In the third installment of “Embedded,” it appears Sean Strickland and Dricus Du Plessis have buried the hatchet before UFC 297.
The UFC is back for its first pay-per-view of 2024, and the popular “Embedded” fight week video series is here to document what’s happening behind the scenes.
UFC 297 takes place Saturday at Scotia Bank Arena in Toronto. The main card airs on pay-per-view following prelims on ESPNews and early prelims on ESPN+.
In the main event, middleweight champion [autotag]Sean Strickland[/autotag] (28-5 MMA, 15-5 UFC) looks to make his first title defense against challenger [autotag]Dricus Du Plessis[/autotag] (20-2 MMA, 4-0 UFC). And in the co-main event, top contenders [autotag]Mayra Bueno Silva[/autotag] (10-2-1 MMA, 5-2-1 UFC) and [autotag]Raquel Pennington[/autotag] (15-8 MMA, 12-5 UFC) will meet for the vacant women’s bantamweight title.
The third episode of “Embedded” follows the featured fighters while they get ready for fight week. Here is the UFC’s description of the episode from YouTube:
Headliners cross paths. Champ Sean Strickland sightsees and sweats; foe Dricus Du Plessis works on numbers. Mayra Bueno Silva arrives in Toronto, as does opponent Raquel Pennington. UFC 297 fight week is underway as the athletes check in and do PR.
The UFC 297 co-main event critics are right, admits Mayra Bueno Silva, who would rather be fighting Julianna Peña.
TORONTO – [autotag]Mayra Bueno Silva[/autotag] has been honest ahead of UFC 297 – brutally honest.
When looking at the card on paper, Bueno Silva (10-2-1 MMA, 5-2-1 UFC) said she understands and even connects with critics of the vacant women’s bantamweight title fight vs [autotag]Raquel Pennington[/autotag] (15-8 MMA, 12-5 UFC) scheduled for Saturday at Scotiabank Arena.
There was a better, easier alternative, according to Bueno Silva.
“Everybody is ready for me and Julianna Peña,” Bueno Silva told MMA Junkie and other reporters at a pre-fight news conference Wednesday. “I believe you want to see me and Julianna Peña. This girl has me crazy.”
Since she defeated Holly Holm in July, Bueno Silva has zoned in on Peña, a brash and outspoken former titleholder who isn’t afraid to talk trash. Despite the energy dedicated toward a potential future opponent, Bueno Silva said she hasn’t struggled to focus on the task at hand.
“It’s easy to focus on Raquel because I’m not focused on Julianna, because Raquel is very tough and more tough than Julianna,” Pennington said. “Julianna is easy money. Raquel is tough.”
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Trash talk aside, Bueno Silva is just happy to be fighting for the title at all. She was suspended six months, and her win vs. Holm was overturned to a no contest due to a failed drug test that eventually traced back to an ADHD medication.
Despite Bueno Silva’s suspension from the Nevada Athletic Commission, the promotion decided to book her for a title fight anyway. Bueno Silva felt supported during an uncertain time.
“Of course, but UFC helped me with everything,” Bueno Silva said. “The UFC did everything for me. This is a big bullsh*t. Everybody knows. Thanks, UFC, for helping me and waiting for me. Thank you, Hunter (Campbell), for helping me get ready for this fight.”
For more on the card, visit MMA Junkie’s event hub for UFC 297.
In the second installment of UFC 297 “Embedded,” freezing temperatures in Toronto don’t stop Dricus Du Plessis from going for a swim.
The UFC is back for its first pay-per-view of 2024, and the popular “Embedded” fight week video series is here to document what’s happening behind the scenes.
UFC 297 takes place Saturday at Scotia Bank Arena in Toronto. The main card airs on pay-per-view following prelims on ESPNews and early prelims on ESPN+.
In the main event, middleweight champion [autotag]Sean Strickland[/autotag] (28-5 MMA, 15-5 UFC) looks to make his first title defense against challenger [autotag]Dricus Du Plessis[/autotag] (20-2 MMA, 4-0 UFC). And in the co-main event, top contenders [autotag]Mayra Bueno Silva[/autotag] (10-2-1 MMA, 5-2-1 UFC) and [autotag]Raquel Pennington[/autotag] (15-8 MMA, 12-5 UFC) will meet for the vacant women’s bantamweight title.
The second episode of “Embedded” follows the featured fighters while they get ready for fight week. Here is the UFC’s description of the episode from YouTube:
Sean Strickland matches wits with Nina Drama. Dricus Du Plessis talks to Canadian media then goes cold. Mayra Bueno Silva takes in fight night. Mike Malott readies for a hometown showdown.
The best facts and figures about UFC 297, which sees Dricus Du Plessis’ strong offense put Sean Strickland’s record defense to the test.
The UFC on Saturday returns to Toronto for the first time since December 2018 with UFC 297 at Scotiabank Arena.
The first numbered event of the year features a title fight doubleheader. In the main event, [autotag]Sean Strickland[/autotag] (28-5 MMA, 15-5 UFC) will attempt to defend the middleweight title against [autotag]Dricus Du Plessis[/autotag] (20-2 MMA, 6-0 UFC. In the co-headliner, [autotag]Raquel Pennington[/autotag] (15-8 MMA, 12-5 UFC) and [autotag]Mayra Bueno Silva[/autotag] (10-2-1 MMA, 5-2-1 UFC) are set to clash for the vacant women’s bantamweight belt.
For more on the numbers behind all four championship competitors, as well as the rest of the card, check below for MMA Junkie’s pre-event facts for UFC 297 (pay-per-view, ESPN, ESPN+).
For Mayra Bueno Silva, winning the women’s bantamweight title at UFC 297 is about more than just getting recognition as the best.
TORONTO – For [autotag]Mayra Bueno Silva[/autotag], winning the vacant women’s bantamweight title at UFC 297 is about more than just getting recognition as one of the best fighters in the world.
“I want to change lives,” Silva told MMA Junkie on Monday. “I think this is my motivation (to win the belt) – to change lives. I want to change my community. For me, everything is about this. It’s not about UFC champion. It’s about Mayra as the champion will change lives.”
Silva (10-2-1 MMA, 5-2-1 UFC) meets Raquel Pennington (15-8 MMA, 12-5 UFC) for the vacant belt left behind by Amanda Nunes when she retired from the sport in June. The matchup co-headlines Saturday’s pay-per-view main card from Scotiabank Arena, which follows prelims on ESPNews and ESPN+.
Although Silva is tenacious and violent inside the octagon, she has a soft heart outside of it. She comes from humble beginnings in Brazil and said she witnessed – and experienced – poverty, crime and plenty of other difficult situations growing up in her hometown of Uberlandia.
Silva, 32, doesn’t want the next generation to endure the same struggles she went through. She can only do so much to help now, but claiming a UFC title would grow her platform and generate more financial freedom to invest in trying to create change.
“It’s hard to talk about this,” Silva said. “But I’m born in a community where some days I don’t eat. I don’t have water and other things. It’s hard for me to talk about this. I don’t want the kids in my community to stay in this same position. I want to change lives. I want to show for everybody if you work hard, if you believe in God, everything can happen.
“When I get the belt, I will start everything. I will start the project in my city. When I put on my belt, everything starts in my life. It’s not only about the belt, it’s about my life. This is about my dream. This is about my kids. This is about my community. This is about everything I believe in.”
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For more on the card, visit MMA Junkie’s event hub for UFC 297.
Mayra Bueno Silva plans to claim gold at UFC 297 and prove she can carry the 135-pound division like Ronda Rousey and Amanda Nunes did.
TORONTO – UFC 297 will mark a new chapter in the history of the women’s bantamweight division when [autotag]Mayra Bueno Silva[/autotag] and Raquel Pennington fight for the vacant championship left behind by Amanda Nunes.
After years of dominance atop the weight class, Nunes retired from competition in June, leaving the belt without an owner. More than six months later, a new champion will finally be crowned when Silva (10-2-1 MMA, 5-2-1 UFC) takes on Pennington (15-8 MMA, 12-5 UFC) in the co-main event at Scotiabank Arena.
It will be just the second time in the history of the division, and first time since the March 2016 bout between Miesha Tate and Holly Holm at UFC 196, that a 135-pound title fight will not feature Nunes or Ronda Rousey. They have been the faces of this division since its introduction to the UFC more than a decade ago, and now Silva is ready to take over.
“I am the champion – I am the chosen one,” Silva told MMA Junkie on Monday. “This division is not a great division. The UFC is not talking too much about the bantamweight division. They talk about Ronda or they talk about Amanda. They don’t talk about this division. This division used to be a big division in the UFC. Now I feel I can do this.”
Silva, No. 4 in the latest USA TODAY Sports/MMA Junkie women’s bantamweight rankings, knows she has a difficult task ahead. No. 2 Pennington has more fights than anyone in the history of the division, and she has title fight experience on her resume in the form of a May 2018 loss to Nunes.
The Brazilian is giving her opponent the ultimate respect going into UFC 297 (pay-per-view, ESPNews, ESPN+), but Silva, 32, is confident she has a superior skill set to Pennington, 35, and it will show inside the octagon.
“She has good boxing, she has a good clinch – she’s tough,” Silva said. “She stay in the top five for a long time. But I believe I’m better than her in everything. My jiu-jitsu is better, my boxing is better, my wrestling is better, but she’s very tough. She’s very dangerous.
“Her fights are great fights, but they’re not very exciting. I believe my style is different. My style is more dangerous and exciting for everybody. I promise I will give a big show.”
Silva said she’s fully locked in on the victory at UFC 297, but it’s hard to ignore what could possibly come after that. The UFC is expected to return to her native Brazil for a pay-per-view event in Rio on May 4, and Silva said it would be a dream to attempt her first defense on that card.
“My focus now is on Saturday night,” Silva said. “But of course, when I win, I want to fight in Brazil.”
For more on the card, visit MMA Junkie’s event hub for UFC 297.
Before departing for UFC 297, Sean Strickland receives a new gun to add to his collection in the first episode of “Embedded.”
The UFC is back for its first pay-per-view of 2024, and the popular “Embedded” fight week video series is here to document what’s happening behind the scenes.
UFC 297 takes place Saturday at Scotia Bank Arena in Toronto. The main card airs on pay-per-view following prelims on ESPNews and early prelims on ESPN+.
In the main event, middleweight champion [autotag]Sean Strickland[/autotag] (28-5 MMA, 15-5 UFC) looks to make his first title defense against challenger [autotag]Dricus Du Plessis[/autotag] (20-2 MMA, 4-0 UFC). And in the co-main event, top contenders [autotag]Mayra Bueno Silva[/autotag] (10-2-1 MMA, 5-2-1 UFC) and [autotag]Raquel Pennington[/autotag] (15-8 MMA, 12-5 UFC) will meet for the vacant women’s bantamweight title.
The first episode of “Embedded” follows the featured fighters while they get ready for fight week. Here is the UFC’s description of the episode from YouTube:
Champ Sean Strickland sits down with Maxx Crosby. Dricus Du Plessis acclimates to Canada. Mayra Bueno Silva trains with legends. Chris Curtis shines in the gym.
For more on the card, visit MMA Junkie’s event hub for UFC 297.
Mayra Bueno Silva was not having Sean Strickland’s sexist remarks.
[autotag]Mayra Bueno Silva[/autotag] was not having [autotag]Sean Strickland[/autotag]’s sexist remarks.
Bueno Silva (10-2-1 MMA, 5-2-1 UFC) meets Raquel Pennington (15-8 MMA, 12-5 UFC) for the vacant bantamweight title in the UFC 297 co-main event Jan. 20. Headlining that card is middleweight champion Strickland, who makes his first title defense against Dricus Du Plessis.
Strickland (28-5 MMA, 15-5 UFC) mockingly commented that he’ll be helping Bueno Silva and Pennington sell pay-per-views in an Instagram post.
“Well Canada time to bring you all some freedom. Didn’t want to fight in Jan or in Canada but was asked to help a couple ladies do their job.. and they call me sexist..”
https://www.instagram.com/p/CzUVtnCph5M/
Bueno Silva fired back at Strickland. She admits that her fight with Pennington may not be the most intriguing matchup, but she doesn’t think Strickland’s fights have been either.
“Look, on paper, my fight with Raquel is not a good fight,” Bueno Silva told ESPN. “But on paper, Sean Strickland and Dricus Du Plessis is a good fight? No. Sean talks too much. He thinks he is a big star, but he is not a big star. I believe my fight and Sean’s fight, one helps the other.
“On paper, two bad fights for fans. But when we enter the octagon, I do a good fight and Du Plessis does good fights, too. I don’t watch good fights from Sean Strickland. I don’t remember a good fight.”
UFC 297 takes place Jan. 20 at Scotiabank Arena in Toronto and streams on pay-per-view.
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For more on the card, visit MMA Junkie’s event hub for UFC 297.
Mayra Bueno Silva was brutally honest on her upcoming title fight vs. Raquel Pennington.
[autotag]Mayra Bueno Silva[/autotag] was brutally honest on her upcoming title fight vs. [autotag]Raquel Pennington[/autotag].
With Amanda Nunes retired, Bueno Silva (10-2-1 MMA, 5-2-1 UFC) and Pennington (15-8 MMA, 12-5 UFC) will square off for the vacant women’s bantamweight title in the UFC 297 co-headliner Jan. 20 at Scotiabank Arena in Toronto.
Former champion Julianna Peña is not a fan of the matchup, and Silva actually understands where she’s coming from. But the Brazilian is making it her duty to change everyone’s minds once the fight is over.
“On paper, it’s not a good fight because nobody wants to watch this fight – I know,” Bueno Silva told Middle Easy. “This fight on paper is no good. But I promise I will give a big show for everybody. Everybody (will go) home and think about, ‘Hey, this girl Mayra Bueno Silva is the chosen one.'”
Bueno Silva sees Pennington as a tougher fight than Peña. She credits the former title challenger for her durability.
“Raquel is more tough than Julianna,” Bueno Silva said. “Julianna is easy money. … I think she’s tough. She has good boxing, but doesn’t have good jiu-jitsu or a good takedown. I think I’m better than her in everything, but she’s tough. It’s hard to hurt her.”
Pennington has only been finished once in the UFC when she was stopped by former champion Nunes in their title fight in 2018. But Bueno Silva is confident she will get Pennington out of there.
“I will knock her out – I believe this,” Bueno Silva said. “I believe – 100 percent.”
After a multi-year absence, the UFC is bringing back its seasonal press conference format on Friday, and you can watch it on MMA Junkie.
After a multi-year absence, the UFC is bringing back its seasonal press conference format on Friday spotlighting its championship bouts for the first quarter of 2024, beginning at 7 p.m. ET/4 p.m. PT.
With the promotional closing out its 2023 campaign on Saturday with UFC 296 at T-Mobile Arena in Las Vegas, attention is beginning to shift to the turn of the calendar, where several title bouts are on the doctor.
UFC 297, which takes place Jan. 20 at Scotiabank Arena in Toronto, is headlined by a middleweight title clash between [autotag]Sean Strickland[/autotag] (28-5 MMA, 15-5 UFC) and [autotag]Dricus Du Plessis[/autotag] (20-2 MMA, 6-0 UFC).
UFC 298, which goes down Feb. 17 at Honda Center in Anaheim, Calif., has a featherweight championship bout between [autotag]Alexander Volkanovski[/autotag] (26-3 MMA, 13-2 UFC) and [autotag]Ilia Topuria[/autotag] (13-0 MMA, 5-0 UFC) set as the main event.
And, in the final announced headliner of Q1 at UFC 299 on March 9, an anticipated bantamweight rematch between [autotag]Sean O’Malley[/autotag] (17-1 MMA, 9-1 UFC) and [autotag]Marlon Vera[/autotag] (21-8-1 MMA, 15-7 UFC).
All four title fights will be in attendance at the press conference and are expected to face off afterward.
For more on UFC’s 2024 schedule, check out the MMA Schedule section of the site.
