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#KSW56 Main EventMichal Materla vs. @Soldic_MMA

You do not want to miss this!! November 14th!! Live around the world on KSWTV and via the KSW App available on iOS & Android! pic.twitter.com/zsCiHniQWm — KSW (@KSW_MMA) October 26, 2020

Konfrontacja Sztuk Walki welterweight champion Roberto Soldic will move up to 185 pounds to face Michal Materla in the KSW 56 main event on Nov. 14.

The Polish promotion announced the matchup on Monday. KSW 56 takes place behind closed doors in Lodz, Poland and streams via online pay-per-view at KSWTV.com.

Soldic enters the matchup on a four-bout winning streak that began with him reclaiming the welterweight crown with a third-round KO of current UFC talent Dricus Du Plessis at KSW 45. Most recently, he outpointed Michael Peitzak in a catchweight affair at KSW 50 in September 2019.

Materla, who reigned as KSW’s middleweight champ from May 2012 to November 2015…

Austin Vanderford will square off against Chris Curtis in a middleweight bout on the Bellator 251 main card.

Sherdog.com confirmed the pairing with a promotion official following an initial report from ESPN. UFC 251 takes place at Mohegan Sun Arena in Uncasville, Connecticut, on Nov. 4 and is headlined by a light heavyweight showdown between Corey Anderson and Melvin Manhoef. The main card airs on CBS Sports Network at 7 p.m. ET/4 p.m. PT.

Vanderford, the husband of former UFC star Paige VanZant, was supposed to face Daniel Madrid at Bellator 246 on Sept. 12 before a positive COVID-19 test forced him off the card. The Gracie Barra Portland representative is 9-0 as a professional and 3-0 in Bellator. He also earned a victory over Angelo Trevino on Season 2 of Dana White’s Contender Series.

After losing three consecutive bouts under the Professional Fighters League banner to close out 2019, Curtis returned to the win column with a stoppage of Darren Smith Jr. in …

Undefeated for almost eight years in MMA, former World Extreme Cagefighting champion Paulo Filho in 2007 was labeled by Anderson Silva as the best middleweight fighter in the world.

Known for his effective grappling game, the Carlson Gracie blackbelt, who has been retired since 2014, recently discussed Khabib Nurmagomedov’s win over Justin Gaethje at UFC 254 with Sherdog.com. Filho offered a definitive take on the retired lightweight champion’s place among the sport’s all-time greats.

"Khabib´s win was a lesson to make all MMA fighters recall the origin of our sport which is martial arts, respect to the master, respect to your origins,” Filho said. “He showed to the world of MMA that it´s not necessary to trash talk or disrespect opponents to be a champion and be popular among fans.

“The numbers never lie -- 29-0. In my opinion, after what he did Saturday, Khabib is the best of all time.”

Filho also revealed that Khabib´s homage to his late father, Abdulma…

The Dream is alive and well! @Chase_Hooper with a successful R1 victory at #UFC245!

 Watch LIVE on @UFCFightPass NOW! pic.twitter.com/C3ck3Fc1mn

— UFC (@ufc) December 15, 2019 A featherweight scrap pitting Chase Hooper against Peter Barrett has been added to the UFC 256 lineup.

MMAFighting.com was first to report the booking. UFC 256 takes place at the UFC Apex in Las Vegas on Dec. 12 and features a women’s featherweight title clash between Amanda Nunes and Megan Anderson. That card will also see Petr Yan defend the bantamweight crown against Aljamain Sterling.

Hooper is coming off his first professional defeat in 11 outings, as he was completely outclassed by Alex Caceres over three rounds at UFC 250 on June 6. The 21-year-old Dana White’s Contender Series alum debuted in the Octagon with a first-round TKO of Daniel Teymur at UFC 245.

Also a former Contender Series competitor, Barrett dropped a unanimous verdict to Youss…

Jared Cannonier revealed that a kick from Robert Whittaker broke his left arm early on in their UFC 254 co-main event encounter this past Saturday night.

“That didn’t go exactly how I wanted but my spirits remain high and I’m happy with how I fought, all things considered. The very first kick he threw broke or fractured my left ulna,” Cannonier wrote on Instagram. “I couldn’t find my [groove] and adjust quickly to get the W so I’ll take my L with pride.”

While Cannonier enjoyed success attacking with heavy low kicks, he absorbed numerous jabs from his opponent and was staggered by a jab-high kick combination from Whittaker in the third frame. Although the MMA Lab product rallied to wobble the ex-champ with a right hand late in the bout, it wasn’t enough to prevent him from losing a unanimous decision.

“[Robert Whittaker] certainly lived up to my expectations before and after the fight. Congrats mate. Enjoy [Christmas] and the new [baby],” Cannonier wrote. “It w…

An injury has forced Jeremy Stephens to withdraw from a prosposed featherweight matchup with Arnold Allen at UFC on ESPN 17.

MMAjunkie.com was first to report Stephens’ exit from the card over the weekend. The exact nature of Stephens’ injury was not disclosed. It’s currently unclear if the promotion will seek a new opponent for Allen.

UFC on ESPN 17 takes place on Nov. 7 at the UFC Apex in Las Vegas and is headlined by a light heavyweight tilt pitting Thiago Santos against Glover Teixeira. The main card airs on ESPN2 and ESPN+ at 10 p.m. ET/8 p.m. PT.

Stephens is currently on a five-bout winless streak in UFC competition. Most recently, “Lil Heathen” suffered a second-round knockout loss to Calvin Kattar at UFC 249 on May 9. Stephens last tasted victory at UFC on Fox 28, when he stopped Josh Emmett in the second round in February 2018.

A flyweight showdown between Tyson Nam and Matt Schnell that was originally scheduled for September has been rebooked for UFC Fight Night on Dec. 19.

MMAjunkie.com was first to report the bout. UFC Fight Night takes place at the UFC Apex in Las Vegas and is headlined by a welterweight clash between Leon Edwards and Khamzat Chimaev. Nam vs. Schnell was slated for UFC Fight Night 177 on Sept. 12 but was scratched due to “weight management issues” for Schnell.

Nam would get a chance to compete one week later at UFC Fight Night 178, where he earned a second-round TKO win over Jerome Rivera. Prior to that, Nam scored a 32-second KO of Zarrukh Adashev at UFC on ESPN 10.

Schnell, meanwhile, saw a four-bout Octagon winning streak come to an end at UFC Fight Night 165, where he suffered a first-round knockout defeat at the hands of Alexandre Pantoja last December.

Georges St. Pierre was supposed to be magic No. 30 on Khabib Nurmagomedov’s journey to retirement.

Instead, “The Eagle” threw a curve and called it a career following his second-round submission of Justin Gaethje in the UFC 254 headliner on Saturday night. After the victory, Nurmagomedov left his gloves in the Octagon and explained his decision, which came on the heels of the death of his father and coach, Abdulmanap Nurmagomedov, earlier this year.

“Today, I want to say, this was my last fight. No way am I going to come here without my father,” Nurmagomedov said. “It was first time, after what happened with my father, when UFC called me about Justin. I talk with my mother three days, she don’t want that I go fight without father. I promised her, it’s going to be my last fight, and if I give my word, I have to follow this. It was my last fight here.”

St. Pierre knows a little something about surprise announcements: He took an indefinite hiatus from the sport aft…

[youtube https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=11FKpmNCIGM&w=560&h=315]

Though the end result wasn’t what he’d hoped for, Justin Gaethje believes that he did inflict some damage on Khabib Nurmagomedov before being choked unconscious in the UFC 254 headliner.

“It sucks. I’m hurt. It’s emotional. But ultimately, it’s the name of the game,” Gaethje said in a post-fight interview on ESPN. “I had him in trouble. I wasn’t very many kicks away from him not being able to walk. He’s gonna be limping for the next three weeks. It’s nothing to be proud of because I lost.”

Indeed, 15 of the 29 significant strikes Gaethje landed were leg kicks, and as the bout progressed it appeared that they were beginning to take their toll on the champion. However, Nurmagomedov was absolutely dominant when the fight hit the ground, slicing through his opponent’s guard and transitioning to submission attempts with ease. Gaethje, an NCAA All-American wrestler at the University of Northern Colorado, had …

It wasn’t the opponent she expected at UFC 254, but Lauren Murphy made the most of what could have been a tricky situation against short-notice replacement Liliya Shakirova on Saturday in Abu Dhabi.

Originally slated to face fellow Top 10 flyweight Cynthia Calvillo, Murphy was forced to change course when a positive COVID-19 test forced Calvillo off the card late last week. With not much to gain against a relatively unheralded foe, Murphy scored the first submission victory of her pro career, tapping out Shakirova with a rear-naked choke at the 3:31 mark of Round 2.

“It feels great. My confidence is probably the No. 1 thing that I’ve improved, my striking is the second thing that I’ve improved the most,” Murphy said. “Just going through the process and staying calm has been huge. I’ve gotten a ton of help; it takes a village to make a fighter.

“I utilize the best of the best in every aspect. I have the best sports psychologist, the best nutritionist, the best s…

UNCONSCIOUS!@AnkalaevM erased all doubt by finishing Ion Cutelaba at #UFC254 pic.twitter.com/nn4eCMA1Oz

— ESPN MMA (@espnmma) October 24, 2020

Magomed Ankalaev left no doubt in his rematch with Ion Cutelaba at UFC 254.

Their initial meeting, a 38-second TKO triumph for Ankalaev at UFC Fight Night 169 in February, ended in controversy when Cutelaba claimed the contest was stopped prematurely. However, there was no such controversy on Saturday, as Anaklaev floored his opponent twice en route to a knockout victory at the 4:19 mark of Round 1 at the Flash Forum in Abu Dhabi.

A counter left hook late in the frame sent Cutelaba tumbling to the canvas, and Ankaleav pounced for the victory with heavy ground-and-pound from above.

“I feel great, now I can finally sleep well. It was a six month camp, so I did a really, really good job in the six months and today I proved it,” Ankaleav said. “I wanted to catch him, I wanted to finish with a co…

Retirements don’t always last in MMA, but UFC president Dana White believes that Khabib Nurmagomedov is sincere in his intentions.

Nurmagomedov announced his retirement in the Octagon following a second-round submission of Justin Gaethje in the UFC 254 main event on Saturday, alluding to a promise he made to his mother before the fight. It was a long and difficult road just to get to UFC 254 for the lightweight champion, who had to endure the death of his father, Abdulmanap Nurmagomedov, to COVID-19 complications earlier this year.

In addition to tragedy, White claimed Nurmagomedov dealt with some injury issues leading into his title defense against Gaethje. Regardless of the circumstances, the UFC boss doesn’t think “The Eagle” will be making a surprise comeback in the future.

“I do [think he’ll remain retired],” White said at Saturday’s post fight press conference.

“What this guy’s has been through, we’re all lucky that we got to see him fight tonight,” …