,500
“UFC Fight Night 222: Pavlovich vs. Blaydes” – $181,500
“UFC on ESPN 44: Holloway vs. Allen” – $254,500
“UFC 287: Pereira vs. Adesanya 2” – $274,500
“UFC on ESPN 43: Vera vs. Sandhagen” – $137,000
“UFC 286: Edwards vs. Usman 3” – $266,500
“UFC Fight Night 221: Yan vs. Dvalishvili” – $194,000
“UFC 285: Jones vs. Gane” – $282,500
“UFC Fight Night 220: Muniz vs. Allen” – $126,000
“UFC Fight Night 219: Andrade vs. Blanchfield” – $158,000
“UFC 284: Makhachev vs. Volkanovski” – $263,000
“UFC Fight Night 218: Lewis vs. Spivac” – $136,000
“UFC 283: Teixeira vs. Hill” – $359,500
“UFC Fight Night 217: Strickland vs. Imavov” – $137,000

Year-to-date total: $8,188,000
2022 total: $8,351,500
2021 total: $6,167,500
Program-to-date total: $22,707,000

For more on the card, visit MMA Junkie’s event hub for UFC 296.

UFC 296 video: Hear from each winner, guest fighters backstage

Check out what the UFC 296 winners and guest fighters had to say backstage at Saturday’s event in Las Vegas.

LAS VEGAS – UFC 296 took place Saturday with 12 bouts on the lineup. We’ve got you covered with backstage winner interviews from T-Mobile Arena in Las Vegas.

You can hear from all the UFC 296 winners by checking out their post-fight news conferences below.

For more on the card, visit MMA Junkie’s event hub for UFC 296.