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‘Let’s beat the hell out of this guy’: Lerryan Douglas celebrates working with ‘real fighters’ like Marco Ruas ahead of UFC Sacramento

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3 months ago

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‘Let’s beat the hell out of this guy’: Lerryan Douglas celebrates working with ‘real fighters’ like Marco Ruas ahead of UFC Sacramento

Lerryan Douglas enters the UFC cage for a second time Saturday night in Sacramento, facing off with Jamall Emmers after flooring Julian Erosa in brutal fashion in his debut this past March, and feels better prepared and more motivated after working in the gym with vale tudo legend Marco Ruas.

Ruas is a longtime friend of Douglas' manager and his family and “an inspiration†for the featherweight talent, who was born five months before Ruas won the UFC 7 one-night tournament. Ruas beat Paul Varelans, Remco Pardoel and Larry Cureton that night in September of 1995, and 31 years later they're sharing the same mat in California.

“I'm always training, trying to get as much experience as possible from the veterans, from the real fighters,†Douglas told MMA Fighting. “It's been an incredible experience. I did several training sessions with him for this fight. He said, ‘Brother, you're ready. You're ready. Let's beat the hell out of this guy.' [laughs]â€

Ruas, 65, last fought under MMA rules in 2007 when he returned from a six-year hiatus for a rematch with Maurice Smith in IFL. “The King of the Streets†was one of the biggest names in the vale tudo scene back in the 1980's and 1990's, competing in World Vale Tudo, UFC and PRIDE.

“Just being able to train with the guy, talk to him, have him show me some techniques and different ways to do things, all of that is already extremely valuable to me,†Douglas said. “Just being around him, training with him, gives you that extra motivation. The legend, Marco, is telling me I'm ready, brother, there's no way I can't be. And if you're not ready, the guy is going to tell you. There's none of that with Marco. That's why I like the old school guys, there's no, ‘I'm going to protect this kid's ego.' With Marco, that's how it has to be. If you're not in good shape, if you're not doing well, he's going to tell you. He's not going to sugarcoat it or protect your ego. For me, that's good for my confidence. If he says I'm good, I'm ready, then I'm ready.â€

Douglas' octagon return is met with anticipation after a successful debut in March, and the 145-pound prospect says the hype from his fellow Brazilians “is motivation for me†ahead of his UFC Sacramento clash with Emmers. His opponent enters his 10th octagon appearances riding a two-fight winning streak over Gabriel Miranda and Hyder Amil in 2025.

“The guys are putting me up there, but I also know where I really stand,†Douglas said. “It's cool to see people supporting me, backing me and putting me up there. I've only had one fight in the UFC, but I've been fighting for a long time. I had my first professional fight when I was 18, and now I'm 31. It's been a long journey. Having people put me up there with those guys is cool for me, I enjoy that. I'm ready to embrace any opportunity that comes my way.â€

“My entire career has been like this,†he continued. “I've never had the option of taking an easier route. There's a good side to that and there's a bad side to it, but the path I followed was a little different, always fighting people at my level or above. That's how you gain experience, right? But for me, I'm cool. Whoever the UFC sends my way, I'll be ready.â€

“Gunslinger†Douglas is a former LFA champion who earned his spot in the UFC by finishing Cam Teague in just 36 seconds on Dana White's Contender Series in 2025, and welcomes facing â€more experienced guys†in the UFC.

“I keep gaining more experience as well until I reach the top, which is my goal,†Douglas said. “Jamall is a well-rounded guy. He can fight anywhere. I watched his last fight, him wrestling with the guy. In some fights he knocks guys out, in others he submits them, so he's a complete fighter. In the UFC, you're going to face guys like that. There won't be anyone incomplete in the UFC. But when they feel the pressure in a fight, guys change their game plans and everything changes, right? When I'm actually there, when it's fight time, we'll see. If he wants to bang, let's bang. If he wants to wrestle, I'm ready. And jiu-jitsu goes without saying. But I'm excited to get another submission or knockout.â€

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MMA fighter Jindrich Janecka resuscitated after cardiac arrest in cage

Published

10 hours ago

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November 12, 2026

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MMA fighter Jindrich Janecka resuscitated after cardiac arrest in cage

Jindrich Janecka went into
cardiac arrest during his bout against Tomas
Skalicky at Cage Game 2, according to Oktagon
MMA chief medic Norbert Bidrman.

Janecka appeared hurt after a kick to the body and was later
knocked out by a punch. The bout took place under Oktagon MMA's
stand-and-bang rules, which prohibit ground fighting.

Oktagon MMA chief medic describes CPR, defibrillation and
Janecka regaining consciousness at Cage Game 2

Bidrman said the medical team performed CPR, delivered a shock and
administered oxygen. Janecka regained consciousness in the cage and
was able to speak with the team before an ambulance took him to the
hospital. Bidrman said a blow to the chest may have triggered an
abnormal heart rhythm, but the cause had not been confirmed.

“I'm the head medic here at Oktagon. We just had a very emergency
situation here, where one of the fighters, specifically Jindra,
went into a sudden cardiac arrest. After some cardiopulmonary
resuscitation, we delivered a shock. He was given oxygen and
brought back to life. He is fully oriented to place, time, and
person. And BRNO, the ambulance service, whom we greatly thank for
arriving on time, has taken him over, and he is now already at the
hospital. Jindra, I want to repeat, was already fully conscious in
the cage. He was communicating with us. And now we just want to
find the cause of why this happened. Most likely this could have
been some kind of arrhythmia caused by a blow to the chest that he
received earlier,†Bidrman said in a statement shared on X.

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UFC 334 | Pro fighters make their picks for Kayla Harrison vs. Amanda Nunes title fight

Published

19 hours ago

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November 11, 2026

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UFC 334 | Pro fighters make their picks for Kayla Harrison vs. Amanda Nunes title fight
Trending:

Josh Hokit compared to Cain Velasquez by Ciryl Gane's coach ahead of UFC 334 showdown

The UFC heads to Madison Square Garden in New York City, New York, for UFC 334. In the co-main event, Kayla Harrison defends her women's bantamweight title against Amanda Nunes. Heading into the bout, Harrison is a -196 favorite while the former champ is a +152 underdog on FanDuel.

Ahead of the bout at UFC 334, BJPENN.com reached out to several pro fighters to get their predictions for the women's bantamweight title fight. The pros believe Nunes will upset Harrison in her return and reclaim the bantamweight title.

BJPENN.com Fighter Picks Kayla Harrison vs. Amanda Nunes:

Julian Erosa, UFC featherweight: I think Nunes. She has less muscle than Harrison, and muscle takes oxygen, and I think Nunes wins in the later rounds.

Dustin Jacoby, UFC light heavyweight: This is a good fight. Amanda is coming back, so there are some questions, and she has the knockout power. But, I do think Kayla will get the win with her wrestling.

Gillian Robertson, UFC strawweight: Amanda. I've trained with and known her for a long time, so I might be bias. But I do think she is the greatest woman in combat sports, and I think Amanda won't be scared of Kayla's judo and will be aggressive on the feet with her striking.

Mario Bautista, UFC bantamweight: I think Amanda Nunes gets the win. Kayla cuts a lot of weight, and I do worry about that with how hard Amanda hits.

Modestas Bukauskas, UFC light heavyweight: A very tough fight to pick. Kayla has been great in the UFC, but I can never pick against Amanda. Although she does have a layoff, I think she wins.

Terrance McKinney, UFC lightweight: I think Kayla Harrison wins. She will be able to take Amanda down, and Nunes will get tired as we have seen in the past. Kayla defends her belt.

***

Fighters picking Kayla Harrison: Dustin Jacoby, Terrance McKinney

Fighters picking Amanda Nunes: Julian Erosa, Gillian Robertson, Mario Bautista, Modestas Bukauskas

ICYMI: Pro fighters also made their picks for the UFC 334 main event featuring Ciryl Gane vs. Josh Hokit.

Who do you think will win the UFC 334 co-main event between Kayla Harrison and Amanda Nunes?

This article appeared first on BJPENN.COM

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Kayla Harrison’s coach downplays past experience with Amanda Nunes playing any real part in UFC 334 fight  

Published

1 day ago

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November 11, 2026

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Kayla Harrison’s coach downplays past experience with Amanda Nunes playing any real part in UFC 334 fight  

As Kayla Harrison prepares to face Amanda Nunes in the UFC 334 co-main event, a lot of the focus for the fight is going to center around them previously training together at American Top Team and even sharing the same coaches at times.

But Mike Brown, who previously coached Nunes and has served as Harrison's head coach since the first day she stepped foot in the gym, says that narrative is really being blown out of proportion. While Brown knows that Harrison and Nunes crossed paths from time to time, they were never that close long before they were scheduled to compete for the women's bantamweight championship.

“It's a big gym,†Brown told MMA Fighting. “There's a lot of training partners. They weren't training partners that often. Very seldom.â€

Of course, Brown gets pulled into that conversation a lot because he did coach both fighters but even that doesn't really cause a conflict of interest. At least in his book.

“I have a job,†Brown explained. “I work for Kayla and I work for ATT. That's my job. I trained with Amanda, but I was never her official head coach. But I did work with her for a handful of fights.

“But this is business. It's a big fight, and they're both going to make a bunch of money and everyone is in a good situation.â€

Now Brown obviously has an intimate knowledge about the good, the bad and the ugly working with both fighters but even that doesn't necessarily serve as an advantage.

Nunes left American Top Team, and effectively started her own gym, and that's continued as she prepares for her comeback from retirement. But Brown knows that Harrison and Nunes both have enough footage out there that the strategy come Saturday night isn't going to be some revolutionary change from what each has done in the past.

“I think they both each other's strengths and weaknesses,†Brown said. “Amanda's a big power puncher and everyone knows that. Kayla is a world class grappler and a multiple world champion, a world champion in judo, so there's no secrets in what each fighter's going to want to do.

“I don't think you would have had to coach them to figure that out. I think everyone knows what everyone wants to do here. It comes down to who can implement their game plan.â€

Since the day she started in the sport, Harrison has long talked about defining her legacy by becoming the greatest of all-time.

With two Olympic gold medals in judo along with a UFC championship and several PFL championships, Harrison could already make a compelling argument as the greatest combat sports athlete in history.

That said, Brown acknowledges that Nunes' accolades are undeniable and adding that win to her resume should help separate Harrison from any past competition when it comes to that greatest of all-time conversation.

“I believe so just because of her track record,†Brown said about Harrison. “Her near perfect record. Amanda's beaten every champion I believe at 135 except for Kayla. She's beat every champ that's ever been at the weight. That's pretty damn impressive except for Kayla. Obviously, she's done more in the sport than Kayla, but Kayla's record is near perfect. One blemish with [Larissa] Pacheco in their third fight. She had beat her twice before that.

“She's clearly head and shoulders above the competition. She also has a very high finish rate I would consider her the greatest of all-time if she wins this fight.â€

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