Tag: UFC 290

Urijah Faber: Ex-UFC champ Deiveson Figueiredo staying at flyweight ‘a smart move’

Deiveson Figueiredo’s manager, UFC Hall of Famer Urijah Faber, supports his decision to remain at flyweight.

UFC Hall of Famer [autotag]Urijah Faber[/autotag] supports [autotag]Deiveson Figueiredo[/autotag]’s decision to remain at flyweight.

Figueiredo announced that he’s moving up to bantamweight after losing his UFC flyweight title to Brandon Moreno in their fourth fight at UFC 283 in January, but opted to stay at 125 pounds.

Figueiredo (21-3-1 MMA, 10-3-1 UFC) is projected to face Manel Kape on July 8 in a 125-pound bout at UFC 290, and his manager and coach, Faber, thinks it’s the right move.

“You know, when he went back home and started the training regimen – he’s still healing up by the way, so that’s not 100 percent signed and delivered on this fight,” Faber told The Schmo. “He just realized this is a big deal in the fight world, and he wants to give himself every advantage to win, and he can still make that weight, you know. Three more fights, he said he feels comfortable in three more fights before he makes the move up. And why not? I think it’s a smart move.”

Though Figueiredo has missed weight only once in a flyweight title fight against Joseph Benavidez in February 2020, his struggle to make 125 is well documented.

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Figueiredo’s past four fights have come against Moreno in flyweight title fights. Their first fight was ruled a majority draw, with Figueiredo retaining his belt. Moreno then dethroned him in the rematch at UFC 263 before Figueiredo reclaimed his title in their trilogy at UFC 270. However, Moreno was able to put a stamp on their rivalry when he scored a TKO doctor’s stoppage win to unify the flyweight belts in January.

For more on the card, visit MMA Junkie’s event hub for UFC 290.

UFC officially books five more events in Las Vegas – four at UFC Apex

The UFC’s late spring and early summer schedule is filling up with Apex events.

Just when it appeared the UFC was making a more full-fledged effort to hit the road, the promotion has locked down four more dates at the UFC Apex for late spring into early summer.

On Tuesday, the Nevada Athletic Commission officially approved five program permits for the promotion to hold events in its jurisdiction over a seven-week period. The only event of the bunch outside the UFC Apex is the International Fight Week pay-per-view at T-Mobile Arena.

With the additions to the 2023 calendar, the promotion will have held 10 of its first 23 events of the year at the UFC Apex and two at T-Mobile Arena.

Scroll below to see which dates have landed at the UFC Apex and the updated fight cards for each.

Sean Brady vs. Jack Della Maddalena targeted for UFC 290 in July

Sean Brady will look to take the unbeaten from Jack Della Maddalena at UFC 290 in July.

UFC 290 keeps taking shape.

The UFC’s “International Fight Week” pay-per-view is expected to have a key welterweight matchup in its lineup, as [autotag]Sean Brady[/autotag] is expected to return against rising contender [autotag]Jack Della Maddalena[/autotag].

MMA Junkie confirmed the news with sources, following an initial report on Twitter on Sunday morning.

UFC 290 is set to take place on July 8 at the T-Mobile Arena in Las Vegas. A pair of title fights involving Alexander Volkanovski vs. Yair Rodriguez, and Brandon Moreno vs. Alexandre Pantoja headline the event.

Brady (15-1 MMA, 5-1 UFC) was supposed to return in February against Michel Pereira, but a torn groin delayed his return. This UFC 290 bout will be his first of 2023. The last time Brady was seen in action, he suffered a TKO loss to Belal Muhammad at UFC 280 in October. That was his first professional defeat.

Della Maddalena (14-2 MMA, 4-0 UFC) is looking to keep his unbeaten record in his return to the cage. He last competed in February when he submitted veteran Randy Brown at UFC 285 in Australia.

The latest UFC 290 lineup now includes:

  • Alexander Volkanovski vs. Yair Rodriguez – for featherweight title
  • Brandon Moreno vs. Alexandre Pantoja – for flyweight title
  • Deiveson Figueiredo vs. Manel Kape
  • Dricus Du Plessis vs. Robert Whittaker
  • Robbie Lawler vs. Niko Price
  • Dan Hooker vs. Jalin Turner
  • Tresean Gore vs. Bo Nickal
  • Sean Brady vs. Jack Della Maddalena

For more on the card, visit MMA Junkie’s event hub for UFC 290.

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UFC 290 adds Robbie Lawler vs. Niko Price, Dan Hooker vs. Jalin Turner

UFC International Fight Week continues to stack up with Robbie Lawler vs. Niko Price and Dan Hooker vs. Jalin Turner.

International Fight Week keeps getting bigger.

Friday, UFC president Dana White announced the additions of [autotag]Robbie Lawler[/autotag] vs. [autotag]Niko Price[/autotag] and [autotag]Dan Hooker[/autotag] vs. [autotag]Jalin Turner[/autotag]. The bouts will take place July 8 as part of UFC 290 at T-Mobile Arena in Las Vegas.

Lawler (29-16 MMA, 14-10 UFC) will be inducted into the fight wing of the UFC Hall of Fame earlier in the week for his UFC 189 battle against Rory MacDonald. In the bout, he’ll look to get back in the win column after five losses in his most recent six outings.

Price (15-6 MMA, 7-6 UFC) is 1-3 with one no contest in his most recent five fights. He most recently competed in December when he was finished by Philip Rowe in a wild brawl.

Hooker (22-12 MMA, 12-8 UFC) and Turner (13-6 MMA, 6-3 UFC) were scheduled to fight at UFC 285 in March. However, Hooker withdrew due to injury and was replaced by Mateusz Gamrot, who then defeated Turner by split decision.

The latest UFC 290 lineup now includes:

  • Alexander Volkanovski vs. Yair Rodriguez – for featherweight title
  • Brandon Moreno vs. Alexandre Pantoja – for flyweight title
  • Deiveson Figueiredo vs. Manel Kape
  • Dricus Du Plessis vs. Robert Whittaker
  • Robbie Lawler vs. Niko Price
  • Dan Hooker vs. Jalin Turner
  • Tresean Gore vs. Bo Nickal

For more on the card, visit MMA Junkie’s event hub for UFC 290.

Robert Whittaker vs. Dricus Du Plessis added to UFC 290; Dana White says winner gets Israel Adesanya

Dana White has announced a No. 1 contender bout in the middleweight division between former champ Robert Whittaker and Dricus Du Plessis.

UFC president Dana White has announced a No. 1 contender bout in the middleweight division between former champ [autotag]Robert Whittaker[/autotag] and [autotag]Dricus Du Plessis[/autotag].

White revealed on Friday that Whittaker (24-6 MMA, 15-4 UFC) and Du Plessis (19-2 MMA, 5-0 UFC) have agreed to clash at UFC 290 on July 8, which takes place at T-Mobile Arena in Las Vegas. The winner will be awarded a championship bout against Israel Adesanya.

“The winner of that fight will fight Adesanya later this year,” White said in a video posted to Twitter. “And that fight is targeted for Sydney, Australia.”

Whittaker, No. 3 in the latest USA TODAY Sports/MMA Junkie middleweight rankings, will attempt to secure a third opportunity to face Adesanya after losing the first two matchups between them. He is coming off a unanimous decision win over Marvin Vettori in September, and can punch his ticket to another title shot during International Fight Week.

No. 8-ranked Du Plessis, meanwhile, will seek his first UFC championship opportunity after a strong start to his promotional tenure, winning all five of his appearances thus far and beating notables such as Derek Brunson and Darren Till. The South African has recently entered into a spat with Adesanya, and if he can win, there will be a title fight with much bad blood.

The latest UFC 290 lineup now includes:

  • Alexander Volkanovski vs. Yair Rodriguez – for featherweight title
  • Brandon Moreno vs. Alexandre Pantoja – for flyweight title
  • Deiveson Figueiredo vs. Manel Kape
  • Dricus Du Plessis vs. Robert Whittaker
  • Robbie Lawler vs. Niko Price
  • Dan Hooker vs. Jalin Turner
  • Tresean Gore vs. Bo Nickal

For more on the card, visit MMA Junkie’s event hub for UFC 290.

UFC champ Alexander Volkanovski: ‘Unpredicatable’ Yair Rodriguez could be my most dangerous challenger

Alexander Volkanovski sees Yair Rodriguez as a serious threat heading into their title unifier at UFC 290.

UFC featherweight champion [autotag]Alexander Volkanovski[/autotag] sees [autotag]Yair Rodriguez[/autotag] as a serious threat.

Volkanovski (25-2 MMA, 12-1 UFC) will look to unify his belt with interim champ Rodriguez (15-3 MMA, 10-2 UFC) on July 8 at UFC 290 in Las Vegas. Rodriguez captured the interim title with a flawless submission of Josh Emmett, showing that he’s more than just an exciting striker. So with his unique and versatile style, Volkanovski knows he has to be careful against Rodriguez.

“I’m looking at him as a real challenger, like he’s a dangerous fighter,” Volkanovski told The MacLife. “He could be one of the most dangerous fighters I’ve fought really. When you talk about unpredictability and knockout power and so many different tools, you need to take him really serious. I think I’m the best fighter in the world, so am I confident? Yeah, but I know not to take this guy lightly. He’s been dominating and looking good in his last few fights”

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Volkanovski also thinks Rodriguez has evolved a lot as of late. “The Great” has continuously asked the division to make some noise, and he sees Rodriguez as a challenge that gets him excited.

“He was very good with his flashy stuff, but that’s all he sort of cared about,” Volkanovski said. “Now he looks like he’s a lot more comfortable at all ranges. He looks very unpredictable, when you’re pressuring him at a long range, no matter where it is, he can fire all different things from all different angles. That’s always a big threat, so it’s good. That’s when the master game planning and the fight IQ and all that type of stuff needs to come in, and (I’m) looking forward to it because, again, that excites me.”

For more on the card, visit MMA Junkie’s event hub for UFC 290.

Deiveson Figueiredo vs. Manel Kape flyweight bout in the works for UFC 290

So much for Deiveson Figueiredo’s move up to the UFC bantamweight division – at least for now.

So much for [autotag]Deiveson Figueiredo[/autotag]’s move up to bantamweight – at least for now.

A flyweight bout between Figueiredo, the former UFC champion, and [autotag]Manel Kape[/autotag] is in the works for UFC 290 on July 8 at T-Mobile Arena in Las Vegas. A person with knowledge of the situation confirmed the news to MMA Junkie on Wednesday following an initial report from ESPN Deportes.

The fight booking comes as a bit of a shocker after Figueiredo, 35, announced he would move up to 135 pounds immediately following his title-fight loss to Brandon Moreno in their tetralogy this past January at UFC 283. Figueiredo’s declaration has garnered multiple callouts from bantamweights – including Rob Font just this week – awaiting his arrival to the division. But that’s on hold now.

Kape will be Figueiredo’s first new opponent since a submission win over Alex Perez in November 2020. After that, Figueiredo and Moreno would fight four consecutive times with one draw, a win for Figueiredo, and two wins for Moreno.

After losing the first two fights of his UFC tenure, Kape (18-6 MMA, 3-2 UFC) is on a three-fight winning streak. He finished Ode Osbourne and Zhalgas Zhumagulov before most recently claiming a unanimous decision David Dvorak this past December at UFC Fight Night 216.

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With the addition, the UFC 290 lineup includes:

  • Alexander Volkanovski vs. Yair Rodriguez – for featherweight title
  • Brandon Moreno vs. Alexandre Pantoja – for flyweight title
  • Deiveson Figueiredo vs. Manel Kape
  • Tresean Gore vs. Bo Nickal

For more on the card, visit MMA Junkie’s event hub for UFC 290.

Brandon Moreno vs. Alexandre Pantoja 2 for flyweight title headed to UFC 290 on July 8

Flyweight champion Brandon Moreno will get a chance to avenge his loss to Alexandre Pantoja at UFC 290.

Flyweight champion [autotag]Brandon Moreno[/autotag] will get a chance to avenge his loss to [autotag]Alexandre Pantoja[/autotag] at UFC 290.

Moreno defends his flyweight title against Pantoja (25-5 MMA, 9-3 UFC) on July 8 at T-Mobile Arena in Las Vegas. UFC chief business officer Hunter Campbell confirmed the news with UFC broadcast partner ESPN after an initial report from Freak MMA.

Moreno has lost to Pantoja twice, but one came during their time on Season 24 of “The Ultimate Fighter” in 2016. Pantoja, who was the No. 1 seed during “TUF 24,” submitted No. 16 seed Moreno in Round 2. The pair fought again in the UFC in 2018, when Pantoja beat Moreno by unanimous decision.

The loss to Pantoja led to Moreno’s UFC release, but he worked his way back to the organization after he won the LFA flyweight title. Moreno has had plenty of success in his second UFC stint. He dethroned Deiveson Figueiredo in their rematch to become flyweight champion at UFC 263. Figueiredo regained the belt in their trilogy bout at UFC 270, which extended their rivalry.

Moreno had to go through Kai Kara-France at UFC 277 to capture the interim flyweight title, then put a nail in the coffin of his series with Figueiredo when he scored a doctor’s stoppage TKO win at UFC 283 to reclaim the belt.

Looking to put an end to his own rivalry is Pantoja, who has won four of his past five. The 32-year-old Brazilian is coming off three straight wins, most recently a first-round submission of former title challenger Alex Perez at UFC 277 in July 2022.

With the addition, the UFC 290 lineup includes:

  • Alexander Volkanovski vs. Yair Rodriguez – for featherweight title
  • Brandon Moreno vs. Alexandre Pantoja – for flyweight title
  • Tresean Gore vs. Bo Nickal

Bo Nickal gets next assignment, will face Tresean Gore at UFC 290 in Las Vegas

Bo Nickal’s second appearance of 2023 will take place at UFC 290 in Las Vegas.

Highly-touted prospect [autotag]Bo Nickal[/autotag] is set to step into the cage for the second time in 2023.

On July 8, Nickal (4-0 MMA, 1-0 UFC) will meet [autotag]Tresean Gore[/autotag] at UFC 290. The pay-per-view event takes place at T-Mobile Arena in Las Vegas, and features a featherweight title unification bout between champ Alexander Volkanovski and interim champ Yair Rodriguez.

Nickal announced the matchup in a video with betr, and Gore announced on Instagram he signed up for his first pay-per-view bout.

Nickal made his promotional debut at UFC 285, where he defeated Jamie Pickett in the first round with a triangle choke. The win didn’t come without controversy, as Pickett and his team initially sought to appeal the result due to a potential low blow that occurred before the finishing sequence. However, the result of the fight will stand after the appeal fell through.

Nickal has won all four of his professional MMA bouts in the first round.

Gore, who was a participant on “The Ultimate Fighter 29,” will compete for the first time in 2023. In his last appearance, Gore picked up his first UFC win by submitting Josh Fremd in the second round with a guillotine choke.

With the addition, the UFC 290 lineup includes:

  • Alexander Volkanovski vs. Yair Rodriguez – for featherweight title
  • Tresean Gore vs. Bo Nickal

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Alexander Volkanovski vs. Yair Rodriguez title unifier targeted for UFC 290 in July

A title unification bout between Alexander Volkanovski and Yair Rodriguez is in the works for UFC 290.

[autotag]Alexander Volkanovski[/autotag] is returning to his division after all.

The UFC featherweight champion will look to unify the featherweight belts with interim champion [autotag]Yair Rodriguez[/autotag] this summer at UFC 290 on July 8 in Las Vegas. The 145-pound title bout is targeted for International Fight week, but contracts have yet to be signed.

MMA Junkie verified with multiple people close to the situation that verbal agreements are in place for the bout following initial reports from FOX Sports and MMA journalist Ariel Helwani. The people requested anonymity because the promotion has yet to make an official announcement.

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Volkanovski (25-2 MMA, 12-1 UFC) saw a 22-fight unbeaten streak come to an end when he tasted his first defeat in the octagon back in February at UFC 284. Volkanovski moved up a division in an attempt to become champ-champ, as he challenged Islam Makhachev for the lightweight title. Volkanovski lost the fight in a very competitive unanimous decision. Prior to the defeat, the Australian had established a dominant reign at featherweight with four consecutive title defenses.

That same night in the co-main event of UFC 284, Rodriguez (15-3 MMA, 10-2 UFC) won the interim featherweight title, submitting Josh Emmett in the second round of their contest. The win put the Mexican star on a two-fight winning streak and 4-1 in his past five outings.

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