Martial Arts News

[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…

[youtube https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=FKNbRnthVQA&w=560&h=315]

On Tuesday, Bellator MMA announced its long-awaited return with a brand-new light heavyweight tournament that will likely take most of 2021. The new Grand Prix features current 205-pound titleholder Vadim Nemkov (12-2), who will be staking his belt each time he fights, as has been the custom with the promotion’s last several tournaments. He will attempt to navigate a tournament field that includes the last two Bellator light heavyweight champs in Phil Davis and Ryan Bader — who still holds the heavyweight title — as well as former Ultimate Fighting Championship 205-pound champion Lyoto Machida and two former UFC title challengers in Anthony Johnson and Yoel Romero.

Initial odds on some key upcoming Bellator MMA bouts, and the outcome of the newly announced light heavyweight Grand Prix, have been released by BetOnline. Unsurprisingly, Nemkov, who is undefeated in Bellator, riding a seven-fight winning stre…

Credit: Getty/UFC Credit: Getty/UFC Credit: Getty/UFC Credit: Getty/UFC

Cory Sandhagen is afraid his No. 1 contender spot will be usurped based on name, rather than accomplishment.

The past weekend, the “Sandman” (14-2) scored the most crucial victory of his career and secured a possible 135-pound title shot when he knocked out former lightweight champ Frankie Edgar with a flying knee in just 28 seconds. Now, it appears that he has some unsolved business with another former titleholder, two-time bantamweight champion T.J. Dillashaw, who has finished his two-year USADA suspension and is about to make his return. Sandhagen believes that Dillashaw, a onetime training partner, has no interest in fighting him for a spot at the top of the division.

“The guy was supposed to be back in January,” Sandhagen said this week on ESPN. “The time would’ve been perfect for us to fight, and he didn’t, so I don’t know what that’s about. I don’t think he wants the fight. I’m worried that…

“Violent Bob Ross” Will step up for a challenge on 10-day’s notice.

According to a report by MMA Fighting, Cage Warriors Fighting Championship titleholder Jai Herbert (10-2) is out of his scheduled fight against Drakkar Klose at the upcoming UFC Fight Night 185 event and Luis Pena will take on his spot in the 155-pound clash.

In his latest Octagon appearance, Klose (11-2-1) was finished for the first time in his career when Beneil Dariush delivered a knockout that put an end to their slugfest that went down at UFC 248. Prior, the 32-year old fighter went on a three-bout winning streak with victories over Lando Vannata, Bobby Green and Christos Giagos.

Pena (8-3) is eager to bounce back after gathering a victory and two defeats in his last three fights. After being edged by Matt Frevola at UFC Fight Night 161, “Violent Bob Ross” upended Steve Garcia at UFC Fight Night 169 back in February 2020. Most recently, Pena was submitted by Khama Worthy at UFC on ESPN 1…

A bantamweight clash between Pedro Munhoz and Jimmie Rivera has been removed from the UFC 258 card after someone involved in the bout tested positive for COVID-19.

MMAFighting.com was first to report the news. The promotion is reportedly targeting Feb. 27 to rebook the matchup. Munhoz vs. Rivera was scheduled to take place on the pay-per-view portion of Saturday’s card. UFC 258 takes place at the UFC Apex in Las Vegas and is headlined by a welterweight championship matchup between Kamaru Usman and Gilbert Burns. According to the UFC's event page, Andre Ewell vs. Chris Gutierrez will replace Munhoz-Rivera on the pay-per-view draw.

Rivera and Munhoz initially squared off more than five years ago at UFC Fight Night 77, with Rivera claiming a split-decision triumph. That was part of a 20-bout professional winning streak for Rivera, who is just 2-3 in the Octagon since 2018. Most recently, “El Terror” snapped a two-bout skid with a three-roud verdict against Cody Stamann …