Tag: UFC Fight Night 244

UFC Fight Night 244’s Grant Dawson won’t ‘give up being dominant to be a bit more exciting’

Grant Dawson takes umbrage with people labelling him as boring.

[autotag]Grant Dawson[/autotag] takes umbrage with people labelling him as boring.

Dawson (21-2-1 MMA, 9-1-1 UFC) takes on Rafa Garcia (15-3 MMA, 4-3 UFC) in a lightweight bout at UFC Fight Night 244 Oct. 12 from the UFC Apex in Las Vegas.

Outside from a 33-second upset knockout loss to King Green in the UFC Fight Night 229 headliner last October, Dawson is unbeaten in the UFC. Not only is he unbeaten, but he’s been able to use his wrestling to dominate plenty of his opposition – most recently Joe Solecki at UFC 302 in June.

Despite his prowess on the ground, Dawson hasn’t gained the popularity as a surging lightweight like he would have wished.

“I’m trying to be more exciting, I really am,” Dawson told MMA Junkie Radio. “It’s just I’m so dominant on the ground, it’s so easy for me to take people down, ride them out, get the choke, land lots of punches, make my percentage of top time even farther away from everybody else in the division than it already is.

“It’s so easy for me to do that. It’s hard for me to be, like, in a fight: Somebody’s throwing leather at my face, and me be like, ‘Nah, I’m not going to take them down, the fans want to see me knock him out.’ I’m fighting for my life in there. I’m fighting for my wife to not have to go back to work. It’s hard for me not to take somebody down when I know I can do it.”

Dawson says if UFC lightweight champion Islam Makhachev can become a fan favorite with an elite wrestling style, then why can’t he get some love as well.

“The thing that upsets me the most about it is probably, they’re so picky on who they like and who they don’t, and what kind of style they are,” Dawson continued. “Everybody thinks that Islam Makhachev is the coolest thing since sliced bread, but he’s doing the same stuff I’m doing.

“But then when I go ride somebody out – literally in my last fight I had 13:45 of control time in a 15-minute fight. That’s insanity. Where, exactly, do you have to give up being dominant to be a bit more exciting? I don’t really know what these guys want to see. I’m just going to keep winning.”

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For more on the card, visit MMA Junkie’s event hub for UFC Fight Night 244.

Chris Barnett gets new opponent for UFC Fight Night 244

Waldo Cortes-Acosta is out of UFC Fight Night 244, but a substitute has been found to fight Chris Barnett.

[autotag]Chris Barnett[/autotag] has a new opponent for his long-awaited return to the UFC cage.

[autotag]Junior Tafa[/autotag] has stepped into UFC Fight Night 244 in place of [autotag]Waldo Cortes-Acosta[/autotag], the promotion recently announced. The three-round heavyweight bout will take place Oct. 12 at the UFC Apex in Las Vegas.

Cortes-Acosta’s manager Javier Torres, of Skillset Management, told MMA Junkie on Sunday an injury was cause for his client’s withdrawal. Cortes-Acosta is expected to return in six to eight weeks.

Tafa (5-3 MMA, 1-3 UFC) most recently competed at UFC 305 in August when he lost to Valter Walker by verbal submission. Tempers flared after the stoppage. Tafa slapped Walker and the two were separated in the cage by security after the fight. The loss was his second straight.

Barnett (23-8 MMA, 2-2 UFC) hasn’t competed since September 2022. He was booked for two other dates since, but withdrew from each. Barnett’s most recent outing was a TKO against Jake Collier at UFC 279.

With the change, the UFC Fight Night 244 lineup includes:

  • Brandon Royval vs. Tatsuro Taira
  • Jun Yong Park vs. Brad Tavares
  • Grant Dawson vs. Rafa Garcia
  • Cory McKenna vs. Julia Polastri
  • Alex Morono vs. Daniel Rodriguez
  • Abdul Razak Alhassan vs. Josh Fremd
  • Jared Gooden vs. Chidi Njokuani
  • Ramazonbek Temirov vs. CJ Vergara
  • Jonathan Pearce vs. Pat Sabatini
  • Themba Gorimbo vs. Niko Price
  • Chris Barnett vs. Junior Tafa
  • Dan Argueta vs. Cody Haddon
  • Clayton Carpenter vs. Lucas Rocha

For more on the card, visit MMA Junkie’s event hub for UFC Fight Night 244.

Are there UFC fights tonight? Here’s the promotion’s upcoming schedule after UFC 306 at Sphere

Missing out on UFC action this Saturday? Check out the promotion’s upcoming schedule, which includes events in Paris and Abu Dhabi.

Sometimes, the UFC and the fans need a break from the hectic schedule of fights.

The UFC’s last event was UFC 306 at Sphere in Las Vegas. Noche UFC, the visual masterpiece that was, thrilled fans in attendance and at home with a breathtaking journey throughout the “love letter to Mexico” that saw two titles change hands.

Are there UFC fights tonight?

No, the UFC is not hosting an event on Sept. 21, 2024. The promotion takes one week off as it gears up for nine consecutive weeks of action worldwide.

Check out the promotion’s upcoming schedule for the remainder of September through October:

Sept. 28 – UFC Fight Night 243: Moicano vs. Saint Denis

Location: Paris, France
Venue: Accor Arena
Broadcast: ESPN+

Current UFC Fight Night 243 lineup:

  • Renato Moicano vs. Benoit Saint Denis
  • Brendan Allen vs. Nassourdine Imavov
  • Joanderson Brito vs. William Gomis
  • Bryan Battle vs. Kevin Jousset
  • Morgan Charriere vs. Gabriel Miranda
  • Matt Frevola vs. Fares Ziam
  • Ion Cutelaba vs. Ivan Erslan
  • Da Woon Jung vs. Oumar Sy
  • Ludovit Klein vs. Roosevelt Roberts
  • Ailin Perez vs. Darya Zheleznyakova
  • Taylor Lapilus vs. Vince Morales
  • Victor Altamirano vs. Daniel Barez
  • Jacqueline Cavalcanti vs. Nora Cornolle
  • Chris Duncan vs. Bolaji Oki

Oct. 5 – UFC 307: Pereira vs. Rountree Jr.

UFC 307 event poster

Location: Salt Lake City, Utah
Venue: Delta Center
Broadcast: ESPN+ pay-per-view, ESPNews, ESPN+

Current UFC 307 lineup:

  • Alex Pereira vs. Khalil Rountree – for light heavyweight title
  • Raquel Pennington vs. Julianna Peña – for women’s bantamweight title
  • Movsar Evloev vs. opponent TBA
  • Kayla Harrison vs. Ketlen Vieira
  • Roman Dolidze vs. Kevin Holland
  • Joaquin Buckley vs. Stephen Thompson
  • Alexander Hernandez vs. Austin Hubbard
  • Carla Esparza vs. Tecia Pennington
  • Jose Aldo vs. Mario Bautista
  • Ovince Saint Preux vs. Ryan Spann
  • Mauricio Ruffy vs. opponent TBA
  • Iasmin Lucindo vs. Marina Rodriguez
  • Court McGee vs. Tim Means
  • Cesar Almeida vs. Ihor Potieria

Oct. 12 – UFC Fight Night 244: Royval vs. Taira

Location: Las Vegas, Nevada
Venue: UFC Apex
Broadcast: ESPN+

Current UFC Fight Night 244 lineup:

  • Brandon Royval vs. Tatsuro Taira
  • JunYong Park vs. Brad Tavares
  • Grant Dawson vs. Rafa Garcia
  • Cory McKenna vs. Polyana Viana
  • Alex Morono vs. Daniel Rodriguez
  • Abdul Razak Alhassan vs. Josh Fremd
  • Jared Gooden vs. Chidi Njokuani
  • Terrance McKinney vs. opponent TBA
  • Ramazonbek Temirov vs. CJ Vergara
  • Jonathan Pearce vs. Pat Sabatini
  • Themba Gorimbo vs. Niko Price
  • Chris Barnett vs. Waldo Cortes-Acosta
  • Dan Argueta vs. Cody Haddon
  • Clayton Carpenter vs. Lucas Rocha

Oct. 19 – UFC Fight Night 245: Pereira vs. Hernandez

Location: Las Vegas, Nevada
Venue: UFC Apex
Broadcast: ESPN+

Current UFC Fight Night 245 Lineup:

  • Michel Pereira vs. Anthony Hernandez
  • Asu Almabayev vs. Matheus Nicolau
  • Rob Font vs. Kyler Phillips
  • Brad Katona vs. Jean Matsumoto
  • Darren Elkins vs. Daniel Pineda
  • Robelis Despaigne vs. Austen Lane
  • Charles Johnson vs. Su Mudaerji
  • Jessica Penne vs. Elise Reed
  • Jake Hadley vs. Brady Hiestand
  • Alice Ardelean vs. opponent TBA
  • Joselyne Edwards vs. Tamires Vidal

Oct. 26 – UFC 308: Topuria vs. Holloway

Location: Yas Island, Abu Dhabi
Venue: Etihad Arena
Broadcast: ESPN+ pay-per-view, ESPN+

Current UFC 308 lineup:

  • Ilia Topuria vs. Max Holloway – for featherweight title
  • Khamzat Chimaev vs. Robert Whittaker
  • Ciryl Gane vs. Alexander Volkov
  • Magomed Ankalaev vs. Aleksandar Rakic
  • Shara Magomedov vs. Armen Petrosyan
  • Dan Ige vs. Lerone Murphy
  • Rafael dos Anjos vs. Geoff Neal
  • Myktybek Orolbai vs. Mateusz Rebecki
  • Said Nurmagomedov vs. Daniel Santos
  • Brunno Ferreira vs. Abus Magomedov
  • Kennedy Nzechukwu vs. Justin Tafa
  • Rinat Fakhretdinov vs. Nursulton Ruziboev
  • Farid Basharat vs. Victor Hugo
  • Ismail Naurdiev vs. Bruno Silva
  • Ibo Aslan vs. Raffael Cerqueira

Upcoming Dana White’s Contender Series events

LAS VEGAS, NEVADA – SEPTEMBER 03: A general view of the Octagon prior to Dana White’s Contender Series season eight, week four at UFC APEX on September 3, 2024 in Las Vegas, Nevada. (Photo by Jeff Bottari/Zuffa LLC)

If you want to see potential stars of the future, Dana White’s Contender Series continues into October, showcasing regional hopefuls fighting to earn a UFC contract.

Each event takes place on  Tuesdays at the UFC Apex in Las Vegas and streams on ESPN+.

UFC Fight Night 244 headliner Tatsuro Taira on burgers, baseball and the three best friends that anyone could have

UFC Fight Night 244 flyweight headliner Tatsuro Taira goes rapid fire on topics from movies to burgers to music.

[autotag]Tatsuro Taira[/autotag] has been climbing the ladder at flyweight, but until earlier this year he’d been doing it rather quietly.

The unbeaten Taira, from Japan, won his first five UFC fights, including back-to-back performance bonuses for submissions – all on the prelims. But earlier this year, he made a seemingly out-of-left-field jump to the UFC on ESPN 58 main event in Las Vegas. His second-round TKO of Alex Perez yielded him another $50,000 bonus.

Now he has a second straight headliner coming up when he takes on former title challenger Brandon Royval in the UFC Fight Night 244 main event. A win could give him a chance to make a case for a flyweight title shot.

Ahead of that show, which is set for Oct. 12 at the UFC Apex in Las Vegas (ESPN+), Taira (16-0 MMA, 6-0 UFC) sat down with MMA Junkie Radio and gave a peek into his life outside the cage.

Check out the video above for Taira’s takes on burgers, baseball and more.

For more on the card, visit MMA Junkie’s event hub for UFC Fight Night 244.

Tatsuro Taira aims to emerge as ‘very clear contender’ with UFC Fight Night 244 win win over Brandon Royval

Tatsuro Taira will look to cement himself as the No. 1 flyweight contender at UFC Fight Night 244.

[autotag]Tatsuro Taira[/autotag] will look to cement himself as No. 1 contender at UFC Fight Night 244.

Taira (16-0 MMA, 6-0 UFC) takes on former title challenger [autotag]Brandon Royval[/autotag] (16-7 MMA, 6-3 UFC) in the Oct. 12 main event at the UFC Apex in Las Vegas.

Another pivotal flyweight clash between former champion Brandon Moreno and Amir Albazi headlines UFC Fight Night 246 on Nov. 2. But with Steve Erceg receiving the most recent title shot against champion Alexandre Pantoja, Taira knows there’s no particular direction when it comes to the flyweight division.

He plans on making himself undeniable against Royval.

“Honestly, I was like, why? To be honest, when I saw that match (Pantoja vs. Erceg), I was a little surprised,” Taira told MMA Junkie Radio through an interpreter. “But it’s true. In the flyweight division in the UFC, there’s no clear contender. So, I just want to be that very clear contender. … I hope they will give me a title match after this.”

Tairia, who’s finished four of his past five fights, is confident that he can be the one to take out Pantoja, who’s outlasted his past three opponents in five-round battles.

“Looking at that title fight hopefully as a contender, I think Pantoja’s fights have all been five rounds,” Taira said. “It’s been all tough rounds, tough fights. But I think honestly, me, I should be able to finish him in three rounds.”

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For more on the card, visit MMA Junkie’s event hub for the UFC Fight Night 244.

Rayanne Dos Santos out of UFC Fight Night 245 due to broken arm

UFC strawweight Rayanne Dos Santos suffered a broken arm in training and has been forced out of her upcoming October bout.

[autotag]Rayanne Dos Santos[/autotag] is out of her upcoming UFC bout due to a broken limb.

Dos Santos (14-8 MMA, 0-2 UFC) was scheduled to face Alice Ardelean in a strawweight contest at UFC Fight Night 245 on Oct. 19 at the UFC Apex in Las Vegas. Unfortunately, Dos Santos broke her arm during training and has been forced out of the contest. Dos Santos shared the news Friday on Instagram.

“I was going to fight the UFC on October 19 in Las Vegas, against Alice Ardelean, But I had the unhappiness of breaking my arm in training,” Dos Santos wrote in Portuguese on Instagram. “I still can’t believe it🥺 I feel heartbroken 💔 but God knows everything!! I’ll heal and can’t wait to go back! I’m doing medical exams and then I’ll do a live stream when I’m calmer.”

https://www.instagram.com/p/C_l0yjcyZWF/?utm_source=ig_web_copy_link&igsh=MzRlODBiNWFlZA==

Dos Santos, a Dana White’s Contender Series veteran, sees a frustrating start to her UFC run continue. She must now wait until her limb heals before attempting to pick up her first win in the UFC. In her first two fights with the promotion, she lost a pair of split decisions to Talita Alencar and Puja Tomar.

At the time of writing, it’s unclear if Ardelean (9-6 MMA, 0-1 UFC) will remain on the card against a different opponent.

With the change, the UFC Fight Night 244 event lineup includes:

  • Michel Pereira vs. Anthony Hernandez
  • Asu Almabayev vs. Matheus Nicolau
  • Rob Font vs. Kyler Phillips
  • Brad Katona vs. Jean Matsumoto
  • Darren Elkins vs. Daniel Pineda
  • Robelis Despaigne vs. Austen Lane
  • Charles Johnson vs. Su Mudaerji
  • Jessica Penne vs. Elise Reed
  • Jake Hadley vs. Brady Hiestand
  • Alice Ardelean vs. opponent TBA
  • Joselyne Edwards vs. Tamires Vidal

UFC Fight Night 244 adds Jonathan Pearce vs. Pat Sabatini to lineup

Veteran UFC featherweights Jonathan Pearce and Pat Sabatini will look to reenter the win column.

[autotag]Jonathan Pearce[/autotag] and [autotag]Pat Sabatini[/autotag] will collide this fall.

At three-round bout between the two featherweights is set for UFC Fight Night 244 on Oct. 12 at the UFC Apex in Las Vegas, two people with knowledge of the matchup recently informed MMA Junkie. The people asked to remain anonymous as the promotion has yet to make an official announcement.

Pearce (14-6 MMA, 5-3 UFC) aims to snap a two-fight skid. After a five-fight winning streak in the UFC from 2020 to 2022, Pearce hit a bumps in the road against Joanderson Brito in November 2023 and David Onama in May 2024.

Sabatini (18-5 MMA, 5-2 UFC) will return to action for the first time in 11 months, since a knockout loss to Diego Lopes. Prior to that fight, Sabatini defeated Lucas Almeida by submission.

With the addition, the UFC Fight Night lineup for Oct. 12 includes:

  • Brandon Royval vs. Tatsuro Taira
  • Jonathan Pearce vs. Pat Sabatini
  • Themba Gorimbo vs. Niko Price
  • Jun Yong Park vs. Brad Tavares
  • Cory McKenna vs. Polyana Viana
  • Grant Dawson vs. Rafa Garcia
  • Abdul Razak Alhassan vs. Josh Fremd
  • Jared Gooden vs. Chidi Njokuani
  • Chris Barnett vs. Waldo Cortes-Acosta
  • Ramazonbek Temirov vs. CJ Vergara
  • Clayton Carpenter vs. Lucas Rocha

For more on the card, visit MMA Junkie’s event hub for the UFC Fight Night 244.

Diego Ferreira explains 17-month layoff ahead of UFC Fight Night 224 return vs. Michael Johnson

It’s been a long time away for Diego Ferriera, but he’s ready to resume swimming with the sharks in the UFC’s lightweight division.

LAS VEGAS – UFC lightweight [autotag]Diego Ferriera[/autotag] has been out of action for a lot longer than he anticipated, but is now just days away from a chance to get his career back on track.

At Saturday’s UFC Fight Night 224 at the UFC Apex, Ferreira (17-5 MMA, 8-5 UFC) makes his long-awaited return to the cage after over 17 months on the sidelines to face fellow veteran Michael Johnson. The lightweight bout streams on ESPN+ and opens the main card.

Ferreira was on one of the hottest streaks in the always-stacked UFC’s lightweight division from 2016-2020. During that stretch, Ferreira won six in a row, with stoppages of Jared Gordon, Kyle Nelson, and former champion Anthony Pettis. Then the calendar flipped to 2021, where things took a sharp turn for the worse as Ferreira lost three straight and suffered an injury keeping him out of action longer than expected.

“It was under my collarbone, my rib. Like a light fracture,” Ferreira told reporters at Wednesday’s media day. “It took me a real good time to recover, but now I’m back and better than ever. It took me that time to focus on myself. … I was not in a rush to get back after an injury.”

Ferreira said he slowly ramped up his training while not pressing things too hard, despite the itch of wanting to compete in the octagon. He returned to the BJJ mats to keep his skills sharp, but didn’t press it too much in the hope of avoiding a further setback.

“It was more of a focus on myself, especially after the few losses I had,” Ferreira said. “I kind of took my time to see what was going to be my focus. I took that time to talk to my family, with my coaches to see what I need to change. After the Anthony Pettis fight, I kind of thought I wasn’t supposed to be training as much. Especially being in the rankings, in there between the sharks. I was not putting that much effort no more. I was just like, ‘OK. I need to maintain.'”

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As for his main card opponent Johnson (21-18 MMA, 13-14 UFC), Ferriera knows exactly what he’s about to get into, but is ready to get back into the swing of things for another run in the stacked lightweight division.

“I know Johnson’s going to bring the best out of me, and I’m expecting that,” Ferreira said. “I’m expecting that he comes like fireballs on his hands and I’ll be there to accept and take it to the deep ocean and see what the fight’s going to bring to myself.”

For more on the card, visit MMA Junkie’s event hub for UFC Fight Night 224.

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