Author: mmafighting
The Mixed Martial Arts Hour is back in your life! Below is a rundown of Monday’s show, which begins at 1 p.m. ET / 10 a.m. PT / 6 p.m. UK time. 1:05 p.m. ET: Boxing champ Anthony Joshua talks about his upcoming fight with Francis Ngannou and more. 1:20 p.m.: Reaction to the Joshua vs. Ngannou press conference and the weekend of combat sports action including UFC Vegas 84 and more. 2 p.m.: Former UFC light heavyweight champion Jiří Procházka talks his UFC 300 fight with Aleksandar Rakic. 2:30 p.m.: UFC middleweight title challenger Dricus du Plessis previews his…
Conor McGregor vs. Michael Chandler is seemingly set and will take place at a higher weight than anyone expected. It’s a nice change of pace when you think about it. Instead of weight-cutting, perennial lightweight staples McGregor and Chandler will weight boost for their anticipated clash. The healthier, the better. In theory, anyway. McGregor recently announced the fight to go down in the 185-pound middleweight division on June 29, which he also claimed to be International Fight Week 2024. The MMA world is still awaiting confirmation on the details of everything from the promotion, but Chandler has since supported the…
Former Bellator fighter Ryan Curtis has suffered a devastating training injury. Featherweight contender Leah McCourt, a close friend of Curtis’, announced on social media that Curtis injured his back, neck, and spine during a training session Thursday. McCourt also shared a GoFundMe page seeking donations to provide support to Curtis and his family. See McCourt’s post below. “As an athlete and human the unimaginable has happened to our beloved Ryan,” McCourt wrote. “He was involved in a life-altering incident during a training session on Thursday 11th January. “Ryan has suffered a broken back, broken neck, and dislocated spine. During this…
Matchroom Sport’s Eddie Hearn thought the next step for Anthony Joshua was already set in stone when the two stepped into Kingdom Arena on Dec. 23 in Riyadh, Saudi Arabia. Joshua and longtime nemesis Deontay Wilder needed only to win their respective bouts against Otto Wallin and Joseph Parker, and finally one of heavyweight boxing’s most anticipated heavyweight showdowns could be made. But then Parker dispatched Wilder in one of the biggest upsets of 2023, and suddenly Joshua was left without a dance partner. “Look, we were due to announce the Deontay Wilder fight in the ring that night,” Hearn…
The only blemish on Sean Brady’s record came from a knockout loss to Belal Muhammad but there’s no bad blood between them these days. In fact, Brady believes that Muhammad absolutely deserves the opportunity to become UFC welterweight champion with all signs pointing towards an eventual showdown with Leon Edwards. Muhammad has been rather vocal calling for the title shot, although the UFC has yet to make any official announcement regarding his future or what comes next for Edwards as champion. “Belal’s good,” Brady said on Joe Rogan’s podcast. “I know I can beat Belal but I’m happy for him.…
Paul Felder is still contemplating a potential MMA comeback, but Jim Miller calling him out for UFC 300 may have swayed his decision. Retired since 2021, Felder spent the past two years serving as a color commentator for the UFC broadcast team, while also engaging in triathlons and dabbling in acting whenever time permits. But after watching “The Korean Zombie” Chan Sung Jung walk out for his final fight this past August, Felder became inspired to consider a return to action. He reentered the UFC’s anti-doping program in August, which requires six months of testing before a retired athlete can…
UFC welterweight Ian Machado Garry recently wrote his hit list for the world to see. Geoff Neal, Colby Covington and Sean Strickland are on it – in that order. On The MMA Hour, Garry explained the logic around his matchup choices and why this particular sequence is the one he feels makes the most sense for his career. Sidelined from UFC 296 by a bout of pneumonia, he is already scheduled to return to the cage at UFC 298 against Neal, whom he was scheduled to fight at UFC 292. The first booking, of course, is the easiest for Garry…
Jim Miller can finally consider UFC 300 for his next fight. Several years ago, the 40-year-old veteran mentioned the historic event as an ideal landing spot for him after already scoring wins at UFC 100 and UFC 200. Following a submission win over Gabriel Benitez at UFC Vegas 84, Miller immediately turned his attention toward the April 13 event, with designs on a showdown against a fellow octagon legend. Immediately after his win, Miller mentioned Paul Felder or Matt Brown as ideal opponents. In his post-fight press conference, however, he slightly leaned toward a matchup against another UFC record holder…
Jon Jones may be struggling to win over the court of public opinion in his ongoing feud with Tom Aspinall, but Chael Sonnen believes there’s any easy way this could be solved. “Jon does not enjoy that side of [MMA], he doesn’t understand it,” Sonnen said on his You’re Welcome podcast. “He thinks the most money, the most accolades should go to whoever can beat up the most people. So Jon could end it. He could end something that he doesn’t want to keep continuing by saying one word, which is yes. But you want to know something? Jon could…
Magomed Ankalaev picked up another big win Saturday and he thinks there’s only one name that makes sense for him next: UFC light heavyweight champion Alex Pereira. In the main event of UFC Vegas 84, Ankalaev scored a nasty knockout of Johnny Walker in the second round to settle their score and possibly position himself as the No. 1 contender at 205 pounds. Shortly after Ankalaev’s win, Pereira’s longtime coach Glover Teixeira sent out a message on social media suggesting Ankalaev could be next to face the champion. Ankalaev responded with a message of his own at the evening’s post-fight…