Martial Arts News

Bare Knuckle Boxing returns to London on Nov. 14, with a world championship bout added to the BKB 61 lineup.

Reigning BKB bridgerweight champion Marko Martinjak will defend his title against former British cruiserweight champion Matty Askin at indigo at The O2. The bout will serve as the co-main event under Lee Selby vs. Ollie Sentance.

BKB bridgerweight champion Marko Martinjak will defend against Matty Askin in LondonAccording to BKB’s announcement Tuesday, Martinjak (13-2, 13 KOs) will return to action against Askin (1-0, 1 KO) in the title matchup.

Croatia’s Martinjak will look to continue his reign as BKB bridgerweight champion. Askin, meanwhile, enters his biggest bare-knuckle bout after winning his promotional debut. The matchup adds another former boxing champion to a BKB 61 card already headlined by Selby, a former IBF featherweight champion.

The promotion also announced a welterweight rematch between Aaron McCallum and Simey Doherty. Ash Devenport will …

Mateus Soares earned an Ultimate Fighting Championship contract Tuesday, stopping Ryuho Miyaguchi in just over a minute on Dana White’s Contender Series.

Soares (12-2) faced Miyaguchi (7-2) in a bantamweight matchup on Week 9 of DWCS Season 10 at Meta Apex in Las Vegas. The Brazilian dropped Miyaguchi with a right hand before following up with a barrage of strikes to force the stoppage 1:03 into the first round.

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Mateus Soares stopped Ryuho Miyaguchi in the first round at DWCS Week 9 Soares entered DWCS 2026 Week 9 looking to impress Dana White and the UFC matchmakers. The 22-year-old did just that, finishing his Japanese counterpart in a short but explosive bout. He was visibly emotional in his post-fight interview.

“I can't believe I'm here,” Soares said via an interpreter in his post-fight interview with Laura Sanko. “I've been dreaming of this since I was seven years old.”

When asked about White praising his fight and finish, Soares said…

Natalia Silva is the new Ultimate Fighting Championship women’s flyweight champion, and oddsmakers are already looking ahead to her first title defense.

Silva captured the vacant 125-pound championship by defeating Cong Wang via unanimous decision in the UFC 332 main event on Saturday in Salt Lake City. Looking ahead to the Brazilian’s next bout, BetOnline has posted early lines for potential matchups against former champions Alexa Grasso (18-5-1) and Valentina Shevchenko (26-4-1).

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Valentina Shevchenko opens at -190 against +165 UFC champion Natalia Silva Silva is listed as a -300 favorite against Grasso (+250). The latter has recorded back-to-back victories over Maycee Barber and Manon Fiorot since losing to Silva in May 2025. The odds reflect how their first fight played out, with all three judges scoring the bout 30-27 at UFC 315.

While she’s favored against Grasso, Silva opened as an underdog against two-time champion Shevchenko. She’s listed …

Oscar De La Hoya has explained why he didn’t attend Ryan Garcia’s victory over Conor Benn, drawing a response from Dana White.

Garcia stopped Benn in the second round of their WBC welterweight title bout on Sept. 12 at T-Mobile Arena in Las Vegas. De La Hoya, who previously said he’d attend the event, was notably absent on fight night despite having a seat and VIP access.

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Dana White disputes Oscar De La Hoya’s reason for skipping Ryan Garcia vs. Conor Benn Speaking to Fight Hub TV, De La Hoya said he chose not to attend because he believed he would be embarrassed at the event, which was co-promoted by White’s Zuffa Boxing and De La Hoya’s Golden Boy Promotions.

“I wasn’t going to show up to be embarrassed,” De La Hoya told Fight Hub TV. “It was a Zuffa f*cking event. A ‘Zuffa event,’ a ‘Turki event’ [doing quotation marks with his hands]. I was not going to show up and be embarrassed, because that’s exactly what they were going to do to me. I was no…

Edson Barboza retired from mixed martial arts earlier this year, but the Brazilian veteran isn’t walking away from combat sports.

Barboza (24-15) has signed with Absolute Championship of Brazilian Jiu-Jitsu, according to an announcement from the grappling promotion, continuing his combat sports career after calling time on his MMA career in August.

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Edson Barboza signs with ACBJJ after ending his 17-year MMA career Barboza announced his retirement following a fourth consecutive defeat, a second-round technical knockout loss to Esteban Ribovics at UFC 330 in Philadelphia. The loss marked the end of his 17-year professional MMA career.

Barboza has now signed with ACBJJ, which holds gi and no-gi Brazilian jiu-jitsu tournaments, superfights and mixed grappling events.

Barboza has already tested himself in grappling. He faced UFC middleweight Sharabutdin Magomedov under the Hype FC banner in March, with their match ending in a draw.

“I did the…

Preston LaGrange made the most of a short-notice opportunity Tuesday, earning an Ultimate Fighting Championship contract with a first-round knockout on Dana White’s Contender Series.

LaGrange (7-1) took on heavy favorite Nell Ariano in a light heavyweight matchup that headlined Week 9 of DWCS Season 10 at Meta Apex in Las Vegas on Oct. 6, securing the finish midway through the opening round to earn his spot on the UFC roster.

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+400 Underdog Preston LaGrange Scores Stunning KO to Earn UFC Contract LaGrange took the fight on two weeks’ notice and moved up a weight class for the opportunity. He weighed in at 199.5 pounds for the light heavyweight bout and was a +400 underdog but proved the oddsmakers wrong with his performance, impressing UFC CEO Dana White and the promotion’s matchmakers.

“It feels good,” LaGrange said in his post-fight interview. “I am excited to be here, and I am ready to put on a show for the UFC.”

When asked when he would …

Ultimate Fighting Championship employee Salhahuddin Everett is now on the promotion’s roster.

Everett entered Week 9 of Dana White’s Contender Series Season 10 on Tuesday with a perfect 4-0 record. He faced fellow unbeaten prospect Ozzy Martin at Meta Apex in Las Vegas and earned a knockout at the 1:57 mark of the first round.

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Salhahuddin Everett knocked out Ozzy Martin to earn a UFC contract at DWCS Week 9 Everett initially joined the UFC through a third-party security agency before eventually becoming a full-time runner for UFC CEO Dana White. “Bundy” secured four straight finishes to begin his pro career and earn a shot at a UFC contract on DWCS.

He unleashed a barrage of punches on Martin, knocking him out to punch his ticket to the roster. Everett then issued a warning to UFC welterweights, saying he won’t back down from any challenge.

“Hey boss, I am ready to be in the UFC,” Everett said in his post-fight interview. “The whole divisio…

Alexander Volkov predicts a hilarious press conference exchange between Alex Pereira and Sergei Pavlovich.

Pereira and Pavlovich are scheduled to collide in an Ultimate Fighting Championship heavyweight matchup at UFC 335 on Dec. 12 at T-Mobile Arena in Las Vegas. Given both fighters’ limited English, Volkov jokingly previewed the back-and-forth between the Brazilian and the Russian.

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Volkov believes Sergei Pavlovich’s power makes him a dangerous stylistic matchup for Pereira Jokes aside, Volkov believes Pavlovich is a bad stylistic matchup for Pereira. He predicts that his countryman’s power will be too much for “Poatan” to handle.

“It will be a very awesome press conference with both of them,” Volkov told Helen Yee. “One of them will say, ‘We’ll see,’ and the other one will say, ‘Chama.’ But I see Alex Pereira going on a losing streak because it’s a very hard matchup for him. Pavlovich punches very hard. Considering [Pereira’s] style, it is a very…

Shavkat Rakhmonov’s return fight could be a welterweight title eliminator.

After being sidelined by recurring knee injuries since December 2024, Rakhmonov has teased a fight against an undefeated opponent with the same record. While he didn’t reveal a name, he appears to be hinting at top-ranked Ultimate Fighting Championship welterweight Michael Morales.

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Shavkat Rakhmonov’s clue points to undefeated UFC contender Michael Morales Rakhmonov hasn’t fought since a win over Ian Garry nearly two years ago. “Nomad” was seen in a protective boot as recently as this past summer but now appears to have a potential opponent in mind.

“19-0 vs 19-0,” Rakhmonov wrote in a TikTok caption.

The only UFC welterweight with the same record as Rakhmonov is Morales, who also recently hinted at a fight booking. Rakhmonov was on the cusp of fighting for a title before his injury setbacks and was subsequently removed from the official welterweight rankings after und…

Dana White is irked with the media for repeatedly bringing up Eddie Hearn during his press conferences.

White and Hearn’s rivalry has been heating up ahead of the long-awaited bout between Tyson Fury and Anthony Joshua, scheduled for Dec. 11 at Principality Stadium in Cardiff, Wales. While White claims he’s involved in promoting and producing the fight alongside Turki Alalshikh, Hearn repeatedly says the Ultimate Fighting Championship CEO isn’t.

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Dana White guarantees he will produce and promote Tyson Fury vs. Anthony Joshua According to Hearn, White cannot get involved in the fight without his approval because of contractual restrictions. The Matchroom Boxing chairman recently said Sela, one of the companies promoting the fight, gave him White’s number to arrange a meeting. While Hearn claims to have texted White, he said White didn’t reply.

Responding to Hearn at the Dana White’s Contender Series Season 10 Week 9 press conference, the Zuffa Boxi…

Islam Makhachev has finally found a serious candidate for one of his Dagestan training offers.

Makhachev’s iconic line, “Send two-three years to Dagestan and forget,” was first used by him to encourage Daniel Cormier to send his son to Russia for wrestling training. While the line has since become part of mixed martial arts folklore, Makhachev has rarely found any serious takers. Unbeaten Ultimate Fighting Championship light heavyweight Navajo Stirling, however, is waiting for an invite.

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Navajo Stirling says he is serious about training in Dagestan if Makhachev extends an invitation Stirling posted a picture of himself wearing a papakha, a traditional wool hat associated with the Caucasus, and wrote on Instagram:

“Islam Makhachev, our saviour, send me 2-3 year Dagestan and forget.”

Stirling has since reiterated that he’s serious about going to Dagestan to train. He noted that while Makhachev has been inviting veterans like Demetrious Johnson,…

The Ultimate Fighting Championship added four new fighters to its roster Tuesday, including a UFC employee.

Week 9 of Dana White’s Contender Series Season 10 went down Oct. 6 at Meta Apex in Las Vegas, where four finishes resulted in as many contracts.

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Dana White signs Mateus Soares, Roque Conceicao, Salhahuddin Everett and Preston LaGrange Alivia Bierley (6-1) and Summer Onley (6-1) kicked off the action, going the distance in their bantamweight bout. Bierley walked away with a unanimous decision win in a lackluster affair, and Dana White didn’t see enough to grant her a UFC contract.

“I had it 1-1 going into the third round,” White said. “And I felt like neither girl tried to really get in there and impose their will and really show they wanted to win that fight. I didn’t see that in that third round, and that’s what made me make my decision. So unfortunately, not tonight.”

While White was disappointed with the first fight, the second gave …