Latest news with #FightoftheMonth
USA Today
6 days ago
- Entertainment
- USA Today
MMA Junkie's Fight of the Month for May: Jack Della Maddalena takes Belal Muhammad's belt
MMA Junkie's Fight of the Month for May: Jack Della Maddalena takes Belal Muhammad's belt With another action-packed month of MMA in the books, MMA Junkie looks at the best fights from May 2025: Here are the five nominees, listed in chronological order, and winner of MMA Junkie's Fight of the Month award for May. At the bottom of the post, let us know if we got it right by voting on your choice. Nominee: Daniel Santos def. Jeong Yeong Lee at UFC 315 Daniel Santos and Jeong Yeong Lee produced three solid rounds of action in the featherweight division, busting each other's faces up over the course of 15 minutes as the contest flowed on both the feet and the ground. After three rounds, Santos (12-2 MMA, 3-1 UFC) was awarded the unanimous decision win over Lee (11-3 MMA, 2-2 UFC) with 30-27 scorecards across the board, which was a credit to Lee's toughness. Nominee: Aiemann Zahabi def. Jose Aldo at UFC 315 Aiemann Zahabi went to war with Jose Aldo in what turned out to be the UFC Hall of Famer's final fight before retirement. After a strong start by the former UFC champion, Zahabi (13-2 MMA, 7-2 UFC) survived a scare and turned the tables on Aldo (32-10 MMA, 14-9 UFC) to win a competitive unanimous decision, extending his winning streak to six fights and marking the end of Aldo's legendary career. Nominee: Melquizael Costa def. Julian Erosa at UFC Fight Night 256 Melquizael Costa and Julian Erosa were immediately transported to a hospital after their hard-fought battle in the featherweight division. Costa (24-7 MMA, 5-2 UFC) and Erosa (31-12 MMA, 9-8 UFC) put on a gruelling three-round scrap, and as a result, both men received an additional $50,000 for Fight of the Night honors. In the end, Costa was awarded the unanimous decision victory after enduring a late swarm from Erosa. Nominee: Alice Ardelean def. Rayanne dos Santos at UFC on ESPN 68 Alice Ardelean got her first UFC win when she outworked the favored Rayanne dos Santos to get her hand raised and snap of eight-month skid women getting Fight of the Night honors. Ardelean (10-7 MMA, 1-2 UFC) pulled off a unanimous decision over dos Santos (14-9 MMA, 0-3 UFC) in the curtain jerker on the prelim in the strawweight division. Dos Santos was more than a 2-1 favorite in the fight, but Ardelean pulled off the upset. The winner: Jack Della Maddalena def. Belal Muhammad at UFC 315 The UFC's welterweight division has a new king, and his name is Jack Della Maddalena. Incoming champion Belal Muhammad entered the fight seeking his first title defense, but would run into a stiff challenge in the form of a highly confident Della Maddalena (18-2 MMA, 8-0 UFC). The welterweight title fight served as the main event of UFC 315 at Bell Centre in Montreal. After the final horn sounded, Della Maddalena was declared the new champion unanimously with 48-47, 48-47 and 49-46 scores over Muhammad (24-4 MMA, 15-4 UFC). Della Maddalena came forward early, putting pressure on the champ as he landed combinations while the crowd chanted in his favor. After studying his opponent's movements, Muhammad began to open up his offense. Della Maddalena appeared very comfortable on his feet, and grew in confidence after stopping Muhammad's first takedown attempt. Striking exchanges unfolded early in Round 2, with both fighters connecting with clean offerings. Della Maddalena found a home for a hard right hand that turned Muhammad's head, but the champ ate it and continued to come forward. Della Maddalena stifled another takedown attempt, but Muhammad landed nicely on the exit. Still feeling good, Della Maddalena had some fun with a few spinning strikes in the closing seconds of the round. A beautiful combination from Della Maddalena started Round 3. As the round progressed, Muhammad chased the challenger all over the octagon, but was met with quick jabs and the occasional two-punch combo. It wasn't all one-way traffic, but Muhammad was unable to land anything of significance to change the tone of the fight. In the fourth round, Muhammad dedicated himself to more takedown attempts. The champ pushed forward with urgency, looking to get the fight to the ground. This caused a few heated exchanges, but it was clearly Muhammad's best round, even though he was on the receiving end of a share of clean strikes. With just five minutes to go and the fight on Della Maddalena's side, Muhammad turned up the pressure more than before. This created some heated moments of hard striking exchanges, where it seemed like the fight could end at any moment. Muhammad was finally able to complete a takedown with over three minutes to work. After landing some ground and pound, Della Maddalena exploded back to his feet and resumed landing sharp strikes, putting Muhammad on wobbly legs. Della Maddalena went for a takedown but was reversed, allowing Muhammad to get off some more offense on the ground momentarily. However, the fight would return to standing, where Della Maddalena would close out his championship-winning performance by pressing on the gas until the final horn. Cast Your Vote!
Yahoo
6 days ago
- Entertainment
- Yahoo
MMA Junkie's Fight of the Month for May: Jack Della Maddalena takes Belal Muhammad's belt
With another action-packed month of MMA in the books, MMA Junkie looks at the best fights from May 2025: Here are the five nominees, listed in chronological order, and winner of MMA Junkie's Fight of the Month award for May. At the bottom of the post, let us know if we got it right by voting on your choice. Nominee: Daniel Santos def. Jeong Yeong Lee at UFC 315 Daniel Santos and Jeong Yeong Lee produced three solid rounds of action in the featherweight division, busting each other's faces up over the course of 15 minutes as the contest flowed on both the feet and the ground. Advertisement After three rounds, Santos (12-2 MMA, 3-1 UFC) was awarded the unanimous decision win over Lee (11-3 MMA, 2-2 UFC) with 30-27 scorecards across the board, which was a credit to Lee's toughness. Nominee: Aiemann Zahabi def. Jose Aldo at UFC 315 Aiemann Zahabi went to war with Jose Aldo in what turned out to be the UFC Hall of Famer's final fight before retirement. After a strong start by the former UFC champion, Zahabi (13-2 MMA, 7-2 UFC) survived a scare and turned the tables on Aldo (32-10 MMA, 14-9 UFC) to win a competitive unanimous decision, extending his winning streak to six fights and marking the end of Aldo's legendary career. Nominee: Melquizael Costa def. Julian Erosa at UFC Fight Night 256 Melquizael Costa and Julian Erosa were immediately transported to a hospital after their hard-fought battle in the featherweight division. Advertisement Costa (24-7 MMA, 5-2 UFC) and Erosa (31-12 MMA, 9-8 UFC) put on a gruelling three-round scrap, and as a result, both men received an additional $50,000 for Fight of the Night honors. In the end, Costa was awarded the unanimous decision victory after enduring a late swarm from Erosa. Nominee: Alice Ardelean def. Rayanne dos Santos at UFC on ESPN 68 Alice Ardelean got her first UFC win when she outworked the favored Rayanne dos Santos to get her hand raised and snap of eight-month skid women getting Fight of the Night honors. Ardelean (10-7 MMA, 1-2 UFC) pulled off a unanimous decision over dos Santos (14-9 MMA, 0-3 UFC) in the curtain jerker on the prelim in the strawweight division. Dos Santos was more than a 2-1 favorite in the fight, but Ardelean pulled off the upset. The winner: Jack Della Maddalena def. Belal Muhammad at UFC 315 The UFC's welterweight division has a new king, and his name is Jack Della Maddalena. Advertisement Incoming champion Belal Muhammad entered the fight seeking his first title defense, but would run into a stiff challenge in the form of a highly confident Della Maddalena (18-2 MMA, 8-0 UFC). The welterweight title fight served as the main event of UFC 315 at Bell Centre in Montreal. After the final horn sounded, Della Maddalena was declared the new champion unanimously with 48-47, 48-47 and 49-46 scores over Muhammad (24-4 MMA, 15-4 UFC). Della Maddalena came forward early, putting pressure on the champ as he landed combinations while the crowd chanted in his favor. After studying his opponent's movements, Muhammad began to open up his offense. Della Maddalena appeared very comfortable on his feet, and grew in confidence after stopping Muhammad's first takedown attempt. Striking exchanges unfolded early in Round 2, with both fighters connecting with clean offerings. Della Maddalena found a home for a hard right hand that turned Muhammad's head, but the champ ate it and continued to come forward. Della Maddalena stifled another takedown attempt, but Muhammad landed nicely on the exit. Still feeling good, Della Maddalena had some fun with a few spinning strikes in the closing seconds of the round. Advertisement A beautiful combination from Della Maddalena started Round 3. As the round progressed, Muhammad chased the challenger all over the octagon, but was met with quick jabs and the occasional two-punch combo. It wasn't all one-way traffic, but Muhammad was unable to land anything of significance to change the tone of the fight. In the fourth round, Muhammad dedicated himself to more takedown attempts. The champ pushed forward with urgency, looking to get the fight to the ground. This caused a few heated exchanges, but it was clearly Muhammad's best round, even though he was on the receiving end of a share of clean strikes. With just five minutes to go and the fight on Della Maddalena's side, Muhammad turned up the pressure more than before. This created some heated moments of hard striking exchanges, where it seemed like the fight could end at any moment. Muhammad was finally able to complete a takedown with over three minutes to work. After landing some ground and pound, Della Maddalena exploded back to his feet and resumed landing sharp strikes, putting Muhammad on wobbly legs. Della Maddalena went for a takedown but was reversed, allowing Muhammad to get off some more offense on the ground momentarily. However, the fight would return to standing, where Della Maddalena would close out his championship-winning performance by pressing on the gas until the final horn. Cast Your Vote! This article originally appeared on MMA Junkie: Fight of the Month, May 2025: Della Maddalena batters Belal Muhammad
Yahoo
01-05-2025
- Sport
- Yahoo
MMA Junkie's Fight of the Month for April: A slugfest on the UFC 314 prelims
With another action-packed month of MMA in the books, MMA Junkie looks at the best fights from April 2025: Here are the five nominees, listed in chronological order, and winner of MMA Junkie's Fight of the Month award for April. At the bottom of the post, let us know if we got it right by voting on your choice. Nominee: Alexander Volkanovski def. Diego Lopes at UFC 314 Nominee: Richie Miranda def. Richie Lewis at LFA 207 View this post on Instagram A post shared by UFC Fight Pass (@ufcfightpass) Nominee: Dominik Hamburger def. Samuel Krištofič at OKTAGON 70 Dominik Humburger KO2 Samuel Krištofič #OKTAGON70 — Neo Vale Tudo (@NeoValeTudo) April 26, 2025 Nominee: Randy Brown def. Nicolas Dalby via punch at UFC on ESPN 66 View this post on Instagram A post shared by The Nightmare (@thenightmaree_) The winner: Marco Tulio def. Tresean Gore at UFC 314 More: Marco Tulio def. Tresean Gore at UFC 314: Best photos Brazilian middleweight Marco Tulio went toe to toe with Tresean Gore at UFC 314, and although they were snubbed by the UFC for Fight of the Night honors, they won't get the short end of the slick here. Tulio (14-1 MMA, 2-0 UFC) had to overcome getting dropped early in the fight, to then come back to drop Gore (5-3 MMA, 2-3 UFC) and eventually get the finish. It was a straight right, and then ground-and-pound to seal the deal at the 3:16 mark of Round 2. Tulio is now on a 10-fight winning streak since suffering his only career loss in 2018. He's logged 10 KO wins and one submission win in his 15 professional fights. View this post on Instagram A post shared by Marco Tulio 'MATUTO' (@marcotulio_matuto) This article originally appeared on MMA Junkie: MMA Junkie's Fight of the Month for April: A UFC 314 prelim slugfest
USA Today
01-05-2025
- Sport
- USA Today
MMA Junkie's Fight of the Month for April: A slugfest on the UFC 314 prelims
MMA Junkie's Fight of the Month for April: A slugfest on the UFC 314 prelims With another action-packed month of MMA in the books, MMA Junkie looks at the best fights from April 2025: Here are the five nominees, listed in chronological order, and winner of MMA Junkie's Fight of the Month award for April. At the bottom of the post, let us know if we got it right by voting on your choice. Nominees Nominee: Alexander Volkanovski def. Diego Lopes at UFC 314 Nominee: Richie Miranda def. Richie Lewis at LFA 207 Nominee: Dominik Hamburger def. Samuel Krištofič at OKTAGON 70 Nominee: Randy Brown def. Nicolas Dalby via punch at UFC on ESPN 66 The winner The winner: Marco Tulio def. Tresean Gore at UFC 314 More: Marco Tulio def. Tresean Gore at UFC 314: Best photos Brazilian middleweight Marco Tulio went toe to toe with Tresean Gore at UFC 314, and although they were snubbed by the UFC for Fight of the Night honors, they won't get the short end of the slick here. Tulio (14-1 MMA, 2-0 UFC) had to overcome getting dropped early in the fight, to then come back to drop Gore (5-3 MMA, 2-3 UFC) and eventually get the finish. It was a straight right, and then ground-and-pound to seal the deal at the 3:16 mark of Round 2. Tulio is now on a 10-fight winning streak since suffering his only career loss in 2018. He's logged 10 KO wins and one submission win in his 15 professional fights. Cast Your Vote!
USA Today
03-04-2025
- Sport
- USA Today
MMA Junkie's Fight of the Month for March: Justin Gaethje and Rafael Fiziev claim award
With another action-packed month of MMA in the books, MMA Junkie looks at the best fights from March 2025: Here are the five nominees, listed in chronological order, and winner of MMA Junkie's Fight of the Month award for March. At the bottom of the post, let us know if we got it right by voting on your choice. * * * * Nominees
