Martial Arts News

Gunnar Nelson has a new opponent at UFC 286.

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The promotion recently announced that Bryan Barberena will replace Daniel Rodriguez and face the Iceland native in a welterweight bout on March 18 at the O2 Arena in London. A reason for Rodriguez’s withdrawl was not given. UFC 286 is headlined by a welterweight title rematch between Leon Edwards and Kamaru Usman.

Barberena had a three-bout winning streak snapped in his last outing, as he suffered a second-round submission loss to Rafael dos Anjos at UFC on ESPN 42 on Dec. 3. Prior to that, “Bam Bam” had earned successive victories over the likes of Darian Weeks, Matt Brown and Robbie Lawler.

Nelson returned following an absence that lasted more than two years at UFC Fight Night 204, where he defeated Takashi Sato via unanimous decision in March 2022.

Tatiana Suarez made her long-awaited return at UFC Fight Night 220, where she defeated Montana De La Rosa via second-round submission in a flyweight bout.

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The long-term plan, however, is for Suarez to return to 115 pounds, where she established herself as a contender with wins over the likes of Alexa Grasso, Carla Esparza and Nina Nunes. Her career was put on hold due to injuries, and Satruday marked her first bout since June 2019.

“I think they should give me a really good opponent at strawweight and then I’ll earn [a title shot],” Suarez said at the UFC Fight Night 220 post-fight press conference. “I’ve never been given anything in my life. I’ve always earned it, and I don’t mind doing that. I think that builds character. You’ve got to work for the things that you get in your life. I don’t mind doing that because that’s how my mom and my grandma raised me to be. So I’m excited for whoever.”

While Suarez is willing to face anyone in the str…

You wouldn’t have known that Yaroslav Amosov had been away for more than a year and a half by watching his performance in the Bellator 291 headliner.

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Amosov controlled all aspects of his rematch with Logan Storley on Saturday in Dublin, as he unified the welterweight belt with a lopsided unanimous decision triumph. It was a far more decisive victory than his first meeting with Storley — a split-decision win at Bellator 252 in November 2020. That’s a good reason for that, Amosov said.

“Before this fight, I said this fight was different. I have many kilograms that I cut for my first match with Logan,” Amosov said at the post-fight press conference. “Now I had a very good camp and recovery as well as different training. Every day I train hard and become better. I have the best team with me. He’s a very good fighter, and I knew this. All people who enter the cage are strong, so if you go in the cage, you’re a high-level fighter. It’s not a surprise to…

Though it’s now a couple weeks in the rearview mirror, the UFC 284 headliner nonetheless remains a hot topic of conversation.

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Islam Makhachev captured a hotly contested decision win over Alexander Volkanovski to retain his lightweight crown on Feb. 11 in Perth, Australia. Many observers thought Volkanovski deserved the nod, and praised the 145-pound champ for giving a larger opponent all he could handle for 25 minutes. Because the fight was so close, there have been calls for an immediate rematch — including from Volkanovski himself.

However, UFC president Dana White isn’t among those who thinks an immediate rematch is the right move to make. For one, UFC 284 also produced a ready made featherweight contender in Yair Rodriguez, who defeated Josh Emmett for the interim crown in the evening’s co-main event. While Makhachev doesn’t have his next opponent lined up, White believes it’s probably best for both champions to fight again before considering a…

Returning after a nearly two-year absence from the cage, Yaroslav Amosov left no doubt that he is one of the top 170-pound fighters in the world.

The destiny of the Bellator MMA welterweight championship was decided on Saturday at the 3Arena in Dublin, Ireland. Coming into the main event, Amosov (27-0, 8-0 Bellator) sought to defend his crown for the first time against interim champion Logan Storley (14-2, 9-2 Bellator), who sole loss had been a split decision to Amosov in November 2020. It was Amosov’s first fight in 21 months, a layoff prompted by Russia’s invasion of his native Ukraine that saw the undefeated champ return home to active military service. That long hiatus, combined with the popular perception that Storley had improved considerably since their first meeting, saw the line on Amosov contract from nearly three-to-one to a mere -140 by the time they stepped into the cage.

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Amosov proved any doubters wrong, looking superb for 25 straight m…

Brendan Allen reasserted himself as a clear and present danger in the Ultimate Fighting Championship middleweight division.

The onetime Legacy Fighting Alliance titleholder submitted Andre Muniz with a rear-naked choke in the third round of their UFC Fight Night 220 headliner on Saturday at the UFC Apex in Las Vegas. Muniz (23-5, 5-1 UFC) checked out 4:25 into Round 3, thus ending his run of nine consecutive victories.

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Saturday's planned main event between Nikita Krylov and Ryan Spann was canceled after Krylov suffered an illness and was not medically cleared to compete. The news was first reported during the UFC Fight Night 220 broadcast at the start of the main card. Allen (21-5, 9-2 UFC) seized the reins from the start in the makeshift main event and remained the aggressor for the duration. He turned the tide in the middle stanza, where he countered a takedown into top position, applied his ground-and-pound and advanced position. Allen later d…

WOW!! Domination!!!

phildefriesmma finishes ToddDuffee in the first round!! #KSW79 pic.twitter.com/RFLaPOO2B0

— KSW (@KSW_MMA) February 25, 2023

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Eleven years from their first meeting, Philip De Fries got one back on Todd Duffee.

In the headliner of KSW 79, the promotion’s first foray into the Czech Republic, KSW heavyweight champ De Fries (23-6, 1 NC; 9-0 KSW) met Duffee (9-4, 1 NC; 0-1 KSW) for a second time. Their first collision, at UFC 155 in December 2012, ended in a first-round TKO win for the American. This time, the result was a complete reversal for De Fries, who showcased his maturation as a mixed martial artist. Right out of the gate, De Fries scored a perfectly-timed takedown over a head kick from Duffee. De Fries then patiently worked to put his opponent in position for a submission attempt, occasionally adding punches to the mix. After taking his foe's back, the British fighter attacked with a neck cran…

UFC Fight Night 220Credit: Getty/UFC UFC Fight Night 220Credit: Getty/UFC UFC Fight Night 220Credit: Getty/UFC UFC Fight Night 220Credit: Getty/UFC UFC Fight Night 220Credit: Getty/UFC UFC Fight Night 220Credit: Getty/UFC UFC Fight Night 220Credit: Getty/UFC UFC Fight Night 220Credit: Getty/UFC UFC Fight Night 220Credit: Getty/UFC UFC Fight Night 220Credit: Getty/UFC UFC Fight Night 220Credit: Getty/UFC UFC Fight Night 220Credit: Getty/UFC UFC Fight Night 220Credit: Getty/UFC UFC Fight Night 220Credit: Getty/UFC UFC Fight Night 220Credit: Getty/UFC UFC Fight Night 220Credit: Getty/UFC UFC Fight Night 220Credit: Getty/UFC UFC Fight Night 220Credit: Getty/UFC UFC Fight Night 220Credit: Getty/UFC UFC Fight Night 220Credit: Getty/UFC UFC Fight Night 220Credit: Getty/UFC UFC Fight Night 220Credit: Getty/UFC UFC Fight Night 220Credit: Getty/UFC UFC Fight Night 220Credit: Getty/UFC UFC Fight Night 220Credit: Getty/UFC UFC Fight Night 220Credit: Getty/UFC UFC F…

Sherdog's live UFC Fight Night 220 coverage will begin Saturday at 4:30 p.m. ET. BETTING PREVIEW | SCOUTING REPORT | ODDS: Aliev (-180), Alves (+155)Round 1 Sherdog Scores Jay Pettry scores the round:Edwin Ayala scores the round:Jack Dankoff scores the round:

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Round 2 Sherdog Scores Jay Pettry scores the round:Edwin Ayala scores the round:Jack Dankoff scores the round:Round 3 Sherdog Scores Jay Pettry scores the round:Edwin Ayala scores the round:Jack Dankoff scores the round: The Official Result BETTING PREVIEW | SCOUTING REPORT | ODDS: Solecki (-520), Deaton (+410)Round 1 Sherdog Scores Jay Pettry scores the round:Edwin Ayala scores the round:Jack Dankoff scores the round:Round 2 Sherdog Scores Jay Pettry scores the round:Edwin Ayala scores the round:Jack Dankoff scores the round:Round 3 Sherdog Scores Jay Pettry scores the round:Edwin Ayala scores the round:Jack Dankoff scores the round:The Official Result BETTING PREVIEW | SCOUTING REPORT | ODDS:…

KO AT THE BUZZER :exploding_head: #UFCVegas70 pic.twitter.com/Itgpoi5dxS

— ESPN MMA (@espnmma) February 25, 2023

Trevor Peek hits like a truck.

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The intriguing but unrefined Agoge Combatives prospect made a successful Ultimate Fighting Championship debut, as he took out Erick Gonzalez with punches in the first round of their featured UFC Fight Night 220 lightweight prelim on Saturday at the UFC Apex in Las Vegas. The undefeated Peek (8-0, 1-0 UFC) brought it to an emphatic close 4:59 into Round 1.

Gonzalez (14-8, 0-3 UFC) tried to counter the 2022 Dana White’s Contender Series graduate with takedowns but failed to keep him bottled up for any meaningful period of time. Peek cut loose with sloppy but powerful punches near the end of Round 1—he even mixed in a few standing hammerfists to the head—before he sat down the Combate Global veteran with a clubbing right. Gonzalez ate multiple left hands to the face before r…

Sherdog's live Bellator 291 coverage will begin Saturday at 11:30 a.m. ET. Round 1 Sherdog Scores Tristen Critchfield scores the round:Lev Pisarsky scores the round:Tyler Treese scores the round:

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Round 2 Sherdog Scores Tristen Critchfield scores the round:Lev Pisarsky scores the round:Tyler Treese scores the round:Round 3 Sherdog Scores Tristen Critchfield scores the round:Lev Pisarsky scores the round:Tyler Treese scores the round: The Official Result Round 1 Sherdog Scores Tristen Critchfield scores the round:Lev Pisarsky scores the round:Tyler Treese scores the round:Round 2 Sherdog Scores Tristen Critchfield scores the round:Lev Pisarsky scores the round:Tyler Treese scores the round:Round 3 Sherdog Scores Tristen Critchfield scores the round:Lev Pisarsky scores the round:Tyler Treese scores the round:The Official Result Round 1 Sherdog Scores Tristen Critchfield scores the round:Lev Pisarsky scores the round:Tyler Treese scores the round:Round 2 S…

Judge's Vote: YanezFan Vote: Yanez

No tiebreaker vote needed... Welcome to the PFL Desiree Yanez!#PFLonFubo pic.twitter.com/xXdHyOm7aq

— PFL (@PFLMMA) February 25, 2023 Eight women's flyweight fighters competed at PFL Challenger Series 2023 Week 5 but only one could earn a contract to compete in the Professional Fighters League's regular season.

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The four-fight card was main evented by a 125-pound fight between Kaytlin Neil and Katherine Corogenes. Neil (7-4) looked to fight against the fence but Corogenes (3-2) was able to stay active with punches from the clinch inside the opening frame. Neil would slow down the fight in the second round and open up more on the feet, which led to it being much closer. Corogenes was docked a point for an eye poke in Round 3, which saw Neil close the round by taking the back of her opponent.

After some deliberation, the judges saw the fight in favor of Neil, who received three 29-27 s…