Martial Arts News

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Legacy Fighting Alliance bantamweight champ Zviad Lazishvili will get his chance to make a mark in the UFC.

Lazishvili will replace Said Nurmagomedov and square off against Jack Shore in a 135-pound contest at UFC Fight Night 191. Adjara Sport was first to report the new booking. UFC Fight Night 191 takes place on Sept. 4 at the UFC Apex in Las Vegas and is headlined by a middleweight showdown between Darren Till and Derek Brunson.

Lazishvili claimed bantamweight gold with a first-round submission of Ricky Steele at LFA 90 in September 2020. The 29-year-old Republic of Georgia native is 8-0 as a professional, a run that includes two victories in LFA and five triumphs via tapout.

A former Cage Warriors bantamweight king, Shore has kicked off his promotional tenure with wins against Nohelin Hernandez, Aaron Phillips and Hunter Azure. The 26-year-old Welshman is 14-0 since beginning his pro career in…

There’s already some history between Alexandre Pantoja and reigining flyweight champion Brandon Moreno — with most of that tilted in favor of the Brazilian contender.

First, Pantoja submitted Moreno in an exhibition bout on Season 24 of “The Ultimate Fighter,” and then “The Cannibal” outpointed the Mexican star at UFC Fight Night 129 in May 2018. Perhaps that’s why Pantoja delivered the most polite callout ever — with Moreno in attendance — in his post-fight interview following a victory over Brandon Royval at UFC on ESPN 29 on Saturday night.

While both flyweights seem to have a certain level of respect for each other, Pantoja was a little less diplomatic in a scrum conducted after the bout.

“He knows my game. I beat him two times. I think he’s maybe a little scared because he lost to me via submission, and then when he had the possibility to get revenge against me, I destroyed him. I made it 30-26. I proved I’m better,” Pantoja said.

“When he came to the…

Before he lost to Robert Whittaker at UFC 254 last October, Jared Cannonier appeared to be Israel Adesanya’s choice for No. 1 contender at middleweight.

That setback knocked “The Killa Gorilla” down the contender’s queue, but Cannonier rebounded to post a five-round verdict over Kelvin Gastelum in the UFC on ESPN 29 headliner at the UFC Apex in Las Vegas on Saturday night.

“Any win is good,” Cannonier said at the post-fight press conference. “I feel good after that win. Took a little bit of damage but I’m not broken so I can go home and hug my kids and be able to play with them come Monday and stuff like that. So I’m happy.”

In his post-fight interview in the Octagon, Cannonier said that he was “broke,” so it was important for him to earn a victory in his first bout since that aforementioned loss to Whittaker. It was a competitive fight throughout, but Cannonier scored the only knockdown of the fight and appeared to get stronger as the matchup progressed.

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IGNACIO BAHAMONDES ENDS IT IN THE LAST 10 SECONDS!! #UFCVegas34 pic.twitter.com/5wxlKMJvVT

— UFC Canada (@UFC_CA) August 22, 2021

In one fell swoop, Ignacio Bahamondes earned his first UFC triumph while submitting a strong entry for “Knockout of the Year.”

The 23-year-old Valle Flow Striking product received a $50,000 “Performance of the Night” award thanks to a spectacular finish of Roosevelt Roberts in a preliminary lightweight affair at UFC on ESPN 29 on Saturday night at the UFC Apex in Las Vegas. After picking his opponent apart with strikes to all levels for the better part of three rounds, “La Jaula” abruptly ended the contest with a highlight-reel spinning wheel kick at the 4:55 mark of Round 3.

Meanwhile, Alexandre Pantoja garnered a $50,000 “Performance of the Night” bonus for a second-round submission of Brandon Royval in a pivotal flyweight matchup. Following a competitive opening frame, the Brazilian took his adversary’s bac…

Sign up for ESPN+ right here, and you can then stream the UFC, PFL and “The Ultimate Fighter” live on your smart TV, computer, phone, tablet or streaming device via the ESPN app. Jared Cannonier at the very least kept his name in the conversation. The MMA Lab standout maintained his position in the Ultimate Fighting Championship’s middleweight pecking order with a unanimous decision over Kelvin Gastelum in the UFC on ESPN 29 headliner on Saturday at the UFC Apex in Las Vegas. All three judges scored it the same: 48-47 for Cannonier (14-5, 7-5 UFC), who rebounded from his Oct. 24 loss to Robert Whittaker.

Both men fought well in spurts. A short-notice substitution for Paulo Costa, Gastelum (16-8, 11-8 UFC) kept a brisk pace and tried to push his opponent’s buttons with leg kicks, lunging left hands and sneaky one-twos. Cannonier was masterful from a defensive standpoint and for the most part managed to steer clear of danger. He floored Gastelum with a clean right hook in t…

Sign up for ESPN+ right here, and you can then stream the UFC, PFL and “The Ultimate Fighter” live on your smart TV, computer, phone, tablet or streaming device via the ESPN app. Sherdog's live UFC on ESPN 29 ​coverage will begin Saturday at 7 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:Tristen Critchfield scores the round:Tyler Treese scores the round:Round 2 Sherdog Scores Jay Pettry scores the round:Tristen Critchfield scores the round:Tyler Treese scores the round:Round 3 Sherdog Scores Jay Pettry scores the round:Tristen Critchfield scores the round:Tyler Treese scores the round:The Official Result Round 1 Sherdog Scores Jay Pettry scores the round:Tristen Critchfield scores the round:Tyler Treese scores the round:Round 2 Sherdog Scores Jay Pettry scores the round:Tristen Critchfield scores the round:Tyler Treese scores the round:Round 3 Sherdog Scores Jay Pettry …

Lingo with the late knockdown!

[ #UFCVegas34 | Prelims are LIVE on ESPN2 & @ESPNPlus] pic.twitter.com/5gagHlPMA5

— UFC (@ufc) August 22, 2021 Sign up for ESPN+ right here, and you can then stream the UFC, PFL and “The Ultimate Fighter” live on your smart TV, computer, phone, tablet or streaming device via the ESPN app. Weaponized cardio made all the difference for Austin Lingo.

The Fortis MMA prospect overcame a difficult start, bit down on his proverbial mouthpiece and took a unanimous decision from Luis Saldana in the featured UFC on ESPN 29 prelim on Saturday at the UFC Apex in Las Vegas. Lingo (9-1, 2-1 UFC) was awarded 29-28 marks by all three cageside judges.

Saldana (15-7, 1-1 UFC) opened a cut near the onetime Legacy Fighting Alliance headliner’s right eye and doubled him over with a body kick in a productive first round. However, his output dipped in the middle stanza, where Lingo applied maximum pressure, went headhu…

[youtube https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ndsKc03OJYI&w=560&h=315]

The upcoming event held by the Abu Dhabi Warriors Fighting Championship has gained an exciting welterweight clash.

On Sunday morning, a source close to the situation informed Sherdog that Omar Hussein Abufarah and Wisem Hammami will collide in a 170-pound feature bout at UAE Warriors 21: Arabia 4. The source asked to remain anonymous since the promotion has yet to make an official announcement.

BREAKING: Sources tell me Omar Hussein Abufarah is welcoming Wisem Hammami in the welterweight division at the upcoming UAE Warriors 21: Arabia 4 event on Sept. 3. "187" is looking for his 4th victory under the UAE banner. Hammami has all finishes on his record.

— Tudor Leonte (@MrTudorLeonte) August 22, 2021

Aburafah (8-2, 3-1 UAE) is coming off a narrow split-decision victory over Yassin Najid in his latest cage appearance at UAE Warriors 17: Arabia 2. “187” was supposed to…

Dan Hooker will square off against Nasrat Haqparast in a lightweight duel at UFC 266.

The pairing was announced during the UFC on ESPN 29 broadcast on Saturday night. UFC 266 takes place at the T-Mobile Arena in Las Vegas on Sept. 25 and is headlined by a featherweight championship clash between Alexander Volkanovski and Brian Ortega. Hooker vs. Haqparast is slated for the preliminary portion of the card.

Hooker will look to snap a two-bout skid after falling to Michael Chandler via first-round TKO at UFC 257 and losing to Dustin Poirier by unanimous decision in the UFC on ESPN 12 main event. Prior to that, “The Hangman” had been victorious in seven of his last eight promotional appearances, with notable victories over the likes of Paul Felder, Al Iaquinta, Gilbert Burns and Jim Miller.

Haqparast, meanwhile, enters the pairing with victories in five of his last six outings. The 25-year-old Tristar Gym representative was able to rebound from a KO loss to Drew Do…

A women’s bantamweight showdown pitting Miesha Tate against Ketlen Vieira has been targeted to headlined an Ultimate Fighting Championship card on Oct. 16.

Combate was first to report the booking. Verbal agreements are in place, but contracts have not been signed as of yet. The event is expected to take place at the UFC Apex in Las Vegas and also includes a featherweight tilt between Holly Holm and Norma Dumont.

Tate ended a five-year retirement at UFC on ESPN 26, where she returned with a third-round TKO triumph over Marion Reneau on July 17. “Cupcake” is a former UFC and Strikeforce bantamweight queen with notable wins over the likes of Holm, Sara McMann, Jessica Eye, Liz Carmouche, Julie Kedzie and Marloes Coenen, to name a few.

After beginning her promotional tenure with four consecutive victories, Vieira has lost two of her last three UFC appearances. Most recently, the 29-year-old Brazilian was outpointed by Yana Kunitskaya at UFC Fight Night 185 on Feb. 20.

Ares remains undefeated

Brave CF 53 leaves us with this great image #BraveCF53 pic.twitter.com/XpUnGXZDj3

— jamie (@wrestlejamia) August 21, 2021 Brave Combat Federation returned to Kazakhstan with an event that saw Tae Kyun Kim remain unbeaten thanks to his superior striking acumen.

In the Brave CF 53 headliner, Kim (9-0, 4-0 Brave) imposed his will against Nurzhan Akishev (11-4, 0-2 Brave). Akishev wobbled “Ares” early in the first frame, following his jab with a well-placed overhand. “Bizon” then swarmed his opponent with punches and threw Kim on the mat, but the South Korean fighter recovered from the shot and was able to return to his feet. “Ares” recomposed himself and stayed out of his opponent’s range while retaliating with plenty of punches of his own. Midway through the round, Kim began to look more comfortable with his combinations. Meanwhile, Akishev went headhunting in pursuit of the finish, but “Ares” was able to avoid serio…

Main event @KillaGorillaMMA

[ #UFCVegas34 | LIVE Tomorrow on @ESPN & @ESPNPlus ] pic.twitter.com/FguVKZW9vL

— UFC (@ufc) August 20, 2021 Kelvin Gastelum had trouble making weight for his UFC on ESPN 29 main event against Jared Cannonier. After a rare week off, the Ultimate Fighting Championship returns to ESPN airwaves. Twenty-two fighters made weight for the event without any issue, while Saidyokub Kakhramonov came in 2.5 pounds heavy for his bantamweight bout against Trevin Jones. Most notably, Gastelum struggled to make weight, initially coming in a quarter of a pound heavy. However, after 20 minutes had passed, Gastelum hit the 186-pound mark.

This is the second UFC main event for Cannonier (13-5), who defeated Jack Hermansson by second-round TKO in his first spotlight bout. "The Killa Gorilla" is looking to rebound after he lost a clear decision to Robert Whittaker last October. The 37-year-old had no issue making weight and c…