While missing out on a big win is never ideal, he feels that he walked away with something even more important in that fight – a lesson.

“I think that the biggest takeaway for me from that fight was for one, there’s no substitute for time under tension and experience,” Walker explained. “DJ has been doing this at the highest level for a very, very, very long time. At the end of the day, he was more prepared than I was and he was the better man on that night. I think that I learned a lot from the fight.”

The specific of that veteran presence had to do with composure more than anything. Both in and out of the cage, Jacoby gave him plenty to grow from.

“I think that he almost showed me firsthand what veteran presence in the octagon is. Because one thing that he said in some of his interviews and whenever I spoke to him after the fight was that he was very exhausted after the fight, right? You wouldn’t have known it being in there with him. If I had known that he was real exhausted, I probably would have gone one, two, double leg,” he said with a laugh. “But DJ had that veteran presence and I think I learned a lot from being in there with him.”

As a result, he’s begun taking those pieces and adding them to his own game.

“I think the biggest thing is not showing your cards,” Walker said. “If you are feeling fatigued, if you get hit with something that hurts – being able to not be shaken by the ups and the downs of not even just the fight itself, but a fight week of the preparation of everything that goes into this and being able to show up and be professional and lock in and do what you need to do to claim victory.”

Now, halfway across the world in Baku, Azerbaijan, Walker is ready to show those things in the cage. He faces Abdul Rakhman Yakhyaev in a battle between light heavyweight prospects.

“You’re going to see Julius ‘Juicebox’ Walker getting his hand raised within the distance, baby,” he said. “I’m very excited to get in there and show what I’ve learned and show how much I’ve improved. My mindset is the best that it’s ever been, I’m honored for this opportunity and I’m ready to make the most of it.”

That fight with Yakhyaev takes place on the UFC Baku main card. The fight card begins at 9am EST this Saturday on Paramount+.

The post UFC Baku’s Julius Walker Finding Veteran Presence appeared first on Cageside Press.

Her training situation has always been a unique one. She trains in a gym full of policemen in her home of Lethbridge, Alberta. However, for this training camp, she stretched her wings a bit to get some new looks.

“I’m still training with the police boys. They’re still my number one team, but actually I leave for New Jersey. I found a gym out there and I’m training,” Clark explained. “I got eight days [at CULTR Fight Club] training. So I went out there in January to try it out, see what I like about the gym and fell in love – did not want to leave.”

A big part of that love for her new home-away-from-home was having some training partners who are the same size as her. Not only that, but the intensity that the gym brought helped to bring out a new level in her as well.

“It was a really cool experience to go to a gym that had people my size that had actual fighters like it was just just a completely different look,” she said. “[Ana Martinez] just won [the Fury FC flyweight title] and she’s a badass. She trains really hard, which is not something I’m exactly used to, so it’s really awesome.”

As the fight neared, CULTR also brought in some UFC level talent to work with Clark. She closed up camp with some solid rounds, which you would think would bring a new level of confidence to the most modest fighter in MMA. If you do think that, though, you don’t really know Shannon Clark.

“Hopefully [it ends] with a win,” she said with a nervous laugh. “That’s all. I don’t know how, but I just hope I win.”

You can catch the fruits of Clark’s new labors as part of the PFL San Diego prelims as she faces Ilara Joanne. The fight card begins at 7pm EST this Saturday.

The post Shannon Clark Discusses Expanded Training Camp for PFL San Diego appeared first on Cageside Press.

Kicking off this UFC Baku edition of TTP is our interview with UFC light heavyweight, Julius Walker. Walker discusses the tough lessons that he learned following his back-and-forth fight with Dustin Jacoby. In addition, he chats about his change of location for the bulk of this training camp and which terrifying heavyweight he is trading hands with on a regular basis. Then we get into talking about his upcoming fight at UFC Baku. He discusses the chance to fight overseas and well as his thoughts on his highly touted opponent, Abdul Rakhman Yakhyaev.

Fights, Dogs and Parlays: UFC Baku (16:12)

The UFC is back out on te road in Azerbaijan for UFC Baku. Headlining the first card in the country is Rafael Fiziev as he tries to maintain his spot in the rankings against Manuel Torres. In the co-main, we’ll see the return of Shara Bullet, as he takes on Michel Pereira. We’ll break down those fights as well as some of our other favorite fights on the main card. Plus, as always, we’re hitting you with an underdog and a plus-money parlay that we think will make your wallet fat this weekend. For this segment, all odds via FanDuel Sportsbook.

Shannon Clark Interview (20:58)

Closing out this UFC Baku edition of TTP is our interview with PFL flyweight, Shannon Clark. Clark shares the details of her PFL signing and how she had to sit on the news for some time. Now that the cat is out of the bag, we chat about the excitement she has to test herself against this new class of 125ers. We also talk about some changes to her training camp and thoughts she has on her very first PFL opponent, Ilara Joanne. Don’t miss it!

The post TTP Ep. 537: Julius Walker, Shannon Clark, and UFC Baku appeared first on Cageside Press.

While it is certainly a believable story, Fleury was happy to share that the inside joke from the bio is a bit of a tall tale.

“It’s a complete exaggeration. There was maybe three or four guys. I was giving a friend the piggyback and some guy kicked my legs out from under me,” Fleury explained. “We got up and there was a bunch of guys around us.”

While it seemed like the conflict was going to dissipate, it flared back up pretty quick thanks to his friend getting back in there.

“My friend was a lot more pissed off than I was. Basically we walked away and my friend walked back over – that was bad for him,” he recalled. “They surrounded him, and when they surrounded him, I was like, oh, they’re going to start it.”

Even though he had not been a fighter yet, the Irish star was still realy to end a fight if he needed to for his friend. And although it wasn’t actually 16 guys, the story is better if it is.

“As soon as they grabbed him, I jumped into the crowd. It was a bunch of bodies and because I jumped on top, I made a bunch of guys fall over,” Fleury said. “As they were getting back up, I was hitting them one by one – this was before I even started fighting. But I probably dropped about four guys and then I grabbed my boy and we ran away. Then the story became Will Fleury beat up 16 guys.”

Give him a chance and that number gets bigger by the minute.

“I heard it was 20,” he added with a chuckle. “It was actually 20.”

Fleury’s next fight won’t have to be 16 or 20 people. He’ll face just one – Kasim Aras – in the main event of Oktagon 90. That fight is for the Oktagon heavyweight title and takes place this Saturday. The card begins at noon eastern time on Oktagon TV.

The post Oktagon 90’s Will Fleury Explains Time He “Beat Up 16 Guys Outside Hillbilly’s” appeared first on Cageside Press.

Kicking off this UFC Vegas 119 edition of TTP is our interview with Oktagon heavyweight and light heavyweight champion, Will Fleury. Fleury discusses the recent run he’s been on and why he is again defending the heavyweight title instead of the light heavyweight title. He shares his thoughts about other future title challengers before getting into his fight this weekend. He squares off with Kasim Aras this Saturday at Oktagon 90. He also shares his prediction for the main event fight.

Fights, Dogs and Parlays: UFC Vegas 119 (19:50)

The UFC heads back to it’s home inside the Apex. UFC Vegas 119 comes to us from Las Vegas this Saturday and is headlined by a RIZIN rematch. Manel Kape will look to avenge a loss over half a decade in the making when he takes on Kyoji Horiguchi. Plus, on the main card, Vincius Oliveira looks to get right against wily veteran Andre Fili. We’ll break down those fights as well as some of our other favorite fights on the main card. Plus, as always, we’re hitting you with an underdog and a plus-money parlay that we think will make your wallet fat this weekend. For this segment, all odds via FanDuel Sportsbook.

Wilson Lopshire Interview (25:51)

Closing out this UFC Vegas 119 edition of TTP is our interview with LFA lightweight, Wilson Lopshire. The up-and-coming prospect gives his thoughts on the call up to LFA and what that might mean for his budding career. In addition, he digs into Friday’s fight with Will Davis, which will take place at LFA 235 from Louisville, Kentucky. He gives us a prediction for that fight and also let’s us know how close that might bring him to a UFC call-up or invite to Dana White’s Contender Series in the fall.

The post TTP Ep. 536: Will Fleury, Wilson Lopshire, and UFC Vegas 119 appeared first on Cageside Press.

The Canadian bantamweight even called out “Suga,” a former UFC champion at 135lbs, following his last fight. That was a win over Chito Vera back in Vancouver last October, one that extended his win streak to seven.

Zahabi (14-2), part of Montreal’s famed TriStar gym, home of great talents like Georges St-Pierre and Rory MacDonald, wasn’t expecting to fight the American star at the White House, however. And when he got the news, at least initially, he didn’t tell anyone.

News of the fight came through brother Firas, head coach at TriStar. Not just that he was fighting Zahabi, but doing so at UFC Freedom 250 on the White House grounds. The offer had been relayed by UFC Chief Business Officer Hunter Campbell, but the deal wasn’t finalized immediately.

“Sean, he’s the biggest name probably in terms of the bantamweight division. And then on top of it, it’s going to be at the White House, everyone’s going to be watching, I’m excited, let’s do it,” Zahabi told Cageside Press in an exclusive interview ahead of the event. “But we didn’t get a ‘yes’ confirmation right away. I had to wait a few days until they announced it on the card, and I saw my name and me and my wife and kids were hugging, and we’re jumping, and we’re super-excited. The whole family was really happy.”

Essentially, prior to that public announcement, the UFC had kept him in limbo.

“Yeah listen, I wasn’t getting my hopes too high and I didn’t tell anybody. Because I didn’t want them to be like ‘ahh I told you, you would never get O’Malley.'”

There was, after all, always the chance the UFC would go another direction. And despite his win streak, which includes Vera and Jose Aldo, among others, there didn’t seem to be an overall consensus among fans and pundits that Zahabi would actually land the fight.

“When I called out O’Malley, even Mike Heck [MMA Fighting], when I did an interview, he told me he thought there was ‘no chance you were getting O’Malley,'” recalled Zahabi. “So I was getting a lot of weird responses from my callout, but in the end, look at me now.”

If Aiemann Zahabi defeats Sean O’Malley on Sunday at UFC Freedom 250, he’ll almost certainly be in line for a title shot. The trilogy fight between Petr Yan and Merab Dvalishvili is out there, but eight straight wins with two former champs would be hard to deny past that. It’s coming late for Zahabi, however, at age 38. Despite that, he feels there’s a reason he’s peaking when he is.

“I think actually, men hit their peak in MMA around 32 to 36. You get your dad strength; I’ve got a couple kids. Also you become wiser, and I also think being in the game for so long, it takes time to get good at striking. And then it takes time to get good at wrestling, and it takes time to get good at jiu-jitsu,” he explained. “To get them all done at the same time, it’s a little bit unrealistic. It takes years to get good in every facet of the game. I think it’s just being dedicated, and not getting lost in too many distractions, and still upping your game every year. I think that’s the secret. Hard work. It’s not sexy, but it’s sound. Hard work doesn’t sell.”

Watch our full interview with UFC Freedom 250’s Aiemann Zahabi above.

The post Aiemann Zahabbi Stayed Mum About UFC Freedom 250 Booking with O’Malley at First appeared first on Cageside Press.

“I never talked to Hunter before and so I was happy to talk to him because I’ve talked to Dana, but I’ve never talked to Hunter,” Garcia explained. “Hunter’s kind of like taking over some of the responsibilities and I was like thank you for reaching out. I like knowing who I work for and who’s calling some of these shots. It’s nice to talk to you. You’ve been killing it – all this stuff.”

The pleasantries only lasted a short while and Campbell immediately got to business. However, the talk wasn’t about Garcia’s next fight or some sort of promotional work like he may have thought. Instead, he was answering personal questions about himself.

“Tell me about your family. I want to know about your kids. Tell me about your kids.
I want to know about you, you know, do you have a record? Have you lived in the United States your whole life?” he recalled.  “Tell me about your upbringing. So he just kind of went down the list and I answered all those questions.”

After answering a slew of questions, Garcia started to get concerned. He spoke up and was given some shocking news.

“Midway through the interview, I was like, what is this about? And then they told me it was the White House,” Garcia said. “I was like, oh, okay. Alright, ask away, you know what I mean? And I asked who the opponent was. They said it was potentially Diego Lopes.”

He then had to standby as he waited for the official announcement. Garcia found out like everyone else – with the announcement during the UFC broadcast that he’d be on the card opposite of Lopes.

In addition to being over the moon about the opportunity, Garcia is also hyped about the fight. He knows that while fans enjoy Diego Lopes, this is a chance to show them all how much fun he can be. More importantly, it’s a chance for him to continue the run to the top.

“Everybody loves the way Diego fights. I think everybody should love how I fight too, you know what I mean? But the thing is, they just don’t know me. I don’t have that push, but it’s all good. I fight for myself and my family and for God,” he said.  “That’s how I provide for my family and unfortunately, Diego Lopes has to fall. He’s the next one and I got to go and do my job.”

You can catch that fight as part of the seven-fight main card of UFC Freedom 250. The card begins this Sunday at 8pm EST on Paramount+.

The post Steve Garcia Didn’t Know He Was Going to Be on UFC Freedom 250 appeared first on Cageside Press.

Kicking off this UFC Vegas 118 edition of TTP is our interview with UFC bantamweight, Aiemann Zahabi. Zahabi discusses the sitting down with the bosses for an interview before getting the call to fight at the White House. He chats about not getting Canadian representation on the kit, but also how pumped he is for the opportunity to represent. Plus, he breaks down the fight with Sean O’Malley and talks about the UFC bantamweight title picture.

Fights, Dogs and Parlays: UFC Freedom 250 (15:58)

The fight night we’ve been talking about for some time is finally here. UFC Freedom 250 comes to us from the White House lawn with a pair of title fights up top. First, Alex Pereira and Cyril Gane will do battle for the interim heavyweight strap. Then we’ll get a fight for the undisputed lightweight title between Ilia Topuria and Justin Gaethje. We’ll break down those fights as well as some of our other favorite fights on the main card. Plus, as always, we’re hitting you with an underdog and a plus-money parlay that we think will make your wallet fat this weekend. For this segment, all odds via FanDuel Sportsbook.

Steve Garcia Interview (22:30)

Closing out this UFC Freedom 250 edition of TTP is our interview with UFC featherweight, Steve Garcia. Garcia also gives us the lowdown of how he found out he’d be fighting on the biggest card of the year. That’s a long way removed from where he was when he started with the organization. He discusses that wild turnaround and the belief that he always had in himself. Plus, he takes some time to break down his fight with Diego Lopes for the big card. He’ll be the first fighter to make that walk to the South Lawn and he’s excited to put on for the world.

The post TTP Ep. 535: Aiemann Zahabi, Steve Garcia, and UFC Freedom 250 appeared first on Cageside Press.

While that career has been a dream, he’s expanding his dream in the world of MMA as well. In addition to his work in the cage, he’s stepping outside to do some work for American Kombat Alliance (AKA) out of his home state of Louisiana. When the promotion first started, he started commentating for them, but has since expanded into working as the matchmaker. That’s work that has been extremely rewarding to him.

“It is some of the most fulfilling work I’ve done within martial arts is as a matchmaker,” Schnell shared. “Watching these guys go out there and compete.”

The best part of the job is seeing things come together. While he loves to play analyst and try to figure out what’s going to happen, it’s always a surprise.

“In the grand scheme of things, the best part about matchmaking is just when they come together. Even with all of my experience – and I do believe I’m quite competent and I have an eye for understanding who’s going to go out there and let it rip, who’s going to go out there and bang event after event – I am so surprised,” he explained. “I’m as surprised as everybody else there about what just happened. You put together fights that you know they’re going to be good fights, but I like to put together fights that I’m not sure who’s going to win it. And still in my mind’s eye, I try to work it out. So often, so often I am completely wrong.”

 

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While he’s loving the process, it’s not all sunshine and rainbows. The work getting fighters at the beginning of their careers to test themselves can sometimes be arduous.

“It is hard to get two knuckleheads to agree to fight each other. I’m telling you, for various reasons, guys have coaches and people that they trust to make the best decision for them,” he said. “I genuinely do believe oftentimes they believe they’re looking out for their fighter, but you’re not looking out for a guy if you’re trying to protect his record – especially as an amateur, there is no gamesmanship.”

Schnell will put that work aside for Saturday as he steps back into the cage to face late-replacement Alessandro Costa. That fight takes place on the main card of UFC Vegas 118, which starts this Saturday at 5pm EST on Paramount+.

The post UFC Vegas 118’s Matt Schnell: The Matchmaker appeared first on Cageside Press.

Kicking off this UFC Vegas 118 edition of TTP is our interview with UFC flyweight, Matt Schnell. Schnell talks about his work outside of the cage for AKA MMA. In addition to doing commentary for them at their events, he’s stepped into a matchmaking role as well. He discusses the highs and lows of that job and why it can be more rewarding than anything. Plus, we chat about his prep work for his fight this weekend.

EDITOR’S NOTE: This interview was recorded prior to his recent opponent change.

Fights, Dogs and Parlays: UFC Vegas 118 (14:59)

We head back to the Apex for UFC Vegas 118 – headlined by former champion Belal Muhammad as he defends his spot in the rankings against Gabriel Bonfim. In the co-main event, Brendan Allen faces Edmen Shahbazyan in a middleweight tilt. We’ll break down those fights as well as some of our other favorite fights on the main card. Plus, as always, we’re hitting you with an underdog and a plus-money parlay that we think will make your wallet fat this weekend. For this segment, all odds via FanDuel Sportsbook.

Brian Manning Interview (21:44)

Closing out this UFC Vegas 118 edition of TTP is our interview with Oktagon middleweight, Brian Manning. Manning talks playing spoiler in his Oktagon debut and getting a chance to do so again in his sophomore effort. Plus, he talks about his love for horror and ranks his top three favorite horror flicks.

Lisa Kyriacou Interview (32:34)

Closing out this UFC Vegas 118 edition of TTP is our interview with Oktagon flyweight, Lisa Kyriacou. Kyraicou also fights this weekend at Oktagon 89 and shares how she came to work with the promotion. Plus, she discusses representing Australia on a big stage and facing a fan-favorite in enemy territory.

The post TTP Ep. 534: Matt Schnell, Brian Manning, Lisa Kyriacou, and UFC Vegas 118 appeared first on Cageside Press.