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The DAZN x PFL era begins in 2023

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DAZN will become the exclusive home of PFL in 53 international markets. pic.twitter.com/lDNBVDFUFN — PFL (@PFLMMA) October 20, 2022 The Professional Fighters League is bringing broadcaster Dazn back into the sport of MMA.

Per a press release on Thursday, the PFL and Dazn are teaming up to put PFL Europe together. This regional league will serve as the feeder to the main PFL organization, and European fans will be able to watch these events on Dazn. Additionally, Dazn will become the provider for every PFL fight card for the “53 international markets” that Dazn covers, including Spain, Ireland and the United Kingdom. According to PFL, this branch of the company will serve as “a pathway to becoming European champion and springboard into the PFL global league.”

The four-year deal does not have additional terms announced, and it will only be for those unspecified nations and…

Eric Albarracin, the wrestling coach of Patricio Freire and Patricky Freire, will spend about half of 2022 in Natal, Brazil.

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After actively participating in Patricio “Pitbull's” entire camp for his recent fight with Adam Borics, “Captain America” returned to Rio Grande do Norte, where he is helping Patricky “Pitbull” prepare for his title defense against Usman Nurmagomedov at Bellator 288 on Nov. 18.

“Patricky is ready in all areas. Kennedy Monday’s help has been really important in this camp. It will be a confrontation between two great schools, and I'm sure Patricky will return with the belt for Natal,” Albarracin told Sherdog.com.

In regards to another Brazil vs. Dagestan matchup, Albarracin shared his thoughts on the lightweight championship fight between Charles Oliveira and Islam Makhachev at UFC 280 on Saturday.

“If Charles does what he said and pulls guard, it will make Makhachev's life easier,” Albarracin said. “These Russians have e…

A one-night tournament to determine the next strawweight champion will headline Invicta FC 50 next month.

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The promotion announced the event on Wednesday. Invicta FC 50 takes place at Reelworks Denver in Denver, Colo., on Nov. 16 and airs on AXS TV and the Invicta FC YouTube and Facebook pages at 9 p.m. ET/6 p.m. PT.

The four tournament participants are as follows: Dana White’s Contender Series alum Valesca Machado, four-time UFC veteran Gloria de Paula, 20-year-old former Legacy Fighting Alliance competitor Edianna Silva and two-time KSW veteran Karolina Wojcik. Both the semifinals and finals will consist of three, five-minute rounds and will take place on the same card. Matchups for the bracket will be drawn at weigh-ins on Nov. 15.

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Invicta FC 50 will also include two tournament reserve matchups in case anything happens to the originally scheduled participants. Sharon Jacobso…

An intriguing lightweight showdown between Magomed Mustafaev and Yamato Nishikawa will not be happening at UFC 280 as originally planned.

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The Las Vegas-based promotion confirmed the cancellation on Tuesday, citing “multiple issues” in a statement. It was initially rumored that the bout was scrapped because Nishikawa was still under contract with another organization, but the Japanese fighter denied those reports.

Order UFC 280 "Oliveira vs. Makhachev" exclusively on ESPN+

UFC 280 will move forward with 13 bouts. The card takes place on Saturday at Etihad Arena in Abu Dhabi and is headlined by a lightweight title clash between Charles Oliveira and Islam Makhachev. The main card airs on pay-per-view via ESPN+ beginning at 2 p.m. ET/11 a.m. PT, while prelims are broadcast on ESPN and ESPN+ at 10 a.m. ET/7 a.m. PT.

Mustafaev hasn’t competed since February 2020, when he dropped a split decision to Brad Riddell at UFC Fight Night 168. The …

A pivotal women’s flyweight clash pitting Jessica Andrade against Lauren Murphy has been booked for UFC 283.

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MMAFighting.com was first to report the pairing. UFC 283 takes place at Jeunesse Arena in Rio de Janeiro on Jan. 21 and features the fourth flyweight championship clash between Deiveson Figueiredo and Brandon Moreno.

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Andrade, who owns victories in three different weight classes in the Octagon, is coming off a first-round submission of Amanda Lemos in a 115-pound clash at UFC Fight Night 205 this past April. “Bate Estaca” has won three of her last four bouts, with her lone defeat coming against Valentina Shevchenko in a flyweight title tilt at UFC 261.

Murphy, meanwhile, rebounded from a title fight loss to Valentina Shevchenko at UFC 266 by spoiling Miesha Tate’s flyweight debut in a unanimous decision triumph at UFC on ABC 3 on July 16. The 39-year-old known as “Lucky…

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Zuffa Boxing may no longer be on the horizon, but that doesn’t mean UFC president Dana White isn’t interested in letting competitors show off the skill in their hands in a different way.

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On Tuesday, the Nevada State Athletic Commission approved a petition for slap fighting to be regulated in Nevada, clearing the way for Dana White’s Power Slap League to run events in the state in the near future. The organization is expected to debut at the UFC Apex in late 2022 with an ownership group that includes White, Lorenzo Fertitta, Frank Fertitta, “The Ultimate Fighter” producer Craig Piligian, UFC chief business officer Hunter Campbell and UFC chief operating officer Lawrence Epstein. MMAjunkie.com was first to report White’s interest in bringing slap fighting to Nevada.

Order UFC 280 "Oliveira vs. Makhachev" exclusively on ESPN+

According to slapfight.com, “slap fighting is a rapidly growing sport where two robust fighters take tur…

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The Nevada State Athletic Commission on Tuesday handed heavyweight Ilir Latifi a temporary suspension for competing with a staph infection at UFC Fight Night 211.

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Latifi initially revealed the ailment during a post-fight interview following a unanimous decision victory against Alexey Oleynik on Oct. 1 at the UFC Apex in Las Vegas.

“Even this week, my leg is swollen. I didn’t even tell my coaches, but I got a staph infection two days ago," Latifi said in the cage. "As you can see, my leg is all swollen. It’s an amazing sport, but the margins are so small. You put in so much work, and this thing happens the last day. Today, actually when I woke up, my leg was swollen. I was like, ‘I can’t cancel again.’ So I had to fight like this with a fever and a staph infection. That’s part of being a fighter.”

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As a result of that revelation, Latifi will not be allowed to c…

Former UFC competitor Bobby Nash has signed an exclusive, multi-fight deal with Bellator MMA.

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The California-based promotion confirmed the news following a report from MMAFighting.com on Tuesday. Nash will reportedly make his Bellator debut late this year or in the first quarter of 2023.

Order UFC 280 "Oliveira vs. Makhachev" exclusively on ESPN+

The 32-year-old Nash won eight of his first nine professional outings before hitting a speed bump in the Octagon. The East Lansing, Mich., native went 0-3 in the UFC in 2017, suffering a trio of KO/TKO losses at the hands of Jingliang Li, Danny Roberts and Kenan Song.

Nash returned to action in 2019 and has since scored four consecutive first-round finishes on the regional scene to run his career mark to 12-4.

Vegas hating . 209 !!!! Let’s get this money . Stockton slap #UFC279 pic.twitter.com/F6IQruT4Tj

— Derek Brunson (@DerekBrunson) September 8, 2022

The Ultimate Fighting Championship has updated its code of conduct to prohibit its athletes from betting on fights within the promotion.

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UFC chief business officer Hunter Campbell wrote in a memo initially obtained by Yahoo Sports that fighters, members of their teams and “certain others” are no longer allowed to wager on Octagon bouts.

“In light of clear direction that we have received from regulators responsible for the regulated sports betting industry in the United States, we are compelled at this time to recognize in the UFC Athlete Conduct Policy certain restrictions relating to wagering by our athletes, members of their teams and certain others,” Campbell wrote.

“As you may already be aware, most states in which regulated sports betting is conducted prohibit athle…

Credit: Getty/UFC Credit: Getty/UFC Credit: Getty/UFC Credit: Getty Images/Zuffa

Karol Rosa will open the show against Lina Lansberg at Saturday’s highly-anticipated UFC 280 card.

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The Brazilian is confident she can rebound from a loss to Sara McMann in her last outing to continue her rise in the bantamweight division.

“I had four straight wins until my last fight,” Rosa told Sherdog.com. “I know Lina likes to fight on her feet and so do I. She is coming off two straight defeats, I am coming off one, but I don't feel pressure. I'm really hungry to get back in the win column.”

Order UFC 280 "Oliveira vs. Makhachev" exclusively on ESPN+ If she is victorious against Lansberg, Rosa already has her next potential opponent in mind.

“I really wanted to fight Raquel Pennington. She's fifth in the [UFC] rankings and it would be a good fight for me because her fighting style fits well with mine. But she already has a fight scheduled [against Ket…

Former lightweight contender Paul Felder will step in for Joe Rogan as part of the broadcast team at UFC 280.

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Felder will join play-by-play veteran Jon Anik and analyst Daniel Cormier on the call for the card at Etihad Arena in Abu Dhabi on Saturday. MMAFighting.com recently confirmed the lineup with UFC officials.

Order UFC 280 "Oliveira vs. Makhachev" exclusively on ESPN+

Rogan no longer serves as a commentator for the at the Las Vegas-based promotion’s international pay-per-view events. At UFC 275 in Singapore, for example, Michael Bisping stepped in for the popular podcast host.

UFC 280 is headlined by a lightweight championship clash between Charles Oliveira and Islam Makhachev, while Aljamain Sterling will defend his bantamweight crown against T.J. Dillashaw in the co-main event. The main card airs on pay-per-view via ESPN+ at 2 p.m. ET/11 a.m. PT, while prelims stream on ESPN and ESPN+ beginning at 10 a.m. ET/7 p.m. PT.

Raphael Assuncao was realistic heading into his fight with Victor Henry at UFC Fight Night 212.

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A loss would be his fifth straight within the Las Vegas-based promotion, and with it would have come with some tough decisions. Instead, Assuncao blended savvy counterstriking with takedowns and top control to earn a unanimous decision triumph.

In the aftermath of his first victory since July 2018, Assuncao admitted that retirement would have been on the table if he had come up short, or at the very least, a change in weight class.

“To be honest, probably …I’m not being proud about it,” he said after the fight. “I would have probably made the switch to featherweight, but I’m not positive if I still would’ve been in the UFC. Five losses (in a row) is probably not a good number to be in the UFC. If I decided not to retire if I had lost today, I would probably move up in weight class just because I feel I was losing muscle. Just [contemplating] all t…

Alexa Grasso passed the first five-round test of her professional career on Saturday night.

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The Mexican standout outdueled Viviane Araujo for a unanimous decision triumph in the UFC Fight Night 212 main event at the UFC Apex in Las Vegas, and she was quite pleased with the end result.

“This was my first time fighting five rounds,” Grasso said at the post-fight press conference. “The training was super hard. The fight was hard too. She’s a tough warrior. I think we did a great job. I did everything I trained for.”

Grasso was able to outland her opponent in significant strikes, but perhaps even more impressively, she stuffed the majority of Araujo’s takedown attempts. And when she was taken down, she was able to return to her feet in relatively swift fashion.

“I’m super proud. She’s a Brazilian (jiu-jitsu) black belt,” Grasso said. “She’s the toughest opponent I’ve faced. I had two fights with two amazing wrestlers. Every fight that is hard for…

Jonathan Martinez has won five of his last six UFC appearances, but even he has to admit that the latest victory was a little more special.

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The Factory X member spoiled Cub Swanson’s bantamweight debut in the UFC Fight Night 212 co-main event, winning via technical knockout 4:19 into the second round at the UFC Apex in Las Vegas on Saturday night.

“All this week I wasn’t thinking about who I was fighting,” Martinez said at the post-fight press conference. “After I got the win, I was like, ‘I just beat Cub Swanson,’ so I’m really excited.”

Swanson is the biggest name on Martinez’s resume to date, and the 28-year-old Plainview, Texas, native admitted to feeling a little bit overlooked by his opponent heading into the fight. The reason for that sentiment was Swanson’s bizarre media day, where he had a teammate answer questions for him while he sat in silence.

“It felt kind of disrespectful when he was interviewing, he didn’t say anything,”…

Jonathan Martinez received a little extra compensation for his wicked striking display in the UFC Fight Night 212 co-headliner.

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The Factory X standout garnered a $50,000 “Performance of the Night” bonus for his second-round technical knockout victory over Cub Swanson in the bantamweight bout on Saturday at the UFC Apex in Las Vegas. Martinez battered Swanson with kicks to the body, knees and elbows, but it was a series of vicious leg kicks that led to stoppage at the 4:19 mark of Round 2. It was the 14th stoppage stemming from leg kicks in promotion history.

Meanwhile, Dusko Todorovic and Jordan Wright earned “Fight of the Night” honors and $50,000 apiece for their back-and-forth middleweight scrap. Wright controlled the action in Round 1 with takedowns, submission defense and ground-and-pound, but momentum shifted considerably in the second stanza, when Todorovic swarmed his fatigued foe, powered into mount and finished the fight with elbows and …

Alexa Grasso just took another significant step toward contention in the Ultimate Fighting Championship’s flyweight division.

The Lobo Gym MMA took a hard-fought unanimous decision victory over Viviane Araujo in the UFC Fight Night 212 main event at the UFC Apex in Las Vegas on Saturday night. All three judges saw the fight in favor of Grasso: 50-45, 49-46 and 49-46. Grasso has won four straight bouts since moving up from 115 pounds.

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In most instances, Grasso (15-3, 7-3 UFC) was quicker to the punch than her Brazilian opponent, as she countered effectively and connected with crisp punching combinations to the head while mixing in kicks and the occasional body attack. Araujo (11-4, 5-3 UFC) kept the pressure on and enjoyed some success of her own on the feet, but she couldn’t match Grasso’s overall volume and accuracy. The 35-year-old Brazilian was also unable to ground her opponent for any significant period of time, and when she did land a takedown, …

Sherdog's live UFC Fight Night 212 coverage will begin Saturday at 4 p.m. ET.

Check out the MMA Forums to discuss the card or enter your comments and predictions below.

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BETTING PREVIEW | SCOUTING REPORT | ODDS: Rodriguez (-730), Jackson (+530)Round 1 Sherdog Scores Jay Pettry scores the round:Tristen Critchfield scores the round:Tyler Treese scores the round:Round 2 Sherdog Scores Jay Pettry scores the round:Tristen Critchfield scores the round:Tyler Treese scores the round: Round 3 Sherdog Scores Jay Pettry scores the round:Tristen Critchfield scores the round:Tyler Treese scores the round:The Official Result BETTING PREVIEW | SCOUTING REPORT | ODDS: Taira (-240), Vergara (+200)Round 1 Sherdog Scores Jay Pettry scores the round:Tristen Critchfield scores the round:Tyler Treese scores the round:Round 2 Sherdog Scores Jay Pettry scores the round:Tristen Critchfield scores the round:Tyler Treese scores the round:Round 3 Sherdog Scores Jay Pettry s…

In a competitive bout, explosive bursts proved to be the key for Leomana Martinez.

The Glory MMA & Fitness representative garnered a split-decision triumph against Brandon Davis in the featured UFC Fight Night 212 prelim at the UFC Apex in Las Vegas on Saturday night. Michael Bell and Tony Weeks scored the bantamweight bout 29-28 in favor of Martinez (10-3, 2-1 UFC), while Junichiro Kamijo submitted a 29-28 tally for Davis (14-10, 2-7 UFC).

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Martinez likely swung the fight in his favor in a couple of key moments. The first came in Round 1, when he clipped Davis with a left hook in what was otherwise a closely-contest frame. A more emphatic statement occurred toward the end of the second period, as the former Fury FC title holder wobbled his foe with a spinning backfist, dislodged hs mouthguard and dropped Davis with a subsequent flurry of punches. Davis survived the salvo and made it to Round 3, where he enjoyed success with rangy right hands, a t…

First to the scale, @AlexaGrasso is in at 125.5 pounds 💪

[ #UFCVegas62 | TOMORROW | Prelims 4pm ET | Main Card 7pm ET | LIVE on @ESPNPlus ] pic.twitter.com/mkRB2w1YxI

— UFC (@ufc) October 14, 2022 The Ultimate Fighting Championship returns with a card that has lost one of its most intriguing fights.

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Order UFC 280 "Oliveira vs. Makhachev" exclusively on ESPN+ While UFC Fight Night 212's top two bouts are intact, the flyweight contest between Askar Askarov and Brandon Royval will no longer proceed. The issue was that Askarov was unable to make weight, and he reportedly declined the match at a catchweight. Headliners Alexa Grasso and Viviane Araujo were on target, along with all fighters on the card except for C.J. Vergara, who came in three pounds over the flyweight limit to receive a 30% purse fine. "Before I started the weight cut I heard my opponent [is] not going to make weight," Royval explained on Twitter. "They t…

Former Ultimate Fighting Championship champion Charles Oliveira has touched down in the Middle East and received a hero’s welcome.

In order to get adapted to Abu Dhabi’s hot climate and recover from any jet lag, Oliveira arrived to the United Arab Emirates with 10 team members, 10 days before his UFC 280 collision with Islam Makhachev. Fighting for his old title, Oliveira made sure to leave enough time in his schedule to get acclimated with the environment, in a locale of Abu Dhabi in which he has never competed. Oliveira’s coach, Diego Lima, spoke to Sherdog on Friday about how “Do Bronx” is handling the final stage of his training camp.

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“We did the best we could to get Charles 100% adapted to the time zone and climate,” Lima explained. “Since we arrived, we are doing [one] training [session] in the morning and another at night, just like we do in Brazil.”

According to the Chute Boxe head, what impressed him the most about the area is the positive…

The hometown hero does it!! 🙌

Young 🇵🇱 @robert_ruchala wins in his first KSW main event!! 🤩 #KSW75 pic.twitter.com/6BnjrM7TLb

— KSW (@KSW_MMA) October 14, 2022 Luck was on the side of a few KSW fighters on Friday.

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The KSW 75 main event saw Ultimate Fighting Championship alum Damian Stasiak taking on Robert Ruchala in a featherweight clash. The initial headliner was supposed to come as a 205-pound championship collision, but Stasiak-Ruchala was elevated following its cancelation. In their three-round encounter, Stasiak (13-9, 2-3 KSW) kept his opponent guessing early with punches and takedown attempts. Ruchala did not allow himself to be grounded so easily, sweeping “Webster” on a pair of occasions, but he conceded his back to his foe before the end of the frame. Ruchala (8-0, 5-0 KSW) implemented a more successful strategy in Round 2, winning all the wrestling exchanges and landing the most impactful shots. Both contest…

History will be made!

Tomorrow night, #LFA144 is set to be UFC’s first live Combat Sports event in @Meta’s Horizon Worlds 🌎

— UFC (@ufc) October 13, 2022 It appears the unorthodox meeting between Meta executives including Mark Zuckerberg and Ultimate Fighting Championship brass bore some fruit.

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The UFC announced on Thursday that it has entered into a partnership with Meta to run events on its Horizon World service. Live MMA events from UFC Fight Pass will air on VR, and they will be viewable through Meta Quest VR headsets. The system will run through VR180, which is a format that gives fans a 180-degree view of the arena. The first fight card from the partnership will be LFA 144, which takes place on Oct. 14 at the Sanford Pentagon in Sioux Falls, S.D.

“We are excited to offer an unprecedented level of engagement for Fight Pass subscribers and MMA fans around the world by producing a live MMA event in virtual reality…

🚨 JUST IN: I'm told Movsar Evloev got injured while training. 😶

Let's see what's going to happen in Mitchell vs Evloev fight which is about to be held on November 5th. 🔎

— Giorgi Kokiashvili 🇬🇪 ✊ 🇺🇦 (@iHeartGeorgius1) October 4, 2022 A thrilling battle of Ultimate Fighting Championship unbeatens will have to wait.

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In September, the organization scheduled Bryce Mitchell (15-0) against Movsar Evloev (16-0) for what turned out to be the main event of UFC Fight Night 214. The featherweight main attraction was only together for about three weeks before a story broke from Setanta Sports on Oct. 4 that Evloev suffered an injury in training. Over a week later, the UFC’s broadcast partner of ESPN Deportes confirmed on Friday that the injury forced Evloev out of the match, and there is currently no replacement on the books.

It is unclear if “Thug Nasty” will remain as the star attraction of this fight card, as Mitchell reported…

A battle between top-five Ultimate Fighting Championship bantamweights will go down on its first fight card of 2023.

MMA Fighting first reported the news on Thursday that Ketlen Vieira (13-2) will be squaring off with Raquel Pennington (14-8) at the UFC Fight Night event on Jan. 14. The 135-pound contenders will be facing one another inside of the UFC Apex in Las Vegas on that date, likely placed high on the main card. Vieira has since confirmed this booking on her Instagram Stories shortly after its announcement.

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Vieira bounced back from the first decision loss of her career – a three-round setback to Yana Kunitskaya in February 2021 – by overcoming ex-champs Miesha Tate and Holly Holm in five-round headliners over the last year. The finish rate of the Brazilian has diminished significant since joining the roster in 2016, as she has only won once by stoppage while recording six other victories on the scorecards. Beyond Kunitskaya, her only other s…