On Episode 4 of UFC 247 Embedded, flyweight title challenger Katlyn Chookagian hits the court at a Houston Rockets game. Lightweight title challenger Dominick Reyes goes jewelry shopping and breaks down his path to victory. Light heavyweight champion Jon Jones enjoys a hearty breakfast and watches more footage on his opponent. Flyweight champion Valentina Shevchenko spends hours hitting mitts and grappling. UFC 247 Embedded is an all-access, behind-the-scenes video blog leading up to the two title fights taking place Saturday, February 8th on Pay-Per-View. Order the Pay-Per-View at ESPNPlus.com/PPV
HOUSTON (AP) — Jon Jones retained his title at UFC 247, beating Dominick Reyes by unanimous decision.
After the bout, opinions on the outcome were anything but unanimous.
Jones retained his light heavyweight belt Saturday night following a surprisingly strong opening by Reyes. The unanimous decision of 48-47, 48-47, 49-46 was met with scattered applause and loud boos from the crowd, as many felt the challenger had proven enough to take the title.
UFC President Dana White addressed what turned out to be a disputed decision.
“The scoring was all over the map,” said White, noting that he thought Reyes had a 3-1 edge entering the final round. “My kids are terrorizing me that, ‘The fix is in, how did this happen?’
“People had it all over the place, but the reality is ... we’re not judges. The judges call the fight, and that’s that. As far as the judging and the reffing tonight, do I think it was perfect? I do not. We need to do some work down here.”
White said UFC can work with the Texas commission to help improve the quality of judging and officiating.
“I do feel disrespected,” Reyes said. “One of the judges had it 49-46. Who are you? I might want to have a word with you. I know I won that fight.”
White said he believes Reyes deserves a rematch.
Jones faced his most serious challenge in years.
“I wasn’t always confident that I was winning the fight,” Jones said. “I was confident that I wasn’t going to give up or slow down. I think I displayed the difference between a champion and an extraordinary contender. Something special happens when it’s time for the champion to present himself, and you guys saw it tonight in the fifth round.”
Jones (26-1-1) handed the fourth-ranked Reyes (12-1) his first loss, improving to 14-0 in title fights. He became the all-time leader in UFC title defenses, breaking the record previously held by Georges St-Pierre.
“I don’t think he was disrespected,” Jones said of Reyes. “I’ve got to watch the fight though. It’s hard to speak with confidence when I haven’t watched the fight.”
Jones was fighting for the first time since last July’s win over Thiago Santos at UFC 239, his longest period between fights in more than five years.
Reyes came out on the attack in the first round, briefly knocking Jones to the ground less than two minutes into the bout. Jones bounced back in the second round, landing several strong hooks to Reyes’ head.
The lively crowd swayed back and forth in support of either fighter, chanting both names at different points.
In the third round, Reyes landed blows to Jones’ head, and he drew blood early in the fourth round. Jones finished that round strong and the once-lively crowd became quiet and tense in anticipation of the final round.
Jones ramped up his attack in the final round, but Reyes seemed to keep enough separation from the champ to put it in the judges’ hands.
Reyes, a 30-year-old from Southern California who played college football at Stony Brook, said before the fight that he expected a victory and that it would be “life-changing.” Instead, he was dealt a controversial loss and said he hopes to get a rematch.
“For me, this is huge validation,” Reyes said. “This was my very first time going all five rounds, and it was against Jon Jones, arguably the greatest of all-time. And I put it on him. I mean, I really took it to him. I feel like I’m the peoples’ champ.”
In the co-main event of UFC 247, flyweight champion Valentina Shevchenko defended her title against Katlyn Chookagian, stopping the challenger in the third round.
The Kyrgyzstan-native Shevchenko (19-3) won her fifth bout in a row in dominant fashion over Pennsylvania-native Chookagian (13-3), who entered as the top-ranked contender for the belt. After the fight, Shevchenko did her trademark cartwheels and dancing in the ring.
“After the last elbow in the first round when I cut her, I knew the fight was not going to last five rounds,” Shevchenko said. “I was just trying to find the best way to finish.”
Earlier on the pay-per-view portion of the 12-bout event at the Toyota Center, Houston-native heavyweight Derrick Lewis (23-7) beat Ilir Latifi (15-8) via unanimous decision with a surging rally late. Lewis, the No. 6-ranked heavyweight who rescued flood victims during Houston’s Hurricane Harvey in 2017, played Houston hip-hop music entering and exiting the ring and had rousing support from the crowd.
Another Houston-native, heavyweight Juan Adams, had a much more bitter homecoming, getting stopped in under two minutes by New Zealand-born Australian Justin Tafa, who earned his first UFC win.
Also on the main card, featherweight Dan Ige (13-2) won his fifth straight fight, taking a split decision over Mirsad Bektic (13-3).
Before the pay-per-view portion of the event, the UFC honored Kobe Bryant, his daughter, Gianna, and the other seven victims of the Jan. 26 helicopter crash with a video tribute and a nine-second moment of silence. Bryant was a partner of UFC sponsor Body Armor and was an investor in the UFC, White said.
Houston sports stars spotted in attendance included J.J. Watt, Deshaun Watson, Russell Westbrook, Eric Gordon, Carlos Correa and others. Rockets owner Tilman Fertitta sat near UFC fan and actress Halle Berry.
Kobe Bryant wasn't just a UFC fan -- he was a big investor -- and got a huge distribution check from the company just days before he passed away ... so says Dana White.
The NBA legend was famous for his business savvy off the court -- and White says part of Kobe's portfolio was an ownership stake in UFC and Body Armor, the official energy drink of the UFC.
White tells TMZ Sports ... that 2019 was the most successful year in UFC history which resulted in massive payouts for all of the investors.
"Kobe got a distribution from the UFC the Wednesday before the incident and he was so pumped up and excited and he said what everybody always says, 'I wish I had invested more!'"
White says he'll remember Kobe as a great dude and an important part of the UFC fabric -- and tells us the organization plans to honor Kobe on Saturday at UFC 247 in Houston.
As for the fight card, White says he's extremely fired up about the main event -- Jon Jones vs. Dominick Reyes -- telling us Reyes is a dangerous man with a real shot to beat the G.O.A.T.
On Episode 5 of UFC 247 Embedded, title challengers Katlyn Chookagian and Dominick Reyes join a Jon Anik-hosted athlete panel alongside Ilir Latifi, who makes his heavyweight debut this weekend. After their session, champions Valentina Shevchenko and Jon Jones take the stage with local heavyweight Derrick Lewis. Chookagian gets in a quick workout, and then the challengers and champions take more questions, this time from reporters, at Ultimate Media Day. UFC 247 Embedded is an all-access, behind-the-scenes video blog leading up to the two title fights taking place Saturday, February 8th on Pay-Per-View. Order the Pay-Per-View at ESPNPlus.com/PPV
On Episode 3 of UFC 247 Embedded, flyweight champion Valentina Shevchenko shows off her sharpshooting skills. Opponent Katlyn Chookagian resets with a walk on the beach. Light heavyweight title challenger Dominick Reyes embraces fight week with a high-energy workout and an inspirational Nate Diaz quote. Reigning champ Jon Jones flies to Houston and meets his brother, Arizona Cardinal Chandler Jones. Local heavyweight Derrick Lewis gets his supplement regime approved. UFC 247 Embedded is an all-access, behind-the-scenes video blog leading up to the two title fights taking place Saturday, February 8th on Pay-Per-View. Order the Pay-Per-View at ESPNPlus.com/PPV
On Episode 2 of UFC 247 Embedded, light heavyweight Dominick Reyes loads up for a travel day and gets fight inspiration from the Super Bowl. Flyweight champion Valentina Shevchenko draws energy from the water at a Texas beach, then draws in the sand. Challenger Katlyn Chookagian explains the strategy behind her commuter fight camp. On the mats and in the pool, champion Jon Jones is focused and calm ahead of his title defense. UFC 247 Embedded is an all-access, behind-the-scenes video blog leading up to the two title fights taking place Saturday, February 8th on Pay-Per-View. Order the Pay-Per-View at ESPNPlus.com/PPV
UFC lightweight champion Khabib Nurmagomedov is eyeing some big money options in 2020. According to his manager, Ali Abdelaziz, The Eagle could make $100 million to fight Conor McGregor or Floyd Mayweather in Saudi Arabia.
"I know some people in Saudi Arabia right now. They met with me, they want to pay $100 million to Khabib to fight Conor in Saudi Arabia. They want to pay Khabib $100 [million] to fight Floyd in Saudi Arabia," Abdelaziz told TMZ Sports.
Of course, Khabib would need to defeat Tony Ferguson in April before he starts thinking too far ahead, but the money will be there for him if he does.
Ali Abdelaziz added that he believes a Mayweather bout is more likely to happen. He wasn't impressed by Conor's win over Cowboy Cerrone at UFC 246.
“He can’t get a title fight by beating a guy who is 36 years old, coming off a loss,” said Abdelaziz.
“If [Conor] wants to fight for a title shot, he has to, like Khabib said, start fighting guys like [Justin] Gaethje. Guys like Islam Makhachev. Young guys, up-and-coming, who is coming off wins. He knocked out the guy he just knocked out, he’s not gonna get a title shot.”
Khabib also shot down the notion of a Conor rematch.
“Why do I need that kind of money?” he asked reporters during a press conference in Russia on Tuesday (via RT Sport). “There are so many organizations. For example, there’s not only football for the blind, there’s sambo and other sports. Let (the UFC) give it to them if they don’t know what to do with the money. But giving me $100 million for me to beat up that idiot again? I don’t think that’s rational.”
On Episode 1 of UFC 247 Embedded, light heavyweight Dominick Reyes trains in Southern California under Joe "Daddy" Stevenson for his title fight and pays homage to another sports great. Flyweight champion Valentina Shevchenko finishes her globe-hopping training camp outside of Houston. Challenger Katlyn Chookagian pursues greatness alongside former champ Frankie Edgar at her home gym in New Jersey. Champ Jon Jones starts his practice with a prayer. UFC 247 Embedded is an all-access, behind-the-scenes video blog leading up to the two title fights taking place Saturday, February 8th on Pay-Per-View. Order the Pay-Per-View at ESPNPlus.com/PPV
Jon Jones recaptured the light heavyweight championship with this victory over Alexander Gustafsson at UFC 232 in December of 2018. Jones next faces undefeated Dominick Reyes in the main event of UFC 247 on Saturday, February 8 in Houston.
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