Kamaru Usman and Colby Covington had a longstanding rivalry, but it was mostly settled at UFC 245. That’s where Usman got the better of his rival, outstriking him, knocking him down, and finishing him with the latest finish in UFC welterweight championship history.

Usman’s win over Covington in December 2019 was also the first defense of his UFC welterweight championship after having taken the belt from Tyron Woodley earlier in the year.

With two defenses under his belt, Usman is now set to headline UFC 258 on Feb. 13, when he will put his welterweight title on the line opposite Gilbert Burns.

The fight with Burns has been a long time coming. This marks the third time the bout has been scheduled.

(Video courtesy of UFC)

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Article source: https://www.mmaweekly.com/watch-kamaru-usmans-fight-of-the-night-ko-of-colby-covington-ahead-of-ufc-258

Israel Adesanya is on top of the world, and the UFC middleweight champion is more than happy to share a little shine with his fans.

“The Last Stylebender” will step up to 205 pounds to challenge Jan Blachowicz for the undisputed UFC light heavyweight title at UFC 259 on Mar. 6 and, with the anticipation beginning to rise ahead of their champion-versus-champion clash, Adesanya shared an epic pre-fight hype video from Instagram account @Stayhydrated.mp4.

Alongside the video, Adesanya stated his intention to become a two-division UFC champion, before urging the UFC to reward the creator of the video with a job offer.

A post shared by Israel Adesanya (@stylebender)

“Champ2X. All you need to know is I’m the new light heavyweight champ!!

“@ufc just hire @stayhydrated.mp4 already.”

Check out the full promo via the video above. It’s a doozy.

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/2021/02/ufc-259-israel-adesanya-shares-epic-fan-made-promo-urges-ufc-to-hire-creator

Michael Johnson’s record is certainly not reflective of the career he’s had in the octagon.

Johnson, a Season 12 “Ultimate Fighter” finalist, has fought a who’s-who in MMA. He holds wins over former UFC interim lightweight champions Dustin Poirier and Tony Ferguson, as well as the likes of Edson Barboza and Joe Lauzon.

But Johnson currently is on a three-fight losing skid and has dropped six of his past eight. A lot of his losses were heartbreaking – bouts in which he was winning or in firm control of before getting stopped.

Johnson (19-16 MMA, 11-12 UFC) knows he has the ability to compete with the best, and despite his rough stretch, he’s not giving up on his goal of becoming champion.

“It’s kind of bittersweet because I’ve fought the best of the best, and I’m still on that path, and I’ve beaten some guys. But then at the same time, I haven’t accomplished what I’ve wanted to accomplish,” Johnson told MMA Junkie Radio. “I haven’t fought for a world title, I haven’t become a world champion yet, and that’s something that’s on the radar – and I still have that plan in mind. I’m not going anywhere.

“And another thing is, I’ve just changed up my chain of thought and the living and everything. So all of those past fights, all the fights I’ve been into and all the guys that I’ve beaten, that means absolutely nothing right now. I’ve kind of rebranded myself to become a better man, a better person, and ultimately a better fighter.”

While having wins over the likes of Poirier and Ferguson will always be impressive on his resume, Johnson has put those accomplishments on the back burner.

As he enters his 24th UFC fight against fellow longtime fighter Clay Guida (35-20 MMA, 15-14 UFC) at UFC Fight Night 184 on Saturday, he’s looking to start a new run.

“It does (mean) a little bit because it means that I have the talent and it means I am good enough to be a world champion,” Johnson said. “That’s what it means to me right there – that I know I have the talent. I know I have the skill, and I just need to stay on the right path.

“As far as me saying it doesn’t mean anything to me, this is a new fight for me. It’s a new career for me. I’m starting out as 0-0, in my mind. I dropped my nickname. I don’t go by ‘The Menace’ anymore, so it’s just Michael Johnson. And I’m just here for business and to beat as many guys as I need to beat to get back to the title.”

Article source: https://mmajunkie.usatoday.com/2021/02/michael-johnson-says-lot-more-to-accomplish-ufc-lightweight

Patricio Freire wasn’t disappointed, nor surprised, to see rival Michael Chandler succeed at UFC 257.

The outcome was what the Bellator lightweight and featherweight champion Freire envisioned. Chandler defeated Dan Hooker in emphatic fashion with a first-round knockout.

Freire doesn’t think Chandler’s success will end with just one UFC victory.

“I already predicted that he would start that way,” Freire told MMA Junkie in Portuguese through a translator on Thursday. “I think he beats every one of the top guys in the UFC. He has very powerful hands. His striking is getting better, and he’s a super wrestler for MMA. I believe he can be the champion.”

Despite all of the trash talk and bad feelings, which Freire projected to the world on UFC 257 fight night and beyond, Freire likes that Chandler is winning. If Chandler’s stock rises, so does Freire’s. When the two fought in May 2019, Freire defeated Chandler by TKO in 61 seconds. “Pitbull” plans on never letting Chandler live that down.

“I’ve been saying this in all my interviews recently,” Freire said. “This has been a good thing for me. Even if he doesn’t want it to be this way, the more that he wins, the more that me destroying him will look great. I’ve been pretty vocal about it.

“He spent three years talking after he beat my brother on social media, so I’ll be doing this forever. There are some fans that complain and talk trash to me. Others think that’s fine and they like it. But I don’t really give a damn, I just care about what I have the desire to do, and I’ll keep doing it. … As my official representative in the UFC right now, everything he does well will look good for me.”

For Freire, his comments about Chandler and the UFC aren’t about jealousy or throwing himself into the spotlight. Sure, it’s about rubbing it in Chandler’s face. But furthermore, it’s about telling the world “I told you so. Bellator fighters are as good as any.”

“No one has done to him what I did, and I don’t think anyone ever will,” Freire said. “It’s good for this sport because people talk like Bellator is a second-tier promotion and UFC is the top-tier of the sport. It’s not like that. We are all the same level, but you have differences when you spend all those years saying how we’re the B-league and when getting there we have to prove ourselves.”

“Pitbull” warned Bellator haters that their doubt will backfire. The more an athlete is told he or she can’t do something, the more motivation that’s created to achieve new heights. That’s what Chandler did.

“You have a great fighter who’s now even hungrier and thirstier than he was before, trying to prove to himself that he’s not the can everyone was writing him to be,” Freire said. “It makes not just Chandler, but anyone making the jump from Bellator to the UFC more dangerous than the UFC guys are to us.”

Article source: https://mmajunkie.usatoday.com/2021/02/mma-news-bellator-patricio-freire-sees-stock-rise-when-ufc-michael-chandler-wins

After an incredible promotional debut at UFC 257 with a knockout win over Dan Hooker, number four ranked lightweight contender Michael Chandler sat down with ESPN’s Ariel Helwani to talk about what’s next in his UFC career.

Chandler started off by naming his top priority and his preferred opponent.

“I think with Dustin Poirier’s performance, I think with my performance, I think both of those warrant for us to fight for the title next,” Chandler said.

“Dustin Poirier needs to be one half of that world title conversation, obviously. He’s earned it.”

However, Chandler is well aware that he might not get that title shot next. Especially against Poirier, who has said he doesn’t think Chandler deserves a fight with him after a victory over Hooker, whom Poirier defeated last July.

If Chandler does not get the first fight on his wish list, he already knows who would be next if it were up to him.

“If I don’t get the next title shot, I understand why,” Chandler said. “I’m just kind of taking it in stride. I will be indifferent about that decision.”

“I think (Justin Gaethje) is a fight that excites me. I think it’s a fight where I match up extremely well,” Chandler continued. “You had a guy who I tangled with a couple times named Eddie Alvarez, who beat Justin Gaethje whenever they fought for the unofficial title of most violent guy in the UFC. Eddie Alvarez won that fight. I think I’m the new most violent guy in the UFC, if Justin Gaethje wants to prove that, he’s gonna need to step into the octagon against me.”

Chandler also noted that he was offered a fight with a top lightweight contender in the very near future.

In fact, Chandler even flew down to Florida with the belief that he would train for this fight, but ultimately, the other lightweight in question declined the bout offer.

“I was ready to stay [in Florida] and train for the next eight days and then hop on a flight to Vegas,” Chandler said. “This opportunity did not come to fruition based on the other person saying no. But I said yes, I’m trying to get some clarity in this lightweight division.”

It was later reported that it was number three ranked lightweight contender Charles Oliveira who turned down a non-title fight against Chandler at UFC 258 in February. His coach, Diego Lima, told Sherdog.com that they turned down the Chandler bout because it was short notice and Oliveira believes he should be fighting for the UFC lightweight title next.

Whether his next opponent is Justin Gaethje, Dustin Poirier, or any of the other sharks swimming in the top five of the lightweight division, Michael Chandler is here to stay.

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Article source: https://www.mmaweekly.com/michael-chandler-im-the-new-most-violent-guy-in-the-ufc