Georges St-Pierre was a guest on "The Joe Rogan Experience" and issued a bleak warning to all young MMA fighters and much more — Fightful has all the latest combat sports news in today's roundup.
Georges St-Pierre warns young MMA fighters
Georges St-Pierre (26-2) has warned young MMA fighters of the risk they are putting their health under by pursuing a career in combat sports. "Rush" was a guest on Joe Rogan's podcast "The Joe Rogan Experience" and was asked what advice he would give to the future of MMA. And the former two-weight champion didn't hold back in his advice.
“A lot of them, my advice would be, ‘Hey bro, you should hang up your gloves and find a real job. Because I’ve seen this movie, and it’s not a good ending, my friend." St-Pierre said. “But if I tell them the truth, they get mad at me. … [They say], ‘He’s jealous and he’s arrogant.”
St-Pierre also weighed in on the topic of sparring and how hard fighters should train during camps.
“I could be brain damaged, but so far, I think I’m good,” St-Pierre jokes with Rogan (h/t LowKickMMA). “I see guys sparring and they lose a lot of brain cells. I believe the best way to improve is when it’s playful. It’s crazy how many guys I’ve seen that have left their careers in the gyms because they spar too hard.”
Ryan Bader delighted to avenge Lyoto Machida loss at Bellator 256
Bellator heavyweight champion Ryan Bader (26-8) avenged his loss to 9 years prior to Lyoto Machida at Bellator 256. Bader is looking to reclaim his light-heavyweight championship in the Bellator Grand Pand after the victory, the former champion reflected on his growth as a fighter since they originally fought in the UFC.
“It’s kind of a testament to how far I’ve grown,” Bader told MMA Junkie at a post-fight news conference. “(In the) first fight, I really couldn’t hold my own at all in the standup department. After that first round, after I kind of figured him out a little bit, I kind of turned it up. I knew my cardio was there. It feels good.”
Dan Hardy weighs in on Eddie Alvarez DQ loss
Former UFC broadcaster Dan Hardy has given his opinion on Eddie Alvarez's DQ loss at ONE on TNT 1 to Iuri Lapicus. The former UFC & Bellator lightweight champion was given the DQ for hitting Lapicus with a string of supposedly illegal shots to the back of his head, although some fans have disputed the legitimacy of that claim.
“So this is where it gets a bit chaotic,” he said (h/t MMA Mania). “Eddie’s got him tied up here and he’s in a position where he can land punches but they’re in a very precarious position. The referee leans over in a moment and warns him about these being back of the head. And it’s almost like Eddie doubles down on the fact that it’s not an illegal shot and goes to town. The problem is as soon as the referee warns him again about back of the head, then immediately Lapicus starts to play up to it.”
“Now this is where it gets frustrating. Because we can all see that Lapicus is playing up to the referee. We know he’s not that hurt. For a start, he’s holding the wrong side of his head. He was hit on this side of the head and now he’s holding on to the other side. So this is what frustrates people and what gets people very animated about the decision the ref made to DQ Eddie."
Cat Zingano explains the initiative to set up a $10,000 'Overcoming Loss Scholarship'
Cat Zingano has explained the new initiative she is backing for those in need. The Bellator featherweight set up a $10,000 scholarship through Bold.org. The scholarship will be awarded to a student who is fighting after losing a loved one and needs financial aid to help them get by. of financial support for their education as they move forward. Zingano knows from experience about the struggles of losing a loved one, as she had the loss of her mother in 2005 from brain cancer, as well as the loss of her husband, who took his own life in 2014.
“I’ve been talking to Bold.org for a bit, and what they are is a company that you can customize scholarships,” Zingano told MMA Junkie. “So for me – especially with everything that I’ve been through and knowing what I needed and who I needed back when those times were tough – it just made sense for me to, especially now that I can, be able to help support somebody, to try to help them get through these crazy times. It was not easy, and it’s something I adjust to every day. It’s something my kid adjusts to every day. I just want to give a handout for the time I didn’t have a handout or the times I did have a handout and I just want to be grateful and pay it forward. So it’s a big deal, and there has already been a ton of applications, and it’s been amazing," said Zingano. "I can’t wait to impact somebody that way because I just feel it. I know what they feel and need. I just can’t wait to see it and hopefully, there can be more of these. It can just make some change, especially right now since everyone is at each others’ throats and so much division. I just hope I can bring people together and I hope this can go well. We can help take care of each other.”
Adriano Moraes reveals Jorge Masvidal told him to use the knee against Demetrious Johnson
Adriano Moraes shocked the MMA world when he knocked out Demetrious Johnson at ONE on TNT 1. The Brazilian dropped Johnson with an uppercut before landed a picture-perfect knee to his grounded opponent. Moraes swarmed with some punches before the referee mercifully stepped in. Moraes has now revealed that Jorge Masvidal has been pestering him to use the knee.
“Some weeks ago, a month ago, when he saw me in fight camp preparing to fight, he said, ‘Adriano, I see how you train and let me tell you something, the knee can change your life. Like the knee I did on Ben Askren, you can do on Demetrious Johnson because you have good knee attacks,’” Moraes told South China Morning Post.
Moraes credits Masvidal as a great teammate and is backing him to finish Kamaru Usman at UFC 261 and bring home welterweight gold.
“Man, he’s always inside the gym working hard, he’s such an amazing guy. He’s a good teammate. He likes to help his friends,” Moraes said (h/t BJPenn.com). "He’s a veteran fighter. He knows what you need to do to get this win and bring that belt home. So I think this fight is going to be tough, but he’s going to do good. I think he’s going to win via TKO in the second or third round."
Vicente Luque explains why he will never fight Gilbert Burns
Vicente Luque has explained why he won't fight Gilbert Burns should they both ascend the UFC welterweight rankings. Burns is scheduled to face Stephen Thompson next who Luque has already fought and lost a unanimous decision. Luque is angling for a Colby Covington fight and should either fighter win against such established names, they would be primed to face-off to decide who will challenge for the belt. But Luque has explained why that will never happen.
“We have already said we won’t fight each other. We are more than friends, we are brothers,” Luque said to BJPenn.com. “Our families are super close and we have a relationship that is different than most teammates. We will figure something out. Both of us want to be champions and that is what we will work for. We both want each other to be champions. For now, there are many other guys we can fight.”
Goiti Yamauchi "almost certain" he will fight Michael Chandler again in MMA
Goiti Yamauchi is excited to watch his former Bellator rival Michael Chandler take on Charles Oliveira for the UFC lightweight belt. Yamauchi lost to Chandler in 2018 via a decision and Yamauchi hasn't forgotten that loss, and predicts that Chandler will return to Bellator one day where they will run back that fight.
“My gut says I’m almost certain I’ll meet Chandler in a cage one day,” he said. “I hope he has a good fight and stays active and healthy until that happens.
Yamauchi has also given props to "Iron" and reflected on a fight that he admits wasn't very entertaining.
"Michael is very cerebral, he doesn’t go in there to brawl, he goes in there to fight,” Yamauchi said. “Impeccable shape, good head. He’s cold in there. When he got hit, unlike others I’ve fought before, he was able to maintain composure and follow his strategy. He was superior with his takedowns and strategy. The fight itself sucked, it was pretty boring," Yamauchi joked in an interview with MMA Fighting. "There’s nothing you can take away from that fight other than he had a good game plan and timing. He was super well-prepared and fought an underprepared Goiti. Hat’s off to him, he did what he had to do to win and was superior to that Goiti that night.”
Scott Coker provides a timeline on Bellator return to hosting events on the road
Scott Coker has admitted that Bellator will differ from the UFC as states begin to open after lockdown. The UFC already has two pay-per-view events with full crowds scheduled for April 24 in Jacksonville for UFc 261 and May 15 in Houston for UFC 262. Coker is expecting Bellator to be back in full by the end of the year.
“If it’s still a locked-down version throughout the country except for a couple states, it’s gonna be tough. But when everything does open up, we will definitely get on the road,” Coker said (h/t MMA Junkie). “I can see light at the end of the tunnel. I just think everybody has to be patient. We’re gonna be here (at Mohegan Sun) through the June fights anyway, but maybe at the beginning of July or end of July, August, September, in that timeframe, we’ll definitely be on the road at some point. Already talking to the venues that we normally go to. I think before the end of the year you’ll see Bellator on the road in a big way.”
UFC fighter Alexander Munoz chases down and push kicks screwdriver-wielding car thief
UFC fighter Alexander Munoz made the most of having his car stolen, as he chased down and humbled one of the thieves who jacked his vehicle. Munoz (6-1 MMA), who is currently preparing for a lightweight bout with ‘Violent Bob Ross’ Luis Pena (8-3 MMA) at UFC Vegas 24, recently sat down with MMA legend Urijah Faber on The Cali Cast, where he shared the following wild story about his car being stolen.
“It was early in the morning,” Munoz began (h/t MMAMania). “My girl woke me up, and she said ‘Did you leave your car parked at the gym?’ No, I didn’t. I knew right away. I ran outside and it was gone. I knew it wasn’t there, filed a police report, and then I found it really fast.”
Munoz proceeded to go searching for his car in some local homeless camps and rough areas and before long he was reunited with his vehicle. The car was found abandoned and his snowboarding gear was nowhere to be found.
Munoz proceeded to call the police and then began to scan the area for the thieves who walked off with his belongings.
“I start looking around myself, I see this guy walking passed … I double-take him, and he’s wearing all my snowboard gear. He’s wearing my jacket, my pants, all my stuff. I double-back around and follow him back to my car, him and his buddy get in. I call the police, like “Where are you at?” They said they were on their way, but I don’t know where they were … I basically hunted these guys down, chased ‘em down for probably five blocks. He jumps out, ‘You have a problem?’ Yeah man, you’re in my car! That’s my vehicle!”
Sam Alvey "absolutely" fighting to keep UFC job
Sam Alvey admits that he is fighting for his UFC career when he faces Julian Marquez at UFC on ABC 2.Marquez has said he intends on delivering an exciting finish against Alvey, a man “The Cuban Missile Crisis” actually called “evil” when previewing the matchup. Alvey says this isn't the first time he's been called this and he will become the man they claim him to be.
“Mike Perry said the same thing years ago,” Alvey recalled (h/t MMA Junkie). “At the end, he said, ‘You know, I was wrong.’ He said, ‘Yeah I’m kind of sorry for it, but no, you seem like a good dude, Sam.’ I said, ‘Well thank you.’
“So you know what? (Marquez) can think what he wants. For 15 minutes, I’m going to be evil. I’m going to try and shorten his life for 15 minutes, but before and after that, he’s a great dude, and I will respect the hell out of him.”
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