Martial Arts News

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.

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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.

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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.

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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

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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.

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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.

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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…

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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.

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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…

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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.

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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, …

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It seems Israel Adesanya and Dricus Du Plessis won't be getting a shot at the middleweight title any time soon.

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Ultimate Fighting Championship CEO Dana White confirmed that the winner of the recently revealed middleweight clash between former welterweight champion Kamaru Usman (20-3) and Khamzat Chimaev (12-0) at UFC 294 will be next in line for a title shot against Sean Strickland.

Initially, “Borz” was slated to face Paulo Costa at UFC 294 before a staph infection in Costa’s elbow derailed the bout. That opened the door for former welterweight king Kamaru Usman to make his middleweight debut against Chimaev on just 10 days' notice. Considering the last-minute reshuffling and Usman's championship mettle, fans speculated the newly formed matchup would serve as a middleweight title eliminator.

Addressing the topic in a recent appearance on “The Pat McAfee Show,” the UFC head honcho made the rumors official.

“That is …

Join us for the #KSW87 ceremonial weigh-ins later today! 😤

🎥 Facebook & YouTube | 6pm CET - 5pm BST pic.twitter.com/CaWXTH5QEq

— KSW (@KSW_MMA) October 13, 2023 Konfrontacja Sztuk Walki returns for its October offering, which is headlined by a heavyweight clash.

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The KSW 87 main event will see Darko Stosic take on Michal Martinek. As expected, both heavyweights had no issue making weight. As for the rest of the card, all fighters made weight with the exception of one. Ahmed Abdulkadirov came in one pound over the 159-pound catchweight limit for his fight against Sahil Siraj and has been fined 30 percent of his purse as a result.

Martinek (10-4) is attempting to get back on track after going 1-2 in his last three outings. "Blackbeard" most recently lost a split decision to Daniel Omielanczuk and stepped on the scale weighing 241 pounds. Stosic (18-6) will be the slightly larger fighter as he weighed in at 244 pound…

The UFC will take a card to Saudi Arabia for the first time in March 2024.

It's worth noting this happened just weeks after UFC merged with WWE under TKO Group Holdings — WWE has a lucrative $50 million per year deal to hold events in Saudi Arabiahttps://t.co/FV2MPNgKyD

— Damon Martin (@DamonMartin) October 11, 2023

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The Ultimate Fighting Championship will soon make its debut in Saudi Arabia, a destination that has swiftly become a major player in global sports.

A UFC Fight Night has been scheduled to go down in Saudi Arabia on March 2, 2024. The news was confirmed by Damon Martin following an initial report by ESPN.

Word of the event follows the aftermath of a merger with World Wrestling Entertainment under the banner of TKO Group Holdings. WWE entered an arrangement with the nation after finalizing a reported $50 million deal with the General Entertainment Authority of Saudi Arabia, where they stage two marque…