Martial Arts News

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. Chalk up one more acquisition for the Ultimate Fighting Championship from the Invicta Fighting Championships ranks. On Friday, Mexican outlet Milenio reported that Montserrat Ruiz (9-1) would be stepping up on short notice to compete at UFC on ESPN 21 on March 20. The fighter out of Mexico will be replacing Kay Hansen, as the latter suffered an injury and was forced to withdraw from the contest. Ruiz will meet fellow debutant Cheyanne Buys (5-1), and she confirmed that she would be making her Octagon debut on this card on her Instagram.

Ruiz made her Invicta debut in 2018, where she dropped a decision verdict to UFC vet Danielle Taylor and suffered her first career loss in the process. Some 19 months later, “Conejo” returned to face former Invicta strawweight title challenger Janaisa Morandin, and she pulled off a thrilling …

The currently unnamed Ultimate Fighting Championship pay-per-view in May has just made some major additions.

Three bouts were added the last few days to UFC 262, which will take place on May 15 presumably at the UFC Apex in Las Vegas. The event does not have a headliner, but it has a few significant matches to bolster it including a lightweight clash between Tony Ferguson (25-5) and Beneil Dariush (20-4-1), as reported by MMA Junkie on Friday. UFC’s broadcast partner ESPN subsequently confirmed that this booking was being finalized shortly after the news broke.

Ferguson, once the proud owner of a spectacular 12-fight win streak where he captured an interim lightweight belt only to lose it due to injury, has fallen on hard times in 2020. “El Cucuy,” who is currently on the first multiple-bout skid of his career, vied for the interim strap once again against Justin Gaethje at UFC 249, only to fall short while suffering his first career knockout loss. Ferguson returned to…

Our quarterfinal matchups for the ONE Atomweight World Grand Prix! Who makes it to the next round? @_itsuki_h_ @PhogatRitu #WeAreONE #ONEChampionship pic.twitter.com/rW44NBsoRf

— ONE Championship (@ONEChampionship) March 12, 2021 The One Championship atomweight tournament will officially begin on May 28.

On Thursday night, ESPN announced that One would commence its atomweight (115 pounds) grand prix on May 28. Although the existence of the tournament and its field was previously publicized, the brackets have now been unveiled. Additionally, the event titled “Empower” will exclusively consist of female fighters for the promotion, and it will take place in Singapore. Finally, a strawweight (125 pounds) title tilt will sit atop the event. One shared this information shortly after the ESPN report via press release, while stating that other bouts may be added to this card in the future.

In the main event, Jingnan Xiong (15-2) will put her 125…

[youtube https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=6mWMbVxRVus&w=560&h=315] Not one but two fighters ahead of LFA 101 missed weight by over four pounds.

The Legacy Fighting Alliance puts on its first of three March events this weekend. Atop LFA 101: The Undefeated is a 210.4-pound catchweight match between Anthony Kalani and Tee Cummins. As the name suggests, the card is largely comprised of fighters that haven’t suffered a loss yet. The eight-fight event is now official as the weigh-ins took place on Thursday, but multiple fighters missed weight.

Fighting out of Huntington Beach, Calif., Kalani (5-0) has the most impressive undefeated record on the card. This will be the HB Ultimate product’s first fight inside the LFA. The Gladiator Challenge veteran has finished four of his five pro bouts, and will look to create another highlight on Friday night. Unfortunately, Kalani officially weighed in at 210.4 pounds, officially 4.4 pounds over the light heavyweight limit.

This will be…

Just to clear a few things up... https://t.co/xxHKs7x7Ai pic.twitter.com/jAq7HGw8e5

— Dan Hardy (@danhardymma) March 10, 2021 Former Ultimate Fighting Championship title challenger Dan Hardy has put out a statement to dispel rumors about his dispute with the organization.

On Wednesday, Hardy released a statement from his personal Full Reptile webpage, where he explained what happened between him and the unnamed UFC staffer he allegedly argued with. The rumors swirled in recent days, which emanated from Dave Meltzer’s Wrestling Observer Newsletter, stating that Hardy had been let go from the UFC due to an “incident” with a female employee while covering an event on Yas Island in Abu Dhabi, United Arab Emirates. Hardy then disputed a report from BJPenn.com about the alleged altercation, while stating that he is no longer working with the UFC and that the gender of the staff member involved was not relevant.

In his statement, Hardy discussed …

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. A burgeoning Ultimate Fighting Championship star is set to make a quick turnaround in April. The UFC announced on Thursday from a press release and later on its Twitter page that Julian Marquez (8-2) will be stepping up to take on Sam Alvey (33-14-1, 1 NC) in just under a month. The two will square off at middleweight at UFC on ABC 2, which takes place on April 10 at the UFC Apex in Las Vegas. Alvey was originally slated to face Zak Cummings, but the latter withdrew for currently undisclosed reasons and has been replaced by his Glory MMA & Fitness teammate Marquez.

Marquez made his triumphant return to form after over two and a half years away by submitting Maki Pitolo at UFC 258. Marquez endeared himself to fans after his performance by calling out pop star Miley Cyrus, asking her to be his valentine -- she later agreed…

Fight 10 (Main Event)

"Omak" Abdysalam Uulu Kubanychiev (18-3) dominates Rolando Dy (14-10) forcing him to quit between rounds. Excellent timing and range w/ the jabs & boxing combined with takedowns and a strong top game. Title shot next for Omak. pic.twitter.com/pJbcmsDwYj

— Dusty Andrews (@Fight_Expert) March 11, 2021 Brave Combat Federation put on an action-packed show with ten fights that brought nine finishes including eight knockouts. The Brave CF 47 main event featured a lightweight battle between Abdisalam Kubanychbek (17-2) and Ultimate Fighting Championship alum Rolando Dy (14-10-1). “The Incredible” looked good in the first part of the opening frame as his educated jab found his way to the Kyrgyz fighter’s chin. Kubanychbek was slow in finding his pace, but once he did, he closed the distance and shot for takedowns. After taking “The Incredible” to the mat, Kubanychbek trapped Dy with his back against the fence and punished…

Welcome to #TrillerFightClub @ivan_redkach @RPrograis @thefrankmir @AntonioTarver #JoeFournier & @reykon! Grab your PPV tickets at https://t.co/agXiM6B4sV pic.twitter.com/aIe3wBfZf2

— TRILLER (@triller) March 11, 2021 > A former Ultimate Fighting Championship heavyweight king will be testing out the sweet science with gloves on first.

From a press release sent out by Triller Fight Club on Thursday, the April 17 boxing event headlined by Jake Paul vs. Ben Askren has gained a trio of matches for its undercard. In the first, Frank Mir (19-13 MMA) will square off against Antonio Tarver (31-6-1, 22 KOs) in a match previously reported by Mir in February. The heavyweight boxing clash was awaiting clearance from the Georgia Athletic and Entertainment Commission, but it has now been made official. Additionally, a super lightweight bout between Regis Prograis (25-1, 21 KOs) and Ivan Redkach (23-5, 18 KOs) has been added to the card. Finally, ligh…

The mixed martial arts world lost one of its most-regarded referees from Europe.

On Wednesday, the news of referee Neil Hall’s death hit home. Hall, 55, passed away after battling with COVID-19. Hall’s family announced the sad news, revealing that he caught the virus after being hospitalized to treat a silent infection developed after a back operation.

“Sadly, Neil Hall passed away today,” they wrote. “He had a back operation in August and picked up an infection in the surgery area which wasn’t found till late January. He went into hospital for intravenous antibiotics for a week then came home, unfortunately it was with COVID. He spent three weeks trying to fight Covid pneumonia but sadly he lost his fight today. Over the years, Neil has met many people from all over the world and has had lots of fantastic experiences. Today we have to say goodbye to him.”

Hall had a few professional bouts as an MMA fighter, competing under the Pride and Glory and the Cage Warr…

【パンクラス】王者ISAOと最強チャレンジャー中島太一が激突、21年はフェザー級タイトル戦で開幕＝5.30新木場#ISAO #中島太一 #PANCRASEhttps://t.co/PAdMQiMJFH

— eFight（イーファイト）格闘技＆フィットネス情報 (@efight_twit) March 10, 2021

A legendary Japanese promotion has announced its first event for 2021.

On Wednesday morning, Pancrase announced that Isao Kobayashi would put his 145-pound championship on the line against Taichi Nakajima in the headliner of Pancrase 321. It will be the first number series show of the year for the Japanese promotion, whose latest event dates back to Dec. 13, 2020.

Kobayashi (26-5-4) captured the interim featherweight championship at the expense of Koyomi Matsushima after his opponent landed an illegal knee at Pancrase 295. After defending his title by upending Nazareno Malegarie at Pancrase 305, the Never Quit-representative was promoted to undisputed champion. He then edged Kyle Aguon via split decision at t…

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.

An upcoming card has just lost its co-main event.

It appears that Jamahal Hill hasn’t recovered yet after testing positive for COVID-19. The Dana White’s Contender Series graduate was slated to clash with Paul Craig in the UFC on ESPN 21 co-feature, but announced he was positive a few days ago. On Wednesday morning, Craig took to his social media accounts to announce that his opponent hasn’t recovered yet and that the match is off.

Hill (8-0, 2-0 UFC) won his Ultimate Fighting Championship contract after overcoming Alexander Poppeck with punches and elbows at the 4:29 mark of their Contender Series encounter in July 2019. In his latest cage appearance, the Black Lion Jiu-Jitsu-representative smashed Ovince St. Preux with punches in the second stanza of their 205-pound co-main event at UFC on ESPN 19. Prior, he …

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 third time is the charm, they say. On Wednesday morning, MMA Junkie reported that Merab Dvalishvili and Cody Stamann are set to clash in a bantamweight affair on the UFC Fight Night card that will go down on May 1. The pair should have already locked horns at UFC on ESPN 19, but Stamann pulled out due to undisclosed reasons a few days after the matchup was announced. The clash between “The Machine” and “The Spartan” was rescheduled for UFC Fight Night 184, but Dvalishvili withdrew due to COVID-19 complications before they could meet in the cage.

Dvalishvili (12-4, 5-2 UFC) is riding a five-fight winning streak into his upcoming assignment. In his latest Octagon appearance, he upended “The Ultimate Fighter 14” winner John Dodson in a three-round bantamweight feature at UFC 252. Prior, “The Machine” recorded similar decision vi…