For the second time, UFC welterweight champion Kamaru Usman has opened as a sizeable favorite over rival Jorge Masvidal.

According to BetOnline, Usman (18-1 MMA, 13-0 UFC) opened as a -300 favorite Tuesday, while Masvidal (35-14 MMA, 14-8 UFC) opened at +250 for a potential future rematch.

In layman’s terms, a bettor would have to place a $300 wager on Usman to see $100 profit should he win. Meanwhile, a $100 wager on Masvidal will return a $250 profit should the upset play out.

Usman’s 3-to-1 status makes him a slightly larger favorite than he closed at when the two fought at UFC 251 in July 2020. For that fight, Usman closed as a near three-to-one favorite at -262. Meanwhile, Masvidal closed at +214.

In that outing, Usman defeated Masvidal by unanimous decision. Masvidal took the fight on six days’ notice after fellow welterweight contender Gilbert Burns tested positive for COVID-19 and was removed from the card.

Usman has since defended his title successfully in a third-round TKO win over Burns this past Saturday at UFC 258. Masvidal has not competed since the loss.

The circumstances of the first fight and the popularity of the fighters involved have garnered interest in a rematch. Following Usman’s win over Burns, Usman, Masvidal, and UFC president Dana White all expressed interest in booking it.

Article source: https://mmajunkie.usatoday.com/2021/02/ufc-news-odds-kamaru-usman-vs-jorge-masvidal-rematch

When Bellator returns to action in April, it’s suffice to say the promotion is giving fans what it wants: a light heavyweight grand prix stacked with big names.

The 205-pound tournament will kick off April 9 at Bellator 256 with two quarterfinal matchups: Ryan Bader vs. Lyoto Machida, and Corey Anderson vs. Dovletdzhan Yagshimuradov. The other side of the bracket will play out the following week at Bellator 257, with champion Vadim Nemkov defending his title in a rematch with Phil Davis, and the matchup everyone can hardly wait to see – Anthony Johnson vs. Yoel Romero.

When assessing the tournament, who do you think emerges as the winner? And what would be the best outcome for Bellator? The “Spinning Back Clique” panel of “Gorgeous” George Garcia, Mike Bohn and Danny Segura weighed in during this week’s episode – and guess what? “Rumble” was a popular choice coming off a four-year layoff.

Check out their discussion in the video above. The full episode can be seen below.

Anthony Johnson, Breaking, Corey Anderson, Dovletdzhan Yagshimuradov, Lyoto Machida, Phil Davis, Ryan Bader, Vadim Nemkov, video, Yoel Romero, Bellator, News, Radio Highlight, Videos

Article source: https://mmajunkie.usatoday.com/2021/02/bellator-light-heavyweight-grand-prix-anthony-johnson-winning-best-scenario

Mike Perry has his next fight lined up.

The UFC is targeting a welterweight fight between Perry (14-7 MMA, 7-7 UFC) and Daniel Rodriguez for its April 10 event at a location and venue to be announced.

Two people with knowledge of the matchup confirmed that agreements are in place but asked to remain anonymous as the promotion has yet to make an official announcement. Fighter Path was first to report the matchup.

Perry, 29, has lost six of his most recent nine outings. He most recently competed against Tim Means at UFC 255 in November and lost a unanimous decision.

Following three straight wins to kick off his UFC tenure, Rodriguez (13-2 MMA, 3-1 UFC) had a nine-fight winning streak snapped against Nicolas Dalby at UFC 255 in November.

In August 2020, Rodriguez called for a fight against Perry during an interview with MMA Junkie.

“I’ll fight anybody, but everybody wanna fight Mike Perry,” Rodriguez told MMA Junkie. “I wanna fight Mike Perry. I wanna sock that fool.”

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

• Darren Till vs. Marvin Vettori
• Nina Ansaroff vs. Mackenzie Dern
• Jarjis Danho vs. Yorgan De Castro
• Ignacio Bahamondes vs. John Makdessi
• Norma Dumont vs. Bea Malecki
• Sam Alvey vs. Zak Cummings
• Jordan Griffin vs. Luis Saldana
• Arnold Allen vs. Sodiq Yusuff
• Hunter Azure vs. Jack Shore
• Mike Perry vs. Daniel Rodriguez

Article source: https://mmajunkie.usatoday.com/2021/02/ufc-news-mike-perry-vs-daniel-rodriguez-booking-april-10

MMAWeekly’s Jim Grieshaber and Jeff Cain break down the weekly news in MMA and talk about the upcoming UFC events in Las Vegas.

The boys also wrap up the UFC 258: Usman vs. Burns event that featured 170-pound champion Kamaru Usman’s come-from-behind TKO stoppage of Gilbert Burns. The victory launched Usman past Georges St-Pierre for the most consecutive welterweight victories in UFC history.

(Subscribe to MMAWeekly.com on YouTube)

TRENDING Gina Carano fires back on being canceled; Dana White expresses support for her

Article source: https://www.mmaweekly.com/ufc-258-fallout-whats-next-after-kamaru-usmans-record-setting-victory

Colby Covington apparently wants no part of the “charity business” of accepting a fight with Leon Edwards on March 13, despite UFC president Dana White publicly pushing for the bout.

Edwards hasn’t fought in more than a year and a half. He was supposed to face Khamzat Chimaev on several occasions, most recently slated for March 13 in Las Vegas. COVID-19 has disrupted the bout three times now, as Chimaev deals with lingering health issues from the disease.

During functions around UFC 258 this past week, White publicly pushed for Covington to step up and face Edwards, who is ranked No. 3 in the welterweight division and on an eight-fight winning streak.

Covington is currently ranked No. 1 at welterweight, coming off of a win over Tyron Woodley after having been knocked out by current champion Kamaru Usman.

Leon Edwards wants the fight with Colby Covington

Edwards is all in, telling The Bash MMA recently, “I know the fight sounds good to me and my team. The UFC wants the fight. I don’t know, he might go running again. You never know. I’m ready to go, the UFC’s ready to go, they’re pushing for the fight.”

Despite Edwards being primed and ready to fight on March 13, Covington downplayed the idea, calling it “charity business.”

“Leon Scott hasn’t earned anything, boys. I’m in the Colby Covington Incorporated championship business, I’m not in the Leon Scott charity business. This isn’t charity hour, man. I’m fighting at the top of the mountain, I’m fighting the best in the world,” Covington said in a recent interview with Submission Radio, making fun of Edwards’s name.

“Did Marty Fakenewsman get a call from the president after his last fight? Oh geez, I wonder why? Because he sucks, he’s irrelevant. So, I’ve done things no one has ever done in this sport. I’m not doing charity busines no more. It’s not my fault this kid hasn’t fought in two years. It’s not my fault this kid – there’s people from England fighting all the time in the pandemic, they’re not scared to fight. So, I’m not doing charity for this guy who hasn’t fought in two years. He’s irrelevant, he’s beat a bunch of bums, and I’m not doing charity. This isn’t charity hour, this is f—ing championship f—ing pay-per-view hour.”

Colby Covington shoots down Jorge Masvidal, says he should fight Kamaru Usman next

Though Usman called out Jorge Masvidal for a rematch following his win over Gilbert Burns at UFC 258 over the weekend, Covington shot down that idea as well. He insists that Masvidal is not the fight that people want to see in the UFC welterweight division, they want to see him get another crack at Usman, though he is little more than a year removed from the loss to him.

“The people want to see one fight. They want to see the rematch, Marty Fakenewsman, Colby ‘Chaos’ Covington part two. Are you f—ing kidding me? It’s a joke. It was the biggest corruption in the history of the sport. Are you kidding me? I was destroying him. He got lucky and he knows that. He got life rafts thrown to him multiple times. Why doesn’t he want to run it back with me? Oh, because I’m the toughest dog in the pack. If I was the easy dog in the pack, he’d be coming after me, but he’s not.

“I deserve and I earned a fight for the world title. I just destroyed the former champion, finished him like nobody’s finished him before in the UFC. I came back and won a fight, what has Jorge Masvidal done besides sit on the sidelines and fake f—ing pull out of fights? He’s scared to fight. He knows he’s washed up, he’s a journeyman. He’s looking for one more pay day. No one wants to see that guy fight for the title, they know what’s gonna happen. It’s gonna be the same exact outcome. And why reward a coward like that? A guy that’s blatantly scared to fight?”

TRENDING Georges St-Pierre addresses potential UFC return to fight Kamaru Usman

Dana White: Colby Covington and Kamaru Usman’s next fights?

(Subscribe to MMAWeekly.com on YouTube)

Article source: https://www.mmaweekly.com/colby-covington-wants-no-part-of-ufc-charity-fight-with-leon-edwards-rips-on-jorge-masvidal