Martial Arts News

[embedded content] Editor's note: The article has been updated on 2:50 p.m. ET to reflect additional information about competitors.

For the second time in a row, champion Liz Carmouche will be facing a challenger that missed weight.

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A stacked Bellator MMA event is now official as the promotion celebrates a monumental milestone of hitting 300 numbered events. Earlier this week, the organization had four championship bouts booked for the "quadruple main event." After an illness to one heavyweight challenger and a weight miss for one at flyweight, Bellator's four-pronged main card has changed significantly. While three title fights still remain on the billing, the third will be a one-way affair, as only the champ can retain her belt at night's end.

The final bout on the Bellator 300 marquee will see Usman Nurmagomedov look to defend his lightweight throne against Brent Primus in what is also a lightweight grand prix semifinal bout. Meanwhile, Cristian…

First to the scale, @BobbyKGreen, in at 156lbs ahead of #UFCVegas80! pic.twitter.com/wnT6zSIpGJ

— UFC (@ufc) October 6, 2023 The Ultimate Fighting Championship returns after a rare week off with a UFC Apex card featuring an intriguing lightweight main event.

UFC Fight Night 229 is headlined by Grant Dawson vs. Bobby Green. Both lightweight contenders successfully made weight for the five-round main event. Every fighter also made weight for the 11-fight card.

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Dawson (20-1-1) is undefeated since entering the UFC. The only blemish on the record of "KGD" is a majority draw against Ricky Glenn in 2021. He's currently coming off three straight wins over Jared Gordon, Mark O. Madsen and Damir Ismagulov. Dawson stepped on the scale weighing 156 pounds.

This marks the second UFC main event for Green (30-14-1, 1 NC), who is coming off a win over Tony Ferguson. Prior to the win, "King" had been on a rough stretch that saw him …

Derek Brunson’s trip up to 205 pounds will be on hold for a few more months.

On Thursday, news broke that Brunson (23-9) had signed with Professional Fighters League. Per his manager, Brunson would be competing this year, and that his destination was ultimately the light heavyweight bracket of the 2024 tournament. The organization released on Friday his first assignment, which will be taking place at middleweight on Nov. 24. At the PFL 2023 Championships event, he will battle it out with former welterweight tourney victor Ray Cooper III (25-8-1).

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The two will collide as the featured prelim in a “showcase” bout, in what will be the second middleweight match since Louis Taylor defeated Abusupiyan Magomedov for the 185-pound throne in the 2018 Championships event. Although Brunson’s manager stated that he would be moving to light heavyweight, it is unclear at this time if the promotion will be re-opening the weight class for a bracket in next year's to…

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Renowned American Kickboxing Academy coach Javier Mendes recently discussed potential opponents for his charge, Ultimate Fighting Championship lightweight champion Islam Makhachev, following his upcoming rematch with Charles Oliveira at UFC 294.

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While Makhachev (24-1) has expressed a desire to move up a weight class and face the winner of Leon Edwards vs. Colby Covington for the welterweight strap following the rematch with “do Bronx,” his manager, Ali Abdelaziz, recently revealed that Justin Gaethje would probably be next in line for a lightweight title shot following an impressive knockout victory against Dustin Poirier at UFC 291.

While Mendes is happy to take on the aforementioned fights, there is one that the AKA head coach would prefer for his Dagestani pupil. In a recent interview with Helen Yee, the San Jose, California,-based trainer elaborated:

“So, in a perfect world, What I would like is what Islam wants beca…

Zayundin Suleymanov could not have scripted a better One Championship debut.

The undefeated Russian cut down Adilet Mamytov with punches in the second round of their ONE Friday Fights 36 flyweight showcase on Friday at historic Lumpinee Boxing Stadium in Bangkok, Thailand. Suleymanov (7-0, 1-0 ONE) drew the curtain 2:46 into Round 2, as he planted his flag in the Chatri Sityodtong-led promotion with authority.

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Mamytov (5-1, 0-1 ONE) fired off some one-twos, a few flying knees to the body and the occasional spinning attack but could not keep his aggressive opponent at bay. Suleymanov kept him off-balance with repeated takedowns and tie-ups, pairing those efforts with ground-and-pound when the opportunity presented itself. He floored Mamytov in the corner with an overhand left midway through the second round, forced him into a defensive shell and closed it out with follow-up punches.

Meanwhile, Lakay MMA prospect Carlos Neyheban Alvarez put away Phr…

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Colby Covington would be more than happy to take on reigning Ultimate Fighting Championship lightweight ace Islam Makhachev in a potential welterweight title bout.

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In a recent interview with ESPN MMA's Brett Okamoto, Makhachev shared that while he isn't overlooking his next opponent, he'd like the opportunity to fight for the welterweight strap if he again conquers Charles Oliveira in their rematch at Oct. 21’s UFC 294 pay-per-view.

The Dagestan native believes he's earned the right to challenge for a belt in another division, especially since he afforded UFC featherweight champion Alexander Volkanovski the same opportunity at UFC 284.

Moreover, Makhachev expressed his support for Covington as the American gears up to take on Edwards for the title at UFC 296. The 31-year-old believes a matchup with "Chaos" would be a great test of USA wrestling vs. Dagestani wrestling.

Responding to the reigning lightweight champion…

Ultimate Fighting Championship lightweight mainstay Beneil Dariush is apparently gearing up to face rising prospect Arman Tsarukyan. Dariush's manager Ali Abdelaziz broke the news to The Schmo in an exclusive interview.

“The UFC [is trying] to make this fight happen and when this fight [gets booked], they’re going to announce it,” said Abdelaziz. “I believe this is the next fight. Arman is a very tough kid, one of the best guys in the world. And Beneil, this is what he does, fight the best of the best. Nobody has [faced a] tougher schedule than Beneil Dariush in all the divisions.”

Dariush (22-5) saw his eight-fight win streak come to a halt in his most recent title elimination outing against former lightweight king Charles Oliveira at UFC 289.

Having recorded wins over the likes of Drew Dober, Tony Ferguson and Mateusz Gamrot, the 34-year-old was on the cusp of securing a title shot but failed to do so, suffering a Round 1 technical knockout loss against the Br…

A move to American Top Team in Coconut Creek, Florida, altered the trajectory of Philipe Lins’ career as a professional mixed martial artist. He won a $1 million Professional Fighters League tournament at 205 pounds roughly a year later in 2018, then signed with the Ultimate Fighting Championship as a heavyweight in order to prove himself at the sport’s highest level.

“It was a high point in my career,” Lins told Sherdog.com.

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However, there was no honeymoon period in the UFC. Lins was greeted by back-to-back defeats to Andrei Arlovski and Tanner Boser, forcing him to recalibrate his position.

“A red light went off,” he said. “I needed to change something. I sat down with my coaches and manager. We made a good decision in having me drop back down to light heavyweight. I have a much healthier lifestyle now. I feel so much better. I’m more focused back at my original weight class.”

Lins will carry a four-fight winning streak into his latest as…

Longtime Ultimate Fighting Championship contender Derek Brunson hopes to continue the trend of UFC castouts winning the million-dollar check in his new division.

On Thursday, The Schmo released an interview conducted with Dominance MMA head Ali Abdelaziz, who explained that Brunson (23-9) is moving onto greener pastures. The former Strikeforce vet was initially slated to meet Roman Dolidze in November, but instead, Brunson was released from the organization altogether. Per the manager, the parting between the UFC and Brunson was “mutual” and both “very smooth” and “very respectful.”

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“Derek Brunson, he signed with PFL,” Abdelaziz stated. “He’s a PFL fighter. He’s going to fight before the end of the year. He did a lot for the UFC, the UFC did a lot for him, he [had] a great career…and now, he’s looking to make his run at [the] light heavyweight title for PFL.”

When Brunson competes again, he will be looking to snap a two-fight skid that dates back to…

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Ultimate Fighting Championship lightweight contender Bobby Green sees certain similarities between himself and Justin Gaethje.

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Green (30-14), who takes on Grant Dawson (20-1) in a main-event clash on Oct. 7, is coming off a Round 3 submission win over Tony Ferguson. Being a thorough crowd-favorite who engages in stand-up clashes, this was the first time Green submitted an opponent since 2013.

However, Green’s reluctance to wrestle has nothing to do with his skill set, as “King” was a CIF wrestling champion at A.B. Miller High School in Fontana, California. Similarly, fellow crowd favorite Gaethje also primarily chooses to avoid wrestling despite being a two-time state champion (AIA) at Safford High School and an NCAA Division I All-American during his time at the University of Northern Colorado.

Green believes he and “The Highlight” both avoid wrestling because they are on a quest to become “superstars.” Promising to conti…

“To put some respect on his name, Belal Muhammad @bullyb170 should’ve been fighting for the belt, you know.”- Joaquin Buckley💯🎯 pic.twitter.com/tIkGxEejH0

— فريال محمد (@faryalmohammed) October 4, 2023

Joaquin Buckley has voiced support for Belal Muhammad amidst the latter’s title shot snub.

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The Ultimate Fighting Championship recently announced a welterweight title clash between Colby Covington (17-3) and Leon Edwards (21-3) at UFC 296 on Dec. 16, sidelining Muhammad from his long-due crack at divisional gold.

The announcement came after months of vocal protests from elite UFC welterweights including Muhammad (23-3), who are unhappy with Covington getting the next shot at 170 pounds.

Despite having not fought in more than a year and two of his last four outings being failed title bids, UFC CEO Dana White was adamant about “Chaos” getting another shot.

UFC welterweight Buckley (16-6) has now become the la…

Finally ran into the bitch Mike Jackson

He quickly discovered the difference between calling people Nazis In person vs on Twitter

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This racist is lucky so many people were there to save his pathetic racist ass pic.twitter.com/90luT0YjfG — Jake Shields (@jakeshieldsajj) December 16, 2022

A spat between former Ultimate Fighting Championship fighters Jake Shields and Mike Jackson turned into a scuffle and has now reportedly resulted in formal charges. MMAFighting was first to report the news.

Shields (33-11) and Jackson (1-2) had been trading barbs online over matters such as politics and race before getting into a physical altercation at Las Vegas’ UFC Performance Institute last December.

In a partial clip of the scrap that went viral, Shields can be seen controlling Jackson from top and landing a few blows while the latter pleaded with bystanders to intervene.

Jackson subsequently threatened to press …