Petr Yan shares why clash with Umar Nurmagamedov would be 'disrespectful'
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USA Today
23 minutes ago
- USA Today
Piera Rodriguez targets rankings, title run after split decision win\u00a0at UFC on ESPN 71
LAS VEGAS – Piera Rodriguez met the media Saturday after her split decision win over Ketlen Souza at UFC on ESPN 71. Rodriguez (11-2 MMA, 4-2 UFC) closed the fight as a more than 40-1 favorite in the live odds against Souza (15-6 MMA, 2-3 UFC), but had to settle for the drama of a split call to open up the prelims at the UFC Apex. Venezuela's Rodriguez won for the second straight time after back-to-back stoppage losses, but the split decision gave her a tense few moments at the end. Although the 32-year-old has six of her 11 wins by decision, Saturday was the first time she's been involved in a split. 'It kind of surprised me that I got a split decision, but a fight is a fight. You can see it from different angles sometimes,' Rodriguez told MMA Junkie at her post-fight news conference. She said now that she's on a streak, she can start looking at a trip into the rankings and an eventual run at the women's strawweight title. 'I'm back in the gym (Monday) – I'm ready,' Rodriguez said. 'I just want to get into the rankings and then start climbing and go for the belt as soon as possible. I'm going to be a champion in this company, and I can't wait for it.' Check out Rodriguez's post-fight news conference in the video above.
USA Today
an hour ago
- USA Today
Sean O'Malley reveals he tried to fight Cory Sandhagen on short notice after UFC 316 loss
Sean O'Malley asked for a quick turnaround to face Cory Sandhagen just a month after UFC 316. O'Malley (18-3 MMA, 10-3 UFC) was submitted by Merab Dvalishvili in June, suffering his second-straight loss to the bantamweight champion. Dvalishvili (20-4 MMA, 13-2 UFC) already has his next title defense set when he takes on Sandhagen (18-5 MMA, 11-4 UFC) in the UFC 320 co-main event on Oct. 4 from T-Mobile Arena in Las Vegas. Prior to the title-fight booking, O'Malley revealed that he was trying to get booked against Sandhagen shortly after his title loss. "I was actually trying to fight Cory when the co-main event fell out for that Max (Holloway) and Dustin (Poirier) fight," O'Malley said on the "Overdogs Podcast." "I threw my name out there to UFC. I was like: Three weeks, me vs. Cory would be sweet. But it didn't really make sense for the UFC. Cory vs. Merab was the next fight to make. But yeah, me vs. Cory is a very interesting fight. That's one that's bound to happen – sooner than later." O'Malley may not get his opportunity to face Sandhagen now, but it still remains one of his most desired fights in the division. He was asked to play matchmaker for the expected White House event next July, and pitched Sandhagen as one of the options. "I think me vs. Cory," O'Malley said. "Me vs. Petr (Yan) 2, I feel like that would be a banger. Me vs. Cory, me vs. Merab 3? No, I'm just kidding."
USA Today
2 hours ago
- USA Today
Rafael Estevam says he chose to focus on fight prep, not weight cut, for UFC on ESPN 71
LAS VEGAS – Rafael Estevam met the media Saturday after his unanimous decision win over Felipe Bunes at UFC on ESPN 71. Estevam (14-0 MMA, 3-0 UFC) was a heavy favorite against Bunes (14-8 MMA, 1-2 UFC) at the UFC Apex, but had his win – a trio of 29-28 scores – marred by another big weight miss. Estevam missed the bantamweight mark by 4 pounds Friday – his second weight miss in three UFC fights. 'If you asked any athlete to have 26, 27, 28, just under 30 days to get ready, we would probably see who's who,' Estevam told MMA Junkie through a translator at his post-fight news conference. 'You have to either prepare yourself or focus on the weight. I was going to either focus on my weight or focus on the preparation, and I wanted to be prepared. 'I'm not an athlete who follows the rules. I'm not as disciplined. I have flaws. There are things I need to improve. I want to get better every single time. That's what I was doing: Focus on the preparation. I think there are things I need to evaluate about the weight cut. That's the problem. Weight cuts are hard from me. I have to work on the mental side. I have to work on the psychological side, maybe go through therapy for this. Whenever you go through what I just did, the psyche needs to be unwavering and unbreakable. Last fight, I had the proper time, I prepared myself properly, and I made the weight.' Check out Estevam's post-fight news conference in the video above.
