Martial Arts News

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Rodolfo Vieira may be one of the greatest Brazilian jiu-jitsu practitioners ever to cross over to mixed martial arts, but he doesn’t let those expectations define his approach to fighting.

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Ahead of his matchup with Cody Brundage at UFC Fight Night 223 on Saturday in Las Vegas, “The Black Belt Hunter” spoke to Sherdog about the ways in which his Ultimate Fighting Championship run has fallen short of what he hoped. More than any particular loss, Vieira professes disappointment that he has only five fights in the four and a half years since joining the promotion in 2019.

“I can’t even complain about my career,” he said. “I came into the UFC very early. I came in after only two years or so of training. I had good fights – three wins by submission. But I also had two losses. But today I’m much more confident, mature, and experienced. I wish I could have fought more often, but injuries and other life matters kept me away. Without a dou…

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Caio Borralho is a study in contradictions. The 30-year-old Brazilian sports one of the most imposing physiques in the Ultimate Fighting Championship middleweight division, offset by an infectious, guileless smile and pair of tinted eyeglasses that would look right at home on a full-time computer programmer. He is a standout athlete who tends towards blood-and-guts aggression in the cage, yet trains with a team of self-described “fight nerds,” employing a committee approach to breaking down his opponents’ strengths and weaknesses.

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Borralho’s 2021 arrival in the Ultimate Fighting Championship came with little fanfare—his first victory on Dana White's Contender Series was nondescript enough that he had to come back six weeks later and win again before earning a UFC contract—but a year after his promotional debut, it has become impossible to ignore him. Now 3-0 in the UFC and on an incredible run of 12-0 with one no contest in his las…

It appears that Deiveson Figueiredo won’t be fighting at UFC 290 after all.

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The former flyweight champion confirmed to MMAFighting.com’s Trocação Franca podcast that he has not been cleared to face Manel Kape at the July 8 event. Figueiredo’s withdrawal was initially reported by Canal Encarada.

“I’m still injured,” Figueiredo said. “I asked for a fight, told my manager I wanted to fight already, but when he gave me the fight and I talked to my physical therapist and my ophthalmologist, [they said] my eyesight is still not 100 percent. There are days I see things normal, but there are days it’s not OK, especially the days after I train, so they decided I had to go the full six-month [medical suspension] the ophthalmologist gave me [after UFC 283].”

Figueiredo is coming off a third-round doctor stoppage loss in his tetralogy against current flyweight king Brandon Moreno. He was initially expected to move to the bantamweight division before rev…

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The UFC Fight Night 223 lineup has undergone another late update, as Marcus McGhee will step in for Brian Kelleher and face Journey Newson on Saturday.

Multiple outlets confirmed the booking following an initial report from Eurosport NL. McGhee vs. Newson will be contested at a 140-pound catchweight. UFC Fight Night 223 takes place at the UFC Apex in Las Vegas and is headlined by a bantamweight duel between Yadong Song and Ricky Simon.

McGhee, 32, enters his UFC debut with a 6-1 career mark that includes a pair of appearances under the Legacy Fighting Alliance banner. Most recently, “The Maniac” defeated Luciano Ramos via third-round TKO at LFA 149 on Jan. 6. All six of his victories have come by way of knockout or technical knockout.

Newson has one victory in five UFC bouts since making his promotional debut in 2019. In his last outing, the Beaverton, Ore., native suffered a decision loss to Sergey Morozov at UFC Fight Night 216 on Dec.…

Walt Harris will return to the Octagon for the first time in two years when he meets Josh Parisian at UFC Fight Night on July 15.

Eurosport NL was first to report the heavyweight bout. The event doesn’t currently have a location or headliner.

Harris was recently seen training with Jon Jones ahead of “Bones’” heavyweight championship victory over Ciryl Gane at UFC 285. “The Big Ticket” last appeared at UFC Fight Night 189 on June 5, 2021, when he suffered a third-round technical knockout defeat to Marcin Tybura — his third consecutive setback within the Las Vegas-based promotion. Harris enjoyed his greatest success in the UFC during a four-bout unbeaten run from June 2018 to July 2019. The 39-year-old owns a 13-10 career mark, with all of his triumphs coming via knockout or technical knockout.

A former competitor on Dana White’s Contender Series, Parisian is 2-3 in UFC competition. In his first outing of 2023, the Scorpion Fighting System representative dro…

Elizeu Zaleski dos Santos will return from suspension to face Abubakar Nurmagomedov at UFC on ESPN 45.

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Canal Encarada was first to report the welterweight booking, and Zaleski’s coach, Cristiano Marcello, later confirmed the bout to MMAFighting.com. UFC on ESPN 45 takes place on June 3 at the UFC Apex in Las Vegas and is headlined by a middleweight tilt pitting Jack Hermansson against Brendan Allen.

Zaleski is coming off a one-year USADA suspension after testing positive for ostarine in an out-of-competition sample. Zaleski blamed the failed test on a contaminated supplement but was unable to secure a reduced sanction. The 36-year-old Brazilian last competed at UFC 267, where he earned a lopsided unanimous decision victory against Benoit St. Denis in October 2021. “Capoeira” is 9-3 during his tenure with the Las Vegas-based promotion and 23-7 as a professional overall.

A veteran of the Professional Fighters League and World Series of Fight…

Defending featherweight champion Brendan Loughnane will lock horns with Jesus Pinedo in the evening’s featured bout when Professional Fighters League resumes its season on June 8.

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The league announced the full lineup for the card, which features featherweight and light heavyweights, on Wednesday. PFL 4 takes place at Overtime Elite Arena in Atlanta and will also see defending 205-pound champion Rob Wilkinson take on Will Fleury in the co-main event. The main card airs on ESPN and includes three additional matchups: Thiago Santos vs. Mohammad Fakhreddine at light heavyweight; Movlid Khaybulaev vs. Daniel Torres at featherweight and Marthin Hamlet vs. Sam Kei at light heavyweight.

Loughnane began his 2023 campaign with a second-round technical knockout victory against former UFC title challenger Marlon Moraes at PFL 1 on April 1. The Englishman has won five straight PFL appearances and 12 of his last 13 professional outings.

A two-time UFC vete…

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Like his famously elusive namesake, Marcos Rogerio de Lima is lurking just outside the Ultimate Fighting Championship heavyweight Top 10, ready to sneak up on a suddenly wide-open division.

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De Lima (20-8-1; 9-6 UFC), who is set to face 9-0 rising prospect Waldo Cortes-Acosta on the main card of UFC Fight Night 223 on Saturday at the UFC Apex in Las Vegas, Nevada, spoke to Sherdog about his history as well as his future with the promotion, and shared some insights on his approach to fighting. The 37-year-old Brazilian who goes by “Pezao” — that’s Portuguese for “Bigfoot” — is a 15-fight veteran of the Octagon, but the first half of his UFC run was contested at light heavyweight. Speaking to him today gives the sense that he is happier in his new weight class, and perhaps even wishes he had made the move sooner.

“Thankfully, I have a blessed career,” he said. “I’m very dedicated to my work. There was a time when I’d drop to light h…

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Legacy Fighting Alliance will now be able to promote its events in Las Vegas.

The Nevada State Athletic Commission on Tuesday approved a promoter’s license for LFA, which has long been one of the top regional promotions in mixed martial arts. LFA debuted in 2017 following a merger between Legacy Fighting Championship and Resurrection Fighting Allliance and consistently has served as a talent pipeline to larger organizations. Notable fighters who have competed under the LFA banner include Brandon Moreno, Brendan Allen, Geoff Neal, Brandon Royval and Joaquin Buckley, to name a few. Prior to the LFC/RFA merger, other notable alumni included Holly Holm, Valentina Shevchenko, Henry Cejudo, Kamaru Usman, Derrick Lewis and Sergio Pettis.

“These guys are the top,” NSAC executive director Jeff Mullen said during the meeting (transcription via MMAjunkie.com). “They are just under the UFC and supply more fighters to the UFC and the upper levels – PF…

"I want to be one of the greatest knockout artists ever seen at middleweight."

Bruno Silva reacts to his KO win over Brad Tavares at #UFCVegas71 🔊🆙

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All Fight Results ➡️: https://t.co/9oT9pvl2lP — UFC News (@UFCNews) April 23, 2023

After back-to-back losses in the Octagon, Bruno Silva returned to the win column last Saturday by knocking out Brad Tavares at UFC Fight Night 222.

“I've never been good on strategy, but this time every step was planned with my trainer, Andre Dida. I didnt want to brawl. My focus was in finding the right distance and getting to Tavares in the cage, and that’s what I did,” Silva said in an interview with the UFC Fight Pass Brazil reporter Evelyn Rodrigues.

Silva is known for asking announcer Bruce Buffer to dance with him in the Octagon after his victories, and he showed his sense of humor by speaking directly to the UFC Fight Pass team in the Sao Paulo Studio — Andre Azevedo, Anto…

A clash pitting Natan Levy against Pete Rodriguez has been pulled from Saturday’s UFC Fight Night 223 event.

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The bout was canceled due to an undisclosed issue affecting Rodriguez. The matchup has been rescheduled for UFC on ABC 4 in Charlotte. MMAFighting.com was first to report the cancellation, while MMA Mania of the new date.

UFC Fight Night 223 will proceed with 11 bouts. The card takes place at the UFC Apex in Las Vegas and is headlined by a bantamweight duel between Yadong Song and Ricky Simon.

Israel’s Levy has won back-to-back UFC appearances after dropping his promotional debut. Most recently, the Dana White’s Contender Series alum took a decision over Genaro Valdez at UFC on ESPN 42 this past December.

Rodriguez, meanwhile, earned his first Octagon triumph at UFC Fight Night 212, where he knocked out Mike Jackson in the opening stanza last October.

Ilima-Lei Macfarlane wasn’t sure the scorecards were going to go her way following a hard-fought bout against Kana Watanabe in the Bellator 295 co-main event.

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Ultimately, Macfarlane emerged with a split-decision triumph, her second consecutive victory within the California-based promotion. “The Ilimanator” came away impressed with her opponent, even though winning on the scorecards wasn’t especially satisfying.

“Her control was so good on the ground. We were prepared for her judo sweeps and everything. We prepared that as soon as it hit the ground, we’d have to scramble. She wasn’t giving me any space,” Macfarlane said at the post-fight press conference. “I honestly thought I lost, but I always think that in the fights that go to a decision because I’m so used to finishing, that when it goes to a decision I consider it a loss.”

In a closely-contested bout, neither fighter was able to gain a clear advantage. Macfarlane believes her fight is a …