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USA Today
2 days ago
- Sport
- USA Today
Geoff Neal on Carlos Prates: 'There is no reason this fight should go past Round 1'
Don't blink when Geoff Neal and Carlos Prates throw down at UFC 319. Neal (16-6 MMA, 8-4 UFC) and Prates (21-7 MMA, 4-1 UFC) square off in a three-round welterweight matchup on Aug. 16 at United Center in Chicago (ESPN+, ESPN, pay-per-view). With both fighters boasting a high knockout percentage, "Handz of Steel" is predicting a quick finish of Prates. "Whoever can keep from getting hit is going to win," Neal said in an interview with Home of Fight. "I really feel like it's going to be a one-round fight. That's my goal. Granted, I'm training for three rounds, but I'm really training for a one-round fight. There is no reason this fight should go past Round 1." The pair were scheduled to fight at UFC 314 in April, but the bout was scrapped when Neal withdrew for undisclosed reasons. Prates ended up competing two weeks later in the UFC on ESPN 66 headliner against Ian Machado Garry, but suffered his first octagon loss. Neal plans on putting the pressure on Prates right off the bat. "I see me knocking him out in the first round," Neal said. "(It's) probably not going to happen in the beginning, but it's going to be probably in the last couple of minutes, maybe three minutes. That's the goal: Get in there, wear him out, put volume on him and then put him down."
USA Today
4 days ago
- Sport
- USA Today
Alexandre Pantoja open to 'roll the dice' in champ-champ fight vs. Merab Dvalishvili
UFC flyweight champ Alexandre Pantoja is open to the idea of going after a second title. Pantoja (30-5 MMA, 14-3 UFC) has four title defenses under his belt, and appears to get better each time out. The 35-year-old champ has wins over six of the current UFC-ranked top 10 contenders. While Pantoja is comfortable ruling over his division, he isn't completely shunning the idea of moving up to bantamweight to challenge Merab Dvalishvili for the title. "That fight makes sense right now, why not?" Pantoja told Home of Fight. "It's gonna be amazing, but the problem is, why do I need to go to 135?" On his run as champ, Pantoja defeated Brandon Moreno to win the title, and has since defended his crown against Brandon Royval, Steve Erceg, Kai Asakura and Kai Kara-France. Add in prior wins over Manel Kape and Alex Perez, and that's six of the top 10. However, the other four have been turning heads as they navigate their way to the top. The next expected opponent for Pantoja is Joshua Van, who faced off with Pantoja inside the octagon at UFC 317, although the fight does not have a date or location. There's also Tatsuro Taira, who rebounded impressively from his first career loss by stopping HyunSung Park, and Amir Albazi, who was originally set to face Taira for what would have been a big top 10 matchup. Lastly, Asu Almabayev is making noise at 5-1 in the division. "I keep having challenges in my division," Pantoja said. "Why not (Mohammad Mokaev if he returns)? He has good grappling. ... Taira, he showed better boxing. When he fought Royval, Royval made him get in trouble. Now I see he have better boxing, he fixed a couple of things. Joshua have amazing boxing too, amazing skill, good takedown defense – I have very good challengers there." Most importantly, Pantoja isn't overlooking what lies ahead. He knows that Van presents a unique challenge, so he doesn't want to get ahead of himself when thinking about a potential move up. Plus, it's not all on him; Dvalishvili has to win his next title defense against Cory Sandhagen, which is set as the UFC 320 co-main event on Oct. 4. "Of course, why not think about that (fight)?" Pantoja said. "Roll the dice. Next fight, I have a fight to fight. Merab have a fight too. It's a good fight. Sandhagen's not an easy guy, bro. It's about Merab too. Merab needs to win his fight too. ... It's a good fight. It's gonna be a banger, this fight. I'm excited to watch."
USA Today
30-06-2025
- Sport
- USA Today
Renato Moicano knows what he needs to work on after UFC 317 loss to Beneil Dariush
Renato Moicano was honest when assessing his UFC 317 loss. After dropping Beneil Dariush (23-6-1 MMA, 17-6-1 UFC) at the end of Round 1, Moicano (20-7-1 MMA, 12-7 UFC) was outgrappled in a unanimous decision loss on Saturday's main card at T-Mobile Arena in Las Vegas. Moicano now has lost back-to-back fights against former UFC lightweight champion Islam Makhachev and Dariush – which has him eager to improve a certain aspect of his game. "What's up, everybody? Thank you so much for the support," Moicano said after the loss (h/t Home of Fight). "Tonight was not my night. I got a little bit tired, but Dariush executed a very good game plan in the second round. He took me down. I need to get way better on the takedown defense. But it is what it is. "I have to get back to the gym training. I know it's all bullsh*t, everything that I will say. Like, 'F*ck.' Nobody f*cking cares, but I am just trying to say that I am healthy, I'm good, and thank you for the support. I need to get back, I need to get better, and I will." Prior to his two-fight losing skid, Moicano had won four fights in a row – including battering and finishing Benoit Saint Denis in the UFC Fight Night 243 main event last September.
USA Today
19-06-2025
- Sport
- USA Today
UFC on ABC 9: Bryce Mitchell explains why he moved down to bantamweight
UFC on ABC 9: Bryce Mitchell explains why he moved down to bantamweight Bryce Mitchell will compete at bantamweight for the first time in the UFC for his next fight. A perennial contender at featherweight throughout much of his UFC tenure, "Thug Nasty" came to a realization that he's perhaps a better fit at 135 pounds. That decision came immediately after his submission loss to Jean Silva at UFC 314 in April. "I pretty much made up my mind right after this last fight," Mitchell said in an interview with Home of Fight. "The guy was so much bigger than me, and I really felt it in the second round. In the first round, obviously I could tell he was bigger and stronger, but it was really in the second round where I felt it. I think that I'm a '35er. My weight's already come down quite a bit since I started dieting. I got this call two weeks ago, I think. So, I'm excited about it. Everything's going good." Mitchell (17-3 MMA, 8-3 UFC) has been matched up with Said Nurmagomedov (18-4 MMA, 7-3 UFC) for his return to bantamweight at UFC on ABC 9 (ABC, ESPN, ESPN+) on July 26 at Etihad Arena in Abu Dhabi. "I feel like I'm going to win the fight, and I feel like I can beat anybody," Mitchell said of Nurmagomedov. "Him specifically, he's good at a lot of stuff. I respect him, and I'm going to put on a great show. That's a good thing for the fans. No matter how it goes for me or for Said, it's going to go great for the fans. I guarantee you it's going to be a fun fight because I'm going to make it a fun fight."
Daily Mirror
07-06-2025
- Sport
- Daily Mirror
Jon Jones breaks silence on Francis Ngannou as he eyes dramatic UFC return
UFC heavyweight champion Jon Jones has given his take after Eric Nicksick revealed that Francis Ngannou would be open to fighting in the UFC once again Jon Jones has expressed his interest in a super-fight with Francis Ngannou, following rumours that the 'Predator' might make a sensational return to UFC. Ngannou's coach, Eric Nicksick, sparked these rumours when he suggested that his star fighter could be open to competing under the UFC banner once again. In an interview with Home of Fight, the American coach stated that enough time has passed since the 38-year-old left the UFC on bad terms for the two parties to reconcile. He believes that the Cameroonian would be open to this idea, as it has always been about business rather than ego. Nicksick also added that Tom Aspinall is fully deserving of the opportunity to be UFC champion. However, fans have shown their excitement over the possibility of Ngannou's return following these comments. Just hours after the interview went viral online, Jones was quick to share his thoughts and claimed he is still interested in going head-to-head with the 38 year old. In a post uploaded to X -formerly known as Twitter - the UFC heavyweight champion posted: "I'm hearing Francis Ngannou is still interested... now we're talking. That's a real super fight. "That's a real super fight. A clash of champions, not just hype. He held the UFC belt, I've defended mine for over a decade. Two kings from different roads. Not just one legend facing a mouth that's hot right now, but two real legacies colliding. That's the kind of fight that actually adds something special to my story. At least from my point of view." In another post, 'Bones' took a dig at Aspinall after fans suggested Ngannou would be an easier opponent for him in the cage. "You clowns thinking, Francis would be that much easier because of the ground game. Tom has no ground game either. In English black belt is like getting a participation ribbon," he wrote. Jones and Ngannou have been exchanging heated words online about a potential fight for several years. The first whispers of a possible showdown between the two emerged back in 2020. After 'Bones' successfully defended his light-heavyweight title against Dominick Reyes, he was keen to step up and challenge for another title. However, the highly anticipated fight never materialised after Jones made a staggering financial demand. In an interview with ESPN, UFC CEO Dana White quashed the speculation, stating: "For the amount of money he's asking for, it's not going to happen. He couldn't be asking for a more absurd amount of money at a worse time," White added. "We have text messages from Jon Jones. It's not like I can't prove that what I'm saying is true because we have text messages. I'll quote him on what he said. He said, 'I want what Deontay Wilder made against Tyson Fury."
