ABU DHABI – MMA Junkie is on scene and reporting live from Monday’s official UFC on ESPN 20 fighter weigh-ins, which kick off at midnight ET (9 p.m. PT).

The weigh-ins take place at Etihad Arena in Abu Dhabi. The same venue hosts Wednesday’s card, which airs on ESPN and streams on ESPN+.

Among those weighing in are Michael Chiesa (16-4 MMA, 10-4 UFC) and Neil Magny (24-7 MMA, 17-6 UFC), who meet in the welterweight main event, and Warlley Alves (13-4 MMA, 7-4 UFC) and Mounir Lazzez (10-1 MMA, 1-0 UFC), who fight in the co-feature at 170 pounds.

The full UFC on ESPN 20 weigh-in results include:

MAIN CARD (ESPN, ESPN+, 12 p.m. ET)

• Michael Chiesa (170.5) vs. Neil Magny (171)
• Warlley Alves (171) vs. Mounir Lazzez (171)
• Vinicius Moreira () vs. Ike Villanueva (206)
• Viviane Araujo (126) vs. Roxanne Modafferi (126)
• Tyson Nam (126) vs. Matt Schnell (126)
• Lerone Murphy (146) vs. Douglas Silva de Andrade (145)

PRELIMINARY CARD (ESPN, ESPN+, 9 a.m. ET)

• Omari Akhmedov (186) vs. Tom Breese (186)
• Gaetano Pirrello (136) vs. Ricky Simon (136)
• Zarrukh Adashev (126) vs. Su Mudaerji (126)
• Dalcha Lungiambula (186) vs. Markus Perez (186)
• Francisco Figueredo (126) vs. Jerome Rivera (126)
• Mike Davis (154.5) vs. Mason Jones (156)
• Sergey Morozov (135) vs. Umar Nurmagomedov (136)
• Manon Fiorot (126) vs. Victoria Leonardo (125.5)

Article source: https://mmajunkie.usatoday.com/2021/01/ufc-espn-20-michael-chiesa-neil-magny-weigh-in-results

ABU DHABI – The UFC’s second main event of the year between Michael Chiesa and Neil Magny is locked in.

At Tuesday’s official UFC on ESPN 20 weigh-ins, Chiesa (17-4 MMA, 10-4 UFC) and Magny (24-7 MMA, 17-6 UFC) had no issues on the scale as they successfully hit the welterweight limit for their headlining matchup.

Chiesa tipped the scale at 170.5 pounds, while Magny used the full one-pound allowance at 171.

OFFICIAL: @MikeMav22 and @NeilMagny have successfully made weight for Wednesday’s welterweight main event. ⚖️#UFCFightIsland8 | Full story: https://t.co/jZnMhQIJii pic.twitter.com/0D5RU1UfJQ

— MMA Junkie (@MMAjunkie) January 19, 2021

UFC on ESPN 20 takes place Wednesday at Etihad Arena on Yas Island. The entire card airs on ESPN.

Watch the above video to see Chiesa and Magny make weight.

Article source: https://mmajunkie.usatoday.com/2021/01/ufc-on-espn-20-video-michael-chiesa-neil-magny-make-weight-official-main-event

Conor McGregor is slated to return to the Octagon for the first time in just over a year on Saturday at UFC 257. He will rematch Dustin Poirier, a man he defeated more than six years ago.

Before McGregor and Poirier square off again, take a look back at highlights from two of McGregor’s outstanding performances, both of which took place on January 18: knockouts of Donald “Cowboy” Cerrone and Dennis Siver.

January 18, 2020: Conor McGregor blasts Cowboy Cerrone

UFC pioneer Paul Varelans died on Saturday, Jan. 16, following a month-long battle against COVID-19.

Varelans had been feeling ill in early December, confirming in social media posts that he had tested positive for COVID-19, the disease caused by the novel coronavirus.

“So it’s official, I am COVID-19 positive. And I feel like hell,” Varelans tweeted on Dec. 12.

A day later he added, “The best way I can compare the feel(ing) of COVID-19 in my experience is it’s like fighting a guy who specializes in kidney punches. They never stop coming.”

On Dec. 17, UFC co-founder Art Davie stated that Varelans’s health had worsened. He added that Varelans had been put in a medically induced coma and placed on a ventilator in the Intensive Care Unit.

A month later, on Jan. 16, Varelans lost his battle with COVID-19.

Paul “The Polar Bear” Varelans: 1969-2021

Most newer mixed martial arts fans probably aren’t all that familiar with Varelans, but he was an easily identifiable character when it comes to the origins of the UFC.

Varelans was six-foot-eight and 300 pounds, a rather imposing figure in the Octagon; though his nickname was “The Polar Bear.”

He first fought at UFC 6, where he defeated Cal Worsham and then lost to Tank Abbott. Varelans is probably most remembered for his 13-minute battle in the finals of an eight-man tournament at UFC 7, where he lost to the legendary Marco Ruas after suffering numerous crippling leg kicks.

His final UFC bout was opposite Kimo Leopoldo at Ultimate Ultimate 1996. Varelans went on to fight several more times outside of the UFC, fighting for the final time Feb. 8, 1998, in the Netherlands. He was 9-9 overall in his fighting career.

Paul Varelans was born on Sept. 17, 1969. He passed away on Jan. 16, 2021. Varelans was 51 years old at the time of his death.

TRENDING Rankings Review: Does Conor McGregor deserve his UFC ranking?

UFC 7: Marco Ruas vs. Paul Varelans

Article source: https://www.mmaweekly.com/ufc-pioneer-paul-varelans-dies-after-battling-covid-19

ABU DHABI – Coach Mike Brown sees an advantage in play for Dustin Poirier against Conor McGregor going into UFC 257.

Brown, who is Poirier’s (26-6 MMA, 18-5 UFC) head coach at American Top Team in Florida, doesn’t think there are many secrets entering Saturday’s main event rematch with McGregor (22-4 MMA, 10-2 UFC). He said they are preparing for all scenarios, but think it’s clear that the more minutes tick off the clock, the greater percentage his fighter wins.

“Anybody that knows this sport will realize quickly that the longer it goes, the better it is for Dustin,” Brown told MMA Junkie. “Conor’s obviously struggled with conditioning. This is not his strong suit. Obviously he’s got great timing, good power and good precision, a very good striker, but we’ve seen him more than once struggle with conditioning, and this is also Dustin’s strong suit. He’s got some of the best natural conditioning I’ve ever seen.

“He could be drinking beers and eating cheeseburgers and he can come off the couch and be sparring with world-class fighters that are peaking and he’s in better shape than them. He’s definitely got some gifts and a talent there, and it’s one of his gifts.”

But conditioning means little if a fight doesn’t go beyond the early rounds. McGregor stopped Poirier by knockout in less than two minutes in their first encounter at UFC 178 in September 2014. Brown said he can only put so much stock in that first bout because he knows from his personal relationship with Poirier he’s not the same man.

“A lot has changed,” Brown said. “So much has changed. They’re really different people at this point. Six years of development in a sport, you’re almost a completely different athlete. I would say besides all the technique and technical improvements, it’s mostly about the mindset – the ability to relax in certain situations and suppress emotion and things of this nature. I think this is really where the biggest changes are made, are major technical changes that we don’t want to get into too much.”

Although Brown doesn’t put much weight on Poirier’s first loss to McGregor, the outside world doesn’t see it the same way. One of the major narratives leading into fight night is how Poirier will mentally absorb what happened in the past. Brown admitted that’s an aspect that’s in play, but said it’s not something he can control as much as other elements involving his athlete.

“That’s not on me – that’s kind of on him in his own head,” Brown said. “I think he’s in a good place. I think he’s very confident. I think he believes in himself 100 percent, and that’s what’s most important. I think he knows he can win this fight, and he knows he’ll win this fight, and he has that mindset coming in. He’s in great shape and he’s ready.”

UFC 257 takes place Saturday at Etihad Arena on Yas Island. The main card airs on pay-per-view following prelims on ESPN and ESPN+.

Brown has worked closely with Poirier as he’s risen up the ranks at 155 pounds to become interim champion, fight for the undisputed belt and more. He thinks the team has put together a good game plan to exact revenge over McGregor, and once again pointed to pace and conditioning as a potentially result-altering key.

“It’s a rematch of a blemish – he doesn’t have many of them – that he’d like to erase,” Brown said. “(McGregor) always comes with something new and something fresh and something different. Honestly, we see some technical holes in the game. But most importantly, we see a lot of what everybody sees: He definitely has a weakness in conditioning. That’s something we’d be smart to exploit if possible.

“(Poirier is) a guy that’s great conditioning, a volume puncher with big power in both hands and both legs, and it doesn’t go away. He can knock you out with either hand or either leg in Round 1 or Round 5, and it doesn’t go away. That’s what makes him the world-class monster that he is.”

Article source: https://mmajunkie.usatoday.com/2021/01/ufc-257-mike-brown-breakdown-conor-mcgregor-conditioning-rematch