Martial Arts News

The featherweight championship clash between Yutaka Saito and Juntaro Ushiku is official for Rizin Fighting Federation 31.

Both the champion and the challenger made weight on Saturday ahead of their 145-pound title tilt. Saito tipped the scales at 145.3 pounds, while Ushiku checked in at 144.8. Rizin 31 takes place at Pia Arena in Yokohama, Japan and will also see Kanna Asakura (107.6 pounds) square off against Saori Oshima (105.7) in the co-main event. The card can be viewed via pay-per-view here.

Saito claimed the featherweight crown with a unanimous decision triumph over Mikuru Asakura at Rizin 25. He has won three straight under the Rizin banner, including a split verdict against Vugar Karamov in a non-title bout at Rizin 28 in his last outing.

Ushiku is the reigning Deep featherweight champion and is coming off a split-decision win over Daisuke Nakamura in a title bout at Deep 102 Impact this past July. He has won seven of his last eight professional appear…

One-half of your main event LOCKED @BorrachinhaMMA

[ #UFCVegas41 | Tomorrow | Live on ESPN+ ] pic.twitter.com/YJLq775mNd

— UFC (@ufc) October 22, 2021 Sign up for ESPN+ right here, and you can then stream the UFC live on your smart TV, computer, phone, tablet or streaming device via the ESPN app. The drama over the middleweight-turned-light heavyweight Ultimate Fighting Championship headliner came to an end when Paulo Costa hit the scales.

The UFC Fight Night 196 card being held inside the UFC Apex in Las Vegas on Saturday was to have a middleweight main event between Costa (13-1) and Marvin Vettori (17-5-1) in a battle of former title challengers and Israel Adesanya foes. On Wednesday, Costa announced he would not be making weight, and after a tumultuous turn of events on Thursday, the two agreed to a 195-pound catchweight limit before shifting it later that night to 205 pounds. Although this is a significant asterisk, every fighter o…

[youtube https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=22wredTJ-Dc&w=560&h=315] A storied kickboxing rivalry that began over a decade ago will see its rubber match play out atop Glory: Collision 3 for heavyweight gold.

On Saturday, Glory Kickboxing will put on a blockbuster pay-per-view offering with heavyweights in the main and co-headlining slots. The marquee matchup pits Rico Verhoeven (58-10, 18 KOs) against Jamal Ben Saddik (36-8, 1 NC; 29 KOs) for all the marbles. All 20 competitors on this kickboxing showcase event successfully made weight ahead of the show.

Since losing a decision to Semmy Schilt at Glory 4 in 2012, Verhoeven has gone on an incredible run inside the Glory ring, winning his next 20 fights with the organization. The champ successfully defended his strap nine times, including once over Ben Saddik in 2017 in an absolute thriller that ended in the fifth frame. Along the way, Verhoeven also entered into a pair of one-night Glory heavyweight tournaments in 2013 and 2…

[youtube https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=1t70sSmSX-8&w=560&h=315] The bantamweight title tilt atop the latest KSW offering feels like a postlim after the two goliaths hit the scales in the co-main event.

At KSW 64, the fight card at the Atlas Arena in Lodz, Poland, will be capped off by a 135-pound championship affair pitting Sebastian Przybysz (8-2) against Bruno Augusto dos Santos (10-2). Despite gold on the line in that one, all eyes will instead be on the super heavyweight slugfest between Mariusz Pudzianowski (15-7, 1 NC) and Serigne Ousmane Dia (2-0). Like the days of Pride Fighting Championships, one competitor comfortably eclipsed the 300-pound mark with no issues. Two preliminary fighters did miss weight, but the event is now cleared to carry on.

Przybysz wrested the bantamweight belt from Antun Racic at KSW 59 in a bit of an upset, surviving a knockdown and making it to the end to capture a decision after five hard-fought rounds. The challenger Santos has gone…

BREAKING: Multiple sources inform me Josh Emmett has booked his UFC return against Dan Ige at #UFC269. This card is amazing. https://t.co/piGxeq51Oa

— Cole Shelton (@ColeShelton91) October 22, 2021 Sign up for ESPN+ right here, and you can then stream the UFC live on your smart TV, computer, phone, tablet or streaming device via the ESPN app. Top-10 Ultimate Fighting Championship featherweights will dance on a card that is already stacked from bow to stern. The year-end UFC pay-per-view card of UFC 269, which already has a full main card as listed by the organization, has gained another major fight. Josh Emmett (16-2) will make his return after a year and a half away to take on Dan Ige (15-4) in a battle that practically guarantees action from bell to bell. The news of this Dec. 11 booking was first reported by BJPenn.com late on Thursday, and it was subsequently by multiple outlets and the UFC’s broadcast partner of ESPN on Friday.

The fight …

[youtube https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=lsR89SPixaQ&w=560&h=315] After nearly a month off, the Legacy Fighting Alliance is back with a vengeance in a mile-high arena in Colorado.

LFA 116 goes down in the Dobson Arena in Vail, Colo., on Friday night on UFC Fight Pass. Capping off the 13-fight billing is a middleweight clash pitting Josh Fremd (7-2) against Renato Valente Alves (8-4). Of the 26 competitors to hit the scales – including the first eight in the amateur ranks – only one fighter missed weight: Dan Argueta (138)*, who came in two pounds above the bantamweight limit. His matchup with Rodney Mondala will otherwise continue as planned, although Mondala will receive a percentage of Argueta’s purse as a result.

Fremd will be looking to rebound from the first knockout loss of his career, as he fell short to future Ultimate Fighting Championship signee Gregory Rodrigues in May by knockout at the end of the middleweight tournament. Three wins under the LFA banner led h…

[youtube https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=TC8Avuctzqw&w=560&h=315] Sign up for ESPN+ right here, and you can then stream the UFC live on your smart TV, computer, phone, tablet or streaming device via the ESPN app. Editor's note: The article has been updated at 9 p.m. ET on Oct. 21 to reflect a change in the weight classification. The upcoming Ultimate Fighting Championship main event has gone through several transformations before setting on a new weight class on Thursday night.

At UFC Fight Night 196 Media Day on Wednesday, Paulo Costa stated matter-of-factly that he would not be able to reach the middleweight limit of 186 pounds come Friday for the weigh-ins. There were immediate concerns their headlining matchup would be scuttled, as Costa admitted to weighing 211 pounds on Wednesday afternoon, thus requiring a drastic 25-pound cut in less than 48 hours.

During that interview with the media, Costa hoped that he and Marvin Vettori could meet at 195 pounds or higher,…

[youtube https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=-9_7lsqQm5A&w=560&h=315] Sign up for ESPN+ right here, and you can then stream the UFC, PFL, Dana White’s Contender Series and “The Ultimate Fighter” live on your smart TV, computer, phone, tablet or streaming device via the ESPN app. The Professional Fighters League now has an anthem by famed musician Wiz Khalifa. On Thursday, the PFL announced via press release that partner and investor Khalifa, a Grammy nominee, has created a song for the league. The song, titled “Million Dollar Moment,” was written in honor of the fighters involved in the 2021 season of the PFL tournament. In addition to its release, Khalifa will perform the track live at the event on Oct. 27 at its championships show.

“I had a great time making this song with [music producer] Sledgren because it allowed me to create something that will be a big part of the PFL with my MMA family,” Khalifa said in the release. “I can’t wait to perform it at the Championship next w…

Sign up for ESPN+ right here, and you can then stream the UFC live on your smart TV, computer, phone, tablet or streaming device via the ESPN app. At a combined age over 80, this December Ultimate Fighting Championship lightweight tilt will be among the eldest in divisional history. On Wednesday, Clay Guida (36-21) announced on his Instagram that he would be taking on Leonardo Santos (18-4-1) at UFC on ESPN 31. The two longtime lightweights will toe the line on Dec. 4 at the UFC Apex in Las Vegas.

“We’ve got a Veteran matchup December 4th on ESPN!!!” Guida wrote when posting a matchup image of he and his opponent. “Wrestling vs. JiuJitsu See ya in Vegas!!! The Best is yet to Come!!!”

Guida will be taking this match four days before his 40th birthday, and the 57-fight vet last competed in August where he fell short by split decision to Mark O. Madsen. “The Carpenter” will be entering into his 32nd UFC bout when he faces Santos, tying Diego Sanchez for the sixth-most in …

Kevin Lee received a temporary suspension from the Nevada State Athletic Commission after testing positive for a banned stimulant.

Lee tested positive for the amphetamine Adderall in relation to his UFC on ESPN 30 loss to Daniel Rodriguez. The NSAC voted to further extend a temporary suspension during a Wednesday hearing. Lee’s case is expected to be heard at the next commission meeting on Nov. 17.

Lee released a statement via Instagram apologizing for his failed drug test.

“I have tested over the limit allowed by the Nevada State Athletic Commission in my most recent fight. In 2018 I was diagnosed with Adult ADHD, it has always affected me,” Lee wrote. “I did not discover real treatment for the diagnosis until 2020 when I was recovering from my double knee surgeries. I was prescribed Adderall from a doctor to improve my mental Health. I told representatives from USADA but did not apply for a Therapeutic Use Exemption from the NSAC before my last fight. For that…

WHAT A COMEBACK FOR BRUNO SILVA

[ #UFCVegas40 | Prelims LIVE on @ESPNPlus ] pic.twitter.com/GlR4TlL5EE

— UFC (@ufc) October 16, 2021 After two impressive wins in the UFC’s middleweight division, former M-1 champion Bruno Silva is slated to return to the Octagon in less than two months.

In an interview with Sherdog.com, Silva revealed that UFC matchmakers called his manager after his victory at UFC Fight Night 195.

“My initial plan was to return next year, but when my manager called me on the day following the event with a very interesting proposal to fight [at UFC 269] in December… I agreed immediately,” Silva said.

Silva is scheduled to sign his bout agreement on Wednesday, but he was unable to reveal the name of his opponent.

“He is not in the top 15 middleweight rankings yet, but I accepted the proposal immediately because he is a great opponent. He is taller than me and likes to stand and bang and not stall fights. I …