Martial Arts News

Main event time at #LFA99! pic.twitter.com/qryMmEquJO

— UFC FIGHT PASS (@UFCFightPass) February 13, 2021 The Legacy Fighting Alliance light heavyweight title is vacant no more as Myron Dennis and Fabio Cherant clashed for gold in the main event of LFA 99.

The first round saw the striking of Cherant (7-1) shine as he landed blistering punches. Showing versatility, "The Water Buffalo" grappled with Dennis (18-8) and showed off his kicking game in Round 2. However, Cherant slowed down in the third frame, which allowed "Lightskin Dynamite" to land some damaging shots of his own. Cherant opened the championship rounds with a flying knee and dug deep to outstrike his opponent over the last 10 minutes. After five rounds of action, the judges awarded Cherant the vacant light heavyweight title with scores of 49-46, 48-47 and 48-47. The new champion dedicated his victory to his late mother, who passed away earlier this year.

The lightweight co-main…

Bobby Green apparently collapsed backstage #UFC258

— José Youngs (@JoseYoungs) February 12, 2021 Sign up for ESPN+ right here, and you can then stream UFC 258 live on your smart TV, computer, phone, tablet or streaming device via the ESPN app. One of the more intriguing matchups ahead of the Ultimate Fighting Championship pay-per-view card this weekend has been pulled after a scary incident. Shortly after the UFC 258 weigh-in ceremony, Bobby Green, who made weight ahead of his match with Jim Miller, passed out backstage. UFC President Dana White announced this unfortunate situation in a media scrum on Friday. White explained that doctors were examining the lightweight. After the review, per ESPN, the bout was removed from the card.

“Bobby Green just collapsed back there,” White explained. “Doctors are looking at him. They’re trying to rehydrate him right now.”

While White stated that the medical staff was looking to rehydrate Green, he…

[youtube https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=s4x-qW6-NSU?start=163&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. Former Ultimate Fighting Championship light heavyweight champ Jon Jones has a clear path set to the heavyweight title. On Friday, UFC President Dana White spoke with TMZ about a variety of issues involving major fighters, including ex-champ Jones (26-1, 1 NC). “Bones” has long-since planned a move up to heavyweight, and his sights were set on the top of the division immediately. His goal is to fight the champion of the division, whether it is Stipe Miocic or Francis Ngannou, who will lock horns in March.

“We know what [Jones] wants,” White explained. “He wants the winner of Stipe and Francis, so that fight’s gotta happen first.”

When asked about whether Jones would get a crack at the winner of that fight, White did not need to expound on the merits …

Khamzat Chimaev is out of Leon Edwards fight on March 13. Full details on ESPN. https://t.co/k560o2EZtu pic.twitter.com/4H9NkF6Mp6

— Brett Okamoto (@bokamotoESPN) February 11, 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 Ultimate Fighting Championship event on March 13 is under assault on Thursday. Hours after the news broke that Ryan Hall would no longer be competing in his significant UFC Fight Night 187 main card tilt with Dan Ige, the March 13 event has taken another massive hit. ESPN announced on Thursday that Khamzat Chimaev (9-0) has been forced out of his welterweight pairing with Leon Edwards (18-3) due to persistent symptoms and issues after contracting COVID-19. The two were originally booked against one another in December, but Edwards pulled out after coming down with the coronavirus. Their meeting in January was similarl…

[youtube https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=hsQzUEpKOH0&w=560&h=315] The light heavyweight title fight for the Legacy Fighting Alliance is official after the weigh-ins.

The LFA returns for its first of two February events. LFA 99 will crown a new light heavyweight champion as Myron Dennis and Fabio Cherant battle for the vacant belt. While the nine-fight card has been checked in following the weigh-ins, two preliminary competitors came in heavy and have both been fined.

While nicknamed "The Future," Dennis (18-7) has already had a lengthy career spanning back to 2010. An alumnus of "The Ultimate Fighter 23," Dennis has put together three straight wins including a split decision victory over Dylan Potter. The Oklahoma fighter had no issue making championship weight and came in at 203.6 pounds.

Also looking to secure championship gold is Cherant (6-1). "The Water Buffalo" impressed in his promotional debut last year by choking out Erick Murray. While he was stopped by Alek…

BREAKING: Multiple sources have informed me Ryan Hall has been forced to withdraw from his fight against Dan Ige on March 13. The UFC is now looking for a replacement. #UFC https://t.co/Gfm9ppxcGl

— Cole Shelton (@ColeShelton91) February 11, 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 Ultimate Fighting Championship return of Ryan Hall was on the books for less than a month before it fell through. BJPenn.com was the first to report the news on Thursday, stating that Hall (8-1) has been forced out of his featherweight tilt with Dan Ige (14-3) due to an injury sustained while training. News of Hall getting his first fight since 2019 was announced in January. Per the report, which was later confirmed by other outlets, the promotion is currently searching for a replacement opponent against Ige at UFC Fight Night 187.

Since his win ov…

It's official. Jiri Prochazka (@jiri_bjp) will face Dominick Reyes in a light heavyweight bout on May 1. #GP pic.twitter.com/uOWlzifsaG

— Paradigm Sports (@ParadigmSports) February 11, 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. A major light heavyweight bout scratched from an upcoming card has been pushed back to May. Paradigm Sports, the management team of Jiri Prochazka (27-3-1), announced on Thursday that his battle with Dominick Reyes (12-2) has been re-booked on the May 1 UFC Fight Night event. The two were initially set to headline UFC Fight Night 186 on Feb. 27, but Reyes suffered an undisclosed injury that forced him out of the matchup. It is currently unclear if the light heavyweights will be placed in the main event of this May 1 card.

Prochazka made a spectacular first impression by shutting Volkan Oezdemir’s lights out in Ju…

[youtube https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=zxM97qLGiMI&w=560&h=315] Sign up for ESPN+ right here, and you can then stream UFC 258 live on your smart TV, computer, phone, tablet or streaming device via the ESPN app. Brazilian MMA fighters have captured belts in all Ultimate Fighting Championship men’s weight divisions except for welterweight, and one more will try to claim it this weekend. In 27 years of UFC history, Brazilian fans have only seen four fellow countrymen vie for the 170-pound title, and none have been successful to claim it. Jorge Patino was the first to try at UFC 18 in 1999, but he was defeated by Pat Miletich. Seven months later, Andre Pederneiras attempted to claim the welterweight throne from Miletich at UFC 21, but he too was rebuffed. A decade later, Thiago Alves pursued the crown from Georges St. Pierre, but his quest for gold was denied atop UFC 100. Finally, Demian Maia faced Tyron Woodley and lost a one-sided decision at UFC 214 in 2017. This series does…

The Best Moments. The Best Athletes. Season 2 had it all!

Season 3 of #KarateCombat // Coming this spring pic.twitter.com/9QP5FPtN6Q

— Karate Combat (@KarateCombat) February 9, 2021 Karate Combat, the full-contact karate league, is sprucing up its third season this spring with a big rematch for a title. The league sent out a press release on Thursday announcing that Josh Quayhagen (5-1 KC) will be taking on Dionicio Gustavo (5-2 KC) for the second time on the third season of Karate Combat. The organization has not announced the official start date of Season 3, but that it will come out in Spring 2021 and that it will consist of 12 episodes. Additionally, Bas Rutten will return on commentary joined by Layla Anna-Lee and play-by-play voice Josh Palmer.

Like Season 2, the events will take place in an undisclosed location, where they will be bolstered by digital scenery and landscapes transporting the fights to unusual locales. In the second…

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. After losing a fight on weigh-in day in January, Nasrat Haqparast is making a quick turnaround to compete in March. On Wednesday night, Haqparast (12-3) posted on Twitter that he had fight news, and that he would be back in the Octagon in less than a month. ESPN later clarified, according to Haqparast’s manager Ali Abdelaziz, that he would be stepping in to face Don Madge (9-3-1) at UFC Fight Night 187 on March 13. Haqparast confirmed the lightweight booking on Thursday on his Instagram.

Madge was originally slated to face Guram Kutateladze at this event, but the Georgian pulled put due to a self-reported knee injury. The South African will be competing for the first time since September 2019, when he took a unanimous verdict against Fares Ziam. A stalwart of the Extreme Fighting Championship organization in South Africa, Mad…

Bellator joins forces with @BBCSport

UK fans will be able to stream EVERY Bellator MMA event live on @BBCiPlayer in pic.twitter.com/3nntEaXPzH

— Bellator Europe (@Bellator_Europe) February 11, 2021 Fresh off its announcement with Showtime, Bellator MMA has secured its 2021 broadcasting schedule for audiences in the United Kingdom. On Thursday, the promotion announced that it has signed a deal to air its events this year on the British Broadcasting Corporation’s streaming service, BBC iPlayer. Showtime Sports is only available for U.S. audiences, so the organization needed to set its international lineup for its other fans. This deal will include the airing of every event of the year starting with Bellator 255 on April 2, and should contain both U.S.-based cards and those held internationally through its Bellator Europe wing.

This is not the first arrangement between Bellator and the BBC, as its first event aired on the BBC iPlayer was …

The California-based promotion has added a red-hot prospect to its roster – one with a familiar name.

According to a report by MMA Junkie, Khasan Magomedsharipov, younger brother of Ultimate Fighting Championship featherweight contender Zabit Magomedsharipov, has signed with Bellator MMA, where he is expected to continue competing in the featherweight division. A date and a name for the Russian fighter’s debut have yet to be announced.

The 20-year-old Magomedsharipov is a perfect 5-0 since his professional debut just over two years ago, with four of those wins coming inside the distance, three by submission. In his most recent appearance at AMC Fight Nights 99 on Dec. 25, Magomedsharipov smashed Mikhail Tarkhanov at the 4:30 mark of the first stanza, pounding Tarkhanov out with a stream of unanswered punches from back mount.

Earlier this week, Bellator announced a series of events for the first half of 2021, as part of its arrangement with new broadcast part…