Martial Arts News

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Within the span of a couple months, both Jon Jones and Henry Cejudo will return to the Octagon following extended layoffs.

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As the wrestling coach of the Fight Ready team, Eric Albarracin was able to observe the daily routines of the two former UFC champions as they prepare to make their highly-anticipated comebacks. Jones will face Ciryl Gane for the vacant heavyweight crown at UFC 285 on Saturday, while Cejudo will lock horns with Aljamain Sterling for bantamweight gold at UFC 288 on May 6. Albarracin discussed the prospects for Jones and Cejudo in a recent interview with Sherdog.com.

“Any athlete who goes three years without competing should be an underdog if they return to fight for a belt, but Cejudo and Jones are probably the only exceptions,” he said. One is the only ‘Triple C’ in the history of combat sports, and the other is the GOAT. They don’t fight only for the belt, but to make history.”

After Jones spent a po…

Bare Knuckle Fighting Championship will be bringing some new star power to the ring in the near future.

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Promotion president Dave Feldman revealed Wednesday on ”The MMA Hour” that BKFC will feature Luke Rockhold vs. Mike Perry and Eddie Alvarez vs. Chad Mendes on the April 29 card at the 1stBank Center in Broomfield, Colo. Rockhold and Alvarez are new free-agent signings for the promotion. While the majority of BKFC events are available through the app for a monthly subscription fee, BKFC 41 will air on pay-per-view for $49.99.

“We have to do it, obviously, to be able to pay for these guys,” Feldman said.

Rockhold returned from a three-year absence at UFC 279, where he suffered a unanimous decision loss to Paulo Costa. The former UFC and Strikeforce middleweight champion announced his retirement after the bout. He later walked back that decision after being granted his release from the UFC. The 38-year-old Californian lost four of his last f…

A serious condition led to Hailey Cowan withdrawing from her Ultimate Fighting Championship debut last weekend.

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While the promotion initially announced that an illness forced Cowan to pull out of a proposed bantamweight clash against Ailin Perez at UFC Fight Night 220, the Dana White’s Contender Series alum offered further details regarding her withdrawal in a social media post.

“I had an ovarian cyst rupture [on] the night before weigh-ins,” Cowan wrote on Instagram. “I lost a lot of blood and the doctors pulled me. I was on weight and ready to go. Super unfortunate but we will rebook ASAP. Apologies to the fans and my opponent but this was beyond my control.”

The 31-year-old Cowan earned a UFC contract after taking a split decision over Claudia Leite on the Contender Series last August. The Waco, Texas, native is 7-2 over the course of a career that includes stints in Invicta FC and Legacy Fighting Alliance.

Darren Till and the Ultimate Fighting Championship have parted ways — though it may not be for good.

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The former welterweight title challenger revealed on Twitter that he was granted his release from the Las Vegas-based promotion at his own request. Twitter account UFC Roster Watch initially brought word that Till was removed from the UFC roster.

“What’s happening everyone? Me, Dana [and] Hunter are still cool as f—k,” Till wrote. “I asked UFC [to] remove me just [to] sort some other s—t for the foreseeable [future]. They happily agreed to release me out of contract, which I appreciate.

“I’m not going anywhere. Got big plans to execute [and] I’ll be back.”

What’s happening everyone,Me, Dana & Hunter are still cool as fuck.I asked UFC 2 remove me just 2 sort some other shit for the foreseeable,They happily agreed to release me out of contract which I appreciate.I’m not going anywhere, got big plans to execute &am…

The Ultimate Fighting Championship continues to be a major source of profit for parent company Endeavor.

Endeavor held an earnings report call on Tuesday, where it revealed that its owned sports properties — led by the UFC — generated 1.3 billion in revenue in 2022, which is $224.1 million more (20 percent) than 2021. According to a summary posted by Endeavor, “growth for the year was driven by increased media rights fees at UFC, as well as greater sponsorship, licensing, commercial PPV and event related revenue from more UFC events with live audiences.” Other sports properties owned by the company include Professional Bull Riders and 10 minor league baseball franchises.

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“All 21 UFC events with live audiences sold out, continuing a 29 event sell out streak since returning from the pandemic. UFC posted its best sponsorship year ever in 2022, unlocking new categories and inventory to reach a fan base that grew double digits over 2021 in the U.S,” Ende…

With big-ticket main events, it’s always good to have a backup plan.

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According to ESPN, Sergei Pavlovich will serve in as the alternate fighter for the Jon Jones-Ciryl Gane headliner at UFC 285 on Saturday. Pavlovich will weigh-in on Friday and must hit the heavyweight mark to be eligible to step in should something happen to either Jones or Gane. UFC president Dana White confirmed during the UFC Fight Night 220 post-fight press conference that the heavyweight title bout would have an alternate but he did not name the fighter who would serve in that role.

Pavlovich is currently scheduled to face Curtis Blaydes in the main event of a UFC Fight Night card on April 22. The 30-year-old Russian owns a 17-1 career mark, with his lone setback coming against Alistair Overeem in his Octagon debut. Since then, Pavlovich has won five consecutive UFC bouts — all via first-round KO/TKO.

UFC 285 takes place at the T-Mobile Arena in Las Vegas and features t…

Nikita Krylov and Ryan Spann are going to try again in a couple weeks.

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After the light heavyweight bout that was scheduled to headline UFC Fight Night 220 fell through on the day of the event, Krylov vs. Spann has been rebooked for UFC Fight Night 221 on March 11. Promotion broadcast partner ESPN confirmed the reschedule bout following an initial report from Igor Lazorin.

UFC Fight Night 221 takes place at the Theater at Virgin Hotels in Las Vegas and is headlined by a bantamweight clash pitting Petr Yan against Merab Dvalishvili. Krylov vs. Spann will now be a three-round contest.

Prior to falling ill just hours before the UFC Fight Night 220 main event, Krylov had posted back-to-back victories over Alexander Gustafsson and Volkan Oezdemir in the Octagon. “The Miner” is 10-7 over the course of two UFC stints.

Spann, meanwhile, has been victorious in three of his last four promotional appearances. During that stretch, “Superman” has s…

While Ciryl Gane has been lauded for his heavyweight striking skills, Jon Jones believes he’s seen better.

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Jones took to Twitter to discuss Gane’s striking acumen ahead of their fight for the vacant heavyweight title in Saturday’s UFC 285 main event. “Bones” pointed to Thiago Santos, who he defeated via split decision at UFC 239, as a superior kickboxer to the Frenchman.

“Man I just finished watching my Thiago Santos fight again. I think it’s crazy that you guys consider Gane the most technical kickboxer I’ve ever faced,” Jones wrote on Twitter. “Everything Thiago did have bad intentions on it. Dude had lightning speed, power, explosiveness. Crazy versatility.

“Gane’s last three opponents had terrible defense. Those guys couldn’t stop a kick if their life depended on it. He’s fought flat footed boxers his last three fights.”

Man I just finished watching my Thiago Santos fight again. I think it’s crazy that you guys consid…

Four months after their first encounter ended in a no contest due to an illegal knee, the second battle between Fabricio Andrade and John Lineker at One on Prime Video 7 was definitely worth the price of admission.

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Just like the first meeting, Andrade used his superior muay thai and reach advantage to control the distance, eventually hurting Andrade badly enough to cause manager/cornerman Alex Davis to stop the fight before the final round. With the victory, Andrade captured the undisputed One bantamweight title. Despite the high stakes involved, Davis doesn’t regret his decision.

 “I would be a criminal if I allowed my fighter to return with both eyes closed,” Davis told Sherdog.com. “It was hard to do, especially with it being a title fight, but I had to take that decision. Safety comes first.”

Davis’ only regret is that Lineker arrived in Thailand just one week before the rematch, which was held at Lumpinee Boxing Stadium in …

Brendan Allen unveiled a fairly lengthy callout list following his submission victory against Andre Muniz in the makeshift UFC Fight Night 220 main event.

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The former Dana White’s Contender Series alum first mentioned rematches against Sean Strickland and Chris Curtis, the only two men to defeat him thus far during his 9-2 run in the UFC. If those aren’t possible, “All In” also targeted bouts against either Jack Hermansson or Dricus Du Plessis. At the post-fight press conference, Allen explained his reasoning behind the opponent wish list.

“At this point, I’m not really trying to chase anything. I’m a super competitive guy. I like Sean and Chris, I think they’re very good guys. We talked for 40 minutes at the UFC PI in the cafeteria,” Allen said. “That’s just business and there’s a lot of eyes if I fought Strickland again, especially me coming off a win and him having fought the champion before, so that sets a statement.

“I understand how thi…

Former KSW two-division champion Roberto Soldic will fight on U.S. soil for the first time when he locks horns with Zebaztian Kadestam at One on Prime Video 10 on May 5.

Promotion officials initially confirmed the 185-pound booking to ESPN. One on Prime Video 10 takes place at the 1stBank Center in Broomfield, Colo., and is headlined by a flyweight (135-pound) title trilogy clash between Demetrious Johnson and Adriano Moraes. The event marks One’s U.S. debut and airs on Prime Video.

Soldic’s promotional debut at One on Prime Video 5 ended prematurely when opponent Murad Ramazanov landed a low blow in the opening round of their Dec. 2 matchup. The 28-year-old Croatian entered the bout on a seven-fight winning streak that included victories over the likes of Dricus Du Plessis and Mamed Khalidov.

Sweden’s Kadestam is coming off back-to-back first-round knockouts under the One banner. Most recently, “The Bandit” scored a 57-second stoppage of Iuri Lapicus at…

2022 Professional Fighters League heavyweight champion Ante Delija will begin his attempt for a repeat when he faces Yorgan De Castro in the PFL 2 headliner on April 7.

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The promotion announced the card for its second regular season event — which features heavyweights and women’s featherweights — on Monday. In the co-main event, 2022 women’s lightweight winner Larissa Pacheco will square off against ex-Bellator champ Julia Budd at 145 pounds. Two more heavyweight bouts round out the main draw: Bruno Cappelozza vs. Matheus Scheffel and Renan Ferreira vs. Rizvan Kuniev.

Seven bouts were announced for the preliminary portion of the card: Denis Goltsov vs. Michal Andryszak; Martina Jindrova vs. Amber Leibrock; Olena Kolesnyk vs. Aspen Ladd; Marcelo Nunes vs. TBA; Marina Mokhnatkina vs. Yoko Higashi; Amanda Leve vs. Karolina Sobek and Biaggio Ali Walsh vs. TBA.

PFL 2 takes place at The Theater at Virgin Hotels Las Vegas. The main card airs on ESPN…