The MMA Thread: DON'T ASK 4 STREAMS & NO GIFS- Cannonier, Imavov, Reyes, Rosas on NOW

[spiderjericho]

18-0!!

Crazy. He’s a problem. Obviously there’s still questions but he’s the young phenom. Bellator going to push him hard. I wish it wasn’t behind Showtime pay wall.

 

[degenerate423]

That size difference, man . I’ll be watching whenever AJ is fighting .

 

[Vincent Van Goat]

Aj gang. First time pitbull been subbed, crazy

 

[steevoo1]

Aj gang. First time pitbull been subbed, crazy

First time Pitbull has been finished really. Only had a doctor stoppage against Benson I think. And the man hasn't lost a fight for 5-6 years.


Man that **** was amazing. From the walkout to the post fight, AJ is doing it right. They need to send that man on a media tour and get him everywhere.

I had a ticket on AJ by KO round 1
Ain't even mad tho. **** was incredible, that man took him out with his own signature move.

Been seeing this all over already, but fight really did feel like UFC 194 in terms of story and how it played out.

 

[xbiker47]

hope we get to see AJ in the ufc someday

 

[spiderjericho]

You know it’s coming unless Bellator/Viacom throws the bag. He’s going to want to fight the best. Max, Volkanawski, Ortega, etc.

 

[jewseejay]

I would bet on it not happening anytime soon actually. Coker has all the incentive to keep throwing the bag at him like he did Chandler until AJ is older. He could prop up the while org for the next 5 years... did u hear that crowd? Shoulda left the snoop on for the whole time but w/e hah

 

[Vincent Van Goat]

The arena wasn't even close to full (or at least it seemed) when I went there for UFC 199 (Bisping Rockhold) that **** was full af

Did it seem loud on tv??? It seemed decently loud in person, was on the floor too

 

[Vincent Van Goat]

Luke's right, it low-key felt like a Strikeforce event

 

[steevoo1]

Crazy thing is AJ is still young as hell. He can fight out another contract with Bellator and make it to the UFC in 3-5 years while still being in those very prime years

 

[Vincent Van Goat]

That AJ vs Pico fight going to be

 

[steevoo1]

Think AJ said he's done with 145 at the post presser. Said the cuts to are too hard. Man's had to use the extra time just for this weigh in cause he was over.

 

[Vincent Van Goat]

“On this night, he was great,” Freire said Saturday night in his post-fight press conference. “He kicked my head and he almost knocked me out and he almost finished me on the same night, so he was good. Congratulations. Now he’s the champion.”

“I watched the fight. I knew I wasn’t asleep, but I saw my hands [start to drop],” Freire said. “I was standing, but that’s it. A fighter wants to fight until the end. That’s my mind.”

“Before the fight I think he told somebody something like this, and it’s a good thing,” Freire said. “He beat me in the featherweight division. I know he’s big, he has trouble cutting weight. And let’s think about it. I have a belt. I’m still a world champion.”

“If we do something like that, this time I’d like it to be in Brazil,” said Freire’s head coach Eric Albarracin. “This guy’s been here for 10 years, double champ-champ, winningest fighter in Bellator history, most title defenses. Why are we fighting in Los Angeles? He’s the champ-champ. We’re fighting in the challenger’s hometown? Great, he won, give it all to him — he slept in his own bed, his dad’s a legend here, born and raised here, he’s born and raised here, 99 percent of the fans cheering for A.J., we’re in his house. Yet [Freire] is double champ-champ? Great, he won. Let’s do it in Brazil next. For one time, bring it to Brazil for the champ.

“Sixteen games in the NFL are played to get a home field advantage, 180 in baseball,” Albarracin continued. “He’s the world champ-champ. You ask a warrior, ‘Hey, where you want to fight?’ They say anywhere, any time. But obviously not in the home town of the challenger, giving him all the advantages — the youth, the range, the reach, and then throw all the home field advantage, where he’s sleeping and training in his own gym. We traveled 36 hours to get here. Let’s switch it up one time.”

 

[spiderjericho]

Vince you went to the card?

When Nothing But a G Thing came on it sounded lit in the arena. The sing along and the home town love.

 

[Vincent Van Goat]

AJ is huge for 145. I want to see AJ vs Borics and Pico but outside of that 145 can be left behind

AJ at 155 vs Usman Nurmagadov is going to be INSANE

“It depends on who steps up to the line,” he said. “Health is key. Making 145 pounds, I can do it, but as I get older, as I get bigger, as I get stronger, as I become more of a man, obviously it’s going to get harder and harder and harder. I’ve been wanting to move up. COVID, so forth, things have come into play where it’s kept me here longer than expected, but god’s timing is perfect.”

 

[Vincent Van Goat]

Vince you went to the card?

When Nothing But a G Thing came on it sounded lit in the arena. The sing along and the home town love.

Classic moment. Should have let it play out longer but the Milly song was appropriate

 

[spiderjericho]

I don’t know about AJ at 155.

At 145, I think he could compete in the UFC FW top five. How well, I don’t know.

155? Islam. Diamond. Justin. And if Khabib was still around. I don’t feel 155 in Bellator is super duper deep. Also champ/champ would hamper those divisions. Like it does now. Those are the two divisions where there is enough depth that entertaining that bs could hurt divisions.

Were the tickets hyper expensive Vince?

 

[Vincent Van Goat]

Yeah Bellator LW division <<< FW division. But I don't see AJ being able to make weight much longer. He seems even bigger than what Conor was when he was cutting

Was only $130 to sit on the floor. We were probably 20 rows up. Other friends of friends showed up without tickets and found seats 10 rows up for $100 each lol

 

[spiderjericho]

That’s not bad. Good atmosphere.

 

[Vincent Van Goat]

This guy is something else

He also told Felder in the ring that if it wasn't for the UFC he'd be cooking meth in a trailer

“If you like to f*cking hurt people, you’re in the right sport. I would love nothing more than to kill somebody in the ring. Nothing more. It would make me super happy I would own that sh*t, too. I don’t know if it would make me liable, I might have to say I’m sorry if the cops came, but I would own that sh*t. Own it. Be a psychopath, it’s f*cking fun,” Strickland said (h/t MMAFighting).

 

[Vincent Van Goat]

Really curious as to when or if Dana ever mentions AJ's name. Wonder how they evaluate him

“Yeah, I mean I would love to see (McKee) fight against other people as well, as you guys would also, but it’s not going to happen because it’s not the UFC’s business model to do it. But you tell me this kid couldn’t go in there and fight anybody right now. Everybody knows that he can do it. So if they want to get it on, we’d do it in a second,” Coker said.

 

[spiderjericho]

They’re not doing UFCxBellator.

It would legitimize Bellator and say their product is on the same level. Where’s the UFCxPride, UFC was in the position where it was trying anything to get Jake Paul buzz.

Would Scott do it? Yes. He’s shown he’s open to it.

 

[xbiker47]

A.J. has already crossed paths with Dana before.

I forgot where I saw it, maybe A.J. mentioned it in an interview somewhere.

 

[spiderjericho]

Is Dana going to buy Bellator to get AJ like he did for Ronda (they probably did that for the catalog, fighters, and eliminate competition).

 

[jayt1202]

Yup UFC is never going to do a cross promotion show with Bellator unless they had ownership in them. AJ beating one of their top FW's would be a terrible look. Plus UFC always refers to Bellator as just another org lol.