Martial Arts News

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

Felipe Lima credits his corner for helping him find the second wind in his Ultimate Fighting Championship debut on Saturday.

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Lima replaced Melsik Baghdasaryan against Muhammadjon Naimov on five days’ notice at UFC on ABC 6 on Saturday in Saudi Arabia. The Brazilian ,who usually fights at bantamweight, also stepped up to 145 pounds for his UFC debut against Naimov. While Lima wasn’t particularly concerned about his opponent’s six-fight winning streak going into the bout, he admitted to being a little nervous about fighting under the UFC’s bright lights.

“I mean yeah, I kind of was nervous, yeah,” Lima told ESPN. “It’s not because of the guy or anything like that. I was nervous [about] how I’m gonna perform in the UFC. Many people, bigger cage, it’s a dream come true. And just everything in less than one week, five days. It was hard but I managed.”

Lima went toe-to-toe with Naimov for two …

Sherdog's live Bellator Champions Series Dublin coverage will begin Friday at 12 p.m. ET. Round 1 Sherdog Scores Tristen Critchfield scores the round:J.L. Kirven scores the round:Christian Stein scores the round:Round 2 Sherdog Scores Tristen Critchfield scores the round:J.L. Kirven scores the round:Christian Stein scores the round:

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Round 3 Sherdog Scores Tristen Critchfield scores the round:J.L. Kirven scores the round:Christian Stein scores the round:The Official Result Round 1 Sherdog Scores Tristen Critchfield scores the round:J.L. Kirven scores the round:Christian Stein scores the round: Round 2 Sherdog Scores Tristen Critchfield scores the round:J.L. Kirven scores the round:Christian Stein scores the round:Round 3 Sherdog Scores Tristen Critchfield scores the round:J.L. Kirven scores the round:Christian Stein scores the round:The Official Result Round 1 Sherdog Scores Tristen Critchfield scores the round:J.L. Kirven scores the round:Christian Ste…

Robert Whittaker reminded everyone why he’s still one of the best in the sport at 185 pounds.

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Faced with a last-minute opponent change in the UFC on ABC 6 headliner, “The Reaper” pocketed a $50,000 “Performance of the Night” bonus for making short work of Iskram Aliskerov on Saturday at Kingdom Arena in Riyadh, Saudi Arabia. The former middleweight king, who was originally slated to face Khamzat Chimaev, knocked his foe out at the 1:49 mark of Round 1 to secure his ninth career bonus with the UFC.

Meanwhile, Sharabutdin Magomedov received a $50,000 check for his finish of Antonio Trocoli in a featured middleweight affair. “Shara Bullet” began the fight-ending sequence with a knee to the chin before unloading with a series of punches to force the stoppage 2:27 into the third frame.

Elsewhere, former light heavyweight title challenger Volkan Oezdemir earned a $50,000 “Performance of the Night” bonus for his knockout of Johnny Walker in a 205-p…

AND NEW! 👑

Ramazan Kuramagomedov continues on his unbeaten streak and captures the Bellator Welterweight Title after his unanimous decision win over Jason Jackson!#BellatorDublin | LIVE NOW on MAX🌍 https://t.co/Dpuq4Xv6Jh pic.twitter.com/APSUTfEcSm

— Bellator MMA (@BellatorMMA) June 22, 2024

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The Ramazan Kuramagomedov era has begun.

The undefeated Russian dethroned Bellator MMA welterweight champion Jason Jackson by a gritty unanimous decision (48-47, 48-47, 48-47) in Saturday’s Bellator Champions Series Dublin main event at 3Arena in Dublin, Ireland. Kuramagomedov (13-0) jumped out to an early lead with his dominant wrestling and slick southpaw counter-punching. Jackson (18-5) seemed hesitant to move forward, where he was often met with a left hand, calf kick or takedown attempt. It wasn’t until Round 4 when Jackson started to find momentum. The Kill Cliff FC staple took Kuramagomedov to the mat and threatened a gui…

Former Ultimate Fighting Championship middleweight king Robert Whittaker (26-7, 17-5 UFC) was unfazed by a late opponent change and he proved again tonight that he is still one of the premier 185-pound competitors in mixed martial arts. Whittaker knocked out rising star Ikram Aliskerov (15-2, 2-1 UFC) in the UFC on ABC 6 main event, which took place in Riyadh, Saudi Arabia.

Whittaker, who was originally slated to face Khamzat Chimaev, sent a message to the rest of the division by becoming the second man – after Chimaev – to defeat Aliskerov. After establishing his jab during the opening minute, Whittaker badly wobbled Aliskerov with a right hook. The Russian stumbled backward against the cage and Whittaker closed in with an uppercut that dropped him to his knees. Whittaker then landed three left hands to the side of a dazed and defenseless Aliskerov’s face before referee Marc Goddard waved off the fight at the 1:49 mark of Round 1. Whittaker has won two in a row this year…

Sherdog's live UFC on ABC 6 coverage will begin Saturday at 12 p.m. ET. BETTING PREVIEW | SCOUTING REPORT | ODDS: Xiao (-115), Lee (-105)Round 1 Sherdog Scores Ben Duffy scores the round:Scottie Smith scores the round:Devin Tejada scores the round: Round 2 Sherdog Scores Ben Duffy scores the round:Scottie Smith scores the round:Devin Tejada scores the round:Round 3 Sherdog Scores Ben Duffy scores the round:Scottie Smith scores the round:Devin Tejada scores the round:The Official Result BETTING PREVIEW | SCOUTING REPORT | ODDS: Gadzhiyasulov (-325), Ribeiro (+260)Round 1 Sherdog Scores Ben Duffy scores the round:Scottie Smith scores the round:Devin Tejada scores the round:Round 2 Sherdog Scores Ben Duffy scores the round:Scottie Smith scores the round:Devin Tejada scores the round:Round 3 Sherdog Scores Ben Duffy scores the round:Scottie Smith scores the round:Devin Tejada scores the round:The Official Result BETTING PREVIEW | SCOUTING REPORT | ODDS: Gafurov (-155), Kang (…

A heavyweight scrap pitting Tai Tuivasa against Jairzinho Rozenstruik has been added to the UFC 305 lineup.

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Multiple outlets confirmed the pairing after Tuivasa initially revealed the matchup on Alex Pereira’s video blog. UFC 305 takes place at RAC Arena in Perth, Australia, on Aug. 17 and is headlined by a middleweight championship bout between Dricus Du Plessis and Israel Adesanya.

🚨 Tai Tuivasa says he has a fight booked against Jairzinho Rozenstruik at #UFC305 in Perth 👀

🎥 YT / @AlexPereiraUFC #UFC #MMA pic.twitter.com/3GYA7a4vjX

— Championship Rounds (@ChampRDS) June 21, 2024

Tuivasa is mired in a four-fight losing streak under the UFC banner. During that stretch, “Bam Bam” has been finished by the likes of Marcin Tybura, Alexander Volkov, Sergei Pavlovich and Ciryl Gane. That skid was preceded by a five-fight Octagon winning streak for the affable Aussie.

Rozenstruik, meanwhile, has won two of his las…

ITS OVER. IMPA GETS THE VICTORY AND IS BACK IN THE #PFLPLAYOFFS!#PFLRegularSeason LIVE NOW🇺🇸 ESPN & ESPN+🌎 https://t.co/jPNvomCxHI pic.twitter.com/9WMp6uMrgc

— PFL (@PFLMMA) June 22, 2024

Impa Kasanganay’s bid for a repeat is in full effect.

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The Kill Cliff FC standout secured the top seed in the Professional Fighters League light heavyweight playoffs with a second-round doctor stoppage victory against 2023 PFL Europe kingpin Jakob Nedoh at PFL 5 on Friday night at the Huntsman Center in Salt Lake City, Utah.

“I told myself this: How would I fight if I was leading Heaven’s armies? God put me here and God’s gonna take me out of here,” Kasanganay said. “No other man will. He’s a champion; you’ve got to take it from him.”

After besting Joshua Silveira to win the PFL title a year ago, Kasangany will get a rematch with the fourth-seeded “Coninha” in the light heavyweight semifinals on Aug. 16 at Hard Rock Live i…

Clay Collard came into the 2024 PFL 5 main event having already clinched a spot in the Professional Fighters League's lightweight playoffs but that didn't stop Mads Burnell from crashing the party.

Ever the composed striker, Collard (25-12, 1 NC) came out working his jab and landing body punches to establish his attack against Burnell (18-6), who would look to grapple later in the round. This late success gave Burnell a game plan to follow, as the Danish fighter would take the back of "Cassius" in Round 2. Likely even going into the third, Collard would use his volume punching to land more strikes than his opponent before being taken down and controlled for the final moments, with Burnell taking the back of the fan-favorite lightweight.

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After 15 minutes of action, Burnell took a unanimous decision win with a trio of 29-28 scorecards but won't make the playoffs. Instead, Collard will face top seed Brent Primus in the lightweight semifinals.

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The Professional Fighters League’s regular season marches on with 2024 PFL 5 Regular Season at 5 p.m. ET. Round 1 Sherdog Scores Brian Knapp scores the round:Tyler Treese scores the round:Mike Fridley scores the round:Round 2 Sherdog Scores Brian Knapp scores the round:Tyler Treese scores the round:Mike Fridley scores the round:

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Round 3 Sherdog Scores Brian Knapp scores the round:Tyler Treese scores the round:Mike Fridley scores the round:The Official Result Round 1 Sherdog Scores Brian Knapp scores the round:Tyler Treese scores the round:Mike Fridley scores the round: Round 2 Sherdog Scores Brian Knapp scores the round:Tyler Treese scores the round:Mike Fridley scores the round:Round 3 Sherdog Scores Brian Knapp scores the round:Tyler Treese scores the round:Mike Fridley scores the round:The Official Result Round 1 Sherdog Scores Brian Knapp scores the round:Tyler Treese scores the round:Mike Fridley scores the round:Round 2 Sherdog Scores Brian Knap…

While Conor McGregor is renowned for showing up on fight night no matter the circumstances, he wanted to make sure that he will be 100% healthy for his long-awaited Octagon return.

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In a post on social media, the Irish star revealed that a broken toe forced his late withdrawal from the UFC 303 headliner against Michael Chandler.

“Man we were so f—ing super ready for this fight, it is absolutely gut wrenching to take,” McGregor wrote on Instagram. “I want that new Bugatti! How I gone justify to myself getting that now without banking these fights. We had a lapse in concentration and engaged in a training session without wearing the full protective gear and I hit the toe off the elbow and broke the toe clean. It needs a few weeks that’s it. I couldn’t justify to my team, or fans, that I make the walk hindered again. That walk has been seen.

“This next walk has got to be, and it will be, 100 percent Conor McGregor. The fans deserve it and we are ge…

Roman Dolidze is moving up a weight class to face Anthony Smith on short notice at UFC 303.

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Dolidze will replace Carlos Ulberg, who withdrew from the event due to an undisclosed injury. The Las Vegas-based promotion announced the new light heavyweight bout on Friday. UFC 303 takes place on June 29 at the T-Mobile Arena in Las Vegas and is headlined by a light heavyweight championship rematch between Alex Pereira and Jiri Prochazka.

Dolidze earned triumphs over Khadis Ibragimov and John Allan at 205 pounds in UFC competition before transitioning to the middleweight division. The 35-year-old Xtreme Couture representative has gone 4-3 since then and is coming off back-to-back decision defeats against Nassourdine Imavov and Marvin Vettori.

A former light heavyweight title challenger, Smith has been victorious in two of his last three Octagon appearances. Most recently, “Lionheart” submitted the previously unbeaten Vitor Petrino in the opening sta…