Martial Arts News

If Khabib Nurmagomedov elects to return to the Octagon for one last fight, he figures to have plenty of suitors.

While some of the most likely potential opponents — Conor McGregor, Dustin Poirier, Michael Chandler and Dan Hooker — occupy the upcoming UFC 257 card, Max Holloway wouldn’t back down if given the opportunity. The former featherweight champion returned to peak form in the UFC on ABC 1 headliner Saturday, as he authored a record-setting beatdown of Calvin Kattar at Etihad Arena in Abu Dhabi.

One day prior to the event, Nurmagomedov and UFC president Dana White met to discuss the lightweight champion’s plans. The session wasn't particularly revealing, but “The Eagle” did leave the door slightly open for a comeback.

“Khabib wanted somebody to impress him, if I did impress him – because I know the way he thinks,” Holloway said. “He wants to fight for his legacy, he doesn’t care about money. He wants the toughest opponents. If I got to push him over the…

According to his Facebook, former UFC fighter Paul Varelans passed away today after a long battle with COVID.

I talked to Paul for a couple of my books and he was a fun guy with a big sense of humor.

Will be missed. pic.twitter.com/xbfScMWPTg — The OFFICIAL MMA Encyclopedia (@JESnowden) January 17, 2021

UFC pioneer Paul Varelans has died after a lengthy fight against COVID-19.

Varelans passed away due to complications from the virus on Saturday, according to his Facebook page. He initially revealed his COVID-19 diagnosis via social media on Dec. 12. “Best way I can compare the feel of COVID-19 in my experiance [sic] is it’s like fighting a guy who specializes in kidney punches they never stop coming,” he wrote regarding the illness.

Less than a week later, he was placed on a ventilator in a medically induced coma at a hospital in Atlanta. Varelans was 51 years old.

A 6-foot-8, 300-pound Alaska native who played college f…

Stipe Miocic and Francis Ngannou will square off for a second time with heavyweight gold on the line at UFC 260.

UFC president Dana White confirmed the pairing during the UFC on ABC 1 post-fight press conference on Saturday. UFC 260 takes place on March 27 at an as yet to be announced location and will see Alexander Volkanovski defend his featherweight crown against Brian Ortega in the co-main event.

Miocic earned a convincing five-round verdict against Ngannou during his first title reign at UFC 220 in January 2018. The Ohio-based firefighter then went 2-1 in a trilogy with Daniel Cormier, concluding that rivalry with a decision win at UFC 252 this past August. Miocic has won eight of his last nine UFC bouts overall.

Ngannou is currently on a four-bout winning streak in which he has finished all four of his foes inside of a round. Most recently, “The Predator” knocked out Jairzinho Rozenstruik in 20 seconds at UFC 249 in May 2020.

Max Holloway’s brilliance and Calvin Kattar’s toughness earned them a little extra bonus money on Saturday night.

Holloway and Kattar received “Fight of the Night” honors and $50,000 apiece for their five-round battle in the UFC on ABC 1 headliner at Etihad Arena in Abu Dhabi. Holloway put on a clinic in earning a trio of lopsided scorecards from the cageside judges, but Kattar kept swinging right up until the final horn in a memorable kickoff to the promotion’s 2021 schedule.

Elsewhere, Jingliang Li earned a $50,000 “Performance of the Night” check by spoiling the return of Santiago Ponzinibbio in a featured welterweight affair. A massive counter left hook from “The Leech” floored Ponzinibbio and a follow-up hammerfist snapped his foe’s seven-bout winning streak 4:25 into Round 1.

Finally, Alessio Di Chirico garnered the evening’s other $50,000 “Performance of the Night” bonus for flipping the script on viral knockout artist Joaquin Buckley in a main-card midd…

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. Max Holloway was about as close to perfect as a fighter can get. The former Ultimate Fighting Championship featherweight titleholder pistol whipped Calvin Kattar for five rounds in an epic beatdown, as he laid claim to a lopsided unanimous decision in the UFC on ABC 1 headliner on Saturday at Etihad Arena in Abu Dhabi, United Arab Emirates. Scores were 50-43, 50-43 and 50-42, all for the victorious Holloway (22-6, 18-6 UFC).

Kattar (22-5, 6-3 UFC) had no chance. Holloway overwhelmed him with volume, variety and violence for five rounds, unleashing every weapon in his arsenal with sadistic glee. It was undeniably uncomfortable at times. Multi-punch bursts to the head and body were followed by knees, kicks and elbows, one of which opened a horrendous gash on Kattar’s scalp. The Methuen, Massachusetts, native returned fire on occas…

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. Sherdog's live UFC on ABC 1 coverage will begin Saturday at 12 p.m. ET. Check out the MMA Forums to discuss the card or enter your comments and predictions below. Round 1 Sherdog Scores Jay Pettry scores the round:Tristen Critchfield scores the round:Tyler Treese scores the round:Round 2 Sherdog Scores Jay Pettry scores the round:Tristen Critchfield scores the round:Tyler Treese scores the round:Round 3 Sherdog Scores Jay Pettry scores the round:Tristen Critchfield scores the round:Tyler Treese scores the round:The Official Result Round 1 Sherdog Scores Jay Pettry scores the round:Tristen Critchfield scores the round:Tyler Treese scores the round:Round 2 Sherdog Scores Jay Pettry scores the round:Tristen Critchfield scores the round:Tyler Treese scores the round:Round 3 Sherdog Scores Jay Pettry scores the round:Tristen Critchfie…

Overwhelmed with emotion!@JoselyneMMA29 with the win at #UFCFightIsland7.

[ #InAbuDhabi | @VisitAbuDhabi ] pic.twitter.com/yhSx8C9Tlv

— UFC (@ufc) January 16, 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. Joselyne Edwards proved she belongs at the sport’s highest level.

The promotional newcomer made a successful Ultimate Fighting Championship debut as a short-notice replacement for Bethe Correia, as she captured a unanimous decision against Yanan Wu in the featured UFC on ABC 1 prelim on Saturday at Etihad Arena in Abu Dhabi, United Arab Emirates. Edwards (10-2, 1-0 UFC) swept the scorecards with 30-27, 30-27 and 29-28 nods from the judges.

Wu (11-4, 1-3 UFC) had her moments — she did her best work in the third round, where she connected with a right hook that snapped her opponent’s head sideways — but appeared to be a step…

Prior to the UFC’s debut on ABC, the revelation of Khabib Nurmagomedov’s next move was billed as something akin to LeBron James’ infamous “Decision.” In reality, it wasn’t much of a decision at all.

UFC president Dana White revealed the gist of his meeting with Nurmagomedov during Saturday’s broadcast, but as it turns out, the lightweight champion didn’t reveal anything definitive regarding a potential comeback.

At best, Nurmagomeodv is taking a wait-and-see approach.

“Like I said, I thought that in his last fight his father had passed away, he’d been through a lot,” White said. “He’d been away from his family during that time, got injured while he was training and I thought that he made an emotional decision. There was no reason to make a hasty decision like that then when he didn’t have to.

“I talked to him, I told him to take his time. We would get together later on. Last night, we did. And basically the way that he feels right now is, he’s accomplished…

Alexander Volkanovski will defend his featherweight belt against Brian Ortega at UFC 260.

Promotion broadcast partner ESPN was first to report the pairing. UFC 260 takes place on March 29 at an as yet to be announced location. According to the report, Volkanovski vs. Ortega will serve as the co-main event because a heavyweight championship clash pitting Stipe Miocic against Francis Ngannou has been targeted for the evening’s headliner. However, that heavyweight bout has not been finalized.

Volkanovski claimed featherweight gold with a five-round verdict against Max Holloway at UFC 245 and successfully defended the crown with a contentious split verdict over the Hawaiian in their rematch at UFC 251 this past July. The 32-year-old City Kickboxing representative has won 19 consecutive fights — including nine in the UFC.

Ortega, meanwhile, will get a second shot at the 145-pound belt after taking a beating from Holloway in a fourth-round TKO defeat at UFC 231 in De…

Eldar Eldarov mixed up wrestling with strikes to close the round. A fantastic showing from the 29-year-old. #BRAVECF46 pic.twitter.com/itTHDhVynv

— BRAVE Combat Federation (@bravemmaf) January 16, 2021

Eldar Eldarov scored his first title defense in Brave Combat Federation’s opening event of 2021.

Eldarov (13-1) put his 165-pound championship on the line against Leonardo Mafra Texeira (15-6) in the main event of Brave CF 46 at Wow Arena in Sochi, Russia, on Saturday. After a few seconds of studying, Eldarov teased Mafra with a boxing combination, setting the tone for the rest of the round. The defending champion looked pretty confident with his punches, many of which found their way to Mafra’s face with ease. The Brazilian challenger retaliated with a few punches and some knees of his own.

In the last minute, Eldarov pushed the pace to take Mafra to the canvas. Even though “Macarrao" managed to defend the takedown attempt, he ate a few p…

UFC on ABC 1 is down to 10 bouts after a last-minute injury forced Phil Hawes out of a proposed middleweight clash against Nassourdine Imavov.

The promotion announced the news on Saturday morning. It was revealed on the broadcast that Hawes suffered some type of leg injury. UFC on ABC 1 takes place at Etihad Arena in Abu Dhabi and is headlined by a featherweight clash between Max Holloway and Calvin Kattar. Hawes vs. Imavov was set for the prelims which air on ESPN+ beginning at 12 p.m. ET/9 p.m. PT. The main card airs on ABC and ESPN+ at 3 p.m. ET/12 p.m. PT.

Hawes earned a UFC contract with a 78-second TKO of Khadzhimurat Bestaev on Dana White’s Contender Series this past August before scoring an 18-second KO of Jacob Malkoun in his promotional debut at UFC 254.

Imavov was also successful in his first promotional foray, as he outpointed Jordan Williams at UFC on ESPN 16. The 25-year-old MMA Factory product has been victorious in his last six professional outi…

.@NyquilNick vs. @AEstrazulasMMA is now up in the main event of #LFA97!

Who will talk away the #andNEW LFA #lightweight champion?@ShellsDotCom@USENDmoney@Krushmatized@PsoRite@GLCDirect2000@AthleticCBD@IncaKolaUSA@HartmanArena@UFCFightPass pic.twitter.com/klYd0wKXzH

— LFA (@LFAfighting) January 16, 2021 The Legacy Fighting Alliance lightweight championship is vacant no more. The main event of LFA 97 saw Nick Browne and Arthur Estrazulas compete in the biggest fight of their professional mixed martial arts careers. Even on the judges' scorecards after two rounds, Estrazulas (12-5) would rock Browne (11-1) with a huge counter left hook to start Round 3. However, the wrestling of Browne would let him recover as he managed to control his Brazilian opponent. The two fighters continued to go back-and-forth in the championship rounds, with each man landing damaging blows and trading positions. After five grueling rounds, Browne was awarded the …