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EXCLUSIVE | Lance Palmer explains why he expected to win the PFL featherweight title
Few fighters entered the inaugural season of the Professional Fighters League (PFL) with better name recognition than Lance Palmer. Palmer, a former Team Alpha Male fighter, has been a champion before. ‘The Party’ is a former two-time World Series of Fighting (WSOF) featherweight champion, Resurrection Fighting Alliance (RFA) 145-pound king, and now the PFL season one champ is a […]
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EXCLUSIVE | Virna Jandiroba: Grounded champion, soaring high like the carcara
In every sport around the world, there are humans that will perform day in and day out to the best of their athletic capabilities. Of all the incredibly talented individuals, some will be more recognizable than others, but that doesn’t mean they’ll all be as equally impressive as the next just because they’re more well […]
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EXCLUSIVE | ONE Championship’s Anthony Engelen looking for third finish in three months
When we talk about the busiest fighters in MMA, we usually mention names like Donald Cerrone, Neil Magny and Thiago Santos — and rightly so. These fighters keep tremendously busy schedules, oftentimes shoehorning four or five bouts into a single year. Yet no discussion about busy fighters is complete without mention of ONE Championship featherweight […]
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EXCLUSIVE | Coach: Jon Jones has no plan to ‘move up to heavyweight’ anytime soon
Jon Jones is once again the light heavyweight champion. He defeated Alexander Gustafsson by third-round TKO at UFC 232 to reclaim the belt. Following the fight, Jones called out Daniel Cormier to fight him at light heavyweight — though he was subsequently booked to fight Anthony Smith at UFC 235 on March 2. Smith is on […]
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EXCLUSIVE | Mike Winkeljohn promises lots more finishes from Jon Jones after UFC 232 comeback
Jon Jones returned to glory at UFC 232 when he defeated his rival Alexander Gustafsson by TKO in the third round to reclaim the UFC light heavyweight title. It was not an easy road back for Jones. The light heavyweight great was coming off of a 15-month USADA suspension and was looking to win back […]
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EXCLUSIVE | Meet Timofey Nastyukhin: the man who will welcome Eddie Alvarez to ONE Championship
Russia’s Timofey Nastyukhin (12-4, 6 KOS, 4 Subs) has been competing in combat sports for a long time. He began training in Pankration when he was just a child, and wound up winning a European championship in the sport at a young age. Buoyed by his success in Pankration, he then transitioned into MMA at […]
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EXCLUSIVE | TUF 28 featherweight winner Macy Chiasson explains why she’s moving to bantamweight
Macy Chiasson is a natural featherweight. She competed at featherweight on The Ultimate Fighter 28, and ended up winning the season at that weight. However, she is moving down to bantamweight for her next fight, which will pit her against Gina Mazany at UFC 235 on March 2. This is a rather interesting move for Chiasson […]
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EXCLUSIVE | Louis Taylor explains why $1M PFL title win was so important for his career
The Professional Fighters League (PFL) seasonal format offers a unique alternative to the matchmaking style used by other major promotions like the UFC and Bellator. Season one middleweight champ Louis Taylor took full advantage of this format. The inaugural season of the PFL concluded on New Year’s Eve with the promotion handing out six million-dollar checks. It […]
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EXCLUSIVE | PFL champ Sean O’Connell shares wise advice for next generation of fighters
On New Years Eve, Sean O’Connell thumped Vinny Magalhaes to a corner stoppage, winning the Professional Fighters League (PFL) light heavyweight belt and a $1,000,000 prize in the process. In the moments after this life-changing win, the ever-entertaining veteran announced his retirement from MMA competition. At the end of his incredible fighting career, which unfurled […]
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EXCLUSIVE | Zak Cummings believes fighters should fight closer to their natural weight
Zak Cummings is a veteran of the sport. He is 34-years-old and has 28 professional fights to his credit. When he joined the UFC ranks in 2013, Zak Cummings spent his entire time at welterweight so that he could be bigger than everyone else. However, after struggling with hard weight cuts for years, Cummings eventually […]
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EXCLUSIVE | For Javy Ayala, beating Frank Mir ‘felt amazing’
Javy Ayala took on former UFC heavyweight champion and mixed martial arts legend Frank Mir at December’s Bellator Hawaii: Salute The Troops event. Many fans and analysts expected that Mir would emerge victorious when his bout with Ayala was first announced. In the first-round of the fight, Frank Mir appeared to be getting the better […]
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EXCLUSIVE | Sean O’Connell: A regular dude with a gold belt
Sean O’Connell has two black eyes and a couple of scrapes criss-crossing his face. For now, The Salt Lake City resident still has the mug of a prizefighter, but as of a few days ago, he isn’t one. O’Connell ended his fighting career on New Years Eve, moments after he thumped Vinny Magalhaes to win […]
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EXCLUSIVE | Cortney Casey breaks down ESPN showdown with Cynthia Calvillo
Cortney Casey was originally supposed to be fighting Cynthia Calvillo at the now-canceled UFC 233 card in Anaheim, California on January 26. Instead, Casey will throw down with Calvillo when the UFC makes its debut on ESPN on February 17. “Even though we had that little change with the venues I was already on schedule […]
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EXCLUSIVE | Lyman Good has been waiting a long time for an opponent like Demian Maia
Lyman Good will face his toughest test in the UFC when he takes on Demian Maia in Brazil on February 2. Good used to be the Bellator welterweight champion and CFFC’s interim welterweight champion before signing with the UFC. Since then, Good has has gone 2-1 in the UFC, most recently knocking out Ben Saunders at UFC […]
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EXCLUSIVE | Pannie Kianzad not expecting featherweight expansion, sick of criticism towards TUF 28 cast
The Ultimate Fighter reality show has been running since 2005 and just recently wrapped up its 28th season in November. And it’s fair to say that the season may have been the most criticized season yet. The two divisions that were featured on TUF 28 were the heavyweight and women’s featherweight divisions. This was the […]
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EXCLUSIVE | Din Thomas says if there’s anyone who can beat Cris Cyborg, it’s Amanda Nunes
If anyone knows Amanda Nunes, it’s her friend Din Thomas, who coaches at American Top Team. Din Thomas isn’t afraid to be honest with his fighters and he doesn’t sugarcoat things when breaking down and evaluating their matchups and opponents. As Amanda Nunes prepares to face women’s featherweight champion Cris Cyborg, a woman that has […]
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EXCLUSIVE | Zak Cummings talks win at UFC Milwaukee and not being able to see during fight
Zak Cummings ended 2018 exactly how he wanted to. The former welterweight moved up to middleweight at UFC Milwaukee and defeated Trevor Smith by decision. Yet winning this fight wasn’t easy. “It was a tough fight. I thought I won every round, it wasn’t easy. He fought me different than I thought he was going […]
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EXCLUSIVE | Pro fighters make their picks for Jon Jones vs. Alexander Gustafsson 2
In the main event of UFC 232 this Saturday, former UFC light heavyweight champ Jon Jones will make his long-awaited return to the Octagon — though not in the setting we originally expected. His opponent in this return to action will be Alexander Gustafsson, the Swedish star who gave him his toughest challenge to date back […]
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EXCLUSIVE | Tenshin Nasukawa certain he will perform better than Conor McGregor against Floyd Mayweather
20-year-old Japanese kickboxing wunderkind Tenshin Nasukawa is currently gearing up for the experience of a lifetime: a three-round exhibition boxing match with undefeated legend Floyd Mayweather Jr. The bout will top the stacked RIZIN 14 card, which goes down inside the hallowed Saitaima Super Arena, just outside Tokyo, Japan, on New Years Eve. Given that […]
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EXCLUSIVE | Kay Hansen recaps Comeback of the Year win at Invicta 33
Kay Hansen did what many believed was impossible. At Invicta 33, Hansen, who is just 19-years-old, took a short-notice fight against Sharon Jacobson, a very tough opponent. When Hansen took the fight on short notice, she believed Jacobson would fight aggressively. However, that is not what happened. Jacobson switched her gameplan which threw Hansen for a […]
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EXCLUSIVE | Pro fighters make their picks for Cris Cyborg vs. Amanda Nunes super fight
This Saturday night, in the co-main event of UFC 232 in Inglewood, California, UFC featherweight champ Cris Cyborg will look to defend her belt when bantamweight champion Amanda Nunes moves up in weight to challenge her. There is no question that this will be one of Cyborg’s toughest tests to date, and because of that, fans are undecided […]
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EXCLUSIVE | Meet the man behind Team Lakay and four ONE Championship titleholders
Nestled among the winding streets of Baguio City, which sits 5000 feet above sea level in the Philippines, Team Lakay is about the closest thing you’ll find to a gym in the clouds. Yet this MMA training facility only recently began to achieve the lofty successes you’d expect from a place at its altitude. In […]
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EXCLUSIVE | Kyle Nelson will remain in UFC after stepping in on short notice at UFC 231
Canadian Kyle Nelson will indeed be a UFC fighter for the foreseeable future. Nelson stepped in on short notice to fight Diego Ferreira at UFC 231. However, he lost the fight in the second round by TKO. Even though he lost the fight, Nelson was satisfied with his performance. “I think it showcased some of […]
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EXCLUSIVE | UFC veteran Matt Brown looks back on his career
Matt Brown has been fighting in the UFC since 2008. During that time, Brown developed into a perennial contender in the UFC’s stacked welterweight division. Ultimately, however, Brown fell just short in his bid to fight for UFC gold. Nonetheless, Matt was fighting some of the top names in the sport, in the likes of […]
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EXCLUSIVE | Jinh Yu Frey: ‘Old guard’ atop the mountain
Becoming a champion is never an easy thing to achieve no matter the sport. In MMA however, it may be even harder than most as the fighters are simply relying on themselves to get their jobs done. Sure, they have the teams that help them get to the dance. That’s in a different sense though […]
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EXCLUSIVE | Mike Rodriguez talks UFC Milwaukee win and comparisons to Jon Jones
Fresh off his UFC Milwaukee victory, “Slow” Mike Rodriguez is taking some time to enjoy the holidays before it’s right back to work in 2019. Rodriguez first burst onto the scene last summer when he earned his UFC contract on Dana White’s Tuesday Night Contender Series. Since then Rodriguez’s life has changed a bit. “It’s […]
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EXCLUSIVE | Jason Parillo talks Cris ‘Cyborg’, Tito Ortiz, and BJ Penn
Jason Parillo is one of the most accomplished boxing coaches in the sport of mixed martial arts. He will be in Cris ‘Cyborg’ Justino‘s corner at UFC 232 for the biggest fight of her career. Parillo has worked with some of the best MMA fighters of this generation. Cyborg, BJ Penn, Tito Ortiz, and Michael […]
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EXCLUSIVE | Cris Cyborg outlines keys to victory against Amanda Nunes
UFC featherweight champion Cris Cyborg will battle arguably her toughest opponent to date when UFC bantamweight champion Amanda Nunes moves up in weight to challenge her in the co-main event of UFC 232 on December 29. Cyborg has been the UFC’s featherweight champion since 2017 and hasn’t lost since her very first pro fight in […]