UFC star Nate Diaz believes that a future boxing match with YouTuber Jake Paul will happen "for sure" — Fightful has you covered on this and all the news in the combat sports world.
Nate Diaz believes a fight with Jake Paul will happen "for sure"
YouTube star Jake Paul has gotten under the skin of multiple professional MMA fighters since he fought and knocked out Nate Robinson on the undercard of Mike Tyson vs Roy Jones Jr. It seems like Paul has once again got the attention of another UFC star in Nate Diaz.
Currently, Paul is scheduled to fight former Bellator welterweight champion, Ben Askren in April. Many people did not believe that the fight would happen but it is now official and now it seems that Nate Diaz is quite interested in a fight with the YouTuber.
During an interview with ESPN, Diaz was asked about whether he thinks the fight will happen and he gave this response, "no, not at that moment, no. But, at some point for sure."
The reason why Diaz is interested in the fight is very simple, he just wants to shut Paul up.
“He was just talking some serious fighting words to Conor. When I said something it was because he was saying stuff to Conor and those are some real fighting words for a guy who is signed to fight in a real fight,” Diaz said. “You are challenging us to a boxing match with real fighting words. No one is going to speak, even Conor doesn’t want to give him any clout."
“Someone needs to tell this guy to shut up, I wasn’t trying to have anybody’s back. But, you are talking fighting words, it doesn’t make no sense when people do that,” Diaz continued. “It is like people talking like that and challenging somebody to a basketball (game). Boxing is just boxing it is only one-piece of a fight. So, someone is going to fuck you up if you don’t watch it.”
Would you be interested in a fight between Paul and Diaz?
Kamaru Usman has no problem facing his former teammate Gilbert Burns
A lot of the talk in the lead up to the UFC 258 main event between Kamaru Usman and Gilbert Burns has been about their past relationship where they were very good friends and long time teammates. We have seen quite a lot of fights in the UFC which have featured rivalries between former teammates in the past, the prime example of this is Cody Garbrandt and TJ. Dillashaw.
However, Usman believes there is no bad blood between himself and Burns, and Usman has revealed that although he may not call Burns a teammate anymore, he has zero animosity towards him and will even offer him a handshake after the fight.
When speaking to MMAFighting, Usman said "I see no face when I step in there so it depends on how they take it. Jorge Masvidal stepped up, he took his loss and he took it like a man and he shook hands and we went about our business. That doesn’t mean it can’t happen again but it all depends on how they take it."
“If [Burns] takes it well, it is what it is, but if he doesn’t, it also it is what it is. I’m walking out there with my hand raised.”
Former Invicta FC fighter Sarah Patterson passes away aged 36
Former Invicta FC featherweight fighter Sarah Patterson has passed away at aged 36, the promotion announced late Monday.
Invicta released the following statement on its Twitter following the unfortunate passing of Patterson.
We are saddened by the passing of former Invicta athlete Sarah Patterson. Our thoughts go out to her friends and family. pic.twitter.com/Dd8BBggEtM
— Invicta FC (@InvictaFights) February 9, 2021
We here at Fightful send our deepest condolences out to the friends and family of Patterson at this time.
Ian Heinisch expects to finish Kelvin Gastelum in “spectacular fashion”
Ian Heinisch is set to face former interim UFC middleweight title challenger Kelvin Gastelum on the main card of UFC 258. Heinisch is well aware of the stakes involved in this fight for Gastelum and he believes that it makes him even more dangerous than he already is.
“I believe that makes him a very dangerous fighter and I expect to face the best Kelvin Gastelum,” Heinisch explained to Just Scrap Radio on BJPENN.com. “His back is against the wall and when your back is against the wall you fight for your life. That is what I expect out of him and I believe it is my time now and unfortunately, I have to be the guy to take him out. It is business.”
Not only is Heinisch confident he will finish Gastelum, but he expects to do so in a spectacular fashion which he believes will put the middleweight division on notice.
“Especially winning in spectacular fashion by knockout or submission,” Heinisch said. “It puts me in the mix and I’m excited to be an active fighter this year.”
Do you think that Heinisch has what it takes to knock out the extremely tough Gastelum?
Drew Dober believes most of Islam Makhachev’s ‘hype comes from Khabib Nurmagomedov’
Russian UFC lightweight contender Islam Makhachev is set to make his highly anticipated UFC return when he will fight fellow fast-rising lightweight contender Drew Dober.
With an impressive record of 18 wins and just one defeat whilst training alongside the current UFC lightweight king Khabib Nurmagomedov, Makhachev has received a lot of attention in his own right. However, Dober believes that can mostly be attributed to his connection with “The Eagle.”
When speaking to MMAJunkie, Dober said, "I think a lot of the hype comes from when you have one of the greatest of all time Khabib talk so highly of you"
Dober went on to say "So I think a lot of his hype comes from Khabib and the fanbase and all that stuff and not really so much his accomplishments in the cage. Honestly, that’s what I’m trying to test out, to kinda see if that hype is really all there and that kinda thing. I don’t really see the hype is warranted, but we’re here to find out March 6.”
Despite Dober's opinions on Makhachev's hype, he is relishing the role of the underdog in this fight.
“It’s more eyes on my fight, and the more eyes the merrier, and I get super excited about it so I’m really just enjoying every moment of this camp,” he said.
Maycee Barber expects to dominate and finish Alexa Grasso and fight Joanne Calderwood next
Maycee Barber is one of the best young prospects in the UFC. She returns to the Octagon in the co-main event of UFC 258 where she will face off against Alexa Grasso.
Barber is extremely excited to remind the world just how good she is.
“I’m excited, it has been a long journey back,” Barber said to Just Scrap Radio on BJPENN.com. “There has been a lot of ups and downs with the recovery. I switched camps, it has been a lot of back and forth but I’m ready and never have felt better so I’m excited."
“I think a lot of people are surprised because she is tough and we both are up and comers. I’m not surprised because I’ve never turned down a fight because if they offer me, someone the UFC has a plan,” Barber continued. “You have to stick with the plan and go with it. She has a lot of followers behind her and I have a lot of followers behind me.”
Barber is very confident that she will get the win over Grasso and she has even outlined her UFC plans for after the fight at UFC 258.
“The plan is to fight Grasso, get the win and we just watched Joanne Calderwood vs Jessica Eye. That fight, I want Calderwood because they are two girls I can beat and they are ranked. Fight Alexa, fight Joanne get the win, and go for a title shot,” Maycee Barber concluded. “I hate not being able to fight consistently but I learned a lot last year. I learned so much about myself, just training and recovering and overcoming different obstacles I learned a lot. This year I would like to be very active, get a lot of wins, get a lot of money.”
Ryan Bader plans for 'redemption year' in 2021
Ryan Bader is feeling more motivated than ever ahead of the Bellator light heavyweight Grand Prix.
Bader's only professional defeats have been to Jon Jones, Tito Ortiz, Glover Teixeira, Lyoto Machida, Anthony Johnson, and Vadim Nemkov. The latter half of those names are three of the eight competitors set for Bellator’s 205-pound tournament.
Bader is extremely motivated to avenge some of the losses during the tournament.
“I’d love to avenge the loss against Machida,” Bader told MMA Junkie at a virtual news conference Tuesday following an event announcing the Grand Prix. “He’s a great gauge to see where I came from when I literally knew nothing striking to where I’m am at now. When he came over to Bellator, that’s one fight I always had my eye on.”
“As for Nemkov, of course, he has the belt right now and I definitely want revenge on that with the proper preparation for that fight and weight cut,” Bader said. “Going in there, I feel like it’d be a different story, (Last time) I felt flat. I felt different in there last time. It was right when I was in my own head, ‘Alright, I’ve got to get this going. This is not going well.’ That’s when I got kicked in the head. I’d definitely like to go back to the drawing board and get that one back.”
When asked about avenging a loss to Johnson, Bader didn’t go into specifics. While he did express doubts at the likelihood the cards would play out where he’d face all three previous foes, he voiced confidence 2021 would be a year for redemption.
“This is a redemption year,” Bader said. “Especially with who’s in this tournament. I’m not going to get to fight all of them. I’m probably going to get to fight two of them, potentially. That’s all I can do on my side.”
Javier Mendez expects Umar Nurmagomedov to be UFC champion in two or three years
Javier Mendez has high expectations for Khabib Nurmagomedov’s cousin, Umar Nurmagomedov.
The AKA head coach, Mendez envisions Umar getting a UFC belt wrapped around his waist in the next two or three years.
“I’ve been saying it, in five or six fights, I expect him to be fighting for a title, and I believe we’re seeing a new champion, 100 percent,” Mendez told MMA Junkie. “He still has some improvements to make, but he’s going to make them. And yeah, you will be seeing him with the strap in five or six fights from now.”
Nurmagomedov has been signed with the UFC for almost a year but just recently made his promotional debut.
“It was really nice to finally see him get this opportunity after so many things have happened,” Mendez said. “It was nice for him to do it on the same date as Khabib, January 20 is the same date Khabib entered (the UFC), and the choke was the same as Khabib’s choke, so all those combined, it was an incredible experience."
“He came in not a Khabib prodigy, he came in as Umar. He’s just himself, and he showed what great talent he has and diversity in different techniques. But father’s plan is still the best plan for Team Eagle, and he showed that, too. He also showed these guys can strike, too.”
Video: Dan Hardy breaks down Kamaru Usman vs Gilbert Burns
Former UFC welterweight title challenger, now UFC analyst Dan Hardy has provided fans with a brilliant breakdown of the UFC 258 main event between Kamaru Usman and Gilbert Burns.
Ahead of their title tussle, former UFC welterweight title challenger and UFC analyst Dan “The Outlaw” Hardy invites us into “The War Room,” as he takes a deep dive into the matchup and offers his technical pointers ahead of the fight. Check out his pre-fight assessment via the video below.
Donald Cerrone looking forward to his fight against former teammate Diego Sanchez
In a long career filled with lots of exciting fights and finishes, Donald Cerrone is looking to add another fantastic finish against his former teammate Diego Sanchez in May.
In an interview on his YouTube channel, Cerrone discussed how the matchup with Sanchez came to fruition and the history he shares with his former Jackson Wink MMA teammate.
“Everyone was booked up,” Cerrone said. “All the fights were booked. Yeah, ’55 is what I wanted to do, then Diego Sanchez I guess went and showed up to the UFC and begged and pleaded with them to make me his retirement fight. So they called me and they asked me. I said, ‘Sure.’
“Cowboy” recalled when Sanchez took issue with his departure from Jackson Wink MMA. Prior to facing Mike Perry in November 2018, Cerrone blasted his old gym, claiming that it has gone downhill since Greg Jackson started running the “puppy mill” on his own and accused Mike Winkeljohn of pushing him out of the gym when he chose to train Perry.
“He says it’s two legends going at it,” Cerrone said. “I don’t think so. He talked a lot of (expletive) when I left Jackson’s, and now he did the same thing and left. It’s funny. I was just doing what I had to do – built my own gym, trained my own people, started making this mold, which I think was the right move to do in my career, and he had a lot to say about it. He said he wanted to fight me, so here’s his chance. Be careful what you wish for. So yeah, this should be a fun highlight reel fight for me."
“I’m not overlooking the kid by no means. There are areas where he could be dangerous, and if I was fighting old Diego 10 ago, yeah, he was tough – hard pace. I used to train with the guy, I know. We’re now fighting May 8. I signed the deal and it’s happening, so should be fun. He wants this to be his ride into the sunset, and I have no problem giving it to him.”
How do you think the fight between Sanchez and Cerrone will go down?
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