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Max Holloway hopes to see Alexander Volkanovski for a fourth time if the stars align.
UFC Kansas City goes down this weekend (Sat., April 15, 2023) where Holloway (23-7) looks to rebound off a third career loss to his rival, the current Featherweight kingpin, Volkanovski. Tasked with Arnold Allen in the evening’s main event, Holloway hopes and intends on eventually getting back to a title opportunity in the weight class he’s made his name in. Despite having come up short every time he’s fought “The Great,” “Blessed” feels he’s the better man and has to believe so otherwise he’ll start declining.

“Yes, I do believe I am a better fighter than Alexander Volkanovki,” Holloway told ESPN (h/t BJPenn.com). “If I didn’t believe I was a better fighter than him, then why I am fighting in the same weight class as the guy? Ask anybody who lost to anybody, do you think you are a better fighter than this guy? Of course, they are going to say [yes]. Once we start saying no I think [he is better], once you get the acceptance that this guy might be better than me, then you don’t belong, you should retire. Guys don’t understand that.”
The Volkanovski-Holloway rivalry has gone to the judges’ scorecards each time, seeing Volkanovki’s hand raised via unanimous decisions in the first and third fights with a split decision in the rematch. Volkanovski is next expected to defend his crown against the interim titleholder, Yair Rodriguez, whose last loss came to Holloway in 2021.

Remember that MMAmania.com will deliver LIVE round-by-round, blow-by-blow coverage of the entire UFC Las Vegas fight card right here, starting with the ESPN/ESPN+ “Prelims” matches, which are scheduled to begin at 5:30 p.m. ET, then the remaining main card balance (also on ESPN/ESPN+) at 8:30 p.m. ET.
To check out the latest and greatest UFC Kansas City: “Holloway vs. Allen” news and notes be sure to hit up our comprehensive event archive right here.

Sean O’Malley wasn’t surprised by the outcome of Raul Rosas Jr. vs. Christian Rodriguez at UFC 287 this past weekend (April 8, 2023).
The Bantamweight division is an ever-expanding pool of talent in and out of UFC. Several of the promotion’s newest rising stars in recent years have come from Dana White’s Contender Series, including the likes of both the No. 2-ranked contender, O’Malley, and 18-year-old prospect, Rosas.
Unfortunately for Rosas, he suffered his first career setback this past weekend, opening the main card opposite the aforementioned Rodriguez. After a strong start in round one, Rosas faded a bit down the stretch and was ultimately out-grappled by his opponent en route to a unanimous decision loss.

“There’s definitely guys in the division that he can go out there and beat,” O’Malley said of Rosas on his TimboSugarShow podcast (h/t MMA Junkie). “I don’t even think he needs to go out there and get a win. He needs to go out there and get better. Take two years off. Lift. F—king grind. … I think he should stay at 135. Just don’t fight for a couple of years. Get good. Just improve everywhere [and] come back.”
Rosas made his Octagon debut this past Dec. 2022, earning an impressive first-round rear-naked choke submission against Jay Perrin (watch highlights) at UFC 282. Having been in a similar position and as confident as they come, O’Malley believes the loss can be a very valuable lesson for “El Nino Problema.”

“I called that. I said I think Christian Rodriguez is going to be too much,” O’Malley said. “[He] trains at a good f—king gym. Doesn’t mean Raul Rosas Jr. is done, but I mean, where do you go from here? Maybe you don’t even sign him at that age — you let him fight for two, three years, rack up some more wins. … But UFC, that’s the risk they’re willing to take. ‘Hey, we’re going to have a potential star.’ He still can be. I don’t know.
“I said he’s going to come out frantic, try to do what he does probably to most people at the gym: take him down, take their back, choke them,” he concluded. “But if not, he’s going to gas. He can’t keep that pace.”

For complete UFC 287 results and coverage click here.

Gilbert Burns is retracting his recent claims.
UFC 287 went down in Miami, Florida this past weekend (April 8, 2023) and wound up hosting the final fight of Welterweight veteran, Jorge Masvidal’s, career. In the evening’s co-main event, Masvidal came up short against Burns via a unanimous decision.
After the bout, Burns claimed that Masvidal utilized a greasing technique by lotioning himself up ahead of their encounter. Masvidal quickly denied the accusation upon hearing it, leading Burns to rethink his stance.

“What’s up, guys? Gilbert Burns right here,” Burns said on Twitter. “I just would like to take the moment to apologize to Jorge ‘Gamebred’ Masvidal and his team, ATT (American Top Team), for the things that I said after the fight in the post-fight press conference for UFC 287. I said that he used lotion and this and that. I said it too much and I cannot prove that and I would like to send my apologies to Jorge and his team and take [back] everything that I said. I hope he accepts my apology and I think what I did was wrong. I have no proof that he did that and I want to take nothing away from him.
“The guy’s a warrior, 52 pro fights, I hope he has a good retirement and I hope he will accept my apology,” he concluded. “Thank you, guys.”
Burns noted after the fight that Masvidal was very slippery, making it impossible for him to lock on a submission during their grappling exchanges. Regardless, “Durinho” only found more success as the fight went on, battering Masvidal on the feet in the third and ultimately securing the victory and getting back on a winning streak.

For complete UFC 287 results and coverage click here.

Welcome to Midnight Mania!
One of the bigger stories in the first half of 2023 remains where Francis Ngannou will end up since departing UFC for greener pastures. In recent interviews, Ngannou has repeatedly mentioned that his plan is to box first — with the most likely candidate being Deontay Wilder at the moment — and then return to the cage. The two likely landing spots are Professional Fighter’s League and One Championship.
Now, there may be a hint that he’s landing in Singapore on Amazon Prime. John Hutchinson is the boxing coach at Tiger Muay Thai, and he works with One champion Anatoly Malykhin (12-0). The vicious knockout artist is favored to unify the Heavyweight crown opposite Arjan Bhullar in the summer, and afterward, Hutchinson believes he’ll face “The Predator.”
Contract pending.

“When that little soft bum Arjan comes out of hiding,” Hutchinson wrote. “We promise it will be over very fast in a powerful blink of a eye. Making room faster than ever for the real fight to happen. @Francisngannou you should of stayed where your at when you had the chance. Your about to face the biggest challenge @anmalykhin … Contract pending let’s see who’s the undisputed king is …”
Despite claims that Ngannou made a terrible mistake in leaving UFC, it seems as if he may be closing to lining up multiple high-profile fights. Perhaps his fight purse requests weren’t so unreasonable after all!

Insomnia
Sean Strickland never misses a chance to talk trash to anyone.

Did Dana White seem angrier than usual last week to anyone else?

From 5-1-1 to start her UFC run to the current five-fight losing streak, it’s been a rough couple years for Cynthia Calvillo.

❌ Fighter removed: Cynthia Calvillo— UFC Roster Watch (@UFCRosterWatch) April 12, 2023

This is nice work.

Jon Anik saw an opportunity to roast Colby Covington and did not back down.

I can say from experience that Song Yadong is the second fastest fighter I’ve ever seen in person after Cody Garbrandt, but he’s like 10-15 pounds heavier.

Read this multiple times and let it sink in.

In their last 3 fights the winner was the one on his way to lose the fight and delivered.This shows you how the outcome of the fight relies on many many variant factors and that there is no such thing as an easy fight at the highest level and that’s what makes combat sport great— ฟิลลิป พอโชลเลอร์ (@ASAP_Pipa) April 9, 2023

Slips, rips, and KO clips
This slow-motion replay of Rob Font knockout out Adrian Yanez is both a great display of Font’s boxing talent and showcase of how MMA is a game of inches!

What a nasty left hook!

More left hooks!

Random Land
Something new to be afraid of.

Midnight Music: Folk, 1966
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Sleep well Maniacs! More martial arts madness is always on the way.

After a third, decisive defeat to Alexander Volkanovski, former Featherweight roost-ruler, Max Holloway, looks to prove he still belongs among the elite when he battles the surging Arnold Allen inside T-Mobile Center in Kansas City, Missouri. ESPN’s show this Saturday (April 15, 2023) also sees Edson Barboza look to right the ship against Billy Quarantillo and Dustin Jacoby attempt to halt the rise of undefeated Light Heavyweight prospect, Azamat Murzakanov.
Eight “Prelims” undercard bouts join UFC Kansas City’s main card on ESPN/ESPN+. Let’s check out the first batch …

155 lbs.: Lando Vannata vs. Daniel Zellhuber

The debut war for Lando Vannata (12-6-2) with Tony Ferguson and subsequent wheel kick knockout of John Makdessi seemingly put him on the fast track to stardom, only for him to go winless in his next four. Dropping to 145 pounds produced a 3-3 run that most recently saw him choked out by Charles Jourdain in April 2022.
“Groovy” faces a four-inch height disadvantage and a six-inch reach disadvantage against “Golden Boy.”
Daniel Zellhuber (12-1) survived a vicious opening round to hand Lucas Almeida his first professional defeat and claim a UFC contract on Contender Series. Nearly a year later, he debuted against Trey Ogden, who capitalized on Zellhuber’s uncharacteristic lethargy to outwork him en route to a unanimous decision win.
His nine professional finishes include seven via knockout.
I genuinely believe Zellhuber is a far better fighter than he showed against Ogden. Flawed, certainly, but gifted and still young enough to turn the corner. While this may just be my optimism talking or an attempt to save face after hyping him up in New Blood, I think he’s got what it takes to win this. So long as he actually lets his hands go, his length and durability present real issues for the eternally inconsistent Vannata.
I acknowledge that Zellhuber completely beefed it last time out and I have no concrete evidence to suggest he’ll put it all together here. Against someone who eternally struggles to make all his gears mesh, though, I’m willing to bank on the physically superior athlete. Prediction? He pieces up Vannata for his first Octagon victory.
Prediction: Zellhuber via unanimous decision

115 lbs.: Bruna Brasil vs. Denise Gomes

Bruna Brasil (8-2-1) defied the odds to hand Yasmin Castanho her first-ever defeat in the former’s Legacy Fighting Alliance (LFA) debut. This set up a shot on the Contender Series, where she stopped Marnic Mann via head kick to extend her winning streak to seven and claim a UFC contract.
Her five professional stoppages are split 3/2 between knockouts and submissions.
A comeback knockout of Milana Dudieva earned Denise Gomes (6-2) her first Invicta victory, after which she punched her ticket to the big show by beating Rayanne dos Santos on the Contender Series. Despite some solid stretches of back control, she proved unable to overcome Loma Lookboonmee on a three-week turnaround, resulting in her first loss since 2017.
She stands four inches shorter than Brasil and faces a 2.5-inch reach disadvantage.
Range is the deciding factor here. Brasil has Gomes badly outclassed at a distance; her deep kicking arsenal and heavy counters make the most of her height and reach advantages. It’s a different story in close, where Gomes’ aggression and grappling skills serve as great equalizers. The uglier it gets and the more Gomes can smother Brasil’s kicks by either catching them or retaliating with punches, the better it’ll go for “Dee.”
Brasil just seems a bit too sharp for that, though, especially since she’s got takedown chops of her own to exploit Gomes’ poor defensive wrestling if things get too hairy on the feet. “The Special One” tears up Gomes’ legs, plugs her with counter punches, and racks up top control to claim a decisive win.
Prediction: Brasil via unanimous decision

135 lbs.: Aaron Phillips vs. Gaston Bolanos

Nearly six years after washing out of the Octagon on an 0-2 skid, Aaron Phillips (12-4) returned in July 2020 to face the red-hot Jack Shore. Victory once again proved elusive, as he succumbed to “Tank’s” rear naked choke midway through the second round.
He fights for the first time in 33 months.
A highly successful Nak Muay and kickboxer, Gaston Bolanos (6-3) has spent the entirety of his mixed martial arts (MMA) career in the Bellator cage. He last saw action in April 2022, knocking out Daniel Carey to end a two-year layoff and avenge one of his three defeats.
All six of his MMA wins have come by knockout.
I can’t say with any certainty what Phillips will look like on Saturday night. As underwhelming as he’s been in his pro career, I’ve seen worse fighters make more dramatic turnarounds over shorter periods of time. It’s not like Bolanos is some unstoppable force, either; his defensive grappling remains a major Achilles’ heel and he can get weirdly sloppy when engaging at long range.
All that said, Phillips failed to make huge strides between his first and second UFC stints, and though you could attribute a lot of that to the fact that he fought a stylistic nightmare in Jack Shore, it doesn’t bode well for his chances here. Like a monkey paw, UFC finally gave Phillips a willing striker, but it’s one who will tear him apart with blistering boxing combos in the pocket..
Prediction: Bolanos via first round technical knockout

135 lbs.: Joselyne Edwards vs. Lucie Pudilova

More than two years after unsuccessfully battling Sarah Alpar for LFA gold, Joselyne Edwards (12-4) claimed her first UFC victory with a decision over Wu Yanan. Though she went on to lose her next two, she enters the cage this Saturday on a two-fight win streak, both of which came in the span of less than two months.
She has knocked out five professional foes and submitted three others.
After leaving the world’s largest fight promotion in an 0-4 freefall, Lucie Pudilova (14-7) rebuilt herself with a 5-1 OKTAGON run. She ultimately made her UFC return in August 2022, pounding out Wu Yanan for her first promotional victory since 2018.
She faces a 2.5-inch reach disadvantage.
This one comes down to whether Pudilova can keep her foot on the gas. She proved against Irene Aldana that she can throw heat for three rounds and showed off some improved takedown skills last time out that Edwards figures to struggle with. Despite her pedigree of violence, though, she was unusually passive for long stretches of the Wu fight, which won’t serve her well against Edwards’ high-volume pitter-pat style.
Even with that caveat, Pudilova strikes me as the likely victor. Edwards struggled with the incredibly limited Ramona Pascual and has historically proven vulnerable to determined takedown artists, suggesting Pudilova can hold her own on the feet and take it to the mat as necessary.
Heavier strikes and strong top control carry the day for Pudilova.
Prediction: Pudilova via unanimous decision
Four more UFC Kansas City “Prelims” bouts remain to preview and predict tomorrow, including a potentially electric Flyweight showdown. Same time tomorrow, Maniacs.

Remember that MMAmania.com will deliver LIVE round-by-round, blow-by-blow coverage of the entire UFC Las Vegas fight card right here, starting with the ESPN/ESPN+ “Prelims” matches, which are scheduled to begin at 5:30 p.m. ET, then the remaining main card balance (also on ESPN/ESPN+) at 8:30 p.m. ET.
To check out the latest and greatest UFC Kansas City: “Holloway vs. Allen” news and notes be sure to hit up our comprehensive event archive right here.

Kelvin Gastelum is back.
Of all the great performances at UFC 287 this past weekend (April 8, 2023), none may have been better than the resurgence of Gastelum’s to close out the preliminary card. The one-time interim Middleweight title challenger went to war with Chris Curtis, earning a unanimous decision win that snapped his two-fight skid.
The win was just Gastelum’s second in six fights since his first and only crack at UFC gold against the now-champion, Israel Adesanya, in April 2019. That same night, Adesanya reclaimed the division’s title, defeating Alex Pereira via a second-round knockout (watch highlights). Gastelum and Adesanya put on one of the greatest fights of all time, leaving The Ultimate Fighter 17 (TUF) winner, Gastelum, with the hopes of running things back.

“We got the win, mission accomplished for now,” Gastelum said on his YouTube channel. “I’m back on my feet. This is like I said, the renaissance of K.G. … I’m ready to take it to another level. I’m ready to go all the way this time. All the way to the belt. Maybe a rematch with ‘Izzy,’ who knows? That’s the goal, why not?
“People want to see that fight,” he continued. “I want to be champion. I’m not just saying that just to say it. I mean that. So, that’s where I’m working towards. I’m talking to my manager about what the next steps are.”
Gastelum hopes to get back to his active ways after ending a layoff that extended to Aug. 2021 before UFC 287. Already in talks for the immediate future, the seemingly revitalized Gastelum intends on returning around International Fight Week in July 2023.

“I was nervous about feeling that ring rust, but to be honest, I felt like I belonged,” Gastelum said of fighting Curtis. “I felt like I had just fought the other day and everything was so natural, everything was so smooth. I impressed myself a little bit. I gotta pat myself a little bit on the back.”

For complete UFC 287 results and coverage click here.