Martial Arts News

43 & still going strong 💪

[ @MassarandubaMMA | #UFC274 ] pic.twitter.com/k25S4gi6nV

— UFC (@ufc) May 8, 2022

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Even at 43 years old, Francisco Trinaldo still has plenty left in the tank.

The Brazilian veteran improved to 2-1 at 170 pounds, defeating Danny Roberts via unanimous decision in a preliminary welterweight bout at UFC 274 at Footprint Arena in Phoenix, Ariz., on Saturday night. All three judges submitted tallies in favor of the Evolucao Thai export: 29-28, 30-26, and 30-27. “Massaranduba” has won five of his last six appearances within the Las Vegas-based promotion.

Roberts had some success with rangy kickboxing techniques in the opening stanza, but he couldn’t match his opponent’s power in the long run. Trinaldo put “Hot Chocolate” on skates with a short right early in Round 2, and doubled him over with a body shot against the fence before spending much of the period in top position. Roberts (18-6, 7-…

Hey look who it is!!!@JonnyBones #CES68 pic.twitter.com/Bs0HETER3u

— UFC FIGHT PASS (@UFCFightPass) May 7, 2022

Jon Jones has offered a little more insight into what might be delaying his rumored matchup against former UFC heavyweight champion Stipe Miocic.

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Jones appeared on the UFC Fight Pass broadcast for CES MMA 68 in Fargo, N.D., and discussed a potential date and location for his heavyweight debut. The ex-light heavyweight king was at the event to accompany training partner Maurice Greene.

“I heard originally it’d be July,” Jones said. “I think when Stipe got that date, I’ve heard he’s been doing a lot of weight-lifting and not a lot of MMA training. He wanted to put his best foot forward. I respect that. He’s a great champion. He deserves that. I think he asked for Sept. 24. I’m hoping that’s going to be in Las Vegas.

’ve been training about three times a day for about two years. I’m this close, why not wait …

After his victory tonight, @YoelRomeroMMA has been rescheduled to face Melvin Manhoef (@team_manhoef) in Dublin on Fri., Sept 23 pic.twitter.com/Y1jaQzYPMe

— Bellator Public Relations (@BellatorPR) May 6, 2022

A light heavyweight clash pitting Yoel Romero against Melvin Manhoef as been rebooked for Bellator Dublin on Sept. 23.

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The California-based promotion announced the matchup on Friday. Romero and Manhoef were initially slated to lock horns in the Bellator 280 co-main event, but Manhoef had to withdraw due to an injury suffered while apprehending three men who attempted to rob his home. “No Mercy” reportedly smashed the burglars car window with his hand, resulting in an injury that required stitches.

Bellator Dublin takes place at 3Arena in the Irish capital and is also expected to include a lightweight clash between Benson Henderson and Peter Queally. The evening’s main card will air on Showtime.

Romero remain…

Charles Oliveira (@CharlesDoBronxs) #UFC274 Official Weight: 155.5

All Weigh-In Results: https://t.co/fAMu27WDxd

— UFC News (@UFCNews) May 6, 2022 Charles Oliveira's lightweight title run comes to an embarrassing end, as the Ultimate Fighting Championship lightweight champion failed to make weight for his UFC 274 title defense against Justin Gaethje.

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The drama began as Oliveira missed weight during his initial weigh-in by .5 pounds, which came as a surprise considering the Brazilian posted on social media on Friday morning that his weight was on point. "Do Bronx" then took an extra hour to cut weight, but once again weighed in half a pound over championship weight. As a result, Oliveira is stripped of the title, and only Gaethje can walk out as champion on Saturday night.

Thankfully, there was no issue in the co-main event, which sees Rose Namajunas put her strawweight belt on the line against former champion Carla E…

Two-time Professional Fighters League women’s lightweight champion Kayla Harrison was dominant once again, but her performance in the PFL 3 Regular Season main event on Friday wasn’t up to snuff and she was blunt about it.

Still, Harrison won virtually every second of her contest against Marina Mokhnatkina (6-3) and took home three points in the PFL women’s lightweight season bracket, winning a lopsided unanimous decision along the way. Harrison landed a few takedowns in the fight and dished out more than enough punishment on the feet, but Mokhnatkina was slick and continuously tried rolling the two-time Olympic gold medal-winning judoka into various leg locks.

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Harrison never truly had Mokhnatkina in any serious peril, but she nullified every attack the Miami-based fighter tried. As the fight wore away, it was obvious that Harrison was frustrated and tried scoring a stoppage late, but Mokhnatkina was hip to her attacks and survived. All three judges…

The 2022 Professional Fighters League Season continues Friday at 5:30 p.m. ET.

Check out the MMA Forums to discuss the card or enter your comments and predictions below.

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It wasn’t the ending the Parisian crowd was expecting for Bellator MMA’s return to France.

In the Bellator 280 main event, Ryan Bader and Cheick Kongo battled for the heavyweight championship for the second time following their no-contest in September 2019. A few moments into the fight, it seemed that history was about to repeat itself as Bader (30-7, 1 NC; 8-2, 1 NC Bellator) landed a knee to the groin while clinching with Kongo, who needed a few minutes to recover. Once the action resumed, it was pretty clear that former divisional champion Kongo (31-12-2, 13-4 Bellator) couldn’t match his opponent’s wrestling pedigree. Thanks to relentless double-leg takedowns and suffocating ground control, Bader kept his prey on the canvas for five rounds, landing a few strikes from time to time to prevent any kind of resistance. The Frenchman struggled to resurge on the feet, but managed to contain damage. Ultimately, the cageside judges delivered 50-45, 50-45 and 50-45 scorecards for…

Sherdog's live Bellator 280 coverage kicks off at 1 p.m. ET.

Check out the MMA Forums to discuss the card or enter your comments and predictions below.

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Round 1 Round 2 Round 3 The Official Result Round 1 Round 2 Round 3 The Official Result Round 1 Round 2 Round 3 The Official Result Round 1 Round 2 Round 3 The Official Result Round 1 Round 2 Round 3 The Official Result Round 1 Round 2 Round 3 The Official Result Round 1 Round 2 Round 3 The Official Result Round 1 Round 2 Round 3 The Official Result Round 1 Round 2 Round 3 The Official Result Round 1 Round 2 Round 3 The Official Result Round 1 Round 2 Round 3 The Official Result Round 1 Round 2 Round 3 The Official Result Round 1 Round 2 Round 3 Round 4 Round 5 The Official Result

.@UFC provides an update on the #UFC274 main event between Charles Oliveira and Justin Gaethje.https://t.co/Z3iB2GDaWj

— UFC News (@UFCNews) May 6, 2022 The Ultimate Fighting Championship felt the need to clear the air directly following the shocking turn of events on Friday morning.

Ahead of the UFC 274 main event, lightweight champ Charles Oliveira missed championship weight, hitting the scales at 155.5 pounds. He still weighed this number after receiving an additional hour to cut weight, and as a result, the UFC had to act accordingly. Oliveira is still set to take on Justin Gaethje in the headliner slot, and the title fight now has substantially different implications depending on the outcome. The promotion released a statement following the weigh-ins to clarify what can happen on Saturday night.

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“Charles Oliveira missed weight for his UFC 274 main event bout against Justin Gaethje on Friday afternoon in Phoenix, w…

I want to fight the best in the world, you are one of them. Let’s go 👊 https://t.co/dbll5UoVRr

— Mateusz Gamrot (@gamer_mma) April 3, 2022 When the dust settles after this Ultimate Fighting Championship lightweight matchup, one man should vault himself into the top 10.

Polish outlet Polsat Sport announced on Thursday that Arman Tsarukyan (18-2) and Mateusz Gamrot (20-1, 1 NC) would toe the line on June 25. The event, likely to be titled UFC Fight Night 208, is expected to go down inside the UFC Apex in Las Vegas. These two lightweights will serve high on the billing, with a card that does not currently hold a headliner. Both men have posted about the fight on their respective social media pages, which is one they have been angling for since the beginning of April. The promotion’s broadcast partner of ESPN noted that the ink has not yet dried on the contracts, but that it is being put together.

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Tsarukyan made his company …

[youtube https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=a3Dk2CLz-4I&w=640&h=360] The welterweight bracket of Professional Fighters League's tournament is off to a rollicking start before any fight has begun.

The PFL continues its 2022 regular season with a card primarily comprised of welterweight and women's lightweight bouts, with a dash of Anthony Pettis thrown in for good measure. PFL 3 is headlined by a women's lightweight bout between two-time champion Kayla Harrison and sizeable underdog Marina Mokhnatkina.

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While both headliners made weight, Ray Cooper III and Genah Fabian were not as successful on the scale. Cooper clocked in at 176.4 pounds, or 5.4 pounds heavy for his welterweight match, while Fabian (160.8) tipped the scales at 4.8 pounds above the lightweight limit. Both fighters have been penalized one point in the standings, and they will not be eligible to earn any points on Friday even if they win. The fights will continue, and their opponents autom…

pic.twitter.com/8NVJvunK4i

— Max Holloway (@BlessedMMA) May 5, 2022 The only trilogy in Ultimate Fighting Championship featherweight history is set to conclude this July.

On Wednesday night, Ariel Helwani brought word that the promotion was aiming to put together Alexander Volkanovski (24-1) vs. Max Holloway (23-6) part three in July. Helwani’s dates included July 2 or July 30, and on Thursday, MMA Junkie broke that UFC 276 on July 2 would play host to the much-anticipated matchup. Both Holloway and Volkanovski have confirmed that the contracts have been signed and the fight is on.

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Volkanovski, who is up two wins to zero against Holloway in their series thus far, has prevailed in his last 21 appearances. “The Great” first claimed the strap from Holloway in 2019, defended it against Holloway in an automatic rematch in 2022, and has subsequently staved off a pair of challengers. In 2021, Volkanovski outworked Brian Orte…