Three Great MMA Fights Coming In The Month of June

Photo By: Stephen R. Sylvanie-USA TODAY Sports

June is already here and Bellator and the UFC have some killer fights coming up in the month of June. The first two are from the biggest MMA promotion’s first PPV in Asia since the onset of the Covid-19 pandemic. The other fight is a matchup between Bellator Middleweights in a championship bout.

Joanna Jedrzejczyk vs. Weili Zhang UFC 275

Former UFC Strawweight champions Joanna Jedrzejczyk and Weili Zhang will face off in the UFC Octagon at UFC 275 in the rematch of their epic championship bout which has been called the greatest Women’s MMA fight of all time where Zhang inflicted so much damage on Jedrzejczyk that she had a giant hematoma on her head the size of a small Nerf football. It was a major fight for the Division which was only about 6 years old at the time. And got a lot of people that weren’t into the idea of Women’s MMA to actually enjoy female MMA. Zhang has been training with Henry Cejudo in recent camps. It is also rumored that former champion Rose Namajunas has reached out to Jedrzejczyk to help prepare her for the showdown at UFC 275.

Valentina Schevchenko vs. Taila Santos UFC 275

The second fight we’re excited for is a matchup between Flyweight Champion Valentina Schevchenko and Taila Santos for the Flyweight title. Schevchenko has shown mastery in the UFC cage throughout her UFC career with her only two losses of her career coming against Female MMA G.O.A.T. former two division champ Amanda Nunes. Schevchenko’s striking is next level and we think this is a great matchup for the fans as Santos is also a striker growing up in a house with a father who was a Muay Thai coach, she is riding a four fight win streak with wins over ‘Meatball’ Molly McCann, Submission specialist Gillian Robertson and UFC veterans Roxanne Modafferi, and Joanne Wood.

Gegard Mousasi vs Johnny Eblen Bellator 282

Former Strikeforce and UFC veteran Gegard Mousasi will return to the Bellator Cage in a few weeks at Bellator 282 live from Mohegan Sun Arena in Uncasville, CT. In his last appearance in the Bellator cage Mousasi faced off against a then Undefeated Austin Vanderford and made quick work of the heavily tatted in his second successful title defense which extended Mousasi’s win streak to four wins in a row. Since entering Bellator, Mousasi has an impressive 7-1 promotional record. His opponent Johnny Eblen, much like Vanderford, is undefeated. Mousasi will look to put an end to Eblens run to the top of the Bellator Middleweight division.

UFC 275 Preview

UFC 275 is right around the corner in June which is headlined by two major title fights. We have three fights that we are really excited about. The first fight we’re excited for is a rematch between Joanna Jędrzejczyk and Zhang Weili, the first fight between the pair was one of the craziest female UFC fights of all time. The next fight we’re excited for is between Flyweight Champion Valentina Schevchenko and Taila Santos for the title. The final fight we’re very excited for is a matchup between Light Heavyweight Champion Glover Teixeira and Jiří Procházka for the belt in one of the most interesting divisions since it was left by former Champion Jon Jones.

Joanna Jędrzejczyk and Zhang Weili faced off at UFC 248 in March of 2022 for the Strawweight title. The pair put on one hell of a show, with Zhang Weili doing a significant amount of damage on Jędrzejczyk causing a giant hematoma on Jędrzejczyk’s head the size of a Nerf Football. Jędrzejczyk has some of the best striking in Women’s MMA and looks to win this rematch with hopes of getting back to wearing the Strawweight title by the end of this year. It is Rumored Former Two time Strawweight Champion, and former rival Rose Namajunas will be helping Jędrzejczyk with her camp. It should be interesting to see how this one goes down.

The next fight that night is a matchup between Flyweight Champion Valentina Schevchenko and Taila Santos for the Flyweight title. Schevchenko has shown mastery in the UFC cage throughout her UFC career with her only two losses of her career coming against Female MMA G.O.A.T. former two division champ Amanda Nunes. Schevchenko’s striking is next level and we think this is a great matchup for the fans as Santos is also a striker growing up in a house with a father who was a Muay Thai coach, she is riding a four fight win streak with wins over ‘Meatball’ Molly McCann, Submission specialist Gillian Robertson and UFC veterans Roxanne Modafferi, and Joanne Wood.

The next fight is a matchup between Light Heavyweight Champion Glover Texieira and Jiří Procházka. Teixeira shocked the MMA world when he won the Light Heavyweight strap in October at UFC 267 at the age of 42 making him the oldest first time Champion in the UFC. The victory, which came by Submission (rear-naked choke,) won Teixeira Fight of the Night Honors. Procházka is riding a 12 fight win streak and is undefeated in his two fights in the UFC. Procházka is no stranger to big fights as he won the inaugural Rizin Light Heavyweight Championship and defended his belt once. 25 of Procházka’s 28 wins have come by means of Knockout. It will be interesting to see who comes out of this title fight on top.

We’re excited for this card. It should be awesome to see who wins.

Fighter Profile: Casey O’Neill

Casey O’Neill entered the UFC in 2021 and since then has gone on a wrecking course towards the top of the Flyweight Division. She looked good in her last outing when she faced women’s MMA veteran Roxanne Modafferi, in Modafferi’s last fight in the UFC. O’Neill is undefeated in her pro career and if she plays her cards right she could find herself in the UFC Octagon across from current Flyweight Champion Valentina Schevchenko as Women’s Flyweight is one of the UFC’s shallowest active divisions.

O’Neill was born Irvine, Scotland on October 7, 1997 to a father who was a Professional Kickboxer. O’Neill would start training in the art at age of four. She’d eventually start training Brazilian Jiu Jitsu. Her family would eventually move to Australia’s Gold Coast. It was here that O’neill attended Coombabah State High School. While in school her father reluctantly let her take part in her first amateur MMA fight when she was only 15 years of age. She’d lose the contest by TKO to a 19 year old woman. O’Neill would compile a 5-2 record as an amateur before turning pro.

O’Neill made her professional debut against Amira Hafizovic in April of 2019 she’d win the fight via Unanimous Decision and would win the Eternal MMA Strawweight Championship. She’d then face Jada Ketley in July of 2019 O’Neill got the victory by Submission (Rear-Naked Choke.) Miki Motono would be next for O’Neill she’d win the bout by Unanimous Decision on the judge’s scorecards. She’d then move up to Flyweight to fight Caitlin McEwen and would get the nod from the judges again. Christina Stelliou would be her final fight in a non major promotion. O’Neill would win the bout via Knockout, the first of her professional career.

O’Neill’s next bout would be her first fight in the biggest MMA promotion in the world, the UFC. She’d face Shana Dobson and would win via TKO (Punches.) She’d then face Lara Procópio winning by Technical Submission (Rear-Naked Choke) in June of 2021. She’d then face Current Flyweight Champion Valentina Schevchenko’s sister Antonina Schevchenko in October of 2021. O’Neill would win the fight by TKO (Punches.) O’Neill would then face Roxanne Modafferi at UFC 271 in Modafferi’s retirement fight. O’Neill would get the victory in a Split Decision.

O’Neill is currently ranked 12th in the UFC Flyweight division. It is not known who will be next for her.

Fighter Profile: Jessica Andrade

Jessica Andrade celebrates after her victory at UFC 266. — Andrade after victory Photo courtesy of Alex Bierens de Haan/Getty Images

Jéssica Andrade is one of the best female fighters in the UFC and is currently ranked first in the UFC Flyweight division right under Current Champion Valentina Schevchenko and sixth in the overall pound for pound rankings. The Former Strawweight champion has a 22-9 record and if you look at her nine losses you will quickly realize that she lost to all of the most dangerous women in the world who were at the top of their game.

Andrade was born in Umuarama, Paraná, Brazil on September 25, 1991 she is the daughter of parents who were farmers and she would work on her family’s farm until it was municipalized and thus her child labor was not allowed anymore. Growing up she played soccer and she even got offers to play for a São Paulo Soccer club, but her parents would not let her move, at this time Andrade decided to train Judo and eventually would also take up Jiu Jitsu. She’d eventually earn a Black belt in Brazilian Jiu-Jitsu under Gilliard Paraná.

Andrade would soon turn her focus to MMA. She’d make her professional MMA debut against Weidy Borges on September 6, 2011 Andrade would win by TKO (Punches.) She’d then face Bruna Fernandes winning by TKO (Punches.) She then get the first loss of her career when she faced Kinberly Novaes in May of 2012. She’d get back to her winning ways two weeks later when she faced Lilian Correia winning by TKO (Body Punch.) She’d win her next five fights before dropping a fight to Jennifer Maia in Samurai FC. She’d win her next two fights both by Submission before going to the UFC.

Andrade would make her UFC debut in July of 2013 when she faced off against Liz Carmouche. Andrade would unfortunately lose the bout by TKO. She’d win her next the fights against Rosi Sexton, Raquel Pennington, and Larissa Pacheco. She’d then lose two of her next three including a rematch with Raquel Pennington. She’d then move down to Strawweight where she’d face Jessica Penne in her Strawweight debut Winning by TKO (Punches.) She’d win her next two fights against Joanne Calderwood and Angela Hill before she faced off against Joanna Jędrzejczyk at UFC 211 for the Strawweight Belt.

Andrade was not deterred and would win her next bout against Cláudia Gadelha. She’d then face Tecia Torres winning by unanimous decision. Karolina Kowalkiewicz would be up next for Andrade she knocked her out in round one. She’d then face Rose Namajunas at UFC 237 the UFC Women’s Strawweight Championship. Andrade would win by KO (Slam) and thus winning the title. She’d then lose her belt her next fight when she faced Zhang Weili. She’d then face Namajunas again ultimately losing a Split Decision. She’d get back in the win column against Katlyn Chookagian when she went up a weight class winning by TKO (Body Punches) she’d then get a shot at the Flyweight title against Valentina Schevchenko. Schevchenko would win by TKO (Elbows.) She’d win her next fight against Cynthia Calvillo by TKO (Punches) at UFC 266.

Andrade is set to face Amanda Lemos in April and will hopefully get two in a row.

Predicting The UFC’s Champions at the End of 2022

Valentina Shevchenko: Amanda Nunes Knows 'She Was Gifted The Victory' In Second Fight | MiddleEasy

Before the UFC’s beginning of 2022 kickoff on Saturday we decided to take a look at what divisions we think will have new champions come the End of 2022 and which divisions will likely have the same champion by the end of this year. We think that this might be a controversial list, but I think that there are some things that definitely need to be said.

Men’s Bantamweight: Petr Yan

Current Champion Aljamain Sterling won his belt due to an illegal knee. It truly was “The Illegal Knee Heard Around the World” and Petr Yan was winning that fight before that happened. Many people thought Sterling was faking it, but under current Unified Rules that was a valid way for Sterling to win a belt and one of the wildest ways I think a UFC title has ever been won. Yan is currently the interim champion of the Bantamweight division after fighting Cory Sandhagen for an interim title after Sterling pulled out of the Rematch. Before facing Sterling, Yan was riding a ten fight win streak and was the Bantamweight Champion and we think he will have UFC gold by the end of 2022.

Women’s Bantamweight: Valentina Schevchenko

Julianna Peña shocked the world at UFC 269 When she beat Amanda Nunes and won the Bantamweight title, a title Nunes had held since 2016 at UFC 200 when she choked out Miesha Tate. We think that Peña won’t hold UFC gold for long and will eventually lose it to either Amanda Nunes or Valentina Schevchenko We’re going to go out on a limb here and say that Schevchenko moves back to Bantamweight and goes after Champ Champ status Schevchenko literally has cleaned out the Flyweight division and the only real challenger that might come her way is former Bantamweight Champion Miesha Tate who is moving down to Flyweight. But we think Schevchenko will be Champ Champ by the end of 2022.

Men’s Heavyweight: Jon Jones

Arguably the greatest MMA fighter of all time, we predict Jon Jones will be Heavyweight Champion by the end of 2022. Jones, who was putting on weight to fight at 265 pounds before his most recent legal trouble. He has not fought since February 2020 when he defended the Light Heavyweight title. Jones who has been M.I.A. throughout the whole pandemic and was in talks to fight Francis Ngannou after Ngannou won the title against Stipe Miocic in March. We hope that Jones fights the winner of Ngannou vs Ciryl Gane when the pair fight their unification bout later this month at UFC 270.

Champions we think will stay the same in 2022:

Women Strawweight: Rose Namajunas

Women’s Flyweight: Valentina Schevchenko

Men’s Flyweight: Brandon Moreno

Men’s Featherweight: Alexander Volkanovski

Women’s Featherweight: Amanda Nunes

Men’s Lightweight: Charles Oliveira

Men’s Welterweight: Kamaru Usman

Men’s Middleweight: Israel Adesanya

Light Heavyweight: Glover Teixeira