UFC welterweight contender Colby Covington has never been one to hold his tongue. That is particularly true when it comes to politics – he’s a long time support of President Donald Trump – and calling out other professional athletes that he derides for being “woke.”

Taking advantage of the flare up around Mike Tyson’s comeback fight in an exhibition with Roy Jones, Jr., Covington again took a shot at NBA great LeBron James.

“Heard they finally scraped Nate Robinson’s carcass off the Staples Center floor. I’d make LeBron James eat the canvas in half the amount of time. Everyone knows current NBA players are the softest and most privileged athletes on the planet.”

Colby Covington on Twitter

It may have taken Phil Hawes a few cracks to finally earn a UFC contract, but he’s right where he belongs.

Hawes, who won a NJCAA wrestling title at Iowa Central Community College, boasts a well-rounded and explosive game that should make him a threat to the middleweight division.

His power was on full display when he dispatched Jacob Malkoun in just 18 seconds in his promotional debut at UFC 254 for his fifth straight finish.

Despite the ups and downs early on in his career, Hawes is still only 31 and is just entering his prime. He gained some international experience fighting under the BRAVE CF banner and made quick work of two opponents in the span of two months.

If he continues to take out middleweights in devastating fashion, he’ll likely have a fast rise in the division. But either way, Hawes certainly has all the tools to become a contender and his early setbacks will have only made him stronger.

Article source: https://mmajunkie.usatoday.com/lists/dana-white-contender-series-prospects-success-analysis-breakdown-opinion-ufc-ignacio-bahamondes-phil-hawes-luana-pinheiro

Gerald Meerschaert had dreams of a home-cage early Christmas present a couple years back, but Jack Hermansson had other ideas.

The middleweights threw down in the middle of the UFC on FOX 31 prelims in December 2018 in Milwaukee, where Meerschaert trains at Roufusport. Hermannsson was fighting in the United States for the first time in more than five and a half years. And he left Meerschaert with a bad taste in his mouth.

Hermansson took down Meerschaert early and wasted no time dominating the fight on the canvas. And though Meerschaert tried to find ways back to his feet, eventually Hermansson latched onto his neck and forced him to tap to a guillotine choke with 35 seconds left in the first round.

Saturday, Hermansson (21-5 MMA, 8-3 UFC) headlines a UFC show for the third time when he takes on Marvin Vettori (15-3-1 MMA, 5-2-1 UFC) in the UFC on ESPN 19 main event at the UFC Apex in Las Vegas. The card airs on ESPN2 and streams on ESPN+. Vettori is a short-notice replacement for Kevin Holland.

Ahead of that fight, check out Hermansson’s masterful work against Meerschaert in the video above. And don’t miss the photo gallery from that fight below.

Article source: https://mmajunkie.usatoday.com/2020/11/ufc-on-espn-19-video-jack-hermansson-submission-gerald-meerschaert-milwaukee

Since the early days when the sport was anything but a mainstream endeavor, the MMA industry has thrived and survived through various websites, forums, and – perhaps most importantly – social-media platforms.

Fighters interact with fans, each other and many more through the likes of Twitter, Facebook and Instagram, which helps outsiders get a deeper look into the minds of the athletes.

Following Saturday’s UFC on ESPN 18 in Las Vegas, several of the winning and losing fighters, along with their coaches, training partners or family members, took to social media to react to the event or share a message with supporters.

Check out some of those reactions.

The defeated

The defeated: Rachael Ostovich

A post shared by Rachael Ostovich (@rachaelostovich)

A post shared by Rachael Ostovich (@rachaelostovich)

The defeated: Martin Day

A post shared by Martin Day (@34spartan)

The defeated: Kai Kamaka

A post shared by Kai Kamaka III (@kaiboikamaka)

The defeated: Ashlee Evans-Smith

A post shared by Ashlee Evans-Smith (@ashleemma)

The defeated: Spike Carlyle

A post shared by Spike Carlyle (@alphagingermma)

The defeated: Josh Parisian

A post shared by Josh Parisian (@parisianmma)

The defeated: Takashi Sato

A post shared by 佐藤天 Takashi Sato (@satotenten)

The victorious

The victorious: Nate Maness

A post shared by Nate Maness (@natemayhem1)

A post shared by Nate Maness (@natemayhem1)

The victorious: Su Mudaerji

A post shared by mudaerji.su (@mudaerji.su)

The victorious: Gina Mazany

A post shared by Gina Mazany 🐻 (@ginadangerak)

A post shared by Gina Mazany 🐻 (@ginadangerak)

The victorious: Anderson dos Santos

A post shared by Anderson Berinja (@andersonberinja_ufc135)

A post shared by Anderson Berinja (@andersonberinja_ufc135)

The victorious: Jonathan Pearce

A post shared by Jonathan Pearce (@jspmma)

A post shared by Jonathan Pearce (@jspmma)

The victorious: Norma Dumont

A post shared by Norma “The Imortal” Dumont (@norma_dumont_mma)

The victorious: Bill Algeo

A post shared by Bill Algeo | MMA Coach (@senor.perfecto)

The victorious: Miguel Baeza

This was an important win for me and I’m happy to have the opportunity to dedicate it to my cousin and honor his memory https://t.co/hB5Ctg9HDL

— Miguel Baeza (@Thunder92Baeza) November 30, 2020

The victorious: Anthony Smith

Jimi? Are you up? Jimi! Wake up, you were dreaming again. 😂😂

I’m a fan of yours, but bruh…chill. You know better. You’ve never said shit to my face other than mad props and fan boying. I’ve been nothing but respectful to you, I expect the same.@thehanyakdj, U can have him https://t.co/Cm9qHlUPTm

— Anthony Smith (@lionheartasmith) November 30, 2020

The Blue Corner is MMA Junkie’s blog space. We don’t take it overly serious, and neither should you. If you come complaining to us that something you read here is not hard-hitting news, expect to have the previous sentence repeated in ALL CAPS.

Article source: https://mmajunkie.usatoday.com/lists/ufc-on-espn-18-reactions-winning-losing-fighters-social-media-twitter-instagram

The lineup for Bellator’s return after a few weeks off continues to build.

The organization has booked Cody Law against Kenny Champion and is targeting a bout between Linton Vassell and Ronny Markes for Bellator 254, which takes place Dec. 10 at Mohegan Sun Arena in Uncasville, Conn.

MMA Junkie confirmed the news following an initial report from MMA Fighting.

Law (1-0 MMA, 1-0 BMMA), a top prospect at American Top Team, made his professional debut in October and submitted Orlando Ortega in the first round at Bellator 250. He is a former NCAA Division-II wrestling champion.

Champion (2-0 MMA, 0-0 BMMA) made his professional debut in October 2019. He will make his Bellator debut against Law.

In the heavyweight bout, both Vassell (19-8 MMA, 8-5 BMMA) and Markes (19-7 MMA, 0-0 BMMA) look to build momentum from victories in their most recent fights, which snapped losing skids for both.

Vassell defeated Sergei Kharitonov with a second-round TKO in November 2019 at Bellator 234. Prior to that, the Englishman was on a three-fight losing skid.

Markes finally will make his Bellator debut more than a year after signing with the promotion. The Brazilian was expected to debut against Josh Barnett in December 2019 in Honolulu, but Barnett was removed from the card just hours before the fight when he was deemed unfit to compete due to illness. Markes most recently fought in June 2019 and beat Sigi Pesaleli in the PFL.

With the additions, the Bellator 254 lineup now includes:

• Champ Ilima-Lei Macfarlane vs. Juliana Velasquez – for women’s flyweight title
• Ronny Markes vs. Linton Vassell
• Magomed Magomedov vs. Matheus Mattos
• Jessica Borga vs. Marina Mokhnatkina
• Tyree Fortune vs. Grant Neal
• Romero Cotton vs. Justin Sumter
• Nate Andrews vs. Goiti Yamauchi
• Kenny Champion vs. Cody Law

Article source: https://mmajunkie.usatoday.com/2020/11/linton-vassell-vs-ronny-markes-cody-law-vs-kenny-champion-bellator-254-fight-booking-mma