Martial Arts News

😂😂😂 https://t.co/GDGgUYMbtO

— Merab “The Machine” Dvalishvili (@MerabDvalishvil) August 28, 2024

Merab Dvalishvili thinks posting a picture of a cut on his eyelid ahead of a title fight wasn’t that big of a deal.

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Dvalishvili is set to challenge Sean O’Malley for the bantamweight title in the main event at UFC 306 on Sept. 14 at The Sphere in Las Vegas. “The Machine” recently posted a picture of a cut he suffered in sparring on his right eyelid, much to the ire of Dana White. White went off on Dvalishvili during a press conference, deeming it extremely “dumb” of the Georgian contender to reveal a cut ahead of a title fight. However, Dvalishvili doesn’t regret any of it, which he claims was just routine for him. With over three weeks left before the fight when he suffered the cut, Dvalishvili knew he would be healed up in no time.

“I never regret what I did,” Dvalishvili told MMAjunkie.com. “I post this because I post ev…

Austin Bashi and his all-terrain brilliance did not disappoint.

The undefeated Warrior Way Martial Arts prospect was one of five hopefuls to land an Ultimate Fighting Championship contact during Week 4 of Dana White’s Contender Series, as he took out Dorian Ramos with a rear-naked choke in the second round of their welterweight showcase on Tuesday at the UFC Apex in Las Vegas. Ramos (8-3, 0-1 DWCS) capitulated 3:15 into Round 2.

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The 22-year-old Bashi (13-0, 1-0 DWCS) wore down the Apex MMA rep with merciless pace and output. He secured multiple takedowns, paired them with steady ground-and-pound, denied Ramos room to breathe and forced him into a defensive state. Bashi grounded him repeatedly in the second round, broke his considerable resolve and waited for a moment of weakness. He advanced to the back and slipped in the choke when Ramos made the unwise decision to try to stand. Bashi tightened his squeeze, dragged him to the mat and prompted the…

Sherdog's coverage of Dana White's Contender Series Week 4 begins Tuesday at 8 p.m. ET/5 p.m. PT. Round 1 Jason Herzog gets the first assignment of the night. The lightweights trade leg kicks and Salkilld test the waters with a head kick. They trade and Young lands hard enough to make Salkilld stumble backward. He seems to be OK though. Salkilld with a solid body kick. Young answers with a front kick. Salkilld digs the body with a left hook and shoots for a takedown shortly thereafter. Young defends nicely and they separate. Salkilld with a hard body kick as he looks to control the range. Another body kick by the Aussie lands. YOung pressures and lands a head kick. Salkilld lands a left to the body and follows with a switch kick. Young keeps the pressure on and lands a glancing straight right before Salkilld kicks to the body once again. Salkilld tries an unusual takedown attempt. It doesn’t work initially, but he is able to work his way to the back. Young is able to fight t…

A flyweight clash between Brandon Moreno and Amir Albazi will serve as the main event for UFC Fight Night 246 on Nov. 2.

UFC CEO Dana White announced the bout Tuesday on social media. A women’s flyweight tilt pitting Erin Blanchfield against Rose Namajunas, which was originally expected to the the UFC Edmonton headliner, will now be the evening’s co-main event. The card will be held at Rogers Place in Edmonton, Alberta, Canada.

A two-time UFC flyweight champion, Moreno is coming off back-to-back losses against Alexandre Pantoja and Brandon Royval. After falling to Royval via split decision at UFC Fight Night 237 on Feb. 24, the Mexican standout announced that he would be taking some time away from the sport. “The Assassin Baby” owns victories over the likes of Deiveson Figueiredo (twice), Kai Kara-France (twice), Royval and Jussier Formiga during his promotional tenure.

Albazi has been victorious in 17 of his 18 professional fights. He last appeared at U…

#BellatorLondon Fight Card Update

Next week’s Bellator Champion Series: London main event rematch featuring Johnny Eblen (15-0) vs. Fabian Edwards (13-3) Middleweight World Title fight has been rescheduled. A new fight date will be announced in the coming days. The September… pic.twitter.com/sTe2Yzf2S2

— Bellator MMA (@BellatorMMA) September 3, 2024

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The middleweight championship rematch between Johnny Eblen and Fabian Edwards will not take place at Bellator Champions Series London as originally scheduled.

The promotion announced on Tuesday that the bout will be rebooked for a future event, with an announcement to be made in the coming days. As for Bellator London, a women’s featherweight tilt pitting Sara Collins against Leah McCourt has been elevated to the evening’s headliner. A reason for the postponement was not given.

Bellator Champions Series London takes place on Sept. 14 at OVO Arena in London and airs i…

A flyweight clash between Matt Schnell and Alessandro Costa scheduled for UFC Fight Night 242 on Saturday has been scrapped.

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Schnell initially announced the news via YouTube, citing an apparent shoulder injury suffered by his opponent, and it was later confirmed by MMAFighting.com. However, Schnell will remain on the card against replacement opponent Cody Durden. UFC Fight Night 242 takes place at the UFC Apex in Las Vegas and is headlined by a welterweight showdown pitting Gilbert Burns against Sean Brady.

Just signed a new 4 fight deal with the @UFC! See you in Vegas this weekend!Packing my bags now, no cornerman. Just my wife and I. Fuck it, this is what I was born to do. 🙏🇺🇸📞🩸

— Cody Durden (@Cody_Durden) September 3, 2024

Schnell has lost three of his last four Octagon appearances. He last competed at UFC Fight Night 238 on March 2, when he suffered a second-round KO loss to eventual flyweight title challenger Stev…

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Belal Muhammad would love to fight Sean Strickland, but he doesn’t think much of the former middleweight champion as an opponent.

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Muhammad defeated Leon Edwards via unanimous decision in the main event of UFC 304 this past July to win welterweight gold. “Remember the Name” has since been discussing a future move up to middleweight, albeit after he defends his title a few times.

Strickland, who has been beefing with Muhammad over his views on the Israel-Palestine conflict, stands out as a potential opponent should that move happen.

Sean Strickland GOES OFF on Belal Muhammad 😳

"[Belal] is such a f***ing little b*tch bro... listen dude, go to f***ing Palestine, go f***ing fight for your f***ing country.

Get the f*** out of here you f***ing can."

🎥 YT / @jonbernardk #UFC302 #UFC #MMA pic.twitter.com/p7JOFIjOV8

— Championship Rounds (@ChampRDS) May 31, 2024

Muhammad recently reiter…

👀💉Aljamain Sterling accuses Movsar Evloev of taking performance enhancing drugs ahead of their fight at #UFC307:

"From what I've heard through the grapevine, he's not a clean athlete...people can say whatever, you have no proof, I'm like dude same thing people were saying… pic.twitter.com/ssqgAXfp64

— Home of Fight (@Home_of_Fight) September 2, 2024

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Aljamain Sterling claims to have heard some potentially damning rumors about upcoming opponent Movsar Evloev.

Sterling is scheduled to fight the undefeated Russian at UFC 307 on Oct. 5 at the Delta Center in Salt Lake City, Utah. The former bantamweight champ recently hurled serious allegations of PED use against Evloev, who strongly denied them while issuing a stern warning.

Don’t be scared boy, I’ll make it quick. You won’t feel a thing. https://t.co/4rMa3K1l9r

— Movsar Evloev (@MovsarUFC) August 23, 2024

You can ta…

Alexa Grasso has developed a weird chemistry with longtime foe Valentina Shevchenko ahead of their upcoming fight.

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Grasso will look to defend the women’s flyweight title in a trilogy title fight against Shevchenko in the co-main event at UFC 306 on Sept. 14 at The Sphere in Las Vegas. In addition to their history inside the Octagon, Grasso and Shevchenko are also coming off their stints as rival coaches on Season 32 of “The Ultimate Fighter.”

Having shared the set on “TUF 32,” Grasso revealed that she inevitably ended up spending a lot of time with Shevchenko. With less than two weeks to go before they trade leather, the champ claims her relationship with Shevchenko is “really, really weird.” However, Grasso also knows that all that will be left aside on fight night as they put their bodies on the line for UFC gold. Proud to be a part of the first women’s trilogy in UFC history, Grasso promises another barnburner at UFC 306.

“We’ve been so ma…

⚡️🤼‍♂️Robert Whittaker called Gilbert Burns one of the greatest MMA grapplers and gave his prediction on his fight with Sean Bready.

"Gilbert Burns is one of the best grapplers in the history of MMA. He's a phenomenal grappler but in terms of MMA grappling,I think he's one of the… pic.twitter.com/ohmdQ2bM0e

— Home of Fight (@Home_of_Fight) September 2, 2024

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Robert Whittaker recently revealed his pick for the upcoming UFC Fight Night headliner between Gilbert Burns and Sean Brady.

Burns takes on Brady in the main event at UFC Fight Night 242 at the Apex in Las Vegas on Saturday. Coming off a two-fight slump, Burns is an underdog going into the bout against Brady.

However, Whittaker had high praise for Burns while analyzing his upcoming fight. According to “Bobby Knuckles,” the Brazilian is one of the greatest MMA grapplers the sport has ever seen. Whittaker noted that Burns injured his shoulder in the first round o…

Dana White's Contender Series graduates will meet in a bantamweight bout at UFC 308.

Farid Basharat (12-0) has been booked to take on Victor Hugo Silva (25-4) at UFC 308 on Oct. 26 at the Etihad Arena in Abu Dhabi. The matchup was first reported by Ag.Fight. Both fighters have since confirmed the bout on social media.

Basharat earned his UFC contract with a unanimous decision win over Allan Begosso on the Contender Series in 2022. The undefeated Englishman has since mounted a three-fight winning streak in the UFC, which includes a submission over Kleydson Rodrigues. In his most recent outing, Basharat scored a unanimous decision win over French prospect Taylor Lapilus this past January. “Ferocious” was briefly booked to replace Said Nurmagomedov against Montel Jackson at UFC Saudi Arabia in June before withdrawing due to unknown reasons.

A veteran on the regional circuit, Hugo rode a 12-fight winning streak into the Contender Series, where he submitted Ed…

A matchup of intriguing bantamweight talents has been added to UFC 309.

Jonathan Martinez (19-5) is set to trade leather against Marcus McGhee (9-1) at UFC 309 on Nov. 16 at Madison Square Garden in New York. The matchup was first announced by Iridium Sports Agency, which represents both fighters.

The 30-year-old Martinez has racked up a 10-4 record thus far during his UFC career. “Dragon” has bested the likes of Adrian Yanez, Said Nurmagomedov, Cub Swanson and Vince Morales while being finished only once in his entire career — by Davey Grant in 2021. Martinez comes off a unanimous decision loss against Jose Aldo at UFC 301 in May that saw a six-fight winning streak snapped.

Meanwhile, McGhee has scored highlight-reel finishes in all three of his UFC outings so far, earning $50,000 “Performance of the Night” bonuses on every occasion. “The Maniac,” who hasn’t gone the distance in his entire career, is coming off a third-round stoppage of Gaston Bolanos at …