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The Roundup: biggest MMA & UFC stories, Sep 18

UFC 331 lands in LA with a title rematch and a nasty press conference blowup, while Steveson-Jones talk, an Allen injury, and a glove controversy shake up the rest of the promotion.

UFC 331 Lands in LA With Van Defending Against Pantoja Again

All twenty four fighters on the card made weight at Friday's official weigh-ins in Los Angeles [4]. The card carries a 79.9% finish rate and features a five round co-main event on top of the title fight [10]. Van's blueprint against Pantoja mirrors what worked for him against Taira, where he consistently refused to let his back get taken, and he cannot afford to give that up this time either [6]. We're hearing that UFC 331 is set to go down this Saturday. A finish rate that high makes this one of the harder cards to skip all year.

Sean Sharaf Turns the Press Conference Into a Firestorm

At the UFC 331 pre-fight press conference, Sean Sharaf called Gable Steveson a "rapist" and invoked the "loophole" nickname while going after him [13]. Sharaf didn't hold back, unloading on Steveson over past sexual assault allegations the moment he got the microphone [15]. The face-offs that followed only got more heated from there [16]. Steveson enters the fight 4-0 with four first-round knockouts, while Sharaf has never won a single fight by decision [9].

Steveson and Jon Jones Already Plotting a Coach vs Student Fight

Gable Steveson revealed he has an agreement with Jon Jones about a potential student versus coach fight down the line [3]. Jones, the former two-weight UFC champion, appears interested in making a comeback and re-entering the heavyweight title picture [3]. Steveson says he isn't concerned about Jones jumping back into that heavyweight picture [3]. A Steveson-Jones fight sounds like pure chaos on paper, and honestly that's exactly why people would watch it.

Arnold Allen Injury Costs UFC 333 a Ranked Featherweight Clash

No. 6 ranked Arnold Allen is reportedly out of a planned fight against No. 13 ranked Aaron Pico [1]. That featherweight contender's bout was reportedly set for the UFC 333 card in Abu Dhabi on October twenty fourth [1]. Allen simply isn't in good enough condition to compete on that date [1]. That matchup had real featherweight contender implications, and now Abu Dhabi loses one of its best scheduled fights on the card [1].

Regulator Shoots Down Topuria's Gaethje Glove Claim

Andy Foster, one of the top regulators at the UFC's White House event on June fourteenth, said Justin Gaethje's gloves and wraps were totally within regulations [14]. His comment directly rejects Ilia Topuria's claim about Gaethje's gloves from that event [14]. When the person actually running the regulatory side says everything checked out, that should be the end of that particular conspiracy.

Undercard Firepower: Jourdain-Vera and Menifield-Baraniewski

Charles Jourdain is 3-0 since dropping down to bantamweight, and he meets No. 10 ranked Marlon Vera on the UFC 331 card [12]. Vera has lost four fights in a row heading into this one, which makes Jourdain's momentum feel even more dangerous [12]. Alonzo Menifield's main card matchup against Iwo Baraniewski at UFC 331 has the look of a straight up slugfest [17]. Neither of these fights is the headline, but both have the kind of finishing potential that turns a good card into a great one.

Sources

Open Scoring MMA is a daily AI-produced MMA and UFC news podcast. Listen on Spotify, read the Feed, or get every episode by email.