Martial Arts News

Jake Paul has been medically cleared to return to boxing after recovering from the broken jaw he suffered in his knockout loss to Anthony Joshua last year, according to his promoter.

Most Valuable Promotions co-founder Nakisa Bidarian announced Thursday that Paul had been cleared to return to the ring. The YouTuber-turned-boxer also shared a list of potential fights spanning boxing and mixed martial arts, including matchups with several current and former Ultimate Fighting Championship athletes.

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Jake Paul names Conor McGregor, Sean Strickland and Francis Ngannou as possible opponents Paul hasn’t competed since Joshua stopped him in the sixth round in December 2025. The defeat left “The Problem Child” with a broken jaw that required surgery, followed by a second procedure in February.

“Jake Paul has been cleared to return to the boxing ring,” Bidarian wrote on X.

Paul’s list included Canelo Alvarez, Ryan Garcia and Francis Ngannou. He also name…

The Ultimate Fighting Championship will host another card at Meta Apex in Las Vegas this Saturday.How to watch Brendan Allen vs. Christian Leroy Duncan in the US and UKHere’s a brief rundown for those who intend to watch the event.

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How to watch UFC Vegas 122 in the United States UFC Vegas 122 goes down at Meta Apex in Las Vegas on Oct. 10. The card airs live in the U.S. on Paramount+ with the prelims starting at 5 p.m. ET/ 2 p.m. PT, followed by the main card at 8 p.m. ET/ 5 p.m. PT.

Surging middleweight contenders Brendan Allen (27-7) and Christian Leroy Duncan (15-2) will headline the card. Allen is coming off wins over Marvin Vettori, Reinier de Ridder and Edmen Shahbazyan. Meanwhile, Duncan is riding a five-fight winning streak, topped off by victories against Roman Dolidze and Jared Cannonier.

How to watch UFC Vegas 122 in the United States Fans in the U.K. and Ireland can watch the UFC Vegas 122 prelims on TNT Sports and UFC Fight Pass at 10 p…

Christian Leroy Duncan believes a win over Brendan Allen would warrant a shot at Ultimate Fighting Championship gold or a matchup with a former titleholder.

Duncan (15-2) is scheduled to headline UFC Vegas 122 against Allen (27-7) on Saturday at Meta Apex in Las Vegas. The Englishman has defeated Roman Dolidze and Jared Cannonier in his last two outings and hopes a victory over Allen will earn him one of those opportunities.

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Christian Leroy Duncan targets former champion as next step after Brendan Allen Duncan is 8-2 in the UFC and has won five straight fights. He believes an impressive performance against Allen could propel him past other middleweight contenders or put him one step closer to a title shot.

‘I don’t see why not [a title shot next],” Duncan told MMA Fighting. “We get a good performance this weekend, I don’t see why not… Brendan Allen being Top 4, it puts us in that title contention section where we’ve got Strickland and Imavov who a…

Josh Hokit believes Alexander Volkov will never get a chance to fight him.

Hokit (10-0) is scheduled to challenge Ciryl Gane (14-2, one no contest) for the Ultimate Fighting Championship heavyweight title at UFC 334 on Nov. 14 at Madison Square Garden in New York. Volkov has criticized Hokit since the title fight was announced, and the American has responded.

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Josh Hokit says Alexander Volkov will never get his chance, mocks heavyweight résumé Volkov considers Hokit an easy matchup and predicts that Gane will defeat the unbeaten contender. In response, Hokit compared their records, noting that he defeated Derrick Lewis and Curtis Blaydes, both of whom beat Volkov.

“Drago” has won consecutive decisions over Jailton Almeida and Waldo Cortes-Acosta and is scheduled to face Rizvan Kuniev at UFC 333 on Oct. 24 in Abu Dhabi. Hokit added that Blaydes defeated both Almeida and Kuniev. “The Incredible Hok” claims he will already be dominating the light heav…

Colby Covington has brought Daniel Cormier into his latest feud with Jon Jones.

Jones’ protégé, Gable Steveson, was knocked out by Sean Sharaf in a major upset at UFC 331 in September in Los Angeles. Covington subsequently blamed Jones’ “bad energy” for Steveson’s loss. Jones responded by saying that Covington, his former college roommate, hasn’t achieved even a fraction of what he has in the Ultimate Fighting Championship.

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Colby Covington tells Gable Steveson to leave Jon Jones for Daniel Cormier Covington responded by citing domestic abuse allegations against Jones. “Chaos” said Jones’ professional achievements don’t excuse his alleged conduct outside the cage. The former interim welterweight champion then suggested that Steveson train with Daniel Cormier, Jones’ longtime rival.

“The things I say only bother you because they’re true,” Covington wrote on X. “You’re a narcissistic abusive sociopath. Your achievements inside the Octagon don’t make y…

Brendan Allen has criticized Dricus Du Plessis for allegedly avoiding a fight with him.

A matchup between Allen and du Plessis was reportedly in the works in January. According to Allen, the bout fell through after he was told du Plessis was injured. Du Plessis went on to face former Ultimate Fighting Championship titleholder Kamaru Usman in July, winning by unanimous decision.

Brendan Allen explains why he believes he was a tougher opponent than Kamaru Usman Allen has accused du Plessis of avoiding him in favor of an easier fight against Usman. “All In” acknowledges that the 39-year-old former welterweight champion remains a bigger draw. However, Allen believes he presents a tougher matchup, prompting du Plessis to take the “easier fight.”

“I know he’s had the opportunity to fight me and he took the easier route,” Allen told UFC on Paramount+. “He can say whatever he wants; it’s a fact. We were supposed to fight. And somehow it got worked that Kamaru’s name got thrown…

Joe Rogan has renewed his partnership with Spotify through a multiyear licensing agreement.

The streaming platform announced Thursday that it had reached a new agreement with Rogan for his podcast, “The Joe Rogan Experience.” New episodes will continue to be released each week on Spotify and other platforms.

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Joe Rogan's new Spotify deal follows previous agreement with reported $250 million potential value Spotify did not disclose the financial terms of its new deal with the longtime Ultimate Fighting Championship commentator. However, The Wall Street Journal reported that the agreement has terms similar to Rogan’s previous deal, which had an estimated potential payout of $250 million.

“The partnership with Spotify has been an amazing fit, and they’re incredible to work with,” Rogan said. “I’m extremely happy and excited to continue with them for years to come.”

The podcast has more than 18 million followers on Spotify and is the platform’s mo…

The Professional Fighters League has added a featherweight matchup to its upcoming event in Lyon, France.

Brandon Brachet will face Adam Meskini on Dec. 19 on the undercard of PFL Lyon.

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Brandon Brachet brings seven-fight winning streak into PFL debut Brachet (9-1) and Meskini (11-3) will meet at LDLC Arena in the promotion’s final event of the year, headlined by Taylor Lapilus vs. Mitchell McKee for the bantamweight championship.

Brachet enters on a seven-fight winning streak, with his latest victory coming against Kevin Robledo in June 2025. The Frenchman will make his PFL debut after an extended layoff, facing Meskini, who is 3-1 in the promotion.

The PFL Lyon card as of Oct. 7:

Taylor Lapilus vs. Mitchell McKee (bantamweight title fight)

Bryan Battle vs. Boris Mbarga Atangana (middleweight)

Abdoul Abdouraguimov vs. Andreeas Binder (welterweight)

Fabian Edwards vs. Ilian Bouafia (middleweight)

Baris Adiguzel vs. Lia…

Donald Cerrone and Anthony Pettis are set to meet for the third time after two bouts in the Ultimate Fighting Championship.

Real American Freestyle announced Wednesday that Cerrone and Pettis will compete in a wrestling match at RAF 15 on Nov. 28 at NOW Arena in Hoffman Estates, Illinois. Both former UFC fighters will make their RAF debuts.

Pettis enters third Cerrone meeting with two UFC victories Pettis won both previous meetings in the Octagon. “Showtime” stopped Cerrone with a first-round knockout in 2013 and earned a unanimous decision in their 2020 rematch.

Cerrone retired from mixed martial arts after a submission loss to Jim Miller in 2022. Pettis last competed professionally in MMA in August 2022, when he lost a unanimous decision to Stevie Ray in the Professional Fighters League.

COWBOY VS SHOWTIME 🔥 MMA legends Donald Cerrone and Anthony Pettis face off at #RAF15 in Chicago on NOV 28 Tickets in bio. Watch on @foxnation https://t…

Natalia Silva has responded to Cong Wang’s eye-poke claim, Dana White’s assessment of their title fight and Valentina Shevchenko’s warning.

Silva captured the vacant Ultimate Fighting Championship women’s flyweight title by defeating Wang by unanimous decision in the UFC 332 main event on Oct. 3 in Salt Lake City, extending her UFC winning streak to nine and her overall run to 15 consecutive victories. She plans to make her first title defense in 2027.

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Natalia Silva disputes Cong Wang's eye-poke claim and Dana White's UFC 332 assessment Speaking to Sherdog, Silva addressed several post-fight developments. In a video posted on social media after the bout, Wang claimed an eye poke early in the fight affected her performance. Silva disputed the Chinese flyweight’s account, insisting that her hand was closed.

“I saw what she said after the fight. She said my finger brushed against her eye, but my hand was closed,” Silva said. “It wasn’t an illegal eye …

Esteban Ribovics has described his victory over King Green as the most satisfying of his career.

Ribovics (17-3) stopped Green (36-18-1, 1 NC) in the first round of their Ultimate Fighting Championship catchweight bout at UFC 332 on Oct. 3 in Salt Lake City, knocking down the veteran three times before referee Herb Dean stopped the fight.

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Esteban Ribovics details heated confrontation with King Green and Arnold Barboza Jr. Tensions between the fighters escalated after Ribovics narrowly missed weight. The Argentine lightweight’s team then clashed with Green’s entourage, including professional boxer Arnold Barboza Jr., before the ceremonial weigh-ins.

Speaking to Hablemos MMA in Spanish, Ribovics said the prefight tension made the victory particularly rewarding.

“Yeah, you can say it's the most satisfying victory of my career because this was the first time they tried to bully me and treat me disrespectfully,” Ribovics said. “So yeah, at that mo…

Johnny Walker already has his next potential opponent in mind.

The Brazilian made his UFC heavyweight debut at UFC 332, knocking out Mick Parkin with a knee at 3:35 of the opening round. Walker has now asked the Ultimate Fighting Championship for a bout against divisional veteran Marcin Tybura.

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Johnny Walker targets Marcin Tybura for December UFC fight Walker told talkSPORT that he wants to face Tybura in December, preferably at UFC 335 in Las Vegas.

“I’ve asked for Marcin Tybura for my next fight. If he’s ready for December, I would like to fight him,” Walker said.

The 40-year-old Tybura has lost three straight bouts, dropping unanimous decisions to Tyrell Fortune and Aleksandar Rakic after being knocked out by Ante Delija in September 2025. His last victory came against Parkin in March 2025.

Walker wants more experience at heavyweight before facing the division’s elite. He said Tybura’s decade in the UFC makes him an ideal opponent. Read more