Rani Yahya – Page 2 – Syndication Server

Cody Garbrandt returns to bantamweight, meets Rani Yahya at UFC Fight Night on July 9

Cody Garbrandt will return to his original home when he faces Rani Yahya in July.

[autotag]Cody Garbrandt[/autotag] will return to his original home.

Garbrandt (12-5 MMA, 7-5 UFC) meets [autotag]Rani Yahya[/autotag] (28-10-1 MMA, 13-4-1 UFC) at UFC Fight Night on July 9, which doesn’t yet have a publicly known venue or location. Both fighters confirmed the news on social media after an initial report from MMA Fighting.

Since dethroning Dominick Cruz to capture the bantamweight title in a masterclass performance in December 2016, Garbrandt has struggled, losing five of six fights. His lone win in that stretch came in a buzzer-beater knockout of Raphael Assuncao in June 2020. In his past outing in December, Garbrandt’s flyweight debut was spoiled when he was knocked out by Kai Kara-France at UFC 269 and will be moving back up to 135 pounds when he meets Yahya.

On the other hand, Brazil’s Yahya is enjoying some momentum in his career at the age of 37. The jiu-jitsu ace is coming off back-to-back wins in a submission of Ray Rodriguez, followed by a unanimous decision over Kyung Ho Kang this past November at UFC Fight Night 198.

The latest UFC Fight Night lineup for July 9 includes:

Rafael dos Anjos vs. Rafael Fiziev
Cynthia Calvillo vs. Nina Nunes
Cortney Casey vs. Antonina Shevchenko
Josh Fremd vs. Tresean Gore
Said Nurmagomedov vs. Douglas Silva de Andrade
Abdul Razak Alhassan vs. Jamie Pickett
Caio Borralho vs. Armen Petrosyan
Cody Garbrandt vs. Rani Yahya

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22 fights on our MMA wishlist for 2022: Conor McGregor vs. Nate Diaz 3, Jon Jones, Jorge Masvidal

What are some of your dream matchups for 2022? Here are 22 fights MMA Junkie hopes to see happen in 2022.

Amidst a tumultuous global pandemic there were many grim realities humans had to endure in 2021. One thing was consistently good, however, and that’s combat sports.

Although just five fights of 21 fights from the 2021 MMA wishlist came to fruition, the sport was extremely hot and gave fans many memorable moments. The world leader of MMA – the UFC – had a particularly great year, and that momentum doesn’t seem to be slowing heading into 2022.

It’s not just UFC fights that are taking attention, either. There’s also plenty happening in Bellator, PFL, Eagle FC and many other promotions.

MMA is in a great spot, and with much excitement we present MMA Junkie’s wishlist of 22 fights we’d like to see in 2022.

UFC Fight Night 198 post-event facts: Rare 0-5 UFC record enters history books

Check out all the facts and figures from UFC Fight Night 198, which saw a near-record 10 fights end in a decision.

UFC Fight Night 198 took place Saturday at the UFC Apex in Las Vegas, and with 10 decision results, it turned out to be one of the more forgettable events of the year.

It won’t be remembered that way for [autotag]Ketlen Vieira[/autotag] (12-2 MMA, 6-2 UFC), though, as she put a signature win on her resume when she outworked [autotag]Miesha Tate[/autotag] (19-8 MMA, 6-5 UFC) to a unanimous decision in the women’s bantamweight headliner.

For more on the numbers behind the main event, as well as the rest of the card, check below for 35 post-event facts to come out of UFC Fight Night 198.

UFC Fight Night 198 predictions: Is anyone picking Ketlen Vieira over Miesha Tate?

Check out our staff members’ picks for the UFC Fight Night 198 main card, featuring Ketlen Vieira vs. Miesha Tate.

	Vieira vs. Tate	Brady vs. Chiesa	Kang vs. Yahya	Santos vs. Wood	Grant vs. Yanez
MMA Junkie readers’ consensus picks 2021: 197-107	Tate (71%)	Chiesa (56%)	Yahya (58%)	Santos (63%)	Yanez (77%)
John Morgan @MMAjunkieJohn 2021: 201-103	Tate	Chiesa	Kang	Santos	Yanez
Simon Samano @SJSamano 2021: 194-110	Tate	Brady	Kang	Santos	Yanez
Mike Bohn @MikeBohnMMA 2021: 191-113 2014 Champion	Tate	Chiesa	Kang	Santos	Yanez
Matt Erickson @MMAjunkieMatt 2021: 189-115	Tate	Chiesa	Yahya	Santos	Yanez
Nolan King @mma_kings 2021: 188-116	Tate	Brady	Kang	Santos	Yanez
Dan Tom @DanTomMMA 2021: 187-117 2020 Champion	Tate	Brady	Kang	Santos	Yanez
Danny Segura @dannyseguratv 2021: 183-121	Tate	Chiesa	Yahya	Santos	Yanez
Ken Hathaway @kenshathaway 2021: 182-122 2018 Champion	Tate	Chiesa	Kang	Santos	Yanez
George Garcia @MMAjunkieGeorge 2021: 177-127	Tate	Chiesa	Yahya	Wood	Yanez
Farah Hannoun @Farah_Hannoun 2021: 176-128	Tate	Brady	Yahya	Santos	Yanez
Abbey Subhan @kammakaze 2021: 176-128	Tate	Chiesa	Kang	Santos	Yanez
Brian Garcia @thegoze 2021: 176-128 2017 Champion	Tate	Brady	Kang	Santos	Yanez
Matthew Wells @MrMWells 2021: 118-70	Tate	Chiesa	Kang	Santos	Yanez

The UFC stays in Las Vegas this week with a former champion at the top of the lineup.

UFC Fight Night 198 takes place Saturday at the UFC Apex in Las Vegas. The card streams on ESPN+.

(Click here to open a PDF of the staff picks grid in a separate window.)

In the main event, former women’s bantamweight champion [autotag]Miesha Tate[/autotag] (19-7 MMA, 6-4 UFC) takes on [autotag]Ketlen Vieira[/autotag] (11-2 MMA, 5-2 UFC). Vieira is a slight -120 favorite at Tipico; the comeback on Tate is -105. But not a single one of our 13 editors, writers, radio hosts and videographers is picking against Tate.

In the co-feature, [autotag]Sean Brady[/autotag] (14-0 MMA, 4-0 UFC) takes on [autotag]Michael Chiesa[/autotag] (17-5 MMA, 11-5 UFC) at welterweight. Brady is a -175 favorite, but it’s Chiesa who has an 8-5 lead in the picks.

Also on the main card, [autotag]Kyung Ho Kang[/autotag] (17-8 MMA, 6-2 UFC) meets [autotag]Rani Yahya[/autotag] (27-10-1 MMA, 12-4-1 UFC) in a bantamweight bout. The fight nearly is a pick’em with Kang at -115 to -110 for Yahya. But Kang has a big 9-4 lead from our staff members.

[autotag]Taila Santos[/autotag] (18-1 MMA, 3-1 UFC) is the biggest favorite on the main card at -380 in her women’s flyweight bout against [autotag]Joanne Wood[/autotag] (15-6 MMA, 7-6 UFC) – formerly Joanne Calderwood. Only one of our pickers is taking Wood in an upset.

And to open the main card, [autotag]Adrian Yanez[/autotag] (14-3 MMA, 3-0 UFC) is our second unanimous pick in his bantamweight bout against [autotag]Davey Grant[/autotag] (11-5 MMA, 4-4 UFC). Yanez is a big -320 favorite at the betting window.

In the MMA Junkie reader consensus picks, Tate (71 percent), Chiesa (56 percent), Yahya (58 percent), Santos (63 percent) and Yanez (77 percent) are the choices.

Check out all the picks above.

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UFC on ESPN 28 loses co-main event due to positive COVID-19 test

The co-main event between Kyung Ho Kang and Rani Yahya becomes the fifth UFC on ESPN 28 fight to fall off this week.

The UFC on ESPN 28 lineup just keeps taking hits.

Just hours away from the event, veteran [autotag]Rani Yahya[/autotag] announced that his co-main event against [autotag]Kyung Ho Kang[/autotag] has been canceled after he tested positive for COVID-19.

Yahya reveled the news Saturday morning on his Instagram account.

“Hey, guys, my fight just got canceled,” Yahya wrote. “I tested positive for the COVID-19 test that was made yesterday. I feel very good physically, and I believe that everything happens for a reason. Thank you all for the support!!”

View this post on Instagram

A post shared by Rani Yahya (@raniyahyamma)

The promotion has yet to announce the news at the time of this story. It’s unknown how the loss of the co-main event will affect the lineup.

This is fifth bout cancellation in one week for UFC on ESPN 28.

The original co-main event between Chris Daukaus and Shamil Abdurakhimov was pulled Monday, as well as Sam Alvey vs. Roman Kopylov canceled due to visa issues. Additionally, two more bouts fell off after Friday’s weigh-ins: Nicco Montano vs. Wu Yanan, and Ronnie Lawrence vs. Trevin Jones.

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UFC on ESPN 28 predictions: Uriah Hall or Sean Strickland in middleweight showdown?

Check out our staff members’ picks for the UFC on ESPN 28 main card, featuring Uriah Hall vs. Sean Strickland.

	Hall vs. Strickland	Kang vs. Yahya	Buys vs. De Paula	Gooden vs. Stolze	Adashev vs. Benoit	Barberena vs. Witt
MMA Junkie readers’ consensus picks 2021: 111-66	Hall (61%)	Yahya (62%)	Buys (77%)	Stolze (61%)	Benoit (74%)	Barberena (86%)
Ken Hathaway @kenshathaway 2021: 112-65 2018 Champion	Strickland	Kang	De Paula	Gooden	Benoit	Barberena
John Morgan @MMAjunkieJohn 2021: 109-68	Strickland	Kang	Buys	Stolze	Adashev	Barberena
Simon Samano @SJSamano 2021: 109-68	Strickland	Kang	Buys	Stolze	Adashev	Barberena
Dan Tom @DanTomMMA 2021: 108-69 2020 Champion	Hall	Yahya	Buys	Stolze	Benoit	Barberena
Mike Bohn @MikeBohnMMA 2021: 107-70 2014 Champion	Hall	Yahya	De Paula	Stolze	Benoit	Barberena
Matt Erickson @MMAjunkieMatt 2021: 106-71	Strickland	Kang	Buys	Stolze	Benoit	Barberena
Nolan King @mma_kings 2021: 106-71	Strickland	Kang	Buys	Stolze	Benoit	Barberena
George Garcia @MMAjunkieGeorge 2021: 105-72	Strickland	Yahya	Buys	Stolze	Benoit	Barberena
Brian Garcia @thegoze 2021: 105-72 2017 Champion	Strickland	Kang	Buys	Stolze	Benoit	Barberena
Danny Segura @dannyseguratv 2021: 104-73	Strickland	Yahya	Buys	Stolze	Benoit	Barberena
Farah Hannoun @Farah_Hannoun 2021: 103-74	Strickland	Yahya	Buys	Stolze	Benoit	Barberena
Abbey Subhan @kammakaze 2021: 100-77	Strickland	Kang	Buys	Gooden	Benoit	Barberena
Matthew Wells @MrMWells 2021: 36-25	Strickland	Yahya	Buys	Stolze	Benoit	Barberena
BetMGM Betting Favorites	Strickland -225	Kang -135	Buys -165	Stolze -200	Benoit -140	Barberena -275

The UFC stays in its Las Vegas home base this week with a fight between a pair of surging middleweights.

UFC on ESPN 28 takes place Saturday at the UFC Apex in Las Vegas. The card airs on ESPN and streams on ESPN+.

(Click here to open a PDF of the staff picks grid in a separate window.)

In the main event, [autotag]Uriah Hall[/autotag] (17-9 MMA, 10-7 UFC) takes on [autotag]Sean Strickland[/autotag] (23-3 MMA, 10-3 UFC) at 185 pounds. Both fighters come in with four-fight winning streaks, but it’s Strickland with a sizable betting advantage at -225 at BetMGM, and he’s got a big 10-3 lead in the picks from our 13 editors, writers, radio hosts and videographers.

In the co-feature, [autotag]Kyung Ho Kang[/autotag] (17-8 MMA, 6-2 UFC) meets jiu-jitsu ace [autotag]Rani Yahya[/autotag] (27-10-1 MMA, 12-4-1 UFC) at bantamweight. Kang is the slight favorite at -135, and he’s got just a narrow 7-6 lead in the picks in our most contentious fight.

[autotag]Cheyanne Buys[/autotag] (5-2 MMA, 0-1 UFC) and [autotag]Gloria de Paula[/autotag] (5-3 MMA, 0-1 UFC) both are looking for their first UFC wins in a women’s strawweight fight. Buys, from South Africa, is a -165 favorite and has a big 11-2 lead in the picks.

[autotag]Jared Gooden[/autotag] (17-6 MMA, 0-2 UFC) is stepping up on short notice to take on [autotag]Niklas Stolze[/autotag] (12-4 MMA, 0-1 UFC) at welterweight. Stolze is a 2-1 favorite at the betting window, and he’s got an 11-2 edge from our pickers.

[autotag]Zarrukh Adashev[/autotag] (3-3 MMA, 0-2 UFC) takes on [autotag]Ryan Benoit[/autotag] (10-7 MMA, 3-5 UFC) in a flyweight bout. And despite just a -140 nod from the oddsmakers and betting public for Benoit, he’s running away with the picks at 11-2.

And to open the main card, [autotag]Bryan Barberena[/autotag] (15-7 MMA, 6-5 UFC) is the biggest favorite at -275 in his welterweight bout against [autotag]Jason Witt[/autotag] (18-7 MMA, 1-2 UFC). He’s also our lone unanimous pick at 13-0.

In the MMA Junkie reader consensus picks, Hall (61 percent), Yahya (62 percent), Buys (77 percent), Stolze (61 percent), Benoit (74 percent) and Barberena (86 percent) are the choices.

Check out all the picks above.

Kyung Ho Kang vs. Rani Yahya, Dooho Choi vs. Danny Chavez added to UFC event on July 31

A pair of Korean fighters return to the cage after lengthy layoffs on July 31 in two newly announced matchups.

UFC officials today announced a bantamweight contest between [autotag]Kung Ho Kang[/autotag] and [autotag]Rani Yahya[/autotag], as well as a featherweight matchup of [autotag]Dooho Choi[/autotag] vs. [autotag]Danny Chavez[/autotag] – both of which take place at a UFC Fight Night event on July 31, which does not currently have a publicly announced location or venue.

Kang (17-8 MMA, 6-2 UFC) returns to action for the first time since a December 2019 split-decision win over Liu Pingyuan. “Mr. Perfect” is currently riding a three-fight winning streak and is 6-1 in his last seven overall contests. He now takes on Brazilian grappling ace Yahya (27-10-1 MMA, 12-4-1 UFC), who picked up a submission win over Ray Rodriguez in March in his most recent appearance.

Meanwhile, Choi (14-4 MMA, 3-3 UFC) also returns for the first time since December 2019. “The Korean Superboy” is actually looking to break a three-fight losing streak – though he earned a “Fight of the Night” bonus in each of the setbacks. He now faces Chavez (11-4 MMA, 1-1 UFC), who last saw action in February, suffering a decision loss that snapped a four-fight winning streak.

With the additions to the card, the July 31 lineup includes:

Bryan Barberena vs. Jason Witt
Jinh Yu Frey vs. Ashley Yoder
Rafa Garcia vs. Chris Gruetzemacher
Collin Anglin vs. Melsik Baghdasaryan
Orion Cosce vs. Phillip Rowe
Cheyanne Buys vs. Gloria de Paula
Mounir Lazzez vs. Niklas Stolze
Kyung Ho Kang vs. Rani Yahya
Dooho Choi vs. Danny Chavez

UFC Fight Night 187 medical suspensions: Belal Muhammad faces 30 days after eye poke

Belal Muhammad isn’t facing a long time off after suffering a nasty eye poke against Leon Edwards at UFC Fight Night 187.

[mm-video type=video id=01f0rk9xdw5jzbn5hn playlist_id=01eqvpne7c1q486dvv player_id=none image=https://images2.minutemediacdn.com/image/upload/video/thumbnail/mmplus/01f0rk9xdw5jzbn5hn/01f0rk9xdw5jzbn5hn-0004b90e420f9325ab0f18363a480e2c.jpg]

Thankfully, [autotag]Belal Muhammad[/autotag] isn’t facing a potentially long medical suspension coming out of UFC Fight Night 187.

Muhammad’s first headliner vs. Leon Edwards was ruled a no contest after Edwards accidentally poked him in the eye 18 seconds into the second round of their welterweight fight. Visibly in pain, Muhammad was unable to continue and, as a result, the fight was stopped without a winner.

Muhammad (18-3 MMA, 9-3 UFC) was able to provide a positive update shortly after, stating that he suffered no permanent damage to his eye and was slowly starting to get his vision back. The medical report supports his claim as Muhammad will be prohibited from any contact for 21 days with no contest for 30 days, until he receives doctor clearance for his right eye.

MMA Junkie on Tuesday obtained the full list of suspensions from MixedMartialArts.com, the Association of Boxing Commissions’ official record keeper.

The full list of UFC Fight Night 187 medical suspensions includes:

[autotag]Leon Edwards[/autotag]: No suspension.
Belal Muhammad: Must have right eye cleared by an ophthalmologist, otherwise suspended 30 days; minimum suspension is 21 days.
[autotag]Misha Cirkunov[/autotag]: Suspended 60 days with 45 days no contact.
[autotag]Ryan Spann[/autotag]: No suspension.
[autotag]Dan Ige[/autotag]: No suspension.
[autotag]Gavin Tucker[/autotag]: Suspended 45 days with 30 days no contact.
[autotag]Jonathan Martinez[/autotag]: Suspended 45 days with 30 days no contact.
[autotag]Davey Grant[/autotag]: Suspended 30 days with 21 days no contact.
[autotag]Manel Kape[/autotag]: Suspended 21 days with 14 days no contact.
[autotag]Matheus Nicolau[/autotag]: No suspension.
[autotag]Eryk Anders[/autotag]: No suspension.
[autotag]Darren Stewart[/autotag]: Suspended 45 days with no contact for 30 days.
[autotag]Angela Hill[/autotag]: Must have left eye cleared by an ophthalmologist, otherwise suspended 30 days.
[autotag]Ashley Yoder[/autotag]: Suspended 180 days or until right ear is cleared by ENT.
[autotag]Marcelo Rojo[/autotag]: Must have maxillofacial bones fractures cleared by maxillofacial surgeon and left lamina papyracea cleared by an ophthalmologist, otherwise suspended 180 days.
[autotag]Charles Jourdain[/autotag]: Suspended 30 days with no contact for 21 days due to left scalp laceration.
[autotag]Rani Yahya[/autotag]: No suspension.
[autotag]Ray Rodriguez[/autotag]: Suspended 21 days with no contact for 14 days.
[autotag]Nasrat Haqparast[/autotag]: Suspended 180 days or until left fibula X-ray is cleared by orthopedic doctor; also suspended 30 days with no contact for 21 days.
[autotag]Rafa Garcia[/autotag]: Suspended 180 days or until right elbow X-ray is cleared by orthopedic doctor; also suspended 30 days with no contact for 21 days.
[autotag]Cortney Casey[/autotag]: Suspended 180 days or until right foot and right hand X-rays are cleared by orthopedic doctor; also suspended 21 days with no contact for 14 days.
[autotag]J.J. Aldrich[/autotag]: No suspension.
[autotag]Gloria de Paula[/autotag]: No suspension.
[autotag]Jinh Yu Frey[/autotag]: Suspended 21 days with no contact for 14 days.
[autotag]Matthew Semelsberger[/autotag]: No suspension.
[autotag]Jason Witt[/autotag]: Suspended 30 days with no contact for 21 days.

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Callout Collection: Who UFC Fight Night 187 winners want next – and how likely they’ll get them

Dan Ige and Ryan Spann were among those who name-dropped their preferred next opponents at UFC Fight Night 187 in Las Vegas.

Earning wins in the UFC is certainly no easy task, but what comes next is often even more important: the post-fight callout.

So, after Saturday’s UFC Fight Night 187 event in Las Vegas, who took advantage of their time on the mic?

See below for this week’s Callout Collection – and just how realistic each one is.

Rani Yahya picks up 21st career submission, UFC-WEC bantamweight finishes record

Watch Rani Yahya secure a record-breaking finish at UFC Fight Night 187.

[autotag]Rani Yahya[/autotag] is still proving how effective jiu-jitsu is almost two decades after making his professional MMA debut.

The 36-year-old bantamweight submitted Ray Rodriguez on Saturday at UFC Fight Night 187 in Las Vegas. Yahya (27-10-1 MMA, 12-4-1 UFC) finished Rodriguez with an arm-triangle choke in the second round.

It was a dominant performance by Yahya, as he took down Rodriguez early in the first round and constantly worked to secure a submission. The second was no different, but this time the Brazilian was able to lock up an arm-triangle for the win.

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This was Yahya’s 21st submission win of his career. He also now holds the record for most finishes at bantamweight in combined UFC and WEC history, surpassing T.J. Dillashaw, Urijah Faber, Marlon Vera, and Eddie Wineland who all have eight. The submission was Yahya’s first win since 2018, as he entered UFC Fight Night 187 with a draw and defeat in his prior two outings.

Below you can watch Yahya’s latest submission win (via Twitter):

SUBMISSION: TWENTY ONE

You cannot make mistakes vs 🇧🇷 @RaniYahyaMMA!

[ #UFCVegas21 continues on #ESPNPlus ] pic.twitter.com/d5gWUP0FxH

— UFC (@ufc) March 13, 2021

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