Martial Arts News

Your #UFCFightIsland6 co-main!@Volkan_Oezdemir vs @KrylovUFC is official! pic.twitter.com/rVJNY0kXGZ

— UFC Europe (@UFCEurope) September 24, 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 Ultimate Fighting Championship’s Oct. 17 event has added a fun light heavyweight tilt in the co-headliner spot. The promotion announced the new co-main matchup on Thursday for UFC Fight Night 180 on Oct. 17. At 205 pounds, Volkan Oezdemir (17-5) will square off with Nikita Krylov (27-7), in a battle between two men that have won only five decisions across 44 victories. This fight card will be held at the Flash Forum in Yas Island, United Arab Emirates, in the fourth of a five-event stretch on the island.

Oezdemir saw a two-fight win streak end violently at the hands of Jiri Prochazka in July. Although Daniel Cormier finished him with strikes in their…

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. Count Ultimate Fighting Championship welterweight Gilbert Burns among those that give Michael Chandler a chance should Chandler fight for a belt at UFC 254. The win for Colby Covington over former UFC welterweight champion Tyron Woodley at UFC Fight Night 178 brought “Chaos” back to the #1 position in the rankings. According to the #2 Burns, these ranking exchanges will not take away his upcoming title shot.

“Fortunately, this ranking is not made by the UFC,” Burns explained to Sherdog. “I called [UFC matchmaker] Sean Shelby last Friday and he guaranteed I’ll be the next [challenger]. I’m just waiting for the contract to sign my fight with [Kamaru] Usman.”

Coming from an impressive sequence of six wins in UFC, the former lightweight with four straight wins in his new division did not hide his disappointment with those that…

Mike Perry vs. Robbie Lawler is booked for UFC 255 on Nov. 21, according to multiple sources.

— Ariel Helwani (@arielhelwani) September 24, 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. A sure-fire welterweight banger is headed towards the Ultimate Fighting Championship pay-per-view card in November. ESPN announced the news on Thursday that Robbie Lawler (28-15, 1 NC) will be squaring off with Mike Perry (14-6) at UFC 255. Their 170-pound affair will be taking place on Nov. 21, likely at the UFC Apex in Las Vegas.

Lawler has not won a fight since 2017, dropping four consecutive bouts to Rafael dos Anjos, Ben Askren, Colby Covington and Neil Magny since then. Although the Askren bout was marred with controversy with a questionable stoppage from referee Herb Dean, the other three unanimous decision defeats left no doubt. The former champ w…

Talk about explosive! @Semtex_170 fights @DerekBarbaric on 10/1 at #Bellator247.

You can watch it all go down LIVE via The Bellator Mobile App!#Bellator247 #MMA pic.twitter.com/bba8KCbOHB

— BellatorMMA (@BellatorMMA) September 22, 2020 The first Bellator MMA card on CBS Sports is now set. On Thursday, the promotion released the full lineup for the event that will take place at the Allianz Cloud in Milan, Italy. Bellator 247 on Oct. 1 – a Thursday, breaking with standard tradition of Bellator shows on Friday or Saturday – will be topped by a welterweight thriller between Paul Daley (41-17-2) and Derek Anderson (16-3, 1 NC). Unlike previous Bellator fight nights that take place in Europe, there will be no tape delay to international audiences. The 10-fight preliminary card will be aired on CBSSports.com and Bellator’s YouTube channel, while the four-fight main card will be the first Bellator offering on the CBS Sports Network.

The event, …

Credit: Dave Mandel/Sherdog.com Credit: Dave Mandel/Sherdog.com Credit: Dave Mandel/Sherdog.com

Sign up for ESPN+ right here, and you can then stream UFC 253 live on your smart TV, computer, phone, tablet or streaming device via the ESPN app.

After 10 months away from the Octagon due to injury, Brazilian Ketlen Vieira will face an added challenge for her return against Sijara Eubanks on Saturday at UFC 253.

Vieira’s coach, Andre Pederneiras, tested positive for COVID-19 upon their arrival in Abu Dhabi this week. Because Pederneiras and Vieira traveled to the Yas Island on different flights (the coach traveled commercially while Vieira arrived on a flight chartered by the promotion), the UFC did not remove the bantamweight from the card.

Pederneiras, who will have to remain isolated in his Abu Dhabi hotel for 14 days, explained his strange case to Sherdog.com on Wednesday.

  “Actually I had a positive serological test on May 21. One week latter I did a…

Sign up for ESPN+ right here, and you can then stream UFC 253 live on your smart TV, computer, phone, tablet or streaming device via the ESPN app.

The UFC’s outfitting partner is not on board with Colby Covington’s views regarding the Black Lives Matter movement.

Reebok issued a statement to Bloody Elbow condemning the comments Covington made on the issue following his victory over Tyron Woodley at UFC Fight Night 178 this past Saturday in Las Vegas. The apparel company, which has partnered with the UFC since 2015, does not have a separate sponsorship deal with Covington as it does with many of the promotion’s athletes. However, Covington is required to wear Reebok apparel during fight week and in the Octagon as part of the outfitting policy.

“Reebok is the uniform provider for the UFC, however we do not sponsor Colby Covington,” the statement read. “We do not agree with the sentiments he expressed, and stand firm in our belief that Black lives matter. We stand…

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Sign up for ESPN+ right here, and you can then stream UFC 253 live on your smart TV, computer, phone, tablet or streaming device via the ESPN app.

UFC middleweight champion Israel Adesanya insists his rivalry with Paulo Henrique Costa is nothing personal.

In fact, he claims that his UFC 253 opponent is doing the majority of the work when it comes to manufacturing animosity leading up to Saturday’s headling bout on Yas Island in Abu Dhabi.

“If you look at it, you can really ask yourself, who’s been doing the trash talking? Who’s been the one posting stupid memes? They’re not even that creative. Who’s been the one posting videos and putting the effort into trying to create something?” Adesanya asked during UFC 253 media day. “I just said I don’t like the guy because I don’t like his vibe, I don’t like the way he looks. I’m honest about it. He’s always trying to create something, the reason why he doe…

[youtube https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=E3ltHorO6n8&w=560&h=315]

Sign up for ESPN+, and you can then stream UFC 253 live on your smart TV, computer, phone, tablet or streaming device via the ESPN app.

Jan Blachowicz didn’t have the look of a contender during the beginning of his Ultimate Fighting Championship tenure.

After a successful stint in Polish promotion KSW, Blachowicz suffered defeat in four of his first six Octagon appearances. What followed was a slow climb toward the top of the light heavyweight division, as the 37-year-old Pole rebounded to win seven of his next eight bouts to set up a showdown with Dominick Reyes for the vacant 205-pound belt at UFC 253.

Blachowicz says his self belief never wavered, even during that difficult stretch.

“I never think about that I’m not going to be a champion,” Blachowicz said during a UFC 253 media day. “I always believed in myself, believed in my skills. I just needed to find out what was going wrong and I f…

[youtube https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=uG7f83w2awA&w=560&h=315]

Sign up for ESPN+, and you can then stream UFC 253 live on your smart TV, computer, phone, tablet or streaming device via the ESPN app.

The bitter taste of a near miss against Jon Jones at UFC 247 still lingers for Dominick Reyes.

Reyes dropped a five-round verdict to Jones in a light heavyweight title bout on Feb. 8, but it was a fight that many observers — including 14 of 21 media scorecards on MMADecisions.com — thought “The Devastator” deserved to win.

Reyes never got his desired rematch. Jones has since vacated the belt with designs on moving up to take on new challenges in the heavyweight division, while Reyes will square off against Jan Blachowicz for the vacant 205-pound crown in the UFC 253 co-main event on Saturday.

“I have a little bit of a chip on my shoulder from that fight,” Reyes admitted at UFC 253 media day. “I feel like this is my first title defense in a lot aspects. This …

After a lengthy delay, Patricio Freire will finally defend his featherweight crown against Pedro Carvalho at a Bellator MMA event on Nov. 12.

MMAFighting.com was first to report the booking. The matchup is part of the quarterfinal round of the promotion’s 145-pound grand prix. Freire was initially slated to meet Carvalho at Bellator 241 in March before the event was canceled due to the COVID-19 pandemic. The Nov. 12 card will take place at Mohegan Sun Arena in Uncasville, Conn.

Freire, who is also the reigning lightweight king, advanced in the bracket with a five-round verdict against Juan Archuleta at Bellator 228. The Brazilian standout is currently on a five-bout winning streak.

Carvalho, meanwhile, punched his ticket to the quarterfinals with a second-round submission of Sam Sicilia at Bellator 226. The 25-year-old SBG Ireland representative has been victorious in his last six professional outings, a stretch that includes four triumphs under the Bellator ba…

Tyron Woodley is facing a potential 180-day medical suspension after suffering a rib injury in his loss to Colby Covington in the UFC Fight Night 178 headliner this past Saturday.

A full list of medical suspensions from the event were released to MixedMartialArts.com on Tuesday. UFC Fight Night 178 took place at the UFC Apex in Las Vegas and saw Covington defeat Woodley via TKO at the 1:19 mark of Round 5 due to the aforementioned injury in their welterweight encounter.

While Covington emerged with a clean bill of health, Woodley is suspended for 180 days unless a left costochondral (joint between the ribs and the cartilage in front of the rib cage) tear is cleared by an orthopedic doctor. At a minimum, the former welterweight champion is suspended 45 days with no contact for 30 days.

Three other athletes from UFC Fight Night 178 are facing 180-day sits pending medical clearance: Niko Price (right hand), Randa Markos (left elbow) and Sarah Alpar (nasal fractur…

Credit: Joao Baptista Credit: Joao Baptista Credit: Joao Baptista

According to Wallid Ismail, the manager of Paulo Henrique Costa, the scale will not be a problem for the middleweight No. 1 contender heading into the UFC 253 main event on Yas Island in Abu Dhabi this Saturday.

“He is having the best weight cut ever. Normally he weighs 200 pounds two days before the weigh-in, this time he is already weighing 200 pounds today (Tuesday),” Ismail told Sherdog.com. “So there is no reason for concern.

“‘’Borrachinha’ is one of the most serious and focused athletes I´ve ever seen. Besides working with a team of excellent professionals, he is absolutely focused on reaching the main goal of his life, which is gaining the UFC belt, and I´m sure he will get it.”

It’s worth noting that Costa has never missed weight for an Octagon appearance.

After his win over Yoel Romero at UFC 241, Costa became one of the most popular MMA fighters in Brazil. His middleweight title b…