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Kayla Harrison can be most significant women’s star in MMA given that Ronda Rousey
Harrison, the charismatic, trash-chatting, 1-woman wrecking crew, who coincidentally occurs to be Rousey’s former teammate with United states of america Judo, won her second $1 million PFL championship Wednesday evening, beating Taylor Guardado through armbar submission 4 minutes into Spherical 2.
With the victory, the undefeated Harrison finished her agreement with PFL and she’ll possible have several suitors, like the UFC and Bellator. The PFL will do its darndest to bring her back, too. Harrison will be the most significant MMA free agent in some time and command best greenback for her services in 2022 and outside of.
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Harrison advised me she’s seeking seven figures for every battle. With the right marketing, she has a probability to turn out to be a huge star, perhaps crossing over into the mainstream. Harrison will not likely even will need significantly enable — she does a ton herself, from ending fights to becoming a lightning rod (not as opposed to Rousey) every single time she picks up a microphone.
It’s a higher bar to very clear, of course. Rousey had 1 of the most incredible operates in mixed martial arts historical past, and not just with her string of very first-spherical finishes, title defenses and her ability to pull an armbar submission out of nowhere.
From 2013 to 2016, Rousey headlined six UFC spend-per-check out playing cards, all of which marketed at the very least fairly very well. Rousey was a dominant UFC women’s bantamweight winner, but she was also, at a time in advance of the rise of Conor McGregor, a person of the most bankable PPV stars in UFC heritage.
Rousey has not fought due to the fact a knockout loss to Amanda Nunes in December 2016. In the just about 5 many years because Rousey has been gone, there have been only seven UFC spend-for each-view reveals headlined by females. Two of those people featured Cris Cyborg, who is no extended with the UFC and at present plies her trade with Bellator.
All of this is to say that the UFC has not experienced a huge attract in its women’s divisions due to the fact Rousey’s departure.
Kayla Harrison won her next straight PFL women’s light-weight championship on Wednesday. With a variety of alternatives of her upcoming, Harrison has a chance to turn out to be 1 of the most important stars in MMA. Cooper Neill / PFL
Nunes, who retains the UFC women’s bantamweight and featherweight titles, would be the closest issue the promotion has to a female spend-per-look at draw. She has headlined 5 UFC shell out-for each-perspective playing cards, but one was against Rousey and the other was UFC 200, which was mired by Jon Jones staying pulled from the card during combat 7 days due to a unsuccessful drug take a look at.
Harrison vs. Nunes would be one particular of the biggest women’s fights in MMA heritage, though they are friends and coaching companions at American Top rated Team in Florida. If Harrison goes the Bellator route, the Cyborg fight would be a significant a single — a pay back-for every-check out principal occasion caliber struggle. And if she stays with PFL, Harrison will continue to be showcased as the experience of the marketing. Perhaps the PFL could even co-endorse with Bellator to make that Harrison vs. Cyborg combat.
Who understands? But in any case, Harrison has a chance to ascend to rarefied air between girls in MMA, if provided the correct option. There are challenges with her excess weight class — Harrison has no level of competition at 155 lbs ., and a confined pool of talent at 145 — but, as the stating goes, if you construct it, they will appear. And Harrison is anyone truly worth developing around. — Marc Raimondi
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Abigail Montes picks up her 3rd specialist MMA win vs. boxing excellent Claressa Shields at the PFL championship.
Claressa Shields has get the job done to do in MMA
Claressa Shields is one of the greatest women’s boxers on the world. In the cage, she remains a function in progress.
Her split-determination decline to Abigail Montes on Wednesday was her first defeat of any variety due to the fact an newbie boxing struggle in 2012. Setback aside, Shields confirmed advancement in just her second MMA struggle, exclusively when it arrived to her takedown defense.
Not like boxing, where by a decline usually proves to be a significant occupation blow, defeats are normally viewed much otherwise in the MMA planet. All along, Shields’ crew, which contains supervisor Mark Taffet and boxing promoter Dmitry Salita, understood the PFL experiment was a very long-expression engage in.
That approach calls for Shields to contend in showcase fights over the first two several years of her a few-year deal with PFL just before moving up into the frequent season competitiveness in 2023.
“Ideal now, we’re in the laboratory,” Taffet said. “We just do it dwell on Tv set.”
When Shields returns to the boxing ring on Dec. 11, she’ll be a major preferred to retain her unified middleweight championship. Soon after that, it is again to Albuquerque, New Mexico, to function on her MMA match, and she is aware you will find a extended way to go.
“I imagine I won the very first two rounds … and then the last round she got the ground-and-pound I’m Okay with that,” Shields instructed ESPN. “It would not detour the gameplan.”
In a way, Shields has previously succeed at MMA by seeking a thing outside the house her ease and comfort zone and discovering even a sliver of achievements. But to actually cross about and dominate in a next sport, she’ll need to have to overhaul her ground sport and prevent the variety of effectiveness that performed out in the third spherical of Wednesday’s battle.
She has two or three far more fights to do the job on it, and a good deal of time in the gym to fine-tune her game right before the MMA bouts actually count. — Mike Coppinger
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Ray Cooper III wins his 2nd PFL title with a natural beauty of a knockout vs. Magomed Magomedkerimov.
Ray Cooper III has accomplished almost everything he can in the PFL — it really is time to take a shot in the UFC
No fighter has developed his or her name in the PFL’s four many years of existence a lot more than Ray Cooper III. The Hawaii native has been Mr. PFL for the last several several years, compiling an 11-2 (1 NC) report in the advertising with 9 finishes. On Wednesday, he gained his next straight $1 million PFL welterweight championship. He avenged his father’s loss to Jake Shields by beating Shields twice in 2018, only to slide just limited of a PFL title with a decline in the remaining to Magomed Magomedkerimov.
In 2019, Cooper gained the PFL welterweight title, and he recurring the feat Wednesday — as soon as once more righting a erroneous, in opposition to Magomedkerimov, the guy who defeat him for the $1 million in 2018. He also conquer Rory MacDonald on the way to the 2021 title.
Cooper has come comprehensive circle in PFL, and just finished every little thing there is to do in the promotion. He is a no cost agent now, and it can be time he attempts his hand in the UFC. Cooper is nonetheless just 28 years outdated, in his athletic key. It’s unclear if “Bradda Boy” will turn into a champion in the UFC or even a top contender, really should he go. But the factors you know you are getting with Cooper are quickly transferrable: motion fights, a never ever-say-die mind-set, sturdiness and those people grenades in his fists.
Cooper picked up additional than $2 million in prize income because 2019 with PFL. The time is right for Cooper to see what he can do in the most significant MMA promotion in the entire world.
“I know I’m the greatest,” Cooper explained right after Wednesday’s victory. “I’d get on the UFC champion, the Bellator winner. We can unify the belts. I’ll just take on any person, just bring them on.” — Raimondi
Kaitlin Young began solid in opposition to Julia Budd, but at the time Budd took over in the 2nd half of the first round, she managed the remainder of the struggle. Cooper Neill / PFL
Julia Budd requires to show much more to even threaten Kayla Harrison
The storyline preceded Julia Budd’s arrival. The former Bellator featherweight champion’s PFL debut in a showcase bout early in the night was crafted up as a preview of what could possibly before long spice up the PFL’s women’s lightweight division. That is the domain of Kayla Harrison, who has mowed down all competitors in winning the championship in 2019 and 2021. The two-time Olympic gold medalist in judo is unbeaten in MMA. She appears to be unbeatable in the PFL. Budd was introduced on to maybe challenge that.
Just before finding to Budd, even though, let’s not dismiss that the PFL signed an even greater identify in the fight athletics environment to incorporate luster to its 155-pound division. The unbeaten boxing wonderful Claressa Shields, a two-division undisputed environment champion, competed in her next MMA fight later on on the undercard. She dropped. Shields confirmed some improvement in her defensive wrestling, and she mostly responded well to her coaches, but she has a long way to go. Let us see how Shields responds to her 1st defeat in battle athletics.
As for Budd, she confirmed up in her new MMA property and managed pretty much every single second of her struggle from Kaitlin Younger. But she’s likely to have to do extra than that to halt Harrison, assuming the two-time champ, now a totally free agent, is still all around for the 2022 year. Budd was calculated in her strategy, demonstrating no recklessness but nevertheless absorbing a lot more strikes than she ought to have, primarily early on. And when Budd acquired the battle to the canvas, she did not unload with ground-and-pound or relentlessly go after dominant positions. Budd fought steadily, which labored wonderful in opposition to Young. I significantly question it would versus Harrison.
I say all of this as the only ESPN voter to place Budd in his women’s pound-for-pound top rated 10. Harrison got votes from two of my colleagues and ended up tied for No. 9 in the rankings. Could that pecking get get flip-flopped following 12 months? Absolutely sure it could. Budd has fought women of all ages with far better resumes than Harrison (Amanda Nunes, Cris Cyborg and Ronda Rousey), when Harrison has confronted no one particular with Budd’s pedigree (other than when she rolls with Nunes in the American Top Crew fitness center). But Shields retains finding far better. The window of taking gain of her relative inexperience is closing rapid.
If Budd will get the matchup for which she came to the PFL, she would will need to put Harrison on the defensive, and to do that Budd would require to ramp up the aggression, which is a dangerous way to strategy the two-time champ. — Jeff Wagenheim
Movlid Khaybulaev smothered Chris Wade for 5 rounds, on his way to a a person-sided unanimous decision in the 2021 PFL featherweight remaining. Cooper Neill / PFL
Wednesday’s most spectacular beneath-the-radar effectiveness
The highlight shined in a number of instructions on this night time, from Kayla Harrison to Claressa Shields to the winner-vs.-champion rematch amongst Ray Cooper III and Magomed Magomedkerimov. But there had been some shining performances exterior the highlight, also.
What a evening it was for Brazil, residence of 3 of the 6 2021 PFL champions — heavyweight Bruno Cappelozza, light heavyweight Antonio Carlos Junior and lightweight Raush Manfio.
But the fighter who amazed me the most outside the house of the most notable places on Wednesday’s card was Movlid Khaybulaev. The Dagestani featherweight did not place on the most entertaining general performance, but his 5-spherical conclusion in excess of Chris Wade was stunningly dominant.
Why so gorgeous? Wade was coming off a get in the semifinals in which he controlled the wrestling towards 2011 NCAA Division 1 winner Bubba Jenkins. Nonetheless he could not do a matter towards Khaybulaev, who took him down 8 occasions and controlled every round on the canvas.
Khaybulaev failed to threaten a flashy end like the ones turned in by Harrison, Cooper and Carlos Junior. But he was even so eye-opening. Sometimes the greatest effectiveness is the one in which you entirely shut down what your opponent is best at. — Wagenheim
Rory MacDonald’s debut year in the PFL didn’t go as planned, but he’ll be back in 2022 for yet another shot at $1 million and a PFL title. Cooper Neill / PFL
With the 2021 championship in the publications, what could the PFL look like in 2022?
PFL produced a major splash early in the 12 months by signing high-profile veterans from other promotions: Anthony Pettis, Fabricio Werdum and Rory MacDonald. Pettis is a former UFC lightweight champion and was a huge more than enough name much less than a decade in the past to have had his graphic emblazoned on a Wheaties box. MacDonald is a former Bellator welterweight champion who was portion of some of the most memorable action fights in UFC background. Werdum is a former UFC heavyweight champion.
The existence of Pettis, Werdum and MacDonald was a signal that PFL wasn’t heading to be shy about signing huge-identify absolutely free agents, and that the marketing had firmly cemented by itself as 1 of the best ones in all of MMA. Unfortunately, it did not very do the job out as hoped. Pettis and MacDonald went a mixed 1-4 in PFL this 12 months. Werdum fought just when, a loss that was overturned to a no contest. Pettis was unable to qualify for the lightweight playoffs. Undoubtedly, putting those people adult males on a card raises the benefit of any party. But it wasn’t inflow of championship-level talent PFL may have been hoping for.
The excellent news is that fighters like Ray Cooper III and Raush Manfio capitalized on victories in excess of MacDonald and Pettis, respectively, to make a even bigger name — and some superior income — for themselves this period. And there is more positivity on the horizon. Pettis and MacDonald are equally back again in PFL for the 2022 year, promotion spokesperson Greg Savage instructed ESPN on Wednesday night time. Werdum’s standing is unclear.
But put those people names with some new signees, such as Budd, the previous Bellator women’s featherweight winner who conquer Kaitlin Younger on Wednesday, and returning champions, and PFL is probable to have its most stacked roster but next 12 months, even if Harrison does not re-sign. — Raimondi
