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A lightweight clash pitting “The Ultimate Fighter” Season 31 winner Kurt Holobaugh against Kaynan Kruschewsky has been added to a UFC Fight Night card set to take place at the Apex in Las Vegas on July 20.

The news was first reported by MMAjunkie.com on X (formerly known as Twitter). The report was later confirmed by Holobaugh in an Instagram post.

The bout against Kruschewsky will serve as the second outing of Holobaugh's third Ultimate Fighting Championship stint. "The Hurt" will face the Brazilian coming off a unanimous decision loss to Trey Ogden in March that snapped a three-fight win streak for the Louisiana native.

As for Kruschewsky, "Bahia" will enter the Octagon on the heels of a brutal Round 1 knockout loss at the hands of Elves Brener in his promotional debut back in November 2023. The loss snapped a seven-fight undefeated streak for the former Jungle Fight lightweight champion, who earned a UFC contract thanks to a Round 1 technical submissio…

While some would argue that Steve Erceg won't have a lot of pressure on him going into his UFC 301 title fight just 11 months after his promotional debut, "Astroboy" couldn't disagree more.

While Erceg acknowledges that he might have been "at the right place, at the right time," in terms of him receiving a title shot just three fights into his UFC tenure, the Myaree, Australia, native isn’t taking the opportunity lightly and sees this as a moment that will serve as the pinnacle of his hard work and dedication to the sport of mixed martial arts.

Erceg, who hasn't lost a bout since his second professional outing in 2017, believes he has a lot of pressure on him going into the matchup and is aiming to walk away with the strap at the end of the night in Rio De Janeiro.

“Honestly, I believe there’s just as much as pressure on me as there is on Pantoja,” Erceg said during his media day appearance. “I know that, yeah, technically he’s the champion, he's the favor…

#ONEFightNight22 highlight video: Smilla Sundell demolishes Natalia Diachkova pic.twitter.com/KzX5PW7JFV

— Sherdog (@sherdogdotcom) May 4, 2024

The women’s muay thai belt at 125 pounds may not be in anyone’s possession now, but the division’s only champion is on a mission to get it back very soon.

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One Championship and beltholder Smilla Sundell (36-5, 5-0 ONE) had visions of the 19-year-old from Sweden claiming titles across multiple disciplines, but much changed the day before the event. Sundell missed her weight class by 1.5 pounds and was forced to surrender her throne, and only challenger Natalia Diachkova (30-5, 4-1 ONE) could claim it. While ONE on Prime Video 22 concluded with a vacant 125-pound belt in One’s women’s muay thai division, it all-but promised an immediate rematch as Sundell pulled victory from the jaws of defeat as she dispatched Diachkova right before the second round ended.

Diachkova proved ear…

ONE Championship’s latest installment in the U.S. primetime series hosts a trio of key contests forming the central allure of ONE Fight Night 22. The event, which is set to go down on May 3, will ignite Lumpinee Boxing Stadium in Bangkok. Sherdog.com brings you exclusive live coverage and play-by-play updates starting at 8 p.m. ET/ 5 p.m. PT. Round 1

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Round 2 Round 3 The Official Result Round 1 Round 2 Round 3 The Official Result Round 1 Round 2 Round 3 The Official Result Round 1 Round 2 Round 3 The Official Result Round 1 Round 2 Round 3 The Official Result Round 1 Round 2 Round 3 The Official Result Round 1 Round 2 Round 3 The Official Result Round 1 Round 2 Round 3 The Official Result Round 1 Round 2 Round 3 The Official Result Round 1 Round 2 Round 3 The Official Result Muay Thai Title Fight:Smilla Sundell (126.5: Missed Weight, Ineligible to Win Title) vs. Natalia Diachkova (125) Round 1 Round 2 Round 3 Round 4 Round 5 The Offici…

𝗢𝗙𝗙𝗜𝗖𝗜𝗔𝗟: Your PFL Sioux Falls Fight Card!

It’s win or go home for the Welterweights & Featherweights as they fight for their spots in the 2024 PFL Playoffs!

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[ #PFLRegularSeason | Friday, June 28th | 10pm ET on ESPN | 6pm on ESPN+ ] pic.twitter.com/KEtthMtgVS — PFL (@PFLMMA) May 3, 2024 The final regular season Professional Fighters League card of the year is officially on the books.

Per a release from the tournament-based league on Friday, PFL 6: 2024 Regular Season, which will feature the featherweight and welterweight divisions, is now official. Twelve fights are on the docket, including one alternate bout at 170 pounds and a non-tourney “featherweight showcase” bout to start off the prelims. Of the six brackets currently operating in the PFL’s main grand prix, 145 pounds is the only one where all five fights see a points-holding winner taking on an opponent that lost earlier in the season.

Serving as th…

Belarusian prospect Ilyas Eziev on Friday improved to 6-1 overall and 2-0 in ONE Championship, as he submitted Joji Goto with a rear-naked choke in the third round of their ONE Friday Fights 61 bantamweight showcase at Lumpinee Boxing Stadium in Bangkok, Thailand.

The 22-year-old controlled his adversary on the canvas for the majority of the first round and scored multiple takedowns before dropping Goto with a straight left toward the end of the frame. Going into the second round, Goto (15-7, 0-1 ONE) seemed to have recovered from the knockdown and began to get comfortable exchanging strikes with Iziev, landing crisp combinations on the Belarusian while also displaying his scrambling ability time and again. Regardless, Iziev stuck to his relentless grappling assault and visibly began to wear his Japanese foe down.

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Goto came out guns blazing in the final frame, dropping Iziev with consecutive left hands. However, the Japanese competitor failed to cap…

Pesée validée pour le jaguar 🐆 @WilliamGomisMMA ⚖️ 64,9 kg (143 lb)

📺 Regardez l’#UFC301 dans la nuit de samedi à dimanche sur 🇫🇷 @RMCSport 2 pic.twitter.com/G8DTwhF2Qd

— UFC France (@UFCFRA) May 3, 2024 A Ultimate Fighting Championship fighter has been forced out of his match after a bad weight cut, but not for the reason one might expect.

Ahead of UFC 301, William Gomis hit the scales for his featherweight matchup against Jean Silva. The Frenchman wobbled to the dais while still wearing a t-shirt and shorts, and did not disrobe like other competitors. Instead, the depleted Gomis stood on the podium and weighed in at 143 pounds, or three pounds below the limit of his weight class. Appearing in poor condition, Silva nearly needed assistance walking to and from the stage as commission officials tended to him.

Shortly after the bizarre scene unfolded, French outlet RMC Sport Combat broke the news that the fight had been scratched for…

[embedded content] The Ultimate Fighting Championship returns to Brazil for its next pay-per-view event.

Headlining UFC 301 is a flyweight title fight between Alexandre Pantoja and Steve Erceg. Both men successfully hit 125 pounds at the official weigh-ins, making the five-round fight official. All other fighters also made weight for the 14-fight card.

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Pantoja (27-5) is looking to make his second defense of the flyweight title. After beating Brandon Moreno via split decision, "The Cannibal" defended the belt against Brandon Royval in a unanimous decision effort. Having not lost since a 2020 defeat to Askar Askarov, the Brazilian brings a five-fight win streak into his first UFC main event.

Meanwhile, Erceg (12-1) is a surprising title contender as the Australian only has three prior fights in the promotion. In his UFC debut, "Astro Boy" defeated David Dvorak via decision in 2023. Since then, he's won a decision over Alessandro Costa and scored a kn…

Two top Ultimate Fighting Championship featherweights will try to move up the ladder this July.

In March, Super Lutas first reported that Arnold Allen (19-3) and Giga Chikadze (15-3) were slated to square off in England, with the date not specified. On Thursday, multiple outlets were able to confirm the featherweight booking for UFC 304, which will go down at the Co-op Live in Manchester, England, on July 27. The only other matchup currently booked for this evening is another 145-pound affair pitting Nathaniel Wood against Daniel Pineda.

Allen is currently riding the first losing streak of his career, having dropped a five-round decision to Max Holloway in April 2023 and then another decision to Movsar Evloev in January. Before losing to the former champ, the Brit had strung together 10 straight wins in the Octagon, where he beat the likes of Calvin Kattar, Dan Hooker and Sodiq Yusuff on his way up the division. This will be Allen’s first outing on home country soil…

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Patrick Mix doesn’t gameplan for opponents. He adjusts and then annihilates them. From flying knees to rear-naked chokes, there’s no technique the Bellator MMA bantamweight champion won’t use to finish a fight. Just ask Magomed Magomedov.

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“I have to give him props,” Magomedov said on the Bellator Champions Series Paris media call Thursday. In the first fight, he surprised me. He used his distance to his benefit. This time, I’m approaching the fight differently, and people should expect a war.”

Mix (19-1) hasn’t seen a tough fight since his lone loss nearly four years ago. After submitting Magomedov in 2022, Mix spent the following year starching Raufeon Stots and Sergio Pettis. Today he rules the division with a fearsome fist but wants to prove he’s the best 135-pounder in the world — even if he has to take out former opponents to do it.

“It’s not just me; it’s also the people that I’m fighting,” Mix said. “This guy’s 20-3…

Charles Oliveira wants to make it clear that he would only move to welterweight for one specific fight.

Former Ultimate Fighting Championship lightweight king Oliveira spoke to Sherdog ahead of UFC 301. The event in Rio de Janeiro, he is not competing, but he is supporting his countrymen and women as well as cornering teammate Elves Brener. “Do Bronx” is coming off a decision loss to Arman Tsarukyan at UFC 300 that served as a title eliminator match, and he says he is ready to put the past behind him.

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“I expected more from myself inside the cage,” Oliveira stated about his UFC 300 defeat. “I think I got the best moments in all three rounds. Actually, I think I won [the first] and [third], but that fight’s already gone. I’m not here to cause any [drama].”

Instead of dwelling on the past, Oliveira wants to learn from his mistakes and look to the future.

“Fourteen years are not fourteen days,” Oliviera pontificated. “Don't get me wrong, I don’t …

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Many believe that if Alex Pereira moved up in weight again, he would be successful, but no one is more confident in his skills than his manager.

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Ahead of UFC 301, manager Jorge “Joinha” Guimaraes spoke to Sherdog about the future of his fighter, Ultimate Fighting Championship light heavyweight champion Pereira. While some expect that the next challenge for “Poatan” will be Russian wrestler Magomed Ankalaev, Guimaraes threw some cold water on that potential pairing, while discussing additional options including a potential shift in weight for the 205-pound king.

“Not necessarily it will be Ankalaev,” Guimaraes noted. “I don’t think Ankalaev moves the needle, but whatever they bring, I think Alex is ready for anything. He doesn’t choose opponents.”

If Ankalaev is indeed the next contender for the throne, the manager of “Poatan” expresses the utmost of confidence in his client.

“Ankalaev would have a hard time [taking] …

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Natalia Diachkova believes her upcoming opponent, Smilla Sundell, has several holes in her game waiting to be exploited.

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Diachkova will challenge Sundell for the ONE Championship women’s muay thai 125-pound title at ONE Fight Night 22 on May 3. While Sundell’s achievements for a 19-year-old are certainly commendable, Diachkova, who won the Russian National Adult Championship at just 16 years of age, isn’t awed.

“Her age doesn't really matter. I won the National Adult Championship when I was 16 years old. But mentally, she is still a child,” Diachkova said.

While Sundell has seemed almost flawless in her career thus far, Diachkova notes that the 5’10” champ has enjoyed a significant height advantage over her latest opponents. Diachkova sees her 5’7” stature posing a problem for the relatively inexperienced Sundell, who will be unable to use her height advantage to the fullest when they cross paths.

“Yes, it will be a proble…

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ONE Championship muay thai women’s 125-pound champion Smilla Sundell recently shared three-sport glory plans ahead of her second title defense.

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The youngest champion in the history of the promotion, Sundell has already achieved more at 19 years of age than many fighters do in their entire career. “The Hurricane” became the inaugural ONE Championship muay thai women’s 125-pound champion with a unanimous decision over Jackie Buntan and has since defended her strap with a knockout win over Allycia Hellen Rodrigues. The Swede is now scheduled to defend her title for a second time against Natalia Diachkova at ONE Fight Night 22 on May 3.

Sundell recently shared future three-sport championship aspirations leading up to her bout against Diachkova. Having already started dabbling in mixed martial arts, Sundell wants to simultaneously hold ONE Championship muay thai, kickboxing and MMA titles.

“I just want to be the best version of…

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Alexandre Pantoja recently doubled down on his claims of having gotten the better of Sean O'Malley in sparring.

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Pantoja and O’Malley have gone back and forth in the past over the result of a sparring session they had six years ago. Pantoja claims to have bested “Sugar” during a sparring session leading up to the Brazilian’s Ultimate Fighting Championship debut.

Meanwhile, O’Malley has completely refuted that narrative, claiming to have stopped Pantoja instead with a liver kick in the very first round.

Pantoja is now scheduled to defend his flyweight title against Steve Erceg (12-1) in the main event at UFC 301 in Rio de Janeiro, Brazil. “The Cannibal” reiterated his stance on the sparring session with O’Malley when asked about a potential move up to bantamweight in the future.

Pantoja claims former champ Henry Cejudo told him that he would never get the sparring footage from O’Malley. While Pantoja admits that a move…

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Ilia Topuria believes there are more deserving candidates for a featherweight title shot if Max Holloway doesn’t put his BMF title on the line.

Holloway captured the BMF title with a fifth-round knockout win over Justin Gaethje at UFC 300 last month. Topuria called out Holloway immediately afterward, offering him a featherweight title shot in exchange for an opportunity to win the BMF belt. “Blessed” hasn’t yet firmly responded to Topuria’s callout, dismissing it as an “angry girlfriend text.”

Topuria believes it is unfair for Holloway to receive a featherweight title shot without putting his BMF title on the line. According to Topuria, Holloway is hesitant because he wants to remain the BMF champ even if he loses a potential featherweight title fight.

“You are the BMF champ, you have the opportunity for the title, to fight for the title,” Topuria said on the Webpositer podcast. “What are you going to do? Are you going to fight or are you…

Undefeated flyweight Nyamjargal Tumendemberel will make his promotional debut at UFC 302 on June 1 at the Prudential Center in Newark, New Jersey.

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Tumendemberel (8-0) will take on undefeated Brazilian prospect Andre Lima (8-0), replacing undefeated South Korean Hyun Sung Park (9-0) on a month’s notice. The news was first reported by Eurosport NL's Marcel Dorff in a post to X (formerly known as Twitter).

The winner of Road to UFC 1 in the flyweight bracket, Park was forced out of the fight due to a ruptured knee ligament suffered in training. “Peace of Mind” provided footage of the incident along with on explanation via Instagram.

“During sparring in preparation for UFC 302, I collided with a colleague who was training with me from an unseen angle, and my knee was pushed inward excessively, causing the inner ligament of my right knee to rupture, so I was unable to participate in UFC 302,” Park wrote (via Google Translate). “I apologize to e…

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Robert Whittaker is confident that he will be able to hold his own in grappling exchanges against Khamzat Chimaev.

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Whittaker will look to hand Chimaev his first career loss in the main event at UFC Saudi Arabia on June 22. While “Bobby Knuckles” admits that his key to victory lies in keeping the fight on the feet, he isn’t afraid of grappling with “Borz.”

“It’s about going out there and pushing my game plan onto him and seeing how he adjusts to me. Because I bring an arsenal of skill sets that he’s not ready for, I believe," Whittaker recently told ESPN Australia. "And I think the shortest way to victory is to go in there, obviously not play to his strengths, which is not engaging in the wrestle, but not be afraid of it. I can wrestle with the best of them, and I have shown and proved that. So, I’m gonna go in there, I’m gonna fight my fight, I’m gonna fight a stand-up fight, I’m gonna see where it goes, I’m gonna drag it out. It…

The Nevada State Athletic Commission has denied a proposed six-month suspension for Igor da Silva after he bit opponent Andre Lima at UFC on ESPN 53 on March 23.

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During a meeting on Tuesday, Nevada deputy attorney general Matthew Feeley proposed an adjudication agreement that would result in a six-month suspension and a fine of more than $3,000 for da Silva, who is also commonly known as Igor Severino. Feeley’s reasoning was there was no real precedent for the incident other than when Mike Tyson bit Evander Holyfield during their boxing match in 1997. Feeley noted that Tyson’s incident, which resulted in a $3 million fine and his license being revoked, was more severe tha da Silva’s.

However, NSAC commissioner Anthony Marnell expressed concern about the precedent a relatively short suspension might set going forward, especially since da Silva could potentially sign with another MMA promotion.

“The bigger issue is the precedent we set going fo…

The Nevada State Athletic Commission is withholding partial purses from Arman Tsarukyan and Diego Lopes for separate infractions at UFC 300.

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The NSAC voted during a meeting on Tuesday to withhold 20 percent ($31,600) of Tsarukyan’s $158,000 purse due to the lightweight throwing a punch at a fan during his walk to the cage. Meanwhile, five percent ($5,000) of Lopez’s $100,000 purse has been withheld after he jumped out of the cage to celebrate his win against Sodiq Yusuff. Both Tsarukyan and Lopes will be subject to a disciplinary hearing at a later date, potentially at the next commission meeting on May 31. Until then, the fine money will remain in the commission’s possession. UFC 300 took place on April 13 at the T-Mobile Arena in Las Vegas.

Tsarukyan claimed that he threw a punch into the crowd because a fan flipped the bird at him during the walkout.

“He showed me f—k you [flipped the bird] and wanted to punch me, and I wanted to punch him…

Alex Perez will get back to work relatively quickly following his main event triumph at UFC on ESPN 55.

Perez will square off against Tagir Ulanbekov in a flyweight bout at UFC Fight Night on June 15. Both fighters confirmed the pairing on social media following an initial report from Eurosport. The fight was initially reported for the event several weeks back before Perez agreed to face Matheus Nicolau this past Saturday. UFC Fight Night is expected to take place at the UFC Apex in Las Vegas and does not currently have a main event.

Perez ended a three-fight skid at UFC on ESPN 55, where he knocked out Nicolau in the second round of their headlining encounter. The former title challenger had previously dropped successive fights against Deiveson Figueiredo, Alexandre Pantoja and Muhammd Mokaev before returning to the win column against Nicolau.

Russia’s Ulanbekov has been victorious in four of his first five promotional appearances. Most recently, he submi…

Charles Oliveira is still interested in a fight against Conor McGregor should the Irishman emerge victorious in his return fight against Michael Chandler.

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McGregor will return after a nearly three-year hiatus in a welterweight matchup against Chandler in the main event at UFC 303on June 29. Given that McGregor is 1-3 in his last four and “Iron” is 2-3 in the Ultimate Fighting Championship — and both have been relatively inactive - Oliveira doesn’t think the matchup has much title relevance. However, the former champion does acknowledge that “Notorious” could be inching close to a gold bid with a victory given the Irishman’s star power. And “do Bronx” believes the former two-division champ will get the job done.

“I think that, in reality, it's a fight that will make money for both. That's the reality," Oliveira recently told Full Violence. “It's a fight that's going to make more money. Of course, if Conor wins, he could take a step towards the bel…

Alexandre Pantoja will draw from Jose Aldo’s celebration book if he defends his title against Steve Erceg at UFC 301.

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Pantoja is scheduled to put his flyweight strap on the line against Erceg in Saturday’s main event at the Farmasi Arena in Rio de Janeiro, Brazil. In an ideal scenario, Pantoja hopes to knock Erceg out and run into the home crowd just like Aldo did after his victory over Chad Mendes at UFC 142 in 2012. Aldo running into the crowd at the HSBC Arena in Rio de Janeiro after knocking out Mendes with a knee with one second remaining in the first round has forever been etched in the promotion’s history books.

Without a single fight in Brazil in an Ultimate Fighting Championship career spanning over seven years, Pantoja had never dreamed of the possibility of replicating the moment. But when the opportunity has finally arisen, “The Cannibal” believes the stars are perfectly aligned for his homecoming.

“I hope I do like him [vs.] Cha…

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Michael Page doesn’t like Colby Covington’s antics outside of the cage and wants to kick “Chaos” in the face.

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Covington has earned the ire of several fighters with his trash talk over the years, even instigating former close friend Jorge Masvidal enough to sucker punch him outside a Miami steakhouse following their fight at UFC 272.

Page, who made hisUltimate Fighting Championship debut last month, is a lifelong martial artist and is principally against Covington’s unhinged trash talk.

“Venom” recently voiced his dislike for Covington while also expressing interest in a potential clash.

“I hate this guy,” Page said on a recent episode of UFC Day Off. “I’m going to be happy to kick this guy in the face… I find him fake. He just doesn’t seem like a nice guy with all the stuff that came out last time about what fighters should and shouldn’t be allowed to talk about with regards to people. People are going deep now, talkin…