Martial Arts News

Tatiana Suarez doesn’t expect to be sidelined for too long after an injury forced her to withdraw from UFC 298.

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The strawweight contender was slated to face former title challenger Amanda Lemos on Feb. 17 at the Honda Center in Anaheim, California. Instead, Mackenzie Dern will step in on short notice to square off against the Brazilian.

Suarez took to Instagram to address her injury. While she didn’t go into specifics, the 33-year-old Californian offered a relatively positive outlook regarding her Octagon return.

“I’m making this post because I know there are many people who support me that are concerned. I won’t be out for long. A minor setback,” Suarez wrote on Instagram. “I asked to postpone just a few weeks so I could heal up and train. Unfortunately, that didn’t happen. Sometimes it’s just not meant to be.”

I apologize to [Amanda Lemos]. Some things are just out of our control. Injuries happen; it’s part of the game. I’m thankful …

Dan Hooker is the latest in a long list of fighters who wants in on Conor McGregor’s return to the Octagon.

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After a nearly three-year hiatus due to injury rehab and other factors, McGregor recently announced that he will be returning to the Octagon opposite Michael Chandler on June 29.

However, McGregor’s word cannot be taken as confirmation of the booking without any official announcement, as the Irishman has teased a return on several occasions in the past.

Hooker, meanwhile, has now offered to be the backup fighter for that matchup if it comes to fruition. “The Hangman” welcomed Chandler to the UFC in January 2021, where he suffered a brutal Round 1 knockout loss that allowed his opponent to secure a lightweight title shot.

On one hand, Hooker has the lure of avenging a loss against Chandler, and on the other lies the promise of a hefty payday against McGregor.

“You obviously get to play the roulette. You get to take the gamble, the…

Sean Strickland still doesn’t think highly of Israel Adesanya’s approach to life.

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Strickland went hard at Adesanya with his trash talk even before they were matched up during the UFC 276 presser in July 2022. He later landed a title shot against Adesanya by a stroke of luck, replacing an injured Dricus Du Plessis at UFC 293 in September 2023.

Strickland vocally questioned Adesanya’s lifestyle in the lead-up, targeting everything from his painted nails to his love for anime. While Adesanya vowed to knock his opponent out, Strickland emerged with a unanimous decision triumph in one of the biggest upsets in recent memory.

“Tarzan” is now slated to defend his strap against Du Plessis (20-2) at UFC 297 at the Scotiabank Arena in Toronto on Saturday.

Meanwhile, Adesanya is potentially looking to return to the Octagon in the second half of the year. The former middleweight champ was also recently arrested in New Zealand for driving under t…

The wheels are officially in motion for Vadim Nemkov to transition to the heavyweight division.

Nemkov has vacated his Bellator MMA light heavyweight crown, Sherdog.com confirmed with a promotion official on Wednesday following an initial report from MMAjunkie.com. The 31-year-old will make his his first heavyweight appearance on the Professional Fighters League vs. Bellator main card against former PFL heavyweight winner Bruno Cappelozza on Feb. 24.

Currently No. 1 in Sherdog’s 205-pound rankings, Nemkov has widely been regarded as one of the world’s best light heavyweights regardless of promotion. The Fedorteam representative went unbeaten in 10 Bellator appearances, claiming the belt with a second-round stoppage of Ryan Bader in August 2020. His championship reign spanned five successful defenses, including a run through the organization’s 205-pound grand prix that culminated in a five-round verdict over Corey Anderson at Bellator 288. He owns a 16-2-1 car…

Renato Carneiro believes his impressive post-fight speeches deserve a better platform than the UFC Apex.

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While Moicano started off with a Portuguese translator for his post-fight interviews, the Brazilian has quickly learned how to speak English, which he claims to have picked up from playing Call of Duty. Moicano’s post-fight speeches peaked in his last two wins at UFC 281 in November 2022.

Moicano’s interviews have certainly worked in his favor as he admittedly got a better deal while renegotiating his contract. The Brazilian also enjoys a significant following on YouTube.

“I don’t think about it at all,” Carneiro told MMAjunkie.com. “After the fight, I usually get so emotional because people who don’t fight cannot understand how hard it is to go through the training camp and the dieting and all that stuff. So, when you go over there and everything went well and you have a great performance, [it’s hard to explain] how happy you are.”

“Defi…

Heavyweight fan favorite Chris Barnett is set to return to action on March 23.

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Barnett will take on former ”Ultimate Fighter” winner Mohammed Usman (10-2) at a UFC Fight Night event at the promotion’s Apex facility in Las Vegas. The matchup was announced by multiple outlets and confirmed by both fighters on social media.

One of the most entertaining fighters on the heavyweight roster, Barnett has scored 18 of his 23 career wins via knockout. However, “Beastboy” is equally loved for his post-fight dance celebrations, where he busts gravity-defying moves without inhibition. Barnett has gone 2-2 since his UFC debut in 2020 and hasn’t fought since a technical knockout win over Jake Collier at UFC 279 in September 2022.

Meanwhile, Usman is the brother of former Ultimate Fighting Championship welterweight king Kamaru Usman. “Motor” earned his contract by winning “TUF 30” in 2022 in the heavyweight category. Usman is currently on a three-fight win…

A light heavyweight clash has been added to a UFC Fight Night event in March.

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Light heavyweight veteran Ovince St. Preux will make his 27th walk to the Octagon against an up-and-coming Kennedy Nzechukwu (on March 16 at the UFC Apex in Las Vegas. The booking was first reported by MMAjunkie.com and subsequently confirmed by Nzechukwu on Instagram.

St. Preux, who has been with the promotion for over a decade now, has lessened his activity in recent times, only fighting once every year since 2021. “OSP” has gone 1-3 in his last four and is coming off a Round 1 knockout loss against Philipe Lins at UFC Fight Night 219 in February 2023.

Meanwhile, Nzechukwu will look to bounce back from a first-round technical knockout loss against Dustin Jacoby in August 2023. The 31-year-old also saw a three-fight win streak snapped by his loss to Jacoby.

The UFC Fight Night event on March 16 will be headlined by a heavyweight clash between Tai Tuivasa a…

UFC 300 has another marquee matchup, as Justin Gaethje will defend his “BMF” title against Max Holloway in a five-round lightweight bout.

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UFC CEO Dana White announced the pairing via social media on Tuesday. Additionally, Jim Miller will square off against Bobby Green in another 155-pound affair. UFC 300 takes place on April 13 at the T-Mobile Arena in Las Vegas and will also include a strawweight championship showdown between Weili Zhang and Xioanan Yan.

A former World Series of Fighting champion, Gaethje has been victorious in three of his last four Octagon appearances. Most recently, he defeated Dustin Poirier via second-round knockout at UFC 291 to claim the “BMF” belt this past July. “The Highlight” has twice challenged for the UFC lightweight crown and was considered among the leaders to face reigning champ Islam Makhachev next before the fight against Holloway was revealed.

Holloway previously competed at 155 pounds at UFC 236, where…

Mackenzie Dern will step in for Tatiana Suarez and square off against Amanda Lemos at UFC 298.

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The Orange County Register was first to report the new strawweight booking. Suarez was forced to withdraw from the event due to an “unspecified injury,” according to the report. UFC 298 takes place on Feb. 17 at the Honda Center in Anaheim, California and is headlined by a featherweight championship clash pitting Alexander Volkanovski against Ilia Topuria.

Dern, 30, split a pair of appearances in 2023. After taking a unanimous verdict over Angela Hill in the UFC Fight Night 223 headliner on May 20, the Brazilian jiu-jitsu black belt suffered a second-round TKO defeat against Jessica Andrade in her last outing at UFC 295. Dern is 8-4 during her promotional tenure, with other notable wins over the likes of Tecia Torres, Nina Nunes and Virna Jandiroba.

Lemos, meanwhile, came up short in a championship bid at UFC 292 this past August, when she lost a u…

The first Professional Fighters League vs. Bellator MMA card is official for Feb. 24 in Riyadh, Saudi Arabia.

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The event will feature four champion vs. champion bouts: PFL 2023 heavyweight king Renan Ferreira vs. Bellator champ Ryan Bader at heavyweight; 2023 PFL light heavyweight champ Impa Kasanganay vs. Bellator middleweight champion Johnny Eblen at 185 pounds; 2023 PFL featherweight champion Jesus Pinedo vs. Bellator featherweight title holder Patricio Freire and 2023 PFL welterweight champion Magomed Magomedkerimov vs. Bellator welterweight champion Jason Jackson.

A handful of other matchups were also confirmed for the event: Bruno Cappelozza vs. Vadim Nemkov at light heavyweight; Clay Collard vs. A.J. McKee at lightweight; Thiago Santos vs. Yoel Romero at light heavyweight and Gabriel Braga vs. Aaron Pico at featherweight. Boxing champion Claressa Shields is also expected to fight on the card against Kelsey DeSantis, while Biaggio Ali Walsh …

ONE Championship continues to stack the lineup for its Qatar debut with title fights.

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The Singapore-based promotion announced Tuesday that reigning atomweight (115-pound) queen Stamp Fairtex will defend her belt against Denice Zamboanga at ONE Championship 166 on March 1 at Lusail Sports Arena in Lusail, Qatar. Additionally, Tye Ruotolo will defend his welterweight (185-pound) submission grappling title against former IBJJF world champion Izaak Mitchell in another featured bout on the card.

ONE Championship 166 already featured three title rematches, all in MMA. In the main event, Anatoliy Malykhin will attempt to become a three-division champion when he challenges Reinier de Ridder for the middleweight (205-pound) strap. Additionally, Jarred Brooks will face Joshua Pacio for strawweight (125-pound) gold, while reigning featherweight (155-pound) champion Kai Tang takes on interim title holder Thanh Le.

ONE also announced that it will hold a …

Sean Strickland has warned Dricus Du Plessis of dire consequences if he crosses the line with his trash talk.

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Strickland is slated to defend his middleweight strap for the first time against Du Plessis at UFC 297 on Jan. 20 at the Scotiabank Arena in Toronto.

The two have developed serious bad blood since Du Plessis brought up Strickland’s abusive childhood during a seasonal press conference last month in response to the champ alleging a sexual relationship between the South African and his coach. Strickland went on to attack Du Plessis while attending UFC 296 the very next day.

Strickland subsequently went on a podcast with comedian Theo Von, opening up about his childhood trauma in detail . Du Plessis has since stated that he doesn’t harbor any ill will towards Strickland, although he doesn’t regret anything he said.

While Strickland also seemingly doesn’t want things to escalate further, he has a message for his upcoming opponent.…