Martial Arts News

Urijah Faber’s return to combat sports has been confirmed.

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Faber announced in March that he would be returning to action under the banner of his own promotion, A1 Combat, but he didn’t specify an opponent. The promotion on Sunday officially announced a rematch between Faber and Jeff Curran that will headline A1 Combat 21 on May 25 at the Visalia Convention Center in California. The matchup will take place under combat jiu-jitsu rule set, which allows open palm strikes.

Faber and Curran faced each other for the first time at WEC 31 in 2007 with Faber’s featherweight title on the line. “The California Kid” went on to successfully defend his strap via a second-round submission.

Faber initially announced his retirement in 2016 following a unanimous decision win over Brad Pickett at UFC on Fox 22. He returned to competition in 2019, knocking out Ricky Simon in under a minute. Faber then suffered a brutal knockout loss to Petr Yan later that sa…

Julio Arce had a lot of pressure to deliver going into his UFC Atlantic City bout against Herbert Burns, and deliver he did.

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Arce scored a second-round KO win over Burns in his first bout since November 2022. Arce’s return was delayed when he was forced out of a UFC 285 booking against Cody Garbrandt in January 2023 due to an ACL tear that required surgery.

With the undeniable jitters of coming back from an injury already in his mind, Arce also had a bizarre weight miss. Arce initially weighed in at 147 pounds, a pound over the non-title featherweight limit, and was given an hour to shed the extra weight. While Arce claims to have tried his best to sweat it out, he miraculously gained half a pound the second time he weighed in. However, Arce doesn’t want to make any excuses about the odd weight miss and vows to make weight in future.

“I got on the scale, it said 147, we had an hour,” Arce said during a post-fight media scrum. “Because I know…

Igor da Silva is looking for a second chance after being cut from the Ultimate Fighting Championship for biting his opponent.

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Da Silva and Andre Lima squared off during the UFC on ESPN 53 preliminary card on March 23. The fight got off to a promising start, but the bout was called to stop in the second round with Lima complaining of a bite from da Silva. Referee Chris Tognoni briefly halted the contest before calling it off, as Lima’s right bicep showed an evident bite mark. Lima was declared the winner via disqualification and da Silva lost his UFC contract along with his perfect record.

While da Silva doesn’t have any explanation for his actions, he claims to have gone into “autopilot mode” after absorbing an elbow from Lima.

“There’s no plausible explanation [for the bite], right? I remember exchanging strikes with him, a close fight, but I was in autopilot mode after that elbow,” da Silva told MMAFighting.com. “I don’t remember anything af…

Nursulton Ruziboev wants to settle the score for Uzbekistan against Gerald Meerschaert after his UFC on ESPN 54 victory on Saturday.

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Ruziboev defeated Sedriques Dumas via technical knockout to score his second consecutive first-round finish in the UFC. Ruziboev called out Meerschaert in his post-fight Octagon interview and later elaborated on it during a media scrum.

Ruziboev is one of only three Uzbek fighters in the UFC, along with Bogdan Guskov and Makhmud Muradov, who suffered a submission loss to Meerschaert in 2021. Ruziboev now wants to avenge his fellow countryman’s loss against “GM3.”

“There’s only three Uzbek fighters in the UFC and one of them was beaten by Gerald Meerschaert. So, I want to revenge that loss and I wanna show that Uzbek fighters are not weak,” Ruziboev said.

With Meerschaert coming off a submission victory against Bryan Barberena earlier this month, the turnaround time might be perfect for a clash between the two.…

It wasn’t the cleanest of victories for Chris Weidman at UFC on ESPN 54, but given his struggles in recent years, the former middleweight champion will take a win any way he can get it.

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Weidman defeated Bruno Silva technical decision in their middleweight clash at Boardwalk Hall in Atlantic City, New Jersey, on Saturday night. It was a bout filled with controversy due to multiple eye pokes, including two that occurred during what initially appeared to be the finishing sequence. After Weidman poked his opponent in both eyes, he connected with a glancing left hook, and Silva tumbled to the canvas. From there, Silva covered up in pain as “The All-American” unloaded with ground-and-pound to force the stoppage at the 2:18 mark of Round 3.

Upon further review, the fight was scored where the eye pokes occurred, and Weidman was instead awarded with a technical decision triumph. At the post-fight press conference (video via MMAjunkie.com), Weidman claimed …

BUCKLEY HAMMERS HIS WAY TO A BIG WIN 🔨 #UFCAtlanticCity pic.twitter.com/wt09AB2Wiz

— ESPN MMA (@espnmma) March 31, 2024

It was a strange sight to see Vicente Luque pull guard during his co-main event showdown with Joaquin Buckley at UFC on ESPN 54 on Saturday night.

After all, Luque is well-known for his finishing ability, as he ranks second all-time in the UFC’s welterweight division in that category with 13 career victories inside the distance. However, with Buckley getting the better of their clash at Boardwalk Hall in Atlantic City, New Jersey, “The Assassin” opted for a different route, one which ultimately led to his demise. Once Luque pulled guard, Buckley unloaded with a salvo of ground-and-pound that led to the bout being halted at the 3:17 mark of Round 2.

“I laughed actually. I chuckled when he pulled guard,” Buckley said at the post-fight press conference. “This whole time I was thinking about Vicente. We all know he’s a tale…

Nate Landwehr is establishing himself as must-see TV in the Ultimate Fighting Championship.

The former M-1 Global champion garnered a $50,000 “Performance of the Night” bonus for his knockout of Jamall Emmers in a preliminary featherweight bout at UFC on ESPN 54 in Atlantic City, New Jersey on Saturday night. Landwehr survived behing hurt early, rallying to put his adversary away with a massive uppercut and follow-up punches at the 4:43 mark of Round 1.

Elsewhere, Dennis Buzukja received the evening’s other $50,000 “Performance of the Night” check for his stoppage of Connor Matthews in a preliminary featherweight affair. Buzukja dropped his foe with a right cross-left hook combination, then swarmed with hammerfists for the finish 22 seconds into the third stanza.

Finally, Ibo Aslan and Anton Turkalj earned “Fight of the Night” honors and $50,000 for their spirited rematch at light heavyweight. While both men had their moments over the first 10 minutes, A…

The Ultimate Fighting Championship women's flyweight division has a new top contender as Manon Fiorot impressed against Erin Blanchfield in the UFC on ESPN 54 main event.

The five-round fight began with Blanchfield (12-2) threatening with a guillotine choke as a counter to a takedown by Fiorot (12-1). The French fighter would survive the submission scare and find her rhythm on the feet. Using a steady jab and leg kicks, Fiorot kept Blanchfield at range and picked apart her foe. "Cold Blooded" lived up to her nickname as she adjusted and started throwing more recklessly in the fourth and fifth rounds. However, it wound up being too little too late for the American as she lost a unanimous decision with three scorecards of 50-45 for Fiorot.

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"The Beast" is now 6-0 inside the Octagon. Buckley Powers Past Luque The co-main event saw Joaquin Buckley cement himself as a welterweight contender against Vicente Luque. The first round was a more tepid affair, …

The Ultimate Fighting Championship returns to Atlantic City, New Jersey, this weekend for UFC on ESPN 54. The event, which is set to unfold on Saturday at Boardwalk Hall, boasts an exciting mix of established names and emerging prospects. Experience the intensity of the event first-hand with Sherdog’s live play-by-play coverage, capturing every moment as it unfolds inside the cage starting at 7 p.m. ET. BETTING PREVIEW | SCOUTING REPORT | ODDS: Loughran (-355), Pacheco (+280)Round 1 Sherdog Scores Ben Duffy scores the round:Tristen Critchfield scores the round:Tyler Treese scores the round:

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Round 2 Sherdog Scores Ben Duffy scores the round:Tristen Critchfield scores the round:Tyler Treese scores the round:Round 3 Sherdog Scores Ben Duffy scores the round:Tristen Critchfield scores the round:Tyler Treese scores the round: The Official Result BETTING PREVIEW | SCOUTING REPORT | ODDS: Malkoun (-205), Petroski (+170)Round 1 Sherdog Scores Ben Duffy scores t…

NATE THE TRAIN PULLS OUT OF THE STATION 🚂💨@NateTheTrain gets the FIRST ROUND KO at #UFCAtlanticCity pic.twitter.com/tDLbOVlj6w

— UFC (@ufc) March 31, 2024

Nate Landwehr made a statement at the expense of Jamall Emmers in the UFC on ESPN 54 featured prelim.

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The three-round featherweight fight saw Emmers (20-8) take control early, as his sharp punches cut Landwehr (18-5) above his left eye. However, "The Train" was as hard-hitting as his nickname and delivered a perfectly-timed uppercut that knocked out Emmers. Landwehr followed his foe to the floor with some punches and the fight was stopped at 4:43 of Round 1.

The 35-year-old has now won four of his last five fights, with the lone defeat coming to Dan Ige.

Jandiroba Edges Godinez Women's strawweight contender Virna Jandiroba passed a tough test by edging out Lupita Godinez over 15 minutes.

Jandiroba (20-3) finished a back-and-forth opening round strong by taki…

UFC 302 is official for Newark, New Jersey, and the June 1 card has a few new matchups, as well.

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The promotion announced the following bouts during the UFC on ESPN 54 broadcast on Saturday night: Ailin Perez vs. Joselyne Edwards at bantamweight; Phil Rowe vs. Jake Matthews at Jake Matthews at welterweight and Mickey Gall vs. Bassil Hafez at welterweight.

UFC 302 takes place at the Prudential Center and will also see Roman Dolidze face Anthony Hernandez at middleweight, while Grant Dawson will take on Joe Solecki at lightweight.

Perez has won two straight in the Octagon, including a unanimous verdict over Lucie Pudilova in her last outing at UFC Fight Night 232. Edwards, meanwhile, had a three-fight winning streak snapped in her last appearance when she fell to Nora Cornolle via unanimous decision at UFC Fight Night 226.

Rowe is coming off a split-decision defeat to Neil Magny at UFC on ABC 5, a loss that snapped a three-bout winning str…

Top 15 heavyweights will duke it out in St. Louis 👊@TheBeast_UFC vs @ZeColmeiiia is your #UFCStLouis main event! pic.twitter.com/NCIWb21V2b

— UFC (@ufc) March 30, 2024

A heavyweight clash pitting Derrick Lewis against Rodrigo Nascimento will headline UFC on ESPN 56.

The Las Vegas-based promotion announced the booking on Saturday. UFC on ESPN 56 takes place at the Enterprise Center in St. Louis on May 11. The main card airs on ESPN and ESPN+ at 7 p.m. ET/4 p.m. PT, while prelims stream on ESPN and ESPN+ beginning at 4 p.m. ET/1 p.m. PT.

Lewis, the UFC’s all-time leader in knockout victories with 14, has lost four of his last five Octagon appearances. Most recently, “The Black Beast” suffered a five-round unanimous decision loss to Jailton Almeida at UFC Fight Night 231 last November. Lewis’ lone victory during his current slump came when he stopped Marcos Rogerio de Lima in 33 seconds at UFC 291.

Nascimento is 4-1 with one no …