Latest news with #Junkie
USA Today
3 days ago
- Sport
- USA Today
Video: UFC 318 post-fight press conference live stream
NEW ORLEANS – UFC 318 takes place Saturday at Smoothie King Center, and you can watch a live video stream of the post-event news conference here on MMA Junkie. Expected to take part in the press conference are the winner and loser of the BMF championship trilogy fight between Max Holloway and Dustin Poirier, which serves as the main event. UFC CEO Dana White is also expects to answer questions from reporters and recap the event. You can watch the press conference in the video above, which will go live upon the conclusion of the headlining bout.
USA Today
3 days ago
- Sport
- USA Today
Michael Johnson vs. Daniel Zellhuber prediction, pick, start time for UFC 318
Michael Johnson and Daniel Zellhuber meet Saturday in the main card opener of UFC 318 at Smoothie King Center in New Orleans. Check out this quick breakdown of the matchup from MMA Junkie analyst Dan Tom. Last event: 4-2 UFC main cards, 2025: 68-50-1 Michael Johnson vs. Daniel Zellhuber UFC 318 preview Johnson (23-19 MMA, 15-15 UFC) has been around the UFC since Season 12 of "The Ultimate Fighter" in 2010. In this fight, he'll look to stay above .500 for his UFC run, while extending his winning streak to three. "The Menace" enters on the heels of a unanimous decision win over Darrius Flowers and a knockout of Ottman Azaitar. ... Zellhuber (15-2 MMA, 3-2 UFC) will aim to rebound from a tough split decision loss against Esteban Ribovics at UFC 306. The result snapped a three-fight streak that included wins over Lando Vannata, Christos Giagos and Francisco Prado. Michael Johnson vs. Daniel Zellhuber UFC 318 expert pick, prediction Kicking off the paid portion of the card is a crossroads fight at lightweight between the UFC veteran Michael Johnson and the up-and-coming Daniel Zellhuber. Although I can appreciate the matchmakers sticking to Joe Silva's tried and true method of booking lightweight main-card openers, this fight could end up being more tepid than some suspect with Johnson being the first notable southpaw of Zellhuber's career. Despite both fighters often finding themselves in exciting fights, I'm curious how the open-stance nature of the matchup will affect Zellhuber's reliance on his jab. Luckily for Zellhuber, he appears to be a fairly dynamic striker and works under Xtreme Couture MMA's Eric Nicksick – who I suspect will have the Mexican fighter well-prepared for this weekend. Johnson used to be one of my favorite underdogs to wager on back in the day, but it's become harder and harder to back the original "Blackzilian" in recent years due to his propensity to fall apart down the stretch. The pick is Zellhuber by unanimous decision. Michael Johnson vs. Daniel Zellhuber UFC 318 odds The oddsmakers and the public are favoring the Mexican fighter, listing Zellhuber -650 and Johnson +475 via FanDuel. Michael Johnson vs. Daniel Zellhuber UFC 318 start time, how to watch As the main card opener, Johnson and Zellhuber are expected to walk to the cage at approximately 10:10 p.m. ET. The fight broadcasts live on ESPN and ESPN+.
USA Today
3 days ago
- Sport
- USA Today
Kevin Holland vs. Daniel Rodriguez prediction, pick, start time for UFC 318
Kevin Holland and Daniel Rodriguez meet Saturday on the main card of UFC 318 at Smoothie King Center in New Orleans. Check out this quick breakdown of the matchup from MMA Junkie analyst Dan Tom. Last event: 4-2 UFC main cards, 2025: 68-50-1 Kevin Holland vs. Daniel Rodriguez UFC 318 preview Holland (28-13 MMA, 15-10 UFC) is building serious momentum as he continues his hyper-active 2025 campaign. After starting the year with a first-round submission loss to Reinier de Ridder in January, "Trailblazer" bounced back with a unanimous decision win over Gunnar Nelson in March, followed by a second-round submission of Vicente Luque last month at UFC 316. ... Rodriguez (19-5 MMA, 9-4 UFC) also enters on the heels of back-to-back wins. Recently on a rough skid of three straight losses, "D-Rod" has rebounded with a split decision win over Alex Morono last October, followed by a third-round finish of Santiago Ponzinibbio in May. Kevin Holland vs. Daniel Rodriguez UFC 318 expert pick, prediction Filling out the main card is a welterweight fight between Kevin Holland and Daniel Rodriguez. I know these two have been booked to fight one another at multiple points in their career, but this booking kind of feels like a waste for the Holland side of things, if I'm being honest. Although I got a lot of respect for the gameness of Rodriguez, I believe that the Los Angeleno has been on a noticeable decline in recent years, seemingly losing some speed and smoothness to his game. Add in the fact that Holland traditionally does well opposite southpaws (officially standing at 10-3-1 opposite UFC-level lefties), and I suspect that the stage is set for "Trailblazer" to land one of his patented right hands down the pike given the open-stance dynamic at play. The pick is Holland by knockout in Round 1. Kevin Holland vs. Daniel Rodriguez UFC 318 odds The oddsmakers and the public heavily favor the younger fighter, listing Holland -600 and Rodriguez +425 via FanDuel. Kevin Holland vs. Daniel Rodriguez UFC 318 start time, how to watch Holland and Rodriguez are expected to walk to the cage at approximately 11:10 p.m. ET. The fight broadcasts live on ESPN and ESPN+.
USA Today
3 days ago
- Sport
- USA Today
Paulo Costa vs. Roman Kopylov prediction, pick, start time for UFC 318
Paulo Costa and Roman Kopylov meet Saturday in the co-feature of UFC 318 at Smoothie King Center in New Orleans. Check out this quick breakdown of the matchup from MMA Junkie analyst Dan Tom. Last event: 4-2 UFC main cards, 2025: 68-50-1 Paulo Costa vs. Roman Kopylov UFC 318 preview Costa (14-4 MMA, 6-4 UFC) will look to end a recent rough stretch of 1-4, including back-to-back losses. Costa's last win came against Luke Rockhold at UFC 278 in August 2022. Since then, he lost consecutive decisions to former champions Robert Whittaker and Sean Strickland. ... Conversely, Kopylov (14-3 MMA, 6-3 UFC) has been doing well, although his competition hasn't been as stiff. He enters as the winner of his last two fights. Last June, Kopylov won a split decision over Cesar Almeida and then stopped Chris Curtis in the third round in January. Paulo Costa vs. Roman Kopylov UFC 318 expert pick, prediction The co-main event in Louisiana features a middleweight showdown between Paulo Costa and Roman Kopylov. Despite initially leaning toward the favorite on first glance, I ended up siding with the underdog after further delving into past notes and fight footage. Even though I've been impressed by Kopylov's southpaw savvy, the Russian tends to harbor some terrible optics that stem from his suspect gas tank. Should Costa find his way back to a more front-foot pressure game, then that could pose some problems for Kopylov's staying power considering how hard "Borrachinha" works the body. Aside from being a much more skilled and nuanced striker than he's given credit for, the majority of Costa's UFC wins come against southpaws, officially standing at 5-1 in this department. Anything involving Costa will always feel risky, so I'll bite the bullet and back the Brazilian to win, likely by decision. Paulo Costa vs. Roman Kopylov UFC 318 odds The oddsmakers and the public are favoring the Russian fighter, listing Kopylov -230 and Costa +184 via FanDuel. Paulo Costa vs. Roman Kopylov UFC 318 start time, how to watch As the co-main event, Costa and Kopylov are expected to walk to the cage at approximately 11:40 p.m. ET. The fight broadcasts live on ESPN and ESPN+.
Yahoo
6 days ago
- Sport
- Yahoo
UFC 318: Kevin Holland media day interview
UFC 318 fighter Kevin Holland spoke to MMA Junkie and reporters at media day for his main card bout vs. Daniel Rodriguez on Saturday in New Orleans.
