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The Funk Master is ready 🤝@FunkMasterMMA | 146 lbs

[ #UFCVegas116 | APRIL 25 | LIVE on @ParamountPlus ] pic.twitter.com/Qem9FGk3Ii

— UFC (@ufc) April 24, 2026 Friday's UFC Vegas 116 weigh-ins were little more than a formality as all 26 athletes properly made weight.

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Former Ultimate Fighting Championship bantamweight champion Aljamain Sterling will return to the Octagon this Saturday. Taking on "Funk Master" in the five-round headliner is Youssef Zalal. Both men successfully made the featherweight limit without issue. All other fighters on the card also hit their marks, so UFC Fight Night 274 will move forward with 13 official matches. As a note, Nevada decided to change its weigh-in policies once again, allowing for a two-hour weigh-in window for this event and all events in the state going forward.

The main event marks the first fight of 2026 for Sterling (25-5). The former 135-pound champion is coming off a unani…

The Professional Fighters League is making its first trip to the city discovered by the Germans in 1904, one named after a whale’s [redacted].

Initially claimed by Spain in the 1500s with a mission built there in the 1700s, the Californian city was admitted along with the rest of the state to the U.S. in 1850. That would San Diego, the staging ground of the PFL card on June 27. Fights will play out inside of the Pechanga Arena in the organization’s first jaunt to California since PFL 9 2018. The promotion confirmed this date for the first June date it has marked on the calendar, as well as one fight on its billing.

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A world class welterweight clash headlines PFL Sioux Falls: Tune in Saturday, May 2 at 7 p.m. ET on ESPN2.

Serving in the main attraction of PFL San Diego is a potential featherweight title eliminator—the division has no champion, so the victor may be in line for the next crack at gold. Former Bellator MMA champ A.J. McKee (24-2) will c…

Nothing quite gets the blood flowing in the combat sports world like a tournament.

Rizin Fighting Federation made a trio of big announcements on Thursday ahead of what it plans to be a massive fall. For starters, it put Rizin 54 on the books, which is set to go down at the Toyota Arena in Tokyo on Aug. 11. No fights are official for the event, although it did schedule the first round of the 2026 heavyweight tournament for that date.

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Three of the four big men are official for that tournament, with Rizin possibly hashing the fourth member out at an upcoming Landmark event. First repping the largest standard weight class will be karateka Mikio Ueda (5-3), who put himself on the map in 2021 by attempting to complete the 100-man kumite where he had to fight and defeat 100 different fighters in consecutive combat. Ueda reached the 60th athlete and the doctor ruled he could no longer continue. As a Rizin fighter, the 30-year-old has notched four knockouts u…

The Professional Fighters League will be moving its upcoming card in the Middle East a hop, skip and 800km down the road.

Earlier in April, the organization elected to reschedule its first PFL MENA card of the year. The show was initially set for the Dhahran Expo in Al Khobar, Saudi Arabia, on May 8. On Thursday, it was bumped to Dubai, United Arab Emirates, for May 24. Additionally, PFL MENA first event in 2026 has changed its additional title from “Rise of the Gulf” to “Pride of Arabia,” and it will feature most of the fights from the initial billing plus a few amateur showcases.

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A world class welterweight clash headlines PFL Sioux Falls: Tune in Saturday, May 2 at 7 p.m. ET on ESPN2.

Earlier in the year, the PFL was planning on scaling back its bantamweight division in the MENA region to run three brackets at featherweight, lightweight and welterweight. Of those three, featherweights and lightweights will be having their various quarterfinal mat…

Greg Jackson won't be in the corner of Josh Hokit or Steve Garcia at UFC White House. | Dave Mandel/Sherdog.com

Two Jackson-Wink MMA athletes will be without one of their primary coaches on the biggest stage of their careers to date.

According to a report from the Albuquerque Journal, Greg Jackson will not corner Josh Hokit or Steve Garcia in their bouts at UFC White House on June 14. Hokit initially revealed the news on social media, saying that Jackson wouldn’t be present for “personal reasons.” Hokit will face Derrick Lewis at heavyweight, will Garcia will square off against Diego Lopes in a featherweight tilt.

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My coach Greg Jackson will not be coaching me on the White House fight for personal reasons… I don’t have a coach now… will the ring girls corner me please… tag them for me🙏

— The Incredible Hok (@Josh_HokitUFC) April 18, 2026 Sitting This One Out This week, Jackson confirmed to the Journal via…

Francis Ngannou will return to MMA on May 16. | PFL MMA

One of the bigger “what if” fights in recent MMA history was a potential heavyweight booking between Francis Ngannou and Jon Jones.

While both men were once under the UFCbanner, the bout never came to fruition, as the promotion had difficulties negotiating with both men at various times during their respective tenures. According to Ngannou, Jones was never a realistic possibility while he was in the UFC.

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“It was never really on the table, so I don’t have to be disappointed. The only time that he seems like a possibility was when he was used as bait, something to bait me,” Ngannou told ESPN.

Ngannou eventually left the UFC, vacating the heavyweight title in the process. He then signed with Professional Fighters League, which allowed him to compete in lucrative boxing matches against Tyson Fury and Anthony Joshua prior to his debut. In his lone PFL appearance, “The Predator” knoc…

Gilbert Burns saw some hard times early in his career. 

Burns recently recalled a heartbreaking phone call with his mother. Burns couldn’t even pay his own rent when he suffered a bout of bronchitis. “Durinho” called his mother, planning to ask her for some money to buy medicines. Burns didn’t want to ask for money right away and had a lengthy conversation with his mother. However, it was Burns’ mother who ended up asking for his help instead. Burns promised her that while he didn’t have any money then, he would send some soon. The Brazilian remembers telling himself after the incident that he didn’t have any choice other than becoming successful in life.

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I Have to Make It Happen 
 “My rent would be like $7-8 a month, that I didn’t have to pay. I have guys helping out, paying my rent,” Burns said in a recent interview (via Home of Fight). “That week I was having bronchitis, I was gonna call my mom just to see if she had money for medicine to help…

Darren Till is disappointed with the UFC's recent state of affairs. 

Till slammed the UFC over lackluster cards, which he claims he doesn’t even watch anymore. “The Gorilla” believes his former boss, Dana White, is no longer focused on the UFC. Till further went off on Dana White for his handling of the media. White recently snapped at a reporter who brought up criticism against AI use in UFC promotional videos. Till says White needs to put his ego aside and respond sincerely to questions.

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Lacking Intrigue “I do like Dana,” Till said on “The Ariel Helwani Show.” “But I just think Dana’s ego is getting a little bit out of control. I think he’s totally switched off from the UFC. I don’t even watch the UFC anymore. I couldn’t tell you half the people who fight there. The events aren’t juicy no more. I’m pissed off, to be honest, with the media side of things. Every time Dana’s in a scrum, it’s like these reporters are scared to say the real thing. …

Jean Silva knocked Charles Jourdain back into his senses by knocking him out. 

Jourdain (18-8) is coming off a unanimous decision win in a “Fight of the Night” battle against Kyler Phillips in front of his home crowd at UFC Winnipeg last weekend. This was Jourdain’s third consecutive bonus-winning performance in as many outings since he moved to bantamweight from featherweight in 2024. “Air” credits the impressive streak to a knockout loss against Silva, which prompted the move to bantamweight. Weeks following the knockout loss, Jourdain’s wife informed him that she was pregnant. Jourdain had to make a choice between giving up his dreams and turning his life around, and he took the tougher path.

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“I have to thank Jean Silva,” Jourdain said on “The Ariel Helwani Show.” “Ever since I got knocked out, he put sense into me—going to 135, three in a row, three bonuses in a row. Jean Silva changed my life with that uppercut… I had no hope anymore for mys…

Renato "Moicano" Carneiro is not a fan of the UFC using artificial intelligence for promotional videos. 

As AI takes over various forms of content across different spheres, the UFC also hasn’t been spared from its influence. The UFC has recently faced backlash from fans over use of AI in their content. 

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“Moicano” is also critical of the UFC about using AI for promotional content. Being a fan himself, the UFC lightweight thinks it's disrespectful to fans, who can clearly see through the lack of effort. With two of the UFC’s biggest stars, Alex Pereira and Ilia Topuria, set to compete at the White House in June, “Moicano” doesn’t think it should be a big deal to fly them down to Washington to shoot some content. While Carneiro is also a content creator, he tries to avoid the use of AI as he considers it “brain rot.”A Sign of Disrespect “UFC is not going to be very happy for me to say that, but I didn’t like it,” Carneiro said on “The Ariel He…

Jasmine Jasudavicius’ fight against Karine Silva was mostly uninteresting, barring a brief moment. 

Jasudavicius (15-4) took on Silva in front of a home crowd at the Canada Life Centre in Winnipeg, Manitoba, Canada, on Saturday. Jasudavicius picked up a unanimous decision win in a lukewarm bout mostly marked with inaction. However, a moment in Jasudavicius’s corner captured fans’ attention. The 37-year-old was seen fiddling with something behind her lips, which fans suspected was a nicotine pouch. 

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However, Jasudavicius denies using a nicotine pouch in her fight. Jasudavicius finds the accusations even funnier as she claims to be among the very few fighters from her gym who don’t use Zyn, a popular brand of nicotine pouches used under the lip. Jasudavicius claims that she usually uses chewing gum during workouts and warm-up, and forgot to spit one out before walking into the Octagon at UFC Winnipeg.

Looks Can Be Deceiving “It’s so …

Sean Strickland confirms that not all the best fighters in the world are a part of the UFC roster. 

Strickland recently shared high praise for his training partner Johnny Eblen. Following a sparring session with Eblen, Strickland joked that the UFC should never sign “Pressure.” Strickland wants Eblen to stay put in the Professional Fighters League because he would be a threat to the entire UFC roster. Strickland believes Eblen would be competing for a UFC title if the promotion signed him.

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Championship Talent “Never let this man come to the UFC,” Strickland said on his Instagram Stories. “Keep his ass where he’s at. F—-ing savage, bro. If this man was in the UFC, he’d be fighting for the belt.” 

Eblen (17-1) is widely considered one of the best fighters in the world outside of the UFC. The former Bellator MMA middleweight champion also continued his reign at PFL when the promotion took over Bellator. Eblen was a massive -550 favorite goi…