Ignacio Bahamondes will draw a seasoned veteran in his UFC debut.

Bahamondes (11-3 MMA, 0-0 UFC) faces John Makdessi (17-7 MMA, 10-7 UFC) at UFC Fight Night on April 10, which does not currently have an announced location or venue.

A person with knowledge of the situation informed MMA Junkie of the booking but asked to remain anonymous since the promotion has yet to make an official announcement. Milenio was first to report the news.

Chile’s Bahamondes earned his UFC contract with a spectacular head-kick knockout of Edson Gomez at Dana White’s Contender Series 34 in Las Vegas. The 23-year-old will drop to lightweight in his promotional debut.

Makdessi, 35, saw his three-fight winning streak snapped at the hands of Francisco Trinaldo at UFC Fight Night 170 last March. Prior to that, the Canadian scored decision wins over Abel Trujillo, Ross Pearson and Jesus Pinedo.

With the addition, the UFC Fight Night lineup for April 10 includes:

• Nina Ansaroff vs. Mackenzie Dern
• Jarjis Danho vs. Yorgan De Castro
• Norma Dumont vs. Bea Malecki
• Ignacio Bahamondes vs. John Makdessi

Article source: https://mmajunkie.usatoday.com/2021/01/john-makdessi-vs-ignacio-bahamondes-added-to-ufc-fight-night-on-april-10

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Daniel Cormier: ‘Conor McGregor sweepstakes’ real, but excitement ends with booking

January 21, 2021

UFC

Article source: https://mmajunkie.usatoday.com/gallery/mcgregor-vs-poirier-ufc-257-ceremonial-weigh-ins-faceoffs-photos

(Photo by Chris Unger/Zuffa LLC)

The co-main event for UFC 257 features a fun pairing of two action-first fighters who have a penchant for turning striking exchanges into car crashes.

An inherent pressure-fighter who is busting onto the UFC stage like a proverbial bull in a China shop, Michael Chandler can seldom be found taking a back step in his contests. Carrying over the athletic ability and explosiveness that he demonstrated as a wrestler on the Mizzou mats, Chandler’s boxing technique made impressive strides back in his initial Bellator tournament run, which in turn helped him earn his first world title.

From his upgraded punching mechanics to little details like rolling under his crosses, it was clear that Chander’s trajectory was upward. And despite a handful of notable bumps in the road and changes in training camps, the former Bellator champion still seems to be firing on all cylinders after settling into his new home.

Now under the tutelage of Henri Hooft, Chandler appears to be furthering his fundamentals and footwork, moving much more fluidly in combinations and even adding in leg kicks of his own. The 34-year-old has also made a more concerted effort to go to the body as of late, which should serve him well against his current counterpart.

Nevertheless, Chandler is not beyond being caught or countered upon entry, as he’ll need to be careful of tunnel vision in regards to landing big bombs or looking for takedowns.

A marauding muay Thai stylist who can stick and move off of pressure, [auttoag]Dan Hooker[/autotag] wields a diverse arsenal of attack.

Whether he’s fighting from orthodox or southpaw, the New Zealand native can strike well from either stance, both coming forward or off the counter.
Working nicely off of a long and well-placed jab, Hooker can offensively prod with effect or attach it to the end of combinations as a disruptive check to help dissuade counters. Often following up with his patented crosses and head kicks, the 30-year-old talent will continue to vary his tempo and attacks throughout the contest, attempting to build in pace and pressure.

Helping glue together Hooker’s offensive repertoire is his ability to effectively feint in space – something that I suspect he can thank Eugene Bareman and the City Kickboxing crew for. And whenever Hooker is able to get a beat on his opponent’s attacks, he’s not afraid to let unforgiving knees fly up the centerline, which could come in handy against a level-changing threat like Chandler.

However, despite Hooker’s noted technical improvements and inherent chin, defense has not necessarily been his strong suit, making offense a potent, two-way street for as long as this stays on the feet.

Article source: https://mmajunkie.usatoday.com/lists/ufc-257-breakdown-michael-chandlers-wrestling-could-be-deciding-factor-vs-dan-hooker

By John Morgan |

January 22, 2021 1:50 pm

ABU DHABI – Ceremonial weigh-ins for UFC 257 are now complete following Friday’s festivites.

Saturday’s card, which takes place at Etihad Arena on “Fight Island” and streams on ESPN+ pay-per-view following prelims on ESPN and ESPN+, is headlined by a rematch between Dustin Poirier (26-6 MMA, 18-5 UFC UFC) and Conor McGregor (22-4 MMA, 10-2 UFC), who meet in a high-stakes lightweight contender matchup. Another pivotal 155-pound bout serves as the co-main event as former Bellator champion Michael Chandler makes his promotional debut against Dan Hooker.

Check out the faceoff highlights for all 11 fights in the video above, as well as a complete photo gallery below.

Breaking, Conor McGregor, Dan Hooker, Dustin Poirier, Michael Chandler, UFC 257, video, News, UFC, Videos

Article source: https://mmajunkie.usatoday.com/2021/01/ufc-257-mcgregor-vs-poirier-ceremonial-faceoffs-video-highlights

(James Goyder is the owner/editor of AsianMMA.com)

Shinya Aoki looked back to his brilliant best as he submitted James Nakashima in the opening round at ONE: Unbreakable on Friday. The Japanese fighter needed just 3:41 to finish the former welterweight title challenger with a neck crank.

Shinya Aoki returned to form with his win over James Nakashima

Aoki went to work with body kicks in the early exchanges. He soon tried to take the fight down by grabbing one of Nakashima’s legs. They ended up clinching against the cage with neither man able to gain an advantage.

The lightweights separated and Aoki landed a right hook. Nakashima tried to respond with a straight right, but the Japanese southpaw timed it to perfection and ducked under to take his opponent’s back from a standing position.

Nakashima was powerless to prevent Aoki from securing the body triangle and then wrapping his forearm around his face. The neck crank was tight and the American tapped almost instantly.

Aoki improved to 46-9-0-1, but played down talk of a title shot afterwards, despite having put together a three-fight winning streak. Nakashima drops to 12-2 after losing back to back fights.

Gadzhimurad Abdulaev moves into welterweight title contention

Former welterweight champion Zebaztian Kadestam returned after a lengthy layoff to face Gadzhimurad Abdulaev. It was a match that pitted the striking of the former against the grappling of the latter. It was the undefeated Russian who ultimately prevailed.

Abdulaev caught a kick early in the fight and took Kadestam down. Moments later he had the Swedish fighter’s back and after a brief tussle he locked in a neck crank with the tap coming at the 2:09 mark.

With the win, Abdulaev moved up to 6-0 and establishes himself as an immediate contender for the welterweight title. Kadestam dropped to 12-6 after losing back to back fights for the first time in his career.

The best of the rest at ONE: Unbreakable

In the first fight of the night, Lito Adiwang (12-3) got back to winning ways in style. He finished Namiki Kawahara (7-4-2) with a left hook at 2:02 of the second round in their strawweight fight.

In a catchweight contest that had originally been set for atomweight, Meng Bo (17-5) scored a unanimous decision win over Samara Santos (11-8-1). 

TRENDING UFC releases Ottman Azaitar for brazen violation of COVID-19 safety protocols

ONE: Unbreakable full results

• Captain Petchyindee def. Alaverdi Ramazanov via TKO at 1:46 of Round 2
• Shinya Aoki def. James Nakashima via submission (rear-naked choke) at 3:41 of Round 1
• Rade Opacic def. Bruno Sasano via KO (Punches) at 1:07 of Round 2
• Gadzhimurad Abdulaev def. Zebaztian Kadestam via submission (rear-naked choke) at 2:09 of Round 1
• Meng Bo def. Samara Santos via unanimous decision
• Lito Adiwang def. Namiki Kawahara via KO (Punch) at 2:02 of Round 2

ONE: Unbreakable fight highlights

(Video courtesy of ONE Championship)

Article source: https://www.mmaweekly.com/shinya-aoki-submits-james-nakashima-at-one-unbreakable