🥊 Heavyweights Return + UFC 266

September 24, 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.

‎Teddy Atlas and co-host Ken Rideout meet at Trinity Boxing Gym in Lower Manhattan to discuss the upcoming heavyweight title fight between Anthony Joshua and Oleksandr Usyk happening this weekend, and this past weekend's UFC fight between Anthony Smith vs Ryan Spann.

Thanks for being with us. The be…

Fight News From Around The 🌍

A Heavyweight Showdown Awaits

If you had told your average boxing fan 3 months ago that Anthony Joshua's next fight would be against Oleksandr Usyk, they'd probably be a bit disappointed.

Given how big the Fury fight would have been, any opponent not called Tyson seems like a big downgrade.

However, since the clash with Usyk was announced, the disappointment has slowly turned into intrigue. The Ukrainian is aiming to join an elite club of former Cruiserweight champions who have successfully made the jump to Heavyweight.

Despite his sensational amateur pedigree and Cruiserweight achievements, chief amongst them becoming only the second undisputed champ at weight in the division's history, there are still doubts regarding Usyk's size compared to the Heavyweight elites.

Anthony Joshua on the other hand, is a fully fledged Heavyweight and has put away much bigger men than Usyk. He'll also be confident in his ability to box and stay safe, as seen with his cautious but effective display against Joseph Parker in 2018.

But, as Teddy points out in the latest episode, Joshua has been stopped before and will know he is vulnerable to that. Usyk will be bringing the confidence that an undefeated record bestows, and if he is able to take Joshua's power, we could be in for a very, very interesting fight.

UFC 266 looks set to deliver fireworks

Alexander Volkanovski and Brian Ortega are finally set to face each other in the octagon after various delays. Their fight comes off the back of a triumphant return of The Ultimate Fighter, where they both served as Head Coaches on this season.

Volkanovski will be looking to show that his victories against the much loved Max Holloway were no fluke and cement his status as a defending champion at Featherweight.

Ortega is coming off a dominant display against the Korean Zombie that threw him right back into the title picture, almost 3 years since his brave but ultimately futile attempt to take the title from Max Holloway.

He'll be looking to use his much improved striking as well as his world class grappling against one of the most well rounded fighters on the roster in Volkanovski. The bad blood between the two adds another interesting dimension to the fight.

In the other title fight on the card, one of, if not the most dominant champion in the sport Valentina Shevchenko takes on Lauren Murphy in what will be her 6th Flyweight world title defense. As is the case with any dominant champion, there is always that question of what if the challenger is the one to end the reign, and Murphy will certainly be looking to do so. It would be a huge upset, given just how skilled Shevchenko is in every aspect of mixed martial arts.

And then there's Nick Diaz.

One of MMA's cult figures returns after almost 7 years out of the game against another true veteran of the sport, "Ruthless" Robbie Lawler. The two will compete in a 5 rounder at 185 lbs, in what will be a rematch of their 2004 fight at UFC 47, where Diaz won by TKO in round 2 of what had been up to then an all out war.

Whilst Diaz is without a win in the sport in 10 years, he has been inactive for a large chunk of that time. Lawler on the other hand, has been a Welterweight world champion with multiple defenses. He comes into this fight on a 4 fight skid, and will see this a great chance to cement his legacy in the sport and potentially end his career on a high.

17 years later, age will definitely play a factor this time around, with both their bodies perhaps not being able to do what their mind commands of them.

But both Diaz and Lawler are legends in MMA and true fighters at heart, and we will see that fighting spirit on full display Saturday night.

The Joshua vs Usyk Fight Plan is Live

Teddy & Ken met up at the iconic Trinity Boxing Gym to take a closer look at the heavyweight title fight this weekend in The Fight Plan.

Check it out and see if it helps you make your mind up (or change it) on a prediction for the big fight.

Fight ⏰ for this weekend

Boxing: Joshua vs Usyk (Saturday 25th/Sunday 26th)

  • 🇺🇸 Full Card: 1pm Eastern/10am Pacific | Main Event: 5pm Eastern/2pm Pacific

  • 🇬🇧 Full Card: 6pm | Main Event: 10pm

  • 🇦🇺 Full Card: 3am Eastern/1am Western | Main Event: 7am Eastern/5am Western

MMA: Volkanovski vs Ortega (Saturday 25th/Sunday 26th)

  • 🇺🇸 Main Card: 10pm Eastern/7pm Pacific | Main Event: 12am Eastern/9pm Pacific

  • 🇬🇧 Main Card: 3am | Main Event: 5am

  • 🇦🇺 Main Card: 12pm Eastern/10am Western | Main Event: 2pm Eastern/12pm Western

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

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