Martial Arts News

Islam Makhachev will make his first welterweight title defense at UFC 330. | Getty/UFC

Some championship hardware will be at stake when the Octagon touches down in the City of Brotherly Love later this summer.

The Las Vegas-based promotion confirmed that UFC 330 will be headlined by a welterweight title tilt between Islam Makhachev and Ian Garry, while Mackenzie Dern will defend her strawweight crown against Gillian Robertson in the evening’s co-main event. Both matchups have been rumored for quite some time but had not been officially announced by the UFC until Wednesday. UFC 330 takes place on Aug. 15 at Xfinity Mobile Arena in Philadelphia and airs in its entirety on Paramount+.

After a successful reign at 155 pounds that included four successful title defenses, Makhachev moved up to welterweight at UFC 322, where he claimed that division’s belt with a dominant five-round verdict against Jack Della Maddalena this past November. The 34-year-old Dagest…

A Professional Fighters League event slated for Friday in Jeddah, Saudia Arabia has been postponed just days before the event.

The promotion announced on Wednesday that PFL MENA 10 has been “postponed until further notice.” The PFL is evaluating future dates for the event and will provide an update as soon as more information is available.

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Top notch featherweights headline PFL San Diego: Tune in Saturday, June 27 at 9 p.m. ET on ESPN.

“The decision is based on internal operational and event readiness considerations, as we continue to ensure the highest standards of delivery,” the release states. “We remain committed to hosting PFL MENA in Jeddah and look forward to welcoming fans for what promises to be another exciting night of world-class mixed martial arts action."

PFL MENA 10 was scheduled to be headlined by Hattan Alsaif making her professional MMA debut against Dania Ouhachi in a 110-pound catchweight clash. The event was also expected…

Conor McGregor believes the UFC didn’t want him to return to competition at welterweight. 

McGregor (22-6) returns from a five-year hiatus in a welterweight tilt against Max Holloway (27-9) at UFC 329 on July 11 at the T-Mobile Arena in Las Vegas. There were brief rumors of McGregor potentially returning against surging welterweight contender Carlos Prates.

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McGregor recently confirmed that Prates had indeed been suggested to him as an opponent. “Notorious” claims he verbally accepted a matchup against Prates. However, McGregor claims he didn’t receive any contract after accepting the booking. McGregor believes the UFC wanted him to return at lightweight. According to McGregor, the UFC brass was suggesting tough matchups for him to scare him away from the welterweight division.Ready and Willing “They said to me about [Prates],” McGregor said on "The Ariel Helwani Show.” “I said, ‘Yeah, no problem. Send the contract.’ So I’m saying yeah for about …

Israel Adesanya believes Arman Tsarukyan needs to be more dialed in to reach the pinnacle of the sport.  

Tsarukyan (23-3) is among the most popular stars in the UFC today, partly due to his regular appearances with social media inlfuencers like Sneako, N3on, and Nina Marie-Daniele. Adesanya believes Tsarukyan needs to spend more time training instead of hanging out with streamers if he wants to reach the very top of the sport. Adesanya admits that Tsarukyan’s popularity has skyrocketed due to his social media. However, the former middleweight champion believes Tsarukyan might find himself sidelined from the UFC lightweight title picture yet again.

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Choosing Priorities “[Arman’s] streaming… Look, he knows how to train, he knows what to do but, to be at the top-top of the game, you can't be hanging out with Sneako and N3on on the regular,” Adesanya said on "The Mightycast.” “You gotta be in the gym… You gotta be at least as active as possible…

Not everyone counted out Justin Gaethje ahead of his fight against Ilia Topuria. 

Gaethje (28-5) challenged Topuria (17-1) for the undisputed lightweight title in the main event at UFC White House last weekend at the White House. Gaethje was as big as a +500 underdog on some sportsbooks going into the fight. 

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However, Francis Ngannou thought the oddsmakers were being unfair to Gaethje. The former UFC heavyweight champion couldn’t fathom why Gaethje was such a massive underdog, considering “The Highlight” always put on a show even in his losses. Ngannou put his money on Gaethje, who made Topuria’s corner throw in the towel at the end of the fourth round. Gaethje finally won the much deserved undisputed title in his third attempt. Ngannou thanked the newly crowned lightweight champion for making his week.A Beautiful Week“I bet on Gaethje,” Ngannou told TMZ Sports. “I saw these odds and I’m like, ‘Something’s wrong with these bookmakers.’ Lik…

Dalton Rosta is 2-2 under the PFL banner. | PFL MMA

A middleweight bout pitting Bryan Battle against Dalton Rosta will headline PFL Charlotte on Aug. 7.

Professional Fighters League announced the pairing on Wednesday. The event takes place at the Bojangles Coliseum in Charlotte, North Carolina, and also includes two other confirmed 185-pound pairings: Joshua Silveira vs. Aaron Jeffery and Josh Fremd vs. Jhony Gregory. The PFL Charlotte main card airs on ESPN at 10 p.m. ET/7 p.m. PT.

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Top notch featherweights headline PFL San Diego: Tune in Saturday, June 27 at 9 p.m. ET on ESPN.

Battle signed with PFL last year following a UFC stint where he went 7-1 with one no contest but was plagued by issues making weight. “The Butcher” faced former middleweight champ Johnny Eblen in his organizational debut, falling via first-round submission at PFL Pittsburgh on March 28.

Anchored at American Top Team, Rosta has split four PFL appearanc…

Youssef Zalal is eyeing a matchup against Kevin Vallejos. 

Zalal recently called out Vallejos for his previous comments. “The Moroccan Devil” believes he will give Vallejos a reality check if they meet inside the Octagon.

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“Let that guy talk, I hope they give me his name,” Zalal told Home of Fight. “I want to see that contract. I’ll show him the ‘kid that runs, the kid that circles, and is not fun to fight’... I can’t wait to give him a reality check and show him there’s levels to this.”On a Collison Course? Zalal’s (18-6) first UFC run ended in 2022 after going winless in four straight outings. However, Zalal returned to the UFC in 2024 after three consecutive first-round finishes on the regional circuit. Zalal went undefeated in five straight outings, with four finishes, in his second UFC stint. Zalal’s impressive run ended with a lopsided decision loss against Aljamain Sterling this past April.

Vallejos was rooting for Sterling to defeat Zal…

Alex Pereira wasn’t expecting the reaction that Jon Jones had to his loss against Ciryl Gane. 

Pereira faced Gane for the interim heavyweight title at UFC White House last weekend. Gane hurt Pereira in the second round and finished him on the feet, albeit not without the controversy of some illegal blows. 

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Jones reacted to Pereira’s loss by posting a video of himself wearing a GOAT necklace, signifying the greatest fighter of all time. Pereira was admittedly surprised by Jones’ reaction to his loss. Pereira doesn’t understand why Jones chose to kick him while he was down. Pereira also notes that he had never shown anything but respect towards “Bones.” Despite the reaction, “Poatan” claims he will continue being a fan of Jones.A Confusing Reaction “To be honest, I was very surprised,” Pereira said on YouTube. “If I was one of the guys that provoked him, then lose, and then he goes and says something, I’d understand. But I’ve never spoken bad…

Alexander Volkanovski believes Arman Tsarukyan didn’t make a wise decision by not weighing in as the backup fighter for the main event of the UFC White House card. 

Tsarukyan (23-3) was officially the backup fighter for the lightweight title fight between Ilia Topuria and Justin Gaethje at UFC Freedom 250 last weekend at the White House. However, Tsarukyan had previously clarified that he would only weigh in as the backup fighter if he saw some serious chance of someone pulling out. “Ahalkalakets” eventually chose not to weigh in as the backup and wrestled Tony Ferguson at RAF 10 instead. Meanwhile, Diego Lopes, who was already scheduled to fight Steve Garcia in a featherweight matchup at the White House, also weighed in as the backup for the main event between Topuria and Gaethje.

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Volkanovski believes Tsarukyan hurt his chances in the UFC by choosing not to weigh in as the backup. According to the UFC featherweight champion, the UFC likes comp…

“The back of the head” is a tricky area in MMA, according to Herb Dean. 

Cyril Gane (14-2) and Alex Pereira (13-4) clashed for the interim heavyweight title at UFC White House. Gane hurt Pereira with a jab early in the second round and swarmed him with punches. As Pereira dropped to the canvas, Gane landed multiple blows to the back of the head without any warning from Dean, who was the referee. While Pereira got back to his feet, Gane finished him soon after with a vicious flurry. 

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Dean has faced severe backlash for allowing Gane’s shots to the back of Pereira’s head, which have been widely deemed illegal. Pereira also holds Dean partly accountable for his loss, especially after emphasizing illegal blows to the back of the head during the rules meeting before the fight. 

Dean has now defended his stance while elaborating on the rule. According to Dean, the rule should actually be called illegal blows to “the nape of the neck.” Dean…

Justin Gaethje entered the White House as the UFC's biggest underdog and left as the biggest winner of the night. After ending Ilia Topuria's undefeated streak, Gaethje took home his belt and two bonuses.

The American's ground coach, Jorge Santiago, spoke with Sherdog.com on Monday about the victory and revealed interesting details about what went on behind the scenes at UFC White House. Having won belts in organizations such as Sengoku and Strikeforce, the Brazilian revealed that he was moved by the show.

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"It was a unique experience. There will never be a show like this. I never imagined seeing the political capital of the USA closed to our sport. Everything was approved by the Secret Service. After all, they had already tried to assassinate the president twice, so it was an impressive level of care. We would pass through a gate and there was an FBI clearance; when we got in the car we couldn't talk to the agents or we would have to go back and do …

Conor McGregor is set for his long-awaited return at UFC 329. | Getty/UFC

Conor McGregor apparently has a timeframe in place for his next two UFC bouts.

McGregor is scheduled to return for the first time since July 2021 when he faces Max Holloway in a welterweight contest at UFC 329 on July 11. In an interview on "The Ariel Helwani Show," the former two-division champion revealed that he has two fights left on his current deal — and the date for his final bout is also tentatively in place. However, McGregor isn’t necessarily pleased by the potential layoff between those two bookings.

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"Right now, I am contracted, and I have both dates," McGregor said. "I have both dates for my fights. I have July 11 and I have – where would you think they would put me back in? When would you think they would put me back in? April 2027. It's almost a year later. That's ridiculous to me. No? This is the way the contract was done. I have my second dat…