Martial Arts News

Alex Pereira’s bonus request was granted — and deservedly so.

The reigning light heavyweight champion received a $50,000 “Performance of the Night” check for his second-round technical knockout of Jiri Prochazka in the UFC 303 headliner at the T-Mobile Arena in Las Vegas on Saturday night. “Poatan” dropped his foe with a head kick early in Round 2 and then sealed his triumph with follow-up punches 13 seconds into the frame.

Pereira was one of four “Performance of the Night” winners from UFC 303. In addition to the Brazilian champion, Macy Chiasson, Joe Pyfer and Payton Talbott all received $50,000 awards for their work in the Octagon.

Chiasson ended Mayra Bueno Silva’s night by gashing her with an elbow from top position, forcing a doctor stoppage at the 1:58 mark of Round 2 in the bantamweight pairing. Pyfer, meanwhile, rebounded from his first career defeat to score a knockout of Marc-Andre Barriault 85 seconds into the opening stanza of their middleweight show…

The 2024 #PFLPlayoffs are set

Welterweights & Featherweights finally book their tickets to Washington DC ✈️

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B2YB @Join_AFReserve | #PFLRegularSeason pic.twitter.com/BJoAcFCMcE — PFL (@PFLMMA) June 29, 2024

Shamil Musaev is sitting pretty as he makes his first venture into the Professional Fighters League postseason.

The 30-year-old Russian secured the No. 1 seed at welterweight by virtue of a second-round technical knockout of Murad Ramazanov at PFL 6 on Friday night at the Sanford Pentagon in Sioux Falls, South Dakota. The KSW veteran is now unbeaten in 17 professional outings, but he’ll have to best the same adversary twice in a row if he is to advance in the 170-pound bracket. His matchup for Aug. 23 at The Anthem in Washington, D.C. will be a return date with the fourth-seeded Ramazanov, who suffered his first professional defeat on Friday. Meanwhile, No. 2 Magomed Umalatov will square off against No.…

In a sport where the term “sniper” is often thrown around too easily, Alex Pereira wields a once-in-a-lifetime blend of precision and power.

In the main event of UFC 303 on Saturday in Las Vegas, light heavyweight champ Pereira (11-2) met Jiri Prochazka (30-5-1) in a rematch of their title fight seven months ago, which the Brazilian won by second-round knockout after likely losing the first round. In the rematch, the first round was a surprisingly tentative affair, most likely due to both men now being fully cognizant of the other’s power. The champ quickly went to work with the brutal leg kicks that had been effective for him in their first meeting, and which had given Prochazka trouble in his subsequent fight against Aleksandar Rakic as well. Prochazka had some success bouncing into range and landing single punches, but his attempts to bring the fight to the floor went nowhere. Nonetheless, the round was a competitive affair—that is, up to the final seconds, when “Poatan” …

Sherdog's live UFC 303 coverage will begin Saturday at 6 p.m. ET. BETTING PREVIEW | SCOUTING REPORT | ODDS: Simon (-218), Oliveira (+180)Round 1 Sherdog Scores Jay Pettry scores the round:Ben Duffy scores the round:Devin Tejada scores the round:

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Round 2 Sherdog Scores Jay Pettry scores the round:Ben Duffy scores the round:Devin Tejada scores the round:Round 3 Sherdog Scores Jay Pettry scores the round:Ben Duffy scores the round:Devin Tejada scores the round: The Official Result BETTING PREVIEW | SCOUTING REPORT | ODDS: Tsuruya (-485), Hernandez (+370)Round 1 Sherdog Scores Jay Pettry scores the round:Ben Duffy scores the round:Devin Tejada scores the round:Round 2 Sherdog Scores Jay Pettry scores the round:Ben Duffy scores the round:Devin Tejada scores the round:Round 3 Sherdog Scores Jay Pettry scores the round:Ben Duffy scores the round:Devin Tejada scores the round:The Official Result BETTING PREVIEW | SCOUTING REPORT | ODDS: Buday (-258), Arlovski …

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Ultimate Fighting Championship middleweights take notice: Joe Pyfer is one frightening individual.

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In the featured preliminary bout of UFC 303 on Saturday in Las Vegas, “Bodybagz” came close to living up to his nickname, obliterating Marc-Andre Barriault with a hail of punches against the fence that left “Power Bar” prone and senseless on the cage floor. It was barely a fight, as Pyfer waded forward immediately, backing Barriault up with big haymakers. Once he had corralled the Canadian against the fence, the rest was academic: Pyfer unleashed a series of huge punches, with a right hand sneaking behind Barriault’s raised guard to connect on the ear. Pyfer tacked on a left as his opponent fell, and Barriault wound up facedown with his hands at his sides, completely separated from his wits and referee Herb Dean waved off the fight at 1 minute, 25 seconds. The chilling knockout put Pyfer back on track after his first UFC …

Michelle Waterson-Gomez is calling it a career.

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The 15-time Octagon veteran announced her retirement following a unanimous decision loss to Gillian Robertson in a preliminary strawweight contest at UFC 303 on Saturday night. “The Karate Hottie” broke down in tears in the Octagon as the promotion played a tribute video on the big screen at the T-Mobile Arena in Las Vegas. The loss to Robertson was her fifth straight defeat.

“I wouldn’t be the person I am today if it wasn’t for the UFC and all you fans continuing to push me. Fighting runs through my veins. It’s made me who I am,” Waterson-Gomez said. “When you fight, you chase greatness.”

The 38-year-old Waterson-Gomez compiled an 18-13 mark over the course of a professional MMA career that began in 2007. She captured the Invicta FC atomweight crown in 2013 and defended that title once before relinquishing the belt to Herica Tiburcio in 2014.

The Jackson-Wink MMA product would then win …

Brendan Loughnane came into the 2024 PFL Regular Season 6 card having already secured a Professional Fighters League featherweight playoff spot, but that didn't stop him from putting on a show against Justin Gonzales.

A clear striking advantage was on display from the very beginning as Loughnane (28-5) was able to find his distance and regularly clip Gonzales (14-5). In clear control, Gonzales would get a nasty cut on his forehead in the second round from a knee to the head. After the doctor looked at the laceration, the fight was called off at 3:34 of Round 2.

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Loughnane will be the No. 1 seed in the featherweight playoffs and will face Kai Kamaka III.

The 2024 #PFLPlayoffs are set

Welterweights & Featherweights finally book their tickets to Washington DC ✈️

B2YB @Join_AFReserve | #PFLRegularSeason pic.twitter.com/BJoAcFCMcE

— PFL (@PFLMMA) June 29, 2024 Storley Outwrestles Poclit The final welterweight fig…

The Professional Fighters League’s regular season marches on with 2024 PFL 6 Regular Season at 6:30 p.m. ET. Round 1 Sherdog Scores Brian Knapp scores the round:Tyler Treese scores the round:Mike Pendleton scores the round:

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Round 2 Sherdog Scores Brian Knapp scores the round:Tyler Treese scores the round:Mike Pendleton scores the round:Round 3 Sherdog Scores Brian Knapp scores the round:Tyler Treese scores the round:Mike Pendleton scores the round: The Official Result Round 1 Sherdog Scores Brian Knapp scores the round:Tyler Treese scores the round:Mike Pendleton scores the round:Round 2 Sherdog Scores Brian Knapp scores the round:Tyler Treese scores the round:Mike Pendleton scores the round:Round 3 Sherdog Scores Brian Knapp scores the round:Tyler Treese scores the round:Mike Pendleton scores the round:The Official Result Round 1 Sherdog Scores Brian Knapp scores the round:Tyler Treese scores the round:Mike Pendleton scores the round:Round 2 Sherdog …

CHAMA 🗿@AlexPereiraUFC is locked in at 204lbs

[ Live on @ESPNPlus PPV | TOM | 10pmET/7pmPT | #UFC303 ] pic.twitter.com/TCPImZQPZi

— UFC (@ufc) June 28, 2024 While it's not the Conor McGregor return that was originally planned, the Ultimate Fighting Championship made the most of a bad situation.

The replacement UFC 303 main event is a good one as Alex Pereira will put his belt on the line against former titleholder Jiri Prochazka. Both men successfully made weight for the rematch of their highly entertaining 2023 fight, which saw the Brazilian claim his second UFC belt. As for the rest of the card, all fighters made weight with the exception of Jean Silva, who came in 1.5 pounds over the featherweight limit for his fight against Charles Jourdain. As a result, Silva will be fined 20% of his purse.

Pereira (10-2) has become a fan-favorite for his vicious knockouts and willingness to fight anyone. Since moving to light heavyweight, "…

Ultimate Fighting Championship lightweight Benoit St. Denis would like nothing more than to go three for three when stopping off in Paris.

At the UFC Fight Night event on Sept. 28 in Paris, St. Denis (13-2, 1 NC) is expected to appear in front of home fans. He will take on resurgent 155-pounder Renato Carneiro (19-5-1), according to an initial report from Ag. Fight. The lightweight stylistic clash has been verbally agreed to by both competitors, but the contracts have not yet been signed. This news has since been confirmed by multiple outlets. The only other fight official for the lineup is Joanderson Brito vs. William Gomis at 145 pounds, although Ciryl Gane is rumored to be appearing and possibly headlining this event in the Accor Arena.

Bayonne, France, native St. Denis appeared at both of the previous UFC cards held in the City of Light, finishing Gabriel Miranda in 2022 and Thiago Moises in 2023. Most recently, “God of War” succumbed to strikes from Dustin Poiri…

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※鈴木千裕が怪我でドクターストップのため欠場… pic.twitter.com/oE4gjS8RYm

— RIZIN FF OFFICIAL (@rizin_PR) June 28, 2024 Rizin Fighting Federation will keep Manny Pacquiao on its upcoming blockbuster show no matter what.

The promotion sent out a press release on Thursday night announcing that Pacquiao would no longer be facing Chihiro Suzuki at Super Rizin 3 on July 28. “PacMan” was expecting to take on Suzuki in a three-round “standing rules” match which consisted of boxing plus spinning strikes. Due to an injury sustained in his exhibition bout against Takanori Gomi in June, Suzuki has been forced out of the matchup. In his stead will be kickboxer Rukiya Anpo, who has already engaged in a similar type of fight ag…

ONE Championship fan-favorite “Reug Reug” will still be vying for the heavyweight title in November.

Per sources close to the situation, Oumar Kane (6-1 MMA, 0-0 KB) will be adding another matchup to his calendar this year. At ONE Fight Night 23 on July 5, “Reug Reug” will be battling Senegalese influence Boucher Ketchup under kickboxing rules. The two big men, who share a history with one another as popular laamb wrestlers, will duke it out for three three-minute rounds at Lumpinee Stadium in Bangkok. As first reported by Sportskeeda, the heavyweights challenged one another on a live broadcast of 221 Live on Tuesday, a show about laamb wrestling.

This will be the kickboxing debut for the 32-year-old training out of 971 MMA. “Reug Reug” entered into MMA in 2019, where he crushed Sofiane Boukichou early into the second round. This lone win propelled him into the roster of ONE Championship, where he went on to crush Alain Ngalani and Patrick Schmid in 2021 to put himsel…