LFA champion Uran Satybaldiev steps in to replace an injured Kennedy Nzechukwu to take on Martin Buday at Saturday’s UFC on ESPN 65.
This weekend’s UFC Fight Night event has undergone a big change, literally.
Heavyweight [autotag]Kennedy Nzechukwu[/autotag] pulled out of Saturday’s UFC on ESPN 65 bout against [autotag]Martin Buday[/autotag] due to injury. Now, newcomer [autotag]Uran Satybaldiev[/autotag] will step in to fight Buday on short notice.
The UFC announced the news on Thursday night. Nzechukwu’s injury wasn’t specified. UFC on ESPN 65 (ESPN, ESPN+) takes place at the UFC Apex in Las Vegas.
Satybaldiev (9-0 MMA, 0-0 UFC) comes to the promotion with an impressive undefeated record that includes six TKO/KO wins and one submission victory. He’s only gone the distance twice in his professional MMA career. “Gorilla” leaves the LFA light heavyweight title to join the UFC. He’ll be moving up a weight class for his debut with the promotion.
Buday (14-2 MMA, 5-1 UFC) was last seen in action in June, when he defeated former UFC heavyweight champion Andrei Arlovski in a close, split decision. Prior to that, he was coming off a TKO loss to fan-favorite heavyweight Shamil Gaziev.
Fortis MMA’s Sayif Saud predicts a trend of light heavyweight fighters moving to heavyweight, and he has two fighters ahead of the game.
Fortis MMA head coach [autotag]Sayif Saud[/autotag] sees a trend coming with light heavyweights and has two examples of high-level fighters under his wing leading the way.
[autotag]Kennedy Nzechukwu[/autotag] and [autotag]Ryan Spann[/autotag] started their UFC careers in the light heavyweight division and have now made a move to heavyweight. Nzechukwu (14-5 MMA, 8-5 UFC) has already fought twice in his new division.
After dropping two straight at light heavyweight, Nzechukwu moved up in October and made quick work of Chris Barnett at UFC 308. He then turned around and recorded another first-round finish of Lukas Brzeski at UFC 310 in December, which earned a Performance of the Night bonus.
According to Saud, the move has produced a much happier fighter.
“He told me, ‘Coach, I got to go to heavyweight, man. I don’t want to cut the weight. … It makes me miserable,'” Saud told MMA Junkie. “The guy doesn’t complain. He’s had a hard road in life. He hasn’t had an easy set of cards, man. He never complains, but he said it, and I said alright. We went to Mick (Maynard), and he said, ‘Hey, I like it. Let’s do it.’ He’s just liked fight week so much better. He’s just so much happier because he was just miserable. That Thursday and Friday was just miserable for him.
“I think he’s really shining and coming into his own. You’ve got to think, I got Kennedy in the (Dana White’s) Contender (Series) at 3-0, man. He’s grown up in the UFC, similar to Macy (Chiasson), similar to a lot them. They’ve grown up in the UFC. For them to be ranked, and have to go through everything, it hasn’t been easy, right? Because they’ve had to learn on the job, a lot of them. … The heavyweight Kennedy, he’s free, he’s happy, so I’m excited about that.”
Spann (22-10 MMA, 8-5 UFC) will test his skills for the first time at heavyweight in March against Waldo Cortes-Acosta. His last fight at 205 pounds was a first-round submission of Ovince St. Preux at UFC 307, a result that snapped a three-fight skid.
Like Nzechukwu, Saud sees the move for Spann as about not worrying about the weight cut and focusing on skills, but also is indicative of a larger movement. Saud believes there will be multiple light heavyweights making the jump to heavyweight in the coming years, allowing the bigger guys to keep up a higher level of activity.
“It’s funny because Spann always said, ‘I’m gonna go to heavyweight. I’ll go and Kennedy will stay, and we’ll switch off,'” Saud said. “For them to all be now at heavyweight, and it to kind of come to fruition, it’s something they’ve always talked about. Alonzo (Menifield) is gonna stay at light heavyweight, he’s back at the gym. Those guys have the frame for heavyweight. They’re big. They’re 6’5”, huge reach, big, explose guys walking around 230, 245 (pounds) at their biggest. They can handle it. They’ve got the frame for it. So, I think he can do amazing stuff as well at heavyweight.
“You look at Jon (Jones) and what Jon has done. I think we’re ahead of the curve here getting our light heavys into heavy. I think you’re going to see a lot of teams and a lot of fighters try to make this jump now, similar to what we’re doing. We’re just trying to be ahead of the curve, and I think the guys are getting older, they’re better, they’re quicker. They’re very talented and skilled. I think they could do great at heavyweight.”
Beyond the scale, the move to heavyweight also gives Nzechukwu and Spann a longer timeline to compete, as the upper tier of heavyweight fighters have typically been older.
“He’s already a big, strong guy,” Saud said. “It’s about him not cutting the weight and really not focusing on the weight cut part of it. Those guys, 205 for Spann, he can do it, but it’s like I just feel like he can really grow. Also, when a guy is 33, 34 at light heayvweight, he’s a little old. When he’s 33 or 35 at heavyweight, he’s young. It just makes sense for these guys right now.”
Kennedy Nzechukwu thinks referee Chris Tognoni could’ve been quicker to stop his UFC 310 finish of Lukasz Brzeski.
LAS VEGAS – [autotag]Kennedy Nzechukwu[/autotag] thought his UFC 310 fight with Lukasz Brzeski could’ve been halted after his knockdown, but the referee thought otherwise, so he had to keep going.
Nzechukwu (14-5 MMA, 8-5 UFC), who has proven to be a humble person throughout his octagon tenure, improved to 2-0 since moving up to heavyweight from the light heavyweight division in October when he dropped and stopped Brzeski (9-6-1 MMA, 1-5 UFC) for a first-round TKO this past weekend at T-Mobile Arena.
After Brzeski was floored with a clean left hook, Nzechukwu pounced with additional shots until it was waved off. It was a pretty standard finish from an outsiders perspective, but from inside the octagon, Nzechukwu said he took no joy inflicting what he deemed as unnecessary punishment before referee Chris Tognoni stepped in.
“The hook was enough,” Nzechukwu told MMA Junkie and other reporters post-fight at UFC 310. “I saw him drop and I felt so bad, but it’s just business and I had to go, because he could’ve regained consciousness. I’ve got to put an end to it.”
Regardless of his thoughts on the stoppage, it was a big win for Nzechukwu. He earned a $50,000 Performance of the Night bonus, and has back-to-back knockout victories since making his decision to change weight classes.
Nzechukwu said the weight cuts down to 205 pounds were devastating to his body, and now that he’s not doing that, he can perform at an optimal level. He’s done that so far with two short-notice wins in a 42-day stretch, and now he hopes to keep the ball rolling.
“Short notice – anything – I always stay ready,” Nzechukwu said. “I like to stay busy. Now I’ve transitioned to heavyweight so I get to stay busy, stay active and do more fights next year.”
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For more on the card, visit MMA Junkie’s event hub for UFC 310.
The UFC Promotional Guidelines Compliance program has now paid out more than $8 million to athletes in 2024 under the Venum deal.
LAS VEGAS – Fighters from Saturday’s UFC 310 event took home UFC Promotional Guidelines Compliance pay totaling $368,500.
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 310 took place at T-Mobile Arena. The main card aired on pay-per-view following prelims on ESPN2 and ESPN+.
The full UFC 310 UFC Promotional Guidelines Compliance payouts included:
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 2024 UFC Promotional Guidelines Compliance payouts:
LAS VEGAS – [autotag]Kennedy Nzechukwu[/autotag] is revitalized at heavyweight.
A Fortis MMA product, Nzechukwu (14-5 MMA, 8-5 UFC) kicked Saturday’s UFC 310 prelims off with a bang at T-Mobile Arena as he crushed [autotag]Lukasz Brzeski[/autotag] (9-6-1 MMA, 1-5 UFC) with knockout blows to stop the fight at 4:51 of Round 1.
A brutal counter combination that ended with a right hand floored Brzeski as the clock wound down in Round 1. Nzechukwu landed a few more follow-up shots from the standing position before referee Chris Tognoni intervened.
A POWERFUL RIGHT FROM KENNEDY NZECHUKWU TO KICK OFF #UFC310
With the win, Nzechukwu moves to 2-0 at heavyweight following a 6-5 stint in the promotion’s light heavyweight division. Brzeski falls into a two-fight skid. He has been knocked out three times in six UFC appearances.
New weight class. New home gym. New Kennedy Nzechukwu.
ABU DHABI – UFC 308 marked a pair of fresh experiences for [autotag]Kennedy Nzechukwu[/autotag].
Nzechukwu (13-5 MMA, 7-5 UFC) made his divisional debut Saturday at heavyweight as he defeated Chris Barnett (23-9 MMA, 2-3 UFC) via first-round TKO at Etihad Arena on Yas Island.
The fight ended due in part to an injury to Barnett’s leg, but Nzcehukwu was still happy to simply get his feet wet in his new competitive frame.
“It was since my doctors told me that with my frame, my organs were going to hurt me in the long run,” Nzechukwu told MMA Junkie and other reporters at a post-fight news conference. “I was vomiting every time during fight week. Just cutting that last 10 pounds was killing me. I walk around at 245. Just cutting that 40 pounds is too much. I use different nutritionists and it just wasn’t working. The last three days were hell, so we decided to go up in weight. It just felt better here.”
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Nzechukwu, who previously needed to hit 206 pounds on the scale at light heavyweight, weighed in at 241 pounds at Friday’s weigh-ins. Nzechukwu said his focus was on strength training during this camp, which he did mostly with a new coach, Steven Wright, of War Room MMA in Forth Worth, Texas. Nzcheukwu’s longtime coach Sayif Saud, of Fortis MMA, also cornered him for Saturday’s fight.
“I just had to focus on my skill set,” Nzechukwu said. “Athleticism can only take you so far in this sport. So just upgrading. That’s when I moved to War Room. That’s my coach right there, Steven Wright. He’s been helping me. We’ve been making tremendous leaps and bounds. I’m just grateful for God.”
“… I just needed to upgrade. I needed someone who is nerdy about the striking game. Ask coach Steve and he just knows it. He’s been training and trains with a lot of different Dutch fighters, Thai fighters. He just has developed a lot of experience over the years. I just need to absorb all that.”
For more on the card, visit MMA Junkie’s event hub for UFC 308.
Ilia Topuria and Max Holloway combined for $74,000 of the Promotional Guidelines Compliance pay for UFC 308.
ABU DHABI – Fighters from Saturday’s UFC 308 event took home UFC Promotional Guidelines Compliance pay totaling $252,000.
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 308 took place at Etihad Arena on Yas Island. The main card aired on pay-per-view following prelims on ESPN+
The full UFC 308 UFC Promotional Guidelines Compliance payouts included:
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 2024 UFC Promotional Guidelines Compliance payouts:
Kennedy Nzechukwu’s size proved to be too much for Chris Barnett at UFC 308.
ABU DHABI – [autotag]Kennedy Nzechukwu[/autotag]’s size proved to be too much for [autotag]Chris Barnett[/autotag] at UFC 308.
In his return to heavyweight, Nzechukwu (13-5 MMA, 7-5 UFC) was able to overwhelm Barnett (23-9 MMA, 2-3 UFC) by landing a knee to the body, followed by a right hook that sat “Beast Boy” down at the 4:27 mark of Round 1 Saturday at Etihad Arena. Barnett appeared to have sustained an injury during the fight and was carried out of the octagon.
Check out the replay of Nzechukwu’s finish below (via X):
Nzechukwu was able to snap a two-fight losing skid after back-to-back losses to Dustin Jacoby and Ovince Saint Preux. Barnett has now lost two of his past three.
Up-to-the-minute UFC 308 results include:
Kennedy Nzechukwu def. Chris Barnett via TKO (punches) – Round 1, 4:27
Check out the best photos from Kennedy Nzechukwu’s first-round TKO win over Chris Barnett at UFC 308 at Etihad Arena in Abu Dhabi.
Check out the best photos from [autotag]Kennedy Nzechukwu[/autotag]’s first-round TKO win over [autotag]Chris Barnett[/autotag] at UFC 308 at Etihad Arena in Abu Dhabi. (Photos by Craig Kidwell, special to MMA Junkie; MMA Junkie; UFC)
Marcos Rogerio says he has his next fight booked, and that it’s between “two titans.”
[autotag]Marcos Rogerio[/autotag] says he has his next fight booked, and that it’s between “two titans.”
Rogerio (22-9-1 MMA, 11-7 UFC) on Friday posted on Instagram that he’s signed on to fight [autotag]Kennedy Nzechukwu[/autotag] (12-5 MMA, 6-5 UFC) in a heavyweight bout at UFC 308 (pay-per-view/ESPN/ESPN+), which takes place Oct. 26 at Etihad Arena in Abu Dhabi.
A person with knowledge of the booking confirmed to MMA Junkie that Nzechukwu, who has been a light heavyweight for all but two bouts in his career, will move up to heavyweight for the fight. The person spoke on condition of anonymity because the UFC has not formally announced the matchup.
“Get ready for an epic night at UFC 308 in Abu Dhabi! On October 26th, two titans will meet in the Octagon! I’m ready to give my all and bring another victory! ,” Rogerio posted.
https://www.instagram.com/p/C-LB64HAPqz
In February, Rogerio found himself in a unique position. When Justin Tafa had to pull out of their fight midweek, Tafa’s brother Junior stepped up to take the fight on short notice. Rogerio dispatched him with a second-round TKO after a barrage of leg kicks.
That got the Brazilian back on the plus side after a 33-second knockout loss to Derrick Lewis at UFC 291 when Lewis opened with a jumping knee. Still, Rogerio has won five of his past seven bouts.
Nzechukwu will be looking to get back in the win column after back-to-back losses. A year ago, he was knocked out in 82 seconds by Dustin Jacoby and had a three-fight winning streak of finishes snapped. He tried to rebound in March, but dropped a split decision to former interim light heavyweight title challenger Ovince Saint Preux.
With the addition, the UFC 308 lineup now includes:
,” Rogerio posted.