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Professional Fighters League 2022 lightweight champion Olivier Aubin-Mercier isn't looking to engage in an all-out war with Clay Collard in their scheduled lightweight finals bout Friday at the 2023 PFL Championships.

Undefeated since his arrival in the PFL, Mercier (20-5) finds himself competing for the lightweight championship for the second time in a row. “The Canadian Gangster” has earned the highly-coveted title fight on the heels of three impressive outings against Bruno Miranda, Anthony Romero and former Ultimate Fighting Championship competitor Shane Burgos.

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Interestingly, Mercier and Collard (24-10) will enter the Smart Cage on Nov. 24 at The Anthem in Washington D.C. having faced a common opponent in Burgos. Although both 2023 playoff finalists managed to secure the victory against “Hurricane,” the way the two approached the matchup couldn't have been more different.

While “The Canadian Gangster” defeated Burgos with his well-rounded ap…

New MMA Global Powerhouse@PFLMMA acquires @Bellator

Our Fighter Roster Equal To UFC - Both 30% Top 25 World Ranked FIghters

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PFL Launch Reimagined Bellator - Bellator International Champions Series

Mega-Event For Fans In 2024 - PFL Champs vs. Bellator Champs pic.twitter.com/Ma4YUl4AUi

— Donn Davis (@DonnDavisPFL) November 20, 2023 Professional Fighters League’s long-rumored purchase of Bellator MMA has become a reality.

PFL announced Monday that it has completed the acquisition of the California-based promotion from Paramount Global, “creating a global powerhouse in mixed martial arts and accelerating the combined company to become the industry co-leader.” Terms of the deal were not disclosed, but PFL founder Donn Davis told the Financial Times that Paramount would retain a minority stake in Bellator.

According to a release, PFL will continue the Bellator brand in 2024, but it will be a “reimagined product”…

Dricus Du Plessis believes Khamzat Chimaev has yet to feel the strength of a real 185-pounder, and he would absolutely love to do the honors.

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“Stillknocks” is slated to challenge Sean Strickland for the middleweight title in the main event at UFC 297 on Jan. 20 in Toronto. The booking came as a surprise to some who were expecting Khamzat Chimaev to get the next title shot at middleweight after a majority decision victory over Kamaru Usman at UFC 294 last month.

Du Plessis believes Chimaev still remains the UFC’s next preference for a gold bid at middleweight against the winner of the upcoming UFC 297 title fight. The South African is also excited about the potential matchup, as he wants to show Chimaev what true strength feels like.

“The UFC is probably going to want to do Khamzat,” Du Plessis said in an interview with James Lynch. “He’s a big draw, and they said if he won the fight against Usman he’d get a title shot. That’s a fight I would …

Francis Ngannou’s coach, Eric Nicksick, claims Tom Aspinall currently has more “upside” than UFC heavyweight champ Jon Jones.

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A highly-anticipated clash between Ngannou and Jones never came to fruition under the UFC banner, with “The Predator” exiting the promotion due to failed contract negotiations earlier this year. Jones went to win the vacant strap with a submission win over Ciryl Gane at UFC 285 in March. He was slated to defend the strap against Stipe Miocic at UFC 295 on Nov. 11.

However, Jones was forced out of the matchup due to injury and Aspinall claimed the interim title with a first-round knockout of Sergei Pavlovich in short-notice co-main event at UFC 295. Despite his title win, Aspinall is currently in a complicated position with Jones expected to return sometime next year and face Miocic. The winner of Jones-Miocic would presumably face Aspinall at a later date.

Nicksick, meanwhile, revealed that he’s had his eyes on Aspinal…

Benoit St. Denis believes Justin Gaethje is one of the only fighters in the UFC who is durable enough to go toe-to-toe with him.

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St. Denis pulled off his fifth consecutive stoppage win with a brutal first-round KO over lightweight veteran Matt Frevola at UFC 295 on Nov. 11. While St. Denis put all lightweights elites on notice in his post-fight interview, Justin Gaethje, who was present cageside, was shown on a split screen as “God of War” called him out.

St. Denis recently shared on "The MMA Hour” that Gaethje remains his primary focus, as he expects that a clash against “The Highlight” would turn out to be quite memorable.

“It is a fight I want to have,” St. Denis said. “It’s at the top of the list, of course. It’s not his fault, but I do believe they are going to make [Islam] Makhachev against [Charles] Oliveira. Gaethje is a warrior, he likes activity, but he will have to fight again and big dates are coming next year, and he has already …

Chase Hooper is targeting a clash against fellow leg lock specialist Claudio Puelles after his victory over Jordan Leavitt at UFC Fight Night 232 over the weekend.

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Hooper and Leavitt went toe to toe in a high-paced grappling affair which ended quickly when “The Dream” capitalized on his opponent’s mistake to lock in a rear-naked choke at the 2:58 mark of Round 1. Hooper, who has a heel hook submission to his name, subsequently called out Puelles in a post-fight interview.

“I’d like someone like a Claudio Puelles. He beat Jordan, I believe, by decision. Then he also has a kneebar win over Clay Guida,” Hooper said. “I just beat Jordan tonight, and I’ve got a calf slicer over Clay in a grappling match. But still, I would love to fight another guy that’s big into leg locks – another big jiu-jitsu guy in the division. Tonight is the perfect example. Those are fun matchups, and I think they’re fun to watch. It’s a style of grappling people can get down w…

5️⃣ DAYS OUT

History will be made in Washington DC 🏆💰

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[Friday, November 24th | 8pm ET on ESPN+PPV|🔗 https://t.co/9tors69QSM| #PFLWorldChampionship] pic.twitter.com/JqOmIMDy9L — PFL (@PFLMMA) November 19, 2023

The 2023 Professional Fighters League Championships will have a familiar price point.

The promotion’s signature event will cost $49.99 on pay-per-view via ESPN+, the streaming service recently revealed. That’s the same price as last year’s championship event, which marked PFL’s debut on pay-per-view.

The 2023 PFL Championships takes place at The Anthem Arena in Washington, D.C., on Friday and will feature title bouts in six different weight classes. The seven-bout main card is headlined by a lightweight title clash pitting Olivier Aubin-Mercier against Clay Collard and begins at 8 p.m. ET/5 p.m. PT via ESPN+ pay-per-view. The prelims will stream immediately prior on ESPN+ begnning at 5 p.m. ET/2 p.m. PT.

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Brendan Allen has laid claim to the No. 1 contender spot at middleweight after his submission win over Paul Craig in the main event at UFC Fight Night 232 on Saturday.

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Allen thoroughly dominated Craig from the outset of their bout, notching nearly eight minutes of control time over the course of two rounds before submitting him in the third. “All In” improved his winning streak to six, five of which have come via rear-naked chokes.

Allen called for a title eliminator next in his Octagon interview, targeting top contenders Robert Whittaker, Jared Cannonier and Khamzat Chimaev.

“I think I deserve it; I’ve earned it,” he said. “I’ve beat everyone they put in front of me, I finished them. Whoever the UFC says that is, I don’t care who. Whittaker, Cannonier, ‘C—shot,’ I don’t care. I’m trying to fight, man. I’m the No. 1 contender. I’m the best in the world, I’m here to prove it. If you say otherwise, come show me, don’t tell me.”

Allen reit…

Trey Ogden wants his full fight purse from UFC Fight Night 232.

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After being in control against Nikolas Motta throughout their fight, Ogden sunk in a deep arm-triangle late in the third round. Referee Mike Beltran prompted Motta to react twice before suddenly stepping in, inviting immediate protest from the Brazilian. While it initially seemed like Ogden would get the nod, it was declared a no contest upon review.

This means both fighters are now only eligible for their show money, despite the fact that Ogden seemed to be on his way to winning the fight with two of the judges scoring the first two rounds in his favor.

The Missouri native asked for his full purse in his post-fight interview, and “Samurai Ghost” reiterated that sentiment while speaking to media after the fight.

“I’m just trying to keep my composure and be a professional. Life happens… I’m no stranger to adversity... But this one hurts,” Ogden said. “Records are records, nu…

Ailin Perez has shared details on an alleged assault that took place on her days ahead of her UFC Fight Night 232 clash against Lucie Pudilova.

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Perez was seen sporting a black eye and a cut during fight week after being allegedly attacked at the UFC Performance Institute. Despite the attack, Perez went on to score a unanimous decision win over her Czech opponent, which she celebrated by twerking inside the Octagon. She subsequently opened up on the assault in the post-fight interview, confirming that it was a fellow fighter.

According to the Argentine, the attack took place due to comments she made online about the assailant’s performance in a fight. Perez further said that the attack was an attempt to make her pull out of the fight.

“So pretty much, I am someone just like everyone else, like you, like you. I don’t have a personal problem with anyone,” Perez said during a post-fight scrum. “What I did is I stated my opinion online about a fight…

Criticism in his home country drove Indonesia’s Jeka Saragih to defy the odds in his Ultimate Fighting Championship debut against Lucas Alexander.

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Fighting on short notice, Saragih’s opponent missed weight by two pounds, giving up 20% of his fight purse. A +350 underdog on some sportsbooks, Saragih handed the Brazilian his first career knockout loss in the first round of their bout at UFC Fight Night 232 to score a huge upset.

Saragih got his UFC call despite coming up short against India’s Anshul Jubli on the debut season of “Road to UFC,” the promotion’s venture to scout Asian talent. Although he scored two finishes en route to the finals, Saragih’s people back home seemingly didn’t have much faith in his skills.

The fact that no Indonesian fighters made the cut in the second season of the show led some people to believe that the country simply lacked Octagon-caliber fighters. Although his own family and friends doubted him, Saragih used it…

Brendan Allen closed the show at UFC Fight Night 232 in style, and he received a little extra spending money for his work in the Octagon.

Allen received one of four $50,000 “Performance of the Night” awards handed out by the promotion on Saturday for his third-round submission of Paul Craig in Saturday’s middleweight headliner at the UFC Apex in Las Vegas. “All In” forced his Scottish foe to tap to a rear-naked choke 38 seconds into Round 3 for his sixth straight victory.

Elsewhere, Amanda Ribas garnred $50,000 for a successful return to the strawweight division. After a slow start against Luana Pinheiro, Ribas rallied to put her foe away with a spinning wheel kick and follow-up punches at the 3:53 mark of Round 3.

Joanderson Brito struggled early against the positional control of Jonathan Pearce in their preliminary featherweight scrap, but the Brazilian turned the tables on his opponent when he forced a tapout with a ninja choke 3:54 into the second period. Tha…

Brendan Allen looks like more and more of a problem for the rest of the Ultimate Fighting Championship middleweight division.

The Kill Cliff Fight Club representative continued his ascent at 185 pounds, as he dismissed Paul Craig with a rear-naked choke in the third round of their UFC Fight Night 232 headliner on Saturday at the UFC Apex in Las Vegas. Craig (17-7-1, 9-7-1 UFC) conceded defeat 38 seconds into Round 3, losing via submission for just the second time in his 25-fight career.

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Allen (23-5, 11-2 UFC) averted potential disaster in the first round when he escaped a calf slicer from the former British Association of Mixed Martial Arts champion. From there, it was all one-way traffic. Allen dictated the terms in their grappling exchanges, hacked open an ugly cut on the Scotsman’s left eyebrow with an elbow strike and methodically established himself as the better fighter. He ripped into Craig with a two-punch combination at the start of the th…

Sherdog's live UFC Fight Night 232 coverage will begin Saturday at 2 p.m. ET. BETTING PREVIEW | SCOUTING REPORT | ODDS: Estevam (-125), Johnson (+105)Round 1 This is the next UFC Fight Night card holed up in the UFC Apex. There are 14 fights on it, and it starts earlier than usual. The first one comes in an unplanned catchweight, as Johnson (13-5, 2-3 UFC) tries to even his UFC record to .500 at the expense of heavy unbeaten newcomer Estevam (11-0, 0-0 UFC). The latter tipped the scales two pounds above the flyweight cap, and he siphoned off 20% of his purse to his opponent. The fighters do not touch gloves with referee Chris Tognoni watching on, and instead they look to find their own ranges immediately with kicks and jabs. Estevam changes levels after throwing a high kick, but Johnson is out of the way. Estevam peppers his foe with kicks to the calf and body, and Johnson springs out of the way of some of them but not all. Estevam keeps a high volume, always prodding out, …

Joanderson Brito can exploit the slightest opening.

The Chute Boxe rep took another step forward in the Ultimate Fighting Championship featherweight division, as he disposed of Jonathan Pearce with a ninja choke in the second round of their featured UFC Fight Night 232 prelim on Saturday at the UFC Apex in Las Vegas. Brito (16-3-1, 4-1 UFC) drew the curtain 3:54 into Round 2.

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After a competitive first round, Pearce (14-5, 5-2 UFC) appeared to seize the reins with a takedown, ground-and-pound and top control in the middle stanza. Brito eventually built a base, returned to his feet and caught the choke as he moved to escape. His squeeze was powerful and true, and Pearce had no choice but to tap.

Meanwhile, Twin Wolves MMA product Jose Johnson subdued fellow Dana White’s Contender Series alum Chad Anheliger with a rear-naked choke in the third round of their bantamweight battle. In his first appearance in more than a year, Anheliger (12-7, 1-2 UFC)…

2022 Professional Fighters League women's lightweight champion Larissa Pacheco doesn't see her upcoming opponent as a serious threat.

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After capturing the lightweight strap against Kayla Harrison in 2022, Pacheco decided to compete in the promotion’s inaugural featherweight season with hopes of securing two-division champion status.

The Brazilian is coming off a 14-second knockout of Olena Kolesnyk in their featherweight semifinal at PFL 8 in August. The impressive victory allowed Pacheco to book a spot in the 2023 PFL Championships against Russia's Marina Mokhnatkina.

A six-time combat sambo world champion, Mokhnatkina is renowned for her grappling prowess and ability to grind out fights on the canvas. However, having faced and defeated a former Olympic judo gold medalist in Harrison, Pachecho doesn't see the sambo specialist posing any threat to her inside the SmartCage.

“I know Marina's game. When Marina fought against Kayla, it was …

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Tom Aspinall firmly believes Jon Jones should be stripped of the Ultimate Fighting Championship heavyweight strap.

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Aspinall recently secured interim heavyweight champion status after defeating Russian powerhouse Sergei Pavlovich within 69 seconds of their short notice-meeting at UFC 295.

The original matchup that was scheduled to headline the event was a heavyweight bout between Jon Jones and Stipe Miocic. Unfortunately, Jones suffered a pectoral tear a few weeks ahead of the bout and was forced to pull out. Instead of offering a replacement opponent to Miocic, the promotion elected to put on an interim heavyweight title bout between Aspinall and Pavlovich on the grounds that offering Miocic an interim title fight would be “disrespectful.”

However, unlike Jiri Prochazkha or Jamahal Hill, there was no mention of Jones relinquishing the title due to his inability to compete for a considerable amount of time. Instead, as per UF…

Eduardo Henrique secured the Legacy Fighting Alliance flyweight championship in the fourth round of his LFA 172 main event against Cody Davis on Friday at the Arizona Financia Theatre in Phoenix.

Considering his striking background, Henrique (12-2) looked to keep the fight on the feet and succeeded in doing so. The Brazilian even managed to drop Davis (8-2) with a sharp check hook in Round 1, all while stuffing multiple takedown attempts. Henrique continued to tag Davis on the feet while fending off all takedown attempts until the third round. Despite being taken down, “Chapolin” kept his composure and got back to his feet, eventually hurting Davis with a knee on the break. Round 3 ended with a hurt Davis shooting in for a takedown, only to be mounted and pounded for the remainder of the period.

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The fourth frame saw a determined Henrique pressure a visibly exhausted Davis with his leg kicks and forward movement, eventually securing a technical knock…

UNDENIABLE 😱@TAKM_MMA has done the unthinkable! He stops @YaroslavAmosov!!! #Bellator301 | LIVE NOW | @SHOsports 🇺🇸 pic.twitter.com/g1qJ1hxUp9

— Bellator MMA (@BellatorMMA) November 18, 2023

They call him “The Ass Kicking Machine” for a reason.

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Jason Jackson shocked the world Friday night after ending mixed martial arts’ longest unbeaten streak when he masterfully knocked out Bellator MMA welterweight champion Yaroslav Amosov (27-1) in the third round (2:08) of the Bellator 301 main event at Winstrust Arena in Chicago.

Jackson (17-4) may have come in as the underdog but after winning his last six fights, the Kingston, Jamaica, native fought with the poise of a polished champion. Amosov tried desperately to get the heavy hitter to the mat and Jackson turned him away at every opportunity.

Forced to engage with him on the feet, Amosov looked to bait Jackson into a big shot or a takedown, but again Jackson wouldn’t …

Sherdog's live Bellator 301 coverage will begin Friday at 5 p.m. ET. Round 1 We have reached what Bellator has so far claimed is just its “final event of the year.” The chatter about the future of the promotion has reached a fever pitch on fight night, but regardless of what comes next, 16 fights are on the docket in Chicago including several huge ones on the main card. We start off in the featherweight division, as France’s Landu (19-9, 4-1 BMMA) tries to make Kobayashi (27-5-2, 0-2 BMMA) feel unwelcome in his return to the promotion. Referee Mike Cimmarusti takes the first assignment of the night, and he watches a glove touch, as the fighters get down to it. Landu marches forward out of his corner, only to have his lead leg kicked hard. Landu counters with an overhand right, and he tumbles to the mat and recovers. Landu crowds his opponent, tossing out a kick or two to find his range. Kobayashi returns fire with a low kick and ducks a looping punch, and he misses on a seco…

Our Main Event is locked in! 🔒@BrendanAllenMMA is in at 186lbs for tomorrow's #UFCVegas82 Main Event! pic.twitter.com/PPveKbHoSi

— UFC (@ufc) November 17, 2023 The Ultimate Fighting Championship returns to Las Vegas for its latest card, which is now set after the UFC Fight Night 232 weigh-ins took place.

Headlining the 14-fight card is an intriguing battle between Brendan Allen and Paul Craig. Both middleweight fighters successfully made weight for the five-round fight. As for the rest of the card, two fighters came in heavy. Both Lucas Alexander and Rafael Estevam were both two pounds over for their fights against Jeka Saragih and Charles Johnson, respectively. Meanwhile, Ailin Perez initially checked in half a pound over for her fight against Lucie Pudilova, but she returned to make 136 pounds with extra time. Alexander and Estevam were fined as a result.

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This marks the first UFC main event for Allen (22-5), who is …

[embedded content] After taking some time away from in-cage activity, referee Mario Yamasaki is ready to get back down to business.

The longtime referee will be returning to the sport to officiate the Professional Fighters League Finals on Nov. 24 in Washington, D.C. The 59-year-old born in Sao Paulo currently resides several miles outside of the U.S. Capitol, where he and his brother operate Yamasaki Academy. Its main stable located in Rockville, Maryland, he splits time between the U.S. and Brazil. Yamasaki spoke to Sherdog about his past career as well as his comeback.

“I’ll be with my brother Fernando and Jerin [Valel], who is coming from Canada,” Yamasaki explained about his upcoming event coverage. “The rules are basically the same except for the elbows which are not allowed in PFL. Very anxious to ref some of those six finals. The promotion here in Washington is huge after all, the show will pay six million dollars for six finalists that night.”

Yamasaki reveale…

Ruslan Satiev showed he could swim in deep waters.

The undefeated Dobryna Gym prospect made a successful One Championship debut with a split decision over Galaktic Sports rep Farid Alibabazade in a three-round ONE Friday Fights 41 flyweight showcase on Friday at Lumpinee Boxing Stadium in Bangkok, Thailand. Two of the three ringside judges sided with Satiev (5-0, 1-0 ONE), who was forced beyond the first round for the first time in his career.

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Alibabazade (8-6, 0-1 ONE) answered repeated takedowns with an active bottom game and nearly sprang the upset. However, Satiev successfully navigated the Azerbaijani’s spidery guard, more often than not dictated the terms of their engagement and racked up points with positional advances and intermittent ground-and-pound. Knees to the head proved to be his most effective weapon on the mat.

Further down the undercard, Satiev stablemate Gadzhimurad Amirzhanov kept his perfect professional record intact and did s…

[embedded content] What might be Bellator MMA's final event of the year is now official.

Headlining Bellator 301 is a welterweight title fight between champion Yaroslav Amosov and challenger Jason Jackson. The co-main event will also see the bantamweight championship on the line as Sergio Pettis looks to unify against interim beltholder Patrick Mix. All fighters on the card made weight, with the exception of Keri Melendez, who came in .6 pounds over the flyweight limit for her fight against Sabriye Sengul. She has been fined a percentage of her purse, and the fight will otherwise proceed as scheduled.

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The undefeated Amosov (27-0) is coming off decision wins over Douglas Lima and Logan Storley. The 30-year-old is 8-0 inside the Bellator cage. "Dynamo" stepped on the scale weighing 169.6 pounds.

Meanwhile, this is the biggest fight in the career of Jackson (16-4). "The Ass-Kicking Machine" is on a six-fight win streak that includes a decision win ove…