Martial Arts News

Nick Galanti worked with a Dana White’s Contender Series alum ahead of his appearance on the show.

Galanti (8-1) opened the action on Week 3 of DWCS 2026 in a middleweight clash against Carlos Petruzzella (15-2). While Galanti is known for his wrestling, he floored Petruzzella with a right hook and finished him with ground-and-pound in just 35 seconds.

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Nick Galanti credits Karl Roberson after knocking out Carlos Petruzzella Galanti later revealed that he has been working with former Ultimate Fighting Championship fighter Karl Roberson to develop his striking. While he originally hoped for a head-kick knockout, he is just as happy to have earned a UFC contract with a right hook.

“Everyone says I’m just a grappler, but I have been working with my guy Karl Roberson, UFC vet, Glory vet; he had one of the fastest knockouts,” Galanti said in his post-fight interview. “The whole time I was calling that right hook. I love that right hook in open stances.…

Guilherme Uriel believes he made a mistake by not using his jiu-jitsu in his first Dana White’s Contender Series appearance last year.

Uriel (8-2) made his second DWCS appearance on Aug. 25 in a heavyweight matchup against Mario Piazzon in Week 3 of Season 10. Uriel made Piazzon tap to a standing guillotine in 50 seconds to earn an Ultimate Fighting Championship contract.

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Guilherme Uriel explains the jiu-jitsu adjustment that helped earn his UFC contract Uriel had previously suffered a knockout loss against Josh Hokit in his first DWCS opportunity last year. He believes he shouldn’t have abandoned his jiu-jitsu against Hokit. Uriel knew that Piazzon, being a product of the Galpao Da Luta gym, would inevitably grapple and hence worked on his takedown defense and fence work ahead of their DWCS bout.

“One of the things from last time, it was my sin not to use my jiu-jitsu,” Uriel said in his post-fight interview. “And with all due respect to Galpao…

Dana White is resourceful and looks out for those in his good graces.

Content creator Nina Marie-Daniele, who covers several TKO events, recently revealed how White helped her deal with a stalker. Daniele’s phone number was once leaked on the internet, leading to numerous calls from unknown numbers. However, one stalker got really persistent and wouldn’t stop bothering Daniele until White intervened.

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Dana White got Nina Drama’s stalker added to no-fly list Daniele claims the stalker used to send her videos of cartel beheadings. She then approached the Ultimate Fighting Championship CEO for help. Daniele says she got a call from counter terrorism within a couple of minutes after calling White.

Counter terrorism found the stalker’s details within a day and put him on a no-fly list so that he couldn’t come to Las Vegas.

“I got a stalker,” Daniele said on her Kick stream. “The stalker was crazy, he was out of his f*cking mind and he wouldn’t stop…

All fighters successfully made weight for Week 3 of Dana White’s Contender Series 2026, scheduled for Aug. 25 at Meta Apex in Las Vegas.Frank Mir’s daughter faces Alex Apodaca atop Dana White’s Contender Series 2026 Week 3Five matchups for Week 3 of DWCS 2026 are set, with fighters competing for Ultimate Fighting Championship contracts. Former UFC heavyweight champion Frank Mir’s daughter Bella is set to compete in the main event.

The action begins at 7 p.m. ET/4 p.m. PT on Tuesday, Aug. 25.

Weigh-in results of Week 3 of DWCS 2026 Bella Mir (136) vs Alex Apodaca (135.5)Mario Piazzon (238) vs Guilherme Uriel (241.5)Gary Belletto Jr. (169) vs Sean Clancy Jr. (170)Ronald Humphrey (169) vs Alexis Miranda (170)Carlos Petruzzella (185.5) vs Nick Galanti (185)

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Sharabutdin Magomedov and Neiman Gracie will meet in a grappling contest at Real American Freestyle in Moscow.

RAF recently announced that the Ultimate Fighting Championship middleweight will face the former Bellator MMA and Professional Fighters League welterweight on Sept. 5.

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Magomedov last competed in June, earning a unanimous decision over Michel Pereira in the UFC. The Russian previously tested his grappling skills under the Hype FC banner, taking on lightweights Arman Tsarukyan and Edson Barboza, with both matches ending in draws.

Gracie, meanwhile, has not competed since losing to Magomed Umalatov in Professional Fighters League in August 2024. The Brazilian challenged Rory MacDonald for the Bellator MMA welterweight title in 2019 but came up short and went 4-5 thereafter. Gracie's most recent grappling appearance came at ADXC 1 in 2023, where he submitted Benson Henderson.

The Magomedov-Gracie matchup joins a loaded RAF Moscow lineup …

Ultimate Fighting Championship veteran Edson Barboza has made it clear that his retirement is final and he has no plans to reverse his decision.

Just days after announcing the end of his 17-year professional mixed martial arts career, the Brazilian has a message for managers and promoters who might try to entice him back into competition.

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Barboza rules out an MMA comeback after ending his 17-year fighting career Barboza announced his retirement after suffering a fourth consecutive defeat, getting finished by Esteban Ribovics at UFC 330 in Philadelphia. The 39-year-old then removed his gloves inside the Octagon as the crowd gave him a standing ovation and chanted his name.

For Barboza, having his children beside him made the moment particularly emotional.

“The entire arena spontaneously chanting ‘Barboza,’ with my kids by my side inside the Octagon — they had never been to one of my fights before,” Barboza told Sherdog. “Definitely, that was t…

Edson Barboza sees plenty of himself in Mauricio Ruffy and believes the surging Brazilian has become an “improved version” of him.

Barboza, who recently retired from the Ultimate Fighting Championship, claims Ruffy is one of his favorite fighters to watch. Ruffy is set to face Arman Tsarukyan in the UFC 331 co-main event on Sept. 19 in Los Angeles and Barboza recently broke down the matchup, having trained alongside Tsarukyan at American Top Team.

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Barboza compares Mauricio Ruffy to Anderson Silva ahead of Arman Tsarukyan fight Barboza gave his assessment of the matchup in an exclusive interview with Sherdog. He claims Ruffy reminds him of UFC legend Anderson Silva before drawing a comparison between Tsarukyan and Khabib Nurmagomedov.

“Ruffy is one of my favorite fighters right now,” Barboza said. “He’s extremely creative and skilled, and he reminds me of Anderson Silva. He just needs one opportunity to finish a fight. I’d say he’s the improved ver…

Jordan Burroughs has called for a wrestling match against Georges St. Pierre, revealing that the Ultimate Fighting Championship legend is his top choice.

The Olympic gold medalist recently called out the UFC Hall of Famer for a freestyle wrestling match under the Real American Freestyle banner, proposing a meeting at RAF 14 in Las Vegas on Oct. 3.

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Burroughs names GSP his top choice and proposes an Oct. 3 showdown at RAF 14 Burroughs discussed a potential match with St. Pierre during an appearance on “The Ariel Helwani Show” after his recent RAF victory over Sean Brady on Aug. 22. When the Canadian’s name came up as a possible opponent, Burroughs made his interest clear.

“Yeah, Georges, if you're out there, I would love to compete against you,” Burroughs said. “I'd love to wrestle you. I honor you. I honor your legacy. And I don't want to embarrass you. I don't want to humiliate you. I just would love to share the stage with you. And so, he's No. 1.…

Colby Covington took shots at Ian Garry and Bo Nickal in a recent interview.

Covington offered harsh assessments of Garry and Nickal while speaking to Submission Radio. The former Ultimate Fighting Championship interim titleholder addressed Garry’s unsuccessful title bid against Islam Makhachev and Nickal’s recent wrestling defeat under the Real American Freestyle banner.

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Covington reacts to Ian Garry’s UFC 330 defeat and writes off a potential Bo Nickal wrestling matchup When asked about Garry's defeat at UFC 330, Covington took the opportunity to poke fun at the Irishman, referencing the controversy and online discourse surrounding his marriage.

“I don't know. I didn't really pay attention, so I didn't really care about it,” Covington told Submission Radio. “But the one thing fitting that I did see is now, you know, the wife got to sit in a corner and watch him get dogged out for once. So, at least the roles got reversed for once. You know, the w…

Former football player Anthony Wint recently opened up about the moment he realized mixed martial arts was his next career path.

Wint, who emerged victorious in his Ultimate Fighting Championship debut at UFC Sacramento, recently reflected on his transition from football to MMA after the Covid-19 pandemic during an appearance on the “Deep Waters” podcast.

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Anthony Wint explains how early grappling success convinced him to commit to fighting Wint recalled working with veteran manager Malki Kawa before transitioning to MMA. Kawa manages several prominent fighters and Wint remembers seeing a picture of Jon Jones in his office.

“I didn't know Malki did fighting,” Wint said. “I remember going up his stairs and seeing the picture of Jon Jones. I was like, damn, you know Jon Jones? He's like, I manage Jon Jones.”

Wint was initially headed toward the CFL, but the 2020 season was canceled because of the Covid-19 pandemic. During that period, Kawa encour…

Jiri Prochazka has shut down ongoing rumors about his return to action in the Ultimate Fighting Championship.

The former UFC light heavyweight champion recently addressed rumors linking him to an interim title fight against Paulo Costa while reigning champion Carlos Ulberg recovers from injury. While Prochazka is staying consistent with his training regimen, he’s yet to lock in a fight.

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Prochazka says his next UFC fight is not confirmed amid Paulo Costa speculation Prochazka last competed at UFC 327, suffering a first-round knockout loss to Ulberg in a bid for the vacant light heavyweight championship. Ulberg suffered an ACL injury in the bout and is expected to return next year, paving the way for an interim title.

Amidst rumors linking him to an interim title bout with Costa, Prochazka took to social media to clear the air, claiming that his next bout is unconfirmed.

“Strong week, great rounds and teamwork,” Prochazka wrote on Instagram. “…

Ultimate Fighting Championship Hall of Famer Michael Bisping believes the rule under which Paddy Pimblett’s purse is being withheld is extremely unreasonable.

Pimblett scored a first-round submission win over Benoit St. Denis at UFC 329 at T-Mobile Arena in Las Vegas in July. “The Baddy” hasn’t yet received his purse for the fight due to a highly criticized rule. Pimblett’s purse is being withheld because he celebrated his win by jumping on the cage. Max Holloway and Gable Steveson, who also celebrated their respective wins at UFC 329 by jumping on the cage, are also under investigation.

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Paddy Pimblett's UFC 329 purse remains withheld over his post-fight cage celebration Bisping believes this rule needs to change for good. The former UFC middleweight champion believes it is absolutely justified to climb on the cage after a win.

“It all goes back to when Paddy beat Benoit St. Denis. What did he do? He celebrated. He jumped on the cage as a lot of f…