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Dana White’s Contender Series will kick off its seventh season on Aug. 8 with a card headlined by middleweights Cesar Almeida and Lucas Fernando.

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The full lineup for the five-bout card was announced over the weekend. The other bouts are as follows: Tom Nolan vs. Bogdan Grad at lightweight; Kevin Szaflarski vs. Caio Machado at heavyweight; Payton Talbott vs. Reyes Cortez Jr. at bantamweight and Rickson Thai Zenidim Bueno vs. Kevin Borjas at flyweight.

The Contender Series takes place at the UFC Apex in Las Vegas and airs Tuesday nights on ESPN beginning at 8 p.m. ET/5 p.m. PT. The current season will run through Oct. 10 and awards UFC contracts to prospects who catch the eye of UFC president Dana White and matchmakers during their bouts. Fighters who have appeared on the Series include Jamahal Hill, Sean O'Malley, Ryan Spann, Maycee Barber, Johnny Walker, Marina Rodriguez, Alex Perez, Taila Santos and Bo Nickal, to name a few.

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Wanderlei Silva will follow in the footsteps of fellow Brazilians Anderson Silva, Vitor Belfort, Jose Aldo and Ronaldo Souza and try his hand at the Sweet Science later this year.

The 47-year-old Pride Fighting Championships legend revealed Sunday that he will face bodybuilder Felipe Franco on Nov. 25 in a boxing match under the Attack Fight Show banner. Silva made the announcement at a body building event called Muscle Contest Brasil, where “The Axe Murderer” and Franco faced off for the first time.

“My friends, fans and admirers, I am here to share news that fills my heart with emotion and excitement,” Silva wrote on Instagram. “After some time away from the ring, I'm back, but this time in a different style: boxing. I will be facing a major challenger, Felipe Franco, a renowned bodybuilder and a force to be recognized. This will be a battle of determination, strength and strategy. I'm looking forward to the fight night, the sound of the gong announcing the …

Brandon Moreno apparently wasn’t at 100 percent for most of his epic-five round title bout with Alexandre Pantoja in the UFC 290 co-main event.

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UFC president Dana White revealed that Moreno broke his hand in the opening stanza of the flyweight title bout, and Fortis MMA coach Sayif Saud confirmed the injury in a post on social media.

“Could not be more proud of [Brandon Moreno] as he fought an absolute war last night,” Saud wrote on Instagram. “These two athletes put on a incredible championship fight. Congratulations to [Alexandre Pantoja] and his team as well. Brandon broke his right hand in the [first] round and still fought at an incredible pace with unbelievable heart, skill and courage. He always shows the world what kind of character he has when he fights. Never complaining or making excuses, he just keeps on coming. Proud of you.”

Despite that injury, Moreno peppered Pantoja with punching combinations throughout the five-round affair,…

Alexander Volkanovski just may get his rematch with Islam Makhachev before the end of the year.

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While Charles Oliveira would seem to be the No. 1 contender in waiting following his impressive victory over Beneil Dariush at UFC 289, the Brazilian recently said he would prefer to face the reigning lightweight champion in November or December. That doesn’t align with the UFC’s plans for Makhachev, which include a title defense at UFC 294 in Abu Dhabi this October.

After defeating Yair Rodriguez via third-round TKO in the UFC 290 headliner on Saturday night, Volkanovski revealed that he would need surgery on his arm. However, he claims that wouldn’t necessarily prevent him from stepping in against Makhachev.

“It makes it a lot better opportunity for me to step in there,” Volkanovski said at Saturday’s post-fight press conference. “I’m not ruling that out. It’s funny. These people want extra time off and here I am telling you I’m going to get surger…

About the only thing that generated more buzz than Dricus Du Plessis’ upset of Robert Whittaker at UFC 290 was his confrontation with Israel Adesanya in the Octagon after that victory.

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The reigning middleweight champion entered the cage to face off with Du Plessis on Saturday night at the T-Mobile Arena in Las Vegas to set the stage for the promotion’s next middleweight championship fight. What ensued was a tense scene that included Adesanya using the N-word multiple times during the fighters’ back-and-forth trash talk on the microphone. According to Du Plessis, Adesanya could have handled the situation better.

“You saw it tonight, I’m prepared. I’m prepared for everything he says,” Du Plessis said at Saturday’s post-fight press conference.

“He’s behaving like a clown in there. That’s not how a champion behaves. That’s not at all how a man behaves. He’s behaving like a child. Conduct yourself like a champion. There’s people looking up to you,…

A flyweight title fight for the ages! @TheAssassinBaby vs @PantojaMMA is our #UFC290 Fight of the Night 🔥

[ B2YB @ToyoTires ] pic.twitter.com/MLKWJR0x7N

— UFC (@ufc) July 9, 2023

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The Ultimate Fighting Championship awarded four fighters performance bonuses following the UFC 290 pay-per-view card.

Newly crowned flyweight champion Alexandre Pantoja received more than just a belt for his incredible performance. Both the Brazilian and former champion Brandon Moreno took home an extra $50,000 after securing Fight of the Night honors via their back-and-forth battle. Both men showed heart and a ton of skill over 25 minutes, with Pantoja ultimately getting the better of their grappling and striking exchanges.

Two Performance of the Night bonuses went to fighters that scored impressive TKO finishes. Dricus Du Plessis scored an upset TKO win over former middleweight king Robert Whittaker. The impressive performance secu…

Alexander Volkanovski remains at the peak of his powers.

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The City Kickboxing standout showcased his physicality in the UFC 290 main event, defeating Yair Rodriguez via technical knockout on Saturday night at the T-Mobile Arena in Las Vegas. Volkanovski ended the bout with a salvo of ground-and-pound at the 4:19 mark of Round 3 to rebound from a narrow loss to Islam Makhachev at UFC 284 this past February.

“You’ve got to expect the unexpected. Everybody that knows this game knows how dangerous he was … This week I flipped the switch,” Volkanovski said. “I’m the champ. I’m the king of this division. No one is ever stopping me.”

While Rodriguez (15-4, 10-3 1 NC UFC) did his best to threaten with his flashy toolbox of kicks, Volkanovski (26-2, 13-1 UFC) gradually broke down is Mexican foe. The Aussie grounded Rodriguez repeatedly in the opening 10 minutes, methodically hammering away with ground-and-pound from above. Rodriguez showed a sense of urgency…

Sherdog's live UFC 290 coverage will begin Saturday at 6 p.m. ET. BETTING PREVIEW | SCOUTING REPORT | ODDS: Ribovics (-140), Kirk (+120)Round 1 The UFC has stacked the deck for International Fight Week, putting on UFC 290, an event that on paper has the goods. Getting right into the combat, the first fight of the night takes place in the lightweight division. With 22 finishes in their combined 23 victories, Kirk (12-5, 1-1 UFC) and Ribovics (11-1, 0-1 UFC) do not make a habit out of leaving things in the hands of the judges. While the judicial system may not be in play for this opener, referee Chris Tognoni might be. Ahead of the potentially thrilling action, the two men clap hands. Ribovics opens up with a sudden sweeping leg kick, and Kirk springs back in time. He cannot avoid a second one, but he does fire off a right hand counter to keep Ribovics honest. Kirk ducks an overhand right, and he succeeds in snatching up a double-leg takedown and easily depositing the Argentin…

ROBBIE LAWLER GETS THE KO IN 38 SECONDS IN HIS FINAL UFC FIGHT 😳 #UFC290 pic.twitter.com/8ZV3mdUXWD

— SportsCenter (@SportsCenter) July 9, 2023

It was a fairy tale conclusion to a legendary career.

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Robbie Lawler ended his mixed martial arts career in vintage form, as he knocked out Niko Price in the opening stanza of their UFC 290 bout at the T-Mobile Arena in Las Vegas on Saturday night. The former welterweight champion rendered Price (15-7, 7-7, 2 NC UFC) unconscious 38 seconds into Round 1 — his 22nd overall triumph via KO or TKO. “It was good. It was just the ending of the career,” Lawler said. “I was landing some big shots in good places…It was too much. It was just nice to end my career like this.” With the masses chanting his name from opening bell, Lawler wasted little time imposing his will. The 41-year-old Kill Cliff FC representative punched his way into the clinch, then teed off with close quarters hooks and…

Francesco Nuzzi! ITS ALL OVER! HEAD KICK 🎯

Nuzzi advances to the Playoffs! #PFLBerlin pic.twitter.com/tcfFl9Xl65

— PFL Europe (@PFLEurope) July 8, 2023

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Francesco Nuzzi is a man on a mission.

In the PFL Europe 2: 2023 Regular Season main event, Nuzzi clobbered Farbod Iran Nezhad to secure a place in the 135-pound semifinals. Nezhad (11-3-1, 0-1 PFL) attempted to move the action to the canvas earlier in the fight, but Nuzzi (10-1, 1 NC; 1-0, 1 NC PFL) was able to deny him and bounce back on the feet. The Italian fighter tested his foe’s reactions for a while before firing a head kick hidden by a left punch. The impact was devastating, and Nezhad collapsed immediately. Referee Rich Mitchell jumped to save Nezhad from Nuzzi’s subsequent punches as the official time indicated the 1:52 mark of Round 1. Nuzzi will now face Bellator MMA alum Frans Mlambo (14-5, 1-0 PFL), who overcame short-notice replacement Rachid El Hazoume…

[embedded content] The UFC 290 pay-per-view card is set with two title fights now official after the weigh-ins took place.

Headlining the anticipated 14-fight card is a featherweight title unification battle between Alexander Volkanovski and interim champion Yair Rodriguez. Both men successfully made weight, as the Australian weighed 144.5 pounds, and Rodriguez came in at 145 pounds on the dot. Meanwhile, the co-main event is also official as Brandon Moreno looks to defend his flyweight belt against Alexandre Pantoja. Both men weighed exactly 125 pounds. All other fighters on the card made weight except for Jalin Turner (158), who checked in two pounds over the lightweight limit for his fight against Dan Hooker and has been fined 20% of his purse.

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Volkanovski (25-2) is coming off his first defeat since 2013 as he came up a hair short in his bid to become a two-weight champion against lightweight kingpin Islam Makhachev. Dropping back to featherweight…

#PFLBerlin’s 𝗼𝗳𝗳𝗶𝗰𝗶𝗮𝗹 𝘄𝗲𝗶𝗴𝗵-𝗶𝗻𝘀 brought to you by @ProperWhiskey

(and also #FransMlambo 🇮🇪 @LewisMcGMMA2000 🏴󠁧󠁢󠁥󠁮󠁧󠁿 @CHughesMMA 🏴󠁧󠁢󠁥󠁮󠁧󠁿 @theNukeTuke 🇮🇪 + @John_Kavanagh) pic.twitter.com/6cT1InaeiS

— PFL Europe (@PFLEurope) July 7, 2023 The PFL Europe 2 card is set after three fighters came in overweight.

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The second Professional Fighters League Europe event in 2023 will be headlined by Francesco Nuzzi and Farbod Iran Nezhad in the bantamweight division. Both men successfully made weight, but not every combatant ahead of the show could say the same. Co-main event competitor Moktar Benkaci was the most high-profile weight miss, as the bantamweight came in half a pound over the limit for his fight against Khurshed Kakhorov. Additionally, lightweight Acoidan Duque (159.1) clocked in 3.1 pounds over the lightweight cap, and Rachid El Hazoume Aamay was .3 pounds over the bantamweight max at 136.3 pounds.

Nuzzi (9-1, 1 NC)…