Dana White’s Contender Series takes place at the UFC Apex in Las Vegas and streams on ESPN+ beginning at 8 p.m. ET/5 p.m. PT. The evening’s featured contest is a featherweight tilt pitting Melski Bagdasaryan (145) against Dennis Buzukja (145.5).
Anchored at Glendale Fighting Club in California, Bagdasaryan has kicked off his professional tenure with victories in four of his first five outings. Perhaps even more impressively, all …
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Frankie Edgar’s victory over Pedro Munhoz immediately made him a person of interest in the Ultimate Fighting Championship’s bantamweight division. Now “The Answer” has his sets set on a fellow former champion.During an appearance on Bruce Buffer’s ”It's Time” podcast, Edgar expressed interest in a future matchup with ex-bantamweight title holder Dominick Cruz. Cruz returned to action after more than three years away at UFC 249, where he suffered a second-round TKO loss to Henry Cejudo in a title bout on May 9.
Edgar believes Cruz makes for an ideal pairing as he waits for the title picture at the top of the bantamweight division to clear up.
“Another guy that’s also a little older and a legend himself is Dominick Cruz,” Edgar said (transcription via MMAFighting.com). “A lot of people are still talking about t…
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Brian Kelleher will welcome Kevin Natividad to the Octagon at UFC Fight Night 176 on Saturday.Natividad is a replacement for Ricky Simon, who was pulled from the card after one of his cornermen tested positive for COVID-19. MMAjunkie.com was first to report the change to the featherweight bout. UFC Fight Night 176 takes place at the UFC Apex in Las Vegas and is headlined by a heavyweight clash between Alistair Overeem and Augusto Sakai. The card streams in its entirety on ESPN+ beginning with prelims at 6 p.m. ET/3 p.m. PT followed by the main card at 8 p.m. ET/5 p.m. PT.
Kelleher will be competing for the fourth time this year. After kicking off his 2020 campaign with finishes of Ode Osbourne at UFC 246 and Hunter Azure at UFC Fight Night 171, “Boom” dropped a unanimous verdict to Cody Stamann in his most recent a…
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Tensions between Dominick Reyes and Jon Jones seemed to have eased somewhat since “Bones” elected to vacate his light heavyweight crown earlier this month.In the weeks following Jones’ controversial decision triumph over Reyes in the UFC 247 headliner, the challenger lobbied hard for an immediate rematch. Jones, meanwhile, was not particularly receptive to the idea.
However, now that Jones is focusing on a move to heavyweight, Reyes will square off against Jan Blachowicz for the vacant 205-pound belt at UFC 253 on Sept. 26. “The Devastator” took some time to reflect on his first title bout and buried the hatchet with Jones in the process. Of course, that doesn’t mean he would be opposed to a rematch down the road.
Hey [Jon Jones] thank you for the experience, man. I wish you the best of luck in your journey,” R…
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Alexa Grasso appears to have found a home in the flyweight division.The Lobo Gym representative impressed in her 125-pound debut at UFC Fight Night 175, earning a unanimous verdict against former Deep Jewels champion Ji Yeon Kim at the UFC Apex in Las Vegas on Saturday night.
“The only thing I want to prove clear is that I belong here and I belong at the top of the division,” Grasso said. “I’m here to prove that every time I step in the Octagon.”
In a bout that featured a number of spirited exchanges, it was Grasso’s combination punching and low kicks that won the day. The 27-year-old Mexican outlanded Kim by an 88-to-68 count in significant strikes and punctuated her victory with a takedown in the late stages of Round 3.
“I knew she was a tough opponent. She has no expression when you hit her,” Grasso sa…
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It wasn’t that type of performance that leaves a lasting imprint on the minds of those who witnessed it, but there’s no denying that Aleksandar Rakic was in complete control against Anthony Smith in the UFC Fight Night 175 headliner.The Austrian contender utilized leg kicks, positional dominance and ground-and-pound to cruise to a clear-cut unaniomus decision over the former light heavyweight No. 1 contender at the UFC Apex in Las Vegas on Saturday night.
“I [said] in my interviews this week I need to make a statement,” Rakic said at Saturday’s post-fight press conference. “I’m not going to rush a finish, if the finish comes, it comes. If not, my goal is to make a great performance and this is what happened. In the third, I think I dropped him. I followed up, but I knew Anthony’s a tough guy. He can take a beating a…
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Anthony Smith never seemed further removed from his days as a top light heavyweight contender than he did at UFC Fight Night 175.The former title challenger was largely overwhelmed by Aleksandar Rakic in Saturday’s three-round headliner at the UFC Apex in Las Vegas en route to losing a clear-cut unanimous decision. Rakic battered “Lionheart” with low kicks, and when Smith attempted to initiate grappling exchanges, the Austrian stifled his opponent from top position while staying busy with ground-and-pound. The end result was a bout in which Smith, while he didn’t feel out of his depth, was rarely able to threaten a more powerful opponent.
“The first round I stayed in kicking range at the beginning, which is obviously stupid now. He beat up my lead leg. Then we got in our clinch and grappling exchanges, which I felt …
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Before all is said and done, Neil Magny could very well surpass Georges St. Pierre for the most victories in the history of the Ultimate Fighting Championship’s welterweight division.Magny moved closer to GSP on Saturday night, as he captured a dominant unanimous decision against former champion Robbie Lawler in the UFC Fight Night 175 co-headliner in Las Vegas. The Elevation Fight Team representative now has 17 triumphs at 170 pounds — just two behind the legendary Canadian. Now he just needs the championship hardware to match St. Pierre.
“It feels great. Leading up to this week I was being put in the category as guys like Matt Hughes, Georges St. Pierre, and here tonight fighting Robbie Lawler,” Magny said in his post-fight interview. “I’m doing the right things, going in the right direction, it's only a matter of …
3 FIGHTS AND 3 SUBMISSIONS!! @seanbradymma keeps the subs rolling at #UFCVegas8! pic.twitter.com/j41QLDuutE
— UFC Canada (@UFC_CA) August 29, 2020Sign 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.
If it was indeed Ricardo Lamas’ farewell bout, the featherweight veteran made it one to remember.Lamas and opponent Bill Algeo received “Fight of the Night” honors and $50,000 apiece for their featured clash at UFC Fight Night 175 at the UFC Apex in Las Vegas on Saturday night. While Algeo rocked Lamas with a knee in the second frame, the former title challenger recovered to author a dominant final crame and clinch a unanimous decision triumph.
Elsewhere, Sean Brady garnered a $50,000 “Performance of the Night” award for a submission of Christian Aguilera in a preliminary welterweight contest. The former Cage Fury Fighting Championships titli…
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Ricardo Lamas knows he is nearing the end of the line in his mixed martial arts career.The 38-year-old Chicago native used a strong third round to pull away from game short-notice foe Bill Algeo at UFC Fight Night 175, earning a unanimous decision triumph in a featured featherweight bout at the UFC Apex in Las Vegas on Saturday night. “The Bully” set career highs for significant strikes landed (104) and takedowns (five) in the victory.
Lamas wasn’t ready to formally concede that it was his final walk to the Octagon, but if it ends up being a farewell, he’s happy to go out on a high note.
“I walked into this thinking it could maybe be my last fight,” Lamas said after the bout. “I didn’t want to walk away with a loss. I always said I don't want to leave this sport in the dirt. I want to leave with my head held hi…
Outside of an overhand right he landed early in the second round, Smith (33-16, 8-6 UFC) was ineffective. Rakic chopped at his lower leg with repeated kicks, then punished him when he attempted to alter the direction of the fight with clinches and takedowns. He assumed top position in all three round…