MMA Community GOES OFF on Colby Covington (FOOTAGE), Leon Edwards EXPOSED for CHEATING, Dana White
What’s up everyone and welcome back to the MMA Zone. Today, let’s get started with… Colby Covington CALLS OUT Leon Edwards for CHEATING Heading into Colby Covington and Leon Edwards’ scheduled main event showdown on Saturday, many believe that the biggest question mark surrounding the fight is whether Covington will be able to stave off the ring rust that comes along with a nearly two-year long layoff. Despite that, the former interim champ believes that the biggest challenge surrounding the fight is the cheating he caught Edwards doing in his previous fight with Kamaru Usman. During a recent interview with
TNT Sports, the challenger called out the champ: “I would say the biggest challenge honestly is the cheating he does in the Octagon like there’s no doubt about it if you watch the last fight he had with with Usman in the UK he had like seven or eight fouls I mean there there was a compilation on Twitter the other day him poking him in the eyes grabbing the fence multiple times you know grabbing the gloves multiple times these are facts you don’t get mad at me because I’m stating facts this is true he’s always looking for
a way to bend the rules and cheat a little bit” With the fight right around the corner, the two men will have the
Toyo Tires announced a multi-year renewal of their partnership deal. Longtime MMA fans may recall that the first time we saw the Toyo Tires logo attached to the UFC was back in 2006. Since then, the deal has seen a number of UFC fighters appear in promo videos for the tire company. Most notably, former champion and fan-favorite Forrest Griffin has done promotional work for the tire company, as well as former bantamweight champion Dominick Cruz. While there has been no word as to how much the multi-year extension of their deal is worth, UFC Senior VP of Global Partnerships
Grant Norris-Jones was quoted in the promotion’s announcement as saying: “We are thrilled to announce the renewal of UFC’s long-standing partnership with Toyo Tires. As UFC’s longest-running partner, our two companies have celebrated many milestones together. This renewal marks the continuation of Toyo’s commitment to this sport and to our fans, and we look forward to celebrating many more unforgettable moments together in the years ahead.” As Toyo Tires Exec Stan Chen explained in the announcement, the fact that the company is now the longest-standing partner of the UFC is something they’re proud of as the two sides look to
the future. Next up, let’s take a look at…As Toyo Tires Exec Stan Chen explained in the announcement, the fact that the company is now the longest-standing partner of the UFC is something they’re proud of as the two sides look to the future. Next up, let’s take a look at… Paulo Costa REVEALS next UFC Fight Despite the fight falling through in the past, Paulo Costa has reportedly accepted a fight against Robert Whittaker. According to a report from MMAFighting, the bout is finalized on Costa’s side, with the former title challenger’s manager stating: “We’re just waiting for the
company answer. Besides, the UFC 299 on March 9th in Miami is perfect for Paulo, and we already expressed our desire for this date. This will be an exciting fight for the fans!” The news comes on the heels of Whittaker’s representative, Titus Day, stating that Costa and his team had been playing games in regard to the bout. At the time, while speaking with Fox Sports Australia, Day explained that Whittaker and his wife are expecting a baby towards the end of February, and as such, he wants to fight on the UFC 299 card in February. At the
time, Whittaker had recently been called out by Costa via social media, opening up the door to another potential booking, however, as Whittaker’s rep indicated, Costa had since vanished. The two were slated to fight at UFC 284, however, the fight never wound up taking place, with Costa repeatedly indicating that despite the fight being announced, he had never signed a contract. Since then, he has renegotiated his contract, and has looked to climb his way back up the middleweight rankings. Next, let’s take a look at… Ian Garry BREAKS SILENCE on HORRIBLE NEWS Unfortunately for fight fans, they won’t
get a chance to see Ian Garry and Vicente Luque throw down at UFC 296. Despite the fight being one of the most-discussed on the card, Garry was forced out of the contest on Wednesday night as the result of pneumonia. After UFC CEO Dana White officially broke the news, Garry released a statement on his withdrawal through Ariel Helwani. The written statement quoted Garry as saying: “I have pneumonia. They tried everything to help me. In the end, UFC doctor said there’s no chance I can fight. The UFC doctor made the call… This annoys me more than anyone.
I want to fight. It’s my favorite thing to do.” In the wake of Garry’s withdrawal, it was also reported by The Schmo that the featherweight showdown between Bryce Mitchell and Josh Emmett would replace the Garry vs Luque fight on pay-per-view. Despite that, it appears as though the UFC may not have to pull Luque from the card after all. Once word got out about Garry’s withdrawal, Kevin Holland took to Instagram, writing: 180 I had t bone steak yesterday #callbigmouth In the clip he took aim at Garry, saying: If you don’t make it to the fight you
lose the fight, I guess all those fuckin memes worked Holland also took aim at Garry in a separate post made on the platform formerly known as Twitter, where he wrote: Here is the deal….I checked with both my wife and my gf, and they said I can fight this weekend. Luque responded to Holland’s offer in a video of his own: “So guys I saw that Kevin Holland wants to jump in to substitute for the fight Saturday night, and I want to tell you guys I’m down so Kevin if you’re really down to come here let’s do
this let’s mix it up let’s get in the Octagon and go to war” As Luque also revealed, he’s willing to do the fight at a catchweight of 180 to accommodate Holland stepping in on short notice. As ESPN’s Brett Okamoto indicated, with both fighters willing, it sounds as though the ball is in the UFC’s court now. Next, let’s take a look at… UFC fight updates Heading into an action packed weekend in Las Vegas, let’s look at today’s UFC fight updates, starting with a change to the UFC Vegas 84 card on January 13th. According to reports, Gabriel
Santos has been forced off the card, resulting in a replacement booking that will see Westin Wilson fight Jean Silva. Wilson will be looking to bounce back from a July loss to Joanderson Brito, while Silva will be looking to make his successful UFC debut after a Dana White’s Contender Series win in September. The card will be headlined by the highly anticipated rematch between Johnny Walker and Magomed Ankalaev, and will take place at the UFC Apex. The following month, Devin Clark will collide with Marcin Prachnio on February 10th at UFC Vegas 86. The bout will see Clark
look to bounce back from a loss to Kennedy Nzechukwu back at UFC 288, which dropped him to 1-1 for the year. On the flip side, Prachnio will be looking to bounce back from a loss to Vitor Petrino at UFC 290. The card will be headlined by a middleweight tilt between Jack Hermansson and Joe Pyfer, and will also notably take place at the Apex. As we approach UFC 296, the hope among fans is that in the next 24 hours we have an official update regarding Kevin Holland stepping in on short notice as well. Next, let’s take
a look at… Dana White BREAKS SILENCE on Conor McGregor’s UFC return While Conor McGregor recently stated while in Saudi Arabia for the Ngannou vs Fury bout that he was itching for a fight, it has remained unclear when the Irish star will return to action. Currently, he is undergoing the six months of testing required in order to be declared as eligible, with the expectation being that he will return either at UFC 300, or as the International Fight Week Headliner in July. In a recent interview with TNT Sports, Dana White gave an update on the return of
McGregor, indicating that we will see the former champ champ in the new year. UFC Fighter SUSPENDED for STEROIDS As we recently reported earlier this month, UFC veteran Daniel D-Rod Rodriguez informed his fans that his failed drug test had been deemed to be the result of a tainted supplement. In the video posted to the welterweight’s social media accounts, he informed fans that he was cleared and no longer suspended by USADA. On the heels of the announcement, Rodriguez has formally accepted the three-month suspension from USADA retroactive to the date of the failed test back on July 28th,
meaning that the suspension expired back on October 28th. However, according to a report from MMAJunkie, despite his USADA suspension being up, he had also previously been handed a six-month suspension from the Nevada Athletic Commission for the failed test that ran in tandem with the three-month USADA sanction, meaning he will be eligible to return on January 28th, six months to the day of his July 28th test. So far no word yet as to who D-Rod will face in his highly anticipated return to the Octagon. At the time of his testing failure he was scheduled to face
Santiago Ponzinibbio at Noche UFC back in September, where he hoped to snap a two-fight skid that saw him lose to Neil Magny and Ian Garry. Since then, the UFC has yet to book Ponzinibbio for another fight, opening the door to a potential rebooking in the new year. Now, let’s shift gears and take a look at… Dana White BREAKS SILENCE on Conor McGregor’s UFC return While Conor McGregor recently stated while in Saudi Arabia for the Ngannou vs Fury bout that he was itching for a fight, it has remained unclear when the Irish star will return to
action. Currently, he is undergoing the six months of testing required in order to be declared as eligible, with the expectation being that he will return either at UFC 300, or as the International Fight Week Headliner in July. In a recent interview with TNT Sports, Dana White gave an update on the return of McGregor, indicating that we will see the former champ champ in the new year. “I say it all the time Conor is extremely wealthy and has a lot of different options in his life. when Conor gets hunger back and really wants to come back
and fight it’s all up to him you know if you look at what the guy has accomplished in such a short amount of time and the amount of money that he’s made and the business opportunities that he’s taken outside of the Octagon Conor can do whatever the hell Conor wants to do and good for him” McGregor has of course continued to train in Dubai for his return. While no date has been announced just yet, the six-month testing period he is required to undergo could see him compete at UFC 300, however, so far the UFC brass
has played things close to the vest. The MMA community goes off on Colby Covington after he makes a joke about Leon Edwards father who passed away. At the UFC 296 press conference, Colby took it too far saying he would drag Leon to hell so he can meet his father who was murdered. Here’s what the community had to say: This guy is a piece of s**t Colby Covington implying he’ll see Leon Edwards’ murdered father in Hell is genuinely one of the grossest things I’ve seen at a UFC presser. That’s not even good fight promotion. It’s just
being a sh***y human. I hope Leon delivers one of the most brutal knocks will have ever seen on Saturday!!!! That comment about Leons father was so low and pathetic bro somebody like that should never have a belt!!! Didn’t this strategy work out poorly for Conor? Taking unnecessary shots at a family member, especially a deceased family member, usually ends poorly. Terrible. Now I won’t feel sorry for Colby if the worst happens to him… Too far. What are we doing here? Million ways to sell a fight-that didn’t need to be one of them. Top Comments: Why do
people think Colby had a bad weight cut? He’s fighting at his natural weight. Think he said he normally walking around 180. That an easy cut to make. someone responded with Well if Colby said it you know it must be true. He would never make up a fake persona and lie about it. Leon tellin Colby he needs a girlfriend instead of fixating on another man was perfect 🤣🤣🤣👏👏👏 Merab low key funny 😂
