Dana White is not sold that Nick Diaz actually wants to return.

Diaz (26-9 MMA, 7-6 UFC), who hasn’t competed in almost six years, has teased a comeback on numerous occasions, but his return has yet to materialize, and White remains unconvinced that it ever will.

In a recent interview, Diaz’s manager Kevin Mubenga stated that there’s a “99.99999 percent” chance that Diaz will return in 2021, but White isn’t so sure.

“Everything that I see from Nick Diaz doesn’t look like he wants to or is ready to compete in this sport,” White told “The Schmo.” “Even Jon Jones, as good as Jon Jones is, you have to be 100 percent mentally, physically and emotionally ready to train, be ready for this, and fight. I don’t think anyone should wanna see Nick Diaz fight.

“Nick Diaz has been in a lot of wars, he’s accomplished a lot of great things in his career, he’s made a lot of money, he’s obviously super-famous. He’s gotten everything you could hope to get out of fighting. I just don’t know why, when I see his Instagram, why he would come back.”

Diaz was last seen in action at UFC 183 in January 2015 when he lost a unanimous decision to Anderson Silva, which was later overturned to a no contest when Silva tested positive for drostanolone and androsterone. Diaz tested positive for marijuana after the bout.

Article source: https://mmajunkie.usatoday.com/2020/12/ufc-news-dana-white-unconvinced-over-nick-diaz-return

Aleksandar Rakic is confident that with a dominant performance on March 6, he will emerge as the No. 1 contender at 205 pounds.

Rakic (13-2 MMA, 5-1 UFC) faces former title challenger Thiago Santos (21-8 MMA, 13-7 UFC) at UFC 259, which is expected to take place at the UFC Apex in Las Vegas.

With both men winning the majority of their fights by knockout, Rakic is expecting a grueling battle, and hopes to leapfrog all the light heavyweight contenders with a strong showing against Santos.

“I’m gonna be prepared for war, and I know Thiago is also gonna be prepared for war,” Rakic told MMA Junkie. “I want this title shot, and I want this belt so bad. I made a promise for one friend of mine who I lost a couple of days ago, and I promised his family that I’m gonna win against Thiago and I’m gonna get the title shot, and this motivates me a lot.”

After tearing through the ranks, including a finish over current UFC light heavyweight champion Jan Blachowicz, Santos has dropped his past two in a row. “Marreta” fell short in a valiant effort against then-champion Jon Jones at UFC 239, then he was submitted in the third round by Glover Teixeira at UFC on ESPN 17 in November.

But, despite Santos’ losing skid, Rakic knows not to underestimate him

“These two losses in a row mean nothing,” Rakic said. “Thiago is a dangerous guy. He fought Jon Jones very well, he fought injured. Now he lost to Glover. He knocked Glover down, Glover came back – he’s dangerous, he’s very dangerous – but you can see that the ring rust was there.”

He continued, “I think in his next fight against me, Thiago is gonna come even more motivated because he’s hungry, he sees his chances, and I’m sure he’s training hard because I know Thiago. We were training in American Top Team in Florida two years ago. He’s a dangerous guy, but I’m now getting into my prime and, I’m telling you, Aleksandar Rakic in his prime, nobody is gonna beat me. Nobody. I can swear to God nobody’s gonna beat me.”

In 2018, Rakic spent a training camp with Santos at American Top Team, making him familiar with the dangerous Brazilian’s game. After studying his opponent’s past fights, Rakic has identified two key fight tactics from Santos and will be prepared for either one come fight night.

“Sometimes he’s waiting to counter, sometimes he’s rushing forward,” Rakic said. “So I don’t know what I can expect from him, but I’m gonna be ready for everything that he’s bringing to the table, because this is the most important fight for me. After this fight, I want that title shot.”

Article source: https://mmajunkie.usatoday.com/2020/12/aleksandar-rakic-prepared-for-war-with-thiago-santos-eyes-title-shot-with-win-at-ufc-259

Larissa Pacheco isn’t intimidated by what Claressa Shields brings to the PFL, and she welcomes the signing.

Pacheco (13-4), a former UFC fighter and “The Ultimate Fighter” cast member, issued a statement to MMA Junkie through her manager, Alex Davis, in which she expressed interest in facing boxing champion Shields (0-0)

“I saw that PFL signed Claressa Shields,” Pacheco said. “Since she is a possible future opponent, I have been aware of her voice on social media. I find her really cute – and I do respect her as a boxer. But someone must communicate with her that MMA is a different world! Since ‘Conde Koma’ came to the Amazon region and challenged boxers to matches, they have all been subbed.

“I think Claressa wants to surf without knowing how to swim, but I welcome easier competition in the tourney.”

In 2019, Pacheco advanced to the women’s lightweight final, where she lost a five-round unanimous decision to Kayla Harrison. The defeat snapped a two-fight winning streak for the Brazilian.

Shields, an Olympic gold medalist in boxing and the current undisputed middleweight champion, signed with PFL in November, but Pacheco will have to wait at least a year to get her hands on her. In 2021, Shields will take one-off fights instead of partaking in the regular season, similar to what Harrison did in 2018 before winning the championship in 2019.

The PFL 2021 regular season matchups have not yet been announced, though the promotion is eying an April 23 start date.

Article source: https://mmajunkie.usatoday.com/2020/12/mma-news-larissa-pacheco-calls-out-claressa-shields-pfl

A champion vs. champion fight will go down in March when reigning UFC light heavyweight titleholder Jan Blachowicz puts his belt on the line against middleweight king Israel Adesanya, who looks for a second championship.

Blachowicz (27-8 MMA, 10-5 UFC) and Adesanya (20-0 MMA, 9-0 UFC) have agreed to clash in the UFC 259 headliner on March 6. MMA Junkie confirmed the news with a person close to the situation Wednesday after Dana White announced the news to promotional partner ESPN.

UFC 259 does not yet have an official location or venue. The main card is set to stream on ESPN+ pay-per-view.

Blachowicz will look to make his first 205-pound title defense a good one after capturing the belt that was vacated by Jon Jones in August. The Polish fighter upset noted favorite Dominick Reyes with a second-round knockout at UFC 253 on Sept. 26, putting UFC gold around his waist for the first time at age 36.

He’ll attempt to use his “Polish power” to great effect once again against Adesanya, who will attempt to become the eighth fighter in UFC history to capture titles in two weight divisions. He would be the first, however, to do it at middleweight and light heavyweight.

The reigning 185-pound king has teased the idea of moving up for more than a year, but many believed it would be for a superfight against Jones. That won’t be the case, as he will instead challenge Blachowicz after earning a victories in a pair of title defenses in 2020 against Yoel Romero and Paulo Costa.

The latest UFC 259 lineup now includes:

• Jan Blachowicz vs. Israel Adesanya – for light heavyweight title
• Amanda Nunes vs. Megan Anderson – for women’s featherweight title
• Aleksandar Rakic vs. Thiago Santos
• Dominick Cruz vs. Casey Kenney
• Askar Askarov vs. Joseph Benavidez
• Sean Brady vs. Jake Matthews
• Randy Costa vs. Trevin Jones
• Aalon Cruz vs. Uros Medic
• Tim Elliott vs. Jordan Espinosa

Article source: https://mmajunkie.usatoday.com/2020/12/ufc-259-jan-blachowicz-israel-adesanya-light-heavyweight-title-champion-vs-champion

An interesting strawweight matchup has been added to the March 20 UFC Fight Night.

Cheyanne Buys will meet Kay Hansen during the event, which does not yet have a location announced. Both fighters confirmed the booking on Instagram after an initial post from “I Like Who I’m Becoming MMA.”

Buys (5-1 MMA, 0-0 UFC) earned her spot in the UFC through Dana White’s Contender Series. She was given a UFC contract after an impressive unanimous decision win over Hilarie Rose at DWCS 29 on Aug. 18. The victory gave the Fortis MMA product four straight wins.

Hansen (7-4 MMA, 1-1 UFC), meanwhile, is a 21-year-old prospect who has proven herself capable of exciting fights, win or lose. Hansen lost an entertaining scrap via decision against Cory McKenna on Nov. 14 in Las Vegas. That ended a three-fight win streak which included a “Performance of the Night” bonus in her UFC debut, a submission finish of former Invicta champion Jinh Yu Frey.

While much of the card has yet to be signed, the March 20 event features a highly anticipated middleweight showdown between Derek Brunson and Kevin Holland.

Article source: https://mmajunkie.usatoday.com/2020/12/cheyanne-buys-kay-hansen-ufc-fight-night-card-march-20