Matt Brown indicated prior to his UFC on ABC 1 fight with Carlos Condit that retirement could be on the horizon, win or lose.

Brown (22-18 MMA, 15-12 UFC) left the octagon with the latter result after dropping a competitive unanimous decision to Condit (32-13 MMA, 9-9 UFC) in their Jan. 16 co-main event matchup at Etihad Arena in Abu Dhabi.

At 40, and with a welterweight record 27 UFC appearances to his credit, it wouldn’t be a stunner if Brown decided he was done. He’s already hung up his gloves once but said he currently has no intentions to do it again. The outcome of the Condit fight has led Brown to think he has a lot more to offer.

“I retired a few years ago, and then when I came back the primary motivator was just be a prize fighter and make some more money, but since I’ve come back, I’ve really loved the whole process again,” Brown told MMA Junkie Radio. “(I’ve) really fell in love with it more again. I’ve kind of seen how good that I can be and the skills that I can – the skills have grown so much. I think I have a lot more in me. I think I can do a lot bigger things than I’ve ever done before.”

On paper, Brown is 1-2 since coming back from his retirement, which lasted a little more than two years from November 2017 through December 2019. A knockout loss to Miguel Baeza last May was undeniable, but the fight with Condit is a little more difficult for him to stomach.

Brown expressed his frustration with the scoring in his loss and thinks he had a case for winning. He said he’s taken important lessons away from it, though, and while he would certainly like another shot at the former WEC and interim UFC welterweight champ, it’s not something he’ll chase.

“I know specifically what mistakes I made and what I can do to fix those up,” Brown said. “But I’m not that guy, either, where I go out and beg for rematches. We get out 15 minutes, and that’s your time to shine, and either you get it done or you don’t.”

So, Brown now moves forward. He said figuring out his next move is a bit of a challenge, because while he knows he’s capable of being extremely active, the reality of being a father to three young children precludes him from fighting as frequently as he did earlier in his career.

Brown said his physical condition is better than ever, though, and that comes from taking a smarter approach to the game.

“I had to tone down a lot of (training) – probably more just the overall volume,” Brown said. “I’ve always been a high-volume training guy where I put in two, three sessions every day, sometimes seven days a week for three (or) four weeks at a time. Putting more emphasis on he recovery and taking the days where I can relax and get my mind away from fighting and just enjoy life more. I’ve always trained so hard that I didn’t have an outside life.”

To watch the full interview with Brown, check out the video below.

Article source: https://mmajunkie.usatoday.com/2021/01/ufc-news-matt-brown-opts-against-retirement-after-loss-carlos-condit

Mariusz Pudzianowski’s fighting career is not over yet.

Pudzianowski (13-7), who gained fame by winning the World’s Strongest Man competition in 2002, 2003, 2005, 2007 and 2008 before transitioning to MMA, is set to make his return to the cage as KSW 59 on March 20.

The promotion announced Pudzianowski’s return during Saturday’s KSW 58 broadcast, but did not reveal an opponent for the 43-year-old Polish strongman (via Twitter):

It’s official!!! PUDZIAN IS BACK!!!

Mariusz Pudzianowski returns at #KSW59 and @AntunRacic will defend his bantamweight title!!! pic.twitter.com/imAu7Bg6rd

— KSW (@KSW_MMA) January 30, 2021

Pudzianowski has not competed since November 2019, when he earned a second-round TKO victory over Erko Jun to snap a two-fight losing skid.

Also announced for KSW 59, which does not have an official location or venue, was the return of bantamweight champion Antun Racic (25-8-1), who will attempt to make a second consecutive defense of his KSW title.

Article source: https://mmajunkie.usatoday.com/2021/01/ksw-59-mariusz-pudzianowski-returns-mma-antun-racic

UFC Fight Night 184 is down a man.

Lightweight Alex Da Silva has withdrawn from his fight against Devonte Smith on Feb. 6 at UFC Apex in Las Vegas. The promotion is currently seeking a replacement for Smith (10-2 MMA, 2-1 UFC) in the hopes of keeping him on the card.

At this time, it is not known why da Silva (21-3 MMA, 1-2 UFC) withdrew.

Multiple people with knowledge of the situation confirmed da Silva’s withdrawal to MMA Junkie but asked to remain anonymous as the promotion has yet to make an official announcement.

Smith, 27, has not competed since a knockout loss to Khama Worthy at UFC 241 in August 2019. After the fight, Smith tore his Achilles tendon, which required surgery and months of rehabilitation.

With the change, the UFC Fight Night 184 lineup includes:

MAIN CARD (ESPN+, 8 p.m. ET)

• Alistair Overeem vs. Alexander Volkov
• Frankie Edgar vs. Cory Sandhagen
• Macy Chiasson vs. Marion Reneau
• Manel Kape vs. Alexandre Pantoja
• Andre Ewell vs. Cody Stamann
• Beneil Dariush vs. Diego Ferreira

PRELIMINARY CARD (ESPN+, 5 p.m. ET)

• Clay Guida vs. Michael Johnson
• Danilo Marques vs. Mike Rodriguez
• Martin Day vs. Timur Valiev
• Devonte Smith vs. opponent TBA
• Joselyne Edwards vs. Karol Rosa
• Molly McCann vs. Lara Procopio
• Seungwoo Choi vs. Youssef Zalal
• Denys Bondar vs. Ode Osbourne

Article source: https://mmajunkie.usatoday.com/2021/01/ufc-fight-night-184-news-alex-da-silva-out-devonte-smith-needs-new-opponent

CFFC is set to host the promotion’s first two events of 2021 when the organization returns to Philadelphia’s 2300 Arena on March 10-11 for a pair of shows to stream on UFC Fight Pass.

The promotion today announced the two cards, which will serve as CFFC 92 and CFFC 93 and will take place with limited fans in attendance.

“Despite all the challenges that 2020 presented to us, it remained one of the best years in Cage Fury Fighting Championships history, and we’re committed to reaching even new heights in 2021,” CFFC President Rob Haydak stated. “We’re starting it out with two of our newest champions looking to defend their belts and continue their rise to the sport’s biggest promotions, while a pair of vacant belts will also be on the line as we look to find the best up-and-coming talent in MMA. With strong lineups already being planned for events in April and May, as well, fans can expect CFFC to continue providing action-packed events every time out.”

Four championship fights were announced for the two-night lineup.

At CFFC 92, flyweight champion Alberto Trujillo (5-1) seeks the first defense of his belt when he takes on fast-rising Ray Longo product Phumi Nkuta (2-0), while the co-main event sees Uzbekistan’s Saidyokub Kakharamonov (7-2) face Charlie’s Combat Club’s Tycen Lynn (8-4) for the bantamweight title recently vacated by Jared Scoggins.

Meanwhile, CFFC 93 sees middleweight champion and Dana White’s Contender Series winner Collin Huckbody (9-2) put his title on the line for the first time when he faces top Canadian contender and fellow DWCS veteran Aaron Jeffery (9-2). Additionally, the vacant CFFC heavyweight title is up for grabs in the co-feature, when Jamelle Jones (10-6) takes on Cody Goodale (7-4).

Additional bouts are expected to be announced shortly.

Article source: https://mmajunkie.usatoday.com/2021/01/cffc-92-cffc-93-in-march-including-champs-collin-huckbody-alberto-trujillo

Neiman Gracie’s relentless pursuit of a submission finish eventually proved successful, as he finished Jon Fitch in the co-main event of Bellator 246 to claim a notable scalp in the promotion’s talent-rich welterweight division.

Faced with seasoned veteran Fitch, Gracie found it tough to put away the longtime contender, who defended admirably to stem the ceaseless tide of submission attempts from the Brazilian in Round 1. But, eventually, Gracie found a crack in Fitch’s defenses and exploited it.

After spending much of Round 2 having his submission attack effectively nullified by Fitch’s dogged defense, Gracie saw his opportunity and locked up a kneebar that gave Fitch no option but to tap at the 4:47 mark.

It gave Gracie his ninth submission finish from 10 career wins and, more importantly, saw him bounce back from his first career defeat, to Rory MacDonald, back at Bellator 222 in June 2019. It also marked the final time we would see Fitch inside the Bellator cage, as the American announced his retirement from the sport after 42 career bouts.

Relive Gracie’s victory at Bellator 246 via the video above.

Article source: https://mmajunkie.usatoday.com/2021/01/bellator-free-fight-neiman-gracie-submits-jon-fitch-at-bellator-246