Martial Arts News

A flyweight pairing pitting Muhammad Mokaev against Manel Kape is in the works for UFC 304.

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Mokaev announced the fight on social media, and it was later confirmed by MMAjunkie.com that Kape has verbally agreed to the booking. UFC 304 takes place on July 27 at Co-op Live in Manchester, England. The event is also expected to include a featherweight clash between Arnold Allen and Giga Chikadze.

Mokaev has emerged as a contender at 125 pounds with victories in his first six Octagon appearances. Most recently, the 23-year-old known as “The Punisher” outpointed former title challenger Alex Perez at UFC Fight Night 238 on March 2. The Brave Combat Federation veteran is 12-0 with one no contest over the course of his professional tenure.

Kape was supposed to compete at UFC on ESPN 55 on April 27, but he withdrew from a proposed bout against Matheus Nicolau after suffering a rib injury. After dropping his first two promotional outings, the former Ri…

Things are starting to get REAL between Cedric and Jaleel… 😳#BellatorParis | Friday May 17 pic.twitter.com/FfHV84XhEl

— Chael Sonnen (@ChaelSonnen) May 8, 2024

Chael Sonnen is one of the greatest heels in mixed martial arts history, but even he thinks Jaleel Willis is approaching dangerous territory.

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Willis might be the most hated man in Paris by the time he squares off with French kickboxing phenom Cedric Doumbe at Accor Arena on May 17 in the Bellator Champions Series Paris co-main event. The Memphis native’s verbal jabs have been non-stop, much to the delight of the “American Gangster.”

Sonnen praised — albeit warned — Willis on his X (formerly known as Twitter) account Wednesday after Willis insulted the French fanbase’s MMA knowledge. Willis (16-5) criticized Doumbe’s (5-1) lack of cage time and implied his fans only support him because they know no better.

“When you call yourself a veteran, you’re calling t…

There was a method behind the madness of Mauricio Ruffy’s post-fight callout of UFC lightweight champion Islam Makhachev last weekend.

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“Since I beat his best sparring partner (Raimond Magomedaliev) in a higher weight class (170 pounds) on the Contender Series, I thought it was a good moment to make a statement,” Ruffy told Sherdog.com. “After all, the UFC lightweight champion guaranteed [Magomedaliev] was going to be the new king of the 170-pound division. And Magomedaliev is really tough. Before facing me, he beat the 2023 PFL light heavyweight champ, Impa Kasangany, who fights three divisions above.”

Ruffy has made a habit of knocking out sparring partners of high-profile fighters. Last year, he scored a first-round stoppage of Corneliu Lascar Rotaru, who has trained with Irish superstar Conor McGregor.

“A few months before receiving the invitation to the Contender Series, I broke my left hand in the first fight of the Centurion FC Grand P…

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Professional Fighters League has added a pair of prospects from the United Arab Emirates to its roster.

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The organization announced on Wednesday that flyweight Hadi Omar Al Hussaini and featherweight Youssef Al Housani have signed exclusive, multi-fight contracts with the PFL. Al Hussaini and Al Housani are expected to compete in showcase bouts during the PFL MENA season this year before joining the season format in 2025.

“We are thrilled to welcome two of the UAE’s top prospects to PFL MENA,” said PFL MENA vice president of fighter operations Gustavo Firmino in a release. “The mission of the PFL is to find the best fighters in every region around the world. Our partnership with SRJ Sports has allowed the PFL to identify and sign exceptional fighters like Al Hussaini and Al Housani, who we know have the potential to become global stars in the sport.”

Al Hussaini is 5-0-1 since beginning his professional MMA career in 2021. H…

Herb Dean fault @ufc #ufc300

— Derrick Lewis (@Thebeast_ufc) April 14, 2024

Derrick Lewis has a different take on the walkoff knockout that wasn’t for Jalin Turner at UFC 300.

Turner took on Renato Carneiro on at UFC 300 on April 13. A sizeable favorite going into the bout, Turner dropped Moicano with a left hook in the closing seconds of the opening frame. However, Turner bizarrely chose to walk away, although referee Herb Dean hadn’t stopped the fight. “Moicano” was back up on his feet in seconds and came from behind to finish “The Tarantula” in the second round.

Lewis, who hadn’t tweeted since February 2022, opted to weigh in on Turner vs. Moicano after the fight, declaring it “Herb Dean fault.” While many praised Dean for allowing “Money” the opportunity to recover, Lewis believes otherwise. Explaining his comments in a recent interview, “The Black Beast” said that the fight should have been stopped when Moicano got dropped.

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Longtime Ultimate Fighting Championship veteran Matt Brown recently shared his feelings about his decision to hang up his gloves.

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While Brown announced his retirement on Saturday via X (formerly known as Twitter), he had informed the UFC of his decision a while back. Despite having arrived at the decision much earlier, Brown was admittedly impassive about it until he had the conversation with UFC matchmaker Sean Shelby.

Brown was waiting to board a flight at Los Angeles International Airport and was admittedly overwhelmed with emotions while informing Shelby of his retirement. “The Immortal” also admitted to feeling similarly emotional while recently announcing his retirement on social media.

“When I first called Sean Shelby and told him, ‘I’m pretty sure this is what I’m gonna do,’ I was at an airport at the time”, the 43-year-old told MMAFighting.com. “This was a few months ago. I was at an airport and I think he returned my call, which is…

Movsar Evloev claims that while Dana White criticized his fight against Arnold Allen, the UFC CEO wasn’t even paying close attention to the bout.

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Evloev took on Allen in a featherweight matchup at UFC 297 this past January. While Evloev maintained his perfect record with a unanimous decision win, the fight failed to live up to the hype, as the Russian cruised to victory through takedowns and positional control.

White was clearly unimpressed with Evloev’s performance and voiced his thoughts during the post-fight press conference.

“That fight sucked the wind right out of the arena… That was the least fun fight anybody’s ever seen,” White said.

Evloev took issue with White’s criticism of the fight, which apparently didn’t have the UFC boss’ full attention. Evloev claims that American Top Team founder Dan Lambert told him that he saw White watching the NFL playoffs during the bout.

Allen caught Evloev in a front headlock in the final roun…

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Michael Chandler claims UFC 303 will either see Conor McGregor retire or mount the greatest comeback in combat sports history.

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After a build-up of more than a year, Chandler is finally scheduled to fight McGregor in the main event on June 29. "Iron" advises everyone to not miss the card, as it might be the last time they can witness “Notorious” set foot inside the Octagon.

The former Bellator MMA champion vows to force retirement on McGregor. However, Chandler also acknowledges the opportunity the former two-division champion has to mount arguably the greatest comeback in combat sports history.

McGregor has been out of action since July 2021, recovering from a broken leg he suffered in his trilogy loss against Dustin Poirier at UFC 264. Given Chandler’s status as one of the biggest fan favorites in the UFC, “Iron” admits McGregor defeating him could potentially be the greatest comeback in combat sports history.

“You h…

Diaz-Masvidal moving to July 6 in Anaheim https://t.co/6IHcHJ2Bj8

— BoxingScene.com (@boxingscene) May 8, 2024

The target demographic for the boxing clash between former UFC stars Jorge Masvidal and Nate Diaz might be a little occupied on June 1.

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As a result, the fight has moved from June 1 at the Kia Forum in Inglewood, California, to July 6 at the Honda Center in Anaheim. The primary motive behind the shift was to avoid conflict with UFC 302, which takes place on June 1 at the Prudential Center in Newark, New Jersey and is headlined by a light heavyweight title tilt between Islam Makhachev and Dustin Poirier. Multiple outlets confirmed the new date and venue for Masvidal vs. Diaz following an initial report from Boxing Scene.

Masvidal vs. Diaz will take place over 10 rounds and will be contested at 175 pounds. The card is available via pay-per-view through Fanmio at a price point of $79.99.

Masvidal and Diaz ini…

A strategic agreement has been signed between Riyadh Season and the Ultimate Fighting Championship (UFC), including the sponsorship of the UFC event in Las Vegas, the UFC event in Riyadh, and Power Slap competitions 🇸🇦❤️ #RiyadhSeason pic.twitter.com/JFe6hVE4jO

— TURKI ALALSHIKH (@Turki_alalshikh) May 7, 2024

The partnership between the Ultimate Fighting Championship and Saudi Arabia will extend beyond the promotion’s June debut in the country.

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On Tuesday, Turki Alalshikh, the country’s chairman of the board of directors of the general entertainment authority, announced in a press release that the UFC will hold another event in Saudi Arabia in 2024-25. Additionally, Riyadh Season will serve as a sponsor for UFC 306, which takes place at The Sphere in Las Vegas on Sept. 14. Riyadh Season, which was founded in 2019, is a yearly state-funded entertainment and sports festival and typically runs from October through March. Read more

Payton Talbott will square off against Yanis Ghemmouri at UFC 303.

The promotion recently announced the bantamweight pairing via social media. UFC 303 takes place on June 29 at the T-Mobile Arena in Las Vegas and is headlined by a welterweight clash pitting Conor McGregor against Michael Chandler.

Talbott has kicked off his professional tenure with eight consecutive triumphs — including two in UFC competition. After earning a contract on Dana White's Contender Series last August, the Reno, Nevada, resident began his UFC career with stoppages of Nick Aguirre and Cameron Saaiman in his first two outings.

Ghemmouri, meanwhile, made his Octagon debut at UFC Fight Night 226, where he suffered a a third-round technical knockout defeat to William Gomis this past September. Prior to that loss, the 29-year-old Frenchman had been victorious in his last nine professional appearances.

Heather Hardy’s combat sports career appears to have reached its end.

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The former boxing champion and Bellator MMA veteran was preparing for a fight against Christine Ferea in BKFC on May 11, but Hardy struggled with her vision and was unable to eat or sleep as she began her camp. According to Hardy, a visit to the doctor revealed that she had suffered too many concussions over the course of her fighting career and any further head injuries could permanently impair her vision.

Hardy’s full Instagram post on the matter is as follows:

My fight for May 11 is off. After my fight last summer with Amanda [Serrano], my vision remained blurred for a few days. I went for an MRI and to get my eyes checked while I was still in TX and it was diagnosed the after effects of a concussion. 6-8 months i should be fine. So basically I needed a fight, and it never got better. My daughter is in college. Everyone thinks I made millions in my career but i didn’t, i w…