Carlos Condit, remarkably, is on a winning streak for the first time since February 2012 after beating Matt Brown in their long-awaited welterweight clash. And for him, it couldn’t come at a better time.

Condit’s (32-13 MMA, 9-9 UFC) unanimous decision win over Brown marked the final fight on his current UFC contract, sending him into free agency with some momentum and confidence about the future. The question now, is, will he remain with the promotion as he moves into the twilight stage of his career?

The situation feels a lot similar to what we just witness with Anthony Pettis a few weeks ago. A former WEC and UFC (albeit interim) champion who has had his fair share of ups and downs inside the octagon closes out his deal with back-to-back wins. Given his name value and fighting style, there are a lot of organizations that would be a good fit for “The Natural Born Killer,” and perhaps with some more beneficial matchmaking for this stage of his career.

The matchup with Brown was the perfect pairing, as it saw Condit meet another man who is in a similar spot in his career. It’s only a matter of time until Condit gets matched up against a young, hungry killer, though, and that’s where the consideration of his future needs to come into play.

If you look at the 170-pound divisions in Bellator, PFL and even ONE Championship, there could be some real tough fights for Condit there as well. He’s not the type who would be chasing a layup, so it could ultimately come down to who is willing to cough up the most dough for his services.

Article source: https://mmajunkie.usatoday.com/lists/ufc-on-abc-1-thoughts-analysis-takeaways-max-holloway-reaction-mind-blowing-performance

Matt Brown didn’t like the way his fight was scored Saturday.

The longtime UFC fighter thought he did enough to outpoint Carlos Condit in the UFC on ABC 1 co-main event in Abu Dhabi. Brown (22-18 MMA, 15-12 UFC) lost a unanimous decision to Condit with 30-27 scores on all three judges’ scorecards.

Brown said he thought it was a close fight and at the very least thinks the scoring should’ve reflected that, even if the end result would’ve been the same.

“30-27 is ridiculous,” Brown wrote on Twitter. “I won the first round 100% he won the second for sure and the third is really close but I ended on top. Should have got the decision imo (in my opinion) but if he got it based on just the third round I wouldn’t be mad. (explicit) judges.

“Thanks for all the love and support (and the occasional hate) I’m still getting better and stronger every day and I will learn and grow from this! Hope you all enjoyed the show!”

30-27 is ridiculous. I won the first round 100% he won the second for sure and the third is really close but I ended on top. Should have got the decision imo but if he got it based on just the third round I wouldn’t be mad. Fucking judges

— Matt Brown (@IamTheImmortal) January 17, 2021

Thanks for all the love and support (and the occasional hate) I’m still getting better and stronger every day and I will learn and grow from this! Hope you all enjoyed the show!

— Matt Brown (@IamTheImmortal) January 17, 2021

Brown did have a good first round and managed to stay on top for a good portion of the round while landing ground and pound on Condit.

The 40-year-old competitor is now on a two-fight losing skid after a two-fight winning streak.

Article source: https://mmajunkie.usatoday.com/2021/01/matt-brown-unhappy-ridiculous-scoring-loss-carlos-condit-ufc-on-abc-1

UFC president Dana White announced the recipients of the bonuses stemming from Saturday’s UFC Fight Island 7 during the event’s post-fight press conference.

Max Holloway, Calvin Kattar, Li Jinliang, and Alessio Di Chirico took home the extra $50,000 performance-based bonuses.

Fight of the Night honors went to the main event bout between Holloway and Kattar. Holloway dominated Kattar on his way to a unanimous decision, but Kattar displayed his toughness and will to win. It was the fourth time Holloway has earned Fight of the Night.

TRENDING Khabib Nurmagomedov leaves door open for UFC return

Jingliang took home a Performance of the Night award for his first-round knockout of Santiago Ponzinibbio in welterweight action. Jingliang clipped Ponzinibbio during an exchange and that was all it took.

Di Chirico earned a Performance of the Night bonus for his first-round stoppage of Joaquin Buckley in their middleweight matchup. Di Chirico connected with a head kick that left Buckley unconscious on the canvas.

UFC Fight Island 7 featured 10 bouts. Seven bouts went the distance while three ended in knockout finishes.

Article source: https://www.mmaweekly.com/max-holloway-earns-bonus-for-ufc-fight-island-7-performance

Article source: https://www.mmaweekly.com/ufc-fight-island-7-holloway-vs-kattar-post-fight-press-conference-replay

ABU DHABI – When UFC president Dana White and lightweight champion Khabib Nurmagomedov met behind closed doors Friday, a handful of potential names were discussed to potentially come out of retirement. Former UFC welterweight and middleweight champion Georges St-Pierre was not among them.

UFC lightweight contenders Conor McGregor, Dustin Poirier, Michael Chandler, Dan Hooker, and Charles Oliveira were among possible opponents floated for Nurmagomedov (29-0 MMA, 13-0 UFC) should he return. However, St.-Pierre (26-2 MMA, 20-2 UFC) wasn’t brought up as that ship has sailed because neither fighter is interested.

“Nope,” White said Saturday at the UFC on ABC 1 post-fight news conference. “GSP never came up. (Nurmagomedov) isn’t interested in that fight. From what I hear today, after that, neither is GSP. So, that’s over.”

Nurmagomedov and St-Pierre had expressed interest in fighting one another in the past. Ahead of his 29-0 record-clinching victory over Justin Gaethje at UFC 254 last October, Nurmagomedov name-dropped St-Pierre as an ideal opponent for his 30th fight.

Following Nurmagomedov’s retirement, St-Pierre deflected questioning as to whether or not he would have accepted the fight had it been offered and had Nurmagomedov not announced his retirement inside the cage.

As for what’s next for Nurmagomedov, White revealed during the UFC on ABC 1 broadcast that the champ will make a final decision following UFC 257 on Jan. 23. He wants to see if any performances jump out at him and give him the itch to come back for No. 30.

Nurmagomedov will fly to Las Vegas next week. Following the conclusion of UFC 257, White will follow suit. The two are expected to have dinner and discuss Nurmagomedov’s final decision over dinner shortly thereafter. This time, White expects he’ll finally get his yes-or-no answer.

“He’s cornering on Wednesday and then he leaves,” White said. “He leaves and goes to Vegas. I’ll have the fight and fly home on Sunday, and I’ll see him again in Vegas. Those fights will have played out. He and I are going to hook up and go to dinner in Vegas and talk again. We’ll make a decision. The one thing he did say is, ‘I won’t hold up the division.’”

Article source: https://mmajunkie.usatoday.com/2021/01/ufc-dana-white-says-khabib-nurmagomedov-vs-georges-st-pierre-talk-over