Martial Arts News

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With the premiere of “The Ultimate Fighter 31” on Tuesday night, the countdown for Conor McGregor’s Octagon return begins in earnest.

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“It’s time for me to immerse myself back in the game,” McGregor said in an interview on the UFC’s YouTube channel. “I’m excited to get back. I couldn’t turn down the offer.”

The former UFC two-division champion said that coaching on the long-running reality show was beneficial to his own development. McGregor previously served as a coach against Urijah Faber on “TUF 22” in 2015.

“I enjoyed myself the last time,” McGregor said. “For me when I start teaching, and I used to coach a boxing class [for John Kavangh] many years ago before I got into the UFC…me committing to coaching a class and coaching a couple of people, it almost forced me to dial in a bit more. I had to think about the technique. I had to think about the way I was gonna teach, why I was teaching. It just allowed me to actually get …

Amanda Nunes’ loss to Julianna Pena at UFC 269 was one of the biggest upsets in the sport’s history, and it took a mental toll on the Brazilian in the immediate aftermath.

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In fact, Nunes considered calling it a career following the second-round submission defeat at UFC 269.

“I was very confused. Losing my belt was crazy,” Nunes said in a recent interview with ESPN. “But at the same time, I know I was sad. Something was wrong. Something wasn’t right. And that’s why it looked, like, not real for me. And then when actually I saw [coach Din Thomas], right in the arena outside, and I gave him a hug, I looked at him and I said, ‘I think I’m done.’ And we looked at each other, and he looked [at me]: ‘Are you sure? OK, call me later. Talk to me later.’”

Ultimately, Nunes had a change of heart, which would set the stage for a rematch with Pena in 2022.

“I drove back home, and I was putting my thoughts together. Everything. What I went through, going t…

Joanne Wood will square off against Priscila Cachoeira in a flyweight bout at UFC 291.

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Cachoeira confirmed the pairing on social media following an initial report from The Mirror. UFC 291 takes place at the Delta Center in Salt Lake City, Utah, on July 29 and is headlined by a lightweight scrap pitting Dustin Poirier against Justin Gaethje.

Wood halted a three-bout losing streak in her first outing of 2023, as she garnered a split-decision triumph against Luana Carolina at UFC 286 on March 18. The Invicta FC veteran is 8-7 during her UFC tenure, with wins over the likes of Jessica Eye, Andrea Lee, Valerie Letourneau and Seo Hee Ham.

Cachoeira, meanwhile, has been victorious in four of her last five Octagon appearances. “Zombie Girl” went 2-0 in 2022, defeating Ji Yeon Kim via unanimous decision at UFC Fight Night 202 before earning a TKO triumph against Ariane Lipski at UFC on ESPN 41.

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Muhammadjon Naimov will make his Octagon debut on less than a week’s notice.

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The former Dana White’s Contender Series competitor will replace Guram Kutateladze and meet Jamie Mullarkey in a featherweight bout at UFC on ESPN 46. MMA Mania was first to report the new booking. Visa issues reportedly forced Kutatelade to withdraw from the bout. UFC on ESPN 46 takes place Saturday at the UFC Apex in Las Vegas and is headlined by a flyweight tilt pitting Kai Kara France against Amir Albazi.

Naimov will enter the matchup with Mullarkey on a three-bout winning streak. He appeared on the Contender Series in September 2020, losing a unanimous decision to Collin Anglin. “Hillman” is 8-2 as a professional, which includes a 5-1 mark within the Titan FC organization.

Mullarkey has been victorious in four of his last five UFC appearances. Most recently, the 28-year-old Australian outpointed Francisco Prado at UFC 284 on Feb. 11.

Israel Adesanya and Alex Pereira put their rivalry on hold to share a few laughs when they recently crossed paths at the airport.

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Both fighters were in Melbourne, Australia this past week. Adesanya trained with the New Zealand Warriors rugby team, while Pereira visited the Melbourne Storm. Adesanya and Pereira were also in attendance for the boxing match between Joseph Parker and Faiga Opelu.

Though they didn’t meet during that time, they did end up at the airport at the same time. In Pereira’s video, Adesanya jokingly hides his face when the camera finds him, while Pereira flexes in the distance in the version filmed by the “The Last Stylebender.”

Guess who I met at the airport ? 👀 pic.twitter.com/c2xr4MAVUs

— Alex "Poatan" Pereira (@AlexPereiraUFC) May 29, 2023

💘💘💘❤️‍🔥My life is a video game 🎮 pic.twitter.com/MoIdUniTJv

— Israel Adesanya (@stylebender) May 29, 2023

Adesanya and Perei…

𝙎𝙐𝙋𝙀𝙍𝙎𝙃𝙊𝙒 🇺🇸🇯🇵

Bellator MMA and @rizin_PR present the biggest cross-promotion of the summer! 🔥 Which fight are you most hyped for? #BellatorxRizin2 | Sun, July 30 | 📍 Saitama Super Arena pic.twitter.com/0y1v3TzUMe

— Bellator MMA (@BellatorMMA) May 27, 2023

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Bellator MMA and Rizin Fighting Federation have worked well together in recent years, and that relationship will continue with a dual-promotion event in Japan on July 30.

Unlike the previous iteration on New Year’s Eve, the upcoming card will be composed of two separate events, with Bellator bouts taking place in a cage and Rizin fights happening in a ring. Still, it’s rare to see two promotions working in such a collaborative fashion in this day and age. According to Bellator president Scott Coker, it’s something that should revolutionize the sport.

“This is unbelievable,” Coker said at a press conference to promote the upcoming event. “Last time I saw [Rizin pr…

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Rizin Fighting Federation and Bellator MMA plan to pull out all the stops for their upcoming head-to-head showcase.

In a joint press conference Saturday morning, Rizin CEO Nobuyuki Sakakibara and his Bellator counterpart Scott Coker, alongside a collection of stars from their respective organizations, announced the date, location and a partial lineup for their next collaboration. Bellator vs. Rizin 2 will be held on July 30 at Saitama Super Arena in Saitama, Japan. Like the first “Bellator vs. Rizin,” which took place on New Year’s Eve in Saitama, the newly announced card will pit champions and top contenders from both promotions against one another, some in the Bellator cage under the Unified Rules of MMA and some in Rizin’s trademark boxing-style ring, under Rizin rules. Notably, Rizin’s rule set allows soccer kicks and stomps to grounded opponents, while prohibiting elbow strikes.

Among the matchups announced on Saturday were former Bellato…

LFA brings the Interim #LightHeavyweight Championship to @Caragua_Oficial, #SãoPaulo, #Brazil at #LFA159! 🏆

Rodolfo "Trator" Bellato🆚Acácio "Pequeno" Dos Santos

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TOMORROW!#CIDECasaBranca#Caraguatatuba, #SaoPaulo, #Brazil#MMA#LFANation@UFCFightPass pic.twitter.com/fqvYCo0uyh — LFA (@LFAfighting) May 26, 2023 The Legacy Fighting Alliance returns to Brazil for LFA 159, which is headlined by an interim light heavyweight title fight.

Fighting for the interim belt in the main event will be light heavyweight prospects Rodolfo Bellato and Acacio dos Santos. Both headliners successfully made weight, as Bellato (9-2) checked in at 204.6 pounds, while dos Santos weighed 202 pounds. Three fighters failed to make the contracted weight for their respective fights, though, as Luiz Cesar da Silva Junior, Argemiro Delmandes and Rafaela Silva all came in overweight.

Bellato comes into the title fight having won four of his …

Bellator MMA is expanding, despite what recent rumors may be suggesting for the company.

MMA Junkie first broke the news on Thursday that the promotion was planning on officially launching a men’s flyweight category. News of this development has since been confirmed by other outlets. The specific date that it will kick off this new division is unclear, and no news has developed regarding the potential signing of competitors to populate its roster.

Despite having no official flyweight weight class, the organization booked over 50 fights at 125 pounds over the years for male fighters. Of note, both Josh Paiva and Zarrukh Adashev both notched three victories in that specific category in the past. The most recent match that took place at flyweight for Bellator came at Bellator 277 in April 2022, when Edwin De Los Santos faced and defeated Alberto Mendez by decision. Before then, De Los Santos accounted for the only 125-pound bout in the last two years, when he knocked ou…

𝗡𝗘𝗪 𝗳𝗶𝗴𝗵𝘁𝘀 𝗵𝗲𝗮𝗱𝗶𝗻𝗴 𝘁𝗼 𝗗𝘂𝗯𝗹𝗶𝗻 🇮🇪🚨

Bellator returns to the @3arenadublin with a 𝗛𝗨𝗚𝗘 card featuring Ireland's own @sineadkavanagh0 and British prospect Luke Trainer.

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🎟️ Get your #Bellator299 tickets now ▶️ https://t.co/QbOrCp0uem pic.twitter.com/bbztMLQ015 — Bellator MMA (@BellatorMMA) May 25, 2023 Bellator MMA is loading up its next Dublin-based card with plenty of local talent.

The organization announced on Thursday that it had booked six new matches for the Sept. 23 event at the 3Arena in Dublin. The fight card, titled Bellator 299, appears to have its four-fight main card put together – albeit this could change at any time – with Johnny Eblen vs. Fabian Edwards for the middleweight strap as the main attraction. The new bout that will open it up is a featherweight clash between Sinead Kavanagh (9-5) and Sara Collins (4-0).

Former title challenger Kavanagh is aiming for a three-fight win streak, which would be …

Cain Velasquez’s trial setting date has been pushed back until Aug. 2 after the former UFC heavyweight champion appeared in Santa Clara County (Calif.) court on Wednesday.

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Accompanied by attorney Renee Hessling, Velasquez’s request to delay the hearing was granted by Judge Panteha Saban. The trial setting date has been postponed on three different occasions.

Velasquez is facing attempted murder and other charges after allegedy chasing and shooting at Harry Goularte, who has been accused of molesting Velasquez’s young son. During a high-speed chase, Velasquez fired at the vehicle containing Goularte and allegedly hit and injured his stepfather, Paul Bender. Velasquez has pleaded not guilty to the charges. If found guilty, he faces 20 years to life in prison.

Velasquez was released on released on $1 million bail in November after spending eight months in a holding facility. He remains under GPS surveillance and cannot leave his home without th…

The mixed martial arts community still has plenty of time to speculate on who Francis Ngannou will face when he makes his Professional Fighters League debut.

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The former UFC heavyweight champion signed with the PFL earlier this month with plans to return to MMA sometime in 2024 after he pursues a fight in professional boxing. While that has led to fans looking at the league’s heavyweight roster and free agents outside the UFC’s control, PFL founder Donn Davis is confident that Ngannou’s first booking will exceed expectations.

“To me, what’s so fun here is the mystery box of candy and everything is going to be good,” Davis said on The Spinning Backfist MMA Show. “There’s been all kind of speculation, ranging from the PFL season to [Fabricio] Werdum. I believe it will be something else and bigger and more exciting than you’ve read so far. We have nine months — nine months ago, people would have laughed if we said Francis was gonna come to the PFL. So,…