Tag: MMA

What Happened With Brock Lesnar’s UFC Return Negotiations, Possible WWE Match For Lesnar

As noted, UFC President Dana White revealed this week that Brock Lesnar recently informed him that he will be retiring from MMA.

There’s a lot of speculation on Lesnar’s UFC future and if he really is retired from the Octagon. It’s important to note that this is White saying Lesnar has retired, not the man himself or anyone close to him. Dave Meltzer noted on Wrestling Observer Radio that Lesnar had been negotiating with UFC for the summer 2019 fight with UFC Heavyweight Champion Daniel Cormier, and a deal could not be reached.

Lesnar reportedly wanted a flat fee from UFC for the Cormier fight, instead of a percentage of pay-per-view buys, but UFC felt like he was asking for too much. Meltzer noted that UFC is no longer under pressure to draw strong pay-per-view buys because they are getting about the same money through their deal with ESPN. We don’t know how much Lesnar asked for, but it was a certain price that was worth it to him to go through a grueling training camp at age 42, for a fight against a top athlete and fighter in Cormier.

It was revealed this week by TMZ Sports that Lesnar was still submitting to USADA drug testing as recent as April. We don’t know how long Lesnar has been considering the retirement, but the timing is interesting. Meltzer noted that Lesnar had to enter into the USADA testing program to negotiate with WWE and UFC, because if he didn’t, then WWE would know that he couldn’t fight for another 6 months, and wasn’t really serious about possibly returning to UFC over WWE. UFC has always been Lesnar’s leverage in WWE contract talks. There’s no word yet on if Lesnar has pulled out of the USADA testing but if he has, he could come back and would have to wait another 6 months before being eligible for a fight. If he does pull out, that’s a good sign that he has really decided not to fight. Meltzer noted that if he doesn’t pull out, this all could be a public negotiation by White in an attempt to get Lesnar to lower his price.

White noted that Cormier will likely face Stipe Miocic next, at the August 17 pay-per-view from Anaheim, California. This could have been the date they wanted to do Lesnar vs. Cormier on.

There’s no word yet on what the MMA retirement will mean for Lesnar’s WWE future. He has been announced for WWE’s return to Saudi Arabia on Friday, June 7, but his opponent has not been named. The Observer notes that he will likely face WWE Universal Champion Seth Rollins in a rematch from WrestleMania 35. The Lesnar vs. Rollins rematch was expected but that was before WWE Hall of Famer Bill Goldberg was also announced for the Saudi show, leading to speculation on a Lesnar vs. Goldberg rematch.

Source: Wrestling Inc.

Dana White Claims Brock Lesnar Has Retired From MMA

Looks like Brock Lesnar’s return to the octagon won’t be happening after all, as Dana White says Brock Lesnar told him he’s retired.

White told ESPN that Lesnar informed him of his decision to retire last week. “He told me he’s done, he’s retired,” said White. “We’re going to move in another direction with Cormier.”

As you may recall, Brock attended UFC 226 in July 2018 and confronted Daniel Cormier in the ring after his win. White has subsequently claimed he was trying to strike a deal with Lesnar, but that no longer seems to be the case.

Instead, the company is looking to book Cormier vs. Stipe Miocic for the Heavyweight title.

Brock Lesnar has yet to release an official statement on the matter.

Source: Pro Wrestling Sheet

Bobby Lashley To Take Time Away From WWE After SummerSlam For MMA Return?

Bobby Lashley recently spoke with Sky Sports and revealed that he is still under contract to the Bellator MMA promotion.

The 42 year old Lashley said he expects to do a few more fights before he calls it quits on his MMA career. He has his eye on Bellator Heavyweight & Light Heavyweight Champion Ryan Bader.

“I think I am still probably going to do a couple more before it’s all said and done,” Lashley said. “I am still under contract at Bellator also, and if I go back I will give them a call and possibly go after (Ryan) Bader. I don’t want to wait too long, time is ticking.”

Lashley said may return to the cage after the WWE SummerSlam pay-per-view in August. He would likely need to take some time away from WWE to train for the fight. Lashley said his body is at 100% these days.

“I feel great. My body is 100% so I think maybe this summer, maybe after SummerSlam,” Lashley said.

Lashley said maybe he will talk with WWE boss Vince McMahon about winning the WWE Universal Title at SummerSlam, then go to Bellator to win their title.

Lashley also talked about Conor McGregor possibly coming to WWE and joked that they won’t be putting a top title on him because he’s too small.

Lashley’s last MMA fight came at Bellator 162 in October 2016. He defeated Josh Appelt that night by submission. Lashley’s current MMA record is at 15 wins and 2 losses.

Source: Wrestling Inc.

Brock Lesnar Re-Enters USADA Testing Pool

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Brock Lesnar showed up at UFC 226 this past Saturday and was invited into the Octagon by Daniel Cormier. Lesnar proceeded to shove the new UFC Heavyweight Champion and cut a promo ripping the UFC Heavyweight Division.

“I walked into this building and watched the Heavyweight disasters from the beginning,” Lesnar said. “Ngannou’s a piece of s–t, Miocic, the piece of s–t, DC… I’m coming for you motherf–ker.”

After the incident, UFC President Dana White said that the company was “definitely going to make that fight.”

ESPN’s Brett Okamoto reports that Lesnar has re-entered the USADA testing pool in preparation for another fight. According to MMAJunkie.com, Lesnar re-joined the USADA testing pool on July 3rd. Lesnar still has around six months remaining in his suspension after failing a pair of drug tests following his UFC 200 fight against Mark Hunt. Lesnar had defeated Hunt via unanimous decision, however the result was changed to a no-contest. He will be eligible to fight again on or after January 8, 2019.

Lesnar is still WWE Universal Champion and has one match left on his contract, according to Dave Meltzer of The Wrestling Observer. His next match has yet to be officially announced by WWE.

Source: WrestlingINC

Dana White ‘Definitely’ Making Brock Lesnar Vs. Daniel Cormier, Video Of Confrontation At UFC 226

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The UFC is going full-steam ahead with plans of putting Brock Lesnar and Daniel Cormier together inside the Octagon. After Cormier defeated Stipe Miocic Saturday night at UFC 226 to become the heavyweight champion, he called out Lesnar, the reigning WWE Universal champion. Lesnar had sat Octagon-side as “DC” knocked out Miocic.

The two became involved in a brief shoving match before officials separated them. Lesnar, according to White, will need six months of clean testing in the USADA pool to become eligible to fight, meaning the bout is likely for early 2019.

“We’re definitely going to make that fight,” White said. “He’s going to pop up (in the USADA testing) here Monday or Tuesday.”

Cormier, who is also the current UFC light heavyweight champion, mentioned during his post-fight press conference a desire to fight again this year before concluding his career in 2019. That could mean a title defense of his 205-pound belt before facing Lesnar for the heavyweight championship.

“I fight Brock Lesnar, I get paid,” said Cormier, who added he is only interested in big fights to finish his career.

Source: WrestlingINC

Below is video of the confrontation between Cormier and Lensar after Cormier called Lesnar out.

UFC 226 Miocic vs. Cormier Fight Card 7/7/18

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MAIN CARD (Pay-per-view, 10 p.m. ET)

  • (C) Stipe Miocic (242.5) vs. Light Heavyweight Champion Daniel Cormier (246) – Heavyweight Title Fight
  • Derrick Lewis (264.5) vs. Francis Ngannou (253)
  • Paul Felder (170) vs. Mike Perry (170.5)
  • Michael Chiesa (157.5)* vs. Anthony Pettis ()
  • Khalil Rountree (205) vs. Gokhan Saki (206)

PRELIMINARY CARD (8 p.m. ET)

  • Paulo Costa (185.5) vs. Uriah Hall ()
  • Raphael Assuncao (136) vs. Rob Font (135.5)
  • Drakkar Klose (156) vs. Lando Vannata (156)
  • Max Griffin (170.5) vs. Curtis Millender (170.5)

PRELIMINARY CARD (UFC Fight Pass, 7 p.m. ET)

  • Gilbert Burns (155.5) vs. Dan Hooker (155.5)
  • Jamie Moyle (116) vs. Emily Whitmire (116)

*Chiesa missed the lightweight limit by 1.5 pounds

Ronda Rousey Inducted Into UFC Hall Of Fame Last Night

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UFC has posted a highlight of last night’s Hall of Fame ceremony in Las Vegas, which featured the induction of former UFC Women’s Bantamweight Champion and current WWE star “Rowdy” Ronda Rousey to close the ceremony last night.

UFC President Dana White inducted Rousey into the Hall of Fame on Thursday, talking about her contribution to the sport of MMA and breaking barriers.

“She proved that women could headline big Pay Per View events, sell out the biggest arenas. She broke barriers, smashed records and put together the most dominant run by any athlete that anybody had ever seen in combat sports at the time.”

MMAFightingonSBN posted highlights from the 2018 UFC Hall of Fame ceremony, including highlights of Ronda’s acceptance speech.

WWE posted a quick clip of Rousey after her induction speech, noting she was getting ready to leave Las Vegas to head to a WWE live event in Philadelphia this weekend.

Tito Ortiz And Chuck Liddell Agree To Fight

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Chuck Liddell and Tito Ortiz will meet for a third time, years removed from their first two bouts that helped set the groundwork for the UFC. According to a report by ESPN, the former champions will fight under Oscar De La Hoya’s Golden Boy promotions banner on pay-per-view.

“I’m proud to announce we’ve signed a deal for the fight between Chuck Liddell and Tito Ortiz,” De La Hoya said. “This will be huge for sports fans around the world. Ortiz and Liddell are two of the most recognized fighters in MMA history. They are legends in the sport. Everyone remembers their rivalry helped put the sport on the map, and we’re excited to host the next and final chapter of this historic rivalry.”

The first meeting took place in 2004, with Liddell scoring a finish. “The Iceman” also won the rematch, defending his light heavyweight title at UFC 66 with a third round knockout.

Source: WrestlingINC

CM Punk Loses Second UFC Fight By Decision

cm punk loses ufc 225

Ex-WWE star CM Punk went the distance during his second UFC fight, but failed to pick up a win.

Punk was defeated by Mike Jackson via unanimous decision following the third round at UFC 225 in Chicago. He was not interviewed in the octagon after losing.

Announcer Joe Regan commended the former WWE champ’s heart, but was pretty harsh for most of the fight on commentary — once criticizing Punk for not being able to do basic white belt maneuvers.

During the post-fight press conference, Dana White seemed less than pleased with the performance of Mike Jackson and said he regretted not putting these two competitors on the fight pass card.

Source: Pro Wrestling Sheet

UFC 224: Nunes vs. Pennington 5/12/18

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MAY 12, 2018 JEUNESSE ARENA, RIO DE JANEIRO, BRAZIL

 UFC FIGHT PASS EARLY PRELIMS 6:15PM/3:15PM ETPT, FX PRELIMS 8PM/5PM ETPT, PPV MAIN CARD 10PM/7PM ETPT

MAIN CARD

  • Amanda Nunes vs. Raquel Pennington (BANTAMWEIGHT TITLE FIGHT)
  • Ronaldo Souza vs. Kelvin Gastelum
  • Mackenzie Dern vs. Amanda Cooper
  • John Lineker vs. Brian Kelleher
  • Vitor Belfort vs. Lyoto Machida

UNDERCARD

  • Cezar Ferreira vs. Karl Roberson
  • Alexey Oleynik vs. Junior Albini
  • Davi Ramos vs. Nick Hein
  • Elizeu Zaleski vs. Sean Strickland
  • Warlley Alves vs. Sultan Aliev
  • Thales Leites vs. Jack Hermansson
  • Alberto Mina vs. Ramazan Emeev
  • Markus Perez vs. James Bochnovic