Grant Dawson Calls For A PFL Boycott & A Cris Lencioni Update: MMA News & Notes For 6/28/23

– Kevin Lee says he has unfinished business to handle in his UFC return:

“Mentally I feel more clear, more clarity. I feel more put together,” Lee said during the UFC Vegas 76 media day (transcript via Simon Samano & Ken Hathaway of MMA Junkie). “I think you’re gonna see a much more experienced me, and I think that’s what’s really gonna show through in this fight. He hasn’t fought anybody at this level. I might not have fought for a while, but I’ve got 18 fights in the UFC against former world champions, against current world champions, against a lot of different dudes. I think me relying on experience and being a strong, still athletic guy is going to shine through.”

He continued, “I’ve got unproved and unfinished business over here that I’ve got to get to. I don’t care too much about stepping into the spotlight. I don’t care too much about the media attention. I don’t care too much about the fans. I appreciate everbody that supports me, don’t get me wrong. But at the end of the day, it’s about something bigger than that. I’ve got a son now, and I want him to be my biggest fan. For him to do that, I’ve got to be my biggest fan, so that’s the only thing I’m worried about.”

– Sean Strickland had no idea who his UFC Vegas 76 main event opponent was:

“I had no idea who the f*ck he was,” Strickland said during the UFC Vegas 76 media day (transcript via Danny Segura & Ken Hathaway of MMA Junkie). “So I’ve been hounding the UFC to fight, I even offered to do 205, but Mick (Maynard) didn’t want me to f*ck up the rankings because there are a lot of 205ers I’d f*ck up. So I had a conversation with Mick, and he pretty much offered me a couple of ranked guys. I said yes to them, they said no.

“So I had a choice: I either wait eight f*cking months or I f*cking fight. The money was right and here we are. I mean, we all fight for money. If the dollar is right, I will f*cking do it. We came to good terms and good pay, and here we are fighting Abus.”

– Daniel Cormier doesn’t think Jon Jones should win the “best fighter” ESPY:

“I just don’t know if one fight in the year against Ciryl Gane puts you in that position,” Cormier said on his ESPN show DC & RC (transcript via Farah Hannoun of MMA Junkie). “And that’s no knock on Ciryl. It was just one fight. You gotta think of the storylines that follow these other athletes. From Makhachev beating ‘Do Bronx’ (Oliveira) to win the belt, from Makhachev beating Alexander Volkanovski. …

“Then you look at Amanda losing her belt to Julianna (Peña) and then winning it back. Then Leon Edwards doing what he did. Jon Jones is in there because Jon Jones is the biggest star. He’s the biggest star that’s holding a championship right now outside of Israel Adesanya. That’s why he’s in there. What’s crazy about it is, he might win it because of him being the biggest star of the people in there.”

– Teddy Atlas says Ilia Topuria’s striking is similar to Alexander Volkanovski’s striking:

“Topuria, he reminds me with his striking a little of Volkanovski, where he’s so solid technically, he’s so buttoned-up with his approach, his overall approach, that it just reminded me of him a little bit,” Atlas said on his show THE FIGHT with Teddy Atlas (transcript via Farah Hannoun of MMA Junkie).

– Marca Lencioni says her husband, Bellator vet Cris Lencioni, is out of the ICU, but has an uncertain road to recovering ahead of him:

“The neurologists were basically like, ‘We have to wait to see what he can do and what he shows us,’” Marca said to MMA Fighting. “Because he was so, so healthy when this happened and is young and an athlete, they’re not really sure what’s gonna happen. The brain is complex, and because of where he’s at, they don’t know and they can’t say. Even the neurologist, she’s like, ‘I can’t give you a definite answer, because it’s gonna be up to him.’

“If anybody can come out of something like this, it’s him. He’s a fighter in all senses. It’s not just in the ring.”

– Tatiana Suarez isn’t happy that Rose Namajunas moved up to flyweight:

“It’s really the craziest thing I’ve ever seen,” Suarez said on The MMA Hour (transcript via Farah Hannoun of MMA Junkie). “I’ve been wanting to fight her because I’m like, ‘Yeah, I’m back to 115 (pounds), maybe I could fight Rose.’ And it’s like, she’s going back to 125. I’m like, crazy.”

– Alexander Volkanovski is open to a fight with Ilia Topuria:

“I’m hearing a lot of people mentioning other guys, Ilia fighting other guys – I’m like, ‘No,’” Volkanovski said during an interview on DC & RC (transcript via Mike Bohn of MMA Junkie). “Don’t do it. Just give me a guy. Give me a contender. To be honest, I’m not going to say too much. I think he’s a good fighter. But the more I speak, the less I’m going to hype up the fight. I think he’s great.”

– Aljamain Sterling doesn’t think that Sean O’Malley deserves a title shot:

“You had this fight (against Yan) and it’s like, dude, we are not the same,” Sterling said on his Youtube channel (transcript via Farah Hannoun of MMA Junkie). “We are just not the same. I’ve cut my teeth in this sport and in this division. What am I, 15-3 now? What are we even talking about? I got the resume. So I don’t think Sean deserved the spot.”

– Grant Dawson calls for a PFL boycott following the Raush Manfio/Natan Schulte controversy:

“That’s a boycott PFL situation,” Dawson said during the UFC Vegas 76 media day (transcript via Damon Martin of MMA Fighting). “Because that makes no sense. They’re two former champions, they’re two former tournament winners, and so for them to fight not even in the tournament, it makes no sense.”

– UFC Jacksonville medical suspensions (via MMA Fighting):

Ilia Topuria: Indefinite suspension

Josh Emmett: Indefinite suspension

Amanda Ribas: Indefinite suspension

Justin Tafa: Indefinite suspension

Gabriel Santos: 60 day suspension

Bruno Silva: 30 day suspension

Wellington Turman: Indefinite suspension

Mateusz Rebecki: Indefinite suspension

Loik Radzhabov: Indefinite suspension