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Strickland Replaces Gastelum, Meets Imavov in New UFC Fight Night 217 Main Event

The first Ultimate Fighting Championship event of 2023 has undergone a late change to its headliner.

According to promotion broadcast partner ESPN, Kelvin Gastelum has been forced to withdraw from his UFC fight Night 217 showdown against Nassourdine Imavov due to a mouth injury, and as a result, will be replaced by Sean Strickland on less than one week’s notice. Strickland will be headlining back-to-back UFC cards after dropping a unanimous decision to Jared Cannonier in the promotion’s last event of 2022 on Dec. 17. While both men typically compete at 185 pounds, Strickland vs. Imavov will be contested at 205 pounds but will remain a five-round bout.

UFC Fight Night 217 takes place on Saturday at the UFC Apex in Las Vegas. It’s the second significant blow for the card, as a proposed co-main event clash between Geoff Neal and Shavkat Rakhmonov was scrapped due to a Neal injury. That bout has since been rescheduled for UFC 285.

After authori…

Ex-ATT Coach Andre Benkei Plans to Build Heavyweight Powerhouse at New Camp

A number of notable heavyweights will be calling Brazilian camp Libertas Esportes de Combate home in the coming months.

According to head coach Andre Benkei, heavyweights Amir Aliakbari, Tony Johnson Jr., Anderson "Braddock" Silva and Guto Inocente will all be training together under the same roof in Mariana, Minas Gerais, Brazil, in the coming months. Benkei is a former coach at American Top Team.

“I’ve always dreamed to join a great team of fighters with the best team of coaches who can produce the best quality fighters to [send to] all MMA shows all over the world,” Benkei told Sherdog.com. “Thanks to the support of the mayor of Mariana and local companies like [Brazilian mining organization Samarco] I was able to make it happen.

Benkei plans on bringing a number of high-level coaches and trainers to sharpen the heavyweights’ skills.

“To take care of their wrestling, we will have [Iran national team member] Poya Baghbani; for boxin…

Featherweights Lerone Murphy, Nathaniel Wood to Meet at UFC 286

Credit: Getty/UFC Credit: Getty/UFC

A featherweight clash pitting Lerone Murphy against Nathaniel Wood has been added to the UFC 286 lineup.

The Las Vegas-based promotion announced the bout on Monday. UFC 286 takes place on March 18 at the O2 Arena in London and also includes a middleweight tilt between Marvin Vettori and Roman Dolidze. A headliner has not been confirmed for the event.

The 31-year-old Murphy will make his first Octagon appearance since October 2021, when he knocked out Makwan Amirkhani with a knee in the second-round of their UFC 267 clash to run his professional mark to 11-0-1. Since then, the Englishman known as “The Miracle” was hospitalized after a cycling accident that he described as a “near-death experience” in May 2022.

A former Cage Warriors bantamweight champion, Wood is 2-0 since moving up to 145 pounds after earning unanimous verdicts over Charles Rosa and Charles Jourdain last year. The 29-year-old Great Britai…

Arjan Bhullar-Anatoliy Malykhin Title Unification Bout Set for One on Prime Video 8

Arjan Singh Bhullar and Anatoliy Malykhin will square off in a heavyweight title unification bout at One on Prime Video 8.

The Singapore-based promotion recently announced the booking. Bhullar and Malykhin were initially slated to meet at One Championship 161 last September, but Bhullar withdrew from the card due to injury. One on Prime Video 8 takes place on March 24 at Singapore Indoor Stadium in Kallang, Singapore and airs in primetime via Prime Video in the United States.

A four-time UFC veteran, Bhullar claimed the undisputed heavyweight crown with a second-round technical knockout victory against Brandon Vera at One Championship “Dangal” in April 2021. Bhullar has won four straight fights and 11 of 12 professional outings overall. Bhullar has not competed since that victory due to the aforementioned injury and a contract dispute with the promotion, according to a release.

Malykhin, meanwhile, is undefeated in 11 professional appearances…

Melquizael Costa Steps in to Face Thiago Moises at UFC 283 on Jan. 21

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Melquizael Costa will replace Guram Kutateladze and face Thiago Moises at UFC 283 on Jan. 21.

MMAFighting.com was first to report the new lightweight booking. UFC 283 takes place at Jeunesse Arena in Rio de Janeiro and is headlined by a light heavyweight championship clash pitting Glover Teixeira against Jamahal Hill.

The 26-year-old Costa will enter his promotional debut with a 19-5 career record. The Chute Boxe Bauru representative has been victorious in seven of his last eight professional outings, including a third-round TKO of Jose Cleiton de Melo Jr. in his most recent appearance at LFA 147 on Nov. 18.

A former Resurrection Fighting Alliance champion, Moises snapped a two-fight losing streak at UFC on ESPN 38, when he submitted Christos Giagos in the opening stanza on June 25. Moises is 5-4 in UFC competition, with notable wins over the likes of Alexander Hernandez, Bobby Green and Michael Johnson.

Khabib Nurmagomedov Expected to Retire from MMA Coaching

It appears that Khabib Nurmagomedov is ready to step away from mixed martial arts entirely.

The former UFC lightweight champion recently shared a post on his Instagram stories indicating that he is retiring from MMA coaching. The translated post, which was shared from the account za.khabiba, reads: “Khabib is leaving the MMA industry. It’s about coaching and everything else related to MMA. The reason is Khabib’s desire to devote more time to his family.”

American Kickboxing Academy coach Javier Mendez, who cornered Nurmagomedov before later working alongside him, confirmed that the former UFC champion is retiring in an interview with Yahoo Sports. Nurmagomedov has three children.

“He just doesn’t want to miss being a father,” Mendez said. “He talked to me about three weeks ago and told me of his plan and said he planned to talk to the team and inform them of his decision. He’s doing this for the right reasons. He’s a family man and he simply w…

Ex-UFC Fighter Cain Carrizosa Arrested for Allegedly Assaulting Girlfriend

Two-time UFC veteran Cain Carrizosa has been arrested for allegedly assaulting his girlfriend twice since March of last year.

According to the Gephardt (Utah) Daily, Carrizosa is being held without bail at the Purgatory Correctional Facility in Washington County for allegedly punching a women with whom he was in a relationship on Jan. 1. Carrizosa, who is identified in the police report as Cain Castillo, is facing second-degree felony charges of aggravated assault resulting in serious bodily injury and robbery in St. George, Utah.

St. George police arrived at the couple's residence after receiving a report of a fight and found the woman with bruises consistent with that of having been punched. When speaking to police, the woman’s mother revealed that the couple had been drinking and she “could specifically hear the sound of a fist hitting flesh at least once.” The mother also said that she separated Carrizosa and her daughter after the victim clai…

One Championship Atomweight Victoria Lee Dead at 18

Victoria Lee, 18-year-old martial arts prodigy and undefeated MMA prospect in One Championship, died on Dec. 26, according to an Instagram post by her sister, ONE atomweight champ Angela Lee, on Jan. 7.

The elder sister's statement read:

“On December 26, 2022 our family experienced something no family should ever have to go through... It is incredibly difficult to say this... Our Victoria passed away.

She has gone too soon and our family has been completely devastated since then. We miss her. More than anything in this world. Our family will never be the same. Life will never be the same.

Victoria was the most beautiful soul who ever lived. She was the best little sister in the world. The best daughter, the best granddaughter and the best godma / aunty to Ava and Alia.

We miss you so much sis. More than you could ever realize. We're all broken. Because a piece of you was in each of us and when you left, those pieces were ripped out of u…

Tatiana Suarez-Montana De La Rosa Flyweight Scrap Booked for UFC Fight Night 220

Credit: Dave Mandel/Sherdog.com Credit: Dave Mandel/Sherdog.com Credit: Dave Mandel/Sherdog.com Credit: Dave Mandel/Sherdog.com The long-awaited return for Ultimate Fighting Championship contender Tatiana Suarez is right around the corner.

On Monday, Sherdog learned from sources that Suarez (8-0) would be coming back from a nearly four-year layoff to take on Montana De La Rosa (12-7-1) in February. Suarez, a strawweight contender before injury kept her on the shelf from mid-2019 through 2022, will be moving to 125 pounds for this matchup. De La Rosa confirmed Friday on her OnlyFans page that this fight was official for the Feb. 25 card of UFC Fight Night 220. She subsequently announced this on her Instagram Stories not long after the news broke.

Suarez won Season 23 of “The Ultimate Fighter” by submitting J.J. Aldrich, Kate Jackson and Amanda Bobby Brundage to run through the reality show. After getting her "six-figure contract," she strung together…

UFC Champ Deiveson Figueiredo Expects Brazilians to Hold 5 Belts After UFC 283

The Ultimate Fighting Championship flyweight king expects his countrymen and women to reign supreme in 2023.

Preparing for his record fourth straight match against one single opponent, Deiveson Figueiredo (21-2-1) is nearly ready to take on Brandon Moreno (20-6-2) once more. The two flyweight titleholders – Moreno claimed the interim strap against Kai Kara France last July – will unify their belts in the co-main event of UFC 283 on Jan. 21. Ahead of this historic battle, “Daico” revealed to Sherdog in an interview on Thursday that he has made some changes in his preparation. Most notably for the champion is that he went home.

“I tried to adapt in Chute Boxe with my family, but it was too cold during the winter time in Sao Paulo and they didn’t get adapted, so I decided to return home [to Para],” Figueiredo admitted.

But even being far from Sao Paulo, Brazil, or his previous camp of Fight Ready in Phoenix, Figueiredo guaranteed that the excellent con…

Bellator 290 Lineup Official for Feb. 4, Includes Mowry-Isaev & Darrion Caldwell

#Bellator290 on @CBS adds four new fights for Feb. 4 including undefeated heavyweights @TallSteveMMA and Ali Isaev.

Plus Lorenz Larkin (@da_MONSOON) vs. Mukhamed Berkhamov and former champ Darrion Caldwell (@TheWolfMMA) vs. Nikita Mikhailov.

More here:https://t.co/ArK3pUrGeK — Bellator Public Relations (@BellatorPR) January 6, 2023 The first Bellator MMA show of 2023 is shaping up to be one to remember.

Per a press release on Friday, the organization finalized its lineup for Bellator 290 on Feb. 4. While most of the bout listings – including the three main card tilts of Ryan Bader vs. Fedor Emelianenko, Johnny Eblen vs. Anatoly Tokov and Sabah Homasi vs. Brennan Ward – had already been made official, the preliminary slate is now fully on the books. Of note, Bellator added a heavyweight clash of the unbeatens between Steve Mowry (10-0, 1 NC) and Ali Isaev (9-0) to its billing.

Bellator 290 will be the promotion’…

Cynthia Calvillo Returns to Strawweight for Lupita Godinez Matchup on April 8

If she can reach the limit, Ultimate Fighting Championship vet Cynthia Calvillo will try to jump-start her career back down at 115 pounds.

Per ESPN Deportes on Thursday night, the UFC’s no. 14-ranked flyweight Calvillo (9-5-1) will be returning to the strawweight division on April 8. At the event tentatively called UFC 287, she will be greeted by Lupita Godinez (8-3), who has also bounced back and forth in divisions as well. Godinez confirmed on her Instagram Stories shortly after its announcement that this fight is official. The destination of this match and event is not yet on the books, although it is rumored to be going down at the Barclays Center in Brooklyn, New York.

This will be Calvillo’s first jaunt back to strawweight since late 2019, where she missed weight by nearly five pounds and fought to a draw against Marina Rodriguez. Her first UFC fight at 125 pounds went in her favor, as she topped the heavy Jessica Eye by decision to earn a place among the top fi…

Jennifer Maia Expected to Face Casey O’Neill at UFC 286 in London

A place among the top 10 at flyweight is on the line at the Ultimate Fighting Championship’s return trip to London.

Courtesy of an initial report from MMA Island on Tuesday, 125-pound contenders Jennifer Maia (20-9-1) and Casey O'Neill (9-0) will square off at UFC 286 on March 18. The two flyweights are expected to battle it out inside of the O2 Arena in London, although the contracts have not yet been formalized. Maia has since confirmed this pairing in a comment on Instagram, and other outlets have also done so as well.

Maia ended her first two-fight skid in November, where she claimed a hard-fought decision over Maryna Moroz. That victory put an end to a rough patch in 2022 where she dropped unanimous verdicts to Katlyn Chookagian and Manon Fiorot. Since making her UFC debut in 2018, the former Invicta Fighting Championships flyweight queen has gone the distance in nine of her 10 outings. The lone stoppage came via armbar over Joanne Wood in 2020.…

UFC Welterweight Warlley Alves Expects 4 Fights in 2023, Hunts for Bonus at UFC 283

Ready to make up for lost time, Ultimate Fighting Championship talent Warlley Alves plans on this year being his most active one yet.

In May 2014, Alves conquered the third season of “The Ultimate Fighter: Brazil” at the age of 23. The Brazilian just turned 32 this week, and he is set to return to the cage for the first time in nearly 19 months. Due to serious injury and subsequent surgery, Alves could not fight for the entirety of 2022, and he is very hungry for his next outing. He will step foot in the Octagon at UFC 283 on Jan. 21, and he will square off against Nicolas Dalby in an important 170-pound tilt. Alves spoke to Sherdog this week about his recovery and what he sees in his future.

“I’m really motivated for this fight,” Alves was ready to admit. “I love to fight opponents that come to exchange. It will be a classic [battle] of striking styles. His karate against my kickboxing. He has a style pretty similar to [Lyoto] Machida, but he likes t…

Lightweight Slate Set for 2023 PFL Challenger Series Event on Feb. 17

The Lightweights are on deck for Week 4️⃣of the Challenger Series

[ #PFLonFuboTV | Lightweights | Fri, Feb 17th | 9pm ET] pic.twitter.com/FoE9DsIeld

— PFL (@PFLMMA) January 5, 2023

The fourth episode of Professional Fighters League’s Challenger Series in 2023 will carry with it several extremely promising 155ers.

Via press release on Thursday, the PFL has announced its fourth week of matches for the upcoming Challenger Series season. This episode on Feb. 17 will feature lightweights, including two highly touted undefeated up-and-comers as well as those that have appeared on Dana White's Contender Series and One Championship thus far. The fight card, like all others in this year’s Challenger Series, will take place at Universal Studios in Orlando, Fla., and it will air on Fubo Sports.

The main attraction in this four-fight show comes between unbeaten finisher Elvin Espinoza (7-0), who has already fought twice f…

Jake Paul Signs With PFL, Buys Minority Stake to Start ‘PPV Super Fight Division’

Signed, Sealed, Delivered. Welcome to the Professional Fighters League @jakepaul pic.twitter.com/pgMDUprK6S

— PFL (@PFLMMA) January 5, 2023 Guess who’s coming to dinner.

Per the Professional Fighters League on Thursday via press release and social media, the organization has signed YouTuber-turned-boxer Jake Paul (6-0, 4 KOs Box) to compete under its banner in MMA. Additionally, he has also bought in as a minority equity owner to the parent company along with fellow promoter and former Ultimate Fighting Championship exec Nakisa Bidarian. According to the release, Paul will jump-start the pay-per-view division to stage “PFL PPV Super Fights,” and he is the first person signed to that section of the PFL.

As the newly appointed Head of Fighter Advocacy, Paul has ordained that the pay-per-view revenue generated from these events will be at least an even 50-50 split with the organization and the competitors. These pay-to-watc…

UFC Parts Ways with 26-Time Octagon Veteran Francisco Trinaldo

It’s the end of an era for Francisco Trinaldo.

The UFC has parted ways with the 26-time Octagon veteran, according to MMAFighting.com. The promotion elected not to renew Trinaldo’s contract after he fulfilled the last fight on his most recent deal this past October.

Trinaldo appeared on “The Ultimate Fighter: Brazil” Season 1 and made his promotional debut at UFC 147 on June 23, 2012. The now 44-year-old Brazilian went 18-8 over the course of his UFC tenure, earning victories against the likes of Ross Pearson, Yancy Medeiros, Paul Felder, Jim Miller, Evan Dunham, Bobby Green and John Makdessi, to name a few.

Trinaldo’s last appearance came at UFC Fight Night 211, where he had a two-bout winning streak snapped in a unanimous decision loss to Randy Brown.

Cain Velasquez Expected to Set Trial Date in March After Latest Court Appearance

Cain Velasquez moved closer to a trial date as he appeared in Santa Clara County, Calif., court on Wednesday.

The former UFC heavyweight champion identified his counsel during a hearing before Judge Daniel T. Nishigaya. Velasquez will be represented by California attorney Renee Hessling, who previously worked alongside Mark Geragos during pre-trial proceedings. Velasquez’s next hearing will be on March 8, when a trial date is expected to be set.

Velasquez is facing attempted murder and other charges after allegedy chasing and shooting at Harry Goularte, who has been accused of molesting Velasquez’s young son. During a high-speed chase, Velasquez fired at the vehicle containing Goularte and allegedly hit and injured his stepfather, Paul Bender.

Velasquez was released on released on $1 million bail in November after spending eight months in a holding facility. He remains under GPS surveillance and cannot leave his home without the court’s perm…

Shavkat Rakhmonov vs. Geoff Neal Rescheduled for UFC 285 on March 4

Shavkat Rakhmonov vs. Geoff Neal has a new date and venue.

After a proposed booking at UFC Fight Night 217 on Jan. 14 was scrapped due to a Neal injury, the welterweight bout has been rebooked for UFC 285 on March 4. ESPN was first to report the rescheduled matchup.

UFC 285 takes place at the T-Mobile Arena in Las Vegas and also includes a middleweight showdown pitting Derek Brunson against Dricus Du Plessis. The card does not yet have a headliner.

Rakhmonov is undefeated in 16 professionals appearances, with four of those triumphs coming under the UFC banner. The former M-1 Global champion last appeared at UFC on ESPN 38, where he submitted Neil Magny in the second frame this past June.

Neal has bounced back from the first two-bout skid of his career to post back-to-back triumphs over Santiago Ponzinibbio and Vicente Luque in the Octagon. “Handz of Steel” is 7-2 within the Las Vegas-based promotion, with other notable victories again…

Endeavor Shares Down Nearly 6% Following Release of Dana White Video

Endeavor shares fall after video shows UFC boss Dana White hitting wife on New Year's Eve https://t.co/UYisZWB28i

— CNBC (@CNBC) January 3, 2023

Endeavor, the parent company of the Ultimate Fighting Championship, could be suffering the consequences of Dana White’s actions.

According to CNBC, the media and entertainment company saw its shares drop nearly 6% on Tuesday after a video surfaced showing the UFC president slapping his wife during an altercation in Mexico on New Year’s Eve. While White issued a statement in an interview with TMZ, neither Endeavor nor broadcast partner ESPN have commented on the incident.

“My wife and I were out on Saturday night on New Year’s Eve, and unfortunately that’s what happened,” White said. “You’ve heard me say for years, there’s never, ever an excuse for guy to put his hands on a woman, and now here I am on TMZ talking about it. My wife and I have been married for almost 30 years. W…

Report: MMA Veteran Phil Baroni Arrested for Allegedly Killing Girlfriend in Mexico

MMA veteran Phil Baroni has been arrested and charged with killing his girlfriend at a hotel room in San Pancho, Mexico, according to a report from Tribuna De La Bahia.

The former UFC fighter reportedly flagged down police and informed them that his girlfriend was unconscious and needed help. When police arrived at the room, the woman was lying naked on the bed, covered in a sheet and had no vital signs. She also had bruises on her face and body, injuries that seem to indicate some type of assault.

Baroni told police that while smoking marijuana and drinking beer, the woman revealed that she had cheated on him with another man. Baroni claimed that he told her to take a shower and allegedly threw her into the shower when she refused, causing the woman to fall and hit her head. According to Baroni, he helped her back to the bed and left the room to get her a cigarette and beer at her request. Upon his return, Baroni claimed to notice the woman was u…

UFC Vet Kendall Grove Returns, Meets Michal Materla in Rematch at KSW 78

Former Ultimate Fighting Championship competitor Kendall Grove will return to action after more than three years away when he faces Michal Materla in the KSW 78 main event.

The Polish promotion recently announced the booking. Materla defeated Grove via unanimous decision in their first fight at KSW 23 on June 8, 2013. KSW 78 takes place on Jan. 21 in Szczecin, Poland and will also see Tomasz Romanowski square off against Radoslaw Paczuski in the evening’s welterweight co-headliner.

Grove, who won Season 3 of “The Ultimate Fighter,” hasn’t competed since submitting Anthony Ruiz in the first round of their bout at World Fighting Championships 110 on Aug. 10, 2019. The 40-year-old Hawaiian is best known for a 7-6 stint in the UFC from 2006 to 2011, but he also had a nine-bout tenure in Bellator MMA and faced Materla and Mamed Khalidov under the KSW banner. “Da Spyder” owns a 24-18 career mark, with notable wins over the likes of Joey Beltan, Derek Bru…

UFC President Dana White Slaps Wife During Altercation on New Year’s Eve

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UFC president Dana White was caught on camera slapping his wife during a physical altercation that occurred on New Year’s Eve while the couple was on vacation in Cabo San Lucas, Mexico.

Video of the incident was released by TMZ Sports on Monday. White and his wife, Anne, were in the VIP section at El Squid Roe, a local bar, when the UFC president appeared to grab his wife by the wrist. Anne then slaps White, who responds by slapping his wife in the face before the couple is separated by others in the group.

White discussed the incident in an interview with TMZ.

UFC 284 Update: Jack Della Maddalena, Randy Brown to Meet in Perth

Rising welterweight star Jack Della Maddalena will face arguably his toughest test to date when he squares off against Randy Brown at UFC 284.

Eurosport confirmed the booking after Brown initially announced the matchup via Twitch last week. UFC 284 takes place at the RAC Arena in Perth, Australia, on Feb. 11 and is headlined by a lightweight title tilt pitting Islam Makhachev against Alexander Volkanovski.

After earning a UFC contract on Dana White’s Contender Series in 2021, Maddalena kicked off his promotional tenure with three consecutive first-round TKO victories this past year. Most recently, the Perth native stopped Danny Roberts 3:24 into the opening stanza of their clash at UFC Fight Night 215 on Nov. 19. The 26-year-old has won 13 straight professional outings overall.

Brown, 32, will take a four-bout UFC winning streak into the showdown with Maddalena. “Rude Boy” went 2-0 in 2022, taking a split decision over Kalin Williams at UFC …

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