Topic: The UFC Info and Prediction Thread - page 30. (Read 96871 times)

^  That means Jones needs to fight asap.  He's been out of it for so long now and getting the risk of being stripped of his belt if he doesn't take a fight this year.  There are more exciting match ups with Aspinall around anyway.

But yeah...  We'll see what's gonna happen.  But I gotta say Jones vs Stipe..?  Not to excited about that one.

Date:  Saturday, July 13
Main Card (ESPN/ESPN+):  10:00pm EST
Preliminary Card (ESPN/ESPN+):  7:00pm EST
Venue:  Ball Arena, Denver, Colorado
Live Streams:



Main Card (ESPN/ESPN+)
Women's Flyweight:  Rose Namajunas vs Tracy Cortez            
Welterweight:  Santiago Ponzinibbio vs Muslim Salikhov            
Lightweight:  Drew Dober vs Jean Silva            
Welterweight:  Gabriel Bonfim vs Ange Loosa            
Featherweight:  Julian Erosa vs Christian Rodriguez            
Middleweight:  Abdul Razak Alhassan vs Cody Brundage   

Preliminary Card (ESPN/ESPN+)
Women's Flyweight:  Jasmine Jasudavicius vs Fatima Kline      
Flyweight:  Joshua Van vs Charles Johnson            
Women's Flyweight:  Luana Santos vs Mariya Agapova            
Middleweight:  Josh Fremd vs Andre Petroski            
Bantamweight:  Montel Jackson vs Da'Mon Blackshear

And there's jeremypwr's Multi Master.

UFC on ESPN 59:  Multi Master Challenge
https://bitcointalksearch.org/topic/sportsbetio-ufc-on-espn-59-multi-master-challenge-13-july-5502401

These would prolly be my picks.

11. Rose Namajunas
10. Santiago Ponzinibbio
9. Drew Dober
8. Ange Loosa
7. Julian Erosa
6. Cody Brundage
5. Charles Johnson
4. Jasmine Jasudavicius
3. Luana Santos
2. Montel Jackson
1. Josh Fremd

Pereira is not #2 in pound-for-pound ranking Bones is only third. Yesterday while watching YouTube, I have caught myself thinking where is Gane? He has started so active career. Every year he fought 2-3 times. Now, half of 2024 has passed and there is not even a single rumour about his next fight, not a single word. I dont remember him being injured or have controversies with UFC. Neither he wasnt released from UFC.

These smaller fights are necessary, whether we like it or not, so that we can have bigger fights. This first half of the year was very atypical precisely because of these unforeseen events that ended up generating bigger and better fights. But expect smaller fights for a while.

The next event isn't all that bad imho.  First fight is Fremd vs. Petroski...  The UFC is setting the crowd up for a fight either ending via SUB by Petroski or a KO finish by Fremd.    But it's looking like it might be a KO finish by Fremd.  Did you guys see how Malkoun stunned Petroski?  And Malkoun isn't even a heavy hitter. 

It's followed by Montel Jackson vs Blackshear...  A possible banger if not for Blackshear getting in their on short notice.  For the other match ups, Van vs Johnson will be decent, Rodriguez vs Eroso will also be decent, Bonfim vs Loosa prolly good and my main event...  Dober vs Silva!  It's happeniiing!

Will do the roster later when the UFC confirms the order of the match ups.

Then those people must be low IQ if they forget to pay taxes for ages. Cant believe all of those adults never heard of income tax, they are orphans and live in caves alone, that nobody can remind them about paying a tax. Sort of a their brain development stopped at the age when they found out what money is, heard something about salary and that is it.

Anyway, I feel like this was some kind of misunderstanding about Khabib, taxes and account freeze, or someone is trying to push on him that way. How much it is claimed he is in debt? I've seen 3million figure. I doubt that he does not have money to repay tax debt. I am even sure, that he is so popular, that people would stand in queue to lend and repay his debt with their money, just to have "a friend who owes you" like Khabib. Or many would repay his debt on free will.

Even if Khabib intentionally did it, it would have been best handled if he wasn't humiliated publicly. This guy brings honor to the Russian government, he is the pride of Dagestianis. Putin even met him and gave him a gift. If Putin knew about this operation of the Tax agency in Russia, Putin may have requested to discreetly do this.
Khabib also isn't explaining himself to the media so we're all just replying to rumors. But I can say this isn't just about paying taxes.

With all the weird things going on in sports today from the cancellation of big fights to crossover fights and Saudi Arabia doing all these businesses, there could be truth to rumors they are prompting Khabib to fight again.

It is not that they forgot to pay their taxes on time, but some are intentionally not paying it because they feel they are paying large sum of money to their government which they don't need to. Also, some are just relying to their financial managers to do their duty. And as such, they don't take care of these things as they were confident, it has been taken care of. Up until they learned that they haven't paid their taxes for years and years already. And that financial manager was already out of his employment.

The banger it would be if they fight on the backyard Now that will be a real BMF title fight, not that "we-gonna-take-best-gangster-imitators-and-force-them-fight". Come on, Gaethji in glasses, a BMF Looks like a BNF, baddest-nerd-fcuker.



Btw, first I wanted to sting you for being lazy and not posting new event card, but then I looked on the card and noticed many chicks, so I dropped my idea Probably going to miss this event.

^  First fight was in the UFC, the second fight was boxing...  What if the third fight will be in bare knuckle boxing?  That would be a banger imho.

Anyway, the roster for the next event is weird.  I don't think the current roster in the UFC's website is the final one yet.  And I think the order of some of the match ups could change.  Tapology, the UFC's site and UFC Stats show different rosters.  Lol.  I hope the Dober vs Silva one at Tapology is real tho.  That'll be a good fight.

I havent watched it fully, but watched some highlights. Decent fight. Diaz avenged his loss for early stoppage in their MMA BMF fight Damn, how quick they become tired. Seems that 4-6 3min rounds were more exhausting than their 5 5min fights under MMA Anyway, I would got with a draw here. There were no clear dominance in the fight. Diaz imho threw more, but Masvidal was more precise with body shots.

P.S. Dont know why DAZN faked their bodies

^  Yeah..  But DDP does know how to take it out of line at times but only if the guy at the other end of the table takes it out of line too.  Like how Strickland was joking around how DDP's coach likes to touch DDP's dck during training.  Lol.  But then DDP went dark and made a retort that he wanted to remind Strickland about how his dad beat him at night when the dad was drunk.  I was like whoa...  That one hit a nerve for sure.

Anyway, anybody watch the bout between Masvidal and Diaz?  It was surprisingly good.  Thought those guys weren't serious. 

DDP is an intellectual troll, he's got a way of getting under their skin. 
I'm 50/50 if he will win this one but if he does, he's going to say something about Adesanaya playing golf again.

Regards Khabibs account freeze due to unpaid taxes, I was always wondering how can it be like this. This is not the first when highly paid athletes get into troubles due to unpaid taxes. Nearly every successful athletes gets into that. Specially football players. I just dont understand how this happens. Ok, you might forget to pay taxes one year, but you always get a reminder from tax organization. You can forget to pay twice. But how come people forget to pay taxes for ages?

^  Lmao yup...  It started when Adesanya disrespected DDP after his match vs Robert Whittaker was it..?  Adesanya came in the cage and he kept calling DDP a 'n***a' then DDP gave a retort by saying something like at least he's a real African and Adesanya isn't.    Adesanya didn't take it well.  Lol.

But either way, the winner would be fighting Strickland.  Adesanaya still has a bone to pick with him after the embarrassing loss.  And DDP rematch should happen as the first match was really close.

Edit:  Anybody watching this?

https://www.tapology.com/fightcenter/events/111405-diaz-vs-masvidal-2

If that's true, that would be the key here.
Khabib and his circle (including Islam) are too big in terms of personality/influence to just fall victim to some routine tax office procedures. The move to freeze his accounts and raid his gym must've been pre-approved by the people in a higher government, possibly Putin himself.


I don't think Khabib wants to fight, BUT, if we have a scenario when he failed to secure enough money in some foreign bank (which is possible as I think there might be some restrictions to Russians) and he falls out of Putin's favour and gets all his funds frozen - what option would he have left? He's too proud to live of donations or from charging some gym fees. He'd probably consider fighting one, last time in some big money fight to cash in couple of $ millions and secure his family financially.

As for McGregor, he's also probably after big money and fame, and fighting a rematch against Khabib is the best way to get some of the old hype back. Let's face it, he's probably going to lose to whoever he'll be fighting next, and losing to a legendary, undefeated Khabib wouldn't be that much of a shame.


They can say whatever they want about there not being any grudge, but it's clear that they truly hate each other.

Oh, yeah...  That's the part that made the face off hilarious.  At the press conference yeah, it seemed like Adesanya was more mature now without the cringe comments and the anime references.  And I was like 'oh cool I like this version of Adesanya now'.  But then yup...  Exactly!  The face off happened.  Lolol.

But it kinda added to the excitement tho.  Just seeing those guys on the stage and staring each other down changed my mind about the match up.

I have heard news, but I dont know how to react on that. I think some background games are on.

Some ideas.

1. Khabibs father always tried to educate him. It was studying before sport all the time. Imagine how he has achieved all that, when he was forced to study a lot, and education was on first place. Imagine what would be, if he only focused on fighting and training. Doubt that he was really that not smart to pay taxes.

2. Khabib is a huge media personality. He has a huge influence. Few weeks ago, there was a huge terrorist attack in Dagestan. Found out, that one of the attackers trained or visited Khabibs gym. There is an idea, that media wants to pull facts to Khabib and hype on that.

3. Due to that terrorist attack, authorities are freezing all money of those who could have even a tiny connection. As in spring, there was another terrorist attack in Moscow. Authorities are trying to close all the possible ways of finance sources.

4. Maybe Khabib only sponsored business, and is he really responsible to what CEO and bookkeepers did? Wasnt he just a co-own of all companies, whos funds were arrested? For media, what sounds better? Millions of Khabibs money are frozen or funds are frozen?

5. Knowing how Russian tax authorities work, it isnt surprise that his funds are frozen. They just freeze everything and everyone funds, and later its your duty to prove that you are not guilty. And what happens to you when you dont have money, nobody cares. (That is actually why some people leave Russia. As Authorities, police or "special forces" can just point on you and say "guilty", and then try to prove that you are clean, white and not guilty).

6. Someone is trying to drag Khabib into politics.

P.S. Khabib all troubles started when he did not give a clear comment on who he is with or what he supports, after that terrorist attack in Dagestan on synagogue.

^ You think Khabib vs Conor 2 will be possible if that happens for his comeback fight?  It will still be a big promotion for UFC even if the outcome is obvious.


I don't see that fight coming either. Not sure if Pereira will be going back to the MW, maybe depending on the offer. Pereira fighting on the HW is already a big money waiting for him and he isn't going to risk dehydrating himself since it looks like his body is meant for LH. There is more for Pereira to pursue HW, even if he starts with Volkov, it's worth it if done in Saudi.

And I remember Izzy said he doesn't need the trilogy as the sage is over. He is also fighting DDP, for all we know he might not win against DDP.

Yeah, the interview part was surprisingly calm and everyone was so nice and composed... and then the staredown happened 

---

Did you guys hear the news about Khabib fleeing Russia and getting his accounts frozen + business raided over the alleged $3 millon that he owed to Russian tax man?
Credit to notblox1 for bringing this up in the ALTT forum
Some links:

https://www.sportspolitika.news/p/ufc-khabib-nurmagomedov-politics-putin-mma-russi
https://www.marca.com/en/ufc/2024/07/01/6682d584e2704e395e8b458c.html
https://www.msn.com/en-in/news/world/conor-mcgregor-alleges-khabib-nurmagomedov-is-in-dubai-following-russian-government-s-seizure-of-the-eagle-s-bank-accounts/ar-BB1pedqb

Damn, if he doesn't have a proper amount stashed in some safe place, who knows, he might be forced to come back from retirement and fight at least one more time.

^  If ever Adesanya wins vs DDP and becomes champ at 185 again, I don't think the UFC would like to match him up vs Pereira again.  Not in 185 at least.  The weight cut is too draining for Pereria.


Lol did you watch it yet?    So hilarious.  

Anyway, no event this weekend.  Sucks..  But here's some vids to watch for the next PPV event.

UFC Free Fight:  Edwards vs Usman 3
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=IESed0ndjn8

UFC Free Fight:  Muhammad vs Brady
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=r1j7-FaJDws

I think Muhammad is gonna make it boring and win via UD.