Sports blog information from USA TODAY.
Check out these photos from the official weigh-ins in Austin, Texas.
Check out these photos from the official weigh-ins for UFC on ESPN 37 in Austin, Texas. (Photos by Matthew Wells, MMA Junkie)
Check out the numbers behind Saturday’s UFC on ESPN 37, where Donald Cerrone can retake sole possession of most wins in UFC history.
The UFC makes its return to Austin, Texas for the first time since February 2018 on Saturday with UFC on ESPN 37, which takes place at Moody Center with a main card that airs on ESPN following prelims on ESPNNews.
A marquee featherweight matchup takes center in stage in the main event. Ranked contenders [autotag]Calvin Kattar[/autotag] (23-5 MMA, 7-3 UFC) and [autotag]Josh Emmett[/autotag] (17-2 MMA, 8-2 UFC) will meet in a clash that will help elevate the winner toward his first UFC title shot.
The co-headliner, meanwhile, will see a pair of lightweight legends face off. [autotag]Donald Cerrone[/autotag] (36-16 MMA, 23-13 UFC) and [autotag]Joe Lauzon[/autotag] (28-15 MMA, 15-12 UFC) finally get their chance to scrap after a fight-day cancellation at UFC 274 in April.
For more on the numbers behind a solid lineup, check below for MMA Junkie’s pre-event facts about UFC on ESPN 37.
Two middleweights will look to keep up their recent success.
A middleweight matchup is the first booked for a UFC event June 18.
The card, expected to be a UFC Fight Night, will feature a three-round bout between [autotag]Julian Marquez[/autotag] (9-2 MMA, 3-1 UFC) and [autotag]Wellington Turman[/autotag] (18-5 MMA, 3-3 UFC). The event does not currently have an announced location or venue.
Two people with knowledge of the booking informed MMA Junkie of the matchup Wednesday, but asked to remain anonymous since the promotion has yet to make an official announcement.
Marquez, 31, rides a two-fight winning streak into the contest including exciting submissions of Sam Alvey and Maki Pitolo. The former earned him a Fight of the Night bonus; the latter a Performance of the Night bonus. Despite his success in winning and pocketing bonuses, Marquez has faced back-to-back cancellations since as he withdrew from both bouts.
Turman, 25, finds himself in a similarly successful situation. He enters the June 18 matchup with two straight victories. After a split decision victory over Sam Alvey, Turman defeated Misha Cirkunov via second-round armbar at a Feb. 26 event. The victory marked the first finish of his UFC tenure.
[vertical-gallery id=1950877]
[vertical-gallery id=1959262]
All the UFC and Bellator fight announcements that were broken 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 from Feb. 7-13.
Next week’s UFC Fight Night 201 card suddenly has started to take a few hits to the lineup.
Next week’s UFC Fight Night 201 card suddenly has started to take a few hits to the lineup.
[autotag]Julian Marquez[/autotag] (9-2 MMA, 3-1 UFC) is out of his middleweight matchup against [autotag]Kyle Daukaus[/autotag] (10-2 MMA, 1-2 UFC). A person with knowledge of the matchup confirmed the news to MMA Junkie on Tuesday. The person requested anonymity because the UFC has not yet made a formal announcement.
In addition, [autotag]Austin Lingo[/autotag] (9-1 MMA, 2-1 UFC) is out of his featherweight fight against [autotag]Jonathan Pearce[/autotag] (11-4 MMA, 2-1 UFC). It is not yet known if Daukaus or Pearce will remain on the card against new opponents.
UFC Fight Night 201 takes place Feb. 19 at the UFC Apex in Las Vegas. The card streams on ESPN+.
Marquez has post-fight bonuses in two straight fights. He submitted Maki Pitolo and, most recently, Sam Alvey at UFC on ABC 2 in April 2021. Marquez was scheduled to face Jordan Wright at UFC Fight Night 195 this past October, but the fight was canceled when Marquez withdrew with non-COVID health issues.
Daukaus, a former CFFC middleweight champion, is coming off a no contest against Holland this past October. Originally a submission win for Daukaus, the decision was overturned after replays revealed an accidental clash of heads knocked Holland unconscious and led to the fight-ending sequence.
Daukaus was supposed to fight Holland in a rematch at UFC Fight Night 197 this past November. Holland had to pull out with an injury. Then replacement Roman Dolidze was pulled due to COVID-19 protocols. Now his fight with Marquez, which was booked shortly after the Dolidze cancellation, is off.
With the changes, the UFC Fight Night 201 lineup now includes:
Kyle Daukaus won’t get to compete this Saturday, but he already has his next fight booked.
[autotag]Kyle Daukaus[/autotag] won’t get to compete Saturday, but he already has his next fight booked.
Daukaus (10-2 MMA, 1-2 UFC), who had his UFC Fight Night 197 matchup with Roman Dolidze scrapped due to COVID-19 protocols, has verbally agreed to meet [autotag]Julian Marquez[/autotag] (9-2 MMA, 3-1 UFC) at a UFC “Fight Night” event Feb. 19, which is expected to take place at the UFC Apex in Las Vegas.
Two people with knowledge of the matchup informed MMA Junkie of the targeted booking but asked to remain anonymous since the promotion has yet to make an official announcement.
Former CFFC middleweight champion Daukaus is coming off a no contest against Kevin Holland in October. Originally called a submission win for Daukaus, the decision was overturned after the replay revealed an accidental clash of heads knocked Holland unconscious and led to the fight-ending sequence. The pair was scheduled to rematch Saturday at UFC Fight Night 197, but Holland withdrew due to injury. Dolidze replaced Holland, but the fight was removed from the card after Dolidze was forced out due to COVID-19 protocols.
Boasting a 100 percent finishing rate, Marquez has notched bonuses in two straight fights. He submitted Maki Pitolo and, most recently, Sam Alvey at UFC on ABC 2 in April. Marquez was scheduled to face Jordan Wright at UFC Fight Night 195 in October, but the fight was canceled when Marquez withdrew with non-COVID health issues.
With the addition, the Feb. 19 UFC lineup now includes:
All the UFC and Bellator fight announcements that were broken 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 from July 26-Aug. 1:
Middleweight finishers Julian Marquez and Jordan Wright will square off in the fall.
Middleweight finishers [autotag]Julian Marquez[/autotag] and [autotag]Jordan Wright[/autotag] will square off in the fall.
Marquez (9-2 MMA, 3-1 UFC) faces Wright (12-1 MMA, 2-1 UFC) at UFC Fight Night on Oct. 16 at an event that does not have a location or venue announced.
Two people with knowledge of the matchup recently informed MMA Junkie of the booking but asked to remain anonymous since the promotion has yet to make an official announcement.
Since returning from a layoff of two-and-a-half years due to injury, Marquez has notched back-to-back bonus-winning finishes of Maki Pitolo and Sam Alvey in the span of two months. The Glory MMA fighter, who’s finished all his pro wins, will look to continue riding that momentum when he meets California’s Wright.
Wright, who also boasts a 100 percent finish rate, rebounded from a loss to Joaquin Buckley, which was the first setback of his career, with a quick TKO of Jamie Pickett at UFC 262 in May. The win over Pickett marked the 29-year-old’s 11th first round finish in 12 pro fights.
[vertical-gallery id=610843]
[listicle id=602468]
Mackenzie Dern and five others could be out up to six months due injuries sustained during Saturday’s card.
Six fighters face potentially lengthy layoffs as a result of injuries sustained in their UFC on ABC 2 bouts.
On Tuesday, MMA Junkie acquired a full list of the UFC on ABC 2 medical suspensions handed out by the Nevada Athletic Commission from MixedMartialArts.com, the Associate of Boxing Commission’s official recordkeeper.
Among those potentially suspended for 180 days is co-headliner [autotag]Arnold Allen[/autotag], who perhaps suffered a broken left hand in his victory over [autotag]Sodiq Yusuff[/autotag].
Fan favorite [autotag]Mackenzie Dern[/autotag] also could be out up to six months due to a potentially broken thumb suffered in her win against [autotag]Nina Nunes[/autotag].
[autotag]Julian Marquez[/autotag], who defeated [autotag]Sam Alvey[/autotag] by submission, will need his right hand cleared in order to avoid the mandatory 180 days off.
[lawrence-related id=602802,602677]
Also handed a six-month suspension was UFC lightweight veteran [autotag]Jim Miller[/autotag], who will need his left foot cleared after his decision loss to [autotag]Joe Solecki[/autotag].
Both [autotag]John Makdessi[/autotag] (face and foot) and [autotag]Ignacio Bahamondes[/autotag] (nose and hand) received six-month suspensions for multiple potential injuries sustained in their back-and-forth preliminary card war.
The card was headlined by middleweights [autotag]Marvin Vettori[/autotag] and [autotag]Kevin Holland[/autotag], who received matching 21-day suspensions for facial lacerations.
[mm-video type=playlist id=01eqvpne7c1q486dvv player_id=none image=https://mmajunkie.usatoday.com/wp-content/plugins/mm-video/images/playlist-icon.png]
The title of “baddest man in Kansas City” will be determined by a pickleball match.
Kansas City native and UFC middleweight MMA fighter Julian Marquez has challenged a trio of Kansas City Chiefs players in the strangest of ways.
After taking down Sam Alvey in the second round of their match in UFC’s Fight Night event in Las Vegas, Nevada on Saturday, Marquez issued a post-fight challenge. He wasn’t calling out another UFC fighter, though. Instead, he issued his challenge to Patrick Mahomes, Travis Kelce and Tyreek Hill.
No, he’s not asking them to get into the Octagon for a fight with him. Marquez wants the Chiefs’ star players to face off with him in a Pickleball match to determine who the “baddest man in Kansas City” truly is.
Check it out:
You heard the man.@JMarquezMMA wants @tkelce, @PatrickMahomes, @cheetah in badminton or pickleball 😅 #UFCVegas23 pic.twitter.com/uHckuS7hgi
— ESPN MMA (@espnmma) April 10, 2021
“Now I have a call out to give to everyone from Kansas City. This is the thing, you guys know, I’m the baddest man from Kansas City, the baddest middleweight in Missouri,” Marquez said. “And this is one thing, this is my time right now, so Travis Kelce, Patrick Mahomes, Tyreek Hill, I challenge you guys to a badminton or pickleball competition. Straight up. If you guys want to see me, as the pound-for-pound champions from Kansas City, you’re coming after me. This magnificent beard tops all of what you guys have to bring.”
I think Kelce might have something to say about that last bit about the magnificent beard.
Never backing down from competition, the trio of Chiefs stars eagerly accepted the challenge from Marquez. Though, Mahomes noted he still needs a few weeks to recover from the surgery he had to repair his turf toe injury.
Once again, Julian Marquez's unconventional post-fight callout hit the mark 🎯
This time, he's got himself a pickleball battle with three of the NFL's best 😂 pic.twitter.com/m9bwbvNmvP
— ESPN MMA (@espnmma) April 10, 2021
Hopefully, Marquez and the trio of Chiefs players can set this up in the future and have it benefit a local Kansas City charity. It’s probably for the best not to get our hopes up, though. Knowing how things typically go with offseason sports activities, Brett Veach will shut this down quicker than a pickup basketball game at the local YMCA.
[listicle id=90927]
