Martial Arts News

Michael "Venom" Page has a tongue-in-cheek response to the aftermath of his Ultimate Fighting Championship exit.

Page won via unanimous decision against Nursulton Ruziboev at UFC Paris, completing his UFC contract. Two days later, UFC CEO Dana White confirmed that the promotion would not re-sign the Englishman.

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Michael Page responds to criticism following the end of his UFC run Page went 5-1 across his six UFC appearances. However, he failed to live up to his pre-UFC reputation as a vicious knockout artist, going the distance in all six Octagon outings. Moreover, most of his fights were lackluster and frequently booed.

Rather than engaging directly with the criticism, Page offered a playful response on social media. The 39-year-old posted a photo of himself seemingly trying to push up a large rock with the caption:

“Me trying to handle the internet’s opinions.”

Page's future remains uncertain, with Bare-Knuckle Boxing Championship pres…

Islam Makhachev believes his teammate, Usman Nurmagomedov, is on his way to the Ultimate Fighting Championship.

Nurmagomedov recently completed his Professional Fighters League contract with a knockout victory over Archie Colgan, sparking discourse over where the undefeated lightweight will compete next. He previously discussed turning down a $2 million-per-fight deal from the PFL and Makhachev’s recent comments further indicate a UFC signing is imminent.

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Usman Nurmagomedov is a free agent after completing his PFL contract Makhachev says there's a strong chance Nurmagomedov will now join the UFC. The welterweight champ claims this is the perfect time for his teammate to make the jump and work towards championship gold in the division he and their mentor, Khabib Nurmagomedov, once ruled.

“It’s the perfect move for him. He needs to prove he’s the best in the world. He could face a Top 10 rival and soon earn a title shot,” Makhachev told Russian outl…

Roberto Soldic wants to stay in the Ultimate Fighting Championship even though his pay has significantly dropped.

Soldic (21-4) recently signed with the UFC after his contract with One Championship expired. He is now scheduled to fight Kalinn Williams (16-5) in a middleweight bout at UFC 332 on Oct. 3 at Delta Center in Salt Lake City. The Croatian recently compared the pay between the two promotions.

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Roberto Soldic compares his new UFC contract with what he earned in One Championship Soldic has revealed that his UFC pay doesn’t even come close to what he was making in One Championship. He was a two-division champion in KSW before signing with One Championship in 2022 and was notably in talks with the UFC after parting ways with the Polish promotion.

Soldic claims that his previous offer from the UFC was better than what he will make now. However, One Championship offered him a slightly better deal, also luring him with the options of kickboxing a…

Waldo Cortes-Acosta no longer considers Tom Aspinall the champion of the Ultimate Fighting Championship heavyweight division.

Aspinall’s first heavyweight title defense against Ciryl Gane ended in an anticlimactic no-contest in October 2025. The Englishman was unable to continue after Gane simultaneously poked him in both eyes in the first round. Aspinall has since been inactive, recovering from multiple eye procedures, but Cortes-Acosta claims he’s avoiding a rematch with Gane.

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Cortes-Acosta accuses UFC heavyweight champion Tom Aspinall of avoiding Ciryl Gane Gane won the interim heavyweight title with a second-round knockout of Alex Pereira at UFC Freedom 250, paving the way for a rematch with Aspinall. Cortes-Acosta believes Aspinall has had sufficient time to recover from his injury and claims the Brit is inactive because he doesn’t want to fight Gane again.

“It’s frustrating to see the champion be like this,” Cortes-Acosta said at Noche UFC …

Taylor Lapilus and Mitchell McKee will battle for the Professional Fighters League bantamweight championship in France this December.

The promotion recently announced that former Ultimate Fighting Championship athlete Lapilus will face undefeated McKee in the main event of PFL Lyon on Dec. 12 at LDLC Arena.

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Taylor Lapilus and Mitchell McKee will fight for the bantamweight title at PFL Lyon Lapilus (25-4) will have the opportunity to win the belt in front of his home crowd. The Frenchman has gone 4-0 since joining the PFL after his UFC run and the upcoming championship opportunity represents the culmination of his career.

“My whole career has led to this moment,” Lapilus said. “I’m here to become champion, leave my mark on this sport and cement my legacy.”

A flyweight title fight headlines PFL Chicago: Tune in on Saturday, Oct. 16 at 11 p.m. ET on ESPN.

Meanwhile, McKee (11-0) made his promotional debut at PFL Chicago earlier this yea…

Michael Page's run in the Ultimate Fighting Championship is over and Jake Paul is looking to add him to the Most Valuable Promotions roster.

Page completed his six-fight UFC deal with a unanimous-decision victory over Nursulton Ruziboev at UFC Paris on Sept. 5. Despite going 5-1 inside the Octagon, the UFC opted against offering the Englishman a new deal after failing to secure a single finish in the promotion.

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Michael Page enters free agency after completing his six-fight UFC contract Paul, the co-founder of MVP, responded to Page's availability with a simple pitch on social media.

“Think it's time to bring MVP to MVP,” the YouTuber-turned-boxer wrote on X.

While he accrued a strong UFC record, with his lone loss coming against the most recent challenger for the welterweight title, Page’s fights drew severe backlash. His lack of output and follow-up shots after brief moments of success on the feet drew the ire of both fans and the promotio…

Justin Gaethje has weighed in on Arman Tsarukyan pulling out of his lone championship opportunity in the Ultimate Fighting Championship.

Tsarukyan was scheduled to challenge Islam Makhachev for the UFC lightweight title at UFC 311 in January 2025. He pulled out the night before weigh-ins due to an alleged back injury and has since been out of the title picture. Gaethje believes Tsarukyan wasn’t on course to make championship weight and used the injury as an excuse.

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Gaethje speculates weight-cutting issues led Tsarukyan to withdraw from his Islam Makhachev title fight Gaethje refuses to believe Tsarukyan was forced out of the fight due to a back injury. He argues that the UFC wouldn’t have treated Tsarukyan as they did if the injury concern was real. Gaethje believes Tsarukyan may have had a difficult weight cut wherein his body came close to shutting down.

“The truth is, he wasn’t gonna make weight, so he dropped out,” Gaethje told Demetrious John…

Justin Gaethje realized he had no money to spend just as he was about to celebrate his first decent paycheck.

Gaethje fought on television for the first time in 2013 under the World Series of Fighting banner. He was supposed to earn $8,000, but was mistakenly paid $10,000. Gaethje went to New York City to celebrate with his family. However, he realized his bank account was frozen due to the payment error when he went to the ATM, leaving him essentially penniless.

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Justin Gaethje recalls going broke early in his career before beating Ilia Topuria for the UFC title Gaethje says he endured an “absolutely terrible” Sunday following his bank account getting frozen. He recalls feeling rich and spending his first paycheck within a month. “The Highlight” didn’t buy anything fancy, spending his money almost entirely on food instead and claims this cycle repeated over and over again.

Now one of the most successful athletes in the sport, the Ultimate Fighting…

Regina Tarin feels divine intervention led her to pursue a professional mixed martial arts career.

Tarin (8-0) tried professional boxing and even considered a pro-wrestling career before an opportunity in the Ultimate Fighting Championship presented itself. She is scheduled to fight J.J. Aldrich (15-7) at Noche UFC 4 on Sept. 12 at Desert Diamond Arena in Glendale, Arizona, in her second Octagon appearance.

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Regina Tarin explains how WWE tryouts and a three-day UFC offer changed her career Tarin was scheduled to fight on Dana White’s Contender Series last year. However, the bout was canceled and she then got a call from the WWE soon after. Tarin participated in their tryouts this past January, and while she was almost set on a WWE career, she asked God if she had chosen the right career path.

The undefeated Mexican then got a call from the UFC to make a debut on three days’ notice. That was the moment that Tarin knew she was destined for MMA. “Kil…

Security had to separate Tommy McMillen and Marwan Rahiki during their run-in at the fighter hotel days before their clash.

McMillen (11-0) and Rahiki (9-0) are set to collide in a highly anticipated matchup of undefeated Ultimate Fighting Championship featherweights at Noche UFC 4 on Sept. 12 at Desert Diamond Arena in Glendale, Arizona.

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Tommy McMillen details altercation with Marwan Rahiki before Noche UFC 4 Bad blood is brewing between the two unbeaten 145-pounder prospects and they’ve taken several shots at one another before fight week. McMillen previously said he’s ready to brawl with Rahiki in a parking lot and doubts whether the Moroccan would be ready to do the same.

The American now claims to have already had a run-in with Rahiki inside an elevator at the fighter hotel. McMillen says he was with his brother and his striking coach when he met Rahiki, who had eight teammates with him.

“I popped up here in the elevator and that’s the …

Kurtis Campbell can’t see his opponents clearly inside the Octagon.

Campbell wears considerably thick-lensed glasses when out of competition. The Liverpool native seems to be heavily dependent on them, putting them back on immediately after his fights. Campbell recently revealed that his eyesight is poor and that his opponents appear blurry to him until they get close.

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Kurtis Campbell explains why his UFC opponents appear blurry across the Octagon While Campbell tried contact lenses when he was young, he was too nervous to put them in. The Ultimate Fighting Championship featherweight eventually got used to fighting without contact lenses and prefers it this way now.

“My eyesight is really bad, but at the same time I love my glasses,” Campbell told Ariel Helwani. “I would never change them… I tried contacts when I was younger, but I was always too nervous; I couldn’t put them in. So, I got used to fighting without them and I don’t think I’ve ever go…

The Rizin Fighting Federation heads to Kyocera Dome Osaka on Sept. 10, with Rizin Super 5 bringing a loaded lineup to Japan.

The event is headlined by a 66 kilogram (145.5 pounds) double-championship fight between Rizin featherweight champion Rajabali Shaidullaev and Professional Fighters League's A.J. McKee, with titles from both organizations on the line. The card also features Mikuru Asakura vs. Shinya Aoki, Ren Hiramoto vs. Karshyga Dautbek and Roberto Satoshi de Souza vs. Shunta Nomura, among others.

Super Rizin 5 weigh-in results for A.J. McKee, Rajabali Shaidullaev and the full cardThe event will be available to stream on RIZIN.TV at 3 a.m. ET/12 a.m. PT on Thursday morning, Sept. 10.Super Rizin 5 weigh-in results Rajabali Shaidullaev (145.5) vs. A.J. McKee (145.4)Mikuru Asakura (156.5) vs. Shinya Aoki (155.8)Karshyga Dautbek (145.2) vs. Ren Hiramoto (145.4)Roberto Satoshi de Souza (156) vs. Shunta Nomura (156.4)Yutaka Saito (145.3) vs. Ren Sugiyama (145.5)Vugar…