Martial Arts News

AND STILL!Abdulaziz Abdulvakhabov defend his title against Hacran Dias! What an amazing performance pic.twitter.com/4VSFQvsukq

— ACA MMA (@ACA_League) November 5, 2021

Friday was definitely a very special day for Brazilian MMA. With Patricky Freire’s knockout win over Peter Queally in Ireland, local MMA fans celebrated the country’s fifth championship victory in a span of nine days.

But there could have been one more reason to celebrate. A few hours before Freire’s victory, Nova Uniao fighter Hacran Dias squared off against Russian champion Abdulaziz Abulvakhabov for the Absolute Championship Akhmat belt. The fight was contested over five rounds in Moscow, the homeland of the champion, and the action didn’t disappoint those in attendance. However, the final verdict was a disappointment to Nova Uniao leader Andre Pederneiras, as Dias lost a split decision at ACA 131.

“As we expected it was a war, with every round being competititve from the…

.@UFCFightPass and @LFAfighting extend exclusive multi-year streaming agreement

: https://t.co/2gRpax5N4M#MMA#LFANation@UFCFightPass pic.twitter.com/wvuCal74sT

— LFA (@LFAfighting) November 8, 2021 UFC Fight Pass has re-upped with one of the top regional feeder promotions in mixed martial arts.

The streaming platform announced Monday that it has extended its partnership with Legacy Fighting Alliance to be the exclusive streaming provider of the promotion’s events through 2025.

“LFA is among the best, with a longstanding relationship with UFC and a track record for developing talent,” UFC Fight Pass vice president and general manager Crowley Sullivan said in a release. “We’re thrilled to continue this relationship and can’t wait to see what the future holds for our two brands.”

According to the terms of the deal, UFC Fight Pass will stream more than 100 LFA events across 200 countries and territories. Subscribers will also have a…

The wins keep on piling up for Kamaru Usman, who is entering rarified air with his extended streak of excellence.

“The Nigerian Nightmare” improved to 2-0 against Colby Covington in the UFC 268 headliner, earning a unanimous decision triumph at Madison Square Garden in New York on Saturday night. Usman has now won 15 straight fights in UFC competition, the second-longest winning streak in promotion history behind pound-for-pound middleweight legend Anderson Silva (16).

UFC president Dana White believes Usman belongs in the lofty company among the sport’s greats after his latest triumph.

“He’s special. He’s damn good and I think he’s the greatest welterweight of all time,” White said at the UFC 268 post-fight press conference.

“He’s obviously the best pound-for-pound fighter in the world right now. He’s one of the guys that we could all start arguing soon about GOAT status. And he’s fighting everybody, it’s not like he’s only fought this guy. He’s fought everybody…

Jon Jones won’t return to Jackson-Wink MMA after being banned from the Albuquerque, N.M.-based camp last month.

Jones revealed that he will seek a new training home in a series of posts on Twitter, though that new destination is currently unclear. The former light heavyweight champion was suspended from the Jackson-Wink gym by Mike Winkeljohn following his arrest for battery domestic violence in Las Vegas this past September. Winkeljohn indicated that Jones could return if he quit drinking, but an eventual reunion doesn’t appear to be an option for the fighter, who hasn’t competed in the Octagon since February 2020.

“Definitely won’t be going back but I will continue to root for all the fighters that are training there,” Jones wrote. “I do believe my training methods and sessions have improved significantly since changing environments. Grateful for all the time I got to spend there, everything has it’s time.

“I know I won’t be able to train in my garage foreve…

What a speech by Chris Barnett for his opponent Gian Villante #UFC268 pic.twitter.com/wvTtzChIOP

— ESPN MMA (@espnmma) November 6, 2021

Gian Villante has announced his retirement from mixed martial arts following a 31-bout professional career that began in 2009.

Villante’s final appearance will end up on highlight reels, as he was dropped by a spinning wheel kick from Chris Barnett and finished with follow-up ground strikes 2:23 into the opening round of their heavyweight bout at UFC 268 on Saturday night at Madison Square Garden in New York. Villante, 36, ends his tenure on a four-bout losing streak — with his final three appearances coming in the heavyweight division.

Villante’s next step will be a return to his gridiron roots, as he is coaching youth football in the Long Island area. He gave those players a shoutout in a post-fight interview with Newsday.

“Say hello to all my Seahawks, all my Generals, all the people in attendan…

There’s something special about fighting in New York for Rose Namajunas.

“Thug” Rose improved to 3-0 in the Empire State with a split-decision triumph over Weili Zhang in the UFC 268 co-main event at Madison Square Garden on Saturday night to successfully defend her strawweight title. Her success at the famous venue began in November 2017, when she initially captured the 115-pound belt with an upset win over Joanna Jedrzejczyk at UFC 217, and she also bested Jedrzejczyk in a five-round rematch at the Barclays Center in Brooklyn, N.Y., in April 2018.

“New York City inspires me,” Namajunas said at Saturday’s post-fight press conference. “Like I said at weigh-ins, it’s the toughest people in the world. It’s the coolest city.”

The rematch with Zhang took on a far different look than their first meeting, when Namajunas vanquished her Chinese opponent with a head kick 78 seconds into the opening stanza at UFC 261. This time around, the bout was far more closely conte…

When all was said and done, Kamaru Usman was able to bury the hatchet with Colby Covington following their rematch at UFC 268.

The two men shared a moment of respect following Saturday’s headliner at Madison Square Garden in New York, where Usman retained his title with a unanimous decision victory — his second triumph against Covington in a little less than two year’s time. Both fights against “Chaos” were hard-fought, which Usman acknowledged while making a lofty comparison regarding their rivalry at Saturday’s post-fight press conference.

“As a competitor I respect him – that’s the next best guy in the division. “This guy’s tough as nails. He’s very, very tough,” Usman said. “Let’s be honest: [Muhammad] Ali needed a [Joe] Frazier. All these guys. You can be the great one, but there’s always going to be the one guy that can push you. He is that guy. As much of him outside the Octagon as most people don’t like, myself included, you have to respect him as a competito…

Justin Gaethje and Michael Chandler delivered on the hype in a big way at UFC 268.

The lightweights received “Fight of the Night” honors and $50,000 apiece for their slugfest at Madison Square Garden in New York on Saturday in a bout that will likely lead many “Fight of the Year” lists in the weeks to come. While Gaethje was rocked early in the first round, he maintained his composure and gradually pulled away from Chandler for an enthralling unanimous decision triumph.

Meanwhile, on an evening that featured a number of memorable finishes, the Las Vegas-based promotion handed out a quartet of $50,000 “Performance of the Night” checks to deserving athletes.

Marlon Vera earned one of those bonuses on the strength of a front kick knockout of Frankie Edgar in a featured bantamweight clash. After two competitive rounds, Vera emphatically brought the show to a close at the 3:50 mark of Round 1, becoming just the eighth fighter in promotion history to win a bout via f…

Sign up for ESPN+ right here, and you can then stream UFC 268 live on your smart TV, computer, phone, tablet or streaming device via the ESPN app. The gulf between Kamaru Usman and Colby Covington appears to have shrunk ever so slightly but not enough to necessitate a changing of the guard. “The Nigerian Nightmare” maintained his stranglehold on the undisputed Ultimate Fighting Championship welterweight crown with a unanimous decision over Covington in the UFC 268 headliner on Saturday at Madison Square Garden in New York. All three cageside judges scored it for Usman (20-1, 15-0 UFC): 48-47, 48-47 and 49-46.

SWANGIN' & BANGIN'

[ #UFC268 | We’re LIVE on ESPN+ PPV: https://t.co/xRVlqJBhNX ] pic.twitter.com/xNso0eL5Ag

— UFC (@ufc) November 7, 2021 An understandably cautious Covington (16-3, 11-3 UFC)—who succumbed to fifth-round punches from the champion in their December 2019 encounter at UFC 245—took some time to get going. Usman floo…

Sign up for ESPN+ right here, and you can then stream UFC 268 live on your smart TV, computer, phone, tablet or streaming device via the ESPN app. Sherdog's live UFC 268 “Usman vs. Covington 2” coverage will begin Saturday at 6 p.m. ET. Check out the MMA Forums to discuss the card or enter your comments and predictions below. Round 1 Sherdog Scores Jay Pettry scores the round:Ben Duffy scores the round:Tristen Critchfield scores the round:Round 2 Sherdog Scores Jay Pettry scores the round:Ben Duffy scores the round:Tristen Critchfield scores the round:Round 3 Sherdog Scores Jay Pettry scores the round:Ben Duffy scores the round:Tristen Critchfield scores the round:The Official Result Round 1 Sherdog Scores Jay Pettry scores the round:Ben Duffy scores the round:Tristen Critchfield scores the round:Round 2 Sherdog Scores Jay Pettry scores the round:Ben Duffy scores the round:Tristen Critchfield scores the round:Round 3 Sherdog Scores Jay Pettry scores the round:Ben Duffy scor…

The MW division just got put on NOTICE

[ #UFC268 | Prelims are LIVE on ESPNews & ESPN+ ] pic.twitter.com/wZbuaYuLal

— UFC (@ufc) November 7, 2021 Sign up for ESPN+ right here, and you can then stream UFC 268 live on your smart TV, computer, phone, tablet or streaming device via the ESPN app. Alex Pereira announced his arrival from the air.

The former two-division Glory kickboxing champion dazzled in his hotly anticipated Ultimate Fighting Championship debut, as he brought down Andreas Michailidis with a spectacular flying knee in the second round of their featured UFC 268 prelim on Saturday at Madison Square Garden in New York. Pereira (4-1, 1-0 UFC) lit the crowd on fire 18 seconds into Round 2.

Michailidis (13-5, 1-2 UFC) closed the distance to great effect for much of the first round—he even managed to ground the Teixeira MMA middleweight twice—but bled his gas tank dry in the process. Pereira took flight in the opening mo…

Ali "Puncher King" Bagautinov stops Sean Santella in the very first round and advances to the final of the BRAVE CF Flyweight Tournament pic.twitter.com/tG6cowx2p3

— BRAVE Combat Federation (@bravemmaf) November 6, 2021

It wasn’t the opponent he originally expected, but Ali Bagautinov is nonetheless moving on in the Brave Combat Federation flyweight grand prix.

It took a little more than one minute for the former Ultimate Fighting Championship 125-pound title challenger to secure the second spot in the Brave flyweight grand prix finals after stopping Sean Santella (23-8-2, 1 NC; 0-2-1 Brave) in the Brave CF 55 headliner on Saturday in Rostov-On-Don, Russia. Bagautinov was supposed to face Jose Torres, but the latter pulled out 24 hours before the weigh-ins after admitting he wouldn’t hit the contracted weight. Former Cage Fury FC flyweight titleholder Santella was originally slated to lock horns with Rizvan Abuev but agreed to replace Torre…