Latest news with #UFCPI
Time of India
08-05-2025
- Sport
- Time of India
Former UFC champion Jamahal Hill shares an unusual interaction with upcoming rival Khalil Rountree Jr. - 'It's weird to me'
Jamahal Hill with The Schmo. Image via The Schmo/YouTube (screengrab) Former light heavyweight champion Jamahal Hill Khalil Rountree Jr Jamahal Hill details the weird interaction with Khalil Rountree Jr, tags Islam Makhachev vs. Ilia Topuria bout as the best possible matchup for IFW Jamahal Hill Details 'Weird" Locker Room Encounter with Khalil Rountree, Alex Pereira Title Rematch will face light heavyweight contender. in Azerbaijan on June 21, 2025. The fighters were supposed to face each other earlier at UFC Kansas City, which got replaced by the Ian Machado Garry vs. Carlos Prates bout. Both Hill and Rountree are looking for redemption following the previous losses faced by the fighters. In a recent interview, Hill deep dives into the relationship he shares with Rountree while talking about the possible main card event of the upcoming International Fight and awkward conversations between fighters are quite common in the world of combat sports. And former UFC champion Jamahal Hill is not new to the experience. The fighter has had such interaction with other athletes like Alex Pereira ahead of Pereira's bout against Magomed Ankalaev at UFC 313. Hill's recent confrontation involves his upcoming opponent for UFC Azerbaijan, Khalil Rountree Jr. Both fighters are currently training for their upcoming bout in Las Vegas, specifically at the UFC Performance Institute , a place that facilitates innovation, research and training for the athletes and members of the MMA in his recent interview with the Schmo, shares an awkward incident that the fighter had to face while confronting his rival Rountree in the locker I was in the UFC PI, walked into the locker room, and I'll say 'What's up' to anybody. And I walked into the locker room and he's like, 'Man, you really don't like me do you?'…and I was like what? And he was like 'You really don't like me, do you?'', The statement took Hill by surprise and he continued, 'I was like 'I don't even know you, we haven't even had a conversation'.It's almost like he's gotta build me up as this villain or this person that he hates, which is fine with me.'Hill further explained the possible repercussions of such an attitude, 'But whenever you start putting the energy off the UFC staff and sh*t like that like we can't be around each other, or something's going to happen, you're not going to do sh*t. So what's the point of that? It's weird to me.'When Hill was asked about what he is most prepared for in context of his rival, the fighter talked about the consistency that Rountree showcases within the Octagon, 'He is able to take damage and still have a game to throw and deal it out. So you got to be ready for that. He's got some fast twitches on some of his strikes into his game. So you got to be ready for that as well.'Towards the end of the 10-minute-long interview, Hill puts his opinion in on the possible main card event of the International Fight Week, 'I am hearing Islam and Topuria, but who knows man!' The fighter continued, 'If they want to make a lot of noise about it, I don't see too many other fights outside of that, you know.'Also read: 'I want to fight asap' - UFC Middleweight contender Bo Nickal opens up on future plans following the first loss of his pro-MMA career Both Hill and Rountree faced defeats in their previous matchups and are looking for a redemption towards the next title shot of the division. After losing the belt to Pereria, Hill lost another bout against Jiří Procházka and is aiming to bounce back and claim the light heavyweight championship belt.
USA Today
06-04-2025
- Sport
- USA Today
UFC on ESPN 67 news: Trevor Peek out due to leg fracture while jumping rope
Trevor Peek says he is out of UFC on ESPN 67 after suffering an injury while training at the UFC PI. Peek (9-3 MMA, 2-3 UFC) was set to face Jeong Yeong Lee (11-2 MMA, 2-1 UFC) in a featherweight bout at Wells Fargo Arena in Des Moines, Iowa, on May 3. Unfortunately, Peek said he fractured his leg while working out at the UFC PI in Las Vegas, prompting officials to remove him from the bout. 'I actually fractured my leg at the performance institution on Friday,' Peek said in a video posted to Instagram. 'It's not a bad fracture. I still have to go get CT scans in the next day or two and figure out if I've got any kind of ligament damage or anything like that. 'I wish I had a cool story on how I did it, but I got on some soft mats and was jump roping. I was alternating each leg. I've been jump roping for 20-something minutes and got a little tired, a little careless, and wasn't paying attention. I come down with all my weight on my left leg and it sounded like a shotgun whenever it went off, it popped.' Peek said since the injury took place at the UFC PI, officials were aware of the injury and removed him from his scheduled bout. He said if he could tape up his leg without the UFC knowing about it, he would have tried to compete. However, he also acknowledged the importance of his next fight and fighting healthy as he has lost three of his last four outings, including both appearances in 2024. If his recovery goes to plan, Peek is hoping to land a spot on a card expected to take place in Nashville, Tenn. on July 12. The promotion has yet to officially announce the event.
Yahoo
19-03-2025
- Sport
- Yahoo
Sean O'Malley, Merab Dvalishvili cordial during run-in at UFC PI: 'Your last fight was impressive'
It's all respect between Sean O'Malley and Merab Dvalishvili ahead of their rumored title-fight rematch. Dvalishvili (19-4 MMA, 12-2 UFC) dethroned O'Malley at UFC 306 to become bantamweight champion. He has since handed Umar Nurmagomedov his first-career loss for a successful title defense at UFC 311 in January. UFC CEO Dana White hinted at a Dvalishvili vs. O'Malley rematch next. The pair recently ran into each other at the UFC Performance Institute, with O'Malley admitting he was impressed by Dvalishvili's performance against Nurmagomedov. "Your last fight was impressive, you looked good," O'Malley said on his YouTube channel. "That was a fun fight to watch. That was very fun." Dvalishvili reciprocated the respect toward O'Malley (18-2 MMA, 10-2 UFC), who failed to get any significant offense going in their fight – outside of a late body kick in Round 5 that certainly caught the champion's attention. "I respect you, man, as a fighter," Dvalishvili said. "When we're going to fight, I know you hit hard, and I know you're going to change your plan." After losing to Dvalishvili, O'Malley underwent surgery to repair a torn labrum in his hip, an injury he was dealing with going into the fight. "I only had one hip last time," O'Malley responded. "I've got both hips now." Dvalishvili landed six takedowns and had more than 10 minutes of control time in his unanimous decision win over O'Malley. "The Machine" says he plans on showing off his hands in their rematch, which O'Malley laughed off. "Now I'm going to use my striking," Dvalishvili said. "You think no? You think I'm not? Bro, you see me fight with Umar? I was striking." All signs are pointing to a title-fight rematch between Dvalishvili and O'Malley, but a date and location is yet to be determined. Cory Sandhagen explains Sean O'Malley's 'advantage' for UFC title rematch vs. Merab Dvalishvili Daniel Cormier: Sean O'Malley 'screwed' if he loses to UFC champ Merab Dvalishvili again Aljamain Sterling: Merab Dvalishvili vs. Sean O'Malley rematch 'hard fight to sell' Sean O'Malley's coach after UFC 311: Merab Dvalishvili a problem, but 'we could be the kryptonite' This article originally appeared on MMA Junkie: Sean O'Malley, Merab Dvalishvili cordial during run-in at UFC PI: 'Your last fight was impressive'
USA Today
07-03-2025
- Entertainment
- USA Today
UFC 313 'Embedded,' No. 3: Mauricio Ruffy's Ferrari fight week thrills
The UFC stays in Las Vegas for UFC 313, its third pay-per-view of the calendar year, and the popular 'Embedded' fight week video series is here to document what's happening behind the scenes. UFC 313 (pay-per-view, ESPNews/Disney+, ESPN+) takes place Saturday at T-Mobile Arena in Las Vegas. In the headliner, light heavyweight champion Alex Pereira (12-2 MMA, 9-1 UFC) puts his title on the line against challenger Magomed Ankalaev (20-1-1 MMA, 11-1-1 UFC). In the co-feature, Rafael Fiziev (12-3 MMA, 6-3 UFC) steps up on short notice for a rematch with former interim lightweight champ Justin Gaethje (25-5 MMA, 8-5 UFC). The third episode of 'Embedded' follows the featured fighters while they get ready for fight week. Here is the UFC's description of the episode from YouTube: Justin Gaethje trains at the UFC PI; Magomed Ankalaev has a striking session; Champ Alex Pereira tests his recovery with his physiotherapist; Maurico Ruffy races cars; Justin Gaethje hits golf balls with Megan Olivi; Rafael Fiziev runs into Chael Sonnen. Previous UFC 313 'Embedded' episodes: For more on the card, visit MMA Junkie's event hub for UFC 313.
USA Today
06-03-2025
- Sport
- USA Today
Colby Covington avoids awkward run-in with Themba Gorimbo at UFC PI, gets response
Colby Covington narrowly avoided running into former teammate Themba Gorimbo. Covington (17-5 MMA, 12-5 UFC) and Gorimbo (14-5 MMA, 4-2 UFC) used to train together at MMA Masters in Miami, with Gorimbo previously crediting Covington for helping his career. However, the pair recently had a falling out when Gorimbo claimed that Covington kicked him out of the UFC Performance Institute in the lead-up to his fight with Leon Edwards last December at UFC 296. Gorimbo has since switched gyms for Xtreme Couture in Las Vegas. In a recent Twitch stream on his YouTube channel, Covington almost ran into Gorimbo at the UFC PI but decided to take a U-turn (h/t Home of Fight). 'You saw who was down there? The ungrateful motherf*cker who we used to feed,' Covington said. 'I think we should just go f*cking train around him actually.' 👀Colby Covington nearly ran into former teammate Themba Gorimbo at UFC PI 🎥 @ColbyCovMMA ▫️ — Home of Fight (@Home_of_Fight) March 4, 2025 Gorimbo took to X to respond to Covington. 'I like you Colby no need to be so scared my guy. But yeah if you feel or ever feel like I am an easy fight please don't hesitate to call me out. I know you desperately need a win and won't take a fight in the rankings and you think I am easier fight for you. On the flip side I desperately want to be in the rankings and I see you to be the easy way in for me . However i ain't naive that I have work to do but hey we can bent the rules for once maybe just so the fans can see what happened in our training sessions. Bless Colby, next time say hi. I promise i am just ugly but don't bite .' I like you Colby no need to be so scared my guy . But yeah if you feel or ever feel like I am an easy fight please don't hesitate to call me out. I know you desperately need a win and won't take a fight in the rankings and you think i am easier fight for you . On the flip side i… — Themba Gorimbo (@TheAnswerMMA) March 5, 2025
