Martial Arts News

Alejandra Lara has been suspended and fined by the Nevada Athletic Commission after reportedly testing positive for a cocaine metabolite.

The commission recently announced that Lara settled for a nine-month suspension stemming from a positive test for benzoylecgonine. She was also fined $412.50 and ordered to pay $250.60 in legal fees.

Alejandra Lara reportedly tested positive for cocaine metabolite benzoylecgonine Lara will become eligible to return on Jan. 24, 2027. The 32-year-old Colombian reportedly tested positive in connection with her April 24 bout at Tuff-N-Uff 153. Lara lost the fight to Jaleen Robledo via third-round guillotine.

The defeat dropped Lara's record to 12-10 and she’s gone 3-3 since departing Bellator in 2023.

Lara spent much of her Bellator tenure competing in the promotion's women's flyweight division. She went 3-6 inside the organization and challenged Ilima-Lei Macfarlane for the Bellator women's flyweight title in June 2018. Lara lost t…

Merab Dvalishvili has clarified that he has no bad blood with Islam Makhachev despite what the latter believes.

The former Ultimate Fighting Championship bantamweight titleholder addressed recent comments from Makhachev after the welterweight champ appeared to accuse Dvalishvili of being unhappy with his success after he defended his title against Ian Garry at UFC 330.

Merab Dvalishvili explains what really upset him after Islam Makhachev's UFC 330 win Dvalishvili explained on social media that his frustration with Makhachev's victory at UFC 330 was directed at the latter's team bringing a Russian flag into the Octagon, rather than at the champion himself.

“I like Islam Makhachev,” Dvalishvili wrote on X. “I think he’s a great and humble champion. I respect all the hard work he has put into his career, I have nothing but respect for him. But when I saw his team bring the Russian flag into the Octagon, I was upset. And the reason I reacted that way is because, first du…

Tyson Fury has admitted he did not take Francis Ngannou seriously, a mindset that nearly cost him the fight.

Fury faced Ngannou in October 2023 in the latter's professional boxing debut. Despite being knocked down by a powerful punch in the third round, Fury recovered to edge Ngannou by split decision over 10 rounds.

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Francis Ngannou knocked Fury down after the heavyweight dismissed the bout as an exhibition In a recent interview with ALF Global, Fury admitted he was underprepared for his bout with Ngannou. He explained that he viewed the matchup more as an exhibition than a serious fight.

“No, I didn’t train for him because I didn’t think he was a good fighter,” Fury said. “I knew he was a good fighter, but to me it’s levels to boxing.”

Fury explained that he viewed the matchup differently because the former Ultimate Fighting Championship champ doesn’t have any boxing credentials or accolades. The Englishman also discussed Ngannou’s mindset g…

Rafael dos Anjos claims multiple surgeries forced his long hiatus.

The former Ultimate Fighting Championship lightweight titleholder returns to the Octagon after nearly two years against Alexander Hernandez at UFC 332 on Oct. 3 at Delta Center in Salt Lake City. The Brazilian suffered a 90-second stoppage loss after injuring his left knee in his last outing against Geoff Neal in October 2024.

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Rafael dos Anjos details the knee surgeries that threatened his UFC career In a recent interview, dos Anjos revealed that he has since undergone three surgeries on his left knee. A doctor in Brazil initially stitched up his meniscus, which apparently was a big mistake. He again tore his meniscus after a few months and underwent surgery in Austin, Texas, in the U.S.

However, the American doctor allegedly left some stitches inside dos Anjos’ knee, which subsequently led to inflammation. The former champ then went under the knife for the third time earlier this y…

Sean Brady claims Carlos Prates doesn’t have the tools to deal with Islam Makhachev’s wrestling.

Michael Morales (19-0) and Prates (24-7) are the leading contenders for the next Ultimate Fighting Championship welterweight title shot against Makhachev (29-1). Brady believes Morales will give Makhachev a harder time than Prates will, citing how the Ecuadorian is more of an unknown and his grappling hasn’t been put to the test in the UFC.

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Sean Brady explains why Michael Morales poses a tougher test for Islam Makhachev While Brady (19-2) acknowledges Prates’ dangerous knockout power, he believes Makhachev will have his way against the Brazilian on the ground. Brady notes that we’re yet to see Morales get challenged on the ground, hence making him more of a puzzle for the UFC welterweight champ.

“I think Prates can knock anybody out, for sure,” Brady told Ariel Helwani. “Out of Prates and Morales, everyone’s gonna say I’m biased because I lost to Morale…

Ronald Humphrey doesn't have any shortage of confidence when it comes to his appetite for violence.

Humphrey, who recently beat Alexis Miranda on Dana White’s Contender Series via submission to earn an Ultimate Fighting Championship contract, grabbed fans’ attention for his killer instinct. He has since claimed that he “embodies violence a lot in a healthy way.”

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Ronald Humphrey explains why he says he 'embodies violence' after earning a UFC contract When asked about the criticism of Ian Garry's performance in the recent welterweight title fight and UFC CEO Dana White’s comments about the Irishman’s lack of killer instinct, Humphrey offered a very different perspective, explaining that violence is a central part of how he approaches life.

“Yeah, I embody violence. I love it,” Humphrey said. “Literally, I'll walk into like a Whole Foods sometimes, and I just see all the people that can't fight. I'm like, man, I could really f*ck all y'all up, and th…

Bella Mir is taking her first professional mixed martial arts loss well.

Mir, the daughter of former Ultimate Fighting Championship titleholder Frank Mir, was one of the most highly touted prospects going into her Dana White’s Contender Series clash against Alex Apodaca. She was a -6000 favorite, the biggest in DWCS history, ahead of the fight.

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However, Apodaca edged out a hard-fought unanimous decision over Mir in the biggest upset in DWCS history. The latter has now taken to social media to address her defeat.Bella Mir vows to rebound after Alex Apodaca hands her first professional MMA defeat Mir (4-1) has since issued her first statement in the aftermath of her first professional MMA loss. She says that this is not the first time she has handled a defeat, albeit this was under the biggest spotlight. Mir vows to bounce back stronger, as she has from all of her previous setbacks.

“I’ve lost so many times,” Mir wrote on Instagram. “Big or small, e…

Jose Delgado believes Jean Silva is hiding his real personality.

Delgado (12-2) and Silva (17-3) will headline the Ultimate Fighting Championship’s fourth edition of Noche UFC on Sept. 12 at Desert Diamond Arena in Glendale, Arizona. Silva was originally scheduled to fight Yair Rodriguez, who pulled out due to an injury. Following Rodriguez’s withdrawal, Delgado stepped up and recently slammed his upcoming opponent, calling his persona inauthentic.

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Jose Delgado attacks Jean Silva’s persona ahead of Noche UFC 4 Delgado is high in confidence going into Noche UFC 4. He recently claimed that beating Silva puts him in title contention, setting him up for the winner of UFC 333’s featherweight championship main event between current champ Alexander Volkanovski and unbeaten challenger Movsar Evloev.

“I expect violence. I expect to break this guy,” Delgado told Ariel Helwani. “I expect a freaking stunner of a KO… If Jean Silva took out Yair Rodriguez, he’…

Sean Brady believes Din Thomas could’ve handled his retirement from cornering better.

Thomas announced his retirement from cornering live on air after his fighter Gillian Robertson made a failed Ultimate Fighting Championship strawweight title bid against Mackenzie Dern at UFC 330. The former fighter faced severe backlash for stealing the moment right after his fighter lost the biggest fight of her life and subsequently issued an apology to Robertson.

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While Brady doesn’t approve of Thomas’ public comments about Robertson, he’s still open to having the UFC analyst in his corner.Sean Brady discusses Din Thomas after Gillian Robertson’s UFC 330 title loss On the “Deep Waters” podcast, Thomas hinted that he will be in Brady’s (19-2) corner in his upcoming clash against Gabriel Bonfim (20-1) on Nov. 7 at Meta Apex in Las Vegas. However, Brady didn’t confirm if Thomas will be in his corner on Nov. 7. While he didn’t like Thomas announcing his retirement af…

Aspen Ladd will debut for BKB on Saturday in Miami. Aspen Ladd believes the next year will be great for women’s mixed martial arts.

Ladd recently weighed in on the merger between the Professional Fighters League and Most Valuable Promotions. She’s slightly skeptical about the merger, considering things didn’t play out as expected with PFL’s acquisition of Bellator in 2023, but remains optimistic.

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Aspen Ladd discussed MVP-PFL merger, critiques UFC’s handling of women’s MMA Ladd also notes that women’s boxing under MVP and bare-knuckle boxing under BKFC are rising in the meantime. With former Bellator president Scott Coker set to launch his own promotion next year, the former Ultimate Fighting Championship athlete believes it’ll be a bright year ahead for women’s MMA.

“Because with the merger between, or supposed to be a merger, right, with PFL and Bellator, you thought, oh, it'd be great,” Ladd told Sherdog's Sean Sheehan. “They're absorbi…

Following a 52-second win, Denis Goltsov already has his next PFL matchup booked.| 📷: PFL MMA

The Professional Fighters League has added a heavyweight matchup to its upcoming event in Chicago.

Promotion officials confirmed to Sherdog on Wednesday that 2024 PFL heavyweight tournament champion Denis Goltsov will return against Maxwell Djantou Nana on Oct. 16. The matchup features two ranked contenders in the division.

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2024 PFL heavyweight tournament champion Denis Goltsov faces Maxwell Djantou Nana on Oct. 16 Goltsov most recently competed at PFL Charlotte, where he stopped Hasan Mezhiev via technical knockout in just 52 seconds in his first appearance of 2026.

Before that victory, Goltsov suffered a loss to Corey Anderson in July 2025. The Russian entered that bout on a four-fight winning streak that included his run to the 2024 PFL heavyweight tournament championship.

Djantou Nana has emerged as one of PFL Africa’s success st…

Islam Makhachev has revealed how many fights he has left in him before he hangs up his gloves.

Makhachev (29-1) recently defended his Ultimate Fighting Championship welterweight title against Ian Garry at UFC 330. The win over Garry saw Makhachev break Anderson Silva’s record for the longest winning streak in UFC history, having won 17 straight. The Dagestani wants to extend his win streak to 20 before walking away from the sport.

Makhachev eyes three more UFC fights while chasing a 20-fight winning streak Makhachev knows there’s one record that he isn’t likely to break: most title fight wins in UFC history. With seven title wins, Makhachev is still far behind the record holder Jon Jones, who has 16. However, Makhachev notes that he got to fight for a title much later in his UFC career than Jones.

Makhachev revealed that he expects to fight at least three more times before calling it a career. With the logjam of elite contenders in the welterweight division, Makhachev …