Ukrainian lightweight Denis Berinchik (18-0, 9 KOs) told how he is going to act in the upcoming fight with Mexican Emanuel Navarrete (38-1-1, 31 KOs).
The meeting of these fighters, at the stake of which will be the vacant WBO title, will take place on May 18 in San Diego, USA.
- Denis, taking into account how much time you've spent on physical training, I'll hazard a guess that your bet for this fight is to cosplay Muhammad Ali - "flutter like a butterfly and sting like a bee". Am I right?
- As Mike Tyson used to say, you can plan and think anything. But it all works until the first punch misses. We're going to do our best: fight, defend, throw combinations. The plan for the fight is to box the way I can box.
UFC lightweight champion Sean O'Malley said he would like to see a fight between lightweight titleholder Islam Makhachev and former featherweight standout Max Holloway.
On April 13 at UFC 300 in Las Vegas, USA, Holloway made a foray into the lightweight division, knocking out Justin Gaethje in the final minute of the fight and picking up the symbolic BMF belt.
"What about the Max Holloway vs. Islam fight? We've never seen Max toughly outpointed by anyone. Gaethje was higher than Holloway in the rankings, but Max knocked him out. So a fight like that makes sense. It would come out wild!" - O'Malley stated on his YouTube channel.
Undefeated American boxer David Benavides (28-0, 24 KOs) has spoken out about his upcoming fight with Ukrainian veteran Oleksandr Gvozdyk (20-1, 16 KOs).
"After the fight with Oleksandr Gvozdyk, a win will make me the number one contender for the winner of the Bivol vs. Beterbiev fight - that's what I'm aiming for.
Right now we are 100% focused on Alexander, he is a great boxer. We are not losing sight of him. We'll take care of him first and then we'll move on to the next opponent," Benavides told Boxing News 24/7.
Recall, Benavides and Gvozdik will fight on June 15 in Las Vegas, USA. At stake will be the temporary WBC light-heavyweight title.
Eddie Hearn, the promoter of former world heavyweight champion Anthony Joshua, has said that his charge could fight Deontay Wilder if the latter gets past Zhang Zhilei.
"There are two things: the potential vacating of the IBF title and the temptation to fight Wilder. If Deontay Wilder gets past Zhang Zhilei, and I believe he will, then everyone will start talking about the Joshua-Wilder fight again. It's definitely a fight that His Majesty likes. AJ is open to this fight. Of course he wants to win the world title again, he would love to fight the winner of the Fury - Usik fight.
Nothing is decided at this point because of all these upcoming fights. We'll see how the card will lie on May 18 and June 1," said Hearn in an interview with YouTube channel Boxing Social.
Recall that the Wilder vs. Zhilei fight will take place on June 1 as part of the "5 on 5" tournament from the promotional companies Matchroom Boxing and Queensberry Promotions.
Bogdan Guskov, an Uzbek welterweight competing in the UFC, addressed mixed martial arts fans, urging them not to confuse him with Anthony Smith.
"The second round was my time. In the first one I let him work a little bit, and in the second one I already turned on full force. But in the future you will all see, remember this name - Bogdan "Tsarevich" Guskov! Don't confuse me with "Lionheart" (Anthony Smith's nickname - note), I am Bogdan Guskov!", - said the fighter after the victory over Ryan Spann.
The fight between Guskov and Spann took place this morning at UFC On ESPN 55, ending with the Uzbekistan representative winning by TKO in the second round. The fight was the co-main event of the tournament.
Alex Pereira, the current UFC bantamweight champion, revealed where he excels over his former opponent, former middleweight champion Israel Adesanya.
"Honestly, I don't know, man. You have to see the criteria they use. Adesanya has made a few title defenses, but I haven't been able to make any middleweight defenses. However, there are things I have done: I was able to become a two-time champion. Izzy made attempts to become a two-time champion, but he couldn't. It doesn't bother me because it doesn't matter what classification you are given. What matters is what you do and inspiring people. And I think I am very good at it," Pereira said in an interview with Brazilian journalist Lavierte Viena.
Absolute world middleweight champion Saul Alvarez has assured that he is in no way hurt by talk of him avoiding a fight against David Benavides.
Uzbek welterweight Bogdan Guskov spoke about his desire to fight for the championship belt after his victory over Ryan Spann.
"I had three fights in the last six months. And all three opponents were from the top-10. Now I want to recover a little bit, rest. And then with new strength to continue the march to the top. Maybe make a title fight.
I think maybe the UFC management will give me a title shot. It would be a big opportunity for me. For my part, I'm doing everything I can. I put on a show every time. I don't like boring fights. I don't like grappling and winning on points. I like blood and show," - quotes the words of Guskov MMA Junkie.
Recall, Guskov knocked out Spann in the second round at UFC on ESPN 55, held April 27 in Las Vegas.
Islam Makhachev, UFC lightweight champion, explained the choice of opponent for the nearest title defense.
"Honestly, no. Dustin is a good opponent. Because I've already beaten Oliveira and Tsarukyan in my time. My dream fight in the lightweight division is Justin Gaethje, but he lost to Holloway. Now only Porier is left among worthy opponents. Arman refused to fight, Oliveira and Gaethje lost. We had no other choice," Makhachev said in an interview with TMZ Sports.
The fight between Islam Makhachev and Dustin Puryear will take place on June 1 at UFC 302 in Newark (USA).
Recall, earlier it became known that Makhachev's opponent could become Tsarukyan, but he refused to fight.
Arman Tsarukyan, the number one UFC lightweight ranking, compared Islam Makhachev and Khabib Nurmagomedov to each other.
"In some aspects Islam is better, in some aspects Khabib is better. It's hard to compare like that. But in terms of media and his opposition - Khabib is on another level. Plus Khabib didn't have the kind of man behind him that Islam has behind him. Islam was top 10, beat Bobby Green and made it to the top 5. How is that possible? I think it's at Khabib's expense. Islam's title fight after such opposition is also a credit to Khabib. Plus they fight a lot in Abu Dhabi. So the UFC is interested in Islam," said Tsarukyan.
Recall, earlier Tsarukyan urged not to make a superhero out of Makhachev.
