Martial Arts News

Mayton Perea is officially headed to the Ultimate Fighting Championship.

The Ecuadorian earned his UFC contract in emphatic fashion, stopping Zevan Hunt in just 45 seconds in the main event of Week 6 of Dana White’s Contender Series at Meta Apex in Las Vegas.

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Mayton Perea reacts to UFC contract after stopping Zevan Hunt at DWCS The fight moved at a frantic pace from the opening exchange. Hunt (7-1) found himself in mount in the early exchanges before Perea (9-3) worked his way back to his feet. The latter then landed a big punch. Hunt scrambled for a leg, but Perea responded with a series of elbows and follow-up strikes to force the referee stoppage.

The victory marked Perea's fourth consecutive win, earning a spot on the UFC roster after impressing UFC CEO Dana White. In his post-fight interview, he opened up about what it means to join the premier mixed martial arts promotion.

“I have been waiting my entire life; I have been manifesting t…

Alexander Volkanovski has shared the cage with some of the world's best mixed martial artists, but his latest opponent presented a very different challenge.

The two-time Ultimate Fighting Championship featherweight titleholder recently squared off with fellow Australian Jordan Mailata, the Philadelphia Eagles offensive lineman and Super Bowl winner, in a series of unconventional challenges. For Volkanovski, this meant facing the much larger Mailata, who stands at 6-foot-8.

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Alexander Volkanovski submits Philadelphia Eagles lineman Jordan Mailata in UFC-NFL challenge The matchup began with Volkanovski and Mailata testing their punching power on a machine before the NFL star volunteered to absorb body shots from the UFC veteran.

Volkanovski then managed to take the much larger athlete off his feet before eventually securing a choke. Mailata was able to lift Volkanovski off the ground at one point, showcasing the obvious size difference between the pai…

Scott Coker believes his latest mixed martial arts venture can produce a new generation of stars.

Coker recently unveiled Ki MMA during a press conference in New York, officially introducing the promotion he first announced was in development in May. The project will launch in 2027. The promotion's name comes from the Japanese concept of “ki,” referring to spirit, mind and energy. Ki MMA will also adopt a format rarely seen in modern MMA, with all fights taking place in a ring.

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Scott Coker explains how Ki MMA's 32-fighter Grand Prix will build its first champion Coker plans to use tournaments as the foundation for building new stars. The inaugural competition will feature a 32-fighter featherweight Grand Prix divided among North America, South America, Asia and Europe.

Each region will have an eight-man tournament, with the four continental champions advancing to a final event. The remaining fighters will then compete in two bouts on the same night …

Alexandre Pantoja is fully focused on his upcoming rematch with Joshua Van.

Pantoja (30-6) will look to reclaim the Ultimate Fighting Championship flyweight title against Van (17-2) at UFC 331 on Sept. 19 at Crypto.com Arena in Los Angeles. Rather than stoking the flames of their rivalry in the lead-up to their rematch, the former champ is solely thinking about the fight.

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Alexandre Pantoja says his sole focus is beating Joshua Van at UFC 331 Pantoja says the lead-up to his rematch against Van will be different than their first encounter. The Brazilian has no room in his mind to sell this fight by building up the rivalry and isn’t even interested in the press conference or other pre-fight customs. While Pantoja knows fans like some pre-fight antics, he believes he gave them their fair share last time around.

“Now it’s gonna be a little bit different than last time,” Pantoja told Full Send MMA. “I don’t try to sell this fight anymore; I’m here to fig…

Alexandre Pantoja and Joshua Van both claim to have tricks up their sleeves for their rematch.

Pantoja (30-6) will look to reclaim the Ultimate Fighting Championship flyweight title from Van (17-2) in their rematch at UFC 331 on Sept. 19 at Crypto.com Arena in Los Angeles. Both 125-pounders have identified holes in each other’s games that they’re looking to exploit.

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Alexandre Pantoja's coach breaks down their UFC 331 flyweight title rematch Pantoja’s muay thai coach at American Top Team, Anderson Franca, says the Brazilian has some surprises in store for his Octagon return. He believes Van will try to keep the fight standing as he will be concerned about Pantoja’s ground game. However, Franca claims Pantoja can surprise Van on the feet as well and predicts a precise fourth-round finish.

“Van’s fight with Taira gave us a lot of elements to study in terms of how he might approach this fight,” Franca told Sherdog. “We have Plan A and Plan B. We’re br…

American Top Team muay thai coach Anderson Franca believes Arman Tsarukyan presents a tricky stylistic challenge for Mauricio Ruffy.

Tsarukyan will meet Ruffy in the co-main event of the Ultimate Fighting Championship’s upcoming event in Los Angeles. Franca, who has previously cornered Tsarukyan, won’t be in the Armenian’s corner at UFC 331 on Sept. 19 at Crypto.com Arena, but was instrumental in creating the game plan.

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Anderson França breaks down Arman Tsarukyan vs. Mauricio Ruffy at UFC 331 In a recent interview with Sherdog, Franca broke down the Tsarukyan vs. Ruffy matchup. The coach revealed changes Tsarukyan has made to his camp in preparation for Ruffy, who he considers the best striker in the 155-pound division.

“Arman always trains with me when he has his camp at ATT, but for this particular camp he brought Petrosyan, who is a high-level fighter who competed in K-1,” Franca told Sherdog. “Arman is an athlete who never gives up and is will…

Scott Coker has officially unveiled the name and format of his new mixed martial arts promotion.

Ki MMA will launch in the first quarter of 2027 under Coker and Peter Y. Levin, with events planned across North America, Europe, Asia and South America. The organization had previously announced plans for a new global league backed by Coker, with a tournament format central to the project.

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Scott Coker and Peter Y. Levin detail Ki MMA's 2027 launch and World Grand Prix Coker and Levin shared the details about the new promotion via a press release. The inaugural Ki MMA World Grand Prix will feature 32 featherweights divided into four eight-man continental tournaments. Each regional tournament will use a single-elimination format, with the four continental champions advancing to a one-night World Grand Prix Final.

The final event will feature two semifinals followed by the championship bout, so the inaugural Ki MMA champion will need to win five fights. Read more

Tom Aspinall has vacated the Ultimate Fighting Championship heavyweight title due to ongoing complications from an eye injury that has sidelined him for nearly a year.

Aspinall hasn’t competed since his bout against Ciryl Gane ended in a no contest last October. Gane accidentally poked him in both eyes and the Brit subsequently underwent multiple eye procedures. He still hasn't received medical clearance to return to the Octagon and has opted to relinquish the championship.

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Tom Aspinall explains why he relinquished the UFC heavyweight championship Aspinall took to Instagram to share a lengthy message announcing his decision to vacate the title amid recent complications with his right eye. The former champion revealed that he had previously agreed to a fight date and resumed sparring before an accident caused further damage.

“I had previously agreed to a fight date and was back sparring, feeling great and ready to compete when an accident caused fur…

One fighter will have a chance to earn an extra $50,000 when the Ultimate Fighting Championship returns to Los Angeles on Sept. 19 for UFC 331.

UFC CEO Dana White recently announced that a special “proper chaos bonus” will be awarded to a fighter at Crypto.com Arena. The additional prize is being introduced in conjunction with the Paramount+ series “MobLand.”

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Dana White will personally decide who earns the UFC 331 ‘proper chaos’ bonus White announced the bonus in partnership with Paramount+’s “MobLand” on Instagram. The bonus will be separate from the promotion's standard $25,000 finishing bonus and $100,000 awards: a Fight of the Night bonus and a few Performance of the Night bonuses.

White hasn’t established specific criteria for the new award, saying the decision will ultimately be his.

“Long before I did a deal with Paramount, I've been telling you guys I'm a huge fan of ‘MobLand.’ It is one of the best shows on television,” White said in…

Josh Hokit has called for a title shot after Tom Aspinall vacated the Ultimate Fighting Championship heavyweight belt.

Aspinall relinquished the title after ongoing eye-related complications prevented him from receiving medical clearance to return to the Octagon. Hokit claims a matchup between himself and interim champ Ciryl Gane should now determine the next heavyweight king.

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Josh Hokit targets Ciryl Gane as UFC heavyweight division moves on from Tom Aspinall Shortly after Aspinall announced his decision to vacate the heavyweight title, Hokit called for a fight against Gane on social media.

“The fans deserve Me vs Gane,” Hokit wrote on X. “I’ll give Ciryl what he has coming. If Alex can win 1 fight in my weight class, I’ll give it to him too, early ‘27. I’ll be the most active champ in the company.”

Both Gane and Hokit recorded stoppage victories at UFC Freedom 250, where “Bon Gamin” beat Alex Pereira to win the interim heavyweight title and …

Renato “Money” Moicano vs. Brian Ortega is no longer part of the upcoming Ultimate Fighting Championship numbered event.

Ortega has suffered an injury, forcing the cancellation of the bout scheduled for UFC 331 at Crypto.com Arena in Los Angeles on Sept. 19. While “T-City” nurses his injury, Moicano has a new matchup and will now headline a Fight Night in Las Vegas in October.

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Brian Ortega’s injury cancels Moicano fight before UFC 331 After his bout with Ortega was pulled from UFC 331, Moicano’s next opponent was announced. The Brazilian is now set to face Tom Nolan in the main event of the UFC Fight Night card on Oct. 31 at Meta Apex in Las Vegas.

Ortega took to social media to reveal details of his injury. A deep cut has forced him out of his UFC lightweight debut and he had to get stitches above his left eye.

“I have to pull out of the fight because of the stitches in my eye,” Ortega wrote on Instagram. “I’m on weight, I’ve been training …

Ryan Garcia has slammed Oscar De La Hoya over the promoter’s absence from his latest fight.

Garcia defended his WBC welterweight championship against Conor Benn on Sept. 12 in Las Vegas, stopping the Englishman in the second round. De La Hoya wasn’t in attendance despite Garcia previously expressing a desire to have his longtime promoter walk him to the ring.

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Ryan Garcia says Oscar De La Hoya had a seat for his Conor Benn fight but didn't attend Despite De La Hoya being at loggerheads with Ultimate Fighting Championship CEO and Zuffa Boxing co-founder Dana White for years, the latter has reiterated that he didn’t prevent the former from attending the event. The Golden Boy promoter had been invited and even offered VIP access.

However, he didn’t attend the event. Garcia initially appeared unfazed by De La Hoya's absence. Days later, however, the champion was far more critical.

“Honestly, nobody wanted him there,” Garcia told Ariel Helwani. “Some…