UFC welterweight contender Khamzat Chimaev is set to arrive in America for specialist treatment following ongoing issues after testing positive for COVID-19 — Fightful has you covered on this and all of the news in the combat sports world.
Khamzat Chimaev set to arrive in the US for specialist health treatment
Fast-rising UFC star, now welterweight contender Khamzat Chimaev is set to arrive in America for specialist health treatment after ongoing respiratory issues after having COVID-19. Chimaev tested positive for COVID-19 back in December 2020 but is still having major issues with his lungs after having the virus. After getting rid of the virus, Chimaev was again rebooked to fight Leon Edwards in early 2021 but again was forced to pull out, this time due to not being fully recovered from the virus.
In a video that was released just a few days ago, Chimaev is seen really struggling to train and is unable to take part in full training due to breathing issues. It is well documented that COVID-19 can have very bad effects on you even after you return a negative test. Chimaev is the prime example of this as he is still having bad symptoms over three months after testing positive.
Chimaev's manager Ali Abdelaziz has revealed to ESPN that Chimaev was set to arrive in Las Vegas on Tuesday to receive medical care for lingering effects of COVID-19 that he’s been dealing with in recent weeks.
In the UFC 258 post-fight press conference, UFC president Dana White said that the UFC would fly Chimaev out to America to help him get the best possible health care so that Chimaev can physically recover and hopefully fight again.
Gilbert Burns disappointed with UFC 258 loss but remains hopeful he will be a champion
After losing to his former teammate Kamaru Usman in the main event of UFC 258, Gilbert Burns is still adamant that he will be a champion one day or he will die trying to be.
In an interview with MMA Junkie, Burns detailed what his feelings are now that the fight is done. burns said "It’s always painful, but as the days are going, I’m feeling better. I watched the fight several times, possibly over 20 times already. I started very good, and I lost patience. I saw the knockout, and I started going after it too much, loaded up a lot of punches. I was out of my zone at the time, but it was right there."
Even though Burns is fresh off a loss he wants to get back into the Octagon as quickly as possible. “I already texted Dana,” Burns said. “I already texted Ali. I already texted Sean Shelby. They want me to take a little time off. That’s exactly what I’m going to do, but I believe in three to four weeks, I’ll be able to go back to training camp and training, but we’ll see."
“It’s hard to relax right now because I was believing so much that I would become a champion, and now it didn’t happen, so it’s kind of very weird right now, but I’m trying to be in the moment right now.”
Burns also went on to say "I know what I did wrong, and I cannot wait to be back fighting again, giving my best. Like I said multiple times, I’m going to be champion, or I’m going to die trying, but a couple more weeks, I’ll be back on the horse again, training. I know that pain, so it’s OK right now. I’m feeling good right now because I know that feeling already, so I’ll be back very soon.”
Do you think that Burns will be a champion one day?
Santiago Ponzinibbio opens up about unsuccessful UFC return
Santiago Ponzinibbio's UFC return could not have gone any worse. He lost via knockout in the first round to Chinese welterweight Li Jingliang.
Ponzinibbio has opened up about the loss.
In an interview with MMA Junkie, Ponzinibbio discussed the loss and his disappointment with it. He said "Without a doubt, it was the toughest defeat of my career because of the winning streak that I was on, I had a lot on the line, and I had been out for a while. I would’ve been on an eight-fight winning streak and the layoff wouldn’t have mattered as much and I would’ve been back at the top.
Before Ponzinibbio returned he had a lengthy battle outside of the Octagon with multiple injuries and other things which kept him from fighting.
Ponzinibbio also believes that everything went perfectly in preparation but he didn't perform on fight night. He said "But with the way it went, knowing I had so much to give and wasn’t able to show it, you’re left with frustration. But the truth is that the weight cut was perfect, the training camp went well, I was extremely prepared everywhere. There’s no excuse, I was well prepared"
Ponzinibbio is still confident that he is still a force to be reckoned with in the welterweight division.
Brandon Moreno targeting fight with Deiveson Figueiredo in April
UFC flyweight contender Brandon Moreno is targeting a rematch for the title in April.
When speaking to MMA Junkie, Moreno said I’ve been in the gym since the fight, training extremely hard"
Moreno went on to say "In my conversations with my manager, Jason House, I told him that I’m ready for April, and he’s pushing the UFC hard. But apparently, Figueiredo thinks a little differently than us. When he was cornering his brother, he looked a little chubby, so I don’t really know if April would work.”
Moreno and Figueiredo were involved in a fight of the year contender in 2020 so fans would definitely be interested in a rematch.
Moreno also believes that he has the champ found out. He said "I’ve discovered the great secret of ‘Figgy, He just tries to intimidate you and get you off your game – make you beat yourself. Once you cross that off the wall, you can see he’s just a human like you and me. I’m proud of my performance in our first fight, and I know I’m going to be twice the fighter I am when I’m back in the Octagon.”
Do you think that Moreno wins a rematch with Figueiredo?
Maycee Barber opens up about UFC 258 loss
At UFC 258, Maycee Barber returned to the Octagon after her first professional loss. She is now dealing with back-to-back defeats after losing to Alexa Grasso.
Barber revealed that although her knee injury which she sustained in her last fight was fully healed, it was still playing on her mind during the fight.
In an interview with BJPenn.com Barber opened up about her preparation for the fight and her feelings after the loss. Barber said "I felt like my camp went great, training was awesome. (My) weight cut went great, but I didn’t realize how much I would feel my knee in there and think about it. My timing was also off. My range was off. A lot of different things were not what I expected them to be. But props to Alexa because she had a great gameplan, and she did what she needed to do and she got the win.”
Even though Barber is now on a two-fight losing streak she still believes that she is destined to be a future UFC champion.
She said "The destination is still the same, but we just have another detour we need to go around. The path might change a little bit, but the title is still the goal in the long run. How we get there, whether it is beat a bunch more people and make some money, we will find out. There should be a lot of growth, and you will see a lot more grittiness and a lot more going after it and finishing the girls – a meaner version (of me).”
Anthony Hernandez believes that he submitted Rodolfo Vieira with a broken hand
Anthony Hernandez's victory over Rodolfo Vieira at UFC 258 was arguably the best finish of the night. Vieira is one of the best fighters on the ground in the UFC but lost via submission to Hernandez.
On MMA Junkie Radio, Hernandez detailed the fight and also revealed that he thinks he submitted Vieira with a broken hand. Hernandez said "I was able to get back to my feet and then on the feet, I was going to get his ass because he’s a grappler, One of the right hands. I’m pretty sure broke the hand, it just went numb. It was but it’s a fight, you gotta keep going, it’s a pride thing. … I kept throwing, it didn’t look like it was broken but it"
Hernandez potentially having a broken hand during the finish makes the submission win even more impressive.
Stephen Thompson wants Kamaru Usman next
Former UFC welterweight title challenger Stephen Thompson has revealed that he wants to fight the current welterweight champion, Kamaru Usman, next.
— Stephen Thompson (@WonderboyMMA) February 18, 2021
Thompson took to Twitter to put his name forward to fight Kamaru Usman next for the welterweight title.
Thompson is coming off of back-to-back decision wins over Geoff Neal and Vicente Luque. The 38-year-old American was written off by many fans and pundits heading into those two fights due to his age and a previous knockout loss to Anthony Pettis, but Thompson has looked very impressive in his last two fights. He picked apart both Neal and Luque with a variety of strikes and based on those two performances, it’s hard to say he’s not ready for another shot at the UFC welterweight title. While Thompson is only ranked number five at 170 pounds, the fact that he’s a fresh matchup for Usman might make him an intriguing option for the UFC matchmakers.
Drakkar Klose plans to test free agency after recent frustrations with the UFC
UFC lightweight Drakkar Klose has become very frustrated with how the UFC is matchmaking fights at lightweight.
After Klose got knocked out by Beneil Dariush at UFC 248 in March of 2020, he did not get another fight for the rest of the year.
“Dude, I’m just trying to get money now. I’m not trying to chase that belt, the UFC already knows who they want to be champion,” Klose said on Just Scrap Radio on BJPENN.com. “It’s the same couple of people always fighting. You look at the top 10, Al Iaquinta is still in there, he hasn’t fought in two years. To me, it is ridiculous, I’m just trying to get these paycheques.”
Klose is so frustrated with the UFC that he has revealed that he may even test free agency and see if he can fight elsewhere.
Klose said "I have three more fights I believe. I’ve never won a belt in any other organization. I’ve beat guys that won belts. I want to get a belt and I don’t care where it is at. If that means me fighting out my contract and going somewhere else to do it, so be it. I love fighting in the UFC, but it is hard to get a belt here, especially at 155."
Do you think that Klose has the skills to get a belt outside the UFC?
Derrick Lewis expects to “break” Curtis Blaydes
Derrick Lewis and Curtis Blaydes will face off this upcoming weekend at the UFC Apex in Las Vegas. Lewis is expecting a violent and bloody fight against Blaydes.
When speaking in the preview for the fight, Lewis said "What makes me dangerous is the power that I have my hands and my will to win. I don’t care who is my opponent, I believe I have the tools to put away any man. I’m coming in, in one of the best shapes of my career, a lot quicker, more agile. This is my time now to really prove to these guys it’s not going to be easy whenever they see my name on that paper.”
It is clear when anybody is fighting Curtis Blaydes that his plan will be to just constantly wrestle. Lewis is expecting to be taken down but believes that he will finish Blaydes in a devastating fashion.
Lewis concluded "This fight right here is going to be very violent and very bloody. I feel I could break Curtis by the third round and that’s what’s going to happen. This is going to be a very intense battle, we both want the title shot right after this and I believe I could get the job done.”
Do you think that Lewis will end up knocking Blaydes out?
UFC 258 prelims drop significantly in ratings compared to UFC 257
The numbers for the UFC 258 prelims have been revealed and they are not great compared with the UFC 257 numbers which of course was a card headlined by Conor McGregor and Dustin Poirier.
The UFC 257 prelims averaged just over 1.4 million viewers whereas the UFC 258 prelims averaged just short of 600,000.
Circling back to UFC 258, it earned a .28 rating in the 18-49 year old demographic. Landing it at No. 13 overall on cable that day.
Following the UFC 258 prelims on ESPN was Top Rank boxing which peaked at an average of 584,000. Despite the big difference from event to event, UFC 258’s numbers were still better than the last four PPV events of 2020.
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