Martial Arts News

Paramount+ poked fun at the 2026 FIFA World Cup final by comparing it to one of the most lackluster title fights in the history of the Ultimate Fighting Championship.

Finalists Spain and Argentina were scoreless through regulation in the 2026 FIFA World Cup final before the European champions secured a 1-0 victory in extra time. Spain controlled much of the possession, while Argentina remained on the back foot, barely threatening offensively. Paramount has now compared the fixture to the UFC 274 strawweight title rematch between Rose Namajunas and Carla Esparza.

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UFC on Paramount+ compared Spain vs. Argentina to the infamous UFC 274 title fight between Rose Namajunas, Carla Esparza Many felt the FIFA World Cup final wasn’t an enjoyable game and Paramount+ has drawn a comparison to its MMA equivalent. Alongside a promotional image for the Namajunas-Esparza rematch, the UFC on Paramount+ account posted on X:

"This World Cup final so far."

Namaju…

One of the Ultimate Fighting Championship athletes who competed on UFC Oklahoma City sustained quite a bit of facial damage.

Austin Bashi has revealed he sustained multiple facial fractures during his unanimous decision loss to Jose Delgado at the recent Fight Night event.

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Austin Bashi’s UFC Oklahoma City injuries revealed Delgado landed a right hand in the opening round and Bashi's right eye gradually swelled shut over the remainder of their three-round bout. Despite the damage and limited vision, the 24-year-old completed all three rounds.

Following the fight, Bashi disclosed on Instagram that medical evaluations confirmed minor fractures to both his orbital bone and nose.

“All glory to GOD! A little fracture in the nose, a little fracture in the orbital but we live to fight another day,” Bashi wrote on Instagram along with a photo of his injuries. “Thank you so much to all my family, fans, and team for all the love and support, love and a…

Christian Leroy Duncan claimed the biggest victory of his Ultimate Fighting Championship career at UFC Oklahoma City, where he beat former title challenger Jared Cannonier.

Duncan extended his winning streak to five with a unanimous decision victory over Cannonier to further ascend the rankings. The Englishman landed several significant strikes against the 42-year-old veteran, who managed to make it all three rounds.

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Christian Leroy Duncan’s UFC Oklahoma City victory over Jared Cannonier strengthens his middleweight contender case Duncan put on a show with his striking arsenal in the UFC Oklahoma City co-main event and was especially effective with his spinning attacks, dropping Cannonier and rocking the American a few times.

“I knew Cannonier was tough, but for him to take some of the shots and keep fighting, it surprised me,” Duncan said in a post-fight interview, praising his counterpart's ability to absorb heavy shots. “He’s called 'The Gorill…

Kamaru Usman is disappointed with one of the judges’ scorecards in his loss to Dricus Du Plessis.

Usman (21-5) faced fellow former Ultimate Fighting Championship champion du Plessis (24-3) in a middleweight tilt in the main event of UFC Oklahoma City. The latter landed more significant strikes from the onset, with barely any wrestling success for Usman. While the former welterweight king found a second wind in the later rounds, it was too little too late, and du Plessis earned a lopsided unanimous decision victory.

Usman explains why he disagrees with Sal D'Amato's scorecard against Dricus Du Plessis While he accepts the result, "The Nigerian Nightmare" is bewildered by one of the scorecards. Judges David Sutherland and Mike Bell scored the fight 49-46 in favor of du Plessis, while judge Sal D’Amato had it 50-45 for the former middleweight champ.

Usman finished strong in the final round and had a strong showing in the third frame as well. He can’t comprehend what D’A…

Former Ultimate Fighting Championship champion Dricus Du Plessis returned to winning ways at UFC Oklahoma City.

Nearly a year after losing his middleweight belt to Khamzat Chimaev, du Plessis returned to action in a five-rounder against former welterweight champ Kamaru Usman, earning a lopsided unanimous decision win. The South African’s return made him realize how much he loves and belongs in the sport.

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UFC champion Dricus Du Plessis explains his mindset after beating Kamaru Usman "Stillknocks" was clearly on top in the opening two rounds, with Usman finding his range in the third frame before du Plessis regained his momentum in the fourth. Usman found a second wind in the final round, but it was too little too late for "The Nigerian Nightmare,” who was on the wrong end of a 50-45, 49-46, 49-46 scorecard.

Having spent 11 months on the sidelines coming off a loss, du Plessis believes that one can forget what it’s like inside the Octagon during a l…

Colby Covington and Belal Muhammad's long-running feud finally boiled over at RAF 11.

Former Ultimate Fighting Championship champion Muhammad defeated Ben Askren on points in the latter's retirement wrestling match before calling out Covington. Later that evening, "Chaos" defeated Arman Tsarukyan to capture the inaugural RAF crossover championship.

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They had to be separated after the wrestling promotion’s Saturday event in Milwaukee after a heated exchange at the post-fight press conference escalated into a physical confrontation.Former UFC stars Colby Covington and Belal Muhammad clash at RAF 11 Following their wins at RAF 11, both Covington and Muhammad attended the presser, where the former UFC welterweight titleholder attempted to diminish the headliner’s victory over Tsarukyan. “He went against a lightweight!” Muhammad said of Covington. “Tell him to go against a welterweight, somebody his size! Cleveland's right around the corner! Let's go!”

“…

Alexandre Pantoja is eager to reclaim the Ultimate Fighting Championship flyweight title.

The former 125-pound champion has been sidelined since suffering an arm injury in his title defense against Joshua Van at UFC 323 last year. "The Cannibal" has now fully healed and believes he is ready to run it back with Van.

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Alexandre Pantoja says he's fully recovered and wants another shot at UFC flyweight champion Joshua Van. Pantoja suffered an arm injury very early into his fight with Van, who caught his kick and forced him backwards before the Brazilian awkwardly posted up on his hand. The referee stopped the bout at 26 seconds, with Pantoja clearly in pain, clutching his arm. His recovery is now complete and he’s targeting an Octagon return.

“I'm ready,” Pantoja told MMA Fighting. “After December, what happened to my arm, two days after that, I went to the gym, started training with just one arm. That's who I am. I'm not done. I'm not done. I have so …

Valter Walker believes one of his teammates is going to be an Ultimate Fighting Championship titleholder soon.

Walker’s friend and teammate, Bogdan Guskov, is scheduled to face Magomed Ankalaev in a light heavyweight outing, the main event of UFC Abu Dhabi on July 25. Guskov took the fight on 14 days’ notice after Ankalaev’s original opponent, Khalil Rountree, pulled out due to an injury.

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Walker backs Gor MMA teammate ahead of short-notice fight with Magomed Ankalaev Guskov is a big betting underdog going into the fight against Ankalaev, who is a massive -500 favorite on some sportsbooks. However, Walker is backing his friend to pull off a huge upset win over the former light heavyweight champion. The Brazilian heavyweight predicts that Guskov will knock out Ankalaev in the second round. He also believes Guskov will go on to become the first UFC champion from their gym, Gor MMA.

“Bogdan is certainly a talent,” Walker told Red Corner MMA. “He’s sim…

A slick exchange in RD3 🙌

[ #UFCOKC is LIVE NOW on @ParamountPlus ] pic.twitter.com/pP0dA8O1qJ

— UFC (@ufc) July 19, 2026 Four fighters pocketed an extra $100,000 after earning UFC Oklahoma City performance bonuses.

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While 12 mixed martial artists got their hands raised during the event, the Ultimate Fighting Championship made sure that four fighters will be smiling going into next week. To the surprise of no one, the main event secured fight of the night honors for Dricus Du Plessis and Kamaru Usman. The back-and-forth main event, which saw Usman never stop coming forward despite taking the best punches of Du Plessis, earned both headliners an extra $100,000. "Stillknocks" took home an unanimous decision victory, moving his professional record to 24-3.

Fans also predicted that Tommy McMillen would take home a performance of the night bonus for his TKO win over Alberto Montes, which is exactly what happened. The bre…

Getty Images/UFC

It was a matchup of former champions who could ill afford another loss in the division, and Dricus Du Plessis and Kamaru Usman fought like it.

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Former middleweight titleholder Du Plessis (24-3; 10-1 UFC) and welterweight counterpart Usman (21-5; 16-4 UFC) met in the main event of UFC Oklahoma City on Saturday at Paycom Center, and while du Plessis showed his resourcefulness and champion’s grit, Usman made him work for every bit of it. The early action was characterized by tense, awkward pocket exchanges as the ex-champs tried to figure one another out, but the balance of things appeared to be going towards du Plessis, who caught Usman with several powerful flush right hands to the head in the first few minutes. Usman weathered them well, however, and never stopped throwing back, leading to a competitive but clear first frame for the South African. After a first round that was nearly all boxing, “Stillknocks” came out ki…

Sherdog's live UFC Oklahoma City coverage will begin Saturday at 5 p.m. ET/2 p.m. PT. The event is also known as UFC Fight Night 281. Round 1 Sherdog Scores Jay Pettry scores the round:Ben Duffy scores the round:Tyler Treese scores the round:

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Round 2 Sherdog Scores Jay Pettry scores the round:Ben Duffy scores the round:Tyler Treese scores the round:Round 3 Sherdog Scores Jay Pettry scores the round:Ben Duffy scores the round:Tyler Treese scores the round: The Official Result Round 1 Sherdog Scores Jay Pettry scores the round:Ben Duffy scores the round:Tyler Treese scores the round:Round 2 Sherdog Scores Jay Pettry scores the round:Ben Duffy scores the round:Tyler Treese scores the round:Round 3 Sherdog Scores Jay Pettry scores the round:Ben Duffy scores the round:Tyler Treese scores the round:The Official Result Round 1 Sherdog Scores Jay Pettry scores the round:Ben Duffy scores the round:Tyler Treese scores the round:Round 2 Sherdog Scores Jay Pettry…

Sherdog's live PFL Austin coverage will begin Saturday at 5:30 p.m. ET.

A middleweight title fight headlines PFL Austin: Tune on Saturday, July 18 at 8 p.m. ET on ESPN.

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Round 1 Round 2 Round 3 The Official Result Round 1 Round 2 Round 3 The Official Result Round 1 Round 2 Round 3 The Official Result Round 1 Round 2 Round 3 The Official Result Round 1 Round 2 Round 3 The Official Result Round 1 Round 2 Round 3 The Official Result Round 1 Round 2 Round 3 The Official Result Round 1 Round 2 Round 3 The Official Result Interim PFL Middleweight Title Fight:Johnny Eblen (184.2) vs. Impa Kasanganay (183) Round 1 Round 2 Round 3 Round 4 Round 5 The Official Result