Martial Arts News

A previously rumored flyweight clash between Michelle Waterson and Marina Rodriguez is now official as the main event for UFC on ESPN 24.

The Las Vegas-based promotion formally announced the bout on Tuesday. The fight will be five rounds like a normal UFC main event, but both Waterson and Rodriguez will be competing a division above their normal weight class. The card lost its originally scheduled headliner between T.J. Dillashaw and Cory Sandhagen when Dillashaw was forced to pull out of the contest after suffering a cut in training.

UFC on ESPN 24 takes place on Saturday at the UFC Apex in Las Vegas and will see Donald Cerrone square off against Alex Morono in the evening’s co-headliner. The main card airs on ESPN and ESPN+ at 8 p.m. ET/5 p.m. PT following prelims on ESPN+ at 5 p.m. ET/2 p.m. PT.

Waterson is coming off a previous appearance in which her fight was elevated to main-event status on short notice. In that bout, “The Karate Hottie” halted a two-bou…

Damn 2 seconds left #Bellator255 pic.twitter.com/Zk1NBRPwkQ

— Pucc0 (@ppucc0) April 2, 2021

Three weeks after submitting Jonathan Wilson in his Bellator debut, Jose Augusto Azevedo Barros agreed to replace Yoel Romero in the first round of the promotion’s light heavyweight grand prix.

Once the decision to step in and face Anthony Johnson at Bellator 258 was finalized, Azevedo found immediate support from master and teammate Patricio Freire.

“We see ‘Gugu’ as a better striker than Anthony Johnson,” said the Bellator two-division champion. “Johnson is a very experienced and dangerous fighter but is coming from four years of inactivity. ‘Gugu’ is in a great place, that's why, even being aware that it's a huge challenge to our athlete, we accepted that fight right away.”

Azevedo, meanwhile, was thrilled to get the opportunity to face an opponent he has admired.

“Three years ago, I was dreaming of being hired by a great organizati…

Dominick Reyes has broken his silence following a knockout loss to Jiri Prochazka in the UFC on ESPN 23 headliner.

The former light heavyweight title challenger suffered his third consecutive defeat on Saturday night, falling victim to a spinning back elbow from Prochazka 4:29 into Round 2 of their clash at the UFC Apex in Las Vegas this past Saturday. “The Devastator” released a statement regarding the bout via Instagram late Monday evening.

“Finally home and surrounded by those I love, I’d like to say, I went out there and fought with all my heart,” Reyes wrote. “I put it all out there and I’m glad it was entertaining for most of you. I’m happy and upset as you can imagine as I didn’t get the desired outcome. But I went out and fought and for that I can say I’m proud.

“I love this game and at times it does not love me back but that’s what we have all signed up for. I want to say I’m doing good healing up I’ll be OK. And congrats to [Prochazka]. Hell of a fight…

ITS FINALLY HERE!

Volume 2 of the @ufcpi journal can be downloaded here:

https://ufc-pi.we https://t.co/qWXsLXC13t

Link in bio https://t.co/tsQdu33dQl

— UFC PI (@UFCPI) May 4, 2021

The UFC Performance Institute has taken a deep dive into mixed martial arts with a 484-page study of the sport.

The digital journal, which is entitled, "A Cross-Sectional Performance Analysis and Projection of the UFC Athlete,” is the second volume of its kind and includes data and insights collected by the UFC PI over the course of the last four years of working with hundreds of fighters. The journal is designed as a resource to help athletes “in all aspects of their health, well-being, and performance.”

The journal is “part analytics and part educational” and is divided into the following five sections, per a release:

PART I - Strategy & Goal Setting-Contains comprehensive data from competition analysis; injury audit data; performan…

A featherweight matchup with title implications has been added to the Rizin Fighting Federation 28 lineup.

The Japanese promotion recently announced that Mikuru Asakura will square off against Kleber Koike Erbst on June 13. Rizin 28 takes place on June 13 at the Tokyo Dome and also features four bouts from the bantamweight grand prix.

During a press conference, Rizin CEO Nobyuki Sakakibara dispelled rumors that Kyoji Horiguchi would return to compete at the event.

“MMA will be making a return to the Tokyo Dome after 18 years so we won't hold back on our cards,” he said. “Horiguchi won't be able to make it so it's natural to bring in our best cards that we can put together at the moment.”

Asakura has been victorious in eight of his nine appearances under the Rizin banner, with his lone defeat coming against Yutaka Saito in a bout for the vacant featherweight crown last April. The 28-year-old Triforce Akasaka representative rebounded with a first-round knock…

A high-profile bout originally slated for UFC 262 will take place about a month later than originally anticipated.

According to a report from Yahoo Sports, Nate Diaz has suffered a minor injury that has resulted in the postponement of his welterweight clash against Leon Edwards. The five-round, non-title contest has been moved from UFC 262 on May 15 to UFC 263 on June 12.

UFC 263 takes place at Gila River Arena in Glendale, Ariz., and is headlined by a middleweight championship tilt between Israel Adesanya and Marvin Vettori. In the co-main event, Deiveson Figueiredo will face Brandon Morena in a flyweight title rematch.

Diaz will compete for the first time since losing to Jorge Masvidal via third-round doctor stoppage for the “BMF” title at UFC 244 in November 2019. The Stockton, Calif., native has competed infrequently in recent years, splitting a pair of bouts with Conor McGregor in 2016 and besting Anthony Pettis at UFC 241 in August 2019 before the aforeme…

Not only did Dominick Reyes lose his third consecutive fight at UFC on ESPN 23, but he could be out for a lengthy period of time as well.

Reyes suffered a second-round knockout loss to Jiri Prochazka in Saturday’s headliner at the UFC Apex in Las Vegas. As a result of that defeat, the former title challenger must receive doctor clearance for nasal and orbital fractures or he will be sidelined for six months. At a minimum, he is suspended until July 1 with no contact until June 16. Despite absorbing some solid shots over the course of the bout, Prochazka emerged with a clean bill of health following his spinning elbow KO victory.

The Nevada State Athletic Commission released a list of medical suspensions to mixedmartialarts.com.

Three other fighters from UFC on ESPN 23 are also facing potential six-month terms pending doctor clearance: Ion Cutelaba (nose), Luana Pinheiro (finger) and Andreas Michailidis (left hand).

UFC on ESPN 23 Medical Suspensions:

…

Donald Cerrone has a new opponent at UFC on ESPN 24.

After original foe Diego Sanchez was released from the roster, Alex Morono has agreed to step in and face “Cowboy” in a welterweight bout on Saturday night. Multiple outlets confirmed the pairing following an initial report from C. Contreras Legaspi on Twitter.

UFC on ESPN 24 takes place at the UFC Apex in Las Vegas, and will reportedly be headlined by a clash between Michelle Waterson and Marina Rodriguez, though that bout has not been formally announced.

Morono has won four of his last six UFC appearances. Most recently, the 30-year-old Fortis MMA product lost a decision to Anthony Pettis at UFC Fight Night 183 on Dec. 19.

Cerrone is looking to get back on track after going winless in his last five bouts. In his most recent outing, the BMF Ranch founder battled Niko Price to a draw at UFC Fight Night 178, but the result was later overturned to a no contest after Price tested positive for marijuana.

Professional Fighters League’s third regular season event is down to nine bouts after a heavyweight clash pitting Ali Isaev against Hatef Moeil was pulled from the card.

The promotion announced on Monday that neither heavyweight would compete on Thursday’s card. A reason for the cancellation of the fight was not given. PFL 3 will mark the promotion’s first card to air on ESPN thus far in 2021 after the main cards previously were broadcast on ESPN2. After one early prelim on ESPN+ at 5:30 p.m. ET/2:30 p.m. PT, the card shifts to ESPN/ESPN+ for the next eight bouts beginning at 7 p.m. ET/4 p.m. PT. PFL 3 is headlined by the promotional debut of ex-UFC champ Fabricio Werdum, who takes on Renan Ferreria at heavyweight.

IT'S FIGHT WEEK on ESPN! #2021PFL3 Update- Ali Isaev and Hatef Moeil will not compete at PFL 3 pic.twitter.com/YC3Nx0xn5i

— PFL (@PFLMMA) May 3, 2021

Russia’s Isaev is the PFL 2019 heavyweight champion and is 9-0 thus far in hi…

As expected, Chris Weidman is facing a lengthy time on the shelf after the unfortunate events that transpired at UFC 261.

Weidman has been suspended six months and requires clearance from an orthodpedic doctor after breaking his leg on a low kick checked by Uriah Hall in their bout on April 24 at Vystar Veterans Memorial Arena in Jacksonville, Fla. The Florida State Boxing Commission released medical suspensions from the event to mixedmartialarts.com.

Weidman’s recovery likely will be longer than that, as the fighter revealed that it could be up to a year before he resumes training after having a rod inserted into his leg during post-fight surgery.

Five other fighters from UFC 261 are facing potential six-month terms (The Florida Commission did not release specific injuries for the majority of the card’s participants): Dwight Grant, Pat Sabatini, Rodrigo Vargas, Zhu Rong and Na Liang. Additionally, Karl Roberson is suspended indefinitely and must provide a nega…

Amanda Nunes had some strong words regarding a potential trilogy against flyweight queen Valentina Shevchenko.

The UFC two-division champion recently discussed that subject — along with her next title defense and the possibility of a future showdown with two-time Olympic gold medalist Kayla Harrison — in an interview on Brazilian podcast "Mundo da Luta.” Nunes defeated Shevchenko via unanimous decision in their first meeting at UFC 196 and then via five-round split decision in their rematch at UFC 215. Shevchenko has been dominant since dropping to 125 pounds, leading to speculation regarding another matchup with Nunes.

“If Valentina really wanted to face me again, she would have stayed at 135 pounds. That's what I would do if someone beat me twice,” Nunes said. “I wouldn't look for the easier way to get a title in a lower division thinking, ‘Maybe one day I´ll return to face her.’ No way. If she ran from bantamweight it is because she is aware that I´m the only one …

A bantamweight showdown pitting Sean O'Malley against Louis Smolka is in the works for UFC 264.

Multiple outlets confirmed that verbal agreements are in place for the pairing following an initial report from journalist Ryan Frederick on Twitter. UFC 264 takes place at the T-Mobile Arena in Las Vegas on July 10 and is headlined by a trilogy bout between Dustin Poirier and Conor McGregor.

After suffering his first career defeat against Marlon Vera at UFC 252, O’Malley returned to the win column at UFC 260, where he defeated Thomas Almeida via third-round knockout on March 27. The Dana White’s Contender Series alum is 13-1 as a professional, with 10 victories coming inside the distance.

Smolka has been victorious in three of five Octagon appearances during his second UFC stint. Most recently, “Da Last Samurai” stopped Jose Alberto Quinonez in the second round of their bout at UFC on ESPN 19 on Dec. 5. The 29-year-old Hawaiian went 5-5 during his first go-round wit…