Below are some of the best costumes in MMA from Halloween 2023 (or, you could do your own costume as an MMA notable)!

Carla Esparza

Wonder Woman and a little Hulk? We’ll forgive the Marvel-DC crossover in this case!

Happy Halloween 🎃 👻! Our little Hulk was sleepy, he’s been on night duty so he’s kinda tired 😂😴 #wonderwoman #hulk #clarkkent #superman #marvel pic.twitter.com/Qix3RYMlPF

— Carla Esparza (@CarlaEsparza1) November 1, 2023

Valerie Loureda

She’s now known as Lola Vice in WWE, but Valerie Loureda had a successful run in Bellator MMA prior to switched to scripted violence. She’s always been known to go all-out for Halloween, but this year she went with an angelic theme.

https://www.instagram.com/p/CzCfKRhOSg-/?hl=en&img_index=1

Megan Anderson

Former Invicta champ and UFC title challenger Megan Anderson dipped into the anime world for her costume this year.

Halloween 2023 👻🎃 pic.twitter.com/vG340ojx7T

— Megan Anderson (@MeganAnderson) October 31, 2023

Pearl Gonzalez

Former UFC star and BKFC fighter Pearl Gonzalez with a little Scream-inspired cheekiness. Ghostface never looked so good.

https://twitter.com/PearlGonzalez/status/1719357438858572033

Neil Magny

Looks like the Magny family went with a Mario theme this year.

https://www.instagram.com/p/CzEFRAhuFUq

Ailin Perez

Ailin Perez pretty much just painted on her costume. In her own words, “I found a really nice pumpkin at the pumpkin patch this year.”

https://www.instagram.com/p/CzEKemOLINB

Gillian Robertson

That’s a savagely good Toy Story-inspired ensemble.

https://www.instagram.com/p/CzEGe8QPeZ0

Tyson Pedro

Sticking with movie-inspired costumes, he’s Tyson Pedro.

https://www.instagram.com/reel/CzDDK4er4hp

Jon Anik

Neil Magny wasn’t the only one going with a Mario theme this year.

https://www.instagram.com/p/CzEWu3YOmRM

Amanda and Nina Nunes

My, what big eyes you have!

https://www.instagram.com/p/CzEZZynrEjv

Kay Hansen

Kay couldn’t settle on just one costume and broke out three – Wonder Woman, a sexy cop, and a Chucky-inspired outfit.

https://www.instagram.com/reel/CzEbZooJs51

Arianny Celeste

Hello nurse!

https://www.instagram.com/p/CzC7jLarqIG

Tracy Cortez

Tracy says she’s ghosting everyone for Halloween this year.

https://www.instagram.com/p/Cy-aNQAOs_3

Max Holloway

This is just cool.

https://www.instagram.com/p/Cy_rrBCymSG

Demetrious Johnson

Not sure which is scarier, this Heath Ledger-inspired joker, or Mighty Mouse with hair!

https://www.instagram.com/reel/CzEoZ0IPHba

Kevin Holland

Kevin Holland just won Halloween.

https://www.instagram.com/p/CzE4fklJ4JW

Kayla Harrison

Quite the cast of characters here.

https://www.instagram.com/p/CzE6zbRAhRR

Stephen Thompson

Beetlejuice, Beetlejuice, Beetle— nope not doing that! He’s do some real damage in the MMA world.

https://www.instagram.com/p/CzE89dePiox

Fabian Edwards

Well that’s just plain creepy.

https://www.instagram.com/p/CzEwy0PrswM

The post Spooky Season 2023: MMA Does Halloween appeared first on Cageside Press.

Speaking to Cageside Press among other media Nunes sat at the interview desk with her daughter on her lap.

“Man these last few months have been heavy. Amanda’s (Nunes) rematch, opening a new gym, moving, having a 2-year-old. So it’s just been a lot. That emotion of Amanda losing after a long time I just wanted her to secure that while trying to coach her and then train at the same time,” Nunes said.

“I always wanted to have more kids. I wanted them close together. I’m not doing that comeback again because that was horrible so I’m just going to stop and make a couple in a row.”

Nunes has been a professional MMA fighter since 2010. 12 years into her career she began to think about the end and decided to call it after he fight on Saturday night.

“After I fought Mackenzie (Dern) my next fight was going to be retirement fight. I was going to fight Amanda Lemos, I ended up having kidney stones again going to 15 (strawweigh). It just wasn’t healthy for me to 15. 25 (flyweight) I feel my best and I just wanted one more,” Nunes said.

“Two careers at the highest level in the same household is really rough. I do want to help the future and the next girls coming up so that’s what I’m going to focus my time on now.”

Her fight with Calvillo was supposed to take place on July 9th, but a stomach issue took Nunes off the card. The UFC decided to move the fight to Saturday night.

“I had plans the day after that fight for my retirement. So I was like come on, I can’t even retire in peace? Every fight I had something and I can’t even retire in peace this is ridiculous. I told Amanda ‘One more thing’ you know? This morning I had really bad cramps and I’m like ‘Are you serious? Is this really happening right now?’ But you know what….I wasn’t as exciting this fight,” Nunes said.

“I just wanted the win so I could bring Raegan (Nunes) in there and take a picture with her.”

Watch the entire post-fight media scrum with Nina Nunes above.

The post UFC San Diego: Nina Nunes Explains Retirement, Wanted Octagon Photo With Daughter appeared first on Cageside Press.

Consider it two strawweights moonlighting for the weekend, in that case. Either way, it was two veterans with plenty of high level experience going at it.

One of those vets would hang up the gloves at the end of the night.

About two minutes into the opening round, Calvillo landed a takedown off a kick, but couldn’t keep Nunes there. Nunes’ kicks, meanwhile, were having an obvious impact, with Calvillo showing some redness on her calf. Just halfway through the round, and Calvillo’s lead leg was getting chewed up something fierce. Calvillo would pursue a single leg takedown, to no avail.

In the second, Calvillo led with her right hand, and got her jab going. Nunes was happy to answer back on the feet. She was less happy being planted on her back around the midway mark of the round. Well away from the fence, Calvillo had ample time to work inside Nunes’ closed guard. She couldn’t find a finish, however, and Nunes had the edge on the feet throughout.

The third frame found Calvillo again falling back on her wrestling as the action progressed. A takedown attempt near the midway mark led to a wild scramble; Nunes made it back up, wall-walking up the fence. They moved back to center, Nunes pressing forward. She chopped at Calvillo’s leg some more, leading to Calvillo trying to snatch a leg and pursue another takedown — no dice on that attempt. Nunes’ kicks, including a late high kick that just grazed Calvillo, were money. She turned up the heat in the final minute, and did enough to take the win on two scorecards.

After the fight, Nunes, who is a mom alongside UFC double champ Amanda Nunes, announced her retirement from the sport.

Nina Nunes has left her gloves in the Octagon and announced her retirement from MMA 👏#UFCSanDiego pic.twitter.com/Va9r7rgiwf

— UFC on TNT Sports (@ufcontnt) August 13, 2022

Official Result: Nina Nunes def. Cynthia Calvillo by split decision (28-29, 29-28, 30-27)

The post UFC San Diego: Nina Nunes Retires Off Win Over Cynthia Calvillo appeared first on Cageside Press.

“The Lioness,” the UFC double champ in the women’s bantamweight and featherweight divisions, parted ways with ATT earlier this year, though the split was apparently amicable. Nunes, however, has stayed behind.

“I stayed at American Top Team. I did both. I trained in the morning at American Top Team, I went to Amanda and my gym, I watched her sparring, I coached her sparring, and then I trained conditioning right after that,” Nunes (10-7) told Cageside Press and other media outlets during Wednesday’s UFC San Diego media day. “So I was actively in both gyms. I had good training partners at American Top Team, I’ve been there 15 years. I’m going to stay there until I finish my career, but I also have the gym that I have with Amanda as well. They’re 15 minutes away from each other. It’s no difference to me, Amanda can pick whatever time she wants to train, and we work around that.”

Best known as a strawweight, Nunes returns to action Saturday against Cynthia Calvillo in a flyweight fight at UFC San Diego. It was a bout that was supposed to go down last month, at UFC Vegas 58, only for Nunes to fall ill.

The pair have both fought many of the top names in the sport, certainly at strawweight, but Nunes isn’t keen on trying to compare records.

“I try not to look at fights like that, because you can’t compare how well someone’s going to do compared to who they fought. Everyone’s different,” Nunes observed. “Different styles make different fights. I have seen really good wrestlers in my division. We were both able to fight at 115 so us fighting at 125, I don’t think it’s going to be a huge difference size-wise, maybe just, we’re going to be a little bit more healthier so we can bring out our better selves.”

But, added Nunes, “I feel like I fought the best wrestler, I feel like Tatiana [Suarez] is the best wrestler in my division. I did fight that fight sick, but however, I felt like I did really well against her. Given a minute more, maybe I would have finished her.”

In the end, Nunes doesn’t feel Calvillo is drastically different from what she has seen before.

“I do feel like I’ve seen her before, in other ways. Especially in the gym, I come from a big gym with a lot of different styes. So it’s nothing I haven’t seen before, but you know, a fight’s fight. Anything can happen, I’m ready for anything.”

Watch the full UFC San Diego media day scrum with Nina Nunes above. The event takes place this Saturday, August 13, 2022 at the Pechanga Arena in San Diego, California.

The post UFC San Diego: Wife Amanda Split from ATT, But Nina Nunes Staying Put appeared first on Cageside Press.

UFC officials confirmed the news on Saturday afternoon, hours out from the start of the event. An unspecified illness suffered by Nunes was cited as the reason for the bout being pulled.

“Due to illness, Nina Nunes has been removed from her flyweight bout with Cynthia Calvillo,” promotion officials wrote in a brief statement. “As a result, this bout has been cancelled from today’s card.”

Nunes would confirm the development on Instagram, reporting that the bout had been rescheduled.

“Hey Everyone, I had an amazing camp and the best weight cut yet. Unfortunately I picked up a stomach virus and have been sick since right after weigh ins,” Nunes wrote. “I tried as much as I could to make this better and still be able to fight. Sadly it has taken a tear on my body and I won’t be able to perform tonight. Sorry to my opponent. We are looking to reschedule the fight in the near future. Thank you.”

https://www.instagram.com/p/CfzRsqYpZVM/?hl=en

Once considered a contender at 115 pounds, a rough weight cut leading to kidney stones back in December had closed the door on strawweight for Nunes (10-7). The move to flyweight, meanwhile, had her looking to snap back-to-back losses, which had come against Tatiana Suarez and Mackenzie Dern.

Calvillo’s struggles with making weight at 115 had likewise been well-documented, but she had lost three straight at flyweight, leaving her in a jam. Calvillo (9-4-1) has not won a fight since a 2020 victory against the recently retired Jessica Eye. The fight marked Calvillo’s first as a flyweight in the UFC, though she competed in the weight class prior to joining the promotion.

The post Cynthia Calvillo vs. Nina Nunes Drops Off UFC Vegas 58 appeared first on Cageside Press.

The fight sees Nunes looking to snap a two-fight skid, including her first fight back from giving birth to daughter Raegan Ann with former UFC women’s bantamweight champ Amanda Nunes. With the chaos that comes with a newborn, it would be easy to see the baby as taking away from that performance, but there was more to it than that, Nunes said during Thursday’s UFC Vegas 58 media day.

“I thrive under chaos, so it wasn’t so much the chaos of the baby. It was physically— I had a really bad delivery. Right after Raegan was born, I was in the hospital two times with in the first two months with infections,” Nunes (10-7) revealed. Admitting that she should have taken more time off, she continued by saying “So those were pretty bad. Right before my fight with Mackenzie [Dern], I had a stent put in because I was having kidney stones. The week of my fight I had to pass a kidney stone, so I was on medication. But you have that in your head, where it’s just like ‘no these are the obstacles you have to go through, and it’s all going to work out.’ But that’s not the case all the time.”

Nunes admits that she fell on her face in the Dern fight, with “Mackenzie on a rip at the time,” and believes taking the fight was a horrible decision on her part. Then there was sitting on the sidelines, watching with Amanda Nunes do everything she was doing as champ. “I had to take my head out of all that kind of stuff. Now, I’ve got to be good, I’ve got to be healthy, I’ve got to be happy — and that’s where I am now, so I’m excited.”

Nunes now returns against Calvillo, another strawweight ex-pat. But for Nunes, at least, there’s no going back to 115 pounds. An attempt in December, which led to her being removed from a fight with Amanda Lemos, closed that door.

While not fighting, Nunes has been seen of late on The Ultimate Fighter 30, coaching next to wife Amanda and opposite Julianna Pena. While she’s looked good on the show, Nunes now questions whether she wants a coaching career — though it’s not directly a result of her time on TUF.

“I used to want to be a coach. I did. Me and Amanda’s dream was to open a gym, mainly targeted towards female fighters,” Nunes revealed. “After being a coach on the show, I’m not sure if I want to do it. Not so much because of all the work that’s put into it, but I feel like the past 15, 20 years that I’ve been fighting, and Amanda, we’re a bit burned out from that scene, and we haven’t yet been able to enjoy all the things that we’ve accomplished over the years.”

Nunes has dreams of travel, and showing her daughter the world. “I want to give her a great life, I want more kids, and I know to be coach is a 100 percent thing,” she continued. “I’m not gonna half-ass it, if I were to be a coach, it would be something that I committed to a hundred percent, and I’m just not sure I want to do that not knowing I was a hundred percent. ”

Nunes added that while it’s not commonly known, she has been her wife’s coach for the past 10 years. “I do know what I’m talking about at the highest level, and I love to give any girls I train with advice, not just on what it’s like fighting technically but just the sport in general, from a business standpoint or the future of what the sport can bring financially, I feel a lot of people struggle with that.”

If she gets the itch after a bit of a break, however, Nunes is leaving the door open. “If I get the itch I’ll step in there and, maybe, give some coaching.”

Watch the full UFC Vegas 58 media day appearance by Nina Nunes above. The event takes place this Saturday, July 9, 2022 at the Apex in Las Vegas.

The post UFC Vegas 58: Nina Nunes Having Second Thoughts About Coaching Career appeared first on Cageside Press.

Calvillo (9-4-1) is set to face Nina Nunes (10-7) at the UFC’s July 9, 2022 event. Cageside Press confirmed the booking Thursday, following an initial report by ESPN.

The fight will mark the debut of Nina Nunes (nee Ansaroff) in the women’s flyweight division in the UFC. Prior to joining the promotion, she had competed at 125lbs under the Invicta FC banner.

Nunes has lost her last two fights, most recently finding herself submitted by Mackzenie Dern a year ago. Prior to that loss, she’d take time off to give birth to her daughter.

Calvillo has lost her last three bouts, to Katlyn Chookagian, Jessica Andrade, and KGB Lee. The Lee fight saw her corner throw in the towel after the second round.

Three misses at the scale preceded Calvillo’s move to flyweight, where she won her first bout against Jessica Eye before hitting her current skid. Nunes’ history as a strawweight may have helped with the decision to stick around 125 pounds a little longer.

The UFC’s July 9, 2022 event does not yet have a venue, location, or broadcast plan announced. Reported for the card thus far are the following bouts:

• Ronnie Lawrence vs. Saidyokub Kakhramonov
• Nina Nunes vs. Cynthia Calvillo
• Antonina Shevchenko vs. Cortney Casey

The post UFC: Cynthia Calvillo Now Meets Nina Nunes on July 9 appeared first on Cageside Press.

Combate was first to report the news that Lemos (10-1) will meet Nina Nunes (nee Ansaroff, 10-7) on the yet-to-be announced card. No location or venue has been revealed for the December 18 event, although if it’s a Fight Night, it’s likely to be at the UFC Apex in Las Vegas.

Lemos sits at #13 in the UFC’s official rankings. Since dropping to strawweight in her second UFC fight, in 2019, Lemos has done nothing but win. The former bantamweight has strung together victories over Miranda Granger, Mizuki Inoue, Livia Renata Souza, and most recently, Montserrat Ruiz. Three of those four wins have come via stoppage.

Nunes, wife of current UFC double-champ Amanda “The Lioness” Nunes, has lost two straight fights, albeit to some of the top fighters in the division. Back-to-back losses to Tatiana Suarez and Mackenzie Dern have, however, put her in must-win territory heading into the fight with Lemos.

Prior to those setbacks, Nunes had put together a four fight win streak with victories over the likes of Angela Hill and Claudia Gadelha. The strawweight missed all of 2020 due to the birth of her first child.

The post UFC: Amanda Lemos vs. Nina Nunes Set for December 18 appeared first on Cageside Press.

Kevin Holland

This will almost feel like cheating, but I wrote this just a few weeks ago:

“After his one-sided loss to Derek Brunson, Kevin Holland stated that he thinks he probably needs to head back to welterweight. It certainly makes a lot of sense given that he didn’t seem to have the requisite takedown defense to survive with the bigger, stronger fighters at 185lbs. He also weighed in well under the middleweight limit. If he does drop down, the UFC should start with a fun striking match to see where he fits there. Santiago Ponzinibbio is also coming off of a disappointing loss and would surely oblige the loudmouthed Holland in the type of fight he’s looking for. In addition, Ponzinibbio also has the name value that Holland seemed to desire in his post-fight interview.”

In my opinion, his fight with Vettori changes none of how I feel here. Let him go back down and have some fun with the Argentinian.

Kevin Holland’s Next Fight: Santiago Ponzinibbio

Sodiq Yusuff

After going undefeated in 4 UFC fights (5 if you count Contender Series), Yusuff faltered for the first time in a unanimous decision loss to Arnold Allen. Ultimately, Yusuff’s output wasn’t enough for the defensive striking and power of Allen. With a lot of lower end of the top 15 already booked, Yusuff might be looking at a bout with another fighter just on the fringe of the rankings. Alex Caceres has probably earned himself a shot at a ranked foe with 4 straight wins. In addition to giving Yusuff a chance to bounce back, it would test him against someone who has similar defensive metrics as Allen.

Sodiq Yusuff’s Next Fight: Alex Caceres

Sam Alvey

While Sam Alvey is a fan favorite and is rarely in a boring fight, this loss does make it 6 straight without a win for Smilin’ Sam. It is hard to imagine the UFC breaking their usual actions and keeping him around for a chance to go for 7, whether he deserves it or not. If they do decide to give him one more kick at the can, you have to imagine it’ll be against a newcomer or someone who has lost their debut even. Jordan Williams fits that bill. It’d be a nice fight for the younger fighter to get his legs under him after he was out-struck in his debut.

Sam Alvey’s Next Fight: Jordan Williams

Nina Nunes

This past Saturday was a tough return for Nina Nunes. After nearly two years away and the birth of her first child, Nunes struggled to get going against a game Mackenzie Dern. Even in the striking department she looked a step or two behind the world champion grappler. However, it’s hard to write off Nunes, who really didn’t have enough time to get her feel back. I doubt she needs to move too far down the rankings before finding another fight. Like Nunes, Michelle Waterson is just 1-2 in her last 3 and has struggled to pick up the signature win that she would need to make herself a contender. A fight between the two would serve to catapult one of them right into that mix.

Nina Nunes’ Next Fight: Michelle Waterson

Mike Perry

Perry, like Alvey, is another one it wouldn’t be shocking if the UFC let go. His out of cage antics are nothing that a company about to go public would want in the headlines. Even when just considering his recent results, Perry is 1-4 in his last five. Of course, his fights usually bring a fair amount of action due to his reckless style and willingness to exchange, so there is always a chance we see him again. If we do, I expect it to be against another fighter on the border of being released. David Zawada is just 1-3 and likely would have been let go if not for a triangle choke victory over Abubakar Nurmagomedov.

Mike Perry’s Next Fight: David Zawada

The post What’s Next: UFC Vegas 23 Losers appeared first on Cageside Press.

The former Nina Ansaroff, now Nina Nunes, returned to action at UFC Vegas 23 in a key strawweight scrap against Mackenzie Dern. Nunes, having given birth to her and wife Amanda Nunes’ daughter in her time off, was fighting for the first time since July of 2019. Prior to her sabbatical, she’d gone on a four fight win streak before running up against Tatiana Suarez. Against Dern, she’d get another top contender, a dangerous ground specialist at that.

The winner would likely find themselves propelled into title contention, albeit with a few names ahead of them in line.

Dern blitzed forward with a combination to start the fight, pushing Nunes to the fence right away. Dern then pushed for a double-leg takedown and was able to drag Nunes down. Nunes tried to lock Dern down, but Dern quickly moved to half guard, then side control, then mount. Dern began working on an armbar and Nina was defending well, but there was over a minute left and simply too much time for the jiu-jitsu expert to work with. She eventually isolated the arm and got the tap from Nunes. A quick and big win for Mackenzie Dern, who is quickly shooting up the strawweight ranks.

Unstoppable on the ground 😤@MackenzieDern proves her jiu jitsu works on anyone! #UFCVegas23 pic.twitter.com/UP1Z74a6FY

— UFC (@ufc) April 10, 2021

Dern is hoping for a top-5 opponent next time out and is waiting for the strawweight division to shake out in the near future before narrowing down an opponent.

Mackenzie Dern def. Nina Nunes by Submission (Armbar) in Round 1 (4:48)

The post UFC Vegas 23 Results: Mackenzie Dern Quickly Submits Nina Nunes appeared first on Cageside Press.