Martial Arts News

WATCH OUT @KingImpa showing no Octagon jitters in his debut. #UFCVegas8 pic.twitter.com/Z4HsaxG0Uo

— UFC (@ufc) August 30, 2020

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If first impressions are any indication, Impa Kasanganay has a bright future in the Ultimate Fighting Championship’s middleweight division.

The still-green Gym-O prospect kept his perfect professional record intact and impressed in his promotional debut, as he captured a unanimous decision over fellow Dana White’s Contender Series graduate Maki Pitolo in the featured UFC Fight Night 175 prelim on Saturday at the UFC Apex in Las Vegas. Kasanganay (8-0, 1-0 UFC) swept the scorecards with identical 30-27 marks from the judges.

It boiled down to horsepower, and Kasanganay had more of it. He moved Pitolo backward and sent spit flying with chopping right hands, mi…

Gamrot is relentless!! #KSW54 pic.twitter.com/eDmXgd7NOZ

— KSW (@KSW_MMA) August 29, 2020

Konfrontacja Sztuk Walki might say goodbye to one of its most dominant champions ever very soon.

In the main event of KSW 54, Mateusz Gamrot (17-0, 1 NC) put on a show in yet another successful lightweight title defense, this time at the expense of Marian Ziolkowski (21-8-1). "Gamer" was initially scheduled to clash with Shamil Musaev, but the Russian fighter was forced to pull out of the battle after sustaining a knee injury in training. Ziolkowski, who was supposed to fight Maciej Kazieczko on the same card, tried his best, but it was not enough to dethrone the defending champion. After a close first round, Gamrot displayed his notorious fighting IQ and made some small but significant adjustments that nullified Ziolkowski's arsenal. Eventually, all three judges rewarded "Gamer" with the eighth decision victory on his rec…

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Ion Cutelaba’s rematch with Magomed Ankalaev will have to wait yet again.

The UFC announced in a statement on Saturday that Cutelaba has tested positive for COVID-19, and as a result, his light heavyweight clash with Magomed Ankalaev at UFC Fight Night 175 has been postponed.

“Due to a positive COVID-19 test, Ion Cutelaba’s light heavyweight fight against Magomed Ankalaev has been removed from today’s undercard and will be rescheduled for a later date,” the UFC statement read.

It’s the second time a positive COVID-19 test has derailed Cutelaba. The Moldovan fighter also tested positive for the virus prior to UFC 252, which scrapped a proposed matchup with Ankalaev on Aug. 15.

As a result, UFC Fight Night 175 will proceed with 10 bouts. The card takes place at the UFC Apex in Las Vegas and is headlined by…

Brant Moore imposed his will and moved another step closer to a shot at the Legacy Fighting Alliance lightweight championship.

Repeated takedowns, crushing top control and an active submission game carried the surging Team 515 representative to a clear-cut unanimous decision over “The Ultimate Fighter” Season 27 finalist Joe Giannetti in the LFA 89 headliner on Friday at the Sanford Pentagon in Sioux Falls, South Dakota. Moore (8-1, 4-0 LFA) swept the scorecards with identical 30-27 nods from the judges.

Giannetti (9-3-1, 0-1 LFA) could not stay upright. Moore climbed to dominant positions in all three rounds and bottled up the South Shore Sportfighting product on the mat. The Brazilian jiu-jitsu black belt did his best work in Round 3, where he used a kimura to roll through an attempted takedown, set up shop in side control, dropped elbows and threatened with an arm-triangle choke before achieving full mount.

Moore, 26, has rattled off six consecutive victories.

<…

BREAKING!

Undefeated Bantamweight Champion Jack Cartwright (8-0) will make the second defence of his title against Gerardo Fanny (9-1) at CW115.

Pure aggression!

The 5th and final title fight to be announced across #THETRILOGY series. pic.twitter.com/p4mvhdKfF9

— Cage Warriors (@CageWarriors) August 28, 2020 A whopping five belts will be on the line across “The Trilogy” of three Cage Warriors Fighting Championship events in September.

A new title clash has been added to the upcoming CW 115 event, per the promotion on Friday. Manchester’s own Jack Cartwright will attempt his second title defense on Sept. 25 against Gerardo Fanny. This championship bout joins another already scheduled on the card at middleweight. CW 115 is the second of three consecutive events across the last week in September.

Cartwright (8-0) won the belt by smashing both Scott Malone and Marko Kovacevic in the first round of the one-night bantamweight tour…

Light heavyweights Anthony Smith (205 pounds) and Aleksandar Rakic (205.5) have both weighed in successfully, making the #UFCVegas8 main event official. pic.twitter.com/JO8qT2Ki39

— ESPN MMA (@espnmma) August 28, 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. Some exciting action is on tap for this weekend, but two fighters missed weight ahead of the event. The Ultimate Fighting Championship continues its stretch of Las Vegas-based events with UFC Fight Night 175. The card is headlined by a three-round battle between light heavyweight contenders Anthony Smith and Aleksandar Rakic. Additionally, former welterweight champ Robbie Lawler will make his return after a over a year away, last competing in a loss to Colby Covington last year.

After a major setback at the hands of Glover Teixeira, Smith (33-15) will look to get back into the win co…

[youtube https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=eeQUPq9Lq-M&w=560&h=315] One of the combatants of the upcoming KSW 54 co-main event is facing a major ban in his adopted home country due to a failed drug test.

On Saturday, Quentin Domingos is scheduled to lock horns with former professional boxer and kickboxer Izuagbe Ugonoh, with the latter set to make his MMA debut. Before that, “Ruskov” will have to contend with a pending four-year ban from the French Anti-Doping Agency (L’Agence Française de Lutte Contre le Dopage, abbreviated AFLD). Domingos was tested the night of hisGladiator Fight Arena 10 bout, which went down on March 17, 2018. The Portugal-born Frenchman went on to render Daniele Palomba unconscious at the 2:17 mark of the opening stanza.

According to his results, Domingos tested positive for a litany of banned substances. The contents of his results included and were not limited to: methenolone and its metabolite 1-methylene-5a-androstan-3a-ol-17-one; a metabolite of…

“Stamp Fairtex” is no longer the queen of her muay Thai division.

On Aug. 28, One Championship returned with a live card titled One: A New Breed, which took place at the Impact Arena in Bangkok, Thailand.

The main event featured a muay Thai battle for One’s atomweight championship between the defending champ Nong Stamp and challenger Allycia Hellen Rodrigues. The Brazilian fighter started slow but gained momentum after making some adjustments in her gameplan. Eventually, the Brazilian fighter upset the local hero Stamp by leading a brilliant fight that saw her emerging victorious thanks to a majority decision on the judges’ scorecards.

In the co-main event, Rodlek PK. Saenchaimuaythaigym locked horns with Kulabdam Sor in the final of the bantamweight muay Thai Grand Prix that One promoted to find a challenger for Nong-O Gaiyanghadao. Kulabdam was supposed to face Saemapetch Fairtex, but the latter was forced to pull out of the fight due to an injury. Rodlek made the m…

[youtube https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=QGwG-_poZcY&w=560&h=315] Join DAZN free for 30 days and live-stream fight night anywhere!

Marian Ziolkowski is ready to take advantage of his unexpected opportunity.

KSW 54 will be taking place on Aug. 29 in Warsaw, Poland, where it will be topped by a lightweight championship affair. Two-division king Mateusz Gamrot (16-0, 1 NC) will be putting not only his 155-pound belt up for grabs, but his unbeaten record on the line as he takes on replacement opponent Marian Ziolkowski (21-7-1, 1 NC). Gamrot, who last defended his title in July, was originally slated to face fellow undefeated Shamil Musaev, but after a knee injury to Musaev, Ziolkowski stepped up from a bout earlier on the card. Both fighters made weight for their title showdown, with Gamrot at the 155-pound mark and Ziolkowski weighing in at 154 pounds in response.

The co-headlining bout sees the recently suspended Quentin Domingos (254) welcome boxer Izuagbe Ugonoh (232…

[youtube https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=7CJ4IRrudjA&w=560&h=315] Legacy Fighting Alliance continues the second phase of its comeback with LFA 89, although there is no title up for grabs on this show.

The six-fight card is headlined by a bout between lightweight contenders Brant Moore and Joe Giannetti. Moore (7-1) is undefeated within the promotion, rattling off three wins since the promotion’s inception. Currently on a five-fight win streak, he’s coming off a submission win over Nation Gibrick, and prior to that, captured a decision over Edmilson Freitas. “Killer Bee” had no issue making weight and came in at 155.8 pounds.

Making his LFA debut is Giannetti (9-2-1), who is riding a two-fight finish streak. He’s stopped eight of his nine opponents before the final bell, and is coming off a submission of Roberto Yong and a knockout over Keenan Raymond. Living up to his “Skeletor” nickname, the lean six-footer Giannetti made weight at 155.2 pounds.

Although all fighters…

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 revolving door of opponents keeps turning for Ultimate Fighting Championship featherweight Alex Caceres. On Tuesday, Caceres (16-12, 1 NC) was slated to face Giga Chikadze, but the latter withdrew from the bout for currently undisclosed reasons. Stepping in for Chikadze at that time was Kevin Croom, but this too fell through. When Croom tested positive for the coronavirus, the promotion was forced to scramble again.

First reported by MMA Fighting on Thursday, the UFC has signed Austin Springer (12-3) to make his UFC debut against Caceres at UFC Fight Night 175. The two will meet at the UFC Apex in Las Vegas on Aug. 29. Springer has since confirmed the booking on his Instagram.

Caceres is riding a two-fight win streak with decision victories over Chase Hooper and Steven Peterson over the last year. The win streak …

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Karol Rosa will replace Macy Chiasson and square off against Sijara Eubanks in a women’s bantamweight clash at UFC Fight Night 176.

Combate was first to report the change to the bout. The reason for Chiasson’s withdrawal is currently unknown. UFC Fight Night 176 takes place at the UFC Apex in Las Vegas on Sept. 5 and is headlined by a heavyweight tilt pitting Alistair Overeem against Augusto Sakai. The card will stream on ESPN+.

Rosa enters the matchup on a four-bout winning streak that includes triumphs over Vanessa Melo and Lara Fritzen Procopio in UFC competition. The 25-year-old Parana Vale Tudo representative is 13-3 as a professional overall, with four wins by KO/TKO and two via submission.

Eubanks, meanwhile, halted a two-fight skid with a three-round verdict over Sarah Moras at UFC Fight Night 171 on M…