Martial Arts News

Yair Rodriguez is apparently moving up to lightweight. 

Rodriguez (20-5) and Belal Muhammad are teammates at Valle Flow Striking in Bensenville, Illinois. Muhammad recently claimed that “El Pantera” is moving up to lightweight from featherweight. 

Rafael Fiziev knocked out Manuel Torres via a highlight-reel spinning back kick in front of his home fans at UFC Baku last weekend. Muhammad subsequently suggested a matchup between Fiziev and Rodriguez. When a fan noted that Rodriguez is a featherweight, Muhammad Said that the Mexican is moving up to lightweight. Muhammad also revealed that Rodriguez underwent surgery on his wrist after his last win over Patricio Freire. 

Fizev and Yair would be fire

— Belal Muhammad (@bullyb170) June 27, 2026 ’ Shifting Gears and Injury Recovery Rodriguez has had an illustrious career at featherweight, only losing to top talents like Frankie Edgar, Max Holloway, Alexander Volkanovski and Bria…

Sharabutdin Magomedov believes Sean Strickland is afraid of fighting outside the U.S. 

Magomedov (17-1) scored a come-from-behind victory over Strickland’s teammate Michel Pereira at UFC Baku last weekend. Strickland had even mimicked “Shara Bullet” while helping Pereira prepare for the fight. 

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Magomedov has since labeled Strickland (31-7) a “domestic champion.” Magomedov accuses Strickland of not leaving America because he is scared. According to Magomedov, Strickland just acts like a hero in his own gym. Magomedov believes Strickland would ask for additional security if had to go to Abu Dhabi to fight. While Magomedov wants to Strickland in the future, he believes it won’t be anytime soon. ‘Just a Windbag’ “He’s just a windbag,” Magomedov told Red Corner MMA. “His time will come and we’ll meet in the Octagon. There’s where we’ll find out. Even if he keeps talking trash what should I do? Go to America to chose him? He’s like a domestic…

Alex Pereira has gained two allies in his crusade against Herb Dean: Tom Aspinall and Renato "Moicano" Carneiro.

Considered one of Brazil's biggest MMA influencers, “Moicano” published a video on his Youtube channel criticizing Dean's failure to deduct points from Sharabutdin Magomedov after the Russian repeatedly grabbed Michel Pereira’s hair during their bout at UFC Baku.

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"Three weeks in a row where Herb Dean has interfered with results: first at UFC White House, then in the 'Lok Dog' vs. Andre Fili fight fight last week, and now in the Michel vs. Shara fight. The truth is this guy manipulates results. How does he not deduct a point? The Russian committed an eye poke and grabbed Michel's hair three times, yet he did nothing. If he had punished [Magomedov for the infractions], the result would have been a draw. Once again, he made a huge mistake and interfered with a fight's outcome,” Carneiro said.United in Criticism Tom Aspinall—who the previous w…

Alex Pereira seemingly doesn’t deserve the backlash that he is facing for his recent seminar during his United Kingdom tour. 

Pereira (13-3) recently faced criticism for allegedly refusing photographs during a paid meet-and-greet session at a seminar in Keighley, England. However, the organizers for the event, Joyagear, recently issued a statement defending Pereira. As per Joyagear, Pereira was only informed about a one-hour seminar, which he delivered. The organizers claim that “Poatan” was not informed about autograph signings or individual photographs after the session. The organizers promise to fully refund the meet-and-greet ticket holders.

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😲Alex Pereira is getting called out after his seminar in London

Attendees claim he REFUSED to take photos, even the pre paid ones

He refused to sign merch

Also he cut the seminar time pic.twitter.com/eFuFWhw2N7

— Dovy🔌 (@DovySimuMMA) June 28, 2026 In Defense of…

Terence Crawford believes he is a smarter boxer than Jaron “Boots” Ennis. 

Ennis (36-0) challenged Xander Zayas for the WBO and WBA junior middleweight titles on Saturday in Brooklyn, New York. Ennis scored three knockdowns en route to a seventh-round stoppage win over Zayas. Fans have since started plotting a matchup between “Boots” and Crawford, who retired last December. 

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However, Crawford confirms that he won’t come back from retirement to fight Ennis. Crawford lauded Ennis in every aspect, labelling him a threat to anyone. However, Crawford believes he would outsmart Ennis.Nothing to Prove “I don’t worry about coming back to prove anything,” Crawford told “The Porter Way Podcast.” “… To credit ‘Boots,’ he is a tremendous talent and he’s no walk in the park for no one. He is a threat to anyone that he steps a foot in the ring with. He got tremendous speed, he got great power, defense, reflexes. But the only thing that I can say is, I’m 1…

Conor McGregor is back to his antics before his UFC return. 

McGregor recently mocked his former boxing opponent, Floyd Mayweather, out of nowhere. “The Notorious” reacted to a video of Mayweather from 2018, which was shortly after their fight in 2017. In the video, “Money” can be seen entering an MMA cage inside a gym and walking around. McGregor simply reacted to the photo with a “tears of joy” emoticon. 

😂 https://t.co/Qk3U69j0Jq

— Conor McGregor (@TheNotoriousMMA) June 28, 2026 A Lucrative Payday McGregor was the UFC featherweight and lightweight champion when he fought former five- division boxing champion Mayweather in a massive boxing match, which was billed as the “Money” fight. Mayweather tired out McGregor before stopping him in the 10th round. Mayweather’s declared payout from the fight was $100 million, and McGregor’s disclosed payout was $30 million. However, both reportedly earned much more from the fight, with May…

Ariane Lipski da Silva competed for the PFL, UFC and KSW over the course of a 30-fight pro tenure. | PFL/MMA

The woman known as “The Queen of Violence” has decided to call it a career.

Ariane Lipski da Silva announced her retirement via social media following a first-round submission loss to Jena Bishop at PFL San Diego on Saturday night. Lipski da Silva went 1-1 under the Professional Fighters Leaguebanner but exits the sport having lost four of her last five professional outings.

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"Officially retired from MMA,” Lipski da Silva wrote on Instagram. “Everything has a beginning, a middle, and an end. Yesterday was the last time I stepped into the cage, bringing to a close a journey of nearly 13 years as a professional MMA fighter, with the privilege of competing in the biggest organizations in the world. I'm grateful for everything this sport has given me; for every opportunity, every lesson, and every door it opened along the way. I gav…

Rafael Fiziev was struggling with his vision moments before he put the decisive finishing sequence in motion in the UFC Baku headliner.

“Ataman” rocked and dropped Manuel Torres with a spinning wheel kick, then put his reeling foe away with a barrage of punches 15 seconds into Round 2 of their lightweight clash on Saturday at National Gymnastics Arena in Baku, Azerbaijan. Fiziev’s spectacular finish seems even better considering the fact that he was dealing with extenuating circumstances in that moment.

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SPINNING HEEL KICK INTO GNP 🤯

Rafael Fiziev blows the roof off of #UFCBaku 👏

[ LIVE ON @ParamountPlus ] pic.twitter.com/3kGbvxosLJ — UFC on Paramount+ (@UFConParamount) June 27, 2026

“This guy is strong, he [has] reach, long hands, power,” Fiziev said in an interview with the UFC. “…[His] last jab on my eye, I didn't see anything when I opened my both eyes, but when I closed my left eye, I see good.

“Begi…

Conor McGregor is set to fight for the first time in nearly five years. | Getty/UFC

The full fight card and bout order are set for UFC 329.

The Las Vegas-based promotion confirmed the full lineup over the weekend. UFC 329 takes place on July 11 at the T-Mobile Arena in Las Vegas and is headlined by a welterweight clash pitting Conor McGregor against Max Holloway. McGregor hasn’t competed since breaking his leg in a loss to Dustin Poirier in July 2021. The former two-division champion defeated Max Holloway via unanimous decision in a featherweight bout at UFC Fight Night 26 on Aug. 17, 2013.

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The UFC 329 main card airs on Paramount+ beginning at 9 p.m. ET/6 p.m. PT. The event kicks off with the early prelims at 5 p.m. ET/2 p.m. PT, highlighted by a featured flyweight tilt between Tracy Cortez and Cong Wang. The preliminary draw continues at 7 p.m. ET/4 p.m. with four more contests, which include the Octagon debut of Gable Steveson and Rob…

Ikram Aliskerov wants to make some noise in his next fight. 

Aliskerov took on Brunno Ferreira (15-4) in a middleweight bout at UFC Baku on Saturday. Aliskerov dominated Ferreira on the ground while holding his own on the feet to score a unanimous decision win. 

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Aliskerov wants an opponent with a big name in his next fight. Aliskerov wants to fight again in October, when the UFC usually hosts its annual Abu Dhabi card.Planning Ahead “Next what I need is big loud fight, a big name,” Aliskerov said in a post-fight interview with the UFC. “At least one fight at the end of the year. So, I’m thinking Abu Dhabi for me, in October, works perfectly. I need one good fight, one big name… The choice is not for me. The choice is for Mick [Maynard], for Hunter [Campbell]. If they give me a good name, I’m happy to fight anybody they suggest.”

Aliskerov (18-2) had only lost to Khamzat Chimaev before making his UFC debut in 2023. Chimaev had once acknowl…

Fans should not blink when Abdul-Rakhman Yakhyaev steps into the Octagon again. 

Yakhyaev was the biggest favourite on the card when he took on Julius Walker in a light heavyweight tilt at UFC Baku on Saturday. Yakhyaev justified the odds by dropping Walker with a right hand and finishing him in 8 seconds. Yakhyaev also earned a $100,000 performance bonus for his highlight-reel victory. 

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Despite scoring one of the quickest finishes in UFC history, Yakhyaev promises an even quicker finish in his next fight. The undefeated Turkish prospect believes he is already prepared for top-tier opponents.Ready to Move Up“Next time fight will be more short,” Yakhyaev said in a post-fight interview with the UFC. “Be ready guys. I think I’m ready for Top 10, Top 5, doesn’t matter. I will sit with my coach, my team, we’ll talk about that and let the UFC know.”

Yakhayaev has finished nine of his 10 career wins so far, eight of them in the first round. The …

Abus Magomedov is eyeing Israel Adesanya. 

Magomedov took on Michal Oleksiejczuk in a middleweight matchup at UFC Baku on Saturday. Magomedov dropped Oleksiejczuk with a brutal elbow before choking him out with a guillotine in the opening round. 

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Magomedov subsequently for a matchup against Adesanya next. Magomedov accuses Adesanya of “talking s—t” about him in the past. However, Magomedov also admits that he respects Adesanya, having grown up watching the former champion.‘Now It’s My Time’ “Only one guy, Adesanya,” Magomedov said in a post-fight interview with the UFC. “Back in the day, some conversation, he talked little bit s—t about me. And now it’s time I think. I hope we gonna fight one day. A lot of respect for Adesanya. He was champion, I was growing up with his fights. But now it’s my time.”

Magomedov’s respectful feud with Adesanya could stems from an interview where “The Last Stylebender” couldn’t remember his name while discuss…