Al Iaquinta News
Al Iaquinta reveals ideal next opponent and timeframe for return
Natasha Hooper - April 22, 2020
Top-ranked lightweight, Al Iaquinta has given a timeframe and ideal opponent for his next UFC appearance. Despite being in lockdown over the coronavirus pandemic, the New-York native is keeping busy. He is ready to get back to business and is even willing to fight on Dana White’s proposed Fight Island.
Al Iaquinta praises Jorge Masvidal as "One of the toughest fights I've had"
Natasha Hooper - April 13, 2020
Top-ranked lightweight contender, Al Iaquinta has praised the “BMF” winner Jorge Masvidal as “one of the toughest fights” he’s ever had. Before “Raging Al” made a name for himself against the likes of Khabib Nurmagomedov and Kevin Lee, the New York native was delivering show-stopper performances against the likes of Diego Sanchez and Jorge Masvidal.
Al Iaquinta predicts Khabib Nurmagomedov vs. Tony Ferguson outcome
Natasha Hooper - April 13, 2020
Al Iaquinta believes Khabib Nurmagomedov will probably beat Tony Ferguson — if they ever end up fighting. In the main event of UFC 249, the undisputed lightweight champ Nurmagomedov was set to defend his title for the third time against Ferguson. Unfortunately, the event was ultimately canceled, marking the fifth time a bout between the pair had fallen through.
Al Iaquinta disappointed in his 'son' Kevin Lee for missing weight at UFC Brasilia
Cole Shelton - March 13, 2020
Al Iaquinta isn’t happy that his longtime rival and someone he’s now calling his “son”, Kevin Lee missed weight at UFC Brasilia. On Saturday night, in the main event of UFC Brasilia, Lee was set to battle Charles Oliveira in a very intriguing lightweight contest. Yet, at weigh-ins on Friday, “The Motown Phenom” missed weight by 2.5 pounds and to no surprise, Iaquinta was quick to give his thoughts on it.
Al Iaquinta wants Islam Makhachev in Russia
Adam Martin - February 20, 2020
UFC lightweight contender Al Iaquinta says he is interested in fighting up-and-coming standout Islam Makhachev in Moscow, Russia. Iaquinta has been calling out Dustin Poirier for a fight but so far the UFC hasn’t booked it yet. Makhachev, meanwhile, was trying to get a fight against Kevin Lee and then Gregor Gillespie but neither of those fights came to fruition. He’s now turned his attention to Iaquinta, and it looks like the New York native is interested in the fight.
Al Iaquinta accuses Dustin Poirier of quitting against Nurmagomedov in heated social media skirmish
Adam Martin - February 18, 2020
UFC lightweight Al Iaquinta accused Dustin Poirier of quitting against Khabib Nurmagomedov at UFC 242 in a heated social media exchange. Iaquinta and Poirier are both currently without opponents and considering both men are ranked in the top-10 at 155lbs, it’s quite possible they will fight each other next.
Al Iaquinta calls for fight with Dustin Poirier: 'I'm gonna f**k him up'
Mike Heck - February 17, 2020
Al Iaquinta is looking to get back to his winning ways and believes fellow former lightweight title challenger Dustin Poirier is the guy that should be standing across the Octagon from him. Following his title fight with Khabib Nurmagomedov — which he took on a little over a day’s notice after the craziness of the UFC 223 fight week — “Raging” Al defeated Kevin Lee via unanimous decision. Since then, Iaquinta has dropped back-to-back fights to Donald Cerrone and Dan Hooker.
Al Iaquinta teases matchup against Dustin Poirier
Adam D Martin - February 5, 2020
UFC lightweight Al Iaquinta took to social media to tease a potential matchup against fellow top contender Dustin Poirier. A fan on Twitter asked Poirier when he would be returning to the Octagon. Poirier told the fan that he’s waiting to hear something, but considering he has been calling out Nate Diaz seemingly every week on social media, Poirier’s next fight is likely going to be announced soon. And his opponent could very well be Iaquinta
UFC 243 medical suspensions: Al Iaquinta facing long absence
Tom Taylor - October 8, 2019
Over the weekend, the UFC returned to our screens with the action-packed UFC 243 card in Melbourne, Australia. The card was topped by a middleweight title fight between undisputed champion Robert Whittaker and interim champion Israel Adesanya. In the end, Adesanya became the UFC’s one true middleweight king with a second-round stoppage of Whittaker.
Pros react to UFC 243 co-main event between Al Iaquinta and Dan Hooker
Natasha Hooper - October 5, 2019
Tonight at UFC 243 at the Marvel Stadium in Australia, Al Iaquinta faced Dan Hooker in the co-main event. Al ‘Raging’ Iaquinta entered the Octagon against Dan Hooker and looked to recover from his last fight: a unanimous decision loss to Donald Cerrone. The perennial division contenders faced off in the main event of UFC Ottowa. Iaquinta absorbed some early shots and couldn’t adapt his fighting enough to sway the decision victory. Nevertheless, his performance against Cerrone demonstrated his reliance which also made him a tough adversary for Khabib Nurmagomedov at UFC 223. ‘Raging’ Al proved his stock in the lightweight division during his successful wins against Kevin Lee (twice), Ryan Couture and Diego Sanchez.
UFC 243 Results: Dan Hooker defeats Al Iaquinta (Highlights)
Chris Taylor - October 5, 2019
A key lightweight bout featuring former title challenger Al Iaquinta taking on Dan Hooker co-headlines tonight’s UFC 243 event in Melbourne, Australia. Al Iaquinta (14-5-1 MMA) was last seen in action at May’s UFC event in Ottawa, where he suffered a unanimous decision setback to Donald Cerrone. Prior to his loss to ‘Cowboy’, ‘Raging Al’ was coming off a decision victory over perennial division contender Kevin Lee.
Al Iaquinta calls 'BMF' title disrespectful to real UFC champions
Natasha Hooper - October 5, 2019
New York native Al Iaquinta isn’t opposed to his former opponent, Jorge Masvidal facing Nate Diaz on his home turf at Madison Square Gardens. However, he doesn’t approve of the ‘BMF’ title attributed to their UFC 244 bout on the 2nd November. “I don’t know, I think the toughest motherf*cker is the champ, the real champ,” said Al Iaquinta who feels the ‘Baddest Motherf*cker’ title undermines the real belt.
UFC 243 | Al Iaquinta believes Dan Hooker fight could be 'a 15-minute beatdown'
Cole Shelton - October 2, 2019
Al Iaquinta is looking to return to the win column at UFC 243 when he takes on Dan Hooker. The Long Island-native will be heading to Australia to take on the Kiwi in Hooker. It will no doubt be a very entertaining fight, yet Iaquinta believes he will get his hand raised and dominate the fight for the full 15 minutes. That, or score an early finish.
Al Iaquinta says Cowboy loss provided 'wake-up call'
Tom Taylor - September 16, 2019
Back in May, in the main event of UFC Ottawa, New York’s Al Iaquinta stepped into the cage with the dangerous Donald “Cowboy” Cerrone. Iaquinta’s objective was to gun down Cowboy and take a big step toward a shot at lightweight gold. Unfortunately for Al Iaquinta and his team, this fight didn’t go as planned, as he was defeated by unanimous decision.
Al Iaquinta critiques Poirier's performance, talks Nurmagomedov's next move
Tom Taylor - September 12, 2019
As one of the top contenders in the UFC lightweight division, New York’s Al Iaquinta was watching last weekend’s Khabib Nurmagomedov vs. Dustin Poirier fight very closely. In fact, Iaquinta had some pretty unique insight into this Nurmagomedov vs. Poirier matchup, having battled the former to a decision loss in a short-notice fight in early 2018. In the end, Nurmagomedov defeated Poirier by submission. With the dust settled, Iaquinta shared his thoughts on the fight on the latest episode of BJPENN.com Radio.
BJPENN.COM Radio Ep. 122 // Colby Covington | Al Iaquinta
Jason Kindschy - September 11, 2019
Colby Covington returns to address the title situation regarding Kamaru Usman, and respond to Jorge Masvidal’s verbal assault from earlier this week. Covington was expected to face Usman at UFC 244 in November at Madison Square Garden following his dominate performance against Robbie Lawler. However, after being offered the fight with an unappealing payday attached, Colby refuted the UFC’s offer and attempted to enter negotiations. Unwilling to do so, the UFC instead booked Masvidal vs Diaz for the main event at UFC 244. Leaving Covington without his title fight, and prompting him to take jabs at his former friend on social media. As this situation continues to escalate at a furious pace, we’ll hear Covington’s response to Masvidal’s recent tirade and a whole lot more.
Al Iaquinta says 'sissy' Conor McGregor has lost stock with UFC
Tom Taylor - July 31, 2019
Conor McGregor is by far the biggest far in UFC history, and his star power has historically given him some real influence within the organization. According to UFC lightweight contender Al Iaquinta, however, McGregor’s stock has taken a major hit since his submission loss to UFC lightweight champ Khabib Nurmagomedov — even if he doesn’t realize it himself.
Al Iaquinta believes a fight with Conor McGregor makes the most sense
Cole Shelton - July 27, 2019
Al Iaquinta is one of many fighters calling for a fight with Conor McGregor. The two have traded shots at each other in the lead up to UFC 229 where the Irishman was making fun of Khabib Nurmagomedov for going the distance with a Real Estate Agent. Obviously, Iaquinta did not take those words too kind and following the bout took shots at McGregor for getting submitted by the Russian.