Bellator MMA and the UFC were both in action this past weekend, with Bellator 221 and UFC 237 respectively. Which means that the Sunday Morning Cornerman had twice as much to talk about this week!

From the shock defeat of Rose Namajunas, in a fight she’d been winning to that point, at UFC 237, to Anderson Silva falling to a leg injury, there was a lot of digest after the UFC’s return to Brazil was all said and done. Then, more upsets and controversy at Bellator 221. Patricio Pitbull knocked out Michael Chandler. Jake Hager (Jack Swagger) refused to release a choke. Douglas Lima knocked out Michael ‘Venom’ Page.

This week the Sunday Morning Cornerman looks at who’s trending up, and who’s trending down from these two big events. Plus, recaps of the action and move. Not to mention a moment to discuss the slam, which was a far scarier moment than most realize, given how badly it could have gone.

Watch the full episode below!

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Another month, another pay-per-view in the books. This time, we’re on the way home from Brazil with a new champion, new blood in the hunt, and old legends faring not so well. After every card, MMA fans everywhere are always wondering what’s next for the fighters, and UFC 237 is no exception. Let’s take a look at what’s on the horizon for our winners and losers!

Bethe Correia Misses Weight and Loses Fourth Fight in Five

Irene Aldana’s beginning in the UFC was off to a rough start. Losing her first two UFC bouts, Aldana has since rattled off three straight wins with her most recent over Bethe. She showed so much improvement with her hands, having even more crisp striking than we’ve seen in the past. Aldana put together combos that gave Correia fits all night, cruising to a unanimous decision victory.

Coming into her fight at UFC 237, Bethe Correia was 1-3 in her last 4 fights. Having not fought since June of 2017, the return to Brazil was to be her homecoming and a win. Irene Aldana had other plans. Correia missed weight by four pounds. With her track record not looking so great in her last few fights, she was in a must-win situation. Unfortunately, she didn’t do enough to get the job done. Correia struggled once Aldana found her range and had trouble landing many of the power shots she needed to get the victory. It’s unclear if Correia will have another fight in the UFC considering this stretch.

Next Opponent for Irene Aldana: Yana Kunitskaya, Macy Chiasson

Next Opponent for Bethe Correia: Gina Mazany, Sarah Moras

Laureano Staropoli Systematically Pieces Up Thiago Alves

Laureano Staropoli, the Argentinian prospect, improved to 9-1 after putting on a beautiful performance against the veteran Thiago Alves. Alves was by far the most experienced fighter Staropoli has faced off against, with more fights than all of Staropoli’s previous opponents combined. The step up in experience was no sweat for Staropoli. He showed great poise in a hostile work environment, piecing up the Brazilian for three rounds, earning the unanimous decision.

Unfortunately for Thiago Alves, UFC 237 was not his night. Staropoli was just too awkward and a hair faster, even though he had Staropoli hurt at the end of the third round. Pitbull might not be his old self, he still has the pop and skill. While it might not be his last fight, Thiago Alves is nearing the end of his career.

Next Opponent for Laureano Staropoli: Ben Saunders, Siyar Bahadurzada

Next Opponent for Thiago Alves: Dong Hyun Kim, Dwight Grant

Alexander Volkanovski Thoroughly Defeats Jose Aldo

Alexander Volkanovski came into UFC 237 as the next contender to get through Jose Aldo. Aldo had been dispatching potential featherweight contenders for Max Holloway before they could get to the champ. Volkanovski was ready for the task. We’ve seen Aldo defeated by Holloway’s pressure and McGregor’s precision in his last couple of fights. Volkanovski decided to try something new. He took his time, made Aldo take chances and become trigger shy when those chances didn’t work for him. He worked on the lead leg of Aldo, an Aldo trademark. The multitude of strikes was enough for Volkanovski to get the win.

Jose Aldo, while taking the loss, didn’t look bad. He is still incredibly fast, has plenty of power, and his footwork is on another level. While a contender may have gotten past him, he’s sure to ruin plenty of other fighters chances, and after a couple wins, possibly another shot at the title he previously held. Unfortunately for Aldo, he found someone who can beat him in Volkanovski. Volkanovski will get that shot now.

Next Opponent for Alexander Volkanovski: Max Holloway

Next Opponent for Jose Aldo: Yair Rodriguez, Josh Emmett

Jared Cannonier Gets the Win, Not How People Wanted to See Anderson Silva

Not much can be said about the fight. Early on, Anderson Silva was still feeling out Jared Cannonier. Cannonier landed a couple shots on Anderson as well. A leg kick, after several, did Silva in and put him out with a knee injury. Cannonier was booed out of the stadium even though he was only doing his job. Tough fight for both of them. Silva needs to hang the gloves up before he receives any more unnecessary damage to his body.

Next Opponent for Jared Cannonier: Derek Brunson, Brad Tavares

Jessica Andrade Pile Drives Her Way to a Title

To be completely honest, Rose Namajunas dominated round one against the current champ, Jessica Andrade. She looked wildly improved from her last fight and looked to be on the way to a win. Then it happened. Andrade picked up Namajunas for the second time of the night. While Namajunas chased a kimura in defense of the slam, she didn’t let go on the way down, landing on her head. This second round slam put Namajunas out and made Andrade the new strawweight champion. Credit to Andrade, her second round adjustments were great. She brawled more and got her hands on Rose enough to get the slam at UFC 237.

Post-fight, Namajunas said she did not know if she even wanted to fight anymore. She admitted to thinking about it in camp and in the fight. That said, if her heart isn’t in the sport, she needs to retire and minimize any more damage to her body. I hope to see her compete again. Rose was a monster and looked her best tonight.

Next Opponent for Jessica Andrade: Suarez/Ansaroff Winner

Next Opponent for Rose Namajunas: Suarez/Anasaroff Loser, Weili Zhang

The post UFC 237 Aftermath: Brazilians Don’t Fare Well at Home appeared first on Cageside Press.

The strawweight title picture was already crowded heading into UFC 237. Jessica Andrade did her part to make it even cloudier with a second-round slam KO to dethrone champion Rose Namajunas. With the victory, Andrade has rightful challengers approaching from multiple angles.

Nina Ansaroff vs. Tatiana Suarez Winner

How often do we get a true number-one contender fight in the UFC that doesn’t have an interim title attached? I can’t personally consider Jose Aldo vs. Alexander Volkanovski one because another Aldo title shot against Max Holloway would have been an exercise in futility had he won. This fight, however, is absolutely one. Both Nina Ansaroff and Tatiana Suarez are on great runs in the tough strawweight division and absolutely deserve a title shot with a win at UFC 238.

Nina Ansaroff looks like a completely different fighter from the fun scrapper who lost in her first two Octagon appearances. The American Top Team product has won four-straight bouts with wins over respected names in Randa Markos and Angela Hill. However, it was a decision victory against perennial top contender Claudia Gadelha that absolutely cemented her claim as a top contender. Gadelha does not lose often and has only fallen to Jessica Andrade and Joanna Jedrzejczyk in her career. Pretty good company for Ansaroff.

Tatiana Suarez is certainly the future of the strawweight division. Her grappling has led to a 7-0 record with four of those wins coming in the UFC. While her list of victims (Amanda Cooper, Viviane Pereira, Alexa Grasso, and Carla Esparza) does not carry the same weight as Ansaroff’s, it’s her style that has people clamoring for a title shot. Suarez has finishes in three of her four Octagon victories (rare in the strawweight division) and has looked absolutely dominant on the mat. A TKO over former champion Carla Esparza is her signature victory thus far.

This is great matchmaking by the UFC and it will be tough to deny the winner a title shot (but that could very well happen)…

Michelle Waterson

Because Michelle Waterson exists. Losses in 2017 to Namajunas and Tecia Torres left the former Invicta FC atomweight champion on the outside looking in in the strawweight title picture. “The Karate Hottie” worked her way up with wins over Cortney Casey and Felice Herrig before putting on the best performance of her career against Karolina Kowalkiewicz.

We saw a new Waterson that night. One that was much more aggressive, and one that put her great skillset on display. It was a performance that proclaimed, “I’m ready.”

Waterson has always had star potential, with a UFC on FOX main event in just her second fight with the promotion. She’s been featured as a desk analyst during fight nights and is the subject of a great documentary in Fight Mom. The UFC would love to give Waterson a title shot (even if she’s less deserving than the two fighters above). Hell, she was even featured in the crowd at UFC 237.

Immediate Rematch with Rose Namajunas

Rose wasn’t a dominant champion by any means. She defended her title once against the woman she took the belt from, Joanna Jedrzejczyk. Her case isn’t like Joanna’s immediate rematch situation, as Jedrzejczyk had an excellent run of five title defenses. Rose’s case rests on how thoroughly she was beating Andrade before the slam.

Namajunas was diligent behind the jab and was giving Andrade fits with straight punches. Andrade wasn’t able to do much in the grappling department either. But one slam changed everything. Obviously, it was a testament to the Brazilian’s strength; however, don’t be surprised to see people write it off as a freak knockout (slam KOs are few and far between). If that gains enough traction, maybe we’ll see tonight’s headliners share the cage once more, and that’s not a bad thing.

Joanna Jedrzejczyk?

I know, I know. This is crazy. It’s also my wild card. Sometimes, a perennial top talent who just can’t quite beat the champ is waiting for them to lose their belt (see: Joseph Benavidez in the Demetrious Johnson era). This is Jedrzejczyk in this case. She tallied an absolutely dominant win over Andrade during her title reign. And while she’s coming off a loss against flyweight champ Valentina Shevchenko, she did win in her last fight at strawweight.

Conclusion

If there is some integrity left in this sport, the winner of Ansaroff-Suarez at UFC 238 will get the shot at the belt. However, we know this isn’t the case and the promotion is looking for any excuse to put Waterson in a title fight. I don’t quite believe Namajunas has a strong enough case for a rematch at the moment given the moving parts in the division.

The post UFC 237: Weighing Options at Strawweight for Champion Jessica Andrade appeared first on Cageside Press.

On a night brimming with some exciting finishes, UFC strawweight, and newly crowned 115lb champion Jessica Andrade scored big time in the bonus department. UFC 237 saw Andrade have a brief but spirited war with Rose Namajunas. The opening frame went to ‘Thug’ Rose, who picked the Brazilian apart on the feet, and even countered the threat for her slams with a kimura trap.

In the second round, Andrade adjusted. She had the champ on her heels, and when the opportunity for a slam came, she made the most of it, dropping the American on her head, and knocking her out for the win.

#UFC237 FOTN | B2YB @ToyoTires@RoseNamajunas vs @JessicaMMAPro 💰 pic.twitter.com/41ebateLFl

— UFC (@ufc) May 12, 2019

When was the last time anyone saw a slam KO in the UFC? Let alone in the promotion’s smallest weight class.

It was a thrilling end to a fantastic fight, even if it didn’t even come close to the third, let alone fifth round. For their efforts, Andrade and Namajunas earned an extra $50,000 for Fight of the Night. Andrade also earned another $50,000 for a Performance of the Night bonus.

The remaining bonus went to Warlley Alves, who chopped away at Sergio Moraes’ lead leg before finishing him in the third round.

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Strawweights were topping a PPV event for the first time at UFC 237 on Saturday night in Rio de Janeiro, Brazil. Perhaps long overdue, the 115lb ladies were fully in the spotlight. Champ Rose Namajunas was in enemy territory, defending her title against Brazil’s own Jessica Andrade.

Andrade was a fearsome striker, a former bantamweight who seemingly kept her power despite dropping weight classes. However, she had come up short against Joanna Jedrzejczyk in a previous title shot. Could she get the job done against ‘Thug Rose’ in her latest opportunity?

To open the affair, Namajunas worked her jab, feinted, and showed slick movement. In and out. Lateral. Rose was the quicker fighter, while Andrade’s feet seemed planted in comparison. Namajunas wasn’t just moving, however. She was landing. Her jab was doing its job. She caught Andrade coming in. The Brazilian would fire off leg kicks, one then another. But Rose was dancing in and out, and had bloodied Andrade early.

Andrade then hoisted Namajunas up, as the came together by the fence. Namajunas latched on with a kimura, preventing a slam. When Andrade finally did plant her, Rose immediately went to an arm-bar off the kimura trap, then threw an upkick and scrambled free. Somehow, Andrade’s biggest moment to that point turned into a highlight for Namajunas.

Moments later, Rose rocked Andrade with a knee, dropping her, then stormed in to follow up. The Brazilian survived, was still in it, but was bloodied and being outclassed. Something would have to change in round two.

The challenger opened the second frame with a leg kick, then charged in with a combination, all of which seemed to miss. A left did graze the champ a moment later, but Namajunas fired back. Then, Andrade went on the offensive, forcing Namajunas back. The champ’s jab continued to fire. The pair clinched, grappled for position, went down, popped up. They traded, both women swinging.

Then, the unthinkable. Andrade finally drove the champ into the fence off an exchange, then hoisted Rose up and slammed her! The thunderous slam knocked Namajunas out, at least for all intents and purposes! Namajunas was done, and Jessica Andrade, after being dominated in the opening frame, had captured the title!

AND NEWWWWWWW!!!@JessicaMMAPro #UFC237 pic.twitter.com/7jl1IKN4Qp

— UFC (@ufc) May 12, 2019

Jessica Andrade def. Rose Namajunas by knockout (slam), Round 2, 2:58

The post UFC 237 Results: Jessica Andrade Weathers Storm, Slams Rose Namajunas To Win Strawweight Title appeared first on Cageside Press.

Jared Cannonier came into the UFC as a heavyweight with a 7-0 record. After going 1-1 at the weight class in the Octagon, “The Killa Gorilla” dropped to light heavyweight. He went 2-3 at 205, falling to Jan Blachowicz and Dominick Reyes consecutively to prompt a move further down to middleweight. He entered the division with a huge KO win over David Branch.

Anderson Silva is returning home at UFC 237. The greatest middleweight of all time returned from a two-year layoff to battle Israel Adesanya in February. Silva was defeated and has just one win since 2012. “The Spider” owns the record for longest win streak in the promotion, with 16-straight victories.

Jared Cannonier had Octagon control in the first round, forcing Silva to the cage several times. He landed a solid number of leg kicks and even landed a few overhand rights against the cage as Silva was fairly tentative in the first, landing a couple of body kicks. The leg kicks did a number on Silva, and one big one in the waning moments of the round that caused the legend to buckle. Silva went down and with a cry of pain, the fight was stopped.

Anderson Silva revealed in his post-fight interview that his knee was giving him issues during camp, and that issue was exploited by Cannonier’s leg kick-heavy gameplan.

Jared Cannonier def. Anderson Silva by TKO (Leg Kick) in Round 1 (4:47)

The post UFC 237 Results: Jared Cannonier Chops Anderson Silva Down with Leg Kicks appeared first on Cageside Press.

UFC 237 went down Saturday night in Rio de Janeiro, Brazil. It was a card stacked with legends, particularly Brazilian legends. Thiago Alves. Antonio Rogerio Nogueira. Jose Aldo. Anderson Silva.

The night did not go well for any of them. Alves and Aldo lost decisions. Nogueira was knocked out. Silva fell to injury. All in all, a rough night for the host country, who usually dominates at these sorts of events.

Yet despite all the legendary names (and that included BJ Penn, who lost his seventh straight fight in the UFC on Saturday), it was the ladies topping the card. A strawweight title fight between Rose Namajunas and Jessica Andrade headlined the affair. The first time strawweights had ever topped a PPV card in the UFC. For Namajunas, it was an attempt to defend her title in enemy territory. For Andrade, a chance to do what she could not against now-former champ Joanna Jedrzejczyk.

Following the event, tune in to the post-fight press conference, streaming live above! Winning (and perhaps some losing) fighters will be on hand to discuss the night’s action!

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Alexander Volkanovski picked up the biggest win of his career over a gun-shy Jose Aldo in Brazil at UFC 237 on Saturday night.

Jose Aldo is one of the greatest fighters of this era, if not all time. He enters UFC 237 having publicly acknowledged that his career is coming to an end, with plans to fight just once more after tonight’s contest. Aldo became the WEC featherweight champion in 2009 and was promoted to UFC featherweight champion in 2011 after the WEC was absorbed. In total, with both promotions considered, the Brazilian defended his title nine times before falling to Conor McGregor. After a pair of losses to Max Holloway in 2017, Aldo returned to form with brilliant knockouts against Jeremy Stephens and Renato Moicano.

Alexander Volkanovski is a tank of a man at 145 pounds, as the former professional rugby player used to weigh in north of 200 pounds. After losing for the first time in 2013, Volkanovski has won 16 straight contests, with the last six taking place in the Octagon. Most recently, the Australian defeated former featherweight title challenger Chad Mendes.

Round one was a good opening round for Alexander Volkanovski, who landed a lot of inside leg kicks on the Brazilian. Aldo didn’t throw much outside of some very well placed body punches and hooks to the head. A pumped up Volkanovski screamed in triumpth after the round; he knew he had a good start and was up after the first five minutes. However, Aldo was far from out of the fight.

In the second round the pace picked up for both fighters, however Volkanovski wasn’t going anywhere. Jose Aldo turned it up however Volkanovski still landed the better shots and was the more efficient of the two through the second frame. Aldo never really pushed the fight and was absolutely down two rounds going into the final five minutes of the affair. Going into the third round, Aldo’s coaches pleaded with him to be more active and possibly even get a finish.

However, that finish would never come. Volkanovski would use his wrestling to control in round three. He was able to pin Aldo to the cage and land some knees, doing enough as to not get separated or give Aldo a chance to separate and land any shots. Overall a dominating third round for Alexander Volkanovski, as he took the round, and took the fight as well.

Incredible performance, but also a very disappointing one by Jose Aldo. This is his first loss in a three round fight in almost 14 years.

Alexander Volkanovski def. Jose Aldo by unanimous decision (30-27, 30-27, 30-27)

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Longtime UFC veteran and former title challenger Thiago Alves was back in action at UFC 237. This time out, ‘Pitbull’ was taking on Argentina’s Laureano Staropoli, who had made his debut back in November on home turf against Hector Aldana. While a successful debut, however, Alves was a definite step up in competition.

Round one was a very good round for Laureano Staropoli. Alves didn’t throw much of anything in the opening five minutes of the bout. As Staropoli was throwing a lot of spinning kicks and landed a couple of nice combinations in the opening round. However, not much of it landed clean and it seemed like Alves took round one off if anything, and didn’t land much outside of a few of his patented leg kicks.

Round two was a much better round for Alves. Alves moved forward more and landed a good variety of leg kicks as well as some nice combinations on the way in. Staropoli didn’t get completely washed in round two, however, it was a very good round for Alves, and got himself back into the bout after a tough first round.

Round three began with Staropoli throwing some heat to start the round, so Alves shot for a big takedown. Staropoli would get back to his feet and work on his timing, landing some nice combinations and walking through the brutal leg kicks that he was taking from Alves. However, near the end of the fight, Alves appeared to hurt Strapoli and started blitzing after him. Starpoli would survive to see the final horn, however, and the judges determined he had done enough to get the victory.

Laureano Strapoli def. Thiago Alves by Unanimous Decision (30-27 x2, 29-28)

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Bethe Correia was set to return to the Octagon for the first time since 2017 at UFC 237 on Saturday night. It was a return that nearly hit a roadblock, as Correia was heavy at Friday’s weigh-ins, coming in at 141lbs. A full five pounds over the bantamweight non-title fight limit. A shocking miss for a fighter who once challenged Ronda Rousey for the bantamweight title. Still, Correia’s fight with Irene Aldana moved forward at a catchweight, albeit with the Brazilian paying a hefty fine.

Round one was a back and forth round where both women had their moments. While a clear round for Aldana most likely, Bethe still had some nice moments. However she appeared to struggle with the size of Aldana and the reach of her, as anytime she attempted to move in she would get hit with a long jab from the Mexican fighter. However, by the end of the round, she began to find her range, and begin to overwhelm her with strikes. A good round for Aldana, but also a good sign for Correia.

Bethe Correia’s success from the end of the previous round would continue into round two. Bethe found excellent success moving forward with leg kicks and combination punches. She would eat punches on the way in from Aldana, but she would throw a flurry of strikes back as an answer. Overall, a very good second round from Correia to get back into the fight.

In round three, Bethe was doing well early, including landing a couple of nice one-twos straight down the middle. However, Aldana started hitting Correia with some nice shots, and Correia looked for a takedown which Aldana sprawled on. Bethe would then give up her back, and Aldana would jump on a ruthless armbar and get the tap.

Irene Aldana def. Bethe Correia by Submission (Armbar) in Round 3 (3:24)

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