Martial Arts News

Carlos Prates and Kalinn Williams are seemingly set on a collision course.

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Prates scored a vicious second-round knockout win over Jingliang Li to start off the UFC 305 main card in Perth, Australia, on Saturday. Despite earning his third consecutive knockout win in the UFC, Prates subsequently called for an “easy” fight against Williams before he takes on ranked opponents. Elaborating on his callout, Prates explained that he was looking for yet another $50,000 bonus in case he wasn’t awarded one at UFC 305.

“I don’t know, I think he is a good opponent, he is a striker,” Prates said at the post-fight press conference. “And to be honest, I almost buy my own house in Brazil. So if I don’t get bonus today, for sure if I fight him, maybe December I’ll get the bonus. Nothing personal against him, just business. And it is what it is.”

Prates ultimately did win a “Performance of the Night” bonus at UFC 305, again his third in as many UFC outings. How…

Strawweights Amanda Ribas (13-5) and Mackenzie Dern (14-5) will run it back at UFC Tampa near the end of the year.

Ribas will take on Dern at the Amalie Arena in Tampa, Florida, on Dec. 14. The matchup was first reported by Ag.Fight.

Dern will have the chance to avenge a unanimous decision loss against Ribas that occurred at UFC Fight Night 161 in October 2019. Dern bounced back from that loss with a four-fight winning streak that included three finishes. Currently 2-2 in her past four, Dern is fresh off a unanimous decision win over Lupita Godinez at UFC on ABC 7 on Aug. 3.

Meanwhile, Ribas’ initial win over Dern was part of a four-fight winning streak to start her UFC journey. The Brazilian has alternated wins and losses in her last eight outings, most recently suffering a unanimous decision defeat against Rose Namajunas in a flyweight bout this past March.

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Dricus Du Plessis coach Morne Visser recently weighed in on potential future matchups for the middleweight champ.

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Du Plessis defended his strap with a fourth-round submission win over Israel Adesanya in the main event of UFC 305 in Perth, Australia, on Saturday. While “Stillknocks” and Adesanya had long been beefing over their authenticity as “African champ,” they appeared to bury the hatchet after their fight on Saturday.

Visser says it’s a relief to have peace in Africa. Visser also revealed that he had already discussed a potential rematch with Adesanya when they crossed paths. According to Visser, Adesanya is the most suitable opponent for a potential UFC card in South Africa, which could happen during Du Plessis’ title reign.

“There’s peace in Africa now, which is a good feeling,” Visser told Submission Radio. “I did say to Izzy when I saw him earlier, I said to him that I believe there’s talks of doing [a UFC card in] …

Things appeared to be going fairly well for Israel Adesanya at UFC 305, but momentum shifted quickly in the championship rounds.

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About halfway through the fourth frame, Dricus Du Plessis clipped the Nigerian-born Kiwi with a series of right hands before powering him to the canvas. Shortly thereafter, the reigning champion elicited a tapout from Adesanya with a rear-naked choke at the 3:36 mark of the period.

“For me, I have to watch it again because I don’t think I was rocked. I think I slipped and I was like, ‘What the f—k was that?’ And then he was trying to catch me as I was exiting,” Adesanya said at the UFC 305 post-fight press conference. “I can’t remember how he took me down because everything in me is always a blur…

“I tried to fight the top hand, and I don’t know what mistake I made because I tried to turn into him, but then he got on my back because I was using the fence, maybe? He switched to a Gable grip, and then I wasn’t able to s…

Dricus Du Plessis is well aware of Alex Pereira’s callout, but he isn’t so certain it’s the best idea for the Brazilian to challenge him at 185 pounds.

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After Du Plessis defended his middleweight title with a fourth-round submission of Israel Adesanya in the UFC 305 headliner on Saturday night, “Poatan” hinted at a return to the middleweight division. Pereira initially claimed 185-pound gold with a stoppage of Adesanya in his fourth Octagon appearance at UFC 281. He moved to light heavyweight after falling to “The Last Stylebender” in their rematch, and the Brazilian has since become the promotion’s champion in his new weight class, authoring two successful title defenses thus far in 2024.

“I honestly don’t think Alex Pereira should drop down to 185. If he wants to, great, perfect. But then we’re going to hear the excuses,” Du Plessis said at Saturday’s post-fight press conference. “I saw Izzy stiff that man in the first round. I felt Izzy’s punchin…

Dricus Du Plessis has multiple eyes on his him after his first successful middleweight title defense.

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Du Plessis and Adesanya went toe-to-toe in an entertaining championship bout at the RAC Arena in Perth, Australia, on Saturday night. While Du Plessis had some early success, Adesanya started finding momentum as the fight progressed, visibly edging past the champ on the feet. However, “Stillknocks” rocked Adesanya with a blistering flurry in the fourth round and almost immediately sunk in a rear-naked choke to earn the finish.

Sean Strickland, who lost his title to Du Plessis via split decision at UFC 297 this past January, has long been adamant on fighting only for the title next. Strickland called for a rematch against Du Plessis in the immediate aftermath of the UFC 305 main event.

“Time for war Dutch man,” Strickland wrote.

Time for war Dutch man......

— Sean Strickland (@SStricklandMMA) August 18, 2024

When a…

Valter Walker weighed in on his chaotic win over Junior Tafa at UFC 305 on Saturday.

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Walker took on Tafa in preliminary featherweight matchup at RAC Arena in Perth, Australia. Walker controlled Tafa on the ground throughout the first round before locking in a heel hook that incited a scream from the New Zealander. While Walker did not tap, referee Steve Perceval called a stop to the contest at 4:52 of the opening frame.

Tafa seemed to only briefly protest the stoppage before squaring up to Walker and slapping his unsuspecting opponent while surrounded by security. Weighing in on the stoppage, Walker says he would have snapped Tafa’s foot if the referee hadn’t intervened.

“If referee not stop, I broke his foot,” Walker said during a post-fight media scrum. “I take his foot to home with me. My coach say, broke and I go to broke. I don’t go for tap, I go for him screaming.”

Walker said Tafa was not a man for cheap shotting him when he couldn’t l…

CASEY O'NEILL'S CELEBRATION 😅 #UFC305 pic.twitter.com/1OXarBr2VT

— ESPN MMA (@espnmma) August 18, 2024

Casey O'Neill celebrated her UFC 305 win with a mimicry of viral Australian breakdancer Rachael Gunn’s Olympic performance.

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O’Neill bounced back from a two-fight slump with an emphatic unanimous decision victory over Luana Santos at the RAC Arena on Saturday night in Perth, Australia. “King” celebrated her victory with a mockery of Gunn’s Olympic breakdance performance, which has recently been in headlines.

Speaking of her celebration, O’Neill considers her performance better than the Australian academic-breakdancer known as “Raygun,” who has been dealing with serious online hate for her bizarre show at the Paris 2024 Olympics. O’Neill even joked about taking a hiatus from MMA for a detour into breakdance to represent Australia in the 2028 Olympics.

“I give that a 10. I think I did better than she did in the Oly…

Dan Hooker and Mateusz Gamrot went back-and-forth for three rounds at UFC 305.

While it was Hooker who emerged with a split-decision triumph, both lightweights went home with an additional $50,000 after the bout received “Fight of the Night” honors. Hooker blended effective striking with relatively stout takedown defense to earn the nod from two of the three cageside judges at RAC Arena in Perth, Australia, on Saturday night.

Elsewhere, Kai Kara-France garnered a $50,000 “Performance of the Night” check for a statement-making victory against Steve Erceg in the flyweight co-main event. “Don’t Blink” initially floored his foe with a left hook before pressuring Erceg against the cage, where he dropped “Astro Boy” again — this time with a right cross. Follow-up punches brought an end to the contest at the 4:04 mark of the opening stanza as Kara-France ended a two-bout skid.

Finally, Carlos Prates received the card’s other $50,000 “Performance of the Night” awa…

No one responds to adversity any better the Dricus Du Plessis. In fact, the man seems to feed off of it.

The 30-year-old South African retained his undisputed Ultimate Fighting Championship middleweight title in scintillating fashion and turned away Israel Adesanya with a rear-naked choke in the fourth round of their emotionally charged UFC 305 headliner on Saturday at RAC Arena in Perth Australia. Adesanya (24-4, 13-4 UFC), who had never before been submitted, raised the white flag of surrender 3:36 into Round 4.

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Du Plessis (22-2, 8-0 UFC) waded through considerable difficulty before he arrived at the finish line. Adesanya zeroed in on his body with hooks from both hands and well-timed kicks, attacked his legs when the mood arose and pieced together stirring combinations to the head. Du Plessis refused to go away. The Team CIT rep executed multiple takedowns—he threatened Adesanya’s neck in the first round in a harbinger of what was in store—and co…

Sherdog's live UFC 305 coverage will begin Saturday at 6:30 p.m. ET.UFC 305: Du Plessis vs. Adesanya Saturday at 10 ET on ESPN+. Order Now!

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BETTING PREVIEW | SCOUTING REPORT | ODDS: Nicoll (-230), Aguilar (+190)Round 1 Sherdog Scores Jay Pettry scores the round:Brian Knapp scores the round:Tristen Critchfield scores the round:Round 2 Sherdog Scores Jay Pettry scores the round:Brian Knapp scores the round:Tristen Critchfield scores the round: Round 3 Sherdog Scores Jay Pettry scores the round:Brian Knapp scores the round:Tristen Critchfield scores the round:The Official Result BETTING PREVIEW | SCOUTING REPORT | ODDS: Song (-192), Glenn (+160)Round 1 Sherdog Scores Jay Pettry scores the round:Brian Knapp scores the round:Tristen Critchfield scores the round:Round 2 Sherdog Scores Jay Pettry scores the round:Brian Knapp scores the round:Tristen Critchfield scores the round:Round 3 Sherdog Scores Jay Pettry scores the round:Brian Knapp scores the round:…

Valter Walker dug into his bag of tricks and took a small but not insignificant step forward in the Ultimate Fighting Championship heavyweight division.

The ex-Titan Fighting Championship titleholder disposed of Junior Tafa with a heel hook in the first round of their featured UFC 305 prelim on Saturday at RAC Arena in Perth, Australia. Tafa (5-3, 1-3 UFC) yelled in pain as his adversary isolated his leg and cranked, resulting in the verbal submission.

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UFC 305: Du Plessis vs. Adesanya Saturday at 10 ET on ESPN+. Order Now!

Walker (12-1, 1-1 UFC) withstood power punches from the Soma Fight Club product, secured two takedowns, established a dominant position and eventually targeted a lower extremity. Tafa went nose to nose with the Brazilian in the aftermath and delivered a slap to the side of his head before he was physically escorted to the other side of the cage.

Meanwhile, Ricardo Ramos rode an opportunistic takedown and a near-finish to a …