Tag: Karl Roberson

Marvin Vettori set to face Karl Roberson at UFC on ESPN+ 31

After his UFC London fight fell through, Italian middleweight Marvin Vettori now faces Karl Roberson at UFC on ESPN+ 31 on Apr. 25.

Just one month after seeing his fight in London scratched, Italian middleweight [autotag]Marvin Vettori[/autotag] has a new assignment to prepare for.

Vettori (14-3-1 MMA, 4-2-1 UFC) will take on [autotag]Karl Roberson[/autotag] (9-2 MMA, 4-2 UFC) at UFC on ESPN+ 31 on Apr. 25. Roberson confirmed the matchup on his social media after an initial report from MMA Fighting.

Vettori was scheduled to face England’s Darren Stewart at UFC on ESPN+ 29 in London last month, but due to the escalating travel and event hosting issues during the COVID-19 pandemic, the event was postponed and Vettori’s fight was scrapped. Stewart went on to face Poland’s Bartosz Fabinski at Cage Warriors 113, and now Vettori has his replacement matchup.

Roberson was expected to face Makhmud Muradov at UFC 249 on Apr. 18, but Prague resident Muradov has also been unable to leave the country. The American will now push his preparation back one week and switch his focus to U.S.-based Italian Vettori, with both men looking to make it three wins in a row.

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Floyd Mayweather client Makhmud Muradov returns at UFC 249 in Brooklyn

Makhmud Muradov, the lone MMA fighter managed by boxing legend Floyd Mayweather, meets Karl Roberson at UFC 249 in April.

A middleweight bout between [autotag]Makhmud Muradov[/autotag], who is the lone MMA fighter managed by boxing legend Floyd Mayweather, and [autotag]Karl Roberson[/autotag] is the latest addition to April’s UFC 249 lineup.

UFC officials on Wednesday announced the bout between Muradov (24-6 MMA, 2-0 UFC) and Roberson (9-2 MMA, 4-2 UFC).

UFC 249 takes place April 18 at Barclays Center in Brooklyn, N.Y. The main card airs on pay-per-view following prelims on ESPN and ESPN+/UFC Fight Pass.

Muradov, 30, has had a hot start to his UFC career. After winning his promotional debut with a short-notice decision win over Alessio Di Chirico, Muradov showed his capabilities with a full training camp when he scored a devastating third-round knockout of Trevor Smith at UFC on ESPN 7 in December.

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Roberson, 29, will also bring a two-fight winning streak into the contest. After starting his UFC run by alternating results over four fights, “Baby K” has put together consecutive victories against Roman Kopylov and Wellington Turman.

The latest UFC 249 card now includes:

  • Khabib Nurmagomedov vs. Tony Ferguson – for lightweight title
  • Jessica Andrade vs. Rose Namajunas
  • Uriah Hall vs. Ronaldo Souza
  • Calvin Kattar vs. Jeremy Stephens
  • Ben Rothwell vs. Gian Villante
  • Sijara Eubanks vs. Sarah Moras
  • Shamil Abdurakhimov vs. Ciryl Gane
  • Ottman Azaitar vs. Khama Worthy
  • Lyman Good vs. Belal Muhammad
  • Makhmud Muradov vs. Karl Roberson

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MMA Junkie’s ‘Submission of the Month’ for November: A Nurmagomedov loses

With another action-packed month of MMA in the books, MMA Junkie looks at the best submission from November 2019.

With another action-packed month of MMA in the books, MMA Junkie looks at the best submissions from November 2019: Here are the five nominees, listed in chronological order, and winner of MMA Junkie’s “Submission of the Month” award for November.

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

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The Nominees

Joshua Pacio def. Rene Catalan at ONE Championship 102

[autotag]Joshua Pacio[/autotag] (18-3) earned his first ONE Championship flyweight title defense when he halted streaking challenger Rene Catalan (6-3) in the second round due to a slick choke.

Pacio finished Catalan with an arm-triangle choke midway through the second round. Before that, the champion displayed dominance in wearing Catalan down with strikes and grappling until he found the opening to finish the fight by submission.

David Zawada def. Abubakar Nurmagomedov at UFC on ESPN+ 21

Despite entering his matchup against [autotag]David Zawada[/autotag] (17-5 MMA, 1-2 UFC) as a sizable favorite according to the oddsmakers, Abubakar Nurmagomedov (15-3-1 MMA, 0-1 UFC) was submitted in the opening round.

The cousin of UFC lightweight champion Khabib Nurmagomedov, Abubakar, was surprised with Zawada’s submission skills in the welterweight bout. The underdog locked in a tight triangle choke from bottom position that caused Nurmagomedov to tap out and spoiling his anticipated octagon debut.

Karl Roberson def. Roman Kopylov at UFC on ESPN+ 21

A nasty eye poke couldn’t stop [autotag]Karl Roberson[/autotag] (9-2 MMA, 4-2 UFC) from achieving victory against highly touted Russian prospect Roman Kopylov (8-1 MMA, 0-1 UFC) in their middleweight bout.

Despite taking a nasty poke from Kopylov in the fight, Roberson managed to finish the fight with a rear-naked choke. He overcame adversity and managed to wear down the previously unbeaten Kopylov until he took the back and locked in the choke deep enough to force the tap.

Randy Brown def. Warlley Alves at UFC on ESPN+ 22

[autotag]Randy Brown[/autotag] (12-3 MMA, 6-3 UFC) showed once again that he’s a future talent to watch in the welterweight division when he became the first man to submit Warlley Alves (13-4 MMA, 7-4 UFC).

The odds indicated an evenly matched fight coming in, and for much of the more than six minutes of action, it was. Brown proved to be more the more dangerous of the pair, though, locking in a triangle choke from bottom in the second. Alves tried to struggle, but he had to tap out in front of the fans in his native Brazil.

Ricardo Ramos def. Eduardo Garagorri at UFC on ESPN+ 22

[autotag]Ricardo Ramos[/autotag] (14-2 MMA, 5-1 UFC) was successful in his move up to the featherweight division, defeating previously unbeaten opponent Eduardo Garagorri (13-1 MMA, 1-1 UFC) inside the first round.

Ramos’ finishing ability clearly translated up from bantamweight, because he managed to quickly take Garagorri’s back from a standing position and work toward a rear-naked choke. Garagorri did his best to resist Ramos’ advances, but eventually they fell to the ground, the choke was sunk in deep and the fight was over.

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The Winner: David Zawada

With his back against the wall and his UFC career likely hanging in the balance, Zawada rose the occasion in a big way against Nurmagomedov.

After dropping consecutive fights in 2018 to begin his octagon tenure, Zawada took nearly a year away from competition before coming back at UFC on ESPN+ 21 in Moscow.

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He got no easy draw of opponent for his comeback in Nurmagomedov, either, but used the platform to make the most of the moment.

Zawada strangled Nurmagomedov into submission with a textbook triangle choke, putting himself back in the win column for the first time in 19 months and getting his hand raised under the UFC banner for the first time.

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Greg Hardy, four others face lengthy medical suspensions after UFC on ESPN+ 21

Greg Hardy is potentially out up to 180 days after injuring his hand at UFC Moscow.

[autotag]Greg Hardy[/autotag] is one of five fighters facing lengthy medical suspensions after UFC on ESPN+ 21.

The event took place Nov. 9 at CSKA Arena in Moscow and streamed on ESPN+.

One half of the co-main event, Hardy (5-2 MMA, 2-2 UFC) dropped a three-round, unanimous decision to heavyweight contender [autotag]Alexander Volkov[/autotag]. As speculated on the broadcast, Hardy injured his right hand/wrist and faces a 180-day medical suspension as a result.

Additionally, four other fighters have been handed out six-month suspensions. [autotag]Dalcha Lungiambula[/autotag], [autotag]Abubakar Nurmagomedov[/autotag], [autotag]Jessica-Rose Clark[/autotag], and [autotag]Grigorii Popov[/autotag] were also handed 180-day suspensions for injuries sustained in their respective losses.

Check out the entire UFC on ESPN+ 21 medical suspension list below (acquired via MixedMartialArts.com):

  • [autotag]Grigorii Popov[/autotag]: Suspended 180 days or until nasal x-ray is cleared by physician; also suspended 30 days with no contact for 21 days
  • [autotag]Davey Grant[/autotag]: Suspended seven days for mandatory rest
  • [autotag]Jessica-Rose Clark[/autotag]: Suspended 180 days or until cleared by ENT physician; also suspended 45 days with no contact for 30 days
  • [autotag]Pannie Kianzad[/autotag]: Suspended seven days for mandatory rest
  • [autotag]Alexander Yakovlev[/autotag]: Suspended seven days for mandatory rest
  • [autotag]Roosevelt Roberts[/autotag]: Suspended seven days for mandatory rest
  • [autotag]Abubakar Nurmagomedov[/autotag]: Suspended 180 days or until left elbow x-ray is cleared by physician; also suspended 14 days for mandatory rest
  • [autotag]Roman Kopylov[/autotag]: Suspended seven days for mandatory rest
  • [autotag]Karl Roberson[/autotag]: Suspended 30 days for right eyelid laceration with 21 days no contact
  • [autotag]Rustam Khabilov[/autotag]: Suspended seven days for mandatory rest
  • [autotag]Sergey Khandozhko[/autotag]: Suspended seven days for mandatory rest
  • [autotag]Magomed Ankalaev[/autotag]: Suspended seven days for mandatory rest
  • [autotag]Dalcha Lungiambula[/autotag]: Suspended 180 days or until cleared by OMF physician; also suspended 30 days with no contact for 21 days
  • [autotag]Shamil Gamzatov[/autotag]: Suspended seven days for mandatory rest
  • [autotag]Klidson Abreu[/autotag]: Suspended seven days for mandatory rest
  • [autotag]Ramazan Emeev[/autotag]: Suspended seven days for mandatory rest
  • [autotag]Anthony Rocco Martin[/autotag]: Suspended 30 days for nasal laceration with no contact for 21 days
  • [autotag]Khadis Ibragimov[/autotag]: Suspended seven days for mandatory rest
  • [autotag]Ed Herman[/autotag]: Suspended 30 days for hard bout with 21 days no contact
  • [autotag]Zelim Imadaev[/autotag]: Suspended seven days for mandatory rest
  • [autotag]Danny Roberts[/autotag]: Suspended 30 days for right temple laceration with 21 days no contact
  • Alexander Volkov: Suspended seven days for mandatory rest
  • Greg Hardy: Suspended 180 days or until right hand/wrist x-ray is cleared by physician; also suspended 30 days with no contact for 21 days
  • [autotag]Zabit Magomedsharipov[/autotag]: Suspended seven days for mandatory rest
  • [autotag]Calvin Kattar[/autotag]: Suspended 30 days for hard bout with 21 days no contact

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