Latest news with #UFCBaku
USA Today
4 days ago
- Sport
- USA Today
UFC Baku: Nazim Sadykhov on what it means to have 'banger' fight at home vs. Nikolas Motta
UFC Baku: Nazim Sadykhov on what it means to have 'banger' fight at home vs. Nikolas Motta Nazim Sadykhov is excited to put on a show for his home country of Azerbaijan. Sadykhov (10-1-1 MMA, 3-0-1 UFC) takes on Nikolas Motta (15-5 MMA, 3-2 UFC) in a lightweight bout on June 21 at UFC on ABC 8 from Baku Crystal Hall in Baku. It's a long trip for Sadykhov from Las Vegas, but he wasn't about to pass up the chance to partake in the UFC's debut show in Azerbaijan, and have his loved ones in attendance. "We're going back to the motherland," Sadykhov told MMA Junkie and other reporters during a scrum. "This is where the history of my family started, so we're going back to the motherland. It's just so important for myself, my family, my people. It wouldn't matter if it was on another planet: I would travel. I would make this fight happen regardless." Sadykhov will take on a furious striker in Motta. The Brazilian is perhaps not the type of opponent who will propel Sadykhov up the rankings, but it's a matchup he expected. "It's a banger," Sadykhov said. "I have much more tools than him, but it's a banger. He's tough. He's training in Thailand now. He was here in Vegas, but he's training in Thailand now. I'm sure I'm going to be fighting the sharpest version of Nikolas Motta, and that's who we're preparing for. He was the CFFC champion. "I literally fought on the same card as him. We've been seeing each other at the (UFC Performance Institute) and stuff, but it was kind of like, 'Hi ... bye,' just because we probably both understood that eventually we might get matched up – and it came sooner than myself or him maybe expected. But anyways, it's going to be a good fight."
Yahoo
7 days ago
- Entertainment
- Yahoo
Maycee Barber, Oban Elliott, Caleb Plant, Jon Jones & Tom Aspinall trolling, more The Ariel Helwani Show
Maycee Barber, Oban Elliott, Caleb Plant, Jon Jones & Tom Aspinall trolling, more | The Ariel Helwani Show | May 27, 2025 Join Ariel and the Boys In The Back break down all the combat sports action from the weekend that was. Monday's lineup is below: 1 p.m. ET: Ariel and the gang look back at the weekend in combat sports. Advertisement 1:30 p.m. ET: Oban Elliott previews his UFC Baku bout against Seok Hyun Ko. 2 p.m. ET: Maycee Barber looks ahead to her UFC Vegas 107 headliner against Erin Blanchfield. 2:30 p.m. ET: Caleb Plant stops by ahead of his super middleweight bout against Jose Armando Resendiz.
Yahoo
27-05-2025
- Entertainment
- Yahoo
Caleb Plant, Maycee Barber, Oban Elliott and more
Ariel Helwani is BACK ... IN ... YOUR ... LIFE! Join "The Ariel Helwani Show" live on Uncrowned and YouTube at 1 p.m. ET/10 a.m. PT/6 p.m. UK time as Ariel and the Boys In The Back break down all the combat sports action from the weekend that was. Monday's lineup is below. Advertisement 1 p.m. ET: Ariel and the gang look back at the weekend in combat sports. 1:30 p.m. ET: Oban Elliott previews his UFC Baku bout against Seok Hyun Ko. 2 p.m. ET: Maycee Barber looks ahead to her UFC Vegas 107 headliner against Erin Blanchfield. 2:30 p.m. ET: Caleb Plant stops by ahead of his super middleweight bout against Jose Armando Resendiz. Catch all new episodes of "The Ariel Helwani Show" live every Monday, Tuesday and Wednesday at 1 p.m. ET on Uncrowned and The Ariel Helwani Show's YouTube page. To listen to every episode, subscribe on Spotify or iTunes.
Forbes
26-04-2025
- Sport
- Forbes
UFC Announces Return Of 2 Former Champions At Massive Event In Atlanta
LAS VEGAS, NEVADA - MARCH 08: UFC CEO Dana White holds a press conference after the UFC 313 event at ... More T-Mobile Arena on March 08, 2025 in Las Vegas, Nevada. (Photo by Chris Unger/Zuffa LLC) Dana White did it again. He took to Instagram Live on Friday night and announced a flurry of fights that took over the top new spot in combat sports for the evening. White announced the return of two former champions, Kamaru Usman and Rose Namajunas, as they will be fighting in the main and co-main event of UFC Atlanta on June 14. The official UFC X account followed up with a post. Usman, arguably the greatest welterweight champion in UFC history and still ranked No. 4 in the division, will take on fast-rising contender Joaquin Buckley in the main event. Buckley comes into the fight on a six-fight winning streak and fresh off a TKO victory over Colby Covington in December 2024. Buckley has title aspirations, but he will need to take care of Usman before he can take the next step. Namajunas, the former two-time UFC women's strawweight champion now competing at flyweight, will face Miranda Maverick in the co-main event. Maverick is getting a major step-up in competition. She comes in ranked No. 12 at 125 pounds and Namajunas is No. 6. Maverick is on a four-fight winning streak and coming off a unanimous decision win over Jamie-Lyn Horth on the same card in December that saw Buckley defeat Covington. Both Usman and Namajunas are in must-win situations if they hope to continue to consider themselves serious title contenders. Usman, 37, is on a three-fight losing streak, though his last two defeats came by way of majority decisions to Leon Edwards and Khamzat Chimaev. Usman's last fight, a last-minute replacement clash with Chimaev at middleweight, came in October 2023. Since then, he has spent time rehabbing injuries, co-hosting his Pound 4 Pound podcast with Henry Cejudo, and preparing for his Octagon return. Namajunas, 32, has been active, but she dropped her last fight, a unanimous decision defeat to Erin Blanchfield in November 2024. Namajunas needs another win at flyweight to prove she can hang with the best in the division. The rest of the card set for UFC Atlanta looks pretty strong too. Here is a look at what's signed according to Tapology: White is in Kansas City for the UFC's card scheduled for Saturday, April 26, and he also announced the co-main event for UFC Baku on June 21. Rafael Fiziev will take on Ignacio Bahamondes. Khalil Rountree Jr. faces Jamahal Hill in the main event. Ian Machado Garry faces Carlos Prates in the main event of UFC Kansas City, but UFC Atlanta is already pulling some attention away with the sheer star power attached. Buckley's recent momentum and Usman's status as a former pound-for-pound king make the headliner compelling. Namajunas vs. Maverick could sneak up on fans if both women fight to their potential. The UFC's summer schedule is still coming into shape, but Atlanta may end up being one of the better non-PPV cards of the year if these matchups hold together. With both Usman and Namajunas needing wins to stay relevant in their divisions, and the rise of Buckley and Maverick providing hungry opposition, there is a formula for two very interesting fights with high stakes.
USA Today
25-04-2025
- Sport
- USA Today
UFC books Rafael Fiziev vs. Ignacio Bahamondes for Azerbaijan debut event
UFC books Rafael Fiziev vs. Ignacio Bahamondes for Azerbaijan debut event [autotag]Rafael Fiziev[/autotag] and [autotag]Ignacio Bahamondes[/autotag] aren't wasting much time getting back into the cage as the UFC has booked the two lightweights against each other for an upcoming event. The fight between Fiziev (12-4 MMA, 6-4 UFC) and Bahamondes (17-5 MMA, 6-2 UFC) is set for UFC Baku, the promotion's debut in Azerbaijan. It will take place June 21 at Baku Crystal Hall in Baku, officials announced the booking Friday. It first was reported by Russian X account RedFuryFT. It'll be a homecoming for Fiziev, who grew up in Azerbaijan. Both Fiziev and Bahamondes most recently competed March 8. At UFC 313, Fiziev suffered his third consecutive loss when he dropped a rematch to Justin Gaethje. Bahamondes picked up his third win in a row with a first-round submission over Jalin Turner. The latest lineup for the card now includes:
