Martial Arts News

The lineup for the Bellator MMA-Rizin Fighting Federation card continues to grow, as two bouts were announced for the Bellator portion of the show on Tuesday.

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Danny Sabatello will square off against Magomed Magomedov in a bantamweight clash, while Lorenz Larkin will face Andrey Koreshkov in a welterweight rematch on July 30 at Saitama Super Arena in Saitama, Japan.

Bellator vs. Rizin 2 features a lightweight grand prix showdown between A.J. McKee and Patricky Freire as well as a clash for the promotion’s inaugural flyweight championship pitting Kyoji Horiguchi against Makoto Takahashi. The promotion announced that the Bellator portion of the card, which takes place in a cage, will be broadcast live in the United States on Showtime at 11 p.m. ET/8 p.m. PT. The Rizin part of the card, which will be contested in a ring, will not air on Showtime.

A former wrestler at Purdue University, Sabatello has made a name for himself due to his outspoken p…

Nicknamed the “fighting scientist” by Patricio Freire, Francisco “Chikão”' Freitas is the man behind the Bellator champion’s move to bantamweight.

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A nutritionist, physiologist and physical trainer, Freitas discussed how Freire reached 145 pounds three weeks ahead of schedule in his weight cut. Already the reigning 145-pound champion, Freire is scheduled to challenge Sergio Pettis for bantamweight gold at Bellator 297.

"Actually, since the [Adam] Borics fight when Bellator started to consider the bantamweight belt as a possibility, we started to change his whole preparation to make it an easy weight cut process. And when you work with a hard worker and focused champion like Patricio, every goal turns out easier,"Freitas revealed.

Freire’s measurements have impressed Freitas.

"I’ve been working with Patricio for the last five years,” Freitas said. I have all his numbers noted from every camp. His power, his hormones and the whole physiologic pr…

Je reste positif et je reviens au plus vite ⏰🤜🏾 Jarrah a de la chance cette fois mais il ne peut pas se cacher. @pflmma c’est chez moi maintenant, alors je vais botter les fesses de tous ces poids welters … #ticTac ⏰ #PoignetMort #AlHamduliLlah pic.twitter.com/uP0JpZGttT

— Cédric Doumbè (@CedricDoumbe) June 7, 2023

Cedric Doumbe’s highly-anticipated Professional Fighters League debut will have to wait.

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The organization announced on Wednesday that Doumbe has withdrawn from a proposed welterweight clash against Jarrah Al-Silawi at PFL 6 on June 23. As a result, Zach Juusola will step in and face Al-Silawi at the event.

Doumbe took to social media to reveal that a wrist injury was the reason behind his exit.

“Now, we are training, we trained, we trained a lot. Everything was good. At the grappling training I don’t know why but my wrist hurt, I told myself it will heal. There’s always little injuries during the tra…

Marlon Moraes enters PFL 4 on a six-bout losing streak in which he has been finished by knockout or technical knockout in all of those defeats.

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Despite those struggles, Moraes doesn’t feel any added pressure as he prepares to face Gabriel Braga on Thursday at Overtime Elite Arena in Atlanta.

“Every fight is pressure,” Moraes said during PFL 4 media day. “You always want to win and you always want to finish. I don’t see any difference. Every fight is pressure.”

Moraes established himself as one of the top bantamweights in the world from 2012 to 2019, when he won 16 of 18 bouts while reigning as World Series of Fighting champion and challenging for UFC gold. His recent losing streak has been tough mentally, but Moraes knows that it comes with the territory of his chosen career.

“It’s the other side,” Moraes said. “I’ve been on both sides. It’s not easy to deal with. But that’s what I chose for my life, to be a fighter.

“I’m not in a good…

The lineup for the second leg of the Professional Fighters League regular season changed significantly when 10 fighters failed drug tests after the organization’s first three events of 2023.

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The light heavyweight field was notably affected, as defending champion Rob Wilkinson was one of four athletes — along with Thiago Santos, Will Fleury and Krzysztof Jotko — who was removed from the campaign as a result of those failed drug tests.

One fighter who remains in contention for the light heavyweight crown is Ty Flores, who is coming off a unanimous decision triumph against Delan Monte at PFL 1. The Elevation Fight Team representative was not surprised to see so many of his counterparts test positive for banned substances.

“I don’t think that PFL is alone in that,” Flores said at PFL 4 media day. “People are gonna cheat in sports. There’s always gonna be cheaters no matter what. I’m never gonna be shocked, especially in a sport like MMA.”

Flores …

After beating Abubakar Nurmagomedov by split decision last Saturday at UFC on ESPN 46 in Las Vegas, Elizeu Zaleski dos Santos disappointed his fans by not calling out a future opponent in his Octagon interview.

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He didn’t make the same mistake when speaking to Evelyn Rodrigues for UFC Fight Pass Brazil shortly thereafter.

“I already have two names I want to face, Gunnar Nelson and Neil Magny, so I'm ready,” he said. “As soon as the UFC decides, you can call me, and I'll be ready for the fight.”

The Brazilian veteran also revealed that he never stopped training during the time he was suspended by USADA for a doping violation.

“I took advantage of this period to evolve and correct mistakes using the excellent training material we have at CM System,” he said.

While his first victory in more than a year and a half made him happy, dos Santos is more excited for the significant life event that is on the horizon.

"I'm anxious. My f…

After 16 bouts, Ilir Latifi and the Ultimate Fighting Championship have parted ways.

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The 39-year-old heavyweight and light heavyweight fighter is no longer on the UFC roster. The news was initially reported by Twitter account UFC Roster Watch and later confirmed by multiple outlets. Latifi reportedly completed his deal and did not have his contract renewed by the promotion.

The Swede known as “The Sledgehammer” last competed on May 20, when he dropped a split decision to Rodrigo Nascimento at UFC Fight Night 223. Latifi went 9-7 during his promotional tenure, earning wins over the likes of Alexey Oleynik, Ovince St. Preux and Gian Villante.

In addition to Latifi, the following fighters are no longer on the UFC roster: Makwan Amirkhani, Tony Gravely, Trevin Jones, Mounir Lazzez, Omar Morales and Batgerel Danaa. All completed their contracts and were not re-signed by the UFC, according to MMAFighting.com.

Chris Weidman will make his first Octagon appearance in more than two years when he faces Brad Tavares at UFC 292.

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Newsday was first to report the middleweight booking. It will be Weidman’s first fight since he suffered a gruesomely broken leg 17 seconds into his clash with Uriah Hall at UFC 261 on April 24, 2021. Weidman, who broke his right fibula and tibia on a checked low kick, had to undergo multiple surgeries to recover from the injury.

UFC 292 takes place on Aug. 19 at TD Garden in Boston and is expected to be headlined by a bantamweight title tilt between Aljamain Sterling and Sean O'Malley. In the co-main event, Weili Zhang will defend her strawweight crown against Amanda Lemos.

A former UFC middleweight champion, the 38-year-old Weidman is just 2-6 within the Las Vegas-based promotion since December 2015 — which dates back to when he relinquished the belt to Luke Rockhold at UFC 194. Weidman’s most recent victory came at UFC Fight…

UFC veteran Tony Ferguson has pleaded not guilty to a misdemeanor charge of driving under the influence after flipping his truck in Hollywood, California, last month.

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TMZ Sports was first to report the news. Ferguson entered his not guilty plea at an arraignment on June 1. The former interim lightweight champion allegedly crashed his truck into two parked cars while driving by a Hollywood nightclub on May 7, and Ferguson’s vehicle flipped onto its side. One of the cars in the crash reportedly belonged to rapper Cash Gotti, who arrived at the scene to find his vehicle totaled.

Ferguson was uninjured in the wreck but refused to take a field sobriety test and was “very uncooperative” at the scene, according to law enforcement officials. One officer revealed that Ferguson also “reeked” of alcohol and had bloodshot eyes. He was arrested with bail set at $30,000 but was later released on his own recognizance. Ferguson is due back in court for a hearing…

Magnifique! We are going back to #UFCParis on Sept 2! 🇫🇷

Find out how to get your tickets early ⤵️

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🎟️ https://t.co/IFdZXeHT2U pic.twitter.com/OS9BkEdHxz — UFC Europe (@UFCEurope) June 5, 2023

Approximately one year after its debut in the City of Light, the Ultimate Fighting Championship is headed back to Paris for a second time.

The Las Vegas-based promotion announced on Monday that a UFC event will take place in the French capital at Accor Arena on Sept. 2. No bouts were confirmed for the card.

“After fifteen years in the making, our first show in Paris was insane. Sold out event and the fans and atmosphere were incredible,” UFC president Dana White said in a release. “The arena was packed from the first fight of the night with everyone on their feet and I can’t wait to deliver another unforgettable night.”

After the ban on mixed martial arts in France ended in 2020, the promotion held its debut even…

Kai Kara-France is taking his contentious split-decision loss to Amir Albazi in stride.

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Despite outlanding his opponent by a significant margin on the feet, “Don’t Blink” was on the wrong side of the scorecards in the UFC on ESPN 46 headliner. Judges Sal D’Amato and Chris Lee scored the contest 48-47 for Albazi, and that made all the difference — despite the vast majority of media members awarding the bout to Kara-France. While statistics favored Kara-France, Albazi was moving forward the majority of the fight and also came the closest to a finish with a third round rear-naked choke attempt.

“This is the sport at the highest level,” Kara-France said on the ESPN+ post-fight show. “It’s a game of inches and I know I’ve said that before but it’s subjective to what the judges are scoring. If they’re scoring damage, if they’re scoring control, aggression, all of these things.

“I was feeling confident when they were calling the announcement but ha…

Amir Albazi believes he proved himself to the world with his split-decision triumph against Kai Kara-France in the UFC on ESPN 46 headliner on Saturday night.

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“That was a Top-3 ranked flyweight in the world and I got the win against him,” Albazi said at the post-fight press conference. “I went five rounds. So I know I can go with these guys for five whole rounds, and I know I’m ready for the title. I just want to go on to the next one, get my belt and keep climbing. Keep becoming the king that I know I am.”

Albazi’s latest triumph was not without controversy, as many observers felt that Kara-France deserved the decision based on superior striking volume. Still, Albazi was the one who came closest to a finish with a tight rear-naked choke in Round 3, and he also felt that his willingness to advance and land heavy strikes made a significant difference. Albazi admitted that he spent more time standing with Kara-France because he wanted to prove himse…