Martial Arts News

Clay Collard isn't surprised he's going to go up against Professional Fighters League 2022 lightweight king Olivier Aubin-Mercier Friday at the 2023 PFL Championships.

Coming off a dominant unanimous decision victory against Shane Burgos in August at 2023 PFL 9, Collard (24-10) is set to meet Mercier (20-5) for the lightweight strap inside the Smart Cage on Nov. 24 at The Anthem in Washington D.C.

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Mercier, on the other hand, is currently undefeated in the promotion and will enter the bout with Collard on the heels of back-to-back finishes against Bruno Miranda and Anthony Romero.

Considering the hectic schedule fighters deal with when competing in a playoff setting, Collard was asked by Sherdog.com if he's had enough time to come up with a game plan for the reigning lightweight champion.

“So, I mean, we're definitely going to cater a little bit towards OAM's fighting style. We're going to work on different things for different individual fig…

Impa Kasanganay envisions himself besting Joshua Silveira in all facets of mixed martial arts in their upcoming Professional Fighters League light heavyweight title battle Friday at the 2023 PFL Championships.

A former Ultimate Fighting Championship middleweight, Kasanganay now competes as a light heavyweight in the PFL. Ever since the move up to 205, the Kill Cliff FC product has racked up four victories, including three finishes under the PFL banner this year; all within the span of five months.

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Most recently, Kasanganay secured his spot in the light heavyweight finals after delivering a devastating Round 1 knockout against Marthin Hamlet. Before that, the former middleweight secured a Round 2 arm-triangle choke submission against Tim Caron in the playoff semis.

Considering his recent track record and performances inside the Smart Cage, Kasanganay (14-3) is understandably confident regarding the outcome of his upcoming light heavyweight title …

Singapore-based ONE Championship made its United States debut in May — and apparently, that was just the tip of the iceberg.

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During a recent interview on CNBC, ONE CEO Chatri Sityodtong briefly outlined the company’s plans for holding events outside of its usual destinations, and he indicated that will include multiple events in the U.S.

“We’re going back to Japan, we’re going Qatar and we’re obviously coming back to Singapore,” Sityodtong said. “And the U.S., by the way, more events in the U.S. in 2024.”

ONE made its stateside debut on May 5 for ONE on Prime Video 10, which saw Demetrious Johnson defeat Adriano Moraes to defend the 135-pound title in the evening’s main event at the 1stBank Center in Broomfield, Colorado. Sityodtong did not mention which U.S. cities ONE might visit in the coming year.

In a separate post on his LinkedIn account, Sityodtong addressed ONE’s growth and ongoing financial success.

“ONE is on track to…

Nineteen fighters who competed at UFC 295 received indefinite medical suspensions.

The New York State Athletic Commission recently release a full list of medical suspensions from the event, which took place at Madison Square Garden in New York on Nov. 11. The NYSAC did not reveal the specific nature of each fighter’s suspension. Every athlete on the card received at least a seven-day term. All indefinite suspensions can be lifted via doctor clearance.

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UFC 295 saw Alex Pereira claim the vacant light heavyweight crown with a second-round technical knockout of Jiri Prochazka in the evening’s main event. Prochazka was suspended 45 days for mandatory rest, and he was also suspended indefinitely pending doctor clearance. Pereira, meanwhile, received a seven-day sit.

UFC 295 Medical Suspensions:

Alex Pereira: Suspended for seven days.

Jiri Prochazka: Suspended 45 days for mandatory rest, indefinitely suspended pending primary care doctor clearance. Read more

Professional Fighters League 2022 lightweight champion Olivier Aubin-Mercier isn't looking to engage in an all-out war with Clay Collard in their scheduled lightweight finals bout Friday at the 2023 PFL Championships.

Undefeated since his arrival in the PFL, Mercier (20-5) finds himself competing for the lightweight championship for the second time in a row. “The Canadian Gangster” has earned the highly-coveted title fight on the heels of three impressive outings against Bruno Miranda, Anthony Romero and former Ultimate Fighting Championship competitor Shane Burgos.

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Interestingly, Mercier and Collard (24-10) will enter the Smart Cage on Nov. 24 at The Anthem in Washington D.C. having faced a common opponent in Burgos. Although both 2023 playoff finalists managed to secure the victory against “Hurricane,” the way the two approached the matchup couldn't have been more different.

While “The Canadian Gangster” defeated Burgos with his well-rounded ap…

New MMA Global Powerhouse@PFLMMA acquires @Bellator

Our Fighter Roster Equal To UFC - Both 30% Top 25 World Ranked FIghters

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PFL Launch Reimagined Bellator - Bellator International Champions Series

Mega-Event For Fans In 2024 - PFL Champs vs. Bellator Champs pic.twitter.com/Ma4YUl4AUi

— Donn Davis (@DonnDavisPFL) November 20, 2023 Professional Fighters League’s long-rumored purchase of Bellator MMA has become a reality.

PFL announced Monday that it has completed the acquisition of the California-based promotion from Paramount Global, “creating a global powerhouse in mixed martial arts and accelerating the combined company to become the industry co-leader.” Terms of the deal were not disclosed, but PFL founder Donn Davis told the Financial Times that Paramount would retain a minority stake in Bellator.

According to a release, PFL will continue the Bellator brand in 2024, but it will be a “reimagined product”…

Dricus Du Plessis believes Khamzat Chimaev has yet to feel the strength of a real 185-pounder, and he would absolutely love to do the honors.

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“Stillknocks” is slated to challenge Sean Strickland for the middleweight title in the main event at UFC 297 on Jan. 20 in Toronto. The booking came as a surprise to some who were expecting Khamzat Chimaev to get the next title shot at middleweight after a majority decision victory over Kamaru Usman at UFC 294 last month.

Du Plessis believes Chimaev still remains the UFC’s next preference for a gold bid at middleweight against the winner of the upcoming UFC 297 title fight. The South African is also excited about the potential matchup, as he wants to show Chimaev what true strength feels like.

“The UFC is probably going to want to do Khamzat,” Du Plessis said in an interview with James Lynch. “He’s a big draw, and they said if he won the fight against Usman he’d get a title shot. That’s a fight I would …

Francis Ngannou’s coach, Eric Nicksick, claims Tom Aspinall currently has more “upside” than UFC heavyweight champ Jon Jones.

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A highly-anticipated clash between Ngannou and Jones never came to fruition under the UFC banner, with “The Predator” exiting the promotion due to failed contract negotiations earlier this year. Jones went to win the vacant strap with a submission win over Ciryl Gane at UFC 285 in March. He was slated to defend the strap against Stipe Miocic at UFC 295 on Nov. 11.

However, Jones was forced out of the matchup due to injury and Aspinall claimed the interim title with a first-round knockout of Sergei Pavlovich in short-notice co-main event at UFC 295. Despite his title win, Aspinall is currently in a complicated position with Jones expected to return sometime next year and face Miocic. The winner of Jones-Miocic would presumably face Aspinall at a later date.

Nicksick, meanwhile, revealed that he’s had his eyes on Aspinal…

Benoit St. Denis believes Justin Gaethje is one of the only fighters in the UFC who is durable enough to go toe-to-toe with him.

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St. Denis pulled off his fifth consecutive stoppage win with a brutal first-round KO over lightweight veteran Matt Frevola at UFC 295 on Nov. 11. While St. Denis put all lightweights elites on notice in his post-fight interview, Justin Gaethje, who was present cageside, was shown on a split screen as “God of War” called him out.

St. Denis recently shared on "The MMA Hour” that Gaethje remains his primary focus, as he expects that a clash against “The Highlight” would turn out to be quite memorable.

“It is a fight I want to have,” St. Denis said. “It’s at the top of the list, of course. It’s not his fault, but I do believe they are going to make [Islam] Makhachev against [Charles] Oliveira. Gaethje is a warrior, he likes activity, but he will have to fight again and big dates are coming next year, and he has already …

Chase Hooper is targeting a clash against fellow leg lock specialist Claudio Puelles after his victory over Jordan Leavitt at UFC Fight Night 232 over the weekend.

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Hooper and Leavitt went toe to toe in a high-paced grappling affair which ended quickly when “The Dream” capitalized on his opponent’s mistake to lock in a rear-naked choke at the 2:58 mark of Round 1. Hooper, who has a heel hook submission to his name, subsequently called out Puelles in a post-fight interview.

“I’d like someone like a Claudio Puelles. He beat Jordan, I believe, by decision. Then he also has a kneebar win over Clay Guida,” Hooper said. “I just beat Jordan tonight, and I’ve got a calf slicer over Clay in a grappling match. But still, I would love to fight another guy that’s big into leg locks – another big jiu-jitsu guy in the division. Tonight is the perfect example. Those are fun matchups, and I think they’re fun to watch. It’s a style of grappling people can get down w…

5️⃣ DAYS OUT

History will be made in Washington DC 🏆💰

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[Friday, November 24th | 8pm ET on ESPN+PPV|🔗 https://t.co/9tors69QSM| #PFLWorldChampionship] pic.twitter.com/JqOmIMDy9L — PFL (@PFLMMA) November 19, 2023

The 2023 Professional Fighters League Championships will have a familiar price point.

The promotion’s signature event will cost $49.99 on pay-per-view via ESPN+, the streaming service recently revealed. That’s the same price as last year’s championship event, which marked PFL’s debut on pay-per-view.

The 2023 PFL Championships takes place at The Anthem Arena in Washington, D.C., on Friday and will feature title bouts in six different weight classes. The seven-bout main card is headlined by a lightweight title clash pitting Olivier Aubin-Mercier against Clay Collard and begins at 8 p.m. ET/5 p.m. PT via ESPN+ pay-per-view. The prelims will stream immediately prior on ESPN+ begnning at 5 p.m. ET/2 p.m. P…

Brendan Allen has laid claim to the No. 1 contender spot at middleweight after his submission win over Paul Craig in the main event at UFC Fight Night 232 on Saturday.

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Allen thoroughly dominated Craig from the outset of their bout, notching nearly eight minutes of control time over the course of two rounds before submitting him in the third. “All In” improved his winning streak to six, five of which have come via rear-naked chokes.

Allen called for a title eliminator next in his Octagon interview, targeting top contenders Robert Whittaker, Jared Cannonier and Khamzat Chimaev.

“I think I deserve it; I’ve earned it,” he said. “I’ve beat everyone they put in front of me, I finished them. Whoever the UFC says that is, I don’t care who. Whittaker, Cannonier, ‘C—shot,’ I don’t care. I’m trying to fight, man. I’m the No. 1 contender. I’m the best in the world, I’m here to prove it. If you say otherwise, come show me, don’t tell me.”

Allen reit…