Despite losing title challenger Gilbert Burns due to a positive COVID-19 test over the weekend, the UFC is looking at one of their original hopeful challengers to welterweight champion Kamaru Usman to fill the pay-per-view void.
According to published reports, Jorge Masvidal has taken his place and barring negative COVID tests from either he or Usman, the fight is expected to headline this Saturday’s UFC 251. ESPN’s Ariel Helwani said both men have agreed to the fight.
Helwani reported that both men will be on their way to Las Vegas shortly where they will need to take another test, pass, fly to Abu Dhabi, take another test, pass, and then another test on Friday, similar to what other fighters on these Fight Island shows are having to do.
The UFC has yet to make an official announcement about any of this, even Burns being out of the fight, until both men pass their tests and the fight can officially be signed.
He and Usman were initially targeted over several months and had a notable verbal altercation while doing interviews on Radio Row during Super Bowl week. After a failure to come to a deal on the fight, Masvidal became increasingly vocal both about pay and of the promotion, choosing to sit out despite Dana White saying he had signed a new contract. Burns, coming off a recent win over former champion Tyron Woodley, became an easy, and less expensive, option.
Masvidal’s last fight was his win over Nate Diaz in November 2019 for the “BMF” title while Usman cruised to a win over Colby Covington last December.
The kickoff to four Fight Island events has already taken a hit as UFC welterweight champion Kamaru Usman vs. Gilbert Burns is off next Saturday’s UFC 251.
The reason: Burns, his brother, and another cornerman tested positive for COVID-19, first reported by MMA Junkie. A teammate of Burns that doesn’t fight in the UFC also recently tested positive.
Burns (pictured above) remained positive about the situation in a tweet while Usman has yet to acknowledge the situation on social media.
The team had flown from Florida to Las Vegas where UFC has set up a testing hub before flying people to Yas Island in Abu Dhabi. It’s expected the Usman-Burns fight will take place on another show, which is why they didn’t look for a last minute replacement to fight Usman.
As of this writing, UFC nor ESPN haven’t announced the fight is off the show.
The UFC 251 main card features two other title fights: featherweight champion Alexander Volkanovski vs. Max Holloway in a rematch and Petr Yan vs. Jose Aldo for the vacant men’s bantamweight title in addition to Rose Namajunas vs. Jessica Andrade 2 and the return of Paige VanZant.
The PPV is the first of four July events in Yas Island, the other three airing on ESPN and ESPN+.
Jorge Masvidal’s resurgent 2019 might not translate into an immediate big payday fight against Conor McGregor, but it appears he will get the next best thing: a UFC title shot.
During an appearance on Jim Rome’s radio show and Will Cain’s ESPN radio show Friday as part of Super Bowl week festivities, Dana White said that Masvidal (pictured above) will challenge welterweight champion Kamaru Usman during July’s International Fight Week in Las Vegas.
“That fight’s happening,” he said while airing frustrations about the verbal pull-apart conflict Masvidal and Usman had on Radio Row Wednesday while doing media. No agreements have been signed as of this writing.
White also told Rome that a Masvidal win might mean a subsequent title defense in his hometown of Miami, Florida. The UFC has only held one event in that city, UFC 42 back in 2003, headlined by then-welterweight champion Matt Hughes defeating Sean Sherk in front of less than 7000 people.
There was some hope Masvidal and McGregor would fight after McGregor’s dominant win over Donald Cerrone in January when Masvidal was in attendance. White, however, seems convinced on making the McGregor-Khabib Nurmagomedov rematch happen if the UFC lightweight champion can defeat Tony Ferguson in April.
Masvidal is coming off a November TKO win over Nate Diaz for the newly-created promotional tool known as the BMF title while Usman finished rival Colby Covington in December for Usman’s first title defense.
We’ve got what will be one of the biggest issues of the year, a double issue with a look at the lives and careers of Rocky Johnson, La Parka and Kendo Nagasaki, plus what will be one of the biggest news stories of 2020, the AEW new television extension with TNT through 2023.
The lead story goes into the life and career of Rocky Johnson, the father of Dwayne Johnson and one of pro wrestling’s biggest stars of the 1970s. We talk about Johnson’s death this past week, his ancestry, the story of him being kicked out of the house at 13, his background in boxing and wrestling along with ties to both Muhammad Ali and George Foreman, as well as where the name Rocky Johnson came from.
We talk about his main skills, his dropkicks, the birth of Dwayne Johnson, the best television match on Roy Shire television of the 70s, his quick rise to main events and championships, and how his run in Los Angeles in 1970 made him into one of the biggest stars in pro wrestling. We cover his years in San Francisco, his landmark program with Jerry Lawler, his headlining in St. Louis, his world title battles, early championships and his brother, as well as how Dwayne Johnson got started in pro wrestling.
The new issue also covers:
Full details of the new television deal between AEW and TNT, including the value, the options, how this relates to the old deal, how this compares to other deals, what we know about the second show, questions this brings up regarding WWE countering, stars that are about to become free agents, Tony Khan talks the new deal, and the ratings in 18-49 and value per episode update on Raw, Smackdown, NXT and AEW and what type of value did TNT get for its money.
The death of La Parka, including his connection with the first La Parka, as well as the uncle of the first La Parka. We look at his career before La Parka, his rise to fame in AAA, his period on top, his biggest feuds, his heel turn and why it flopped, L.A. Park comments on his rival and more on his biggest matches.
The death of Kazuo Sakurada, the Japanese Kendo Nagasaki. We look at his connection with Bret Hart, with comments by Bret Hart, Ross Hart and Fumi Saito. How Dusty Rhodes created Kendo Nagasaki and who it was copied from. Many of his other wrestling names. Sakurada’s tough guy reputation and his days in sumo prior to pro wrestling. How he got into pro wrestling, his original relationships with Giant Baba and Genichiro Tenryu, his day in Stampede Wrestling as one of its biggest tag team stars, his wrestling in Japan, Mid South, WCW and the story of he and Bruiser Brody from Puerto Rico. His fights in the ring,and his one MMA fight.
Next WWE show in Saudi Arabia, a new Dwayne Johnson television show, a new Miz television show, notes on the return of Big Show, Paul Levesque and Paige, Bret Hart filming a WWE show, Brock Lesnar honored, WWE trademarks, WWE BT party in London,WWE European ratings, notes on several new WWE signings as well as a major star who has met with Paul Levesque about coming in. We look at the next MSG show, DVR viewership of WWE programming, plus a look at all the WWE & NXT live events over the past week with results,highlights and business notes.
Update the Royal Rumble and World Collide shows and how tickets are selling for the next round of major WWE events.
The Tessa Blanchard controversy and her winning the Impact title, with comments from many in wrestling and a full rundown of TNA Hard to Kill with match-by-match coverage, star ratings and poll results.
Update the changes at Bellator in structuring, who is now in charge and what may be happening next.
More money being sent into MMA with the PFL, its new ownership and revenue sources and how much new capita they now have.
Coverage of the WWE U.K. Takeover show, with show notes, business notes, match-by-match coverage with star ratings and poll results of the show.
The 2019 Wrestling Observer Awards ballot.
Regarding the Wednesday numbers, we’ve got full details, demos that each side won, how every segment did and what match ended up as the difference maker.
Full coverage of all the WWE and AEW television shows from the past week.
In-depth looks at the ratings of all the major shows, the key demos and quarters for AEW and WWE, what happened head-to-head and what can be learned from them.
Results of all the major pro wrestling events around the world over the past week.
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WEDNESDAY NEWS UPDATE
WWE
On today’s episode of WWE’s The Bump, Robert Stone said Chelsea Green will be wrestling on NXT tonight. The Dusty Rhodes Tag Team Classic finals will also take place, with Matt Riddle & Pete Dunne facing The Grizzled Young Veterans (Zack Gibson & James Drake). The winning team will challenge for Kyle O’Reilly & Bobby Fish’s NXT Tag Team titles at TakeOver: Portland. Tegan Nox vs. Dakota Kai is also set for tonight, and Adam Cole’s TakeOver: Portland challenger will be revealed.
In a video for the WWE Performance Center’s YouTube channel, Matt Riddle discussed his Royal Rumble appearance and still wanting to face Brock Lesnar. Riddle said he doesn’t care what Lesnar says or whether he wants the match or not, it isn’t up to him. Riddle said he’s going to make that match happen and take Lesnar’s career.
WWE Backstage averaged 97,000 viewers on FS1 last night, down from the 111,000 it averaged last week. The rating in the 18-49 demo was a 0.04, down from last week’s 0.06. Last Tuesday’s show had appearances by CM Punk and Becky Lynch, while last night’s show was filmed in Miami and featured Roman Reigns and The New Day.
Ronda Rousey will be one of the guests on tomorrow’s episode of Corey Graves’ After the Bell podcast. WWE uploaded a clip from the podcast where Rousey praises Rhea Ripley and says she’s looking forward to seeing if they ever get the opportunity to face each other. Rousey also said she hopes Charlotte Flair faces Ripley at WrestleMania. MVP and Santino Marella are the other guests on tomorrow’s After the Bell.
Andrade commented on his recent wellness policy violation on Instagram, saying “Never quit because things got tough, remember where you come from and where you are going.”
NXT took advantage of their head start over AEW by hitting a home run with last week’s live premiere.
It wasn’t surprising that NXT’s first live episode was good — it would have been pretty shocking if it wasn’t. Even if there have been occasional peaks and valleys, NXT has always been a good show. Triple H and his team know what they’re doing and the roster is stacked with talent. But NXT was able to pass one of their most important tests: creating a show that feels must-see and different from what they were already offering viewers.
It’s become clear that NXT is going to be a place that features all of WWE’s non-main roster sub-brands. In addition to the regular NXT talent on display, the show featured an appearance by WWE United Kingdom Champion WALTER and his Imperium stablemates. There was also a Cruiserweight Championship number one contender’s match, with Lio Rush making his return and defeating Oney Lorcan.
Due to the final episodes of the USA Network series “Suits,” the first two live editions of NXT are being split across USA and the WWE Network. Last week’s USA Network hour featured a really good fatal four-way number one contender’s match that saw Candice LeRae defeat Mia Yim, Bianca Belair, and Io Shirai to become NXT Women’s Champion Shayna Baszler’s next challenger. Cameron Grimes squashed Sean Maluta, and Roderick Strong became the new NXT North American Champion by defeating Velveteen Dream. The first NXT broadcast of the USA Network era ended with every member of Undisputed Era holding a title.
With perhaps the most important week for the U.S. industry in a decade coming up, a double issue this week:
Goes through details of the moves by WWE and AEW, what plans are, advertisers wants, promotion and much more.
Includes an extensive look at Battle of Los Angeles, New Japan’s upcoming big shows and Tokyo Dome plans, what to learn from the NXT ratings and much more.
The lead story talks about WWE’s big week, the importance of the different shows, overdoing nostalgia, ticket sales, announcing changes, 205 Live’s future, plans for all the shows, what demos to look at, what happened with AEW and ITV, NXT, Smackdown and AEW on the West Coast, replays shows, Smackdown ad rates, as well as a look at Hell in a Cell.
Impact to AXS and what the plans are for specials leading to the regular show.
The keys in week two’s NXT show and the audience change.
Brock Lesnar’s future, John Hennigan coming in, CM Punk, former UFC legend talks coming to WWE, Shayna Baszler talks her career, WWE injuries, WWE stock update, most-watched shows on WWE Network for the past week, as well as a look at every WWE & NXT arena event over the past week with results, highlights and business notes.
NJPW coverage of Destruction in Kobe, Tokyo Doe direction, King of Pro Wrestling, the Young Lions Cup and match-by-match coverage with star ratings.
Battle of Los Angeles, Bandido’s win, past winners, other PWG alumni, business notes, the good and the bad, the stars of the weekend, the stars of the future, Aramis, Alex Zayne, plus match-by-match coverage with star ratings.
Full coverage of the UFC from Mexico City along with business notes.
Full coverage of all the WWE television shows from the past week.
Results of all the major pro wrestling events around the world over the past week.
ORDERING INFO: Order the print Wrestling Observer right now and get it delivered via mail, by sending your name, address, Visa or Master Card number and an expiration date to [email protected] or by going to www.paypal.com directing funds to [email protected].
Rates in the United States are $14.50 for 4 issues, $35.50 for 12, $70 for 24, $116 for 40 and $149.50 for 52.
In Canada and Mexico, the rates are $16 for 4, $27 for 8, $38.50 for 12, $76 for 24, $126 for 40 and $162.50 for 52.
For the rest of the world, rates are $18 for 4, $48.50 for 12, $93 for 24, $155 for 40 and $201.50 for 52.
If you order by mail with a check, cash or money order to P.O. Box 1228, Campbell, CA 95009-1228, you can get $1 off in every price range.
TUESDAY NEWS UPDATE
Additional notes by Joseph Currier
WWE
Tomorrow’s episode of NXT is listed as having a 15-minute overrun, meaning it will end at around 10:15 p.m. ET.
Joaquin Wilde gave an update on his orbital bone surgery: “My eye is swollen shut but i just wanted to let yall know that surgery was a success and im officially on the road to recovery. I have a steel plate in my face now. Surgeon said 4 weeks til i can start doing stuff again. So ill be back at it real soon!”
Jon Moxley sent out a tweet hyping up his appearance on tomorrow’s AEW Dynamite premiere: “Moxley. Live TV. Pissed Off. Tomorrow night. TNT. #AEWDynamite”
Cody, Brandi Rhodes, and MJF are doing a meet-and-greet at Anniversary Plaza on the south side of the Illini Union in Urbana, Illinois at noon Central time this Thursday.
Ohio Valley Wrestling moves to Tuesdays starting tonight on Louisville’s local channel 21, WBNA.
John Morrison has been added to RetroMania Wrestling, an upcoming video game based on WWF WrestleFest that is coming out for the PC, Xbox One and Nintendo Switch.
UFC/MMA
UFC today officially confirmed that the Kamaru Usman vs. Colby Covington Welterweight title fight is back on, this time for UFC 245 on December 14.
A warrant has been issued for Anthony “Rumble” Johnson stemming from a missed court date. He was scheduled to be in court in relation to a misdemeanor domestic violence charge from earlier this year.
The first two episodes of UFC Embedded for UFC 243 are now available.
Georges St-Pierre’s coach Firas Zahabi thinks the ship has sailed regarding the idea of St-Pierre vs. Khabib Nurmagomedov at 155.
Kevin Lee vs. Gregor Gillespie is being targeted for UFC 244 in New York.
The final UFC pay-per-view of 2019 will have three title fights.
ESPN’s Ariel Helwani and Brett Okamoto reported Friday night that welterweight champion Kamaru Usman will look for the first defense of his title against top challenger and former interim champion Colby Covington at December’s UFC 245 in Las Vegas.
UFC was trying to put the fight together for November’s UFC 244 at Madison Square Garden in New York City, but issues with both sides prevented that from happening. Both men are 15-1 with Usman riding a 14-fight win streak (10-0 in UFC) while Covington has won seven in a row. Usman won the title with a dominant victory over Tyron Woodley in March while the controversial Covington (seen above) dominated Robbie Lawler in August.
The two had a memorable exchange of words on the ESPN+ set following Covington’s victory and have been jawing at each other for months.
The fight rounds out an impressive three title fight main card which includes featherweight champion Max Holloway vs. Alexander Volkanovski and women’s bantamweight champion Amanda Nunes vs. Germaine de Randamie.
Last week was a period of arrivals and departures for WWE.
Without much advance warning, Ricochet, Aleister Black, Johnny Gargano, and Tommaso Ciampa all debuted on Raw last Monday. After news of them being backstage was reported online, WWE tweeted out pictures of them to hype that they were at the show. Triple H then opened Raw and confirmed that they would be debuting later in the night. Ricochet made a save for Finn Balor and teamed with him to defeat Bobby Lashley & Lio Rush, Black defeated Elias, and Gargano & Ciampa got a win against Raw Tag Team Champions The Revival in a non-title match.
The return of Roman Reigns and information on leukemia and how some athletes have returned quickly while having it is the lead story in the new issue of the Wrestling Observer Newsletter.
This issue is back to the usual format with a news filled issue, including comparisons of Georges St-Pierre to the other all-time greats in MMA, as well as details regarding the comings and goings in WWE including Bruce Prichard, TJP, Tye Dillinger, Arn Anderson and others.
Look at the background of the hiring of Prichard and departure of Anderson, Prichard’s past roles in WWE, how long Prichard is committed to doing live events with Conrad Thompson, and what this hire says about Vince McMahon.
Also look at plans for 2020 WrestleMania, 2019 Fan Axxess, Hardy’s contract, WWE injury updates, XFL notes, how AAF negotiated with WWE to buy XFL name, how that led to Vince doing the XFL, and football on WWE Network. Also look at how the AAF is doing.
Also look at “Fighting with my Family,” WWE star running for mayor has a major hurdle based on his past, Ric Flair’s real birthday party, Flair and Hogan history, Nikki Bella wins award, and new WWE signees.
Read notes from all the WWE and NXT events at arenas this past week, with results, highlights and business notes.
Have a look at the Matt Hughes situation, with what he’s alleged to have done, his response, and what others have said about him as well as his life post-accident.
ORDERING INFO: Order the print Wrestling Observer right now and get it delivered via mail, by sending your name, address, Visa or Master Card number and an expiration date to [email protected] or by going to www.paypal.com directing funds to [email protected].
Rates in the United States are $14.50 for 4 issues, $35.50 for 12, $70 for 24, $116 for 40 and $149.50 for 52.
In Canada and Mexico, the rates are $16 for 4, $27 for 8, $38.50 for 12, $76 for 24, $126 for 40 and $162.50 for 52.
For the rest of the world, rates are $18 for 4, $48.50 for 12, $93 for 24, $155 for 40 and $201.50 for 52.
If you order by mail with a check, cash or money order to P.O. Box 1228, Campbell,CA 95009-1228, you can get $1 off in every price range.
SUNDAY NEWS UPDATE
by Bryan Rose and Dave Meltzer
WWE
It was announced yesterday that Tommaso Ciampa will not be appearing at WLW’s Night of Champions on March 9. He is reportedly suffering from a injury, though the severity is not currently known. Adam Cole will take his place instead.
A United States title match between AJ Styles and Kevin Owens from WWE Battleground 2017 was uploaded to YouTube.
Mustafa Ali will be appearing in the series “The Secret Life of Muslims” an Emmy and Peabody Award nominated series. Ali, real name Adeel Alam, is on the show because he broke from playing the typical Muslim heel stereotype and chose to be a role model instead. The episode will air on 3/13.
NOAH held their final event with their distincitve green mat last night. The company will undergo a visual makeover on 3/11, dropping the Mitsuharu Misawa-inspired green theme it’s been known for since its formation in 2000.
Momo Watanabe broke the record earlier today for most Wonder of Stardom title defenses at the show in Nagoya. Results were: Kaori Yoneyama & Le Okazaki b Rina & Hina, Hana Kimura b Hanan, AZM & Konami b Natsuko Tora & Says Iida, Arisa Hoshiki b Starlight Kid, Utami Hayashishita NC Bea Priestley for the Eve International title when both were knocked out, Mayu Iwatani & Tam Nakano & Saki Kashima b Kagetsu & Hazuki & Natsu Sumire to keep the trios titles, Momo Watanabe b Jungle Kyona to keep the Wonder of Stardom title. Match was said to be great (thanks to Shannon Walsh)
Arnold Schwarzenegger got involved in a pro wrestling match on Saturday. It was New Oho Wrestling doing a show at the Arnold Kids and Teen Expo in Columbus, OH. Onyx was wrestling Robby Starr for the Arnold championship, and Starr tried to run away and Schwarzenegger threw him back into the ring (thanks to Tim Taylor)
Smash Wrestling on 3/8 at Fanshawe College in London, ONT. They also run 3/9 in Kitchener, ONT at the Tannery Event Centre.
New Generation Wrestling on 3/9 in Hull, ONT at the Eastmount Centre. They also run 3/16 in Nottingham at the Rushcliffe Arena and 3/17 in Keighley at Victoria Hall and 3/24 in Chester-le-Street at the Pelton Community Centre. A lot of WOS talent will be appearing on these shows.
Revolution Wrestling Federation on 3/23 at H-Mac in Harrisburg, PA,.
Johnny Mundo and P.J. Black will be appearing in Australia in April for Lucha Downunderground II in Melbourne, Sydney and Adelaide. Mundo will also work Melbourne and Sydney in June.
BCW from Friday night in Melbourne: Preston Kindred & Vance Adams b Cletus & Nick Bury & Mitch Waterman, Kellyanne b Melina (WWE) to win the women’s title, Big Cuz b Robbie E, Ken Shamrock & Carlo Cannon b Gabriel Wolfe & Jake Andrewartha to keep the tag titles, Maddog b DCT to keep the BCW title, Mick Moretti b Dowie James in an Iron man match at 65:00 when neither won a fall in the first 60 minutes.
AAW in Perth, Western Australia from last night: Roxy Ryot won Battle Royal, Delhi Dud Singh & Eric Owens b Mako Hunter & Warship and Julio Garcia & Marcio Garcia, Ajax b Hayden Zenith 3-2 in 30:00 Iron man match, Felix Young b Ricky South to keep No limits title in a really strong weapons match, Roxy Ryot b Felix Young to win the title, Chris Target over Adam Brooks and Seth Kincaid to win the AAW title, Mecha Wolf 450 b Craven, Tom Leadbetter b The Shark in a cage match to win cntrol of the promotion.
Mikey Nicholls returns to EPW, his original home promotion, on 4/6 in Perth.
Carlo Cannon, who holds the BCW tag title, broke his leg on Saturday night at a show in Melbourne for Warzone Wrestling. Cannon was trained by Lance Storm. (thanks to Kevin Chiat)
Wrestling Go from last night in Sydney, Australia: Nikki Van Blair b Cesar, Jay Sorbet b Eric Fisher, Azalea won over Arya Reign and Jasmin Vittora, Candy Lee b Stella Nyx, Jessica Troy b Kellyanne, Kingsley & Xena b Indi Hartwell & Steph De Lander, Bel Pierce b Tarlee, Shazza McKenzie b Melina. Australian historian Dann Lennard called the Jessica Troy vs. Kellyanne match possibly the best women’s live match he’s ever seen and both got a standing ovation when it was over.
UFC/MMA
Last night’s UFC prelims on ESPN did a 1.0 rating on the overnights, tying for the second best when it comes to PPV prelims since 2013. The show did 1.35 million Google searches, putting it at No. 1 for yesterday of any topic, which indicates an above average number. The key topics searched for were Jon Jones, Ben Askren and Cody Garbrandt. Notable that Kamaru Usman did not crack the top 20.
Kamaru Usman and Colby Covington confronted one another at the Palms buffet earlier today. They also had a confrontation last night as Usman was leaving the cage.
Brett Okamoto reported soon after Usman won the welterweight title that the UFC informed Covington he will receive the first title shot against him. Despite Covington being the interim champion, the UFC decided to make the the next welterweight title fight between Woodley and Usman instead.
Bonuses for last night’s UFC 235 went to Pedro Munhoz vs. Cody Garbrandt for fight of the night, while Johnny Walker and Diego Sanchez won performance of the night honors.
Dana White said after the show that Daniel Cormier and Brock Lesnar want to fight each other and will make the fight, but doesn’t know when.
Jon Jones told TMZ Sports that he ‘has a feeling’ he’ll fight Israel Adesanya. He also says he would like to fight four times in 2019.
Josh Gormley, the grandson of Jack Dempsey headlines Backyard Brawl 1 on PPV on 4/5 from Cheyenne, WY. It will be a show with ten bare knuckle boxing matches and two MMA fights.
Ed in San Antonio presents the WRESTLEMANIAWeekend Events (more to be added):
Sunday, April 6th, at 12:00 pm: Lunch (all you can eat) at Churrascaria Plataforma ($90 per person), located at 316 W. 49th street in Manhattan. Purchase tickets here~!
Luxury Bus to MetLife Stadium for Wrestlemania: We will depart from the Hilton Midtown (site of Wrestlecon) located at 1335 Avenue of the Americas. Departure time is 4:00 pm and will return from MetLife approximately 30 mins after the event. Times are subject to change, and cost $67.00 per person for the round trip. Purchase tickets here~!
Welcome to F4WOnline.com’s live coverage of UFC 235: Jones vs. Smith, emanating from the T-Mobile Arena in Las Vegas, Nevada.
The Octagon returns home to Las Vegas with a stacked card featuring two big title fights, the returns of former champions and the much-anticipated UFC debut of one of the biggest UFC signings in a while.
UFC Light Heavyweight Champion Jon Jones makes the quick turnaround as he defends the championship against Anthony Smith in the main event. Jones became the 205-pound champion once again when he defeated Alexander Gustafsson at UFC 232 in December, and he looks to continue his dominance in the division. Smith looks to score the biggest upset in UFC history, and he comes in with a lot of momentum after winning three straight fights since moving up to 205 pounds, and looking impressive in doing so.
The co-main event sees UFC Welterweight Champion Tyron Woodley make his fifth title defense as he defends against Kamaru Usman. Woodley is unbeaten in his last seven fights and is coming off a title defense against Darren Till at UFC 228 in September. Usman has won 13 straight fights and is seen as one of the biggest threats to Woodley at 170 pounds.
Also on the main card is the return of former UFC Welterweight Champion Robbie Lawler as he welcomes the debut of Ben Askren, the flashy former NCAA wrestling champion who is undefeated in 19 career fights. In the main card opener, former UFC Bantamweight Champion Cody Garbrandt looks to get back in the win column and into the title picture as he takes on Pedro Munhoz.
The stacked preliminary card airing on ESPN is capped off with a featherweight bout as long-time UFC veteran Jeremy Stephens looks to end the 12-fight win streak of Zabit Magomedshapirov. Also on the prelims is a light heavyweight bout between Misha Cirkunov and surging prospect Johnny Walker and a welterweight fight as original TUF winner Diego Sanchez battles Mickey Gall.
Follow along with our live coverage of the event beginning at 6:30 p.m. Eastern time with preliminary action all the way through the main card.
We are looking for your thoughts on tonight’s event, so send a thumbs up, a thumbs down or a thumbs in the middle along with a best fight and a worst fight to Dave at [email protected].
They trade early on. Cifers lands a right hand. Viana with some low kicks. Viana with a body kick. A lot of feeling out going on. Viana with a body kick and Cifers counters with a combo. Viana with a leg kick and then a body kick. They clinch and Viana pulls guard. Cifers with some punches from the top as Viana is going for a leg lock. Cifers gets to the half-guard and they get to their feet. Cifers with a right hand. Cifers drops Viana with a right hand. Viana gets back to her feet. Viana lands some kicks. Viana with a knee to the body at the end. 10-9 Cifers.
They trade punches. Cifers lands a punch. Viana with a combo ending with a body kick and Viana pulls guard. Cifers in the full guard and eats some elbows from Viana on the bottom. Viana controlling the positioning from the bottom. Cifers just hanging on from the top as she wants this fight on the feet. Cifers lands a hemmerfist. Viana with an elbow from the bottom. Viana landing some punches from the bottom. Cifers isn’t doing much from the top. Viana with more elbows from the bottom. Viana is winning this round from the bottom. Viana with more strikes from the bottom. 10-9 Viana, 19-19.
Viana with a some body kicks. Both land inside the pocket. Viana with a body kick and is starting to land more. She is landing kicks and knees. Cifers with a leg kick. They trade and Cifers lands a right hand. Viana lands a right hand to the body. Cifers with a right hand. Viana with a body kick and then lands some knees to the body. They clinch and Cifers lands a left hook on the break after eating some knees. Viana with a body kick. Viana with more kicks to the body and Cifers lands a counter right. They have a flurry late. Close fight. 10-9 Viana, 29-28 Viana.
Official Result- Hannah Cifers def. Polyana Viana by split decision (29-28, 28-29, 29-28)
Mazany attacking the body with some straight left hands. Chiasson with some body kicks. Chiasson with a body kick and Mazany counters with a left hand and then lands another left hand. They clinch against the fence. They break and Chiasson lands some punches and then drops Mazany with a hard right hand and finishes her with a few hammerfists on the mat. Impressive stoppage by Chiasson.
Official Result- Macy Chiasson def. Gina Mazany by TKO (strikes) at 1:49 of Round 1
> Edmen Shahbazyan (8-0, 1-0 UFC) vs. Charles Byrd (10-5, 1-1 UFC) Middleweights
Byrd with a leg kick. Shahbazyan lands a good combo. Byrd going for a takedown but eating elbows that are hurting Byrd badly and Byrd goes to the mat and is covering up and Byrd has been stopped by Shahbazyan. That was a brutal and violent finish.
Official Result- Edmen Shahbazyan def. Charles Byrd by TKO (elbows) at :38 of Round 1
ESPN PRELIMS | 8 PM ET/5 PM PT
> Diego Sanchez (28-11, 17-11 UFC) vs. Mickey Gall (5-1, 4-1 UFC) Welterweights
Sanchez comes out with a front kick but Gall counters with a big combo. Gall with a head kick that is checked. Gall with a knee to the body followed by an uppercut. They clinch and Gall with some body punches. They break and Gall with a combo. Gall lands a combo as they clinch. Sanchez trying for a takedown and Gall looks for a choke but Sanchez escapes and is on top. Sanchez gets in the guard as he eats some elbows from Gall. They stand and Sanchez with knees to the legs and then drags Gall down from the back. They get back up. Sanchez still has the back and Gall lands an elbow. Sanchez gets a takedown into the guard. Gall with some more elbows. Sanchez with elbows to the body. Sanchez in side control and looking to set up a choke. He runs out of time. 10-9 Sanchez.
Sanchez with a right hook. They trade and Sanchez gets the clinch. They break. Sanchez with a body kick. Gall with a combo. Gall with a huge left hand. Sanchez with a huge knee that hurts Gall and Gall goes to the mat. Sanchez looking to finish and Gall tries to reverse but Sanchez gets back to the top and Gall is hurt. Gall is tired. Sanchez gets the back of Gall. Sanchez gets in the full mount and is landing from the top. Sanchez with elbows. Sanchez with more hard elbows. Gall in a whole lot of trouble as Sanchez gets into the mount. Sanchez with more elbows. Sanchez gets the back and flattens Gall out. Sanchez landing lots of punches and he finishes Gall! Sanchez with a classic showing and it is his first stoppage win since 2008.
Official Result- Diego Sanchez def. Mickey Gall by TKO (punches) at 4:13 of Round 2
They trade near the fence. Stamann misses a head kick. Stamann lands a left followed by a right hand. Perez trying to land the jab but Stamann ducking away. They trade and Stamann tries a takedown but Perez escapes. Stamann lands a left hand. Stamann with an inside leg kick. Perez with a left hook to the body followed by a right hand. Stamann goes for a takedown and lands a knee as they break. Stamann with a left hook. Perez with a leg kick. Stamann goes for a takedown and Perez lands an elbow. Stamann with a brief late takedown. 10-9 Stamann.
Perez coming forward but misses a head kick. They trade punches and Stamann now pushing forward. Perez with a leg kick. Stamann with a left hook as Perez was coming in. Perez lands a left. Stamann with a counter left hand. Stamann with a body kick and he goes for a takedown. Perez defends and they break. Stamann with a left hand. Perez just misses a spinning back fist. Stamann lands a right hand and then a front kick to the body. Perez with a leg kick followed by another. Stamann goes for a takedown against the fence. Stamann with a knee to the body. Perez getting warned multiple times to not grab the cage. 10-9 Stamann, 20-18 Stamann.
Perez lands a leg kick and then gets a takedown. Perez landing some leg kicks as Stamann is on the ground. Stamann gets back up. Perez goes for a single-leg and lands a left hook on the break. Stamann with a left hand to the body and then a right hand there. They trade punches. Stamann misses a high kick. Perez lands a left hand. Perez with a leg kick. Perez with another. Stamann with a combo. Stamann goes for a takedown but Perez defends it well against the fence. They are stood up by the referee. Stamann lands a left hook. Stamann with a right hand at the end. 10-9 Perez, 29-28 Stamann.
Official Result- Cody Stamann def. Alejandro Perez by unanimous decision (29-28, 29-28, 30-27)
> Misha Cirkunov (#14, 14-4, 5-2 UFC) vs. Johnny Walker (#15, 16-3, 2-0 UFC) Light Heavyweights
Cirkunov with a leg kick. Walker with a huge flying knee that drops Cirkunov and finishes him off with a few more punches. Right around 30 seconds. Walker is a star. He may have hurt himself celebrating. It was a perfect flying knee. This guy is terrifying.
Official Result- Johnny Walker def. Misha Cirkunov by TKO (flying knee, punches) at :36 of Round 1
> Jeremy Stephens (#6, 28-15, 15-14 UFC) vs. Zabit Magomedshapirov (#13, 16-1, 4-0 UFC) Featherweights
Magomedsharipov with a leg kick. Magomedsharipov with a left hand. Stephens with a nice leg kick. Stephens with another one. Stephens just misses a spinning back fist attempt. Magomedsharipov with a body kick. Magomedsharipov with a left hand. Magomedsharipov with a head kick. Magomedsharipov with a hard leg kick and then another. Stephens with a right hand to the body. Magomedsharipov with a spinning back fist that gets blocked. Stephens chasing Magomedsharipov around the Octagon. Magomedsharipov grabbed the fence to attempt a kick and got a warning. Magomedsharipov with a left hand and then lands a groin kick and we have a timeout. Magomedsharipov with a spin kick and tried an off the cage kick. Magomedsharipov with a hard body kick. Magomedsharipov with another body kick. 10-9 Magomedsharipov.
Stephens coming forward. Magomedsharipov with a hook kick. They trade punches in close range. Magomedsharipov with a left hand. Magomedsharipov with a head kick. Stephens with a combo and lands a hard right hand. Magomedsharipov with a left hand. They trade punches. Magomedsharipov grabs the single leg and completes the takedown. Magomedsharipov gets the back of Stephens as they get to their feet. Magomedsharipov gets Stephens down again and has his back with the hooks in. Magomedsharipov with punches from the back. Magomedsharipov with some big elbows and punches. Magomedsharipov gets the full mount. Stephens gives up his back. Magomedsharipov with some elbows and rolls Stephens over. Magomedsharipov back to side control. Dominant end to the round. 10-9 Magomedsharipov, 20-18 Magomedsharipov.
Stephens with an inside leg kick. Stephens with a right hand followed by a spinning back fist. Magomedsharipov with a kick to the body. Stephens with a left hand. Magomedsharipov circling around the Octagon. Magomedsharipov goes for a takedown but it is stuffed. Stephens with a left hand. Stephens is landing more this round. Magomedsharipov tries a takedown but Stephens gets away and throws a big right hand that just misses. Magomedsharipov with a left hand. Stephens with a left hand followed by a right hand. Stephens lands a big right hand. They are trading inside the last 30 seconds. Magomedsharipov lands a combo and a left hand and gets a late takedown but eats some punches from Stephens. 10-9 Stephens, 29-28 Magomedsharipov.
Official Result- Zabit Magomedshapirov def. Jeremy Stephens by unanimous decision (29-28, 29-28, 29-28)
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> Cody Garbrandt (#2, 11-2, 6-2 UFC) vs. Pedro Munhoz (#9, 17-3 1 NC, 7-3 1 NC) Bantamweights
Munhoz lands a right hand as Garbrandt was going for a kick. They scramble and Munhoz goes for a leg lock but Garbrandt escapes and they’re on their feet. Munhoz just misses a head kick. Garbrandt with a high kick. Munhoz with a leg kick. They trade punches. Garbrandt with a combo. Garbrandt with another flurry but eats a leg kick from Munhoz. Munhoz with a spin kick and lands a right hand. They clash heads and Garbrandt is rocked from it and they go to the mat. Munhoz in the half-guard but Garbrandt gets up and lands a flying knee followed by a right hand that rocks Munhoz. They are trading in the pocket and both rocking each other. Garbrandt with a huge knee. They are trading big punches and Munhoz knocks Garbrandt out! Wow. Huge win for Munhoz. Garbrandt had Munhoz in trouble and made a reckless decision to trade punches instead of trying to be patient and finish it and it cost him the fight.
Official Result- Pedro Munhoz def. Cody Garbrandt by knockout (punches) at 4:52 of Round 1
Zhang with some kicks early. Zhang with some more kicks but eats a combo from Torres. Zhang with a leg kick. They trade. Zhang keeps going for the spin kick. They clinch and scramble to the mat and get back up and Torres lands a right hand. Zhang tries another spin kick and eats a right hand. Zhang trying for a takedown against the fence and jumps on the back and is looking for a standing choke. Torres being patient as she avoids the choke attempt and has Zhang on her back as they stand. Torres escapes and lands a right hand. Torres gets a takedown but Zhang rolls over to side control and lands some punches as the round ends. 10-9 Zhang.
Zhang throwing kicks. Torres lands a leg kick and Zhang just barely lands a spinning back fist. Torres with a combo. Zhang constantly throwing spin kicks. They trade body kicks. Torres with a left hook. Zhang with a side kick. Zhang with a left hook as Torres rushes in. Torres with a right hand. Torres with a combo. They clinch and both looking for underhooks. Zhang gets a takedown and is on top and lands. Torres reverses into the closed guard of Zhang. Torres with some hammerfists and ends the round on top. She may have stolen it late. 10-9 Torres, 19-19.
Zhang with a front kick and then a side kick. Zhang constantly coming forward and Torres has her timing down. Torres with a leg kick. Zhang with a combo and Torres fires back with a combo and they hurt each other. They clinch and Torres with a knee to the body before they break. They clinch again for a moment but break. Zhang with a leg kick. Zhang gets a trip takedown. Zhang in the half-guard and landing short elbows. Zhang keeping Torres on her back. Zhang with short punches. Zhang with short shots as the fight ends. Big round for Zhang. 10-9 Zhang, 29-28 Zhang.
Official Result- Weili Zhang def. Tecia Torres by unanimous decision (29-28, 30-27, 30-27)
> Robbie Lawler (#6, 28-12 1 NC, 13-6 UFC) vs. Ben Askren (18-0 1 NC, 0-0 UFC) Welterweights
Askren going right for the takedown and has the back of Lawler. Lawler lifsts Askren up and slams him down and is landing punches and elbows and Askren in a lot of trouble. Askren looked out there and is cut wide open. Lawler landing more. They get to their feet and Askren still holding on. Lawler with a knee to the body and they break. Lawler with a left hand. Askren wobbly on his feet. They clinch against the fence. Lawler with a big knee. Askren still holding onto Lawler. Askren gets the back of Lawler and looking for a choke. Askren has a bulldog choke and Lawler looks out but wasn’t out and Herb Dean stopped the fight. Lawler wasn’t out and is upset and Herb Dean knows he messed up. Lawler never tapped. Lawler’s arm went limp and that is when Dean grabbed the arm and then stopped the fight. Lawler may have went out for a moment. This definitely controversial.
Official Result- Ben Askren def. Robbie Lawler by submission (bulldog choke) at 3:20 of Round 1
Woodley with a right hand that just misses. Usman gets a single-leg and Woodley has the neck looking for a guillotine as they go to the mat. Usman with right hands as the choke isn’t locked in. Usman with elbows to the thighs. Usman with a knee to the legs of Woodley. They get to their feet. They trade knees and then break. Usman shoots for a single leg. Woodley defends. Usman lands a right hand and they clinch. Usman with a knee to the body. Usman with uppercuts to the body. They are separated by Marc Goddard. Usman lands a short left and they clinch. 10-9 Usman.
Usman coming forward and they clinch against the fence. Usman with short punches and knees and foot stomps. Usman lands a big elbow as they break. They clinch again and Usman with a big takedown. Usman gets into full mount. Woodley is cut above his right eye. Usman looking to set up a choke. Usman with short elbows and punches from the mount. Usman in complete control of this fight so far. Usman still in the mount position. Usman with some elbows. Usman looking for an arm-triangle. Woodley is blocking it but eating punches to the body. Woodley gets out and survives the round. 10-8 Usman, 20-17 Usman.
Woodley just misses a right hand as Usman ducks under. They clinch and Usman with punches to the body. Usman with foot stomps. They are broken up from the clinch by the ref. Usman lands a left hand after faking a takedown attempt. Woodley is constantly backing up and not throwing any combos. They clinch and Usman with short body punches before they are separated. Woodley lands a right hand. Usman lands an elbow after a clinch and then they clinch again. Usman with a foot stomp and uppercuts to the body. 10-9 Usman, 30-26 Usman.
Usman with an uppercut and Woodley grabs the neck and gets taken down by Usman. Woodley looks lost in there. Usman with body punches on the mat. Usman with shoulder strikes on the mat. Woodley is doing absolutely nothing. He looks either tired or that he’s already given up. They are stood up again. They clinch and Usman with some knees and Woodley lands a few uppercuts and they break. Usman with a big uppercut and he is teeing off on Woodley. They are throwing big punches and Usman landing big combos. Woodley lands a knee. Usman with big punches and a big elbow. Usman with an uppercut. 10-8 Usman, 40-34 Usman.
Usman goes for a single leg. Woodley has the neck but is just hanging on. Usman with some knees to the legs and then some foot stomps. Usman with a big takedown against the fence. Usman with punches to the body and short elbows. Woodley is done and this one is over. We are getting a new champion crowned here. Usman with another big elbow. Usman with more body punches. Usman with a knee to the body now. Complete domination from Usman. 10-9 Usman, 50-43 Usman.
Official Result- Kamaru Usman def. Tyron Woodley by unanimous decision (50-44, 50-44, 50-45), Usman is the new UFC Welterweight Champion
> Jon Jones (C, 23-1 1 NC, 17-1 1 NC UFC) vs. Anthony Smith (#3, 31-13, 7-3 UFC) UFC Light Heavyweight Championship
Smith with a leg kick. Jones tries to land but Smith gets out of the way. Jones with a spinning back kick to the body followed by a low calf kick. Jones coming forward and lands another spinning back kick to the body. Smith with a head kick and Jones catches the leg and pushes him against the fence. They trade knees. Jones with some shoulder strikes. They break. Smith with a low kick. Smith trying to land a left hand. Jones with a side kick to the body. Smith just misses a right hand. Jones with a head kick that Smith blocks. Jones with a side kick to the body and then a leg kick. 10-9 Jones.
Jones with a leg kick and then one to the upper body and another to the leg. They trade right hands. Jones with a body kick. Jones with a leg kick and then one high. Jones with a spinning elbow as they clinch. Jones with more shoulder strikes. Smith lands a right hand and then lands a left to the body. Jones with a leg kick. Jones with kicks to the body and legs. Smith lands a left hook. Jones with more kicks. Jones lands a left hand and Smith backs up. Jones with a leg kick and then another. Jones with an overhand right. They trade body kicks. Jones with more kicks. Jones with a right hand to the body. 10-9 Jones, 20-18 Jones.
They clinch early on and Jones with short knees. They aren’t doing much otherwise. They trade knees but still not doing much. Jones was trying for a takedown but Smith was defending. Jones with left hands to the body. Jones with a big takedown and he lands an elbow as Smith spins to sprawl position. Jones with some body punches and then some knees. Easy round for Jones. 10-9 Jones, 30-27 Jones.
Jones tries for a flying kick but misses and Smith smiles. Jones with a high kick followed by a spin kick to the body. Jones with some elbows and punches. Jones with a flying knee and he takes Smith down. Jones may have landed an illegal shot. Jones with some kicks to the legs. Jones takes the back of Smith. Smith has no offense. Jones with an elbow. Smith is cut open badly from his nose. It was from the knee. They get to their feet. Jones with another takedown. Jones has the back and lands some nasty elbows and punches. Jones with a big knee to the body and then another. Jones landed an illegal knee. We have a timeout. The knee was illegal and Jones was docked two points. 8-8 round due to the point deduction. 38-35 Jones.
They come out trading and both men landing punches. Jones goes for a takedown but Smith defends and lands a right hand on the break. They clinch and Jones landing some knees and short punches and shoulder strikes. Jones tries a takedown but Smith slips away. Jones with some punches to the body followed by shoulder strikes and an elbow. Jones with some foot stomps. Jones with a flying knee to cap it off. 10-9 Jones, 48-44 Jones.
Official Result- Jon Jones def. Anthony Smith by unanimous decision (48-44, 48-44, 48-44), Jones is still the UFC Light Heavyweight Champion
For the second straight year, WWE went with two fan-pleasing choices as their Royal Rumble winners. WWE followed up on Shinsuke Nakamura and Asuka’s wins from last year by having Seth Rollins and Becky Lynch win their respective Rumble matches on Sunday night. The results were entirely predictable, but that doesn’t mean they weren’t the right choices. While there are other stories that WWE can tell, top babyfaces beginning their road to WrestleMania by winning the Royal Rumble will pretty much always work.
A quick note that the format of this issue is different due to the fact I messed up my left hand in a bicycle crash on 1/24 making typing extremely difficult.
This issue has complete Royal Rumble and NXT results with eliminations, stats, and facts, plus Dave’s comments. It also includes star ratings, NXT awards, and notes on the post show angle.
Roman Reigns is going to be in the Rock’s new movie. There were some photos of Roman Reigns last week from where he’s been filming the new sequel of the Fast and the Furious franchise, which had been kept kind of quiet. Reigns is playing Rock’s character Hobbs’ brother…
AEW released a short video with Cody Rhodes talking about signing Jungle Boy and the announcement that on February 7th, there is a Ticket Announcement Party at the MGM from Las Vegas. Brandi teased announcing more women at that event. There is a lot of talent expected at that event. CIMA is likely going to be there…
NJPW is very confident that it will not be an issue by the time the MSG G1 Supercard show comes up, with it being several months away…
From reports of the Dallas, TX Road to G1 Supercard show, Shibata’s students, Clark Connors, Karl Fredericks, and Alex Coughlin are all seemed as really good in the technical aspect, with all their basics down, as they’re being trained with the Japanese New Japan Dojo mentality. Shibata, who is the lead trainer in the US Dojo, has interpreters with him at all time during training…
Matt Sydal’s contract with Impact Wrestling ended January 1st. He should be ready in a couple of months from a minor knee surgery he got last week…
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FRIDAY NEWS UPDATE
by Joseph Currier and Bryan Rose
WWE
PWInsider reported that Dean Ambrose is on the road with WWE this weekend and is scheduled for tonight’s Raw-brand house show in Saskatoon, Saskatchewan, Canada. The report also stated that Ambrose is scheduled for “upcoming TV tapings.”
Kevin Owens indicated that he was training with Adam Cole at the Performance Center today: “I just wrestled @AdamColePro for the first time in 4 and a half years. There was exactly one spectator. He gave it 51.25 stars.”
The trailer for “Hobbs & Shaw,” which stars Dwayne “The Rock” Johnson and Jason Statham and features Roman Reigns as one of The Rock’s brothers, has been released.
Today is Ronda Rousey’s 32nd birthday. WWE uploaded a video looking back at moments from her first year with the company.
There’s also a video on her YouTube channel taking a look at her Royal Rumble weekend.
Impact Wrestling tonight on Pursuit and Twitch features Psycho Clown vs. Fallah Bahh, Rascalz vs. Eddie Edwards and Eli Drake, Lucha Bros. and Taurus vs. LAX and Daga and the team of Killer Kross and Moose against Brian Cage and Johnny Impact.
The Giant Baba Memorial show, which is headlined by Hiroshi Tanahashi and Yoshitatsu vs. Kento Miyahara and Daisuke Sekimoto, will air live on Samurai TV on 2/19.
Eddie Edwards is heading back to NOAH to team with Atsushi Kotoge against new GHC tag champions Mohammed Yone and Quiet Storm at their next event on 3/10.
Naomichi Marufuji also made his return on this morning’s card after suffering a shoulder injury. He challenged GHC Heavyweight champion Kaito Kiyomiya to a title match, also on 3/10.
Cody Rhodes and The Young Bucks have teased that they’ll be appearing at tonight’s McAloon Productions show in Atlanta.
UFC/MMA
There was some sort of altercation at the UFC 235 presser yesterday. Ben Askren says that Kamaru Usman threatened him backstage. Usman said that they did meet each other backstage, but all they did was exchange words and that there was no threat. The two have been exchanging words over social media since December when Askren started lobbying for a interim welterweight title fight that never materialized for the now-cancelled UFC 233.
Georges St. Pierre said that Khabib Nurmagomedov was interested in facing him at one, and so was he, but the UFC wasn’t so interested in the match-up.
Holly Holm said she was unaware of the UFC cancelling her fight against Aspen Ladd until after the news was announced.
Sara Frota missed making weight by seven pounds ahead of tomorrow’s UFC event in Fortaleza, Brazil. Her strawweight fight against Livia Renata Souza is still on, but Frota will give up 40 percent of her purse.
Two new promotions are heading to UFC Fight Pass: World Extreme Cagefighting, which will have a weekly Wednesday event, and Glory Kickboxing, which will air Glory 63 tonight on the service.
Cezar Ferreira says he is out of his match against Tom Breese at UFC London due to an injury to his right knee.
Ed in San Antonio presents the WRESTLEMANIAWeekend Events (more to be added):
Sunday, April 6th, at 12:00 pm: Lunch (all you can eat) at Churrascaria Plataforma ($90 per person), located at 316 W. 49th street in Manhattan. Purchase tickets here~!
Luxury Bus to MetLife Stadium for Wrestlemania: We will depart from the Hilton Midtown (site of Wrestlecon) located at 1335 Avenue of the Americas. Departure time is 4:00 pm and will return from MetLife approximately 30 mins after the event. Times are subject to change, and cost $67.00 per person for the round trip. Purchase tickets here~!
2018 was an especially mixed year for WWE. It’s been an incredible year for WWE financially — even if that hasn’t always been mirrored by traditional metrics. They agreed to two transformative TV deals that will shape the company for years to come. WWE also reached a lucrative 10-year deal with the Saudi General Sports Authority, with the first two shows in Saudi Arabia being among the most controversial in the history of the promotion.
When the Tokyo Dome opened on March 17, 1988, the idea of pro wrestling there wasn’t even an idea.
The Dome was built to be the new modern home of two baseball teams, the Yomiuri Giants of the Central League, the team of Shigeo Nagashima and Sadaharu Oh years earlier, the unofficial national team that had all its games on NTV, and sold out every game. The Dome held 48,316 fans for baseball, but for years, every single Giants game announced the attendance as 56,000. The other team, the Nippon Ham Fighters of the Pacific League, which played there through the 2003 season, were the ones that the average person could get tickets to see.
The idea was baseball and concerts, the Rolling Stones (who have 19 Tokyo Dome sellouts), Michael Jackson (who sold 405,000 tickets for nine dates in December 1988), U2, Madonna and Japanese artists. But while it has housed numerous sporting events, including NFL and Major League Baseball, with the exception of baseball and concerts, it’s probably best known for pro wrestling.
Pro wrestling was still huge on television back then. All Japan, headed by Giant Baba, was a fixture on Nippon TV, one of the major networks. New Japan, on TV-Asahi, had matches airing in prime time.
ORDERING INFO: Order the print Wrestling Observer right now and get it delivered via mail, by sending your name, address, Visa or Master Card number and an expiration date to Dave Meltzer, or by using PayPal directing funds to [email protected].
Rates in the United States are $13 for 4 issues, $32 for 12, $61 for 24, $101 for 40 and $131 for 52. In Canada and Mexico, rates are $14.50 for 4, $35 for 12, $67 for 24, $111 for 40 and $144 or 52. In Europe, you can get the fastest delivery and best rates by sending to [email protected]. For the rest of the world, rates are $16.50 for 4, $44 for 12, $85 for 24, $141 for 40 issues and $183 for 52. If you order by mail with a check, cash or money order (P.O. Box 1228, Campbell, CA 95009-1228), you can get $1 off in every price range.)
If you are a new subscriber ordering 24 or more issues, you can choose one free classic issue or two free classic issues with a 40-issue subscription.
WWE Network News has the content listings for the Royal Rumble match and Rusev Day collections that are being uploaded to the WWE Network tomorrow.
This week’s Canvas 2 Canvas is a painting of the winged eagle WWE title from the late eighties and early nineties.
Pro Wrestling
Impact’s Homecoming event takes place tonight, returning to the Asylum in Nashville, Tennessee. Here is the card:
Johnny Impact vs. Brian Cage for the Impact World title
Tessa Blanchard vs. Taya Valkyrie for the Knockouts title
LAX vs. Fenix and Pentagon for the Impact tag team titles
Jake Crist vs. Ethan Page vs. Rich Swann vs. Trey for the X Division title
Eddie Edwards vs. Moose in a falls count anywhere match
Sami Callihan vs. Willie Mack
Eli Drake vs. Abyss in a Monster’s Ball match
Allie & Su Yung vs. Kiera Hogan & Jordynne Grace
NJPW’s post-Wrestle Kingdom press conference will stream on New Japan World for free at 10 p.m. Eastern time time tonight. It should include news for Fantastica Mania and New Beginning shows.
Lisa Marie Varon, better known as Victoria in WWE, announced on social media this afternoon that 2019 would be her last year wrestling, saying that a new adventure is to come.
TMZ Sports has footage of the David Arquette/Jocephus hair match from last night’s NWA pop-up event.
The War Kings (Crimson & Jax Dane) defeated Jay Bradley & Caleb Konley at the NW pop-up event to become the first team to qualify for the Crockett Cup, which is taking place in Concord, North Carolina on April 27.
Naomichi Marufuji will return to NOAH on their February 2 card. He has been out since November with a shoulder injury.
UFC/MMA
After Kamaru Usman said earlier this week that the fight between him and Tyron Woodley is a done deal for UFC 235, Ariel Helwani is now saying the same. Woodley in the past has said that he wants to face former interim champion Colby Covington.
Stephen “Wonderboy” Thompson is looking to challenge Anthony Pettis, who has recently expressed interest in moving up to welterweight.
A recent report from MMA Weekly says that Brock Lesnar has yet to pay a $250,000 fine from NSAC for a failed drug test back in 2016 in his fight against Mark Hunt.
2018 was an especially mixed year for WWE. It’s been an incredible year for WWE financially — even if that hasn’t always been mirrored by traditional metrics. They agreed to two transformative TV deals that will shape the company for years to come. WWE also reached a lucrative 10-year deal with the Saudi General Sports Authority, with the first two shows in Saudi Arabia being among the most controversial in the history of the promotion.
When the Tokyo Dome opened on March 17, 1988, the idea of pro wrestling there wasn’t even an idea.
The Dome was built to be the new modern home of two baseball teams, the Yomiuri Giants of the Central League, the team of Shigeo Nagashima and Sadaharu Oh years earlier, the unofficial national team that had all its games on NTV, and sold out every game. The Dome held 48,316 fans for baseball, but for years, every single Giants game announced the attendance as 56,000. The other team, the Nippon Ham Fighters of the Pacific League, which played there through the 2003 season, were the ones that the average person could get tickets to see.
The idea was baseball and concerts, the Rolling Stones (who have 19 Tokyo Dome sellouts), Michael Jackson (who sold 405,000 tickets for nine dates in December 1988), U2, Madonna and Japanese artists. But while it has housed numerous sporting events, including NFL and Major League Baseball, with the exception of baseball and concerts, it’s probably best known for pro wrestling.
Pro wrestling was still huge on television back then. All Japan, headed by Giant Baba, was a fixture on Nippon TV, one of the major networks. New Japan, on TV-Asahi, had matches airing in prime time.
ORDERING INFO: Order the print Wrestling Observer right now and get it delivered via mail, by sending your name, address, Visa or Master Card number and an expiration date to Dave Meltzer, or by using PayPal directing funds to [email protected].
Rates in the United States are $13 for 4 issues, $32 for 12, $61 for 24, $101 for 40 and $131 for 52. In Canada and Mexico, rates are $14.50 for 4, $35 for 12, $67 for 24, $111 for 40 and $144 or 52. In Europe, you can get the fastest delivery and best rates by sending to [email protected]. For the rest of the world, rates are $16.50 for 4, $44 for 12, $85 for 24, $141 for 40 issues and $183 for 52. If you order by mail with a check, cash or money order (P.O. Box 1228, Campbell, CA 95009-1228), you can get $1 off in every price range.)
If you are a new subscriber ordering 24 or more issues, you can choose one free classic issue or two free classic issues with a 40-issue subscription.
THURSDAY NEWS UPDATE
(By Bryan Rose and Joseph Currier)
WWE
TMZ Sports talked to Gene Okerlund’s son Todd who said that his father died as a result of a bad fall last month, suffering multiple broken ribs. Four days before his death, he was admitted to a nursing home. He began to have trouble breathing and was admitted to a hospital on Wednesday where he passed away.
Vince McMahon tweeted a statement on Okerlund’s passing: “It was impossible not to crack a smile whenever ‘Mean’ Gene Okerlund entered a room. He was the voice behind so many of WWE’s most iconic and entertaining moments, and the WWE family will miss him immensely.”
The final set of NXT television tapings before TakeOver: Phoenix are being held at Full Sail University tonight.
WWE’s website has an interview with Dominik Dijakovic, who has started appearing on NXT TV in recent weeks.
Drake Maverick said on yesterday’s 205 Live that new faces will be arriving in 2019, though didn’t go into details.
Braun Strowman is doing a Polar Plunge to raise money for a Boys & Girls Club in Hartford, Wisconsin. He launched a GoFundMe campaign where donations can be made.
Wrestle Kingdom 13 airs live overnight, with the pre-show gauntlet match starting at 2 a.m. Eastern time. The show will air live on New Japan World with both English and Japanese commentary available. It’s also available to purchase as a standalone event on Fite TV. Here’s the full card:
IWGP Heavyweight Champion Kenny Omega defending against Hiroshi Tanahashi
IWGP Intercontinental Champion Chris Jericho defending against Tetsuya Naito in a no DQ match
Kazuchika Okada vs. Jay White
IWGP Junior Heavyweight Champion KUSHIDA defending against Taiji Ishimori
IWGP United States Heavyweight Champion Cody Rhodes defending against Juice Robinson
IWGP Tag Team Champions Guerrillas of Destiny defending against EVIL & SANADA and The Young Bucks in a three-way match
Revolution Pro Wrestling Undisputed British Heavyweight Champion Tomohiro Ishii defending against Zack Sabre Jr.
IWGP Junior Heavyweight Tag Team Champions El Desperado & Yoshinobu Kanemaru
defending against SHO & YOH and Shingo Takagi & BUSHI in a three-way match
NEVER Openweight Champion Kota Ibushi defending against Will Ospreay
Pre-show match: Togi Makabe, Toru Yano & Ryusuke Taguchi vs. Yuji Nagata, Jeff Cobb & David Finlay vs. Hirooki Goto, Beretta & Chuckie T vs. Minoru Suzuki, Davey Boy Smith Jr. & Lance Archer vs. Hangman Page, Marty Scurll & Yujiro Takahashi in a gauntlet match to determine the number one contenders for the NEVER Openweight Six-Man Tag Team titles
A new British Heavyweight title belt will be given to the winner of Ishii vs. Sabre at the Tokyo Dome.
Impact Wrestling announced that Johnny Impact’s Survivor castmates Nick Wilson (the winner of the season) and Davie Rickenbacker will be appearing and sitting front row for Impact’s World title defense against Brian Cage at Sunday’s Homecoming PPV.
The NWA has uploaded a video hyping the David Arquette/Jocephus hair vs. hair match at the NWA pop-up event on January 5.
PAC vs. Chris Brookes has been signed for Rev Pro’s March 24th event.
It has been announced that DDT will be working with Fight Club Pro in the UK going forward, exchanging talent.
PWA in Australia has announced a triple threat match featuring Jonah Rock, Robbie Eagles and Adam Brooks on January 13 in Sydney.
UFC/MMA
Kamaru Usman is saying that the deal is done and in March he will face current champion Tyron Woodley for the Welterweight title. Woodley disputes that, saying he will fight Colby Covington next.
Alexander Gustafsson isn’t ruling out a move to heavyweight after losing to Jon Jones.
Ovince Saint Preux will fight Misha Cirkunov at UFC 235.
Jairzinho Rozenstruik has signed with the UFC and will face Junior Albini in a heavyweight bout at UFC Fight Night Brazil on February 2.
Gokhan Saki will face Saparbek Safarov at UFC London on March 16.
Teruto Ishikawa vs. Kyung Ho Kang in a bantamweight bout is now set for UFC 234 on February 10.
Welcome to F4WOnline.com’s live coverage of UFC Fight Night 129: Maia vs. Usman, emanating from the Movistar Arena in Santiago, Chile.
The Octagon debuts in Chile with a 13-fight card featuring a UFC veteran looking to get back to his winning ways against a fast-rising contender in the welterweight division.
Former two-division title challenger Demian Maia looks to end his two-fight losing skid when he takes on the dangerous Kamaru Usman, who is undefeated in the Octagon and winner of eleven straight overall. Maia steps in for this fight on a shortened training camp as he replaced Santiago Ponzinibbio, who was forced out due to a broken hand.
Maia fights for the UFC for the 28th time, and only two fighters have competed under the UFC banner more. Usman is making a charge at 170 pounds and could solidify a potential title shot with another win, but Maia is dangerous and always primed for an upset.
Also on the main card is a battle in the women’s strawweight division as Alexa Grasso looks for her second consecutive win against former TUF winner Tatiana Suarez, who looks to remain undefeated in her career. In the women’s flyweight division, Andrea “KGB” Lee makes her UFC debut, and she has a lot of star potential, as she takes on Veronica Macedo.
Follow along with our live coverage of the event beginning at 6:30 p.m. Eastern time with preliminary action all the way through the main card.
UFC FIGHT PASS PRELIMS | 6:30 PM ET/3:30 PM PT
> Claudio Puelles (7-2, 0-1 UFC) vs. Felipe Silva (8-1, 1-1 UFC) Lightweights
Silva starts with a leg kick. Puelles blocks a head kick and Silva just misses a spin kick. Puelles gets a takedown and into the guard of Silva. Puelles stands up and then comes back into the guard after a hard left hand. Puelles stands and lands another left and then grabs the neck looking for a choke. Silva was able to scramble and ends on the top and starts landing punches. Puelles rolls for a kneebar and has a foot lock in but Silva gets out of trouble. They get back to their feet. Silva with some knees to the body. Puelles pulls guard looking for an armbar. They’re back on the feet. Puelles grabs a leg and gets another takedown. Puelles with some left hands from the top. Back on their feet. Puelles shoots for a takedown but pulls guard and Silva lands a punch. 10-9 Silva.
Silva starts with a leg kick again. Silva lands some punches as Puelles retreats. Puelles lands a left hand. The pace has slowed a little bit. Silva lands a standing knee to Puelles’ body. Silva with a leg kick. Silva with a high kick. Puelles with a body kick. SIlva lands a right hand. Puelles shoots for a takedown but it is defended. Silva lands a big combo and Puelles drops to the ground. Silva goes to the mat and is landing some punches looking to finish. Silva with more big punches from the top. Silva with more big punches. They get to their feet. Silva lands some big punches and to the body. Puelles pulls guard to survive the round as Silva lands punches to end it. 10-8 Silva, 20-17 Silva.
Puelles with a spinning back fist. They trade leg kicks. Silva drops Puelles with a big right hand and is going for the finish. Silva with big punches on the ground. He backs off and the ref stands Puelles up. Silva rocks Puelles with a left hand. Silva then drops Puelles again with a body punch. They are back on the feet. Silva landing big punches on the feet. Puelles shoots but ends on the bottom and Silva landing punches and elbows. Puelles then locks a kneebar out of nowhere and it is in tight. Silva taps! Wow! A big comeback win for Puelles in the third round. Incredible comeback.
Official Result- Claudio Puelles def. Felipe Silva by submission (kneebar) at 2:23 of Round 3
> Henry Briones (16-7-1, 1-3 UFC) vs. Frankie Saenz (12-5, 4-3 UFC) Bantamweights
Saenz with a leg kick followed by a right hand. Saenz with a left hand to the body followed by a right hand. They are being patient so far. Briones with a leg kick. Saenz lands a punch and then gets a takedown. They get to their feet and Saenz starts landing more punches. They are trading punches on the feet. Briones lands a big right hand. They trade late. Close round. 10-9 Saenz.
They trade early on. Saenz drops Briones with a right hand but Briones gets back to his feet. Saenz scores a takedown. Saenz landing some punches from the top before they get back to their feet. Saenz with some body shots. Briones lands a right hand. They are trading punches and kicks on their feet. They continue to trade punches and kicks at the end. 10-9 Saenz, 20-18 Saenz.
Saenz lands an accidental groin strike early. They trade kicks. Saenz lands a knee in the clinch. Saenz gets a takedown but Briones has the neck looking for a choke. Saenz slips out and is in the guard. Saenz with some elbows. Saenz landing big shots from the top as Briones is trying to roll out from the bottom. Saenz keeping Briones on the mat but they do get to their feet. They break as Saenz lands an elbow. They go to the mat and Saenz has the back. Saenz landing punches from the back as the fight ends. 10-9 Saenz, 30-27 Saenz.
Official Result- Frankie Saenz def. Henry Briones by unanimous decision (30-27, 30-27, 30-26)
> Enrique Barzola (14-3-1, 4-1 UFC) vs. Brandon Davis (9-4, 1-1 UFC) Featherweights
They both miss on high kicks. Davis lands a right hand. Barzola with a teet kick. Barzola trips up Davis with a leg kick and then grabs his back. Barzola trips Davis to the mat but they quickly get up. Barzola gets a big slam takedown. They get up and break. They trade leg kicks. Davis lands a hard right hand. Davis lands a combo and then a leg kick. Davis lands another hard right hand. Barzola lands a left hand. Davis gets a takedown. They get to their feet and Davis lands a solid combo to end the round. Close round. 10-9 Davis.
They trade leg kicks. Barzola grabs the back and gets a brief takedown. Barzola is relentless with back control. Davis with a backwards elbow. Barzola with a big takedown and in the half-guard. Barzola looking to grab the back but moves to the neck and is looking for a choke. Davis gets to his feet and escapes. Barzola gets another slam takedown. Barzola has the back and is working for a choke. Barzola landing punches from the back. Davis gets out. Davis working for a takedown but eating elbows. Barzola going for a guillotine choke. Davis gets out. 10-9 Barzola, 19-19.
They trade punches and kicks to start the final round. They trade punches in close range. They continue to trade in close range and Barzola lands a hard right hand. Davis fires back with a combo. They trade body kicks. Davis lands a left hand. Barzola gets a takedown and moves to the back. They get to their feet. They break and Davis lands a knee to the body. Barzola grabs the neck and drags the fight to the mat. Barzola in the half-guard. Barzola gets the back and is landing punches as the fight ends. 10-9 Barzola, 29-28 Barzola.
Official Result- Enrique Barzola def. Brandon Davis by unanimous decision (30-27, 30-26, 30-26)
FOX SPORTS 2 PRELIMS | 8 PM ET/5 PM PT
> Gabriel Benitez (20-6, 4-2 UFC) vs. Humberto Bandenay (14-4 1 NC, 1-0 UFC) Featherweights
Benitez right away with a leg kick and then drops Bandenay with a left hand. Benitez gets on top and landing but Bandenay looking for an armbar from the bottom. He has it locked in but Benitez slams him hard to the mat and knocks Bandenay out after a left hand. Wow. Big finish by Benitez as he gets the knockout in less than a minute.
Official Result- Gabriel Benitez def. Humberto Bandenay by knockout (slam & punch) at :39 of Round 1
Botelho with a leg kick to start. She lands a big body kick that hurts Kondo. She drops Kondo with a right hand and Kondo is in a lot of trouble. Botelho lands some more punches as Kondo is having trouble defending and the fight is stopped. Wow. Botelho with a big finish in another fight that goes less than a minute.
Official Result- Poliana Botelho def. Syuri Kondo by TKO (strikes) at :33 of Round 1
Moreno with a quick leg kick. Pantoja with a leg kick in return. Moreno just misses a spinning wheel kick. They trade and Pantoja lands a knee. Moreno gets a takedown but they scramble to the feet. Pantoja lands a left hand. They trade punches. Pantoja lands a good combo that wobbles Moreno. Pantoja lands a solid right hand that hurts Moreno and Moreno starts to retreat away. Moreno fakes a takedown. Moreno falls to the mat after missing a takedown and Pantoja follows down and is landing punches from the top. Pantoja with some big punches and Moreno is bleeding. Pantoja takes the back and lands big punches to end the round. 10-8 Pantoja.
Pantoja with a leg kick. He lands an overhand right. Moreno lands a left hook but Pantoja is countering with big combos. They are dirty boxing against the fence. Pantoja landing the jab. Pantoja with a leg kick. They trade punches and kicks. Pantoja with more leg kicks. The pace has slowed a little. They trade some punches inside the pocket. Pantoja wobbles Moreno with a left hand and then lands a knee to the body against the fence. 10-9 Pantoja, 20-17 Pantoja.
Pantoja with an inside leg kick. Pantoja lands a left hand. They clinch and Moreno pushes the fight against the fence. Pantoja reverses and lands a knee. Moreno with an elbow on the break and they trade punches. Moreno gets a brief takedown but Pantoja gets it right back up. They both trade big punches and Pantoja got the better of it. Pantoja lands a hard right hand. Pantoja lands some more hard punches. They trade punches. Wild brawl to end the fight. 10-9 Pantoja, 30-26 Pantoja.
Official Result- Alexandre Pantoja def. Brandon Moreno by unanimous decision (30-26, 30-26, 29-27)
> Zak Cummings (21-5, 6-2 UFC) vs. Michel Prazeres (24-2, 8-2 UFC) Welterweights
Prazeres with a body kick. Prazeres lands a right hand. Prazeres gets a takedown and is on top. Prazeres in the half-guard but not doing much and they are stood up by the referee. They trade punches and Cummings is cut open from a headbutt. Prazeres lands a left hand and then a leg kick and followed with a right hand. Cummings with a high kick that misses. 10-9 Prazeres,
Prazeres goes for a takedown and has the back of Cummings. Prazeres gets a takedown but Cummings gets up. They break and Cummings lands some punches and Prazeres is cut open under his eye. They continue to clinch and Cummings with some body punches. They break and both land. Cummings with a high kick and Prazeres counters with a right hand. Cummings lands a straight left hand. They clinch and Cummings pushes it against the fence. Prazeres grabbed the cage to block a takedown. They trade punches. 10-9 Cummings, 19-19.
They trade punches. Cummings starting to bleed more. Prazeres lands a right hand. He fakes a takedown and ends with another right hand. Cummings lands a left. They are fighting slow and the crowd is booing. Cummings with a high kick that is blocked. They clinch but nothing happens and they are split by the ref. Cummings with a body kick and then a head kick. They trade. Prazeres lands a left hand. Cummings with a big body kick and then a knee to the body. Prazeres with a late takedown. He ends the fight on top. 10-9 Prazeres, 29-28 Prazeres.
Official Result- Michel Prazeres def. Zak Cummings by split decision (29-28, 28-29, 29-28)
FOX SPORTS 1 MAIN CARD | 10 PM ET/7 PM PT
> Vicente Luque (12-6-1, 5-2 UFC) vs. Chad Laprise (13-2, 6-2 UFC) Welterweights
Luque with some leg kicks and Laprise counters with one of his own. They trade punches. Laprise with a leg kick followed by a left hand. They trade and clinch and Laprise gets a takedown but they get right back up. Luque lands a right hand. Laprise lands a double jab. Luque with a head kick that is blocked. Luque drops Laprise with a big left hand and then finishes him off with a couple of more punches. Big finish by Luque.
Official Result- Vicente Luque def. Chad Laprise by knockout (punches) at 4:16 of Round 1
> Veronica Macedo (5-1, 0-1 UFC) vs. Andrea Lee (8-2, 0-0 UFC) Women’s Flyweights
They trade leg kicks. Macedo lands a nice combo. They clinch and Lee lands a knee and then some to the body and another to the head. Macedo with a spin kick to the body. They trade and clinch. Lee with some more knees to the body. Lee gets a takedown. Lee with some kicks as Macedo is on the ground. Macedo with a big knee and then rocks Lee with a head kick. They clinch and Lee gets a throw takedown. Lee gets the back and locks in a rear-naked choke. She had it but let go and landed some elbows. Lee still has back control and goes for an armbar but time runs out. 10-9 Lee.
Macedo misses a spin kick. They clinch and Lee lands a couple of knees. Lee with a head-and-arm throw but Macedo able to scramble to her feet. Macedo pulls guard. Lee gets to her feet and lands some leg kicks to the downed Macedo. Macedo gets up and lands a left hand. They clinch and Lee lands a knee and Macedo an uppercut. Macedo then gets a takedown but Lee able to reverse to the top. Macedo rolls for a kneebar but Lee able to get out of it. Lee working for an arm-triangle. Lee mounts Macedo and lands an elbow before Macedo escapes. 10-9 Lee, 20-18 Lee.
They trade punches. Lee gets a takedown and ends up on top. Lee with some punches from the top and she gets to her feet. Macedo remains on her back. Macedo wants Lee back on the mat. Macedo lands a couple of upkicks. They trade punches. They clinch and Lee with some knees and then gets a takedown. Lee in side control and then moves to mount. Macedo gives up her back and Lee looking for an opening for the choke. They scramble and Macedo grabs the neck for a moment but Lee gets to her feet. Lee ends the fight on top. 10-9 Lee, 30-27 Lee.
Official Result- Andrea Lee def. Veronica Macedo by unanimous decision (30-27, 30-27, 30-27)
> Diego Rivas (7-1, 2-1 UFC) vs. Guido Cannetti (7-3, 1-2 UFC) Bantamweights
Rivas drops Cannetti for a moment to start the fight. RIvas gets the fight to the mat for a moment but Cannetti gets it up and has Rivas against the fence. Cannetti gets a takedown. Rivas grabbed an arm and was looking for an armbar but Cannetti escaped out and got the back. They get to their feet and Cannetti has the backpack and Rivas is looking for an escape. They break as the round ends. 10-9 Cannetti.
Cannetti with a body kick. We have an errant groin shot on Rivas and a timeout. They get back to action and Cannetti gets a takedown and is in the guard working for something. They are stood up by the referee. Rivas unable to do much in this one so far. They trade kicks. Rivas gets a big takedown but Cannetti right back to his feet. Rivas grabs the neck and has the guillotine locked in but Cannetti pops his head out. They get to their feet and Cannetti ends the round on the back of Rivas. 10-9 Cannetti, 20-18 Cannetti.
They come out trading. Rivas lands a big right hand that wobbles Cannetti. Cannetti misses a spin kick by a mile. They clinch and Rivas lands an elbow. Cannetti tries a trip takedown but can’t get it and Rivas grabs the neck. Rivas lands some knees and some elbows and uppercuts in the clinch. Cannetti grabs the neck and they drop to the mat. Cannetti working for a guillotine but Rivas escapes. Cannetti has a big cut open. They get to their feet and Cannetti lands a couple of kicks. Rivas with a body kick. Crowd with loud chants for Rivas. They trade strikes. Rivas with a flurry to end. 10-9 Rivas, 29-28 Cannetti.
Official Result- Guido Cannetti def. Diego Rivas by unanimous decision (29-28, 29-28, 29-28)
> Jared Cannonier (10-3, 3-3 UFC) vs. Dominick Reyes (8-0, 2-0 UFC) Light Heavyweights
Cannonier with a leg kick and an overhand right. Reyes with a leg kick. Cannonier with a right hand. Reyes with an inside leg kick. Reyes goes for a takedown and grabs a leg but Cannonier lands some punches and he lets go. Reyes lands a left hand. Cannonier lands a right hand. Reyes with a series of strikes. Reyes rocks Cannonier with an uppercut and Cannonier is retreating. Reyes follows up with leg kicks and then drops Cannonier with an uppercut and the referee stops it. Cannonier went limp after the uppercut and Marc Goddard had seen enough. Impressive stoppage by Reyes.
Official Result- Dominick Reyes def. Jared Cannonier by TKO (strikes) at 2:55 of Round 1
They trade kicks. Suarez shoots for a takedown but Grasso defends against the fence. Suarez with a head-and-arm takedown. Grasso back to her feet. Suarez with another takedown. Grasso trying to get out but Suarez gets the back and keeps the fight down. Suarez looking for a rear-naked choke and she has it locked in. She gets Grasso to tap out! Suarez with an impressive first-round submission win.
Official Result- Tatiana Suarez def. Alexa Grasso by submission (rear-naked choke) at 2:44 of Round 1
Usman with a leg kick and then another. Maia lands a left hand. Usman with another leg kick. Maia lands another left hand. Usman with a leg kick and Maia counters with a takedown but Usman right back to his feet. Maia has the back of Usman standing. Maia with a right hand from the back. They are broken up by the referee. Usman with a leg kick. Usman with the jab. Not much to the round. 10-9 Maia.
Usman lands a right hand. Maia goes for a takedown but it is stuffed by Usman. Usman has the neck in the sprawl position. They get back to their feet and Maia lands a left hand. Usman with a right hand. Usman lands another right hand. Usman with a leg kick and Maia works for a takedown but Usman defends it. They trade punches and Maia goes for another takedown but Usman defends it perfectly. Usman lands some right hands. Maia with an uppercut to the body and Usman counters with his own. They clinch against the fence. Maia pulls guard but not much happens after. 10-9 Usman, 19-19.
Maia lands a left hand. Usman with a right hand. They trade punches. Usman stumbles but lands a right hand as he catches his balance. Maia with a combo. Maia lands a left hand. Usman trying to land punches but Maia is in retreat mode. Maia dives for a takedown but Usman defends. Maia inviting him to the mat but Usman is having none of it. They trade punches. Maia with another takedown attempt that Usman stuffs. 10-9 Usman, 29-28 Usman.
Usman drops Maia with a right hand and he is swarming looking to finish but Maia sprawls to his knees and grabs Usman. Usman trying to escape there and is landing punches. They get to their feet. Maia shoots for a takedown but Usman sprawls and starts landing punches. They get back to their feet. Neither man landing anything now. Maia lands the jab. Maia bleeding now. Maia grabs the single leg but lets go as he can’t get Usman down. Usman lands a right hand. 10-9 Usman, 39-37 Usman.
Maia still trying for takedowns but can’t get Usman down. Maia is exhausted. He wants Usman on the ground but Usman won’t take the bait. They trade punches and Maia starts retreating again. Maia lands a left hand. Maia tries a takedown but Usman quickly grabs the head and sprawls. Usman lets go and they get to their feet. Usman with a right hand. Maia tries a takedown but it is defended and Usman goes to the mat in Maia’s guard. Usman gets to his feet and Maia continues to invite him to the mat. Usman with a right hand. Usman with a head kick. Not the most exciting fight you will see to say the least. 10-9 Usman, 49-46 Usman.
Official Result- Kamaru Usman def. Demian Maia by unanimous decision (50-45, 49-46, 49-46)
UFC returns for its second show of three this month, a Fox Sports One show emanating from Santiago, Chile — their first show in the country. Fun fact: all three of their May events are outside of North America. Use that at your next round of trivia and stump everyone!
The show was supposed to be headlined by a battle of fast-rising welterweights, but local favorite Santiago Ponzinibbio had to bow out due to injury, leaving Kamaru Usman without a dance partner. Enter veteran Demian Maia, looking to snap a two-fight losing streak and hold as he nears the end of an interesting career.
Helping me preview the show and answer some questions are “Mr. Winnipeg” Paul Fontaine and Texas tough Ryan Frederick.
Main Card
Demian Maia vs. Kamaru Usman
Alexa Grasso vs. Tatiana Suarez
Jared Cannonier vs. Dominick Reyes
Diego Rivas vs. Guido Cannetti
Veronica Macedo vs. Andrea Lee
Vicente Luque vs. Chad Laprise
Undercard
Zak Cummings vs. Michel Prazeres
Brandon Moreno vs. Alexandre Pantoja
Poliana Botelho vs. Syuri Kondo
Gabriel Benitez vs. Humberto Bandenay
Enrique Barzola vs. Brandon Davis
Henry Briones vs. Frankie Saenz
Claudio Puelies vs. Felipe Silva
What are you most looking forward to?
Frederick: I guess it would be the main event as there isn’t much to this card. I don’t think Maia has much of a chance against Usman, and the short training camp and preparation time hurts him more. Usman has so much power on his feet and has arguably the best wrestling in the welterweight division. Out of all of the rising competition at 170, I see Usman as the one that is destined to be the champion more than any of the others (Darren Till, Colby Covington and Santiago Ponzinibbio to name a few). Also, I am looking forward to Andrea “KGB” Lee’s UFC debut as she has star potential.
Fontaine: I’m a big proponent of women’s MMA and have been following Lee’s career for a couple of years and it’s great to see her finally debuting in UFC this weekend. I think she could be the signature star of the UFC’s newest weight class within a year or two.
Nason: Usman-Maia because Usman has a lot on the line after his last outing, a dull win that raised Dana White’s ire as Usman’s “30%” comment that got taken the wrong way. With an impressive showing, he gets right back in the mix for an interesting fight. With a boring win, I think they try to run the Ponzinibbio fight back. The Grasso-Suarez fight is also on my radar, but more on that below.
What is being overlooked?
Fontaine: The fact this show is even happening is my answer as it’s really a one-fight main card with no one anyone knows outside of the most hardcore of the hardcore fanbase. Going down the prelims, there are a few more names that are slightly familiar but aside from Maia, no one has ever headlined a card or even been in a featured fight aside from Suarez in the TUF finale the year she made it to the finals.
Frederick: I really don’t think anything is being overlooked due to the lack of overall interest in this card. I know a lot of people are down on Grasso vs. Suarez as a co-main event, but it is an interesting fight. Grasso still has loads of potential despite the stumbling block that was her loss to Felice Herrig, but she could still be a contender down the line. Suarez also could be a contender and she has shown a lot of potential. It’s a very good fight for both at this stage of their careers.
Nason: I think the term “co-main event” really can throw people off. On this show, I’m fine with the placement as there’s really not much else and UFC would love to have one of these two breakout this year. An impressive showing by either puts them in a good spot for their next fight. The undefeated Suarez can take a loss here and will be fine, but I think the weight of this is really on Grasso given the expectations she came in with.
What’s not doing it for you?
Nason: The prelms are pretty meh. The Moreno-Pantoja fight could be a dark horse, but UFC has to hope this is like last week’s Brazil show with lots of fun finishes.
Frederick: I don’t have many expectations for this card. There are some solid, mid-tier fights in certain divisions, but nothing overtly stands out. It’s a night of fights.
Fontaine: The whole card in general. As someone who, for the most part, prides himself in seeing every card the UFC puts out there, it’s a struggle for even me to care in the slightest about this show. I do have family commitments that will make it impossible for me to see it live and, for the first time in awhile, I’m contemplating not even bothering to catch up with the show the next day when I have a chance to.
What’s the intrigue with this show?
Frederick: It’s whether Maia can pull off the upset over Usman. It’s Maia’s 28th UFC fight and only Michael Bisping and Jim Miller have had more. He’s a hard-nosed veteran who is certainly capable of pulling it out. However, he’s getting up there in age and it’s going to be a tough outing for him. If he’s able to win, it’s the most intriguing thing to me on this card.
Fontaine: I suppose it would be whether or not the three unbeaten fighters on the show can maintain their perfect records. Syuri Kondo (6-0) and Tatiana Suarez (5-0) are early in their careers but in a strawweight division that doesn’t have a ton of depth, they could be title contenders in short time. The other is light heavyweight Dominick Reyes. At 8-0, he’s had first round finishes in each of his first two UFC fights. 205 is a division in turmoil right now and a third straight quick finish will have a lot of people talking about the 28-year-old prospect.
Nason: I’m also interested in the Reyes-Cannonier outcome, but the intrigue here is whether Usman can put on a show. A finish of Maia would raise his stock considerably.
What will be people talking about Sunday after the show is done?
Frederick: That Kamaru Usman is a real threat to be the champion at 170 pounds, and that Andrea Lee is going to be a star. Those are the two to watch on this show. Everything else just seems to be filling a card. Chile finally gets an event and I’m sure the fans there are going to show up and be a good crowd.
Fontaine: Whether or not the Celtics can be competitive in the NBA finals with either Golden State or Houston. Certainly not anything from this show. Maybe Andrea Lee if she puts in a good performance and gets some promo time.
