Martial Arts News

The cards for the Professional Fighters League playoffs appear to be complete.

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The promotion on Wednesday announced alternate and showcase matchups to fill out each of the three events scheduled for next month. The PFL had previously only confirmed semifinal matchups in each weight class.

At PFL 7 on Aug. 2 at the Nashville Municipal Auditorium in Nashville, Tennessee, Sergey Bilostenniy will square off against Tyrell Fortune in a heavyweight alternate bout.

Meanwhile, PFL 8 will take place on Aug. 16 at the Hard Rock Live in Hollywood, Florida and will include a light heavyweight alternate clash pitting Antonio Carlos Jr. against Karl Albrektsson. Additionally, Mads Burnell will meet Elvin Espinoza in a lightweight alternate pairing.

Finally, PFL 9 will be held on Aug. 23 at The Anthem in Washington, D.C. and features a pair of alternate bouts: Neiman Gracie vs. Luca Poclit at welterweight and Tyler Diamond vs. Enrique Barzola at …

A strawweight clash pitting Tabatha Ricci against Angela Hill has been booked for an Ultimate Fighting Championship event on Aug. 24.

Hill initially announced the bout on her ”2Straws” podcast, and it was later confirmed by MMAjunkie.com. The UFC Fight Night event is expected to take place at the UFC Apex in Las Vegas and does not currently have a headliner.

Ricci has been victorious in five of her last six Octagon appearances. Most recently, “Baby Shark” took a split decision against Tecia Pennington at UFC on ESPN 56 on May 11.

Hill, meanwhile, has won four of her last five outings in UFC competition. The former Invicta FC champion is coming off a second-round submission triumph against Luana Pinheiro at UFC Fight Night 241 on May 18.

Jon Jones has pleaded not guilty to two misdemeanor charges stemming from an encounter with a drug-testing agent at his Albuquerque, New Mexico, home earlier this year.

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During a virtual hearing in Bernalillo County Metropolitan Court on Wednesday, Jones pleaded not guilty to a petty misdemeanor for assault and a misdemeanor for interference with communications. Jones was in attendance with attorney Christopher Dodd, while Judge Brittany Maldonado was in charge of the hearing.

A date for a bench trial is still yet to be determined. The conditions for Jones’ release until said date are as follows: Jones is not allowed to possess any firearms or dangerous weapons, he’s not allowed to possess or consume any alcohol or illegal drugs, he has to notify the court if his address changes and he has to maintain contact with his attorney. Additionally, Jones must avoid contact with the alleged victims in the case.

If Jones is convicted on both charges, h…

Maurice Abevi will welcome undefeated newcomer Samat Mamedov to ONE Championship when they meet at the promotion’s upcoming event in Denver on Sept. 6.

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The organization recently announced the lightweight (170-pound pairing). ONE Championship 168 takes place at Ball Arena in Denver and features a muay thai title bout between Jonathan Haggerty and Superlek Kiatmoo9. The card will stream on Prime Video in the United States.

After dropping a unanimous decision to Halil Amir in his promotional debut, Abevi has rebounded to score back-to-back triumphs against Blake Cooper and Lipeng Zhang under the ONE banner. The 24-year-old Switzerland native has been victorious in eight of his nine professional appearances overall.

Kazakhstan’s Mamedov will take a 6-0 make into his first ONE Championship foray. The 25-year-old Mamedov has finished all of his victories inside of a round, including a stoppage of one-time UFC competitor Will Chope this past December.

Julian Erosa largely credits teammate Andy Varela for refining his guillotine choke to a lethal weapon.

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An underdog going into the fight, Erosa tagged Christian Rodriguez on the feet before submitting him with a guillotine late in the first round at UFC on ESPN 59 in Denver last weekend. Erosa recently weighed in on his guillotine, which has now earned a quite reputation for itself around Las Vegas.

Erosa claims to have already had a decent guillotine choke when he started training at 10th Planet Jiu Jitsu in Las Vegas. There Erosa met Varela, who according to him has one of the best guillotines in the world. “Juicy J” credits Varela for helping him make small adjustments to his own guillotine, which he claims is now nearly “unstoppable.”

“I would say I moved to Vegas about almost seven years ago now,” Erosa said on UFC Unfiltered. “And when I first moved to Vegas, I walked into 10th Planet in Henderson here and met a kid named Andy Varela. And…

Virna Jandiroba recently elaborated on the significance of her unique headgear and her nickname, “Carcara.”

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Jandiroba will headline UFC on ESPN 60 — her first main event in the promotion — against fellow Brazilian Amanda Lemos at the UFC Apex in Las Vegas on Saturday. While walking out, the strawweight contender will be sporting her signature traditional leather hat usually worn by Brazilian cowboys.

Born and raised in the countryside of the northeastern Brazilian state of Bahia, Jandiroba takes pride in her ancestry. Jandiroba explained that her signature hat is a common headgear among cowboys in “backlands” of Bahia. According to the 36-year-old, the hat is a representation of her home.

“I’m from Brazil. Born and raised in the countryside of Bahia,” Jandiroba told ESPN. “My parents are from there. My mother came from a farming family. From the fields. I think our ancestry is very strong here in the northeastern region. From my family, all t…

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Muhammad Mokaev believes Tom Aspinall’s father, Andy Aspinall, can hold his own against ranked UFC fighters.

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Mokaev and Aspinall will share a card in their hometown of Manchester, England, at UFC 304 on July 27 as the promotion returns to the city after nearly eight years. While Mokaev takes on Manel Kape in a flyweight matchup, Aspinall will put his interim heavyweight title on the line against Curtis Blaydes in the co-main event at the Co-op Live Arena.

As two elite MMA fighters hailing from the same region, Mokaev and Aspinall go back a long way. Mokaev was training in Wigan when he first met Aspinall and his father Andy, who were coaching at a different gym. Mokaev revealed that “Honey Badger” was working security at a pub then and would give him a ride home after practice for several years.

“Yeah, I met Tom Aspinall, he was coaching the kids session… And then his father was coaching adult session next session… And once…

Sean Strickland believes his unhinged rants could be the only impediment on the road to his next middleweight title shot.

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Strickland dethroned Israel Adesanya via unanimous decision at UFC 293 in September 2023 in one of the biggest upsets in UFC history. Strickland’s short-lived title reign came to an end via a split-decision loss to Dricus Du Plessis at UFC 297 this past January. Strickland has since bounced back with a split-decision win over Paulo Costa last month, which many believe should have been scored unanimously in favor of “Tarzan.”

Meanwhile, Du Plessis puts his title on the line against Adesanya in the main event at UFC 305 on Aug. 17 in Perth, Australia. Strickland is now adamant on fighting the winner of that bout next instead of a title eliminator against Robert Whittaker. “Bobby Knuckles” rebounded from a stoppage loss against Du Plessis with a unanimous decision win over Costa followed by a knockout over surging newcomer Ikram Al…

A couple of highly-touted prospects will be in action at the Professional Fighters League playoff event on Aug. 16.

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Biaggio Ali Walsh will face Korey Taylor in a lightweight showcase bout on the evening’s main card, while Jordan Oliver will lock horns with Braydon Akeo in a preliminary contest at featherweight. MMAjunkie.com was first to report Ali Walsh vs. Taylor, while BJPenn.com initially brought word of Oliver vs. Akeo. Sherdog.com subsequently confirmed both bookings with a promotion official.

The grandson of boxing legend Muhammad Ali, Ali Walsh compiled a 6-1 record as amateur, with five of his victories coming under the PFL banner. He made his pro debut at the PFL vs. Bellator Champs event in February, earning a unanimous decision triumph against Emmanuel Palacio.

Taylor, meanwhile, owns a 4-0 professional mark and has finished all of his opponents inside of a round on the regional circuit.

Oliver was a two-time NCAA national …

One of the main highlights of UFC on ESPN 59 in Denver was Jean Silva moving up a weight class to score his third knockout in six months against Drew Dober, a victory that came just two weeks after “Lord” finished Charles Jourdain at UFC 303.

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In an interview with Ag.Fight shortly after the bout, Jean revealed that the UFC had already nominated a veteran in the Top 15 to be his next opponent.

“Unfortunately, I still can't say anything, just that it will be at featherweight,” said the Fighting Nerds member.

Silva also promised that if the UFC needs him to step up again in the coming weeks, he will be available. His lone condition would be that the short-notice fight would take place at 155 pounds.

“My plan this year is to have three more fights at featherweight, but if the UFC asks me, exceptionally, to face a striker at lightweight, that could be a possibility,” Silva said. “But my focus is on my division.”

In a separate interview with …

Sean O'Malley's selection as “Fighter of the Year” at the recent ESPY awards was heavily criticized by the Brazilian media.

On his weekly podcast, "Papo de Luta", UFC Fight Pass Brazil commentator Carlos Barreto, said he did not understand the reasons for O'Malley to surpass the achievements of UFC light heavyweight champion Alex Pereira.

“I'm not discussing the quality of O'Malley, who is undoubtedly talented and a great fighter, in addition to being very popular in the U.S. What must be taken into question here are the facts. In the period in question, O'Malley knocked out [Aljamain Sterling] and beat ‘Chito’ Vera on points, while ‘Poatan’ knocked out Jiri [Prochazka] twice, Jamahal Hill once and beat Blachowicz on points, becoming double champion,” Barreto said.

“If the award went to the greatest American fighter of the year, that would be fine, but here it is a global award. Unfortunately, it even takes away the credibility of the award.”

Recently inducted to the UFC Hall of Fame, Wanderlei Silva participated this week on the Combate Podcast, Mundo da Luta, and spoke of his desire to do a “real” boxing challenge.

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Silva expressed disappointment with the recent duel between Anderson Silva and Chael Sonnen, an exhibition that ended in a draw.

“It is a new range of entertainment that is opening up,” Silva said. “What I can say is this: when Wanderlei Silva has an exhibition fight, you will see what a real exhibition is. It has to be real. If I had the opportunity to beat up Chael Sonnen, what do you think I would do? I was going to beat Sonnen up, the guys had to give me that opportunity (laughs). I'm not his friend, I'm just an acquaintance.”

While the Pride Fighting Championships veteran had some intense moments with Sonnen on the third season of “The Ultimate Fighter: Brazil” in 2014, he makes it clear that he now has a good relationship with the American.

"He's a nice guy. I l…