“After I beat (Charles) Jourdain I was told that I was likely going to fight a ranked guy. Then I got matched up with (Alex) Caceres. When I signed the contract for Caceres he was ranked at the time,” Woodson told reporters including Cageside Press at his post-fight scrum.

“Couple weeks before we fought he got bounced out of the rankings. I beat him and then after that I was for sure told I was going to get a top 15 guy. I was told I was going to fight (Edson) Barboza in December. I was waiting on the confirmation for that. It never happened.”

Woodson (13-1-1) may have been a bit frustrated with how things played out at that point.

Until he got Padilla’s name offered to him.

“They came to me with Fernando. I just knew though like him being the finisher he is, I feel like the company still had a lot of hype behind him. I just know I’m due for a ranked guy now,” he said.

If he wasn’t clear about what he wants in 2025, he made sure to clarify for everyone in the room.

“A ranked opponent. I will go anywhere in the world. At first I was big on ‘I don’t want to fly overseas’ and all that. I will go anywhere, I will fight anybody, rank me,” he said.

“Dana’s big on ‘earn what you kill’. I heard him say that a lot. I feel like I’ve set myself up for a big fight. I’ve earned it and I deserve it.”

Watch the entire post-fight scrum with Sean Woodson above.

The post Sean Woodson Says He Embraced, “Earn what you kill”, Wants Ranked Fight appeared first on Cageside Press.

Woodson was having a strong 2024, having picked up victories against Charles Jourdain and Alex “Bruce Leeroy” Caceres. Padilla was coming off a submission win against Luis Pajuelo which had improved his UFC record to 2-1.

The fight started quickly with Sean landing a high kick that partially landed. Padilla immediately followed up with aggression swinging looping punches backing Sean up against the cage. Woodson was blocking a lot of the strikes with high guard. Padilla lost his footing with his aggression and Woodson jumped on him. Padilla and Woodson exchanged positions on the ground but not much damage was landed.

When the fight returned to the feet, Padilla kept up the relentless pressure on Woodson. Walking him down, non-stop pressure then output. Sean managed to negate some of the forward pressure and stunned his opponent with a solid jab-cross in the center of the octagon. The most damaging shots of the fight to that point. At the mid-way point of the round, Woodson was holding his mouth open slightly as a result of the constant onslaught of strikes and defensive footwork. With about 90 seconds to go in the round, Woodson sat his opponent down with a leg kick triggering a pop from the crowd. Fernando recovered quickly and went back to walking forward before being dropped again seconds later. Once the fight back on the feet, Padilla kept on his gameplan. Cornering Woodson, throwing punches, keeping in his face and keeping him fatigued. In the final seconds of the round Woodson got space from the fence and landed a looping upper cut-cross combo that badly hurt Padilla. Woodson dropped his retreating opponent with a follow up two pieces. Sean swarmed and bounced his foe off the canvas with follow up shots before the ref stepped in to stop the fight.

After the result, Woodson took to the mic in his post-fight interview. “He overwhelms guys” the St. Louis native remarked, speaking on his foe, “I wasn’t going to let him go through me.” Sean capped his massive win off with a huge statement saying, “Rank me and run me my 50. That dude is a lethal finisher, and I finished him.” The victory capped off a massive 2024 for Sean as he went 3-0 in during the calendar year.

Official Results: Sean Woodson def. Fernando Padilla via TKO, 4:58, Round 1

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“I always had fights, since I was really young, in the streets and in school,” Padilla said. “Fighting was always there for me.”

However, for Padilla, it was never about self-preservation and certainly not about picking on others. Instead, even at a young age, it was always about the thrill of competition for him. He loved it so much, that even without a sport to chase after it, he still chased it.

“I always had that edge of competition. If a kid pushed me, I pushed them back. If they punch me, I punch you back,” he explained. “At little kid parties, I was always the kid in the bouncey house kicking someone else or wrestling with someone else.”

While practicing his karate while kids were eating cake and ice cream got the job done for awhile, he needed more. As a teenager he walked onto the mats of 10th Planet Chihuahua in Mexico and he could feel everything change for him.

“When I stepped on to MMA mats back in Chihuahua at Fight Club Chihuahua/10th Planet Chihuahua, I remember it was completely a different sensation,” he said. “Being able to do jiu jitsu, hit the bags, strike – it surrounded me with everything that I liked and I just fell in love with the sport.”

Padilla will get that next chance to scratch that itch this Saturday at UFC Tampa. He’ll take on fellow featherweight Sean Woodson on the prelims. That portion of the card begins at 7pm EST on ESPN+.

You can hear the entire audio version of this interview on the latest edition of TTP. The interview starts below at 2:15.

The post Fernando Padilla: From Bouncey House Karate to UFC Tampa appeared first on Cageside Press.

Kicking off this UFC Tampa edition of TTP is our interview with UFC featherweight, Fernando Padilla. Padilla discusses getting the chance to see one of his best training partners make his UFC debut on short notice. Plus, we dig into his recent submission win and the bonus that came along with it. Finally, Padilla shares his thoughts on fellow lanky featherweight, Sean Woodson, who he fights this weekend.

Fights, Dogs, and Parlays: UFC Tampa (17:47)

With UFC 310 in the rearview, we look ahead to the last UFC event of the year. UFC Tampa comes your way from the Sunshine State. While Ian Garry was originally supposed to main event, we still have an intriguing matchup between Joaquin Buckley and late replacement Colby Covington. We’ll break that down as well as some of the other big fights on this card. In addition, we’ll run further down the card to find an underdog and a parlay that we think will make your wallet fat this weekend. Don’t miss these picks! For this segment, all odds via FanDuel Sportsbook.

Natalie Salcedo Interview (25:06)

Next up on this UFC Tampa edition of TTP is our interview with Invicta FC atomweight, Natalie Salcedo. Salcedo chats about her recent win and dispels the rumor that she meant to pull guard. Also, she discusses the growing rumors of the UFC adding an atomweight division. Finally, she breaks down her fight this weekend and we get a check in from her dogs.

Ashley Barrett Interview (35:14)

Closing out this UFC Tampa edition of TTP is our interview with Invicta FC strawweight, Ashley Barrett. Barrett discusses her early origins in the sport, which were all largely striking based. She then talks about how she found wrestling and it changed her style completely. Then she breaks down her Invicta FC 59 fight for this weekend.

The post TTP Ep. 459 with Fernando Padilla, Natalie Salcedo, Ashley Barrett and UFC Tampa appeared first on Cageside Press.

UFC Tampa (UFC on ESPN 63 for those keeping track of such things) takes place December 14, 2024 at the Amalie Arena in Tampa, Florida. Woodson vs. Padilla’s addition to the card was first reported by ESPN Deportes. Woodson later confirmed the booking on social media.

Woodson (12-1-1), a.k.a. “The Sniper,” has had a strong 2024 thus far. He’s 2-0, starting the year with a split decision win over Charles Jourdain, and following that up by going the distance with Alex “Bruce Leeroy” Cacares, taking the victory on all three scorecards.

Not currently ranked, Woodson is undefeated since 2020, with a record of 5-0-1.

Padilla (16-5) is 2-1 in the UFC to date, having linked up with the company last year. He holds wins over Julian Erosa and most recently Luis Pajuelo. The 27-year old from Mexico also fought some seriously tough competition prior to joining the UFC, including bouts with UFC vets Spike Carlyle, Darrick Minner, and current star Dan Ige.

UFC Tampa is still in search of a main event, but features the following reported bouts:

• Joel Álvarez vs. Drakkar Klose
• Navajo Stirling vs. Tuco Tokkos
• Mackenzie Dern vs. Amanda Ribas
• Josefine Lindgren Knutsson vs. Piera Rodriguez
• Dustin Jacoby vs. Vitor Petrino
• Tracy Cortez vs. Miranda Maverick
• Davey Grant vs. Ramon Taveras
• Manel Kape vs. Bruno Gustavo da Silva
• Cub Swanson vs. Billy Quarantillo
• Said Nurmagomedov vs. Daniel Marcos
• Sean Woodson vs. Fernando Padilla

The post Sean Woodson vs. Fernando Padilla Added to UFC Tampa appeared first on Cageside Press.

Rose Namajunas

‘Thug’ Rose Namajunas got her first victory as a flyweight in UFC Vegas 89’s main event, cruising to a decision win over Amanda Ribas. Now 1-1 in the division, her options are wide open, as is a move back down to the division she used to reign in. With her win over the number eight flyweight in the world she will presumably take over that spot. Above her lie fighters like Natalia Silva, Maycee Barber, Katlyn Cerminara, and Jessica Andrade.

Now would be a perfect time to settle the score with Andrade, though all the other fights are appealing as well. Andrade moves back and forth between 115 and 125-lbs frequently and so she could fight Rose at either weight after her upcoming right with Marina Rodriguez. Win or lose it makes sense because Rose and Jessica are tied 1-1 in the series between them, with Jessica taking Rose’s belt away before Rose beat Andrade later to earn a title shot on her path to being a two-time champion at strawweight.

Namajunas’ Next Fight: Jessica Andrade 3

Karl Williams

Williams is the hottest-streaking prospect at heavyweight now after improving his UFC record to 3-0 in UFC Vegas 89’s co-main event. Before him that position was held by Shamil Gaziev, who just lost for the first time upon attempting to enter the top fifteen. If Williams can prove he is the best unranked heavyweight and beat the well-rounded Gaziev, then he would be well-deserving of his own shot at the rankings.

Williams’ Next Fight: Shamil Gaziev

Edmen Shabazyan

Although he was once the hottest rising, undefeated contender at middleweight, Shahbazyan’s knockout win on Saturday was just his second victory since 2019. After losing to four ranked fighters and beating two unranked ones in the midst of the losses, he needs to prove more before jumping back into the top-15, though his striking, power, and speed make him a constant and entertaining threat.

Next, Edmen ahould either fight guys who were on the verge of contention but are now coming off of losses, like Joe Pyfer and Roman Kopylov, or ones who are rising towards contention currently like Ikram Aliskerov or Rodolfo Vieira. Pyfer would be the best option here, as with his recent loss to Jack Hermansson he just went through what Shabazyan did a few years ago, which would create an interesting storyline for their fight.

Shahbazyan’s Next Fight: Joe Pyfer

Payton Talbott

Talbott had some hype coming into his UFC Vegas 89 fight, but when leaving the octagon after beating down Cameron Saaiman he had generated a ton more for himself with just over five minutes of work. People are now talking about the twenty-five year old fighting a ranked opponent soon in the stacked bantamweight division, which seems a bit much after only two UFC wins. Yet that perhaps shows just how good Talbott is.

Now is the time for Talbott to be tested against one of the unranked elder statesmen of bantamweight like Davey Grant, Cody Stamann, or Douglas Silva de Andrade. They all have more than ten UFC fights and are great fighters, but have struggled to hold onto a ranking for long in this division. Every upcoming prospect has to go through one of them. Davey Grant vs Payton Talbott in particular would be a great fight.

Talbott’s Next Fight: Davey Grant

Youssef Zalal

Zalal’s short-notice return to the UFC ended in celebration as he surprised by dominating veteran Billy Quarantillo on his way to a second round submission win. After his first 3-3-1 stint in the UFC he won three fights outside the promotion before this one, and that time seemed to havr turned Youssef into a significantlu more physically imposing and technically skilled fighter.

Looking like a future contender means he will be tested like one, and will be given someone like Julian Erosa or Josh Culibao next. Erosa won by submission as well on this very card, so matching them up next makes sense as they will naturally be on similar timelines for when their next bout takes place.

Zalal’s Next Fight: Julian Erosa

Fernando Padilla

Fernando Padilla kicked off the UFC Vegas 89 main card with a bang when he put hands on Luis Pajuelo before snatching up a first round d’Arce choke. At 3-1 in the UFC with three finishes, this 27-year old looks like a potential future contender as well.

So why not match him up with the other name I mentioned? Joshua Culibao is a solid fighter who bats .500 in the UFC, which is not easy to do, and is an appropriate test for Padilla after he failed his last test on this level, Kyle Nelson.

Padilla’s Next Fight: Joshua Culibao

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Not since Mike Tyson has a fighter taken such a chunk out of an opponent, but Igor Severino did his best Hannibal Lecter impression at the Fight Night event on Saturday. During a grappling exchange/takedown attempt, he took the time to chomp on Andre Lima’s arm, resulting in an immediate disqualification.

Lima, before the event was even over, had managed to get a tattoo commemorating the incident, and UFC President Dana White’s promise of a $25,000 bonus — later upped to $50,000 when he caught wind of the tattoo.

Severino meanwhile was cut for one of the most blatant fouls in recent memory.

The UFC even had a little fun with the incident, officially announcing the “Bite of the Night” bonus.

Tonight's BOTN 💰💰 #UFCVegas89 pic.twitter.com/Ngttbbryr8

— UFC (@ufc) March 24, 2024

The more traditional post-fight bonuses at UFC Vegas 89 saw Fight of the Night honors awarded to Steven Nguyen and Jarno Errens. The bout saw Errens come away with a hard-fought win. Two main card standouts picked up Performance of the Night bonuses, meanwhile. In an absolute beatdown, the undefeated Payton Talbott finished fellow prospect Cameron Saaiman by TKO, a stoppage that felt more like a life-saving intervention by the ref.

Fernando Padilla picked up the other Performance bonus for a brabo (standing d’arce) choke submission of Luis Pajuelo.

All five fighters pick up $50,000 for their efforts; Lima may want to consider a tetanus shot.

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Peru’s Pajuelo had won his way into the promotion via Dana White’s Contender Series last year, and was riding a five-fight win streak to start the night.

As for Padilla, Mexico’s “El Valiente” had posted a 1-1 record to start his UFC run, but was coming into Saturday night’s showdown off a loss to Canadian Kyle “The Monster” Nelson.

Come the start of Saturday’s scrap, the action got going and Padilla landed a hard outside leg kick. He was doing a good job early on, controlling the range with a series of kicks. Padilla was kicking to both the legs and the body while throwing sneaky uppercuts and knees. As Luis Pajuelo was coming forward, Padilla landed a well-placed left hand sitting Pajuelo down. Padilla landed a volley of good elbows after that, and finally locked up a standing d’arce choke, forcing Pajuelo to tap right away!

The win improves Fernando Padilla’s record to 2-1 under the UFC banner, and proves that he’s not the type of fight most newcomers would be wise to take.

Official Result: Fernando Padilla def. Luis Pajuelo by submission (standing d’arce choke), Round 1, 2:45

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As is often the case with such situations, the MMA Gods opted to sow a little chaos, with the fight scored a draw thanks to an inexplicable 10-8 scorecard for Grasso by judge Mike Bell in the third round. What’s next for “Bullet,” who would have won the fight on the scorecards otherwise? Read on.

Valentina Shevchenko

Valentina Shevchenko may not have lost the fight against Alexa Grasso but she came out the loser nonetheless, since she does not have the belt and Grasso still does. She has a right to feel slighted, the 10-8 scorecard in the fifth round from judge Mike Bell has been widely panned as a bad decision and if not for that score then ‘Bullet’ would have won the fight and regained her throne.

Still, if she had won then the next move would be no different: a trilogy bout with Grasso. After a draw a rematch is almost always in order, and this series has been closely contested throughout. The worry is that this would lead to a fourth fight which would hold up the division if Valentina wins, but the women’s flyweight GOAT deserves it regardless.

Shevchenko’s Next Fight: Alexa Grasso 3

Kevin Holland

One of the UFC’s budding stars faced a setback against a fellow rising welterweight star in Noche UFC’s co-main event as Kevin Holland lost to Jack Della Maddalena by split decision. Although a competitive fight, most fans and pundits seem to agree with the Aussie, Maddalena, getting the nod the back of his clean boxing, especially in the first and third rounds.

With not a single fighter in the top-15 at welterweight currently booked to fight, thirteenth-ranked Holland has many options. He called for a fight with Neil Magny in the aftermath of this loss and that fight does make sense. Magny has long since been the unofficial gatekeeper of 170-lbs, is right next to Holland in the rankings at the moment, and is also coming off of a recent loss to a fellow contender. This fight would test Holland and potentially put him back on track as a rising star.

Holland’s Next Fight: Neil Magny

Terrence Mitchell

Terrance Mitchell has had a tough schedule in his first two UFC fights, but a third consecutive loss would still likely spell the end of his run with the promotion. He should fight a fellow inexperienced fighter, likely one making his UFC debut or with a similar losing record in the promotion. One solid option is Charalampos Grigoriou, a fighter who just won his UFC contract on the sixth season of Dana White’s Contender Series with a first round knockout. Both fighters like to come out swinging, making this potential fight a likely candidate to produce fireworks.

Michell’s Next Fight: Charalampos Grigoriou

Christos Giagos

Christos ‘The Spartan’ Giagos started strong but ultimately fell victim to a choke from the long arms of Daniel Zellhuber at Noche UFC. His 6-7 UFC record in one of the sport’s toughest divisions is certainly respectable and there are a plethora of talented lightweights he would be well-matched against. One such fighter is Marc Diakiese, who is now 7-7 in the UFC after back-to-back losses in the last year. These two well-rounded and experienced martial artists would make for an interesting and competitive fight in the shark tank that is the lightweight division.

Giagos’ Next Fight: Marc Diakiese

Fernando Padilla

Padilla started strong at Noche UFC but ultimately lost the decision against his Canadian opponent as Kyle Nelson’s veteran tactics won the fight down the stretch. Padilla is now 1-1 in the UFC and clearly has a propensity for violence, especially in the early going as seen in his highlight reel knockout of Julian Erosa. There are any number of unranked featherweights with similar record in the UFC whom he could face next, such as Luis Saldana, Lucas Almeida, or Melquiazel Costa.

Of these options, Melquiazel Costa makes the most sense. ‘Melqi’ is also 1-1 in the UFC with a win over Austin Lingo after a short notice debut loss up a weigh class to Thiago Noises. The striking-heavy styles of both men will make for a compelling and exciting clash at 145-lbs.

Padilla’s Next Fight: Melquizael Costa

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The featherweight showdown kicked off the main card, on a night which had already seen some big performances from Mexican fighters.

Nelson landed a solid low kick early, spinning Padilla around and giving him something to look out for. Another one landed a few seconds later, again almost tripping up Padilla, who answered with his hands. Padilla’s jab had Nelson bloodied, but a Nelson jab caused a stumble from Padilla. A solid first half to the round. Later in the frame, Padilla would fire off a volley of standing elbows, to the approving roar of the crowd. He also began targeting the body, ripping punches and launching a knee at the buzzer.

Nelson landed a heavy right hand early in the second, then sailed over him with a head kick. Some while punches were exchanged with Nelson landing a glancing head kick moments later. Padilla was eating some heavy right hands, but came back and launched several uppercuts in close. Wrestling, meanwhile appeared to have been forgotten about as both fighters focused on their stand-up, with Nelson landing a kick to the body, then another moments later. Padilla did catch a kick in the final minute, but couldn’t dump Nelson, who showed some solid balance in the sequence.

With the score likely 19-19 headed into the third, it would come down to who wanted it more. Padilla was more active with his low kicks early in the round, but one strayed up, catching Nelson in the cup which led to a timeout. Back underway, Nelson landed a kick, and Padilla answered with a right hand. Nelson briefly changed levels, thinking takedown, but bailed on it when Padilla proved aware of the attempt. Round three prove to be quite close, and Nelson knew he, shooting a takedown in the final minute. Padilla went down, but didn’t stay there, and instead it went to the scorecards.

Nelson took the win there, with 29-28 scores reasonable, while a 30-27 was a bit of a question mark given Padilla seemed to have done enough to win the first.

Official Result: Kyle Nelson def. Fernando Padilla by unanimous decision (29-28, 29-28, 30-27)

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