Martial Arts News

Former Professional Fighters League heavyweight champion Bruno Cappelozza has been suspended one year for failing an out-of-competition drug test.

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Cappelozza tested positive for clomiphene and its metabolite, desethyl-clomifene, in a urine sample collected on April 17, 2024. Clomiphene is in the category of hormone and metabolic modulators and is banned at all times under the PFL anti-doping policy. Cappelozza will be eligible to return to active competition on April 17, 2025.

It’s the second failed drug test for Cappelozza, who tested positive for drostanolone in relation to a PFL regular season bout against Matheus Scheffel on April 7, 2023. That resulted in a nine-month suspension for the Brazilian, whose knockout of Scheffel was also overturned to a no contest.

Cappelozza returned to action for the first time since that sanction at the PFL vs. Bellator Champs event on Feb. 24, when he suffered a second-round submission loss to former Bel…

Dana White's Contender Series is officially back for another season.

All 10 competitors slated to fight on Week 1 made weight without issue ahead of their respective bouts on Monday. The show awards UFC contracts to fighters who impress Dana White with their performance.

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The Contender Series takes place at the UFC Apex in Las Vegas on Tuesday and airs on ESPN+ at 7 p.m. ET/4 p.m. PT. The evening’s featured bout is a middleweight showdown pitting Mansur Abdul-Malik (186) against Wesley Schultz (185).

Anchored at MMA Masters, Abdul Malik will take a 5-0 mark into the matchup with Schultz. He last appeared at LFA 176 on Feb. 9, when he defeated Allan St-Gelais via first-round knockout. All five of his professional triumphs have come inside of a round.

Schultz, meanwhile, has competed primarily for LFA while compiling a 6-1 record. He’s won his last three outings inside of a round, including a stoppage of Adland Benson at LFA 181 on April 5.

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While he might have been viewed as an unlikely title challenger in just his fourth Octagon appearance, Steve Erceg proved that he belonged on that stage this past May.

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The 29-year-old Australian gave Alexandre Pantoja all he could handle in the UFC 301 headliner, ultimately dropping a competitive unanimous decision to the reigning flyweight champion in Rio de Janeiro.

“Showed people that, despite the apparent pressure, I’m not going to wilt,” Erceg recently told the New York Post. “Although it looked too soon and all that nonsense, it probably wasn’t. I’m going to be a contender and then, eventually, champion one day.”

UFC 305: Du Plessis vs. Adesanya Saturday at 10 ET on ESPN+. Order Now! Erceg will return to action for the first time since then when he meets Kai Kara-France in the UFC 305 co-main event on Saturday at RAC Arena in Perth. A victory over another top contender could put “Astro Boy” right back into the middle of the title discussio…

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As a coach, Khabib Nurmagomedov is known for running a very tight ship. Belal Muhammad recently just learned firsthand how strict Nurmagomedov’s workouts can be.

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Xtreme Couture head coach Eric Nicksick recently revealed details of one of Nurmagomedov’s “invite only” training sessions that he attended at the UFC Performance Institute in Las Vegas. Nicksick said that Nurmagomedov’s training sessions are extremely strict, with everyone laser focused only on training throughout. Nicksick admits drawing valuable insights from those practices regarding changes he can implement at his own gym.

“It’s invite only… It’s very serious, but very regimented. There’s no music, there’s no bulls—ing. Like, they’re not there to talk s—t with one another and joke around,” Nicksick told Red Corner MMA. “You’re there and it’s work, from the moment you step on the mat until the moment you’re off the mat…It taught me a lot on how to improve some of our…

It’s a tough pick for Robert Whittaker to make between former foes Dricus Du Plessis and Israel Adesanya for their upcoming title fight.

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Du Plessis looks to defend his middleweight title for the first time against Adesanya in the main event at UFC 305 in Perth, Australia, this weekend. The South African knocked out Whittaker at UFC 290 last year to earn the title shot and dethroned then champ Sean Strickland via split decision at UFC 297 this past January.

Whittaker is finding it increasingly difficult to make a pick for the UFC 305 main event as the fight draws near. However, judging by Du Plessis’ performance against Strickland, Whittaker expects the champ to retain his title. Regardless of the outcome of the fight, “Bobby Knuckles” expects it to go the distance as both fighters are too skilled to be finished.

“If Dricus pushes the same plan, uses the same style he had against Strickland, he has to be my pick to win,” Whittaker told Fox Sport…

Dricus Du Plessis recently addressed the possibility of a future rematch against Sean Strickland.

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Du Plessis dethroned Strickland at UFC 297 this past January via split decision in a middleweight title fight that could have easily been scored either way. Strickland later claimed to have been robbed due to the fight taking place in “liberal” Canada.

Strickland has since been calling for a rematch, strengthening his case with a decision win over Paulo Costa at UFC 302 in June. Meanwhile, Du Plessis is set for his first title defense against former champ Israel Adesanya at UFC 305 on Saturday in Perth, Australia.

When it comes to a potential rematch against Strickland, Du Plessis says he doesn’t owe the American anything. The South African claims to be surprised by the controversy surrounding the scorecards, which according to him, shouldn’t have been split in the first place. However, that doesn’t mean Du Plessis will shy away from a rematch agai…

🚨 New Opp 🚨@KingCaseyMMA will now take on Brazil’s Luana Santos at #UFC305! pic.twitter.com/h6DgbQoiM6

— UFC_AUSNZ (@UFC_AUSNZ) August 12, 2024

Luana Santos will step for Tereza Bleda and face Casey O'Neill at UFC 305 on Saturday.

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The Las Vegas-based promotion recently confirmed the new flyweight booking after it was initially announced by All In Sports Management. UFC 305 takes place at the RAC Arena in Perth, Australia, and is headlined by a middleweight title tilt between Dricus Du Plessis and Israel Adesanya.UFC 305: Du Plessis vs. Adesanya Saturday at 10 ET on ESPN+. Order Now! Santos will make a quick turnaround after appearing at UFC on ESPN 59 on July 13, when she defeated Mariya Agapova via first-round submission. The 24-year-old Brazilian has won five straight contests, including three in UFC competition.

O’Neill, meanwhile, began her professional tenure with nine consecutive triumphs. After winning her first…

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Alexander Volkanovski is expecting a return to form for Israel Adesanya at UFC 305.

“The Last Stylebender” will return to action on Saturday for the first time since relinquishing the middleweight strap to Sean Strickland in the UFC 293 headliner last September. It was perplexing effort from Adesanya, who was building a resume at 185 pounds that rivaled some of the best in the sport’s history.

Volkanovski, who has trained with Adesanya at City Kickboxing, believes his teammate is capable of putting on a highlight reel performance against current 185-pound champ Dricus Du Plessis.

“I’m expecting a performance from Israel Adesanya, like a proper performance like you’ve seen [in] the Paulo Costa [fight]. A fight like that where he goes out and just does it in impressive fashion,” Volkanovski said on his YouTube channel.

UFC 305: Du Plessis vs. Adesanya Saturday at 10 ET on ESPN+. Order Now! “Because Dricus is very awkward, very unorthodox. He’s…

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Israel Adesanya has benefitted from a much-needed recharge since his upset loss to Sean Strickland at UFC 293 last September.

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“I’ve definitely evolved,” Adesanya told TMZ Sports. “And just taking my time to heal myself: mind, body and spirit. Patience has been my friend throughout this whole thing. I’m a very patient man, so I’m just able to sit, watch and plot.”

When Adesanya relinquished the middleweight strap to Strickland, it ranked as one of the biggest upsets in the sport’s history. Shortly thereafter, he revealed that he wouldn't be fighting for “a long time.” In addition to mental healing, Adesanya revealed that he has been focused on eating healthier and getting the proper amount of sleep.

“Now I’m living like a proper athlete and it’s nice,” he said.UFC 305: Du Plessis vs. Adesanya Saturday at 10 ET on ESPN+. Order Now! Adesanya will return for the first time since that loss when he challenges Dricus Du Plessis for …

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The budding rivalry between Dricus Du Plessis and Israel Adesanya reached a boiling point following the South African’s triumph over Robert Whittaker at UFC 290 last summer.

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In that moment, tensions flared when Adesanya entered the Octagon to confront Du Plessis, setting the stage for a future title bout between the two middleweights. Du Plessis had drawn Adesanya’s ire when he referred to himself as “the African fighter in the UFC” during a media day event in 2023, and that anger was reflected when the Nigerian-born Kiwi addressed Du Plessis in the cage that night.

The highly-anticipated showdown between Adesanya and Du Plessis took some time to materialize, but the two will finally meet more than a year later in the UFC 305 headliner on Saturday at RAC Arena in Perth, Australia. Now, however, their roles are reversed: Du Plessis is the champion and Adesanya is the challenger. In an interview with Fox Sports Australia, Du Plessis…

Eric Nicksick shares the story of how a thoughtful gesture from Francis Ngannou brought one of his coaches to tears 👏

🎥 @MMAFighting #UFC #MMA pic.twitter.com/9UR5dzj31g

— Championship Rounds (@ChampRDS) August 10, 2024

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Xtreme Couture head coach Eric Nicksick recently revealed how a gesture from Francis Ngannou moved one of his other coaches to tears.

Nicksick shared how fellow coach Nate Pettit is one of the hardest working guys in the gym, devoting his whole life to the Las Vegas-based camp. A couple of weeks ago, a teary-eyed Pettit walked up to Nicksick in the gym and said Ngannou had just handed him a check.

When Nicksick later thanked Ngannou for looking out for Pettit, “The Predator” said he didn’t want the coach’s efforts to go unreciprocated. Nicksick also credited Pettit for a significant role in preparing Ngannou for his knockout title win over Stipe Miocic at UFC 260 in 2021.

“Nate Pettit’s one …

Jose Mariscal was so embarrassed by missing weight for his clash against Damon Jackson on Saturday that he almost pulled out of the fight.

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UFC on ESPN 61 allowed only one hour for fighters to weigh in instead of the usual two. Mariscal, who weighed in at 3.5 pounds over the featherweight limit, was one of three fighters who missed weight for the event. However, Mariscal doesn’t blame the short weigh-in window and instead takes responsibility for his weight miss.

A lifetime martial artist, Mariscal knows the importance of making weight. “Chepe” didn’t even want to be seen in the arena, but his coaches put his mind back on track. An undisclosed portion of Mariscal’s purse was offered to Jackson, who agreed to proceed with the fight. Mariscal went on to earn an impressive unanimous decision win over Jackson in a high-paced, entertaining affair.

“We kind of calculated the weight cut kind of wrong, especially with the Vegas heat and everything — …