Amanda Nunes heads up UFC 224. UFC.com
UFC 224 kicks off a run of 5 straight fight weekends for the UFC, and on paper it is a good, not great event. It lost the interim welterweight title matchup between Rafael Dos Anjos and Colby Covington to UFC 225 next month. That said, there are still some noteworthy fights on the card in Rio.
The main event matches up Amanda Nunes and Raquel Pennington for Nunes’ 135 lb. title. After bludgeoning Ronda Rousey and Meisha Tate, Nunes took a tight decision over Valentina Schevchenko in her last matchup. Still, the UFC is having a hard time putting someone in front of her that presents a legitimate challenge, and she is again a massive betting favorite in this one at -1100. Nunes is a wrecking ball. She is incredibly aggressive, and probably hits harder than anyone not named Cris Cyborg in women’s MMA. Add that to her black belt in jiu-jitsu and a brown belt in judo, and she is a real problem for any woman to deal with. Pennington is tough and a solid grappler in transition situations, but at the end of the day, there are really very few scenarios where I can picture her taking out the champion, particularly in front of a partisan Brazilian crowd.
The co-main would main event a lot of cards, and is probably the most anticipated fight on this card. Ronaldo “Jacare” Souza takes on Kelvin Gastelum in what is unofficially a No. 1 contender’s bout for the middleweight title. Jacare is a force with his grappling, and is arguably the best pure jiu jitsu fighter in MMA history. He is a pressure grappler and adds to it by mixing in submission attempts with nasty ground and pound. His striking has also improved drastically since he got his start in MMA. Gastelum is a force. He couldn’t consistently make weight at 170 lbs., but has established himself at 185 with wins over Tim Kennedy and Michael Bisping. He also KO’ed Vitor Belfort, but the decision was turned to a no-contest when Gastelum tested hot for marijuana. He has a solid chin and is willing to engage. He is also faster and more athletic than the average middleweight, and Jacare has struggled with similar fighters (see Robert Whittaker). However, Whittaker moved well and changed angles, something that Gastelum doesn’t typically do. This should be an excellent fight.
Mackenzie Dern takes on Amanda Cooper, as Dern hopes to return some of the shine to her prospect star. She didn’t look great last time out, but escaped with a split decision victory. Her grappling is on a level that most women aren’t accustomed to dealing with, though she has shown some struggles to get the fight to the ground. Her standup is sloppy, but again, if the fight hits the mat, she is unstoppable. Cooper is a really solid striker, and has added some solid ground and pound to her repertoire. A win for Dern puts her in the conversation for a shot at the strawweight title.
Lyoto Machida takes on Vitor Belfort in a battle of 40-something year old former champions. Belfort is no longer the machine he was in his 20’s, when he had a chin willing to take a shot while he dished out two. He has struggled under duress in recent years. The good news for him is Machida has never been a pressure fighter, and is unlikely to change up his style to take on Belfort. Vitor has already announced that this is his last fight, and if he is able to get a win over Machida, it could be Lyoto’s as well.
The prelims include several familiar faces, including former TUF winner Cezar “Mutante” Ferreira, Thales Leites, and a heavyweight battle between Junior Albini and Alexey Oleynik.
PREDICTIONS:
Nunes by submission
Souza by submission
Dern by submission
Lineker by decision
Belfort by decision
Ferreira by decision
Oleynik by submission
Ramos by knockout
Strickland by decision
Alves by knockout
Hermansson by decision
Emeev by decision
Perez by submission
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How latest Astros comments point to mixed signals, communication breakdown
Feb 17, 2025, 4:38 pm
Alex Bregman couldn’t hold back the smile when he was asked who might have had the biggest impact on his decision to sign with the Boston Red Sox.
“My favorite player Dustin Pedroia,” Bregman said of the club's former second baseman and two-time World Series champion.
“He reached out a few times this offseason and talked about how special it was to be a part of the Boston Red Sox,” Bregman said Sunday. “It was really cool to be able to talk to him as well as so many other former players here in Boston and current players on the team as well.”
A day after Bregman's $120 million, three-year contract was announced, he sat at a 25-minute news conference between his agent, Scott Boras, and Boston Chief Baseball Officer Craig Breslow. Manager Alex Cora, who gave Bregman a hug after he handed the infielder his No. 2 jersey, also was at the table along with team president Sam Kennedy.
Breslow and Cora wouldn't say whether Bregman would move to play second base, Pedroia's position, or remain at third — a position manned by Rafael Devers since July 2017.
A few players, Jarren Duran and Rob Refsnyder among them, and coaches stood behind the seated reporters to listen.
Bregman gets a $5 million signing bonus, a $35 million salary this season and $40 million in each of the following two years, with some of the money deferred, and he can opt out after the 2025 and 2026 seasons to become a free agent again.
Asked why he agreed to the shorter contract with opt outs, he leaned forward to the microphone in front of him and replied: “I just think I believe in my abilities.”
Originally selected by Boston in the 29th round of the 2012 amateur draft, Bregman attended LSU before the Houston Astros picked him second overall in 2015. His family history with the Red Sox goes back further.
“My dad grew up sitting on Ted Williams’ lap,” he said.
MLB.com said Stan Bregman, the player's grandfather, was a lawyer who represented the Washington Senators and negotiated Williams' deal to become manager.
Boston has missed the playoffs in five of the last six seasons and had avoided signing the highest-profile free agents. Boras said a conversation with Red Sox controlling owner John Henry showed ownership’s desire to get back to winning.
“I think it was after Soto signed,’’ Boras said, citing the record contract he negotiated for Juan Soto with the Mets. “We had a discussion. I could tell knowing John back with the Marlins and such, he had a real onus about ‘we need to do things differently than what we’ve done before.’
“This is a point and time where I believe Red Sox ownership was hungry for championship play and exhausted with what had happened the last five, six years.”
Called the “perfect fit” by Breslow, the 30-year-old Bregman joined the Red Sox after winning two World Series titles and reaching the playoffs in eight consecutive seasons with Houston.
“I’ve been fortunate enough to be in the playoffs the first eight years of my career, and I plan on continuing to do that here,” he said in his opening remarks. “I’m a winning player and this is a winning organization.”
Coming off an 81-81 season, the Red Sox acquired left-hander Garrett Crochet from the White Sox and signed fellow pitchers Walker Buehler, Patrick Sandoval, Aroldis Chapman and Justin Wilson during the offseason.
After the pitching moves, they found a right-handed bat, too.
“As the offseason progressed it just became clearer and clearer that Alex was the perfect fit for what we were trying to accomplish,” Breslow said.
Bregman ranks first among players with at least 75 career plate appearances in Fenway Park with an OPS of 1.240.
“He fits like a glove for our organization,” Kennedy said.