A company man, Eblen welcomes a promotional newcomer after admittedly expecting to fight a top 10 opponent at Mohegun Sun Arena in Uncasville, Connecticut. Pegged at No. 5 in Bellator’s middleweight division, Eblen intends to be more upfront with the promotion from here on out.

“I think after this fight I’m going to be a little more direct in my next fight about who I want,” Eblen said. 

“It would be nice to be back into the cage before the end of the year, give them a time I want to be back, even a possible opponent, a top 10 guy or something like that.”

Eblen sees top 10 matchups in his immediate future. The unbeaten middleweight is entering the first bout of a new four-fight deal he signed with Bellator this past June.

Eblen improved to 8-0 after most recently knocking out Daniel Madrid at Bellator 258 this past May. The American Top Team product is still without a victory over a top 10 opponent.

“It’s nice to get a little pay raise, get another multi-fight deal. Now that I am ranked, I kind of see a path to the belt,” Eblen said. “I think I have  a pretty good resume of guys I’ve beaten.”

The task at hand for Johnny Eblen

First thing’s first, and that’s his upcoming bout with Davis. Eblen makes his first main card appearance, kicking off the show on Showtime. 

Davis is a professional boxer, although six of his 10 professional MMA victories come by submission. He most recently tapped Ryan Parker by a second-round arm-triangle choke at Ohio Combat League 11 last March. 

The 34-year-old has mixed it up with the likes of former UFC fighter Dominique Steele and LFA middleweight contender Joshu Fremd. Eblen is less experienced as a professional fighter, but expects a dominant victory nonetheless. 

“I just feel like I’m going to dominate him [Davis] everywhere, on the feet, on the ground and on the cage,” Eblen said. “Travis Davis will be another guy to have on my hit list.”

Finding a top 10 opponent is something Eblen wants, but he is fine with how he’s progressed under the Bellator banner. The way he sees it, the more time until a title shot, means more time to train, more time to prepare.

Ahead of him in line right now is teammate and fellow undefeated contender Austin Vanderford, who ranks second.

Eblen is looking at the long game. The contender is confident he can beat anyone in the top 10 right now, including the champion Gegard Mousasi. 

He continues to try and make this case with a lop-sided victory over Davis. Eblen plans to make one statement of many to come. 

“I think I can beat anyone on the roster, but I want to be able to beat anyone on the roster and not get touched,” Eblen said. “Just going to take my time, develop more, so when I get there, I’m just going to be super dominant.”

Bellator 262 takes place this Friday, July 16 at the Mohegan Sun Arena in Uncasville, CT. The card airs live on Showtime following online prelims right here on Cageside Press.

The post Johnny Eblen Expects Ranked Opponent After Bellator 262 Bout with Travis Davis appeared first on Cageside Press.

A source with knowledge of the match-up confirmed the booking to Cageside Press, speaking of condition of anonymity. The bout was first reported by MMA Fighting.

The location and venue for the UFC’s October 2 event is yet-to-be-announced.

Holland (21-7) started 2021 off slowly with back-to-back decision losses to Derek Brunson and Marvin Vettori in the span of three weeks. After going 5-2 in under a year’s time, “Trailblazer” is taking six months off between fights. 

The proven striker is focusing on his wrestling and takedown defense, even working with Daniel Cormier at the American Kickboxing Academy [AKA] in California. Holland, who has 12 of his 21 wins coming by TKO/knockout, will face a jiu-jitsu black belt in October. 

Daukaus (10-2) is coming off his second UFC loss, a unanimous decision defeat to Phil Hawes at UFC on ESPN 24 in May. A Dana White’s Contender Series alumnus, Daukaus picked up his first octagon victory by beating Dustin Stoltzfus via unanimous decision at UFC 255 last November.

That win came after dropping a decision to Bendan Allen in his UFC debut at UFC on ESPN 12 in June 2020, a fight he accepted on short notice. The 28-year-old brings an extensive ground game to the cage with eight of his 10 victories coming by submission.

With the addition of this middleweight bout, the UFC Fight Night card on Oct. 2 includes:

• Thiago Santos vs. Johnny Walker
• Grant Dawson vs. Diego Ferreira
• Jared Gordon vs. Joe Solecki
• Bethe Correia vs. Karol Rosa
• Fernando Padilla vs. Sean Soriano
• Douglas Silva de Andrade vs. Gaetano Pirrello
• Kyle Daukaus vs. Kevin Holland

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Since the New Jersey native’s last fight in November 2019, his mother successfully battled cancer, but he also suffered the loss of his cousin Brandon Lawson, who passed away due to a car accident this past January. During the COVID-19 pandemic, he found little time to train since he was taking care of his mother and working a security job. 

The former Penn State wrestler is set to return to the cage against David White at Ring of Combat 73 in Atlantic City, New Jersey on July 17. Lawson’s return is a long time coming. 

“My mother is in remission now and is able to see me fight since the pandemic is over, so we’re just excited and blessed to have gotten through it,” Lawson said. 

“There’s just a lot of exciting energy going through me right now, no matter what happens because over this pandemic I had the opportunity to realize what’s really important. What’s really important is getting after it and making the most of this opportunity.”

Lawson is less than three weeks from his fourth professional appearance. A much better position to be in that a year ago, not knowing when his return would be.

The heavyweight gained weight during the pandemic, weighing as high as 300 pounds. Lawson is back to walking around at 260 pounds. 

Although work and family took priority, the Killer B Sports Academy product still managed to progress as a martial artist throughout the pandemic.

“I’ve had a lot of time to hone my skills in the striking department, the jui-jitsu department, even my wrestling department,” Lawson said. “I feel with the culmination of all of that, I’ve become a way better mixed martial artist.”

Lawson is a firm believer in the concept that fighters are built from trials and tribulations throughout their life. He relates to the notion.

He recalls conversations with his late cousin, speaking about Lawson’s goals of making it to the UFC one day. It’s the same reason Lawson started his career training out of AKA Academy with former UFC heavyweight champions Daniel Cormier and Cain Velasquez.

Today, Lawson is still chasing the dream.

“A lot of guys come from backgrounds or something happened to them in their lives where they just are able to go in there and be a savage. Punch another man in the face that they might not have any problem with and continuously do so,” Lawson said. “I’m at the point in my life now where my body has matched up to my mental aspects.”

Lawson’s return is against a much more experienced fighter in White. White fought six times as a professional, only winning his last two bouts in 2019. 

White is yet to go the full distance, only making it to the third round once in his career. 

Although Lawson is also coming off back-to-back victories in 2019. Lawson spent over a year thinking about his next fight and it’s getting closer.

He expects it to be worth the wait.

“I have high expectations for the fight,” Lawson said. “I think no matter what, people are going to be happy with the performance.”

The post Ring of Combat 73: Jimmy Lawson’s Return A Long Time Coming appeared first on Cageside Press.

After falling short of making season 29 of “The Ultimate Fighter,” Wetzell meets fellow bantamweight prospect Askar Aksar at LFA’s event on June 4. Cageside Press confirmed the bout with both fighters.

The 29-year-old is not getting a direct shot at the UFC, but instead is facing someone who previously signed with the promotion.

“This is my chance to take his spot,” Wetzell said. “It’s a perfect opportunity for me, the UFC signed him, so they are going to be watching his fights since his recent departure from the UFC.”

Justin Wetzell jumped on chance to fight Askar Askar

Wetzell immediately agreed to fight Askar when presented with the match-up, mostly because of his past credentials. Askar signed with the UFC in February after winning 11 of his 12 professional fights.

He stepped in on late notice against Cody Stamann, but was pulled from the card due to pre-fight medical abnormalities. He was released by the UFC on Feb. 9. 

Wetzell is 6-1 and currently on a five-fight win streak. He is yet to fight a UFC veteran, which makes his fight with Askar all the more intriguing to him. 

“They are going to be watching his [Askar]  fights and that means eyes on me too,” Wetzell said. “If I beat this guy, it is going to put me in [The UFC].”

My 27 Second KO at LFA 79. I'm ready for the show. Tell uncle @danawhite
#knockout #MMATwitter pic.twitter.com/7fwwtMiPKA

— Justin Wetzell (@JWetzellMMA) December 17, 2019

A challenge

Askar is a two-time LFA veteran. He most recently defeated Kevin Wirth by unanimous decision at LFA 92 last October. He rebounded after suffering his first professional defeat, a first-round knockout to Saidyokub Kakharamonov at HFC 42 in February 2020.

Askar is a skilled striker with six of his wins coming by TKO/ knockout. The Palestinian is a pressure fighter and Wetzell welcomes the challenge.

“He likes to put his foot on the gas right away,” Wetzell said. “It’s either going to be a first-round finish or it is going to be a long drag-it-out decision.”

Worth the Wait

The Elevation Fight Team product never anticipated taking seven months off after his last bout. Although he spent most of his time trying out for “The Ultimate Fighter,” he recognizes the next move in his career.

With a win over Askar, Wetzell is confident the UFC will be unable to deny him. He plans to make his next fight worth the wait. 

“I think about this [expletive] every single day and it’s something I’ve been chasing for 10 plus years,” Wetzell said. “I want it.”

LFA 109 takes place Friday, June 4 at the Sanford Pentagon in Sioux Falls, South Dakota. The event airs live on UFC Fight Pass.

The post Justin Wetzell Says June 4 LFA 109 Bout with Askar Askar is “Perfect Opportunity” appeared first on Cageside Press.

Woodson never anticipated taking this much time off between his first octagon loss to Julian Erosa last June and his upcoming bout with Youssef Zalal at UFC Fight Night 189 in Las Vegas, Nevada on June 5.

The 28-year-old prides himself on his ability to not dwell on the past, but didn’t forget his last fight either.

“I’m still mad as if it was the same night, but I definitely haven’t been dwelling on it,” Woodson said. 

“Instead of just thinking about it, I’ve been preparing for the day where I can get in there and do something about it. The day is right around the corner and I am super happy about it.”

Sean Woodson and where he belongs

If Woodson learned anything from his loss to Erosa, it’s that he belongs under the UFC banner. 

After going through two different opponents in the span of a two-week fight camp, Woodson tapped to a rear-naked choke in the third round. Erosa stepped in on two days notice, replacing Kyle Nelson, who pulled out of the fight due to visa issues. 

Erosa’s late introduction to the card marked his sixth octagon appearance, the first of his third stint with the UFC. Woodson found himself against a much more experienced adversary.

Woodson was just one fight into his UFC career at 7-0, while “Juicy J” was a 31-fight veteran. The Missouri native fought back-and-forth with Erosa for two rounds before being submitted in the third.

“As crazy as it sounds, the main thing I took away from that fight is this is where I belong,” Woodson said. “I thought his experience might come into play, he might pull a few tricks I haven’t seen before, but that wasn’t the case at all. I feel like my skills were above and beyond his for sure and the only thing I can remember is how tired I was after the first.”

Knowing the division

Woodson prefers taking about three months off between fights. He never thought it would be close to a year later before he made his third walk to the octagon. 

He was scheduled to face Jonathan Pearce back in November, but a late rib injury forced “The Sniper” to withdraw. With his rib injury, Woodson was forced to sit back and wait to heal.

He spent his time in recovery watching fights and playing video games. Woodson even watched all of Zalal’s UFC bouts.

“I’ve seen all of those fights live and I went back and rewatched those fights multiple times during this camp,” Sean Woodson said. “I’ve probably watched every guy in my division two to three times over.”

No judges necessary

The end to Woodson’s longest-career layoff is nearing. As he prepares to re-enter the win column, Zalal is looking to bounce back from back-to-back defeats to Seung Woo Choi and Ilia Topuria.

The 6-foot 2-inch frame Woodson expects Zalal to try and take him down. No matter where the fight goes, Woodson is confident the fight will end before three rounds.

He can sympathize with his opponent. He knows a thing or two about waiting to redeem himself. 

The opportunity to win is here for both and Woodson expects that to show on June 5.

“Both of our backs are against the wall here,” Woodson said. “I know we’re both coming in here with a chip on our shoulders. I feel like that is going to make for a fight where the judges won’t be needed.”

The post First UFC Loss Feels Fresh for Sean Woodson appeared first on Cageside Press.

The 26-year-old booked his spot on the UFC roster after finishing all four of his previous opponents by TKO/knockout. Nchukwi fought through all three rounds for the first time in his career last December, beating Jamie Pickett via unanimous decision at UFC Fight Night 183 last December. 

Following his octagon-debut victory, the Cameroon native is not trying to make three rounds a habit against Jun Yong Park at UFC on ESPN 24, May 8.

“I’m going to show you all a little bit more of what I learned and what I can do in there too,” Nchukwi said. “I don’t want to get too comfortable with three rounds, it’s the best thing to just get in there, get the job done and enjoy the rest of the night.”

Tafon Nchukwi is not getting “Paid overtime”

Nchukwi is by no means regretting going the distance. He would keep the outcome the same if he could do it over again. 

He does recall a few moments where he may have been able to put Pickett away. In the third round, Nchukwi landed a head kick, followed by a knee to the body.

The blow put Pickett down, but Nchukwi never took his opponent out. 

Instead of harping on it, Nchukwi is opting to learn. 

“I got to stop being hesitant. When I see the kill shot, I need to make sure I do the right moves to get a finish,” Nchukwi said. “There’s a lot of opportunities where I could have finished that fight, but because of me being in the mindset of, ‘I’m going to put this man out, it kind of slipped away.’”

A quick night

Nchuki is yet to face anyone with as many fights as Jun Yong Park, especially under the UFC banner. Park suffered four losses in 16 professional fights.

The South Korean lost two bouts by submission and is yet to be knocked out.  Nchukwi is looking to change that.

He predicts a second-round finish. For Nchukwi, the shorter the fight, the better. 

“I feel like I am going to get in there, pick him apart and get the finish in the second round,” Nchukwi said. “We don’t get paid overtime.”

Watch our full interview with Tafon Nchukwi above. UFC on ESPN 24 (UFC Vegas 26) takes place Saturday, May 8 at the UFC Apex in Las Vegas, Nevada.

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