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PFL Announces Women’s Featherweight Lineup for Challenger Series

The Women's 145 Division makes its @fuboTV Challenger Series debut in Week ✌️. All matchups are set 🔐

[ #PFLonFuboTV | Women's Featherweights | Fri, Feb 3rd | 9pm ET] pic.twitter.com/TYqaQgh3jV

— PFL (@PFLMMA) December 21, 2022

The Professional Fighters League is going forward with introducing a women’s featherweight division in 2023, and that will begin with a full lineup of 145-pound talent on the Challenger Series.

The organization on Wednesday announced the four featherweight bouts set for the PFL Challenger Series, which airs Feb. 3 on Fubo TV at 9 p.m. ET/6 p.m. PT. The 145-pound edition of the Challenger Series will be headlined by a clash between IBJJF world champion Amanda Leve and Olympic judoka Naranjargal Tsendayush, the first Mongolian fighter to compete under the PFL banner.

The other three featherweight matchups for the Challenger Series are as follows: two-time PFL competitor Jeslen Mishelle vs. A…

Second Bellator vs. Rizin Event Already Discussed, Could Potentially Be Held in U.S.

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Both Scott Coker and Nobuyuki Sakakibara are in agreement: The Bellator vs. Rizin card slated for New Year’s Eve is not a one-off event.

While the organizations have shared fighters before, the upcoming event will mark the first time that a promotion vs. promotion format has been utilized, with five Bellator athletes squaring off against five Rizin athletes on the evening’s main card at Saitama Super Arena in Saitama, Japan. The first version will take place in the Rizin ring under the Japanese organization’s rule set, but the next iteration is expected to take place in a cage under Bellator rules.

“Sakakibara and I talked about a two-fight event,” Coker said during a media call. “The next one has to be in a cage and under the Bellator rules. Things can be different when the rules are different and the apparatus is different.”

The location and venue for the second cross-promotional event hasn’t been decided, but Coker has at l…

Charles Oliveira Favors Islam Makhachev Against Alexander Volkanovski at UFC 284

After his loss to Islam Makhachev in a lightweight title bout at UFC 280 this past October, Charles Oliveira turned down an opportunity to fight in Rio de Janeiro on Jan. 21.

During his time off since that defeat, “Do Bronx” has also avoided doing media. However, Oliveira recently broke his silence in an interview with Brazilian podcast Super Lutas, where he discussed the loss to Makhachev. The former lightweight champion, who doesn’t yet have a date for his UFC return, revealed that he hasn’t yet watched the bout but wouldn’t change anything if he faced the Dagestani again.

“Islam was better. I have no excuses but I wouldn't do anything different from what I did,” he said. “I saw some people talking s—t, saying I was walking with lions in the week of the fight. They know nothing. I know how much I trained for this fight.”

Makhachev is scheduled to make his first 155-pound title defense against reigning featherweight champ Alexander Volkanovs…

Video: Anderson Silva’s Son Gets Knockout Win in Pro Boxing Debut

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Kalyl Silva, the 23-year-old son of former UFC champion Anderson Silva, had a professional boxing debut to remember over the weekend in Bahia, Brazil.

The younger Silva was cornered by his father and boxing coach Luiz Carlos Dorea and faced a fellow newcomer, Paulo dos Santos, in a four-round fight at 155 pounds. Kalyl was victorious via knockout after hurting his opponent with a left to the body and a follow-up right to the head in the final stanza.

After the victory, father and son kneeled together in the center of the ring, a move reminiscient of “The Spider’s” respectful post-fight gesture to opponents during his UFC career. Kalyl Silva is also 2-1 in professional kickboxing bouts, with his most recent appearance coming this past September.

Ex-Title Challenger Taila Santos to Face Erin Blanchfield at UFC Fight Night 219

Recent flyweight title challenger Taila Santos will square off against surging prospect Erin Blanchfield at UFC Fight Night 219 on Feb. 18.

Multiple outlets confirmed the booking after Blanchfield announced the matchup on the "Morning Kombat” show. Blanchfield also revealed that she has signed a new four-fight contract with the Las Vegas-based promotion. UFC Fight Night 219 takes place at the UFC Apex and does not yet a main event.

Santos is coming off a five-round, split-decision loss to Valentina Shevchenko in the UFC 275 co-main event this past June, when she gave the reigning flyweight queen arguably the toughest test of her championship reign. Prior to that defeat, the 29-year-old Astra Fight Team representative had won four straight bouts in the Octagon, with notable victories over the likes of Joanne Wood, Roxanne Modafferi and Molly McCann.

Blanchfield, 23, has emerged as one of the most intriguing talents in the division since makin…

Ovince St. Preux vs. Philipe Lins Rebooked for UFC Fight Night 219

After a couple previous cancellations, a light heavyweight clash between Ovince St. Preux and Philipe Lins has been rescheduled for UFC Fight Night 219.

MMAFighting.com was first to report the rebooked contest. UFC Fight Night 219 takes place on Feb. 18 at the UFC Apex in Las Vegas. The event does not yet have a headliner.

St. Preux was slated to face three different opponents at UFC 282 — Lins, Alexander Gustafsson and Antonio Trocoli — before eventually being removed from the Dec. 10 card entirely. “OSP” was also supposed to meet Lins in November, but that fight fell through as well. St. Preux last competed at UFC 274, where he defeated Maurico Rua via split decision in a rematch of a 2014 clash.

The 37-year-old Lins halted a two-bout skid in his last outing, when he outpointed Marcin Prachnio at UFC Fight Night 205 on April 23. “Monstro” is a 2018 PFL champion at heavyweight and also compiled a 3-3 mark during a short stint in Bellator MMA.

Previously Announced Robert Whittaker-Paulo Costa Bout Not Happening at UFC 284

A previously announced middleweight bout between Robert Whittaker and Paulo Costa is now not likely to happen at UFC 284, according to a report from ESPN.

Though the contest is still listed on the UFC’s official website, the promotion has been unable to finalize the bout. The matchup was initially announced in October, and the only hurdle at the time was getting the fight cleared by the Western Australia Combat Sports Commission.

Since then, however, Costa revealed that he was still in negotiations with the UFC for a new contract with one fight remaining on his current deal. As a result, “Borrachinha” had not agreed to face Whittaker at UFC 284 because the promotion had not yet met his financial terms, and he claimed that his contract could potentially expire before he fulfilled the last bout.

More recently, Whittaker’s coach, Alex Prates, acknowledged that there was a "great possibility” that the former middleweight champion would not fa…

Middleweights Andre Muniz, Brendan Allen to Meet at UFC Fight Night 220 on Feb. 25

A middleweight showdown pitting Andre Muniz against Brendan Allen has been added to the UFC Fight Night 220 lineup.

Ag.Fight was first to report the booking. UFC Fight Night 220 takes place at the UFC Apex in Las Vegas on Feb. 25 and is headlined by a light heavyweight duel between Nikita Kyrlov and Ryan Spann.

Muniz is in the midst of a nine-bout winning streak that dates back to December 2017. The Dana White’s Contender Series alum is 5-0 in the UFC since his promotional debut in 2019, with notable wins over the likes of Uriah Hall, Eryk Anders and Ronaldo Souza. “Sergipano” is 23-4 as a professional, with 15 victories by way of submission.

Also a former competitor on the Contender Series, Allen has compiled an 8-2 mark during his tenure with the Las Vegas-based promotion. The 26-year-old Sanford MMA export is coming off a 3-0 campaign in 2022 that featured victories against Sam Alvey, Jacob Malkoun and Krzysztof Jotko.

Jared Cannonier Confident He Won Three Rounds Against Sean Strickland

The UFC Fight Night 216 headliner wasn’t the type of bout that produced a definitive winner.

That was reflected in the final scorecards, as Jared Cannonier captured a contentious split-decision triumph over Sean Strickland on Saturday night at the UFC Apex in Las Vegas. The verdict drew harsh criticism from Strickland in the aftermath, and not a single round was scored unanimously by cageside judges Derek Cleary, Sal D’Amato and Junichiro Kamijo. Cannonier, whose approach included a barrage of low kicks and occasional bursts of power punches, believed that he did enough to earn the nod on the scorecards.

“I definitely thought I won at least three of the five rounds,” Cannonier said at the post-fight press conference. “I felt confident that I won three out of five rounds. On top of that, I felt confident that I won the fight in general.”

As expected, Strickland did some of his best work with his jab while confounding his opponent with moveme…

Arman Tsarukyan Wants More Five-Round Experience, Targets ‘Big Name’ Opponents

While beating someone like Damir Ismagulov might not move the needle in the eyes of the casual fan, Arman Tsarukyan was well aware of the significance of his latest victory.

Tsarukyan relied on takedowns and clinch work to end Ismagulov’s 19-bout professional winning streak in the UFC Fight Night 216 co-main event at the UFC Apex in Las Vegas on Saturday night. The American Top Team-trained Russian took his opponent’s back in both the second and third rounds, but a finish didn’t materialize.

“I felt like if I get his back I’m going to choke him right away because I heard he doesn’t have good wrestling, grappling. But today I understood he’s tough on the ground too, and it’s difficult to hold him there,” Tsarukyan said at Saturday’s post-fight press conference. “He was really good. Nobody stopped him or knocked him out in the UFC. Nobody [beat] him in the UFC, and I’m the first guy who beat him here. I think it’s a big fight for me and big name. Ye…

After Close Loss, Sean Strickland Says Judges ‘Don’t Know How to F—ing Do Their Job’

Sean Strickland is admittedly a “sore loser” following his split-decision loss to Jared Cannonier in the UFC Fight Night 216 main event.

In a bout where neither middleweight made a definitive statement, Strickland did his best work with a consistent jab and movement that at times confounded his opponent. According to UFCStats.com, Strickland outlanded Cannonier in every round but the first — though the totals were close in each frame. Ultimately, Cannonier’s power and varied striking made more of an impression with the cageside judges.

Shortly after the loss, Strickland ripped the scoring in a video on his Instagram account.

“I’m a f—-ing sore loser,” Strickland said. “Hat’s off to Jared, but you have judges that don’t know how to f—-ing do their job. You actually look at the scorecard and you look at the significant strikes and you look at how many times I wobbled him. You have experts in the field come up to me and say, ‘Yeah man, I don’t …

UFC Fight Night 216 Bonuses: Drew Dober, Bobby Green Earn ‘Fight of the Night’ Honors

DREW DOBER LAID OUT BOBBY GREEN #UFCVegas66 pic.twitter.com/3z600Cvjk0

— ESPN MMA (@espnmma) December 18, 2022

Drew Dober’s knockout power ultimately won out against Bobby Green’s superior volume at UFC Fight Night 216, but both men received a little extra compensation for their work.

Dober and Green earned “Fight of the Night” honors and $50,000 apiece for their entertaining lightweight clash at the UFC Apex in Las Vegas on Saturday night. Green ran out to an early lead, as he kept his opponent off balance with punching combinations in Round 1, but Dober struck the decisive blow when he knocked out “King” with a left hook and one follow-up punch at the 2:45 mark of the second stanza.

Elsewhere, Alex Caceres garnered a $50,000 “Performance of the Night” award thanks to a nearly picture-perfect finish of Julian Erosa in a featured featherweight encounter. “Bruce Leeroy” dropped his foe with a head kick that was expertl…

Split Verdict Sends Jared Cannonier Past Sean Strickland at UFC Fight Night 216

Jared Cannonier’s performance was not the kind that inspires long-term hope in the Ultimate Fighting Championship middleweight division, but it was enough to get the job done.

Thudding leg kicks and occasional bursts of power punches spurred Cannonier to a split decision over former King of the Cage champion Sean Strickland in the UFC Fight Night 216 headliner on Saturday at the UFC Apex in Las Vegas. All three members of the cageside judiciary struck 49-46 scorecards: Sal D’Amato for Strickland, Derek Cleary and Junichiro Kamijo for Cannonier.

Neither man established much of a framework for victory, hence the discrepancies in the scorecards. Cannonier (16-6, 9-6 UFC) was effective with kicks to the lower extremities for much of the back-and-forth affair. Strickland (25-5, 12-5 UFC), meanwhile, managed distance with a consistent jab, then picked up the pace in the middle rounds. He aimed his shots almost exclusively at the head. Cannonier continue…

UFC Fight Night 216 ‘Cannonier vs. Strickland’ Play-by-Play, Results & Round Scoring

Sherdog's live UFC Fight Night 216 coverage will begin Saturday at 4 p.m. ET. BETTING PREVIEW | SCOUTING REPORT | ODDS: Morozov (-280), Newson (+235)Round 1 Sherdog Scores Jay Pettry scores the round:Brian Knapp scores the round:Edwin Ayala scores the round:

Round 2 Sherdog Scores Jay Pettry scores the round:Brian Knapp scores the round:Edwin Ayala scores the round:Round 3 Sherdog Scores Jay Pettry scores the round:Brian Knapp scores the round:Edwin Ayala scores the round: The Official Result BETTING PREVIEW | SCOUTING REPORT | ODDS: Kape (-240), Dvorak (+200)Round 1 Sherdog Scores Jay Pettry scores the round:Brian Knapp scores the round:Edwin Ayala scores the round:Round 2 Sherdog Scores Jay Pettry scores the round:Brian Knapp scores the round:Edwin Ayala scores the round:Round 3 Sherdog Scores Jay Pettry scores the round:Brian Knapp scores the round:Edwin Ayala scores the round:The Official Result BETTING PREVIEW | SCOUTING REPORT | ODDS: Fakhretd…

UFC Fight Night 216 Prelims: Cory McKenna Outflanks Cheyanne Vlismas in Las Vegas

Cory McKenna found the weakness and exploited it.

The Team Alpha Male standout leaned on takedowns, positional dominance and spotty ground-and-pound, as she took a step forward in the Ultimate Fighting Championship women’s strawweight division with a unanimous decision over Cheyanne Vlismas in the featured UFC Fight Night 216 prelim on Saturday at the UFC Apex in Las Vegas. McKenna (8-2, 3-1 UFC) swept the scorecards with 29-28 nods from all three judges.

Vlismas (7-3, 2-2 UFC) kept it standing for much of the first round, countered effectively and pieced together two- and three-punch combinations. McKenna wisely switched gears in the second, controlled the Xtreme Couture rep in the clinch and slowly but surely turned the tide in her favor. She powered into top position in Round 3 on an ill-advised choke attempt from Vlismas, attacked with short punches and walked away with her sixth win in seven outings.Semelsberger Handles Favored Matthews Crazy…

Holly Holm vs. Yana Kunitskaya Booked for UFC on ESPN 43

Former bantamweight queen Holly Holm will lock horns with Yana Kunitskaya at UFC on ESPN 43 on March 25.

MMAFighting.com was first to report the pairing. UFC on ESPN 43 takes place at the AT&T Center in San Antonio, Texas. A headliner has not been announced, but the card is expected to include a middleweight tilt between Chidi Njokuani and Albert Duraev as well as a women’s flyweight duel pitting Maycee Barber against Andrea Lee.

Holm had a two-bout winning streak snapped in her lone appearance of 2022, as she fell to Ketlen Vieira in a closely-contested split-decision defeat at UFC Fight Night 206. Prior to that, the Jackson-Wink MMA standout had posted back-to-back decision triumphs over Irene Aldana and Raquel Pennington.

Kunitskaya sat out the entirety of 2022 after announcing her pregnancy with husband Thiago Santos. In her last outing, the 33-year-old Russian suffered a first-round TKO defeat to Aldana at UFC 264 in July 2021.

Mamed Khalidov Forces Mariusz Pudzianowski to Tap to Strikes in KSW 77 Headliner

Size didn’t matter to Mamed Khalidov.

𝐌𝐀𝐌𝐄𝐃 𝐊𝐇𝐀𝐋𝐈𝐃𝐎𝐕 just beat 𝐌𝐀𝐑𝐈𝐔𝐒𝐙 𝐏𝐔𝐃𝐙𝐈𝐀𝐍𝐎𝐖𝐒𝐊𝐈!!! XTB #KSW77

The King of the KSW Legends 👑 pic.twitter.com/RLqhKipBLr — KSW (@KSW_MMA) December 17, 2022

Billed as the biggest fight in Konfrontacja Sztuk Walki history, former KSW two-division champion Khalidov faced five-time “World’s Strongest Man” titleholder Mariusz Pudzianowski in the KSW 77 main event on Saturday at a fully-packed Arena Gliwice in Gliwice, Poland. Khalidov (36-8-2, 20-4-2 KSW), who weighed 53 pounds less than his foe on the scale, was lighter on the feet as he wisely opted to move around Pudzianowski (17-8, 1NC, 17-7, 1NC KSW) rather than directly attacking him. “Pudzian” shortened the distance and clinched with his foe, allowing Khalidov to showcase a remarkable judo throw that grounded the 259-pound colossus. On the mat, Khalidov quickly captured Pudzianowski’s back and poured a barrage of strikes on his flattened a…

Joanne Wood to Face Luana Carolina at UFC 286 in London

A women’s flyweight showdown pitting Joanne Wood against Luana Carolina is on tap for UFC 286 in London.

Multiple outlets confirmed the booking following an initial report from Ag.Fight. UFC 286 takes place on March 18 at the O2 Arnea in London and also includes a middleweight clash between Marvin Vettori and Roman Dolidze. A headliner has not been announced for the event.

A former strawweight competitor, Wood is 5-5 at 125 pounds in the Octagon. The 36-year-old Syndicate MMA representative has lost three straight bouts and is coming off a first-round submission loss to Alexa Grasso at UFC on ESPN 33 on March 26.

After a 2-0 campaign in 2021, Carolina was on the wrong end of a spinning backfist KO against Molly McCann at UFC Fight Night 204 in her lone appearance of 2022. The Dana White’s Contender Series alum is 3-2 during her tenure with the Las Vegas-based promotion.

Chidi Njokuani, Albert Duraev to Clash at UFC on ESPN 43 on March 25

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CSAC Adopts Rule to Limit Travel for Judges, Refs After Recent Controversy

The California State Athletic Commission (CSAC) is limiting how far its judges and referees can travel when working consecutive events.

CSAC executive officer Andy Foster issued a memorandum on Friday that officials who work in the state can only travel as far as Nevada — or vice versa — if they are planning on working events on back-to-back days. Ariel Helwani was first to report the news. The memorandum is as follows: While the Commission understands that, as Officials you may also work in other states. It is imperative that you be at your best for those assignments and keep in mind the travel distance between locations when accepting consecutive assignments. If you work in California on a Friday, the Commission finds it acceptable for you to work as far as Nevada on Saturday or vice versa. If you accept an out of state assignment that is within one day of an assignment in California, you may be removed from the California assignment if you are being required to tr…

Source: Michal Materla, Kendall Grove Rematch Set for KSW 78

🚨 Breaking! Per source, The Ultimate Fighter 3 winner Kendall Grove is making his cage return to take on Michal Materla at #KSW78 on Jan. 21. The pair first collided in June 2013 in a hard-fought contest won by Materla via decision. Story coming to @sherdogdotcom. pic.twitter.com/tdwwLYWeRL

— Tudor Leonte (@MrTudorLeonte) December 17, 2022

“The Ultimate Fighter” Season 3 winner Kendall Grove will get a chance to avenge a defeat at the hands of former Konfrontacja Sztuk Walki titleholder Michal Materla on Jan. 21 in a rematch nearly-10-years-in-the-making at KSW 78. A source close to the situation informed Sherdog about the matchup.

In their first clash, Materla (31-9, 20-7 KSW) upended Grove on all scorecards at KSW 23 on June 8, 2013, notching the second defense of his 185-pound championship. “Cipao” is coming off a nasty first-round knockout loss to Mariusz Pudzianowski at KSW 70 in May. Before that, he stopped Ja…

UFC Fight Night 216 Weigh-in Results: Headliners Cleared; Maheshate Heavy

Our last main event of 2022 is official! ⚖️✅

Jared Cannonier in at 185.5lbs for #UFCVegas66 tomorrow pic.twitter.com/fELKHGiRsc

— UFC (@ufc) December 16, 2022 Editor's note: The article has been updated at 4:25 p.m. ET on Dec. 16 to reflect the purse fine amount.

The final Ultimate Fighting Championship event of the year is now official.

UFC Fight Night 216 is headlined by middleweight contenders Jared Cannonier and Sean Strickland. While the main event fighters and the rest of the main card all made weight, preliminary competitor Maheshate Hayisaer came in 2.5 pounds over the lightweight limit for his bout against Rafa Garcia. He has been fined 20% of his purse, and the match will otherwise continue as scheduled.

"The Killa Gorilla" is coming off a unanimous decision defeat to Israel Adesanya, while Strickland (25-4) was knocked out by now-champion Alex Pereira. Both will look to bounce back into contention a…

Darren Elkins Shares List of Injures Suffered at UFC on ESPN 42, Including Torn MCL

Well I tore my meniscus, tore my MCL when I got the first takedown & fractured my fibula in the fight… but I still had a great vacation in the Turks and Caicos with my family pic.twitter.com/voVpA4LtLD

— Darren Elkins (@DarrenElkinsMMA) December 16, 2022 Ultimate Fighting Championship fan-favorite “The Damage” Darren Elkins put his nickname to the test in his last fight.

In early December, Elkins (27-11) faced off against Jonathan Pearce (14-4) at UFC on ESPN 42. Elkins made it to the final horn to ultimately lose a unanimous decision, but not before suffering a myriad of injuries and absorbing heavy damage from bell to bell. While the lacerations and ample plasma deposits across the Octagon floor looked daunting, the major issues for Elkins occurred internally. According to Elkins on social media on Thursday, he tore his meniscus and MCL when landing a takedown in Round 1, and also fractured his fibula sometime during the melee.

Acco…

KSW 77 Weigh-in Results: Pudzianowski Holds 53-Pound Advantage on Khalidov

🤩 The Main Event 🤩

Icon vs. Icon. Legend vs. Legend.🇵🇱 𝐊𝐇𝐀𝐋𝐈𝐃𝐎𝐕 🆚 𝐏𝐔𝐃𝐙𝐈𝐀𝐍 🇵🇱

XTB #KSW77 | KSWTV | Viaplay pic.twitter.com/hz3ZqjSGGN — KSW (@KSW_MMA) December 16, 2022 The biggest fight in Konfrontacja Sztuk Walki history is now official as both Mamed Khalidov and Mariusz Pudzianowski weighed in for their superfight.

Fresh off a brutal knockout of Michal Materla, Pudzianowski (17-7, 1 NC) will bring his power to KSW legend Khalidov (35-8-2), a former light heavyweight and middleweight champion. The 45-year-old former strongman competitor weighed in at 259 pounds, and enters the main event on a five-fight win streak. Meanwhile, the 42-year-old Khalidov is coming off a defeat to Roberto Soldic, and is just 1-4 in his last five contests.

In addition to the main event, there are two title fights, as Sebastian Przybysz will put his bantamweight title on the line against Jakub Wiklacz, and light heavyweight champion …

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