Martial Arts News

Paulo Costa believes the Ultimate Fighting Championship light heavyweight division will have a new champion before Carlos Ulberg returns to the Octagon.

Ulberg (14-1) won the vacant title this past April, knocking out Jiri Prochazka in the first round of their title clash. Currently recovering from an ACL injury he suffered in the bout, the Kiwi champion recently revealed that he plans to defend his belt in 2027. Ulberg even pitched some 205-pound matchups following Magomed Ankalaev’s win over Bogdan Guskov at UFC Abu Dhabi, pitting Ankalaev against Prochazka and Costa against Khalil Rountree.

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Costa, however, sees the divisional title picture playing out differently.Paulo Costa angles for title shot, shuts down Carlos Ulberg playing matchmaker Ulberg took to social media after former champion Ankalaev returned to winning ways in a lackluster bout in Abu Dhabi to pitch the aforementioned matchups. “After last night's fights, here's my thoughts: Ankal…

Charles Oliveira's camp has shut down speculation linking the former Ultimate Fighting Championship lightweight champion to a BMF title defense against Diego Lopes.

With Lopes making it clear that he’s looking to move up to lightweight after his knockout victory over Steve Garcia at UFC Freedom 250, rumors linking him to a fight against the BMF champ emerged. According to Chute Boxe coach and Oliveira’s manager, Diego Lima, their team’s goal remains the undisputed lightweight crown.

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Diego Lima shuts down Oliveira vs. Lopes, eyes Justin Gaethje rematch Lima recently broke down the lightweight title mix, revealing that current champion Justin Gaethje is expected to return to action next year. The veteran coach also acknowledged that Arman Tsarukyan, who’s beaten Oliveira, is ahead of “do Bronxs” in the pecking order at 155 pounds. However, Lima highlighted the fact that his pupil is a bigger star than Tsarukyan and, more importantly, boasts a win ove…

Bryan Battle has opened up about dealing with personal issues ahead of his Professional Fighters League debut.

Battle made his promotional debut against Johnny Eblen in Pittsburgh this past March. He looked completely out of his depth as Eblen repeatedly slammed him on the canvas before making him tap to a face crank in the opening round.

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Bryan Battle Opens Up On Divorce, UFC Release Before PFL Debut Battle claims he couldn’t give his 100% in training for the fight against Eblen. “The Butcher” revealed that issues like his divorce and exit from the Ultimate Fighting Championship were cluttering his mind going into his PFL debut. Battle believes the lopsided beatdown from Eblen has taught him the hard way to give maximum effort going forward.

“I learned lessons,” Battle told Ariel Helwani. “There was definitely a bit of a learning curve, once again, headlining and fighting a bona fide former world champion… And there's just things in life. Thought …

Michel Pereira is looking to appeal his loss to Sharabutdin Magomedov, which was followed by his release from the Ultimate Fighting Championship.

Pereira took on Magomedov in a middleweight bout in the co-main event of UFC Baku. While Magomedov came away with a unanimous decision win, the fight was marred by controversy. The Russian pulled Pereira’s hair multiple times from bottom position in the first round. While referee Herb Dean warned Magomedov against committing any more fouls, he didn’t deduct any points when “Shara Bullet” accidentally eye-poked Pereira in the third round.

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Michel Pereira seeks overturned result after disputed UFC Baku fight with Sharabutdin Magomedov Pereira subsequently wasn’t offered a contract renewal and the Brazilian is now looking to overturn his last result to a draw. He is grateful for his UFC career, holds nothing against the promotion and is proud of some of the memorable moments he delivered to fans inside the Oct…

Islam Makhachev sympathizes with Conor McGregor.

McGregor (22-7) returned to action in the Ultimate Fighting Championship after a five-year hiatus against Max Holloway at UFC 329. However, the highly anticipated rematch ended anticlimactically as McGregor injured his knee with the first kick he threw. The Irishman could barely plant his leg after the injury, forcing the referee to step in at just 69 seconds of the opening round.

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Despite the longtime rivalry between their teams, Makhachev feels bad for the former two-division champ.Islam Makhachev says Conor McGregor's comeback ending in 69 seconds wasn't how he expected the fight to unfold While the Dagestani contingent aren’t fans of McGregor, Makhachev (28-1) commiserated with the fan favorite. While the reigning welterweight champion expected Holloway to win, he didn’t see the fight ending the way it did. Makhachev recently revealed that he was interested in seeing how McGregor would perform afte…

Jan Blachowicz's journey back to title contention has taken another unexpected turn.

The former Ultimate Fighting Championship light heavyweight titleholder was originally slated to rematch Bogdan Guskov at UFC Belgrade on Aug. 1 in Serbia. However, those plans changed when Guskov was offered the UFC Abu Dhabi main event spot against Magomed Ankalaev following Khalil Rountree's withdrawal.

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As such, Blachowicz (29-11-2) will now square off against Navajo Stirling in the new co-main event in Belgrade and the Polish veteran is unfazed by the change.Jan Blachowicz prepares for UFC Belgrade fight against Navajo Stirling After Guskov accepted the short-notice bout against Ankalaev, Blachowicz was paired with Stirling. The former champion insists little has changed in his preparation. “I am doing this all my life,” Blachowicz said in a recent interview. “It’s a new opponent. I have a lot of respect for him, but it's just another fighter who I have to stop…

Jon Jones remains highly confident in his ability.

In a recent interview, the former Ultimate Fighting Championship heavyweight and light heavyweight titleholder weighed in on how he believes a fight against fellow former two-division king Alex Pereira and a wrestling match against longtime rival Daniel Cormier would unfold, backing himself in both scenarios.

Jon Jones explains why he sees grappling as the deciding factor in a hypothetical fight with Alex Pereira Jones and Pereira were seemingly on a collision course when the latter announced his move up to heavyweight for UFC Freedom 250. However, with Jones’ ongoing stalemate with the UFC regarding his future, a fight against “Poatan” has fallen through.

Nevertheless, Jones cites size as a key factor at heavyweight, claiming his former opponents Stipe Miocic and Ciryl Gane are bigger than Pereira, who previously competed at 185 pounds.

“I watched Pereira train,” Jones said in an interview with AFL Global. “I …

Arman Tsarukyan will return to competition this weekend, though not inside the Octagon.

The top-ranked Ultimate Fighting Championship lightweight contender is set to face Indian fitness influencer Ankit Baiyanpuria in a submission-only grappling match at a Hype Fighting event in Armenia, the promotion announced on Instagram.

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Arman Tsarukyan faces Ankit Baiyanpuria in a submission-only grappling match at Hype Fighting in Armenia Hype Fighting announced a submission-only grappling match between Tsarukyan and Baiyanpuria for their upcoming event in Yerevan, Armenia, on Aug. 1.

Tsarukyan has not competed in mixed martial arts since November last year, when he submitted Dan Hooker. The victory marked his return following a lengthy hiatus after earning a decision win over former lightweight champion Charles Oliveira at UFC 300 in April 2024.

While his next UFC appearance remains unconfirmed, Tsarukyan has stayed active outside the promotion. The Ar…

Islam Makhachev's elite grappling continues to draw compliments.

Makhachev will look to defend his Ultimate Fighting Championship welterweight title against Ian Garry in the UFC 330 main event on Aug. 15 at Xfinity Mobile Arena in Philadelphia. Ahead of his first title defense at 170 pounds, Porrada Training Center coach Ronny Markes has hailed Dagestan’s ability on the mat.

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Islam Makhachev’s grappling advantage before UFC 330 welterweight title defense Markes has worked with numerous high-level athletes at his Las Vegas gym, including Johnny Walker, Jessica Andrade, Alexander Volkov, Magomed Ankalaev and Kelvin Gastelum. Speaking to Sherdog, he offered insight into Makhachev's grappling prowess.

“I watched him train here at the P.I. against an ADCC champion, a Brazilian more than 10 kilograms [22 pounds] heavier, under grappling rules,” Markes said. “It was an incredibly tough session and Islam only lost by two or three points in that grappling sp…

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The Professional Fighters League has finalized the lineup for its July 31 event at UBS Arena in Long Island, New York, featuring an 11-bout card headlined by a lightweight title fight.

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PFL New York is headlined by Usman Nurmagomedov vs. Archie Colgan. The card also features several notable matchups across the main and preliminary cards.PFL New York: All the details PFL New York will see undefeated champion Nurmagomedov (21-0) defend his lightweight crown against unbeaten contender Colgan (13-0) in the main event. In the co-headliner, top-ranked women's flyweight Dakota Ditcheva (15-0) returns after more than a year on the sidelines against Denise Kielholtz (9-5) in a bout with significant title implications at 125 pounds.

The main card also includes a light heavyweight matchup between Dovletdzhan Yagshimuradov (26-8-1) and Simeon Powell (12-2), while unbeaten lightweight prospect Amru Magomedov (10-0) squares off against Angel …

Islam Makhachev can do it all.

Makhachev recently gave two young men a stylistic makeover. He started by taking off one’s necklace and the other’s bracelet. The Ultimate Fighting Championship welterweight champion then cropped off their curly locks of hair with a trimmer. The Dagestani assured them that the new hairdo suited them better.

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Islam Makhachev’s Dagestan team tradition returns ahead of UFC 330 The close crop hairstyle is mandatory in Khabib Nurmagomedov’s team. The rule was laid down by the UFC Hall of Famer’s late father, Abdulmanap Nurmagomedov, who initially honed the entire team in the mountains of Dagestan. Notably, Makhachev had once been thrown out of the gym for having long hair.

Makhachev took to his Instagram Stories to showcase the only hairstyle permitted in the team.

“Today, for these two brothers, we make good haircut. I swear you look better.”

Khabib also posted a video of his protege trimming their hair. Makhachev sh…

F1 star Lewis Hamilton was very disappointed with Jon Jones for an unexpected reason.

The former Ultimate Fighting Championship double champ recently recalled an incident that led Hamilton to unfollow and block him on social media. Jones had joined Army Rangers on a hunting trip from a helicopter with rifles. He even managed to shoot a pig, which was donated to an underprivileged family. However. Hamilton was disappointed with Jones’ way of hunting.

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Jon Jones explains how Lewis Hamilton reacted to his helicopter pig hunt and why the F1 icon cut ties on social media Hamilton called Jones a “coward” for shooting the animal from a helicopter. The former F1 champ believes that animals should be hunted traditionally with spears or arrows, to give them a fighting chance.

“I went hunting years ago with a bunch of Army Rangers and we ended up hunting pigs from a helicopter using AR-15s,” Jones told ALF Global. “I was so proud of myself because I killed one…