Martial Arts News

The Kingdom Arena in Riyadh, Saudi Arabia, saw a unique combat sports spectacle on Saturday night.

On the one side was lineal UFC champion Francis Ngannou, who won the title by knocking out Stipe Miocic in Round 2, then successfully defended it against interim champion Ciryl Gane. He was making his pro boxing debut against undisputed heavyweight champion Tyson Fury, who had never lost in his career, most recently knocking out Derek Chisora in the 10th round in December 2022. Would Ngannou's frightful punching power, the most devastating that the heavyweight division and perhaps all of MMA has ever seen, give him a chance against the supremely talented Fury, a 6-foot-9, 270-plus pound goliath with the ring movement and footwork of a skilled light heavyweight? It was a tantalizing matchup, calling to mind the famous showdown between Conor McGregor and Floyd Mayweather, another instance where a top MMA striker and champion has challenged a legendary boxer. However, Fury was sti…

Sanjeet Budhwar Defends his Belt and how!🥊🥊🔥🔥🔥🔥.#MFN13 #Winner #TitleBelt pic.twitter.com/U6ZvziY8bV

— Matrix Fight Night (@mfn_mma) October 28, 2023

Featherweight champion Sanjeet Budhwar (10-2) recorded his first title defense via split decision against Shyam Anand (4-2) in the Matrix Fight Night 13 main event at the Noida Indoor Stadium, Uttar Pradesh, India, on Saturday.

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The main event lived up to expectations with both fighters putting on a display of grit and will. In the end, Budhwar managed to secure a split-decision victory that could have very well come down to his performance in the final frame of the bout.

In the co-main event, welterweight champion Darkhanbek Ergeshev (11-2) secured an impressive submission win at the 2:26 mark of the very first frame against Jason Solomon (9-4). Ergeshev's forward pressure and cage control allowed him to eventually take the fight to the ground. Once in mount, Ergeshev w…

Rizin Fighting Federation’s annual New Year’s Eve extravaganza will include a pair of championship bouts.

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The Japanese promotion recently announced that Juan Archuleta will face Kai Asakura for the bantamweight crown, while Kyoji Horiguchi will square off against Makoto Takahashi in a rematch for the flyweight strap at Rizin 45 on Dec. 31.

Rizin 45 takes place at Saitama Super Arena in Saitama, Japan, and will also include a featherweight scrap pitting Kleber Koike Erbst against Yutaka Saito and a flyweight showdown between Hiromasa Ougikubo and John Dodson.

A former Bellator 135-pound title holder, Archuleta claimed Rizin gold with a three-round verdict against Ougikubo at Super Rizin 2 on July 30. “The Spaniard” has won four straight contests — including three under the Rizin banner.

Asakura, meanwhile, has been victorious in four of his last five Rizin appearances. Most recently, the 29-year-old Japan Top Team representative scored a…

WOW. Daniel Frunza cracks Haris Talund?i? with a brutal elbow and gets the finish with 1 second left in the fight. Crazy ending in the LFA main event. #LFA170 pic.twitter.com/bQa4BKN3QN

— caposa (@Grabaka_Hitman) October 28, 2023

Romanian welterweight Daniel Frunza (7-2) secured his seventh professional victory with an emphatic knockout in the last second of his bout against Bosnia's Haris Talundzic (6-2) in the Legacy Fighting Alliance 170 170 main event at the Dobson Arena in Vail, Colorado, on Friday night.

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The fight was competitive right up until the finish. Talundzic managed to keep the fight close with his cage control and grappling pressure. Round 3 also saw the Bosnian control Frunza on the side of the cage for a considerable amount of time before being separated by the referee due to inaction.

With barely a few seconds left in the final round, Frunza managed to land a thudding right elbow on Talundzic that lef…

play-by-play and round-by-round scoring kicks off Saturday, Oct. 28 at 2 p.m. ET with results of the undercard. Full PBP and virtual scoring from three unofficial judges will commence as business picks up for the main event.

Alcibiade Duran vs. Jack McGann

Carlos Takam vs. Martin Bakole

Moses Itauma vs. Istvan Bernath

Arslanbek Makhmudov vs. Junior Anthony Wright

Joseph Parker vs. Simon Kean

Fabio Wardley vs. David Adeleye

Tyson Fury vs. Francis Ngannou Round 1 Sherdog Scores Tristen Critchfield scores the round:Lev Pisarsky scores the round:Scottie Smith scores the round:

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Round 2 Sherdog Scores Tristen Critchfield scores the round:Lev Pisarsky scores the round:Scottie Smith scores the round:Round 3 Sherdog Scores Tristen Critchfield scores the round:Lev Pisarsky scores the round:Scottie Smith scores the round: Round 4 Sherdog Scores Tristen Critchfield scores the round:Lev Pisarsky scores the round:Sc…

#ANDSTILL! @dannimccormack puts Karolina Wojcik to sleep and retains the Invicta FC Strawweight Championship! #InvictaFC54 pic.twitter.com/PsBXHAWAgX

— Invicta FC (@InvictaFights) October 28, 2023 Danni McCormack is still the Invicta Fighting Championships strawweight champion.

The Invicta FC 54 main event saw McCormack take on challenger Karolina Wojcik. It was a closely contested fight on the feet over the first three rounds, with McCormack (8-2) walking forward and Wojcik (11-4) countering well with punches. However, the fourth frame would see McCormack get a takedown, secure the back of Wojcik and sink in a rear-naked choke. The tap officially came at 1:22 of Round 4.

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The co-main event was a pivotal flyweight scrap between Kristina Williams and Dee Begley. The first two rounds were largely contested on the feet, with Williams (7-4) having a clear striking advantage. Begley (4-3) would have her best moments in the…

The Notorious heads to The Kingdom 🇸🇦👑 #furyngannou pic.twitter.com/dZOCQMXvkI

— Conor McGregor (@TheNotoriousMMA) October 26, 2023 Mixed martial arts star Conor McGregor will be making an appearance at the Tyson Fury vs. Francis Ngannou boxing match on Saturday.

The Irishman will join several renowned athletes and celebrities, including a swath of former boxing and MMA champions, as well as soccer great Cristiano Ronaldo. McGregor claimed he received a formal invitation from the House of Saud, the royal ruling family of Saudi Arabia. McGregor posted on social media on Thursday night to confirm he would be in attendance in Riyadh on Saturday, while also weighing in on the matchup itself.

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“What’s up guys, the notorious Conor McGregor here,” the Irishman declared. “Just getting on to happily announce I will be heading to the Kingdom of Saudi Arabia early AM tomorrow for the big blockbuster fight between boxer Tyson Fury …

[embedded content] Meat is back on the menu for the all-heavyweight Top Rank boxing main card on Saturday.

With no cap on the heavyweight division, none of the 10 competitors on the main card of Top Rank: Fury vs. Ngannou was at risk of missing weight. As a result, weights ranged from a shade under 230 pounds to a whisker below 300 pounds, and the green light has been given to the entire lineup.

The main event, which will take place in Riyadh, Saudi Arabia, on Oct. 28, comes in a non-title, 10-round exhibition match between lineal boxing heavyweight kingpin Tyson Fury (277.7) and former UFC heavyweight champion Francis Ngannou (272.1). Both men hit the scales above 270 pounds, with about five and a half pounds separating the two heavy hitters. Despite Fury not putting any of his titles on the line in this pairing, with Ngannou an unranked boxer ineligible for any gold, the WBC elected to create the “Riyadh Champion” belt for the victor.

The co-featured attraction…

Fans may get to witness Jorge Masvidal put his striking skills on display once again, only in the squared circle rather than the Octagon.

The longtime veteran known as “Gamebred” (35-17) announced his retirement from mixed martial arts following a decision loss to Gilbert Burns (22-6) at UFC 287 in April. The loss marked Masvidal's fourth consecutive defeat with the Ultimate Fighting Championship, including two failed title bids against then-champion Kamaru Usman.

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Since then, the UFC and Strikeforce stalwart has been focused on promoting his Gamebred FC events, which dabble in boxing as well as bare-knuckle MMA. In an interview with ESPN on Thursday, the 38-year-old confirmed that he will be making his return to boxing in early 2024. In 2005, “Gamebred” made his boxing debut against Joseph Benjamin in Miami, and he captured a majority decision in a four-round affair.

When asked if he would be re-entering the boxing world, Masvidal replied, “It's a y…

Ultimate Fighting Championship heavyweight champion Jon Jones is in good spirits despite suffering a serious injury requiring months of recovery.

Jones (27-1, 1 NC) is determined to make a return to the Octagon as soon as he can, after being forced out of his UFC 295 title fight with Stipe Miocic (20-4) due to a shoulder injury. About two and a half weeks before the highly anticipated heavyweight title attraction, UFC CEO Dana White announced that Jones had suffered a pectoral tear during a grappling session that would require surgery.

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With Jones on the shelf for a prolonged period, the promotion elected to create an interim heavyweight strap. Vying for the newly created belt will be top contenders Tom Aspinall and Sergei Pavlovich, who will be stepping up on extremely short notice in the co-main event of UFC 295. Jones (27-1) took to social media on Thursday to address his withdrawal, and apologize to his opponent as well as the fans.

“Thank …

Never count out Mark Abelardo in One Championship.

The Fairtex Pattaya product withstood two knockdowns and wide swaths of positional control to put away Georgy Shakhruramazanov with punches in the second round of their ONE Friday Fights 38 bantamweight showcase on Friday at Lumpinee Boxing Stadium in Bangkok, Thailand. Abelardo (22-10, 7-5 UFC) brought it to a dramatic close 4:43 into Round 2.

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Shakhruramazanov (12-2, 1-1 ONE) floored his counterpart with a spinning wheel kick in the first round and moved into clinch range behind a burst of punches, only to stall in the corner. He caught Abelardo with the same kick in the middle stanza, swarmed with punches and ultimately secured a takedown and advanced to the back. From there, it all went awry. Abelardo scrambled to his feet, initiated an exchange and decked the Russian with a sweeping left hook. A series of standing-to-ground punches followed, necessitating the stoppage.

Meanwhile, former Univer…

Tom Aspinall says his upcoming title shot was just what he expected, and the only surprise was its timing.

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Ultimate Fighting Championship heavyweight contender Aspinall (13-3) recently received an early morning phone call from the promotion asking if he was ready to fight on two weeks’ notice. A day later Aspinall was booked to take on Sergei Pavlovich (18-1) for the interim title in the co-main event at UFC 295 on Nov. 11 in Madison Square Garden.

The card was originally scheduled to be headlined by Jon Jones defending his strap against heavyweight legend Stipe Miocic. However, the bout fell through as Miocic reportedly refused to accept a change in opponent after Jones was forced out due to a pectoral injury.

Two of the fastest-rising forces in the heavyweight division, Aspinall and Pavlovich have been on a collision course for a while now. Moreover, Aspinall recently revealed that a clash against the Russian, potentially for the vacant titl…