Latest news with #AaronPico
Arab News
5 hours ago
- Sport
- Arab News
UFC Fight Night returns to Abu Dhabi in July with stacked card
ABU DHABI: UFC CEO Dana White has revealed a strong card for UFC Fight Night: Whittaker vs. de Ridder in Abu Dhabi on July 26 at Etihad Arena on Yas Island. For the latest updates, follow us @ArabNewsSport The main event will be headlined by former UFC middleweight champion Robert Whittaker and highly-rated Dutch standout Reinier de Ridder whose seamless transition from the ONE Championship has been hugely impressive. White took to social media to announce what promises to be one of the most thrilling Fight Night cards of the year, which will see No.12-ranked 185-pounder De Ridder, undefeated in his three UFC bouts to date, likely earn a middleweight title eliminator should he defeat Whittaker. 'De Ridder is a former middleweight and light heavyweight world champion and has finished every one he has fought in the UFC,' White said. 'He's coming off a win over the top prospect in the sport, Bo Nickal. If De Ridder can beat Whittaker, it's very likely he'll be fighting for the No. 1 contender bout next. I am pumped for this fight because these guys are both killers — and they always come out and deliver.' The main card boasts two five-round bouts and a stacked lineup of electrifying talent, former champions, and elite contenders — all coming together for one of the year's most anticipated international showcases, marking the 21st UFC event in Abu Dhabi since 2010. In the co-main event in Abu Dhabi, unbeaten featherweight Movsar Evloev takes on UFC newcomer Aaron Pico. Evloev, who will be looking to extend his eight-fight winning streak since his UFC debut in 2019, most recently outpointed Aljamain Sterling in a hard-fought unanimous decision at UFC 310 in December 2024. Pico, long considered MMA's top free agent, recently joined the UFC roster. A decorated collegiate wrestler and former Bellator standout, the 28-year-old currently holds a 13-4 professional record and arrives with major expectations. White added: 'Aaron Pico is a ridiculously violent striker and a very high-level grappler. He's had hype behind him since he was a teenager because of his skill set and fighting style — people compare him to guys like Justin Gaethje or Dustin Poirier.' Former UFC bantamweight champion Petr Yan makes his return in a featured bout against rising contender Marcus McGhee. Yan will be looking to build on the momentum from a strong 2024, where he secured consecutive wins over Song Yadong and Deiveson Figueiredo. UFC Abu Dhabi Fight Card: Robert Whittaker vs. Renier de Ridder - Middleweight Movsar Evloev vs. Aaron Pico - Featherweight Petr Yan vs. Marcus McGhee - Bantamweight Bryce Mitchell vs. Said Nurmagomedov - Bantamweight Shara Magomedov vs. Marc-Andre Barriault - Middleweight Nikita Krylov vs. Bogdan Guskov - Light Heavyweight
Forbes
13 hours ago
- Sport
- Forbes
Dana White: Evloev Likely Next For Volkanovski With UFC Abu Dhabi Win
LAS VEGAS, NEVADA - DECEMBER 07: Movsar Evloev of Russia looks on prior to a featherweight fight ... More during UFC 310 at T-Mobile Arena on December 07, 2024 in Las Vegas, Nevada. (Photo by) Earlier this week, UFC CEO Dana White announced several fights for the July 26 UFC Abu Dhabi fight card. One of those bouts was the five-round co-main event between highly-ranked Movsar Evloev and coveted free-agent signee Aaron Pico. While announcing the bout, White added that with a win, Evloev is likely to be next in line to face UFC featherweight champion Alexander Volkanovski. LAS VEGAS, NEVADA - DECEMBER 07: Movsar Evloev of Russia awaits the start of a round in a ... More featherweight bout during the UFC 310 event at T-Mobile Arena on December 07, 2024 in Las Vegas, Nevada. (Photo by Chris Unger/Zuffa LLC) "In the co-main event," said White, "we have another five-round fight, between No. 4 ranked Movsar Evloev taking on the guy most people consider to be the top free agent in the world, Aaron Pico. "Evloev is undefeated at 19-0 and one of the most intimidating guys at featherweight. Aaron Pico is a ridiculously violent striker and a very high-level grappler. Pico has had hype behind him since he was a teenager because of his skill and fighting style, which people compare him to the likes of Justin Gaethje or Dustin Poirier. "If Movsar can get the victory, he will likely be the next contender for the title against Alexander Volkanovski. "Expect this fight to be an absolute war." Volkanovski does not have his next title defense booked. NEWARK, NEW JERSEY - MAY 06: Movsar Evloev of Russia prepares to fight Diego Lopes of Brazil in a ... More featherweight fight during the UFC 288 event at Prudential Center on May 06, 2023 in Newark, New Jersey. (Photo by Cooper Neill/Zuffa LLC via Getty Images) Evloev (19-0) made his UFC debut in April 2019 in a featherweight contest against Choi Seung-woo. At the time he stepped into the UFC Octagon for the first time, Evloev was 10-0 and coming off a defense of the M-1 Global bantamweight crown. Evloev, defeated Choi via unanimous decision. Over the next five years, Evloev would climb the featherweight rankings, facing progressively tougher opponents under the UFC banner. He is 9-0 under the UFC banner. In his most recent outing, the 31-year-old defeated former UFC bantamweight champion Aljamain Sterling by decision at UFC 310 in a 145-pound scrap. Evloev has an eight-fight winning streak at 145 pounds, one of his UFC wins came at a catchweight of 150 pounds. He has the fourth longest winning streak in the history of the division. Volkanovski's 11-fight winning run between November 2016 and July 2022 is the second-longest UFC featherweight winning streak. All nine of Evloev's UFC wins have come via decision. Pico (13-4) joined the UFC as a free agent earlier this year. Pico was with Bellator for his entire MMA career before departing as a free agent. The 28-year-old had an up-and-down run with the promotion, but he enters UFC Abu Dhabi on a three-fight winning streak. His record in his past 10 fights is 9-1. His only loss during that span, which dates back to January 2020, is a October 2022 TKO loss to Jeremy Kennedy in a fighter were the doctor stopped the bout because Pico dislocated his shoulder. MIAMI, FLORIDA - APRIL 12: Alexander Volkanovski of Australia reacts after his unanimous-decision ... More victory against Diego Lopes of Brazil in the UFC featherweight championship bout during the UFC 314 event at Kaseya Center on April 12, 2025 in Miami, Florida. (Photo by Jeff Bottari/Zuffa LLC) In April after wining the vacant UFC featherweight title with a decision over Diego Lopes, Volkanovski spoke about who he could face next. 'If the UFC wants to give it to Yair [Rodriguez], I ain't gonna stop that for him,' Volkanovski said. 'I'll be honest, before that fight [against Patricio Freire], I didn't think if he won, he would be getting a shot. I'll be honest, that didn't come to mind. But now that he's calling, I'm not going to be the one to say no. I'm going to leave everything to the UFC. 'Obviously, you've got guys like Movsar, who's undefeated. I'd love to take that zero. We've got to see what the UFC say. I even seen him tweeting that he wants to fight someone in May and doing all this sort of stuff, so maybe he's had the chats and they want him to have one more fight. So I don't know that situation, but I'll see how things are. I'd love to say I want to get straight back in there. I still do. But I'm gonna have to maybe look at a couple of things.' As for Evloev, he's been angling for a title fight for a while. He revisited that idea in April on social media. Saturday, July 26, 2025 Etihad Arena in Abu Dhabi Main Card: 3:00 p.m. ET Preliminary Card: 12:00 p.m. ET We will have more on UFC Abu Dhabi and the Movsar Evloev vs. Aaron Pico fight as fight night approaches.
Al Etihad
17 hours ago
- Sport
- Al Etihad
UFC announces July Abu Dhabi fight card
19 June 2025 21:41 ABU DHABI (WAM)The UFC is back in Abu Dhabi on July 26 for a UFC Fight Night card at Etihad CEO Dana White announced the first six matchups for that fight card, including the main event, which pits former UFC middleweight champion Robert Whittaker against the rising Reinier de Ridder. In the evening's co-main event, Aaron Pico makes his UFC debut opposite Movsar Evloev in a five-round featherweight Abu Dhabi Fight Card: Official FightsRobert Whittaker vs. Renier de Ridder - MiddleweightMovsar Evloev vs. Aaron Pico - FeatherweightPetr Yan vs. Marcus McGhee - BantamweightBryce Mitchell vs. Said Nurmagomedov - BantamweightShara Magomedov vs. Marc-Andre Barriault - Middleweight Nikita Krylov vs. Bogdan Guskov - Light Heavyweight
USA Today
2 days ago
- Sport
- USA Today
Aaron Pico gets unbeaten Movsar Evloev for UFC debut in Abu Dhabi
Aaron Pico gets unbeaten Movsar Evloev for UFC debut in Abu Dhabi Former Bellator standout was one of many to leave PFL behind after merger Aaron Pico's UFC era will begin this summer in Abu Dhabi. The longtime Bellator featherweight standout was a high-profile free agent signing by the UFC earlier this year when he departed the PFL. Now Pico (13-4 MMA, 0-0 UFC) will make his promotional debut at UFC on ABC 9 against Movsar Evloev (19-0 MMA, 9-0 UFC). UFC officials announced the booking Tuesday. Pico vs. Evloev is scheduled for five rounds and will be the co-main event of UFC on ABC 9 (ABC, ESPN, ESPN+) on July 27 at Etihad Arena. Pico fought exclusively in the U.S. for the first 15 fights of his MMA career, but this will be his third straight fight overseas. Of his 13 wins under the Bellator banner, 11 were finishes. Pico moved up to lightweight in February 2024 for a fight against Henry Corrales the PFL vs. Bellator showcase event and won by first-round knockout for this third straight victory. Evloev remains unbeaten in his pro career, including his first nine in the UFC – all of which have been decisions. Those wins have come against increasingly stiff competition, including Arnold Allen in early 2024 and former bantamweight champion Aljamain Sterling late this past year. A middleweight bout between former champion Robert Whittaker and ex-ONE Championship dual titleholder Reinier de Ridder, who's coming off a major upset of Bo Nickal, will headline the card. Below is the latest UFC on ABC 9 lineup:
The Independent
23-05-2025
- Sport
- The Independent
Alexander Volkanovski's UFC title reign up in the air as champion is denied preferred fight
Alexander Volkanovski 's next fight is up in the air, after the UFC champion's preferred challenger declared he is fighting a fellow contender this summer. Volkanovski reclaimed the featherweight throne in April, outpointing Diego Lopes to win the belt that Ilia Topuria vacated in February. Twelve months earlier, Topuria knocked out Volkanovski to become champion, ending the Australian's four-year reign. And Volkanovski, looking to build a strong second stint with the belt, had made clear his desire to defend the gold against Movsar Evloev first. The Russian is unbeaten at 19-0 and last fought in December, outpointing ex-bantamweight champion Aljamain Sterling. Evloev was the most obvious next challenger for Volkanovski, 36, but the 31-year-old tweeted on Thursday (22 May): 'If you are a UFC fighter and believe you are the best in the world then you have fight every fight they throw at you. 'No risk no reward. See you guys in July, it's ON #AbuDhabi. '@alexvolkanovski thank you Champ for trying to fight me, I will fight in July and you fight in September, hopefully we both win and we can meet in December.' It is suspected that Evloev could face new signing Aaron Pico, 28, who has joined the UFC from Bellator, while Volkanovski's next challenger may be Yair Rodriguez through a process of elimination. While Volkanovski beat the Mexican handily in 2023, stopping him in round three, Rodriguez recorded a significant win against former Bellator champion Patricio Pitbull last time out. Admittedly, that decision victory only snapped a two-fight losing streak for Rodriguez, who was submitted by Brian Ortega after his defeat by Volk. However, the only fighters above the 32-year-old in the rankings are: Topuria, who has moved up to challenge for the lightweight strap; Lopes, who just lost to Volkanovski; and Max Holloway, who is booked to fight at lightweight in July (and who Volkanovski has beaten three times). Furthermore, with the UFC having booked its pay-per-view main events for June, July and August, the next free headline slot is September's UFC 320 in Mexico – Rodriguez's home country. But there are ongoing issues with the new Arena Guadalajara, meaning the event could yet be moved. UFC 320 has already suffered a setback, with a boxing super-fight between Saul 'Canelo' Alvarez and Terence Crawford being moved from 12 September to 13 September, the same night as the UFC show. That is despite a plan for UFC president Dana White to co-promote the boxing event with Saudi adviser Turki Alalshikh. With both fight cards playing out on the same night, it seems unlikely that White will be involved in Canelo vs Crawford. It is unclear what that means for his new working relationship with Alalshikh under TKO Boxing.
