Three Fights We’d Like To See in 2023

2022 Is coming to a close which means that we have come to a whole new set of dates of fightnights, Pay Per View and other exciting things in the MMA world such as hopeful new seasons of The Ultimate Fighter and another season of Dana White’s Contender Series. We’ve put a list together of top fights we want to see in the UFC and hopefully Dana White is paying attention because we have some good ones picked for the Upcoming year.

Michael Chandler vs Conor McGregor

Michael Chandler has a not so good record in the UFC, but everytime the former Bellator Champ steps foot in the UFC Octagon he puts on an electric performance we think a showdown with Mystic Mac would be a great fight for both of these guys as they both put on performances in the cage (not so stellar as of late for McGregor though.) It would make sense that these two would fight at some point they talk trash they stylistically are a mismatch with Chandler being a great wrestler and Mcgregor Being a stellar striker in his prime. This would sell ppv buys and I’d love to see it. If this matchup didn’t work out, we’d like to see McGregor take on Jorge Masvidal.

Dustin Poirier vs Colby Covington

Dustin Poirier is getting over a recent case of staph infection, but when the former interim champ is done with treatment for the nasty case on his foot we’d like to see him fight the loudmouth Colby Covington who is also a former interim Champion. I think this fight would bring a lot of eyeballs to the UFC Octagon with Poirier being the good guy everyone loves while Covington is the classic heel goofball that many people despise. We think that poirier would have the upper hand in this fight as he has proved once again that he is one of the most entertaining fighters on the UFC Roster

Valentina Shevchenko vs Zhang Weili

Valentina Shevchenko is one of my favorite fighters too watch in the UFC Octagon. She is a great striker who puts on amazing performances in the women’s Flyweight Division. Shevchenko has defended her belt seven times, with all but one of those performances being in dominant fashion. Shevchenko a solid Mixed Martial Artist and we’d love to see her fight two time Women’s strawweight champion Zhang Weili. We love watching the 115 pound queen, Weili fight each time she steps into the octagon she brings the fight, who could forget her two performances against Joanna Jędrzejczyk, which were epic.

What’s Next For Dustin Poirier After UFC 281?

It was good to see Dustin Poirier return to the UFC Octagon where he was born to be. Poirier put himself at the front of the pack for Lightweight title contusion but we don’t think a title will be next for the Louisiana native but we do have some fights we’d like to see Poirier fight. The first fight we’d love to see Justin Gaethje take on Porier in the Octagon. One other opponent that would make for an interesting fight is high level Grappler Beneil Dariush. This is a long shot, but we’d love to see Poirier move up and fight Colby Covington, the pair hate each other and it’d make for high drama.

We’d love to see Porier fight Gaethje, and so does Gaethje who said in an interview before Chandler and Poiriers fight at UFC 281 “Ideally, Poirier beats Chandler, I’d like to fight Poirier. I mean, he beat me. That’s one win I’d like to get back. It was Fight of the Year, Fight of the Decade — Fight of a Couple Years, probably. That was a hell of a fight. That’s ideal” we certainly agree that this would be fireworks just like Porier’s fight with Chandler. It’d be a great fight to watch because Gaethje is a human highlight as his nickname implies because it’s true this would be a great fight.

One fight that makes sense for Louisiana’s Poirier is a matchup between him and Beneil Dariush. Dariush is coming off a win against Mateusz Gamrot at UFC 280 in October he is riding an amazing eight fight win streak which I think Poirier could snap in the UFC cage. But it would definitely be super competitive as Dariush and an amazing grappler who much like poirier is a Brazilian Jiu jitsu Black Belt, but he is on another level in grappling in terms of Grappling for MMA as Dariush in that division is up their with guys like Charles Oliveira.

Another good fight would be a matchup between Colby Covington and Poirier. The smack talk would be epic. This would be a move up for Poirier, but I think the diamond could manage this matchup very well. Covington is a wrestler and is quite boring; he barely backs up his smack talk in the cage with his lackluster striking and boring wrestling style and was almost cut by the promotion till he turned heel. Poirier on the other hand is a top tier fighter who will bring the fight to Covington. Just remember Poirier’s only two losses in the last six years were to Charles Oliveira and Khabib Nurmagomedov are two of the best Lightweights of all time.

These are some fights that would make sense for Dustin Poirier after his win against Michael Chandler at UFC 281. We can’t wait to see what comes next for the Diamond.

UFC 280 Preview

The UFC 280 card is absolutely stacked but we’ve picked some key fights for you to tune into and maybe put some wagers on. The first fight we’re really excited for is a matchup between a wrestler in Belal Muhammad and Undefeated Jiu Jitsu Black Belt Contender Sean Brady. The Next fight we’re really excited for is a matchup between Sean O’Malley and Petr Yan. This is an odd matchup with many fans and trolls alike wondering what the outcome will be when the American faces off the Russian Striking sensation. The final matchup we are super excited for is a the Main event where Charles Oliveira will face off against Khabib’s pupil Islam Makhachev.

Sean Brady has been undefeated in his MMA career so far. Although some call his game one dimensional we find his fighting style to be very fun to watch and unique. Brady who is a Black Belt under Professor Daniel Gracie has submission skills that could neutralize Huhamads wrestling. In his last three fights he’s had two submission victories and in his last performance he went to a decision against Michael Chiesa . I have to say Belal Muhammad wins a lot of his fights but they way he does it is quite boring how he just smothers people and waits for each round to pass and he controls his opponent to get a decision. Effective, but boring.

The Next matchup we’re really excited for is matchup between Sean O’Malley and striking wizard Petr Yan. It appears that Dana White is done giving the Suga show easy fights to grow his and is throwing the young American to the wolves when he matches up with Petr Yan. The former champ is scary good and opened as a heavy favorite on the sportsbook. Yan should make quick work of O’Malley. We don’t see this one going the distance in any way, but we are looking forward to seeing how it goes down.

The champion has a name and it’s Charles Oliveira. Oliveira put on a great performance recently when he faced off against Former interim Champion Justin Gaethje with a quick round one submission victory where he outclassed his opponent and every way. What should of been a title defense for Oliveira was not so this will be interesting to see If Oliveira regains his belt. Across the cage from him will be islam Makhachev who is the best combat Sambo fighter out of Dagestan not named Khabib. Makhachev has vicious sambo skills which would scare even the most talented Grapplers as he can control you and pummel you with strikes and eventually get the submission.

The UFC 280 card is a banger Dana White shows why he is the best promoter in combat sports history with fights like these. What an amazing lineup You can catch this card on ESPN+ PPV.

Three Great UFC Fights Coming Up in September of 2022

September is right around the corner and by the end of the year we will be already three quarters of the way done with. The UFC has some interesting fights coming up this month and will definitely be worth waiting for. The first fight we’re excited for is a matchup between Robert Whittaker and Marvin Vettori The second bout we’re excited for is a matchup between Ciryl Gane and Tai Tuivasa which will headline the UFC Paris card. The third one we’re excited for is a fight between UFC veteran Nate Diaz and rising star Khamzat Chimaev

Robert Whittaker vs. Marvin Vettori UFC Paris

Robert Whittaker and Marvin Vettori are both in an interesting spot they both sit towards the top of the UFC Middleweight Division but have both been incapable of capturing or recapturing the slot at the top in that division respectively due to a very dominant Champion. Whittaker has been fighting for a long time and holds a 23-6 Record which is respectable considering his losses are to fighters of the likes of striking masterminds Israel Adesanya and Stephen “Wonderboy” Thompson. Vettori will walk into the cage with a 18–5–1 record with two of those losses coming from Adesanya. In his last outing Vettori fought Paulo Costa winning by Unanimous decision. A great fight

Ciryl Gane vs. Tai Tuivasa UFC Paris

Ciryl Gane is a UFC Heavyweight who moves like a Middleweight. Gane has a Muay Thai background and was Undefeated in all of his Muay Thai belts and until recently was Undefeated in his MMA career when Francis Ngannou took his 0 away. This will be the former Interim Heavyweight Champions first fight since his title unification bout with Ngannou. Across the cage from Gane will be Bam Bam Tai Tuivasa. Tuivasa jumped to the top of the Heavyweight Division when he Knocked out Derrick Lewis in February this is going to be a great fight worthy of a headlining the card.

Nate Diaz vs. Khamzat Chimaev UFC 279

Nate Diaz has been one of the most consistent draws in the UFC Octagon over a decade ago. The Stockton California native puts on amazing performances even when he loses especially like the performance he put on against current Welterweight Champion Leon Edward’s in Diaz’s last outing. Diaz Is a showman and I’m glad we’ll get to see him in the Octagon at least one more time. Khamzat Chimaev will be across the Octagon from Diaz. Chimaev put on the fight of the year contender when he faced off against Gilbert Burns earlier in the year.

UFC 279 Preview

UFC 279 is coming up in September with many good fights including a main event that fans will love, but doesn’t make sense at all. The first fight we’re really excited for on the UFC 279 card is Johnny Walker vs. Ion Cuțelaba. The next fight is a banger between Li Jingliang and Tony Ferguson. The Main event is a match up between MMA veteran Nate Diaz and rising MMA star Khamzat Chimaev. This is a banger card we’re super excited for.

Johnny Walker got knocked out in his last outing when he faced off against Jamahal Hill in February which was the most recent blemish in his current slide in his career losing four of his last five fights with one thinking that is he loses this fight he would probably be cut from the UFC roster. He’ll have tough competition across the UFC Octagon in Ion Cuțelaba. Cuțelaba is also in a rough patch of his career but his losses are to killers in the division like Magomed Ankalaev and former UFC Champion Glover Teixeira. With his last loss coming to Ryann Spann.

Tony Ferguson has lost his way losing his last four contests the last one being a brutal Front Kick Knockout by former Bellator Champ Michael Chandler. Ferguson seems to be being fed to the wolves much like Diaz as he will have tough competition in Li Jingliang. Li has a record with a few blemishes on it with a 19-7 record with his last loss coming against the headliner of UFC 279 Khamzat Chimaev. A fantastic addition to this card.

Khamzat Chimaev has climbed the ranks of the UFC Welterweight division leaving the bodies of his competitors in shambles. Chimaev has an impressive 11-0 record with six of those wins coming by Knockout and four by Submission and only one of those victories coming by Unanimous Decision. Nate Diaz has been on the UFC roster from 2007 until now and he’s been trying to get out of his UFC contract and I think this is the UFC’s way of saying have a good life. Diaz has a 20-13 record losing three of his last four fights against the likes of Leon Edwards, Jorge Masvidal, and Prime Conor McGregor.

The PPV will be available for purchase on ESPN+

What’s Next For Marlon ‘Chito’ Vera After UFC San Diego

Marlon “Chito” Vera put on one hell of a show when he faced off against Dominic Cruz in the UFC Octagon at UFC San Diego over the former champion with a vicious Knockout of the former Bantamweight champion. Vera has many options at 135 in our opinion. In this piece we’re going over the matchups that make sense for the rising Bantamweight. It all depends on who wins matchups at the top of the division in coming months.

The first fight I think that makes sense for Vera is the winner of the matchup between Petr Yan & Sean O’Malley. Yan is a striking master with a background in Boxing and Muay Thai the former Champion has been training hard since his title bout that he lost against current champ Aljamain Sterling. The Yan O’Malley matchup doesn’t really make sense but a matchup between Vera and Yan would definitely make more sense. As would a rematch between Vera and O’Malley the pair definitely have unfinished business.

Jose Aldo faces off against Merab Dvalishvili at UFC 278. I think the winner of that matchup would also make sense for Vera. Aldo is one of the best fighters in the lower weight classes in UFC history with 7 title defenses of his 145 pound belt. Vera could be an interesting matchup for Aldo because they both can Grapple, but both have striking games so it’d be interesting to see where the fight would end up. Dvalishvili is a black belt in Judo, but the majority of his wins come from the Judges so it would be cool to see Vera try to Submit or Knockout the Georgian.

One matchup I really like for vera is Cory Sandhagen. Sandhagen has an impressive 14-4 I think Sandhagens striking and grappling would be put to the test with Vera. as Chito can go toe to toe and I think the grappling exchanges would go in Vera’s direction I want to see this matchup. But it all depends on Sandhagen’s next performance when he faces off against Song Yadong who is a really tough matchup for the 135er but I think Vera vs Sandhagen is really the fight to make if the matchups above don’t work out.

I’m super excited to see who Vera takes on next as he is definitely on his way to a title fight.

Fighter Profile: Paulo Costa

MMA has many entertaining figures in the sport with many who share memes and jokes, but none are as funny as UFC Middleweight Paulo Costa. The Brazilian is not only funny but has the skills to back up his internet hijinks in the cage sporting an impressive 13-2 record with losses in his last two outings. He hopes to get into the win column when he fights again at UFC 278 in his first outing of the year.

Costa was born April 21st, 1991 in Belo Horizonte, Minas Gerais, Brazil he is the youngest of two siblings. Costa was an athlete growing up playing soccer and taking up Muay Thai. He’d later try Jiu jitsu but would quit the art when his father would pass away. Costa would later return to the sport, and would eventually gain a Black Belt in the art, the hardest belt to achieve in any martial art. But Costa had one thing that set him apart from other grapplers who move to MMA and that was his hands.

Costa made his Professional MMA debut in Febuary 2012 when he faced off against Teo Esteves for the MMA Total Combat promotion. He’d win the fight by TKO (head kick and punches.) He’d then face Ademilson Borges winning the fight by TKO (head kick and punches.) In his next bout Costa would face Fábio Moreira; he’d win this fight by TKO (punches.) He’d then win his next four of five fights by Knockout.

Costa would make his UFC debut in March 2017 against Garreth McLellan he’d win the fight by TKO (punches.) He’d then face Oluwale Bamgbose winning with a second round TKO. Johny Hendricks would be next for Costa and by no big surprise Costa would win the bout via TKO. He’d then beat Uriah Hall and Yoel Romero, before getting a title shot. Costa would get his title shot at UFC 253 when he faced off against Middleweight legend Israel Adesanya. He’d lose this fight and his next outing against Marvin Vettori.

We can’t wait to see what Costa does in the Octagon next.

UFC 278 Preview

Photo Courtesy of Chris Unger/Zuffa LLC/GETTY

UFC 278 Is a few weeks away and it is absolutely stacked. The first fight of interest is a matchup between José Aldo and Merab Dvalishvili. This fight will immediately be followed up by the funniest MMA fighter on the Internet Paulo Costa who will be facing off against Luke Rockhold. The Main event will be a title fight between Kamaru Usman and 19-3 Leon Edwards which is a rematch between the pair, who first faced off in December of 2015.

José Aldo is tough as nails and was at one point considered to be the best UFC Featherweight of all time. And if you look at all of Aldo’s losses were to killers like Petr Yan, Max Holloway, and Alexander Volkanovski. Aldo has won his last three and hopes to make it four wins a row. He is set to take on Merab Dvalishvili who is riding a seven fight win streak holding a 14-4 MMA record. The Georgian has a background in Wrestling, khridoli, Sambo and Judo.

If you don’t follow Paulo Costa you probably should. The Brazilian is one of the funniest men in MMA and talks shit on the internet. The Jiu Jitsu Black Belt has a 13-2 record and is on a two fight losing streak, but hopes to get back into the win column when he faced off against Luke Rockhold. Rockhold is also a Black Belt in Jiu Jitsu who has a 16-5 record with all of those loses coming against tough opposition like Michael Bisping, Vitor Belfort, and Jan Błachowicz. This fight is a banger.

The main event is really something to behold, a rematch seven years in the making. Kamaru Usman wasn’t the Champion back then, but now he is and the 170 pound title is on the line. Since their last meeting Edwards has gone without a loss and he hopes to get revenge from his loss against Usman with a win against the 170 pound champion.Usman looks to add another title defense to his resume when he fights against Edwards. Usman is phenomenal in the UFC Octagon with a perfect promotional record and an overall 20-1 record.

UFC 278 is a great card and will be live on ESPN+ PPV. It’s sure to be a night of great fights.

What’s Next For Amanda Nunes After UFC 277?

Amanda Nunes and Julianna Peña put on a Fight of the Year candidate at UFC 277 when they faced off in their second meeting. In this piece we’ll go over some of the options that Dana White and the UFC Matchmakers have for the greatest women’s fighter of all time. Could a third fight with Peña be in the cards? Could a fight with Valentina Shevchenko be in order? Or Could a matchup with someone in the Defunct Featherweight division be next for Nunes?

Peña has gone toe to toe with the GOAT multiple times now and has a 1-1 record against the champ. I think the promotion would love to make a third fight as it would definitely be a money maker, but I don’t know if it will be next for the Champ. In the seven rounds that the pair have faced off against each other Nunes has won six of them, making one think with how lopsided the fight was, is it really needed as there’s other fighters in the division that deserve a crack at 135. So I think that rematch will happen again but not right away.

Fans would love to see a matchup with Valentina Shevchenko. Since their last meeting Shevchenko has gone on a crazy title reign at 125 where she’s literally cleaned out the division much like the way Nunes did at 135 and 145. Shevchenko is 0-2 in her matchups with Amanda Nunes, but they both have run out of people to fight so it would make sense that Dana White would make this fight as it would make money and when two champions fight its something very special the fans would love to see.

Could a matchup at 145 be in the cards for Amanda Nunes. The division has a handful of fighters left on the roster. It seems like it’d be interesting to bring back the division with a new season of the Ultimate fighter where the winner takes on Amanda at the end of the season. White’s done odder things with the series, including adding divisions to the biggest MMA promotion naming champions, this would make sense to fans as they’re probably dying for another season of the Show as it just wrapped its latest season where Nunes coincidentally was a head coach of one of the teams.

These are some possibilities or ideas that would definitely work for the two division champ.

UFC 277 Preview

The UFC is having two interesting PPV cards this month with the second coming up at the end of the month headlined by the rematch of Amanda Nunes vs. Julianna Peña at UFC 277 for the UFC Bantamweight title. The card also features other great bouts including a matchup between Light Heavyweight Magomed Ankalaev and MMA veteran Anthony Smith. Heavyweight Derrick Lewis will also be fighting in a bout with Sergei Pavlovich. The Co-Main event will be a matchup between former Men’s Flyweight champion Brandon Moreno and Kai Kara-France.

A bout between Light Heavyweight Magomed Ankalaev and Anthony Smith is the first fight we’re excited for. Smith who has been fighting MMA for almost a decade and a half has compiled a career 36-16 record and is riding a three fight win streak since going through his last rough patch where he lost three out of four fights. He will be facing Magomed Ankalaev who came into the UFC in 2018 and since losing his promotional debut has not lost since with an amazing 17-1 record. Ankalaev hails from Dagestan and is a wrestler and a master of sport in combat Sambo.

Knockout artist Derrick Lewis will be facing off against Sergei Pavlovich at UFC 277. Lewis who is one of the most active fighters, lost in his last outing when he faced off against Tai Tuivasa at UFC 271. Lewis who hails from Houston is an interesting case as he doesn’t care about titles or glory he cares about knockouts and getting paid and going back to his property and his cars and living peacefully. Lewis is an entertainer and he looks to add to add to his knockout count when he stands across the Octagon against Pavlovich. Pavlovich is a talented wrestler who has heavy hands, with 12 of his 15 wins coming by way of knockout.

The Co-Main Event at UFC 277 is a matchup between former Men’s Flyweight champion Brandon Moreno and Kai Kara-France. Moreno is coming off his title fight against Deiveson Figueiredo where he lost his belt to Brazilian Deiveson Figueiredo. Moreno has an odd looking 19-6-2 record. Kara-France is a formidable opponent for Moreno in his last outing Kara-France beat a then undefeated Askar Askarov. Before that he had a great TKO victory over former Champion Cody Garbrandt. Kara-France hopes to beat another former UFC Champion.

The biggest upset in the MMA world was when Julianna Peña shocked the world and took the Bantamweight title from Amanda Nunes. The pair which are coaches on the Ultimate Fighter will face off again for the Bantamweight title at UFC 277. Nunes is still a favorite on every sports book for the rematch but not as heavy a favorite as she was in the last fight, where Peña showed everyone what a puncher’s chance really means.

Peña did everything she said she was going to do to Nunes, proving that she is a fierce opponent worthy of taking on any fighter in the division. Nunes, who holds her Black Belt in Judo and Jiu Jitsu and can throw her heavy hands, successfully defended the Bantamweight belt five times and won the Featherweight title in the process of defending that belt twice. We shall see if she regains the Bantamweight belt next from current champ Peña.