Sports blog information from USA TODAY.
With another action-packed month of MMA in the books, MMA Junkie looks at the best fights from November 2023.
With another action-packed month of MMA in the books, MMA Junkie looks at the best fights from November 2023: Here are the five nominees, listed in chronological order, and winner of MMA Junkie’s Fight of the Month award for November.
At the bottom of the post, let us know if we got it right by voting on your choice.
With another action-packed month of MMA in the books, MMA Junkie looks at the best submissions from November 2023.
With another action-packed month of MMA in the books, MMA Junkie looks at the best submissions from November 2023: Here are the five nominees, listed in chronological order, and winner of MMA Junkie’s Submission of the Month award for November.
At the bottom of the post, let us know if we got it right by voting for your choice.
Former UFC champ Robert Whittaker believes Brendan Allen needs to slow his role before calling for top contenders.
Former UFC middleweight champion [autotag]Robert Whittaker[/autotag] believes [autotag]Brendan Allen[/autotag] needs to slow his role before calling for top contenders.
Allen (23-5 MMA, 11-2 UFC) wants a No. 1 contender fight after submitting Paul Craig in this past Saturday’s UFC Fight Night 232 headliner at the UFC Apex in Las Vegas. He mentioned Jared Cannonier, Khamzat Chimaev, and Whittaker as desirable next fights, but Whittaker (25-7 MMA, 15-5 UFC) thinks Allen has a little more work to do after beating lower-ranked Craig.
“I’m pretty sure he said my name,” Whittaker said on his MMArcade Podcast. “I’m pretty sure in his speech he said he wants to fight a contender, he wants to fight me or Cannonier. I think he’s No. 10 now. He’s obviously just broken into those top guys. I don’t know, I’m not a matchmaker.
“Paul Craig wasn’t a 10th-ranked dude, he wasn’t in the top-10 rankings. He’s got to have his bite still, I guess. The top-10 fights. Just do your work. UFC realize that, recognize that. The matchmakers are there. I don’t know who he fights next. To be honest, I don’t care.”
Having heard these words, Allen made another pitch to Whittaker on X.
Wellll mr @robwhittakermma feel free to show me what those top guys are like. I always wanted a former champ/future HOF on my resume https://t.co/OGTQIgOQZo
— Brendan Allen (@BrendanAllenMMA) November 22, 2023
Wellll mr @robwhittakermma feel free to show me what those top guys are like. I always wanted a former champ/future HOF on my resume
Allen is on a six-fight winning streak. Meanwhile, Whittaker is coming off a TKO loss to Dricus Du Plessis at UFC 290 in July. Prior to that, Whittaker won four out of his past five, including a unanimous decision over former title challenger Marvin Vettori.
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For more on the card, visit MMA Junkie’s event hub for UFC Fight Night 232.
Check out the latest USA TODAY Sports/MMA Junkie rankings following UFC Fight Night 232 and Bellator 301.
Last weekend’s Bellator and UFC events were the source of a number of changes in this week’s rankings update.
The biggest move of the week came from now-undisputed Bellator bantamweight champion [autotag]Patchy Mix[/autotag], who defeated Sergio Pettis in the Bealltor 301 co-main event. Mix submitted Pettis in the second round to unify his interim title. This week, Mix jumps from No. 10 to No. 4, entering the top 5 of the USA TODAY Sports/MMA Junkie bantamweight rankings for the first time.
Check out all the latest pound-for-pound and divisional USA TODAY Sports/MMA Junkie rankings above.
Christian Duncan bounced back from the first loss of his career to win as a 4-1 favorite against Denis Tiuliulin at UFC Fight Night 232.
LAS VEGAS – [autotag]Christian Duncan[/autotag] beat Denis Tiuliulin with a second-round TKO Saturday on the preliminary card at UFC Fight Night 232 at the UFC Apex in Las Vegas.
Take a look inside the fight with Duncan, who bounced back from the first loss of his career in June to win as about a 4-1 favorite.
At UFC Fight Night 232, Joanderson Brito picked up his fourth straight finish win after a loss in his UFC debut nearly two years ago.
LAS VEGAS – [autotag]Joanderson Brito[/autotag] beat Jonathan Pearce with a second-round submission Saturday to close out the preliminary card at UFC Fight Night 232 at the UFC Apex in Las Vegas.
Take a look inside the fight with Brito, who picked up his fourth straight finish win after a loss in his UFC debut nearly two years ago.
Jose Johnson got his first UFC win after a twister submission loss in his August debut, and he apparently enjoyed it against Chad Anheliger.
LAS VEGAS – [autotag]Jose Johnson[/autotag] beat Chad Anheliger with a third-round submission Saturday on the preliminary card at UFC Fight Night 232 at the UFC Apex in Las Vegas.
Take a look inside the fight with Johnson, who got his first UFC win after a twister submission loss in his debut in August.
Rafael Estevam missed weight for his UFC debut after another bad weight cut a few months ago. But he vowed it won’t happen again.
LAS VEGAS – [autotag]Rafael Estevam[/autotag] beat Charles Johnson with a unanimous decision Saturday to open up the preliminary card at UFC Fight Night 232 at the UFC Apex in Las Vegas.
Take a look inside the fight with Estevam, who missed weight for his UFC debut – and also had a bad weight cut that led to a fight cancellation for what was supposed to be his debut in May.
Mick Parkin got his second straight decision win, both in the UFC, after starting his career with six consecutive finishes.
LAS VEGAS – [autotag]Mick Parkin[/autotag] beat Caio Machado with a unanimous decision Saturday on the preliminary card at UFC Fight Night 232 at the UFC Apex in Las Vegas.
Take a look inside the fight with Parkin, who got his second straight decision win, both in the UFC, after starting his career with six consecutive finishes.
UFC Fight Night 232 winners and losers react on social media outlets such as X, Instagram and Facebook.
Since the early days when the sport was anything but a mainstream endeavor, the MMA industry has thrived and survived through various websites, forums, and – perhaps most importantly – social-media platforms.
Fighters interact with fans, each other and many more through the likes of X, Facebook and Instagram, which helps outsiders get a deeper look into the minds of the athletes.
Following Saturday’s UFC Fight Night 232 in Las Vegas, several of the winning and losing fighters, along with their coaches, training partners or family members, took to social media to react to the event or share a message with supporters.
Check out some of those reactions.
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