Martial Arts News

Just like that, the Bader era for Bellator MMA and the Professional Fighters League is over.

On Wednesday, Ariel Helwani reported that Ryan Bader had parted ways with his organization, despite the heavyweight having one more fight on his deal. The departure was amicable, and Bader will now become a free agent. He confirmed this news on social media on Thursday, thanking both organizations for his time with them while pitching his upcoming film “The Smashing Machine.”

“Just an update…officially a free agent,” Bader wrote. “PFL and our team came up with terms we were both happy agreeing on with one fight remaining on contract. The Bellator run was one for the books. What a blast, and being surrounded by great people running that org. I’m still open to different opportunities in the fight game. The Smashing Machine movie will be released somewhat soon and it will be an exciting year for sure. Big thanks to [Bellator matchmaker] Mike Kogan for always treating the fight…

[embedded content] Gilbert Burns plans on digging deep into his bag of tricks to eject Michael Morales from the ranks of the unbeaten.

While Burns (22-8) enters his match with Morales (17-0) on a three-fight skid, the vaunted grappler still remains a ranked welterweight. The two 170ers plan on crossing swords at the Bell Centre in Montreal, Canada, as part of UFC 315 on May 10. The 38-year-old told Sherdog that he has shaken some issues that plagued him in recent camps, and that his training partners have made him a more complete fighter as of late. He also weighed in on the landscape of his division and gave his thoughts on a few key matchups the Ultimate Fighting Championship is planning.

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“I had some problems in the previous camps,” Burns admitted, “but now, I’m doing very well, and there are still six weeks until the fight. He has a [two-meter, or 79-inch] reach, and in my gym, I have a lot of sparring partners helping me with similar characteris…

𝙋𝘼𝙍𝙄𝙎… 𝙒𝙀’𝙍𝙀 𝘽𝘼𝘾𝙆 𝘼𝙂𝘼𝙄𝙉! 🇫🇷

The PFL returns to Paris for the fourth time on Saturday 24th May, with a STACKED card planned for the French fans!

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Mansour Barnaoui meets the undefeated American standout Archie Colgan in a high stakes lightweight matchup, with… pic.twitter.com/EqtncKYb1x — PFL Europe (@PFLEurope) March 27, 2025 The Professional Fighters League has officially started populating its return to France this May.

At PFL Europe 2, which will take place at the Accor Arena in Paris on May 24, the organization has announced a pair of non-tournament tilts to take place on the billing. The bout order is still in flux, given that this event will also contain the league’s bantamweight bracket of four fights plus an alternate match at least. A key encounter on the billing sees Paris native Mansour Barnaoui (22-6) take on Archie Colgan (11-0) in a lightweight matchup outside of tournament parameters.

The well-trave…

A flyweight clash pitting Joshua Van against Bruno Silva has been rescheduled for UFC 316.

Marcel Dorff was first to report the pairing. Van and Silva were intially slated to meet at UFC 313 on March 8 before Silva withdrew from the event due to injury. UFC 316 takes place on June 7 at the Prudential Center in Newark, N.J. A headliner has not been announced for the card.

Van remained on the UFC 313 card, where he defeated replacement foe Rei Tsuruya via unanimous decision. The 23-year-old Myanmar native has been victorious in six of his seven Octagon appearances overall, with his only defeat coming to Charles Johnson in July 2024.

Silva, meanwhile, had a four-bout winning streak snapped in his last outing, when he fell to Manel Kape via third-round TKO at UFC Tampa. “Bulldog” had finished all four of his previous UFC opponents inside the distance.

今日の会見で追加のワンマッチも4試合発表させていただきました！どのカードも、男祭りに相応しいド派手な闘いが繰り広げられると思いますよ！何れにしても今週末のRISEさんの大会とRIZIN香川大会の試合の結果も踏まえて、未来の相手と、更なる追加の対戦カードをマッチアップします！… https://t.co/aqpjhUvcwW pic.twitter.com/Non1oW40Qs

— 榊󠄀原信行 Nobuyuki Sakakibara (@nobu_sakakibara) March 26, 2025

Several new bouts have been announced for Rizin Fighting Federation’s upcoming event on May 4.

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At flyweight, current BKFC champ and former UFC title challenger John Dodson will lock horns with Takaki Soya, while outspoken Bellator MMA veteran Danny Sabatello will face Shinobu Ota at bantamweight.

Rizin "Otoko Matsuri" takes place at the Tokyo Dome in Tokyo and features a featherweight title tilt pitting Kleber Koike Erbst against Rajababil Shaidullaev. The event will also include a heavyweight grand prix.

A handful of other bouts have b…

PROFESSIONAL FIGHTERS LEAGUE LLEGA A FOX SPORTS 🔥

*La PFL iniciará el jueves 3 de abril con la Primera Ronda de PFL World Tournament 2025...

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👇MÁS DETALLES👇https://t.co/XdcfDudFC3 — FOX Sports MX (@FOXSportsMX) March 26, 2025

Fight fans South of the Border will now be able to get their Professional Fighters League fix in Spanish.

The PFL on Wednesday announced a multi-year broadcast partnership with Fox Sports Mexico to air all of the organization’s franchises: PFL World Tournament, Champions Series, PFL Europe, PFL MENA, PFL Africa and the PFL fight library. Fox Sports Mexico will also carry PFL programming such as pre- and post-fight shows, press conferences and weigh-ins. Terms of the deal were not disclosed. All content will be broadcast in Spanish.

Fox Sports Mexico airs a variety sporting events including soccer, NFL, MLB, UFC and Formula 1 racing. According to PFL CEO Peter Murray, the agreement could…

Credit: Getty/UFC Credit: Getty/UFC Credit: Getty/UFC Credit: Getty/UFC

Former Alex Pereira rival Artem Vakhitov isn’t going to join the Ultimate Fighting Championship.

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Vakhitov is among the few men in the world who can boast a victory over Pereira. The Russian beat “Poatan” via majority decision under the Glory kickboxing banner in 2021, avenging a split-decision loss from earlier that year.

Following in Pereira’s footsteps, Vakhitov transitioned to MMA in 2023 and earned a UFC contract with a first round knockout on Dana White's Contender Series last year. However, Vakhitov the rare fighter who is going to pass on his contract from the Contender Series. Vakhitov revealed that the UFC has a standard pay structure for all contracts earned through the Contender Series. While Vakhitov understands the UFC’s strictness with protocols, he couldn’t turn down a much more lucrative contract that Glory offered. The former champ is now going to fight he…

Charles Oliveira believes Ilia Topuria needs a lesson in humility.

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Topuria recently vacated his featherweight title and announced a move up to lightweight. While “La Leyenda” has always exuded confidence, he has never failed to back it up with action. Topuria continues the same with his lightweight move, recently proclaiming himself the champion of the division.

Since Topuria might not get an immediate title shot at 155 pounds, the Georgian-Spaniard’s name has been linked to a potential matchup against former champ Oliveira. However, “do Bronx” made clear that he isn’t willing to fight Topuria until he has proved himself at lightweight.

Topuria was recently honored in Spain with a street being named after him. Topuria was also asked about Oliveira’s comments and if he would take a walk with the Brazilian on the newly-named street.

“Actually yes, to give him a bit of culture and teach him something,” Topuria said. “I’m sure I would, because it…

👀🔥Kamaru Usman names ideal opponents for his return fight

"If I had to pick in order I would say Brady, Shavkat and Buckley. That what makes sense."

🎥 @pound4poundshow ▫️ pic.twitter.com/mqImUypRnh

— Home of Fight (@Home_of_Fight) March 25, 2025

Kamaru Usman recently listed potential opponents in order of preference for his next fight.

Usman would like to fight either Sean Brady, Shavkat Rakhmonov or Joaquin Buckley when he returns to action. Usman’s first preference would be Brady, who submitted Leon Edwards at UFC London last weekend. While Usman doubts Brady will be able to get past him, “The Nigerian Nightmare” believes the Philadelphia native’s title shot will be undeniable if he does.

“Honestly, what would make sense would be – If I had to pick the order, I would say Brady, Shavkat, Buckley,” Usman recently said on the “Pound4Pound” podcast. “That’s what makes sense. Because, winner of Brady and I, we fight for the …

Magomed Ankalaev is willing to defend his title against absolutely anyone.

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Ankalaev dethroned Alex Pereira via unanimous decision at UFC 313 earlier this month. However, color commentator Joe Rogan recently noted that Pereira’s team claimed that he was not 100% going into the fight. “Poatan” allegedly had nororvirus and a broken hand.

While Ankalaev believes no fighter goes into a fight 100%, he is willing to give Pereira another shot. The Russian claims to have already accepted a rematch against Pereira in August. However, Ankalaev is willing to defend the light heavyweight throne against anyone if Pereira isn’t ready in August.

“Joe Rogan mentioned his team said that Alex fought with a broken hand and Norovirus. When fighters step in the cage nobody is 100%,” Ankalaev wrote on X. “I was offered a rematch with him in August and I said yes, but if he is not ready I will fight whoever is next. It doesn’t matter.”

Joe…

Jan Blachowicz’s Octagon return didn’t end in victory, but there were at least some observers who thought the Polish light heavyweight deserved the nod on the scorecards.

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After being sidelined for nearly 20 months due to multiple shoulder surgeries, Blachowicz dropped a closely-contested unanimous decision to Carlos Ulberg in the UFC London co-headliner this past Saturday. Four of the 12 unofficial media scorecards tracked by MMADecisions.com saw the contest in favor of Blachowicz. While Ulberg held a 75-to-59 advantage in significant strikes landed, his favored offense in the fight was leg kicks, where he outlanded his foe 50 to 32.

Blachowicz reacted to the ruling in a recent post on his Instagram account.

“More controversy on the record, as it turns out the approach to significant strikes doesn’t align with the actual meaning,” Blachowicz wrote. “I’ll leave the verdict for discussion. What happened in the stands after the announcement, and w…

Two UFC veterans at the center of a gambling scandal involving Glory MMA & Fitness coach James Krause have been officially suspended by the Nevada State Athletic Commission.

During an NSAC meeting on Tuesday, Minner was suspended for 29 months and fined $235.56 in prosecution fees for failing to disclose a knee injury he suffered prior to a bout against Nuerdanbieke Shayilan at UFC Fight Night 214 on Nov. 5, 2022. The suspension is retroactive to that date, so Minner will be eligible to return on March 26.

Molina, meanwhile was suspended for 36 months and must pay $232.56 in prosecution fees for failing to inform the commission of his Minner’s injury and then placing a significant bet on his teammate’s fight. Molina’s suspension, which is also retroactive to the date of the Minner fight, will end on Nov. 5.

Minner was released from the UFC shortly after the loss to Shayilan and has not fought since then. Molina had been suspended since late 2022 for what wa…