Martial Arts News

Muhammad Mokaev’s strained relationship with the Ultimate Fighting Championship isn’t getting any better.

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Mokaev and Raul Rosas Jr. were scheduled to meet in a catchweight submission grappling bout in the main event at ADXC 6 on Friday at the Mubadala Arena in Abu Dhabi. However, the fight was canceled soon after it was announced, which the promotion blamed on “unforeseen circumstances.”

“Due to unforeseen circumstances, [Muhammad Mokaev] vs [Raul Rosas Jr.]has been cancelled as the ADXC6 main event! The show must go on,” ADXC wrote in a statement. “Stay tuned for a new grappling main event to be announced soon!.”

Due to unforeseen circumstances, Muhammad Mokaev vs Raul Rosas Jr has been cancelled as the #ADXC6 Main Event! The show must go ON 🔥 Stay tuned for a new Grappling Main Event to be announced soon! 👀#ADXC6 #JiuJitsu #Grappling #AbuDhabi #MubadalaArena pic.twitter.com/4KXq3aTaK6

— ADXC_official (@adxc_o…

Tatiana Suarez’s path to Ultimate Fighting Championship gold has hit another roadblock.

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The strawweight contender has reportedly suffered an undisclosed injury and has been forced to withdraw from a proposed clash against Virna Jandiroba at UFC 310 on Dec. 7. Multiple outlets confirmed the news following an initial report from MMA Melotto. It is currently unknown if Jandiroba will remain on the card against a replacement opponent.

Suarez and Janiroba were previously booked to square off in August 2023 before the Brazilian suffered a knee injury and pulled out of the fight. Suarez would remain on the UFC on ESPN 50 card, where she submitted ex-strawweight queen Jessica Andrade in the second round of their encounter. The 33-year-old Milennia MMA representative was supposed to return to action against Amanda Lemos at UFC 298 in February, but Suarez withdrew from that contest due to what she described as a “minor setback.”

When healthy, Suarez i…

The BMF title will not be on the line at UFC 308, but Ilia Topuria believes he can have a negative impact on its relevance.

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Topuria will defend his featherweight crown against former champ Max Holloway in Saturday’s headliner at Etihad Arena in Abu Dhabi. After going 0-3 in 145-pound title bouts against Alexander Volkanovski, Holloway was on the outside looking in when it came to the featherweight title picture. However, that changed when Topuria defeated Volkanovski to become the new featherweight king at UFC 298.

Meanwhile, Holloway moved up to 155 pounds at UFC 300, where he captured the BMF belt with an iconic fifth-round knockout of Justin Gaethje. Topuria has since stated that Holloway was reluctant to accept a championship fight at 145 pounds, and he reiterated that claim in a recent interview with CBS Sports.

"After he knocked out Justin Gaethje, I asked about Max Holloway," Topuria said. "Before that fight, I thought of giving the rema…

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Khamzat Chimaev has taken some heat for his lack of activity in recent years.

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After emerging as one of the Ultimate Fighting Championship’s hottest prospects in 2020, Chimaev’s ascent has slowed somewhat. He fought just once in 2023 and will make his first appearance this year when he meets Robert Whittaker in the UFC 308 co-headliner on Saturday at Etihad Arena in Abu Dhabi.

“Borz” was supposed to face Whittaker at UFC Saudi Arabia on June 22, but the Chechen-born Swede was forced to pull out of the event after become “violently ill” a little more than a week before the fight. According to Chimaev, his exit occurred due to circumstances beyond his control.

“We were in training camp. The first month was very good,” Chimaev said on the UFC Countdown show. “The last three weeks, my immunity goes down. I don’t know what happened. All the guys ate the same food, [but] only [I] got sick.UFC 308: Topuria vs. Holloway Saturday at 2…

While Ilia Topuria might very well be the next big thing at 145 pounds, Max Holloway has been there before.

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The former featherweight king has faced the best the sport has to offer over the course of an Ultimate Fighting Championship tenure that began in 2012. While “Blessed” can see some parallels betwen his and Topuria’s rise to the top, at this point in his career, the mind games that accompany pre-fight promotion don’t have much of an effect on the 32-year-old Hawaiian.

Holloway will square off against Topuria in the UFC 308 main event on Saturday at Etihad Arena in Abu Dhabi. The main card airs on pay-per-view via ESPN+ at 2 p.m. ET/11 a.m. ET, while prelims begin on ESPN+ at 10 a.m. ET/7 a.m. PT.

“I got my first belt against former champions…Your idols become your rivals. Ilia said he’s a big fan. So I guess he did what I did, and I respect that,” Holloway said in an interview with UFC.com. “At the end of the day, all these mental games…

🇪🇸 Ilia Topuria’s custom shorts for #UFC308 are 🔥🔥🔥

🎥 @ClubDeLasMMA #UFC #MMA

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pic.twitter.com/v528bQC5o7 — Championship Rounds (@ChampRDS) October 19, 2024

Ilia Topuria will have some special, customized fight shorts for his first featherweight title defense.

Spanish outlet Marca recently revealed the shorts, which are red and yellow with bulls on the sides, that Topuria will wear for his UFC 308 main event showdown with Max Holloway on Saturday. UFC 308 takes place Etihad Arena in Abu Dhabi and airs via pay-per-view on ESPN+ at 2 p.m. ET/11 a.m. PT.

UFC 308: Topuria vs. Holloway Saturday at 2 PM ET on ESPN+. Order Now!

Topuria claimed the featherweight belt with a second-round knockout of Alexander Volkanovski in the UFC 298 headliner on Feb. 17. “El Matador” has kicked off his professional tenure with 15 straight triumphs, a run that includes seven victories in UFC competition.

A former featherweigh…

Featherweight fighter Daiane Silva is still hospitalized after a bad weight cut led to her becoming seriously ill ahead of a proposed fight at Bellator Champions Series London on Sept. 14.

Silva was slated to face Eman Almudhaf at the event but was hospitalized due to severe dehydration as a result of her cut to the featherweight limit of 146 pounds. According to multiple reports, Silva was induced into a coma for several weeks after suffering kidney failure. More recently, she has displayed some positive signs of consciousness while remaining hospitalized.

“As Daiane made weight for her debut in Bellator, she suffered an accident due to dehydration,” Silva’s manager, Alex Davis said in a statement released to MMAFighting.com. “She was promptly seen by the doctor, was rushed to the hospital in delicate condition, was admitted to intensive care. Her condition was serious, but since, she has been improving steadily and our hope is that she recovers fully. Myself, her t…

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Professional Fighters League will hold a championship twin bill of sorts in Saudia Arabia next month.

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The promotion announced on Saturday that both the PFL Championships and the PFL MENA finals will take place on Nov. 29 in Riyadh, Saudi Arabia. The evening’s main card will feature title bouts in six PFL weight classes, topped by a featherweight championship clash between Brendan Loughnane and Timur Khizriev.

Meanwhile, the undercard will feature PFL MENA title bouts at welterweight, lightweight, featherweight and bantamweight. All told, the PFL World Championships event will showcase 10 five-round bouts.

“The Championships are the culmination of our sports-season format, where PFL athletes have beaten the odds to reach this point in the toughest test in all of sports,” PFL CEO Peter Murray said in a release. “There are multiple athletes competing who I am excited to see take that next step in their careers, while there are also returning c…

😮‍💨💥Robert Whittaker is fired up for the fight with Khamzat Chimaev

“I'm going to go in there and hunt [Khamzat] down, I'm gonna take the fight to him. I don't think he'll be able to stand up to that…

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I hope he's ready, because I am."

🎥 @KevinI ▫️ pic.twitter.com/umG7we7fpb

— Home of Fight (@Home_of_Fight) October 19, 2024 Robert Whittaker (26-7) plans to take the fight to Khamzat Chimaev (13-0) in their upcoming matchup at UFC 308.

Whittaker and Chimaev will clash in the co-main event at UFC 308 on Saturday at the Etihad Arena in Abu Dhabi. They were originally scheduled to meet at UFC Saudi Arabia this past June, but Chimaev pulled out due to severe illness. Whittaker went on beat short-notice replacement Ikram Aliskerov via knockout in the first round. Aliskerov’s only other pro loss dates back to 2019 against Chimaev, who called him the toughest matchup of his life so far.

Although Dana White has promise…

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Francis Ngannou challenged Renan Ferreira for the Super Fight heavyweight title in the main event at "Battle of the Giants: Brace for Impact" on Saturday at the Mayadeen in Riyadh, Saudi Arabia.

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“The Predator” displayed a well-rounded skillset, taking Ferreira to the ground early and surviving a triangle attempt before earning a victory via ground-and-pound in the first round. The former UFC champ then broke down in tears inside the cage while dedicating his win to his late son Kobe, who died earlier this year at 15 months old.

“I can’t think of anything than my son Kobe. I wanted to fight for him… I hope they can remember his name, because without Kobe we wouldn’t be here tonight. I wouldn’t have fight,” Ngannou said.

“In combat sports all depends on me, how I feel. How I deal with life right now. But otherwise… I always thought I still have a lot to give to combat sports. And I hope I keep thinking that way, I keep that…

Daniel Pineda put on a memorable performance at UFC Vegas 99 before retiring from MMA.

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Pineda opened the main card against fellow veteran Darren Elkins at the UFC Apex in Las Vegas on Saturday. The featherweights left everything inside the Octagon in a “Fight of the Night”-winning performance, setting the bar high for the rest of the card.

Elkins survived multiple guillotine attempts from Pineda to eventually earn a unanimous decision win. Pineda laid down his gloves inside the Octagon after the result was announced, prompting UFC commentator Paul Felder to allow him to have a say on the mic. “The Pit” announced his retirement after a career spanning more than a decade and a half.

“Guys that was my last one man… We were some dogs in here,” Pineda said. “It’s my third one straight. F—k it dude, I’m done. I’m done guys. Thank you Elkins for this bad ass fight.”

Pineda retires from the sport with a 28-17 professional record and a 5-8 reco…