Knockdown Daily 9/25/21: Jon Jones Charged With Domestic Battery In Las Vegas
Jon Jones' recent legal issues lead the MMA headlines for Saturday
Welcome to the Saturday edition of the Knockdown Daily. Today’s incredibly busy: tonight is UFC 266, there are ONE Championship and LFA cards from last night to discuss, and former UFC Light Heavyweight Champion Jon Jones has also made headlines again.
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Jon Jones Charged With Domestic Battery In Las Vegas
Former UFC Light Heavyweight Champion Jon Jones was arrested Friday morning and charged with misdemeanor domestic battery and injury or tampering with a vehicle.
Jones, 34, was arrested by the Las Vegas Metro PD, per a report from Marc Raimondi of ESPN. He was held at the Clark County Detention Center with a bail of $8,000.
Jones had appeared the previous night at UFC’s Hall of Fame ceremony, accepting an award in the “Fight Wing” for his 2013 bout against Alexander Gustafsson.
The former UFC Light Heavyweight Champion has been out of the cage since early 2020. He relinquished his belt last year, announcing an attempt to move up to heavyweight.
Jones and the UFC have engaged in public disputes over the past year regarding his next fight.
He mentioned during a press scrum Thursday that he aims to return to action in the second quarter of 2022.
Jones has been in trouble with the law before.
The former champ was sentenced to 18 months of supervised probation in 2015 after pleading guilty to leaving the scene of an automobile accident.
Jones was sentenced to four days of house arrest and one year of supervised probation in 2020 after pleading guilty to a DWI (driving while intoxicated) charge. He had also pleaded guilty to a DUI (driving under influence) in 2012.
In 2019, Jones pleaded no contest to a battery charge that stemmed from an altercation with a waitress at a strip club.
Ok Rae Yoon Dethrones Christian Lee In Controversial Decision
Ok Rae Yoon pulled off a massive upset on Friday, dethroning Christian Lee to become the new ONE Championship 170-pound MMA Champion. Ok took the fight via unanimous decision, in a result that many disagreed with.
The fight headlined ONE Championship’s “Revolution” card, which took place at the Singapore Indoor Stadium in Singapore.
Lee had a good start to the fight, being the more active fighter in the opening frame. He was able to look for a rear naked choke late in the second round after putting together some shots that connected.
Ok earned a flash knockdown early in the third round with a combination of hooks. Lee answered back only seconds later, dropping an aggressive Ok with an overhand right.
Ok started to take over the fight in the fourth, advancing on Lee and throwing with more shots as fatigue presumably set in.
A close final round finished on a high note for Lee, as he stunned Ok again with an overhand right – this time not knocking him down.
Lee was ONE’s 170-pound champion for over two years. He defended his belt twice, including a stoppage victory over Timofey Nastyukhin earlier this year.
Lee disputed the result of the fight afterward, calling for a rematch and for the fight result to be overturned.
“I have a lot of respect for Ok Rae Yoon … But I won that fight,” said Lee during an interview that was met with some boos from the small audience in attendance.
Ok’s title win was the peak of an incredibly quick climb up the ONE rankings.
The Korean welterweight made his ONE debut in April, defeating big names Marat Gafurov and former UFC Champion Eddie Alvarez.
A full report on “Revolution” can be read here.
Here are the quick results for the card:
Lead Card (6:30AM EDT / 6:30PM SGT) (Bleacher Report App / Youtube)
Bout 1: James Yang def. Roel Rosauro via TKO, Strikes (RD 2) (MMA Bout)
Bout 2: Petchtanong Banchamek def. Zhang ChengLong via Decision, Unanimous (Kickboxing Bout)
Bout 3: Marcus Buchecha def. Anderson Braddock Silva via Submission, North-South Choke (RD 1) (MMA Bout)
Bout 4: Taiki Naito def. Petchdam Gaiyanghadao via Decision, Split (Muay Thai Bout)
Bout 5: Lito Adiwang def. Hexigetu via Decision, Unanimous (MMA Bout)
Main Card (8:30AM EDT / 8:30PM SGT) (Bleacher Report App / Youtube)
Bout 6: Victoria Lee def. Victoria Souza via TKO, Strikes (RD 2) (MMA Bout)
Bout 7: Anatoly Malykhin def. Amir Aliakbari via TKO, Strikes (RD 1) (MMA Bout)
Bout 8: Kim Jae Woong def. Martin Nguyen via TKO, Strikes (RD 1) (MMA Bout)
Bout 9: Joshua Pacio def. Yosuke Saruta via TKO, Strikes (ONE MMA Strawweight Championship) (125 lbs)
Bout 10: Capitan Petchyindee Academy def. Mehdi Zatout via Decision, Unanimous (ONE Kickboxing Bantamweight Championship) (145 lbs)
Bout 11: Ok Rae Yoon def. Christian Lee via Decision, Unanimous (ONE MMA Lightweight Championship) (170 lbs)
Josh Silveira Scores Quick Head Kick Knockout on Tee Cummins, Earns LFA Light Heavyweight Championship
Josh Silveira had an explosive win to become the new LFA Light Heavyweight Champion on Friday night, putting away Tee Cummins 49 seconds into the first round with a head kick.
The quick win for Silveira headlined LFA 115, which took place at the Menominee Nation Arena in Oshkosh, Wisconsin, USA.
Silveira, the son of American Top Team coach and former MMA fighter Marcus “Conan” Silveira, caught Cummins in the first minute, with the fight officially being called at the 49th second.
The win continued Silveira’s career-long streak of finish wins. He has earned six victories since turning pro in 2019, including three submissions in LFA.
His prior bout, a main event LFA fight in April, saw him submit Rafael Viana in just 41 seconds.
After his fight, Silveira mentioned his intention to move down to middleweight and challenge for a 185-pound belt before heading to a larger promotion.
Silveira was first set to challenge for an LFA belt in July against Jesse Murray, although that fight was later pulled from a card.
Cummins entered Friday’s main event undefeated. He had four wins as a pro, including a finish win that he earned against Anthony Kalani in an LFA main event months ago.
A full report on LFA 115 can be read here.
Leonardo Santos Out of October 2nd UFC Bout Against Alexander Hernandez
UFC’s October 2nd show will proceed without Leonardo Santos, as he has withdrawn from a bout against Alexander Hernandez due to undisclosed reasons. News of the development was first broken by Nolan King of MMA Junkie.
Santos addressed the cancelled fight on Instagram recently, citing “personal reasons” for his departure from the fight.
It is not known at the moment whether Hernandez will get a new opponent or have his fight moved ahead. MMA Junkie is reporting that the promotion is aiming to keep him in the October 2nd lineup.
The fight was scheduled to be Santos’ return after taking his first UFC loss earlier this year, getting stopped with strikes from Grant Dawson. Before then, he had scored seven wins since 2013.
Hernandez was also looking to bounce back from a loss, having been defeated by Thiago Moises in February.
Pat Sabatini Looks To Continue Momentum Against Gavin Tucker In November 20th UFC Booking
Pat Sabatini will attempt to continue his undefeated UFC rookie run when facing Gavin Tucker at the promotion’s November 20th event. The new featherweight pairing was first reported by Nolan King and John Morgan of MMA Junkie.
Sabatini, a former CFFC Featherweight Champion, has earned two wins since joining the UFC roster this year. His promotional debut was in April, defeating Tristan Connelly via unanimous decision.
Sabatini returned four months later to submit Jamall Emmers in the first round with a heel hook.
Tucker had his three-fight winning streak broken earlier this year, getting stopped in just 22 seconds by Dan Ige. He has the chance to get back to his winning ways in the November matchup.
Two ‘Contender Series’ Winners Set To Make UFC Debut on January 15th Card
Two recent winners on “Dana White’s Contender Series” will get their first shot in the UFC on January 15th, per reports. The new bouts join a card that does not have any other bouts reported for it yet.
The location for the card also isn’t known at the moment.
Brito Given Algeo For First UFC Challenge
Joanderson Brito’s long regional scene win streak will get tested in January, as he will meet Bill Algeo in a featherweight contest, per Nolan King of MMA Junkie.
Brito won on the first week of the show, securing a technical decision win over Diego Lopes. The win added to a streak of victories that he has strung together since 2017, including many fights in Brazil and one in LFA.
Algeo has won a fight and lost a couple since joining the UFC roster last year. He wasn’t favoured on scorecards in his most recent appearance, losing via unanimous decision to Ricardo Ramos in May.
Rodrigues To Face Flyweight Adashev
Only a few days after securing a UFC contract on the “Contender Series,” Kleydson Rodrigues has been booked to face Zarrukh Adashev on January 15th.
The matchup was first confirmed by Marcelo Alonso and Tristen Critchfield of Sherdog.
Rodrigues went the distance in his “Contender Series” win earlier this week, defeating former CFFC Champion Santo Curatolo via unanimous decision. The fight moved his win streak to six consecutive.
Adashev is coming off his first UFC win, which came against Ryan Benoit in July. He had a two-fight losing streak before then.
Preview
UFC 266: Volkanovski vs. Ortega
Competing for the first time after a two-fight rivalry with former champ Max Holloway, UFC Featherweight Champion Alexander Volkanovski will return in Saturday night’s main event against Brian Ortega. The fight headlines UFC 266, which will conclude “International Fight Week” from the T-Mobile Arena in Las Vegas, Nevada, USA.
The fight will come at the end of a busy evening that also has a Valentina Shevchenko title fight, the return of Nick Diaz against Robbie Lawler, the showcase of undefeated prospects Nick Maximov and Uros Medic, and more.
A full preview of the card is accessible here.
Early Prelims (6:00PM EDT / 3:00PM PDT) (UFC Fight Pass)
Bout 1: Omar Morales (11-1) vs. Jonathan Pearce (10-4) (Featherweight)
Bout 2: Matthew Semelsberger (8-3) vs. Martin Sano (4-2-1) (Welterweight)
Bout 3: Nick Maximov (6-0) vs. Cody Brundage (6-1) (Middleweight)
Bout 4: Uros Medic (7-0) vs. Jalin Turner (10-5) (Lightweight)
Preliminary Card (8:00PM EDT / 5:00PM PDT) (ESPN+ / TSN 4)
Bout 5: Roxanne Modafferi (25-18) vs. Taila Santos (17-1) (Flyweight)
Bout 6: Shamil Abdurakhimov (20-5) vs. Chris Daukaus (11-3) (Heavyweight)
Bout 7: Dan Hooker (20-10) vs. Nasrat Haqparast (13-3) (Lightweight)
Bout 8: Marlon Moraes (23-8-1) vs. Merab Dvalishvili (13-4) (Bantamweight)
Main Card (10:00PM EDT / 7:00PM PDT) (PPV)
Bout 9: Jessica Andrade (21-9) vs. Cynthia Calvillo (9-2-1) (Flyweight)
Bout 10: Curtis Blaydes (14-3) vs. Jairzinho Rozenstruick (12-2) (Heavyweight)
Bout 11: Robbie Lawler (28-15) vs. Nick Diaz (26-9) (Middleweight)
Bout 12: Valentina Shevchenko (21-3) vs. Lauren Murphy (15-4) (UFC Flyweight Championship)
Bout 13: Alexander Volkanovski (22-1) vs. Brian Ortega (15-1) (UFC Featherweight Championship)
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