Martial Arts News

Apparently Sherdog.com's 2021 "Fight of the Year" winner wasn’t all that impressive to Justin Gaethje.

Gaethje, whose scintillating lightweight clash with Michael Chandler at Madison Square Garden last November took home top fight honors from more than a few publications, reminisced on the bout during an interview with BT Sport. His assessment of the action focused more on the disappointment of not finishing Chandler than anything else.

“To be completely honest with you, I feel like that was kind of a boring fight when I was in there,” Gaethje said. “Yeah, it just makes no sense. It’s the first time I’ve ever wanted to win more than to knock somebody out.

“So yeah, it was not good. I didn’t like it. I want to go back to just wanting to hurt somebody and finish them. But now that I have won, I got my title shot, I can go back to how it should be.”

The former World Series of Fighting champion has won five of his last six outings, and his unanimous verdict o…

Karina Rodriguez will make her first flyweight title defense against Ketlen Souza in the main event of Invicta FC 46 on March 9.

The all-female promotion announced the matchup on Wednesday. Invicta FC 46 will take place in Kansas City without fans or media in attendance, according to a release. Broadcast information will be revealed in the coming weeks. Invicta’s last card streamed on its YouTube channel.

Four other bouts were announced for the card: Daiana Torquato vs. Milana Dudieva at flyweight; Danielle Taylor vs. Liz Tracy at strawweight; Paulina Granados vs. Monique Adriane at atomweight and Fatima Kline vs. TBA at strawweight.

Rodriguez claimed flyweight gold with a five-round verdict over Torquato at Invicta on AXS TV last May. The Puebla, Mexico native has won three of her last four outings in the promotion, also earning wins over DeAnna Bennett and Dudieva.

Souza will make her Invicta FC debut on the momentum of a three-bout winning streak. The 2…

The stakes will be raised when Belal Muhammad and Vicente Luque square off for a second time in the Octagon.

A welterweight rematch between Muhammad and Luque will serve as the five-round headliner for a UFC Fight Night event on April 16. ESPN was first to report the pairing. A venue has not been announced for the event.

Muhammad and Luque initially squared off at UFC 205 in Madison Square Garden, where Luque won via knockout in 79 seconds. Muhammad has lost just once in 12 UFC appearances since that defeat and is currently unbeaten in his last seven outings, with a no contest against Leon Edwards the only blemish on his ledger during that time. The former Titan FC title holder is coming off back-to-back decision triumphs against Demian Maia and Stephen Thompson.

Luque, meanwhile, is currently riding the momentum of a four-bout UFC winning streak, with finishes of Niko Price, Randy Brown, Tyron Woodley and Michael Chiesa to his credit. “The Silent Assassin” has…

Recent women’s flyweight title challenger Denise Kielholtz has her next assignment, as she will square off against Kana Watanabe at Bellator London on May 13.

Promotion officials also confirmed a featherweight tilt pitting Daniel Weichel against Robert Whiteford for the event. MMAFighting.com was first to report the bookings. Bellator London takes place at the SSE Arena and is headined by a welterweight title fight between Yaroslav Amosov and Michael Page.

Kielholtz is coming off a split-decision loss against reigning 125-pound champ Juliana Velasquez in the Bellator 262 headliner on July 16. Prior to that, “Miss Dynamite” won four straight bouts under the Bellator banner to solidify herself as the division’s No. 1 contender.

Watanabe, meanwhile, suffered her first loss in 11 professional outings at Bellator 261, where she suffered a 35-second TKO defeat to Liz Carmouche. The former Rizin and Deep Jewels competitor began her promotional tenure with triumphs ove…

Two days after regaining the flyweight belt with a decision win over Brandon Moreno at UFC 270, Deiveson Figueiredo briefly let his thoughts drift to a return home while dining with teammates at a Denny’s in Arizona, where he trains at Fight Ready.

The first two-time flyweight champion in UFC history won’t relax for long, however.

"I can't wait to have some acai and eat some typical Amazon fish that I love,” Figueiredo told Sherdog.com. “But as soon as possible I want to return with my family to Arizona. Besides loving the city, I was treated like family here. There is no doubt that my next camp will be here."

Figueiredo worked with coaches Henry Cejudo and Eric Albarracin to develop an interesting strategy – complete with code phrases -- for the trilogy with Moreno.

"Our game plan was always to mix [it up] and never leave Moreno in his comfort zone,” Figueiredo said. “For example, when my corner screams ‘Taco Burrito, I attack with body shots; ‘Chifrada’ …

Former two-division UFC title challenger Chael Sonnen has been added to the broadcast team for Eagle Fighting Championship 44 on Friday.

The promotion, which was founded by Khabib Nurmagomedov, announced the news on Tuesday. Sonnen joins a commentary team that already includes Henry Cejudo, Felicia Spencer, Jennifer Sterger and Cyrus Fees.

Sonnen has a lengthy history behind the mic, including analyst duties for both the UFC and Bellator. He currently hosts “The Chael Sonnen Show with Jorge Sedano” on ESPN+. During his fighting career, the West Linn., Ore., native was best known for his rivalry with Anderson Silva, which culminated in middleweight championship losses at UFC 117 and UFC 148. He later challenged for light heavyweight gold, falling to Jon Jones via first-round TKO at UFC 159.

"Khabib and Sonnen – the two undefeated champions join forces," Sonnen said in a release. "Eagle FC, Friday."

Eagle FC 44 takes place at the FLXcast Arena in Miami, Fla…

[youtube https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=MRo1hN8Jsow&w=560&h=315]

Eight female lightweights will vie for a Professional Fighters League contract on the third edition of the PFL Challenger Series on March 4.

The promotion on Tuesday revealed the lineup for the card, which takes place at Universal Studios in Orlando, Fla., at 9 p.m. ET and airs on Fubo Sports Network. Perhaps the most interest note from the release states that “the third installment of the Challenger Series will feature women’s lightweight fighters angling for a chance to take a shot at one of MMA's baddest combat sports athletes, Kayla Harrison.”

Harrison, of course, completed her most recent PFL deal by winning the organization’s 2021 championship. She was recently seen in attendance at UFC 269 and both Harrison and Dana White admitted that both sides had been in talks. However, this would seem to indicate that the two-time Olympic gold medalist has re-signed with PFL.

Some of the most notable wo…

PFL is back on @ESPN this April pic.twitter.com/ajnfBCbhm8

— PFL (@PFLMMA) January 25, 2022

The partnership between Professional Fighters League and ESPN will continue for the foreseeable future.

The promotion announced Tuesday that it has reached a new, multi-year media agreement with ESPN that will see “expanded coverage” on the Worldwide Leader’s family of networks. According to a release, that means that the entirety of the PFL playoffs and the “majority” of regular season events will be televised on ESPN and simulcast on ESPN+, with additional events airing on ESPN2.

The new deal begins with the start of the PFL 2022 season, which is slated for April 20. In addition to live event coverage, ESPN platforms will also provide pre- and post-fight coverage as well as other exclusive PFL content.

“After two successful years of providing fans with premium MMA content alongside ESPN, PFL is proud to extend and expand our agreement,” said…

Maiquel Falcao and Marcelo Brigadeiro at Bellator 66, April 20, 2012 (Dave Mandel/Sherdog)

In the wake of the death by stabbing of Ultimate Fighting Championship veteran and former Bellator MMA title challenger Maiquel Falcao on Sunday, Sherdog reached out to Falcao’s friend and former coach, Marcelo Brigadeiro. The Astra Fight Team head man gave a frank and harrowing account of his troubled friend and the longstanding issues outside of the cage that hampered his professional as well as personal lives.

Sherdog: Can you talk about the recent report about Maiquel Falcao’s violent stabbing death in Brazil? You worked with him for many years, including his UFC and Bellator stints. He was a controversial person, from his single UFC bout, a win against Gerald Harris, to a gas station fight that resulted in severe brain injuries to his training partner Kaue Mena. At some point he was considered for a UFC return but an old battery charge kept that from happening. H…

Longtime UFC flyweight contender Jussier Formiga will compete for the first time in more than 18 months when he faces Miguel Felipe Bunes da Silva in the Legacy Fighting Alliance 124 headliner on Feb. 11.

The promotion recently announced the booking. LFA 124 takes place at Arizona Federal Theater in Phoenix, Ariz., and will see Windson Ramos square off against Clayton Carpenter in a 125-pound co-feature. The main card will stream on UFC Fight Pass.

Formiga parted ways with the UFC follwing successive defeats against Alex Perez, Brandon Moreno and Joseph Benavidez, with his last appearance coming in June 2020. The 36-year-old Formiga went 9-7 within the Las Vegas-based promotion, earning notable wins over the likes of current Bellator bantamweight king Sergio Pettis and reigning UFC flyweight champ Deiveson Figureiredo. Before the UFC added the flyweight division, the Brazilian was widely regarded as the best 125-pound fighter in the world.

Da Silva will make hi…

OH MY BEAST BOYYYYYYYYY

[ #UFC268 | Early Prelims are LIVE on @UFCFightPass & ESPN+ ] pic.twitter.com/cRf5Z3ocq6

— UFC (@ufc) November 6, 2021 On the heels of a spectacular spinning wheel kick knockout victry, Chris Barnett will return to the Octagon against Martin Buday at a UFC Fight Night event on April 16.

Eurosport was first to report the heavyweight booking. UFC Fight Night will likely take place at the UFC Apex in Las Vegas, though a venue has yet to be confirmed. The card does not have a headliner at this point in time.

After suffering a submission loss to Ben Rothwell in his promotional debut, Barnett authored one of 2021’s most memorable finishes with the aforementioned KO of Gian Villante at UFC 268. The Tampa, Fla., native known as “Huggy Bear” owns a 22-7 career mark that includes stints in UAE Warriors, Road FC, Island Fights and Rizin Fighting Federation.

Slovakia’s Buday will make his Octagon debut after ear…

Former UFC bantamweight champion T.J. Dillashaw expects to be in a title fight when he makes his Octagon return — now it’s just a matter of when that happens.

Dillashaw fought for the first time in more than two years following a USADA-mandated suspension at UFC on ESPN 27, where he edged Cory Sandhagen via split decision this past July. In August, the 35-year-old fighter underwent surgery for a torn PCL and damaged meniscus.

In an interview with ESPN, Dillashaw gave an update on his recovery and said he hopes to fight again in approximately six months.

"It's on track, I just didn't realize how much work I would have to get done," Dillashaw said. "I didn't realize how beat up my knee was. I knew what I tore but once I watched the video of what [the surgeon] did to me, I messed it up really bad. I almost have a full range of motion. Strength is there. I've just gotta make sure I'm safe about getting those full motions.

"I wouldn't say an exact timeframe, b…