Elly De La Cruz's diving stop
Joshua Van calls in before his short-notice fight against number one flyweight contender Brandon Royvall to talk about his win over Bruno Silva, jumping up the rankings, buying his mom a house, training with Myanmar legend Aung La Nsang, and more.
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Michal Oleksiejczuk wants Marvin Vettori afer UFC 319 win: 'I can break this guy'
CHICAGO – Michal Oleksiejczuk feels like a different fighter now that he's training with the Fighting Nerds in Brazil, and thus far, the proof is in the results. Poland's Oleksiejczuk (21-9 MMA, 9-7 UFC) spent his last two training camps with one of the hottest teams in the game today, and is thrilled with his decision – especially after recording his second straight first-round finish by stopping Gerald Meerschaert in the United Center at UFC 319. "This was my second time in Brazil and my skills, my cage game, my ground game – all is better," Oleksiejczuk told reporters during a post-fight news conference. "I am happy my corner gave me great energy." Things were not in a good place for Oleksiejczuk just a year ago. After ending his 2023 campaign with a first-round finish of Chidi Njokuani, things took a nose-dive in 2024. Oleksiejczuk lost all three of his fights, two of which were first-round stoppages. Since switching to the Fighting Nerds, he finished Sedriques Dumas in the first round at UFC 314, and followed it up with the opening-round TKO of Meerschaert. Now, the Polish middleweight has his eyes on a ranked opponent. "I think that my skill is ready for top 15 now," Oleksiejczuk said. "I want fight with Marvin Vettori. I think this is very good fight because Marvin is from Europe, I am from Europe, Poland, and I am ready. I think a lot of people want this fight." Vettori currently holds the No. 13 spot in the UFC's official 185-pound rankings. He's in a similar place to Oleksiejczuk last year, having lost three straight fights. If and when they meet, Oleksiejczuk believes he can be the first fighter to stop the ultra-durable Italian. "I know Marvin is very tough fighter, but I think that this is my time," Oleksiejczuk said. "I can break this guy, I am sure."
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Yahoo
an hour ago
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Francis Ngannou explains his criticisms of PFL Africa launch, responds to Donn Davis
PFL's long-discussed debut trip to Africa turned out to be a success in July, showcasing some of the promotion's top talents like Dakota Ditcheva and Johnny Eblen. However, PFL Africa ambassador and heavyweight superstar Francis Ngannou was noticeably missing from the arena come fight night. PFL founder Donn Davis expressed his disappointment with Ngannou's absence following the conclusion of the launch event. Davis claimed not to know why the Cameroonian puncher didn't attend the event, which bothered Ngannou. The former UFC heavyweight champion explained this week to Uncrowned exactly what led to his decision to not attend the first two Africa shows he pushed PFL to create. "I don't think it was something [Davis] should have brought out there [to tell people], right?" Ngannou said on "The Ariel Helwani Show." "At least if it was me, I wouldn't put it out there now, because he gets in the position where we have to bring up context [of] why didn't I come there. He did know why I didn't come. I've been waiting on this for two years — this was a big part of it. ... I wasn't OK with something, but I wasn't the one that was going to [put it] out [into the public conversation]. "If you want to know what exactly is the reason why I wasn't there, I wasn't very OK with the first PFL Africa event seeming to be like an undercard," Ngannou continued. "Quoting [Davis], we worked a lot for that, for [the launch of] PFL Africa. I hoped the PFL Africa debut would have at least had its glory, its moment. That wasn't my decision. I wasn't down for it, but I expressed my feelings to them." The keys to the proverbial castle in PFL were essentially handed to Ngannou upon his arrival to the promotion in 2023. Along with his high-value contract, the signing came with a role in spearheading PFL Africa as a sub-promotion under the overall PFL umbrella. But Ngannou believes his vision wasn't necessarily met — he hoped the launch of PFL Africa would ideally consist exclusively of African talent. "This is what it's about," Ngannou said. "You talk about something for two years, you expect this glorious moment, and I couldn't explain [to people why the card turned out how it did] if I had been there. It looks like I had been in a very bad position to explain how the PFL Africa I've been talking about has become an undercard. So, on that perspective, I'm not facing this. That was the main reason. "What was worse for me was I have seen some people talking about it, but they didn't even realize Aug. 9 was the second [PFL Africa] event." Despite holding down a lucrative spot on the PFL roster for more than two years, Ngannou has only fought once for the promotion, when he made his debut this past October with a first-round stoppage of 2023 PFL heavyweight tournament winner Renan Ferreira. As part of his deal, Ngannou has been allowed to fight freely in big-money boxing matches against Tyson Fury and Anthony Joshua during the period. Ngannou said he hasn't had any formal discussions with PFL officials regarding a potential return to the cage in 2025, but has prodded them via email recently. He's under the impression PFL does not have a suitable opponent for him at the moment and hasn't spoken to Davis since their recent disagreements. The relationship between PFL and Ngannou appeared to be in a good place until Davis' comments. From Ngannou's perspective, things are still fine between both parties; it's just a matter of understanding where each is coming from going forward. "So far, I would say we've had a good relationship," Ngannou said. "We have two businesses together. One is PFL Africa, and then one is me as a fighter and PFL as a promoter. But again, everything doesn't always run smooth. It wasn't like, 'OK, this is not working.' This just works like, 'Oh, I don't agree with this. I think it should be like this,' and somebody gives his own point of view. Sometimes it works out, sometimes it doesn't work out. "Personally I don't think we are in that point, as you can see, 'Oh, we have a bad relationship.' No, we have a good relationship. We are just working things out. "I think the problem here is from a culture difference, which they are struggling to understand. The African culture aspect of things. I have to try to make sure that's being considered. So I think that's what is getting lost here. Because without that, the relationship would be qualified as a great relationship."
