Tom Aspinall feels that Francis Ngannou is good enough to topple former heavyweight champion Deontay Wilder if the two meet in a boxing ring. Ngannou, who recently signed with PFL, will have the flexibility to pursue boxing opportunities prior to his first fight with the promotion. In the past, Ngannou has been tied to potential fights with Anthony Joshua and champion Tyson Fury, though Wilder has expressed interest in facing him in the past. Aspinall spoke with JN Media UK about the possibility. The heavyweight contender believes the one-dimensional Wilder is a winnable fight compared to current champions Fury and…
Author: Danny Howard
Danny Howard
Danny Howard has been covering combat sports for 13 years and likes to think he knows what he’s talking about. He has been a featured contributor at FightHype, The Boxing Tribune, The Fight City, and Covers.
Conor McGregor’s return to the UFC as a coach on The Ultimate Fighter 31 didn’t exactly set the world on fire last Tuesday. https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=aaBj5BHMrQg McGregor appears as a coach this season opposite Michael Chandler, with the two expected to fight by the end of the year, making it the second time McGregor has been a headlining act on the long-running show. Previously, McGregor coached alongside Uriah Faber in Season 22 to higher views. The show debuted with 294,000 viewers, down significantly from the 622,000 viewers from McGregor’s previous appearance. This could serve as a sign of McGregor’s waning influence in…
Amir Albazi defeated Kai Kara-France in the UFC Vegas 74 main event, though he’ll have a hard time actually being seen as the true winner. The split-decision verdict to give Albazi the victory came as a shock, especially as Kara-France did more than enough to win the fight. Kara-France landed more than twice as many strikes (133) as Albazi (64), scored on both his takedown attempts, and dictated the pace of the action. Though he showed plenty of heart, Albazi being declared the winner was wholly unexpected. While Albazi certainly showed that he was able to hold his own with…
Ray Longo, coach of bantamweight champion, Aljamain Sterling, isn’t too happy with how his charge is being treated. After a grueling split decision win over Henry Cejudo at UFC 288, Sterling will need to be ready for Sean O’Malley at UFC 292. Sterling previously voiced his displeasure with the rapid scheduling of the fight, drawing the ire of UFC President Dana White in the process. Longo appeared on the Anik & Florian podcast to air his grievances with the UFC. During the interview, he also believes Sterling is not held in as high regard as lightweight champion Islam Makhachev. https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=TLYwfVtxAO0…
Dustin Poirier expects Conor McGregor to return to form and beat Michael Chandler when they fight. “The Diamond” recently shared his thoughts on The MMA Hour on the unannounced super fight between his former conquests. During the segment, Poirier believes a rejuvenated McGregor could stop Chandler in two rounds.“If Conor is who he was before the injury and stuff, I think two rounds — I think the fight’s over in two rounds.” McGregor has been inactive since a gruesome leg injury caused a TKO loss to Poirier at UFC 264. It was the latest setback for McGregor, whose attempts to…
Jon Jones vs. Stipe Miocic, a dream fight in every sense of the word, is looking unlikely to happen. Though Jones and Miocic were expected to face off in the summer, reports are emerging that the fight is in dire straits. Over the last few weeks, we’ve seen Jones engage boxing heavyweight champion Tyson Fury to challenge him in the UFC. Predictably, UFC President Dana White has publicly thrown his weight behind a fight that is a statistical impossibility to ever happen. Not too long after, reports began coming out that Jones may not be facing Miocic. Daniel Cormier and…
Khamzat Chimaev’s time on the sidelines is coming to an end, and a major fight is brewing. The UFC’s hottest prospect has been on the shelf since his win over Kevin Holland at UFC 279. Currently, Chimaev is training in Abu Dhabi, which is the hosting location for UFC 294. According to Chimaev, he’s sounding pretty certain that his opponent will be former welterweight champion Kamaru Usman. “I’m already here in Dubai, living here, training camp, everything is good, so I’ve been in shape a long time ago. I’ve been in Thailand training camp, I’ve been here training camp, I’ve…
Jan Blachowicz is on the verge of once again challenging for the light heavyweight title, provided he defeats Alex Pereira at UFC 291. The former light heavyweight champion detailed the stakes for the Pereira fight on The MMA Hour. “When I heard that he would come to our division, I just want to fight against him. I talked with my manager and they did this fight. It was easy. I said, ‘OK, give it to me.’ Why not?” Blachowicz won the title at UFC 253, defeating Dominick Reyes in the second round. He successfully defended the title as an underdog…
Dana White has reaffirmed that Aljamain Sterling will defend his bantamweight title against Sean O’Malley at UFC 292. Last week, the bout was announced as the main event of the Boston card. Shortly after, Sterling made comments suggesting he would need more time after his UFC 288 win over Henry Cejudo to prepare. Not only did White confirm the fight will happen, but had to do so because Cejudo offered to step in versus O’Malley. “Henry Cejudo calls me and says, ‘This little p*ssy doesn’t want to fight, I’ll take the fight. I’m throwing my hat in right now. Let’s…
Mackenzie Dern doled out a comprehensive beating of veteran Angela Hill in the main event of UFC Vegas 73. Though many expected Dern to use her grappling to slow Hill down, she delivered a striking clinic en route to a dominant decision win. Once the fight started, it looked like Hill would get the style of the fight she hoped for as Dern readily engaged her. However, it didn’t take long for Dern to set the stage for what would tell the story of the fight. Dern slammed Hill to the canvas, then floored her with a solid shot. A…