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The Francis Ngannou sweepstakes in the world of professional boxing is an ongoing story. Ngannou’s head coach Eric Nicksick confirmed to MMA Junkie Radio that a boxing fight is likely next for Ngannou, and the most interesting potential opponent for the team is Deontay Wilder.
Rampage Jackson’s dreams of becoming a pro wrestler were killed by the Undertaker at 17.
Jon Jones reveals he’s hit 250 lbs.
Beneil Dariush opens as a betting favorite against Charles Oliveira at UFC 288.
Sergei Pavlovich vs. Curtis Blaydes will headline the UFC event on April 22.
Tyron Woodley wants to fight Jake Paul in the PFL.
Aljamain Sterling vs. Henry Cejudo is being finalized for UFC 288.
Erin Blanchfield wants to fight Valentina Shevchenko in July.
William Knight has been released from the UFC following his bizarre performance.
Ryan Bader will serve as an assistant coach to Michael Chandler on TUF 31.
Jake Paul has been in talks with Francis Ngannou to join the PFL.
Jessica Andrade says her breast popped out during her loss to Erin Blanchfield.
MacKenzie Dern vs. Angela Hill is set for May 13th.
Ben Askren was dethroned by MMADro in last week's featured Tournament.
- Islam Makhachev’s mother wants him to retire
- Ciryl Gane admits to being lazy when it comes to training
- Eugene Bareman wanted Israel Adesanya to have a longer break before rematching Alex Pereira
Islam Makhachev has followed the lead of Khabib Nurmagomedov throughout his career. He was trained under the tutelage of Khabib’s late father, Abdulmanap Nurmagomedov, and shares the same cultural values as Khabib. One of those values is family. Khabib suddenly retired from fighting because of a request from his mother. She didn’t want Khabib fighting without his father in his corner. Khabib promised her that he’d retire after fighting Justin Gaethje, and he did. He retired at the top of the sport as the pound-for-pound #1 ranked fighter on the UFC roster.
When you retire at the top of the sport the way Khabib did, it’s hard to have any regrets. He reached a goal that only a few fighters ever achieve. It’s a goal that Islam Makhachev is still chasing, the pound for pound #1. After his fight with Alex Volkanovski, Islam’s mother asked him to retire from the sport. “When I came home, there were a lot of people there. She said, ‘You’re a champion now. Wrap it up. Khabib listened to his mother. When will you listen to yours?’ “I told her Khabib defended his title and I need to do the same. It’s a hard topic for my mother” said Islam when speaking with UFC Russia. Islam is still ambitious and wants to continue to fight, but it will be interesting to see for how long.
Ciryl Gane did an interview with the French outlet La Sueur where he told them he was lazy when it comes to training. “I love grappling, but unfortunately, I’m lazy, that’s the truth. I only train when a fight is announced. I have a lot of media obligations. Professional opportunities outside of the sport. You can’t say no to all these things. I also have to give time to my family, rest well ”.
Gane is a naturally gifted athlete and has been fighting in MMA for less than 5 years. He’ll be taking on Jon Jones, who arguably has the greatest fight IQ of any fighter that’s ever competed. While Gane only trains when a fight is announced, Jones is a student of the game that’s never stopped learning since entering the sport. Experience is where Jones will have a significant advantage in this fight.
While Gane’s comments came as a surprise to many, Jones thinks it’s a trap. He tweeted, “I smell a trap, either way doesn’t matter, I’m training my ass off”. There are a lot questions heading into this fight, and they’ll all be answered next week.
When Israel Adesanya suffered his 2017 knockout loss to Alex Pereira in kickboxing, his head coach Eugene Bareman forced him to take an extended break from fighting. Bareman felt that more head trauma in close concession would be harmful to Israel’s career, so he made him sit out. Adesanya will step back into the Octagon with Alex Pereira 4 months and 3 weeks after Pereira finished him at UFC 281. Baremen appeared on the MMA Hour this week and said he would have liked Adesanya to have more time off.
“If I had a choice, which I quite often don’t, then I would probably have waited longer just to give Israel a little bit more time between a stoppage like that and the next fight,” Bareman said. "Israel is 100% adamant that he must be the next person to fight Alex Pereira. Beyond all doubt.” Stepping into the Octagon against Alex Pereira after a TKO loss this fast is a difficult challenge for anyone, but one that Israel Adesanya is choosing to embrace.
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