🍷 Ageing Like Fine Wine

October 29, 2021

Welcome to this week’s edition of The Fight With Teddy Atlas Newsletter, your one stop shop for all things combat sports related, brought to you by Teddy and The Fight team.

Every Friday, we bring you:

  • A combat sports news digest with all the headlines you need to know from Boxing and Mixed Martial Arts.

  • Highlights from the podcast and across the fight world.

  • Fight times and information you need to know ahead of time.

  • How to’s and tips for Boxing from Teddy himself.

‎Alexander Volkanovski joins Teddy Atlas and co-host Ken Rideout for a conversation about his most recent title defense against Brian Ortega, his desire for another fight with Max Holloway, his preparation and training, and more.

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Fight News From Around The 🌍

Boxing's Best Prospect?

Following Shakur Stevenson's dominant stoppage of Jamel Herring last week, we turn to another top prospect, who is rivalling the WBO Super Featherweight champion for the label of the best boxer under 25.

Jaron "Boots" Ennis has been putting in impressive, eye catching performances for years now. He hasn't heard the final bell in a fight since 2017, having stopped all of his 16 opponents since.

His latest win was a devastating KO against former world champion Sergey Lipinets, who before then had never been beaten inside the distance.

Within the next year, he'll be looking to remove that label of "prospect" and move into being considered a world class fighter, in the same way the likes of Shakur, Teofimo Lopez and Gervonta Davis have done.

It won't be an easy task, as he competes in one of the most talented Welterweight divisions in recent memory, where two of it's champions are in the Top 10 Pound for Pound, and the other (Yordenis Ugas), is no slouch himself.

Patience will be key. He faces a tough test tomorrow night against veteran Thomas Dulorme, who has looked more durable at 147 than he was at 140. With a win, he'll keep his name amongst the contenders and within touching distance of an opportunity to challenge the elites of his division.

The talent is there for all to see. It's just a matter of time and waiting for his chance to truly shine.

Light Heavyweight Gold On The Line.

The UFC returns to Abu Dhabi, United Arab Emirates, with a pay-per-view headlined by Jan Blachowicz and Glover Teixeira for the Light Heavyweight Championship.

Blachowicz will be defending his light heavyweight crown for the 2nd time, after a successful defence against Israel Adesanya, where he really established himself as THE champion of the post-Jon Jones era.

Glover Teixeira has, like his opponent, seemed to have got better with age, having torn through younger contenders since dropping a decision to Corey Anderson in July 2018. He'll be coming in with the intensity of a man who, at 43, knows this is his final shot at UFC gold.

That'll make him a dangerous prospect for Blachowicz, alongside his elite wrestling and grappling. The champ will have to rely on his speed advantage and staying as sharp as he did against Adesanya in order to keep his belt.

Whatever happens, these two fighting for a title shows the power of persistence.

5 years ago, Blachowicz was 2-4 in the UFC and on the verge of being cut. Teixeira had just been brutally knocked out by Alexander Gustafsson.

Fast forward to tomorrow night, and they are at the top of their division, vying for the title of the best Light Heavyweight on the planet.

Corey Sandhagen and Petr Yan compete in the co-main for the Interim Bantamweight Championship.

Yan will be looking to prove that he is the true champion of the division, after his DQ loss to Aljamain Sterling in a fight that he was winning quite handily.

He's been a force of nature in the division since his debut in 2018, tearing through contender after contender with his dangerous mix of technical striking and underrated grappling.

Enter the Sandman.

Corey Sandhagen is coming off a super close decision loss to the returning TJ Dillashaw. He gave the former champion fits during the fight and is a tough matchup for any of the top bantamweights.

These are two aggressive and hyper competitive fighters, in their prime, looking to take a step closer to undisputed Bantamweight glory.

Fun Fact: This is the first UFC title fight where both men have been coming off a loss.

It sure doesn't seem like it.

Fight ⏰ for this weekend

Boxing: Ennis vs Dulorme (Saturday 30th/Sunday 31st)

  • 🇺🇸 Full Card: 5pm Eastern/2pm Pacific | Main Event: 8pm Eastern/5pm Pacific

  • 🇬🇧 Full Card:10pm | Main Event: 1am

  • 🇦🇺 Full Card: 8am Eastern/5am Western | Main Event: 11am Eastern/8am Western

Boxing: Zepeda vs Vargas (Saturday 30th/Sunday 31st)

  • 🇺🇸 Full Card: 7pm Eastern/4pm Pacific | Main Event: 10pm Eastern/7pm Pacific

  • 🇬🇧 Full Card: 12am | Main Event: 2am

  • 🇦🇺 Full Card: 7am Eastern/10am Western | Main Event: 1pm Eastern/10am Western

UFC: Blachowicz vs Teixeira (Saturday 30th/Sunday 31st)

  • 🇺🇸 Main Card: 10:30am Eastern/ 7:30am Pacific | Main Event: 2pm Eastern/ 11am Pacific

  • 🇬🇧 Main Card: 3:30pm | Main Event: 7pm

  • 🇦🇺 Main Card: 1:30am Eastern/10:30pm Western | Main Event: 5am Eastern/2am Western

Don't forget to tune in to the latest episode 🎧

We had the pleasure to chat with the UFC Featherweight champion Alexander "The Great" Volkanovski.

In addition to being a brilliant fighter and one of the toughest men on the planet, he's also a 5 star human being.

Thanks for being with us and see you next week #BANG💥