Month: Januar 2025

The UFC 312 card has undergone a change a month before fight night.

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Jimmy Crute (12-4) was originally scheduled to face Marcin Prachnio (17-8) at UFC 312 on Feb. 8 at the Qudos Bank Arena in Sydney, Australia. However, Prachnio is now out of the bout due to unknown reasons. Rodolfo Bellato (12-2) will instead take on Crute in front of the latter’s home fans. The change was first reported by Laerte Viana.

Crute is 0-3-1 in the Octagon since 2020 and is coming off a submission loss against Alonzo Menifield in his most recent outing at UFC 290 in July 2023.

Meanwhile, Bellato graduated from Dana White's Contender Series with a technical knockout over Murtaza Talha Ali and followed it up with another stoppage win against Ihor Potieria in his UFC debut in December 2023.

Prachnio is 4-6 in the UFC and fresh off a submission loss against Modestas Bukauskas at UFC 304 in July 2024.

A strawweight matchup pitting Angela Hill against Ketlen Souza has been added to the UFC Vegas 102 bill.

Souza confirmed the bout on social media following an initial report from MMAjunkie.com. UFC Vegas 102 ? also known as UFC Fight Night 251 -- takes place on Feb. 15 at the UFC Apex in Las Vegas and is headlined by a middleweight duel between Jared Cannonier and Gregory Rodrigues.

Hill will be making her 27th walk to the Octagon when she faces Souza. The former Invicta FC title holder had a two-bout winning streak snapped in her most recent outing, when she fell to Tabatha Ricci via unanimous decision at UFC on ESPN 62.

After dropping her promotional debut to Karine Silva, Souza has rebounded to post back-to-back triumphs against Marnic Mann and Yazmin Jauregui in UFC competition. The 30-year-old Brazilian has been victorious in seven of her last eight professional appearances overall.

A recent video posted by Alex Pereira created quite the uproar among UFC fans.

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In the clip, “Poatan” was seen leaving the UFC offices with manager Ed Soares — presumably with a fight agreement in tow. If Pereira wanted to return to fight in March as rumored, it seemed to rule out a title defense against top light heavyweight contender Magomed Ankalaev, who would not be available due to Ramadan. One website speculated that Khamzat Chimaev would be the opponent, but that possibility was not confirmed by either side or any MMA journalist.

It won’t be Ankalaev ! 😭

— Alex "Poatan" Pereira (@AlexPereiraUFC) December 19, 2024

In the first week of 2025, Brazilian journalist Laerte Viana revealed on his YouTube channel that he received information from people close to “Poatan” that his next opponent would be heavyweight contender Alexander Volkov. That rumor was analyzed by UFC Fight Pass Brazil commentator Carlos Barreto on hi…

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Bo Nickal recently made some bold claims about a potential clash with Khamzat Chimaev.

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Nickal has been touted as a potential foil to Chimaev’s wrestling since he joined the Ultimate Fighting Championship in 2023. The former three-time NCAA Division I national champion delivered on those expectations until recently. While Nickal has finished six of his seven pro outings, the Penn State alum eked out a unanimous decision win over Paul Craig in his most recent fight at UFC 309 this past November. In that bout, Nickal was hesitant to engage on the ground against “Bearjew,” who is known for his tricky jiu-jitsu.

Nickal’s latest performance has led to doubts that the 28-year-old will be a match for Chimaev, who is on the brink of receiving a title shot. However, Nickal is confident that he can beat the Chechen-born Swede. According to Nickal, he will be able to win the majority of potential grappling exchanges with Chimaev. Nickal beli…

Movsar Evloev is coming for Ilia Topuria.

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The UFC featherweight title picture is in a bit of a fix right now. Topuria won the title by knocking out Alexander Volkanovski at UFC 298 last year and defended it by handing Max Holloway his only career knockout loss at UFC 308. With Holloway considering a permanent move to lightweight, Diego Lopes and Movsar Evloev are in the running for title contention next.

However, Topuria has expressed an interest in moving up to lightweight soon, citing a lack of contenders at 145 pounds. Evloev is not bothered by Topuria’s comments, as he is currently focused on becoming world champion — regardless of the opponent he has to face. However, the Russian wants “El Matador” at some point and is willing to chase him across weight classes. But most importantly, Evloev believes Topuria isn’t going to move up before defending his featherweight throne at least once more.

“Ilia start talking that he’s moving up also, …

Quinton Jackson and Rashad Evans will settle their old rivalry inside the squared circle.

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Jackson and Evans are expected to meet in a boxing bout in Albuquerque, New Mexico, sometime in 2025. The exact date for the fight is yet to be announced. The promotion Influencer Crossover Series made it official on social media for their first event, which is entitled ICS Mania I. Jackson and Evans also both announced the fight via social media.

“Rampage” and Evans starred as rival coaches on “The Ultimate Fighter 10 “in 2009. The two met in a non-title main event clash at UFC 114 the following year, where “Suga” emerged victorious via a unanimous decision.

Over the course of career that spanned two decades, Jackson has competed in a number of major promotions, including the UFC — where he captured light heavyweight gold — Bellator MMA and Pride Fighting Championships. “Rampage” hasn’t fought since a knockout loss to Fedor Emelianenko at Bellator 2…

Ultimate Fighting Championship CEO Dana White is joining forces with Mark Zuckerberg.

It was announced on Monday that White — along with Exor CEO John Elkann and technology investor Charlie Songhurst — have been elected to Meta’s board of directors. One of the largest information technology companies in the U.S., Meta owns Facebook, Instagram, WhatsApp and Threads, among other things.

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“Dana, John, and Charlie will add a depth of expertise and perspective that will help us tackle the massive opportunities ahead with AI, wearables and the future of human connection,” said Zuckerberg, who is the founder and CEO of Meta.

White has long been the frontman of the UFC, both when it was previously owned by Zuffa and now under the TKO Group Holdings umbrella. He expressed enthusiasm about his new venture in a release.

“I’ve never been interested in joining a board of directors until I got the offer to join Meta’s board. I am a huge believer that social…

The top of the card appears to be in place for UFC Seattle.

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A bantamweight clash between Henry Cejudo and Yadong Song has been targeted to headline the card. Verbal agreements are reportedly in place, and the bout is expected to be finalized in the coming days. Multiple outlets confirmed that the fight is in the works following an initial report from Kevin K on X.

Meanwhile, Dominick Cruz will lock horns with Rob Font in the evening’s co-main event at 135 pounds. UFC broadcast partner ESPN was first to report the pairing.

UFC Seattle — also known as UFC Fight Night 252 — takes place on Feb. 22 at the Climate Pledge Arena in Seattle, Washington, and also includes a middleweight title between Brendan Allen and Anthony Hernandez as well as a heavyweight scrap between Curtis Blaydes and Rizvan Kuniev. According to ESPN, the promotion is working on getting Spokane, Washington, native Michael Chiesa on the card.

A former title holder at both …

🚨 UPDATE: Vadim Nemkov now faces Tim Johnson at the Coca-Cola Arena in Dubai on Saturday 25th January.

BE THERE! 🎟️ https://t.co/HZ3ZYOEyw7#RoadtoDubai | Sat Jan 25 | Coca-Cola Arena | Dubai, UAE pic.twitter.com/YsjhJSyKpo

— Bellator MMA (@BellatorMMA) January 6, 2025

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Vadim Nemkov will remain on the Road to Dubai card after all — he just won’t be fighting against Corey Anderson.

Instead, Nemkov will square off against Tim Johnson in a heavyweight bout on Jan. 25 at the Coca-Cola Arena in Dubai, United Arab Emirates. The new booking was announced via the Bellator MMA social media account on Monday. Road to Dubai is headlined by a lightweight championship tilt pitting Usman Nurmagomedov against Paul Hughes.

Nemkov was originally slated to face Ante Delija at Road to Dubai, but that quickly changed to a trilogy bout between the former Bellator light heavyweight king and Anderson when Delija withdrew from the fight. …

New Year … New AdjustmentsYOU asked for ELBOWS@PFLMMA is giving you elbows!

All elbows. All fights. All the time. #PFLMMA 2025 … COMING

— Donn Davis (@DonnDavisPFL) January 6, 2025

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It appears that Professional Fighters League will have a significant revision to its rule set for 2025.

In a post on social media, PFL CEO and founder Donn Davis announced that the promotion will allow elbows for all bouts going forward. In previous years, elbows were banned during the PFL season, presumably to avoid cuts and injuries that might prevent competitors from advancing through the format.

“New year….new adjustments,” Davis wrote on Monday. “You asked for elbows, PFL is giving you elbows. All elbows. All fights. All the time.”

It’s currently unclear if Davis’ announcement could coincide with an end to the PFL season format. The organization has yet to announce any PFL events for 2025. Thus far, the only PFL-affiliated …

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Colby Covington is intrigued by the options that might accompany a move up in weight.

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The former interim welterweight champion fought for the first time in a year at UFC Tampa, where he lost to Joaquin Buckley via third-round doctor stoppage in the evening’s main event on Dec. 14. In a recent interview with Submission Radio, Covington discussed his options going forward, which included moving up or down in weight.

“I don’t see myself ever going to 155, even though I know I could make it and I’d probably be way stronger than the guys on fight night. I’d feel like a bully, and I’m not a bully. I got into MMA because I didn’t like guys bullying me,” Covington said.

“But [185]? Honestly, [185] is intriguing. I think it would be kind of cool to go up there with a narrative of, ‘Oh, this guy is a small ’70, he’s going to go up to ’85 and take on an even bigger challenge.’ There is a possibility. I’m always looking for the biggest an…

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Arman Tsarukyan (22-3) has a special trick up his sleeve for Islam Makhachev (26-1).

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Tsarukyan challenges Makhachev for the lightweight title in the main event at UFC 311 on Jan. 18 at the Intuit Dome in Los Angeles. While Tsarukyan has long been the rightful No. 1 contender, he was very particular about having a full camp for his rematch against Makhachev.

Tsarukyan believes he is now totally ready. While “Ahalkalakets” spent a long time working on his physique, he is now focused on preparing specifically for Makhachev as fight night nears. And Tsarukyan claims to have devised a trick that he is certain will work and change the entire course of the fight.

“Back in September I worked on my cardio, my breathing, my strength [and] endurance,” Tsarukyan recently told Red Corner MMA. “But now it’s all about preparing for my opponent – Islam… Of course, I have one trick prepared that I believe in. I know it will work. And it will c…