Martial Arts News

Edson Barboza and Sodiq Yusuff were an easy choice for “Fight of the Night” on Saturday.

The featherweights received $50,000 apiece for their back-and-forth, five-round battle in the UFC Fight Night 230 headliner at the UFC Apex in Las Vegas. Yusuff had Barboza reeling early in Round 1, but the Brazilian veteran displayed tremendous resilience in a remarkable comeback performance. He dropped Yusuff with a spinning wheel kick in the third frame and relied on consistent body work to earn a hard-fought unanimous decision triumph.

Elsewhere, Jonathan Martinez utilized punishing leg kicks to earn a $50,000 “Performance of the Night” bonus in a victory over Adrian Yanez in a featured bantamweight affair. Martinez hobbled his foe over the course of the bout, ultimately forcing a stoppage due to the barrage of kicks at the 2:26 mark of Round 2.

Finally, Michel Pereira garnered a $50,000 “Performance of the Night” check for a successful UFC middleweight debut. “Demolidor…

Sherdog's live UFC Fight Night 230 coverage will begin Saturday at 4 p.m. ET. BETTING PREVIEW | SCOUTING REPORT | ODDS: Ducote (-340), Yoder (+270)Round 1 Sherdog Scores Brian Knapp scores the round:Tristen Critchfield scores the round:J.L. Kirven scores the round:

Advertisement

Round 2 Sherdog Scores Brian Knapp scores the round:Tristen Critchfield scores the round:J.L. Kirven scores the round:Round 3 Sherdog Scores Brian Knapp scores the round:Tristen Critchfield scores the round:J.L. Kirven scores the round: The Official Result BETTING PREVIEW | SCOUTING REPORT | ODDS: Gutierrez (-250), Alateng (+200)Round 1 Sherdog Scores Brian Knapp scores the round:Tristen Critchfield scores the round:J.L. Kirven scores the round:Round 2 Sherdog Scores Brian Knapp scores the round:Tristen Critchfield scores the round:J.L. Kirven scores the round:Round 3 Sherdog Scores Brian Knapp scores the round:Tristen Critchfield scores the round:J.L. Kirven scores the round:The Official Re…

Edson Barboza has electrified Ultimate Fighting Championship fans for over 14 years and shows no sign of slowing down after pulling off one of the biggest comebacks of the year in the in the UFC Fight Night 230 main event Saturday at the UFC Apex.

Barboza was done. Or so we thought. Sodiq Yusuff was putting a beating on the Brazilian legend in the first round of their featherweight clash and referee Herb Dean could’ve stepped in at any time.

Advertisement

Dean however continued to let Barboza compete and fight fans around the world are thankful as Barboza recollected himself and put on a masterful performance over the next four rounds to snatch away the unanimous decision victory (48-46, 49-46, 48-46).

Yusuff couldn’t believe his eyes. After bulldozing Barboza in the first, Barboza responded with his textbook body attack in the second before dropping Yusuff with his trademark spinning wheel kick in the third.

At this point Barboza had all the momentum as Yu…

Darren Elkins did damage to force the tap 👏 #UFCVegas81 pic.twitter.com/KO4VmrGiH3

— ESPN MMA (@espnmma) October 14, 2023

Even at 39 years old Darren “The Damage” Elkins continues to be a tough night at the office for Ultimate Fighting Championship opponents.

Advertisement

Elkins turned back the clock with a beautifully executed rear naked choke on T.J. Brown at the 2:23 mark of the third round of their featherweight clash at UFC Fight Night 230.

Elkins has been cut more than Michelin star chefs but fans were surprised to see him clean after two rounds of consistent scrambling with Brown.

Despite Brown’s 10 submission wins, Elkins seemed unfazed by the Westside MMA prospect. Elkins settled into top control and made life miserable with the constant pace.

Heading into Round 3, the fans finally got what they wanted. As the blood streamed down Elkins face, Brown’s eyes grew frantic once “The Damage” sunk into an RNC that would…

Former Ultimate Fighting Championship middleweight contender Derek Brunson had his reasons for choosing to move on from the Las Vegas-based promotion to the Professional Fighters League.

Advertisement

Brunson was initially slated to face Roman Dolidze at UFC 295 on Nov. 11 in New York. However, halfway through September, Brunson's manager, Ali Abdelaziz, confirmed that the UFC and "The One" had mutually parted ways.

Brunson is now signed with the PFL, where he will face two-time welterweight champion Ray Cooper III in his promotional debut on Nov. 24.

In a recent interview with ESPN, Brunson shared why he chose to leave the Las Vegas-based promotion and eventually join the PFL.

“It just didn't work out, you know,” Brunson said. “I don't know, PFL is just a great opportunity for me, a new challenge, new venture, I'm motivated. I would say with the UFC, just being on these streaks and not getting my title shot, which I felt I deserved. I was on two fiv…

Read the full statement from USADA CEO Travis T. Tygart here: https://t.co/3vfuhx5haD pic.twitter.com/MNGgnDN6U6

— USADA (@usantidoping) October 11, 2023

Dana White isn't too pleased with the way United States Anti-Doping Agency CEO Travis Tygart handled the news of the Ultimate Fighting Championship not renewing its contract with the drug-testing agency.

Advertisement

On Wednesday, the USADA CEO released a statement announcing that the testing agency would cease to serve as the UFC's anti-doping partner effective beginning Jan. 1, but that wasn't all.

Tygart insinuated that the relationship between the promotion and USADA became "untenable" due to the UFC's hope that USADA would excuse Conor McGregor from the six-month testing window, which is mandatory for any fighter who has been out of the testing pool.

While White had assigned chief business officer Hunter Campbell and senior vice president of athlete health and performance…

JUST. LIKE. THAT!!! 👊 #KSW87

🇷🇸 Darko Stosic silences the Czech fans. pic.twitter.com/9Y9dCxBpEJ

— KSW (@KSW_MMA) October 14, 2023

Advertisement

KSW 87 took place in the beautiful Czech Republic and featured plenty of local talent.

In the headliner, No. 1 ranked heavyweight and Ultimate Fighting Championship veteran Darko Stosic (19-6, 5-1 KSW) faced No. 3 Michal Martinek (10-5, 1-2 KSW). Stosic went 1-3 in the UFC, with his last outing a decision loss to current light heavyweight champion Jamahal Hill, but had gone 5-2 since leaving the organization, including four thunderous knockouts. Stosic already had a crack at KSW heavyweight champion Phil De Fries but was been forced to retreat late in Round 5. Stosic was hoping a big win could get him a rematch.

Martinek, meanwhile, was looking to right the ship and electrify the home crowd after a split decision verdict against another UFC veteran, Daniel Omielanczuk, went against …

Fans might have to wait a while before they get to see Israel Adesanya back inside the Octagon.

Advertisement

The Former Ultimate Fighting Championship middleweight champion is coming off a shocking unanimous decision loss to Sean Strickland at UFC 293.

After the bout, Adesanya opted out from his post-fight press conference duties, assigning his coach the responsibility of talking to the media. Apart from a short interview uploaded to his YouTube channel, “The Last Stylebender” has mostly kept to himself, seemingly taking much-needed time to regroup and recalibrate.

However, the former middleweight champion recently made an appearance on "The Rock" radio show, where he addressed several topics relating to his fighting career — including his UFC return timeline.

“Before this fight I was very like, ‘I know I’m on the back end of my career, so I want to do as many as I can' because I know when I’m done with this I’m going to miss it... I’m trying to do as mu…

And just like that - tomorrow's main event is OFFICIAL!@EdsonBarbozaJR in at 146lbs for #UFCVegas81 💪 pic.twitter.com/nhVa8dlSMs

— UFC (@ufc) October 13, 2023 The Ultimate Fighting Championship returns to the UFC Apex this weekend, this time with an intriguing featherweight main event.

UFC Fight Night 230 is headlined by rising contender Sodiq Yusuff and fan-favorite veteran Edson Barboza. Ever the professionals, both main event fighters had no issue making weight. As for the rest of the card, all fighters made weight with the exception of Christian Rodriguez. The would-be bantamweight came in 4 pounds over the limit at 140 for his fight against Cameron Saaiman and has been fined a percentage of his purse as a result.

Yusuff (13-2) is coming off two statement wins -- a unanimous decision over Alex Caceres and a 30-second guillotine choke submission against Don Shainis. Prior to a setback to Arnold Allen, "Super" was 4-0 inside the Octa…

Soon after Charles Oliveira's withdrawal from UFC 294’s lightweight title fight against Islam Makhachev was confirmed, the leader of Chute Boxe Sao Paulo, Diego Lima, took to social media to give his take on the situation involving his charge.

Considering the severity of the cut, “do Bronx” received a lot of criticism from fans and members of the mixed martial arts community alike for engaging in “hard” sparring sessions merely a few days away from the scheduled main event.

Advertisement

Detailing the sequence of events that led to the nasty cut over Oliveira’s eyebrow, Lima provided clarity to the situation on Instagram.

“I'm here to explain some things about what happened. I know that many don't make a living from this sport and, therefore, give wrong opinions. In relation to sparring [training that simulates fighting], it is one of the best training sessions to take the fight time, press the gas and work on the strategy. The sessions are always done, but thei…

[embedded content]

Ultimate Fighting Championship Chief Business Officer Hunter Campbell has issued a scathing response to an announcement recently made by United States Anti-doping Agency CEO Travis Tygart.

Advertisement

In a statement released on Wednesday, Tygart announced that the partnership between USADA and the UFC will officially end on Jan. 1, 2024.

Additionally, the USADA CEO implied that negotiations for a renewal of the partnership reached a screeching halt due to discussions surrounding former UFC two-division king Conor McGregor's return to the USADA testing pool.

USADA has publicly reiterated the need for McGregor to return to the testing pool for a period of six months before being eligible to compete inside the Octagon. “Notorious” suffered a gruesome leg break in his trilogy bout with Dustin Poirier a little over two years ago and has not competed since.

According to the statement issued by Tygart, the anti-doping agency felt pressured b…

[embedded content]

As the Ultimate Fighting Championship’s partnership with the United States Anti-Doping Agency comes to an end in December 2023, the Las Vegas-based promotion already has another deal with a sport drug testing organization in place.

Advertisement

In a Thursday press conference, UFC Chief Business Officer Hunter Campbell and Senior Vice President of Athlete Health and Performance Jeff Novitzky revealed that the UFC will be partnering with Drug Free Sport International for their anti-doping program starting Jan 1. 2024.

While many wondered what route the promotion would take in terms of drug testing following the less than amicable split with USADA, it is clear the UFC intends to stick to a third-party independent organization overseeing their anti-doping program.

“Drug Free Sport International currently handles collection duties for the following professional sports leagues, they have 325 long-term tenured sports clients including the NFL, …