Latest news with #Uncrowned
Yahoo
a day ago
- Entertainment
- Yahoo
Julio Cesar Chavez Jr.'s goal is clear: 'I want to end Jake Paul's career'
Jake Paul, left, and Julio Cesar Chavez Jr. face off during a news conference at the Avalon Hollywood Theatre in Los Angeles on May 14, 2025, as Oscar De La Hoya looks on. (Photo by) Julio César Chávez Jr. will look to put a stop to Jake Paul's lucrative boxing journey when the pair clash June 28 at the Honda Center in Anaheim, California. "Yes [I'm motivated to end Paul's career]," Chávez Jr. told Uncrowned's "The Ariel Helwani Show" on Wednesday. "[I still think] that I'm better than Jake Paul, so I think after this fight maybe Jake continues to fight [and tries] to be a [better] boxer, but I don't think he has [the] skills and everything [necessary to] win [against me]. I want to end Jake Paul's career." Advertisement For Chávez, it's an opportunity that has arrived at a time when he wants to resurrect himself in the sport. The son of legendary Mexican boxer Julio César Chávez Sr., the younger Chávez held the WBC middleweight title from 2011-12 and continued to compete at a high level until his 2019 loss to Daniel Jacobs. Chávez incited a small-scale riot at the PHX Arena in Phoenix that night after Chávez, who had weighed in five pounds over the limit for the fight, quit on his stool after just five rounds. Chavez Sr. famously put his head in his hands after learning of his son's decision. Chávez's weight miss and refusal to fight on when things got tough were clear signs his heart was no longer in the sport. Regardless, he continued to compete at a lower level after the Jacobs fight, and now 20 months alcohol-free, Chavez hopes to make another run at the top of the sport — and a win over Paul could be the catalyst for his comeback. Advertisement "I liked the idea [of fighting Paul] because I think the fight [has come at the right time]," Chávez said. "I [thought] about [taking the fight because] Jake is very popular, [and] I'm pretty sure that I'll win this fight. "I want to [make it] clear that I'm still here. I'm not old, and I take this sport seriously. [I] train hard [and I'm] disciplined. I'm 39, so I don't think I'm old. I still feel good in the gym ... I'm still a good fighter. So I want to fight better opposition after this fight, and that's why I take this fight. "Now I'm disciplined, I'm focused, I want to finish the fight [with Paul with a] win and take this opportunity to be back in real boxing. That's my goal." In recent days, Paul has claimed his team has begun talks to face unified WBA/WBO cruiserweight champion Gilberto Ramirez and WBC cruiserweight titleist Badou Jack in 2026. Chávez hopes a win over Paul will be enough to replace him in the conversation to take on some of the best fighters boxing has to offer. Advertisement "What I want [to do is to fight] the best," Chávez said. "I'd love to fight "Zurdo" Ramirez. I'd love to fight [another] cruiserweight champion — [Jai] Opetaia is a very strong guy. ... I want that [fight]. You know why? I'm here because I want to fight the best." "If Opetaia offers me [a fight with him], if Ramirez offers me [a fight] after [the Paul] fight, or after [the Paul] fight and another fight, I'm there. I'm ready to fight [undisputed light heavyweight champion Dmitry] Bivol at cruiserweight [or Artur Beterbiev]." Chávez and Paul share one common opponent: Former UFC middleweight champ Anderson Silva. Paul won a unanimous decision over Silva in October 2022, while Chávez lost a split decision to Silva the year before in Mexico. Advertisement Contrasting results in their respective bouts with Silva is perhaps what gives Paul the confidence to believe he can defeat another former world boxing champion. Chávez, however, insists that he was not at his best against Silva and that Paul shouldn't put too much into that fight. "[I was in a] very bad situation at that time," Chávez said of the Anderson fight. "But in boxing, there's no excuses. What happened, happened. Of course, I feel bad about this situation — to lose to a UFC fighter for years because I'm not in shape. When I'm not in shape, I don't feel happy with myself, [or] with my performance — no matter what happens, if I win or lose. "These things, like the fight with Silva and a couple of other fights, make the UFC fighters [and] other people [think] that [Paul] can beat real boxers. I don't think that's possible. When you're a real boxer [and] you train right, it's different." Despite Paul holding a win over a fighter that Chávez couldn't beat, Chávez isn't impressed with Paul's boxing ability. "I respect all fighters in general, but I don't have [anything] significant to respect [about] Jake [to say he is a] good fighter. He's a real fighter — he's a fighter now. He has 11 fights. But that's it, he's nothing special. He's strong, that's it."
Yahoo
a day ago
- Sport
- Yahoo
Brian Norman Jr. vs. Jin Sasaki live results, round-by-round updates, ring walks, start time for WBO title fight
WBO welterweight champion Brian Norman Jr. makes the second defense of his title against Japan's Jin Sasaki at the Ota-City General Gymnasium in Tokyo, Japan. Uncrowned has Brian Norman Jr. vs. Jin Sasaki live results, round-by-round updates, highlights, ring walks and start time for the Norman vs. Sasaki fight card on Thursday morning at the Ota-City General Gymnasium in Tokyo, Japan. Brian Norman Jr. defends his WBO welterweight title against Japan's Jin Sasaki in the 12-round main event. Norman Jr. (27-0, 21 KOs) was one of Uncrowned's Top 25 Under 25 in our recent ranking of up-and-coming combat sports stars. The young American upset Giovani Santillan with a 10-round knockout to win the WBO interim welterweight title in May 2024. He then was upgraded to full WBO champion following Terence Crawford's decision to relinquish the belt this past August. Norman, 24, has made one successful defense of his championship: A third-round stoppage win over Derrieck Cuevas in March on the Mikaela Mayer vs. Sandy Ryan 2 undercard. Advertisement Sasaki (19-1-1, 17 KOs) has won eight of his past nine fights since moving up to welterweight after losing his unbeaten record to Andy Hiraoka in 2021 down at super lightweight. (Hiraoka is currently the mandatory to Gary Antuanne Russell's WBA 140-pound title.) Sasaki, 23, was last in action on the Naoya Inoue vs. Ye Joon Kim undercard this past January, winning a competitive unanimous decision over Shoki Sakai. The Norman Jr. vs. Sasaki main card starts at 4 a.m. ET on ESPN+, with main event ring walks expected around 7 a.m. ET. Follow all of the action with Uncrowned's live results and play-by-play of the main card below. Main Card (4 a.m. ET, ESPN+) WBO welterweight title: Brian Norman Jr. vs. Jin Sasaki Advertisement IBF light flyweight title: Cristian Araneta vs. Thanongsak Simsri Welterweight: Sora Tanaka vs. Takeru Kobata Featherweight: Yuya Oku vs. Reiya Abe Featherweight: Ren Ohashi vs. Guangheng Luan Super middleweight: Yuito Moriwaki vs. Ha So Baek Lightweight: Seiya Yamaguchi vs. Ryosuke Kiuchi
Yahoo
2 days ago
- Sport
- Yahoo
Khalil Rountree learned how to not be 'afraid of the fire' in Alex Pereira fight, vows to be 'undeniable' at UFC Baku
Khalil Rountree Jr. will be a part of history in his first fight since challenging for UFC light heavyweight gold this past October. Among the three title challengers that former champion Alex Pereira fought in 2024, none gave him a tougher battle than Rountree, as the two collided in a back-and-forth bout that made the short list for Uncrowned's best of the year. Rountree ultimately came up short, leading him to a clash with former champion Jamahal Hill this Saturday in UFC Baku's main event. The card will be the first UFC event in Azerbaijan after a Hill injury sunk the originally scheduled date for UFC Kansas City in April. Advertisement Having been in Baku since last Saturday, Rountree is pleased with how everything turned out. "It's an arena that I've never experienced before," Rountree said on "The Ariel Helwani Show." It's nothing like any arena that I've ever been to in the States. It's nothing like the T-Mobile [Arena]. It's nothing like anything. It's got a very different feel to it. It definitely feels authentic to Baku. "I've just been in awe of everything that I've experienced here. The arena was just one of those experiences. It just feels like a special place, it's got a different energy to it. I can't even explain it. It's not high up. It's kind of, like, low ceilings, but the floor is really wide, and I would just imagine it being packed with people, and it kind of brought me some chills, man." Despite the five-fight win streak Rountree rode into his Pereira title fight, he was ranked No. 8 in the UFC's light heavyweight division at the time and a controversial choice to challenge for the belt. Yet the performance was arguably the best of Rountree's career, and a stock-raiser even in defeat. Advertisement If he gets the win over Hill, Rountree hopes to be close to a second crack at the title. "There's been talks of what we'd like after this, and I think that the UFC have their own ideas and thoughts on what they would want," Rountree said. "My plan is to put on a performance that makes a title shot again undeniable, if that makes any sense. "I'm definitely sure that I'm ready to be a champion, and I'm ready to be that champion. Everything that I'm working on and doing is to be prepared for that again. That's absolutely what I want and what I'm gunning for. So my plan is to put on an undeniable performance, so that I can get that chance again." Rountree's performance against Pereira felt like a "coming of age" type of moment for the fighter. Early on in his UFC career, which began with "The Ultimate Fighter 23" in 2016, Rountree often impressed with highlight-reel victories but failed to string together consistency. When tasked with an opponent that could get him over the hump into title contention, he fell short several times under the bright lights. Advertisement So the first title fight of his 20-fight career was an eye-opener, to say the least. "I saw how far I was willing to go," Rountree said. "I was really tested to the very end in that fight. I went as far as I possibly could. In my mind, I enjoyed the whole thing. I enjoyed it all the way through, and it was just something that I remember. I gave my absolute all in that fight, so I got to experience what that feels like. I think that it just helped me grow — and not necessarily be afraid of the fire, for lack of better words. I've been through the fire, and although I didn't make it out victorious, I've been there, and I felt that, I felt it. So I think it toughened me up a bit. Advertisement "No fight stands out to me like that one does as far as having to go into deep waters." The UFC light heavyweight division has obviously shifted at the top since Pereira vs. Rountree. In March, Pereira finally met his match at 205 pounds, dropping his belt to Magomed Ankalaev after a back-and-forth bout at UFC 313. The expectation now is for an immediate title rematch between the two in 2025. For Rountree, though, it's not about the opponent when it comes to another title shot. "To be honest, I really care who the champion is until it's me," Rountree said. "I think that [rematch with Pereira] would be a great fight. I'm sure that people would want to see a second fight between us for the belt again. I think that would be exciting, but it's nothing that I'm hoping for. "Whoever has it, I'm doing whatever I can to prepare to fight whoever has it."
Yahoo
2 days ago
- Entertainment
- Yahoo
Cory Sandhagen, Paul Walter Hauser and Marc Raimondi in studio, On The Nose and more
Catch today's edition of "The Ariel Helwani Show" live on Uncrowned and YouTube at 1 p.m. ET/10 a.m. PT/6 p.m. UK time as Ariel Helwani and the Boys In The Back set the table for the combat sports weekend with another eclectic lineup of guests. Wednesday's rundown can be seen below. 1 p.m. ET: Ariel kicks off the show by answering all your questions on the latest edition of On The Nose. Advertisement 2 p.m. ET: Cory Sandhagen previews his potential UFC title fight against Merab Dvalishvili. 2:30 p.m. ET: Old friend Marc Raimondi joins us in-studio to discuss his upcoming book, "Say Hello to the Bad Guys: How Professional Wrestling's New World Order Changed America." 3:30 p.m. ET: Paul Walter Hauser — Golden Globe Award winner, Primetime Emmy Award winner, and up-and-coming professional wrestler — join us in-studio. Catch all new episodes of "The Ariel Helwani Show" live every Monday, Tuesday and Wednesday at 1 p.m. ET on Uncrowned and The Ariel Helwani Show's YouTube page. To listen to every episode, subscribe on Spotify or iTunes.
Yahoo
3 days ago
- Entertainment
- Yahoo
Julianna Peña, Rose Namajunas, Andrei Arlovski, Phil Rowe, JunYong Park and more
Julianna Peña returns for her first interview since UFC 316. Ariel Helwani and the Boys In The Back go live on Uncrowned and YouTube at 1 p.m. ET/10 a.m. PT/6 p.m. UK time for Tuesday's edition of "The Ariel Helwani Show." The full rundown for Tuesday's show is below. 1 p.m. ET: Phil Rowe joins following his UFC Atlanta knockout of Ange Loosa. Advertisement 1:30 p.m. ET: "The Iron Turtle" JunYong Park previews his UFC Baku fight against Ismail Naurdiev. 2 p.m. ET: UFC legend Andrei Arlovski stops by the show. 2:30 p.m. ET: Julianna Peña returns following her UFC 316 title showdown with Kayla Harrison. 3 p.m. ET: Rose Namajunas looks back at her big UFC Atlanta win over Miranda Maverick. Catch all new episodes of "The Ariel Helwani Show" live every Monday, Tuesday and Wednesday at 1 p.m. ET on Uncrowned and The Ariel Helwani Show's YouTube page. To listen to every episode, subscribe on Spotify or iTunes.
