Battling through personal adversity outside the cage and delivering a quick submission win over Jared Gordon, the veteran once again proved that even after nearly two decades in the sport, he’s still finding ways to win, and still not ready to walk away.

“In there everything’s moving like a mile a minute, or in slow motion, it’s really weird. I wish you guys could see what it’s like,” Miller told reporters including Cageside Press at his post-fight scrum.

“It’s unique when you get into that flow state, and things just happen. If I was thinking about all those things, if I was thinking about the injuries or my son’s health issues, I mean over the years there’s been plenty of stuff.”

Miller (39-19) had been dealing with his son’s health issues for a while, but the longtime UFC lightweight used it all as motivation to get through camp and into the fight. Even with the seriousness of the situation Miller was able to compartmentalize it better than past fights.

“If I thought about those things when I was warming up or making the walk or in the octagon, I wouldn’t be here today. Fighting immediately after my brother was one of the hardest things I’ve ever had to do because then during the warm-up I’m seeing him, I’m seeing the look on his face,” he said.

“And it’s like he is not here. Like sh*t, this is not cool. Having to turn that off and wanting to be there for him and just having to go and fight undefeated Iranian national champ wrestler…”

To win in front of his family, and his son, was something he was grateful for after his win over Gordon. Some would think that it would be the perfect time for the 42-year-old father of four to walk away, but that just wouldn’t be his style.

“It felt great. It’s awesome to be here, it’s awesome to get to fight, I get this opportunity. I earned it and I still get to do it,” he said.

“I can very confidently say that a vast majority of (fighters) are retiring because their body’s breaking down or because they’re not able to keep up with the sport. I’ve been able to do both of those things. I’ve been able to stay healthy and I’ve been able to keep up with my opponents.”

With Miller continuing on in his career in hopes of reaching that 50 UFC fights mark he said he didn’t care who he faced next. He did however shoot his shot at a specific lightweight.

“Whoever,” Miller said when asked who he wanted next.

“Unfortunately I think I might have broke my left hand in the four minutes that we were fighting, but I hear there’s an Irishman looking for a fight. I think that would be a fun one.”

Conor McGregor, the ball is in your court.

Watch the entire post-fight scrum with Jim Miller above.

The post Jim Miller Balances Family Struggles, Calls For McGregor Bout appeared first on Cageside Press.

The first loss of his professional career saw Chimaev drop a split decision against the American, in a fight that could best be described as solid, but at the same time one that did not live up to the hype generated by the pair’s pre-fight rivalry.

Things even wound up cordial after the main event had been settled, with Chimaev putting the belt on Strickland, and Strickland admitting that he’d gone “too far” with his trash talk selling the match-up.

Speaking with media outlets including Cageside Press at the UFC 328 post-fight press conference, UFC CEO and President Dana White revealed that Chimaev had told him afterwards that he was done with 185lbs.

“I don’t want to fight [here] again. I want to move up,” White said Chimaev told him.

“Ever since Fight Island, he’s gone on a run, he’s undefeated, won the world title. He did everything he’s said he’s going to do. But with the level of success, and lifestyle, it makes it tough,” noted White.

“Borz” had teased a move to 205lbs prior to the Strickland bout. He had been 15-0 prior to the loss, starting his career on “Fight Island” during the coronavirus pandemic. Back then, White saw something special in the fighter, who also competed as a welterweight. On Sunday, White suggested Chimaev had lived up to the hype.

“He’s a champion. When you see somebody fight for the first time, and you’re like ‘wow this guy’s special’ and they become a world champion in the UFC, yeah I would say so [that he lived up to expectations].”

And so White is satisfied that Chimaev has reached the potential he saw in the Chechen fighter all those years ago. “100%”

Jim Miller, an ageless wonder at 42, earned a Performance of the Night bonus at UFC 328 for a submission of Jared Gordon. Miller had missed an entire year, due in part to his son battling, and beating, a rare form of cancer.

“I wasn’t [aware] until tonight. Until tonight. And tonight was the last fight on his contract, and we just signed him to five more fights,” White said in response. “If he fights four, it’s 50 fights in the UFC, if he fights the last one it’s 51.”

The extra fight, added White, was one that “I just threw it in there.” The UFC exec is off on the math, however. Miller fought in his 47th UFC fight on Saturday. He needs just three more to hit 50, an unthinkable number for any UFC fighter. That number, 50 fights with the company, has been Miller’s stated goal for the last few years.

Miller has been with the company nearly 18 years now, debuting at UFC 89. He’s fought at all three UFC centennials, UFC 100, 200, and 300. He has the most wins in UFC history (28), the second most finishes, and is third all-time in post-fight bonuses. Yet he’s never been a megastar for the company, more of a workhorse. That led one reporter to suggest to White that Miller, perhaps, was underrated.

“I don’t know if it’s underrated, I don’t know what you’d call it. The guy’s special,” White said in response. “I think he was a 3-to-1 dog tonight and he wins in the first round by submission. That’s why when we were looking at the Performances of the Night, it’s hard not to give it to Jim. I don’t know if I’d call it underrated. He’s special, what he’s doing is pretty amazing.”

Watch the full UFC 328 post-fight press conference with Dana White above.

The post Dana White: Chimaev Wants 205 Move After UFC 328, Miller Signs 5-Fight Deal appeared first on Cageside Press.

Joshua Van entered UFC 328 as the promotion’s flyweight champion, with a whole host of questions surrounding his legitimacy. That’s what happens when you win the title off of an injury, as Van did against Alexandre Pantoja late last year. Against Tatsuro Taira, however, there was no such injury, and while some including Taira may feel the fight ended early, there wasn’t too much controversy on Saturday.

Taira started strong, using his wrestling until Van erupted and knocked the Japanese challenger down. Taira suddenly found himself under fire but miraculously recovered and even managed to land some takedowns later in the same round. Then, in the fifth, Van dug the body and eventually landed enough punches for the ref to come in and wave off the fight, though Taira would protest.

The bout earned Fight of the Night honors on Saturday, UFC CEO and Dana White told media outlets including Cageside Press after the fight. A better fight than Khamzat Chimaev vs. Sean Strickland, a decent bout that was perhaps overhyped in the build-up.

Performance of the Night bonuses, meanwhile, went to 42-year old Jim Miller, and former Bellator welterweight champ Yaroslav Amosov. Miller snatched the neck of Jared Gordon, locking up a guillotine choke inside of a round. Amosov for his part submitted Joel Alvarez.

All four bonuses winners collect $100,000 U.S., while the night’s other finishers earn $25,000. Those include King Green, Ateba Gautier, Grant Dawson, and Baisangur Susurkaev. Attendence at UFC 328 was 17,783 for a gate of $7.5 million U.S., breaking the UFC’s own record for gate at the Prudential Center in Newark, New Jersey.

The post Van vs. Taira Earns FOTN, Miller Cashes In at UFC 328 appeared first on Cageside Press.

The veteran wasted no time imposing his pressure before snatching a tight guillotine to force a quick submission win over Jared Gordon, adding another finish to his legendary resume at UFC 328 on Saturday night.

Round 1 – Miller came out in southpaw stance while Gordon fought from orthodox. Miller immediately applied pressure, forcing Gordon to circle on the outside. Gordon responded with a high kick that was blocked.

Miller surged forward, landing heavy shots and forcing a clinch. Gordon pushed him to the fence, absorbed a knee to the face, then answered with right hands to the body before circling out and landing a body kick.

Miller looked to establish his step-in jab, but Gordon avoided it. Miller followed with a leg kick and was briefly taken down, though the sequence was halted when the referee called time after noticing the kick had landed low. Gordon was given a moment to recover.

Once the action resumed, Miller returned to pressing forward. He threw a body kick, but Gordon countered with a right hand over the top that sent Miller stumbling, though he stayed on his feet.

Gordon then secured a takedown by catching a body kick, but Miller quickly locked in a guillotine choke. Gordon stayed calm at first, but as the pressure tightened, he was forced to tap, bringing the fight to an early end.

Jim Miller does it again, folks.

Official Result: Jim Miller def. Jared Gordon via R1 SUB (Guillotine), 3:29

The post Jim Miller Does It Again, Submits Jared Gordon With Guillotine appeared first on Cageside Press.

“There’s tons of miles on my body and I do understand that it’s like, hey, if something stupid happens and I blow out my knee or I blow out my shoulder, at this point, I’m not coming back from that,” Miller said. “I’ve been lucky enough to keep those types of injuries away. The plan is to continue to do that and to train intelligently – try to really maximize what I have left and do the right things.”

And to Miller, there is really no rhyme or reason as to when people go down hurt. You could be in phenomenal shape and doing something silly and miss out on time. That’s a consideration that he keeps in mind.

“I’ve seen guys that I’ve trained with, their careers get shortened or their careers get paused because of nonsense injuries, right? One of my training partners a couple of years ago tore his Achilles playing flag football,” he recalled. “Absolute stud, undefeated, one of my best training partners and he sidelined for a year because he was cold and playing flag football, right? So it’s like something like that could happen at any time.”

Despite those things always lurking around him, Miller has been mostly healthy throughout his career. The secret for that fact? Miller says that it’s more simple than you realize.

“There probably is a secret. I should probably shut up,” Miller said with a laugh. “No, honestly, I think it’s just that I’ve always focused my training around, not that I fight conservatively, but nobody likes getting hit, right? You don’t want to absorb it. So my training style, my striking style is always, I try to keep my hands up and, and keep my head between my hands so that I’m not getting caught outside my guard.”

He also attributes some of his toughness to his upbringing. Not only has it helped him to stay healthy and not get hurt, but it’s also helped him stay in fights – having only been finished in five fights over a career like his.

“I think honestly – it’s my upbringing. As a kid, we were just doing stupid stuff. We learned how to take falls and we’ve learned how to dust yourself off and get back up,” he said. “In those fights I’ve never looked for the way out. I’ve always had in my head, even the times where I have been finished – there’s gotta be a way out of this.”

His next chance to take a step towards that elusive goal comes at UFC 328, which taked place this Saturday. Miller will take on Jared Gordon as part of the prelim portion of the card. The card starts at 5pm EST and will air on Paramount+.

The post UFC 328’s Jim Miller Shares Keys to Longevity appeared first on Cageside Press.

Ask Hooper (16-3-1) if he feels that way thought and it’s almost comical when he talks about being an ‘old guy’.

“Half the kids I train with are like 19 or 20 so I’m definitely feeling like the old guy now,” Hooper told reporters including Cageside Press at his post-fight scrum.

“I feel like I’ve been in this business for a while. I started fighting at 16. 9 years later here we are. I do feel old, I do feel beat up a little bit, but that’s the business.”

Coming from the Contender Series to taking out a UFC staple like Jim Miller it’s safe to say Hooper has grown up in the eyes of fans in the promotion. If you compare how he spoke in interviews when he first started in the UFC to now it’s quite clear he literally grew up in front of a crowd.

“I feel like more the outside commentators they like to bag on the UFC, but honestly this company’s given me everything. When I fought on the Contender Series I had like $34 bucks in my bank account,” he told Cageside Press.

“Now I have a wife, a baby, a house. This is providing. These couple times a year fighting I’m able to provide for my wife and daughter. I’m doing it for them now. It’s having a purpose and it’s gone from where it started out like ego and paying the bills to now doing it for them. Feels good. Feels like things are going the way they should. You don’t get the storybook thing very often in life, but I feel like we’re here.”

Watch the entire post-fight scrum with Chase Hooper above.

The post Chase Hooper Feels Like The ‘Old Guy’, Grateful To Be Able To Support Family appeared first on Cageside Press.

Miller (38-18) has accolades and records that could take an entire article on their own. He’s faced the who’s who at 155-pounds including known names such as Donald Cerrone, Clay Guida, Nate Diaz, and Benson Henderson to name a few. Now he makes his way through the younger crop of lightweights as he continues his run.

Hooper (15-3-1) came into the fight on a four-fight win streak including victories over Clay Guida and Viacheslav Borshchev. The 25-year-old was arguably facing his biggest test in Miller in Miami.

ROUND 1: Hooper ducked under a left straight to land a left elbow that connected. He then landed a right hook from and Miller answered with a left hand. It didn’t take too long for these two to start grappling as Hooper shot a single leg. Miller snatched his patented guillotine, but Hooper defended it and ended up on the bottom. He threw a triangle attempt but Miller was wise to it. Miller attempted another guillotine as Hooper shot a takedown, but Hooper popped his head out. ‘The Dream’ transitioned to take Miller’s back as he was standing back up. Miller eventually shook him off, but Hooper immediately threatened with an arm bar as he was sliding down. Hooper was super active off his back, throwing another triangle attempt that Miller successfully defended. Some wild grappling exchanges in the first round, as expected.

ROUND 2: The second round started with the two southpaws mainly exchanging left hands down the middle. A takedown from Hooper along the fence got Miller down and the youngster found his way to the veteran’s back once again. ‘A10’ eventually got out of the position but a trip from Hooper got the fight right back down to the mat. Once again, Miller wrestled his way back up, but the 25-year-old was on point with his mat returns. In the final minute, the two found their way into an unusual leg entanglement that appeared to have the veteran in pain, but his toughness allowed him to survive until the horn. Round 2 was a much more dominant one for Hooper.

ROUND 3: Hooper shot a telegraphed takedown just 20 seconds into the final frame that Miller easily defended. With Miller clearly the more exhausted of the two, Hooper got the fight down on his second shot of the round. Hooper worked his way to the same leg entanglement that they were in at the end of the last round. With Hooper having full control of Miller’s left leg, the commentary team thought that he might have been setting up a twister, but he instead opted for top position. Hooper spent the final minute in complete control, landing some elbows for good measure. A very encouraging performance from the young Hooper as he won the rounds in more dominant fashion as the fight went on.

Coming back-to-back victories over Clay Guida and Jim Miller, Hooper used his octagon interview to call for a bout with a fighter in his age range, naming Fares Ziam and Tom Nolan as potential matchups.

Official Result: Chase Hooper def. Jim Miller by Unanimous Decision (30-27, 29-28, 29-28)

The post Chase Hooper Dominates Miller, Wins Unanimous Decision appeared first on Cageside Press.

Referencing PRIDE, the legendary Japanese organization that levied immediate fines for fouls, Miller noted during the UFC 314 media day on Wednesday that “if the fighter that was poked was unable to continue, the fighter who committed the foul lost. They were DQ’d.”

The man with the most fights in UFC history, facing off against Chase Hooper on Saturday, also pointed out that fighters who endure pokes rarely go on to win those bouts. “I believe we need to treat them as a foul. We all know how to keep our hands closed.” Miller believes that fighters being tentative, not wanting to get hit and pushing opponents away, are often the culprit behind pokes in the modern UFC.

Asked whether he would be open to seeing fight-ending eye pokes turned into disqualifications, as they were in PRIDE, Miller was on board.

“Yeah I would. I would. And honestly if that was the case, if you knew that you were going to get disqualified for a poke, I guarantee that you’re going to see a dramatic drop in the amount of pokes that you see,” he told Cageside Press, adding that “accidents do happen, it does happen.”

Miller admitted that he’s been the culprit of an eye poke himself, and would have accepted a DQ loss.

“I have been close to poking people in the eye in grappling situations, and when I fought Donald Cerrone the first time, he hurt me to the body in the very first exchange in that fight. And I remember exactly where we were in the octagon, he had me against the cage in his corner and I tried to shove him away because I wanted some f*cking space. And I felt my finger go into his eye a little bit, and he hit me really, really hard right after that.”

“Had the ref stopped the fight for it, hey man, I’m a big boy, I’m a grown man. It was my f*ck up,” Miller exclaimed. “That’s why it happened. I was hurt, I didn’t want to be in that situation. And if we’re going to have rules, we should follow them. Honestly I do believe if we’re going to start actually treating the foul like a foul, then it should be something that causes a disqualification.”

Watch Jim Miller’s full UFC 314 media day appearance above.

The post UFC 314: Jim Miller On Board with Fight-Ending Eye Pokes Being DQs appeared first on Cageside Press.

Miller (38-18, 1NC) will face Chase Hooper (15-3-1) at the Pay-Per-View event, strongly rumored to take place in at the Kaseya Center in Miami, Florida on April 12, 2025.

News of Miller vs. Hooper was first reported by Twitter/X’s Super Fan (@McGregorRousey2), who posted snippets of a DM exchange with Hooper confirming the bout. Miller later confirmed the booking on his Instagram Story.

Chase Hooper is riding high of late, having won four straight fights, most recently submitting Clay Guida, an old foe of Miller’s and another veteran of the lightweight division (as it turns out, Hooper will be the final UFC opponent for Guida, who is now gone from the company). At 25, “The Dream” is 16 years younger than Jim Miller, who will once again have the experience advantage in the fight.

“A-10” Miller is 6-2 across his last eight bouts and is coming off a submission finish of Damon Jackson at UFC 309. That extended his record for most UFC wins, bouts, and lightweight bouts.

Having made his UFC debut in 2008, Jim Miller has seemingly never looked back, with his current goal 50 fights with the promotion. The Hooper fight will be his 46th.

UFC 314 is rumored to be headlined by a featherweight title fight between champ Ilia Topuria, and the man he defeated for gold, Alexander Volkanovski. Not officially announced, news of that booking was leaked by UFC middleweight Bo Nickal. The following fights have been reported for the card to date:

• Gilbert Burns vs. Michael Morales
• Yan Xiaonan vs. Virna Jandiroba
• Dominick Reyes vs. Nikita Krylov
• Jim Miller vs. Chase Hooper

The post Jim Miller vs. Chase Hooper Booked for UFC 314 appeared first on Cageside Press.

Miller, who has more fights inside the octagon than anyone in UFC history, just earned a submission win over Damon Jackson at UFC 309 at Madison Square Garden. Somehow, at 41 years young, “A-10” keeps finding ways to turn back the clock.

He’s appeared on the UFC 100, UFC 200, and UFC 300 cards, the only fighter in the promotion to do so. He was already a 10+ fight veteran when he signed on with the company in 2008, and was appearing in his fourth UFC scrap at the centennial event in 2009. Jon Jones, who headlined UFC 309, was also in action that night, in his third UFC fight.

Miller has gone on to fight for the company a grand total of 45 times; Jones, comparatively, has 24 fights under the UFC banner.

“The 50 is the hard stop. Okay, you guys can hold me to that sh*t. 100%. 100%,” Miller (38-18, 1NC) said following UFC 309, speaking with media outlets including Cageside Press. “Unless they’re like, ‘a couple million dollars, 51.’ I’m ready to move on to other stuff. There’s definitely parts of me that are ready to make a commitment to something else.”

Miller admits that the transition away from fighting is not likely to be an easy one. He’s competed as a professional since 2005, and met his wife training at his very first gym, just prior to his second fight.

“It’s going to be difficult. It’s going to be f*cking hard to not get to do this. I’ve never had a real job. I framed houses with my father, when I was in college I worked at Buffalo Wild Wings for a little bit, I was a pretty crappy fry cook for a couple months there. But yeah, I’m a fighter, that’s what I do. And I know that everybody’s road is different, and I’m trying to create my own and be in a good spot to move on to something else. And I want to have some energy left to do other stuff.”

“50 is the hard stop; the goal of mine is to get to 30 wins. So in those five fights, get three more wins and really put that one away,” Miller added. In terms of who he’d like to compete against, “just have some fun fights, fight on some big cards and fight some guys that I’ve been fans of forever. I feel like I’m in a really cool spot, I’m in a different spot than most people and in a different spot than most fighters before me. I want to go out and I want to put on shows, but also I’ve cemented Jim ‘F*cking’ Miller. I’m going to go out, and I’m going to finish people, or I’m going to get my f*cking ass kicked trying to do it.”

And so there will be no push to UFC 400, which by one journalist’s estimation will arrive in 2031.

“No, no, no. It’s not even funny,” Miller said, betraying that comment by laughing while saying it. “50 will be it, yeah.”

Watch the full UFC 309 post-fight press conference appearance by Jim Miller above.

The post UFC 309: The End Is in Sight for Jim Miller, And It’s the Big 50 appeared first on Cageside Press.