Martial Arts News

The UFC 299 lineup appears to be complete, as the Las Vegas-based promotion recently confirmed the 13-bout card.

Advertisement

Two new bouts were announced in a release on Tuesday: Michel Pereira vs. Michal Oleksiejczuk at middleweight and Robelis Despaigne vs. Josh Parisian at heavyweight. UFC 299 takes place on March 9 at the Kaseya Center in Miami and is headlined by a bantamweight championship clash between Sean O'Malley and Marlon Vera.

Pereira is currently on a six-fight winning streak in UFC competition. While the majority of those triumphs occurred at 170 pounds, “Demolidor” made a successful move to middleweight with a 66-second TKO of Andre Petroski in his last outing at UFC Fight Night 230 on Oct. 14.

Poland’s Oleksiejczuk has won three of his last four Octagon appearances — all via first-round knockout or technical knockout. Most recently, the 28-year-old stopped Chidi Njokuani 4:16 into the opening stanza of their clash at UFC Fight Night 225…

[embedded content]

Islam Makhachev will defend his strap against Justin Gaethje next, according to manager Ali Abdelaziz.

Advertisement

The Ultimate Fighting Championship’s lightweight title picture is currently a bit unclear. Makhachev has already expressed his preference in defending his belt against Gaethje over former opponents Charles Oliveira and Arman Tsarukyan.

Dana White recently announced a matchup between Oliveira and Tsarukyan for UFC 300 on April 13, with the winner securing a next title shot against the champ, who is expected to return after Ramadan.

However, Abdelaziz believes the title picture makes it obvious that Gaethje deserves the next shot against Makhachev, who also continues to chase that matchup.

“I think it’s obvious … Justin Gaethje’s a guy that never wants something to be given to him. He earned it with sweat and blood and tears inside the cage. Islam Makhachev, very interested to fighting him. He said, ‘Doesn’t matter who, when…

Michael Page believes Kevin Holland’s “striking only” experience with Stephen Thompson will prevent him from repeating the same in their upcoming clash.

Advertisement

The former Bellator striking ace is slated to make his Ultimate Fighting Championship debut against Holland at UFC 299 on March 9 at the Kaseya Center in Miami.

Holland had previously agreed to keep the fight standing against Thompson, another elite striker, at UFC on ESPN 42 in December 2022. “Trailblazer” was outclassed on the feet and suffered a fourth-round corner stoppage loss resulting from a hand injury. Page, who sees himself as a better version of “Wonderboy” in many aspects, wouldn’t mind a similar deal with Holland but is quite confident that his opponent won't be up for it.

“I know for a fact Kevin Holland is not going to want to do that agreement again after the whooping that he took against Stephen ‘Wonderboy’ Thompson,” Page recently told MMAjunkie.com. “I see myself as the f…

Former Ultimate Fighting Championship talents Junior dos Santos and Alan Belcher will fight for the inaugural Gamebred Fighting Championship heavyweight title in March.

Advertisement

UFC veteran Jorge Masvidal, the founder of the promotion, announced on Instagram that the fight will be a five-round, gloveless mixed martial arts contest on March 2 at the Kia Center in Orlando, Florida. Tickets for the event go live on Jan. 17 and broadcast information is yet to be revealed.

Dos Santos exited the UFC on a four-fight skid, and he followed that with an injury stoppage loss to Yorgan De Castro in his debut at Khabib Nurmagomedov’s Eagle FC in 2022. “Cigano” defeated fellow UFC veteran Fabricio Werdum in his promotional debut at GFC 5 in September to earn the title shot.

Meanwhile, Belcher retired from MMA in 2013 at the age of 29 following a loss to Michael Bisping at UFC 159. The former UFC middleweight contender returned to combat sports in 2021, competing …

Francis Ngannou isn’t ready to fully commit to fighting mixed martial arts in 2024.

Advertisement

Ngannou, who signed with Professional Fighters League last year, is scheduled to face Anthony Joshua in his second pro boxing match on March 9 in Riyadh, Saudia Arabia. According to Ngannou, the PFL continues to support his forary into the Sweet Science.

“When I received a call and the offer for proposal of this fight (against Joshua), what happened? I reached out to PFL and told them because we’re in the business together,” Ngannou said during an appearance on "The MMA Hour."

“They gave me their blessing and said they can’t take away this opportunity from me, so I was happy to do that. I didn’t want to know what else they’re going to say, as long as they approved. They didn’t have a problem with this.”

Ngannou was previously expected to make his PFL debut sometime in 2024 in the organization’s pay-per-view superfight division. However, Ngannou’s closely-conte…

Khamzat Chimaev claims to have been promised a title shot on his return to the Octagon.

Advertisement

Chimaev made his middleweight debut against Kamaru Usman at UFC 294 in October, picking up a majority decision win over the former welteweight champ. While “Borz” did secure the win, many questioned whether it was enough to warrant an immediate title shot.

The upcoming middleweight title fight between Sean Strickland and Dricus Du Plessis set for UFC 297 on Jan. 20 in Toronto was announced soon after.

Chimaev’s absence from the bout also makes sense considering he recently posted some concerning hospital pictures stating he was recently “very sick.” However, “Borz” claims to be next in line for a middleweight title shot after Strickland and Du Plessis fight at UFC 297.

“A hundred percent. He [Sean Strickland] has good fighter who he’s fighting with, Du Plessis, and if he wins against this guy for sure we’re gonna fight 100 percent. They promised fo…

[embedded content]

Israel Adesanya wanted to throw the kitchen sink at Sean Strickland going into the final frame of their UFC 293 title fight, but coach Eugene Bareman advised otherwise.

Advertisement

Adesanya was a -650 favorite going into his UFC 293 title defense against Strickland, who stepped up on short notice for an injured Dricus Du Plessis. Strickland knocked down the champ in the very first round en route to a dominant decision win in one of the greatest upsets in UFC title fight history.

Adesanya had no doubt he was losing entering the final round and wanted to go out with guns blazing. However, City Kickboxing head coach Eugene Bareman wanted Adesanya to employ a more “tactical” approach.

“I never lost hope,” Adesanya said in an interview with Teddy Atlas. “I went back to the corner, Round 3 or Round 4, whatever it was, I was like, ‘Right, we go this round, we must go this round.’ Even like when I asked Eugene in the fifth round, I said ‘Shou…

[embedded content]

Michael Chandler is seemingly unbothered by Conor McGregor's lengthy absence from the drug testing pool and the rumors that have accompanied that time away.

Advertisement

McGregor hasn’t fought since breaking his leg in a trilogy clash with Dustin Poirier in 2021 and dropped out of the drug testing pool in the third quarter of the year. The Irishman was expected to return to action against Michael Chandler last year following the completion of “The Ultimate Fighter 31,” where the two starred as rival coaches.

However, among other moving pieces, McGregor's delay in returning to the testing pool appeared to be a major reason behind his absence from competition. The Irishman went back and forth with the U.S. Anti-Doping Agency before returning to the testing pool but not before the Ultimate Fighting Championship announced that the promotion would be parting ways with USADA and partnering with Drug Free Sport International at the start of 2024. US…

While Ian Garry on one hand sympathizes with Sean Strickland’s childhood trauma, he believes that doesn't give the UFC middleweight champ free reign to ridicule other fighters and their families.

Advertisement

The feud between the two started with Strickland questioning Garry’s relationship with his wife, who is 14 years older than him. Strickland called “The Future” a “f---ing c--k” leading up to UFC 296, and the two also had a run-in at the UFC Performance Institute. Garry detailed the incident during an appearance on "The MMA Hour".

“I wouldn't say it was a seeing, it was more of a glance, and him being shuffled into a lift, and that was it,” Garry said. “And he had a little snicker on his face, and I shouted something at him — I don’t know what I shouted at him, but I shouted something at him before I even had a chance to think. My body went straight into fight mode, and then the doors closed. There was nothing much to it, to be honest.”

Around the same…

While Bo Nickal was admittedly impressed with Khamzat Chimaev’s UFC 294 win against Kamaru Usman, the wrestling phenom has also spotted a few holes in his game.

Chimaev picked up a majority decision win in his middleweight debut against the former welterweight champ, who accepted the fight on short notice. While Nickal acknowledged the caliber of Chimaev’s win, he did not fail to notice “Borz” gradually slowing down as the fight progressed. Nickal, like others, also believes the decision could have gone the other way had it been a five-rounder. The former Penn State standout, who has called out Chimaev in the past, believes that he has the tools to defeat the Russian-born Swede in a potential clash.

“I think in the first round he looked lights out like he always does. He got Usman on the ground, held him down, beat him up, and was close to a finish a couple of times. But then the pace slowed for both of them as rounds went on... I think there's a lot to take aw…

Since he was already in the rehabilitation process, Jon Jones has decided to take care of some additional ailments while he waits.

Advertisement

The UFC heavyweight champion revealed on social media that he recently underwent surgery on his left elbow. Jones has been sidelined after suffering a torn pectoral in training prior to a scheduled title defense against Stipe Miocic this past November.

“Back out here in California with Dr. [Neal] ElAttrache, this time instead of doing a pec repair, we are working on my left elbow,” Jones said in a video on his Instagram stories. “I’m actually about one hour off the table. We had a two-hour surgery shaving down some bone spurs. The good news is it’s about a 10-week healing process, and I’m out for months anyway, because of this pec surgery, so I thought I’d just kill two birds and get this elbow taken care of once and for all.

“I appreciate all the support. Your boy’s back in the sling, back on this recovery journ…

The mystery regarding Charles Oliveira’s next opponent is over, as the Brazilian will face Arman Tsarukyan in a contender’s bout at UFC 300.

Advertisement

While it was rumored that Justin Gaethje would receive the next lightweight title shot against reigning champion Islam Makhachev, UFC CEO Dana White added some clarity to the situation during his announcement on Sunday night.

"The winner will face Islam when he returns this summer," White said.

Shortly after the official announcement, Oliveira’s coach, Diego Lima, revealed further details regarding the negotations in an interview with Sherdog.com.

"As I [said] a few weeks ago, Charles' main focus was the belt. If Makhachev would fight, the opponent would be Charles, but many things have happened since we talked,” Lima said. “Makhachev is still injured and besides that, he will have Ramadan. And after Ramadan he will need time to get ready.

“Since Charles is a former champion and No. 1 ranked [in t…