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VM Breakdowns | UFC Vegas 36 PT.2 w/ Chisanga Malata

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Join us for the latest episode of VM Breakdowns with resident host Kyle Dimond as he dives into upcoming MMA cards with some of the best minds in the UK MMA scene.

After we covered the Cage Warriors alumni with Brad Wharton, co-host Kyle Dimond is joined by special guest co-host Chisanga Malata for part two as they breakdown the remainder of the UFC Vegas 36 card taking place Sept. 4th!

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PREVIEW | Diego Lopes takes on Gavin Tucker at UFC Nashville

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A vitalizing short notice display against the undefeated Movsar Evolev has earned Diego Lopes (21-6) another opportunity at in the UFC. The Brazilian featherweight is slated to stand across from 145lb mainstay Gavin Tucker (13-2) this weekend, as the UFC returns to the Bridgestone Arena in Nashville, Tennessee, USA for UFC on ESPN 50

Lopes has been provided an invaluable opportunity against Tucker, which is credited to his encouraging performance against Evolev within one week’s notice. In spite of the four days of preparation, the Brazilian was able to illustrate the varied disciplines of martial arts instilled into his arsenal. 

In his UFC debut, Lopes captivated the attention of the UFC faithful with his formidable jiu-jitsu, as he posed problems to Evloev on multiple occasions when he was taken down. Whilst he was unable to secure the tap, Lopes demonstrated exceptional grappling. Not to mention, the martial arts veteran more than held his own as a switch stance striker in the striking exchanges, as he clipped Evolev on several occasions.

Although he was outperformed to a unanimous decision victory by the wrestling virtuoso Evloev, Diego Lopes’ stocks unequivocally did not take a dive. In fact, it skyrocketed to the point where it has left supporters eagerly awaiting his return to the octagon.

Courtesy of MMAjunkie

Gavin Tucker, as opposed, has had a relatively quiet rise to the position he’s in. A perennial hard worker, Tucker earned his stripes accepting fights and battling up and coming prospects. However, the Canadian has been inactive for over two years, with his most recent bout resulting in a one punch knockout loss at the hands of featherweight contender Dan Ige. Accordingly, the southpaw striker has taken a couple years off to rejuvenate and upskill himself, to meet the standards mandated to flourish in this dynamic sport.

Nonetheless, Tucker proved that he is no cakewalk for any contender in the 145lbs weight class, and his position at the promotion was attained through sheer hard work, determination, and fortitude. In a sport where it pays to be young, at 37 years of age, Tucker has shown no signs of slowing down, with his sights still set on climbing through the ranks.

Courtesy of Zuffa LLC

Given that the pair are unranked, their clash is avidly awaited withal by those who witnessed them. It has the potential to be granted ‘Fight of the Night’ honours. Considering that Lopes is merely 28 years of age, the Brazilian has attained an exponential amount of experience with over 25 fights under his belt. An early bloomer, Lopes envisaged himself eventually sporting the patented UFC colors and competing with the very best in the world. 

The Brazilian has now been provided with the occasion to exhibit this, now with a full camp. Needless to say, an exhilarating bout awaits us.

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For more previews, stay tuned to Violent Money TV.

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PREVIEW | Tatiana Suarez returns against Jessica Andrade at UFC Nashville

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A drop back down in weight class and a jump up in competition sees Tatiana Suarez (10-0) face former UFC strawweight champion Jessica Andrade (24-11) at 115lbs this Saturday at UFC on ESPN 50. The event will mark the promotion’s return to Nashville, Tennesse.

The American had a triumphant night on her return to the octagon earlier this year in the wake of a near four-year layoff, as she put on a clinic at the expense of Montana De La Rosa, submitting her opponent in the second round. 

Suarez hit her stride running on her return and had an efficient night in the office as she landed 86% (37/43) of her strikes and over 75% of her significant strikes (10/13) on De La Rosa. It enabled her to utilize her wrestling, whereby she secured two takedowns in six attempts. It eventually paved the way for her submission. The victory solidified her position amongst the elite of her weight class, despite a sustained period of inactivity, putting all talks of ring rust to bed in convincing fashion.

Courtesy of Zuffa LLC

Andrade, in contrast, will be itching to get back in the win column in light of successive defeats to top contenders, Yan Xiaonan and Erin Blanchfield, via KO and submission respectively. Whilst the 31-year-old has hit a rough patch in the recent past, going back and forth, piling up victories as well as defeats, she remains a significant threat, for the women in both the strawweight and flyweight divisions.

An explosive and powerful striker, Andrade is well equipped and diverse in her striking arsenal. In addition, the Brazilian possess an adequate ground game, which has granted her multiple submission victories. Andrade already attained the pinnacle of the sport when she dethroned former UFC strawweight champion Rose Namajunas to capture the 115lbs title in stellar fashion by slamming her headfirst onto the canvas, over four years ago. 

Courtesy of Zuffa LLC

An undefeated wrestling specialist, Suarez stockpiled victories against the likes of former 115lb champion, Carla Esparza and reigning 125lbs champion Alexa Grasso, doing so in sublime fashion, having TKO’d Esparza via punches and elbows, and submitting Grasso via a rear naked choke, prior to her injuries that sidelined the 32-year-old for over three years. 

‘The Ultimate Fighter’ season 23 strawweight tournament winner will feature in her second bout of the calendar year as she seeks to return to active competition on a consistent basis, following a near four-year layoff to recuperate from an ACL tear and a couple other nagging injuries. 

Despite her recent shortcomings, it would be prudent to assume that this could potentially be the beginning of Andrade’s final run to etch her claim for another championship bout with the promotion. 

Suarez, albeit a force to be reckoned with in her own respect, faces an arduous test in the form of Brazil’s Andrade.

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For more previews, stay tuned to Violent Money TV.

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PFL 2022 | Inside the featherweight division

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The PFL 2022 season is officially underway and this week’s card features the opening round of bouts for the featherweight division. With last year’s featherweight winner and reigning champion Movlid Khaybulaev unable to defend his title due to an injury, there will be a new featherweight winner guaranteed. With that in mind, get to know the 10-men aiming to emerge victorious in this season’s tournament.

Brendan Loughnane (21-4)

After he was controversially denied a UFC contract after winning on Dana White’s Contender Series, Brendan Loughnane’s signing with the PFL added a lot of intrigue to the 145-pound division. In his first tournament last year, Loughnane made it to the semi-finals where he lost to the undefeated Khaybulaev who went on to win the tournament. A first-round stoppage over Sheymon Moraes and a dominant performance against Tyler Diamond proved what everyone already knew, that Loughnane deserves all the credit he gets as a top tier featherweight. He’s also the man that UK fans have to thank for the PFL being on Channel 4 so he has already made quite an impact.

Chris Wade (20-7)

Another one of last season’s top performers whose campaign was stopped by Khaybulaev was Chris Wade. Competing in the PFL since 2018 after a 7-fight run in the UFC, Wade has made it to the later stages of the tournament on each occasion but has never won it. Wade will face a tough test in his first fight this season, taking on two-time winner Lance Palmer who despite having 12 fights in the PFL, he is yet to face.

Lance Palmer (22-5)

A four-time NCAA Division 1 All-American wrestler, Lance Palmer used his wrestling credentials to win back-to-back featherweight tournaments in 2018 and 2019. With a lot of dominant decision wins on his PFL resume, Palmer attempted to make it three in a row once the PFL returned in 2021. After his two years of dominance at 145, Palmer went 0-2 in last year’s season, losing two unanimous decisions to Bubba Jenkins and Khaybulaev.

Bubba Jenkins (16-5)

Debuting in the PFL last season, Bubba Jenkins put two wins together over Lance Palmer and Bobby Moffett before losing to Chris Wade in the semi-finals. Jenkins moved over into the PFL as the reigning Brave CF featherweight champion after an 11-fight run in Bellator. After his previous opponent pulled out 2 weeks before the event, former UFC fighter and fan favourite Kyle Bochniak will step in as the first test of the season for Jenkins. We recently caught up with him to talk all about his career so far and moving forward.

Sheymon Moraes (13-5)

Another fighter returning from last season’s tournament, Sheymon Moraes’ PFL career started with a first-round loss to Brendan Loughnane. Since last season’s debut, Moraes has regained his momentum with back-to-back second-round finishes over Jesse Stirn and Lazar Stojadinovic. Though his UFC career didn’t go to plan, his five professional losses have come to Marlon Moraes, Zabit Magomedsharipov, Sodiq Yusuff, Andre Fili and Brendan Loughnane. Moraes will be out to prove once again that he should not be counted out when he meets another former UFC competitor.

Boston Salmon (8-3)

After losing his first two UFC fights via first-round finish, Boston Salmon’s UFC career was cut incredibly short. After one fight in the LFA, Salmon debuted in the PFL in March with a corner stoppage victory. Salmon came through in the RFA before getting a shot on Dana White’s Contender Series, picking up a win over last season’s TUF winner Ricky Turcios. His fight in this first round of match ups vs Sheymon Moraes is sure to produce a finish.

Alejandro Flores (20-3)

Mexico’s Alejandro Flores will be one of the fighters coming into the tournament as more of an unknown despite having 23 professional fights. After competing for South American promotion Combate for several years, Flores got a shot on Dana White’s Contender Series which he lost to Rafael Alves. His PFL debut came last year in August where he picked up a split decision win to solidify his place in this year’s tournament. On Tapology, he is the 3rd ranked pro featherweight in the US, 2nd ranked in Latin America and number one in Mexico.

Kyle Bochniak (11-5)

After going 6-0 in CES, Kyle Bochniak debuted in the UFC in 2016. After going 2-2 in his first four pro UFC fights, Bochniak won fans completely over with his performance against Zabit Magomedsharipov. Despite losing the fight, his brawling style made him a fan favourite but after losing three in a row, he was cut from the promotion. Going 3-0 in the promotion XMMA, Bochniak has stepped in on late notice to face Bubba Jenkins and compete in the PFL 2022 season and always, is guaranteed to deliver some must watch fights.

Saba Bolaghi (14-2-1)

The number one ranked featherweight in Germany, Bolaghi comes into this season off the back of two wins last year. Two decision losses and one split decision draw are the only blemishes on his record since his pro debut in 2014. Bolaghi will meet Alejandro Flores in this season’s featherweight opening, watch this space for a dark horse in the tournament.

Ryoji Kudo (10-2-1)

Rounding out the ten competitors is Japan’s Ryoji Kudo. Competing in the likes of ONE Championships Warrior Series and Japanese promotion Shooto, Kudo comes into this season off the back of a loss. A majority decision in July of last year put Kudo’s 3-fight first-round KO/TKO streak to a halt but there are no easy fights in the PFL 2022 season so Kudo can’t be slept on despite not fighting outside of Asia. His first fight in the PFL comes against Manchester’s Brendan Loughnane which is sure to produce a great kickboxing match whilst it lasts.

Who is your favourite to finish the PFL 2022 season as champion? Let us know your thoughts in the comments below.

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