Latest news with #RamizBrahimaj
USA Today
4 hours ago
- Entertainment
- USA Today
Ramiz Brahimaj explains emotional outburst after devastating choke at UFC on ESPN 68
Ramiz Brahimaj explains emotional outburst after devastating choke at UFC on ESPN 68 Show Caption Hide Caption Ramiz Brahimaj earns win with devastating choke finish at UFC Vegas 107 UFC on ESPN 68 winner Ramiz Brahimaj talks to MMA Junkie and other reporters post-fight after his first-round submission of Billy Ray Goff. LAS VEGAS – Ramiz Brahimaj met the media Saturday after his first-round submission win over Billy Ray Goff at UFC on ESPN 68. Brahimaj (12-5 MMA, 4-3 UFC) took out Goff (11-4 MMA, 1-2 UFC) with a sickeningly brutal standing guillotine choke at the UFC Apex. The win got Brahimaj a $50,000 performance bonus – his second straight. After the win, which kept his perfect finish rate intact and was his 11th submission in 12 wins, Brahimaj explained why the victory made his so emotional. Check out Brahimaj's post-fight news conference in the video above.
USA Today
21 hours ago
- Sport
- USA Today
MMA Junkie's Submission of the Month for May: Ramiz Brahimaj's savage standing choke
MMA Junkie's Submission of the Month for May: Ramiz Brahimaj's savage standing choke With another action-packed month of MMA in the books, MMA Junkie looks at the best submissions from May 2025: Here are the five nominees, listed in chronological order, and winner of MMA Junkie's Submission of the Month award for May. At the bottom of the post, let us know if we got it right by voting for your choice. Nominee: Jasmine Jasudavicius def. Jessica Andrade at UFC 315 Jasmine Jasudavicius passed the sternest test of her career with flying colors against former champion Jessica Andrade. Jasudavicius (14-3 MMA, 8-2 UFC) submitted Jessica Andrade (26-14 MMA, 17-12 UFC) less than three minutes into the opening round of the women's flyweight bout. Jasudavicius picked Andrade up and slammed her down, before quickly transitioning to her back to cinch in the rear-naked choke finish. Nominee: Benoit Saint Denis def. Kyle Prepolec at UFC 315 Benoit Saint Denis performed like a heavy favorite against short notice replacement Kyle Prepolec in their lightweight bout. Saint Denis (14-3 MMA, 6-3 UFC) ran through the returning Prepolec (18-9 MMA, 0-3 UFC) for an arm-triangle choke at the 2:35 mark of Round 2. After controlling the action throughout, Saint Denis sunk in the finishing technique to snap a two-fight losing skid. Nominee: Luana Santos def. Tainara Lisboa at UFC Fight Night 256 Luana Santos was a force to be reckoned with in her return to the women's bantamweight division, and Tainara Lisboa felt the wrath. Santos (9-2 MMA, 4-1 UFC) dominated Tainara Lisboa (7-3 MMA, 2-1 UFC) with superior grappling, eventually locking in and finishing the first Americana in women's UFC history with just one second remaining in the second round. Nominee: Jordan Leavitt def. Kurt Holobaugh at UFC on ESPN 68 Jordan Leavitt returned to the octagon from a long layoff and scored one of the most impressive wins of his career against Kurt Holobaugh. Leavitt (12-3 MMA, 5-3 UFC) landed a takedown just seconds into the lightweight contest, and that was the beginning of the end. Holobaugh (21-10 MMA, 2-7 UFC) tried to scramble, but Leavitt transitioned into an anaconda choke and put his foe to sleep in just 99 seconds. The winner: Ramiz Brahimaj def. Billy Ray Goff at UFC on ESPN 68 Ramiz Brahimaj scored one of the most vicious submissions in recent memory at UFC on ESPN 68 when he put Billy Ray Goff to sleep. Brahimaj (12-5 MMA, 4-3 UFC) applied a tight standing guillotine choke on Goff (9-4 MMA, 1-2 UFC) in the opening round of their welterweight bout on Saturday at the UFC Apex in Las Vegas and squeezed until he dropped his opponent's lifeless body to the canvas with shades of Jon Jones' finish of Lyoto Machida back in December 2011. With the win, Brahimaj maintained his 100 percent career finish rate and now has back-to-back wins in the octagon. He said he thinks this is the start of his best days at 170 pounds. "I feel like I'm home," Brahimaj said in his post-fight interview with Daniel Cormier. "I've battled through a lot. I was going to hang up these gloves two years ago due to injuries. I know it's God pushing me toward this journey, so I'm here." Cast Your Vote!
USA Today
2 days ago
- Sport
- USA Today
UFC on ESPN 68 post-event facts: Women get Fight of the Night after eight-month drought
UFC on ESPN 68 post-event facts: Women get Fight of the Night after eight-month drought The UFC's final event of May was one it will soon want to forget with UFC on ESPN 68 on Saturday at the UFC Apex in Las Vegas being struck by disaster in more ways than one. After multiple cancellations leading into fight night, the original main event between Erin Blanchfield and Maycee Barber was called off due to a medical issue on Barber's side, leaving the card with just nine bouts. There were still some notable results to come out of the chaotic evening. For more on the numbers, check below for MMA Junkie's post-event facts from UFC on ESPN 68. Event stats The UFC Promotional Guidelines Compliance payout for the event totaled $121,500. Debuting fighters went 0-1 at the event. Ramiz Brahimaj, Jordan Leavitt, Alice Ardelean and Rayanne dos Santos earned $50,000 UFC on ESPN 68 fight-night bonuses. Ardelean and dos Santos are the first females to get Fight of the Night since September 2024. The UFC sold VIP tickets to fans for UFC on ESPN 68, but the promotion did not make public the total number of tickets sold or the gate. Betting favorites went 6-3 on the card. Betting favorites improved to 12-6 in UFC headliners this year. Total fight time for the nine-bout card was 1:36:45. Mateusz Gamrot def. Ludovit Klein Mateusz Gamrot (25-3 MMA, 8-3 UFC) has completed 49 takedowns in UFC lightweight competition, the most among active fighters in the weight class. Ludovit Klein (23-5-1 MMA, 7-3-1 UFC) has suffered two of his three UFC losses by decision. Ramiz Brahimaj def. Billy Ray Goff Brahimaj (12-5 MMA, 4-3 UFC) has earned all 12 of his career victories by stoppage. Billy Ray Goff (9-4 MMA, 1-2 UFC) suffered the first submission loss of his career. Dustin Jacoby def. Bruno Lopes Dustin Jacoby (21-9-1 MMA, 9-6-1 UFC) improved to 9-5-1 since he returned to the UFC for a second stint in October 2020. Bruno Lopes (14-2 MMA, 1-1 UFC) has suffered both of his career losses by knockout. Ketlen Vieira def. Macy Chiasson Ketlen Vieira (15-4 MMA, 9-4 UFC) has earned eight of her nine UFC victories by decision. Macy Chiasson (10-4 MMA, 8-4 UFC) has suffered two of her four career losses by decision. Zachary Reese def. Dusko Todorovic Dusko Todorovic (12-6 MMA, 3-6 UFC) fell to 2-6 in his past eight fights after starting his career on a 11-fight winning streak. Allan Nascimento def. Jafel Filho Allan Nascimento (21-6 MMA, 3-1 UFC) has earned two of his three UFC victories by decision. Jordan Leavitt def. Kurt Holobaugh Leavitt (12-3 MMA, 5-3 UFC) has earned four of his five UFC victories by stoppage. Leavitt has earned seven of his nine career stoppage victories by submission. Bolaji Oki def. Michael Aswell Bolaji Oki (10-2 MMA, 2-1 UFC) has earned both of his UFC victories by Michael Aswell (10-3 MMA, 0-1 UFC) has suffered all three of his career losses by decision. Alice Ardelean def. Rayanne dos Santos Dos Santos' (14-9 MMA, 0-3 UFC) three-fight losing skid is the longest of her career. She hasn't earned a victory since May 2023. Dos Santos has suffered seven of her nine career losses by decision. UFC research analyst and live statistics producer Michael Carroll contributed to this story. Follow him on X @MJCflipdascript.
USA Today
3 days ago
- Sport
- USA Today
UFC on ESPN 68 bonuses: Jordan Leavitt's slick finish gets extra $50K
UFC on ESPN 68 bonuses: Jordan Leavitt's slick finish gets extra $50K The UFC handed out four bonuses after Saturday's card in Las Vegas. After UFC on ESPN 68, four fighters picked up an extra $50,000 for their performances in Las Vegas. Check out the winners below. Performance of the Night: Jordan Leavitt Jordan Leavitt def. Kurt Holobaugh via submission (anaconda choke) – Round 1, 1:39 Jordan Leavitt (11-3 MMA, 4-3 UFC) was back for the first time in 18 months, and he looked as good as ever when he choked Kurt Holobaugh (22-9 MMA, 2-6 UFC) to sleep in the first round. The bonus was the third of his career. Performance of the Night: Ramiz Brahimaj Ramiz Brahimaj def. Billy Ray Goff via submission (guillotine choke) – Round 1, 3:16 Ramiz Brahimaj (12-5 MMA, 4-3 UFC) had one of the year's most violent-looking submissions yet when he choked out Billy Ray Goff (11-4 MMA, 1-2 UFC) with a guillotine along the fence. Fight of the Night: Alice Ardelean vs. Rayanne Dos Santos Alice Ardelean def. Rayanne Dos Santos via unanimous decision (30-27, 29-28, 29-28) Alice Ardelean (10-7 MMA, 1-2 UFC) got her first UFC win when she outworked the favored Rayanne Dos Santos (14-9 MMA, 0-3 UFC) for a unanimous decision in the curtain jerker on the prelims. Dos Santos was more than a 2-1 favorite in the fight, but Ardelean pulled off the upset.
Reuters
3 days ago
- Entertainment
- Reuters
Fight Night ends with Erin Blanchfield-Maycee Barber cancellation
June 1 - UFC Fight Night was supposed to end with a women's flyweight fight between top-five contenders Erin Blanchfield and Maycee Barber. Instead, the fight was canceled as both were set to enter the Octagon at the UFC APEX in Las Vegas on Saturday night. Instead of cutting to Barber's dressing room, the broadcast cut to play-by-play commentator Brendan Fitzgerald revealing that Barber (14-2 MMA, 9-2 UFC) was "not medically cleared to compete." Barber missed weight Friday, weighing in at 126.5 pounds, while Blanchfield (13-2 MMA, 7-1 UFC) fulfilled her obligations. Blanchfield revealed she would not grant Barber a rebooking, saying she would "talk to her manager" to see what contenders are available. "(Barber) needs to look at another division," Blanchfield said at a press conference after the cancellation. "She needs to fix her life. She needs to fix herself. I think she's a mess in every aspect of her entire life." The card finished with nine fights, five on the main card at UFC Vegas 107. In the co-headliner, Mateusz Gamrot won a unanimous decision over Ludovit Klein 30-27-30-27, 30-27. Gamrot (25-3 MMA, 8-3 UFC) has won four of his last five fights, sending Klein (23-5-1 MMA, 7-3-1 UFC) to his first loss since October 2021. Ramiz Brahimaj pulled off a critical upset at welterweight over Billy Ray Goff with a guillotine choke at 3:16 in Round 1. Brahimaj has finished all 12 of his wins, 11 of them by submission. Brahimaj (12-5 MMA, 4-3 UFC) has won two of his last three, while Goff (9-4 MMA, 1-2 UFC) has lost two straight. Dustin Jacoby, 37, demonstrated that he still has power in his hands, making quick work against Bruno Lopes by securing a first-round TKO at 1:50. A Jacoby jab set up the finish before a flurry of punches, as he has now won back-to-back fights. Jacoby (21-9-1 MMA, 9-6-1 UFC) made it clear he is anything but a "stepping stone," and would eventually love to run back his October 2022 split-decision loss to former UFC light heavyweight title challenger Khalil Rountree Jr. (13-6 MMA, 9-6, 1 NC UFC) down the line. Lopes (14-2 MMA, 1-1 UFC) returns to the drawing board, suffering his first loss since September 2023. The second fight saw Ketlen Vieira use her ground control to beat Macy Chiasson by unanimous decision (29-28, 29-28, 30-27) at women's featherweight. Vieira (15-4 MMA, 9-4 UFC) halted a possible skid as she's now won four of her last six. Meanwhile, Chiasson (11-4 MMA, 8-4 UFC) has split her last four fights as a two-fight winning streak was snapped. In the main card opener, Zachary Reese beat Dusko Todorovic in middleweight action, taking the cards 29-28, 29-28, 29-28. Reese (9-2 MMA, 3-2 UFC) has won three of his last five, while Todorovic (12-6 MMA, 3-6 UFC) has lost three in a row and four out of his last five. --Field Level Media
