Tag: UFC on ESPN 31

Spinning Back Clique: UFC-Bellator bantamweight supremacy, Paul-Woodley 2, UFC 269

Check out this week’s “Spinning Back Clique,” MMA Junkie’s weekly show that takes a spin through the biggest topics in mixed martial arts.

Check out this week’s “Spinning Back Clique,” MMA Junkie’s weekly show that takes a spin through the biggest topics in mixed martial arts.

This week, we look back at the UFC on ESPN 31 and Bellator 272 bantamweight headliners, as well as look ahead to the unexpected Jake Paul-Tyron Woodley rematch and this weekend’s UFC 269.

Our “Spinning Back Clique” panel of Nolan King, Matthew Wells and “Gorgeous” George Garcia discuss these topics with host John Morgan.

  • This past weekend saw a couple of incredible bantamweight main events, starting [autotag]Sergio Pettis[/autotag], who had a tough time with [autotag]Kyoji Horiguchi[/autotag] but ultimately delivered a “Knockout of the Year” contender to retain his bantamweight title at Bellator 272. That belt is going up for grabs next year in a bantamweight grand prix, so let’s ask: Is Pettis the odds on favorite to retain the belt all the way through the tournament?
  • Meanwhile, over at UFC on ESPN 31, [autotag]Jose Aldo[/autotag] proved he’s still very relevant at 135 pounds with a clear-cut decision win over [autotag]Rob Font[/autotag]. After the fight, Aldo said a matchup with T.J. Dillashaw appeals to him next while they wait on the title unification bout between Aljamain Sterling and Petr Yan. Lot of great names at the top of that division, but Bellator president Scott Coker said his grand prix will determine the best 135 pounder in the world. The question: Is he right? Does Bellator have a better bantamweight division than the UFC right now?
  • Well, [autotag]Jake Paul[/autotag] was set to box Tommy Fury later this month in a fight that we wouldn’t have to care much about here at MMA Junkie, but now Fury is out, and former UFC champion [autotag]Tyron Woodley[/autotag] is getting the rematch he had been campaigning for since their first meeting. That’s right, just when we thought we were out, they pulled us back in. Now that it’s a reality, how excited are you? And is there any way it goes differently than the first time?
  • The UFC’s final pay-per-view event of the year takes place this week with UFC 269, and two veterans top the bill, with [autotag]Charles Oliveira[/autotag] defending his lightweight title against [autotag]Dustin Poirier[/autotag]. Both of these guys are so deserving of the spotlight given their journeys in the sport, but who has more on the line here? Who might really be feeling the pressure Saturday night?
  • Outside of the main event, we have a stacked UFC 269 card, so which fight are you looking forward to most outside of the headliner and why?

“Spinning Back Clique” is released each Tuesday on MMA Junkie’s YouTube channel. You can watch the full episode in the video above.

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Bryan Barberena doesn’t understand Nate Diaz’s stance, wants to fight everyone

Take a look inside Bryan Barberena’s win over Darian Weeks at UFC on ESPN 31 in Las Vegas.

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LAS VEGAS – [autotag]Bryan Barberena[/autotag] beat Darian Weeks with a unanimous decision Saturday on the preliminary card at UFC on ESPN 31 in Las Vegas.

Take a look inside the fight with Barberena, who got back in the win column after a July loss to Jason Witt.

MMA Junkie Radio #3215: Paul vs. Woodley 2, UFC on ESPN 31, Bellator 272 reactions

Thursday’s edition of MMA Junkie Radio with hosts “Gorgeous” George and “Goze” is here.

Monday’s edition of MMA Junkie Radio with “Gorgeous” George and “Goze” is here.

On Episode 3,215, the boys react to all the big fights between UFC on ESPN 31 and Bellator 272 this past weekend, as well as Monday’s breaking news that Tyron Woodley is stepping in for Tommy Fury to rematch Jake Paul. Tune in!

Stream or download this and all episodes of MMA Junkie Radio over at OmnyStudio. You can also catch it on Apple Podcasts, Spotify, Stitcher, and more. A new episode of the podcast is released every Monday and Thursday.

Aljamain Sterling reveals key to shutting down Jose Aldo in potential UFC title fight

Aljamain Sterling has a UFC bantamweight title unification bout with Petr Yan to deal with, but the champion sees Jose Aldo creeping.

[autotag]Aljamain Sterling[/autotag] has a UFC bantamweight title unification bout with Petr Yan to deal with, but the champion sees [autotag]Jose Aldo[/autotag] creeping toward a title shot, as well.

Aldo (31-7 MMA, 13-6 UFC) took another step toward securing a second shot at 135-pound gold on Saturday, when he beat up Rob Font (19-5 MMA, 9-4 UFC) for a unanimous decision win at UFC on ESPN 31, which took place at the UFC Apex in Las Vegas. The Brazilian has won three fights in a row, and while he said he would like a title shot, he understands the realities of the division and instead pitched a matchup with T.J. Dillashaw.

If that fight happens, it would be a definitive No. 1 contender match. The winner would be perfectly positioned to fight the winner of Sterling (20-3 MMA, 12-3 UFC) vs. Yan (16-2 MMA, 8-1 UFC). The reigning champ was cageside to see Aldo compete from up close, and he couldn’t leave anything but impressed.

“I thought it was a phenomenal performance,” Sterling said during the UFC on ESPN 31 post-fight show. “Compared to what he did against Petr Yan, this was night and day. I think he’s still getting better, still proving that he’s one of the top dogs in this division, and I’m super excited because this division is really hot right now.”

Font had a good start to the opening round against Aldo at UFC on ESPN 31, but then a big punch late in the round turned the tide, and it was never reversed all the way back. Sterling thinks Font made some tactical mistakes, and although Aldo is clearly a tough customer, Sterling sees a tried-and-true way of beating him.

“I think you’ve just got to stay in his face the whole time; that’s my personal opinion,” Sterling said. “When he started taking Rob Font down, he was a fish out on land, so to speak. … He’s a black belt. He’s a legend. He’s done what he’s done in the history books for a reason, but I do believe I have the tools to beat every one of these guys in the bantamweight division.”

Whether Sterling and Aldo ever link up inside the octagon remains to be seen. Sterling is keeping his focus on immediate business, though, and he said he’s waiting on a call to lock in the rematch with Yan.

“We’ve got a lot of unsettled business,” Sterling said. “I can’t wait to just shut that guy up for good.”

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Dusko Todorovic was struck by car in July, re-injured mangled foot while warming up at UFC on ESPN 31

It’s not often that fighters detailing less-than-ideal circumstances encountered while training includes being struck by a vehicle.

LAS VEGAS – It’s not at all uncommon to hear of fighters detailing less-than-ideal circumstances encountered while training for a UFC appearance. However, it’s not often that those struggles includes being struck by a vehicle.

“It was a delicate situation,” [autotag]Dusko Todorovic[/autotag] told MMA Junkie following Saturday’s UFC on ESPN 31 event. “By the end of July, I got hit by a car. The guy ran over me while I was crossing, so he messed up my left leg pretty good, and I knew that the call was going to come, so I was thinking at that time of trying to prepare for a possible bout, you know? So when the contract came, I was still not training properly or anything.

“I couldn’t, you know, use my foot the right way, so there were definitely lots of setbacks during this camp and difficulties, all regarding that injury. I didn’t want to talk with anyone about it. I didn’t let even my family know. Just my girl knew, so yeah, it was pretty crazy.”

Todorovic (11-2 MMA, 2-2 UFC) faced Maki Pitolo (13-9 MMA, 1-5 UFC) in the featured prelim of Saturday’s UFC on ESPN 31 card. It was an important contest for the 27-year-old middleweight after dealing with a pair of consecutive losses following an undefeated run of 10 fights to start his pro career.

Todorovic admits he wasn’t anywhere near 100 percent for the matchup but felt it was important to show up and compete.

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“I was on crutches for three weeks,” Todorovic told MMA Junkie via email. “Whilst in that state, I was able to only go to the gym and do therapy for my knee and foot. It was probably up until the middle of September when I came back to the Secutor Academy MMA gym and did my first light workout. It was mostly boxing on the bag without much movement. All the wrestling was mostly controlled drilling.

“I wasn’t able to do as much of sparring or even train as I normally do. We have had to modify everything for this fight.”

As if all that wasn’t enough for Todorovic, things continued to get worse for him during pre-fight warmups.

“My leg gave up on me during the warmup for the fight,” Todorovic admitted. “It snapped pretty hard as it slipped off the makeshift warmup tatami, so that was another obstacle I had to go over before actually crossing gloves with Maki.”

Fortunately for Todorovic, after fending off an early guillotine choke from his opponent, he was able to turn the tide, eventually working to a dominant position and pounding away with punches to score a first-round TKO.

While the numerous challenges he faced could have easily proven impossible to overcome, Todorovic said he turned his misfortune into anger and used it to fuel his performance.

“I got mad,” Todorovic said. “I was pissed off because then that leg was – even from earlier stages – it was injured. Those things occurred to me pretty often, you know, where my foot would just go ‘snap’ and get swollen and hurt a couple of days, and I got used to it, but to happen right before a fight – and the fight that’s so important for me – I got pissed, man.”

With the result, Todorovic returns to the win column and closes out a very difficult year on a high note. But don’t expect him to make a quick turnaround. While the Dana White’s Contender Series veteran is proud of what he accomplished in the face of immense difficulties, he also knows the importance of allowing himself a chance to now make a full recovery.

“I want to stay active, but I need to take care of this because it’s not a light injury, especially after a car hit me,” Todorovic said. “It’s still pretty fresh. You know, it was in July. The wounds, itself, closed up maybe a month-and-a-half ago, so it’s still pretty fresh. I would like to heal it properly so I can prepare for a fight and go with my A-game in the next bout.”

To hear the full interview with Todorovic, check out the video above. To see graphic video of the recovery process, see the video below.

Rob Font: ‘I feel I can beat’ Jose Aldo despite UFC on ESPN 31 loss

Rob Font is confident he has the answers to Jose Aldo’s game, he just wasn’t able to execute at UFC on ESPN 31.

[autotag]Rob Font[/autotag] is confident he has the answers to Jose Aldo’s game; he just wasn’t able to put them together in the UFC on ESPN 31 main event.

Font (19-5 MMA, 9-4 UFC) had his winning streak snapped Saturday when he suffered a unanimous decision loss to Aldo (31-7 MMA, 13-6 UFC) in the bantamweight headliner at the UFC Apex in Las Vegas. He had a strong start to the fight, but once his opponent started to find his range, it went downhill.

Aldo’s power proved to be the difference inside the octagon. He dropped Font twice over the course of 25 minutes, and any time Font started to gain some momentum, a hard shot would swing the action back the other way.

The strikes created a lot of damage around Font’s eye, and he said it compromised his vision to the point he struggled to see what was coming. If that didn’t happen, Font thinks it’d have been a different fight.

“He caught me with some clean shots I didn’t see, and it was hard to see that extra third and fourth shot with my eye all swollen up,” Font said during his in-cage interview with Daniel Cormier after the fight. “But the guy’s a legend. He’s tough. I feel I can beat him, but it just wasn’t my night. Hat’s off to him.”

Although he’s disappointed with the outcome, Font said he’s able to take positives away from the experience.

Going the distance with Aldo will provide nothing but valuable lessons to Font as he moves forward with his career, and even in the immediate aftermath of the fight, he was wise enough to realize the result will benefit him in the long run.

“I’ll be back,” Font said. “I know for a fact this will make me better, and I just went five rounds with one of the legends in the sport, and I’m going to get better off of this fight, for sure.

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Rafael Fiziev ‘didn’t like many moments’ in UFC on ESPN 31 bout, including TKOing a friend

The knockout was incredible, but Rafael Fiziev sees defects in the victory.

LAS VEGAS – [autotag]Rafael Fiziev[/autotag]’s UFC latest performance wooed the small crowd in attendance at the UFC Apex and wowed thousands watching around the world, but there are some things about it he just didn’t enjoy, himself.

Though it was capped off by an athletic and powerful spinning wheel kick knockout, Fiziev (11-1 MMA, 6-1 UFC) didn’t bask in the glory for too long at the UFC on ESPN 31 post-fight news conference. He admitted it was a great highlight, but defeating a friend, [autotag]Brad Riddell[/autotag] (10-2 MMA, 4-1 UFC), who he’s trained with in the past, was a difficult pill to swallow.

“It feels amazing,” Fiziev told MMA Junkie. “What I can say? What I can say? I just don’t know if I’m sad or I’m happy because it’s not so good when you (defeat) your friend like that, you know? It’s just this. Of course, I’m happy inside. I don’t know. … It was a beautiful KO or TKO. It was beautiful, but I still didn’t want the fight (yet). I still didn’t like many moments in the fight. I still need growing. I still need work.”

With the victory, Fiziev won a $50,000 “Performance of the Night” bonus and extended his winning streak to five, with two knockout finishes in the stretch. Despite his affinity for violence and success in the cage, Fiziev revealed he never seeks specifically for a finish.

“I never find knockout in my fights,” Fiziev said. “I never try to make a knockout. I never believe in this before a fight. I waited for his damage and I (took) it. I go to my kitchen today and I’ll try to cook something.”

UFC on ESPN 31 took place Saturday, airing on ESPN and streaming on ESPN+.

To se the full interview with Fiziev, check out the video above.

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Jose Aldo: T.J. Dillashaw ‘the best opponent next’ after UFC on ESPN 31 win

Jose Aldo wants to fight fellow former longtime UFC champ T.J. Dillashaw after a main event win at UFC on ESPN 31.

[autotag]Jose Aldo[/autotag] knows exactly who he wants to fight next after defeating Rob Font at UFC on ESPN 31.

Aldo (31-7 MMA, 13-6 UFC), the former UFC featherweight champion, earned his third consecutive win in the bantamweight division Saturday with a unanimous decision win over Font (19-5 MMA, 9-4 UFC) at the UFC Apex in Las Vegas.

Trending toward a title shot, Aldo is realistic about the state of the weight class, which is waiting for a title unification bout between Aljamain Sterling and Petr Yan. The next title shot behind that could potentially be up for grabs, though, and Aldo thinks it makes the most sense to battle [autotag]T.J. Dillashaw[/autotag] for a No. 1 contender position.

“Of course I want to fight for the title but we don’t know what’s going to happen with that,” Aldo told Daniel Cormier through an interpreter during his UFC on ESPN 31 post-fight interview. “Dillashaw’s right there, so I want to fight Dillashaw. That would be the best opponent next.”

Dillashaw (17-4 MMA, 13-4 UFC) was recently victorious in his return to competition from a more than two-year layoff due to a USADA suspension, as he beat Cory Sandhagen in the UFC on ESPN 27 main event in July. He had since been sidelined recovering from surgery, but has repeatedly stated his desire to fight for the title next.

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A fight with Aldo would be logical, however, especially after the Brazilian put on a brilliant display against Font. Aldo had multiple knockdowns and roughly nine minutes of top position time against Font, and he said it was a performance that showed he’s following his goal to strive toward being a more well-rounded fighter.

“Everyone thinks I can only go three rounds but I proved I can do five and I want to be a champion of this division and I’m still working for that,” Aldo said. “We’ve been talking about this, to become a complete MMA fighter. So yes, I’m going to be standing up and when it goes to the ground I’m going to work down there. This is the new Aldo you’re seeing.”

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UFC on ESPN 31 bonuses: Fiziev’s wheel kick, Guida’s submission among six total winners

UFC handed out more bonuses than usual after an event filled with exciting finishes at UFC on ESPN 31 in Las Vegas.

LAS VEGAS – UFC on ESPN 31 was an exciting card filled with incredible finishes and a solid performance from a future Hall of Famer in the main event.

With so many great performances on Saturday evening, choosing the usual four bonuses winners had to be tough for the decision-makers. Luckily for the fighters, the promotion decided to divvy out $50,000 bonuses to a total of six fighters. Four individual fighters earned a “Performance of the Night” bonus while the only women’s bout on the entire card between [autotag]Cheyanne Vlismas[/autotag] and [autotag]Mallory Martin[/autotag] earned “Fight of the Night” honors for their high-paced three-round battle.

UFC on ESPN 31 took place at the UFC Apex in Las Vegas. The card aired on ESPN and streamed on ESPN+.

Check out who else took home an extra check after Saturday’s event at the UFC Apex in Las Vegas.

UFC on ESPN 31 results: Resurgent Jose Aldo outworks Rob Font to get back in title conversation

A former featherweight champion stopped the ascension of a serious bantamweight contender Saturday night.

A former featherweight champion stopped the ascension of a serious bantamweight contender Saturday night – and may have put himself back in the title mix one more time.

Jose Aldo (31-7 MMA, 13-6 UFC) started slow in the first against Rob Font (19-5 MMA, 9-4 UFC), but turned it up in every other round and won a unanimous decision with a pair of 50-45 scores and a 49-46. The win snapped Font’s four-fight winning streak and was the third straight for Aldo.

The bantamweight bout was the UFC on ESPN 31 main event at the UFC Apex in Las Vegas. It aired on ESPN and streamed on ESPN+.

Font took the center early and came right at the former champion. He backed Aldo up with a right hand, then landed a combo. Aldo kicked to the body, but Font still pushed forward. A minute in, an awkward takedown attempt for Font worked, and he tied Aldo up when he popped back to his feet. Font worked for another takedown, but Aldo battled out of it. Font threw and landed the bulk of the offense in the opening frame, and Aldo seemed to be mostly on defense.

But with 12 seconds left, Aldo drilled Font with a right hand that sat him on the canvas. It seemed to come out of nowhere. Aldo pounced and hit him with a couple more good shots before the horn, but he didn’t have enough time to get the finish. Still, the knockdown was enough to win the round for Aldo from two of the judges.

Font went back to his same wheelhouse in the second working jabs and kicks. But two minutes in, once again Aldo showed his power and wobbled Font with a hard right. Font stayed on his feet, though, and continued to work his jab.

A minute into the third, a Font takedown attempt led to Aldo on top looking for a choke. He worked his way to side control, but eventually had to settle back into guard. Font was good defensively and kept Aldo from landing much damage. Font finally got back to his feet with two minutes left. With a minute left, a low kick from Aldo knocked Font right off his feet.

Font came out urgent in the fourth, but Aldo landed a big right hand, then a knee. Soon after, he put Font back on the canvas. He dropped down to side control and landed elbows. Both fighters had eyes that were swollen and seemed to be bothering them. Font struggled to get off his back, even though Aldo was working to pass to mount more than he was delivering offense. Font was good defensively, though, and he recovered to full guard.

Font’s cornermen told him he likely needed a finish in the final round, and he again came out aggressive. Font pushed him to the fence a minute in, and Aldo appeared to be wearing down. Font landed an elbow on the break, but Aldo kept muscling forward. Midway through the final round, Font landed an elbow that seemed to hurt Aldo. But Aldo fired back, wobbled Font and put him on the canvas one more time. With two minutes left, he was on top and in control. Aldo had a chance for a choke finish late, but Font defended it to get to the scorecards.

Up-to-the-minute UFC on ESPN 31 results include:

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