News

PFL 2 | England’s Stuart Austin set for biggest test to date

Published

2 years ago

April 27, 2022

Harry Elson

A veteran UK heavyweight with a huge drive to succeed in this unforgiving sport, Stuart Austin looks to make good of his $1 million opportunity with the PFL, beginning this lucrative journey with a shot at the man to beat.

Austin made his PFL debut last season, taking on proven finisher Renan Ferreira, a bout which saw the Brit crash out early after a nasty overhand right connected flush to end the night. Despite the loss, Austin has been given a roster spot for this year’s season, drawing the hardest match up of the bunch. “He-man” will need all of his tools in this one, taking on reigning heavyweight King, Bruno Cappelozza in the main event of PFL 2 on April 28th.

Cappelozza thrusted his name into the mix of guarenteed crowd pleasers last year, seemingly delivering on every outing en-route to championship status and that 1 million dollar prize. It was difficult to gauge what to expect from the Brazilian after 2 years off but boy did he exceed expectations. 3 vicious finishes saw him to a comfortable unanimous decision victory over Ante Delija to end a stellar year as champion.

For Austin this is most definitely the biggest fight of his career, a main event on a big PFL show against the reigning champ, opportunities don’t get much better. He may be the underdog but don’t forget this is heavyweight MMA, and with the experience and ability Austin has he’s more than capable of causing problems in there.

Austin has been around the block when it comes to MMA, competing on the likes of Bellator, BAMMA, EFC and now the PFL. He’s fought Multi discipline veterans such as Satoshi Ishii whom he beat in 2020, UFC staples and veterans alike such as Johnny Walker and Mark Godbeer, even being one of 2 people to hold a win over UFC heavyweight title hopeful Tom Aspinall.

The Aspinall win is certainly one that has aged well, a contest in where he even scored a finish with a heel hook in round 2. The grappling base he utilises so well stems from a judo background, his brother being an Olympic level judoka certainly aiding his game tremendously in the grappling area. A strength in the clinch is always evident with Austin, utilising those judo roots to find throws, paving the way for his strong top game which has seen him control a number of opponents throughout his career.

Aside from his grappling, Austin is decievingly fast for a man with a 6’3, 245lb frame. By no means a volume puncher like his Brazilian counterpart in Cappelozza, he tends to strike in short bursts, biding his time to make reads and capitalise on a sufficient opportunity. He moves well and he strikes fast, the pressure and hands opening up the clinch work which we know is his bread and butter.

He has the experience and he has the skill set, should it all mesh together on the day, don’t sleep on Stuart Austin. He finds him self with a huge opportunity, in a division full of killers, as a pretty sizeable underdog, if that doesn’t breed motivation then I don’t know what will. He-man is out to prove that he is in fact, the master of the heavyweights.

Interviews

Smilla Sundell Recaps Training With Tawanchai & Stamp In Thailand

Published

2 days ago

April 17, 2024

VM Staff

For a fighter to become the best, it helps to remain humble and focused. And if the opportunity to train with world-class athletes arises, they should grab it with both hands. Ahead of her return to ONE Championship next month, ONE Women’s Strawweight Muay Thai World Champion Smilla Sundell has been doing all that.

The Swedish striker is set to return in the main event of ONE Fight Night 22 on Saturday, 4th May, inside Bangkok, Thailand’s Lumpinee Boxing Stadium, where she’ll defend her crown against Russian ruiner Natalia Diachkova.

Sundell has been dominant across four promotional outings. But she knows she’ll have her hands full with Diachkova, so she recently chose to take some tips from ONE Featherweight Muay Thai World Champion Tawanchai PK Saenchai.

“I did his seminar in Bangkok at PK Saenchai with my friend Matt. We went there and wanted to learn some new skills and see how he did seminars because I want to go to America after my fight to do seminars. I’ve done one now, and I like teaching, so it was fun,” Sundell said.

“There’s no competition in it. He’s like a cat playing with a rat. It’s too easy for him sometimes. He doesn’t even try.”

The strawweight Muay Thai queen sharpens her skills at the Fairtex Training Center in Pattaya, Thailand, alongside other world-class striking talents, like three-sport ONE World Champion Stamp Fairtex.

Stamp’s fun-loving nature has rubbed off on Sundell, but it’s her commitment to never backing down that has truly inspired the 19-year-old sensation.

“She’s always been a happy girl and trains hard every day. She’s basically the same funny girl. Still hungry (to get wins),” Sundell explained.

“I think I learned that you can achieve whatever you like as long as you put in the work. But I learned that from my parents, too. But maybe more practical, in a sense, because Stamp did it in martial arts.”

News

CW 171: Final Card & Broadcast Details

Published

4 days ago

April 15, 2024

VM Staff

It’s fight week for Glasgow! Cage Warriors – Europe’s Leading MMA Organisation – heads to Scotland for the first time since 2013 with the stacked CW 171 card pitting the nation’s finest against elite opposition from the UK, Europe and beyond!

With the home nation represented in all six of the main card bouts, the atmosphere is set to be electric in the Braehead Arena as CW presents one of its biggest fight nights of all time.

In the main event, blistering KO artist Dumitru Girlean returns to face home favourite Chris ‘The Bad Guy’ Bungard in what is sure to be an electrifying lightweight contest.

Also featuring in high-stakes bouts are title hopefuls Reece McEwan and Aidan Stephen, who face UFC veteran Cameron Else and Italy’s Gianluca Scottoli respectively.

Elsewhere on the card, former title challenger Scott Malone is back in the famous yellow gloves, as he takes on surging contender Nicolas Leblond, while hot prospect Sean Clancy Jr looks to keep his unbeaten run alive against Lucas Rodriguez.

The final CW 171 card is as follows…

Cage Warriors 171: Glasgow | LIVE on UFC Fight Pass

Main Card – 12:30 (PT) | 15:30 (ET) | 20:30 (BST) | 21:30 (CEST)

Lightweight: Dumitru Girlean vs Chris Bungard
Bantamweight: Cameron Else vs Reece McEwan
Welterweight: Lucas Rodrigues vs Sean Clancy Jr
Bantamweight: Gianluca Scottoli vs Aidan Stephen
Flyweight: Nicolas Leblond vs Scott Malone
Bantamweight: Kaique Modesto vs Keir Harvie

Prelims – 08:30 (PT) | 11:30 (ET) | 16:30 (BST) | 17:30 (CEST)

Lightweight: Konstantinos Ntelis vs Jan Quaeyhaegens
Featherweight: Alberth Dias vs Paul McBain
Bantamweight: Jack Eglin vs Daan Duijs
Lightweight: Jordan Little vs Jordan Stronge
Welterweight: Wallison Henrique vs Carlo Pedersoli Jr
Light Heavyweight: Nell Ariano vs Jamie Macdonald
Catchweight (167lbs): Diego Dikson vs Ieuan Davies
Lightweight: Dec Dean vs Michael Blair
Flyweight: Ronal Siahaan vs Igor Wojtas
Featherweight: TBC vs Damon Donald
Bantamweight: Pav Sahota vs Iain Postlethwaite
Welterweight: Mush Aslani vs Khadim Dia
Featherweight: Cornellius Aritonang vs Thomas Hepburn

Cage Warriors 171: Glasgow will air live on UFC Fight Pass and international broadcast partners.

News

UFC 300 – Live Results | Pereira vs Hill

Published

6 days ago

April 13, 2024

Jake Davis

It’s fight day! The milestone event UFC 300 is finally upon us, bringing with it one of the strongest cards ever put together. In the main event, Alex Pereira will defend his light heavyweight belt against former titleholder Jamahal Hill.

For the full results as they happen, look no further!

Note: any point deductions will be denoted with an asterisk and explained at the bottom of the page.

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