Sports blog information from USA TODAY.
Check out what the UFC Fight Night 217 winners and guest fighters had to say backstage at Saturday’s event in Las Vegas.
LAS VEGAS – UFC Fight Night 217 took place Saturday with 11 bouts on the lineup. We’ve got you covered with backstage winner interviews from the UFC Apex.
You can hear from all the UFC Fight Night 217 winners by checking out their post-fight news conferences below.
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 Dec. 26-Jan. 1.
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 Oct. 31-Nov. 6.
The UFC added 32 fighters to its roster last month. Find out who joined and learn more about them here.
The UFC roster is bigger than ever – and it continues to expand.
Fresh faces appear on nearly every card, whether onboarded as short-notice opening fillers, Dana White’s Contender Series signees, or the increasingly rare straight-up additions. Sometimes, it’s hard to keep track of the hustle and bustle of the mixed martial arts news beat, but here at MMA Junkie, we’ve got you covered.
“Fresh Ink” is your list of fighters added to the UFC roster the previous month and provides background on who they are and where they came from.
Scroll below to check out the 32 fighters the promotion inked in August 2022.
Mateusz Rebecki wants to test his mat skills against top-tier grapplers in the UFC.
LAS VEGAS – [autotag]Mateusz Rebecki[/autotag] wants to test his mat skills against top-tier grapplers in the UFC.
Rebecki (16-1) needed just one round to submit Brazilian striker Rodrigo Lidio (12-3) with a rear-naked choke to earn a UFC contract at Dana White’s Contender Series 52 on Tuesday.
Rebecki had to walk through a huge head kick from Lidio before getting a takedown, but once he was able to keep him down, it was smooth sailing for the Polish fighter. Rebecki doesn’t care whom he fights next, but he’d rather face a grappler over another striker.
“It doesn’t matter for me,” Rebecki told reporters, including MMA Junkie. “I’m a normal fighter. I want to soon get some fight with anybody – it’s not a problem. Maybe just opponent who tries takedowns, a different style. Every one of my opponents is a striker. Maybe change my style of opponent.”
Rebecki earned high praise from UFC president Dana White for his performance and he’s happy to see his work getting recognized on the big stage.
“It’s very important for me that Dana White watches my fight and I just want to show my best performance, and I do this,” Rebecki said. “It’s good for me.”
He continued, “It’s good because I’ve been training really hard and someone sees this and understands how I’ve been doing everything to be here and show what I do.”
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At Dana White’s Contender Series 52, Mateusz Rebecki submitted Rodrigo Lidio with a rear-naked choke without any hooks.
UFC hopeful [autotag]Mateusz Rebecki[/autotag] didn’t even need hooks to get the tap at Dana White’s Contender Series.
At DWCS 52, Rebecki (16-1) submitted [autotag]Rodrigo Lidio[/autotag] (12-3) via rear-naked choke at 3:05 of Round 1. The light bout served as one of five on the card Tuesday at the UFC Apex.
Relentless with his takedowns from the opening bell, Rebecki made it clear early that he wanted to drag the fight to the canvas. Lidio rose back to his feet after the first successful takedown by Rebecki, but he couldn’t repeat it.
Upon the second takedown, Rebecki immediately maneuvered to get to side control. Lidio turned into the Rebecki as he shifted. Rebecki grabbed hold of the rear-naked choke and then Lidio tried to shift back to his original position. This left Rebecki with a tight grip of the rear-naked choke, but without hooks. Essentially chest-to-chest with Lidio, Rebecki squeezed until he got the tap. The unusual submission got visual and audible approval from UFC president Dana White who expressed his delight with the finish.
Submission number ✌️ of the night@RebeckiMateusz gets the first round finish #DWCS! pic.twitter.com/YtY5vnnAR6
— UFC (@ufc) August 31, 2022
Rebecki, 29, is one of the most experienced fighters featured on the entire DWCS, Season 6. He extends his winning streak to 13 with the victory. Fourteen of his 16 pro wins have come inside the distance.
The up-to-the-minute DWCS 52 results include:
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Check out these photos from the fights at Dana White’s Contender Series 52 at UFC Apex.
Check out these photos from the fights at Dana White’s Contender Series 52 at the UFC Apex in Las Vegas. (Photos courtesy of Joshua Hedges, UFC)
(Gallery updated throughout the event.)
