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Donald Cerrone Re-enters Drug Testing Pool, Targets UFC Comeback at Middleweight

The wheels are in motion for Donald Cerrone’s Ultimate Fighting Championship return.

During a recent appearance on The Pacman Jones Show, “Cowboy” revealed that he has re-entered the drug testing pool in homes of making a comeback to the Octagon by next summer. The UFC Hall of Famer initially announced his retirement following a second-round submission loss to Jim Miller at UFC 276 in July 2022. The Combat Sports Anti-Doping website shows that Cerrone has submitted to one test session thus far in 2024.

“I just re-entered the testing pool,” Cerrone said on the show. “I have to be six months clean. Probably June, July we will make the comeback. Coming back for two more. Just two more. I want 50 fights in the UFC [under the Zuffa umbrella]. I promised the wife no matter what happens, no matter the outcomes – two more and that’s it.”

While Cerrone has previously competed at lightweight and welterweight during his UFC tenure, he expects to fight i…

Coach: Ramadan Not Likely to Interfere With Rumored UFC 313 Title Matchups

[embedded content] According to a coach in the know, the month-long observation of Ramadan should not necessarily preclude a challenger from vying for a Ultimate Fighting Championship belt.

With the main events of the first two UFC pay-per-view offerings of 2025 already on the books—UFC 311 will feature Islam Makhachev vs. Arman Tsarukyan with a co-main of Merab Dvalishvili against Umar Nurmagomedov, while UFC 312 sees Dricus Du Plessis defending his throne against Sean Strickland while the co-headliner comes between Weili Zhang and Tatiana Suarez—speculation quickly turned to its upcoming March card. On March 8, the UFC’s regular stomping ground of the T-Mobile Arena will play host to UFC 313, and no marquee bouts have been announced yet.

Light heavyweight kingpin Alex Pereira recently stated that he was planning to return in March or April, and his expected opponent would be Magomed Ankalaev. Some put the pieces together, questioning how the UFC wo…

Tatiana Suarez Has High Hopes for UFC 312: ‘When the Bright Lights Shine, So Do I’

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Great things have been expected of Tatiana Suarez since early in her Ultimate Fighting Championship career.

She’ll get a chance to deliver on that promise when she meets Weili Zhang in a strawweight title bout at UFC 312 in Sydney, Australia, on Feb. 8. The situation is a little unusual since Suarez hasn’t competed since submitting Jessica Andrade at UFC on ESPN 50 in August 2023. However, the 34-year-old Californian isn’t altering her mindset heading into the biggest fight of her career to date.

“I don’t feel any different,” Suarez recently said on UFC Unfiltered. “I just feel like it’s another fight. It’s another challenge for me. I’m really excited because I’ve never had a five-round fight. But if anybody can do it, it’s me.”

Suarez is no stranger to lengthy layoffs. Injuries sidelined her for more than three years after a victory over Nina Nunes at UFC 238 in June 2019, but she returned to the Octagon in 2023 to post back…

Source: PFL Exceeded ‘Pitbull’ Freire Contractual Obligations

As far as PFL providing everyone 2 fights this year, I really hope that’s what’s gonna happen and not because many more will be cut.

I want PFL to succeed, it’s good for the sport and for fighters.

That said, I want to leave right away. Can we agree to it this week? (2/2) https://t.co/Zvx4NS45H8 — Patricio Pitbull (@PatricioPitbull) December 19, 2024

Patricio “Pitbull” Freire has not been happy with his current situation under the Professional Fighters League banner following its acquisition of Bellator MMA in 2023.

Over the course of several weeks, “Pitbull” has taken to social media to voice his displeasure with the lack of activity he’s seen in 2024, and has stated multiple times that he wants out of his contract to compete elsewhere.

A source with knowledge of the situation talked to Sherdog.com, and said the PFL has exceeded its contractual obligations with the 37-year-old featherweight champion. The sourc…

Aleksandre Topuria Expected to Make Octagon Debut at UFC 312 in Sydney

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The elder brother of UFC featherweight champion Ilia Topuria will make his Octagon debut Down Under.

Aleksandre Topuria is expected to face Cody Haddon in a bantamweight bout at UFC 312 on Feb. 8. The booking was initially reported by Australian MMA and subsequently confirmed by MMAjunkie.com. UFC 312 takes place at Qudos Bank Arena in Sydney and is headlined by a middleweight championship rematch between Dricus Du Plessis and Sean Strickland.

The 28-year-old Topuria will be competing for the first time since May 2023, when he defeated Johan Segas via first-round technical knockout at The Way of the Warrior 9 in Madrid, Spain. “El Conquistador” has won five of his six professional outings, with all of his victories coming inside the distance. He began his professional MMA tenure in 2015 and fought three times that year but did not return to action again until December 2021.

A native of Perth, Haddon has been victorious in eight of his ni…

Merab Dvalishvili Claims He Was Denied Entry to UFC P.I. Due to Umar Nurmagomedov

It’s all good - this guy will get what is coming to him on January 18th. #ufc311 🦾🇬🇪🇺🇸 pic.twitter.com/hC8YN6vkX9

— Merab “The Machine” Dvalishvili (@MerabDvalishvil) December 23, 2024

It might be the holiday season, but Merab Dvalishvili wasn’t feeling especially jolly after allegedly being denied entry into the UFC Performance Institute on Monday.

In a social media post, the reigning bantamweight champion claimed that security wouldn’t let him into the facility because UFC 311 opponent Umar Nurmagomedov was already inside the buildiing.

“I’m here out front of the UFC P.I., and security don’t let me go in because they said, ‘Umar Nurmagomedov is inside,’ and they are protecting him,” Dvalishvili said in a video. “Don’t worry, guys. I’m not going to smash him before the fight. But Jan. 18, different story. I’m not able to go in UFC P.I. because I was supposed to get treatment for my injury. I was supposed to sign some …

Arman Tsarukyan: Islam Makhachev ‘Not as Good as People Think’

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Arman Tsarukyan once viewed fighting in the UFC as an unattainable dream.

Fast forward to the present day, and he’s less than a month away from challenging for championship gold in the world’s largest mixed martial arts promotion, when he locks horns with Islam Makhachev in the UFC 311 main event on Jan. 18 at the Intuit Dome in Los Angeles.

Competing in the Octagon became a reality shortly after Tsarukyan’s last fight on the regional circuit in Russia in August 2018. Sharing a card with the likes of 2024 PFL heavyweight champ Denis Goltsov, UFC veteran Alexander Romanov and ex-Bellator MMA light heavyweight title holder Christian M'Pumbu, Tsarukyan won his 11th straight bout that night — defeating one-time UFC competitor Felipe Olivieiri via third-round knockout.

After that bout, Tsarukyan recalls his manager telling him that he would be in the UFC soon. About eight months later, he was booked in his short-notice Octagon de…

BKFC President Reveals Plans for $25 Million Tournament in 2025

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Bare Knuckle Fighting Championship has something in special in store for the coming year.

BKFC president David Feldman recently announced that the promotion will hold a $25 million tournament — “the biggest, baddest tournament that ever took place” — beginning in April 2025.

“It’s going to spread out between nine or 12 months. There’s going to be tryouts, qualifying rounds and those qualifying rounds are going to take place in five different continents,” Feldman said during a post-fight press conference following BKFC Hollywood.

“We’re close to locking in a huge streaming platform that’s going to have the rights to this thing, so everything is really falling in place. I can’t give you all the details, but it will be the biggest, baddest, biggest prize money to find the baddest motherf—ker on the face of this earth.”

It’s currently unclear how the prize money will be distributed. However, even the promotion’s biggest stars apparently won’t…

Israel Adesanya on Why He Continues to Fight: ‘I Almost Forgot How Great I Was’

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Israel Adesanya will be in an unfamiliar position at UFC Saudi Arabia.

When he faces Nassourdine Imavov in the UFC Fight Night 250 main event, it will be the first time since February 2019 that “The Last Stylebender” won’t be involved in a championship bout. According to the former middleweight champion, that’s something that only concerns people on the outside looking in.

“I still get paid,” Adesanya said on his YouTube channel. “There’s still a referee. There’s two of us in there. There’s still a crowd. So it’s not in the f—ing Apex or something. It doesn’t feel any different. I think people are making it out to be something how they would react to it but they’re not in my shoes. They’re not in my shorts.

“Yeah it’s different like, ‘Oh my God it must be eating him alive to be on a Fight Night.’ I was like, it’s a Saudi Arabia Fight Night. I still get paid.”

Adesanya is coming off the first two-fight losing streak of his pr…

Ian Heinisch Suffered from Consistent Headaches, Confusion Before Retiring from MMA

Ian Heinisch initially planned to take a temporary hiatus from mixed martial arts, but that break has turned into a full-fledged retirement for the benefit of his overall well-being.

The seven-time Octagon veteran hasn’t fought since July 2021, when he suffered a second-round technical knockout loss to Nassourdine Imavov at UFC on ESPN 27. Citing numerous health issues — including head trauma and concussions — Heinisch announced in 2023 that he was stepping away from the sport. At the time, he insisted that he was “not quitting.” As it turns out, brain injuries would ultimately send Heinisch into an early retirement — but it’s a decision he doesn’t regret.

“Man, I hid it for probably a year-and-a-half. When I was supposed to fight Sam Alvey, I had to pull out of that fight. I couldn’t hide it anymore,” Heinisch recently told MMAjunkie.com. “I couldn’t go to the gym. I didn’t feel like myself. I had headaches all the time. I had confusion. One time,…

Oleksandr Usyk Outpoints Tyson Fury in Heavyweight Classic

.@Tyson_Fury makes his way to the ring to none other than Mariah Carey x Biggie Smalls 🎅#Usyk2Fury | BUY NOW on TNT Sports Box Office ▶️ https://t.co/FXWiFF98Ej pic.twitter.com/5K3DAHI8Fw

— Boxing on TNT Sports (@boxingontnt) December 21, 2024 After 24 rounds shared in the ring, Oleksandr Usyk and Tyson Fury will forever be linked for their two wars together in the squared circle, but the history books will remember one man as the victor of their storied rivalry.

Usyk put his stamp on the feud Saturday night with a masterful 12-round performance that resulted in him retaining his WBA, WBO, WBC and Ring Magazine heavyweight titles by unanimous decision (116-112, 116-112, 116-112) in the DAZN main event at Freedom Arena in Riyadh, Saudi Arabia.

Usyk (23-0, 14 KOs) had to storm back in their first fight after a slow start, but that was not the case in the rematch. The defending champ took the fight to the 281-pound challeng…

Brandon Royval vs. Manel Kape Targeted for UFC Main Event on March 1

Brandon Royval has a little more work to do if he wants to get another shot at flyweight gold.

According to an initial report from Ag.Fight, Royval will face former Rizin bantamweight champion Manel Kape in the main event of UFC Fight Night 253 on March 1. Royval and multiple outlets have since confirmed the booking. The event is expected to take place at the UFC Apex in Las Vegas.

“At the end of the day, I got the toughest résumé since I signed to the UFC,” Royval wrote on Instagram. “Y’all going to learn to put some respect on my name. Only top 10 fighters. 4th main event in a row.”

Royval has won five of his last six UFC appearances. His lone defeat during that stretch came when he challenged Alexandre Pantoja for the flyweight belt and dropped a unanimous decision at UFC 296. “Raw Dawg” has since rebounded to post back-to-back triumphs over Brandon Moreno and Tatsuro Taira in headlining bouts.

Kape is also 5-1 in his last six promot…

UFC Tampa Medical Suspensions: Colby Covington Receives 45-Day Term

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Sherdog Breakthrough Fighter of the Year Dakota Ditcheva Continues to Stack Awards

The 𝗗𝗔𝗡𝗚𝗘𝗥𝗢𝗨𝗦 era is HERE 🏴󠁧󠁢󠁥󠁮󠁧󠁿🇧🇬

Congratulations to 2024 PFL Flyweight World Champion @dakotadofficial on being named @MMAJunkie Female Fighter of The Year pic.twitter.com/GneCsNRf1v

— PFL (@PFLMMA) December 21, 2024

The marvelous journey for Professional Fighters League’s Dakota Ditcheva continues to grow through the end of 2024. After bursting onto the scene in 2023, Ditcheva made her arrival known by collecting the PFL Europe Women’s Flyweight title, and doing so in emphatic fashion, putting away all her opponents by stoppage during her run to the PFL Europe gold and the $100,000 grand prize.

Not satisfied with her accomplishments at PFL Europe, Ditcheva arrived on the PFL Global stage in 2024, joining the women’s flyweight season and continuing her run of finishes to extend her undefeated record. Putting away all her opponents by stoppage in 2024, Ditcheva’s success would grow even more, becoming PFL champion …

Lightweight Champion Salahdine Parnasse Shreds Wilson Varela Atop KSW 101

Salahdine Parnasse barely broke a sweat.

The Atch Academy cornerstone retained his Konfrontacja Sztuk Walki lightweight championship in style, as he stopped Wilson Varela with punches in the first round of their KSW 101 headliner on Friday at Paris La Defense Arena in Nanterre, France. Varela (12-6, 4-2 KSW) succumbed to blows 60 seconds into Round 1, his six-fight winning streak at an end.

Parnasse (20-2, 12-2 KSW) dropped the Marseille Fight Club rep with a left cross, pounced with follow-up punches and forced the challenger to shield himself from contact. He then climbed to the back, flattened out Varela and closed the deal with a string of clubbing right hands to the side of the head.

Meanwhile, onetime Bellator MMA tournament winner Marcin Held cast aside Adrenaline Fight Team’s Davy Gallon with a guillotine choke in the first round of their lightweight co-main event. Gallon (21-10-2, 0-1 KSW) raised the white flag of surrender 2:24 into Roun…

Tom Nolan vs. Viacheslav Borshchev, Jack Jenkins vs. Gabriel Santos Set for UFC 312

The UFC 312 lineup continues to take shape with the addition of a lightweight clash between Tom Nolan and Viacheslav Borshchev and a featherweight tilt pitting Jack Jenkins against Gabriel Santos.

The Las Vegas-based promotion confirmed the pairings on Tuesday. UFC 312 takes place on Feb. 8 at Qudos Bank Arena in Sydney, Austraila, and is headlined by a middleweight title rematch between Dricus Du Plessis and Sean Strickland. In the co-main event, Weili Zhang will defend her strawweight belt against Tatiana Suarez.

After suffering his first career defeat in his Octagon debut, Nolan has rebounded with back-to-back triumphs over Victor Martinez and Alex -Reyes-24199">Alex -Reyes-427185">Alex Reyes. The 24-year-old Brisbane, Australia, native has won eight of his nine professional outings, with five of those coming via KO or TKO.

Borshchev has experienced mixed results in the promotion since earning a contract on Dana White’s Contender Ser…

Preliminary Card Announced for Road to Dubai Event on Jan. 25

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Renan Barao, Fabricio Werdum, Junior dos Santos Excited About Global Fight League

The Future of MMA is Here 🌍The Global Fight League launches in 2025. Revolutionizing MMA with the first global, team-based MMA League bringing you a roster of legends, contenders and rising stars.

Learn more from the link in bio 🔗#GFL #GlobalFightLeague #MMA #FutureOfMMA pic.twitter.com/cIvOmPjWx8

— Global Fight League (@mmagfl) December 13, 2024

The official announcement regarding the launch of the Global Fight League shook up the mixed martial arts world last week.

Thus far, more than 50 fighters have reportedly been signed by the fledgling promotion, including ex-UFC champions. Sherdog recently spoke to three of those former title holders — Junior dos Santos, Renan Barao and Fabricio Werdum — all of whom confirmed their participation and expressed excitement about the potential of the new promotion.

The first Brazilian champion of the UFC’s bantamweight division, the now 37-year-old Barao left the promotio…

Islam Makhachev Believes He Can Finish Arman Tsarukyan

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Islam Makhachev thinks he can stop Arman Tsarukyan inside the distance in their upcoming matchup.

Makhachev looks to defend his lightweight strap against Tsarukyan in the main event at UFC 311 on Jan. 18 at the Intuit Dome in Los Angeles, California. The two previously met in 2019 when Makhachev roped in a hard-fought unanimous decision win. Tsarukyan stepped in on short notice against Makhachev for his UFC debut and displayed impressive takedown defense against the Dagestani. While it is widely regarded by some as Makhachev’s toughest outing to date, the lightweight champ disagrees. Makhachev claims that although Tsarukyan was a tough matchup, his toughest outing was his unanimous decision win over Alexander Volkanovski in his first title defense. Makhachev also believes his initial clash with Tsarukyan was competitive because he might have underestimated “Ahalkalakets.”

“It was one of the hardest fights of course but it’s not to…

Conor McGregor Dismisses Rumors of Ilia Topuria Bout, UFC Champ Responds

Conor McGregor SHUTS DOWN rumors of a fight against Ilia Topuria, and says he's accepted an offer to fight Logan Paul in India

Ilia Topuria responds: "I don't fight nor am I interested in fighting with a r*pist."#UFC #MMA pic.twitter.com/PqHqrGTMMN

— Championship Rounds (@ChampRDS) December 17, 2024

Ilia Topuria took a dig at Conor McGregor after the Irishman mentioned his name.

McGregor recently dismissed rumors of a bout against Topuria. The Dubliner instead claims to have initial agreements with the billionaire Ambani family in India for a boxing match against YouTuber turned boxer Logan Paul. However, “Notorious” still plans to eventually return to the Octagon.

“The rumors of a bout with [Topuria] are false,” McGregor wrote on X. “I am in preliminary agreements with the Ambani family to face Logan Paul in a boxing exhibition in India. I have agreed. I will then seek my return to the Octagon.”

Read more about Conor McGregor Dismisses Rumors of Ilia Topuria Bout, UFC Champ Responds

Lineup Official for UFC Vegas 101 with Ribas-Dern 2, Curtis-Kopylov at Top of Card

The Ultimate Fighting Championship’s first card of 2025 is now official.

The promotion confirmed the 14-bout lineup for UFC Vegas 101 — also known as UFC Fight Night 249 — in a release on Tuesday. The card takes place on Jan. 11 at the UFC Apex in Las Vegas and is headlined by a strawweight rematch between Amanda Ribas and Mackenzie Dern, while Chris Curtis will square off against Roman Kopylov in the evening’s co-main event at middleweight.

Ribas, who defeated Dern via unanimous decision in their first meeting at UFC Fight Night 161 on Oct. 12, 2019, has competed at both strawweight and flyweight in the UFC. The Brazilian is coming off a five-round defeat to Rose Namajunas at 125 pounds in the UFC on ESPN 53 headliner this past March.

A Brazilian jiu-jitsu black belt, Dern snapped a two-bout skid in her last outing, when she took a three-round verdict over Lupita Godinez at UFC on ABC 7 on Aug. 3. The 31-year-old RVCA representative owns v…

PFL’s Road to Dubai Event Loses Vadim Nemkov-Corey Anderson Co-Headliner

The Vadim Nemkov-Corey Anderson trilogy bout won’t be happening at Professional Fighters League’s Road to Dubai event as originally planned.

A promotion official confirmed the cancellation to Sherdog.com on Tuesday following an initial report from MMAFighting.com. The PFL is seeking a new co-main event for the card. Nemkov was originally booked to meet 2022 PFL heavyweight champion Ante Delija at Road to Dubai, but the 34-year-old Croatian withdrew from the event.

Road to Dubai takes place at Coca-Cola Arena in Dubai and appears to be a rebranded version of Bellator Champions Series. In the main event, Usman Nurmagomedov will defend his lightweight strap against Paul Hughes.

While a reason for the cancellation wasn’t given, Anderson recently took to social media to blame Nemkov for backing out of the fight.

“Woke up to a text this morning from PFL and Bellator saying ‘Vadim refuses to fight you,’” Anderson said in video on Instagram. “Verba…

Contender Series Vets Mazzeo, Er-Ramy Suspended for Failed Drug Tests

A pair of competitors on the most recent season of Dana White's Contender Series have been suspended after testing positive for banned substances.

During a Nevada State Athletic Commission meeting on Tuesday, Francesco Mazzeo and Abdelah Er-Ramy were handed sanctions after failing drug tests in relation to their respective bouts.

Mazzeo was suspended nine months due to a positive test for the metabolic modulator GW1516 and its metabolites. He was also fined $750 and ordered to pay $157.04 in prosecution fees. Mazzeo, who suffered a second-round submission loss to Kevin Christian on Sept. 24, will be eligible to return to active competition on June 23.

Er-Ramy, meanwhile, tested positive for the anabolic steroid drostanolone and was suspended nine months. He was fined $750 as well as $157.04 in prosecution fees. Er-Ramy, who lost to Torrez Finney via first-round knockout on Oct. 1, will be eligible to return on June 30.

Finally, Quemuel…

At 38 Years Old, Michael Johnson Believes He Might Be ‘Peaking’ in UFC Career

UFC Tampa was, at least in part, a showcase for the old guys.

While 41-year-old Cub Swanson’s knockout of Billy Quarantillo in the co-main event deservedly garnered the lion’s share of the attention, 38-year-old Michael Johnson had a spectacular finish of his own, scoring a vicious KO of Ottman Azaitar on the evening’s uncard at Amalie Arena on Saturday night.

Johnson, who was a finalist on “The Ultimate Fighter 12” in 2010, never envisioned his career lasting as long as it has.

“I did not think I would be fighting til I was 38,” he said at the UFC Tampa post-fight press conference (video via MMAjunkie.com). “My plan was to get in the UFC, fight the best guys, win, get a title, be financially able to retire around 30….so eight years past that, and I’m still going. It feels great. I have no problem with missing my first goal. Now I’m on to my second goal and that’s what keeps me motivated.”

While Johnson hasn’t seriously approached championshi…

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