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UFC, Venum Come to Terms With Ranked 145er on Specific Shorts Color Options

Editor's note: The article has been updated to reflect some good news announced by the fighter in question.

One Ultimate Fighting Championship fan-favorite just proved that the squeaky wheel gets the grease.

On Thursday, Dan Ige—who is currently the No. 14 featherweight on the UFC’s Official Rankings—posted on social media that he was disallowed to wear red shorts for his upcoming tussle with Melquizael Costa at UFC Houston in February. According to the Hawaiian, his request for shorts is limited to the locales he is permitted to represent.

The man once known as “Dynamite” posted a segment of a message from UFC or Venum staff, who explained that he is only allowed to represent the U.S. or “universal,” meaning no country, when he walks out on Feb. 21. This obstacle hearkens back to the bizarre situation that middleweight Anthony Hernandez faced where he was allegedly forced to prove his family lineage to rep Mexico. Ige claimed that the promotion …

PFL Champ Cris Cyborg Sets End Goal for Combat Sports Career

A champion across several major MMA organizations, the legendary Cristiane Justino knows her remaining time as a fighter is limited.

Former Ultimate Fighting Championship, Strikeforce, Bellator MMA and Invicta Fighting Championships beltholder has done what no one else has in mixed martial arts: win titles across five major promotions. Currently serving as PFL’s featherweight champ, she claimed that throne by trumping Larissa Pacheco in 2024 across five rounds, and defended it by mollywhopping Sara Collins at the end of 2025. At the age of 40, “Cris Cyborg” wants one more MMA match, and she has already made her thoughts known.

The Brazilian traveled to Rio de Janeiro recently and appeared on the Wednesday edition of Combate’s “Mundo da Luta” podcast. There, the longtime veteran confirmed that 2026 would be the last year she steps into a cage or a ring as a pro. “Cris Cyborg” solidified her plan to compete just once more in MMA, and only one more time…

Ketlen Souza to Train Alongside Ranked Strawweight Ahead of UFC Vegas 113

Ultimate Fighting Championship 115-pounder Ketlen Souza has her back against the wall, and she is changing things up accordingly.

Souza (15-6) will be facing fellow countrywoman Bruna Brasil (11-5-1) on Saturday at UFC Vegas 113, also known as UFC Fight Night 266. The two Brazilians will collide at the UFC Apex in Las Vegas as part of the preliminaries. Souza, 31, spoke to Sherdog recently, where she discussed her new training regimen away from her traditional team of the Carioca Academy.

Seeking her third victory inside the organization, Souza enters the matchup at a pivotal moment in her UFC career following two consecutive losses. In preparation for the Feb. 7 fight, the Amazonian athlete joined the Ribas Family team in Varginha, Minas Gerais. The striker by trade completed her entire training camp alongside established UFC fighters like top-ranked strawweight Amanda Ribas and Alexia Thainara.Looking for Evolution According to Souza, the move was m…

Two PFL Talents Face Ex-UFC Opposition at PFL Pittsburgh

A pair of de facto Professional Fighters League vs. Ultimate Fighting Championship matchups are headed to Steel City.

According to the PFL on Thursday, its upcoming event in Pittsburgh has just added two matchups with newly ranked participants. The organization released its own official rankings on Tuesday, and all combatants booked have numbers next to their names. At flyweight, Sumiko Inaba (8-2) will square off with Ariane Lipski da Silva (17-11), with the two ladies toeing the line at the UPMC Events Center in the second-largest city in Pennsylvania on March 28.

Inaba, 34, will be looking to bounce back from a one-sided decision defeat to Dakota Ditcheva that some considered a “Beatdown of the Year” candidate. That loss to the British striker ended a two-fight win streak for the Hawaiian, who took a win on the scorecards against Saray Orozco and stopped Mackenzie Stiller with strikes. The former Bellator MMA player has never competed outside of…

‘Patchy’ Mix Booked for Rizin 52 Following Unceremonious UFC Release

"Patchy" Mix didn't last long in the UFC. | Bellator MMA

Patrick "Patchy" Mix was regarded as one of the top bantamweights in the sport when he signed with the UFC.

Two fights — and two losses later — Mix is headed to Rizin Fighting Federation. The former Bellator MMA champion will move to 145 pounds for a matchup against 19-year-old prospect Kyoma Akimoto at Rizin 52, the Japanese promotion announced on Wednesday. Rizin 52 takes place on March 7 at Ariake Arena in Tokyo.

Veteran vs. Prospect Mix entered the UFC on a seven-fight winning streak, and with just one loss in 21 professional appearances overall. “Patchy” dropped a lackluster unanimous verdict to Mario Bautista inhis Octagon debut at UFC 316, and he didn’t look much better in fallling to Jakub Wiklacz via split decision at UFC 320. The 32-year-old New York native was then released from his contract, according to MMAjunkie.com.

Akimoto, meanwhile, has compiled 11-1 mark sin…

Manager Releases Statement on Controversial Fight Cancellation at UFC 324

Michael Johnson has been on the UFC roster since 2010. | Getty/UFC

Michael Johnson’s manager has released a statement regarding the cancellation of his fighter’s bout at UFC 324.

Johnson was scheduled to face Alexander Hernandez on Jan. 31 at the T-Mobile Arena in Las Vegas. However, the lightweight contest was scrapped a few hours before the event when online oddsmakers flagged the bout for irregular betting patterns. Both UFC athletes have been quiet since then, but Dave Martin released a statement to Yahoo! Sports on Johnson’s behalf. The manager did not specifiy what might have caused the fight to garner that type of attention.

Hoping to Be Rebooked "We were obviously disappointed by the cancellation, as Michael had an outstanding training camp and was fully prepared to compete,” Martin stated. “That said, we understand and respect the UFC’s responsibility to protect the integrity of the sport. In today’s environment, particularly w…

Glover Teixeira: ‚Poatan‘ Would KO Khamzat Chimaev Within Three Rounds

Former light heavyweight champion Glover Teixeira was in Las Vegas last Saturday, where he attended UFC 324 alongside Alex Pereira.

During a visit to the UFC Performance Institue, Teixeira met ex-lightweight champ Khabib Nurmagomedov. A video that went viral on social media and left many fans curious shows the two former champions doing a grappling training session. But according to the Brazilian, it wasn't a training session.

“Khabib is an idol of the sport. Everyone wants to be like him, Anderson, Jon Jones, ‘Poatan’ — they are all great idols. When I saw him there at the PI leading a training session for his students, I took the opportunity to ask him about a takedown he does by grabbing one leg,” Teixeira said. “Then he grabbed my arm and said come here and showed me, and we joked around a bit and he gave me some pointers. Obviously, all with great respect, because when Khabib speaks, we stop to listen.”

Texeira didn't give details of wh…

Yoel Romero Withdraws From BKFC Knucklemania 6 Co-Main Event

A strong case of the flu has knocked Yoel Romero out of BKFC Knucklemania 6. | PFL MMA

Former UFC title challenger Yoel Romero won’t be competing at one of BKFC’s signature events as originally planned.

“The Soldier of God” has been forced to withdraw from a proposed clash against Lorenzo Hunt at BKFC Knucklemania 6 after contracting a “strong strain of the flu.” As a result, BKFC’s No. 1 pound-for-pound fighter, David Mundell, will step in to face Hunt in a 199-pound catchweight affair.

Rebooking in the Works “Unfortunately I have to withdraw from my scheduled fight against Lorenzo Hunt at KM6 due to a very strong strain of the flu,” read a statement from Romero released through BKFC. “During my weight cut for RAF I felt my immune system was low, and I was feeling very weak. A few days after my Jan. 10 RAF match I started to experience severe flu symptoms.

“I am extremely disappointed but I’ve been unable to train and I need to make …

Viewership Figures Announced for UFC 324 on Paramount+

The UFC’s debut on Paramount drew a significant amount of eyeballs.

According to a release, the UFC 324 reached a live-minute average audience of 4.96 million and 7.18 million global households, a record for a live event on the streaming platform. Citing Adobe Analytics and Nielsen Media, the release also states that “UFC 324 also reached more homes than any other live UFC event in nearly a decade across linear, broadcast and streaming.” The viewership figures do not included co-viewing or delayed viewing.

“As is the industry norm, we don’t disclose subscriber data for individual events, but suffice to say the first live event exceeded expectations against all major benchmarks,” the release stated.

UFC 324 took place this past Saturday at the T-Mobile Arena in Las Vegas and saw Justin Gaethje capture the interim lightweight crown with a unanimous decision victory over Paddy Pimblett in the evening’s main event. The event marked the beginning of the se…

Amanda Nunes: ‚Interim Title is Too Small for Everything I Represent‘

Amanda Nunes is only interested in undisputed gold. | Getty/UFC

The news of Kayla Harrison's injury the week before UFC 324 disappointed fans, but undoubtedly the most impacted by that was her opponent, Amanda Nunes.

“I've never been through anything like this in my entire career. I had already finished camp and was starting to pack my bags when UFC called me,” the former two-division champ said in an interview with Ag.Fight backstage at the event in Las Vegas.

‘There’s a Whole Plan’ The "Lioness" stated that she never considered competing for an interim title.

“The athletes are right to ask I've been there, I know what it's like to be there wanting to fight for the title, it involves a lot,” she said. “There’s a whole plan, there's a plan between me and the UFC. The interim title is too small for everything I represent in women's MMA.”

Nunes did admit that if Harrison doesn’t make a relatively quick recovery, she might change …

Former Invicta FC Champ Jillian DeCoursey Announces Retirement

She may have only needed 10 walks to the cage as a pro, but ex-Invicta Fighting Championships queen Jillian DeCoursey made them count.

On her social media on Thursday, DeCoursey announced her retirement from MMA competition. The 41-year-old atomweight had flirted with returning after dropping her belt in 2023 to Rayanne dos Santos, but efforts never materialized. A veteran of only Invicta and Cage Warriors Fighting Championship for the entirety of her pro career, she won a belt with the former and unsuccessfully vied for one with the latter.

First stepping into the cage as an amateur in 2014, the New York native rattled off eight nonprofessional victories opposite a single defeat. Along the unpaid circuit, DeCoursey battled future talents like Hilarie Rose, Marisa Messer-Belenchia and Lindsey VanZandt, beating all three. After taking a decision for an amateur belt in 2017, DeCoursey turned pro.Might Make ‘Fill in the Blank’ My New Fight NameThe fight…

Chase Hooper Gets Homecoming at UFC Seattle Against ‘Fearless’ Canadian

The Ultimate Fighting Championship is adding what should be a grappler’s delight to its March show in Seattle.

Per the organization on Thursday, Chase Hooper (16-4-1) and Lance Gibson Jr. (9-2) will toe the line at UFC Seattle, also known as UFC Fight Night 271. This lightweight affair on March 28 will serve as the first time Hooper has competed in his home state of Washington since he went 5-0 in the regionals from 2017 to 2018.

Submission specialist Hooper saw his five-fight, three-sub streak come to a crushing halt at the hands of Alexander Hernandez at UFC 319 in 2025. That knockout, the second of his young tenure as a pro, derailed the momentum built up by beating the likes of Jim Miller, Clay Guida and Jordan Leavitt. “The Dream” celebrates an even finish rate of 75%, with two-thirds of those stoppages coming by sub.

Gibson exceeds his upcoming foe’s finish rate by a few percentage points, although he comes in a few years older and fairly le…