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Former two-division UFC champion Daniel Cormier recently shared his thoughts on the Real Madrid vs. Bayern Munich UEFA Champions League game and slammed the referee for making some controversial decisions. Elsewhere, reigning heavyweight king Jon Jones doubled down on his intentions to face Stipe Miocic.
Catch up on all the latest news and updates from the mixed martial arts world with Sportskeeda MMA's Midnight Roundup.
Daniel Cormier sounds off on the referee officiating the Real Madrid vs. Bayern Munich match
UFC icon Daniel Cormier wasn't happy about some of the referees' decisions and calls during the Real Madrid vs. Bayern Munich semi-final game. After a hard-fought battle, Madrid won the match 2-1 and will now face Borussia Dortmund in the Champions League finals on June 2 at the Wembley Stadium.
During the game, one of the linesman flagged a Bayern Munich goal as offside. The goal would've leveled the score and given the German football giants another chance to win. However, the referee decided to blow the whistle before the VAR decision came in, and the 'Los Blancos' won the game.
In the aftermath, Cormier took to X to vent his frustration. Leaning into a popular conspiracy theory that Real Madrid is favored by officials in European games, he wrote:
"That was a bullsh*t offsides call! They wanted Real Madrid to win. That was nonsense @TeamKhabib no.1 bullsh*t."
UFC heavyweight champion Jon Jones reiterates intention to fight Stipe Miocic next
Jon Jones is blocking out all the noise and has his mind focused on exactly what he wants. After beating Ciryl Gane, Jones was booked for an epic legacy fight against Stipe Miocic. However, he suffered a nasty pectoral tear and was forced to undergo surgery. This sidelined him for over six months.
During this time, Tom Aspinall won the interim heavyweight title against Sergei Pavlovich at UFC 295 last November and has been calling for a title unification bout against Jones. However, 'Bones' doesn't seem too interested despite many fans calling for him to accept the fight.
In a recent X post, Jones reiterated his intention to fight Miocic next and wrote a heartfelt note expressing his desire. He wrote:
"I'm in the middle of a pretty clear decision... stick to exact and original plans and fight the man with all the accolades. Or, completely disregard all of the Stipe training I've put in and fight another potential hype train that may not even be around in three years. I am not changing my plans for anyone... Whatever comes next comes next."
Jiri Prochazka willing to fight Alex Pereira in a rematch at UFC 303 in June
Jiri Prochazka can't wait to redeem his loss against Alex Pereira and would be willing to return to the cage by June. The former 205-pound champion recently expressed his desire to fight again and challenge for the title as soon as possible. They first fought at UFC 295 last November, where Pereira beat Prochazka via second-round knockout to win the vacant light heavyweight belt.
Both men fought on the milestone UFC 300 card, with Pereira defeating Jamahal Hill and Prochazka beating Aleksandar Rakic. In the aftermath, 'Denisa' called for another shot at the title against Pereira.
During a recent interview with Bodog Canada, he reiterated his callout and said:
"I didn't hear anything. I just said what I said in the cage after the fight that I want to be the next challenger for the title and that's something that was my opinion... I think about after August - July or August - or something like that. October, maybe. It doesn't matter. For me, it doesn't matter. If they want for me to fight in some short [notice], I will do that. I will go for that... If [UFC 303] will be accepted by Alex, I will do that. I will go with that."
UFC featherweight Sodiq Yusuff lauds Jake Paul's boxing resume after watching Devin Haney's pro debut
UFC featherweight contender Sodiq Yusuff recently heaped praise on Jake Paul's boxing resume. The MMA fighter reacted to a social media post showing Devin Haney's professional boxing debut and compared his maiden fight to Paul's debut.
@MMABoxingFanatic on X recently posted a clip of Haney's professional boxing debut and pointed out that 'The Dream' fought his first pro fight in a Mexican bar. He captioned the post:
"Devin Haney fought a 5 foot Mexican Truck driver inside a bar for his pro debut."
Yusuff reacted to the post and shared the clip via his own X handle. Praising Paul's resume compared to other professional boxers, he wrote in the caption:
"This is what I was trying to tell yall when everyone was sh**ting on Jake Paul. His resume compared to most boxers with the amount of fights he had is actually a lot more competitive."
Islam Makhachev claims Khabib Nurmagomedov getting caught in Dustin Poirier's guillotine choke was tactical
UFC lightweight champion Islam Makhachev recently claimed that Khabib Nurmagomedov got himself into one of Dustin Poirier's guillotine chokes for tactical reasons during their fight at UFC 242 in 2019.
While 'The Eagle' dominated most of the fight, Poirier managed to catch his opponent in a guillotine choke in the third round. However, Nurmagomedov survived the choke and submitted 'The Diamond' in the same round. Later, Nurmagoemdov admitted that he narrowly escaped the submission attempt.
In a recent episode of the Good Guy/ Bad Guy podcast, Makhachev revealed that Nurmagomedov planned on getting himself into a guillotine choke to empty Poirier's gas tank. He said:
"Before the fight, I swear to God, Khabib told me, 'Catch me in guillotine. I have to feel. I will give him my neck and make him tired."
