Martial Arts News

Merab Dvalishvili won’t be back in the Octagon until later this year.

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The UFC bantamweight contender recently underwent surgery on his right hand and is expected to spend approximately six to eight weeks in a splint. His return to full contact, including punching, isn’t expected to occur until 10 to 12 weeks after the procedure. Dvalishvili’s manager, Oren Hodak, initially confirmed the news to MMAFighting.com.

Dvalishvili has won his last nine bouts in UFC competition. Most recently, “The Machine” earned an impressive five-round verdict over ex-champ Petr Yan in the UFC Fight Night 221 headliner on March 11. He also owns notable wins over the likes of Jose Aldo, Marlon Moraes, Cody Stamann and John Dodson.

While Dvallishvili is currently a title contender at 135 pounds, he has stated on multiple occasions that he won’t challenge for the belt as long as Serra-Longo Fight Team stablemate Aljamain Sterling is champion. Sterling is currently sc…

The 2023 Professional Fighters League campaign will have to move on without defending light heavyweight champion Rob Wilkinson.

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Wilkinson has failed a drug test following his victory over Thiago Santos at PFL 1 and has been pulled from a scheduled clash against Ty Flores at PFL 4 on June 8. Wilkinson will also miss the rest of the PFL season due to a pending suspension. MMA Mania was first to report Wilkinson’s failed drug test. The substance for which Wilkinson tested positive has not been revealed.

As a result, Flores will now face Dan Spohn at PFL 4, which takes place at Overtime Elite Arena in Atlanta. Wilkinson vs. Flores was slated to be the card’s co-main event.

Wilkinson is just the latest — and perhaps most prominent — PFL athlete to fail a drug test following the league’s first three events. Nine fighters, including Santos, have either been fined and suspended or are facing sanctions from the Nevada Athletic Commission after testi…

Aaron Pico will lock horns with Pedro Carvalho in a featherweight duel at Bellator 299.

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The California-based promotion announced the bout on Tuesday. Bellator 299 takes place at 3Arena in Dublin, Ireland on Sept. 23 and is headlined by a middleweight championship showdown between Johnny Eblen and Fabian Edwards.

After a shoulder injury led to a technical knockout loss against Jeremy Kennedy at Bellator 286 in October, Pico returned to the win column at Bellator 295, taking a clear-cut unanimous verdict against James Gonzalez on April 22. The 26-year-old Jackson-Wink MMA product has won seven of his last eight contests under the Bellator banner.

According to a release, Carvalho recently signed a new Bellator deal. The SBG Ireland export is 2-2 in his last four outings ? including a decision defeat to Kennedy in his most recent appearance at Bellator 291. The Portugal native owns notable wins over the likes of Mads Burnell, Daniel Weichel, Sam…

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With the premiere of “The Ultimate Fighter 31” on Tuesday night, the countdown for Conor McGregor’s Octagon return begins in earnest.

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“It’s time for me to immerse myself back in the game,” McGregor said in an interview on the UFC’s YouTube channel. “I’m excited to get back. I couldn’t turn down the offer.”

The former UFC two-division champion said that coaching on the long-running reality show was beneficial to his own development. McGregor previously served as a coach against Urijah Faber on “TUF 22” in 2015.

“I enjoyed myself the last time,” McGregor said. “For me when I start teaching, and I used to coach a boxing class [for John Kavangh] many years ago before I got into the UFC…me committing to coaching a class and coaching a couple of people, it almost forced me to dial in a bit more. I had to think about the technique. I had to think about the way I was gonna teach, why I was teaching. It just allowed me to actually get …

Amanda Nunes’ loss to Julianna Pena at UFC 269 was one of the biggest upsets in the sport’s history, and it took a mental toll on the Brazilian in the immediate aftermath.

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In fact, Nunes considered calling it a career following the second-round submission defeat at UFC 269.

“I was very confused. Losing my belt was crazy,” Nunes said in a recent interview with ESPN. “But at the same time, I know I was sad. Something was wrong. Something wasn’t right. And that’s why it looked, like, not real for me. And then when actually I saw [coach Din Thomas], right in the arena outside, and I gave him a hug, I looked at him and I said, ‘I think I’m done.’ And we looked at each other, and he looked [at me]: ‘Are you sure? OK, call me later. Talk to me later.’”

Ultimately, Nunes had a change of heart, which would set the stage for a rematch with Pena in 2022.

“I drove back home, and I was putting my thoughts together. Everything. What I went through, going t…

Joanne Wood will square off against Priscila Cachoeira in a flyweight bout at UFC 291.

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Cachoeira confirmed the pairing on social media following an initial report from The Mirror. UFC 291 takes place at the Delta Center in Salt Lake City, Utah, on July 29 and is headlined by a lightweight scrap pitting Dustin Poirier against Justin Gaethje.

Wood halted a three-bout losing streak in her first outing of 2023, as she garnered a split-decision triumph against Luana Carolina at UFC 286 on March 18. The Invicta FC veteran is 8-7 during her UFC tenure, with wins over the likes of Jessica Eye, Andrea Lee, Valerie Letourneau and Seo Hee Ham.

Cachoeira, meanwhile, has been victorious in four of her last five Octagon appearances. “Zombie Girl” went 2-0 in 2022, defeating Ji Yeon Kim via unanimous decision at UFC Fight Night 202 before earning a TKO triumph against Ariane Lipski at UFC on ESPN 41.

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Muhammadjon Naimov will make his Octagon debut on less than a week’s notice.

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The former Dana White’s Contender Series competitor will replace Guram Kutateladze and meet Jamie Mullarkey in a featherweight bout at UFC on ESPN 46. MMA Mania was first to report the new booking. Visa issues reportedly forced Kutatelade to withdraw from the bout. UFC on ESPN 46 takes place Saturday at the UFC Apex in Las Vegas and is headlined by a flyweight tilt pitting Kai Kara France against Amir Albazi.

Naimov will enter the matchup with Mullarkey on a three-bout winning streak. He appeared on the Contender Series in September 2020, losing a unanimous decision to Collin Anglin. “Hillman” is 8-2 as a professional, which includes a 5-1 mark within the Titan FC organization.

Mullarkey has been victorious in four of his last five UFC appearances. Most recently, the 28-year-old Australian outpointed Francisco Prado at UFC 284 on Feb. 11.

Israel Adesanya and Alex Pereira put their rivalry on hold to share a few laughs when they recently crossed paths at the airport.

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Both fighters were in Melbourne, Australia this past week. Adesanya trained with the New Zealand Warriors rugby team, while Pereira visited the Melbourne Storm. Adesanya and Pereira were also in attendance for the boxing match between Joseph Parker and Faiga Opelu.

Though they didn’t meet during that time, they did end up at the airport at the same time. In Pereira’s video, Adesanya jokingly hides his face when the camera finds him, while Pereira flexes in the distance in the version filmed by the “The Last Stylebender.”

Guess who I met at the airport ? 👀 pic.twitter.com/c2xr4MAVUs

— Alex "Poatan" Pereira (@AlexPereiraUFC) May 29, 2023

💘💘💘❤️‍🔥My life is a video game 🎮 pic.twitter.com/MoIdUniTJv

— Israel Adesanya (@stylebender) May 29, 2023

Adesanya and Perei…

𝙎𝙐𝙋𝙀𝙍𝙎𝙃𝙊𝙒 🇺🇸🇯🇵

Bellator MMA and @rizin_PR present the biggest cross-promotion of the summer! 🔥 Which fight are you most hyped for? #BellatorxRizin2 | Sun, July 30 | 📍 Saitama Super Arena pic.twitter.com/0y1v3TzUMe

— Bellator MMA (@BellatorMMA) May 27, 2023

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Bellator MMA and Rizin Fighting Federation have worked well together in recent years, and that relationship will continue with a dual-promotion event in Japan on July 30.

Unlike the previous iteration on New Year’s Eve, the upcoming card will be composed of two separate events, with Bellator bouts taking place in a cage and Rizin fights happening in a ring. Still, it’s rare to see two promotions working in such a collaborative fashion in this day and age. According to Bellator president Scott Coker, it’s something that should revolutionize the sport.

“This is unbelievable,” Coker said at a press conference to promote the upcoming event. “Last time I saw [Rizin pr…

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Rizin Fighting Federation and Bellator MMA plan to pull out all the stops for their upcoming head-to-head showcase.

In a joint press conference Saturday morning, Rizin CEO Nobuyuki Sakakibara and his Bellator counterpart Scott Coker, alongside a collection of stars from their respective organizations, announced the date, location and a partial lineup for their next collaboration. Bellator vs. Rizin 2 will be held on July 30 at Saitama Super Arena in Saitama, Japan. Like the first “Bellator vs. Rizin,” which took place on New Year’s Eve in Saitama, the newly announced card will pit champions and top contenders from both promotions against one another, some in the Bellator cage under the Unified Rules of MMA and some in Rizin’s trademark boxing-style ring, under Rizin rules. Notably, Rizin’s rule set allows soccer kicks and stomps to grounded opponents, while prohibiting elbow strikes.

Among the matchups announced on Saturday were former Bellato…

LFA brings the Interim #LightHeavyweight Championship to @Caragua_Oficial, #SãoPaulo, #Brazil at #LFA159! 🏆

Rodolfo "Trator" Bellato🆚Acácio "Pequeno" Dos Santos

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TOMORROW!#CIDECasaBranca#Caraguatatuba, #SaoPaulo, #Brazil#MMA#LFANation@UFCFightPass pic.twitter.com/fqvYCo0uyh — LFA (@LFAfighting) May 26, 2023 The Legacy Fighting Alliance returns to Brazil for LFA 159, which is headlined by an interim light heavyweight title fight.

Fighting for the interim belt in the main event will be light heavyweight prospects Rodolfo Bellato and Acacio dos Santos. Both headliners successfully made weight, as Bellato (9-2) checked in at 204.6 pounds, while dos Santos weighed 202 pounds. Three fighters failed to make the contracted weight for their respective fights, though, as Luiz Cesar da Silva Junior, Argemiro Delmandes and Rafaela Silva all came in overweight.

Bellato comes into the title fight having won four of his …

Bellator MMA is expanding, despite what recent rumors may be suggesting for the company.

MMA Junkie first broke the news on Thursday that the promotion was planning on officially launching a men’s flyweight category. News of this development has since been confirmed by other outlets. The specific date that it will kick off this new division is unclear, and no news has developed regarding the potential signing of competitors to populate its roster.

Despite having no official flyweight weight class, the organization booked over 50 fights at 125 pounds over the years for male fighters. Of note, both Josh Paiva and Zarrukh Adashev both notched three victories in that specific category in the past. The most recent match that took place at flyweight for Bellator came at Bellator 277 in April 2022, when Edwin De Los Santos faced and defeated Alberto Mendez by decision. Before then, De Los Santos accounted for the only 125-pound bout in the last two years, when he knocked ou…