Month: Februar 2026

Kyoji Horiguchi was in prime form against Amir Albazi. | Getty/UFC

More than 10 years ago, Kyoji Horiguchi wasn’t ready to become UFC champion.

The Japanese standout squared off against pound-for-pound great Demetrious Johnson at UFC 186, falling to “Mighty Mouse” via armbar in the fifth round of their April 2015 championship bout. Horiguchi would win three more UFC bouts before parting ways with the Las Vegas-based promotion in 2016. He enjoyed plenty of success in Rizin and Bellator before returning to the UFC late last year. On Saturday, he earned his second consecutive victory in the Octagon, as he cruised past Amir Albazi in the UFC Fight Night 266 co-main event.

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“I’m better at everything,” Horiguchi said of the difference between now and then at Saturday’s post-fight press conference. “Fighting fear, scared, everything, I learn. That’s why I’m strong right now.”

At 35 years old, Horiguchi appears to still be at the peak of his…

Vinicius Oliveira had a rough time in the UFC Vegas 113 main event. | Getty/UFC

Vinicius Oliveira took a step up in competition on Saturday, and things didn’t go as planned for the Brazilian prospect.

Oliveira was outclassed in the UFC Vegas 113 main event, as he fell to Mario Bautista via second-round submission at the UFC Apex in Las Vegas. That snapped a four-bout promotional winning streak for “LokDog,” who had an opportunity to enter the upper echelon of the bantamweight division with a victory over the battle-tested Bautista.

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In the aftermath of his first UFC, defeat Oliveira revealed that he suffered multiple injuries leading up to the fight.

"Well, earthlings, things went wrong again," Oliveira wrote on Instagram. "I've lost count of how many times I've lost in my life, but every time I've gotten up and moved on. I'm sad for my team and for everyone who was cheering for me, but anyway, no sad stories, let's move on to anothe…

Jon Jones believes the best version of himself doesn’t involve competing in MMA. 

Jones (28-1) recently revealed that he might finally be done fighting. Jones believes he is still fit enough to hold his own with some of the best fighters in the world. However, Jones, widely considered the greatest of all time, is only used to competing with top competition. Jones wants to retire with his legacy intact instead of continuing to a point where he takes unnecessary damage and some losses.

‘My Best Self Is On Its Way’   “I think my best self is on its way, and that’s a person without fighting, and I’m excited to forge this guy…I think I could be done,” Jones told Helen Yee. “I know I am young enough to compete with some of the best fighters in the world, I’m healthy enough to compete with some of the best fighters in the world, but I’ve always been used to competing with the best in the world. That’s a really high standard to uphold. Maybe it's just about doing it rig…

Umar Nurmagomedov believes he won’t be matched up against Sean O'Malley. 

Nurmagomedov and O’Malley are currently on the cusp of title contention, with a win likely to seal a title shot for either of them. However, former bantamweight champion Merab Dvalishvili has been guaranteed a chance to reclaim his title against Petr Yan next. 

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Nurmagomedov (20-1) is willing to fight anyone in the meantime, preferably O’Malley (19-3) in Abu Dhabi this summer. However, Nurmagomedov doubts the matchup will come to fruition as neither O’Malley nor the UFC will want it. Nurmagomedov believes that if Yan defends his title, O’Malley will get the next title shot, considering his previous split-decision win over the champion. However, Nurmagomedov believes he will secure the next title shot if Dvalishvili reclaims the title against Yan. While Nurmagomedov has lost once to Dvalishvili, O’Malley has lost two title fights against the Georgian, including a stoppa…

Alfie Davis shared a lighthearted moment with Islam Makhachev after his loss to Usman Nurmagoedov at PFL Road to Dubai.

Davis challenged Nurmagomedov for the Professional Fighters League lightweight title on Saturday at the Coca-Cola Arena in Dubai. Nurmagomedov choked out Davis with a reverse arm-triangle late in the third round to successfully defend his title. 

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Davis revealed that he thought he could just survive the round when he heard his corner say that there were only 30 seconds left. However, the next thing the Englishman knew was that he was regaining consciousness. When Davis came to his senses, he saw Usman’s cousin and coach, Khabib Nurmagomedov, in his face. Davis says that the entire team was very respectful toward him after the fight. Davis also revealed that Makhachev couldn’t resist one of his signature humorous one-liners. Makhachev reminded Davis that he is now 1-1 against their team after “The Axe Man” beat their teammate Ga…

Movsar Evloev believes it’s not a good idea for Ilia Topuria to fight Islam Makhachev at welterweight. 

Lightweight champion Topuria has long been eyeing a clash against welterweight champion Makhachev. Topuria is currently expected to fight interim champion Justin Gaethje in a title unifier. While Evloev was impressed with Gaethje’s interim title win over Paddy Pimblett last month, he believes “The Highlight” is highly susceptible to a knockout against Topuria. However, Evloev believes Topuria stands no chance at welterweight against Makhachev, who is visibly bigger and on a different level.

Another Level “It's a stupid move,” Evloev told Submission Radio. “I think if Ilia does this, he will lose everything. But he has the power to fight at lightweight, and I don’t think it’s going to be a good fight for Gaethje if they fight. Gaethje’s fight [against Pimblett] was so good, but he missed a lot of punches. That’s not a good idea with Ilia. If [Ilia] touches [Justin],…

Javid Basharat underwent a brutal weight cut only to see his opponent, Gianni Vazquez, miss weight. 

Basharat was originally scheduled to fight Said Nurmagomedov at UFC Fight Night 266 at the Apex in Las Vegas on Saturday. However, Nurmagomedov pulled out due to visa issues and was replaced by Vazquez on two days’ notice. While Basharat successfully made weight, Vazquez came in at 141 pounds, missing the non-title bantamweight limit by a whopping five pounds. 

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Basharat dropped Vazquez early and came close to finishing the fight in the first round. However, Vazquez survived the onslaught and turned the tables by dropping Basharat in the second round. Basharat weathered the storm and controlled Vazquez for most of the third round to earn a hard-fought unanimous decision win. The Struggle is Real Basharat subsequently revealed that he had a taxing weight cut as he was sick throughout fight week. After finally making weight, “The Snow Leop…

Alex Pereira was glad to see a former kickboxing opponent’s skills successfully translate inside the Octagon on Saturday. 

Pereira’s former Glory kickboxing foe, Dustin Jacoby, took on Julius Walker in a light heavyweight matchup at UFC Vegas 113 on Saturday. Walker took down his former training partner, Jacoby, multiple times in the first round. However, Jacoby dropped Walker in the second round and followed up with precise ground-and-pound, forcing the referee to step in. 

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The Glory Days Pereira was nostalgic while watching the fight and congratulated Jacoby on his win. “Poatan” also called for his former foe to be placed in the official UFC light heavyweight rankings.

“Incredible work [Dustin Jacoby] put some respect on his name and place him in the rankings!” Pereira wrote on Instagram.. “Nostalgia from the Glory days, would love to see him in the rankings to show the evolution that has occured in a different Sport! Chama.”

Per…

Jon Jones didn’t want the whole world to know that he has arthritis. 

A recent conversation recorded on Meta glasses revealed Jones talking about his arthritis. The former UFC light heavyweight and heavyweight champion was asked about a potential wrestling match against archrival Daniel Cormier. However, Jones dismissed the idea while revealing that he has severe arthritis in his left hip. Jones claimed that he has even qualified for a hip replacement surgery. “Bones” said that he wants to preserve the remainder of his good hip to play with his 3-year old son. 

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Jones has now slammed the guy who leaked the conversation, which was meant to be confidential. Jones also admits that he indeed has severe arthritis. However, Jones knows that it comes with a lifetime of being an athlete and he has no regrets about it.Comes with the Territory “The kid who leaked that was an absolute asshole,” Jones told the Schmo. “I was talking to some guys in confid…

Muin Gafurov claims he did not intentionally submit to Jakub Wiklacz at UFC Fight Night 266. 

Gafurov (20-7) missed weight by a whopping five pounds for his bantamweight clash against Wiklacz (18-3) on the prelims at UFC Fight Night 266 at the Apex in Las Vegas on Saturday. While Gafurov had Wiklacz on his heels in the first round, the Polish fighter bounced back in the second round. Gafurov looked to be edging out the third round when he started frantically looking for a finish in the final seconds. Wiklacz took the opportunity to jump a mounted guillotine on Gafurov. While Gafurov showed a thumbs-up right before the final bell, he bizarrely tapped out with a second left in the fight. Referee Chris Tognoni watched the replay and confirmed that Gafurov tapped out before the final bell. 

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Gafurov told his teammate, Merab Dvalishvili, that he thought he had heard the final bell before tapping out. Gafurov was frantically tapping as he couldn’t…

Daniil Donchenko passed a stern veteran test in his sophomore Octagon appearance.

“The Ultimate Fighter 33” winner pushed Alex Morono to the brink of the defeat early, but ultimately emerged with a clear-cut unanimous decision victory in the featured prelim at UFC Vegas 113 at the UFC Apex on Saturday night. Judges scored the welterweight bout 30-26, 30-26 and 30-27 for the Ukrainian prospect. The 35-year-old Morono (24-13, 13-10, 1 NC UFC) has lost his last four UFC bouts.

Donchenko (13-2, 2-0 UFC) nearly made it a short night at the office. The 24-year-old Tiger Muay Thai representative dropped Morno with a left hook near the fence in Round 1, and proceeded to batter his reeling foe with punches, elbows and hammerfists on the ground. Somehow, Morono made it to the horn.

From there, it was a more measured approach from Donchenko, who repeatedly chopped away at Morono’s leg and opened a gash near his adversary’ mouth with a wicked spinning elbow. With his mobility sev…

Professional Fighters League lightweight champion Usman Nurmagomedov secured his first stoppage win in nearly three years after submitting Alfie Davis via arm triangle in the third round (4:41) of Saturday’s PFL Dubai main event at the Coca-Cola Arena in Dubai, United Arab Emirates.

Nurmagomedov (21-0, 3-0 PFL) entered as a massive favorite against the PFL Tournament champion, but showed respect early for The Axe Man’s diverse striking background. Davis (20-6-1, 3-2 PFL) fought loose against the undefeated kingpin from Dagestan. The Englishman cracked smiles and fired off axe kicks as Davis hoped to catch Nurmagomedov with a spectacular shot, but the champ wasn’t having it. Nurmagomedov fought aggressively but calculated, blasting Davis with leg and body kicks to make him circle around the ring nonstop. Nurmagomedov would put Davis out of his misery late in the third round, securing a double leg near the fence, where he would eventually climb to Davis’ back and finish him …