Tag: UFC 261

Chris Weidman’s wife provides post-surgery update after ‘horrible’ leg break at UFC 261

Chris Weidman is out of surgery and smiling after snapping his leg in shocking fashion against Uriah Hall at UFC 261.

[autotag]Chris Weidman[/autotag] is out of surgery and smiling after snapping his leg in shocking fashion against Uriah Hall at UFC 261.

Weidman (15-6 MMA, 11-6 UFC) suffered a disturbing compound fracture just 17 seconds into his middleweight bout with Hall (17-9 MMA, 10-7 UFC) on Saturday in Jacksonville, Fla. He threw a right leg kick that was checked, and when he stepped back the limb folded under his weight, he collapsed to the ground in agony on the mat.

It was an eerily similar situation to what happened in Weidman’s UFC 168 fight with Anderson Silva in December 2013, but in that fight is was “The Spider” who was on the receiving end of the injury.

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Weidman was quickly placed on a stretcher after the fight was waved off and rushed to the hospital, where he was stabilized and prepped for surgery on Sunday morning. He’s out of that surgery now, and according to a social media update from his wife, Marivi Weidman, the surgery was a success and he’s now in recovery (via Instagram):

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

Well that was horrible. Freak things happen in life and plans get crushed. It’s been a lonnnggg day but so happy to finally see this man of mine post surgery. Everything went well thank you Lord! Very thankful for the medical staff, UFC family @danawhite @reedharrisufc #allieraimondo, our management team @vaynersports @sarahzemonek and our family and friends here rallying to help with the kids. My heart breaks for my husband because I know the work and dedication that he puts into his training everyday and the great man that he is, so I only want the best for him. While this absolutely sucks in the moment and for some weeks to come, we are completely overwhelmed by the love and support we have far and wide and are very aware how blessed we are. All of that overpowers the awfulness of this situation. We are blown away by our friends and family offering to hop on flights to come help us without hesitation. We are so grateful and love you all!! It’s been a crazy year so far but us Weidmans are a force and covered in Grace and Mercy everyday! We were reminded this year how precious each day is and I am so thankful to be spending another day on earth next to my love even if it’s in a hospital room far from home. 🙌🏻 #teamweidman

Weidman has yet to make his own comments, and details on the long-term impact of his injury remain scarce.

UFC president Dana White alluded to the possibility this might not be something that Weidman can come back from in his career. He will turn 37 in June. But the former UFC middleweight champion always has been resilient.

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Jake Paul takes aim at ‘real douche’ Dana White over UFC fighter pay

After Dana White threw backhanded compliments the way of Jake Paul, Paul responded and took aim at how much the UFC pays its fighters.

After Dana White threw a few backhanded compliments the way of [autotag]Jake Paul[/autotag] after UFC 261 on Saturday night, Paul responded Sunday and took aim at how much the UFC pays its fighters.

White told MMA Junkie after UFC 261 that he wouldn’t be interested in doing business with Paul, a YouTube star-turned-boxer who eight days ago knocked out ex-UFC fighter Ben Askren in a boxing pay-per-view headliner. White questioned the legitimacy of the pay-per-view numbers Triller Fight Club reportedly did for the event, which was part boxing card, part concert, and nearly all spectacle.

Paul said he made more in his third boxing match than the UFC has ever paid any fighter, save for former champions Khabib Nurmagomedov and Conor McGregor.

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And he challenged White to make the heavyweight title fight between new champion Francis Ngannou and former light heavyweight champ Jon Jones – which seemed to be a sure thing until Jones and White recently re-upped their squabbles publicly over how much Jones will get paid.

“Dana you claimed you would be $1M on me losing. Set up Askren to train with Freddie Roach…game him full access to UFCPI…and he still got his ass handed to him. Seems like you are the real douche…not Ariel. In my 3rd fight I made more more in total pay than any fighter in UFC history. Maybe it’s time to pay your fighters their fair share? No wonder they all want to get into boxing. Dana you say you make the fights fans want to see…so hurry up and make Jones vs. N’gannou. Pay them their fair share….$10M purse for each guy, plus PPV. Why are UFC fighters so underpaid vs. Boxers? Why did I make more in my 3rd fight than all but two (Khabib & Conor) UFC fighters have in history? I know why…”

Paul attended UFC 261 on Saturday night at VyStar Veterans Memorial Arena in Jacksonville, Fla., which had fans in attendance for the first time in more than a year. Many fans taunted Paul with a chant, and he also was confronted by former heavyweight and light heavyweight champ Daniel Cormier, who left the broadcast booth to get in Paul’s face over comments Paul made on a podcast.

Still, though Paul regularly is in the news in the MMA world and claims his win over Askren could lure the likes of McGregor into an eventual boxing match, White said Paul’s brand – or Triller’s brand – of combat sports isn’t something he’s interested in being a part of.

“There is a market for that,” White said. “That is not what I do. That’s not what I do. People want to see that, and it’s great, and this kid’s going to make a couple bucks before this ride is over. It’s just not what I do. What I do is what happened tonight. What happened tonight is, we sold this place out and it was packed, and the numbers that you’re hearing (Triller) did – they’re full of s**t. They’re full of s**t. OK? They didn’t pull those kind of numbers at all – not even f**king close. What happened here tonight is what I do: The best vs. the best.”

https://youtu.be/U1zYpW4D-ak

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Valentina Shevchenko won’t pick next challenger after fifth UFC title defense

Valentina Shevchenko continued to prove herself as one of the most dominant champions in women’s MMA history Saturday.

JACKSONVILLE, Fla. – [autotag]Valentina Shevchenko[/autotag] continued to prove herself as one of the most dominant champions in women’s MMA history Saturday.

But the women’s flyweight champ isn’t that interested in picking whom she’ll take on next after UFC 261. Shevchenko (21-3 MMA, 10-2 UFC) stopped former strawweight champ Jessica Andrade (21-9 MMA, 12-7 UFC) with a second-round TKO at VyStar Veterans Memorial Arena in Jacksonville, Fla. It was the UFC’s first event in front of fans in more than a year.

“For me, it seems very simple – (people who say) this name or that name,” Shevchenko told MMA Junkie after her win. “I want to do something different. I want to continue to show and be a real martial artist, not someone who is, ‘OK, this name is convenient.’ I don’t like those things.

“I want to be very honest in what I do and continue what I do in my weight class. It doesn’t matter who’s going to be in front of me. I just want to fight them to prove I’m better.”

In the buildup to her fight with Andrade, in which she was a sizable favorite, Shevchenko said the narrative was that her opponent could bring a particular danger to the fight that finally might make the champ vulnerable.

Against Andrade, the theory was the Brazilian’s power would be what could finally stop Shevchenko. But she said she heard that before a past fight with Holly Holm, and she handled her boxing. Or that Julianna Pena would be too much for her on the ground – and she submitted her.

“I really liked how this fight played before the fight – people created so much interest,” Shevchenko said. “Like, ‘Jessica, she brings so much.’ And some people doubted if I could handle it. I didn’t want to say anything before the fight. I really liked it. From one side, it’s creating some kind of interest for the fight and everyone’s like, ‘Oh, maybe this is something.’

“But I was so sure in my power, what I can do, and what I can bring – that’s why I was like, ‘OK, it’s going to be a surprise for you. I’ll let you believe in your power.'”

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The win was Shevchenko’s seventh straight, sixth straight title fight win and fifth successful defense. Her only two losses the past 10 years have come to current UFC women’s bantamweight and featherweight champ Amanda Nunes – which always is going to beg the question of when she’ll ask for another shot at her.

But the 125-pound champ said going back up to 135 for a shot at Nunes is something that needs to happen organically and that she won’t go around asking for the trilogy.

“My career is not going to be over soon,” she said. “I plan to fight for a long time. This fight is just going to happen. I’m not going to push it and say, ‘Give me Amanda right now. I’m going to break her face.’ This fight is just going to happen. It’s going to happen just naturally, when everyone feels like, ‘There’s no more. Only this fight makes sense for everyone’ – when the fans, when the UFC, when Dana White thinks we need this fight.

“When it’s time to happen, it’s going to be something big and huge – and I’ll be ready for it. I’m already for it – but I’ll be sure to gain some pounds back.”

But until then, Shevchenko is content to wait for whatever name the UFC brings to her next. She’ll corner her sister Antonina next month at UFC 262, then go from there.

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Dana White doubts Triller’s Jake Paul-Ben Askren numbers, no interest in doing business with Paul

Jake Paul found a way to keep himself at the forefront of the MMA consciousness when he showed up at UFC 261 on Saturday.

JACKSONVILLE, Fla. – [autotag]Jake Paul[/autotag] found a way to keep himself at the forefront of the MMA consciousness when he showed up at UFC 261 on Saturday.

Paul, a YouTube star-turned-boxer, knocked out former Bellator and ONE Championship titleholder and ex-UFC fighter Ben Askren in Triller’s first pay-per-view eight days ago. He also recently talked smack about former UFC heavyweight and light heavyweight champion [autotag]Daniel Cormier[/autotag] on a podcast.

That led Cormier to leave the broadcast booth before the UFC 261 main card at VyStar Veterans Memorial Arena in Jacksonville, Fla., to get in Paul’s face. The confrontation quickly went viral.

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But don’t spend too much time wondering if Cormier might come out of retirement to box Paul, or if UFC president Dana White would take part in any kind of promotion of something involving Paul.

“This kid’s done a good job of putting himself in a place to make some money,” White told MMA Junkie after UFC 261. “Good for him. He’s got (the media) talking about him all the time and asking questions about him, got Daniel Cormier running after him – so he’s doing something right.

“He knocked out an NBA guy who was 40 years old and 30 pounds less than him, and I don’t even know what to think about the Askren thing. The whole thing is f**king mind-boggling to me. But hey, good for him. Grab that money while you can, kid.”

When MMA Junkie asked White if he’d be interested in doing business with Paul, given the reported pay-per-view buys his fight with Askren did for Triller in Atlanta, White was, for the most part, dismissive.

“The numbers are there? Nah. I don’t know if the numbers are there,” White said. “Do you know what would happen to this guy (in the UFC)? He ain’t fighting in the UFC. He’s getting hand-picked opponents, and God knows what else is going on with that whole f**king thing.

“There is a market for that. That is not what I do. That’s not what I do. People want to see that, and it’s great, and this kid’s going to make a couple bucks before this ride is over. It’s just not what I do. What I do is what happened tonight. What happened tonight is, we sold this place out and it was packed, and the numbers that you’re hearing (Triller) did – they’re full of s**t. They’re full of s**t. OK? They didn’t pull those kind of numbers at all – not even f**king close. What happened here tonight is what I do: The best vs. the best.”

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UFC fans loved Joe Rogan’s hilarious reactions to the two big KOs at UFC 261

Joe Rogan was all of us last night.

UFC 261 had all the makings of being a great night of fights and then it delivered – and maybe over delivered – with an absolutely electric event in front of a full crowd in Jacksonville, Fla.

The last two fights of the nights had some insane knockouts. First, Rose Namajunas caught Weili Zhang with a head kick in the first round to win the strawweight belt.

Then in the main event Kamaru Usman defended his welterweight belt with a beautiful knockout of Jorge Masvidal with an overhand right that should be replayed for years to come.

Those knockouts led to some great reactions from Joe Rogan, Daniel Cormier, and Jon Anik who called the fights.

Check out this one from the Namajunas KO:

And this one from Usman’s KO:

Too good.

Man, what a night of fights.

Twitter loved those reactions:

Dana White queues up Colby Covington rematch for Kamaru Usman’s next fight

A time table hasn’t been set, but go ahead and start planning on plenty of drama for Kamaru Usman’s next title fight.

JACKSONVILLE, Fla. – A time table hasn’t been set, but go ahead and start planning on plenty of drama for [autotag]Kamaru Usman[/autotag]’s next title fight.

UFC president Dana White told MMA Junkie after UFC 261 on Saturday that Usman’s arch rival [autotag]Colby Covington[/autotag] (16-2 MMA, 11-2 UFC) will be the champion’s next welterweight title defense. Usman (19-1 MMA, 14-0 UFC) beat Covington with a fifth-round TKO at UFC 245 in December 2019.

Saturday, Usman stopped another rival, Jorge Masvidal (35-15 MMA, 12-8 UFC), with a vicious second-round knockout in a main event rematch. Now White says both he and Usman agree Covington is next in the queue.

“It’s the fight to make,” White said. “He’s the No. 1 (contender) in the world. Usman’s thing was, he didn’t want him to be the backup. He’s like, ‘I want Masvidal, then I want a camp, then I’ll take (Covington) again. I’m going to start lapping these guys.'”

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Usman’s win over Masvidal made him 14-0 to start his UFC career. White thinks the 170-pound champ could very well be on his way to becoming the greatest welterweight in history – a title most currently place on Georges St-Pierre.

White said beating Masvidal twice, and the prospect of beating Covington twice will just bolster Usman’s case that he’s the best in the world.

“For him, to really cement your legacy, when you go in and you beat the guys who are looked at as the best in the world at that time, and you beat them twice, and you beat them convincingly, it’s all just part of cementing that legacy that this guy’s going to end up having some day,” White said.

Covington said on ESPN’s post-fight show that Usman’s win over Masvidal was nothing to be proud of. But then again, Covington might have more beef with Masvidal than he does with Usman.

“That guy is a journeyman,” Covington said. “What’s he got: 15, 20 losses on his record? You shouldn’t be happy or praising yourself for beating a journeyman like that. There’s a reason he’s a backstabber. He’s a street Judas. He’s a bum. If I lost the next 12 fights in a row, I’d still have a better record than journeyman Masvidal.”

He also said his second fight with the champ will be a lot different than their first time around, which was a competitive fight until Usman got the late stoppage.

“He knows he can’t take me down,” Covington said. “I’m going to take him down into deep waters. I’m going to take him down and I’m going to finish him. There are no more fake nut shots next time. … I have new coaches now. I have a new team behind me. Before, there was so much drama at my old gym. People were screaming at me. I couldn’t get my training time in. Now, I have Daniel Valverde (and) Cesar Carneiro over at MMA Masters.

“We’re getting better every single day. My striking is on a whole other level. What has to go different is I have to put a higher pace on him next time. I didn’t put enough pace on him last time and just keep my hands up. I know I’m going to get my hand raised when I fight him.”

But no matter what goes down in the Usman-Covington rematch, whenever it might take place, White thinks his welterweight champ already is one of the greats.

The boos Usman got at VyStar Veterans Memorial Arena in Jacksonville, Fla., had a lot to do with the Florida crowd backing Miami resident Masvidal.

“No matter how you feel, the guy is getting booed in there tonight, (but) he’s one of the best ever,” White said. “He’s on his way to probably being the greatest of all time. I mean, the guy is an absolute stud. He looks better every time he comes out.

“These people talk about him being boring. You’re an idiot. You’re an idiot if you think this guy is boring. He hasn’t been in a boring fight in a while.”

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‘I’m looking at this guy like he’s short’: Jake Paul explains Daniel Cormier confrontation at UFC 261

Jake Paul gives his side of what happened and what was said between him and Daniel Cormier at UFC 261.

When [autotag]Jake Paul[/autotag] arrived at UFC 261 on Saturday night, he caught the attention of everyone inside Vystar Veterans Memorial Arena. The proof? A “F*ck Jake Paul” chant broke out among 15,000 fans in attendance.

One person whose attention Paul especially caught, though, was that of [autotag]Daniel Cormier[/autotag]. He made that very clear on the broadcast.

“I swear to God, I just saw Jake Paul. I pointed at him and said, ‘Don’t play with me,’ because I’ll smack him in the face,” Cormier told fellow commentator Joe Rogan on the broadcast. “He’s right there. I’ll slap him. I don’t play those games, Joe.”

What did Cormier do? In between the final prelim ending and before the pay-per-view began, the former UFC dual champion left his cageside position to confront the YouTube star-turned-professional boxer, who was sitting in the front row with Tampa Bay Buccaneers wide receiver Antonio Brown.

The encounter was captured on video from multiple angles, including MMA Junkie above, which showed UFC security getting involved to deescalate the situation. As for what went down, Paul explained his side in an Instagram video.

“Cormier comes up to me, starts chirping. I’m sitting here enjoying myself with AB,” Paul said. “… This guy goes, ‘Keep my name out your mouth. Keep my name out your mouth.’ I said, ‘Wait a minute, Daniel. You’re putting my name in your mouth first. You put my name in your mouth first. You talked about me on your little commentator podcast with Ariel. So don’t come over here talking about how I talked about you.’ I said, ‘Let’s sign the contract. Let’s run a fight. I’m not scared of you, DC. You’re short.’ I’m looking at this guy like he’s short.

“Everyone’s chanting ‘f*ck Jake Paul.’ They’re feeding into this sh*t. I love it.”

Cormier was among many current or former professional fighters last week to share a strong reaction to Paul’s first-round TKO of Ben Askren in their boxing match on April 17. In response, Paul called Cormier “fat boy,” which led Cormier to say more on his ESPN show “DC & Helwani” the Monday after the Askren fight.

That led to Saturday’s encounter in Jacksonville.

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UFC 261 video: John Morgan, Mike Bohn figure out what’s next for champs

UFC 261 was memorable for all kinds of reasons Saturday, and we break down what’s next for the champs after Jacksonville.

JACKSONVILLE, Fla. – UFC 261 was memorable for all kinds of reasons Saturday.

For starters, the promotion broke back into events in front of in-person fans with a packed house of more than 15,000. UFC 261 broke the venue gate record at VyStar Veterans Memorial Arena in Jacksonville, Fla., UFC president Dana White said after the card.

The main card had two bits of disturbing results early from an injury standpoint when Jimmy Crute (12-2 MMA, 4-2 UFC) couldn’t put any pressure on his left leg without it buckling in a TKO loss to Anthony Smith (35-16 MMA, 10-6 UFC). And right after that, Chris Weidman (15-6 MMA, 11-6 UFC) had his leg snapped in a horrific way when he threw a kick against Uriah Hall (17-9 MMA, 10-7 UFC) just 17 seconds into the fight. He broke his leg the same way Anderson Silva broke his throwing a kick against Weidman in 2013.

But the three title fights had scintillating results. Women’s flyweight champ [autotag]Valentina Shevchenko[/autotag] (21-3 MMA, 10-2 UFC) stayed dominant with a TKO of Jessica Andrade (21-9 MMA, 12-7 UFC). [autotag]Rose Namajunas[/autotag] (10-4 MMA, 8-3 UFC) reclaimed the women’s strawweight belt with a first-round head kick knockout of Zhang Weili (21-2 MMA, 5-1 UFC). And welterweight champ [autotag]Kamaru Usman[/autotag] (19-1 MMA, 14-0 UFC) became just the second man to knock out Jorge Masvidal (35-15 MMA, 12-8 UFC) when he put him out cold with a vicious right hand in the main event.

After the card, MMA Junkie’s John Morgan and Mike Brown broke down those three title fights and wondered what might be next for the three champs. Check out their on-site analysis in the video above.

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Rose Namajunas’ stunning kick created the most delightful reactions at UFC 261

You’ll see the video of this reaction more than you will the kick that created it.

Be honest: There’s a good chance that you remember the best moment of your favorite team’s existence not just by what happened on the field or court, but by how those you were watching with reacted.

(This may also apply to worst moments, but let’s not resurrect those right now.)

UFC 261 in Jacksonville Saturday night gave us … well, a lot of moments to react to. Some were gruesome. Others, like the one below, left octagon-side observers surprised and awed in the most delightful way.

And, in a beautiful moment, it left one fighter weeping tears of joy.

Let’s start at the beginning, though. Here’s Rose Namajunas delivering a very sudden kick to the head of previously undefeated Zhang Weili in the first round of their 115-pound title fight.

Which led to this instant classic reaction from the broadcast crew that included Joe Rogan.

Yeah, you’re going to see this as a meme, friends. Just be ready for it.

The best reaction to this fight, though, came a few moments later when Namajunas officially reclaimed the belt she’d lost in 2019.

(Photo by Alex Menendez/Getty Images) 

Sports!

The great reactions don’t end there. Weili congratulated the new champ and vowed to “become a new me.”

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

All class.

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