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Ricky Simon ‘not going away,’ ready for quick UFC return against anyone

ABU DHABI – Ricky Simon beat Gaetano Pirrello with a second-round submission Wednesday on the preliminary card at UFC on ESPN 20 in Abu Dhabi.

Take a look inside the fight with Simon, who won for the second straight time and got his first stoppage since April 2018.

Gaetano Pirrello vs. Ricky Simon

Result: Ricky Simon def. Gaetano Pirrello via submission (arm-triangle choke) – Round 2, 4:00
Updated records: Simon (17-3 MMA, 5-2 UFC), Pirrello (15-6-1 MMA, 0-1 UFC)
Key stat: Simon landed seven takedowns and 72 percent of his total strikes for a 50-10 advantage.

Simon on the fight’s key moment

“I always feel good when I go out there and execute a game plan. I’m always on myself about what can I do better. I talk to my coaches about what can I improve on. I’m definitely happy with going out there and executing the game plan.”

An arm triangle seals the deal for @RickySimonUFC 💪 #UFCFightIsland8 pic.twitter.com/SfoFImXwJN

— ESPN MMA (@espnmma) January 20, 2021

Simon on being in it for the long haul

ABU DHABI, UNITED ARAB EMIRATES – JANUARY 20: (L-R) Ricky Simon prepares to take down Gaetano Pirrello of Belgium in a bantamweight fight during the UFC Fight Night event at Etihad Arena on UFC Fight Island on January 20, 2021 in Abu Dhabi, United Arab Emirates. (Photo by Jeff Bottari/Zuffa LLC)

“I’m just one of those guys that’s not going away. I can fight the best any given night, or if those guys are busy they can throw whoever they want at me like tonight. I’m going to do what I do.”

Simon on what he wants next

ABU DHABI, UNITED ARAB EMIRATES – JANUARY 20: (R-L) Gaetano Pirrello of Belgium punches Ricky Simon in a bantamweight fight during the UFC Fight Night event at Etihad Arena on UFC Fight Island on January 20, 2021 in Abu Dhabi, United Arab Emirates. (Photo by Jeff Bottari/Zuffa LLC)

“I feel great. I’ve been in camp for a while. I was supposed to fight (Brian) Kelleher back in September and went through a full camp. I stayed with Alex Perez and did a two-month camp for him for his world title fight, then jumped right back in for this one. I’ve been in nonstop camp, but I feel good. As long as my coaches are OK with it, I would like to get back in there soon.”

To hear more from Simon, check out the video of the full post-fight interview above.

Breaking, Ricky Simon, UFC on ESPN 20, video, News, UFC, Videos

Article source: https://mmajunkie.usatoday.com/lists/ricky-simon-quick-return-against-anyone-ufc-on-espn-20-video

Video: Who could Nate Diaz’s mystery opponent be?

Nate Diaz could very well return to the octagon in 2021. And whoever he ends up fighting, the event will no doubt be big.

UFC president Dana White, for his part, recently hinted that he has what sounds like a fun fight in mind for the popular Stockton, Calif. native. But he’s not ready to spill the beans on who he has in mind to meet the competitor we haven’t seen since his memorable UFC 244 “BMF” fight against Jorge Masvidal.

So who could it possibly be? Our “Spinning Back Clique” panel of Mike Bohn, Danny Segura, and “Gorgeous” George Garcia weighed in during this week’s episode.

You can watch in the video above.

Article source: https://mmajunkie.usatoday.com/2021/01/ufc-nate-diaz-mystery-opponent-2021-next-fight

UFC 257 pre-event facts: Dustin Poirier, Conor McGregor bring legendary stats into rematch

Poirier won a UFC title in his 22nd octagon appearance, the second most of any champion in company history behind Michael Bisping (26).

Poirier competes in his ninth UFC main event. He’s 5-3 in previous headliners.

Poirier is 10-2 (with one no contest) since he moved up to the UFC lightweight division in April 2015.

Poirier is one of 10 fighters in UFC history to earn 18 or more wins with the promotion.

Poirier’s six knockout victories in UFC lightweight competition are tied for third most in divisional history behind Melvin Guillard (seven) and Edson Barboza (seven).

Poirier lands 6.45 significant strikes per minute in UFC lightweight competition, the third-best rate in divisional history behind Justin Gaethje (7.46) and T.J. Grant (6.83).

Poirier is the only lightweight in UFC history to land 150 or more significant strikes in three separate fights.

Poirier and Dan Hooker combined for 390 total strikes landed at UFC on ESPN 12, the single-fight record for a UFC lightweight bout.

Poirier is one of three fighters in UFC history to earn two or more submission victories by D’Arce choke. Tony Ferguson and Vicente Luque also accomplished the feat.

Poirier is one of 12 fighters in UFC history to earn 10 fight-night bonuses.

McGregor became the first simultaneous two-division champions in UFC history when he defeated Eddie Alvarez at UFC 205.

McGregor is one of four fighters in UFC history to be a simultaneous two-division champion. Daniel Cormier, Amanda Nunes and Henry Cejudo also accomplished the feat.

McGregor is one of seven fighters in UFC history to win titles in two weight classes. Cormier, Nunes, Cejudo, Georges St-Pierre, Randy Couture, and B.J. Penn also accomplished the feat.

McGregor has earned 19 of his 22 career victories by knockout. He earned 17 of those finishes in the first round.

McGregor is one of 13 fighters in UFC history to earn victories in three weight classes.

McGregor is one of three fighters in UFC history to earn knockout victories in three different weight classes. Vitor Belfort and Jared Cannonier also accomplished the feat.

McGregor is one of five fighters in UFC history to earn three knockdowns in a single fight on two separate occasions. Donald Cerrone, Israel Adesanya, Anderson Silva and John Lineker also accomplished the feat.

McGregor is one of two fighters in UFC history to earn three knockdowns in a single fight in two separate weight classes. Silva also accomplished the feat.

McGregor’s 13-second knockout of Jose Aldo at UFC 194 marked the fastest title-fight stoppage in UFC history.

McGregor is the only fighter in UFC history to receive fight-night bonuses in eight consecutive bouts. No one else has been awarded a bonus in more than seven straight fights.

Article source: https://mmajunkie.usatoday.com/lists/ufc-257-pre-event-facts-dustin-poirier-conor-mcgregor-numbers-stats-figures-rematch-results

UFC 257’s Makhmud Muradov grateful for relationship with manager Floyd Mayweather

ABU DHABI – Makhmud Muradov finds himself in a unique position with one of the most popular and powerful sports figures behind him.

Uzbekistani middleweight Muradov (24-6 MMA, 2-0 UFC) is the lone MMA client of “The Money Team,” former boxing world champion Floyd Mayweather’s management company.

Since joining the UFC roster in 2019, Muradov has picked up a decision win over Alessio Di Chirico and a knockout of Trevor Smith in his past outing last December. But despite only having two UFC fights, Muradov has already amassed over a million followers on Instagram.

He credits Mayweather for helping push his career to new heights, as well as the support of his loyal fans.

“Happy New Year, I sent him a message,” Muradov told MMA Junkie of his last interaction with Mayweather. “He called me on FaceTime, ‘Hey, brother, keep working.’ I have a good connection with Floyd. I thank him because it helped me, support me every time. He told me about business plans and sport plans – 10 years before coming to Czech, I don’t have nothing. Now I have Floyd Mayweather as a friend, sometimes he calls me, sends messages, it’s life. You don’t know what’s waiting for you tomorrow.”

He continued, “Of course it helped me. It’s good support for me, I don’t know, the Uzbek people, the Uzbek army – I have big fans in Uzbekistan, Czech Republic, Russia, U.S. I like my fans.”

Currently riding a 13-fight winning streak, it’s been a frustrating past year for Muradov, who saw four straight bouts canceled. He will finally make his return to the octagon when he faces Andrew Sanchez this Saturday at UFC 257.

Article source: https://mmajunkie.usatoday.com/2021/01/ufc-257-makhmud-muradov-grateful-floyd-mayweather-management

Khabib Nurmagomedov cousin Umar Nurmagomedov leads charge on UFC Fight Island 8 bonuses

The UFC continued its three-event, eight-day stint on Fight Island with Wednesday’s UFC Fight Island 8.

The shadow of UFC lightweight champion Khabib Nurmagomedov has loomed large over Fight Island. Everyone has waited with bated breath to learn if he will return to the Octagon or not, but he was there largely to support his cousin, Umar Nurmagomedov, who led the charge on the UFC Fight Island 8 performance bonuses.

UFC Fight Island 8 Performances of the Night: Umar Nurmagomedov

Like his older cousin, Umar Nurmagomedov left the Octagon remaining undefeated following his UFC debut.

Khabib choked out Kamal Shalorus in the third round for his Octagon debut, so Umar had to one-up him. He managed to choke out Sergey Morozov in the second round at UFC Fight Island 8.

The victory improved Umar’s overall record to 13-0 and earned him a $50,000 Performance of the Night bonus.

Mike Davis kicks Mason Jones at UFC Fight Island 8

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