Martial Arts News

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A welterweight clash pitting Diego Sanchez against Jake Matthews is one of three new additions to the UFC 253 lineup.

Also announced were a featherweight bout between Brad Riddell and Alex Da Silva as well as a lightweight matchup between Nate Landwehr and Shane Young. UFC 253 takes place on Sept. 26 and is likely to be held on Yas Island in Abu Dhabi. The card is headlined by a middleweight title tilt between Israel Adesanya and Paulo Henrique Costa.

The 38-year-old Sanchez has won three of his last four Octagon appearances. “The Ultimate Fighter” Season 1 winner is coming off a bizarre matchup with Michel Pereira in which he prevailed after his opponent landed an illegal knee in the third round.

Matthews, 25, has won five of his last six promotional outings. Most recently, “The Celtic Kid” outpointed Emil Meek…

Sign up for ESPN+ right here, and you can then stream the UFC live on your smart TV, computer, phone, tablet or streaming device via the ESPN app. Dana White’s Contender Series in its fourth year of existence continues to infuse the Ultimate Fighting Championship with untapped talent. Four more competitors—welterweights Louis Cosce and Orion Cosce, strawweight Cheyanne Buys and heavyweight Josh Parisian—were signed by the promotion on Week 3 of DWCS on Tuesday at the UFC Apex in Las Vegas. Since the season started on Aug. 4, a total of 12 fighters have punched their tickets to the UFC.

Lost Boys Jiu-Jitsu and Muay Thai’s Louis Cosce cut down Victor Reyna with punches in the first round of their welterweight showcase. Reyna (11-5), who had never before been knocked out, bit the dust just 72 seconds into Round 1. Cosce (7-0) elected to forego the feeling-out process and rushed out throwing heat with kicks and punches. He sent Reyna crashing to the canvas with a chopping ov…

Sign up for ESPN+ right here, and you can then stream the UFC live on your smart TV, computer, phone, tablet or streaming device via the ESPN app. Sherdog's live DWCS 2020 Week 3 coverage kicks off Tuesday at 8 p.m. ET. Check out the MMA Forums to discuss the card or enter your comments and predictions below. Round 1 Sherdog Scores Tristen Critchfield scores the round:Brian Knapp scores the round:Mike Fridley scores the round:Round 2 Sherdog Scores Tristen Critchfield scores the round:Brian Knapp scores the round:Mike Fridley scores the round:Round 3 Sherdog Scores Tristen Critchfield scores the round:Brian Knapp scores the round:Mike Fridley scores the round:The Official Result Round 1 Sherdog Scores Tristen Critchfield scores the round:Brian Knapp scores the round:Mike Fridley scores the round:Round 2 Sherdog Scores Tristen Critchfield scores the round:Brian Knapp scores the round:Mike Fridley scores the round:Round 3 Sherdog Scores Tristen Critchfield scores the round:Br…

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A pivotal featherweight showdown between Chan Sung Jung and Brian Ortega is expected to headline an Ultimate Fighting Championship event on Oct. 17.

Milenio was first to report the booking, and it was later confirmed by ESPN. A location for the event has not yet been announced, but the card is also expected to include a women’s flyweight clash pitting Jessica Andrade against Jessica Eye.

“The Korean Zombie” and Ortega were originally scheduled to meet at UFC Fight Night 165 on Dec. 21, but a knee injury forced Ortega to exit the bout. Jung then dispatched replacement opponent Frankie Edgar via first-round technical knockout in the card’s new main event. Jung has won three of his last four UFC appearances, with his only defeat coming thanks to a Hail Mary KO from Yair Rodriguez in November 2018.

Ortega has not c…

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A heavyweight showdown pitting Curtis Blaydes against Derrick Lewis will serve as the main event of a UFC card on Nov. 28.

ESPN was first to report the booking. A location for the event has not been announced.

"I'm happy and excited about it," Blaydes told ESPN. "This is the one I asked for, and I'm happy the UFC listened and made it a main event. I know Derrick Lewis is a name, he has a large following and a win over him will solidify my case as the next one to go after the heavyweight title. I know [Francis] Ngannou is up next, and I want to build my case for after him.”

Blaydes has won four straight bouts since a 45-second TKO loss to current heavyweight No. 1 contender Francis Ngannou at UFC Fight Night 141 in November 2018. Most recently, Blaydes earned a five-round verdict against Alexander Volkov in the …

Just ate it @JimMiller_155 was absolutely unfazed by Pichel's headkick.

Prelims close now on @ESPN pic.twitter.com/l5lRfLjArr

— UFC (@ufc) August 16, 2020 Sign up for ESPN+ right here, and you can then stream the UFC live on your smart TV, computer, phone, tablet or streaming device via the ESPN app. The UFC 252 preliminary card averaged 831,000 viewers this past Saturday on ESPN, according to ShowBuzz Daily.

That ranks as the fifth best offering for a pay-per-view preliminary card on ESPN thus far in 2020. However, it does surpass the ratings of the last two cards, UFC 250 (775,000) and UFC 251 (809,000). The highest rated prelims of 2020 remains UFC 246, with 1.767 million viewers for the lead-in to a pay-per-view headlined by Conor McGregor’s Octagon return.

The UFC 252 prelims, which featured a lightweight clash between Vinc Pichel and Jim Miller, peaked at 1.2 million viewers for the broadcast. That card also secured a 0.29 rati…

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A light heavyweight rematch between Mauricio Rua and Paul Craig has been scheduled for UFC 255.

ESPN was first to report the booking. UFC 255 takes place on Nov. 21 and is headlined by a flyweight championship tilt between Deiveson Figueiredo and Cody Garbrandt. In the co-main event, Valentina Shevchenko will defend her 125-pound belt against Jennifer Maia. A location for the event has not been announced.

Rua and Craig initially squared off at UFC Fight Night 164, where their clash ended in a split draw this past November.

“Shogun” returned to the win column in his most recent outing, as he captured a split-decision triumph over Antonio Rogerio Nogueira at UFC on ESPN 14 on July 25. The 38-year-old Brazilian has been victorious in five of his last seven Octagon appearances dating back to 2015.

Craig was …

[youtube https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=3TqKQUNk5JA&w=560&h=315]

Cage Warriors 115 has added an exciting clash between two up-and-coming fighters.

Welshman Ben Ellis is taking on Kingsley Crawford in a 145-pound clash at the second of the three events Cage Warriors announced for its September return. A person with knowledge of the situation informed Sherdog about the matchup, which was then confirmed by a promotion official.

Ellis (2-0) is arguably one of the most promising young talents fighting out of Wales at the moment. He made his pro debut last year after a brilliant amateur career that ended with a record of 7-0. So far, all his fights have ended in the opening stanza, as he trashed both Brad Evans and Rafael Skouras at CW 104 and CW 108, respectively.

Crawford (5-2) is currently riding a two-bout streak after he steamrolled  Scott Butters at CW 111 before submitting Lewis Monarch via triangle choke at CW 113. So fa…

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It appears that Anthony Johnson will be cutting weight when he makes his long-awaited comeback to the Ultimate Fighting Championship.

Johnson’s manager, Ali Abdelaziz, told ESPN that “Rumble” will enter the UFC’s drug testing pool this week. He must be available for testing six months before he is eligible to fight again. Johnson removed him self from USADA testing following a loss to Daniel Cormier in a 205-pound title bout at UFC 210 in April 2017.

While Johnson initially considered making a return at heavyweight after watching the Cormier-Stipe Miocic rematch at UFC 241, “Rumble” is now planning on competing in the light heavyweight division.

Johnson’s news comes on the heels of Cormier’s retirement following a loss to Miocic in their trilogy at UFC 252 and the announcement that Jon Jones has vacated his li…

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Eye pokes were once again a story in the third meeting between Stipe Miocic and Daniel Cormier, so it’s no surprise that both will need medical clearance from eye specialists.

The Nevada State Athletic Commission released a full list of medical suspensions from UFC 252 on Monday. Miocic retained his heavyweight crown with a unanimous decision victory over Cormier in Saturday’s main event at the UFC Apex in Las Vegas.

Miocic, who underwent surgery after being poked in the eye in his second bout with Cormier, was on the receiving end of another foul in the opening stanza at UFC 252. The Strong Style Fight Team member must have retinal specialist clearance on his left eye before he can compete at again. At a minimum he is suspended until Sept. 30 with no contact until Sept. 15.

Cormier, meanwhile, endured an eye po…

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Jon Jones is no longer king of the Ultimate Fighting Championship’s light heavyweight division.

The reigning light heavyweight champion announced via Twitter on Monday that he has officially vacated his 205-pound belt.

“Just got off the phone with [the UFC],” Jones wrote. “Today I confirm that I’m vacating the light heavyweight championship. It’s officially up for grabs. It’s been an amazing journey, sincere thank you to all my competition, UFC and most importantly, you fans.”

Just got off the phone with @Ufc, today I confirm that I’m vacating the light heavyweight championship. It’s officially up for grabs. It’s been an amazing journey, sincere thank you to all my competition, Ufc and most importantly you fans.

— BONY (@JonnyBones) August 17, 2020

Jones threatened to vacate the belt…

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Outside of a post-fight interview with Joe Rogan, Daniel Cormier didn’t get to say his piece following a unanimous decision loss to Stipe Miocic in the UFC 252 main event this past weekend.

Cormier was transported to a nearby hospital shortly thereafter to be treated for a potential injury that resulted from an accidental eye poke by Miocic in the third round of their heavyweight title clash. As a result, “DC” did not attend Saturday’s post-fight press conference to further address his future.

However, Cormier has frequently said UFC 252 would be his last fight, and a statement issued on his Instagram account Monday seemed to confirm those plans. The American Kickboxing Academy captain was classy in defeat, thanking, Miocic, his family, fans, team and the UFC for all the support over the years.

“Thank you all fo…