Daniel Cormier isn’t all that hyped over a potential third fight with Jon Jones as retirement looms.

It appears that Cormier’s name will always be tied to Jones’s, with the 40-year old having failed to beat the latter on the previous two occasions. Jones won their first fight by unanimous decision at UFC 182 but his UFC 214 knockout win over Cormier was sullied by his testing positive for a performance-enhancing drug that ultimately saw Cormier handed the light heavyweight belt back.

Jones is constantly touted as the best fighter of all time but Cormier can boast having won both the light heavyweight and heavyweight titles, something Jones has yet to do. Their rivalry is one of the most talked up in the history of MMA and UFC boss Dana White only recently told reporters he would love for them to fight once more, albeit admitting that the bout isn’t a must.

It’s easy to want to see Cormier and Jones go at it. They’re at the top of the MMA food chain right now and this has to be the fight fans want to happen. Cormier, though, isn’t as enthusiastic as he reckons whatever results from the potential fight will be tainted, given Jones’s failed drug test.

There is no single path to becoming a successful professional athlete. This is particularly true for Mixed Martial Arts (MMA) – a relatively new sport which combines the elements of many different striking and grappling martial arts and combat sports. In this article we will examine and analyze the career paths of 81 athletes who have captured the most prestigious honor in MMA: the UFC title.

MMA is a modern amalgamation of a number of different disciplines, ranging from wrestling and Brazilian Jiu-Jitsu to boxing, Muay Thai, and taekwondo. There are opportunities for athletes and practitioners of many of these sports to transition to MMA, provided they are willing to round out their game and learn aspects of mixed martial arts that they may not be familiar with from training just their base art. For example, the UFC featherweight champion Max Holloway started out in kickboxing before discovering MMA. His next opponent, former lightweight champion Frankie Edgar, was a standout collegiate wrestler before making his MMA debut after just a few weeks of training. These two fighters alone illustrate some of the different routes for martial artists seeking an opportunity to compete in the UFC, where the earning potential is significantly higher than within the individual disciplines – with the exception of professional boxing at the highest levels of competition. Understanding the different aspects of MMA, including how different styles match up with each other, is crucial when placing an educated bet with a sportsbook such as Betway.

MMA (Mixed Martial Arts) is a hugely popular sport, and it seems to be gaining momentum all the time. Just what is it, though, that makes it so well loved the world over? Why do people love to watch – and participate in – this kind of sport? There are many different reasons; read on to find out what just some of them are.

Skilled Fighters

The fighters who take part in MMA are highly skilled. Of course, the same could be said of boxers, or other types of martial artists, but there is something special and certainly unique about the fighters in MMA. These are people who have mastered, as the name suggests, many different types of martial arts, and they know exactly how to use their skills to good effect.

It’s fun to find a favorite fighter and follow their career. You might even go to watch their matches when you can, and you can use Unibet to see what the odds are of them winning. That makes the fight even more exciting, and it is a thrill to watch.

It’s For Everyone

The great thing about MMA is that it really is for everyone. Men and women alike enjoy this particular sport, and can watch it together, all enjoying the fight for the skill and the fun they are experiencing.

Even more interestingly, MMA is for all participants too. Again, men and women can both take part – although in separate fights – making it a much more inclusive sport than many others. There are many famous female MMA fighters, such as Ronda Rousey.

MMA betting has gained popularity around ten years ago when the sport established one of the fastest growing fan bases worldwide. It even outranked boxing in interest. The fight between Khabib Nurmagomedov and Conor McGregor broke UFC viewership records at the time, and while the biggest fights still take place on Pay-Per-View, many cable channels have begun to broadcast MMA fights on a regular basis.

The first thing you need to know about MMA betting is that oddsmakers are not as sharp at handicapping UFC fights compared to traditional sports. The fraction of MMA betting action is still fairly small compared to more popular sports like soccer of football, which is great news for smart bettors with knowledge of MMA, as this puts the odds in their favor.

Everything About MMA Odds

MMA odds determine the probability of an event during the match. If you are betting on the favorite the odds might look something like -800, which means you will be paid 1/8th of your original bet if the fighter you pick wins. The underdog will have odds like +550, which means your payout will be 5.5 times your original bet.

UFC odds tend to be artificially higher than what they should be due to the inherent unpredictability of the sport. This doesn’t mean you should avoid betting on favorites, but be very selective when laying down a wager on them.

The real value is in knowing when to bet on underdogs, as upsets are more common than you might think. Most predicted that Ronda Rousey would defeat Holly Holm in 2014. Holm was a big underdog with odds of +600.

What if the fight ends in a draw? This is rare, but if it happens the bet is a push and all stakes are returned.

Top flight athletes are always looking at what to do after their current career comes to a conclusion. But for gold medal Olympic wrestler Jordan Burroughs, will he give the fans what they want and make the jump to Mixed Martial Arts (MMA)?  Bonusbets.com reports on the subject.

Jordan Burroughs himself isn’t saying much yet about any potential move, though he knows the lure of the octagon having witnessed many other wrestlers make the same jump.

“I’ve arrived at a place too where I’m seeing all of these guys that I once trained alongside become champions—and this is not a shot at any of those dudes—but if these guys can become champion, then I know I can become a champion because I possess all the same qualities that these guys possess.

It’s exciting, it’s exciting. It’s something that I’d definitely consider. If I do consider fighting, it won’t be until after the Olympic games in 2020, and then from there I’ll reevaluate, see if it’s something that would be a realistic option for me.”

Speaking on The MMA Hour (via MMA Fighting) Burroughs was asked about a potential future in MMA and had this to say:

Most MMA fans were under the impression that a UFC fight was in the plans for Brock Lesnar, and were disappointed to say the least when Dana White announced that the fighter had made the decision to retire instead. Freetips.com looks at the story and the controversy surrounding this man-mountain.

To be fair, Brock is now 41, and therefore retirement could have been expected soon, but it seems that even White was not expecting that decision yet. The fighter who has starred in MMA, UFC and WWE was expected to return to the ring – so what has changed? It was originally thought that there would be a meeting between Lesnar and Daniel Cormier this summer, which would have been the for UFC heavyweight title, but following the announcement that Lesnar is retiring, White has now suggested it will be Stipe Miocic who will instead face Cormier in a rematch.

There ARE an increasing number of fighters lining up for a shot of the welterweight belt
Photo by  Andrius Petrucenia / CC BY 2.0

There are several weights in both the women’s and men’s divisions that can be described as being on fire at the moment. The one that has been turned on its head the most in recent weeks though is the men’s 170lb division. If you had asked fans and so called experts 12 months ago to sketch the likely top 10, very few, if any would have come up with anything resembling the current rankings.

The biggest Losers

Without doubt, the two fighters who have gone backwards the most in recent months are Darren Till and Stephen Wonderboy Thompson. Just 8 months ago, it looked like Till was going to be a genuine contender for the Welterweight belt and becoming the next star of the UFC. That is where the problem lay. The UFC and, crucially, WME-IMG and ESPN are desperate for a star name. Ronda Rousey was that name for a while, Conor McGregor stepped up at the perfect time to take on the mantle. The heads in their respective boardrooms are looking around desperately for the next person to step up. The mouthy Scouser looked like a perfect fit. Two back to back defeats have derailed his and their plans, however.

There have been few fighters in recent boxing memory as captivating and awe-inspiring as Vasyl Lomachenko. Every time the Ukrainian maestro takes to the ring, it’s a huge event for the sport, one which fans around the world don’t want to miss a second of.  The next opportunity to witness modern day boxing greatness from the 31-year-old will fall on April 12th, when British hope Anthony Crolla will be the next challenger to contest Lomachenko’s WBA ‘Super’ and WBO lightweight titles.

A Safe Bet

It’s at the Staples Center in Los Angeles, California, where Lomachenko will aim to defend his 135-pound belts again. Vasyl is considered a strong favorite at odds of -5000. Notably, the Ukrainian ace also holds the prestigious and highly-regarded Ring Magazine strap, having won it when he brilliantly dethroned Jorge Linares back in May last year.

Incredibly, that victory for ‘Loma’ over the stylish and very popular Linares at the world famous Madison Square Garden in 2018 was his maiden ring outing at lightweight. His 10th-round stoppage success over the Venezuelan saw him become the fastest ever three-weight world champion, earning another slice of history in his already sublime career in the professional ranks.

Lomachenko shot to prominence in a short amount of time as a professional and dazzled anyone who’s had the opportunity to view his incredible credentials up close. Bantamweight champion TJ Dillashaw, regarded as the favorite in the UFC odds to overcome Henry Cejudo before his eventual upset, was previously involved in the Ukrainian’s camp while the MMA fighter prepared for an upcoming bout in the Octagon.

TJ Dillashaw by K.O. Artist Sports (CC BY 3.0)

Through the ages, long before the term ‘Mixed Martial Arts’ has ever been uttered or even conceived, the practitioners and spectators of various martial arts and combat sports have asked the question: which art is the most effective of them all? And the beginnings of modern MMA were intended to precisely answer that question (and the answer, at least around the time of early UFCs, was Brazilian Jiu Jitsu). Of course the days of “style vs style” are long behind us, and today to be a successful mixed martial artist, one needs to have a diverse skill set that borrows from a plethora of martial arts and styles. However we still experience an occasional cross-over matchup between practitioners of different arts. In this article, I will examine some of the most notable cross-overs between mixed martial arts and boxing.

Conventional wisdom dictates a significant “home court” advantage in a style-vs-style matchup: if a boxer faces a mixed martial artist in a ring under boxing rules, the boxer is a lot more likely to win than if the bout took place under MMA rule set – and vice versa. Betting odds reflect this, and so do most of the past fight outcomes. So if you’re a gambler, you could place a large, relatively safe bet for a comparatively small payoff on the odds favorite. Or you could take a big risk with a small bet on the underdog, in hopes of a big payoff if your prediction comes true.  Either way, next time your favorite MMA star steps into the boxing ring, you can get some help from the UK’s betting sites.

Art Jimmerson vs Royce Gracie

While this can’t be exactly be called a “boxing vs MMA” matchup – since MMA did not exist yet, and Royce Gracie represented BJJ in the first UFC – we have to start at the beginning. The very beginning might technically be Muhammad Ali vs Antonio Inoki, but UFC 1 is usually a good starting point for anything MMA-related. Of course the first UFC was organized and promoted by the Gracie family as a means of letting the world know about Gracie Jiu-Jitsu, and to show that GJJ/BJJ was the supreme martial art. To this end, rumor has it that UFC 1 competitors were not truly the best of the best at their individual sports, to assure an easier path to victory for Royce. Art Jimmerson is a good example of this – while he had a respectable boxing record of 29-5 prior to his fight with Gracie, Jimmerson did not earn many accolades in the boxing world. He also went 4-13 upon returning to the right after his brief UFC stint, indicating that he may have already been past his prime when he faced Gracie. Regardless, Art clearly had no clue of what he was getting himself into – of course, neither did most other UFC 1 contestants. Inexplicably, Jimmerson showed up to his one and only match in the Octagon wearing a single boxing glove, and was quickly taken down and mounted by Gracie. Trapped on his back with no idea how to escape the position, Jimmerson panicked and tapped out rather than absorb needless punishment. And thus began the legend of Royce Gracie.

Whether you are a boxing fan or not, you probably dream of having a body like a professional boxer. Boxers usually have a well-chiseled chest and ab muscles as a clear indication of the hard work they put into their sport. Besides that, they are well conditioned, capable of even going toe to toe for 12 rounds of intense boxing. Many boxers, especially the most successful ones, don’t dwell on power alone; they also rely on speedy handwork and footwork to bamboozle their opponents.
So, the question becomes: how can you get yourself a body like one? Here is an in-depth guide that’ll take you through how to train like a pro boxer.
Most exercises in this list will be bodyweight exercises, meaning you won’t need a gym to practice – only yourself and some space.

Burpees
Burpees are an excellent option for strength and conditioning training. With burpees, you work all the major muscle groups in your body.

How To Do a Burpee
Stand upright with your feet some distance apart for better stability. Quickly switch to a squatting position. Once in a squatting position, throw your feet back and get into a plank. Return to the squat and jump as high as you possibly can. You can add a few twists such as do two squats instead of one or do a sideways lateral jump rather than jumping straight up.