Tag: Mohammed Usman

With Valter Walker out, Mohammed Usman steps in to face Jake Collier on UFC’s Sept. 23 event

Mohammed Usman will step in for Valter Walker against Jake Collier at UFC Fight Night on Sept. 23.

[autotag]Valter Walker[/autotag]’s UFC debut will have to wait.

Walker, the younger brother of light heavyweight contender Johnny Walker, has been forced out of his UFC Fight Night matchup Sept. 23 against [autotag]Jake Collier[/autotag]. He will be replaced by [autotag]Mohammed Usman[/autotag]. The bout takes place at the UFC Apex in Las Vegas.

Two people with knowledge of the booking informed MMA Junkie of the change Friday. They asked to remain anonymous since the promotion has yet to make an official announcement.

Usman (9-2 MMA, 2-0 UFC), who won Season 30 of “The Ultimate Fighter” with a knockout of Zac Pauga, made good in his second octagon appearance when he defeated formerly unbeaten Junior Tafa by unanimous decision in April.

Collier (13-9 MMA, 5-8 UFC), 34, alternated wins and losses in his first 10 UFC fights, but has dropped three in a row. Included in those recent setbacks was a controversial split decision loss to former heavyweight champion Andrei Arlovski.

Mohammed Usman reveals brother Kamaru’s advice prior to UFC Fight Night 222 win

As per his brother Kamaru’s request, Mohammed Usman exercised patience in his UFC Fight Night 222 win over Junior Tafa.

LAS VEGAS – As per his brother’s request, [autotag]Mohammed Usman[/autotag] exercised patience in his win over Junior Tafa.

Usman (9-2 MMA, 2-0 UFC) made it 2-0 in the octagon when he defeated Tafa by unanimous decision this past Saturday at UFC Fight Night 222 at the UFC Apex. With his brother, former UFC welterweight champion [autotag]Kamaru Usman[/autotag], giving him some pre-fight advice, “The Motor” was able to weather an early storm and use his grappling to control Tafa.

“My brother just kept saying the same thing over and over again: ‘Don’t rush, stay patient,'” Usman told reporters, including MMA Junkie, at his UFC Fight Night 222 post-fight news conference. “Fighting, when you rush, your heart rate goes up.

“Your heart rate is already going through the roof, but when you rush, it goes up a little bit more. It makes you lose track of focus, and the mission is not to go in there and rush. The mission is to go in there and execute and do what we need to do to get the job done. I’m glad that we got that done today.”

Usman took on an unbeaten prospect in former Glory kickboxer Tafa, but “The Ultimate Fighter 30” winner isn’t concerned with matchmaking moving forward.

“This is the UFC. You get to a certain level, you fight everybody,” Usman said. “The goal going forward is just to keep listening to my coaches, just keep getting better. Just keep getting better to just be in the cage and be able to mix everything up and just improving.”

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For more on the card, visit MMA Junkie’s event hub for UFC Fight Night 222.

UFC Fight Night 222 post-event facts: Sergei Pavlovich makes history with first-round KO streak

Sergei Pavlovich is firmly in the UFC record books after extending his first-round KO streak against Curtis Blaydes at UFC Fight Night 222.

The octagon was back in the UFC Apex in Las Vegas on Saturday for UFC Fight Night 222, and a new heavyweight contender emerged from the main event.

[autotag]Sergei Pavlovich[/autotag] (17-1 MMA, 6-1 UFC) made history when he recorded a modern company record sixth consecutive first-round knockout, this time against his most decorated opponent to date in fellow contender [autotag]Curtis Blaydes[/autotag] (17-4 MMA, 12-4 UFC).

Pavlovich has put his mark on the record books of the promotion, and for more on the numbers, check below for MMA Junkie’s post-event facts from UFC Fight Night 222.

UFC Fight Night 222 Promotional Guidelines Compliance pay: Program total passes $17 million

UFC Fight Night 222 fighters took home UFC Promotional Guidelines Compliance pay, a program that continued after the UFC’s deal with Venum.

LAS VEGAS – Fighters from Saturday’s UFC Fight Night 222 event took home UFC Promotional Guidelines Compliance pay totaling $181,500.

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 Fight Night 222 took place at the UFC Apex. The entire card streamed on ESPN+.

The full UFC Fight Night 222 UFC Promotional Guidelines Compliance payouts included:

* * * *

[autotag]Sergei Pavlovich[/autotag]: $6,000
def. [autotag]Curtis Blaydes[/autotag]: $16,000

[autotag]Bruno Silva[/autotag]: $6,000
def. [autotag]Brad Tavares[/autotag]: $21,000

[autotag]Bobby Green[/autotag]: $21,000
vs. [autotag]Jared Gordon[/autotag]: $11,000

[autotag]Iasmin Lucindo[/autotag]: $4,000
def. [autotag]Brogan Walker[/autotag]: $4,000

[autotag]Jeremiah Wells[/autotag]: $4,500
def. [autotag]Matthew Semelsberger[/autotag]: $6,000

[autotag]Christos Giagos[/autotag]: $11,000
def. [autotag]Ricky Glenn[/autotag]: $6,000

[autotag]Montel Jackson[/autotag]: $6,000
def. [autotag]Rani Yahya[/autotag]: $21,000

[autotag]Norma Dumont[/autotag]: $6,000
def. [autotag]Karol Rosa[/autotag]: $6,000

[autotag]Mohammed Usman[/autotag]: $4,000
def. [autotag]Junior Tafa[/autotag]: $4,000

[autotag]William Gomis[/autotag]: $4,000
def. [autotag]Francis Marshall[/autotag]: $4,000

[autotag]Brady Hiestand[/autotag]: $4,000
def. [autotag]Danaa Batgerel[/autotag]: $6,000

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 2221 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 2023 UFC Promotional Guidelines Compliance payouts:

Year-to-date total: $2,411,500
2022 total: $8,351,500
2021 total: $6,167,500
Program-to-date total: $17,000,500

For more on the card, visit MMA Junkie’s event hub for UFC Fight Night 222.

UFC Fight Night 222 video: Hear from each winner, guest fighters backstage

Check out what the UFC Fight Night 222 winners and guest fighters had to say backstage at Saturday’s event.

LAS VEGAS – UFC Fight Night 222 took place Saturday with 11 bouts on the lineup. We’ve got you covered with backstage winner interviews from the UFC Apex in Las Vegas.

You can hear from all the UFC Fight Night 222 winners by checking out their post-fight news conferences below.

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Matchup Roundup: New UFC and Bellator fights announced in the past week (March 20-26)

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 March 20-26.

UFC Fight Night 222 adds heavyweight bout Junior Tafa vs. Mohammed Usman

Younger siblings of UFC vets are set to clash at UFC Fight Night 222 at the UFC Apex in Las Vegas.

Younger siblings of UFC veterans will meet in a heavyweight clash in April.

At UFC Fight Night 222, heavyweight winner of “The Ultimate Fighter Season 30” [autotag]Mohammed Usman[/autotag] will meet the debuting [autotag]Junior Tafa[/autotag] on April 22, according to an announcement by the promotion.

The event takes place at the UFC Apex in Las Vegas, and is headlined by a heavyweight matchup between [autotag]Sergei Pavlovich[/autotag] vs. [autotag]Curtis Blaydes[/autotag].

Mohammed (8-2 MMA, 1-0 UFC), the younger brother of former welterweight champion [autotag]Kamaru Usman[/autotag], took care of business in his first fight with the promotion at UFC on ESPN 40. A violent left hook put Zac Pauga down in the second round, crowning Mohammed the winner of “TUF 30.”

Junior (4-0 MMA, 0-0 UFC), the younger sibling of UFC heavyweight [autotag]Justin Tafa[/autotag], will fight for the promotion for the first time. Junior has been on an undefeated streak since 2020 across MMA, kickboxing, Muay Thai, and boxing bouts, racking up a total of eight straight victories.

With the addition, the UFC Fight Night 222 lineup includes:

  • Sergei Pavlovich vs. Curtis Blaydes
  • Matthew Semelsberger vs. Jeremiah Wells
  • Norma Dumont vs. Karol Rosa
  • Ricky Simon vs. Song Yadong
  • William Gomis vs. Francis Marshall
  • Iasmin Lucindo vs. Brogan Walker
  • Jared Gordon vs. Bobby Green
  • Junior Tafa vs. Mohammed Usman
  • Priscila Cachoeira vs. Karine Silva
  • Danaa Batgerel vs. Brady Hiestand
  • Bruno Silva vs. Brad Tavares
  • Christos Giagos vs. Ricky Glenn
  • Montel Jackson vs. Rani Yahya

Waldo Cortes-Acosta calls for Mohammed Usman after UFC Fight Night 215, fight outside Apex

Waldo Cortes-Acosta has a couple of requests for the UFC.

LAS VEGAS – [autotag]Waldo Cortes-Acosta[/autotag] has a few requests for the UFC.

The UFC heavyweight has a couple of things in mind following his second win inside the octagon. Cortes-Acosta (9-0 MMA, 2-0 UFC) defeated Chase Sherman (16-11 MMA, 4-10 UFC) by unanimous decision in the co-main event of Saturday’s UFC Fight Night 215. It was his second fight in just 21 days after he made his debut for the promotion last month at UFC Fight Night 213.

Cortes-Acosta has an opponent in mind for his return, and that’s Kamaru Usman’s brother, Mohammed.

‘I’ve said it. I want [autotag]Mohammed Usman[/autotag],” Cortes-Acosta told reporters, including MMA Junkie. “I want him. I want him. I don’t know what’s happening, but I want him.”

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But Cortes-Acosta’s requests don’t stop there. Having fought twice at the UFC Apex, the unbeaten heavyweight would like to experience fighting with a crowd, and he sees fitting the last pay-per-view of 2022 – UFC 282 on Dec. 10 at the T-Mobile Arena in Las Vegas.

“I’m anxious to see the people going crazy, chanting ‘Salsita Boy’ and going crazy,” Cortes-Acosta said. “I want to see that. I want to feel that motivation from people whenever they’re chanting my name.”

For more on the card, visit MMA Junkie’s event hub for UFC Fight Night 215.

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After joining brother Kamaru as ‘TUF’ champion, Mohammed Usman wants to blaze his own UFC path

Mohammed Usman doesn’t want to ride the UFC coattails of his brother Kamaru and plans to build his own legacy.

LAS VEGAS – [autotag]Mohammed Usman[/autotag] is ready to build his own legacy.

Usman (8-2 MMA, 1-0 UFC) , who is the younger brother of UFC welterweight champion and No. 1 pound-for-pound fighter Kamaru Usman, won Season 30 of “The Ultimate Fighter” this past Saturday when he knocked out Zac Pauga (5-1 MMA, 0-1 UFC) in Round 2 at UFC on ESPN 40 at the UFC Apex.

Just like Kamaru, Usman will kick off his UFC tenure having captured the “TUF” title, but he’s excited to branch out and write his own story.

“I’m just trying to write my own path,” Usman told MMA Junkie and other reporters. “My brother’s already did what he needed to – he’s already did more than I could ever dream of in this sport. So I’m just blazing my own path, I’m just taking it a day at a time and blazing my own path.”

“It feels like it’s the start of my journey. It’s Day 1, so this is my first day on the job in the UFC. Now I can put the UFC stuff on and feel accomplished.”

It was a beautiful left hand that got the job done for Usman, who said he pictured the moment during training camp. Having trained with Pauga in the past, Usman knew his power would make the difference.

“I manifested this moment,” Usman said. “Me and my coaches, we worked, we worked, we worked and that’s the No. 1 thing we worked on. We worked on putting him away because he knows that I have power but he’s never really felt my power. He’s only felt me at training. Training, you’re not trying to knock nobody out in training. When you get in that octagon, you’re trying to put somebody’s lights out and that’s what I did.”

For more on the card, visit MMA Junkie’s event hub for UFC on ESPN 40.

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