Latest news with #UFC311
USA Today
a day ago
- Sport
- USA Today
Paul Felder criticizes Ilia Topuria for preferring vacating over fighting Arman Tsarukyan
Paul Felder is tired of UFC champions not fighting the rightful No. 1 contenders. Felder was particularly talking about UFC lightweight champion Ilia Topuria (17-0 MMA, 9-0 UFC), who said he'd vacate the title before fighting Arman Tsarukyan (23-3 MMA, 9-2 UFC). Felder acknowledges it may be gamesmanship by Topuria, but can't help but be baffled by this mindset. "The guy's the No. 1 contender," Felder said of Tsarukyan on the "Believe You Me" podcast. "And to say that you would rather relinquish the belt than fight him is? Come on, man. We're getting a little carried away. We've talked about this before where these guys in this generation of fighters, when they get to this top position now, are so willing to jump around weight classes and and try to deny fighting guys. "It's like, that's not how it f*cking works, man! If the guy's No. 1 and the UFC says, 'This is the guy,' you're the champ. You're holding that belt. That's who you fight. If you're the best and he's not on your level and all this kind of stuff, then prove it! Just go out there and prove it. I hate that, and I'm not saying that I think that he doesn't think he could beat him." Granted, Tsarukyan will likely have to fight one more time after withdrawing from his title fight against Islam Makhachev at UFC 311 in January. Topuria recently said he thinks his first title defense will be against either Justin Gaethje or Paddy Pimblett, but Felder is irked by "El Matador" ruling Tsarukyan out of the equation. "I hate it. I was like, come on, man, here we go," Felder said. "Here we go again. Now you've got a champion who's just looking for the biggest thing. Look, the UFC is not going to try to put you in a position that's not going to be a big thing."
USA Today
a day ago
- Sport
- USA Today
Jiri Prochazka criticizes Khalil Rountree 'careful' win over Jamahal Hill
Jiri Prochazka was not impressed by Khalil Rountree's most recent win. Rountree (14-6 MMA, 10-6 UFC) defeated former champion Jamahal Hill (12-4 MMA, 6-4 UFC) by unanimous decision in their UFC on ABC 8 main event June 21 in Baku, Azerbaijan. Rountree dropped Hill in Round 3, but wasn't able to finish him. Prochazka (31-5-1 MMA, 5-2 UFC), who knocked out Hill at UFC 311, thinks Rountree was tentative throughout the fight, and let his foot off the gas pedal. "A very careful performance, patient," Prochazka said of Rountree's win over Hill on "The Ariel Helwani Show." "My opinion, I don't like that. I don't like that performance because he gave Jamahal too many chances to be back in the fight, a chance to win the fight. He had many chances to finish him decisively. So, that was really not good from him. He was very patient. "What surprised me was Jamahal Hill's performance. I thought after a lot of trash talking, he would show a much better fight than he showed. It was strange from Khalil that he let him recover and still survive the fight, and Jamahal didn't show anything, and he was still too self confident after the fight. If you want to fight on the top level, go there and show your best, totally, no regrets." Former champion Prochazka meets former title challenger Rountree in a three-round bout at UFC 320 on Oct. 4 at T-Mobile Arena in Las Vegas. Prochazka hopes it's a No. 1 contender bout. Prochazka revealed that he will weigh in as a backup for the night's headliner between light heavyweight champion Magomed Ankalaev and Alex Pereira.
USA Today
a day ago
- Sport
- USA Today
Dan Hooker not keen on Paddy Pimblett next: 'I think someone's sh*t, then I fight sh*t'
Dan Hooker is seeking the toughest fight possible for his UFC return. Hooker (24-12 MMA, 14-8 UFC) called out Arman Tsarukyan (22-3 MMA, 9-2 UFC) and Charles Oliveira for the November pay-per-view card in a series of tweets. He broke down the landscape at lightweight, and why he's zoning in on Tsarukyan, who withdrew from his title fight against Islam Makhachev at UFC 311 in January. "I think they're going to do (Max) Holloway-Oliveira (and) they're going to do (Justin) Gaethje for the title," Hooker told Submission Radio. "That leaves Arman in the lurch. He's stuck fighting me, brother. He's got to fight me to get back in the mix and to get a title shot. And that's always the fight I want, and not because he's a prick and I hate him, but because I genuinely think that he's the harder fight." Hooker was asked about Paddy Pimblett (22-4 MMA, 7-0 UFC), but "The Hangman" took a dig at him when explaining why he'd rather fight Tsarukyan. "I don't think the guy's that good," Hooker said of Pimblett. "And it brings out the best of me when I fight an actual good fighter. Like, when they give me someone that I think I can beat, or I think someone's sh*t, then I fight sh*t. Like, my mind subconsciously relaxes because I think they're sh*t, and then I do sh*t, then they beat me. "But when I fight a guy that I think could kick my ass, then my subconscious goes, 'Oh,sh*t, we might get our ass kicked.' Then I wake up so, I actually end up fighting really well. So, I'd rather just fight the best guy so I actually perform well."
USA Today
4 days ago
- Sport
- USA Today
Arman Tsarukyan: 'You gotta delete' Paddy Pimblett from UFC rankings
Paddy Pimblett shouldn't get the next title shot, or even be in the rankings, according to fellow UFC lightweight contender Arman Tsarukyan. After Ilia Topuria won the lightweight title by knocking out Charles Oliveira at UFC 317, Pimblett (23-3 MMA, 7-0 UFC) entered the cage for an intense faceoff. The interaction has led many to believe Pimblett will jump the queue in the lightweight division to get the next title shot, given the bad blood between him and Topuria. Tsarukyan (22-3 MMA, 9-2 UFC) believes the next shot is his, and doesn't believe the moment in the cage will change that. "Nobody said he's getting the title shot," Tsarukyan said on "Overdogs Podcast." "So, they are still figuring out who's fighting for the title – me, (Justin) Gaethje, or Paddy. But I know they got to put me because I'm the No. 1 contender right now." Tsarukyan is currently ranked No. 2 in the promotion's official lightweight rankings. The No. 1 spot is held by Islam Makhachev, who recently vacated the title and is expected to fight Jack Della Maddalena for the welterweight title soon. While making a case for his own shot at the title, Tsarukyan torched Pimblett's UFC resume and doesn't even view him as a top-ranked fighter. "You gotta delete him from the rankings, even," Tsarukyan said. "He's not even deserving to be in top 10." Tsarukyan went down the list of recent names that Pimblett has faced, criticizing the strength of schedule. "He beat the last three guys, it was (Michael) Chandler, he had three losses," Tsarukyan said. "It was Bobby Green, he had three, four losses. It was Tony Ferguson, he had eight losses. That's crazy, and like, you want to bring that guy and fight for the title? I don't know. You shouldn't even mention his name, you know? He doesn't even deserve even mentioning his name." Pimblett's last three opponents have a combined UFC record of 30-26-1, while Tsarukyan's last three, Charles Oliveira, Beneil Dariush, and Joaquim Silva, are 46-22-1. To Tsarukyan's point, Pimblett's recent opposition experienced rough stretches before he fought them. Chandler was 1-4 over his previous five, Green fared better at 3-2, but Ferguson was on a six-fight skid, which extended to eight before his exit from the UFC. Tsarukyan was set to challenge Islam Makhachev for the lightweight title at UFC 311 in January, but withdrew during fight week due to an injury. Topuria recently stated he would vacate the title before facing Tsarukyan.
USA Today
4 days ago
- Sport
- USA Today
Dan Hooker declares 'daddy's home,' calls out Charles Oliveira and Arman Tsarukyan
Dan Hooker wants to return to UFC competition before the end of the year and has publicly called for two highly ranked names. Hooker (24-12 MMA, 14-8 UFC) hasn't seen action since an August 2024 victory over Mateusz Gamrot at UFC 305. He's been dealing with arm and hand injuries, the latter of which forced him to withdraw from a March matchup against Justin Gaethje. Now on the cusp of his comeback, Hooker took to social media over the weekend and directly called for fights against former champion Charles Oliveira or top-ranked contender Arman Tsarukyan, declaring that "daddy's home" (via X): Hooker, 35, is riding a three-fight winning streak against Gamrot, Jalin Turner and Claudio Puelles dating back to November 2022. Oliveira (35-11 MMA, 23-11 UFC) is coming off a first-round knockout loss to Ilia Topuria at UFC 317 in June for the vacant 155-pound title. Tsarukyan, meanwhile, hasn't fought since he withdrew on weigh-in day from a title fight against then-champ Islam Makhachev at UFC 311 in January.
