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🚨| Israel Adesanya was seemingly involved in a road rage incident, in New Zealand. 😬#MMA #UFC pic.twitter.com/oHAYyZAtnK

— MMA Frenzy (@mma_frenzy) September 5, 2024

Israel Adesanya opened up on a recent heated confrontation involving another individual in New Zealand.

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Adesanya was recently filmed getting into a spat with an unidentified person in his home country. The footage shows the former UFC middleweight champ trying to get inside his car while arguing the person who repeatedly flexes his biceps. “The Last Stylebender” appears to spit at the person before the video ends.

While the reason for the altercation is unclear from the video, Adesanya claims the man was trying to coax him into a fight while he tried his best to de-escalate the situation. Adesanya also says he’ll press charges against the man for racially abusing him and threatening violence.

“On Wednesday morning, I was leaving a cafe on K Rd when a p…

Khabib Nurmagomedov reveals a pic with black eye after sparring session 😳#UFC #MMA pic.twitter.com/bXCHtBlRtI

— Sportskeeda MMA (@sportskeedaMMA) September 1, 2024

Usman Nurmagomedov recently shared how Khabib Nurmagomedov got a black eye in sparring.

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Khabib recently posted a picture of himself with a black eye, along with a caption wondering if the years are catching up with him.

According to Usman, “The Eagle” had allowed him a morning of rest on the day of the incident. When a surprised Usman asked him about the black eye in the evening, Khabib revealed that another teammate of theirs, Islam Mamedov had elbowed him while sparring.

“No no, it’s when he grapple with Islam Mamedov, there [it happened],” Usman told Sportskeeda MMA. “That day I was rest morning because Khabib pushed me all week and he said, ‘Today you rest.’ He come, I said, ‘What happened with your eye.’ He’s like, ‘Islam Mamedov give me elbow.’” Read more

[embedded content] Bellator MMA will put on its first show since June. All fighters made weight for the 10-fight card, which is headlined by Usman Nurmagomedov putting his lightweight title on the line against Alexandr Shabliy.

The undefeated Nurmagomedov (17-0, 1 NC) is coming off an overturned victory over Brent Primus after failing a drug test for a prescription medicine. The Russian wasn't stripped of the title, though, which he won off Patricky Freire in 2022. This will look to be Nurmagomedov's third defense as he submitted Benson Henderson in between the two aforementioned fights. The 26-year-old officially weighed 154.8 pounds.

Meanwhile, this is the first Bellator main event for Shabliy (24-3). "Peresvet" is 5-0 inside the promotion with notable wins over Freire, Primus and Tofiq Musayev. The 31-year-old will look to make a statement in his first title opportunity and also weighed 154.8 pounds.

Bellator Champions Series San Diego Weigh-in Results: Usman Nur…

First to the scale 😤

Sean Brady weighs-in at 171lbs!

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[ #UFCVegas97 | TOMORROW on @ESPNPlus | 7pmET/4pmPT ] pic.twitter.com/dZ2W3VFGsP — UFC (@ufc) September 6, 2024 Editor's note: The article was updated at 1:45 p.m. on Friday to reflect fine amounts.

The Ultimate Fighting Championship kicks off September by returning to Las Vegas for UFC Fight Night 242.

The 12-fight card will be headlined by Gilbert Burns and Sean Brady. Both of the welterweight contenders successfully made weight, but two other fighters did not. Kyle Nelson (148.5) came in 2.5 pounds overweight for his featherweight fight against Steve Garcia. Meanwhile, Dylan Budka (188.5) also clocked in 2.5 pounds over the middleweight limit for his bout versus Andre Petroski. As a result, both will be fined 20% of their purses.

This marks the third UFC main event for Burns (22-7). "Durinho" is looking to bounce back from a two-fight skid that saw him co…

[embedded content] Twenty years later, the story of the disappearance of Priscila Belfort, sister of Vitor Belfort, remains unfinished.

In January 2004, Belfort prevailed over Randy Couture to earn the Ultimate Fighting Championship lightweight throne. Instead of celebrating the victory—a doctor stoppage due to a cut inflicted to Couture’s eyelid—Belfort broke down in tears in his post-fight interview. “The Phenom” revealed that his sister had disappeared earlier in the month. As of September 2024, she still has not been found.

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The harrowing tale of the Belfort family will be shown in a four-part documentary series titled “Volta Priscila,” or “Come Back Priscila.” It will air on Disney+ in Brazil on Sept. 25. It is currently unclear whether the documentary will be dubbed or subtitled in English for international release.

Priscila disappeared on January 9, 2004. At the time, the sister of Vitor worked at the Municipal Department of Sports and Leisur…

[embedded content] No matter who gets it done on Saturday, the world of MMA will see a new Russian millionaire.

Atop Bellator Championship Series: Nurmagomedov vs. Shabliy in San Diego on Sept. 7, Usman Nurmagomedov (17-0, 1 NC) will put his lightweight strap on the line against Alexander Shabliy (24-3). The victor will not only claim the Bellator MMA 155-pound throne, but also a check for $1 million. On their way to glory, both Russians defeated former champ Patricky Freire, who weighed in on the matchup to Sherdog.

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At Bellator 288 in November 2022, Freire surrendered his belt to Nurmagomedov prior to the commencement of the tourney. A year later, “Pitbull” collided with Shabliy at Bellator 301, and he lost on the scorecards once more. With the experience of facing both across 25-minute engagements, the ex-champ believes the fight will be a lengthy endeavor, while suggesting that sizeable betting underdog +325 Shabliy should be favored.

“I believe…

An undisclosed illness has forced Ovince St. Preux to withdraw from a proposed light heavyweight clash against Ryan Spann at UFC Fight Night 242.

Spann will not remain on the card against a replacement opponent, and as a result, Saturday’s event will proceed with 12 bouts. UFC Fight Night 242 takes place at the UFC Apex in Las Veags and is headlined by a welterweight clash between Gilbert Burns and Sean Brady. The evening’s main card airs on ESPN+ beginning at 7 p.m. ET/4 p.m. PT, while prelims stream on ESPN+ at 4 p.m. ET/1 p.m. PT.

A former football player at the University of Tennessee, St. Preux has won two of his last three Octagon appearances. Most recently, he took a split verdict over Kennedy Nzechukwu at UFC Fight Night 239 on March 16. St. Preux’s 25 UFC appearances at 205 pounds rank No. 1 all-time in promotion history.

Spann has lost three straight outings, falling to Nikita Krylov, Anthony Smith and Bogdan Guskov in succession. The Fortis MMA …

Djorden Ribeiro dos Santos didn’t let the odds get in the way of his dreams.

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The Brazilian was one of five fighters to earn a UFC contract on Week 4 of Dana White's Contender Series on Tuesday night, as he outdueled English prospect Will Currie to earn a unanimous decision triumph at the UFC Apex in Las Vegas.

“I got really happy about [Dana White’s] words. He summarized my history,” Santos said. “I knew Currie would be a hell of a challenge. The guy was the No. 1 in the UK for a reason, but the fact of being a 4-1 underdog just motivated me.”

Santos came from a difficult life to pursue his goal of becoming a professional fighter.

“I left my mom's house when I was 13 years old and went to live in [Belo Horizonte]. Since I didn’t have money and anywhere to sleep, I lived in a pitbull kennel. My mother started sending me around $10 a week to help me. At the beginning, I had to eat biscuits and [drink] those artificial powder juices. But I sta…

It will be a while before Blagoy Ivanov is able to return to active competition.

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The Professional Fighters League heavyweight has been suspended for 22 months after testing positive for an anabolic agent in an out-of-competition sample collected on March 28, USADA announced on Wednesday. According to a statement from the anti-doping body, the “urine sample was analyzed using a specialized test that differentiates between anabolic androgenic steroids naturally produced by the body and prohibited anabolic agents of external origin.”

Ivanov received a reduction to his sanction for his “full and complete cooperation.” The soon to be 38-year-old Bulgarian will be eligible to return in January 2026.

A former World Series of Fighting who made his PFL debut in 2017, Ivanov returned to the organization on April 4, when he suffered a unanimous decision defeat to Sergey Bilostenniy at PFL 1. Ivanov has lost three straight bouts dating back to February…

Joshua Van will replace Kevin Borjas and fight Edgar Chairez at UFC 306.

MMAjunkie.com was first to report the new flyweight booking. UFC 306 takes place at The Sphere in Las Vegas on Sept. 14 and is headlined by a bantamweight title clash between Sean O’Malley and Merab Dvalishvili. A reason for Borjas’ withdrawal is currently unknown.

Van had an eight-bout winning streak snapped in his last Octagon appearance, as he suffered a third-round knockout loss against Charles Johnson at UFC on ESPN 59 on July 13. Prior to that, the 22-year-old had earned successive triumphs over Zhalgas Zhumagulov, Borjas and Felipe Bunes to begin his promotional tenure.

Chairez, who was part of the inaugural Noche UFC event last year, is coming off a first-round submission win over Daniel da Silva at UFC Fight Night 237 on Feb. 24. That helped erase the sting of his first meeting with da Silva at UFC Fight Night 227, which was declared a no contest when referee Chris Tognoni wa…

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Belal Muhammad recently detailed a part of camp that was a game changer in his title fight with Leon Edwards.

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Muhammad got his title shot against Edwards in the main event at UFC 304 in Manchester, England, this past July. “Remember the Name” put on a dominant display, completely outclassing Edwards in almost all aspects to earn a unanimous decision win.

A big part of Muhammad’s win had to do with his consistent forward pressure against Edwards, who is known for his ability to control range. And the new champ revealed that it did not come to him easily. Muhammad claims to have taken thousands of body kicks while constantly moving forward during sparring in preparation for the Edwards matchup. If he failed to do so, his coaches were always quick to remind him, making him reach a point where moving forward just became a mantra.

“Especially because Leon’s so good at lateral movement… So for me I was like, I can’t be in kicking …

Alex Pereira has created a stir by announcing that his desire to return to the middleweight division.

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Pereira defends his light heavyweight title against Khalil Rountree in the main event at UFC 307 on Oct. 5 at the Delta Center in Salt Lake City, Utah. The Brazilian had previously expressed interest in moving back down to middleweight after Dricus Du Plessis’ successful title defense against Israel Adesanya at UFC 305 last month. Pereira recently revealed that he is now decided on moving to 185 pounds after his clash against Rountree, regardless of the result.

“I’m focused on my next fight and I’m going prepared but you never know what can happen, so regardless of the result I want to go down one more time to the middleweight and go for the belt, “Pereira wrote on Instagram. “Hey Dricus, bring your will to fight me so you can prove that you are better than me, with your public statement it is easy to make this happen. Chama.”

Widely considered…