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Date: Saturday, June 3rd
Preliminary Card (UFC Fight Pass): 22:30 BCT / 3:30pm PST / 6:30pm EST
Preliminary Card (Fox Sports 1): 00:00 BCT / 5pm PST / 8pm EST
Main Card (PPV): 2:00 BCT / 7pm PST / 10pm EST
Live Streams: http://firstrowus1.eu/


http://i286.photobucket.com/albums/ll87/RickJSanchez/Other/ufc212.jpg

Main Card (PPV)

http://i286.photobucket.com/albums/ll87/RickJSanchez/Flags/brazil.gif Jose Aldo (https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Jos%C3%A9_Aldo) (26-2) vs. http://i286.photobucket.com/albums/ll87/RickJSanchez/Flags/usa.gif Max Holloway (https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Max_Holloway) (17-3) (Featherweight Championship unification bout)
http://i286.photobucket.com/albums/ll87/RickJSanchez/Flags/brazil.gif Claudia Gadelha (https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Cl%C3%A1udia_Gadelha) (14-2) vs. http://i286.photobucket.com/albums/ll87/RickJSanchez/Flags/poland.gif Karolina Kowalkiewicz (https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Karolina_Kowalkiewicz) (10-1) (Women's Strawweight)
http://i286.photobucket.com/albums/ll87/RickJSanchez/Flags/brazil.gif Vitor Belfort (https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Vitor_Belfort) (25-13) vs. http://i286.photobucket.com/albums/ll87/RickJSanchez/Flags/usa.gif Nate Marquardt (https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Nate_Marquardt) (35-17-2) (Light Heavyweight)
http://i286.photobucket.com/albums/ll87/RickJSanchez/Flags/brazil.gif Paulo Borrachinha (https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Paulo_Borrachinha) (9-0) vs. http://i286.photobucket.com/albums/ll87/RickJSanchez/Flags/nigeria.gif Oluwale Bamgbose (https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Oluwale_Bamgbose) (6-2) (Middleweight)
http://i286.photobucket.com/albums/ll87/RickJSanchez/Flags/brazil.gif Erick Silva (https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Erick_Silva) (19-7) vs. http://i286.photobucket.com/albums/ll87/RickJSanchez/Flags/usa.gif Yancy Medeiros (https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Yancy_Medeiros) (13-4) (Welterweight)

Preliminary Card (Fox Sports 1)

http://i286.photobucket.com/albums/ll87/RickJSanchez/Flags/brazil.gif Raphael Assuncao (https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Raphael_Assun%C3%A7%C3%A3o) (24-5) vs. http://i286.photobucket.com/albums/ll87/RickJSanchez/Flags/brazil.gif Marlon Moraes (https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Marlon_Moraes) (18-4-1) (Bantamweight)
http://i286.photobucket.com/albums/ll87/RickJSanchez/Flags/brazil.gif Antonio Carlos Junior (https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Ant%C3%B4nio_Carlos_J%C3%BAnior) (7-2) vs. http://i286.photobucket.com/albums/ll87/RickJSanchez/Flags/usa.gif Eric Spicely (https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Eric_Spicely) (10-1) (Middleweight)
http://i286.photobucket.com/albums/ll87/RickJSanchez/Flags/brazil.gif Johnny Eduardo (https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Johnny_Eduardo) (28-10) vs. http://i286.photobucket.com/albums/ll87/RickJSanchez/Flags/usa.gif Matthew Lopez (http://www.sherdog.com/fighter/Matthew-Lopez-136139) (9-1) (Bantamweight)
http://i286.photobucket.com/albums/ll87/RickJSanchez/Flags/brazil.gif Iuri Alcantara (https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Iuri_Alc%C3%A2ntara) (34-7) vs. http://i286.photobucket.com/albums/ll87/RickJSanchez/Flags/usa.gif Brian Kelleher (http://www.sherdog.com/fighter/Brian-Kelleher-53666) (16-7) (Bantamweight)

Preliminary Card (UFC Fight Pass)

http://i286.photobucket.com/albums/ll87/RickJSanchez/Flags/brazil.gif Viviane Pereira (http://www.sherdog.com/fighter/Viviane-Pereira-136367) (12-0) vs. http://i286.photobucket.com/albums/ll87/RickJSanchez/Flags/usa.gif Jamie Moyle (https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Jamie_Moyle) (4-1) (Women's Strawweight)
http://i286.photobucket.com/albums/ll87/RickJSanchez/Flags/brazil.gif Luan Chagas (http://www.sherdog.com/fighter/Luan-Chagas-113505) (14-2-1) vs. http://i286.photobucket.com/albums/ll87/RickJSanchez/Flags/england.gif Jim Wallhead (https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Jim_Wallhead) (29-10) (Welterweight)
http://i286.photobucket.com/albums/ll87/RickJSanchez/Flags/brazil.gif Deiveson Alcantara (http://www.sherdog.com/fighter/Deiveson-Alcantara-Figueiredo-110485) (11-0) vs. http://i286.photobucket.com/albums/ll87/RickJSanchez/Flags/mexico.gif Marco Beltran (https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Marco_Beltr%C3%A1n) (8-4) (Flyweight)

Other

- Felipe Arantes was expected to face Iuri Alcantara at the event. However on May 11, Arantes was pulled from the fight due to undisclosed reasons and was replaced by promotional newcomer Brian Kelleher on the same day.

Thanks to the Puertorican for letting me use this content (https://www.liquidpoker.net/poker-forum/1150706/UFC_212:_Aldo_vs._Holloway.html?topic_id=1150706&currentpage=1)

This bout is exciting. Jose Aldo has a home advantage. But i think Holloway is gonna win this fight. He is really good fighter. He beat the top fighters on his weight class(including Pettis). In my prediction. This is a close fight. Its a Unanimous decision to me. All for Holloway.

If there's any a time for Max Holloway it is now. I love Jose Aldo, I really do but ever since his loss to McGregor in 13 secs I think there will be some doubts in Aldo's head. Holloway has won his last 10 bouts and had looked great in all of them. This is going to be the title bout since McGregor hasnt defended his belt over a yeah. A really good match up and I cant wait for it.

Antony Pettis came to 145 pound division because he was not having a good time in his natural weight class of 155 pounds and he was not in good form and even in the match against Holloway he missed weight and so you really cannot count out Jose Aldo because of a freak knockout by Mcgregor. My bet is for Aldo to win the match.

I am not sure if I will watch this one.

With the new things going on in UFC, it's really tough to watch how they hurt players for entertainment.

Holly Holm vs Germaine de Randamie was the recent proof of why UFC kind of junk these days. If they want people to just fight without rules then they should just fight without rules.

Holloway had a pretty cool fight against Anthony Pettis. I might watch the whole fight on YouTube...maybe.

I hope that Holloway wins. Holloway is a pretty cool fighter, he reminds me of the sort of person that is fighting the celebrities and showing them that fighting isn't just entertainment -respectfully of course.

I like Aldo to win this fight only because I want him back in circulation on Conor's who to fight next list. The history and the drama between them too entertaining for the UFC to ignore. I speculate that Conor will ignore and avoid Jose Aldo for a while and when the time is right he will be all over him again talking trash. If Aldo cannot wait and really wants to fight Conor he has to move up to lightweight.

Conor McGregor and Korean Zombie could be the guys that gave Aldo the toughest fights and both had reach and height advantages over Aldo.

Max Holloway has a height advantage over Aldo (but not a reach advantage). I think that gives Holloway a better chance of winning than shorter fighters like Chad Mendes or Frankie Edgar.

Jose Aldo's cardio has also not looked good. He only fought 1-2 minutes of each round when he fought Frankie Edgar. For the most part Aldo coasted in that fight & Frankie Edgar did not pressure him much.

This card is still 4 months away with no other fights announced other than Max Holloway vs Jose Aldo.

I wonder if Michael Bisping vs Yoel Romero might also be announced for Rio.

Bisping vs Romero in Rio?  I pretty much doubt that.  I don't think Bisping will want to be a side show in Brazil and not under an Aldo fight.  Maybe if it was a bigger draw in the main event (McGregor vs someone) and being fought in Vegas or NY, then yes.  Tho I think Bisping will be fighting in his home turf again or in England at least.

Bisping is looking for big money fights and he is nursing an injury at the moment and he is avoiding Yoel Romero as it is a really hard fight for him instead he wants to face Georges St Pierre instead :D because those two are having the longest wins in UFC history and recently Romero started a GoFundMe page for Bisping mocking him :D it is interesting to see how Romero with his limited English ability is pissing Bisping .

Aldo Vs Holloway is an interesting match and with Mcgregor not interested to fight in 145 pound division this is the match we want to see ,but then again i would have liked to see Frankie Edward facing Holloway for the intern title rather than Pettis ,hope the match will go on as booked as Aldo has pulled out of matches in recent times they have to come up with good co main event if someone pulls out of the main event. ;D

Jose Aldo was destroyed by Conor in less than 20 seconds, which is why Jose Aldo vs Conor 2 is not really a main attraction anymore. I think Jose Aldo has a lot of anger and wants to prove that he is a good fighter, so he will have to win this, then aim for a second Conor shoot, but I think Conor will not give him a rematch.

I would like to see Khabib vs Conor in Russia for the inauguration of UFC Russia, that would be huge.

Even Jose Aldo will win on their match against Holloway, Conor don't give a f**k about Aldo.

Why there's no news regarding on Conor McGregor defending his belts or he's stagnant. 

Conor Mcgregor is the biggest champion in the history of MMA and he has won multiple championships in Featherweight and Lightweight in Cage Warriors and UFC and he might be the only champion who never defended any of the belts he won in both organisation  ;D and now he is not even bothered or interested to fight anyone in MMA but wanted to fight Floyd Mayweather .I like to see a rematch between Aldo and Mcgregor and Aldo really deserved a rematch because he was so dominant during his reign. Let me tell you one thing he wont face Khabib anytime soon . :D

The only big sellers for Conor McGregor:

-Khabib Numbwhatever
-Tony Ferguson
-Tyron Woodley

Those 3 guys are the biggest selling points against McGregor nowadays. And of course, Mayweather would be a total success in a boxing match, probably biggest selling fight in history.

Jose Aldo will definitely win this fight against Holloway. He has face tough opponents before and Holloway will not be a big challenge of Jose I think. Max better be bringing his A-game, because this is Jose's town and love there. Aldo is still eager to fight Connor so this fight will be his stepping stone to be in the limelight again. Aldo by KO round 2.

If Jose Aldo fails to deliver his chances to fight Conor McGregor will be next to 0. As discuses above, Conor has too many options which are more lucrative than an Aldo fight.
Conor would need to get beaten a couple times for him to give him a fight.

That is because Conor knows Khabib has a good chance to win versus him. It would be a wise move for him to avoid fighting Khabib or anyone until he finds an advantage. Since he is risking everything in every fight then Conor should pick his battles.

Every potential future fight for Conor is a potential loss for him, that's what happen whe nyou raise the bar too high.

Any of the big selling fights, will present him big difficulties.

A Nate Diaz rematch, a Khabib match, a Tyron Woodley match... a Floyd in boxing match.. all are big risks for Conor.

I know Connor Mcgregor is a smart individual. He wants to fight Floyd Mayweather now ,it will be the biggest draw in sports history without a doubt and the money he is going to make will be huge no problem even if he loses then he has to face Tyron Woodley the biggest match in UFC no problem if he loses he can come back to Khabib and yet another big pay day ,no problem if he loses he can go down to face jose Aldo again. With these fights he will be happy to retire as he will be the richest sports person in fight history.  :D

It is almost certain that Floyd Mayweather Connor Mcgregor match will happen and it is head that the negotiations are done and only papers have to be signed for the bout to be officially announced and if its true it will be the biggest match of all time and the predictions are off the roof with this one. If that happens he will be vacating his 155 pound belt too. Another interesting news is that GSP has signed a contract with the UFC once again.

Nate Diaz is the weakest fighter in that line up. That shows Conor McGregor wants not only entertaining fights but also challenging ones for his development as a martial artist. He is special and we will not see someone like him for a long time after he retires. 

A fight versus Woodley would knock him out of his socks. It is best to avoid him.

@eaLiTy. Please post the link. That news is almost certainly fake. Floyd released a statement that there was nothing at present.

Well we've seen a lot of dominant fighters havibgbtheir careers eclipsed by younger blood like anderson silva, and i think aldo could end up the same after the loss to connor. Im still rooting for aldo and if i have to bet, i'd still bet on him in this fight but i don't think it would ever be the same as before. Hopefully he wins amd we get to see a rematch with connor in the future

I think Aldo will not let this one slip away because he also knows that a lost will mean no Connor McGregor for him. That's why I think, with his hometown behind him, he will win this fight to get a notch higher chance of fighting McGregor to avenge his lost.

@joshy23. I am with you. I said before that a Jose Aldo win will be good for a 2nd chance to see him fight Conor McGregor. There is nothing like a good grudge match with a lot of drama to make the fans salivate in anticipation.

If Aldo wins it will solidify his position as champion in feather weight. He can then move up to light weight and go after Conor for his belt. That will be good for the UFC, the fighters and the fans.

What a match it be when Aldo faces Connor again. Can't wait to see it. Going back to Aldo vs Holloway though, I think Holloway is a live underdog here. I hope Aldo will not underestimate this guy because Holloway has been improving a lot lately. I'm sure if Aldo wins, he will call out Connor during the interview.. ;D

@peter0425. Watch Jose Aldo's fight versus Frankie Edgar. From that fight alone I could see Aldo as the slight underdog in the upcoming main event versus Max Holloway. Max fights almost the same as Frankie but he is a younger, faster and a more improved version of him. Let us see what Aldo can do.

Even i would really like to see a rematch between Aldo and Connor but things have changed a lot for Connor as he is now a champion in another division and it will be hard for Aldo to get that rematch as Connor is having other plans.

@bbc.reporter Aldo is a really strong opponent and one loss against Connor will not deter his value and skills and this fight will determine whether injuries have taken its toll on his body as Holloway is a really improved and talented fighter.

@SaShiRaJaVu. I agree with you about Aldo. He is making it his mission to get a rematch versus Conor McGregor. That is why I am speculating that in the future Aldo will be very eager to move up to the lightweight division to get his rematch. If Aldo wins versus Max Holloway it will be one of the biggest fights in UFC history. Another fight with a champion in featherweight and lightweight involved. If the money is right I do not think Conor will back down from it because he knows he can beat Aldo.

@bbc.reporter I am sure the there are plenty of matches lined up for Conor Mcgregor in the UFC ,i want to see him fight against Aldo then against Khabib and Tony and a super fight with GSP and i am sure all these matches will break UFC pay per view records. Hope he returns in the UFC and not deviate his plans by not defending any of his belts and rather box mayweather.

Apart from the Aldo Vs Holloway match they just added Cláudia Gadelha vs Karolina Kowalkiewicz for the card. My request to the UFC is that they must have a really good co main event because you really cannot trust an Aldo main event as he used to get hurt most of the time and if they don't get a good co main event it will be a stalemate of a card.

Yes I saw that fight. Actually I was rooting for Frankie Edgar to win that fight and I think he ""almost" beat Aldo on his worst day. I have nothing against Holloway, he is good with a 6 fight winning streak if I'm not mistaken, but I still like Aldo to win and set up a match with Connor to prove that he still has it. ;D

@ peter Max Holloway is on a ten fight winning steak and his last loss was against Conor McGregor and Holloway is the first person who dragged the match till the end inside the UFC against Connor as he won by decision and he is really young as he is just 25 years of age. If he is able to beat Aldo in Brazil that will be a feature in his cap. He was reckless against Conor and i really doubt he would risk and i would see the match going to a decision.

What are you talking about? Aldo does not get hurt most of the time. He is one of the most durable fighters in the UFC. Also why are you requesting a good comain event when you already mentioned it. A rematch between Claudia Gadelha and Karolina Kowalkiewicz will be a good one. That we can expect.

Anderson Silva and Kelvin Gastelum are set to fight in this event.  Imho, I think this is a big mistake for Anderson to fight him this early after his bout with Brunson.  He didn't look good then and I bet he wouldn't look good vs Gastelum either.  He should give it more time before fighting again.  He's over 40 ffs.

It is going to be a hard fight for Anderson Silva as Kevin Gastelum looks comfortable after moving up in weight but you cannot count out the greatest of all time and when he was in his prime he defeated everyone who is thrown in front of him and now with the injuries and the fight years he has being through he should retire on a high end rather than retiring like Vitor Belfort with a loss.

Agree it will be a tough one for the "legend" Anderson Silva. Kevin Gastelum is not a push over. Yes he has problem with this weight that why he moves up and face Silva. Its hard not to put your money on Kevin, because I hate to see Anderson lose this one. But I have to bet against him, I'm picking Kevin on this fight.

Jose Aldo got rocket by Conor McGregor. This card is just not that interesting, the Cormier card is also not that interesting in my book. I think the UFC is failing to come up with great cards lately, at least to catch the attention of the average joe that isnt a fan.

Maybe because the attention right now is on Connor McGregor only. I agree with you saying that lately the cards is not stack up as previous years. I think Dana White should bring in fresh new fighters inside the cage that is interesting. Or maybe some of the fighters are injured that's why the card in not as worthy as before.

Sure Conor MgCregor is the main UFC attraction, but the problem, the rest of the UFC talents keep fucking up. Khabib N didn't pass the weight test against the big Tony Ferguson fight, Jon Bones Jones didn't pass the drug test against the big Daniel Cormier fight, Anderson Silva is no longer on his prime and should retire...

Aldo says he will pursue the knockout against Holloway.

Most of Aldo's success has come against fighters shorter than him, with less reach.

The title defenses Aldo had the most trouble with were against fighters near to his size: Conor McGregor & Korean Zombie.

I'm looking forward to seeing Aldo fight Holloway.   ;D

Holloway doesn't have KO power tho.  So I think Aldo has the edge here.  And imho Aldo winning will be much better for the UFC because he'll come after McGregor next.  I can imagine the winning speech already.  He'll call out McGregor.

Aldo is motivated to prove he is one of the best, but McGregor destroyed his confidence, the win by McGregor was too clear, he got KO'd and that is a very bad feeling for fighters and you have it in your head for the future 2 or 3 fights.

Holloway does not have KO power but he is the only fighter who fought with Conor Mcgregor and went the distance when all the fighters got knocked out,so he is durable and he has improved a lot after that loss,but Aldo is a really tough fighter and is one of the best fighters and i was routing for him to kick the hell out of Mcgregor and lost a huge bet in that match and i really wish to see the rematch between them,but it is really difficult to catch Mcgregor now as he has a long list of fights and that too big money fights.

@eaLiTy. That is true but that does not mean Aldo cannot win versus Max Holloway. I speculate this fight will be almost the same as Aldo versus Frankie Edgar. Frankie and Max almost have the style. Also another big help for Aldo is the fight will be in Rio de Jianero.

About Conor and Aldo, I am confident that Aldo will get his chance before he retires.

@bbc.reporter I am with Aldo in this encounter because i do consider him the best in the world but i just gave Holloway the credits because he is really young as he is just 25 years of age and he has already accomplished a lot at this age and went the full distance with Conor while he was knocking the rest of the fighters,Aldo was wild and he used to knock everyone out when he came into MMA and then he started to fight smart after becoming the champion and the only time when he lost his cool was against Conor and he got humiliated in that fight and if there is a rematch i am sure Aldo will win but to get that rematch is really difficult with Conor having other plans.

Well said, he is young lion and willing to take the crown for the old's one. But Aldo has the experience, the durability and looking for the rematch against Connor. So Aldo will pull this win and fight Connor. However, like you said, Connor has other plans like the Mayweather fight??? or move to a different weight class. So I doubt if he will get the rematch soon after he wins against Max.

Aldo has declared that he was willing to move up in lightweight just to fight versus Conor. I speculate Aldo will keep hunting for a rematch with the Irishman after winning versus Max Holloway. The humiliation is too much for him. He feels Conor's win was not deserved.

Well in a way i think connir got into aldo's head the last time that's aldo got cocky and careless. But i'd love to see a rematch. I believe aldo deserves a rematch of all people consifering his contributions to the ufc. Though i'm nit sure if the result would br different as mcgregor actually keeps getting better after their last fight. But that is onr rematch i'd pay to see

@Malsetid. I agree. I do not think he was at his best when he fought Conor. Aldo would not be so careless by throwing wild punches with his head leaned forward and his chin exposed.

Conor made him do that and trapped him up,he knew with the mind games he played he will come after him swinging and he waited for the perfect shot and knocked him out cold,i have never seen anyone humiliating Aldo in his career before the match and no one talked trash to Aldo and the mind games worked perfectly,i do think Conor is a genius to upset the oppositions rhythm.

Jose Aldo is 5.7 and for a 145 pound champion he wont be getting a 6 feet challengers as they wont be able to get to that weight and Kenny Florian is 5.10 and he had the reach advantage and still Aldo won the match as he kicked the hell out of his legs and that is how he is going to fighter taller guys and even with Korean Zombie he was not at all in any trouble and he popped his shoulders in the match and Aldo finished that fight soon after.

Lol.  Jose Aldo isn't knocking out anyone now that the UFC is so strict with PED use.  And he's not knocking out Max Holloway for sure maybe even under PED.  Holloway is quicker and has the athleticism and techique to make this a close fight.  Too bad he has pillows for fists.  So there's no threat for Aldo getting KO'd too.

So you think that Aldo was taking PED's ,i would say that it is just not true,because he has not dropped his performance even after USADA,look at the performance of Vitor Belfort,Erick Silva,Johny Hendricks,Pettis and many more after the USADA test and look at their difference in how they look now but i do not see much of a difference with Aldo.

What?  The Brazilians are known to use the 'Brazilian Juice' during training.  Don't be naive to believe Aldo didn't use performance enhancers, in one form or another during all his training before the USADA begun to become really strict with the tests.

Some of them even resort to vitamins with added ingredients that increase your testosterone levels.  Those have been known to be used by the Brazilians and have been flagged by USADA as illegal.

@ tokeweed i am also against fighters who are fighting with the help of synthetic drugs and it should be removed from the sport and especially in combat sport like MMA ,it is really dangerous and it is an added advantage and now when it comes to Aldo he is never flagged for taking illegal substance and you really cannot predict that everyone from a group are taking juice,i am not seeing any difference in his physic before and after the testing started and it is not easy to escape the testing process as they are conducting Olympic style random tests and even if you take tainted food or medicine you will get flagged,so hope you understand the level of strictness.

If that is the case then you have to say that everyone was on juice before the USADA testing and you can see the difference between performance from some fighters and i have mentioned earlier about it and i have not seen any performance difference from Aldo and with the recent testing it is really difficult to get away with PED use as they will be testing them randomly,it is a known fact that testosterone replacement therapy is used by many fighters but Aldo was not in that list who took that treatment.

Watch the press conference.  Some interesting development is occuring for UFC 212.  After the pull out of Gastelum, Anderson Silva has explicitly expressed his desire to fight only someone who is coming off from a win in his division.  Belfort and Rockhold is out of the question.  Mousasi just fought Weidman, so he's out too.

There's only one name left.  Yoel Romero!  YES PLEASE!

UFC 212 Press Conference
https://m.youtube.com/watch?v=8jRVJFgINfU

I think this will be a close fight between Aldo vs Holloway,in terms of stats Aldo got the advantage on this match. In my opinion this fight will end in a decision, I'm craving for Aldo vs Mcgregor in years but the match will never be happened even how Aldo strive. By the way I'm waiting also for the last slot who will be the opponent of Anderson Silva, @tokeweed hopefully you're right.

Yes, in paper it looks like Aldo has the advantage. But Holloway is a live underdog. We all love for Aldo to win because we want him a rematch with the Connor, but this is not an easy fight for him.

@tokeweed

What a match if Silva with face Yoel. Yoel is a monster, I don't think Silva can win if they face each other. I just hope for Anderson to retire. He has already cemented his legacy. No need to get that body bang again with the likes of Yoel Romero.

@Kemarit. That speculation might now be over. There is news that Anderson Silva has pulled out of UFC 212. I also said that he has not left in good terms and it mentioned that the UFC organization has disrespected him and his legacy in the sport.

Will we see him go to Bellator?

I read the news as well about Anderson Silva announcing his self pull out from UFC 212. Anderson Silva may have carved a good history with UFC but his fight antics has turned off a lot his fans just like what happened on his fight with Chris Weidman. he mocked and played too much and got caught and now he wants respect. I know that's part of his fight plan but I find it disrespectful to the other fighter. 

@lemipawa. His fight antics are what make the fans watch his fights. Your opinion of him is very flat and very depthless and it is very unfair to criticize him from his fight versus Chris Weidman.

It is maybe because you really do not watch the UFC that much and have not seen the growth and the journey of Anderson and what he has brought to the sport.

You have heard it wrong,Anderson Silva is not pulling out from UFC 212,he does not have an opponent to dance with and he is looking to fight in Brazil for a very long time and he wants to face Yoel Romero for an interim title and Romero is happy to go on with the fight against Anderson but UFC is not interested in putting the fight together and so is the reason he is frustrated.

I feel Anderson is being a drama queen this time.  I mean he's still a great fighter with a legacy behind him, but c'mon...  He himself should know that his stock has gone down and he can't pull the same PPV numbers he used to.  It's sad it came to this, really.

So true. But that is the problem with some of the athletes in all of sports. It is like that they can't accept that they are no longer relevant in their sport. Like what Anderson is right now, he has lost the luster in his career after that unfaithful lost to Weidman. Anderson thinks he has still the command in his career but I doubt he will be. He should retire, he has already cemented his legacy.

Anderson Silva is still on time to retire and live a good life with still a legendary legacy. If he continues like this he is going to start damaging his legacy.

It's like Mirko Crocop, he should have retired years ago. He lost a lot of times in the UFC, even tho lately he won some good fights in Japan, but that's not UFC.

Mirko Crocop is a legend no doubt about that and when he came to the UFC he could not perform like he used to be in the past,his performance was on a slide when he signed for the UFC and he ended his career in Japan with a championship victory and he announced his retirement,good to see him get to retire on a winning note and that too a heavyweight title,it is time for Anderson Silva to step out of the UFC and have some fun fights and call it quits like Mirko did.

Maybe it was better if Anderson retired as the champion like what GSP did and then make a comeback fight for the money. I speculate the reason why Anderson is still fighting is more for the money now.

Hey guys.  Updated the OP with some of the info about the players.  May it help you choose your bets wisely.

Anyway, time moves very fast.  I didn't realize 212 is gonna be this weekend!  Yay!

Here are some videos to get you started.

UFC 212 Countdown: Full Episode
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=5_wHmcwT_cY

UFC 212 Free Fight: Max Holloway vs Cub Swanson
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=6L1STr2RL2M

UFC 212 Free Fight: Aldo vs Mendes 2
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=6ZZxzwHZ2Ek

UFC 212 Embedded: Vlog Series - Episode 1
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=1l-F1oHWY7s

Do you guys think Holloway has a chance?

After the Rizen win in Japan by Mirko im sure he retired with a good sensation, he demonstrated he could still kick ass.

He should retire now, im sure he is a multi millionaire, all he needs to do now is open a couple gyms and enjoy the unlimited passive income.

Same goes for Silva, his days in the UFC as a world champion are over.

I have no idea about Aldo vs Holloway, that's one I can't predict.

Im saving some money for the Mayweather vs McGregor fight, that's going to be huge. I don't see how you cant lose if you bet for a Mayweather win. It worked 49 times.

The hype when Mirko joined the UFC was so huge that time. But losses to many unknown fighters that time stop the hype train, too bad. As for Silva, nothing to proved anymore. He is already a legend and please don't fight and enjoy your life.

As for Mayweather's record. "49 have tried and 49 have failed".

Still having a hard time picking Aldo vs Holloway? You are not the one. I still don't know who to pick with.

Oscar De La Hoya beat Mayweather once, even if judges awarded Floyd the decision.

Even Floyd's father came out and said he thought Oscar De La Hoya won that fight.

I'm leaning towards Max Holloway defeating Jose Aldo. I think Jose Aldo could be a more skilled fighter than Max Holloway. I'm not sure Aldo has the cardio to last 5 rounds. His endurance hasn't looked good of late.

One thing for sure,it will be a good battle and i am favoring Jose Aldo to win the fight as he thinks that he has unfinished business with Conor McGregor which i think will not be fulfilled,his last fight against Frankie was impressive and if he could perform to that level i think he can win the fight,Max Holloway has improved a lot since his last defeat against Mcgregor and age is also in his side.Let the best man win.

I'm sticking with Aldo here.  The fight is in Rio, Brazil and that's a big psychological edge right there.  And at 1.86 at Nitrogen, that's fair value imo.  Not as high as I would like but still ok.

Plus it would be way better to see Aldo call out and come after McGregor after this.  Maybe Aldo could even go up to LW and try to get two belts in the process.  It sounds crazy but the UFC has been doing stuff differently since the WME-IMG acquisition.

my picks


Jose Aldo  even if like Max and hes from the same island
Vitor Belfort
Yancy Medeiros
Raphael Assuncao
Eric Spicely
Johnny Eduardo

Mayweather is 40 years old his reflexes may have gone down and if McGregor could connect one single punch then it will be game over,McGregor has already shown that he could hit the target with short gloves and with ten inch gloves he could connect in my opinion,it all depends upon how rusty Mayweather will be coming into the fight.

Mayweather is still on top shape, he is always training and keeps himself active. In his last fight he made Berto look like an Amateur, and McGregor is an actual boxing amateur, so he is going to make him look like a fool.

Of course, McGregor hits hard as hell, so if he connects one punch that could be it. This is why the fight is so exciting. But let's not forget, Mayweather has a strong chin and can take a punch:
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=LhnRO9NeXFI

In this second round Mosley rocked Mayweather, and he still managed to come back and make Mosley look like a tool by the end of the fight. It takes amazing determination to do that.

Lol. How did you know that Mayweather has lost his reflexes? But what I know is that he keeps himself in top shape all year round. He is still a step ahead of all his opponents. McGregor is not a pro boxing, have you seen a pro boxer hitting Mayweather straight in the face?.........???? Last time I saw him being hit was with Mosley, he buckled a bit, but was able to recover and win.

I must agree that Mayweather is not getting any younger. And at 40 years and still top of his game is amazing. But as far as his reflexes is concern, I think it is still there because he is an extra ordinary athlete. He was able to maintain it for such a long time but doing a lot of work even when he is not fighting. So I disagree with you that his reflex may have been gone already. I also don't think that ring rust will also be another factor against him because just like I said, he keeps himself busy through out the year.

That is the only thing i like about Mayweather is that he wont drink nor use drugs and he always takes care of his body,McGregor is not even an amateur boxer as i am not sure he has entered a boxing ring in his life for a bout but he could hit hard and that is the exciting factor,no one cares if Mayweather schools him because that is what is supposed to happen a big pay day for both the fighters but what if he could knock him out and what different does an MMA fighter who is really unorthodox can do.



How do you know that he has not lost his reflexes.He has not taken much damages in the boxing ring but anything could happen,what if Mayweather takes Mcgregor lightly like the rest of the opponents he faced in MMA and gets knocked out.It is a possibility. 

@SaShiRaJaVu. The boxing gloves that will be used for their fight will add up to Floyd's advantage. Yes I know Conor can connect with the MMA gloves and the boxing gloves. But Floyd is more accustomed to the 8 oz gloves and he can use it to protect his chin or face and block Conor's punches. With MMA's smaller 4 oz. gloves, a fighter can use a Wing Chun style screw punch to hit through the hands protecting the face.

Hey guys.  Take the boxing chat to the proper thread.  McGregor vs Mayweather is a scam fight organized to get your money anyway.  ;D

Anyway, here's Dan Hardy's break down of the main event.  He seems to think that both fighters are equally matched and has the mental advantage on Holloway, but I dunno...  I'm still with Aldo on this one. 

And watch the vlog series episode two.  KK is sooo hot in a bikini.  ;D

UFC 212: Inside the Octagon - Jose Aldo vs Max Holloway
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=iQvaf84pRDg

UFC 212 Embedded: Vlog Series - Episode 2
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=rZsQ2hxLebg

McGregor is not even amateur. I couldn't find any senior titles, he may have won some junior titles, in some video he showed some trophies when he was young... nothing big.

http://boxrec.com/search/do_search

If he had any relevant boxing titles it would show up on this website. So yeah, he has no actual boxing experience. He will have to use his UFC striking skills. And remember that power on boxing globes is different to UFC.

Conor McGregor is the talk even in this thread,he has truly created something which is unique with all the fight fans with the way he talked,pro wrestling gave us good scripted talk and earlier we had Mohammed Ali who talked the talk and walked the walk,now what ever Conor McGregor touches he turns that into gold,he is the only person who gave every fighters a hope to start getting paid more than what they are used to and i think he is an smart individual by pitching a fight against Mayweather as he could easily retire after the match even if he looses,as he is rumored to make around hundred million or more with this single fight.

Mirko was great in pride and I the type of training they did back then was different.  They didn't do as much research into the opponent and develop in depth game plans.  It was okay to be a one sided fighter back then.  He had great take down defense and the lethal kicks.  But in the UFC, people are constantly looking out for his kick and it wasn't a surprise anymore.  He also wasn't able to adapt and keep his opponent guessing...he just continued with the same style and had trouble evolving.

As for Aldo vs. Holloway...hard to say for me as well.  Holloway's confidence is at an all time high.  I think it's safe to say this will be a stand up fight, so depends on if Aldo can chop the leg down and land hay makers to rock Holloway, who has a great chin...or if Holloway can put pressure on Aldo and get him moving backwards, and in boxing distance.  I see it being pretty even as they're both beasts.

Karolina is looking good in a black bikini on the UFC embedded series. Anyone think she could pull off an upset against Claudia Gadelha? The UFC also seems to be giving Max Holloway more coverage than the champion Jose Aldo is receiving. It makes me wonder and question why the UFC does certain things.

Only a few days more and this event is live. At least this card gives me more hope than the last card did.

@Hydrogen. No. Karolina is too slow and too weak for Claudia. Claudia fights like she can compete in the men's division. She is like Amanda Nunes to a degree but without the lesbian girlfriend. Hehehe.

She also looks good in a peachy colored bikini.  You like?  :D

https://i.imgur.com/TSSgafm.jpg

And here are some additional videos as the event comes near.  Hopefully most of you have already made your bets.  Krach advices not to watch any hype or docu type of videos unless you have already made your bets since it could affect your judgement.

UFC 212 Embedded: Vlog Series - Episode 4
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=5kI1HsfF31A

UFC 212: Media Day Faceoffs
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=zmoDKGNIQIg

UFC 212: Open Workout Highlights
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=nU_YeslYOd0

I think Karolina will defeat Claudia.

That's my prediction.   :D

It may not be a good prediction.

That's the impression I get from watching the open workouts & listening to some of the things they're saying.

Of course open workouts aren't reliable as some fighters like Max Holloway throw their punches and kicks at 10% during open workouts while fighters like Jose Aldo throw their punches and kicks closer to 60%. It can be hard to gauge how good or powerful someone's technique is.

lol...why should Holloway put on a good open workout for the crowd when they're yelling out that he's going to die?  ;)

I'm torn between who to choose between Aldo and Holloway.  I'm for Holloway, but tough to bet against Aldo.

Any of you guys bet via bitcoin?

I really think that Jose Aldo will approach this fight like he faced Frankie Edgar where he will pick his shots and since Max Holloway is not a great wrestler expect some vicious leg kicks and Aldo has one of the nasty leg kicks in MMA history and it all depends upon his game plan,i wish i could see the old WEC Aldo where he was finishing people and yes i am wagging with bitcoin.

Yeah I'd say Aldo has the best leg kicks in the UFC...maybe Edson Barboza is close.  He looked good against Edgar.  If he can damage Holloway's front leg...the later rounds especially are going to be tough.

WEC Aldo is no more...those flying knees and crazy knock outs...he's more into technical boxing now.  In his defense, it's difficult to fight like he used to in WEC as a long time champion.

Everyone in this thread bets with bitcoin. Check their wallets, they are all empty. ;D

If you find it hard to choose between Jose and Max, look for any small advantages one has over the other. In this fight it is the advantage of the home crowd for Jose.

lol what platforms are being used for betting with bitcoin?

Agreed - that's a good tip, but I'm not going to bet on this particular fight.  Home crowd is a huge advantage, and I'd probably lean towards Aldo to win the fight, but not with much confidence.  I'll watch this one for entertainment and bet on the ones I'm more sure of (not that it's a sure thing either) :)

Hey guys just dropping by to post more videos.  The weigh ins were ok, not much tension or any fighters in the main card antagonizing each other (at least not from what I've seen, I skipped the video to the final two matches' weigh ins :D).  But yeah, totally unlike the McGregor fights.

 UFC 212 Embedded: Vlog Series - Episode 5
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=DFPrRHlXLbU

UFC 212: Official Weigh-in
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ROxf8sFP4CI

Are you all ready?

https://i.imgur.com/KI5vd15.jpg

Jose Aldo has a chance to redeem himself, he was pretty depressed after the Connor fight, but I doubt he will ever get a rematch from Conor.

If I had to guess, Conor will fight Mayweather, will lose, will get the 75 million, will go back to UFC, will fight Ferguson and Khabib and that's it, he will end his career there.

Jose Aldo needs this win for him to establish himself again after getting a not so good knock out from the notoriuos Conor McGregor. His (Jose Aldo) experience of headlining events is an advantage over his opponent so I expect Aldo to show that he is the greatest in his weight class.

I think I'm going with Gadelha to win via decision. Kowalkiewicz coming from a lost from a title fight and facing Gadelha will be a big task for her. I see that their style is very similar, they are very aggressive. I think Gadelha is much better if there is a chance that they will clinch in the corner that's why I give the advantage to her. And Gadelha for me is more well round than Kowalkiewicz. Tough to pick but I have to say that Holloway has the advantage. He is young and is very aggressive as well. He will pressure Aldo here, and I don't know if Aldo can maintain the phase that Holloway will put on him. I initially pick Aldo to win, but I'm putting my money now on Holloway. Too many intangibles that point on Max Holloway that is not easy to ignore.

Aldo has savage leg kicks. That can be a disadvantage at times when Aldo fights southpaws since its easier for his kicks to accidentally impact their knee/shin similar to how Anderson Silva broke his leg kicking Chris Weidman. When Jose Aldo fought Korean Zombie he broke his foot leg kicking into Korean Zombie's knee/shin.

If Max Holloway fights southpaw with his right left forward that could go a long way towards nullifying Jose Aldo's leg kicks similar to what happened when Aldo fought southpaw Conor McGregor.

I'm leaning towards Max Holloway winning since Aldo's cardio looked very bad when he fought Frankie Edgar the last time.

Yeah, I bet via BTC.   :D  I lost 0.14 btc betting last week. Hopefully I will win this week.

No doubt that Carolina won some hearts with her bikini display and it is a tough fight and i am more interesting in betting the rounds rather than choosing the winner,i think it will go full three rounds,while i really cannot think about Aldo loosing to anyone other than a one punch knockout,Max wont KO him and it will be a great fight.

Karolina lost via rare naked choke. She tried to stand up and exposed her back. For a professional she made an amateur mistake.

Update - Nice win by Max. He got the best of Jose Aldo in 3 rounds. We have a new era now at featherweight.

The reign of Jose Aldo as the undisputed feature weight champion is over at a young age of 30,the first two rounds were scored by Aldo but Max Holloway came back strong in the third round and defeated Aldo,it was a classic performance from the young champion and now he is undefeated in his last eleven fights and his next test will be Frankie Edgar.

Wow what a great fight.  Aldo and Holloway looked sharp.  Aldo had a good start and was on point with his counters, but didn't throw any leg kicks.  I'm happy for Holloway...well deserved.

yup weird he didnt throw one leg kick he needed to slow max down for the later rounds

Congratulations to holloway there though i lost quite a couple of hundreds with the bet i made, it was a good fight. I think aldo would have a hard time bringing back his old self especially with the losses he's suffered. Sad to see him go like that but great guys eventually had to reach this point. Hopefully he doesn't retire yet though

Nice win for both of them and thank coz I won my bet  ;D

Yeah, a new era has started with Max Holloway at the reign of featherweight division. Max didn't disappoint us in his  biggest fight and he make it counts with a 3rd round stoppage of Jose Aldo. In the end, Holloway was able to prevail and leave no doubt about the best fighter in the division. Holloway's last lost was with Connor McGregor. Can we have Holloway vs McGregor then?  I think Aldo needs more time and rethink about what his future maybe.

As for Claudia vs Karolina, I have predicted the clinch will be critical for Claudia, both are strikers but when they clinched she proves powerful with her elbow and able to get the double-underhooks and put Karolina on her back to finished her.

Yup.  And wtf, Aldo got tired by the third round?  He has more championship rounds experience than Holloway.  It's really surprising.

So who's next for Holloway?  Edgar?  The division just got boring.

Maybe Aldo wants to proved something here by going toe to toe and not using his vaunted leg kick to his advantage. Well its pretty solid division to me. We still have Frankie Edgar, who should get his title shot after defeating Yair earlier. And then we have Ricardo Llamas, Cub Swanson and Anthony Pettis in the line.

No words to describe my frustration,i think it is time for Aldo to change the camp if he wants to improve and have a real strategy ,people are studying his game for a long time and for the first two rounds he was managing to win the rounds,he did not throw one leg kick which really surprised me and in the third round it is all over,the reign is over for good,huge loss in my bets too.

Aldo is known for fading a bit (not badly) in the later rounds regardless of his championship experience.  Tough to be so explosive and keep great cardio.  Whereas Holloway always has great cardio.

Edgar and Swanson should battle it out for the next title fight.

I was wrong on Karolina winning.

But right on Aldo's cardio being bad:


I like Aldo but his fighting career could be over. He'll be one of those fighters who needs to win his fights early or he could be finished when he slows down and his cardio fails him.   :-\

@Hydrogen. I do not think so. Jose Aldo still has 5 or more years in him. Most of it may not be the big fights that he is used to but he will still continue to fight as long has he has motivation to do it. Look at Anderson and Vitor, they are over their 40's but they are still in the most competitive organization in all of MMA.

Watch the last Aldo vs Edgar fight, Aldo didn't use the leg kicks much either.  It was Aldo fighting another way which was good against Edgar but it would have been better if he had the leg kicks against Holloway.  But hindsight is always 50/50.


Pettis, Llamas are ok, but something I won't really care about if they fight Holloway,  Same with Edgar.  He lost to Aldo twice in the UFC, watching him fight the guy who beat Aldo won't pique my interest either.

Holloway vs Cub Swanson 2?  Maybe...

First round of Aldo Vs Holloway I give it to Aldo and I thought Aldo have this fight in the bag but Holloway have a fight plan that I many didn't see coming. Holloway waited for the right time and Aldo runs out of gas to continue. Last Saturdays Aldo is different from the Aldo that we see on UFC 163, 169, 179. Maybe Aldo is very cautious after his fight with McGregor.

Jose Aldo was making a good job until he got rocked. He was throwing good jabs but the other guy got some good angles counter attacking and he was able to throw him at the floor and fuck shit up.

Holloway and Conor is now in the realm of possibility but I think we all want to see Tony Ferguson, Khabib, or even Tyron Woodley above a Holloway fight.

Conor will fight Mayweather first before an UFC fight tho. But then one of those guys will fight Conor.

Hmmm. The way I analyzed it, seems to me the new breed of UFC fighters are emerging. Jose Aldo has been a very good fighter. But now new fighters are raising the bar, like Holloway, that keeps some very extra-ordinary fighters be like ordinary now. Look at what happened to Ronda. They have already caught up with Ronda and she looks like just a ordinary fighter now. Same as Robbie Lawler, Anthony Pettis and now Aldo.
Only one I'm seeing is Mighty Mouse and Jon Jones (but we have to see it if he fight next). Fighters are really notching one level above and we are seeing a new wave of fighter making those ex-champs obsolete, if I may say.

Well of course your thoughts are very much appreciated. I'm just calling it the way I see the UFC fighters now. Evolving.

We saw the growth of Mighty Mouse Johnson from his WEC days at 135 pounds and now the undisputed king at 125 pounds and he has improved his game a lot and keeps on improving,Jon Jones is the greatest fighter the world has seen till now,you cannot find many weakness with Jones and almost all of the holes are closed when it comes to Mighty Mouse,sure the new breed is taking the bar higher and with the exit of Aldo we have new match ups and Edgar will get a chance to face someone for the championship other than Aldo.

The game is definitely elevating over time, and in reality it's super tough to be champion for so long.  GSP went into retirement from the stress of being champion for so many years.

I think Ronda had a bit of a different situation because of her persona in the ring, as a killer.  Female fighters were highly intimidated by her and couldn't properly execute their game plan.  Holly was the first to expose how bad her footwork is when boxing.  Probably the worst footwork in the UFC, but she knocked out Bethe Correia so people thought she was a great boxer.  Holly picked her apart, and then that "immortal" persona went out the window.  Boxing mitts and actually fighting are so different.  She's great at hitting mitts with Edmond "head movement" Tarverdyan lol.

Aldo really relies on his reflexes, quickness, explosiveness and power....which doesn't usually translate into aging well as a fighter.  Those things are only going to slow down with time.

It all depends on whether Jose Aldo has abused steroids during his career.

If Aldo abused steroids, eventually he could reach a point where his heart & cardiovascular system will become damaged & negatively affect his cardio.

That could be what happened to Aldo when he fought Frankie Edgar. Aldo had to pace himself and only fought the last 1-2 minutes of each round. Frankie Edgar made the mistake of giving Aldo a lot of time and space to recover when Aldo did get tired. Max Holloway gave Aldo no time to rest and threw a lot of body shots. That could be why Aldo started to get tired in the 3rd round & he slowed down enough that Max Holloway was able to finish him.

No one keeps records on the negative effects of PED's afaik but Kimbo Slice & Kevin Randleman dying prematurely at relatively young ages could be because of steroids. A lot of professional WWE/WWF wrestlers have also died young from steroid/drug abuse. I hope those who feel tempted to take steroids think twice, it can have a lot of negative long term consequences.

The Frankie Edgar vs Jose Aldo fight really exposed how his stamina is. It has been in question years ago but he keeps on winning that's why it is put out of the window. And I think Edgar won that fight. Aldo was just lucky that he was the champion then but I think Frankie won round 3-5 at least in my own card. No one keeps record of PED abusers, until thy die.

You really cannot confirm the death of Randleman and Kimbo is solely because of PED use,look at the fights they have being it can be because of long term trauma ,you can only speculate about it,most of the WWE starts your mentioned died young because of the drug abuse ,mainly synthetic and other drugs and a mixture of PED to ripe their body,those combinations are deadly.

Yes that is a good analogy. The Brazilians were always known to abuse steroids way back during the days of Pride FC. Shogun, Vanderlei and the some of the rest were always on it during events.

Do you think Jose Aldo over did steroid use in the UFC? Not in all his MMA career, but just in the UFC.

There is more to it than just steroids.  Almost all fighters also have multiple concussions.  Randleman had nasty staff infections as well.

Check this out:

http://i120.photobucket.com/albums/o197/Luis_Espinal/blogging%20content/athletes/Kevin%20Randleman/KR2.jpg

Kevin Randleman's official reason of death was "pneumonia". It's too hard to know what cause it specifically.

Kimbo was a street fighter, those fights are brutal, then again he usually fucked everyone up. He was never a top professional, and Kevin got a 17–16 record so that's a lot of damage.

Nontheless pretty sure they were on the juice, but that's a standard in the sport.

@freeyourmind that is one nasty pic,was having my food when i saw that snap and voila i was about to vomit seeing that. :(
They are professional athletes and they could not care about their body,strange attitude
@ if you are talking about drug abuse every athlete was on juice and it all started in athletics and body building and then it translated to other sports and even now Japanese promotion fighters are juiced to the gills as they want spectacle rather than a sporting event. I am not a fan of Aldo's preparation as half of his in ring bouts are over within his camp as they engage in hard sparring session like in the real fight and that could take a toll in the body and with a relative small age of 30,it looks like his reign is over.

lol sorry dude...I sometimes do have that effect on people  :D

I think the fighters definitely do care about their bodies...however they have a very "tough" mentality at the same time, which means you're going to address issues very late.  Most of them just tough through it, and depending on the type of injury or issue they have, might work some of the time.  Other stuff definitely requires medical attention...like the staff infection he had.

@freeyourmind i can understand that,having a tough mind is good,but with age and with amount of abuse a body can take depends upon individuals and there will be a point where you body wont be able to tolerate anything,toughness comes from a mental perspective ,the fact is i like smart fighters rather than being tough,one the biggest example is Mayweather,is he a boring fighter ,hell yeah,but does he take any damages during a fight,hell no,does he spar smart,hell yes,is he making a ton of money,hell yes. The most important thing to be asked is,will he be able to live a healthy life after the fight career is over and that is the biggest thing every fighter need to understand .

I agree with. There are tons of tons of Peds user but there will be a time that your body will not take it anymore.

Regarding Jose Aldo, my personal opinions say that somewhere in his career in UFC, I suspect that does PEDs in the Chad Mendes(another suspected steroids user-his body is screaming with steroids. LOL) fight. I think he likely stop using PEDs in the McGregor fight and the fight with Max Holloway.

You can only speculate whether he was doing that or not,with the loss to McGregor, Aldo is a different fighter,he never landed any leg kicks and his game plan for the entire fight was just stupid and it is a well known fact that Jose Aldo does not have a great stamina and that is how the match ended,he was explosive and aggressive when the busted into the scene,i would like to see that version of Aldo in future fights .

Yes. It seems that he's lost to McGregor was still in his mind. That lost really took a tool of Jose Aldo. He is still a skilled fighter no doubt, but it looks like its more on a mental for him. Its like a skeleton on his closet really. I'm also hope that Jose Aldo can go back to his old version, but I doubt it. He needs to get a win to boost his confidence. A really good win against top player to be in the contention again.

Conor McGregor already destroyed the soul of Jose Aldo as a fighter on their last match, in that day Aldo's era has ended. He came back after the that loss and fought with Frankie Edgar (win via unanimous decision), still his prime is not fading. I watched Aldo's interview after the loss to Max Holloway he said "We go down so we can get back up'", I hope to see the classic Aldo in the future.     

Eww that looks really nasty.  It's like something is eating up the flesh and working its way going inside. 

The other thing is they don't allow you to rehydrate with IV's after the weigh-in, and Aldo looks like he cuts a lot to make weight.  It's going to be very tough for him to climb back to the top in my opinion.  Not because I doubt his skill (although he'll have to regain his self-confidence), but because his opponents will be much more confident after seeing his vulnerability vs. before he fought Conor and he looked invincible to an opponent.

Conor will enjoy his unbeatable aura for as long as he doesn't come back into the UFC.

Honestly I think his career is over. He will fight Floyd, get 9 figures, then come back to the UFC to:

1) Fight Khabib
2) Fight Fergusson
3) Fight Woodley

All of these guys can beat him, it could be ugly if he goes into the floor with Khabib, or Woodley due the weight difference.

I hope I can be proved wrong, and if someone can prove me wrong and do incredible things then that has to be McGregor.

AFAIK there was no out-of-competition drug testing before USADA.

Fighters could avoid drug tests by taking 3 months when they didn't have fights scheduled to cycle steroids & other PED's, knowing they wouldn't be tested.

Looking at fighter records, those with consistent 6-8 months inbetween fights like Jose Aldo has could have abused PED's outside testing.


This is interesting.

http://i68.tinypic.com/ezompx.jpg

I think both Kimbo and Randleman may have died due to heart complications.

I'm interested to see Connor fight Khabib. Hard core fight fans has been calling this fight to happen in more than a year. Khabib has been holding one of the longest winnings(undefeated) in the UFC. I hope Khabib can recover back and fight either Ferguson for the interim belt of fight Connor just for the sake of seeing who will be the top dog of Lightweight division.

I don't think Khabib will get to fight Conor for his next fight.  Since he unfortunately had to pull out of the Ferguson fight, I think that Tony would be next in line for the title fight.  But rankings and giving the fight to who's most deserving isn't really how the UFC operates anymore, and especially with Conor.

Let's see if the Mayweather fight even happens.  I think the lightweight division will be on pause until we know whether or not that fight is going to happen.

Dana White is a businessman and knows Conor McGregor is the UFC cashcow. If he fights Khabib, he is risking his cashcow. Look at Ronda Rousey, she was a solid cashcow, now her career is over.

But like I said before, all of his possible fights (that the fans want to watch) are an huge risk for Conor.

Woodley, Khabib, Ferguson... lets see how Conor handles that.

That's true, but after the UFC has been sold to WME, Dana no longer has equity in the company as far as I know.  He's just an employee now that agreed to continue to run the show.  WME definitely has an objective of max revenue over being a fair sport.

In terms of Conor though...the real money is with the Mayweather fight...the other UFC fights won't be anything close to that.

@freeyourmind. I do not think Dana White is only like an employee now. He still has an interest of 9% of profits made by the company. He also still runs the show and has the power to make the decisions on matchmaking and other deals. 

Yeah you're right.  I know he sold his 9% share, but didn't know he still received 9% of future profits without that share in the company.  I stand corrected.

Although he definitely has different objectives, so it's not him totally running the show.  The UFC is run very differently before and after the sale.  It's about max viewership now, so fighters that are skilled and not the most popular, don't really get many opportunities.  We can see the behaviour of fighters changing, and artificially talking shit and being their own version of Conor to try and get some attention and viewership.

Im pretty sure White is very well off and retired for life, he will keep getting dividends from the company. I only see the UFC going higher and eventually will be able to get massive paydays for the fighters boxing style.

It depends on how good the fights are, it all comes down to that. If they give us the fights we want it will be a success.

He was supposed to get 360 million for selling his share to WME, and he was likely quite well off even before the sale.  Without having a well run fighters union OR legit competition in MMA, they pay isn't going to be like boxing.  Bellator would need to grow some more and directly compete with the UFC as a premiere organization, and then maybe they'll need to bid the price up on fighters.  Right now, unless you're one of the top handful of fighters/champions, you're probably not breaking 200k per fight.

Boxing has a very long legendary history as a sport. Give UFC some time. In a couple of decades it will be a more established sport with big paydays. It looks like all the kids are getting into MMA, so I would say MMA interest is growing more than boxing and at the end of the day all of these kids are the future UFC ticket buyers. In a couple of generations MMA will be consistently making more numbers than boxing, even tho I like boxing more but that's how it is.

That is of course unless boxing can create new big personalities with great talent that draw millions of people to tune in like Ali, Tyson, Floyd etc.

The Josua-Kltischko fight was exciting, I didn't felt that in a long time in the HW division so I hope I can see more of that.

Exactly.

Some UFC events have an attendance of 5,000.

NFL/NBA/soccer and other pro level sports have attendance of 75,000 - 100,000.

MMA fighters aren't paid as much as other athletes as MMA itself isn't as big or established.

The truth is people like fighters with personalities and those with big personalities made their huge paydays,in boxing we had those characters in Ali,Mayweather,Tyson but when it comes to MMA there was a shortage of big starts until McGregor came along and changed how pay per views and fighter salaries are made and now people are trying to be cocky now to get more attention and everyone wants to be Mcgregor. :D

Yeah MMA is getting a lot more popular, and it's been pretty mainstream for a few years now, with very frequent events (which dilutes the cards).  But the UFC is a single promotion, with Bellator as a growing #2.  It doesn't give many options for fighters to get paid well, regardless of whether or not UFC is making good gate/ppv revenue.  It doesn't affect the fighter's pay unless they are in a title fight or super popular.  I don't doubt that the UFC will make better numbers than boxing (they already do unless it's a huge boxing event I believe)...I just don't think it will translate into fighter pay until there is proper competition, and the UFC needs to start paying more or lose their fighters to other promotions.

And agreed, the Joshua Klitschko fight was very entertaining.  I like seeing GGG as well, but have shifted my interest in boxing to MMA around 15 years ago.

Wasn't there a fan actually a couple come into the ring last night after a fight where a guy punch another when he was turned away.
But the thing is that punch was all legal and was allowed so those fans where out of order to go and attack that fighter.

Yeah man I saw that as well.  I think Grigorian, who eventually got knocked out just had a brain freeze after that knee to the head.  From his body language, it looked like he was walking to his corner as if the round was over.  Must have been some knee ;)

Could have been an angry dude that just lost his bet that jumped in to take out his frustration? haha but it's crazy how easy it is for people from the crowd to enter the ring.  Octagon is a bit better for security.

I also found it weird that Groenhart curled up and almost went fetal with a dude from the crowd trying to fight him.  I would think a highly trained kickboxer could maybe land 1 knee which would paralyze a normal dude.

That is really unfortunate,which fight was that,was that in the NZ UFC,but i did not find any fighter being attacked by the crowd.The problem with these events are they will be providing booze in the arena and since you are watching a combat event anything could happen,you can never predict how someone would behave when they are high,full security must be given to the fighters no matter what.

It was the Murthel Groenhart vs. Harut Grigorian fight in Glory kickboxing.

Here's a link to a video clip of it: https://twitter.com/Grabaka_Hitman/status/873631499958071296 (https://twitter.com/Grabaka_Hitman/status/873631499958071296)
But you can just google it as well.

You'll see him Grigorian just start walking away while the fight is on...really weird...and get's KTFO.

Lol yeah alcohol changes the vibe of the audience, but these promotions and venue's need to sell their concessions...$12-15 beers.