Tag: UFC 260

UFC free fight: Sean O’Malley lights up Thomas Almeida, knocks him out in Round 3

Ahead of his fight against Petr Yan at UFC 280, relive Sean O’Malley’s finish of Thomas Almeida at UFC 260.

[autotag]Sean O’Malley[/autotag] put on a striking clinic against Thomas Almeida.

Looking to rebound from his first career loss to Marlon Vera at UFC 252, O’Malley faced Almeida at UFC 260 in March 2021.

Almeida looked to chop away at the legs of O’Malley, who was light on his feet and continuously changed stances. O’Malley poked away at Almeida from the outside, making it hard for him to reach him. “The Suga Show” blasted Almeida with a head kick, followed by a left hand, but somehow Almeida was still in the fight.

Almeida tried to work his way back into Round 2, landing two hard leg kicks – one which dropped O’Malley. But O’Malley’s movement and feints continued to give Almeida problems. In Round 3, O’Malley’s pressure started to take a toll on the durable Almeida, who was finally put down with a left hand and a massive right on the ground which put him out.

O’Malley (15-1 MMA, 7-1 UFC) returns to action Oct. 22 when he takes on former champion [autotag]Petr Yan[/autotag] (16-3 MMA, 8-2 UFC) on the UFC 280 main card at Etihad Arena in Abu Dhabi.

Before he faces Yan, relive O’Malley’s finish of Almeida in the video above.

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Triple Take: Which UFC pay-per-view main event has been best of 2021?

The UFC has been on fire on pay-per-view in 2021, but which of the headliners has produced the most memorable win? Our panel discusses.

The UFC has been on fire on pay-per-view in 2021. This past Saturday’s UFC 262 event was the latest in a strong stretch of numbered events that saw the headliner deliver the goods.

Five of six main events this year have ended in a stoppage, including two title defenses and another pair of results that saw new champions crowned. Charles Oliveira, of course, was among the latter, as he became new lightweight title with a second-round TKO of Michael Chandler on Houston in a memorable battle.

Oliveira’s performance continued the trend of big wins in pay-per-view, but which has been best? MMA Junkie’s Mike Bohn, Farah Hannoun and Nolan King discuss in the latest edition of “Triple Take.”

With Nate Diaz booked, Vicente Luque alters plans for next fight

Vicente Luque didn’t get his wish to fight Nate Diaz, and now he wants a top-ranked UFC welterweight next.

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[autotag]Vicente Luque[/autotag]’s callout of Nate Diaz at UFC 260 didn’t materialize, but he doesn’t regret shooting for one of the biggest names in the game.

Following his first-round submission win over Tyron Woodley this past Saturday in the “Fight of the Night,” Luque made it known he wants a piece of Diaz next. He thought there was a decent chance to get his wish, but then three days later, Diaz was booked for a fight against Leon Edwards at UFC 262 on May 15.

A portion of the immediate reaction to Luque’s request for Diaz was based around it being an unrealistic matchup. Luque said the fact Diaz is back and fighting a highly ranked welterweight, however, shows he wasn’t aiming out of his depth.

“Right after I called him out, there were people who loved that callout and people who were saying, ‘You wasted a callout. Nate is never going to come back. He doesn’t look like he’s going to fight again,'” Luque told MMA Junkie. “Then when that fight was announced, I was like, ‘Man, you see? It isn’t such a crazy callout.’

“I knew he was going to come back at some point. I wish it were against me, but I think it’s a great fight. For Nate, it makes sense. Right now, I’m No. 6 (in the UFC rankings). Leon Edwards is No. 3, so that’s the better fight for him.”

If Luque had gotten the offer to fight Diaz, he said he would’ve been ready to go at the drop of a dime. Now that he’s booked, though, it changed the game plan for the Brazilian.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=_MEP4plDP9E

Luque has built himself up to the point at which he’s not looking to take just any name. He’s entrenched himself in the top 10 of one of the deepest weight classes in the sport, and the majority of the names ranked above him already have something planned.

The upside for Luque, however, is that some key fights are on the horizon. Champion Kamaru Usman defends against Jorge Masvidal at UFC 261 on April 24, while Diaz and Edwards clash less than a month later. The 170-pound division will have more clarity within six weeks, and Luque said it would be wise to see where he fits in after everything shakes out.

“I think that’s the move to make,” Luque said. “I think it just makes sense. I had a great fight, I had a really hard training camp for this fight. Even though the fight just lasted one round, the training camp is really where you put in all the work, and that’s where the body needs to heal a little bit. … I’ve got to rest a little bit. My son is going to be born soon, so I’m going to take a little time to take care of that. But I’m evolving and training. I came out of this fight 100 percent, so I’m going to be back training real soon, keep working on my game, developing myself.

“There’s this fight (with Diaz and Edwards) happening. We have the title fight going. I think there are many different possibilities. I’m not totally disappointed to not get that fight, I definitely wanted to fight Diaz, but just the fact he’s going back to activity makes it more realistic that I can get a fight with him eventually. We’ll see how things go.”

Regardless of which top-ranked name comes next, Luque said he’ll be primed for the challenge. His confidence is at an all-time high after beating a former titleholder in Woodley, and Luque thinks his aggressive and stoppage-heavy style of fighting is going to help him match up well against any elite welterweight.

“I think Leon Edwards would be a great test. Colby Covington would be another great guy (to fight),” Luque said. “Because if you look at the champion right now, he is an amazing wrestler. He’s been developing his striking, but he’s an amazing wrestler. So if I want to be ready to beat a guy like that, I have to be ready to face tough competition like Colby, like Leon Edwards that are going to try to do the same thing against me. Just try to wrestle me and eliminate my striking. I feel confident I can fight those guys. Right now I am at the best point of my career where I can use unleash my striking and not worry about if I’m going to go to the ground.”

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Daniel Cormier shuts down talk of Jon Jones being scared of Francis Ngannou: ‘He’s not afraid, bro’

Daniel Cormier scoffs at the notion that Jon Jones is afraid of Francis Ngannou.

[autotag]Daniel Cormier[/autotag] has scoffed at the notion that [autotag]Jon Jones[/autotag] is afraid of [autotag]Francis Ngannou[/autotag].

After Ngannou (16-3 MMA, 11-2 UFC) scored a brutal knockout of Stipe Miocic to claim the heavyweight title at UFC 260, UFC president Dana White joked that Jones should ponder a move down to 185 pounds.

Jones (26-1 MMA, 20-1 UFC) has been bulking up as he prepares to transition to heavyweight and has been waiting in the wings since vacating the light heavyweight title in May. Following Ngannou’s win over Miocic, Jones tweeted “show me the money,” indicating that he wants to be suitably compensated for a potential superfight with Ngannou.

Upon hearing Jones’ comments, White insinuated that Jones might not actually want to take the fight, which prompted the former light heavyweight king to go on a Twitter tirade before eventually asking for his release. But Cormier says that just because Jones is asking for a payday, it doesn’t mean “Bones” is afraid of facing Ngannou.

“Jon Jones, for everything that’s between us, is not afraid of Francis Ngannou,” Cormier said on ESPN’s “DC and Helwani” show. “This is absurd that people think that – he’s not afraid, bro.”

White already presented a Plan B for Ngannou, when he claimed that a Derrick Lewis rematch is the fight to make if “Bones” is hesitant. But Cormier is confident that the matchup between Ngannou and Jones will come to fruition, and that the current back-and-forth is just a part of the negotiation process.

“Here’s where you start to play the game if you’re Dana and Jones,” Cormier said. “Jones wants his money, Dana has to show that he has options. That’s all that’s happening. High-level negotiations is what’s going on right now. But, make no mistake about it, Jones believes that he’ll beat Francis Ngannou, as any great champion would believe that they would beat him.

“Jon Jones is one of the most talented guys that I’ve ever seen inside the octagon, and if you have to find someone that can piece together a way to solve that puzzle (Ngannou), it’s Jon Jones. Let’s not be crazy here. Jon Jones feels he’s defending himself against his name, but the reality is they’re just negotiating in public. We’ve seen this with Conor (McGregor), we’ve seen this with other fighters in the past. I believe it happens, I really do.”

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UFC 260 medical suspensions: Stipe Miocic potentially out two months following knockout loss

Stipe Miocic is facing two months on the shelf after his knockout at UFC 260.

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[autotag]Stipe Miocic[/autotag] has received a two-month suspension as a result of his second-round knockout loss to [autotag]Francis Ngannou[/autotag] in the main event of UFC 260.

MMA Junkie obtained the full list of medical suspensions from MixedMartialArts.com for UFC 260, which took place this past Saturday at the UFC Apex in Las Vegas.

Miocic, 38, is among eight fighters to receive a medical suspension of 60 days or greater. Five fighters, [autotag]Gillian Robertson[/autotag], [autotag]Jamie Mullarkey[/autotag], [autotag]Fabio Cherant[/autotag], [autotag]Omar Morales[/autotag], and [autotag]Shane Young[/autotag], were handed 180-day suspensions as a result of their respective UFC 260 bouts.

Additionally, former UFC welterweight champion [autotag]Tyron Woodley[/autotag] faces 45 days away from competition. [autotag]Thomas Almeida[/autotag], who was knocked out by [autotag]Sean O’Malley[/autotag] on the pay-per-view main card, received a 60-day medical suspension.

Four fighters, [autotag]Miranda Maverick[/autotag], [autotag]Alonzo Menifield[/autotag], [autotag]Abubakar Nurmagomedov[/autotag], and [autotag]Michal Oleksiejczuk[/autotag] received no suspension. All four fighters won their fights at UFC 260.

The full UFC 260 medical suspensions include:

  • Francis Ngannou: Suspended 30 days, with no contact for 21 days.
  • Stipe Miocic: Suspended 60 days, with no contact for 45 days.
  • [autotag]Vicente Luque[/autotag]: Suspended 21 days, with no contact for 14 days.
  • Tyron Woodley: Suspended 45 days, with no contact for 30 days.
  • Sean O’Malley: Suspended 21 days, with no contact for 14 days.
  • Thomas Almeida: Suspended 60 days, with no contact for 45 days.
  • Miranda Maverick: No suspension.
  • Gillian Robertson: Suspended 180 days or until right hand X-ray is cleared by a doctor; also suspended 21 days with no contact.
  • Jamie Mullarkey: Suspended 180 days or until right hand and wrist X-ray is cleared by a doctor.
  • [autotag]Khama Worthy[/autotag]: Suspended 45 days, with no contact for 30 days.
  • Alonzo Menifield: No suspension.
  • Fabio Cherant: Suspended 180 days or until right ribs X-ray is cleared by a doctor; also suspended 30 days with no contact.
  • Abubakar Nurmagomedov: No suspension.
  • [autotag]Jared Gooden[/autotag]: Suspended 30 days, with no contact for 21 days.
  • Michal Oleksiejczuk: No suspension.
  • [autotag]Modestas Bukauskas[/autotag]: Suspended 30 days, with no contact for 21 days.
  • Omar Morales: Suspended 180 days or until right tibia and right thumb X-rays are cleared by a doctor; also suspended 14 days with no contact.
  • Shane Young: Suspended 180 days or until left tibia/fibula X-ray is cleared by a doctor; also suspended 28 days with no contact for 21 days.
  • [autotag]Marc-Andre Barriault[/autotag]: Suspended 30 days, with no contact for 21 days due to right eyebrow cut.
  • [autotag]Abu Azaitar[/autotag]: Suspended 60 days, with no contact for 45 days.

UFC 260 took place Saturday at the UFC Apex in Las Vegas. The main card streamed on ESPN+ pay-per-view after prelims on ESPN/ESPN+.

Stipe Miocic’s wife provides update on ex-champ after UFC 260 knockout

Stipe Miocic appears to be in good health after his knockout loss to Francis Ngannou in the UFC 260 main event.

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[autotag]Stipe Miocic[/autotag] has yet to make any public comments since losing his heavyweight title to Francis Ngannou at UFC 260.

However, Miocic’s wife, Ryan, provided an update on his behalf.

Miocic (20-4 MMA, 14-4 UFC) lost the title to Ngannou (16-3 MMA, 11-2 UFC) by brutal second-round knockout in Saturday’s headliner. He was transported from the UFC Apex in Las Vegas to a local hospital and did not speak to the media post-fight.

Despite the fight-ending sequence, Miocic appears to be in good health. He was smiling in a photo posted by his wife, which included a caption indicating he’s not significantly injured (via Instagram):

https://www.instagram.com/p/CM80F3hprAZ

He’s alright, still my hero! ❤️

Miocic has been in this situation before. His first UFC title reign came to an end courtesy of a knockout loss to Daniel Cormier, but he rebounded to reclaim the strap.

It remains to be seen what the 38-year-old has planned for his next move. Ngannou said he’s not keen on an immediate trilogy bout, and if he wants to get the title back again, it may require Miocic to take another bout in the meantime.

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Callout Collection: Who UFC 260 winners want next – and how likely they’ll get them

Francis Ngannou and Vicente Luque were among those who name-dropped their preferred next opponents at UFC 260 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 260 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.

Sean O’Malley admits final shot on Thomas Almeida unnecessary: ‘I looked into his eyes – he wasn’t there’

Sean O’Malley admitted the final shot of his Thomas Almeida knockout win at UFC 260 was unnecessary.

LAS VEGAS – [autotag]Sean O’Malley[/autotag] thinks his latest knockout win could’ve come a few seconds sooner.

O’Malley put away Brazil’s Thomas Almeida on the pay-per-view main card of Saturday’s UFC 260. O’Malley (13-1 MMA, 5-1 UFC) connected with a short left in the third round that sent Almeida (22-5 MMA, 5-5 UFC) to the canvas. To follow up, O’Malley took a second before he pounced over an unresponsive Almeida to land a final blow, which forced the referee to call the fight.

The 26-year-old doesn’t think the last strike was needed since he already thought Almeida was done.

“It was still potential viral. I think it was a good knockout, (but) that shot was unnecessary,” O’Malley told reporters at the post-fight news conference. “I looked into his eyes – he wasn’t there. But in the first round, after (the referee) said, ‘Hey, if I don’t stop it, you have to keep fighting,’ I had to give him my little ‘2,’ a juicer to the lips.”

O’Malley wobbled Almeida in the first round, then dropped him to the canvas. “Suga” tried to pull off a walk-off knockout, but the referee didn’t wave off the fight. O’Malley had to keep going and didn’t find the finish that round.

O’Malley isn’t sure the fight should’ve been stopped in the first, but he’s glad the referee didn’t since he got extra cage time.

“I’d have to see it, but I’m glad he didn’t,” O’Malley said. “I got to go a whole other round. The amount of times I watch my fights is ridiculous. I’m my No. 1 fan. I think that’s why I improve so much. I record every single sparring round and I watch it. I watch it in slow motion and I’ll send sweet clips to my coaches. So the fact that I got to go a whole other round or round and a half, I’m OK with that because I’m going to watch it 100 times.”

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The win got O’Malley back in the win column after a loss this past August to Marlon Vera, the first of his career. As far as what’s next, O’Malley doesn’t care who he fights, but does want to get one more bout before the end of 2021.

“I want to fight before the end of the year,” O’Malley said. “I don’t know when. I don’t know who. I want to get back in the G-I. I want to train and I want to get better. That’s my priority.”

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Jon Jones says absent ‘some bread’ from the UFC, Derrick Lewis can have next title shot

After a tweet barrage making his case to be the UFC’s next heavyweight title challenger, Jon Jones says give it to Derrick Lewis.

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[autotag]Jon Jones[/autotag] spent the immediate aftermath of the start of [autotag]Francis Ngannou[/autotag]’s heavyweight title reign making his case on Twitter to be next in line for a title shot.

Less than two hours later, though, the former light heavyweight champion took his foot off the proverbial gas pedal and said [autotag]Derrick Lewis[/autotag] (25-7 MMA, 16-5 UFC) can get the first shot at Ngannou – provided the UFC doesn’t meet Jones’ financial requirements.

“It’s OK, Derek (sic) can have the fight,” Jones posted in response to a Twitter user saying UFC president Dana White was using Lewis as leverage against Jones. “No need to rush a great thing. I’ve already had a Hall of Fame career, I’m going to need some bread.”

That “bread,” presumably, is the kind of money Jones has been saying for a while now he needs to get paid by the UFC. Jones vacated his light heavyweight title in 2020 and announced a move up to heavyweight. He’s been the odds-on favorite to get a title shot in his first fight in his new division, despite some highly publicized complaints about his pay and treatment by the UFC.

After Ngannou (16-3 MMA, 11-2 UFC) knocked out Stipe Miocic (20-4 MMA, 14-4 UFC) in the UFC 260 main event Saturday to win the heavyweight title, White responded at the post-fight news conference to some of Jones’ (26-1 MMA, 20-1 UFC)’ comments in his tweet barrage – including one in which he said “Show me the money.”

White said he didn’t know what that meant, and also said if Jones wants the fight with Ngannou so badly, he should reach out to the UFC to make it happen. But White also said if Jones watched Ngannou’s decimation of Miocic, he might be wise to forego his move to heavyweight and move not just back down to 205 pounds, but to 185, instead.

“If I’m Jon Jones and I’m home watching this fight, I start moving to 185,” White told MMA Junkie. “… Sure. Listen, I could sit here all day and (ask) you, ‘What’s “Show me the money” mean?’ I tell you guys this all the time: You can say you want to fight somebody, but do you really want to?”

Jones later said he would be talking to the UFC about his terms – and alluded to making public the number he’ll be asking for to fight Ngannou for the heavyweight title.

https://twitter.com/JonnyBones/status/1376074228806520836

For his part, Ngannou didn’t shy away from the potential for a booking against Jones later this year. Outside of the Jones matchup, there is the possibility of a third fight against Miocic, which he said he wasn’t immediately interested in – or one with Lewis, who has won four straight fights.

UFC 260 took place Saturday at the UFC Apex in Las Vegas. The main card aired on pay-per-view following prelims on ESPN and early prelims on ESPN+.

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UFC fighters, sports stars, and celebs were in awe of Francis Ngannou’s KO of Stipe Miocic

Wow.

The Francis Ngannou era has officially begun and man did it start in beautiful fashion.

Ngannou became the UFC heavyweight champ Saturday night with his devastating KO of the former champ, Stipe Miocic. The two traded a few serious blows in the second round before Ngannou sent Miocic to the mat with a huge left hook and then finished him off with one last punch. It’s Ngannou’s fifth straight win and they’ve come from powerful punches.

Ngannou spoke after the fight about a possible matchup with Jon Jones, who is making the move up to heavyweight. While that would be an incredible fight, we need to give his KO of Miocic the celebration it deserves.

Ngannou was pretty pumped about his new title:

UFC fighters, sports stars, and celebs were in awe: