Tag: Li Jingliang

Michael Chiesa announces he’s off UFC 287 after replacement options fizzle

UFC 287 won’t feature Michael Chiesa, who was removed from the card after replacement options for Li Jingliang fizzled.

[autotag]Michael Chiesa[/autotag] is officially off Saturday’s UFC 287.

With opponent [autotag]Li Jingliang[/autotag] out due to a spinal injury, some replacement options came to light but none materialized, Chiesa (16-6 MMA, 11-6 UFC) revealed Monday on “The MMA Hour“.

UFC 287 takes place Saturday at Miami-Dade Arena in Miami. The main card airs on pay-per-view following prelims on ESPN and early prelims on ESPN+.

“There was (talk of keeping me on the card,” Chiesa said. “I’m not going to name names of the guys who were offered who turned it down, because it was a matter of visa issues and some guys not being able to make weight. I’m not that type of guy to go out there and blast, like, ‘So-and-so turned it down.’ Look, I’m a tough out for anybody at 170 pounds, especially if you only have a couple of weeks to prepare.”

One option that was viable from the athletes’ perspectives was Niko Price, who Chiesa tipped his proverbial cap to. However, the UFC did not elect to pursue that avenue.

“Niko Price was lobbying hard to get the fight, so I want to give him his flowers,” Chiesa said. “That guy was ready and willing to jump in, but I think the UFC had other plans for him.”

Chiesa, 35, has not competed since November 2021 when he lost a unanimous decision to Sean Brady. With his return further delayed, Chiesa said he hopes to be rebooked for Jingliang or fight Gunnar Nelson this summer.

“I want ‘Leech’ to recover,” Chiesa said. “Hopefully him and I can do it down the road. There’s one guy I kind of think we have in mind and I have in mind, too. I’d love a fight with Gunnar Nelson. I think he’s a tremendous competitor. I think styles make fights. I know he’s available and I think that he’s interested as well, so hopefully we can get something moving in that direction. I’d even be willing to go across the pond and fight him in England in July. I’ve never done the whole ‘go into enemy territory’ thing, so I think that’d be a fun challenge.”

With the removal, the UFC 287 lineup includes:

MAIN CARD (Pay-per-view, 10 p.m. ET)

  • Champ Alex Pereira vs. Israel Adesanya – for middleweight title
  • Gilbert Burns vs. Jorge Masvidal
  • Rob Font vs. Adrian Yanez
  • Kevin Holland vs. Santiago Ponzinibbio
  • Christian Rodriguez vs. Raul Rosas Jr.

PRELIMINARY CARD (ESPN, 8 p.m. ET)

  • Kelvin Gastelum vs. Chris Curtis
  • Luana Pinheiro vs. Michelle Waterson-Gomez
  • Chase Sherman vs. Karl Williams
  • Gerald Meerschaert vs. Joe Pyfer

PRELIMINARY CARD (ESPN+, 6 p.m. ET)

  • Cynthia Calvillo vs. Loopy Godinez
  • Ignacio Bahamondes vs. Trey Ogden
  • Steve Garcia vs. Shayilan Nuerdanbieke
  • Jaqueline Amorim vs. Sam Hughes

For more on the card, visit MMA Junkie’s event hub for UFC 287.

Li Jingliang out of UFC 287 fight vs. Michael Chiesa due to injury

Li Jingliang has suffered an injury and is out of his UFC 287 bout vs. Michael Chiesa.

[autotag]Li Jingliang[/autotag] is out of UFC 287.

Due to a back injury, Jingliang (19-8 MMA, 11-6 UFC) won’t return as expected April 8 vs. [autotag]Michael Chiesa[/autotag] (16-6 MMA, 11-6 UFC).

Jingliang first announced the news Monday on Chinese social media platform Douyin. A person with knowledge of the situation subsequently confirmed the withdrawal to MMA Junkie. It is unclear at this time if Chiesa will remain on the card.

Jingliang, 35, most recently competed in September when he lost a close and controversial split decision to Daniel Rodriguez at UFC 279. He was originally scheduled to fight Tony Ferguson, but due to Khamzat Chimaev’s weight miss, the lineup was shuffled. The defeat was his second in three fights.

Should he remain on the card against a new opponent, Chiesa will look to snap a two-fight skid that includes losses to Vicente Luque and Sean Brady.

With the change, the UFC 287 lineup now includes:

  • Champion Alex Pereira vs. Israel Adesanya – for middleweight title
  • Gilbert Burns vs. Jorge Masvidal
  • Rob Font vs. Adrian Yanez
  • Christian Rodriguez vs. Raul Rosas Jr.
  • Kevin Holland vs. Santiago Ponzinibbio
  • Chris Curtis vs. Kelvin Gastelum
  • Michael Chiesa vs. TBA
  • Gerald Meerschaert vs. Joseph Pyfer
  • Cynthia Calvillo vs. Lupita Godinez
  • Luana Pinheiro vs. Michelle Waterson-Gomez
  • Steve Garcia vs. Shayilan Nuerdanbieke
  • Chris Barnett vs. Chase Sherman
  • Ignacio Bahamondes vs. TBA
  • Jaqueline Amorim vs. Sam Hughes

For more on the card, visit MMA Junkie’s event hub for UFC 287.

Matchup Roundup: New UFC and Bellator fights announced in the past week (Jan. 30-Feb. 5)

All the UFC and Bellator fight announcements that were first reported 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 Jan. 30-Feb. 5.

Michael Chiesa announces UFC 287 bout vs. Li Jingliang

For the first time since 2021, Michael Chiesa has a fight on the books and announced he’ll face Li Jingliang at UFC 287.

[autotag]Michael Chiesa[/autotag] has a fight on the books for the first time since November 2021.

Friday during “UFC Live,” Chiesa (16-6 MMA, 11-6 UFC) announced he will fight [autotag]Li Jingliang[/autotag] (19-8 MMA, 11-6 UFC) at UFC 287, a pay-per-view event expected for April 8 at a location and venue yet-to-be-determined.

Jingliang, 34, has alternated wins and losses over the span of his past six fights with a 3-3 record. Following a knockout of Muslim Salikhov in July, Jingliang lost a closely-contested split decision against Daniel Rodriguez at UFC 279 in September, a matchup he accepted in less than 48-hour notice.

Chiesa, 35, looks to snap a two-fight skid, which includes losses top competition in Vicente Luque and Sean Brady. The setbacks came, however, after four straight wins, including victories over Carlos Condit, Diego Sanchez, Rafael dos Anjos, and Neil Magny.

With the addition the UFC 287 lineup includes:

  • Alex Pereira vs. Israel Adesanya – for middleweight title
  • Gilbert Burns vs. Jorge Masvidal
  • Kevin Holland vs. Santiago Ponzinibbio
  • Raul Rosas Jr. vs. Christian Rodrigues
  • Rob Font vs. Adrian Yanez
  • Michael Chiesa vs. Li Jingliang
  • Gerald Meeerschaert vs. Joe Pyfer
  • Kelvin Gastelum vs. Chris Curtis
  • Cynthia Calvillo vs. Loopy Godinez
  • Luana Pinheiro vs. Michelle Waterson-Gomez
  • Ignacio Bahamondes vs. Nikolas Motta
  • Steve Garcia vs. Shayilan Nuerdanbieke

For more on the card, visit MMA Junkie’s event hub for UFC 287.

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15 best fight bookings of 2022 that got away due to injuries, weight issues, and more

Check out these highly anticipated matchups in 2022 that fell through due to various issues outside of the cage.

Fight bookings throughout 2022 were not ravaged by COVID-19 like the year before, but a number of key matchups still never made it to the cage.

Unfortunate injuries occurred in training camp, and in two instances, after weigh-ins, leading to last-minute scheduling changes and late bout scratches.

From entertaining veteran matchups to top contender bouts and title fight rematches, MMA lost some incredible fights this year due to various reasons.

Take a look below at some of the biggest pairings and why they did not go ahead as planned (in order of scheduled date).

Daniel Rodriguez calls for Li Jingliang rematch: ‘Everyone talking sh*t saying I lost’

Daniel Rodriguez is tired of hearing people say he lost against Li Jingliang at UFC 279.

[autotag]Daniel Rodriguez[/autotag] is tired of hearing people say he lost against [autotag]Li Jingliang[/autotag].

Rodriguez (16-2 MMA, 6-1 UFC) edged out Jingliang (19-7 MMA, 11-5 UFC) by split decision on this past Saturday’s UFC 279 main card at T-Mobile Arena in Las Vegas. It was a decision that even UFC president Dana White thought went the wrong way.

At the post-fight news conference, Rodriguez admitted it was a close fight, but was confident he did more than Jingliang. However, he’s willing to run things back to silence the doubters.

“Everyone talking sh*t saying I lost !!! Let’s rematch !!! @lijingliangmma @danawhite @ufc”

https://www.instagram.com/p/CibVFa3pe6x/?utm_source=ig_web_copy_link

In a recent appearance on “The MMA Hour,” Jingliang wore a homemade t-shirt with “ROBBED” written across it and expressed his frustration with the outcome of the fight.

“Of course I think I won the fight,” Jingliang said. “I won the fight.

“When Bruce Buffer declared the result, I couldn’t believe that. I couldn’t believe that. It’s already an awful matchup, and the result was worse. And I think it’s just an injustice. I can accept a loss – that’s fine. But please tell me why – why I lost the fight. Please, the three judges, tell me why you think I lost the fight. Tell me. Explain to me, please.”

Rodriguez originally was scheduled to face Kevin Holland and Jingliang was set to fight Tony Ferguson in the co-main event. But after Khamzat Chimaev came in 7.5 pounds over the welterweight mark for his headliner against Nate Diaz, the card was shuffled and Rodriguez wound up against Jingliang in a 180-pound catchweight bout.

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UFC 279 Promotional Guidelines Compliance pay: Khamzat Chimaev nets $6,000

Fighters from Saturday’s UFC 279 took home UFC Promotional Guidelines Compliance pay totaling $202,000.

LAS VEGAS – Fighters from Saturday’s UFC 279 event took home UFC Promotional Guidelines Compliance pay totaling $202,000.

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

The full UFC 279 UFC Promotional Guidelines Compliance payouts included:

* * * *

[autotag]Nate Diaz[/autotag]: $21,000
def. [autotag]Tony Ferguson[/autotag]: $21,000

[autotag]Khamzat Chimaev[/autotag]: $6,000
[autotag]Kevin Holland[/autotag]: $11,000

[autotag]Daniel Rodriguez[/autotag]: $6,000
def. [autotag]Li Jingliang[/autotag]: $16,000

[autotag]Irene Aldana[/autotag]: $11,000
def. [autotag]Macy Chiasson[/autotag]: $6,000

[autotag]Johnny Walker[/autotag]: $6,000
def. [autotag]Ion Cutelaba[/autotag]: $11,000

[autotag]Julian Erosa[/autotag]: $11,000
def. [autotag]Hakeem Dawodu[/autotag]: $6,000

[autotag]Jailton Almeida[/autotag]: $4,000
def. [autotag]Anton Turkalj[/autotag]: $4,000

[autotag]Denis Tiuliulin[/autotag]: $4,000
def. [autotag]Jamie Pickett[/autotag]: $6,000

[autotag]Chris Barnett[/autotag]: $4,500
def. [autotag]Jake Collier[/autotag]: $11,000

[autotag]Norma Dumont[/autotag]: $6,000
def. [autotag]Danyelle Wolf[/autotag]: $4,000

[autotag]Heili Alateng[/autotag]: $6,000
def. [autotag]Chad Anheliger[/autotag]: $4,000

[autotag]Elise Reed[/autotag]: $4,500
def. [autotag]Melissa Martinez[/autotag]: $4,000

[autotag]Yohan Lainesse[/autotag]: $4,000
def. [autotag]Darian Weeks[/autotag]: $4,000

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.

Year-to-date total: $6,171,000
2021 total: $6,167,500
Program-to-date total: $12,338,500

For more on the card, visit MMA Junkie’s event hub for UFC 279.

UFC 279 results: Daniel Rodriguez earns split decision nod in striking battle against Li Jingliang

Daniel Rodriguez convinced two of the three cageside judges he did enough to earn a victory on the UFC 279 main card.

LAS VEGAS – Despite a late shuffle in opponents, [autotag]Daniel Rodriguez[/autotag] put together a solid striking performance to get his hand raised.

Rodriguez (16-2 MMA, 6-1 UFC) entered fight week preparing for a catchweight contest against Kevin Holland, whereas his replacement, Li Jingliang anticipated a welterweight fight against Tony Ferguson. Despite knowing the size difference, Jingliang (19-7 MMA, 11-5 UFC) accepted the matchup, and the 180-pound catchweight bout became part of the UFC 279 main card at T-Mobile Arena in Las Vegas.

The size difference between the two fighters was apparent from the onset. In the first round, Rodriguez controlled the pace of the action early, pressing forward as he landed punches. Jingliang answered back well with a nice array of kicks, picking his shots well as he circled on the outside.

The action continued at a fast pace in the second round, as Jingliang appeared more comfortable staying closer to the pocket trading with Rodriguez. Both fighters mixed in kicks to the legs as they looked to land power punches upstairs. The best shot of the round was a clean right hand from Jingliang that got Rodriguez’s attention.

The final round saw the close striking battle continue. Some fans in the arena booed, but both fighters were active as they exchanged strikes. Rodriguez pressed forward throughout most of the round as Jingliang appeared to lose some steam in the closing moments.

The fight was close, and the official scores reflected that as the judges were split with two 29-28 scorecards going in Rodriguez’s favor.

Rodriguez keeps his hot streak rolling with his fourth victory in a row. “D-Rod” knocked off Mike Perry, Preston Parsons, and Kevin Lee before picking up the win over Jingliang on Saturday.

Jingliang has now traded wins and losses over his past five outings.

Up-to-the-minute UFC 279 results include:

For more on the card, visit MMA Junkie’s event hub for UFC 279.

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Daniel Rodriguez def. Li Jingliang at UFC 279: Best photos

Check out the best photos from Daniel Rodriguez’s split decision win over Li Jingliang at UFC 279 in Las Vegas.

Check out the best photos from [autotag]Daniel Rodriguez[/autotag]’s split decision win over [autotag]Li Jingliang[/autotag] at UFC 279 at T-Mobile Arena in Las Vegas. (Photos by Joe Camporeale, USA TODAY Sports)

UFC 279 ‘Embedded,’ No. 5: ‘This has never happened in the history of this company’

Episode 5 of UFC 279 “Embedded” goes behind the scenes of the press conference, which was canceled due to backstage brawls.

The UFC is back with its 10th pay-per-view of the year, which means the popular “Embedded” fight-week video series is here to document what’s happening behind the scenes.

UFC 279 takes place Saturday at T-Mobile Arena in Las Vegas. The main card airs on pay-per-view following prelims on ESPNNews and early prelims on ESPN+.

The main event is between unbeaten rising star [autotag]Khamzat Chimaev[/autotag] (11-0 MMA, 5-0 UFC) and fan favorite [autotag]Nate Diaz[/autotag] (20-13 MMA, 15-11 UFC) in what is likely to be Diaz’s last fight in the promotion. In the co-feature, former interim lightweight champion [autotag]Tony Ferguson[/autotag] (25-7 MMA, 15-5 UFC) takes on [autotag]Li Jingliang[/autotag] (19-7 MMA, 11-5 UFC).

The fifth episode of “Embedded” follows the UFC 279 press conference, where “all hell broke loose” backstage and caused UFC president Dana White to cancel the event. Here is the UFC’s description of the episode from YouTube:

An altercation between Khamzat Chimaev and Kevin Holland occurs backstage resulting in Dana cutting the UFC 279 Pre Fight Press Conference short. Kevin Holland, Tony Ferguson, Nate Diaz make weight but Khamzat Chimaev does not. Dana White announces a new fight card. The new matchups of UFC 279 face off: Nate Diaz vs Tony Ferguson, Khamzat Chimaev vs Kevin Holland, and Li Jingliang vs Daniel Rodriguez.

Also see:

For more on the card, visit MMA Junkie’s event hub for UFC 279.

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