Fightful Fix is your one-stop-shop for all of today’s biggest combat sports stories — from Frankie Edgar’s statement on his knockout loss to Cory Sandhagen at UFC Vegas 18 and more — conveniently compiled in one place. Take a look below.
Frankie Edgar releases statement following KO loss to Cory Sandhagen at UFC Vegas 18
Former UFC lightweight champion and MMA legend Frankie Edgar suffered a devastating knockout loss to Cory Sandhagen over the weekend at UFC Vegas 18. It took just 28 seconds for Sandhagen to land a perfectly timed flying knee that put Edgar out cold and made for a frightening sight.
Start your KO of the Year lists, people — #UFCVegas18 pic.twitter.com/a7dMvwV8bH
— UFC (@ufc) February 7, 2021
Edgar took to Instagram after the matchup to make a statement on the vicious knockout defeat. The former champ was graceful in defeat as always and seems hopeful he can rebound from the loss to Sandhagen.
Now 1-1 since dropping down to 135 pounds, Edgar still has life in the new division in terms of contending. But he’s 2-4 now in his last six fights with three of the defeats being by brutal knockouts to Brian Ortega, Chan Sung Jung, and now Sandhagen.
Dustin Poirier’s fight kit for UFC 257 draws in $26,000 for Good Fight Foundation
UFC lightweight contender Dustin Poirier continues to do more great things outside of the Octagon. Poirier has long been applauded for his work through his charity the Good Fight Foundation and it’s become a tradition for him to auction off his fight worn attire each fight, with the proceeds going towards the GFF. The Lafayette, Louisiana native continued this tradition after his second-round knockout over Conor McGregor in their rematch at UFC 257 and getting $26,200 from the highest bidder going back to his charity. Poirier spoke with MMAJunkie’s Mike Bohn prior to his victory over the Irishman about what cause the proceeds from his fight kit would go towards.
.@DustinPoirier’s fight kit from #UFC257 is up for grabs via auction. As he told me prior to his TKO of Conor McGregor, @TheGoodFightFDN is putting this money to a *very* good cause. —https://t.co/3YogB1wz76pic.twitter.com/fNZo5sIJG0
— Mike Bohn (@MikeBohnMMA) January 29, 2021
Eddie Alvarez praises former foes Dustin Poirier and Michael Chandler’s UFC 257 wins
Former UFC and Bellator lightweight champion Eddie Alvarez is no stranger to facing either Dustin Poirier or Michael Chandler, facing each man twice and going 1-2-1 in the four grueling bouts. Speaking with MMAJunkie Radio recently, the now One Championship fighter praised his former rival’s wins, and performances at UFC 257.
Alvarez on Poirier’s win over McGregor.
“Dustin Poirier putting on them sprints that he puts on, I thought that would be the best way that he could get it done,” he said (h/t MMAJunkie). “I agreed that if he gave Conor the space that Conor can relax and create stuff that he’d have a bad night. But Dustin just fought a beautiful game plan by kicking that leg and then putting a short sprint on him and being able to cause him to panic and put him away.”
continuing on Chandler’s win over Hooker.
“And then Mike Chandler coming out and, in your debut, with all that pressure, with all them people saying, ‘You’re not this and you’re not that,’ to be able to go out there and execute the way he did, it was just a beautiful night for MMA. I think a lot of times in this sport, they don’t care if you’re the bad guy or good guy. The fight gods give the winner to whoever the winner is, and the good guys conquered that night. It doesn’t always go that way, but it’s beautiful when it does.”
Kevin Lee vouches for Charles Oliveira to get the next UFC lightweight title shot
Former UFC lightweight title challenger Kevin Lee is no stranger to voicing his opinions and he did just that recently, taking to his Twitter account tweeting in support of former opponent Charles Oliveira to get the next crack at UFC gold at 155 pounds. The two faced off back in the main event of UFC Fight Night 170 in March of last year, with Oliveira ultimately submitting Lee with a guillotine choke in the third round. Oliveira is 9-1 since returning to the lightweight division in April 2017 and is riding an eight-fight win streak currently.
Quit letting them skip over you for the title @CharlesDoBronxs
— Kevin MTP Lee (@MoTownPhenom) February 6, 2021
Mike Perry goes on Twitter callout spree
UFC welterweight Mike Perry is looking for a fight and went on a tweeting spree, posting several tweets to his Twitter account calling out different potential opponents. The new father sent out requests to Conor McGregor, Robbie Lawler, Paul Felder, Vicente Luque, Alan Jouban, Niko Price, and a few other fighters for potential fights. Perry is 1-3 in his last four fights, most recently dropping a unanimous decision to Tim Means at UFC 255.
Or @Ruthless_RL or @TheNotoriousMMA ? @ALIAQUINTA ? @felderpaul rematch ? Anybody short or tall , @VicenteLuqueMMA rematch ? @Nikohybridprice can get knocked out too , anybody else ? I’ll be on weight and ready ! Let’s go ! Training Monday ! Mindset on Mind Set ! #Working
— Platinum Mike Perry (@PlatinumPerry) February 7, 2021
Or how about a fight with @UfcJingliang ? He beat @SPonzinibbioMMA and I believe he turned down a fight with me in the past plus I am a huge fan of Chinese martial arts so it would be an honor to knock him out !
— Platinum Mike Perry (@PlatinumPerry) February 7, 2021
Spike Carlyle excited about UFC release
Spike Carlyle was recently released by the UFC, but the fan-favorite featherweight is viewing the bittersweet situation as an exciting opportunity. Carlyle took to his Instagram account and did a live video session to discuss the release from the promotion.
“I had one more fight on my contract and they decided to cut me,” Carlyle said (h/t MMAFighting). “They said it was partially based on my last performance. It’s a little bitter, but it’s also [very] sweet. I’m actually pretty stoked on it.”
After going 1-2 in his short stint inside the Octagon and losing his most recent outing to Bill Algeo via a unanimous decision at UFC Vegas 15, Carlyle is hoping now as a free agent he can find a way to fight for the RIZIN organization.
“I’m no longer a UFC fighter. I’m a free agent,” he stated. “My dream and No. 1 desire is to fight for RIZIN, possibly Bellator because they co-host events, and that way I can do the best of both worlds. The goal is to become a Japanese champion and fight the American champion, a RIZIN-Bellator combination so hopefully, it comes together. I’m trying to get on the March 14 card in Tokyo so we’ll see what God wants to do.”
Jose Canseco earns over $1 million for Rough N’ Rowdy 13 loss
Former Major League baseball player Jose Canseco competed over the weekend in a boxing match against Barstool Sports intern Billy Football in the headlining bout of the company’s Rough N’ Rowdy 3 event. Canseco appeared to take a pretty clear dive in the bout and lost in 10 seconds, upsetting many including Barstool founder Dave Portnoy who tweeted that Canseco had made over $1,000,000 for his efforts.
So here is how @JoseCanseco got paid last night. 50k guarantee. He got 50k more if he won. He also had a rev share if we broke our record for PPV buys.We shattered it.Get ready to puke. Jose made over 1 million dollars for 5 seconds last night. I don’t feel bad for him anymore. *
— Dave Portnoy (@stoolpresidente) February 6, 2021
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