1. Broner Doesn’t Care About Mayweather-Pacquiao II
During Thursday’s media conference call, Manny Pacquiao would be tight-lipped when it came to a potential rematch with Floyd Mayweather following his return to the ring on January 19th.
While Pacquiao would only say he’s “focused on Adrien Broner,” Broner was a little more vocal about the rumors of his opponent facing the undefeated Mayweather.
“No disrespect,” Broner said, “but I don’t give a f*** about Mayweather and Pacquiao.”
2. Rogan Discusses Johnson-Jones GOAT Debate
For the past several years in Mixed Martial Arts, the two names brought up in the argument of greatest of all time have been former UFC flyweight champion Demetrious Johnson and current UFC light heavyweight champion Jon Jones.
One person who has given both the mantle of G.O.A.T is UFC commentator Joe Rogan, who broke down his thoughts on both during his podcast this week.
“Here’s what’s disappointing to me, that for whatever reason, ‘Mighty Mouse’ never became a giant superstar,” Rogan said (transcribed by BJPenn.com). “That confused the s**t out of me. When he took Ray Borg and suplexed him and caught him with an armbar on the way down… I was like what the f**k does this guy have to do to become a superstar? I mean his skill level is off the chart. He doesn’t get hit. He’s a dazzling fighter. He puts on shows.”
“[Johnson is] the best ever,” Rogan continued.
3. Ortiz Eyes Bellator Return Against Sonnnen
The UFC Hall of Famer, who recently reentered retirement after his Golden Boy MMA 1 win over Chuck Liddell, is planning a return to fighting.
Ortiz is looking to fight the man he fought in his other most recent retirement fight, Chael Sonnen. Sonnen was a vocal critic of Ortiz and Liddell’s return to Pay-Per-View in late 2018, which Ortiz took as a declaration of war.
“[Chael] started it,” Ortiz told TMZ Sports recently. “As Chuck started it. And Chuck only lasted what, four and a half minutes? He called me out man. I’m gonna stay in retirement. I’m still gonna stay retired, and I’m gonna smash Chael. I’m not gonna choke him, I’m not gonna submit him, I’m gonna smash him. I’ll put a show on for every one of the fans. That’s what I’m gonna do.”
Ortiz submitted Sonnen in their meeting in 2017, but Sonnen would stay active getting past Rampage Jackson in the first round of the heavyweight grand-prix, only to fall to Fedor Emelianenko in the tournament’s semi-finals.
“This guy has a loud mouth,” Ortiz said of the fighter/ESPN analyst. “I’m gonna shut him up. Like I say: I’m not gonna choke him, I’m not gonna submit him, I’m gonna pummel him for three rounds. And give the fans what they want to see, and that’s a great fight.”
While Ortiz pledged after beating Liddell that he would help run Golden Boy MMA, it seems that the “Huntington Beach Bad Boy” is looking to return to the Bellator cage and fight at the “World’s Most Famous Arena.
“I don’t know [where],” said Ortiz. “I’ve never fought at Madison Square Garden, so possibly Madison Square Garden. That’ll be the first thing.
4. Silva Wants UFC To Allow TRT Use
As Anderson Silva prepares to return to the Octagon, the former middleweight champion has come out in-favor of a highly controversial treatment to be made legal by the UFC.
While speaking with the Rap 77 YouTube channel, Silva, who recently finished a one-year suspension due to tainted supplements, has come out in favor of testosterone replacement therapy (TRT).
The practice was common in the UFC up until being banned by the organization in 2014, due to controversy surrounding the practice.
During the interview Silva cited former opponent Vitor Belfort, as well as fellow ex-UFC-champ Dan Henderson, as examples to make his case.
“There are some athletes who need to make use of the hormonal replacement,” Silva said. “I think, if USADA regulated that, we’d have the sport at a high level, with athletes who have stopped fighting. Vitor, for example. Even me, though I never had the replacement. But some athletes who really need it, who are older. Dan Henderson, many other athletes who have stopped because of this.”
5. UFC 232 Trending Towards 700,000 Buys
Jon Jones’ return to the Octagon yielded the second biggest buy rate of 2018, as early numbers show UFC 232 pulling in 700,000 buys.
Initially reported by the Wrestling Observer Newsletter, the card featuring Jones’ rematch against Alexander Gustafsson for the vacant UFC light heavyweight title and Amanda Nunes first round upset over Cris Cyborg, would pull behind UFC 229, which would see 2.4 million buys for Conor McGregor’s return against Khabib Nurmagomedov.
These numbers exceed a majority of UFC’s numbers for last year, with UFC 231 between 240-300,000 buys, UFC 230 from Madison Square Garden drawing 250,000 and UFC 228 barely over 130,000 buys for Tyron Woodley’s win over Darren Til.