Event of the Year 2024

Eddie Law: Nothing beats UFC 300 in my mind. The names alone would have made it a massive card, but the matchups were exquisite to say the least. Capped off by a TKO finish of Jamahal Hill by Alex Pereira, but the show stolen by Max Holloway, nine former champs, eight out of 13 bouts were finishes….what else needs to be said?

Jay Anderson: UFC 300. On paper, I felt the UFC’s third centennial event looked weaker than the Pay-Per-View that preceded it, UFC 299. Dana White struggled to find a main event for the milestone card, yet in the end, everything fell into place, and the event delivered in spades. Alex Pereira’s meme-fuel finish of Jamahal Hill, Holloway vs. Gaethje, Kayla Harrison making her debut, Jiri Prochazka returning to form, Bobby Green vs. Jim F’ing Miller – lots to love. Huge props to Noche UFC, however, for proving that when they want, the UFC can push their production over the top. And honorable mention to RIZIN Decade, which was a whole lot of fun.

Gabriel Gonzalez: UFC 300. From start to finish, the tricentennial event had just about all one could ask for.  Several iconic moments, from Max Holloway’s knockout to Alex Pereira’s signature stoppage of Jamahal Hill, the night was so special that the fans couldn’t maintain the crescendo of energy that the night elicited. Noche UFC was a special night and a truly monumental production, but the number of stars who delivered at 300 puts it just ahead.

Bryson Hester: UFC 300. UFC 300 easily takes the cake over Noche UFC. Noche UFC had the production and WOW factor, undoubtedly, but UFC 300 was massive and simply delivered. 12 current or former champions, the fighter of the year fought on the card and the KO of the year occurred on the card. There were lots of finishes and three separate titles on the line. Not to mention the former Olympian, Kayla Harrison, made her UFC debut. UFC 300, biggest card of the year.

Patrick McCorry: UFC 300. Wild title fights, wild finishes. Exactly what we wanted from the UFC’s 300th UFC Pay-Per-View.

Cade Morehouse: Event of the year for me was UFC 300 only because of the star power on that card and what that meant to MMA to have the UFC reach a milestone like that. UFC 300 delivered for the fans and the UFC and was something that drew a lot of attention even outside of the die hard fan base. Gaethje and Holloway alone could have sold that fight card and they were the third fight on the card!

Brett Cagle: UFC 300. Not much needed to be said here. From Alex Pereria’s performance in the main event to Gaethje vs Holloway and former world champions on the prelims, UFC 300 was one of the greatest events in combat sports history. 

Mathis Desjardins: UFC 300. In the same vein as the knockout of the year, let’s not overthink this. In terms of pre-fight hype, nothing tops UFC 308, but top to bottom, UFC 300 is not beatable. There were six former champions on the prelims alone, Deiveson Figueiredo and Cody Garbrandt were the curtain jerkers, there were three fights AFTER Charles Oliveira and Arman Tsarukyan. When Kayla Harrison running through Holly Holm in her UFC debut is a footnote, you know you witnessed a special event.

End result: It’s a landslide, as UFC 300 sweeps the category!

The post MMA 2024 Year in Review: Event of the Year appeared first on Cageside Press.

“Fight day in the back room is when I really started to second guess a lot of…everything else is just like having doubt of like, man if this doesn’t go well I don’t know where I go from here,” Sterling said on The MMA Hour.

“Do I continue to keep fighting or do I just call it quits kind of thing.”

Sterling (24-4) did walk away with a decision victory over Kattar, but he says his journey at 145 is about a lot more than getting paid.

“At the end of the day I’m not just trying to just collect the check. There’s so many guys that stick around just to do that. I respect them, but I’m here to be number one,” he said.

“Im not here just to be second fiddle. If it’s just like I’m going to be in the pack…I made enough money, I think I’ve done enough with my career where I’m like alright it’s probably time to find a new job.”

A loss would have set Sterling on a two-fight losing streak, but it depended on the manner that he lost.

“It depends on how it would have happened. I think if I had got my ass completely kicked by Calvin Kattar I was probably done,” Sterling said.

“No one knew about that. I didn’t share those sentiments with anybody.”

End of the day for Sterling it’s about being a champion.

“That’s kind of the way I look at things. If you’re not first you’re kind of last.”

Since he won the fight Sterling should be up for another big fight at 145 that gets him closer to the belt. A scrap with “T-City” seems to suit him just fine.

“I would actually rather the (Brian) Ortega fight. I’m gunning for the belt. If there’s a fight for me, you’re going to give me the option to pick, I’m going to pick the highest ranked guy,” he said

“If I could beat the highest ranked guy I think it just removes all doubt altogether.”

The post Aljamain Sterling May Have Retired With A Loss At UFC 300 appeared first on Cageside Press.

Some big performances closed out the night, from the insane last second KO of Justin Gaethje by Max Holloway, to Alex Pereira pushing away ref Herb Dean (who was attempting to call a low blow endured by ‘Poatan’) so he could decimate Jamahal Hill.

What comes next for the main card’s big winners? Our take is below.

Alex Pereira

The light heavyweight king made his first title defense in UFC 300’s main event when his patented left hook knocked Jamahal Hill stiff. Due to taking next to zero damage in the fight, the champ immediately asked to be given a fight next month in his home country of Brazil, at heavyweight so he does not have to cut. In the past there were rumblings about Pereira fighting Tom Aspinall for the Brit’s interim heavyweight belt, but Aspinall has his heart set on a date at UFC 304 in Manchester, his home city.

The UFC could still give him a fight in Brazil though. Jairzinho Rozenstruik would be a good opponent, a ranked heavyweight coming off a win who is also a former kickboxer, though not of Poatan’s pedigree. Rozenstruik is from the neighboring country of Suriname, as well. It makes sense, but the most likely outcome is still that Pereira defends his belt presumptive number one contender Magomed Ankalaev next, later this year.

Pereira’s Next Fight: vs Magomed Ankalaev

Zhang Weili

Strawweight champion Zhang Weili won the first all-Chinese title fight in UFC history by dispatching Yan Xiaonan by a 49-45 decision. Xiaonan made it interesting with some sharp counters when Weili threw kicks, but the powerful wrestling of the queen was too much, as Zhang even almost submitted Yan and almost TKOed her with ground strikes.

The strawweight division is somewhat lacking for contenders at the moment. Jessica Andrade won her second fight in a row on this card, but ahead of her has to be Tatiana Suarez, who submitted Andrade last year. The wrestling prodigy has not competed since then, but her 10-0 pro record, ‘Ultimate Fighter’ title, and 7-0 UFC record, including two submission wins since her return from injury last year, means she’s as deserving contender as there is.

Weili’s Next Fight: vs Tatiana Suarez

Max Holloway

“To be the best you got to beat the best, and the best is Blessed.” Those words ring true now more than ever, as Max Holloway staked his claim as one of the BMFs of human history, not just of the UFC today, with his epic, buzzer-beater knockout of Justin Gaethje as the two made a gentleman’s agreement to stand and trade for the final seconds of their fight. Holloway now becomes the BMF belt-holder but clearly has his eyes set on a different prize, a realer one: his old featherweight championship.

Alexander Volkanovski was Max’s Achilles Heel, but Volk was dethroned by Ilia Topuria earlier this year. Among contenders, Holloway clearly has the strongest case even though the Gaethje bout was at 155-lbs; his wins over Arnold Allen and ‘Korean Zombie’ hold a lot of weight. Evloev and Ortega wait in the wings, but their runs are less impressive and they do not have the legacy as a champ – an all-time great champion at that – to push them into a title shot. Holloway VS Topuria for the rumored Spain card later this year would be blockbuster, especially if made at Topuria’s local stadium of Santiago Bernabeu, the famous home of Real Madrid FC.

Holloway’s Next Fight: vs Ilia Topuria

Arman Tsarukyan

Armenia’s pride and joy notched his biggest career win by split decision at UFC 300 as his dominant wrestling and ground elbows outweighed Charles Oliveira’s close submission attempts in the judges’ eyes. He was offered a title fight against Islam Makhachev at UFC 302 immediately after his win, but seven weeks turnaround was too soon. Still, he is the clear number one contender after Justin Gaethje lost, so he should wait for his title shot against the winner of Islam Makhachev vs. Dustin Poirier.

Tsarukyan’s Next Fight: vs winner of Makhachev/Poirier

Bo Nickal

After three wins by finish against lower tier opponents in the UFC it is time for a step up in competition for the All-American and national wrestling champion. An appropriate step up would be a middleweight like Christian Leroy Duncan, who is a dangerous striker, solid wrestler, was a Cage Warriors champion, is on a two fight winning streak, and is 3-1 in the UFC overall. CLD looked better than ever in his last fight and would perhaps give Bo Nickal his first real test in MMA.

Nickal’s Next Fight: vs Christian Leroy Duncan

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The main event saw Jamahal Hill return from a debilitating injury layoff to unsuccessfully attempt to reclaim the title that he never lost against “Poatan” Alex Pereira.

There are a few fighters that need to pick up the pieces and start over after UFC 300. And all fighters have a lot of options moving forward regardless of the direction they choose to go in.

Jamahal Hill

Jamahal Hill was brutally stopped by Alex Pereira in the first round at UFC 300. An incredibly difficult result to stomach for the fighter that made a miraculous recovery to an Achilles tendon tear last year.

Hill ran thru Jimmy Crute, Johnny Walker, Thiago Santos and finally beat Glover Teixeira in a one sided five-round beating to claim the light heavyweight belt in January 2023. Hill suffered the injury outside of competition, relinquished his belt, recovered and originally was slated to comeback against Anthony Smith last month.

After a rebook, Hill fought Pereira at 300 and Smith fights 11-0 including 4-0 in the UFC, Vitor Petrino at UFC 301. While giving Hill the winner of that fight is tempting the better direction to go in would be the feature prelim winner of UFC 300, Jiri Prochazka.

Jiri had a poised come from behind win, against Aleksandar Rakic, who was returning from a nearly two years layoff. An impressive striking displayed that would be another solid high-ranking matchup for Jamahal Hill. And more importantly, it’d be a top 5 high level striker to prove himself against and a fast turnaround.

If Hill needs some extra time to recover after the stoppage, then a top 10 striker like Khalil Rountree Jr. would be a great matchup. Rountree last competed in December of last year finishing Anthony Smith. A latter half of third or quarter of the year matchup would allow Khalil to compete and Jamahal to take time, then return.

Hill’s next fight: Jiri Prochazka or Khalil Rountree Jr.

Yan Xiaonan

Yan Xiaonan lost a disappointing, decisive, five round co-main event to the UFC strawweight champion, Zhang Weili. Xiaonan is now 8-3 with the UFC and has lost three of her last five fights.

Virna Jandiroba would be a solid top 5 type of opponent for Xiaonan. It would be a solid match up as Virna is a grappling specialist and at UFC 300 Weili definitely exposed some holes in Xionan’s ground game. Jandiroba is on a 3-fight winning streak and has won four of her last five fights with the UFC.

This fight would also keep Xiaonan within a fight or two of the title picture. Jandiroba also last fought in March, so the timing should line up fairly well. Especially with Jandiroba specifically calling to fight fighters ranked in front of her following her last fight.

Top ranked fighters Tatiana Suarez and Amanda Lemos are also decent canadines, but ultimately match up better against each other. (Suarez has had layoffs from injuries and Lemos is just one fight removed from a title shot.)

Xiaonan’s next fight: Virna Jandiroba

Justin Gaethje

Justin Gaethje was brutally KO’d in the final seconds of a five-round bout against Max Holloway for the BMF title at UFC 300. It was a spectacular fight that will be talked about for years to come and the gall of both men to risk everything in the final seconds of such a great fight was something to behold.

Unfortunately for Gaethje, he was on the wrong end of the highlight reel moment on Saturday night so he must reevaluate his spot in the ever-evolving UFC lightweight elite merry go round.

A really good striking match up and a fight that a lot of fans would get hype for, would be Justin Gaethje vs Renato Moicano. Renato has been on fire recently and has won five of his last six fights, four via stoppage. “Money Moicano” is a crowd favorite and during the UFC 300 prelims stormed back from being dropped the first, to stop Jalin Turner in the second. Fun fight with a top 10 fighter and they both shared a card.

If Gaethje needs some time, then a Charles Oliveira rematch would be a solid fight to consider. Give Gaethje time to recoup and train and a win and he’s virtually a fight or two from title contention. It’s also an excellent opportunity to show improvement in his game thanks to the result of the pair’s first meeting.

Gaethje’s next fight: Renato Moicano or Charles Oliveira

Charles Oliveira

Charles Oliveira lost a crushing split decision Saturday night against Arman Tsarukyan. The bout was undoubtedly deciding who would be next in line to challenge for the UFC lightweight belt. Now Oliveira must compete against another fighter to decide who will be the next in line after Tsarukyan.

Charles has fought pretty much everyone in the UFC’s lightweight title picture. But Charles has not fought emerging contender Mateusz Gamrot. Mateusz is a top 5 contender who has won seven of his last eight fights and is a jiujitsu ace. He last competed about a month ago, against Rafael dos Anjos so the timing would also work very well. It’s a great fight to make.

A Gaethje rematch would be an excellent alternative to the Gamrot fight if that doesn’t materialize. Justin just lost by KO on Saturday night to a fighter in Max Holloway that might not stay in the weight class. If Charles wants some time, this rematch could really make sense, and set the winner up to compete for the title once again.

Oliveira’s next fight: Mateusz Gamrot or Justin Gaethje

Cody Brundage

After a somewhat promising first round, Brundage was submitted by one of the UFC’s brightest prospects via rear naked choke in the second. Brundage became the first fighter to take Bo Nickal out of the opening round.

Brundage, a 2020 Contender Series product, is now 4-5 in the UFC. Brundage has fought five times since last April and has won just two of those fights (though they were both first round finishes)

Dusko Todorovic would be an excellent match for Cody as he has also won just two of his last five fights. Todorovic also has a similar amount of experience in the UFC as he has a 3-4 record with the promotion. And Todorovic was on the Contender Series like Brundage, though it was a year earlier in 2019. Todorovic withdrew from his bout against Edmen Shahbazyan last month so potentially he could be ready for a bout against Brundage in a few months.

Brundage’s next fight: Dusko Todorovic 

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You probably know why by now. After rescuing his parents from a house fire a month ago and battling smoke inhalation, Coleman, 59, was the sentimental favorite to award the BMF title on Saturday night. Both Max Holloway and Justin Gaethje asked for it, and the UFC delivered.

Coleman addressed the media backstage early Saturday evening, starting off by saying that he was “blessed to be here.”

“I’m healthy, and health is wealth,” Coleman added. “And I have that.”

“I’m very fortunate,” added Coleman, who believes that “God was with me about a month ago, and he got me through the scariest night of my life. We came through with my mom and dad still alive. I didn’t quite have enough in me to get my dog Hammer, but he’ll always be with me the rest of my life. He meant the world to me, my first dog ever.”

It was trying to save Hammer that saw Coleman fall to smoke inhalation, later rescued himself by the fire crew. But Hammer saved the family, with his barking what woke Coleman up on the fateful night. “Until you have a dog, you don’t get it. And I didn’t get it until I got one. I have three daughters, and Hammer was my son. He woke me, and he’s a hero.”

At UFC 300, it was Holloway coming away with the BMF title, in what was quite literally a legendary performance. There was talk all week long of having a women’s BMF title, a concept Coleman is a fan of.

“We definitely need a [women’s] BMF, and they’ll let themselves be known who it is,” said Coleman. When asked about who he would see fighting for that belt, he polled reporters, who came back with Joanna Jedrzejczyk.

“If she came out of retirement, she’d be the perfect BMF to start it off. Who wants Joanna? She’d come out of retirement I’d bet,” exclaimed Coleman.

Watch the full UFC 300 press conference appearance by Mark Coleman above.

The post Mark Coleman on House Fire, Having A Women’s BMF appeared first on Cageside Press.

He just won’t be fighting for a title next.

Following Tsarukyan’s fight at the massive event inside the T-Mobile Arena in Las Vegas, 155lb champ Islam Makhachev took to social media to post “see you soon, boy” without naming Arman directly.

During his post-fight press conference appearance, Tsarukyan (22-3) sent the same message in return. “See you soon, boy.” But later in the night, UFC President and CEO Dana White announced that it would be Dustin Poirier facing Makhachev at UFC 302 in June.

Tsarukyan will wait for the winner it seems.

Still, there was reason to be elated on Saturday. Arman Tsarukyan will get a title shot, the culmination of a lengthy journey. “That was so long a journey, to get here, to beat [the] number one contender. Especially on UFC 300, it’s the best feeling,” he stated.

An early Charles Oliveira guillotine, “it was tight,” Tsarukyan also admitted.

There was also an incident with a fan during Tsarukyan’s walkout, during which he threw a couple of punches at a man apparently giving him the finger.

Arman Tsarukyan punched a fan during his walkout to fight Charles Oliveira 😅 pic.twitter.com/DMoX27o8H1

— Happy Punch (@HappyPunch) April 14, 2024

“He showed me ‘f*ck’ and wanted to punch me, and I wanted to punch him back. That’s it,” said Tsarukyan, who endured considerable disrespect at a Q&A in Miami a month earlier. “Guys, no one shows me ‘f*ck you,’ it doesn’t matter who you are, I’m going to punch you in the face. You can show me ‘f*ck’ from 200 meters, I’m not going to punch you, but when you’re close to me, it’s like automatically. I’m from Russia, don’t do that please, or I’m going to go to prison in the U.S.”

Watch the full UFC 300 post-fight press conference appearance by Arman Tsarukyan above.

The post Arman Tsarukyan Addresses Punching Fan During UFC 300 Entrance appeared first on Cageside Press.

“I feel mixed emotions about my performance. Obviously any time you get a win, you get a finish, that’s a good thing,” said Nickal, a three-time NCAA Division I champ in collegiate wrestling. “But I don’t really compete and fight and train just to get a win or to get a finish. That being said there’s a lot to improve on, a lot that could have been done differently.”

“I’m grateful for the experience. Got to the second round for the first time in my career, got punch in a real fight for the first time in my career. Those might not seem like good things, but I think they’ll only help me in the long run.”

In terms of why he was unhappy with his showing on Saturday, Nickal admitted that “I’ll be honest, that 300K bonus got me trying to knock this dude out right away.”

“I can’t, I think, be easily drawn into that type of fight, just because that’s pretty much the only type of fight I’m going to lose.” Nickal believes he can dominate and control early in fights without getting wild and brawling, he explained. “I’m a little frustrated with myself, in that, but it’s a learning experience, it’s a lesson. Hopefully I’ll get a quick turnaround to be able to get back in the octagon soon and learn from that.”

Watch the full UFC 300 post-fight press conference appearance by Bo Nickal above.

The post Bo Nickal Tried to Force Finish at UFC 300 with 300K Bonus in Mind appeared first on Cageside Press.

He got that in Aleksandar Rakic at UFC 300, in a fight that has vaulted the Czech star back into title contention.

“After that fight in New York, I felt I needed a push. I need some push from some opponent who will be aggressive, who will be tough. Like a tough guy,” Prochazka (30-4-1) admitted following Saturday’s back-and-forth firefight. “Aleksander was really, especially like that.”

It wasn’t easy, and Prochazka ate any number of punches and leg kicks, his mobility seemingly compromised. Yet the ex-champ prevailed, earning a TKO finish in the second round then calling for the winner of Pereira vs. Jamahal Hill, who headlined the massive card at the T-Mobile Arena in Las Vegas.

Whether he actually gets that fight, or has to compete against someone like Magomed Ankalaev first, remains to be seen.

“It doesn’t matter for me. For me, right now it’s most important to improve myself in the training. And to take this experience from tonight to the next fight, as soon as possible,” said Prochazka during his post-fight press conference appearance. “Because I’m still learning. I’m still learning how to connect my violence and that hunting instinct with the mastery, with the technique, with the present moments to keep it in one.”

That said, Prochazka went on to add that after the fight with Rakic, “I believe I deserve it.”

Scenes of Jiri Prochazka marching forward, hands down, were frequently commented on by the UFC 300 broadcast team. It’s something the light heavyweight also addressed post-fight.

“That was something that was inside me. Every time I have that problem, I have to show to my opponent, you have nothing [for] me. But I’m trying to be more professional, because with guys like Pereira, it’s not good to catch any punches. So that’s why I’m working for head movement, like a flash, like a shadow.”

As for getting back in the win column in a house full of fans at a milestone event like UFC 300, “for me it was not too much about the event, but after my last fight in New York with Pereira, it was for me important to make a spark inside myself,” Prochazka told Cageside Press. “To show to myself that storm, that hunter inside myself. I’m very glad for that. Very glad.”

Watch the full UFC 300 post-fight press conference with Jiri Prochazka above.

The post Jiri Prochazka Believes He Deserves Title Shot Following UFC 300 appeared first on Cageside Press.

“If you look at my resume man I’ve only fought three guys in my entire UFC career that were not ranked. I’ve never been shy about taking the unbeaten path. Give me the next best guy,” Sterling told reporters including Cageside Press at his post-fight scrum.

“Hopefully that removes all doubt.”

Sterling (24-4) is hoping to make a name for himself at 145 pounds with the right opponents to get him a shot at gold.

“At the end of the day I want my title shots earned, not given, some of these other guys they like handouts. I like to prove that I’m the best. I want to beat the next guy in front of me (in the rankings) and show that I belong and I’ve earned my shot,” said Sterling.

So what names are on Sterling’s radar that could possibly get him to that title shot?

“Give me the next best guy. I mean (Max) Holloway’s fighting at 55 tonight, right? He wins he ain’t coming back down. It wouldn’t make any sense for him,” he said.

“So then that’ll put Brian Ortega as number 1. I’ll take Brian Ortega, respectfully. No bad blood or anything like that just that we’re both trying to chase the same thing.”

Watch the entire post-fight scrum with Aljamain Sterling above.

The post Aljamain Sterling Calls For Fight With Brian Ortega appeared first on Cageside Press.

“Movsar (Evloev) is next International Fight Week. Give him the rematch,” Lopes told reporters including Cageside Press at his post-fight scrum.

“I think that the first fight speaks for itself and I think that the fights that came after that I think they say I deserve a rematch against Movsar.”

Lopes (24-6) fought Evloev on short notice at UFC 288 in May 2023. He lost the fight by decision, but had Evloev in trouble in a few different spot. Evloev had taken to social media to speak on Lopes and his rise.

“I think it’s actually really funny that he actually went on social media and said that my greatest feat was actually to have a fight against him. I went back on social media and say well your greatest feat is make Dana White like a fight that you’re involved. It’s just that I was involved,” Lopes said.

“I like to call him Decision-Man. I even coined a term Mr.Decision. I think his work speaks for himself, and my work speaks for itself.”

Watch the entire post-fight scrum with Diego Lopes above.

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