Giga Chikadze Archives - Cageside Press Cageside Press - Everything MMA! Mon, 15 Dec 2025 19:33:51 +0000 en-US hourly 1 https://wordpress.org/?v=6.8.5 https://cagesidepress.com/wp-content/uploads/2021/01/cropped-cagesidepress512-3-32x32.png Giga Chikadze Archives - Cageside Press 32 32 What’s Next: UFC Vegas 112 Losers https://cagesidepress.com/2025/12/15/whats-next-ufc-vegas-112-losers/ Mon, 15 Dec 2025 19:33:51 +0000 https://cagesidepress.com/?p=218745 UFC Vegas 112 was the final UFC card of the 2025 calendar year. Additionally, the APEX card also marked the end of the UFC era on ESPN. The main event featured top ranked flyweight, Manel Kape, dropping and finishing Brandon Royval in the first round. In the co-main event, Kevin Vallejos logged a standout performance […]

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]]> UFC Vegas 112 was the final UFC card of the 2025 calendar year. Additionally, the APEX card also marked the end of the UFC era on ESPN.

The main event featured top ranked flyweight, Manel Kape, dropping and finishing Brandon Royval in the first round. In the co-main event, Kevin Vallejos logged a standout performance and finish against longtime ranked featherweight, Giga Chikadze.  A six-fight main card as well as one fight that ended in a draw means the edition will be heavily loaded with a total of seven fighters.

Brandon Royval

Manel Kape took a little over half a round to trap Royval against the cage, drop him with a hook and finish the job. This was a matchup that had been made twice before this year, with both fighters causing a cancellation a piece, injuries being the culprits for both men. Royval entered the fight ranked at #2 in the division while Kape was at #8. This is Royval’s second loss in a row after losing to now 125lb champion Joshua Van, via a Fight of the Night, unanimous decision back in June. Brandon is 2-2 since an unsuccessful title shot to the former champion, Alexandre Pantoja, in December of 2023.

The perfect bout for Royval at this point, is to take on Tim Elliot. Tim has a whacky striking style, much like Brandon does. Elliot is currently ranked at #8 in the division and is coming off of a second-round guillotine finish against Kai Asakura back in August. That was the last time fans had seen the now 38-year-old Tim Elliot, in the octagon in nearly two years. Elliot is 10-11 in the UFC and the would be a fight that could keep Royval active while a lot of the other ranked fighters have matchups. This could be fight night card headliner or co main event.

Royval’s next fight: Tim Elliot

Giga Chikadze

Kevin Vallejos had his highlight moment on Saturday with his spinning back fight finish of Giga Chikadze. The spectacular display of Argentine striking triggered the third set back in a row for Chikadze. And Giga has now lost four of his last five dating back to 2021. His only win in that time is to Alex Caceres, who is no longer with the promotion.  Giga lost to Calvin Kattar, Arnold Allen, David Onama (which he missed weight for) and now Kevin Vallejos. Giga entered this fight just hanging on to his spot in the rankings at #15. Obviously, that’s gone now as Kevin was unranked.

At 37 years old and with the injuries suffered in his career, it’s important for Giga to get the right matchup here. Who better than a guy like Sean Woodson? This is a matchup that was referenced in a previous loser’s article and though it’s dangerous, it has an upside for both fighters. Woodson is 7-2-1 in the UFC and recently had a 7-fight unbeaten streak snapped by Dan Ige back in April. To make matters worse for Woodson, he was stopped and shut out of the rankings. 33-year-old Woodson is 6’2″ with a 78″ reach while Giga is 6’0″ with a 74″ reach. Seans a more of a boxing striker while Giga is more kickboxing. This could offer an excellent just outside of the rankings matchup to determine which fighter lands a shot at a ranked fighter.

Chikadze’s next fight: Sean Woodson

Cesar Almedia

Cezary Oleksiejzuk tallied a victory in his UFC debut on Saturday, with a unanimous decision victory over Cesar Almedia. It was a grinding a grimy fight as Alemedia now falls to 3-2 with the promotion. His three wins against Dylan Budka, Ihor Potieria and Abdul Razak Alhassan are all against fighters who have since been cut by the promotion. Almedia is in dire need of a win here.

The perfect matchup here for Cesar is pairing him up against Marco Tulio.  Marco fought last month, getting finished via spinning backfist at the hands of Christian Leroy Duncan. That losers article referenced Tulio taking on Michel Pereira, but Pereira was instead booked against Zach Reese. Cesar would offer an excellent matchup, and the timing would work perfectly. Tulio is 2-1 with the UFC and shares a win over Ihor Potieria. Marco’s other win came back in April when he stopped Tresean Gore. Cesar went to a split decision against Roman Kopylov. But its dicey because he’s only 7-2 as a pro in MMA, not even 10 fights yet. Tulio is 14-2 and has stopped nearly everyone, it’s a dangerous matchup.

That said, Cesar was also a credentialed Glory kickboxer that faced Alex Pereira multiple times (1-2, all decisions). Book it! Sleeper of a solid fight for hardcore fans that could be a feature PPV prelim.

Almeida’s next fight: Marco Tulio 

Morgan Charriere

Melquizael Costa just barely landed a picture-perfect head kick on Morgan Charriere 74 seconds into the pair’s bout on Saturday. The highlight reel KO marked the first time that Charriere has been stopped in his 34-fight professional MMA career. Charriere is now 3-3 with the UFC but he has scored bonuses in four of his six appearances.

A great matchup for Charriere would be pitting him against Christian Rodriguez.  Christian is 5-4 with the promotion and is actually on a two-fight skid. Rodriguez has also lost to Costa, via unanimous decision back in March. The 2021 Contender Series alum, nicknamed “CeeRod”, was last in action in August with a split decision loss to UFC vet, Andre Filli. Rodriguez made a splash when he first arrived in the UFC, with victories over hot young prospects, Raul Rosas Jr and Cameron Saaiman. However, he continuously lost the fight to the scale and has since moved up to featherweight- where he’s struggled. Exciting scrap in the making here, could land nearly anywhere on a fight night card.

Charriere’s next fight: Christian Rodriguez

Lance Gibson Jr.

39-year-old King Green pieced up and secured a split decision victory over Lance Gibson Jr to kick of the main card of UFC Vegas 112 on Saturday. Gibson Jr. definitely had his moments in his short notice UFC debut, but the split decision was somewhat controversial as many fans thought the fight should have been scored as a unanimous decision (as well as King Green).

Lance, a former Bellator fighter, at 30 years old and 9-2, has a couple of directions he can go here. Jump in the deep end, so to speak, against more veteran fighters or test his metal against hungry Contender Series -type fighters. Perhaps a Contender Series alum is a more entertaining and manageable path like a fight against Terrance McKinney or Thiago Moises. Two CS guys, but tenure in the promotion too. Terrance is 2019 alum who has gone 7-5 with the promotion. While Moises is from the 2018 season and has gone 8-7.

Leaning towards McKinney, who has gone 2-2 in his last four. McKinney is known for his fights, win or lose, not making it out of the first round. Would be an interesting test for Lance who has gotten a lot of different looks/styles throughout his short, well-traveled career. Going the distance with Green on short notice is no small feat, this would be a interesting matchup for fans to watch next.

Gibson’s next fight: Terrance McKinney or Thiago Moises

Kennedy Nzechukwu and Marcus Buchecha

Kennedy Nzechukwu and Marcus Buchecha fought to a draw on Saturday in what was an action-packed bout. The bout ultimately ended up being decided by a point deduction by Kennedy for eye poking, otherwise he would have logged a victory.

Kennedy’s next fight should be against Martin Buday. Kennedy and Martin were scheduled to fight back in April, but it was cancelled after Nzechukwu withdrew. However, Buday has since released by the promotion (despite coming off a win and going 7-1 with the promotion since 2021). So instead, Kennedy should take on Louie Sutherland who is 0-1 with the UFC. Sutherland made his debut against Valter Walker in late October. Walker heel hooked “The Vanilla Gorilla” in just 84 seconds. Valter did the same to Kennedy back in July but that time took under a minute. Match these two up. Slim pickings here.

As for Buchecha, Marcus should fight Mohammed Usman in his next fight. Mohammed is 4-2 in the UFC and was last in the octagon back in June with a unanimous decision against Hamdy Abdelwahab. Hamdy has since been released by the promotion. Prior to that, Mohammed dropped fights to Thomas Petersen and Mick Parkin.

Both of these men are in dangerous territory as the promotion has cleared out several guys that these guys have fought. Anything could happen here. Nice to book with the loser or both guys, or neither facing the axe.

Nzechukwu’s next fight: Louie Sutherland

Buchecha’s next fight: Mohammed Usman

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]]> Kevin Vallejos Stuns Giga Chikadze with Spinning Backfist KO https://cagesidepress.com/2025/12/14/kevin-vallejos-stuns-giga-chikadze-with-spinning-backfist-ko/ Sun, 14 Dec 2025 05:46:01 +0000 https://cagesidepress.com/?p=218676 Featherweights Giga Chikadze and Kevin Vallejos anchored the UFC Vegas 112 co-main event on Saturday. The fight found Georgian Chikadze promising to send Vallejos “back to kindergarten,” suggesting he was too much of a step up for the Argentinian. After a short feeling out process in the opening minute, Giga missed on a kick stumbling […]

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]]> Featherweights Giga Chikadze and Kevin Vallejos anchored the UFC Vegas 112 co-main event on Saturday.

The fight found Georgian Chikadze promising to send Vallejos “back to kindergarten,” suggesting he was too much of a step up for the Argentinian.

After a short feeling out process in the opening minute, Giga missed on a kick stumbling to the ground. On his way up Chikadze ate two solid right hands before circling away. Moments later Giga landed a quality combination set up by a kick to the body. Vallejos was forced to clinch pressing Giga up against the cage. A massive cut had opened on the leg of Chikadze as Vallejos continued to hold the fight in the clinch. Now limping Giga continued to throw kicks wit his damaged leg landing another to the body of Vallejos. After the first five minutes Giga seemed to be the fighter who landed the more substantial blows.

In the second, Chikadze started to press forward continuing to land solid kicks to the body and legs at distance. Vallejos exploded out of nowhere throwing a spinning backfist against the fence that caught Giga clean. Stumbling to the floor, Vallejos continued the attack finishing the fight with elbows moments later. This was a viscous and electrifying win for Vallejos who picked up the biggest win of his young career.

In the post fight interview, Vallejos gave props to his opponent and said he wants to donate part of his purse to Giga’s cancer charity. Already a top fifteen fighter in his weight class, Vallejos called out UFC legend Cub Swanson for a fight in Miami in 2026.

Official Results: Kevin Vallejos def. Giga Chikadze via R2 KO, 1:29

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]]> Giga Chikadze Vows to Bring Back the “Giga Show,” Send Vallejos “Back to Kindergarten” https://cagesidepress.com/2025/12/12/giga-chikadze-vows-to-bring-back-the-giga-show-send-vallejos-back-to-kindergarten/ Sat, 13 Dec 2025 04:57:10 +0000 https://cagesidepress.com/?p=218550 Giga Chikadze fights for the second time this year at UFC Vegas 112, a feat he hasn’t achieved since 2021. He’ll also mark one of the last fights in the ESPN era of the UFC, something he takes pride in. “That’s not a surprise to me because I started with ESPN, and I’ll finish their […]

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]]> Giga Chikadze fights for the second time this year at UFC Vegas 112, a feat he hasn’t achieved since 2021. He’ll also mark one of the last fights in the ESPN era of the UFC, something he takes pride in.

“That’s not a surprise to me because I started with ESPN, and I’ll finish their era well,” he said during this week’s media day. “I think they wanted me to be here in that spot, and here we are, ‘Giga Show’ is coming back again.”

Chikadze faces Argentina’s Kevin Vallejos, an unranked fighter but a dangerous up-and-coming prospect. With Chikadze looking for a ranked opponent, the matchup provides a get-right spot for the #15 featherweight after two losses.

“I don’t look much at the ranking spots right now. I know I’m a championship-level fighter, and I have to do some stuff to become a champion,” Chikadze continued,

“He’s an upcoming fighter; I don’t think he’s ready for the level where I’m at. But I guess Saturday we’re gonna see it, and I’m gonna send him back to Kindergarten to come back later and better. He’s young, he’s got a long career in the future, but right now all my experience puts me in this position, and we’ve got a plan for next year to do the big thing.”

Despite wanting to push Vallejos away from the rankings, he accepted the fight out of respect for Vallejos’s confidence.

“I love the confidence, that’s why I gave him the chance. To see what he’s doing and if he can do it.”

Vallejos has been adamant about closing the distance and forcing his ranked opponent to box with him, something Chikadze doesn’t see happening.

“You mentioned that he’s more than ready and happy to trade; we’ll see about that. That’s what everybody says.”

“That’s not going to be a surprise if he picks up more of a grappling game, but I’m not leaving any chance, and I’m finishing the fight in the first round.”

With his health being the priority over recent years, coming into a fight healthy has given the Georgian a chance to return to form.

“I’m sharp, I’m faster, I made weight easier this time. My reactions are great. This camp has been really good.

“I just have to be the Giga. I just have to bring my 100%, I have to feel my best. You guys know my skills already; I can deal with anybody.”

Watch the entire media day scrum with Giga Chikadze above. He fights in the Co-main event of UFC Vegas 112 against Kevin Vallejos on Saturday night.

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]]> Kevin Vallejos Embraces Career-Defining Test Against Giga Chikadze https://cagesidepress.com/2025/12/12/kevin-vallejos-embraces-career-defining-test-against-giga-chikadze/ Fri, 12 Dec 2025 13:01:51 +0000 https://cagesidepress.com/?p=218524 Kevin Vallejos is stepping into the biggest moment of his career at UFC Vegas 112, drawing perennial contender and elite striker Giga Chikadze in a matchup that could redefine his place in the featherweight division. For the rising Argentine prospect, it’s a chance to prove he belongs among the division’s elite and to silence any […]

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]]> Kevin Vallejos is stepping into the biggest moment of his career at UFC Vegas 112, drawing perennial contender and elite striker Giga Chikadze in a matchup that could redefine his place in the featherweight division.

For the rising Argentine prospect, it’s a chance to prove he belongs among the division’s elite and to silence any lingering doubts as he takes on one of the most dangerous kickboxers on the UFC roster.

“On a professional level very happy to have the opportunity because I do feel that this will get me closer to being a title contender,” Vallejos told reporters through a translator on Wednesday.

“One thing at a time, that’s further down the road, but it gets me closer to that objective of being able to look for the title in the future.”

Vallejos (16-1) made it clear he understands exactly what’s at stake when he steps in against veteran contender Chikadze. Despite the spotlight, the rising featherweight spoke with humility and appreciation about the opportunity in front of him.

“This is a real test for me to try my skills out there. On a personal level I’m very happy with the opportunity to fight a guy that’s been up there for quite some time. I’m a nobody in the company compared to him,” he said.

“He’s taking the opportunity to fight me with 5-6 fights in a career here, and he’s giving me that. It makes me really happy to have that fight on a personal level.”

When breaking down the matchup, Vallejos didn’t shy away from the tactical chess match that awaits him against one of the division’s most dangerous kickboxers. He framed the fight as a stylistic test, one that will reward whoever can take control early.

“I think this is going to be a clash of styles. With a guy that kicks, you go out there and you box. With a guy that box, you go out there and you kick him. I do believe that the one that can impose his style of fighting will come out on top,” he said.

“My thing is just shorten that distance, get in there, and knock him out, and I think it’s going to be very exciting on Saturday.”

Kevin Vallejos faces Giga Chikadze at UFC Vegas 112 on Saturday night.

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]]> Giga Chikadze to Face Kevin Vallejos at UFC Vegas 112 https://cagesidepress.com/2025/11/03/giga-chikadze-to-face-kevin-vallejos-at-ufc-vegas-112/ Mon, 03 Nov 2025 21:22:33 +0000 https://cagesidepress.com/?p=217117 Georgian featherweight Giga Chikadze is set to face Kevin Vallejos at UFC Vegas 112 this December, the final UFC event of 2025 – and of the ESPN era. The event takes place at the UFC Apex in Las Vegas on December 13, 2025. Chikadze himself revealed news of the match-up on the Fight Hop podcast […]

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]]> Georgian featherweight Giga Chikadze is set to face Kevin Vallejos at UFC Vegas 112 this December, the final UFC event of 2025 – and of the ESPN era.

The event takes place at the UFC Apex in Las Vegas on December 13, 2025. Chikadze himself revealed news of the match-up on the Fight Hop podcast earlier today.

Chikadze (15-5) will be looking to snap a two-fight skid in the bout, having fallen to both Arnold Allen and David Onama of late. The Onama fight, his most recent, saw Chikadze losing a unanimous decision back in April.

Prior to that, “Ninka” had earned a win over Alex “Bruce Leeroy” Caceres.

Vallejos (16-1) has won both his assignments under the UFC banner. The 2024 Contender Series winner faced Danny Silva most recently, earning a unanimous decision victory.

UFC Vegas 112 is headlined by flyweights Brandon Royval and Manel Kape. The following match-ups have been reported for the December Fight Night card:

  • Brandon Royval vs. Manel Kape
  • Jamey-Lyn Horth vs. Tereza Bledá
  • Steven Asplund vs. Sean Sharaf
  • César Almeida vs. Cezary Oleksiejczuk
  • Melquizael Costa vs. Morgan Charrière
  • Joanderson Brito vs. Melsik Baghdasaryan
  • Allen Frye vs. Guilherme Pat
  • Luana Santos vs. Melissa Croden
  • Gillian Robertson vs. Amanda Lemos
  • Giga Chikadze vs. Kevin Vallejos

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]]> What’s Next: UFC Kansas City Losers https://cagesidepress.com/2025/04/28/whats-next-ufc-kansas-city-losers-2/ Mon, 28 Apr 2025 14:00:41 +0000 https://cagesidepress.com/?p=206986 UFC Kansas City boasted 14 fights of high-octane cage fighting action Saturday. The Fight Night show’s main card featured a special six fights including a main event between two ranked welterweights in Ian Machado Garry and Carlos Prates. In the co-main event, UFC journeyman and former light heavyweight title challenger Anthony Smith took to the […]

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]]> UFC Kansas City boasted 14 fights of high-octane cage fighting action Saturday.

The Fight Night show’s main card featured a special six fights including a main event between two ranked welterweights in Ian Machado Garry and Carlos Prates. In the co-main event, UFC journeyman and former light heavyweight title challenger Anthony Smith took to the octagon one last time in a rough retirement fight against Zhang Mingyang. Three fights ended with finishes on the main card, and three fights ended with unanimous decisions. A few fighters on the fringe of the rankings lost to unranked opponents on this card- which suggests a rankings shakeup is incoming.

Carlos Prates

Carlos Prates was out-struck in a technical battle against Ian Garry in the main event of UFC Kansas City. Prates dropped Garry near the end of the bout and almost finished the fight.

Carlos had not lost since 2019. The 2023 Contender Series vet was 4-0 with the UFC, four finishes, four bonuses. Huge momentum killer here. Considering that Ian is ranked at #7 in the division compared to Prates ranked at #13- this was a ripe opportunity (Garry is now officially the backup for the upcoming welterweight title fight at UFC 315 following this win). Tough to stomach for Carlos, especially with how this fight ended.

The fight to make here has to be rebooking the Geoff Neal fight. Prates and Neal were supposed to throw down at UFC 314 on April 12, but Neal had to withdraw due to injury. Neal has some lethal hands and Prates just showed that he can be dangerous for the better part of half an hour in the octagon.

Neal is currently ranked at #10 in the division. A fight between these two is guaranteed to be both action packed and violent.  Winner would be looking to fight someone in the top five especially if they deliver an impressive finish.

Prates’ next fight: Rebook Geoff Neal fight

Anthony Smith

Anthony Smith was finished in the first round by Zhang Mingyang in what he announced, prior to the fight, would be his final fight. Smith entered the fight ranked at #15 in the light heavyweight division while his opponent was unranked. Smith ends his UFC career after being with the promotion since 2013 and amassing a 13-12 record. The hard-nosed, former title challenger, finished out his stint with the UFC losing four of his last five fights. He currently appears as an analyst on UFC broadcasts.

Smith’s next fight: Retirement

Giga Chikadze

Giga Chikadze dropped a very competitive unanimous decision to David Onama at UFC Kansas City on Saturday. Chikadze missed weight ahead of this fight weighing in at 147lbs. on Friday.

Chikadze entered the bout ranked at #12 in the UFC’s featherweight vision while Onama was unranked. Well Giga can very likely kiss that ranking goodbye. The fighter known as “Ninja” has now lost three of his last four bouts dating back to his all-time scrap against Calvin Kattar in early 2022. Giga, who turns 37 in August, needs to get back on the right track, and fast.

A fight against Sean Woodson could be exactly what the doctor ordered. Woodson was last in action as the feature prelim on UFC 314 opposite of a #14 ranked Dan Ige.  Woodson was finished, albeit controversially, in the third round of that fight. A matchup between these two lengthy strikers could make a lot of sense and be a real treat for fans. Not to mention, the timing is great as well. Woodson was riding a 7-fight unbeaten streak before the loss to Ige, so the winner of this fight would likely be one win away from getting a ranked matchup.

Chikadze’s next fight: Sean Woodson

Michel Pereira

Michel Pereira put in an uncharacteristically lackluster and inactive performance against Abus Magomedov on the way to a unanimous decision defeat Saturday. Pereira entered the fight ranked at #14 in the middleweight division while Abus was unranked.

Pereira has now lost two fights in a row after he was finished in the final round of his main event against Anthony Hernandez last October. Before that, Pereira had ripped off an impressive eight-fight win streak. He’s got to get that spark back and he needs a matchup that’ll allow him to go “weapons free.” A fight opposite of “The Action Man,” Chris Curtis, could do just that. Chris is a high output striker that has solid boxing and is never in a boring fight. Curtis is 1-3, 1 NC in his last five fights and really needs a good win. Curtis has a good gas tank, where Michel has historically been weak, but there is a path to victory for him here. Winner of this scrap could be knocking back on the door of the incredibly shallow middleweight rankings. Just depends on the dominance of the victory.

Pereira’s next fight: Chris Curtis 

Nicolas Dalby

Randy Brown faceplanted Nicolas Dalby in the second round of a franticly paced fight on the main card of UFC Kannas City on Saturday.

The bout drew Fight of the Night honors, but the reality of this outcome is extremely sobering for Dalby. Nicolas turns 41 later this year and has now lost two in a row. It goes without saying, but welterweight is an extremely talented and deep division. This is just the second time in Dalby’s career where he’s lost two or more fights in a row. A good matchup for Dalby in his next fight will be critical for the trajectory of the tail end of his fight career.

Dalby’s next fight should be against someone in a similar spot in their career which is why the loser of Santiago Ponzinibbio vs Daniel Rodriguez makes a lot of sense. Both men have won their most recent fights but had lost two in a row prior to that. Both fighters also turn 39 years old later this year and are entertaining strikers. Ponzinibbio and Rodriguez are scheduled to fight May 3, so the timing also matches up (especially if there is a finish). Easy book here to determine which aging welterweight is still a very credible threat in a cutthroat division. Losing that fight could potentially result in sparking talks of being cut/retirement.

Dalby’s next fight: Loser of Santiago Ponzinibbio vs Daniel Rodriguez 

Andre Muniz

Andre Muniz was dropped and finished by Ikram Aliskerov in the first round to kick of the main card of UFC Kansas City. Very rough for Muniz especially considering he’s been out of action since December of 2023. This matchup had been cancelled twice already both times because of Muniz (withdrew and passport issues). Bottom line is that Andre has lost three of his last four fights and he was finished in all three. Muniz’s only win in that time was a split decision against Jun Yong Park in December 2023.

Muniz is in trouble here. Inactivity is no one’s friend.  He needs a good fight and a win, pronto. The perfect dance partner for Andre here would be Christian Leroy Duncan. Duncan, who is 4-2 with the UFC, won his most recent fight last month when he defeated UFC newcomer Andrey Pulyaev by unanimous decision.  Duncan has only lost to Armen Petrosyan and Greogory Rodrigues in his UFC (and entire pro) career. This would be a classic striker vs grappler matchup. CLD is looking for that next tier win to validate his skills within the UFC while Muniz is looking to prove he still truly belongs after a rough stretch and inactivity. They both get what they need here. An impressive win in this fight could propel the winner into a real name potentially just outside of the rankings.

Muniz’s next fight: Christian Leroy Duncan 

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]]> UFC Kansas City: David Onama Scores Biggest Career Win, Bests Giga Chikadze https://cagesidepress.com/2025/04/26/ufc-kansas-city-david-onama-scores-biggest-career-win-bests-giga-chikadze/ Sun, 27 Apr 2025 03:07:28 +0000 https://cagesidepress.com/?p=206909 Featherweights Giga Chikadze and David Onama faced off at UFC Kansas City, with the #12-ranked Chikadze giving an opportunity to the unranked Onama to break into the top 15. Chikadze had not competed since a decision loss to Arnold Allen last July, and was treating the fight as a stepping stone to a bigger name, […]

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]]> Featherweights Giga Chikadze and David Onama faced off at UFC Kansas City, with the #12-ranked Chikadze giving an opportunity to the unranked Onama to break into the top 15.

Chikadze had not competed since a decision loss to Arnold Allen last July, and was treating the fight as a stepping stone to a bigger name, he explained during Fight Week. Onama, meanwhile, was fighting at home, and wasn’t about to be overlooked.

Known for his “Giga Kick,” Chikadze’s kicks were on full display early in Saturday’s fight. He went to the head and body, though Onama was quick to block the attacks. Those kicks would continue to come from both sides as the round progressed, however. Onama would try to walk the Georgian down, but Chikadze was certain to circle out of harm’s way any time he started to get hemmed in. Onama would get the fight to the ground at the end of the frame, getting on top, but didn’t have much time to work.

Round two saw Chikadze come out and land a right hand. Onama used kicks of his own to try to keep Giga off his line, and mixed in an uppercut with his next combo. This round, Onama would get the fight down earlier, with over 90 seconds still on the clock. When Chikadze tried to scramble, Onama dragged him along the canvas. Onama looked for a choke, and to find space for elbows, as Giga Chikadze worked his way to the fence. Chikadze finally got to his feet when the round came to a close, with Onama having worked over the body on the ground.

Between rounds, Giga’s corner told him the fight was tied 1-1. A pretty accurate assessment, but one that also relied on the judges getting things right. And while the opening minutes played out on the feet, Onama landed the takedown with more than two minutes remaining. There appeared to be an accidental clash of heads ahead of that, and the end result was Onama stalling out on top for a bit. Still, it was enough to win him the round, and therefore the fight.

Official Result: David Onama def. Giga Chikadze by unanimous decision (29-28, 29-28, 29-28)

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]]> UFC Kansas City: Giga Chikadze Expects “Something Big” From UFC After Fighting Unranked Onama https://cagesidepress.com/2025/04/24/ufc-kansas-city-giga-chikadze-onama/ Thu, 24 Apr 2025 18:33:59 +0000 https://cagesidepress.com/?p=206761 Returning to action for the first time since July of 2024, Georgian featherweight Giga Chikadze has drawn David Onama at UFC Kansas City this weekend. The bout, originally booked for UFC Vegas 105, was pushed back a few weeks, and arrives with Chikadze (15-4) still ranked #12 in the 145lb division, while coming off a […]

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]]> Returning to action for the first time since July of 2024, Georgian featherweight Giga Chikadze has drawn David Onama at UFC Kansas City this weekend.

The bout, originally booked for UFC Vegas 105, was pushed back a few weeks, and arrives with Chikadze (15-4) still ranked #12 in the 145lb division, while coming off a loss against Arnold Allen. Onama, meanwhile, is not ranked, something that Chikadze touched on during Wednesday’s UFC Kansas City media day.

“I’m an MMA fan, and I’m a fan of each fighter who decides to be in the octagon and who [does] their hard work to be here, and who reaches that level,” the former kickboxer, known for his “Giga Kick,” said when asked to assess his opponent. “As an opponent, if you ask me, I’m not going to say nice things. In general, he’s a great fighter, he has some knockout skills. I look at him as a good athlete, and good, competitive fighter. That’s all I can say at the moment. I can speak about him highly after the fight.”

After the fight, should all go well, Chikadze will be looking for bigger names. He sees fighting the unranked Onama as a quid pro quo situation more or less.

“I feel like that’s an investment for me. Fighting somebody who’s not ranked, I’m going to expect something after. Something big from the UFC,” stated Chikadze. “I do something for them, they do something for me.”

“I’m here to become a champion, that’s the only reason I’m in the UFC. I’m not here just to get paid. And that’s it.”

The featherweight division is in an interesting spot at the moment. Just two weeks ago at UFC 314 in Miami, Alexander Volkanovski reclaimed the 145lb title at age 36. Ilia Topuria had vacated the belt to move to lightweight, and with Diego Lopes falling to Volkanovski for that vacant title, Movsar Evloev and Yair Rodriguez appear to be the front-runners for title shots.

Rodriguez, who defeated Bellator great Patricio Pitbull at UFC 314, revealed a title shot had been promised to him, despite the fact that he was coming off a loss prior to the Pitbull fight.

“Yair beating someone who is not in the UFC and getting a title shot, I don’t think that’s the right call,” Chikadze opined on Wednesday. “But whatever the UFC decides, that’s that.”

Watch Giga Chikadze’s full UFC Kansas City media day appearance above.

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]]> Giga Chikadze vs. David Onama Set for April 26 UFC Event https://cagesidepress.com/2025/02/02/giga-chikadze-vs-david-onama-set-for-april-26-ufc-event/ Sun, 02 Feb 2025 21:46:34 +0000 https://cagesidepress.com/?p=202237 Giga Chikadze will be looking to land a “Giga Kick” on David Onama this April. Georgia’s Chikadze (15-4) will return to action for the first time since July when he faces off against Onama (13-2) at a UFC Fight Night event on April 26, 2025. Iridium Sports Agency, who represent Onama, announced the news on […]

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]]> Giga Chikadze will be looking to land a “Giga Kick” on David Onama this April.

Georgia’s Chikadze (15-4) will return to action for the first time since July when he faces off against Onama (13-2) at a UFC Fight Night event on April 26, 2025.

Iridium Sports Agency, who represent Onama, announced the news on Saturday. The card is rumored to take place at the T-Mobile Center in Kansas City, Missouri.

36-year old Chikadze sits at 2-2 in his last four, and will be looking to bounce back from a loss to Arnold Allen in his last outing. Both of Chikadze’s losses in that span have come via decision; more concerning is that he has fought just one per year the past three years.

A former kickboxer, Chikadze holds notable MMA victories over Edson Barboza and UFC Hall of Fame member “Killer” Cub Swanson.

Opposite Giga Chikadze this April will be David Onama, who has seen his arm raised in his last three outings. Most recently, Onama, 30, earned a unanimous decision victory against Roberto Romero at UFC 309.

The UFC’s April 26, 2025 Fight Night event does not have a main event reported, and only one other fight is on the docket as it stands. That bout sees Michel Pereira take on Abus Magomedov.

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]]> What’s Next: UFC 304 Losers https://cagesidepress.com/2024/07/29/whats-next-ufc-304-losers/ Tue, 30 Jul 2024 03:08:02 +0000 https://cagesidepress.com/?p=192790 UFC 304 went down in Manchester, England on Saturday featuring an exciting five fight main card. The prelims left something to be desired with only three of the nine fights ending with a finish. In the main event UFC welterweight champion and hometown favorite, Leon Edwards lost his belt and his first fight in nine […]

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]]> UFC 304 went down in Manchester, England on Saturday featuring an exciting five fight main card. The prelims left something to be desired with only three of the nine fights ending with a finish. In the main event UFC welterweight champion and hometown favorite, Leon Edwards lost his belt and his first fight in nine years losing a dominant decision to Belal Muhammad. A lot of fighters at solid rankings need matchups moving forward after UFC 304.

Leon Edwards

Leon Edwards lost a five round unanimous decision to Belal Muhammad in the main event of UFC 304. Edwards was on a mythical 13-fight unbeaten streak heading into the title bout, including two successful title defenses. (Colby Covington and Kamaru Usman)

Edwards should fight Ian Machado Garry in his next fight. Although Jack Della Maddalena is ranked slightly higher at #5 compared to Garry’s #7 ranking and would make sense. A fight with Ian makes even more sense. Garry has defeated bigger names with his last four wins being over: Daniel Rodriguez, Neil Magny, Geoff Neal and most recently, Michael Page. Although Garry has been vocal with his callouts of Colby Covington in the past, surely, he could change around his plans for the former UFC welterweight champion.

Leon’s next fight: Ian Machado Garry

Curtis Blaydes

Curtis Blaydes was quickly dropped and finished by interim UFC heavyweight champion, Tom Aspinall on Saturday. The co-main event of UFC 304 was over in exactly a minute as Curtis, who entered the fight as the #4 ranked UFC heavyweight, was sent back to the drawing board.

Blaydes has now lost two of his last three fights since defeating Aspinall in the pair’s first fight, back in July of 2022.

The top of the UFC’s heavyweight division is small and crowded. To avoid a rematch with Pavlovich (Who Curtis just fought in 2023), Curtis should fight the winner of Spivac vs. Tybura II. That fight is scheduled to be the main event of a fight card on August 10th. Curtis has not fought either fighter and both Tybura and Spivac have lost to Aspinall.  Tybura is the #8 ranked UFC heavyweight while Spivac is ranked at #9. So Curtis getting the winner of the fight the main event on August 10th makes sense as a ‘rebuilding’ type fight.

Curtis’ next fight: Serghei Spivac vs. Marcin Tybura II winner

King Green

King Green (formerly Bobby Green) was submitted in the first round of his fight against Paddy Pimblett in the people’s main event of UFC 304. Green has now lost two of his last four fights. He’s also been one half of the co-main or main event in two of his last four fights.

King entered the fight ranked as the #15 lightweight even after being with the UFC for over 11 years now.

Green has fought a lot of guys. Avoiding a pointless rematch, a good fight for King Green at this point in his career would be a fight against the winner of Matt Frevola vs. Fares Ziam. That fight is scheduled for September 28. Both men have won three of their last four fights. The winner could be just an impressive win away from a ranking and a name like Bobby could get them there. Or vice versa and Bobby could get right back in the mix at nearly 38-years-old by taking one of these guys out.

Bobby’s next fight:

Christian Leroy Duncan

Christian Leroy Duncan lost a bloody unanimous decision at the hands of Greogry Rodrigues on Saturday. Duncan has now lost two of his last four fights since stopping Dusko Todorovic in his UFC debut last March. His wins are a pair of second round stoppages against Denis Tiuliulin and Claudio Ribeiro.

Duncan’s next fight should be opposite of Brad Tavares. The veteran Tavares has been in the UFC for 14 years now. Plus, Tavares has amassed a record of 15-9 with the promotion. Tavares has lost three of his last four. The win being against former UFC middleweight champion, Chris Weidman, last August. His last time in the octagon was also against Greogry Rodrigues, but he was finished early in the third round. Tavares was supposed to fight Jun Yong Park recently (July 20th), but Park was not medically cleared after weigh ins.

Christian’s next fight: Brad Tavares

Giga Chikadze

Giga Chikadze lost a unanimous decision to Arnold Allen in the main card opener of UFC 304. Chikadze entered the fight as the #10 UFC featherweight while his opponent was ranked at #6. Chikadze has now lost two of his last three fights dating back to his first UFC main event against Edson Barboza in August of 2022.

Bryce Mitchell should be the next fight for Chikadze. #13 ranked UFC featherweight, Bryce Mitchell, has also lost two of his last three fights. However, unlike Giga, Bryce was finished in both losses. Bryce was most recently in action late last year at UFC 296 when he was flatlined by a huge overhand from Josh Emmett in the first round on UFC 296. (Giga was the original opponent for Josh until he tore his groin in training and Mitchell stepped in.)

Giga’s next fight: Bryce Mitchell 

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