Martial Arts News

Charles Oliveira claims that he wasn’t in the right mindset heading into his lightweight title bout against Islam Makhachev at UFC 280.

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In an interview with Brazilian outlet AgFight, Oliveira admitted that his mentality was affected by the tension surrounding the fight, which Makhachev won via second-round submission in October 2022. Part of that was due to statements made by Khabib Nurmagomedov expressing extreme confidence in his protege. Those, Oliveira says, caused him to “get too involved” in wanting to make a statement against his opponent.

“Do Bronx” has vowed that he won’t get distracted by outside comments before his rematch with Makhachev at UFC 294.

“I said some things for that fight that I shouldn't have said. That wasn't me. I ended up getting too emotionally involved,” Oliveira said. “I’ll never say I'm going to kill someone, curse or anything like that. And at times I ended up saying this about Islam: 'Oh, I'm going to kill th…

It appears that Molly McCann’s time as a UFC flyweight has run its course.

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The popular English fighter indicated that a move to strawweight is imminent in a social media post on Monday. McCann is coming off a first-round submission loss to Julija Stoliarenko in the UFC Fight Night 224 co-main event on Saturday.

“If there’s one thing I know, it’s how to always overcome adversity and this is no different,” McCann wrote. “20 months ago I was sitting in this same position, [back to back] losses and ready to pack it in. Then a boss run and my world changed forever.

“We have one more adjustment to make and I believe that will make all the difference in the world, the smallest in the division makes it tough when the opponents are so much bigger. So for me it’s time to drop down and face the girls who are the same size!”

McCann has competed primarily at 125 pounds during her tenure with the Las Vegas-based promotion, compiling a 6-5 record alo…

And just like that... I get to smoke an insurrectionist. #TruthVsMiletichhttps://t.co/RZSSrWGFuN pic.twitter.com/V0jtYvX92E

— Mike Jackson, Esq. (@TheTruthJackson) July 24, 2023

UFC Hall of Famer Pat Miletich will return to mixed martial arts at 55 years old when he faces four-time Octagon vet Mike Jackson at a Caged Aggression event in October.

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The promotion recently announced the bout, which is part of a two-night event and takes place at the River Center in Davenport, Iowa. According to a release, “this confrontation between the two fighters encapsulates the broader societal divisions and political conflicts prevalent in today’s world.” The bad blood between the two apparently stems from Jackson’s reaction to Miletich’s participation during the now-infamous protests at the U.S. Capitol on Jan. 6, 2021.

Miletich, a former UFC welterweight champion, hasn’t competed professionally in MMA since Dec. 11, 2008, when he d…

London has been a popular destination for the Ultimate Fighting Championship in recent months.

The latest visit occurred this past Saturday, as UFC Fight Night 224 took place at the O2 Arena and saw Tom Aspinall make a triumphant return with a first-round technical knockout of Marcin Tybura in the evening’s main event. According to UFC senior vice president Dave Shaw, the event was an all-around success — and maybe a little bit less hectic than the previous visit.

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“The trip was great. It feels like home. We’ve been here four times in the last 18 months,” Shaw said at Saturday’s post-fight press conference. “For us, coming off of [the UFC 286] pay-per-view in March, where it was a very intense week – big week, lots going on, big card, Dana [White] and the whole crew, everyone here – it felt a little bit more manageable. But it felt like home. We’ve been in The O2 so many times now. I think for our crews, for the teams, it was fairly straightforward. Re…

Tom Aspinall put the Ultimate Fighting Championship’s heavyweight division on notice Saturday.

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In his first fight in a year, the Englishman blitzed Marcin Tybura for a 73-second technical knockout victory in the UFC Fight Night 224 headliner at the O2 Arena in London. Aspinall’s blend of skill and athleticism was on full display, and he appears to be a difficult matchup for most anyone in the weight class. That includes Jon Jones, who Aspinall hasn’t been shy about mentioning as a desired opponent.

“I think I match up well,” Aspinall said at Saturday’s post-fight press conference. “It’s a dream fight of mine. I think I’m young and I’m fresh. I’ve not got loads of miles on the clock. I’m big. I can do everything well. I’m fast, I’m strong, I’m heavy, which is unlike a lot of his opponents who he’s fought in the past. I just think I bring something different to him, and I think he knows that, as well.”

Aspinall’s callout drew Jones’ attention, a…

EASY WORK for @AspinallMMA 👀

He gets the finish in the first round! #UFCLondon pic.twitter.com/TtKd6uUR3f

— UFC (@ufc) July 22, 2023 The Ultimate Fighting Championship awarded four fighters performance bonuses following the UFC Fight Night 224 card.

Tom Aspinall impressed in his return from injury as the heavyweight contender quickly ran through Marcin Tybura. Aspinall's slicing elbows and powerful punches put away Tybura in slightly over a minute. The impressive TKO win was enough for the British fighter to earn a Performance of the Night bonus and take home an extra $50,000. The fight was officially stopped at 1:13 of the first round.

The other Performance of the Night bonus went to Paul Craig. After a rough first round, "Bearjew" managed to put away Andre Muniz with a series of brutal elbows. Finally, Fight of the Night went to Danny Roberts and Jonny Parsons, which earned both fighters an extra $50,000. Parsons wound up fin…

Tom Aspinall didn’t miss a beat.

Almost a year to the day since he suffered a knee injury in a loss to Curtis Blaydes, Aspinall returned to form with a first-round technical knockout victory against Marcin Tybura in the UFC Fight Night 224 headliner at the O2 Arena in London on Saturday. The heavyweight bout was called off just 73 seconds after it began.

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“This is a whole new version of me. I’m not going to say that I’m back… I’m just different now than what I was last year,” Aspinall said. “My mind’s different. My body’s different. I’m going all the way.”

Aspinall didn’t give Tybura (24-8, 11-7 UFC) a chance to get going. The Englishman rattled his foe with a head kick at the outset of the fight, and then showcased his speed and mobility by making the Pole swing at air. Shortly thereafter, Aspinall (13-3, 6-1 UFC) stopped Tybura in his tracks with a step-in elbow before dropping him with a right hand. From there, the Team Kaobon standout unleash…

Sherdog's live UFC Fight Night 224 coverage will begin Saturday at 12 p.m. ET. BETTING PREVIEW | SCOUTING REPORT | ODDS: Filho (-125), Barez (+105)Round 1 Sherdog Scores Jay Pettry scores the round:Tristen Critchfield scores the round:Tyler Treese scores the round:

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Round 2 Sherdog Scores Jay Pettry scores the round:Tristen Critchfield scores the round:Tyler Treese scores the round:Round 3 Sherdog Scores Jay Pettry scores the round:Tristen Critchfield scores the round:Tyler Treese scores the round: The Official Result BETTING PREVIEW | SCOUTING REPORT | ODDS: Brasil (-150), Bannon (+130)Round 1 Sherdog Scores Jay Pettry scores the round:Tristen Critchfield scores the round:Tyler Treese scores the round:Round 2 Sherdog Scores Jay Pettry scores the round:Tristen Critchfield scores the round:Tyler Treese scores the round:Round 3 Sherdog Scores Jay Pettry scores the round:Tristen Critchfield scores the round:Tyler Treese scores the round:The Official Result …

JONNY PARSONS WITH SECONDS LEFT IN THE ROUND 😲 #UFCLondon pic.twitter.com/DUn027uR21

— ESPN MMA (@espnmma) July 22, 2023

Syndicate MMA product Jonny Parsons outdueled English veteran Danny Roberts during a wild second-round brawl for a technical knockout victory in the featured welterweight prelim at UFC Fight Night 224 in London on Saturday. Parsons brought the show to a close at the 4:57 mark of Round 2 for his sixth straight win. Roberts has lost three straight fights dating back to May 2022.

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Roberts (18-8, 7-7 UFC started well, using his reach and superior boxing to get the better of Parsons (9-3, 1-0 UFC) in the opening stanza. That changed in the second period when Parsons clipped his foe with a clean right to the jaw. From there, Roberts threw caution to the wind — to his detriment. Parsons had Roberts reeling with a series of knees and uppercuts against the fence, forcing “Hot Chocolate” to shoot for a takedown …

[embedded content] The Ultimate Fighting Championship's return to England is set after the official weigh-ins took place.

All 30 fighters on the UFC Fight Night 224 card successfully made weight, including heavyweight headliners Tom Aspinall and Marcin Tybura. It will be the local combatant that will be the heavier man in the cage on Saturday, as Aspinall checked in 12 pounds higher than Tybura. Both men are signed up for five potential rounds of action.

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This marks the first fight for Aspinall (12-3) since suffering a knee injury just 15 seconds into his encounter with Curtis Blaydes last year. Almost exactly one year later, Aspinall will look to return to the form that had him undefeated inside the Octagon. Prior to the setback, the English heavyweight had wreckedAlexander Volkov, Sergey Spivak and Andrei Arlovski in the span of about 13 months. Aspinall officially weighed 258 pounds, the heaviest in his UFC career to date.

This marks the second …

After weathering an early storm, a comeback late in the round secured the TKO win for Mick Stanton. He retains the CW Middleweight Title 🏆 what an incredible fight by both competitors 👏#CW157 pic.twitter.com/xIqxgm55It

— Cage Warriors (@CageWarriors) July 21, 2023 Cage Warriors Fighting Championship mainstay Mick Stanton now knows the sweet taste of revenge.

For as long as it lasted, the CW 157 headliner was a slugfest starring Stanton (12-7, 9-5 CW) and James Webb (9-5-1, 8-5-1 CW) with the middleweight championship on the line. In their first clash, Webb defeated Stanton by unanimous decision. This time, the match was far, but much was more intense. Webb rocked his adversary right out of the gate with powerful strikes, keeping Stanton guessing until dropping him with a powerful body shot. Stanton recovered quickly enough and fired back with a vengeance. Thanks to a series of quick fists and a well-timed uppercut, Stanton rebounded and dropped…

[embedded content] The Legacy Fighting Alliance returns for its second event of July.

Headlining the nine-fight LFA 163 card is featherweight championship collision for the vacant belt between Elijah Johns and Javier Garcia. Both participants made weight for the five-round bout. However, there were three main card weight misses, as Johnny Hopper, Matheus Pereira and Angel Alvarez all came in heavy for their respective bouts.

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An LFA mainstay, Johns (9-2) bounced back from a 2021 split decision defeat to Bruno Souza by defeating Brandon Phillips and Masuto Kawana both by unanimous decision. Winner of seven of his last eight appearances, the Dallas native stepped on the scale weighing 144.6 pounds.

Meanwhile, Garcia (10-5) has won three of his last four after also losing on the scorecards to the aforementioned Souza. Recent victories over Leandro Gomes and Albert Morales earned "El Mariachi" a shot at championship gold. The 31-year-old officially weig…