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Sign up for ESPN+ right here, and you can then stream the UFC live on your smart TV, computer, phone, tablet or streaming device via the ESPN app. It’s knock out or get knocked out with this upcoming Ultimate Fighting Championship middleweight tilt in September. The news first came from MMA Junkie on Thursday, reporting that Joaquin Buckley (12-4) would be taking on Antonio Arroyo (9-4) at middleweight at the promotion’s Sept. 18 UFC Fight Night event. The news has since been confirmed by other outlets.

Owner of one of the most spectacular knockouts in UFC history, a spinning back kick to demolish Impa Kasanganay in October 2020, Buckley followed it up with a crushing finish of the then-undefeated Jordan Wright a month later. In his last performance, Alessio Di Chirico starched him with a head kick to end his spectacular winning streak. As a pro, the Finney’s Hit Squad product out of Missouri possesses a career knockout rate of 75 percent – although 75 percent of his loss…

The stakes have been raised for the scheduled boxing match between Vitor Belfort and Oscar De La Hoya.

According to a report from ESPN, the fight, which was formerly slated to be an exhibition, is now a professional bout. It will be contested over eight two-minute rounds at 180 pounds and will take place on Sept. 11 at the Staples Center in Los Angeles. The California State Athletic Commission has approved the change.

“(Oscar) is the one who said ‘I’m in the best shape of my life, f- - - this exhibition B.S.’ I’m going for real.’ None of this ballroom dancing boxing has had to endure. Both of them are in incredible shape,” Triller co-founder Ryan Kanagaugh told ESPN.

The 44-year-old Belfort was initially supposed to face “The Real Tarzann” Mike Holston in a boxing match on June 19 before that booking fell through. “The Phenom” signed with One Championship after his final UFC appearance in 2018 but never fought for the Singapore-based promotion. Belfort is a former UFC…

A bantamweight clash pitting James Gallagher against Patrick Mix is in the works for Bellator MMA’s return to Ireland on Nov. 5.

Both fighters confirmed the matchup on social media following an initial report from MMAjunkie.com. It is unclear where the bout will be placed on the card. The likely venue for the event is the 3Arena in Dublin. The California-based promotion last traveled to Ireland for Bellator 240 in February 2020, a card that saw Leah McCourt outpoint Judith Ruis in the evening’s main event.

Gallagher and Mix were initially slated to square off at Bellator 258 on May 7 before the Irish fighter withdrew from the contest.

Gallagher, 24, has lost just once in 12 professional fights. The 24-year-old SBG Ireland representative has rebounded from a first-round KO loss to Ricky Bandejas at Bellator 204 to post four consecutive triumphs in the promotion. Most recently, Gallagher submitted Callum Ellenor in the opening stanza at Bellator Milan last Octobe…

Kai Kamaka III will replace the injured Doo Ho Choi and meet Danny Chavez at UFC on ESPN 28.

Both Kamaka and Chavez confirmed the bantamweight booking on social media following an initial report from MMA Island. UFC on ESPN 28 takes place on July 31 at the UFC Apex in Las Vegas and is headlined by a middleweight showdown between Uriah Hall and Sean Strickland.

A former Bellator MMA and Legacy Fighting Alliance competitor, Kamaka is 1-2 during his tenure with the Las Vegas-based promotion. After outpointing Tony Kelley in his Octagon debut at UFC 252, “The Fighting Hawaiian” has dropped back-to-back fights against Jonathan Pearce and T.J. Brown in UFC competition.

Chavez had a four-bout winning streak snapped in his last outing, when he fell to Jared Gordon via unanimous decision at UFC Fight Night 185 on Feb. 20. The 34-year-old MMA Masters product outpointed Brown in his first promotional foray at UFC 252.

Brandon Moreno doesn’t sound as though he believes a trilogy with Deiveson Figueiredo will be his next move.

After battling Figueiredo to a majority draw in the UFC 256 headliner, Moreno became the first Mexican-born champion in promotion history when he submitted the Brazilian in the third round at UFC 263 on June 12. Moreno left no doubt the second time around, which is why he thinks Figueiredo has more work to do the second time around.

Speaking at a media luncheon on Tuesday, Moreno discussed what might be next for his first flyweight title defense.

"The next name? I don't know," Moreno said (via ESPN). "There are a lot of possibilities. I think it's obvious Figueiredo wants the next one, because he lost the last one. But man, last fight I dominated him since the first minutes of the first round. I dominated him -- in the striking, in grappling, in wrestling. Obviously, I'm open to fight again with him. But I think he needs to fight again with somebody [els…

Three athletes from Saturday’s UFC on ESPN 26 card could be sidelined for as long as six months.

Marion Reneau (nose), Malcolm Gordon (right hand) and Alan Baudot (nose) all must receive doctor clearance for their respective injuries or they will be on the shelf until Jan. 14. The Nevada State Athletic Commission recently released a full list of medical suspensions to mixedmartialarts.com.

UFC on ESPN 26 took place at the UFC Apex in Las Vegas and saw Islam Makhachev defeat Thiago Moises via fourth-round submission in the evening’s headliner. Moises is suspended until Sept. 1 with no contact until Aug. 17, while Makhachev emerged with a clean bill of health.

UFC on ESPN 26 Medical Suspensions:

Thiago Moises: suspended until 09/01/21; no contact until 08/17/21

Miesha Tate: suspended until 08/08/21; no contact until 08/01/21

Marion Reneau: must have nose x-rayed, if positive needs ENT clearance or no contact until 01/14/22; minimum suspension no…

A heavyweight showdown between Cheick Kongo and Sergei Kharitonov will serve as the main event for Bellator 265.

Promotion officials announced the pairing on Tuesday. Bellator 265 takes place at the Sanford Pentagon in Sioux Falls, S.D., on Aug. 20 and will also see Adam Borics face Jay-Jay Wilson in a featherweight No. 1 contender bout in the evening’s co-headliner. The main card airs on Showtime at 9 p.m. ET/6 p.m. PT.

After an eight-bout winning streak under the Bellator banner from June 2015 to February 2019, Kongo is winless in his last two promotional apppearances. A heavyweight title shot against Ryan Bader ended in a no contest due to an accidental eye poke at Bellator 226, and the 46-year-old Frenchman returned to drop a split verdict to Timothy Johnson in his most recent outing at Bellator 248 last October.

The 40-year-old Kharitonov will get back in the Bellator cage for the first time since November 2019, when he suffered a second-round TKO defeat t…

HE BROKE HIS ARM @AndreMunizUFC submits Jacare Souza in Round 1!! #UFC262 pic.twitter.com/dH6tn41xhZ

— UFC Canada (@UFC_CA) May 16, 2021

In recent months, UFC fans have seen three bouts end abruptly after fighters suffered gruesome fractures.

Chris Weidman broke his tibia and fibula throwing a leg kick at UFC 261; Ronaldo Souza had his humerus fractured during an armbar from Andre Muniz at UFC 262 and Conor McGregor broke his leg after stepping awkwardly in the UFC 264 headliner.

Shortly after McGregor’s injury, Sherdog.com spoke to Dr. Rickson Moraes, the orthopedist for Rafael dos Anjos, Jose Aldo, Souza and many other UFC fighters. Moraes speculated about the impact restrictive weight loss diets can have on the bone composition.

"It's pretty common for stress fractures in patients submitted to rigid diets for long periods,” Moraes said. "The bones are a living tissue. All our lives we are forming and reabsorbing bones. Any hum…

Yogibo presents RIZIN.30, Japan Bantamweight Grand Prix Quarterfinals set, Super Atomweight Champion Hamasaki returns to action in a non-title. Long time veteran Shintaro Ishiwatari announces retirement.

Yogibo presents #RIZIN302021.9.19Saitama Super Arena#RIZIN #MMA

— RIZIN FF English (@rizin_English) July 20, 2021 A quartet of bantamweight grand prix quarterfinals will be the featured attraction at Rizin Fighting Federation 30 on Sept. 19.

The Japanese promotion recently announced the pairings for its bracket, which are as follows: Kai Asakura vs. Alan Yoshihiro Yamaniha, Naoki Inoue vs. Yuto Hokamura, Hiromasa Ougikubo vs. Takafumi Otsuka and Kenta Takizawa vs. Yuki Motoya. Rizin officials determined the matchups for the quarterfinals.

“We matched the fight where we won’t have any rematches and have new, intriguing fights for the quarterfinals of the bantamweight grand prix,” Rizin CEO Nobuyuki Sakakibara said at a press conferenc…

Sign up for ESPN+ right here, and you can then stream the UFC, PFL and “The Ultimate Fighter” live on your smart TV, computer, phone, tablet or streaming device via the ESPN app. The semifinal pairings for all six weight classes in the Professional Fighters League playoffs are now official. The league on Tuesday announced the playoff matchups for its playoff events, which are scheduled for Aug. 13, 19 and 27 at Seminole Hard Rock Hotel and Casino in Hollywood, Florida. The Aug. 13 and Aug. 27 events will air on ESPN2, while the Aug. 20 card will air on ESPN.

“No sports league can match the thrilling action Professional Fighters League will deliver this August as the final four fighters for each weight division will compete for a spot in the $1 million world championship bout,” said PFL CEO Peter Murray. “The only playoff format in the sport gives every fighter a chance. The more than 550 million MMA fans around the world are going to witness unmatched intensity durin…

Bellator MMA is expected to venture to South Dakota for an upcoming card on Aug. 20.

Bellator 265 is set for the Sanford Pentagon in Sioux Falls, S.D., according to an initial report from MMA Island. The has not been formally announced by the promotion, nor does it have an official headliner. According to MMAjunkie.com, a women’s flyweight tilt between Alejandra Lara and DeAnna Bennett will take place on the card.

The California-based promotion previously traveled to South Dakota for Bellator 204 on Aug. 17, 2018, a card that saw Darrion Caldwell defeat Noad Lahat via second-round KO in the evening’s headliner.

Lara last appeared at Bellator 255, where she suffered a split-decision loss to Kana Watanabe. The 26-year-old Colombian is 3-3 in the promotion, including a submission defeat to Ilima-Lei Macfarlane in a 125-pound title bout in June 2018.

Bennett, meanwhile, has won just two of her last 10 professional fights dating back to January 2016. Most rece…

Bellator 263 has gained a trio of contests while losing an intriguing bantamweight matchup.

Promotion officials announced Monday that the following three bouts have been added to the July 31 card: Brent Primus vs. Islam Mamedov at lightweight; Vanessa Porto vs. Ilara Joanne at flyweight and Gadzhi Rabadanov vs. Daniel Carey at 150 pounds.

Missing from the bout order was a previously scheduled bantamweight matchup pitting Raufeon Stots against Magomed Magomedov. Sherdog.com subsequently confirmed that bout has been removed from Bellator 263 for undisclosed reasons.

Bellator 263 takes place at the Forum in Inglewood, Calif., and is headlined by a featherweight championship clash between Patricio Freire and A.J. McKee. The main card airs on Showtime at 10 p.m. ET/7 p.m. PT, while prelims stream on Bellator’s YouTube channel, Showtime Sports YouTube channel and Pluto TV at 7 p.m. ET/4 p.m. PT. Primus vs. Mamedov is slated for the main draw, while Porto vs. Joanne a…

Credit: Getty/UFC Credit: Getty/UFC

A heavyweight clash pitting Chris Daukaus against Shamil Abdurakhimov that was originally slated for UFC on ESPN 27 this Saturday has been pushed back one week.

Multiple outlets confirmed the change following an initial announcement from Daukaus via Twitter. Daukaus revealed that COVID-19 protocols forced the postponement, and MMAjunkie.com later reported that a positive test in the Abdurakhimov camp was the cause.

Fight pushed back until next week, Covid strikes again! Thank you for everyone for the support! pic.twitter.com/etIN1s2rVr

— Chris Daukaus (@ChrisDaukausMMA) July 19, 2021

Daukaus vs. Abdurakhimov will now take place at UFC on ESPN 28 on July 31. That card takes place at the UFC Apex in Las Vegas and is headlined by a middleweight showdown between Uriah Hall and Sean Strickland.

Daukaus is on a four-bout winning streak – including three in UFC competition. The 31-year-old Philadelphia …

Thiago Moises is moving forward with a positive attitude following his loss to Islam Makhachev in the UFC on ESPN 26 headliner this past Saturday.

Moises succumbed to a rear-naked choke in the fourth round of his lightweight clash with Makhachev at the UFC Apex in Las Vegas. The 26-year-old American Top Team representative struggled to get any offense going against the suffocating style of his opponent, as he landed just 13 significant strikes and was controlled for 8:11 during the bout.

Despite what could be viewed as a discouraging effort, Moises is taking the defeat in stride.

“Thank you all SO much for the incredible support. I’m proof we could put on a show for you tonight,” Moises wrote. “Islam is an amazing fighter, and he was the best guy tonight. No excuses, we keep improving. I’m only 26 years old, I have a lot of time to be in my prime, but fighting is in my blood and I won’t stop.

“I’m still a winner because I have a great family, a great team,…

[youtube https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=zfR0YJyhvyE&w=560&h=315]

If there is one obstacle to Islam Makhachev’s rise through the UFC’s lightweight division, it’s that his style is not as fan friendly as some of the other top contenders.

It was something of a slow burn on Saturday night, as Makhachev gradually imposed his will on Thiago Moises before submitting his opponent with a rear-naked choke at the 2:38 mark of Round 4 in the UFC on ESPN 26 headliner. It wasn’t a performance that was able to keep Dan Hooker’s interest.

“I kind of was watching and on fast forward,” Hooker said in an interview with Submission Radio “I got bored. So, I can’t really… like, yeah. It kind of is what it is.”

Makhachev is currently on an eight-bout winning streak at 155 pounds and has been anointed by teammate Khabib Nurmagomedov as a future lightweight champion. The Dagestani has gradually improved the level of competition in the Octagon since his 2015 debut, with recent submi…

A shoulder injury has forced Doo Ho Choi to pull out of a proposed clash with Danny Chavez at UFC on ESPN 28.

“The Korean Superboy” announced his exit from the card in a post on his Instagram account on Sunday.

“First of all, I'm so sorry for the fans who are waiting for my fight because I couldn't have a fight due to injury. I'm in a fight business. That means an unexpected accident can happen at any time and I also think a fighter should take the fight even if he has a some injury because that is way it is,” Choi wrote. I injured my shoulder in the last sparring session on Friday night. It was very light and easy rolling but something bad unlucky thing happened.

“It is not a huge injury, but definitely it isn’t something that can handle the fight. If I had more time for recover, I would push forward and take the fight, but our camp [inevitably] decided that two weeks were just too shorts to recover.

“I'm so sad that I prepared for this fight very hard a…

We’re BACK on 30 July for ONE: BATTLEGROUND, topped by a thrilling ONE Muay Thai World Title clash and featuring the returns of Aung La N Sang, Ritu Phogat, Victoria Lee and MORE! @AungLANsang @PhogatRitu #ONEBattleground #WeAreONE #ONEChampionship pic.twitter.com/A4aoBmt4cA

— ONE Championship (@ONEChampionship) July 17, 2021

One Championship “Battleground” will feature a strawweight muay Thai title bout and the return of former two-division champion Aung La N Sang at the top of the bill.

The Singapore-based promotion announced the full card for the event, which takes place at Singapore Indoor Stadium in Singapore on July 30. In the main event, Sam-A Gaiyanghadao will defend his strawweight crown against Prajanchai PK.Saenchai Muaythaigym, while Sang will square off against Leandro Ataides in a featured MMA clash at middleweight (205 pounds).

The event will take place behind closed doors and according to a release, the promotion “is wor…

[youtube https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=g7NRYyKHJHI&w=560&h=315]

The fifth season of Dana White’s Contender Series will kick off later this summer.

The promotion announced on Saturday night that the show will premiere on Aug. 31 with a card headlined by a heavyweight clash between Matheus Scheffel and Azamat Murzakanov. After that event, four other Contender Series fights were confirmed for the following four weeks through September.

The remaining featured bouts for the announced Contender Series cards are as follows: Darian Weeks vs. Josh Quinlan at welterweight on Sept. 7; Jailton Junior vs. Nasrudin Nasrudinov at light heavyweight on Sept. 14; Chris Duncan vs. Manuel Gaxhja at lightweight on Sept. 21 and Lukasz Sudolski vs. Ihor Potieria at light heavyweight on Sept. 28.

Dana White’s Contender Series airs Tuesdays on ESPN+ at 8 p.m. ET/5 p.m. PT.

International Fight Week is returning to Las Vegas this September.

The UFC announced that the interactive fan experience, which includes the promotion’s Hall of Fame induction ceremony, will take place from Sept. 21 through Sept. 25. The festivities will conclude with UFC 266 at the T-Mobile Arena in Las Vegas.

The Hall of Fame ceremony is scheduled for Sept. 23, while Sept. 24-25 will feature a two-day, free UFC Fan Experience that “will feature meet and greets, autograph sessions, and partner activations that provide unprecedented access to UFC champions, top-ranked contenders, Hall of Famers, and other UFC personalities.”

Fans will also have access to ceremonial weigh-ins, press conferences and other live entertainment during the week. International Fight Week was canceled in 2020 due to COVID-19 concerns. The latest iteration of the event will be the promotion’s ninth International Fight Week.

UFC 266 takes place at the T-Mobile Arena in Las Vegas on …

Even after a retirement that lasted more than four years, Miesha Tate appeared to be in peak form at UFC on ESPN 26.

The former UFC and Strikeforce bantamweight champion blended her striking and takedowns effectively en route to a third-round technical knockout victory against Marion Reneau in Saturday’s co-main event at the UFC Apex in Las Vegas. While it was just the beginning of Tate’s comeback tour, it was a farewell for Reneau.

“I think she brought everything she had. I believe this was the fight she wanted, she was exactly where she wanted to be, she knew this was her Super Bowl, this was the fight she wanted to leave it all in the Octagon, and I believe she did that,” Tate said. “I’m excited to go back, watch the fight, learn from it and move forward.

“I’m a huge fan of Marion, she is just an inspiration as a woman and as a person. She is a teacher, she is a mother, she gives back to her community… It takes a good dance partner out there to really bring …

It is no secret that Islam Makhachev has been tabbed as the heir apparent to Khabib Nurmagomedov in the UFC’s lightweight division.

Makhachev lived up to that billing yet again on Saturday, as he cruised to fourth-round submission victory against Thiago Moises in the UFC on ESPN 26 main event at the UFC Apex in Las Vegas. The Dagestani has won eight consecutive fights at 155 pounds, one of just six fighters in the division’s history to do so. One of those men, Nurmagomedov, was in Makhachev’s corner.

“When you have by your side a champion, he knows everything everywhere, what I have to do, what I have to say, how I have to move… When Khabib is in my corner, I feel more powerful,” Makhachev said.

Comparisons to Nurmagomedov as a fighter are lofty enough, but for Makhachev, his teammate and coach also casts a large shadow because of the person he is.

“If somebody says I’m almost the same as Khabib, I agree with this,” Makhachev said. “I want to be like Khab…

Billy Quarantillo and Gabriel Benitez took home an additional $50,000 apiece for their work in the Octagon on Saturday night.

Quarantillo and Benitez received “Fight of the Night” honors for their entertaining featherweight scrap at UFC on ESPN 26 at the UFC Apex in Las Vegas. Both fighters landed knockdowns in the bout, but Quarantillo was the one who walked away with his hand raised after a series of punches from back control forced the TKO stoppage 3:40 into Round 3.

Meanwhile, four “Performance of the Night” bonuses were handed out, as Miesha Tate, Mateusz Gamrot, Rodolfo Vieira and Rodrigo Nascimento all received an additional $50,000 for their efforts.

In her first fight in more than four years, Tate was impressive in a third-round stoppage of Marion Reneau in the evening’s co-main event. “Cupcake” took Reneau down, moved to back mount and earned a TKO with punches from that position 1:53 into Round 3.

Gamrot, meanwhile, wasted little time in putting…

Sign up for ESPN+ right here, and you can then stream the UFC, PFL and “The Ultimate Fighter” live on your smart TV, computer, phone, tablet or streaming device via the ESPN app. Islam Makhachev lived up to the hype in his first headlining effort. The Dagestani lightweight gradually imposed his will on Thiago Moises before submitting his opponent with a rear-naked choke at the 2:38 mark of Round 4 on Saturday at the UFC Apex in Las Vegas. Makhachev, who has won eight straight in UFC competition, is the first person to defeat Moises via tapout.

“This is my first fourth round in my life. I never fight more than three rounds. That’s why this is good experience for me,” Makhachev said.

“I tell you guys before, I'm gonna take him down, make him tired, and make him tap.”

Moises (15-5, 4-3 UFC) spent the majority of the bout on the defensive. Makhachev (19-1, 9-1 UFC) was effective in spurts with punching combinations to the head and kicks to the body, but it was in clo…

Sherdog's live UFC on ESPN 26 coverage will begin Saturday at 7 p.m. ET.

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

Sign up for ESPN+ right here, and you can then stream the UFC, PFL and “The Ultimate Fighter” live on your smart TV, computer, phone, tablet or streaming device via the ESPN app. 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 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 Pe…