Connect with us

MMA

Dominick Cruz says Conor McGregor was fighting for reason beyond money

Published

on

Dominick Cruz says Conor McGregor was fighting for reason beyond money
Dominick
Cruz believes Conor
McGregor's return to action in the
Ultimate Fighting Championship was motivated by more than
financial gain, suggesting the former two-division champion was
looking for a way to escape the lifestyle that produced his
wealth.

McGregor suffered a knee injury with the opening strike he threw at

UFC 329. The referee called a halt to the bout a little over a
minute in, as “Notorious†was unable to plant both feet firmly
while advancing and repeatedly fell over. This marks the second
McGregor fight in a row that has ended in an anticlimactic leg
injury, as his trilogy bout against Dustin
Poirier back in 2021 resulted in a bone break.

The former UFC champion shares his theory behind McGregor's
comeback attempt

Cruz spoke from experience, having dealt with several major
injuries during his own career.

“We keep saying he doesn’t need to come back because he’s got the
money, but I disagree,†Cruz said on the UFC 329 post-show on
Paramount+. “I think the reason why he was coming back was to save
his own life from the money, from the lifestyle he’s been living. I
think that he’s going to be facing that again.â€

The new Hall of Fame inductee and former bantamweight champion
believes McGregor's mindset will now have to reset to how the
Irishman's approach was before signing on to rematch Max
Holloway.

“God is going to keep putting the same test in front of you until
you choose different. Fighting wasn’t going to pull you out.
Fighting can’t solve everything, and he’s going to learn that
because he’s got to face himself without this thing that really
cures a lot of us,†Cruz added. “I mean, martial arts saved my
life. I truly believe he came back to save his own life, and now
he’s back to where he started before he booked this fight.â€

McGregor has released a statement since his defeat to Holloway,
revealing that after getting surgery for his injury, he will return
to training and commence preparations for the final bout of his UFC
contract.

Continue Reading
Click to comment

Leave a Reply

Your email address will not be published. Required fields are marked *

MMA

Ronda Rousey trains with Jena Bishop ahead of Liz Carmouche rematch

Published

on

Ronda Rousey trains with Jena Bishop ahead of Liz Carmouche rematch
Jena
Bishop has an
Ultimate Fighting Championship Hall of Famer helping her
prepare for the biggest fight of her career.

The
Professional Fighters League recently shared a photo showing
Bishop training with Ronda
Rousey ahead of the former's rematch with Liz
Carmouche for the inaugural PFL women’s flyweight
championship.

Jena Bishop challenges Liz Carmouche for the inaugural PFL
women's flyweight championship after training with Ronda
Rousey

Bishop will face Carmouche in the main event of
PFL Chicago on Oct. 16 at Wintrust Arena. The bout will crown
the promotion’s first women’s flyweight champion and mark its first
new title since the PFL’s merger with
Most Valuable Promotions.

The clash is a rematch of last year’s PFL women’s flyweight
tournament final. Carmouche stopped Bishop in the third round of
that meeting, but the latter has since rebounded with victories
over Borena
Tsertsvadze and Ariane
Lipski da Silva. Carmouche enters following a submission win
over Viviane
Araujo in June.

Rousey, who became the face of women’s MMA during her UFC run, also
has a history with Carmouche, having defeated her at UFC
157 in 2013, in the first defense of her UFC women’s
bantamweight title and her Octagon debut.

Continue Reading

MMA

Umar Nurmagomedov not taking Yadong Song lightly: Not an easy fight

Published

on

Umar Nurmagomedov not taking Yadong Song lightly: 'Not an easy fight'
Umar
Nurmagomedov expects a difficult test when he meets Yadong Song
in their upcoming main event in the
Ultimate Fighting Championship.

Nurmagomedov is looking to extend his win streak to three straight
at
UFC Shanghai and the Russian is well aware of the challenge
ahead of him in China's Song.

Umar Nurmagomedov expects a difficult UFC Shanghai main event
against Yadong Song

Nurmagomedov has picked up two decision wins since suffering the
lone loss of his professional career to Merab
Dvalishvili in their bantamweight title fight back in January
last year. He's beaten Mario
Bautista and Deiveson
Figueiredo via unanimous decision to return to winning form and
defeating Song in the Chinese 135-pounder's home country could put
the Dagestani back in the title mix.

Nevertheless, Nurmagomedov is focused on the task at hand against a
well-rounded opponent and isn't thinking about the title.

“Of course, I’m going to be happy to do a knockout, you know, but
this guy is not an easy fight,†Nurmagomedov said in a recent
interview. “And I will, I will, we both, I think, we’re going to
show what they mean by mixed martial arts.â€

Nurmagomedov also emphasized that his motivation extends beyond the
title picture. With Petr Yan and
Dvalishvili set to meet in a trilogy bout for the belt at
UFC 333, the 30-year-old is focused on delivering his best
performance regardless of what happens elsewhere in the
division.

“Of course, I want to show my best version,†Nurmagomedov added. “I
don’t care about that fight, whether they’re going to fight or not,
like, for myself, I want to show my best version.â€

Continue Reading

MMA

Umar Nurmagomedov wants Merab Dvalishvili next: Now its personal

Published

on

Umar Nurmagomedov wants Merab Dvalishvili next: 'Now it's personal'
Umar
Nurmagomedov is targeting a rematch with Merab
Dvalishvili.

Nurmagomedov suffered the first loss of his professional career
when Dvalishvili defeated him by unanimous decision in January last
year in their
Ultimate Fighting Championship title bout. The Russian is eager
to run it back with “The Machine†and wants to fight him next,
regardless of the outcome of the latter’s
UFC 333 title fight against Petr Yan.

Umar Nurmagomedov wants revenge against Merab Dvalishvili after
facing Yadong Song at UFC Shanghai

The tension between Nurmagomedov and Dvalishvili has only grown
since their first meeting. The former is set to face Yadong Song
at
UFC Shanghai on Aug. 29, and while he's focused on his upcoming
bout, the Dagestani wants revenge for his loss to the former
champ.

“First of all, of course I have to win this fight,†Nurmagomedov
told MMA Junkie. “Then I will fight with Merab, if he will win or
if he will lose, I think we’re going to fight.â€

Dvalishvili notably questioned whether Nurmagomedov had earned a
title shot in the first place before their clash and has repeatedly
pointed to favoritism aiding the Russian, with Umar being the
cousin of UFC Hall of Famer Khabib
Nurmagomedov.

The rivalry took another turn after Dvalishvili was involved in an
altercation with Nurmagomedov’s friend, Ahmed Gadzhimagomedov, at a
recent Real American Freestyle event in Georgia. When asked if
their feud is personal, Nurmagomedov confirmed the same.

“Is it personal? I think yes,†Nurmagomedov continued. “Already
yes. Now it’s personal. Now it’s personal not just for me. It’s
personal for all of Dagestan.â€


Continue Reading
Advertisement

OUR NEWSLETTER

Subscribe Us To Receive Our Latest News Directly In Your Inbox!

We don’t spam! Read our privacy policy for more info.

Trending