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- 🥊 A Heavyweight Weekend
🥊 A Heavyweight Weekend
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.
Hall of Fame boxing commentator and trainer to 18 world champion fighters, Teddy Atlas shares his views on all things boxing. In addition to giving fight analysis, predictions, and a look at what’s happening behind the scenes in the boxing world, Teddy connects the tenets and lessons learned inside…
Fight News From Around The 🌍
David Benavidez to fight for WBC interim title against David Lemieux.
Jake Paul questions why Yildirim gets to fight Canelo and he can't.
Unified Light Heavyweight champion Artur Beterbiev takes on Marcus Browne tonight in Canada.
Former champions Jose Ramirez and Jose Pedraza to face off February 5th in Fresno.
Nate Diaz and Dustin Poirier tease January fight at welterweight.
A Heavyweight Crossroads Fight...Again
Joseph Parker and Derek Chisora probably weren't expecting to have to run it back when they fought the first time.
Parker was quietly confident in being a class above the tough former world title contender, whilst said contender was also confident that he would score a knockout against the former WBO world champion.
The latter almost transpired the first time around, when Chisora knocked Parker down within the opening 30 seconds of their fight in May 2021. The Kiwi then rallied and seemed to outbox Chisora from around the halfway point, leading to an eventual split decision win.
The fight was fan friendly enough to warrant a rematch, and with the top of the heavyweight division occupied with rematches and interim fights, both mens other options were slim.
Parker will be confident that enough was taken out of Chisora from the first fight for him to be more vulnerable to a stoppage this time around. He hasn't scored one since his KO of the undersized Shawndell Winters in February 2020, but he has sufficient power, especially down the stretch to be able to hurt the veteran.
One of the main reasons Chisora has been such a fan friendly heavyweight for years is due to his one track, all action pressure style. Some thought he did enough to beat now unified Heavyweight king Usyk back in October 2020 with his aggression and constant pace.
Whilst this could be a stretch, he is a handful for any heavyweight on the planet when he is on his A-game, and that includes the sometimes gun-shy Joseph Parker.
This fight is not a gimme for the for Parker and if he treats it as such, he could hit the canvas again this time, and not get up for the count. Watch this space, as it'll most likely be a great heavyweight dust-up from across the pond.
Heavy Hitters Close Out 2021 For UFC
Another heavyweight crossroads fight goes down this Saturday, but this time in the octagon as the main event of the UFC's last fight card of what has been an amazing 2021 for mixed martial arts.
In a year of upsets and unexpected champions, from Glover Teixeira to the recently crowned Julianna Peña, the "Black Beast" Derrick Lewis was was unfortunately unable to add himself to that list of new UFC titleholders, as he was stopped in 3 rounds by the super talented Ciryl Gane for the interim Heavyweight title.
This fight on Saturday night marks the start of a potential comeback trail for one of the most popular fighters on the roster. At 36, there's still time for another run at the title for the Houston native, especially if the man he beat 3 years ago, Francis Ngannou, continues to reign over the division.
As is always the case with the UFC, and part of what has contributed to it's huge growth over the last decade, there are no tune-up fights, no matter how popular and/or talented you are.
This weekend is no different, as Lewis has been matched with Chris Daukaus. The 32 year old is undefeated in the UFC and hasn't heard the final bell since making his debut in August 2020.
A win over Lewis would send a huge statement to the division and position him as a top 5 contender in the division, joining the likes of Curtis Blaydes, Alexander Volkov and former champion Stipe Miocic.
Daukaus, a serving police officer for the Philadelphia Police Department, has a wide array of striking skills and is brilliant in the clinch. Crucially, he also commands the power to get Derrick Lewis' respect and make him think twice about throwing bombs of his own.
An honorary mention also goes out to Stephen "Wonderboy" Thompson, who'll be taking on Belal Muhammed in the co-main event of what will be his 17th UFC appearance.
One of the most accomplished and polished strikers the sport has ever seen, Wonderboy will be looking to build another win streak with a victory on Saturday.
He is coming off a very competitive unanimous decision defeat to Gilbert Burns at UFC 264, and there was little from that defeat to suggest that he is on the downward slide.
In fact, he recently expressed his desire to become the oldest fighter in UFC history. Should his goal come to pass, it's likely he'll have stuck around for long enough to get a third shot at the welterweight crown.
With a win on the weekend, it could come sooner than that, as him and Vincente Luque (who he has a win over) are the only top 5 170lbs fighters who haven't had the opportunity to challenge the champion Kamaru Usman.
Fight ⏰ for this weekend
Boxing: Parker vs Chisora (Saturday 18th/Sunday 19th)
🇺🇸 Full Card: 2pm Eastern/ 11am Pacific | Main Event: 5pm Eastern/2pm Pacific
🇬🇧 Full Card: 7pm | Main Event: 10pm
🇦🇺 Full Card: 6am Eastern/ 3am Western | Main Event: 9am Eastern/ 6am Western
Boxing: Paul vs Woodley (Saturday 18th/Sunday 19th)
🇺🇸 Full Card: 9pm Eastern/6pm Pacific | Main Event: 11pm Eastern/ 8pm Pacific
🇬🇧 Full Card: 2am | Main Event: 4am
🇦🇺 Full Card: 12pm Eastern/ 10am Western | Main Event: 2pm Eastern/12pm Western
MMA: Lewis vs Daukaus (Saturday 18th/Sunday 19th)
🇺🇸 Full Card: 7pm Eastern/ 4pm Pacific | Main Event: 9pm Eastern/ 6am Pacific
🇬🇧 Full Card: 12am | Main Event: 2am
🇦🇺 Full Card: 11am Eastern/ 8am Western | Main Event: 1pm Eastern/ 10am Western