Day: 1. März 2025

UFC Vegas 103 was an entertaining affair with four fighters earning bonuses.

Manel Kape (20-7) earned an extra $50K Performance of the Night bonus for a stoppage over Asu Almabayev (21-3) in the flyweight headliner. Kape thoroughly outstruck Almabayev from the opening bell, never allowing the Kazakh to implement his wrestling. “Starboy” eventually delivered too much damage on Almabayev, forcing the referee to step in at 2:16 of the third round, ending his undefeated streak that dated back to 2017. However, the Angolan seemingly scraped Almabayev twice in the left eye, which went unpenalized.

The second POTN bonus went to undefeated heavyweight debutant Mario Pinto (10-0) for his knockout win over Austen Lane (13-6). Pinto got dropped by Lane in the opening frame before rallying back to put the former football defensive end to sleep with a left hook-straight right combo early in the second round.

Meanwhile, Morocco’s Nasrat Haqparast (18-5) and Argentina’s Esteba…

Manel Kape may have cleared the final obstacle between him and a long-sought shot at the Ultimate Fighting Championship flyweight crown.

The former Rizin Fighting Federation titleholder was awarded an anticlimactic technical knockout over Asu Almabayev in the third round of their UFC Fight Night 253 main event on Saturday at the UFC Apex in Las Vegas. Referee Mike Beltran stepped in to wave it off 2:16 into Round 3, even though Almabayev (21-3, 4-1 UFC) seemed to be lucid and defending himself.

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Kape (21-7, 6-3 UFC) was the aggressor from the start. He unleashed lightning-fast punches from odd angles and called upon bulletproof takedown defense against the Kazakhstani grappler. Almabayev—who entered the cage on a 17-fight winning streak—emerged for the second round clearly bothered by the damage he sustained to his left eye. Kape zeroed in on it, sometimes with punches and sometimes with what appeared to be clear fouls—replays showed he raked the eye…

Sherdog's live UFC Vegas 103 coverage will begin Saturday at 4:30 p.m. ET. The event is also known as UFC Fight Night 253. BETTING PREVIEW | SCOUTING REPORT | ODDS: Temirov (-115), Johnson (-105)Round 1 Sherdog Scores Jay Pettry scores the round:Brian Knapp scores the round:Dayne Fox scores the round:

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Round 2 Sherdog Scores Jay Pettry scores the round:Brian Knapp scores the round:Dayne Fox scores the round:Round 3 Sherdog Scores Jay Pettry scores the round:Brian Knapp scores the round:Dayne Fox scores the round: The Official Result BETTING PREVIEW | SCOUTING REPORT | ODDS: Aldrich (-205), Lee (+170)Round 1 Sherdog Scores Jay Pettry scores the round:Brian Knapp scores the round:Dayne Fox scores the round:Round 2 Sherdog Scores Jay Pettry scores the round:Brian Knapp scores the round:Dayne Fox scores the round:Round 3 Sherdog Scores Jay Pettry scores the round:Brian Knapp scores the round:Dayne Fox scores the round:The Official Result BETTING PREVIEW | …

Merab Dvalishvili says he loves Alexander Volkanovski and doesn’t want to fight him out of respect 🤝

“It’s nothing like I don’t want to take a risk, it’s nothing like I’m scared… I just have so much respect.”

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🎥 @ManoukAkopyan #UFC #MMApic.twitter.com/q9ZWMyaQjx — Championship Rounds (@ChampRDS) February 28, 2025

Merab Dvalishvili respects Alexander Volkanovski too much to fight him.

Dvalishvili (19-4) is currently looking for fresh contenders to defend his bantamweight title against. Former featherweight champ Volkanovski (26-4) is not a name that excites “The Machine.” While Dvalishvili claims he isn’t ducking the matchup, he respects “The Great” too much to want to fight him. The Georgian also mentioned a callout from flyweight champ Alexandre Pantoja.

“I love Alex Volkanovski man, he is one of the greatest,” Dvalishvili told Manouk Akopyan. “And I just really respect him. It’s nothing like I don’t want …

Michael Chandler reacts to the clip of Dustin Poirier calling him "fake" and "a cheater":

"I don't lose a wink of sleep thinking about Dustin Poirier and how he thinks about me.

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Obviously I live rent free in his head and he does lose sleep over me."

🎥 @ZachGelb #UFC #MMA pic.twitter.com/i7aIx5DxXk

— Championship Rounds (@ChampRDS) February 28, 2025 Michael Chandler wants to run it back with Dustin Poirier.

Poirier beat Chandler (23-9) via third-round submission in their initial meeting at UFC 281 in 2022. Things have since been sour between the two as Poirier (30-9) accused Chandler of fish hooking and other alleged fouls.

Poirier went on a rant about Chandler, calling him a “fake mother*cker” in a recent interview. While discussing the alleged fishhook, “The Diamond” claimed to have bitten Chandler’s finger so hard that he might have ripped a piece off if not for his mouthpiece.

Responding to Poirier…

🎙️Sadibou Sy said he would like to fight Impa Kasanganay in the PFL MW World Championship, but not for the reasons you might think…

“As soon as the cage door closes, we’re gonna fight. So I don’t have to hate you (to fight you).”

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🎥 @JakeNoeckerMMA x @Home_of_Fight pic.twitter.com/6nJuTcL9rz — Home of Fight (@Home_of_Fight) February 28, 2025

Sadibou Sy wants to face Impa Kasanganay out of his admiration and respect for his fellow fighter.

Sy (17-8) and Kasanganay (18-5) will compete in the light heavyweight bracket as the PFL kicks of its 2025 campaign on April 18 in Florida.

Sy wants to fight Kasanganay in the finals as he really the likes the former light heavyweight champ and his family. However, “The Swedish Denzel” vows to show no mercy once the cage door closes on them.

“Impa [Kasanganay] because I really like Impa,” Sy told Home of Fight. “Whenever I meet his family, his mom and dad, they’re gr…