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1 week ago | 
essentiallysports.com | Ishan Yadav |SYED AHMED
Who would’ve thought that what Dana White & Co. wouldn’t dare to do, MMA fans might actually be bold enough to push for themselves? Last week, the long-standing situation surrounding reigning heavyweight kingpin Jon Jones took a dramatic new turn online. The uproar began when not just interim champion Tom Aspinall, but thousands of frustrated fans voiced their discontent over ‘Bones’ holding the title for over 800 days while defending it only once.
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1 week ago | 
essentiallysports.com | Ishan Yadav |SYED AHMED
“I want to be compensated to the point where if I won or lost, that really wouldn’t matter.” Those were the words of UFC’s reigning heavyweight kingpin Jon Jones, spoken during last year’s UFC 309 press conference. At the time, ‘Bones’ made it clear that if Dana White & Co. wanted him to defend his title against interim champion Tom Aspinall, it would require a massive payday.
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1 week ago | 
essentiallysports.com | Ishan Yadav |SYED AHMED
With UFC 316 just two weeks out, reigning 135lbs kingpin Merab Dvalishvili is once again preparing to defend his title. The Prudential Center sets the stage for a blockbuster rematch between ‘The Machine’ and former champion Sean O’Malley, who is eager to regain the belt. While the Georgian enters the Octagon as the clear favorite, the spotlight of concern in his camp isn’t on the challenge ‘Suga’ presents.
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1 week ago | 
essentiallysports.com | Ishan Yadav |SYED AHMED
After nearly two years away from competition, former welterweight champion Kamaru Usman is finally set to make his highly anticipated return to the Octagon. The 38-year-old will step back into action on June 14 at Atlanta’s State Farm Arena. However, ‘The Nigerian Nightmare’ faces a tough challenge—he’s currently on a three-fight losing streak and will be taking on the red-hot Joaquin Buckley, who is riding an impressive six-fight winning streak.
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1 week ago | 
essentiallysports.com | Kanishk Thakur |SYED AHMED
The UFC world is desperate. The fate of the Jon Jones vs. Tom Aspinall heavyweight title unification bout is still shrouded in mystery. Fans will pay for Dana White to put them out of their misery by just telling them whether the fight is going to happen or not, after nearly eight months of will-they-won’t-they. And it seems the time for the announcement is nigh. Or at least that is what Aspinall wants us to believe.
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1 week ago | 
essentiallysports.com | Ishan Yadav |SYED AHMED
Fans people view UFC CEO Dana White as a polarizing figure in the world of combat sports. On one hand, he’s credited with transforming the UFC into the global face of MMA through sharp business instincts and bold decisions. On the other, he’s faced harsh criticism over several controversies—most notably, fighter compensation. Compared to boxing, UFC athletes often earn far less, prompting many to accuse White of shortchanging the very fighters who helped build the brand.
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1 week ago | 
essentiallysports.com | Ishan Yadav |SYED AHMED
What more does a fighter have to do to earn a UFC title shot? For undefeated featherweight contender Movsar Evloev, a 9-fight win streak inside the Octagon (19-0-0 overall) still hasn’t been enough. Since his debut in 2019, the Russian has steadily built a resume worthy of championship contention, yet the long-awaited title opportunity continues to slip through his fingers.
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1 week ago | 
essentiallysports.com | Ishan Yadav |SYED AHMED
“If the butcher weeps for the cow, who will bring the meat?” That proverb feels eerily fitting for GLORY Kickboxing—the London-based promotion that polished raw talent like Alex Pereira into world-class fighters. Once hailed for giving the MMA world one of its brightest stars, GLORY now finds itself facing heavy scrutiny—and not without reason. After 14 strong years in the game, GLORY is preparing for a landmark event: GLORY 100, scheduled to go down on June 14 at the iconic Rotterdam Ahoy.
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2 weeks ago | 
essentiallysports.com | Ishan Yadav |SYED AHMED
Although he’s never fought for the UFC title, No. 9 ranked lightweight contender Beneil Dariush made headlines this week with a bold statement. He claimed he would have submitted reigning champion Islam Makhachev if they had faced each other at UFC 311. “I would’ve won,” Dariush said.
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2 weeks ago | 
essentiallysports.com | Kanishk Thakur |SYED AHMED
The MMA world’s loss is Charles Oliveira‘s gain. The fight the MMA community wanted to see was Islam Makhachev vs. Ilia Topuria. But that won’t happen since Makhachev has moved up a weight class. ‘Do Bronx’, of course, is now set to fight Topuria for the lightweight title on the June 28, International Fight Week UFC 317 card. Oliveira, of course, had won the title in 2021 and went on to lose it in a one-sided submission loss to Islam Makhachev at UFC 280 in 2022.
