Martial Arts News

Carlos Prates’ preparation for his first Ultimate Fighting Championship title bout is underway.

Prates is seemingly set to challenge Islam Makhachev for the welterweight championship next. Makhachev, who recorded his first title defense at 170 pounds against Ian Garry in August, has singled out Prates as his next opponent. The Russian recently revealed when he’ll return to action and Prates is training hard to give the pound-for-pound king a rough outing.

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Carlos Prates predicts Islam Makhachev will fall to 29-2 in potential UFC title fight Makhachev (29-1) claims he’s looking to return to the Octagon before Ramadan, eyeing late 2026 and early 2027 for his second title defense. Prates (24-7) shared a message for Makhachev on social media, confirming that he’s already training for the Dagestani.

“Yes, Makhachev… Whatever I’m going through here at this gym, somebody is going to pay for it,” Prates said on his Instagram stories. “And guess who’s going …

Tom Aspinall's lengthy absence could force the Ultimate Fighting Championship heavyweight title to be vacated.

Aspinall has not competed since October last year, when his fight with Ciryl Gane ended in a no contest after illegal eye pokes left him unable to continue. The heavyweight champion suffered injuries to both eyes that required surgery and there is still no firm confirmation of his return. UFC CEO Dana White recently weighed in on what’s next in the heavyweight title picture.

Dana White says the UFC will discuss Tom Aspinall’s heavyweight championship status amid his injury absence With Valentina Shevchenko recently vacating the UFC women's flyweight championship after an injury, White was asked whether Aspinall would do the same during the Ryan Garcia vs. Conor Benn post-fight presser.

“We’ll definitely be talking about that,” White told reporters. “It’s one of those – like, Valentina doesn’t want to tie up the division. And I’m assuming Tom feels the same way…

Sean O'Malley had an unexpected incident with a fan while on cornering duty.

The former Ultimate Fighting Championship bantamweight titleholder was in teammate Tommy McMillen’s corner for his featherweight bout against Marwan Rahiki at Noche UFC 4, marking the fan favorite’s first time cornering in an arena. O’Malley recently detailed his experience, including his reaction to a heckling fan.

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Sean O’Malley details bizarre fan encounter while cornering Tommy McMillen at Noche UFC 4 O’Malley recalled an exchange with a heckling fan during McMillen’s walkout in a video posted to his YouTube channel. He claims the fan was hurling expletives at McMillen just before the walkout, prompting the former champ to roll his cap into a ball and throw it at him.

“This one f*cking drunk cowboy guy was shouting, ‘F*ck you Tommy, you f*cking p*ssy,’ for like two minutes,” O’Malley said. “I grabbed my hat and rolled it into a ball and I got it into a nice ball and ri…

Jose Delgado thoroughly enjoyed the experience of fighting Jean Silva, regardless of the outcome.

Delgado headlined for the first time in the Ultimate Fighting Championship against Silva on Sept. 12 in front of a home crowd at Desert Diamond Arena in Glendale, Arizona. Delgado was a massive underdog going into the toughest matchup of his career so far, and while he had his moments, he ultimately came up short.

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Jose Delgado reflects on his submission loss to Jean Silva at Noche UFC 4 Delgado (12-3) gave early hope of an upset as he dropped Silva (18-3) in the first round with a clean cross-hook combo. However, Silva, who had unusually low output in the first round, managed to survive. The Brazilian started gaining momentum in the second stanza as Delgado struggled to find his range, before locking in a slick one-arm rear-naked choke to force a tap in the third period.

Addressing his loss to Silva at Noche UFC 4, Delgado says he enjoyed every moment…

Merab Dvalishvili didn’t rejoice in Umar Nurmagomedov’s knockout loss despite their rivalry.

Nurmagomedov took on Yadong Song in a pivotal bantamweight clash in the Ultimate Fighting Championship in Shanghai, China, in August. The latter perfectly timed an uppercut to knock Nurmagomedov out cold, marking the first stoppage defeat of the Dagestani’s professional career.

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Dvalishvili praises Yadong Song and eyes a future fight after the UFC Shanghai upset While Dvalishvili (21-5) has always been vocal about his dislike for Nurmagomedov (20-2), he claims he wasn’t happy to see his former foe get knocked out so viciously at UFC Shanghai. However, the former champ was happy for Song and is excited by a future matchup with the Chinese 135-pounder.

“Song Yadong’s performance was impressive,” Dvalishvili said in a recent interview. “I always know that guy is dangerous. When I see Umar lose that way, I was not happy because I never wish somebody to lose or …

Arman Tsarukyan is reportedly taking his collaborations with streamers to the next level.

Tsarukyan (23-3) is scheduled to fight Mauricio Ruffy (14-2) on Sept. 19 at Crypto.com Arena in Los Angeles. Streamer Mikyle Rafiq, aka N3on, claims he will be cornering Tsarukyan for the fight along with former Ultimate Fighting Championship middleweight titleholder Khamzat Chimaev.

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N3on says he and Khamzat Chimaev will corner Arman Tsarukyan against Mauricio Ruffy Apart from walking out with the top-ranked UFC lightweight, N3on also claims that Tsarukyan will be walking out to his track, “She wanna hang with an Indian.” N3on is very confident that he will be in Tsarukyan’s corner at UFC 331, allegedly having sent in his corner kit size to the UFC.

“It is a 100% locked in,” N3on said on his Kick stream. “I’ll be in Arman Tsarukyan’s corner for his fight on the 19th. He’s gonna be walking out to ‘She wanna hang with an Indian.’ I’m gonna be standing right next…

A mix-up allegedly caused Oscar De La Hoya to miss Ryan Garcia’s walkout.

Garcia put his WBC welterweight title on the line against Conor Benn in the main event of a Zuffa Boxing card at T-Mobile Arena in Las Vegas on Sept. 12. Fighting on Mexican Independence Day weekend, Garcia expected Mexican-American icon De La Hoya to attend his fight and even revealed that he had invited “The Golden Boy” to walk him out for his fight against Benn.

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Golden Boy says a fight-day mix-up kept Oscar De La Hoya from Garcia vs. Benn Garcia was slightly disappointed to see De La Hoya missing from the event altogether.

“I thought he was gonna be here…” Garcia said after his second-round knockout win over Benn. “I actually invited him to walk out with me. I thought that was gonna be iconic. Everybody was asking where he was.”

Director of De La Hoya’s Golden Boy Promotions, Jane Murcia, claims that the Olympic gold medalist missed Garcia’s walkout due to a mix-up. M…

Khamzat Chimaev believes Arman Tsarukyan is levels above Mauricio Ruffy.

Tsarukyan (23-3) is scheduled to fight Ruffy (14-2) in a pivotal Ultimate Fighting Championship lightweight bout on Sept. 19 at Crypto.com Arena in Los Angeles. While Chimaev considers Ruffy one of the best strikers in the UFC right now, “Borz” believes Tsarukyan won’t face much adversity if he mixes in his ground game at UFC 331.

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Chimaev says Tsarukyan's wrestling and grappling are on a different level from Ruffy's According to Chimaev, Tsarukyan’s wrestling and grappling are levels above his Brazilian counterpart’s. The former UFC middleweight champ Chimaev acknowledges Ruffy’s elite striking ability, but notes that Tsarukyan can hold his own on the feet as well.

“Ruffy’s a top fighter, I think he is one of the best strikers in the UFC right now,” Chimaev told Adam Zubayraev. “I think if Arman works on both levels, there won’t be any problems at all. Arman’s wrestling and gr…

EVERY DOG HAS HIS DAY 😤@JeanSilvamma96 locks in the RNC to earn the finish at #NocheUFC! pic.twitter.com/msnDnfvWBF

— UFC (@ufc) September 13, 2026 The Ultimate Fighting Championship's yearly Noche UFC event saw four fighters earn performance bonuses worth an extra $100,000.

Naturally, the first $100k performance of the night bonus went to main event winner Jean Silva. The Brazilian proved to be too much for Jose Delgado, who tapped to a rear-naked choke in the third round. It wasn't the best outing for "Lord," though, as he started the fight slow, refusing to throw punches at first. Still, the strong finish will stick with the UFC and fans.

The other obvious bonus to give out was to Sean King, who landed a spectacular knockout on the prelims. The featherweight slammed opponent Jessie Rosas on his head to secure a vicious KO. Just 22, the victory came just 36 seconds into his debut fight inside the Octagon. King is now 7-0 as a pro and…

Jean Silva took his gloves off and gave them to Hunter Campbell 😂

📺 @paramountplus pic.twitter.com/bw7AR9CSgC

— UFC on Paramount+ (@UFConParamount) September 13, 2026 Jean Silva scored an important win in the main event of Noche UFC 4 inside the Desert Diamond Arena in Glendale, Arizona, on Saturday, but he seemed completely uninterested throughout.

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Opponent Jose Delgado controlled the pace in the opening round just by throwing a few punches; Silva essentially didn’t even throw one strike for at least three minutes. Delgado (12-3) dropped “Lord” in the first and easily won the frame, but Silva (18-3) woke up in the second and once he established control, he never looked back.

Silva cracked his foe with a right cross midway through the third, and after a scramble on the canvas, the Brazilian seized the local fighter’s back, sunk in a one-armed rear-naked choke, and secured the submission. The end officially came at …

Sherdog's live Noche UFC 4 coverage will begin Saturday at 2 p.m. ET/11 a.m. PT. The event is also known as UFC Fight Night 288.Noche UFC 4 live results, updates and round scoring for Jean Silva vs. Jose Delgado J.J. Aldrich (125) vs. Regina Tarin (125) Round 1 Women’s flyweights kickoff festivities at Noche UFC 4, where Aldrich (15-7, 11-6 UFC) meets the unbeaten 21-year-old Tarin (8-0, 1-0 UFC) at 125 pounds. Gustav Gibson adjudicates matters. No glove touch from the two combatants. Inside leg kick from Aldrich greets the Mexican prospect. Tarin probes with her lead hand, as they size up each other in the center of the cage. Gibson warns both women about extended fingers. Tarin scores with an inside leg kick. Aldrich steps forward and walks into a three-punch volley from her counterpart. They trade in the center, though neither woman gains a discernible advantage. Sharp jab from Aldrich, who changes levels and shoots on the hips. She drives Tarin into the fence and works …

Jonas Magard is starved for new opposition.

The former Oktagon MMA bantamweight champion hasn’t fought in nine months and can’t afford to wait any longer for a shot at his old crown. He’s ready to hunt, but his bloodlust has led him into hostile territory and a new weight division.

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Magard, 34, makes his featherweight debut Saturday when he faces hometown hero Radek Rousal at Oktagon 93, live from Winning Group Arena in Brno, Czech Republic. Magard (19-7) expects to receive the cold shoulder from the Brno fans hoping to see Rousal (7-2) notch a fourth straight knockout, but the Danish veteran plans to leave the crowd at a loss for words.Former Oktagon champion Jonas Magard explains why he's moving to featherweight to face Radek Rousal “I’ve always been the outside guy,” Magard told Sherdog.com. “I’ve always been the guy that has to come in and prove myself. But to be honest, I love fighting the home crowd because I don’t feel the pressure. It’s me aga…