Tag: UFC 247

Who deserves the next shot at Jon Jones? | Spinning Back Clique.mp4

MMA Junkie’s John Morgan is joined by MMA Junkie Radio’s own Gorgeous George and Goze to unpack the biggest storylines coming out of UFC 247 and UFC Rio Rancho.

MMA Junkie’s John Morgan is joined by MMA Junkie Radio’s own Gorgeous George and Goze to unpack the biggest storylines coming out of UFC 247 and UFC Rio Rancho.

No rematch? Dominick Reyes reacts to potential Jones vs. Blachowicz title booking

Dominick Reyes’ hopes for a rematch with Jon Jones took a hit at UFC on ESPN+ 25.

[autotag]Dominick Reyes[/autotag]’ worst-case scenario occurred on Saturday at UFC on ESPN+ 25.

[autotag]Jan Blachowicz[/autotag] needed to do something spectacular against Corey Anderson in the light heavyweight contender matchup in order to shift the conversation away from a rematch between Reyes and champion Jon Jones.

He did just that.

Blachowicz (26-8 MMA, 9-5 UFC) scored a brutal first-round knockout of Anderson, and did so with Jones (26-1 MMA, 20-1 UFC) sitting cageside. The pair engaged in a colorful post-fight moment, and it felt Reyes’ chance to run it back may have just slipped away.

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It’s clear Reyes (12-1 MMA, 6-1 UFC) sensed at much, because he took to social media and did the only thing he could: Accuse Jones of avoiding a fight with him (via Twitter):

Duck Duck Goose 🦆 @ufc

Reyes pushed Jones to his very limit at UFC 247 this month, falling just short in a controversial unanimous decision. There’s been plenty of talk about booking a second fight immediately, and it still remains a possibility.

Jones spoke to MMA Junkie post-fight at UFC on ESPN+ 25, which took place at Santa Ana Star Center in Rio Rancho, N.M., and although he thinks Blachowicz asserted himself as a title-worthy contender, he didn’t rule out the rematch with Reyes.

“It’s something that I definitely consider, but in order for a Dominick Reyes rematch to happen it just needs to take a few meetings with the UFC to make that happen,” Jones said. “But if we don’t rematch, I’m fine with that, too. I think I won the fight, definitely won Rounds 3, 4, 5.”

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Dominick Reyes shows off battered legs following narrow loss to Jon Jones at UFC 247

Dominick Reyes’ legs took a major beating in the Jon Jones fight.

[autotag]Dominick Reyes[/autotag]’ legs took a major beating in the [autotag]Jon Jones[/autotag] fight.

Reyes (12-1 MMA, 6-1 UFC) was helped out of the octagon following his heartbreaking loss to UFC light heavyweight champion Jones (26-1 MMA, 20-1 UFC) at UFC 247, where Jones implemented his usual array of attacks, chopping away at Reyes’ legs.

After a strong start, outstriking Jones throughout the first three frames, Reyes started to slow down a little in the latter rounds, and the damage to his legs could have played a part in hindering his movement late. He lost a unanimous decision in a fight that many thought he won.

Five days later, Reyes took to Instagram to show off some of his battle scars, confirming that no major damage has been done.

“Hey Everyone! I’m doin good, thanks for the tremendous support. MRI came back negative, but have some bruising from blunt force trauma. #peopleschamp #pricewepay”

Jones, who’s also adamant that he won, was seen in the UFC 247 “Thrill and Agony” segment telling Reyes that he’s willing to run it back.

However, this Saturday’s pivotal rematch between Corey Anderson and Jan Blachowicz at UFC Rio Rancho may prove otherwise, but time will tell.

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The MMA Road Show with John Morgan, No. 255 – Las Vegas – Cold Coffee is alive!

Episode No. 255 of “The MMA Road Show with John Morgan” podcast is now available for streaming and download.

Episode No. 255 of “The MMA Road Show with John Morgan” podcast is now available for streaming and download.

MMA Junkie lead staff reporter John Morgan hosts the show while traveling the world to cover the sport.

He’s still not quite 100 percent, but Cold Coffee is back from surgery and ready to catch up with John Morgan on the continued fallout from UFC 247, as well as look ahead to this weekend’s UFC Rio Rancho.

Check it out on iTunes or at themmaroadshow.com. You can also subscribe via RSS.

Trevin Giles picked public service over UFC fame and was ultimately rewarded for it

James Krause wasn’t the only one who made a courageous decision prior to UFC 247.

When James Krause stepped in on 24 hours’ notice to move up a weight class and fight at UFC 247, he was rightfully applauded for his gesture.

However, his middleweight opponent, [autotag]Trevin Giles[/autotag], also made a courageous decision – though he’s not one to brag.

Born in Texas, Giles (12-2 MMA, 3-2 UFC) lives in Houston and works for the Houston police department. He didn’t have to accept a fight against a dangerous opponent with virtually no notice, but he also didn’t want to let down those who came out to support him.

Giles won the hard-fought preliminary bout via split decision. In doing so, the win snapped a two-fight losing streak and potentially saved his UFC job.

Giles’ loyalty is nothing new. According to his manager, Oren Hodak, Giles was put in a difficult position in late 2019. That’s when he chose loyalty over his athletic dreams.

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When the UFC came knocking for Giles to fight Antonio Arroyo at UFC on ESPN+ 22, Giles was faced with a tough decision: would he take the fight and leave public service, or would he decline to fight and risk his UFC aspirations? Given that Giles had lost his previous two fights, this was a tough call. But after verbally accepting the fight, Giles chose couldn’t in good conscience leave his unit in the dust.

He ultimately declined, choosing to put his police priorities first.

“Our longstanding relationship with the matchmakers had us confident that the right timing and opportunity would present itself,” Hodak told MMA Junkie. “It was hard to turn down the first fight offer, but Trevin has a duty to the city of Houston and his follow officers that he holds himself accountable for.”

It was a risky maneuver, but one that ultimately paid off. Months later, the promotion went back to the well and offered Arroyo again, this time at UFC 247.

As the old saying goes, it takes two to tango – so props to Krause and Giles for the effort turned in at UFC 247.

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MMA rankings report: Why Dominick Reyes climbs despite UFC 247 loss to Jon Jones

It’s not often that a fighter moves up in the rankings after a loss, but that’s the case with Dominick Reyes coming out of UFC 247.

The result of the UFC 247 main event [autotag]Jon Jones[/autotag] and [autotag]Dominick Reyes[/autotag] has sparked plenty of debate. So, too, might our latest USA TODAY Sports/MMA Junkie rankings.

Jones escaped last Saturday with a unanimous decision over Reyes to retain his light heavyweight title in Houston. The outcome has been debated ad nauseam since the moment the scores were read.

On the heels of that controversy, both Jones and Reyes have made moves in our latest rankings. Despite the loss, Reyes has leapfrogged Bellator dual champion Ryan Bader for the No. 2 spot at 205 pounds. As for Jones, despite the questionable nature of his win, he moves ahead of UFC lightweight champion Khabib Nurmagomedov for the No. 1 spot in the pound-for-pound rankings.

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Do you agree with those decisions? Our rankings chair “Gorgeous” George of MMA Junkie Radio discusses why with MMA Junkie’s John Morgan in the latest edition of the MMA rankings report.

You can watch the video above to also find out how UFC 247 impacted the rest of the rankings, including where [autotag]Valentina Shevchenko[/autotag], [autotag]Derrick Lewis[/autotag] and [autotag]Dan Ige[/autotag] landed after their victories.

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Corey Anderson happy Jon Jones beat Dominick Reyes at UFC 247: ‘I get to be the one to dethrone him’

Corey Anderson is happy that Jon Jones beat Dominick Reyes so he gets to be the one to dethrone the pound-for-pound champion.

[autotag]Corey Anderson[/autotag] thinks he might have been the biggest winner at UFC 247.

UFC light heavyweight champion [autotag]Jon Jones[/autotag] successfully defended his title in a back-and-forth battle with a very game Dominick Reyes this past Saturday in Houston. And while many thought Reyes should have gotten the nod, top contender Anderson (13-4 MMA, 10-4 UFC), is ultimately happy that Jones retained, because he wants to be the one to finally defeat Jones.

“I knew he was beatable,” Anderson told TMZ Sports. “I was the one that always said, ‘I know I can beat Jon, I know ways to beat him.’ I see the holes, I see what you got to do to beat him, and Dom went out there and did pretty much a lot of it. He went out there and did another blueprint of things that I had already seen, but I see so much more.

“I got more in my tank, and I got more in my style in the way I fight that Dom doesn’t that I think is going to be a problem for him. But at the end, I’m happy that Jon got the win because I get to be the one to dethrone him.”

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Anderson didn’t see the fight as the massive robbery some have claimed it to be, and instead acknowledged the work that both guys put in during their five-round war. He’s happy with the outcome, though, because he knew that, had Reyes won, the UFC would have most likely booked an immediate rematch, putting his own title aspirations on hold for even longer.

“When I was watching, I was like, ‘Man, I could lose that opportunity to be the one to beat Jon,'” he explained. “It could have gone either way, especially when he got caught with a couple of shots and looked like he might have been hurt. Dom is usually known for pouring it on, but he (was) just so tired, he couldn’t do it.

“Dominick threw more punches and landed more, but, percentage-wise, I think Jon landed more. You could flip the coin on that one, it could have went either way.”

Having campaigned hard for a title shot through 2019, Anderson is riding a four-fight winning streak heading into his first fight of 2020, and he hopes a second career victory over fellow contender Jan Blachowicz at Saturday’s UFC on ESPN+ 25 in New Mexico will see him move to the front of the queue to face Jones next.

Clearly, he fancies his chances of dethroning “Bones” and capturing the 205-pound crown.

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Juan Adams announces UFC release following loss to Justin Tafa

Juan Adams announced that’s he’s been handed his walking papers after four fights with the UFC.

[autotag]Juan Adams[/autotag] announced that’s he’s been handed his walking papers after four fights with the UFC.

The heavyweight earned a UFC contract on Dana White’s Contender Series in 2018, with a first-round finish over Shawn Teed.

After a successful promotional debut, taking out Chris de la Rocha, Adams (5-3 MMA, 1-3 UFC) would face a string of unfortunate results, dropping his next three in a row to Arjan Bhullar, Greg Hardy, and, most recently, a TKO loss to Justin Tafa at this past weekend’s UFC 247.

Adams took to Twitter to announce the news of his UFC release.

“Spoke with the manager and I’m not in the ufc anymore. As easy as it would be to give up, I’m going to keep going. I made the changes too late and now I have to pay for that but I have the right pieces in place now. I will continue Hoping and working for the best moving forward.”

Adams exits the UFC with a 1-3 record, with his most recent loss coming in his hometown of Houston.

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Jon Jones: Dominick Reyes ‘completely stopped fighting in the championship rounds’ at UFC 247

Jon Jones doesn’t understand why Dominick Reyes thinks he got robbed when he visibly slowed down in the championship rounds at UFC 247.

Despite the continues furor over the scoring of his fight, UFC light heavyweight champion [autotag]Jon Jones[/autotag] remains adamant that he beat [autotag]Dominick Reyes[/autotag] at UFC 247.

Jones (26-1 MMA, 20-1 UFC) retained his title vs. Reyes (12-1 MMA, 6-1 UFC) via controversial unanimous decision in the main event of this past weekend’s event in Houston and thinks it all came down to the championship rounds.

Although the judges’ scorecards were all in Jones’ favor, many observers have expressed belief that Reyes did enough to win the first three rounds, with “Bones” claiming the last two.

While Reyes explained that his conservative approach towards the end was due to him thinking he was ahead on the cards, Jones is adamant that he controlled the fight and that his pressure caused Reyes to tire in the championship rounds, and he took to social media to make his case.

“Dominic out struck me by literally 12 shots. I scored the take downs, was the aggressor, control the octagon every round, had more significant strikes landed.. Dom completely stopped fighting in the championship rounds and has the audacity to be mad at the judges. 😩🤷🏾‍♂️”

Jones was able to outstrike Reyes in Rounds 4 and 5, leaving a lasting impression in the judges’ eyes in a closely-contested fight.

“Don’t be mad at the judges, be mad at Dom’s conditioning guy. Man started to give up when the water got deep and is now going around doing interviews talking about being robbed. When will these young boys start taking responsibility 🤷🏾‍♂️ That’s what’s wrong with boys these days.”

While the UFC hasn’t mentioned any immediate plans for a potential rematch, the champion appears to be willing to run it back in a fight he dubbed a classic.

“At the end of the day, I got to be a part of another classic. I’m over here in ABQ smiling from ear to ear. Having fights like that tickles my pickle, it makes me feel so alive. Makes me feel like a man. Especially when you display having balls the way I did, nothing but a win.”

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