Dana White said this afternoon that Daniel Cormier will be fighting at UFC 200, and in speaking off the cuff, seemed to intimate Jon Jones may be in even more trouble than previously thought.
“There are tons of guys that are interested. We’ll get a fight done,” White said to Colin Cowherd on FS 1 today.
Later, White said Cormier would fight this weekend, would get the same money* as he would have against Jones, and that they hope to have the fight finalized and announced by the end of the day today.
*Cormier’s money is based on a percentage, but the amount is expected to be lower since the number of buys will likely be lower.
Cormier had said he was willing to fight anyone up to 220 pounds, saying that because he’s dropped so much weight he wasn’t willing to fight a big heavyweight.
White nixed the talk of Michael Bisping, which would be the most marketable potential fight for storyline reasons.
“Bisping just won the 185 pound title,” he said. “Let me tell you what Bisping does in his off season. When Bisping’s not training, he goes on a bender. He’s in no condition to fight Daniel Cormier. I promise you that. I don’t even have to ask him.”
Bisping was the third name after Gegard Mousasi and Tom Lawlor who publicly asked for the fight when word got out that Jones was off. He would make the most sense given it would create an historical champion vs. champion fight, and there is a storyline situation with Bisping having just beaten Luke Rockhold on June 4 to win the middleweight title.
Even if odds would be against it, it would make for a remarkable story if Bisping could win two titles on short notice. In fact, if such a thing would happen, it would probably go down as something that would be a huge part of the history of the sport that would be talked about for decades as the perhaps the most remarkable feat in UFC history.
Mousasi was already scheduled to fight Thiago Santos on Saturday. For fighters who have trained and are in top condition, Mousasi is really the only choice, but there is no story built around that fight. Mousasi was to fight at middleweight, but has fought at heavyweight in the past and fought for years at light heavyweight.
Glover Teixeira said today it would be impossible for him to make weight to fight Cormier, but Alexander Gustafsson said he could make it and do the fight. In the case of the former, Teixeira is set to face Anthony Johnson later this summer in essentially a #1 contender’s fight while Gustafsson and Cormier had a Fight of the Year candidate in 2015.
Onto the Jones story, White confirmed that Jones did not test positive for a recreational drug.
Also, when saying how it’s virtually impossible the B sample will come back clean, White mentioned two different agents in the A sample test failure. It is possible testing positive for two agents could lead to a suspension longer than two years.
A visibly distraught Jon Jones denied knowingly taking performance-enhancing drugs at a press conference Thursday morning after being flagged by USADA for a potential out of competition drug test failure on Wednesday night.
The emotional Jones had to leave the press conference to gather himself briefly before coming back. He apologized for the fans, the UFC, and Daniel Cormier for being removed from the fight.
“I want to apologize to Daniel Cormier. I know that this fight means a lot to him. The fight means a lot to me and the fight is not happening. So I just want to apologize to everyone sincerely.”
The interim light heavyweight champion and top pound-for-pound fighter in the world was joined by agent Malki Kawa and said that he had never even heard of the substance that led to him being removed from the main event of UFC 200 against Cormier. Kawa said that it is possible that the failure could’ve come from a tainted supplement.
“I’ve been taking the same supplements for the majority of my career and I’ve been so outspoken about being against any type of performance enhancers,” Jones said. “The whole thing sucks because being labeled someone who would ever cheat just really hurts more than anything else I’ve been through in my whole career.”
Both Yoel Romero and Tim Means were able to prove to the satisfaction of USADA officials that it was a supplement they had taken which caused a positive test. In those situations, the fighters were suspended for six months, rather than the usual two years for a first offense.
If such a thing happens here Jones would be eligible to fight on the New Year’s show, but would miss the Madison Square Garden show that he was expected to be part of, whether he won or lost against Cormier.
Kawa said that Jones’ B sample will be tested tonight in Salt Late City, Utah, but that chances the test would come back negative weren’t good.
The big question coming out of this is why it took until July 6 to get the result from the A sample for a test on June 16, and yet a B sample test could come back immediately. And if that is the case, if the B sample comes back clean (unlikely but it is possible), what that would mean, because in that theory the fight should still be on.
If Jones is unable to prove that the positive test came from a contaminated supplement, that would mean a two-year suspension from the sport. Jones vowed to continue fighting even if given the lengthy suspension.
During an impromptu press conference Wednesday night, UFC president Dana White announced that Brock Lesnar vs. Mark Hunt is the new main event for UFC 200.
The reason? Interim light heavyweight champion Jon Jones has been flagged by USADA for a potential anti-doping violation. Because the procedure part of this review cannot be completed by Saturday, Jones’ fight with light heavyweight champion Daniel Cormier has been taken off the show.
Lesnar vs. Hunt will remain a three round fight.
White said he was informed by USADA that Jones was tested on June 16, but was unclear what the violation was for. He hasn’t spoken to Jones or his agent Malki Kawa as of this point. He also didn’t know why the test results took nearly a month to get back.’
“This is devastating to Daniel Cormier mentally, physically and financially,” White said.
Cormier was going to get a percentage of the PPV revenue which, for a show that may do record numbers, would be several million dollars. White said he was unclear how Cormier would be compensated considering the amount of money that he makes. Cormier was in attendance at the presser, but the press conference feed was cut off after White spoke.
UFC Vice President of Athlete Health and Performance Jeff Novitsky made a brief statement, saying noted that USADA will handle results management, potential hearings and due process on the matter, and whatever legal review process is necessary before any sanctions are imposed.
White said they found out just a short time ago and wanted to alert the media to the annoucement as soon as possible. Matchmaker Joe Silva isn’t even aware of the situation as he’s on a flight. White’s hope would be that someone would step up to fight Cormier on super short notice, but isn’t sure what’s about to happen.
There were no other light heavyweight fighters booked on the show, and the closest thing to a possibility would be Gegard Mousasi, a middleweight contender who is fighting Thiago Santos. However, Mousasi is getting ready for a fight in a 20 pound lighter weight class. Our Tom Lawlor, a Las Vegas resident who fights at 205, has begun petitioning for the fight on Twitter.
The UFC released the following statement:
The UFC organization was notified tonight that the U.S. Anti-Doping Agency (USADA) has informed Jon Jones of a potential Anti-Doping Policy violation stemming from an out-of-competition sample collection on June 16, 2016.
USADA, the independent administrator of the UFC Anti-Doping Policy, will handle the results management and appropriate adjudication of this case. It is important to note that, under the UFC Anti-Doping Policy, there is a full fair legal review process that is afforded to all athletes before any sanctions are imposed.
However, because Jones was scheduled to compete against Daniel Cormier this coming Saturday, July 9 in Las Vegas, there is insufficient time for a full review before the scheduled bout and therefore the fight has been removed from the fight card. As a result, the three-round heavyweight bout between Brock Lesnar and Mark Hunt will become the UFC 200 main event.
Consistent with all previous potential anti-doping violations, additional information or UFC statements will be provided at the appropriate time as the process moves forward.
Ticket refunds available upon request at primary point of purchase.
36 fights. 72 fighters. Three shows. Lots of punches.
That’s what we’re looking at as International Fight Week kicks into full swing Thursday night as the first of three UFC shows in Las Vegas happens, headlined by lightweight champion Rafael dos Anjos defending the belt against Eddie Alvarez on UFC Fight Pass. After Friday night’s TUF Finale show on FS1, the big one is upon us: UFC 200 — arguably the greatest card that has ever been assembled…on paper, anyway.
But with all of those fights and fighters, surely some stand out more than others, right? That’s why Josh brought in special guest Dave Doyle of MMA Fighting to help him preview the week in a slightly different way.
Both Josh and Dave jotted down 10 fighters competing over the next three days that they are most interested in seeing how this week plays out for. While there was a little bit of crossover, both guys had distinct picks and rationale for why they’re so intriguing to them. There’s a few names you might expect (Brock, Cain), but many that you might not expect.
Click below to listen to a special 45-minute conversation that will get you ready for all three UFC events!
Brock Lesnar, Mark Hunt, UFC light heavyweight champion Daniel Cormier, interim light heavyweight champion Jon Jones, women’s bantamweight champion Miesha Tate, Amanda Nunes, Cain Velasquez, and Travis Browne will address the MMA media this afternoon at 3 PM EST.
The press conference is in anticipation of this Sunday’s UFC 200 event that the promotion is hoping will be the biggest show in company history.
On the show, Lesnar will make his return to mixed martial arts after an almost five-year layoff against Hunt. Lesnar last fought at UFC 141 in a loss against Alistair Overeem.
Jones is challenging Cormier in a light heavyweight championship unification bout as Jones was forced to vacate his title after a string of personal issues kept him out of the sport for a year. He won the interim version of the belt earlier this year in a unanimous decision win over Ovince Saint Preux.
Tate will defend her championship against Nunes with the winner likely to face either Ronda Rousey or Holly Holm later this year if the cards falls right.
Also on the show, Aldo faces Edgar for the interim featherweight championship, and Velasquez vs. Browne opens the PPV portion of the card.
After a month in the Fortress of Solitude, Josh Nason has returned for the 36th edition of Josh Nason’s Punch-Out with fellow scribe and FloCombat senior editor Duane Finley in tow!
Josh and Duane had no shortage of interesting stuff to talk about which included:
– A few good minutes on the Conor McGregor vs. UFC situation
– Thoughts on the build toward UFC 200 before the announcement of the event and after
– Why people are booing Daniel Cormier and loving Jon Jones
– Josh’s theory as to what Demetrious Johnson needs to get over with fans
Joanie Laurer, who was one of the most recognizable stars during the period that pro wrestling has its most mainstream significance in the last 60 years, best known as Chyna, was found dead on 4/20 at her home in Redondo Beach, CA. She was 46.
While it may not be as major an event as Conor McGregor vs. Nate Diaz II was made out to be, UFC 200 got its marquee fight after all as Daniel Cormier will face rival Jon Jones in a light heavyweight championship unification bout.
The fight was announced on the Wednesday edition of Good Morning America.
Jones won the interim version of the belt by defeating Ovince Saint Preux by unanimous decision last Saturday at UFC 197 on a night he was originally supposed to face Cormier. Cormier injured his knee and had to be removed from the event, but after meeting with his doctors Monday, he’ll be cleared to fight on the July 9th event.
The two first fought in January 2015 with Jones successfully defending his title via unanimous decision. That was Jones’ last fight until this past Saturday due to various legal and personal issues.
The show will also feature Jose Aldo vs. Frankie Edgar in an interim featherweight title bout, and women’s bantamweight champion Miesha Tate vs. Amanda Nunes.
Welcome to F4WOnline.com’s live coverage of UFC 197: Jones vs. Saint Preux from the MGM Grand Garden Arena in Las Vegas, Nevada. The event is headlined by a bout for the UFC Interim Light Heavyweight Championship as former UFC Light Heavyweight Champion Jon Jones makes his anticipated return to action to take on Ovince Saint Preux, who replaced an injured Daniel Cormier in what was originally supposed to be a rematch for the UFC Light Heavyweight Championship held by Cormier and previously held by Jones. In the co-main event, it is another title fight as UFC Flyweight Champion Demetrious Johnson looks to make another title defense as he welcomes challenger and former Olympic medalist Henry Cejudo, who puts his undefeated record on the line. Also on the card is former UFC Lightweight Champion Anthony Pettis as he takes on Edson Barboza. Follow along with our live coverage of the event beginning at 6:30 PM eastern time with preliminary action all the way thru the main card.
We’re looking for your thoughts on the show, so you can leave a thumbs up, thumbs down or thumbs in the middle and a best and worst match to dave@wrestlingobserver.com
LIGHTWEIGHTS- EFRAIN ESCUDERO (24-10, 5-6 UFC) VS. KEVIN LEE (11-2, 5-2 UFC)
First round: Right and left by Lee and body kick. Lee with a left. Lee continues to land. Escudero got behind him and tried for a takedown. Lee up and tried a takedown and now Lee tried a suplex but Escudero blocked. Lee got a momentary takedown. Lee let him go. Lee with a body kick. Escudero coming backs with punches late in the round. Escudero got a takedown. Lee 10-9.
Second round: Lee with a right. Lee has him against the fence. Escudero got a single leg but couldn’t get the takedown. Lee with a knee to the body. Body kick by Lee. Both landed. Escudero has him against the fence. Escudero with a right. Left by Escudero. Lee 20-18, but this round was closer.
Third round: Lee throwing front kicks. Escudero with an accidental low kick. Lee in with a body kick. Escudero with a left. Escudedro with knees to the thigh. Lee got underneath and slammed him down. Lee landing lefts. Lee grabbed a guillotine but Escudero escaped. Lee landing punches on the ground. Lee with body punches and elbows from the top. Should be Lee 30-27 or maybe 29-28.
Scores: All three have it 29-28 for Lee.
LIGHT HEAVYWEIGHTS- MARCOS ROGERIO DE LIMA (13-3-1, 2-1 UFC) VS. CLINT HESTER (11-5, 4-2 UFC)
First round: De Lima throwing kicks. De Lima knocked him down with a right hook counter to the ear. He’s on top with punches to the side of the head. De Lima with more punches. De Lima remains on top in guard. Nothing happening and boring. Now de Lima broke fee and is landing a lot of hard punches. He pummeling Hester from the top and got the submission with a head and arm choke.
HEAVYWEIGHTS- WALT HARRIS (7-4, 0-3 UFC) VS. CODY EAST (12-1, 0-0 UFC)
First round: East landed a nice right. Harris missed a high kick and East hit a body kick. Body kick by Harris. East landing punches. East landing a lot. Kick by East landed like it was an Arena Mexico finish. Harris with a body kick. Both swing like rock em sock em robots and the crowd picked up big. Body kick by Harris. Good pace and good movement for big guys here. East with two rights and Harris countered and dropped him with a counter left to the jaw. Harris landing big punches on the ground. Now he’s landing elbows. More big punches by Harris and it was stopped. East took a real beating from a big hard hitting guy here. 4:18
PRELIMINARY CARD (FOX SPORTS 1- 8 PM ET/5 PM PT)
LIGHTWEIGHTS- GLAICO FRANCA (13-3, 1-0 UFC) VS. JAMES VICK (8-0, 4-0 UFC)
First round: Franca with low kicks and took Vick down. Second takedown by Franca. Franca staying on top. Vick up and landed a body kick. Franca pushed him against the fence. Vick with a spin kick to the body. Viick landing all kinds of shots but Franca took him down again. Close round Franca 10-9.
Second round: Between rounds they are checking Franca’s right eye but they let him continue. It’s not bleeding but it was poked. Vick taking him apart with punches at 6-foot 2 and a lightweight. Franca tagged him back. Spinning backfist by Franca landed. Franca took him down with a hip toss. Vick back up. High kick and knee by Vick. Vick has the big edge standing with his reach and accuracy. Franca fired back with a hard right. Front kick by Vick. Spin kick to the body by Vick. Vick’s round so 19-19.
Third round: Vick landing lefts. Vick with lefts and rights. Vick continuing to land lefts. Jumping knee by Vick. Franca landed a hard right. Vick continues to jab. Low kick by Franca. Vick is dancing away a lot now which could hurt him but he’s clearly superior standing. Great front kick to the head by Vick. Good fight. Crowd liked it 29-28 Vick.
Scores: 29-28, 29-28 and 30-27 Vick
WOMEN’S STRAWWEIGHTS- (#2) CARLA ESPARZA (10-3, 1-1 UFC) VS. (#14) JULIANA LIMA (8-2, 2-1 UFC)
First round: Slow start as in nothing happening. Esparza with punches and Lima going for a takedown. Lima with punches and Esparza took her down. Esparza gave her a short power bomb off an armbar attempt. Lima tried for another armbar and Esparza out. Lima tried for it again and Esparza with another short power bomb. Nice up kick by Lima and another. Esparza with punches from the top but doing no damage. Lima with another up kick. Esparza cradled her and punched her a few times. Esparza 10-9.
Second round: Lima swinging wildly. Lima with a kick and Esparza slammed her down after grabbing the leg. That kick was a bad idea. Esparza with a lot of punches but again no real damaging blows. Esparza again with a short power bomb. Lima up with 30 seconds left and took Esparza down but Esparza right back up. Lima working for a takedown late but didn’t get it. Esparza 20-18.
Third round: Esparza took her down to start the third round. Another up kick by Lima. Lima back up with 3:00 left. Esparza took her down right away. Lima up. Esparza took her down again. Esparza with a few punches. Lima reversed with 1:17 left. Lima is in side control. Esparza regained guard. Boring fight. Esparza 30-27.
Scores: All three have it 30-27 for Esparza.
WELTERWEIGHTS- DANNY ROBERTS (12-1, 1-0 UFC) VS. DOMINIQUE STEELE (14-6, 1-1 UFC)
First round: Steele dropped him with a right early. Roberts worked for a triangle but didn’t get it. Roberts up with 2:50 left in the round. Body kick by Roberts. Another body kick by Roberts. Big left by Roberts. Steele went for the takedown off a missed punch but couldn’t get it. They traded knees. Steele 10-9.
Second round: Knee to the body by Roberts. Roberts with a body kick and punches. Roberts landing more punches. Steele with a knee to the body. Roberts with a knee. Roberts with an elbow. Roberts with more punches. Front kick by Roberts. Roberts landing several punches. Roberts with a head kick. Steele spun and got behind Roberts. Roberts’s round so 19-19 after two.
Third round: Steele with a high takedown. Roberts landed elbows. Steele went for a takedown but Roberts is defending well Steele now got him down. Roberts throwing elbows from the bottom. Herb Dean ordered a standup. Steele landed a knee to the head and now both are swinging wildly and Steele took him down again. Steele 29-28. Scores: All three have it 29-28 for Roberts. The crowd is booing like crazy. Steele is in disbelief as is the crowd.
FLYWEIGHTS- (#14) SERGIO PETTIS (13-2, 4-2 UFC) VS. CHRIS KELADES (9-2, 2-1 UFC)
First round: Pettis seemed to land more and be more technical. He got a takedown with a trip late. Pettis 10-9.
Second round: Kelades put Pettis down and Pettis threatened with a triangle. Pettis reversed to the top. Both landing. Nice head kick by Pettis. Body kick by Pettis. Pettis 20-18.
Third round: Pettis with a takedown. Pettis landing punches. Kelades back with punches. Pettis went for a takedown and didn’t get it. Pettis with a front headlock. Pettis shooting for a takedown. Kelades went for a choke at the horn. Pettis 30-27.
Scores: All three scored it 30-27 for Pettis. You’ve never seen such a rushed decision announcement in your life.
MAIN CARD (PPV- 10 PM ET/7 PM PT)
FEATHERWEIGHTS- YAIR RODRIGUEZ (6-1, 3-0 UFC) VS. ANDRE FILI (15-3, 3-2 UFC)
First round: Rodriguez threw a crazy kick that missed. Takedown by Rodriguez off a kick. Rodriguez landing hard elbows. Rodriguez now holding him down. Rodriguez in side control. Fili back up with 45 seconds left. Nice sweeping low kick took Fili off his feet. Fili dropped him with a left jab. Hard low kick by Rodriguez. Body kick by Fili and a takedown by Fili. Rodriguez back up. Great round. 10-9 Rodriguez..
Second round: Fili tripped Rodriguez down on a kick but let him back up. Rodriguez with a takedown. Rodriguez knocked him cold with a knockout of the year jumping kick. This will be in the all-time highlight reel. It was a jumping left switch kick to the head. Fili is okay but he went out immediately. 2:15
MIDDLEWEIGHTS- (#7) ROBERT WHITTAKER (15-4, 6-2 UFC) VS. (#13) RAFAEL NATAL (21-6-1, 9-4-1 UFC)
First round: Ozzie, Ozzie, Ozzie chants for Whittaker. Body kick by Whittaker. Body kick by Natal. Low kick by Whittaker. Low kick by Natal. Both swinging hard. Left by Whitaker. Natal got behind him but Whittaker escaped. Natal with a low kick. Whittaker hurt him with punches and Natal went down. Natal got back up. Left by Whittaker. Whittaker landed another left. Whittaker 10-9.
Second round: Natal with a low kick. Both throwing punches. Whittaker’s left leg is all bruised up. Low kick by Natal. Whittaker missed on a punch. Natal landed a counter. Whittaker bleeding from the nose. Natal taking over this round. Natal knocked him off his feet, more a trip than a knockdown. Now Whittaker landing. Nice left by Whittaker. Low kick by Whittaker. Jumping kick by Whittaker. Could go either way, I’ve got it 19-19 with it going to Natal.
Third round: Whittaker threw a kick that landed low and the bout was stopped for a time out. Whittaker with a body kick. Whittaker’s left leg is so beat up. Whittaker now with low kicks. Left by Whittaker. Front kick and low kick by Whittaker and followed with a right. Hard left by Whttaker. Natal with low kicks. Left by Whittaker. High kick by Whittaker knocked him down and Natal up and both swinging wildly as the fight ended. Crowd liked the fight. 29-28 Whittaker.
Scores: 29-28, 30-27 and 30-27 Whittaker
Whittaker said he injured his right hand early so was mostly throwing lefts. He said he got tired in the second round and Natal was really tough.
LIGHTWEIGHTS- (#3) ANTHONY PETTIS (18-4, 5-3 UFC) VS. (#8) EDSON BARBOZA (16-4, 10-4 UFC)
First round: Body kick by Barboza. Low kick by Barboza. Pettis with a counter off a kick by Barboza. Good left by Barboza. Low kick by Barboza. Low kick by Barboza. Big right by Barboza. Another right by Barboza. Spin kick to the body by Barboza. Pettis tried a takedown and couldn’t get it. Spin kick to the head by Barboza. Pettis tried a flying kick that missed. 10-9 Barboza. Good round.
Second round: Barboza with a body kick as Pettis tried for takedown. Pettis landed a right. Pettis in with punches. Pettis with a body kick. Big right by Barboza. Barboza with a nice combo. Pettis tried a takedown and didn’t get it. Hard body kick by Barboza. Trading punches. Pettis tried a cartwheel kick that missed. Barboza 20-18.
Third round: Pettis with a cartwheel kick that didn’t land solid. Barboza put him down with a low kick. Low kick by Barboza. Barboza kicked him in the groin. Brief time out and back in action. Big low kick and another by Barboza. The two kicks sounded like a shotgun going off. Two more low kicks by Barboza. Left by Barboza. Another low kick by Barboza. Left and low kick by Barboza. Another low kick. Barboza really taking over now. Pettis tried for a takedown and didn’t come close. Spin kick by Barboza. Pettis missed a spin kick. Barboza 30-27
Scores: 29-28, 29-28 and 30-27 Barboza.
UFC FLYWEIGHT CHAMPIONSHIP- (C) DEMETRIOUS JOHNSON (23-2-1, 11-1-1 UFC) VS. (#2) HENRY CEJUDO (10-0, 4-0 UFC)
First round: They are shooting Joseph Benavidez at ringside. Cejudo definitely got the bigger reaction. Some boos, but not many for Johnson. Low kick by Cehjudo. They are in a clinch. Both trading knees. Johnson landed a right. High kick by Johnson blocked. Back to a clinch. Takedown by Cejudo. Place went nuts for this. This is the most intense I’ve ever seen a crowd at a Johnson fight. Johnson back up. Back to a clinch. Knee by Johnson. Johnson landing a lot of knees. An elbow and knees hurt Cejudo and and knee to the body put him down and a few punches later it was over. 2:49
UFC INTERIM LIGHT HEAVYWEIGHT CHAMPIONSHIP- (#1) JON JONES (21-1, 15-1 UFC) VS. (#6) OVINCE SAINT PREUX (19-7, 7-2 UFC)
First round: Spin kick to the body by Johes. Johes kicked the knee. Jones missed a front kick. OSP missed a punch. Another kick to the knee by Jones. Kick to the body by Jones. Jones caught a kick by OSP. Side kick by Jones. Jones throwing kicks to the knee. OSP kicked the knee. Body kick by Jones. Spin kick by Jones. Left by OSP. Jones with a knee to the body. Jones 10-9.
Second round: Jones tried for a single leg but gave it up when OSP landed punches. Body kick by Jones. Body kick by Jones. OSP chant. Left to the body by Jones. Knee by OSP. Real loud OSP chants. Jones firing elbows and knees now. Jones with elbows. OSP hurt him with a punch. He missed another one. Jones with a high kick but didn’t connect with any damage. Spin kick to the body by Jones. Big right by OSP. Left by OSP. Spin kick to the head by Jones. Crowd really buzzing because OSP did land some shots. Still Jones 20-18.
Third round: Jones with all kinds of kicks to the knee. Jones with a left. OSP landed some punches. Jones with another kick to the knee. Spinning punch by Jones. Left by Jones. Left to the body by Jones. Body kick by OSP. Left by Jones. Left by OSP. Fans booing because it’s not that great of a fight. Jones with a high kick. Left and right by OSP. Body kick by Jones. Another body kick by Jones. Left and right by OSP. Jones back to attacking the knee. OSP missed big punches. He’s too slow and telegraphing them. Jones 30-27.
Fourth round: Crowd booing a lot. Body kick by OSP. Body kick by Jones. Jones working for a takedown. He picked him up and slammed him and OSP back up. Jones landed a knee. Crowd booing again. Elbows by Jones. Left to the body by Jones. Jones took him down again. He’s in side control. Elbow by Jones. OSP nearly escaped. Jones has his back with 33 seconds left. Jones with punches, a kick to the body and an elbow and a stomp. Jones had him nearly beat at the end of the round. 10-8 round Jones 40-35.
Fifth round: Jones with a body kick. Jones with a left. Spin kick to the body by Jones. Uppercut by Jones. Another uppercut by Jones. Jones with a high sidewalk slam into side control. Kick to the body by Jones and OSP back up. Jones missed a high kick. Trading punches as Jones had OSP backed into the fence. OSP just too tired to do anything as time ran out. Jones 50-44.
Scores: 50-44, 50-45 and 50-45 for Jones
Jones said this isn’t the real belt. Said it took him a while to pull the trigger. Fans booed him when it was over. I was watching and anticipating and imagining but I wasn’t going for it, watching instead of reacting. Said he physically felt amazing, mentally said he felt he was sucking. Said his problems didn’t play into the fight. Said he really needed that fight. Said he needed a fight like that before the title match. Really excited to fight Daniel Cormier. I’ll be back in practice Tuesday and Wednesday. Then said he loved the fans. Lukewarm at best reaction.
OSP interivew. Said Jon was the best pound for pound and said he only had three weeks to get ready so he thought he did a good job. Said his arm his killing him from blocking a high kick. Said he’s consistent and tactical.
As Elton John once said, “Saturday night’s all fight for fighting!” and with a week of madness in the world of MMA, it’s time for some action inside the Octagon and tonight will see the return of Jon Jones.
While not quite the matchup that everyone was hoping for due to light heavyweight champion Daniel Cormier pulling out of the originally scheduled main event, it’s still a big deal when the pound for pound best in the world steps into the Octagon. If you don’t buy the “interim” tag as legitimate, you can watch Demetrious Johnson put up his flyweight title in the night’s co-main event against the unbeaten Henry Cejudo. There are also two former champions on the card in Anthony Pettis and Carla Esparza. It should be a great night of action and our panel weighs in with their picks for the biggest fights on the card.
Here’s our panel with the 2016 records in parenthesis. We’ve also added a running tally of the records of the favorites going into the fights and the panel consensus picks
John Pollock (24-11; .686) – Fight Network analyst, Live Audio Wrestling co-host, MMA Report co-host
Josh Nason (23-12; .657) – Host of Josh Nason’s Punch Out; writer/editor WrestlingObserver.com , WON Twitter guy
Mike Sawyer (21-14; .600) – Tough Talk MMA
Consensus picks (19-13; .594)
Mike Sempervive (20-15; .571) – Wrestling Observer Live and Big Audio Nightmare co-host
David Bixenspan (20-15; .571) – Figure Four Weekly writer, podcast host
Ryan Frederick (20-15; .571) – Observer DraftKings expert, WON Twitter guy
Favorites (20-15; .571)
Dave Meltzer (19-16; .543)– Wrestling Observer founder
Steve Juon (19-16; .543) – MMA Mania/Wrestling Observer writer, Angry Marks founder
Front Row Brian (17-18; .486) – MMA newsbreaker, Beloved internet personality, Podcast host
Paul Fontaine (16-19; .457) – MMADraws.com founder, WrestlingObserver.com writer
Interim Light Heavyweight Title: Jon Jones (21-1) vs Ovince St Preux (19-7)
Jones’ problems outside the cage are well documented but inside the cage it’s hard, if not impossible, to question his dominance. The only question here is whether nearly 16 months outside the Octagon in the prime of his career will hurt him. For his first fight back he really shouldn’t have a problem with the overmatched OSP, who took this fight on three week’s notice. The winner of this fight should get a title fight with Daniel Cormier this year in what will be one of the biggest fights of the year.
UFC Flyweight Champion Demetrious Johnson (23-2-1) vs Henry Cejudo (10-0)
Johnson is the first and only champion in this division, having beaten Joseph Benavidez in a tournament final nearly 4 years ago to win the strap. This will be his 8th title defence and he’s the longest reigning current champion in the UFC. He’s also managed to finish 4 of his last 6 challengers inside of 5 rounds. He does have a tough test in Olympic champion wrestler Cejudo. The unbeaten challenger has been on a fast track to a title shot since debuting in the UFC 15 months ago and has won all 4 of his fights in the Octagon, despite not having scored a finish. If “Mighty Mouse” manages to get through Cejudo, he’s scheduled to face the winner of the TUF 24 flyweight tournament later this year.
Anthony Pettis (18-4) vs Edson Barboza (16-4) Lightweights
These guys are on almost every show…in a sense. Pettis’ “Showtime” kick, which clinch his WEC title fight with Benson Henderosn is shows in video packages at every live event, as is Barboza’s devastating head-kick KO of Terry Etim in their 2012 bout. Matching them up together will hopefully produce another memorable moment and it will almost certainly be an action-packed fight. Barboza is trying to get where Pettis has already been, to the top of the most stacked division in MMA. Both guys have lost 2 of their last 3 fights though and a loss for either man will probably remove them from the title picture.
Robert Whittaker (15-4) vs Rafael Natal (21-6-1) Middleweights
Whittaker has been on a tear since moving up from 170 as he’s won 3 straight with 2 KO’s and a dominant decision win over Uriah Hall. The TUF Smashes winner is probably Australia’s best hope for their first ever UFC champion. Standing in his way is the veteran Natal. After losing to Tim Kennedy in his first and only UFC main event, Natal followed that up with a loss to veteran Ed Herman and many thought he was done. Instead he’s rung up 4 straight wins and will be in title contention with a win over Whittaker. This is a very important fight in the division and could steal the show.
Carla Esparza (10-3) vs Juliana Lima (8-2) Strawweights
Esparza makes her UFC return 13 months after being destroyed in a 2 round massacre at the hands of Joanna Jedrzejczyk. The first ever champion in this dvision also formerly held the Invicta title in the same weight class. Lima also fought the current champ but managed to go the distance with her in her UFC debut. Since that loss, she’s run up two straight decision wins and will be on the short list of title contenders with a win over the former champ.
