Martial Arts News

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A heavyweight duel pitting Josh Parisian againt Alan Baudot is on tap for a UFC Fight Night card on June 25.

Both fighters announced the bout via social media. The event is expected to take place at the UFC Apex in Las Vegas and also includes a flyweight clash between Tim Elliott and Amir Albazi. A headliner for the card has not been confirmed.

A two-time winner on Dana White’s Contender Series, Parisian has come up short in two of three UFC appearances thus far. Most recently, the 32-year-old Scorpion Fighting System product suffered a third-round TKO loss to Don’Tale Mayes at UFC Fight Night 199 this past December.

France’s Baudot is still looking for his first Octagon triumph after a pair of losses and a no contest in his initial three promotional outings. Baudot is coming off a unanimous decision loss to Parker Porter at UFC Fight Night 201 on Feb. 19.

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A middleweight matchup pitting Joaquin Buckley against Abusupiyan Magomedov has been targeted for the UFC’s June 4 offering.

MMAjunkie.com was first to report the booking. The event doesn’t have an official location at this time but is likely to take place at the UFC Apex in Las Vegas. The card is also expected to include a featherweight clash between Dan Ige and Movsar Evloev.

Buckley, who gained fame for…

[youtube https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=NEE0BfgPQUM&w=560&h=315]

Aljamain Sterling has heard all the naysayers over the past year.

Sterling’s championship victory over Petr Yan at UFC 259 in March 2021 has come with an asterisk for many in the MMA community due to the nature of the “The Funk Master’s” victory, which came when he was rendered unable to continue due to an illegal knee in the fourth round. As a result, Sterling was able to take the 135-pound belt home thanks to a disqualification victory. Yan was ahead on two of the three judges’ scorecards at the time of the stoppage.

The rematch between the two bantamweights has been delayed as Sterling recovered from neck surgery, a procedure that helped to alleviate an issue that has plagued him for years. Sterling was sidelined longer than originally anticipated, which of course subjected him to more negative comments.

Sterling will finally get the chance to settle the score when he faces Yan for a second tim…

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Andre Fili will lock horns with Joanderson Brito in a featherweight scrap at UFC on ESPN 35.

Brito announced the pairing via Instagram and it was later confirmed by MMAFighting.com. UFC on ESPN 35 takes place at the UFC Apex in Las Vegas on April 30 and is headlined by a bantamweight showdown pitting Rob Font against Marlon Vera.

Anchored at Team Alpha Male, Fili will return for the first time since UFC Fight Night 190, when his clash with Daniel Pineda ended 46 seconds into Round 2 due to an accidental eye poke. Fili has been up-and-down during his promotional tenure, compiling a 9-7 mark while never winning more than two straight fights in UFC competition.

Brito earned a UFC deal with a technical decision triumph over Diego Lopes on Dana White’s Contender Series this past August. The Brazilian saw a 10-bout winning streak snapped in his Octagon debut, when he fell to Bill Algeo via unanimous decision at UFC on ESPN 32.

Christian Leroy Duncan with the flying Knee KO! 🔥Incredible scenes at #CW136, a new middleweight champ is crowned!!#AndNew pic.twitter.com/I0DtGxIPUl

— Cage Warriors (@CageWarriors) April 2, 2022

Cage Warriors Fighting Championship put on a serious Event of the Year candidate for its latest card at BEC Arena in Manchester, England, concluding with all 13 bouts ending before the final horn.

The main attraction at CW 136 was a middleweight championship affair between defending titleholder Djati Melan and Christian Leroy Duncan. Things appeared to be going the champion’s way as Melan (8-1, 2-1 CW) secured an excellent takedown early in the first frame and kept the challenger on the ground for almost the whole round before Duncan made his way up on the feet. The situation changed in the following stanza as Duncan pushed forward right out of the gate. The Englishman looked more at ease in hitting his adversary with a variety of punches and ki…

The UFC on ESPN 34 card has taken a hit, as Uriah Hall has been forced to pull out of a showdown against Andre Muniz on April 16.

MMAFighting.com was first to report Hall’s exit from the card. A replacement opponent for Muniz is reportedly being sought.

UFC on ESPN 34 takes place at the UFC Apex in Las Vegas and is headlined by a welterweight rematch between Vicente Luque and Belal Muhammad. Muniz vs. Hall was supposed to be the evening’s co-main event.

Hall, 37, had a four-bout winning streak snapped in his most recent appearance, as he dropped a five-round verdict to Sean Strickland at UFC on ESPN 28 this past July. “The Ultimate Fighter 17” finalist is 10-8 during his tenure with the Las Vegas-based promotion.

Muniz is in the midst of an eight-fight winning streak that includes four triumphs in UFC competition. Most recently, the Brazilian submitted Eryk Anders in the opening stanza at UFC 269.

The UFC is hoping the third time is the charm when it comes to a middleweight booking pitting Phil Hawes against Deron Winn.

Hawes and Winn will lock horns at a UFC Fight Night event on June 18. Winn confirmed the pairing via Facebook following an initial report from MMAFighting.com. The card is expected to take place at the UFC Apex in Las Vegas but does not currently have a headliner.

Hawes and Winn were scheduled to fight on two different occasions in 2021, but both times Winn was forced to withdraw from the proposed bouts.

The 33-year-old Hawes had a seven-bout winning streak snapped in his last outing, when he suffered a first-round knockout loss to Chris Curtis at UFC 268 this past November. Hawes had kicked off his promotional tenure with successive triumphs over Jacob Malkoun, Nassourdine Imavov and Kyle Daukaus.

Winn is returning to action for the first time since December 2020, when he defeated Antonio Arroya via unanimous decision at UFC Fight…

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— #OnAmission4Gold (@KelvinGastelum) April 2, 2022

Shortly after the promotion scrambled to find him a replacement opponent, an injury has forced Kelvin Gastelum to withdraw from UFC 273.

UFC officials recently announced Gastelum’s exit, but the nature of his injury was not disclosed. Du Plessis will not remain on the card.

“I wish it was an April Fool’s joke,” Gastelum said in a video on Twitter. “I wish this didn’t happen, but it did, and unfortunately, I have to withdraw from the fight. I was advised not to disclose the injury, but just know, I am compromised, and I can’t and won’t be heading into the fight compromised the way that I am.”

Gastelum was originally slated to face Nassourdine Imavov at the event before visa issues forced Imavov off the card. As a result, Du Plessis was pulled from a matchup against Anthony Hernandez and lined up as a replacement foe for Gastelum.

“I’ve just got to s…

Alexei Pergande submitted Joe Hamm with an arm-triangle choke in the second round of their PFL Challenger Series 7 lightweight attraction and in doing so netted a Professional Fighters League contract on Friday at Universal Studios in Orlando, Florida. Pergande (1-0), who has spent time at the powerhouse Sanford MMA camp, brought it to a close 4:42 into Round 2.

Hamm (0-1) was largely ineffective. Pergande managed distance, controlled the clinch and shifted momentum with takedowns. He grounded Hamm with 90 seconds left in the second round, climbed to full mount and zeroed in with punches. From there, Pergande progressed to the back, transitioned to the choke and let his squeeze do the rest.

Meanwhile, Sanford MMA prospect Andrija Stankovic pieced together educated striking combinations, surprising takedowns and suffocating top control, as he banked a unanimous decision over Louis Brewington in a three-round welterweight feature. Stankovic (1-0) swept the scorecards wit…

A crossover matchup between a top-ranked Ultimate Fighting Championship flyweight and another in the top 10 at strawweight will go down this May.

Combate was first to report the pairing in March, announcing that Katlyn Chookagian (17-4) will be squaring off with Amanda Ribas (11-2) at a currently unnumbered UFC Fight Night event on May 14. The two will face off in the flyweight division, with Chookagian re-signing a deal with the promotion after ending her contract while Ribas will come back to the division after two appearances at 115 pounds. Ribas was initially booked against Michelle Waterson for March, but the fight was postponed once to May and then called off again due to what Waterson called a “career-threatening injury.” Chookagian vs. Ribas has since been confirmed by multiple outlets as well as Chookagian herself on Instagram on Friday.

Chookagian concluded her last UFC deal after capturing a trio of decision wins over Cynthia Calvillo, Viviane Araujo and Jen…

It’s no April Fools’ joke, Ultimate Fighting Championship fighter William Knight is officially moving to heavyweight.

Late Thursday night, MMA Junkie reported that Knight (11-3) would be stepping up to the heavyweight division on April 16. At UFC on ESPN 34, he will be taking on fellow former light heavyweight Devin Clark (12-6) inside of the UFC Apex in Las Vegas. News of this short-notice booking has since been confirmed by other outlets as well as Knight himself on Instagram.

Knight last competed in February, where he dropped a decision to Maxim Grishin after missing weight by 12 pounds to make the matchup a de facto heavyweight contest. His weight miss clocked in as the largest among all bouts that have taken place inside the Octagon. The defeat to Grishin ended a two-fight win streak with a knockout of Fabio Cherant and a decision over Alonzo Menifield. Win or lose, every career bout for “Knightmare” has ended by knockout or decision, without a submission on his…