Martial Arts News

Bellator MMA will hold a pair of significant cards on back-to-back days in September.

The California-based promotion will run Bellator 245 on Sept. 11 with a card that is headlined by a rematch between Phil Davis and Lyoto Machida. The lineup will also include Cat Zingano’s Bellator debut against Gabrielle Holloway at 145 pounds.

One day later, Bellator 246 will feature a showdown between Juan Archuleta and Patrick Mix for the organization’s vacant bantamweight crown. Also at that event, Jon Fitch will meet Neiman Gracie at welterweight, while Liz Carmouche will make her first promotional foray against DeAnna Bennett at flyweight. Additionally, Roger Huerta will lock horns with Derek Campos.

Sherdog.com confirmed the events and bouts with a promotion official following an initial report from ESPN. Both Bellator 245 and Bellator 246 are likely to take place at the Mohegan Sun in Uncasville, Connecticut. The promotion has held all of its events at the same venue d…

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

Jon Jones doesn’t necessarily need to get a win at heavyweight before he receives a title shot, but “Bones” will have to wait his turn behind current No. 1 contender Francis Ngannou.

During an appearance on SportsCenter, UFC president Dana White briefly discussed Jones’ prospects at heavyweight after the light heavyweight champion vacated his belt earlier this week. Perhaps the most interesting takeaway was that White believes Jones has the credentials to step into a championship bout immediately.

"[Jones is] the longtime light heavyweight champion. In my opinion he's the greatest of all time, and if he wants to come back and take a shot at the heavyweight championship, I wouldn't have a problem with that," White said. "But he can't just jump in front of Ngannou right now."

Ngannou is the next planned opponent for reigning heavyweight king Stipe Miocic, who is coming off a victory over Daniel Corm…

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Former interim welterweight champion Carlos Condit will lock horns with Court McGee at the Ultimate Fighting Championship’s Oct. 3 event.

Condit initially announced the booking on ”The Buck and Dex Podcast.” The card is expected to take place on Yas Island in Abu Dhabi and is headlined by a women’s bantamweight clash between Holly Holm and Irene Aldana.

Condit is currently on a five-bout skid that dates back to a split-decision loss against Robbie Lawler in a 170-pound title clash at UFC 195. In his last outing, “The Natural Born Killer” suffered a second-round submission loss to Michael Chiesa at UFC 232. The 36-year-old Albuquerque, New Mexico, native did not compete at all in 2019, as a detached retina forced him out of a showdown with Mickey Gall at UFC on ESPN 7.

McGee has also fallen on hard times of late,…

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Former middleweight champion Anderson Silva will return against Uriah Hall in a featured middleweight bout at a UFC event on Oct. 31.

UFC president Dana White confirmed the pairing to ESPN late on Tuesday. During a media scrum following the Contender Series earlier in the evening, White said that it could be the final fight of Silva’s MMA career. However, Silva’s management told ESPN that a decision has yet to be made on “The Spider’s” final bout.

The 45-year-old Silva last appeared at UFC 237, where he suffered an injury due to a leg kick from Jared Cannonier in May 2019. The legendary Brazilian has won just once in his last eight promotional appearances dating back to 2013.

Hall, meanwhile, has won three of his last four Octagon outings, including a split verdict over Antonio Carlos Jr. at UFC Fight Night 158…

Credit: Jay Pettry/Sherdog.com

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With Jon Jones out of the picture, Dominick Reyes and Jan Blachowicz will square off for the vacant light heavyweight belt in the UFC 253 co-main event on Sept. 26.

The Las Vegas-based promotion confirmed the title bout on Tuesday night. UFC 253 is headlined by a middleweight championship clash between Israel Adesanya and Paulo Henrique Costa.

Jones vacated the title earlier this week, hinting at a future move to heavyweight if negotiations with the UFC prove to his liking.

Reyes is coming off a unanimous decision loss to Jones in the UFC 247 headliner on Feb. 8, a bout many observers thought “The Devastator” deserved to win. The 30-year-old Victorville, California, native kicked off his professional career with 12 consecutive triumphs, including six victories under the UFC banner…

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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 …