Martial Arts News

While Rodolfo Bellato’s comeback victory over Ihor Potieria at UFC on ESPN 52 earned him a $50,000 bonus, 2023 didn’t start out so well for the Brazilian light heavyweight.

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"If someone told me in February that 2023 would be the best year of my life, I would think it was some kind of [joke]. After all, I had lost to [Vitor] Petrino in September 2022 and my dream of going to UFC looked far away,” Bellato told Sherdog.com.

After a pair of victories under the Legacy Fighting Alliance banner earlier this year, Bellato got a second chance on Dana White’s Contender Series this past October. This time, he earned a UFC contract after scoring a technical knockout victory against Murtaza Talha Ali.

“A few weeks later, the UFC invited me to debut against Potieria, a guy who knocked out [Mauricio Rua] and had twice as many fights as I did. I knew it would be a war, but I decided that the only way he was going to beat me was to knock me out,” Bellato said. Read more

Lipeng Zhang will square off against Maurice Abevi in a 170-pound tilt at ONE on Prime Video 18 on Jan. 12.

Promotion officials confirmed the booking to Sherdog.com. ONE on Prime Video 18 takes place at Lumpinee Boxing Stadium in Bangkok and features a 135-pound kickboxing title bout between Superlek Kiatmoo9 and Elias Mahmoudi. Additionally, UFC veteran John Lineker will compete in muay thai against Liam Harrison at 145 pounds.

Zhang has been victorious in three of his four appearances under the ONE banner. Most recently, the 33-year-old China native scored a first-round technical knockout win against Timofey Nastyukhin at ONE on Prime Video 15 on Oct. 6. “The Warrior” notably went 2-2 during a four-bout UFC stint from 2014 to 2015. Zhang is 25-3-1 since parting ways with the Las Vegas-based promotion.

After winning his first six professional outings on the regional circuit, Abevi split a pair of appearances with ONE in 2023. The Swiss fighter began his …

Former Ultimate Fighting Championship star Darren Till might grace the Karate Combat pit sometime next year, according to company president Asim Zaidi.

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Till was granted his UFC release earlier this year on the heels of three consecutive losses. While “The Gorilla” revealed that he was still on good terms with the promotion, his future in MMA remains unclear.

A longtime muay thai practitioner, Till recently sounded dismissive of Karate Combat fighters, claiming he could beat anyone on the roster. The promotion’s 185-pound champ, Ross Levine, challenged Till in response, leading to the promotion courting the Liverpudlian regarding a title fight debut.

Zaidi recently revealed that Till’s title fight with Levine was originally being targeted for Karate Combat 43 on Dec. 15 in Las Vegas. However, that fell through and Levine will now defend his strap against UFC vet Sam Alvey. The card will be headlined by a rubber fight between former UFC champs…

Dan Hooker believes Ultimate Fighting Championship lightweight champ Islam Makhachev won’t risk having his throne challenged by Arman Tsarukyan.

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Tsarukyan recently announced his arrival in the lightweight title picture with a spectacular knockout win over Beneil Dariush in the main event at UFC Austin on Dec. 2. “Ahalkalakets” subsequently called for a rematch against Makhachev, who defeated Tsarukyan in his UFC debut in 2019. UFC CEO Dana White also admitted that Tsarukyan’s win over Dariush complicates the question of the next title shot at lightweight, which was expected to be given to Charles Oliveira until now.

Hooker, a former opponent of Makhachev’s, said on "The MMA Hour” that he believes the champ will hang up his gloves before facing Tsarukyan. Hooker also thinks that Tsarukyan is too risky a stylistic matchup for Makhachev while not being a big draw.

“He ain’t gonna fight him. I guarantee he’ll retire,” Hooker said. “He’ll retire b…

Regardless of the outcome of his upcoming clash against Shavkat Rakhmonov, Stephen Thompson is looking forward to having a few battle scars after their fight.

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After turning down a booking against Rakhmonov on multiple occasions in the past, “Wonderboy” is slated to meet the undefeated Kazakh sensation with a 100% finish rate at UFC 296 at the T-Mobile Arena in Las Vegas on Dec. 16.

Rakhmonov is heavy -500 betting favorite going into the clash, which could be attributed to his superior grappling skillset. One of the most elite strikers in MMA, Thompson believes “Nomad” will eventually prefer going to the ground against him. However, “Wonderboy” is glad that Rakhmonov is the kind of fighter who Will Hunt for the finish, giving him the opportunity to go out on his shield.

“Now, do I feel like Shavkat is going to stand there bang with me? I don’t think so,” Thompson told Submission Radio. “I think eventually he’s going to shoot. He’s going to s…

Gilbert Burns claims to have fully recovered from his shoulder injury and is plotting a return to the Octagon, with a specific foe in mind.

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Burns (22-6) is coming off a decision loss against Belal Muhammad at UFC 288 in July after appearing to damage his left hand early in the fight. “Durinho” went on to severely injure his shoulder in training, which has kept him on the shelf ever since. The Brazilian now claims to have fully recovered from the injury and is now back to training. Burns told MMA Junkie:

“I’m 100 percent and back to training. I’m in no pain and injury free. I didn’t get surgery. I almost did. My ligament was barely hanging on my shoulder. My deltoid and my AC joint was very compromised, so I had to rest a lot. I couldn’t do anything for like three months, and then I started my (physical therapy), and then I put a couple of stem cells, and now I’m back to training.”

While Burns is eyeing a return in March or April and is alread…

Jon Jones has taken notice of Tom Aspinall’s suggestion that he be stripped of the UFC heavyweight crown.

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Jones, who was forced to withdraw from the UFC 295 headliner against Stipe Miocic due to a torn pectoral, issued a strong response on Monday to the recently-crowned interim champion on social media.

“I’ve faced the absolute toughest competition this world had to offer for 15 years now,” Jones wrote. “During camp for a title defense I sustained a major injury that required surgery for the first time in my career. Now I have newcomers requesting I get my championship stripped. Zero wins over legends, zero title defenses and already thinking you can call the shots to Dana, that’s hilarious.

“In my 15 year career I have seen so many guys who are supposed to be the next big thing. There’s ever only been one Jon Jones, never forget that.”

I’ve faced the absolute toughest competition this world had to offer for 15 years now…

Giga Chikadze has withdrawn from a proposed UFC 296 clash against Josh Emmett on Dec. 16.

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Emmett initially announced that Chikadze had pulled out of the event on social media, and it has since been confirmed by multiple outlets. Later, Chikadze revealed that he suffered a torn groin. "I'll be back soon," he added.

Giga’s Out ❌-Who’s ready Dec 16th? #UFC296

— JOSH EMMETT (@JoshEmmettUFC) December 4, 2023

UFC 296 takes place at the T-Mobile Arena in Las Vegas and is headlined by a welterweight title tilt between Leon Edwards and Colby Covington. In the co-main event, Alexandre Pantoja will defend the flyweight crown against Brandon Royval.

Sh*t happens! Tore groin! I’ll be back soon! pic.twitter.com/ABMggWhHdM

— GIGACHAD (@giga_chikadze) December 5, 2023

After a hiatus that lasted more than a year and a half, Chikadze returned to action at UFC Fight Night 225, where he outpointed Alex …

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Jamahal Hill has broken his silence regarding his arrest for allegedly assaulting a family member.

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Hill was arrested on charges of misdemeanor aggravated domestic violence in Michigan for inflicting “serious or aggravated injury” upon his brother, James Anthony Hill Jr. The former UFC light heavyweight champion recently released a brief statement on his YouTube channel regarding the situation.

“There’s been a lot of reports out today about the situation that happened when I was back home in Michigan, visiting for the holidays,” Hill said. “I will just say this, at this time it is an open case. I’ve been advised not to speak on it, which I know not to speak on it.

“I just can’t wait for the truth to be told in court. I will wait for that day and I look forward to that day. The people who know me and know my character and truly, truly rock with me and know who I am, hold onto that and stay true to that. That’s all I’m a say on …

Deiveson Figueiredo is weighing his options after a successful bantamweight debut at UFC on ESPN 52 this past Saturday night.

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Figuereido, who defeated Rob Font via unanimous decision at UFC Austin, discussed his desire to face some of the bantamweight division’s biggest names in an exclusive interview with Sherdog.com.

"Font had great fights with former champions and some top of the division,” he said. “Many people thought I was too small for him, and I showed what I'm capable of when I’m happy and healthy.

“As a former champion, if UFC wanted to set me up to challenge for the title I would surprise many fans again. [Sean] O’Malley is an excellent striker, but I believe a lot in my team’s strategy. When I enter the Octagon I love to exchange, but against O'Malley I believe my jiu-jitsu would make the difference. If I get a hold of him, I would submit him.”

Figueiredo realizes that the UFC is more likely to want him to face another Top 1…

Alexandre Pantoja doesn’t have a high opinion of former American Top Team training partner Colby Covington.

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Covington will challenge Leon Edwards for the welterweight crown in the UFC 296 main event, while Pantoja will defend his flyweight strap against Brandon Royval in the evening’s co-headliner on Dec. 16 at the T-Mobile Arena in Las Vegas.

Pantoja recently revealed on MMAFighting’s Trocação Franca podcast that he wants to have nothing to do with Covington during fight week and would rather like to meet Edwards, whose story he relates to and respects.

“I don’t care,” Pantoja said. “I was born in Copacabana and we are disgusting towards everybody [laughs]. There’s an artist right next to you and you don’t care. I respect him a lot as an athlete, but in a way I’m more connected to Leon Edwards because of his life story and everything he’s done. Leon Edwards is definitely someone I would go out of my way to shake hands and wish him a good fi…

Sean Brady doesn’t think highly of Ian Garry and believes he can dominate the Irishman in a potential clash.

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Brady welcomed Kelvin Gastelum back to welterweight on Saturday at UFC on ESPN 52 at the Moody Center in Austin, Texas. Brady thoroughly dominated Gastelum for the entirety of the fight before submitting him in the third round. With the win, Brady bounced back from his first career defeat at the hands of Belal Muhammad at UFC 280 last year.

The standout grappler subsequently redirected a callout to Garry, whom he had also mentioned in the lead-up to UFC Austin. Brady had previously highlighted Garry’s questionable gym etiquette, which includes consistently recording sparring sessions.

Brady reiterated his dislike for “The Future,” and expressed confidence in his ability to impose his will on Garry during a post-fight media scrum on Saturday.

“Just the way he went about his whole thing with his team, it rubbed me the wrong way. He…