11/21/24 Notebook: Verdict Pending In Conor McGregor Civil Assault Case

Welcome to the notebook, a quick catchup of all the smaller (but still important) stories from the world of MMA!

If you want the notebook delivered to you every morning along with MMA’s top headlines, consider subscribing to the Knockdown Daily newsletter via Substack. It’s free!

Here are the latest stories we’re following:

UFC

• Warning: This bullet point includes mentions of sexual assault. Closing arguments wrapped up earlier this week in the civil lawsuit against Conor McGregor, where in the case he is alleged to have raped a woman in a Dublin, Ireland penthouse in 2018. The legal team representing the plaintiff has focused on a “litany of evidence,” including numerous medical experts who were called upon to describe the damage the alleged victim has suffered. Some professionals spoke about the large amounts of bruising she was found with, and others described a PTSD diagnosis she has been given since her encounter with McGregor. “So let’s put it this way – somebody did it,” lawyer John Gordon said, per the Irish Mirror. “It happened in the Beacon Hotel. It was Mr McGregor … As I said opening the case she’s [the plaintiff] no angel. She was out for a good time and indeed up to [a] certain point she had a great time. But things went badly wrong.” McGregor’s team, on the other hand, has tried to persuade the jury by showing a series of inconsistencies in the plaintiff’s storytelling, attempting to cast her as an untrustworthy source. CCTV footage, lies she told to her boyfriend through text, and other details were brought up once again during the closing statements. “The reason I put all that to you is [the] entirety of the approach of the plaintiff is it’s all very simple: She was raped, has the bruises to prove it and everything else is just a distraction,” said lawyer Remy Farrell. I wrote a full report on the closing statements for POST Wrestling, which you can read here. I’ll provide an update once a verdict is reached – although it’s unclear when we’ll arrive at that point.
• We can now discuss three more recent developments for UFC 310, which will go down on December 7th from the T-Mobile Arena in Las Vegas, Nevada, USA:
  • Returning with the hopes of earning his first win since 2019, Kron Gracie (5-2) will go up against Bryce Mitchell (16-2). Gracie has lost back-to-back bouts, dropping matchups against Cub Swanson and Charles Jourdain. Mitchell is coming off a finish loss from his last fight, suffering a scary knockout last year against Josh Emmett.
  • A clash between Chris Weidman (16-7) and Eryk Anders (16-8), which was initially expected for last weekend at Madison Square Garden, has been re-booked for UFC 310, as announced this week.
  • While it was reported elsewhere that Rizvan Kuniev (13-2-1) was expected to debut against Martin Buday (14-2), the matchup reportedly fell through after Buday withdrew, per Marcel Dorff. It’s unclear if Kuniev will get a new matchup.
• A bantamweight fight between Ricky Turcios (12-4) and Bernardo Sopaj (11-3) has been rescheduled for UFC 311 on January 18th from the Intuit Dome in Los Angeles, California, per Damon Martin of MMA Fighting. The fight was originally set to happen earlier this month but ended up being abandoned due to medical issues on the side of Turcios. The fight gives Turcios a chance to bounce back from a June submission loss he took to Raul Rosas Jr. Sweden’s Sopaj is coming off an unsuccessful UFC debut from March, getting stopped by Vinicius Oliveira.
• Mayra Bueno Silva (10-4-1) will return to flyweight for the first time since 2021 when she faces Jasmine Jasudavicius (12-3) at UFC’s February 1st card in Saudi Arabia. Bueno Silva suffered a pair of losses at bantamweight this year, dropping a five-round title fight to Raquel Pennington and then getting stopped by Macy Chiasson. For rising Canadian Jasudavicius, she’ll be trying for her fourth consecutive win.
• UFC is reportedly working to make a fight between Jacqueline Cavalcanti (8-1) and Julia Avila (9-3) for their February 15th show, per Guilherme Cruz of MMA Fighting. Former LFA champ Cavalcanti hasn’t lost since joining the UFC roster last year, recently earning her third victory by beating Nora Cornolle via split decision. Avila is returning after a late 2023 loss to Miesha Tate.
• Two more fights have joined UFC’s February 22nd show:
  • 30-fight UFC vet Edson Barboza (24-12) will meet Steve Garcia (17-5), per Damon Martin of MMA Fighting. Barboza appeared in a five-round decision loss earlier this year against Lerone Murphy, ending a two-fight winning streak. Garcia on the other hand has put together five consecutive finish wins, most recently getting past Kyle Nelson within a round.
  • A rematch will take place at middleweight, per Alex Behunin of MMA Mania. Facing off more than seven years after they first met on an LFA card, Brendan Allen (24-6) and Anthony Hernandez (13-2) are expected to collide in February. Allen had a lengthy seven-fight streak of wins brought to an end last month, losing a decision to French contender Nassourdine Imavov. Hernandez hasn’t lost in over four years, recently extending his streak with a fifth-round finish over Michel Pereira.

PFL

• PFL has announced some undercard fights for their 2024 Championships card in Saudi Arabia on November 29th. Along with the world title fights and MENA championship fights, here are the other bouts expected to go down that day:
  • Bellator talents Mansour Barnaoui (21-6) and Alfie Davis (17-4-1) will face off in a lightweight clash. Davis earned his third consecutive win in March, beating Oscar Ownsworth. Barnaoui snapped a two-fight skid in May, submitting RIZIN alum Yusuke Yachi in the first round.
  • 2023 PFL Featherweight Champion Jesus Pinedo (23-6-1) will make his return against Jeremy Kennedy (19-4). Pinedo is appearing for the first time since capturing PFL’s 145-pound title last year, ending the undefeated record Gabriel Braga with a third-round stoppage. Kennedy is coming off an unsuccessful Bellator title shot from earlier this year, getting stopped by Patricio Pitbull.
  • In a clash between undefeated heavyweights, Slim Trabelsi (7-0) and Abraham Bably (5-0) will face off. Trabelsi scored his second Bellator win earlier this year, beating Louie Sutherland on scorecards. Bably is coming back to PFL after a first-round finish on the regionals two months back.
  • Former CFFC champ Jose Perez (9-1) is booked to meet Asael Adjoudj (8-1) on the undercard. Perez won his PFL debut in August, beating Jesse Stirn in a non-tournament matchup via decision. Adjoudj has slowly put together an impressive eight-fight winning streak, including numerous appearances in Bellator.
  • Long-time Bellator fighter Costello van Steenis (15-3) will face Brazil’s Joao Vitor Dantas (7-1). Van Steenis returned to the win column in May, submitting Gregory Babene after a loss to Douglas Lima the year prior. Dantas is getting a PFL opportunity after a series of wins in the notable Brazilian regional promotion Jungle Fight.
  • An amateur atomweight fight between Hattan Alsaif (2-0) and Lilia Osmani (0-0) has also been booked for the card.

ONE Championship

• ONE interim 125-pound champ Jarred Brooks (21-3) will move up to the 135-pound limit for a fight against Reece McLaren (17-9) at the promotion’s December 6th show. The fight will be Brooks’ first appearance above flyweight since 2016. He captured his interim title in August, scoring a first-round submission win against Gustavo Balart. McLaren is coming off a split decision win over Hu Yong in May.
  • MMA veteran Shinya Aoki has also been booked to face Cole Abate in a grappling bout on the same lineup.
• UFC vet John Lineker will try to score his third consecutive Muay Thai victory when he meets Kulabdam Sor Jor Piek Uthai at ONE Fight Night 27 on January 10th.

RIZIN

• Top Japanese MMA promotion RIZIN has announced some more matchups for their annual New Year’s Eve card from Saitama, Japan. For those who missed out, last week it was announced that Chihiro Suzuki will put his featherweight title against Kleber Koike. Here’s all the new details:
  • Kickboxer Rukiya Anpo will meet disgraced boxer Ryan Garcia in a boxing exhibition. It’s one exhibition to another for Anpo: Earlier this year he went up against Manny Pacquiao, a fight he was slotted into after Chihiro Suzuki had to withdraw due to injury. After his fight in July against Pacquiao, Anpo was challenged to a match by Garcia. 26-year-old Garcia, who his family has stated has been struggling with his mental health, was expelled by the World Boxing Council earlier this year following a racist tirade which was published on social media.
  • Taisei Sakuraba (0-0), the son of Pride FC legend and MMA pioneer Kazushi Sakuraba, will make his MMA debut against RIZIN vet Yusuke Yachi (27-14). 26-year-old Sakuraba steps into the sport with a tough first test: Yachi, while inconsistent in his wins and losses, is coming off a September victory over Sho Patrick Usami and has the experience of 18 RIZIN appearances.
  • YA-MAN (1-1), a former kickboxer turned RIZIN MMA talent, will take on Kazakhstan-based prospect Karshyga Dautbek (16-3). YA-MAN scored a stoppage win in his last fight, putting away Hiroaki Suzuki in the first round with strikes. Dautbek, who hasn’t lost since 2019, has finished his opponent within a round for seven consecutive fights.
  • Looking to close out his 2024 with a third RIZIN win, Kyrgysztan’s Razhabali Shaydullaev (11-0) will go up against Yuta Kubo (5-1). Shaydullaev has earned a pair of big wins in the promotion thus far, submitting vets Koji Takeda and Juan Archuleta. Kubo is on a five-fight winning streak, most recently stopping former featherweight champ Yutaka Saito with strikes.
  • Undefeated Korean heavyweight Kim Tae-in (5-0) will make his RIZIN debut against Mikio Ueda (3-2). Kim, Road FC’s current heavyweight champ, has put all five of his past opponents away within two rounds. Ueda had a three-fight run of wins broken in June, getting caught in an armbar by Polish talent Przemyslaw Kowalczyk.
  • In another heavyweight pairing, sumo wrestler turned MMA fighter Takakenshin (1-3) will go up against Ed Polo King (0-0). Takakenshin broke a three-fight skid in March, beating U.S. regional talent Cody Jerabek for his first pro victory. Polo King has no pro fighting experience and is coming over to RIZIN after appearing on Mikuru Asakura’s “Breaking Down” web series.