Tag: UFC 251

Alexander Volkanovski: Maybe ‘Korean Zombie’ and his team ‘need another good slapping’

UFC champion Alexander Volkanovski thinks Chan Sung Jung should quit talking and fight for the No. 1 contender spot.

UFC featherweight champion [autotag]Alexander Volkanovski[/autotag] thinks [autotag]Chan Sung Jung[/autotag] should quit talking and fight for the No. 1 contender spot.

Following Volkanovski’s split decision win over Max Holloway in the co-main event of UFC 251, Jung called out the champ and dubbed him a “shameful champion.”

Jung thought Holloway won and vowed that the judges wouldn’t be needed if he were to fight Volkanovski. But Volkanovski (22-1 MMA, 9-0 UFC), who doubts Jung is actually writing his social media posts, is surprised to see “The Korean Zombie” and his team haven’t learned their lesson after their altercation with Brian Ortega.

Ortega confronted Jung’s friend and manager, Korean rapper Jay Park, while both were in attendance at UFC 248 in March, about some of the things Park had said when translating Jung’s words, which included accusations of Ortega ducking him. When Ortega saw Park in Las Vegas, he slapped him in the face and was escorted out of the arena.

“I don’t know, maybe he’s got one of his boys writing some stuff for him again,” Volkanovski told ESPN. “Again, straight after my last fight, he started getting – or one of his teammates or his manager got lippy and started carrying on, and then one of them got slapped for it, and then they went quiet. So Brian Ortega gave them a good slapping, and they stopped talking for a while, but maybe they need another good slapping to keep them quiet.”

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Jung (16-5 MMA, 6-2 UFC) has been linked to a fight against Ortega for a while now, with the two initially scheduled to compete last December before Ortega was forced out due to injury. They are yet to get rebooked, but Volkanovski thinks Jung should fight Ortega before getting a title shot.

“He’s probably just trying to hype the fight up, but I think he needs to fight Brian Ortega,” Volkanovski said. “I think that’s what they plan on doing and again, I want them No. 1 contenders. You go out there, and you take out Brian Ortega, I’m sure everyone’s gonna be screaming your name, and I’m gonna be there waiting. One hundred percent.”

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MMA rankings report: Why did Jorge Masvidal drop spots when Colby Covington didn’t?

MMA Junkie’s George Garcia and Brian Garcia discuss changes to the rankings in several weight classes in the aftermath of UFC 251.

UFC 251 was the biggest card of the year so far and it had significant implications to the top of multiple weight classes.

The main event, of course, saw [autotag]Kamaru Usman[/autotag] (17-1 MMA, 12-0 UFC) hold on to his top spot in the welterweight division with a successful title defense against [autotag]Jorge Masvidal[/autotag] (35-14 MMA, 12-7 UFC), who came into the fight on short notice. Nevertheless, the loss cost “Gamebred” his previous position at 170 pounds.

In addition, featherweight champ [autotag]Alexander Volkanovski[/autotag] (22-1 MMA, 9-0 UFC) defended his title while [autotag]Petr Yan[/autotag] (15-1 MMA, 7-0 UFC) claimed the vacant bantamweight belt. As a result, both men left the card with the No. 1 rankings in their respective weight classes.

That’s jus the tip of the iceberg of everything that happened, though. The results of the card in Yas Island, Abu Dhabi caused movement for both the key winners and losers.

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How do we make sense of it all?

Fortunately, MMA Junkie’s “Gorgeous” George Garcia and Brian Garcia are here to sort out all the complicated dynamics for the USA TODAY Sports/MMA Junkie rankings. So make sure to watch the video above to catch up with the aftermath of the UFC’s big “Fight Island” debut.

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Mural in Russia honors new UFC champion Petr Yan

UFC bantamweight champion Petr Yan has been honored with his own mural in Saint Petersburg.

UFC bantamweight champion [autotag]Petr Yan[/autotag] has been honored with his own mural in Russia.

A mural of Yan (15-1 MMA, 7-0 UFC), who captured the vacant 135-pound title with a fifth-round finish over Jose Aldo at UFC 251, was painted in the city of Saint Petersburg to celebrate his championship winning performance.

An image of the mural was posted by the Instagram page “SBP Colors,” a graffiti page based in Saint Petersburg.

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Поздравляем @petr_yan с победой! Следим за его творчеством со времён, когда это ещё не было мэйн-стримом! Пётр мастерски расправляется со своими соперниками, как настоящий художник с холстом. Приятно делать подарки таким великим людям! Респект за победу! Адрес: Санкт-Петербург, улица Печатника Григорьева 8 . . . . . . . . . . . . . #ufc#ufcrussia#petryan#arhangelmihail##архангелмихаил#spbcolors#mma#rusfighters#russia#josealdo#санктпетербург#teamyan#nomercy

A post shared by Граффити из Петербурга (@spbcolors) on

Russian-born Yan took the UFC by storm in 2018, competing seven times in just two years to capture the bantamweight title. He’s won his last 10 in a row  and has only one career blemish – a split decision loss to Magomed Magomedov in 2016, which he was able to avenge a year later.

The Blue Corner is MMA Junkie’s blog space. We don’t take it overly serious, and neither should you. If you come complaining to us that something you read here is not hard-hitting news, expect to have the previous sentence repeated in ALL CAPS.

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Davey Grant undergoes surgery after multiple jaw fractures in UFC 251 win

Davey Grant’s highlight-reel knockout of Martin Day at UFC 251 came at a cost.

[autotag]Davey Grant[/autotag]’s highlight-reel knockout of Martin Day at UFC 251 came at a cost.

Although the fight ended in the best way possible, with Grant (11-4 MMA, 3-3 UFC) flattening Day (8-4 MMA, 0-2 UFC) with a sick one-shot knockout in the third round, he had to overcome some adversity to get there.

Grant revealed post-fight that he suffered a jaw injury in the first round of the bantamweight bout. He claims he felt it fracture, but insisted on pressing forward. His heart and tolerance for pain paid off, because he managed to get his hand raised and put himself on a two-fight winning streak for the first time in his UFC career.

Upon returning home to England, Grant said his fear were confirmed. Two fractured to the jaw were diagnosed, and he was immediately hospitalized and prepped for surgery, as he revealed on social media (via Instagram):

Unfortunately in my fight on Saturday night I fractured my jaw in 2 places in the first round! After getting home yesterday for barely an hour I was shipped off to hospital again and I’m now awaiting surgery to put it right today. Few weeks off to rest then back at it and on to the next! 😊❤️🦍

Grant, 34, indicated that an extended layoff won’t be required in the aftermath of surgery. He said he intends to resume training and shift focus to his next fight after a “few weeks off.”

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Jorge Masvidal calls for immediate rematch with Kamaru Usman after UFC 251: ‘I know I’m better’

Jorge Masvidal has a singular focus after his title-fight loss at UFC 251: Rematch Kamaru Usman and win the title.

[autotag]Jorge Masvidal[/autotag] has a singular focus after his title-fight loss at UFC 251: Rematch [autotag]Kamaru Usman[/autotag].

Masvidal (35-14 MMA, 12-7 UFC) wants an immediately second opportunity to challenge for the welterweight title after his unanimous decision defeat to Usman (17-1 MMA, 12-0 UFC) in Saturday’s headliner at Flash Forum in Yas Island, Abu Dhabi.

The fight came together on just six days’ notice when Masvidal replaced Gilbert Burns to get his first UFC title shot. He couldn’t overcome Usman under the circumstances, and he said the result is burning away at him.

Reported pay-per-view buy rate of roughly 1.3 million prove Masvidal is a superstar, but he said he’s not coming out of UFC 251 looking for money fights. If he could make a choice of next opponent, he said only one option exists.

“It’s a no-brainer,” Masvidal told ESPN. “Could they offer me bigger names that pay me more money? Yes. For a fact. But if it’s up to me, Usman. For me stepping up on six days’ notice when no one else would. Because no one else would. A lot of people are saying that they would, but who else did it? Ask Dana (White). Who else was actually like, ‘Hey, Masvidal didn’t do it, I’ll do it. I’m right here.’ So, if it’s up to me Usman right away. I don’t care if they can offer me a bigger fight or not, I would like to fight Usman.”

Masvidal said that even if the reported pay-per-view number for UFC 251 wasn’t totally accurate, anything even close to the ballpark will blow the doors off as the biggest payday of his career. There was a contract struggle with the UFC brass that delayed the Usman fight from being made originally, but when Burns tested positive for COVID-19, Masvidal was handed the leverage to get his demands met.

With his bank account padded to a point he’s comfortable with, Masvidal said he doesn’t need to chase the big-money fights. The title is much more important to him at this juncture, and intends to make his case in an upcoming meeting with UFC president White.

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“You could tell me (I’m fighting Conor) McGregor right now and will pay me X, Y, Z dollars: ‘The biggest pay-per-view event in history,'” Masvidal said. “I feel I get compensated well enough now that I keep making the right decisions I’ve been doing, then this money is forever money. So it’s not about money. It’s about I want that damn belt and I’m stubborn and I know I’m better than Usman and I want to prove it. I want to fight again. I’m not going to take nothing from him. He won the first one. Let’s do it again and that’s it. Then after that then whatever comes next after that. But Usman’s the thing I want the most. The immediate rematch with Usman.”

Masvidal said he knows where he went wrong in the fight with Usman and where he could be better under more ideal circumstances. He said immediately after UFC 251 that he wasn’t going to make excuses for the loss and stuck true to that in his first interview upon returning home from the fight.

With the outcome eating away at him, Masvidal said he’s already back to working out in the form of bike rides an weight lifting. He said his immediate goal is to improve his conditioning because he knows it will be a key aspect if he’s given the chance to rematch Usman.

“It’s just begun, as far as competitiveness goes,” Masvidal said. “Obviously I wasn’t at my best. When I got the call on six days I was on more in the gym on a general condition. I was running, I was lifting weights. I wasn’t on the mats three, four times a week but my general priority was to get in better shape. More long distance running and things like that. When I got the call we started training specifically for the fight and I did the best I can. But I don’t want to make no excuses, I don’t want to take nothing away from Usman because even me on six days’ notice, fighting the world champion, I am a dangerous animal.

“I am a effing tiger at all times and I think you say that. It was a battle for real estate and he won on the real estate more often than not. He was able to take me to his side of the world and keep me there. I don’t want to take nothing from him. We’ll leave it up to the rematch. I’ll let my actions speak louder than my words.”

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UFC doesn’t plan on changing ‘Fight Island’ judges

Despite his displeasure with UFC 251 judges, Dana White said they will finish out their stint on “Fight Island.”

ABU DHABI – Despite his displeasure with UFC 251 judges, UFC president Dana White confirmed there will be no personnel changes for the three remaining “Fight Island” events this month.

This past weekend, featherweight champion Alexander Volkanovski escaped with a narrow split decision win in his rematch with Max Holloway, with a large portion of fans ad media expressing disagreement with the result. According to MMADecisions.com, 65 percent of polled fans thought Holloway won.

Following the UFC on ESPN 13 weigh-ins Friday, White was asked whether or not the promotion would make any changes. Unlike state-sanctioned events in the U.S., the UFC is self-governed when it comes to certain international events, including those held on Yas Island, Abu Dhabi.

“No, whatever we had planned for here is planned,” White said. “No matter who you bring in or what you do, there’s always a possibility of bad decisions. Did you guys see today that FanDuel, if you bet with FanDuel, they gave you your money back on Max Holloway? Yeah, it’s pretty crazy. That there goes to show you.”

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Following Volkanovski’s win over Holloway, White voiced his displeasure with the judges’ decision. White said the promotion would have to “figure it out.”

“Listen, man, you can’t leave it to these guys,” he told reporters backstage at Flash Forum. “We’ve got some bad judging. …

“I dunno. Did anybody in here score it for Volkanovski? Nobody in the media? I don’t know. We’ll have to figure it out.”

UFC on ESPN 13 takes place Wednesday on Yas Island, Abu Dhabi. The event airs on ESPN and streams on ESPN+.

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Dana White: UFC 251 pay-per-view numbers cement Jorge Masvidal as ‘a massive star’

UFC 251 was nothing short of a major success for UFC president Dana White, who admits Jorge Masvidal played a big part in that.

ABU DHABI – UFC 251 was nothing short of a major success for UFC president Dana White, who admits [autotag]Jorge Masvidal[/autotag] played a big part in that.

At a UFC on ESPN 13 pre-fight scrum held Tuesday, MMA Junkie asked White about a recent report that Saturday’s event raked in upward of 1.3 million pay-per-view buys. White didn’t confirm the specific numbers, but he did praise his promotion’s execution.

“It was a very successful event,” White said. “We’re happy. This thing killed across the board in every way you could possibly kill it. It was awesome. It was awesome. The thing did really well.”

White attributes the lucrative night of fights to a handful of factors. The “Fight Island” branding played a part – but so did headlining challenger Masvidal (35-14 MMA, 12-7 UFC). White also tipped his cap to UFC welterweight champion Kamaru Usman, complimenting his in-cage abilities.

“I said it to you guys the other night. I think when you put on a fight – a successful promotion of an event – this is a big melting pot of different things,” White said. “‘Fight Island’ was a massive star in this thing. Jorge Masvidal was a massive star. Obviously, Usman, the champion and a guy that we’re all starting to realize is tough to beat – and a great card underneath it. It all came together perfectly.”

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As for areas of improvement, White had trouble locating any. In recent meetings, White said he’s brainstormed what could’ve gone better at UFC 251 but hasn’t come up with anything.

“It was a major success,” White said. “Everybody is healthy. It’s all good. Literally, (there’s) not one negative thing I could point out as I’ve been talking to people, especially here from Abu Dhabi, who were involved in the event. I’ve had meetings since the fight, and they’re like, ‘What can we do better next time?’ I’m like, ‘I wish I could tell you something negative. I wish I could tell you something that didn’t go perfectly, that wasn’t perfect.’ Everything here has been perfect.

“When you think about this safety zone that we’re in from the restaurants to the hotels and the service and everything else, it literally could not be done better than this if you look at all the other places. California just shut down again. With what’s going on in the States, you couldn’t execute a better event with better facilities with better food for everybody. The list just goes on and on. It could not be better.”

The estimated 1.3 million buys are the most the promotion has drawn for a single event since UFC 229 in October 2018, which holds the promotion’s record at an estimated 2.4 million. That event was headlined by the infamous grudge match between Khabib Nurmagomedov and Conor McGregor.

Three title fights were on Saturday’s billing: Usman vs. Masvidal, Alexander Volkanovksi vs. Max Holloway, and Petr Yan vs. Jose Aldo. Masvidal lost a five-round unanimous decision after taking the fight on just six days’ notice.

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Leonardo Santos just thankful to see end of foul-plagued fight with Roman Bogatov at UFC 251

Take a look inside Leonardo Santos’ win over Roman Bogatov at UFC 251 in Abu Dhabi.

ABU DHABI – [autotag]Leonardo Santos[/autotag] beat Roman Bogatov with a unanimous decision Saturday on the preliminary card at UFC 251 in Abu Dhabi.

Take a look inside the fight with Santos, who endured two low blows, then an illegal knee to the head with a 2-point decision for Bogatov.

Result: Leonardo Santos def. Roman Bogatov via unanimous decision (29-26, 29-26, 29-26)
Updated records: Santos (18-3-1 MMA, 7-0-1 UFC), Bogatov (10-1 MMA, 0-1 UFC)
Key stat: Santos won the striking battle 116-81, including a barrage in the second round that nearly ended the fight.

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Santos on the fight’s key moment

“I expected a great fight. He’s a warrior and I knew it would be a hard fight. … The fouls were weird because he did them three times. The last one, I saw him stand up and so I just blocked my ribs. Thanks to God to give me the strength to get to the end of the fight.”

Santos on the chance to be at “Fight Island”

“I feel great and blessed to have the chance to be a part of history. I love my life and enjoy fighting. I just want to say thank you to the UFC and Dana White for being brave and having a big organization to fight for my family, country and team. … I didn’t have enough time to do a perfect camp. So I just came here with my heart, bravery and experience. That’s what I did in the octagon. The most important thing is the win.”

Santos on what he wants next

“After my last fight I asked for someone in the top 10 or top five and no one answered me. So I don’t care. I’m healthy and happy. I’ll be ready.”

To hear more from Santos, check out the video of the full post-fight interview above.

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Muslim Salikhov says Elizeu Zaleski dos Santos got him in the first but glad with split win

Take a look inside Muslim Salikhov’s win over Elizeu Zaleski dos Santos at UFC 251 in Abu Dhabi.

ABU DHABI – [autotag]Muslim Salikhov[/autotag] beat Elizeu Zaleski dos Santos with a split decision Saturday on the preliminary card at UFC 251 in Abu Dhabi.

Take a look inside the fight with Salikhov, who picked up his fourth straight win after dropping his UFC debut in 2017.

Result: Muslim Salikhov def. Elizeu Zaleski dos Santos via split decision (30-27, 28-29, 29-28)
Updated records: Salikhov (17-2 MMA, 4-1 UFC) def. Elizeu Zaleski dos Santos (22-7 MMA, 8-3 UFC)
Key stat: Dos Santos won the striking battle 46-40, but got just one judge to side with him.

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Salikhov on the fight’s key moment

“I wasn’t surprised, but he got me in the first round with a right hand. It was a surprise, but I was OK. It’s a fight. … I feel that I’m doing my job, like another day at the office. This guy was very tough. I think he’s a top opponent. He can be a top fighter. This is a big win for me.”

Salikhov on being at Fight Island

“Everything’s been great (on ‘Fight Island’). It’s an island for the fighters. We have everything here. They took care of us. We just had to do our job and fight. It was good.”

Salikhov on what he wants next

“I want to fight as soon as possible. I don’t have any injuries.”

To hear more from Salikhov, check out the video of the full post-fight interview above.

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Spinning Back Clique: Why Jorge Masvidal will be just fine coming out of UFC 251

Check out this week’s edition of “Spinning Back Clique,” which unpacks what went down over the weekend at UFC 251.

Welcome to “Spinning Back Clique,” MMA Junkie’s weekly show that takes a spin through the biggest topics in mixed martial arts. This week, Simon Head hosts and is joined by MMA Junkie Radio’s “Gorgeous” George and “Goze,” as well as senior reporter Mike Bohn.

SHOW TOPICS

  • [autotag]Jorge Masvidal[/autotag]’s risk, taking a welterweight title fight on six days’ notice, didn’t pay off as champion [autotag]Kamaru Usman[/autotag] won a convincing unanimous decision in the UFC 251 main event. Masvidal’s stock was soaring heading in, but where does he stand now, and can he work his way back to another title shot?
  • Usman, meanwhile, seemingly has two clear options for his next title defense: [autotag]Gilbert Burns[/autotag] or [autotag]Leon Edwards[/autotag]. Both men have made their cases with a heated exchange. Who should it be?
  • Large sections of MMA Twitter were screaming robbery after featherweight champion [autotag]Alexander Volkanovski[/autotag] won a narrow split decision against [autotag]Max Holloway[/autotag] in their rematch at UFC 251. The result really puts former champ Holloway in a tricky spot now with two losses to the current titleholder. So what’s his best play to get out of it?
  • In a fight between former champions, [autotag]Rose Namajunas[/autotag] scored a unanimous decision win over Jessica Andrade in their “Fight of the Night” rematch at UFC 251. The result all but sets up a title shot for “Thug Rose” against another big hitter in [autotag]Zhang Weili[/autotag]. After what we saw Saturday, who’s the way-too-early pick between Weili and Namajunas?
  • Coming up on Saturday, [autotag]Deiveson Figueiredo[/autotag] and [autotag]Joseph Benavidez[/autotag] will run it back for the vacant flyweight title at UFC on ESPN+ 30. Figueiredo, who missed weight when they fought in February, won the first bout by stoppage. Who wins this time around?

For answers to all of those questions, watch Episode 37 of “Spinning Back Clique” above.