Midnight Roundup! Ex-UFC champ's sister turns heads, "Mortal Kombat"-style eye poke, Jon Jones' lone loss haunts back, and more
Sportskeeda's Midnight Roundup is back with the best of MMA as we approach the second UFC Fight Night event of the year.
From a nasty eye poke that ruled a fight 'No Contest' to a Jorge Masvidal-esque knockout, the world of combat sports has seen some exciting things go down this weekend. Here are the top picks.
Jiri Prochazka's picture with his sister goes viral
Jiri Prochazka is not very vocal about his personal life on social media, which is why fans were understandably surprised when he posted a picture with his sister at a recent social event.
The two were dressed to the nines for the Ples jako Brno event in Brno, Czech Republic.
Fans made lighthearted comments about Prochazka and his sister as they looked dapper in the black tie attire. One asked, "Either of you single?" while another said, "Jiri, I want to be your brother-in-law." A third jokingly asked for his sister's number.
The Instagram carousel also comprised images of him training outdoors, which is a common occurrence on his socials.
A nasty eye poke stops one LFA fight
A bantamweight fight between Apollo Gomes and Vinicius Pires at LFA 175 ended in a No Contest after a gruesome eye poke. Although declared unintentional, Pires' eye poke rendered Gomes unable to compete any further, which led to the decision.
However, some fans on social media suspected that the poke was intentional from Pires'. One called it a "Mortal Kombat fatality," while another compared it with the fouls committed by Jon Jones during his light heavyweight days.
Read the comments here.
Jon Jones' sole UFC loss is back to haunt him
Jon Jones' only defeat in the UFC came against Matt 'The Hammer' Hamill in the UFC - The Ultimate Fighter 10 Finale when he landed illegal 12-6 elbows on his opponent and got disqualified.
The controversial result has been a blemish on 'Bones's' otherwise perfect record, even though he was not outsmarted inside the cage. Hamill, being the only man who can claim to have a 'W' over Jones, recently commented on Facebook about a rematch.
Under a post of a quote by Jones shared by an MMA media outlet, Hamill wrote:
"Well, he lost to me. Let's have a rematch."
There were speculations regarding whether the comment was made by Hamill's account or a fan page, but other commenters seemed to confirm that it was the fighter himself.
Read more fan comments here.
"Japanese Jorge Masvidal" reigns
Japanese MMA fighter Takaya Suzuki took his winning streak to five with a four-second knockout over Yuichi Miyagi at Professional Shooto 2024 Vol. 1.
Fans were quick to compare the KO with Jorge Masvidal's iconic five-second win against Ben Askren in 2019 at UFC 239.
However, some fans were offended by the nature of the finish as well, as it seemed like Suzuki took advantage of his opponent trying to touch gloves before the fight. Many called it a "cheap shot".
Luke Rockhold on Sean Strickland - "He'll try to kill you"
On the JAXXON Podcast, Luke Rockhold revisited a sparring session with Sean Strickland at RVCA gym.
"He's that guy that just doesn't care. He'll try to kill you... He's tricky."
Listen to Rockhold's comments below:
Valentina Shevchenko turns heads in swimsuit snap
When not fighting, Valentina Shevchenko loves to travel if her social media is anything to go by.
She's currently on a trip to Thailand. To keep her fans updated, she posted a picture in a green swimsuit, standing amid a grove of coconut trees.
Fans were enamored of the picture. Read the reactions here.
Read More:
Tom Aspinall moves on from the Jon Jones fight
Neil Magny claims UFC wanted him to lose at UFC 297
Midnight Splurge!
Watch Jake Paul show off his new $700,000 Ferrari SF90 Spider!