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Former Ultimate Fighting Championship heavyweight champion Fabricio Werdum, who is currently serving a two-year suspension by the United States Anti-Doping Agency (USADA) after failing an out-of-competition drug test in 2018, is looking for the promotion to grant him an early release from his contract so he can fight in other promotions.

Werdum was interviewed on Thursday night with Portal do Vale Tudo and said that his manager, Ali Abdelaziz, is currently in negotiation with the UFC to secure an early release from his contract, which still has two fights remaining (transcribed by MMA Fighting):

”My idea is to do the right thing, which would be rescind my contract with the UFC,” Werdum said. “Ali is a manager that defends us really well. He has a lot of famous fighters, many people, and to me he’s the best manager right now, the one with the best direct contact with the UFC.”

Financially, a break with the UFC may prove costly for the Brazilian as it could mean he…

[youtube https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=o1WTJM-Zpxc&w=560&h=315]

Amanda Nunes is being labeled by some as the greatest women’s MMA fighter in history after knocking out Cristiane Justino at UFC 232 to take her featherweight title.

In the aftermath of the fight, “Cyborg” said she should be given an immediate rematch against Nunes. However, Ultimate Fighting Championship President Dana White was non-committal over the prospect of the pair facing off in the short term, saying, “It won’t happen anytime soon due to how convincing the win was.”

Nunes’ coach, Conan Silveira, whom she described as a “father-like-figure” during her post-fight speech on Saturday night, was a recent guest on the latest episode of The MMA Hour. Silveira claims Nunes is on a different level than any of her opponents, including Justino.

“I’d never put that it way, to say it’s not possible [for Cyborg to beat Nunes in a rematch],” Silviera said. “I’d just explain it in the way of how Amanda is…

WHAT A YEAR!We're just getting started. #PFLmma pic.twitter.com/wbCFsjpHtW

— #PFLmma (@ProFightLeague) January 2, 2019

Count the Professional Fighters League among the other major mixed martial arts organizations that had banner years in 2018, as the league on Thursday declared that its 2018 tournament season was a success.

Six fighters saw their fortunes changes as they ended the year as millionaires following the tournament finale, including:

Featherweight -- Lance Palmer (Columbus, OH) via unanimous decision.Lightweight -- Natan Schulte (Joinville, Brazil) via unanimous decision.Welterweight -- Magomed Magomedkerimov (Russia) via Submission (Guillotine Choke) at 2:18 of the 2nd Round.Middleweight -- Louis Taylor (Chicago, IL) via KO (Punch) at 0:33 of the 1st Round.Light Heavyweight -- Sean O'Connell (Salt Lake City, UT) via TKO (Corner Stoppage) 5:00 of the 3rd Round.Heavyweight -- Philipe Lins (Natal, Brazil) via TKO (Knees and Punche…

He's back! @GokhanTheRebel will face Saparbek Safarov at UFCLondon!

https://t.co/iH4Pj44Uto pic.twitter.com/euNtJa1d5H

— UFC Europe (@UFCEurope) January 3, 2019 The gears in the light heavyweight division are turning once again, as two significant bouts in the weight class are slated for the Ultimate Fighting Championship's return to London in March. According to a report from BJPenn.com, Volkan Oezdemir (15-3) will be facing off against the undefeated Dominick Reyes (10-0) at UFC Fight Night 147 in London.

A former light heavyweight title challenger, Oezdemir will be looking to bounce back after dropping consecutive bouts for the first time in his career. First knocked out in a title fight by Daniel Cormier in January, Oezdemir then fell short against Anthony Smith in October, losing that bout by third-round submission. A closer by trade, Oezdemir celebrates a finish rate of 77.8 percent, with all but one of those stoppages coming by knock…

LHW contenders collide at #UFC235! @003_OSP battles @MishaC911!

https://t.co/3H0s6OHr2j pic.twitter.com/OiUL1k2Ekp

— UFC Canada (@UFC_CA) January 3, 2019 A battle between light heavyweight contenders is now set for UFC 235, when Ovince St. Preux meets Misha Cirkunov in Las Vegas.

The Ultimate Fighting Championship announced Thursday that St. Preux (23-12) will face Cirkunov (14-1) at the T-Mobile Arena on March 2.

Former UFC light heavyweight title challenger St. Preux has had a tumultuous UFC career to date. Prior to his most recent loss, by decision to Dominick Reyes, St. Preux became the first man to finish Tyson Pedro back at UFC Fight Night 132. In doing so, he pulled off a straight armbar -- a submission only seen eight times in company history and just the second at light heavyweight, after Ricardo Romero tapped Seth Petruzelli with one at UFC 116 in 2010. He holds the unusual distinction of being the only fighter in UFC histor…

.@theTHNDRcat returns to Cage Warriors at #CW102!

Check out some of his biggest finishes before March 2nd pic.twitter.com/tVx3jYu0q6

— Cage Warriors (@CageWarriors) January 3, 2019 Cage Warriors Fighting Championship announced the first crop of names for CW 102. The card is highlighted by the return of former Ultimate Fighting Championship welterweight Craig White. “The Thundercat” is coming off a short stint in the UFC, where he went on a two-bout losing streak after being knocked out by Neil Magny at UFC Fight Night 130 and losing a decision to Diego Sanchez at UFC 228. An opponent has not yet been announced.

On the same card, UFC veteran John Maguire takes on Brad Wheeler in a 175-pound catchweight clash. Both fighters are eager to bounce back after a defeat in their last match. Maguire lost via KO to former CW welterweight champion Stefano Paterno, while Wheeler was defeated by Nathan Jones via unanimous decision at CW 99.

Furth…

After coming up short in his third shot at the Ultimate Fighting Championship light heavyweight belt, Alexander Gustafsson may consider a change of scenery.

Gustafsson has fought for the UFC lightweight championship belt on three occasions, losing twice to Jon Jones and once to Daniel Cormier. The Swede, who at 6’5: with a 79-inch reach is one of the biggest high-level 205-pounders in the world, may try his luck in the heavyweight division now that his two-time for Jones appears to be back for good.

During the UFC 232 post-fight press conference, “The Mauler” was asked by a reporter if his days at light heavyweight were done (via MMAJunkie.com):

“Yeah, it’s not over yet. Let’s see what’s next. Like always, you do this for a reason, and it’s to compete with the best guys out there, and that’s what I’ll do. I will do it as long as I think it’s fun.”

The 31-year-old said he was open to a moving up a division but would go back to the gym and talk about a potent…

Amanda Nunes provided a huge upset on Saturday night at UFC 232 when she dethroned Cristiane Justino in just 51 seconds to become the first women’s dual-division champion in the history of the Ultimate Fighting Championship.

The knockout loss for “Cyborg” was the first in her career and after the fight and not surprisingly, the first question that was asked to the Brazilian during the post-fight press conference was if she deserved an immediate rematch. The former champ was clearly frustrated and rather than answer the question, she pointed the finger at the UFC for not allowing her a post-fight interview inside the Octagon (courtesy of MMA Fighting):

“They just kicked me out of the cage,” Justino said. “I think (it’s) very bad, very disrespectful, because I did a lot for the sport. I was supposed to say hello for my fans and talk to them. I think it’s not right. But OK, they did, (it’s) already done, I can go (to the) media and talk to my fans, say how I appreciate th…

Jon Jones proved again that he is the best light heavyweight fighter on the planet after dispatching Alexander Gustafsson in their rematch last Saturday night at UFC 232, but he apparently isn't happy that talk of his past with performance-enhancing drugs continues to follow him.

Inside the Octagon at least, “Bones” managed to put all the drug testing controversy behind him, including the last minute venue change to Los Angeles, and defeated the Swede by TKO in the third round. After the fight, however, Jones was interviewed by the Fox Sports panel and according to former Ultimate Fighting Championship middleweight champion and Fox Sports analyst Michael Bisping, the champ was unhappy with the questions about his failed drug tests.

Bisping claims that during a commercial break, Jones blasted him and the producers of the show for focusing on the doping controversy rather than on his latest victory.

“On the weigh-in show, we had to interview Jon Jones,” Bisping sai…

Paige VanZant was one of a handful of UFC athletes to sign exclusive contracts with Reebok after the athletic apparel company became the official outfitter of the Las Vegas-based promotion. Now, it appears that VanZant’s endorsement deal with Reebok has come to an end.

VanZant revealed the news via social media on Wednesday.

“As my contract has come to an end I regret to share that Rebook has decided not to [re-sign] me with their company,” she wrote. “I am blessed to have been partnered with such an amazing team for so long, I know the future is bright for me and will bring new opportunities.”

pic.twitter.com/wakE9Lx80A

— Paige VanZant (@paigevanzant) January 2, 2019

Like all UFC fighters, VanZant will continue to wear Reebok gear during fight week and on fight nights as part of the organization’s outfitting policy. She signed the exclusive deal prior to her second Octagon appearance in 2015.

The 24-year-old “Dancing with the S…

Darrion Caldwell came up short in his bid to become a champion in two promotions, falling to Kyoji Horiguchi at Rizin 14 on New Year’s Eve.

The former NCAA national champion wrestler adopted a conservative approach, taking Horiguchi to the canvas in each round of their bantamweight title bout at Saitama Super Arena in Saitama, Japan. However, in the third stanza, Horiguchi secured a guillotine choke and forced Caldwell to tap out at the 1:19 mark of the period. With the win, Horiguchi captured Rizin’s inaugural bantamweight strap.

Caldwell, still the reigning Bellator 135-pound king, would like to get a crack at Horiguchi on familiar ground next time.

“No regrets, just lessons learned!” Caldwell wrote on Instagram. “Next time we dance in the cage. I’m still the best in the world!”

The chance of a rematch in Bellator seems quite likely. In a recent interview with MMAjunkie.com, Bellator president Scott Coker revealed the terms of the agreement he made with R…

In the past, Jon Jones claims he would fill his life with “partying and nonsense” following a big victory. However, in the aftermath of his light heavyweight championship triumph over Alexander Gustafsson at UFC 232, Jones only wants to fill his schedule with more fights.

In a recent Instagram post, “Bones” revealed a desire to fight three times in 2019. If those plans hold up, it would be Jones’ most active year since 2011, when he bested Ryan Bader, Mauricio Rua, Quinton Jackson and Lyoto Machida in a breakout campaign. The Jackson-Wink MMA standout has not competed more than twice in a year since then.

“In my heart and mind there has been a shift and it’s a hunger that’s raging. In the past I would fight then shut everything down while I filled my schedule with partying and nonsense, but in the aftermath of reclaiming my belt the only thing I want to do is get back in there,” Jones wrote on Tuesday. “I want to step back into the cage and continue to prove why I’m th…

It appears that Teruto Ishihara will meet Kyung Ho Kang at UFC 234.

Ishihara announced the bantamweight bout via Twitter on Tuesday. UFC 234 takes place on Feb. 9 (Feb. 10 in Australia) at Rod Laver Arena in Melbourne and is headlined by a middleweight championship tilt pitting Robert Whittaker against Kelvin Gastelum.

Ishihara has lost four of his last five Octagon appearances, including a first-round technical knockout defeat at the hands of Petr Yan at UFC Fight Night 132 on June 23. The 27-year-old Team Alpha Male product is 3-4-1 over the course of his UFC tenure and 10-6-2 as a professional overall.

Kang, meanwhile, had a three-bout winning streak snapped in his most recent outing when he dropped a split verdict to Ricky Simon at UFC 227 in August. The 31-year-old South Korean is 3-2 with one no contest in UFC competition and 14-8 overall.

Happy new years 2019. Just droped off tha fight news right here. It's February 10 Melbourne …

The Ultimate Fighting Championship recently unveiled its schedule for the second quarter of 2019.

The slate will include five Fight Night events on ESPN+, three pay-per-views and two UFC on ESPN cards. Locations and venues were not announced. The pay-per-view lineup is as follows: UFC 236 on April 13, UFC 237 on May 11 and UFC 238 on June 8. The UFC on ESPN events are set for April 27 and June 29. All of the cards from April through June will take place on Saturday.

UFC on ESPN cards will be split between ESPN and ESPN Deportes for the main card, with preliminary bouts airing on ESPN+. ESPN+ Fight Nights will air in their entirety on the network’s streaming service. Preliminaries for pay-per-views will air on ESPN linear networks.

Meanwhile, the Las Vegas-based promotion also announced during the UFC 232 broadcast that it will make its debut in Kansas on March 9 with a UFC on ESPN+ event at Intrust Bank Arena in Wichita. No bouts were revealed for the event.

UFC 2…

After approximately one year, mixed martial analyst Jimmy Smith and the Ultimate Fighting Championship are parting ways.

Smith announced on Wednesday that the UFC elected not to renew his contract.

“Now that the New Year has arrived I’m afraid I have to announce that the UFC has declined to re-sign me and my time with the promotion has come to an end,” Smith wrote on Twitter. “I just want to thank everyone at the promotion who made me feel welcome and appreciated at every single show.

“I tried my utmost to show the fighters the respect they deserved for giving their lives to this sport and hope they felt that when they heard what I had to say. The UFC fans were truly amazing and I wish I could thank each and every one of you for your support and even your criticism because it made me strive to be better. Wishing everyone a great 2019 and on to the next fight…Adios Amigos.”

Smith joined the UFC broadcast team at the beginning of 2018, helping call Fox Sports…

Vice grip! #PFLChampionship #NewYearsEve2018 pic.twitter.com/MRpJOfumLV

— #PFLmma (@ProFightLeague) January 1, 2019

What was thought by some to be a coronation for Ray Cooper III turned into a coming-out party for Magomed Magomedkerimov.

The rising American Top Team welterweight submitted Cooper with a second-round guillotine choke in the 2018 Professional Fighters League Championships main event on Monday inside the Hulu Theater at Madison Square Garden in New York. One of six division champions crowned and awarded $1 million prizes by the PFL, Magomedkerimov (23-5, 5-0 PFL) drew the curtain 2:18 into Round 2.

Cooper (17-5, 4-1 PFL) was not afforded the opportunity to put his dazzling offensive skills to work. Magomedkerimov circled out of danger and lured the heavy-handed Hawaiian into the clinch before executing a single-leg takedown and nearly sealing the deal with a rear-naked choke in the first round. Cooper withstood his advances, b…

Sherdog's live PFL Championships coverage kicks off Monday at 7 p.m. ET.

Check out the MMA Forums to discuss the card or enter your comments and predictions below. Round 1 Round 2 Round 3 Round 4 Round 5 The Official Result Round 1 Round 2 Round 3 Round 4 Round 5 The Official Result Round 1 Round 2 Round 3 Round 4 Round 5 The Official Result Round 1 Round 2 Round 3 The Official Result Round 1 Round 2 Round 3 Round 4 Round 5 The Official Result Round 1 Round 2 Round 3 Round 4 Round 5 The Official Result Round 1 Round 2 Round 3 Round 4 Round 5 The Official Result

Jon Jones, Alexander Gustafsson and Cristiane Justino topped a UFC 232 payroll that saw a total of 10 fighters take home six-figure paydays.

The California State Athletic Commission released salaries from the event to MMAjunkie.com on Sunday. UFC 232 took place at the Forum in Inglewood, Calif., and saw Jones claim the vacant light heavyweight crown with a third-round technical knockout of Gustafsson in the evening’s headliner. Both Jones and Gustafsson earned a flat $500,000 purse for their work.

Meanwhile, Justino also garnered $500,000 in a 51-second knockout loss to Amanda Nunes in a featherweight title clash in the co-main event. Nunes, who became the third UFC fighter to hold championships in two divisions, received $350,000.

The other fighters who earned six-figure salaries at UFC 232 were as follows: Carlos Condit ($115,000), Corey Anderson ($130,000), Alexander Volkanovski ($125,000), Andrei Arlovski ($300,000), B.J. Penn ($150,000) and Uriah Hall ($110,…

Satoru Kitaoka def. Tatsuya Kawajiri by SD pic.twitter.com/kZxARJQaIq

— Bruno Massami (Бруно Массами) (@BrMassami) December 31, 2018

As the Heisei period nears its end in Japan, Rizin Fighting Federation’s Heisei’s Last Yarrenoka — which serves as something of a prelim to Rizin 14 — featured a mix of new and old talent at Saitama Super Arena in Saitama, Japan.

In the card’s main event, 69-fight MMA veteran Satoru Kitaoka battled it out in a match of Japanese legends against former Shooto Champion and UFC competitor Tatsuya Kawajiri at lightweight. In a fairly slow match, Kitaoka — whose career dates back to 2000 and includes wins over Carlos Condit, Paul Daley and Takanori Gomi — was able to drop Kawajiri in the first with a left straight and followed up with knees to the head until the end of the round.

In the second round, Kitaoka landed a takedown but was unable to mount any solid offense. With Kawajiri seemingly behind on the cards going…

The first season of the Professional Fighters League is about to come to a close, as six titles will be on the line Monday night with the winner of each earning $1 million.

Top seeded Ray Cooper III weighed in at 169.6 pounds as he contends for the welterweight title against No. 3 seed Magomed Magomedkerimov (169.8) at the PFL Championship at the Hulu Theater at Madison Square Garden in New York, New York. Co-headlining the event at heavyweight will be third seed Philipe Lins (234.8), who faces the eighth seeded Josh Copeland (257).

PFL Championship, which airs live on NBCSN at 7 p.m. ET/4 p.m. PT, also features a light heavyweight matchup between top seed Vinny Magalhaes (204.2) and sixth seed Sean O’Connell (204.2). At lightweight, No. 1 seed Natan Schulte (154) meets seventh seed Rashid Magomedov (154). Facing off at featherweight will be top seed Steven Siler (144.8) against Lance Palmer (144.4). Finally, first seed Abusupiyan Magomedov (184) and second seed Louis T…

It took all of 13 years for it to happen, but Cristiane Justino was beaten again in an MMA match.

But “Cyborg” wasn’t just beaten on Saturday night in the co-main event at UFC 232 in California, she was obliterated by fellow Brazilian Amanda Nunes. Many had expected “Cyborg” to do what she normally does, which was throw her wild haymakers, connect and walk out of the Octagon with yet another fabulous knockout win.

There was a knockout win, but it wasn’t Justino (20-2) who walked out of the cage as the victor. It was Nunes, the reigning UFC women’s bantamweight champion, who bludgeoned “Cyborg” with a battery of fists to the head. Nunes (17-4) bombarded betting favorite in just 51 seconds, but Justino kept her head high after the shocking defeat.

“In the beginning, when I did my first MMA fight, I lost,” Justino told the assembled press after UFC 232 on Saturday night. “I never said I was going to be invincible or that I’d never lose. It’s the fight game. It happe…

It had been two-and-a-half years since Jon Jones officially scored a win inside the famed UFC Octagon, but Saturday’s victory may have been his sweetest to date. Jones, arguably the greatest mixed martial artist in the history of the sport, fought a much different fight in his rematch against rival Alexander Gustafsson in the main event of UFC 232 at the Forum in Inglewood, Calif.. When the two first locked horns at UFC 165 in 2013, “Bones” was taken to the brink of defeat and had to dig deep to eke out an extremely close decision win. This time around, however, Jones ended things emphatically in the third round. “My dad said to me when he left the hotel room today, ‘Don’t chase Gus. People cheered when he ran away from me, so don’t chase him,’” Jones told the media at the post-fight press conference late Saturday night. “I changed it up and kind of out-Gustafssoned Gustafsson. He kept saying he wanted to put pressure on me so I backed up and scored points. I think his aggre…

On a night when Amanda Nunes staked her claim to being the greatest fighter in women’s MMA history, it should come as no surprise that she got a little something extra for her work.

Nunes received a $50,000 “Performance of the Night” bonus for her stunning knockout of Cristiane Justino in the UFC 232 main event at the Forum in Inglewood, Calif., on Saturday night. Nunes rocked “Cyborg” early and didn’t let up, ultimately sending her opponent face-first to the canvas with a right hand just 51 seconds after the featherweight title bout began.

Elsewhere, Alexander Volkanovski and Chad Mendes received “Fight of the Night” honors and $50,000 apiece for their scintillating featherweight scrap to open the pay-per-view portion of the card. Volkanovski survived an early knockdown in the opening stanza to turn up the heat on the former title challenger down the stretch. The Australian rallied to drop Mendes with a left to the body and right hand over the top before sealing the v…

[youtube https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Tr7J1h8sRGc&w=560&h=315] UFC 232 is now available on Amazon Prime.

Sherdog's live UFC 232 coverage kicks off Saturday at 6:15 p.m. ET.

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

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