Martial Arts News

Week 3 of Dana White’s Contender Series saw the biggest upset in the history of the show.

Week 3 of the 10th season of DWCS went down at Meta Apex in Las Vegas on Aug. 25. All five winners on the card walked away with Ultimate Fighting Championship contracts.

Alex Apodaca defeats the -6000 favorite to cap DWCS 2026 Week 3 The main event of the card saw the biggest upset in the history of DWCS. Former UFC heavyweight champion Frank Mir’s daughter Bella Mir (4-1) was a -6000 favorite going into her bantamweight clash against Alex Apodaca (5-1). Apodaca outclassed Mir on the feet while holding her own in wrestling exchanges to earn a unanimous decision win.

White admits that while he is mostly unbiased in fights, he was heavily biased towards Mir, having been a mentor to her. White notes that Michael Bisping had correctly expected Apodaca’s experience to play a factor in the fight.

“Alex, what you had to face tonight… Now I’m very proud of myself that in 10 years…

Abubakar Nurmagomedov is set to return to competition after a three-year absence.

The former Ultimate Fighting Championship welterweight will face David Zawada in an 84-kilogram (185-pound) wrestling rematch under the AIGA banner in Istanbul, Turkey. The match is scheduled for ORA Arena on Sept. 20 as part of the Global Grappling Series 2026.

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Abubakar Nurmagomedov faces former UFC opponent David Zawada in Istanbul They previously met in the Octagon in November 2019 at UFC Moscow, where Zawada submitted Nurmagomedov via first-round triangle choke.

Nurmagomedov went 2-2 during his UFC tenure. His most recent MMA appearance came back in June 2023, when he dropped a split decision to Elizeu Zaleski dos Santos.

Zawada, meanwhile, will look to repeat the result of their first meeting. The German veteran went 1-4 in the UFC, with his lone victory in the promotion coming against the Dagestani in Russia. He’s also competed in Oktagon MMA, the Profes…

Bilal Hasan's Ultimate Fighting Championship debut feels written in the stars.

The undefeated prospect will make his Octagon debut against fellow promotional newcomer Nilson Rojas at UFC Shanghai on Aug. 29, with the significance of the date not lost on Hasan.

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Bilal Hasan plans a special walkout for his UFC Shanghai fight against Nilson Rojas Hasan takes on Rojas on Michael Jackson's birthday, a coincidence he described as almost prophetic.

“It still feels so surreal to be halfway across the world fighting in China on August 29th on Michael Jackson's birthday,” Hasan said in a recent interview. “Sounds like something out of like a prophecy or something like that. It still doesn't feel real.”

Hasan, a big fan of “The King of Pop,” plans to make the occasion memorable with his walkout.

“I have a sick walkout planned,” he added.

The matchup will open the UFC Shanghai main card, giving Hasan his first opportunity to compete since earning h…

Yadong Song has left no stone unturned in preparation for his upcoming bout against Umar Nurmagomedov.

Song claims to be well-equipped to deal with Nurmagomedov’s grappling prowess ahead of their Ultimate Fighting Championship bantamweight clash at UFC Shanghai. The Chinese 135-pounder even worked with Georgian wrestlers who are familiar with the wrestling system used by Nurmagomedov’s team.

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Yadong Song trained with Olympic and world champions ahead of UFC Shanghai While Song is a competent grappler, he’s well aware of the challenge Nurmagomedov presents and is confident should the fight hit the mat.

“Umar is a very tough guy,” Song said in a recent interview. “Even everybody knows he's a very good grappler. So, I just prefer to use striking... But if you want to grapple, let's grapple. Doesn't matter.”

Song further revealed that he traveled to Georgia before beginning his latest training camp, where he worked with Olympic and world champion…

Kai Asakura wants to showcase improvement in his next bout.

The former Rizin Fighting Federation champ endured a disappointing start in the Ultimate Fighting Championship, getting finished in his first two appearances. He then secured a win after moving up to bantamweight and is set to meet Qileng Aori next at UFC Shanghai.

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Kai Asakura targets Qileng Aori knockout after successful move to bantamweight Asakura recorded his first win in the UFC against Cameron Smotherman earlier this year. He claims he’s settled in nicely at bantamweight and vowed to finish Aori when they clash on Aug. 29 to extend his win streak. However, he isn’t just looking for a win, stating that he wants to show off some new moves as well en route to finding the knockout.

“I will knock him out and I will show a new combination this Saturday,” Asakura said at UFC Shanghai media day.

The Japanese fighter also revealed that he wants to stay active and compete again before …

Jena Bishop has an Ultimate Fighting Championship Hall of Famer helping her prepare for the biggest fight of her career.

The Professional Fighters League recently shared a photo showing Bishop training with Ronda Rousey ahead of the former’s rematch with Liz Carmouche for the inaugural PFL women's flyweight championship.

Jena Bishop challenges Liz Carmouche for the inaugural PFL women’s flyweight championship after training with Ronda Rousey Bishop will face Carmouche in the main event of PFL Chicago on Oct. 16 at Wintrust Arena. The bout will crown the promotion's first women's flyweight champion and mark its first new title since the PFL's merger with Most Valuable Promotions.

The clash is a rematch of last year's PFL women's flyweight tournament final. Carmouche stopped Bishop in the third round of that meeting, but the latter has since rebounded with victories over Borena Tsertsvadze and Ariane Lipski da Silva. Carmouche enters following a submission win over Vi…

Umar Nurmagomedov expects a difficult test when he meets Yadong Song in their upcoming main event in the Ultimate Fighting Championship.

Nurmagomedov is looking to extend his win streak to three straight at UFC Shanghai and the Russian is well aware of the challenge ahead of him in China’s Song.

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Umar Nurmagomedov expects a difficult UFC Shanghai main event against Yadong Song Nurmagomedov has picked up two decision wins since suffering the lone loss of his professional career to Merab Dvalishvili in their bantamweight title fight back in January last year. He’s beaten Mario Bautista and Deiveson Figueiredo via unanimous decision to return to winning form and defeating Song in the Chinese 135-pounder’s home country could put the Dagestani back in the title mix.

Nevertheless, Nurmagomedov is focused on the task at hand against a well-rounded opponent and isn’t thinking about the title.

“Of course, I'm going to be happy to do a knockout, you know…

Umar Nurmagomedov is targeting a rematch with Merab Dvalishvili.

Nurmagomedov suffered the first loss of his professional career when Dvalishvili defeated him by unanimous decision in January last year in their Ultimate Fighting Championship title bout. The Russian is eager to run it back with “The Machine” and wants to fight him next, regardless of the outcome of the latter's UFC 333 title fight against Petr Yan.

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Umar Nurmagomedov wants revenge against Merab Dvalishvili after facing Yadong Song at UFC Shanghai The tension between Nurmagomedov and Dvalishvili has only grown since their first meeting. The former is set to face Yadong Song at UFC Shanghai on Aug. 29, and while he’s focused on his upcoming bout, the Dagestani wants revenge for his loss to the former champ.

“First of all, of course I have to win this fight,” Nurmagomedov told MMA Junkie. “Then I will fight with Merab, if he will win or if he will lose, I think we're going to fight.”<…

Alex Apodaca didn’t want to be affected by the odds going into her Dana White’s Contender Series outing against Bella Mir.

Apodaca (5-1) took on Mir (4-1), daughter of former Ultimate Fighting Championship titleholder Frank Mir, in a bantamweight tilt on Week 3 of DWCS 2026. Mir was a -6000 favorite, the biggest in DWCS history, going into her clash against Apodaca, a +1200 underdog.

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However, it was clear that the odds were off as soon as Apodaca defended the first takedown.Alex Apodaca earned a UFC contract after beating Bella Mir in the biggest upset in DWCS history Apodaca gave Mir all she could handle in a highly competitive affair, establishing control in the final round to earn a unanimous decision victory. The former earned a UFC contract for the biggest upset in DWCS history, and after the bout, she revealed that she avoided looking at the odds to stay focused on the high-profile matchup.

“I didn't want to look at the odds before; I knew …

Joseph Kropschot won't have to wait long for his Ultimate Fighting Championship debut.

The Dana White’s Contender Series Season 10 Week 1 contract winner has been booked to face Nick Klein at a UFC Fight Night on Oct. 31 at Meta Apex in Las Vegas.

Joseph Kropschot faces Nick Klein at UFC Fight Night on Oct. 31 Kropschot earned his UFC contract on Aug. 11, defeating Jonathan Kunneman by unanimous decision after three rounds on the opening episode of the 2026 Contender Series season. He boasts a 9-3 professional record in mixed martial arts and has won his last five fights. His contract-winning effort on DWCS marks the lone decision win of his career.

Meanwhile, Klein owns a 6-3 professional record and has not competed since a technical knockout loss to Andrey Pulyaev in August 2025. He lost to Mansur Abdul-Malik in his UFC debut after earning a contract on DWCS in 2024.

The upcoming matchup gives Kropschot an opportunity to build on his Contender Series debut an…

Sean Clancy Jr. claims he could have finished his Dana White’s Contender Series bout sooner than he did.

Clancy Jr. (9-0) took on Gary Balletto Jr. (11-4) in a welterweight clash on Week 3 of DWCS 2026. Clancy Jr. took Balletto Jr. down in the second round and blasted him with elbows to earn a stoppage and an Ultimate Fighting Championship contract.

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Sean Clancy Jr. says he sought experience before finishing Gary Balletto Jr. Clancy Jr. says he felt Balletto Jr.’s face get crushed between his elbow and the mat.

“I'm buzzing, yeah, I've always wanted to put something open like that,” Clancy Jr. said in his post-fight interview. “It was, aye, it's something I've wanted for a while. I remember being so present; it just, as soon as I put it down, I just felt his face just get crushed in between my elbow and the mat. It was phenomenal. Just split wide open. It's the first time I've done it, but aye, here's to many more.”

The 23-year-old also claims…

Ronald Humphrey is a dangerous addition to the stacked Ultimate Fighting Championship welterweight division.

Humphrey (5-0) took on Alexis Miranda (9-3) on Week 3 of Dana White’s Contender Series 2026. He slammed his opponent early, then dropped him with a jab and finished him with a rear-naked choke in the first round.

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Ronald Humphrey targets UFC gold after submitting Alexis Miranda at DWCS Humphrey revealed championship aspirations after earning his big win. He was also covered in Miranda’s blood after splitting him open with a well-timed elbow. The blood tasted like chicken blood to Humphrey, who claims he didn’t mind consuming it. Humphrey then sent a warning to all UFC welterweights between himself and the belt.

“My f*cking existence is a declaration to warn any and everybody who's gonna try to stop my title run,” Humphrey said in his post-fight interview. “Get in my way. It's up… I threw an elbow; I didn’t know that sh*t was going to land l…