‘The fans won that fight’ – Michael Chandler looks back on UFC 268 barnburner with Gaethje
The result may have not gone his way, but Michael Chandler received a ton of props for his UFC 268 showing against Justin Gaethje. There were notable moments during the fight when the former three-time Bellator champion pushed forward despite the beatings he took. Chandler just EATS these punches from Gaethje and then walks him […]
Francis Ngannou says UFC ‘created’ backstage encounter with Ciryl Gane
Amidst the already spectacular night of fights at UFC 268 early this month was a brief encounter between Francis Ngannou and Ciryl Gane. In the short clip that went around online, “The Predator” appeared to have snubbed his former training partner at the backstage area. Not a word between the HWs #UFC268 pic.twitter.com/Ei15lcr2KM — Jim […]
Kamaru Usman says he fought Colby Covington with broken hand at UFC 268
Kamaru Usman has revealed that he fought Colby Covington with a broken hand in their welterweight title rematch at UFC 268. ‘The Nigerian Nightmare’ said that he broke his right hand while sparring teammate Justin Gaethje at Onx Sports in Colorado just three weeks out from the fight. “I broke it before the fight. Most […]
Report: UFC 268 generated around 700,000 PPV buys on ESPN+
The UFC’s much anticipated return to Madison Square Garden was a smashing success both in terms of fight quality and pay-per-view buys. Sports Business Journal’s John Ourand reported (H/T TSN’s Aaron Bronsteter) on Monday that last month’s UFC 268 blockbuster pulled in an estimated 700,000 buys domestically, aka purchases made exclusively through ESPN+ in the […]
Justin Gaethje: It’s ‘comical,’ Conor McGregor keeps picking up ‘my sloppy seconds’
Justin Gaethje hasn’t been shy about his dislike towards Conor McGregor. He takes jabs at “The Notorious” when he gets the chance, and he once again did so during a recent sitdown with TMZ Sports. This time, “The Highlight” aimed at the Irish UFC star for wanting to fight guys he’d already beaten. “I don’t […]
The Level Change Podcast 148: Masvidal-Edwards, Esparza vs. Dana, UFC Vegas 42
Welcome to the The Level Change Podcast, our combat sports themed variety show hosted by Stephie Haynes, Mookie Alexander and Victor Rodriguez, featuring the news of the week, fight card breakdowns and analysis, a roundup of regional promotions’ cards and fights, and whatever else we decide is important enough or entertaining enough to bring to […]
‘You fell asleep’ – Khabib tells Justin Gaethje to ‘shut up’ about title shot demands
Entering UFC 268, former UFC interim lightweight champion Justin Gaethje made one thing clear: either he gets a title shot with a win over Michael Chandler, or he riots. “The Highlight” did get the job done in three full rounds in what’s already branded by many as 2021’s Fight of the Year. However, the UFC […]
35-fight MMA vet reveals he only had $10 in the bank ahead of KO win at UFC 268
At this point, we’ve all grown familiar with the financial struggles that many UFC fighters face. It’s affected a large chunk of the roster, from those at the bottom of the totem pole to reigning undisputed champions. So this story about 35-fight MMA veteran and UFC newcomer Chris Curtis is nothing new, but it likely […]
‘He tried to justify it’ – Justin Gaethje blasts ref for not owning potential $1 million mistake
Justin Gaethje’s fight against Michael Chandler at UFC 268 seems likely go down as one of MMA’s all-time great wars. Two fighters dead set on crushing one another in the cage, and yet somehow, someway, despite all the violence on display, they were unable to do it. At the end of 15 minutes, the ‘Highlight’ […]
‘My spirit doesn’t want to be done’ – Frankie Edgar ‘not ready’ to retire after latest KO loss
He may be on a bit of a skid right now, but Frankie Edgar isn’t willing to call it a career just yet. The man sees himself fighting on his deathbed, and even after a disappointing, viral loss to Marlon Vera on Saturday night at UFC 268, his sentiments remain the same. In a recent […]
Dana White claims a UFC 268 ‘prelim fighter’ earned $750,000
At least for the time being, fighter pay will be one of the top recurring hot topics in MMA today. From their end, UFC president Dana White continues to brush off the issue. But in a recent appearance on YouTube show Pardon My Take ahead of last weekend’s UFC 268, White made a revelation. According […]
UFC welterweight champion Kamaru Usman ‘not chasing GSP’ for GOAT status
Kamaru Usman and Georges St-Pierre are two very different fighters with two very different legacies. Usman has defended his welterweight title five times to St-Pierre’s nine but has arguably faced tougher competition along the way. The former has surpassed GSP’s overall winning streak at welterweight but insists that he is not looking to overtake ‘Rush’ […]
Alex Pereira ‘happy’ with successful UFC debut, but knows he ‘still has much to learn’
Two-time Glory kickboxing champion Alex Pereira has finally made his Octagon debut. At UFC 268, ‘Poatan’ successfully defeated Andreas Michailidis via flying knee KO in the second round after struggling with his opponent’s wrestling in the first. Despite that bump in the road, the Brazilian considers the outcome positive. In an interview with Ag Fight, […]
UFC 268 Edition | The Final Episode of The Best of the C’Mon Now MMA Podcast – 81
We regret to inform our loyal listeners of this show, that this episode will be Trent’s last one. He will be refocusing his energies on his work solely as an Author here on BloodyElbow.com, instead. Thank you for listening to the past 81 hours of content he has produced for us here at Bloody Elbow […]
Cejudo to Usman: Forget that ‘African pride’ and fight Israel Adesanya for ‘legacy’
UFC 268 was another statement win for Kamaru Usman. Now with five successful title defenses and 15 straight UFC wins, “The Nigerian Nightmare” had pretty much wiped out the competition at 170 pounds. Related Africa’s UFC Kings | Francis Ngannou, Israel Adesanya & Kamaru Usman For observers like UFC president Dana White, Usman already did […]
‘I knew the ref’s gonna be a problem’ – Frankie Edgar argues why UFC 268 stoppage was early
If you’re a Frankie Edgar fan, Saturday night’s fight was difficult to watch. For the second straight time, “The Answer” lost in highlight-reel fashion, this time via a front kick to the chin courtesy of Marlon Vera. Edgar, however, continues to question the referee stoppage. He was already protesting as it happened then spoke about […]
UFC 268 Audio: Covington breaks character after loss to Usman, Wittman’s corner advice
Corner audio for UFC 268 has been released and it did highlight some interesting moments. Featured on the clip was how Trevor Wittman impressively went 3-0, having Justin Gaethje win another fight of the year candidate, and both Kamaru Usman and Rose Namajunas defend their titles. Those three fighters also went a combined 6-0 in […]
I don’t see anything else that ‘makes sense’ – Rose Namajunas on Esparza rematch
It feels exceptionally rare when the opportunity for a title fight comes along with the kind of extended, meaningful history like the shared narrative between Rose Namajunas and Carla Esarpza. The two women first met in 2014, at The Ultimate Fighter: Season 20 Finale. Even then, Esparza was already considered one of the more seasoned […]
The Mookie & Crookie Show 144: UFC 268 rewind, Modafferi retiring, Jones looking for new team
Welcome to ‘The Mookie & Crookie Show’, a spinoff of ‘The Level Change Podcast’ that goes a little more in-depth on major combat sports news, as well as takes a humorous look at the crazy world of combat sports social media. The show is hosted by Mookie Alexander and Stephie Haynes and airs every Tuesday. […]
‘I hope he does well’ – Israel Adesanya wants Pereira rematch ‘in the next four fights’
Throughout his decade-long professional career, Israel Adesanya had only been stopped once. It happened against Alex Pereira in a kickboxing rematch in 2017, where he was knocked out by a left hook in the third round. Pereira made his UFC debut at UFC 268 on Saturday and won big via flying knee TKO in the […]
Marlon Vera reacts to Edgar’s ‘f—d up’ UFC 268 KO photo, explains why he flipped the bird
Among the high points of Saturday’s blockbuster UFC 268 event was Marlon Vera’s front kick knockout win over Frankie Edgar. What made it more noteworthy was the photo of that exact moment that will now be forever associated with “The Answer’s” legacy. This photo of Frankie Edgar from last night might honestly be one of […]
UFC 268: Why Colby Covington wasn’t awarded a takedown in Round 3 against Kamaru Usman
With his decision win over Colby Covington at UFC 268, Kamaru Usman retained his UFC welterweight title, kept his UFC record unblemished at 15-0 and remained perfect in takedown defense. The last item on Usman’s post-fight checklist was not without controversy. Related UFC 268 Live Stream | Usman vs. Covington 2 | Radio Style Play […]
‘The streets don’t belong to the fake’ – Jorge Masvidal responds to Covington’s callout
If the message coming from Kamaru Usman after his fifth title defense was that he might want to spend some time with his family in the immediate future, Colby Covington seems much more dead set on getting back to action as quickly as possible. Following his unanimous decision loss at UFC 268, Covington had a […]
‘I’m not surprised’ – Kamaru Usman on Colby Covington shaking hands after UFC 268
It may not have lasted long, it may never happen again, but for one brief moment it seemed as though Colby Covington and Kamaru Usman buried the hatchet. That small amount of peace came just after the conclusion of UFC 268, the second time the ‘Nigerian Nightmare’ and ‘Chaos’ had shared a full five rounds […]
Michael Chandler on UFC 268 loss to Justin Gaethje: ‘Ill-advised yet entertaining is my strong suit’
Michael Chandler enjoyed sharing the Octagon with Justin Gaethje at UFC 268 on Saturday night but acknowledged he could have made better decisions in the fight. Chandler and Gaethje were involved in a ‘Fight of the Year’ candidate that had near fight-ending finishes from both men over the course of three rounds. ‘Iron’ wobbled ‘The […]
UFC 268 Reactions & UFC Vegas 42 Picks | Care/Don’t Care Podcast
It’s time for another one of our infamous and patented Care/Don’t Care Podcasts, with your talent: the astounding Eugene S. Robinson, author of the ‘Eugene S. Robinson Substack’, the fight book: “Fight: Everything You Wanted to Know About Ass-Kicking but Were Afraid You’d Get Your Ass Kicked for Asking”, host of the ‘Eugene S. Robinson […]
‘You don’t sit around and wait for fights’, Dana White dashes Carla Esparza’s UFC title shot hope
At UFC 268 this past weekend Rose Namajunas beat Zhang Weili by a razor thin split decision to retain her UFC strawweight title. Namajunas had won that belt from Zhang—by TKO—when the pair first met back in April. Before Zhang was called upon to receive an immediate rematch with Namajunas, many felt that another former […]
UFC 268: Usman vs. Covington 2 – Unofficial Awards
I was shocked at the lack of buzz surrounding the lead into UFC 268, the UFC’s first return to Madison Square Garden since before the COVID pandemic. Fortunately for us, the fighters weren’t aware of any shortage of interest, delivering the new front runner for event of the year, not to mention one of the […]
UFC 268: Nine unanswered questions from the Usman vs. Covington fight card
Two title fights headlined UFC 268 and although neither of those belts changed hands, the Welterweight title fight between Kamaru Usman and Colby Covington and the Strawweight scrap between champion Rose Namajunas and ex-champ Weili Zhang did not wrap things up in a tight bow in those weight divisions. In addition, there are questions to […]
MMA SQUARED: To understand Usman’s legacy and rivalry with Covington, we gotta look to the past
Chris Rini Hey all, I’ll be live on twitch today at 11am EST recapping UFC 268 and working on some live charcoal sketches from Saturday night. Take care of yourself and I’ll talk to you Wednesday. Chris