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Yogibo presents #RIZIN33 at the Saitama Super Arena. Bantamweight GP Semi-Final matchups confirmed. Former Champion and favorite Kai Asakura gets Kenta Takizawa. Former UFC contender Naoki Inoue gets TUF runner up Hiromasa Ougikubo. #RIZIN #MMAhttps://t.co/XTqRMN4cep

— RIZIN FF English (@rizin_English) November 30, 2021

The Rizin Fighting Federation bantamweight grand prix will reach its conclusion at the promotion’s signature New Year’s Eve event.

The Japanese organization announced on Tuesday that Kai Asakura will meet Kenta Takizawa in one 135-pound semifinal at Rizin 33, while Naoki Inoue will square off against Hiromasa Ougikubo in the other half of the bracket. The finalists will lock horns later on the card.

Rizin 33 takes place at Saitama Super Arena in Saitama, Japan, and will also see lightweight champion Roberto de Souza defend his crown against an as yet to be announced opponent. The card will be available internationally via…

Dana White’s Contender Series veteran Caio Borralho is expected to step in for the injured Anthony Hernandez and face Dustin Stoltzfus at UFC Fight Night 199.

Borralho announced the new middleweight bout via social media, and it was subsequently confirmed by MMAFighting.com. Borralho must receive a visa before the bout is finalized, however. UFC Fight Night 199 takes place on Dec. 18 at the UFC Apex in Las Vegas and is headlined by a heavyweight clash between Derrick Lewis and Chris Daukaus.

Borralho earned a pair of victories on the Contender Series in 2021. He was not awarded a UFC contract after outpointed Aaron Jeffrey on Sept. 28, but he impressed Dana White when he stopped Jesse Murray in the opening stanza of their Oct. 19 encounter. The 28-year-old Brazilian is 10-1 with one no contest over the course of a professional tenure that began in 2014.

Also an alum of the Contender Series, Stoltzfus is 0-2 in the Octagon after falling to Kyle Daukaus via unan…

Twenty-four fight MMA veteran Jake Heun has been sentenced seven years and nine months in prison after being convicted on drug trafficking charges in Australia.

The news was first reported by the Dail Mail. Heun was arrested while attempting to import 801 grams of methamphetamine after a package labeled “bath gel and cologne” broke open while in transit from France. The package was addressed to Heun’s apartment, which led to a police investigation that also found conversations on the fighter’s cell phone with his girlfriend regarding further drug trafficking.

Heun claimed that he was being paid $1,000 to receive the package, and he ultimately plead guilty to importation of a commercial quantity of a border-controlled drug and another charge of trafficking cocaine. Images found on Heun’s found included a picture of a parcel containing cocaine, which he was attempting to send to his girlfriend through the mail. Heun was also believed to have mailed out 35 to 40 grams o…

Coming off his first loss in nine Octagon appearances, Nova Uniao standout Leonardo Santos is excited to make his promotional return on Saturday against Clay Guida at UFC on ESPN 31.

“I’m really motivated for this fight,” Santos said. “Guida is a legend of the UFC who has already defeated names like Takanori Gomi, Rafael dos Anjos and Anthony Pettis. The guy has almost 60 fights to his credit and despite being nearly 40 years old — like myself — he is still giving a hard time to many top talents of the division. It's gonna be an honor to share the Octagon with him.”

Santos was in camp with longtime friend and teammate Jose Aldo, who will fight Fob Font in the UFC on ESPN 31 main event. Santos revealed that he didn’t spend too much time sparring with the former featherweight champion.

“Nova Uniao is such a paradise of lightweight fighters,” Santos said. “Even when we were in close proximity, we needed to face different styles, so we didn’t spar too much. But from…

Credit: Getty/UFC Credit: Getty/UFC

A matchup of surging lightweights is in the works for an upcoming UFC Fight Night card, as Arman Tsarukyan and Joel Alvarez have agreed to square off on Feb. 26.

Multiple outlets confirmed the bout has been targeted following an initial report from Igor Larzorin. The Fight Night event takes place at an as yet to be announced location and is headlined by a pivotal 155-pound encounter between Beneil Dariush and Islam Makhachev.

After falling to Makhachev in his Octagon debut, Tsarukyan has rattled off four consecutive triumphs within the Las Vegas-based promotion. Most recently, the American Top Team-trained Russian scored a first-round technical knockout win against Christos Giagos at UFC Fight Night 192 on Sept. 18.

Spain’s Alvarez is also on a four-bout UFC winning streak after dropping a three-round verdict to Damir Ismagulov in his initial Octagon foray in February 2019. The 28-year-old Bandog Fight Club representative has…

A lightweight clash between Jay-Jay Wilson and Alfie Davis scheduled for Bellator 272 has been canceled.

As a result, a bantamweight scrap pitting Josh Hill against Jared Scoggins has been elevated to Friday’s main draw. MMAjunkie.com was first to report the removal of Wilson vs. Davis, and promotion officials confirmed the new Bellator 272 lineup on Monday. A reason for the cancellation is currently unclear.

Bellator 272 takes place at Mohegan Sun Arena in Uncasville, Conn., and is headlined by a bantamweight championship tilt between Sergio Pettis and Kyoji Horiguchi. The evening’s main card airs on Showtime at 10 p.m. ET/8 p.m. PT, while prelims begin on the Bellator YouTube channel, the Showtime Sports YouTube channel and Pluto TV at 7 p.m. ET/4 p.m. PT.

Hill earned decision wins against Erik Perez and Vinicius Zani in his first two promotional appearances before dropping a three-round verdict against Raufeon Stots in his last outing at Bellator 258.

A forme…

Khabib Nurmagomedov will bring Eagle Fighting Championship to the United States early next year.

The retired former UFC champion told ESPN that he plans to hold events in Miami with his mixed martial arts promotion in both January and March, with hopes for several more in the U.S. as the year progresses. Eagle FC is working with media company FLX on a production facility in Miami that will host the organization’s cards, which are expected to stream on the FLXcast app.

"If you want to become big in MMA, you have to be in USA," Nurmagomedov said. "For fighters, for promotion, you have to be in U.S. If you're not in U.S., you can never become No. 1 or best. It's almost impossible.”

Nurmagomedov told ESPN that the Eagle FC has signed multiple fighters with previous ties to major organizations like the UFC and Bellator. He hopes to add at least 50 fighters to his promotion for the coming year. Nurmagomedov, however, does not want to compete with other well-known MM…

A battle of lightweight contenders is in the works for early next year, as Beneil Dariush is slated to lock horns with Islam Makhachev on Feb. 26.

ESPN was first to report the booking, which will serve as the headliner for the UFC Fight Night card. In addition to agreeing to the bout, both Dariush and Makhachev have reportedly signed conract extensions with the Las Vegas-based promotion. A location for the event has not been announced.

Dariush enters the matchup on a seven-bout winning streak. The Kings MMA product went 2-0 in 2021, defeating Diego Ferreira via split decision at UFC Fight Night 184 before taking a unanimous verdict against Tony Ferguson at UFC 262. Dariush is 15-4-1 in UFC competition overall, with other notable wins against the likes of Drew Dober, Thiago Moises, Jim Miller and Michael Johnson.

Makhachev, meanwhile, has been victorious in his last nine Octagon appearances. Most recently, the Khabib Nurmagomedov training partner tapped Dan Hook…

Pneumonia Covid never give up pic.twitter.com/QshVGYiUvW

— Diego Sanchez UFC (@DiegoSanchezUFC) November 26, 2021 Beloved fan-favorite fighter Diego Sanchez is suffering from serious complications due to COVID-19.

A week ago, Sanchez posted on social media stating that he was undergoing a REGEN-COV monoclonal antibody therapy for COVID-19, also known as a Regeneron antibody infusion. Sanchez went on to explain that his condition had briefly improved, thanking fellow fighter Luis Palomino for recommending this treatment. The former Ultimate Fighting Championship mainstay lamented that the treatment was depriving him of sleep, and that he was “cleaning out all the poison.”

On Thursday night, Sanchez posted an unfortunate update that he had been hospitalized due to the virus. Showing a photograph of him being hooked up to machines, he stated that he had come down with pneumonia as well with low oxygen numbers. A few hours later, Sanchez said t…

Jarred Brooks puts the ONE strawweight division ON NOTICE by submitting Lito Adiwang in the second round! @The_monkeygod #ONENextGen3 #WeAreONE #ONEChampionship pic.twitter.com/JHUSk2VAgL

— ONE Championship (@ONEChampionship) November 26, 2021 “The Monkey God” may be one to watch in One Championship’s 125-pound division.

The main event of “NextGen 3,” a tape-delayed event filmed at the end of October, featured a clash between well-traveled vet Jarred Brooks and divisional mainstay Lito Adiwang at One’s strawweight division of 125 pounds. Brooks (17-2, 1 NC; 1-0 One) landed his first takedown 20 seconds out of the gate, pinning Adiwang (13-4, 7-2 One) with his back against the mat for most of Round 1. “The Monkey God” landed a few shots from on top, but remained content to rack up control time until Adiwang eventually surged back to his feet. When both were upright again, Adiwang targeted Brooks’ body with kicks, and set up punches from those…

Sign up for ESPN+ right here, and you can then stream the UFC live on your smart TV, computer, phone, tablet or streaming device via the ESPN app. A newly announced Ultimate Fighting Championship card on March 5 will play host to a thrilling striker vs. grappler battle at 145 pounds. MMA Junkie was the first to break the news on Thursday, reporting that Edson Barboza (22-10) will come to blows with Bryce Mitchell (14-0) on March 5. The two featherweights will toe the line at a previously unannounced UFC card on that date, which does not currently have a location or venue officially on the books. The pairing, which has been agreed upon but not formally signed, has since been confirmed by other outlets. No other matchups have yet been announced for the event, and it is not currently clear if this bout will serve as its headliner.

Feared Brazilian striker Barboza had a two-fight win streak snapped when Giga Chikadze knocked him out in August. The defeat put an end to clear-cu…

.@USMAN84kg on breaking his hand before the fight pic.twitter.com/L1JEi7jQyK

— Full Send Podcast (@fullsendpodcast) November 24, 2021 Sign up for ESPN+ right here, and you can then stream the UFC live on your smart TV, computer, phone, tablet or streaming device via the ESPN app. Recently victorious Ultimate Fighting Championship welterweight kingpin Kamaru Usman kept a firm grip on his title even with a broken hand. On Wednesday afternoon, Usman spoke on the Full Send Podcast about his UFC 268 meeting with Colby Covington. According to the champ, he broke his right hand three weeks prior to the fight date of Nov. 6, and did not strike with that hand until fight night.

“Yeah, I broke it before the fight,” Usman admitted on the Full Send Podcast. “Most people didn’t know that, so…yeah, I broke it three weeks before and I didn’t throw it a day until my fight.”

When asked about how that impacted training, or if he used his hand for anything…