Las Vegas, NV — Sure, Miguel Baeza could have turned down his fight with Victor Reyna on Tuesday. Reyna tipped the scales at 178lbs, well over the welterweight non-title fight limit of 171lbs. He could have said no, and given how badly Reyna missed the mark, it’s likely Baeza would have been rebooked at some point.

That, however, never crossed his mind. That’s not the kind of fighter Baeza is. Knowing that, it’s no surprise that he was still upset post-fight about not finishing the bout Tuesday.

“It was a tough fight, they changed it up on me. Obviously I’ve got to go back and get better. I really was looking for the finish, and I know Dana was looking for that,” he told reporters including Cageside Press after what was a very entertaining Contender Series scrap. “I was saying, I feel like every fighter should be looking to try to dominate their opponent. You go in there, you’re not there to play touch butt, quoting Nate Diaz. You’re there to finish the guy, and I wasn’t able to do that. So I was a little disappointed in myself, and I didn’t really think the fight went the way Dana wanted it [to]”

Still, Baeza recognized that, weight issues or not, “Reyna was a vet, he’s a tough guy.” So the welterweight is “happy with the contract, but I’m going to work on getting better, and getting that finish. That’s the goal.”

On the weight issue, Baeza underscored that “it didn’t matter. The fact is, I’m here to fight. I’ve put in the weeks, the months, the years of my life go into this.” And so, he said, for somebody to question whether he wanted to fight, over an opponent missing weight, “what? If the guy was 185, 195, 205, I’d have been like ‘we’re going to fight.’ Plain and simple. There was no second guessing that. I was here for one reason, and that’s it.”

No question of pulling out, but once again, the lack of a finish bothered the fighter, who said that moving forward, he’ll take the approach that “I don’t get paid by the hour, so we’ll put him out in the first round.”

Watch the full Miguel Baeza post-fight press scrum from Dana White’s Contender Series Season 3, Week 2 above.

The post Miguel Baeza Never Considered Declining Contender Series Fight Despite Opponent Missing Weight appeared first on Cageside Press.

Las Vegas, NV — Week two of the latest season of Dana White’s Contender Series has come and gone. In an abnormality, all five fights went to a decision. Two contracts were still handed out, however, to Miguel Baeza and Miles Johns.

Following the fights, Dana White himself was singing the praises of Baeza in particular, pointing out that he’d received “a new opponent eleven days out.”

“A new guy they don’t know and comes in,” he told media outlets including Cageside Press on Saturday. “He’s a southpaw, which is horrible. You haven’t been sparring, training for southpaws or anything like that. Then the guy shows up and he’s overweight and you still accept the fight.”

White’s respect for Baeza didn’t stop there. “Then the guy [Victor Reyna] comes in tonight, and doesn’t want to f*cking leave. He’s here to win and not quit. The kid [Baeza] couldn’t have stacked the deck any higher against himself, and he still pulls off the win, still looks good. His stand-up, his clinch work, his ground game, and his composure. How he took his time with everything. He didn’t rush and go crazy. I think that the kid has a lot of talent, and I think he’s got a bright future in the sport.”

Another fighter White was impressed with, of course, was the other contract winner, Miles Johns. “The guys’s a savage. I think that that guy seriously has a future in the sport.”

But despite another two contracts being awarded this week, White still hasn’t escaped criticism of his decision not to award Brendan Loughnane a contract in week one this year. It’s a decision White doesn’t regret, however.

“I think everybody knows what I’m looking for here. While I said that kid is talented, I also said if I’m wrong, he’s a free agent, and anybody can pick him up,” White pointed out. “If anybody thinks I’m wrong, show me.”

The crux of the issue was White’s criticism that Loughnane shot for a takedown with seconds remaining in his fight, rather than looking for a finish. Not awarding Loughnane a UFC deal, while admitting the fighter could likely make it in the big leagues, seems questionable. But White is sticking by his choice, and feels Loughnane will be fine either way.

“What better position could you be in than a kid coming off the show, he wins, and people think I made the wrong choice,” White said. “So if that’s the case, there you go. There’s a free one for you. Lock him up, and he’s all yours.”

In way of explanation, he added that “we all know what this show is about. This show isn’t about the Ultimate Fighter, and you’re going to win, you’re going to fight all these times and you win a contract. This isn’t a fight night or a PPV and stuff like that.” Instead, White is basing his selections on those he thinks can make an immediate impact in the UFC. “I have five fights, and I have to pick somebody who I think can come into the UFC, make a huge impact, break into the top five, and become a world champion.”

“There’s ten seconds left in the fight, and you’re going to shoot?” he questioned again later.

While the first episode of the Contender Series in 2019 had a fight fall off the card, week two had another hiccup. Victor Reyna missed weight by a full seven pounds. Since Baeza got the better of him, it didn’t matter, but what if Reyna had won? Cageside Press asked White if fighters who miss weight will be eligible for contracts, and it appears that, in the right circumstances, they could be.

White, for one, was impressed that Reyna got back up after a crushing body shot. “I guarantee he didn’t want to get up, but he got up.” It’s something, White feels, that anybody who has really been in fighting can understand. “There’s things like that that you look at. Everybody messes up. He had a eleven days notice. The thing that pisses the matchmakers off is, he had eleven days notice, it sounds like a great excuse, but they had three other guys that they could have picked that would have made weight. And that’s what drives everybody crazy and pisses everybody off.”

Despite that, however, “when you see a guy fight like he fought tonight – if he pulled that win off and won, it’d be hard to say no.”

Watch the full press scrum from Week 2 of Dana White’s Contender Series Season 3 above.

The post Dana White Suggests Even With Missing Weight, Fighters Could Earn UFC Contract on Contender Series appeared first on Cageside Press.

Las Vegas, NV — A former Contender Series fighter was on hand at week two of Dana White’s Contender Series Season 3 on Tuesday. Fortis MMA’s Steven Peterson, a.k.a. ‘Ocho,’ was there in support of teammate Miles Johns, alongside another teammate, Ramiz Brahimaj. Peterson (17–8) sat down with Cageside Press ahead of the fight, and gave his thoughts on the UFC’s new Apex facility.

“It’s amazing. Everything that the UFC is doing is super high level. The PI is super high level, I love going over there to use the facility,” Peterson told us. “And this is just next level combat sports, to be able to have boxing, kickboxing, the UFC promoting these events, and Dana White’s Contender Series here — it’s just incredible to see how it’s growing and progressing, and the UFC continues to outdo themselves.”

Peterson, of course, is alluding to Dana White’s plan to use the facility to host events in multiple disciplines, something the UFC President revealed just a week ago.

As for Ocho’s own future, Peterson will next be fighting at UFC San Antonio (UFC on ESPN 4). It’s the first time he’ll fight there since his second pro fight. “I love the San Antonio crowd, they seem to get behind Mexican names, they chanted Ocho [the last time],” Peterson recalled. Peterson’s originally from the west coast, but has been fighting out of Texas since the beginning of his career.

“I’m hoping that we can get the “Ocho” chant going in the crowd. It’ll be a coming out fight here in Texas, it’s a great match-up for me,” he added. The opponent in question is none other than Bruce Leeroy himself, Alex Caceres. “I plan to out there and handle business, and it’ll be a good night for me.”

That featherweight scrap is not to be missed. In the meantime, some good news for Fortis MMA. Miles Johns won his Contender Series fight (contract winners were not yet announced at publication time).

Watch the full interview with Steven ‘Ocho’ Peterson above!

The post Ahead of UFC San Antonio, Steven Peterson Talks Apex Facility, Bruce Leeroy appeared first on Cageside Press.

Call it the season three curse. The season opener of Dana White’s Contender Series had a fight drop off the card last minute, when Leon Shahbazyan had to stop his weight cut. Well, here we are at week two, and a fighter missed weight badly enough for the show to shuffle the deck. That came when Victor Reyna tipped the scales at a whopping 178lbs for his main event fight against Miguel Baeza.

Baeza made weight, but the promotion opted to move the bout, making it the card opener, instead of the closer. At least the bout was saved.

With the switch-up, Alton Cunningham vs. Tony Johnson at light heavyweight becomes the new headliner for Dana White’s Contender Series Season 3 Week 2.

For a full breakdown of all the fights on Tuesday’s card, check out our Week 2 breakdown. For full results, check below throughout the event, where Cageside Press will be on hand.

Dana White’s Contender Series Season 3 Week 2 Results:

Alton Cunningham vs. Tony Johnson

Tony Johnson (@tjohnsonboxing) def. Alton Cunningham (@altonthebo_man) via unanimous decision (29-28, 29-28, 29-28) in Round Three

Zach Zane vs. Justin Gonzales

Michael Lombardo vs. Kyle Daukaus

Kyle Daukaus (@kyle_daukaus) def. Michael Lombardo (@michaelvlombardo) via unanimous decision (30-25, 30-26, 29-27) in Round 3

Richie Santiago vs. Miles Johns

Miles Johns (@milesxjohns) def. Richie Santiago (@ricardomiguel1010) via unanimous decision (30-27, 30-27, 30-26) in Round 3

Miguel Baeza vs. Victor Reyna

Miguel Baeza def. Victor Reyna in Round 3 via Unanimous Decision (29-29, 29-28, 29-28)

CONTRACT WINNERS: Miguel Baeza and Miles Johns

The post Dana White’s Contender Series Season 3 Week 2 Live Results appeared first on Cageside Press.

The Contender Series was back this Tuesday with the second installment of its third season. Which meant that Monday was weigh-in day. Week 1 say the first time a fight had been scratched from the show, so fingers crossed that no hiccups come this week.

Among the fighters appearing, Alton Cunningham (7-1), getting his second look on the show since losing to Bevon Lewis on the Contender Series last year. Since that defeat, Cunningham has bounced back with two wins, both finishes.

Opposite Cunningham, Tony Johnson — a fighter who turned pro over a decade ago, and who has appeared in both Strikeforce and Bellator. However, Johnson has fought infrequently to say the least, and enters the fight at 7-2.

In the featured fight, meanwhile, welterweight Miguel Baeza (6-0) was putting his perfect record on the line against the more experience southpaw Victor Reyna (10-3).

Check below for live results from the official weigh-ins for week two of Dana White’s Contender Series Season 3!

Dana White’s Contender Series 2019 Week 2 Weigh-In Results:

MAIN EVENT – Light Heavyweight: Alton Cunningham (205.5) vs. Tony Johnson (203)
Featherweight: Zach Zane (146) vs. Justin Gonzales (146)
Middleweight: Michael Lombardo (185.5) vs. Kyle Daukaus (185.5)
Bantamweight: Richie Santiago (135.5) vs. Miles Johns (135.5).                      Welterweight: Miguel Baeza (169.5) vs. Victor Reyna (178)*

* Reyna missed weight by 7 lbs *

Miguel Baeza vs. Victor Reyna has been moved from the main event to the opening bout. Alton Cunningham vs. Tony Johnson is now the main event for Contender Series Week Two.

https://twitter.com/RodneyJames138/status/1143188385994948609?s=19

The post Dana White’s Contender Series Season 3 Week 2 Weigh-In Results appeared first on Cageside Press.