Martial Arts News

Ex-Ultimate Fighting Championship title challenger Gilbert Burns still has plenty to offer at his age.

Less than two months after announcing his retirement from the Octagon at age 39, on the heels of his fifth consecutive loss—a knockout to Mike Malott—“Durinho” Burns made a stylish comeback at UFC BJJ 9 on Thursday. The elder statesman grappler tapped out Brazilian Horlando Monteiro in just 1:22 seconds with a slick rear-naked choke.

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Burns started the fight being taken down by his opponent, but seemed to welcome that as he had a plan. “Durinho” quickly reversed the position and took Monteiro’s back, where he secured the choke that ended the fight. It marked his first victory on the grappling mats since he beat Rafael Lovato Jr. in a special match in 2021.There are a lot of good jiu-jitsu fighters who would love to competeElated in victory, Burns was able to take off some of the pressure on his shoulders coming from five straight defeats in a cage. H…

The Professional Fighters League middleweight strap will still be on the line, just in a different way.

The promotion announced on Friday that its marquee matchup for PFL Austin has changed. Due to an injury suffered by middleweight kingpin Costello van Steenis, Johnny Eblen (17-1) will be drawing a new opponent at the Moody Center in Texas’ capital city. For the interim 185-pound belt, Eblen will be rematching Impa Kasanganay (20-6).

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

The man who currently calls himself “Pressure” was looking to exact revenge for his lone career defeat. After bringing over the Bellator MMA belt with him, Eblen vied for the PFL title in 2025 against van Steenis. Up on two scorecards, Eblen succumbed to a last-second rear-naked choke that put him all the way to sleep. He has since bounced back into the win column by wrangling Bryan Battle with a face crank in a little ov…

Depending on how the match plays out, a spot in the Ultimate Fighting Championship’s logjammed lightweight division’s rankings may be on the line.

Heavy first broke the news on Thursday that UFC 329 would be getting a striker’s delight at 155 pounds. Per the initial report, and subsequently confirmed by one of the fighters on his Instagram Stories page, King Green (35-17-1, 1 NC) will be throwing down with Terrance McKinney (18-8) on July 11. They will be colliding inside of the T-Mobile Arena in Las Vegas, likely serving as a high-billed prelim.

Green currently rides a three-fight win streak, his longest since claiming a trio of decisions over Clay Guida, Lando Vannata and Alan Patrick in 2020. In this run, he beat Lance Gibson Jr., knocked out Daniel Zellhuber and tapped Jeremy Stephens within the last seven months. The grizzled veteran will be entering into his 31st with the promotion, having joined the roughly two dozen names who completed at least 30 UFC bouts…

Holly Holm is interested in big fights, whether that's in boxing or MMA. | Getty/UFC

The finish line appears to be in sight for Holly Holm.

Holm, who is coming off a controversial split-decision loss to Stephanie Han in a boxing match under the Most Valuable Promotions banner last weekend, gave a rough timeline for the end of her combat sports career during an appearance on "The Ariel Helwani Show.”

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I don't know, but if I'm being really honest, I want big fights. I'm not saying that all of them are big fights for a title. ..Within the year and I'm done,” Holm said. “That's where I'm at. I definitely want them to be fights that people want to see. I want it to be something big like that. And that's where I'm at, whether it be MMA or boxing.”

Holm confirmed that likely means only one or two more fights total before the Jackson-Wink MMA standout calls it a career.

Holm hasn’t competed in MMA since UFC 300, when she suffered a seco…

It's hard to imagine that 17 years ago, Alex Pereira was still working at a tire shop and had serious problems with alcoholism. That's when he decided to enroll in kickboxing — a decision that changed his life.

Since then, “Poatan” has achieved what seemed impossible for someone who first put on gloves at the age of 21. After winning two belts in Glory Kickboxing and the UFC, he will seek something that no fighter has achieved to date on June 14: a UFC title in a third weight class. To do this, Poatan will have to beat Ciryl Gane in the co-main event of of the UFC White House card.

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‘Something Very Special’ In an interview with UFC on Paramount+, “Poatan” highlighted the symbolic weight of the possible achievement, classifying the belt as something unique in his career. The Brazilian stressed that, unlike other titles in the organization, this one would have a special value because it represents his entire journey, marked by challenges and overcoming…

Gabriel Bonfim is coming off a finish of Randy Brown. | Getty/UFC

There’s a significant gap in experience in UFC Fight Night 278 headliner.

On one side is former welterweight champion Belal Muhammad, a veteran of 20 fights in the UFC who is coming off a two-fight losing streak. On the other side is Gabriel Bonfim, a Brazilian talent nine years younger who is climbing the rankings with a 6-1 UFC mark. This is the dynamic of Saturday’s featured bout at the UFC Apex in Las Vegas.

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Despite being the betting favorite (-200 to +150), Bonfim revealed to Sherdog.com that he prepared for the most difficult fight of his life.

“After he lost the belt wanting to prove himself standing up with [Jack Della Maddalena], I don’t believe he’ll come to strike with me,” Bonfim said. “After all, one of his strengths is the cage game. I think he’ll look for this game similar to what [Nicolas] Dalby did. But I trained a lot to avoid his [grappling]. I thin…

Real American Freestyle is going international.

The wrestling promotion announced on Wednesday that it will hold its first overseas event on July 11 in Tbilisi, Georgia. The card will be headlined between a matchup of former UFC champions, as Georgia native Merab Dvailishvili will take on Henry Cejudo. In the co-main event, Kyle Snyder will defend his light heavyweight crown against Abdulrashid Sadulaev. Additionally, RAF staple and UFC lightweight contender Arman Tsarukyan will square off against Kuat Khamitov.

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Dvalishvili made his promotional debut at RAF 9 on May 30, where he defeated Frankie Edgar via technical fall. The former UFC bantamweight champion is known for his relelentless grappling and conditioning inside the Octagon, where he defended his belt three times in 2025 before falling to Petr Yan this past December. “The Machine” has stated that he expects to receive a championship rematch against Yan in his next UFC appearance.

Ceju…

Ilia Topuria is confident that he will finish Justin Gaethje in the very first round. 

Topuria looks to defend his lightweight title against interim champion Justin Gaethje in the main event at UFC White House on June 14. While the fight is scheduled for five rounds, Topuria doesn’t see it going past the first round. “El Matador” clarifies that he has the gas tank to go for way more than the 25 scheduled minutes if required. Topuria claims he knows how it feels to push past his breaking point. However, the undefeated Georgian-Spaniard is confident that he won’t need more than five minutes to finish Gaethje. Topuria just wants to make it a highlight-reel finish. 

Faith in His Skills “I have the stamina to go not for five rounds, but for five days,” Topuria told UFC on Paramount+. “I know how it feels when you’re tired, when you can’t do more, and you never give up. So I’m ready. But I have the complete faith that I am going to finish him in the first round. I ju…

Daniel Rodriguez has a story to pass down through generations. 

Rodriguez (20-5) is scheduled to headline UFC Belgrade against Uros Medic (13-3) on Aug. 1. The booking comes just months after Rodriguez was released from a Mexican prison. 

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Rodriguez was arrested for crossing the Mexican border with marijuana and ended up spending eight months in a prison in Tijuana. Rodriguez recently revealed how he ended up sharing a cell in jail with a cartel leader. Rodriguez was getting bitten by bedbugs while initially sharing a room with 20 guys. By then, the word had gotten around that “D-Rod” was a UFC fighter. A guard offered to shift Rodriguez to better accommodations in the jail for $7,000. Rodriguez then met with the guy who was the leader of a gang and had special arrangements in the jail. In addition to all the basic amenities, the leader’s cell also had a TV with a PlayStation. The gang leader offered Rodriguez to move into his cell for $3,000…

The record holder for the most heel hook submissions returns at UFC Abu Dhabi. 

Valter Walker is scheduled to meet Thomas Petersen in a heavyweight matchup at UFC Fight Night 282 on July 25 at the Etihad Arena in Abu Dhabi. 

Collision CourseWalker (15-1) suffered his lone professional loss in his UFC debut in 2024. Aptly nicknamed “The Foot Hunter,” Walker has since scored five straight submission wins via heel hooks. The Brazilian has now tied the notorious Rousimar Palhares for the most heel hook submissions in UFC history. 

Meanwhile, Petersen (11-4) had only lost to Waldo Cortes-Acosta before making his UFC debut in 2024. However, “The Train” has since alternated between wins and losses, going 3-3 in the promotion. Petersen is coming off a majority decision win over the previously undefeated Guilherme Pat from this past April. 

Justin Gaethje is willing to risk taking damage to execute his game plan against Ilia Topuria. 

Interim champion Gaethje (27-5) challenges Topuria (17-0) for the lightweight title in the main event at UFC White House on June 14. Gaethje believes the most important thing he needs to avoid against Topuria is compromising his position. 

Topuria is coming off consecutive knockouts over Alexander Volkanovski, Max Holloway and Charles Oliveira. Gaethje believes all three fellow legends made the mistake of going on their back foot against Topuria. With Topuria being known for his long combinations, Gaethje saw his opponents retreating after the first couple of punches. However, Gaethje is absolutely adamant about going forward against Topuria. “The Highlight” says he is even willing to risk taking some damage to avoid going backwards.

Forward at All Costs “It’s position,” Gaethje told UFC on Paramount+. “They got compromised. They got put on their back foot. The…

U.S. President Donald Trump believes the the UFC White House setup is impressive enough that it may become a permanent fixture.

Construction is currently underway to accommodate the historic UFC event set for June 14 on the South Lawn. Also known as Freedom 250, the card is being held on Trump’s 80th birthday and is part of a celebration of the United States’ 250th birthday. It’s currently unclear exactly how long the structure is supposed to remain on the White House lawn after the UFC leaves town.

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“Many don’t know that in Paris, France, the Eiffel Tower, 1889, it was built,” Trump said on TikTok. “It was supposed to be taken down immediately after the World’s Fair. They said, ‘You know, we sort of like it. Let’s leave it up a little bit longer.’ And then they said let’s leave it up longer and longer and longer. Well, they never took it down.

“You know, we’re building something in front of the White House that’s quite attractive to a lot of peop…