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Ilia Topuria: Movsar Evloev ‘Needs to Finish Someone’ to Earn Title Shot

More than anything, UFC 298 will likely go down in history as a changing of the guard in the featherweight division.

Ilia Topuria ended the lengthy championship reign of Alexander Volkanovski in emphatic fashion, knocking out the Aussie standout with a clean right hook at the 3:32 mark of Round 2 at the Honda Center in Anaheim, California, on Saturday night. Prior to the finish, the fight was quite competitive, with Volkanovski taking the opening stanza on all three judges’ scorecards.

Ultimately, it was a matter of Topuria figuring out his opponent’s timing and finding the right opening.

“First of all, I don’t need the judges,” Topuria said at Saturday’s post-fight press conference. “When I’m fighting, they can go and take their time to break. The guy [Volkanovski] was really fast, very fast jabs. With his kicks, he surprised me a little bit. It took me a little time to study him, and I had to knock him out in the second round.

“I was just …

Dana White Discusses UFC 300 Card-Building Process, Praises Leon Edwards

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Producing a high-quality fight card can be a challenging process, especially when it’s an event like UFC 300.

After plenty of buzz and speculation, UFC CEO Dana White announced Saturday night that Alex Pereira will defend the light heavyweight title against Jamahal Hill in the UFC 300 headliner. While it wasn’t necessarily the type of jaw-dropping main event some were expecting, it helps round out one of the promotion’s deepest overall cards in recent memory.

According to White, there are a lot of factors that went into finding the suitable headliner for the highly-anticipated card.

“This was not about money,” White said at the UFC 298 post-fight press conference on Saturday night. “It was all about timing. We’ve got three killer cards in a row and in this business you have injuries and all kinds of other bulls—t that goes on behind the scenes. We’ve been talking about [UFC] 300 forever. We were just trying to make the best f…

UFC 298 Salaries: Alexander Volkanovski ($750K), Robert Whittaker ($400K) Top Payroll

Alexander Volkanovski may have lost his featherweight title on Saturday night, but he was nonetheless compensated quite nicely for his efforts.

Volkanovski took home an event-high $750,000 for his second-round knockout loss to Ilia Topuria ($350,000) in the UFC 298 headliner at the Honda Center in Anaheim, California, on Saturday night. The 35-year-old Australian was one of 13 fighters who earned a six-figure payday, according to salary figures released by the California State Athletic Commission.

Meanwhile, former middleweight champion Robert Whittaker was the card’s second second biggest earner, as he banked $400,000 for a unanimous decision triumph over Paulo Costa ($250,000) in the evening’s co-main event.

Note: The disclosed purses reported by state athletic commissions do not include any performance-based or discretionary bonuses that may be awarded to a fighter by the promotion. Additionally, the reported figures do not reflect any deduction…

UFC 298 Bonuses: Ilia Topuria Receives $50K for Championship-Winning Knockout

UFC 298 will go down as a night to remember for Ilia Topuria.

In addition to becoming the fifth featherweight champion in promotion history, Topuria received a $50,000 “Performance of the Night” bonus for his second-round knockout of Alexander Volkanovski in Saturday’s headliner at the Honda Center in Anaheim, California. A clean right hook from “El Matador” abruptly ended what had been a competitive affair at the 3:32 mark of Round 2.

Elsewhere, Anthony Hernandez garnered a $50,000 “Performance of the Night” award for his submission victory against Roman Kopylov in a featured middleweight bout. “Fluffy” gradually overwhelmed his opponent with pace and pressure before forcing a tapout with a rear-naked choke 3:23 into the second frame.

Former Road to UFC competitor Mingyang Zhang captured the evening’s third $50,000 “Performance of the Night” bonus for making short work of Brendson Ribeiro in a preliminary light heavyweight clash. Zhang dropped his Brazilian foe…

Alex Pereira to Defend LHW Title Against Jamahal Hill in UFC 300 Headliner

YOUR #UFC300 MAIN EVENT IS OFFICIAL 🚨@AlexPereiraUFC vs @JamahalH for the light heavyweight title on April 13th!! pic.twitter.com/6j2EyBTZX4

— UFC (@ufc) February 18, 2024

After months of speculation and intrigue, UFC 300 finally has its main event.

 UFC CEO Dana White announced on Saturday night that Alex Pereira will defend the light heavyweight strap against Jamahal Hill in the evening’s headliner at the T-Mobile Arena in Las Vegas on April 13. Pereira vs. Hill will be the fourth five-round bout on the card.

A former middleweight title holder, Pereira made the transition to 205 pounds last year. After edging Jan Blachowicz via split decision in his light heavyweight debut at UFC 291, “Poatan” claimed the vacant championship with a second-round TKO of Jiri Prochazka at UFC 295 this past November.

Hill, meanwhile, will take a four-fight winning streak into his matchup with Pereira. “Sweet Dreams” captured 205-pound gold with …

Ilia Topuria Flattens Alexander Volkanovski to Win Featherweight Belt at UFC 298

Just like that, one of MMA’s greatest title reigns ends and a new era begins.

In the main event of UFC 298 on Saturday in Anaheim, Calif., Ilia Topuria (15-0, 7-0 UFC) navigated a round and half of nail-biting tension against Alexander Volkanovski (26-4) before shutting the lights out with a crushing right hand. The matchup of the undefeated 27-year-old phenom against one of the most dominant champions in the sport delivered on expectations, as Topuria got out to a fast start, stinging Volkanovski with heavy leg kicks and fast boxing combinations. “The Great” remained calm, made adjustments and seemed to have snatched back the momentum by the end of the frame.

The second round was just as close as the first, with Volkanovski continuing to chip away at the Spaniard with crisp combinations and good lateral movement. That is, until “El Matador” followed up a pair of glancing hooks with a flush right hand that melted the champ at the base of the fence. …

UFC 298 ‘Volkanovski vs. Topuria’ Play-by-Play, Results & Round Scoring

Home of the NHL’s Anaheim Ducks is the vibrant backdrop for Saturday’s UFC 298 pay-per-view event, set to unfold on Feb. 17 at Honda Center in Anaheim, California.

The star of the show, featherweight king Alexander Volkanovski, returns to the featherweight division following a subpar outing in his second crack at lightweight gold against Islam Makhachev. He faces Ilia Topuria, a fiery European in overdrive. This is a classic matchup of a champion who has proved his mettle, yet is presented with a challenge that courts significant danger.

Don't miss live play-by-play coverage and virtual round scoring that brings the Octagon action to your screen with every punch, kick and submission attempt, starting at 6:30 p.m. ET. BETTING PREVIEW | SCOUTING REPORT | ODDS: Maverick (-192), Lee (+160)Round 1 Sherdog Scores Jay Pettry scores the round:Ben Duffy scores the round:Tristen Critchfield scores the round:Round 2 Sherdog Scores Jay Pettry scores the round:Ben Duffy scores the …

UFC 298 Prelims: Amanda Lemos Busts Up Mackenzie Dern

Amanda Lemos came into UFC 298 looking to confirm her place as a top contender in the UFC strawweight division. Mission accomplished, though Mackenzie Dern made her earn it.

For the first several minutes it looked as though Lemos (14-3-1, 8-3 UFC) was in for a night of easy work, as she hobbled Dern (13-5, 8-5 UFC) with heavy leg kicks, stung her with punches and left Dern struggling to lay a hand on her. Everything turned in an instant, however, when Dern ducked under for a double-leg takedown near the midpoint of the round. From there, the multiple-time grappling champion controlled the remainder of the round, keeping Lemos under heavy pressure and constantly threatening to pass her guard. Lemos went right back to work on the feet in the second round, nailing Dern with a punch combination that left her on her back, face swelling up and wincing in obvious pain. Lemos followed up with standing-to-ground punches with referee Mike Beltran looking on, but Lemos followed her fo…

Wanderlei Silva to Be Enshrined in UFC Hall of Fame Pioneer Wing

Welcome to the #UFCHOF, @WandFC 👏

He's the 2nd member of the UFC Hall of Fame Class of 2024! 🏆 pic.twitter.com/GOBf6ViHXS

— UFC (@ufc) February 18, 2024

Former Pride Fighting Championship middleweight title holder Wanderlei Silva will be inducted into the UFC Hall of Fame.

Silva will become the 19th member of the Pioneer Wing during a ceremony this summer in Las Vegas. The Pioneer Wing includes athletes who turned pro before Nov. 17, 2000, are at least 35 years old or who have been retired for at least one year.

“Wanderlei Silva is one of the true pioneers of the sport of MMA,” UFC CEO Dana White said. “Wanderlei was an absolute savage who left his mark by delivering some of the most memorable fights in combat sports history. He had legendary fights against Mirko Cro Crop, Chuck Liddell, Dan Henderson, Brian Stann, and his fights against Rich Franklin, as they were absolute wars. He was also one of the early supe…

UFC 301 Officially Announced for Rio de Janeiro on May 4

Alô, Brasil! Estamos de volta! 🇧🇷

O UFC retorna ao Rio de Janeiro em maio para o #UFC301!

Cadastre-se para a pré-venda em: https://t.co/DMSL3ghOZ8 pic.twitter.com/smRAATqJHA — UFC Brasil (@UFCBrasil) February 17, 2024

The Ultimate Fighting Championship’s return to Rio de Janeiro is now official.

The Las Vegas-based promotion announced on Saturday that UFC 301 will take place on March 4 at Jeunesse Arena in Rio de Janeiro. A headliner has not been confirmed for the event, although reigning flyweight champion Alexandre Pantoja recently indicated that his next title defense would come at the event.

A handful of contests have already been reported for the card, including Paul Craig vs. Caio Borralho at light heavyweight; Joanderson Brito vs. Jack Shore at featherweight; Joaquim Silva vs. Drakkar Klose at lightweight and Alessandro Costa vs. Kevin Borjas at flyweight.

The promotion last traveled to Rio d…

Moldova’s Valeriu Mircea Claims Interim Lightweight Title at KSW 91

WOW!! History made!! 🤩

🇲🇩 Valeriu Mircea submits Leo Brichta to become the first Moldovan champion in KSW history!!! #KSW91 pic.twitter.com/QxCF16Kx5h

— KSW (@KSW_MMA) February 17, 2024

Valeriu Mircea took Leo Brichta into deep waters and drowned the Prague native with a rear-naked choke in the fourth round of the KSW 91 main event Saturday at Home Credit Arena in Liberec, Czech Republic.

With the win, Mircea claimed the vacant interim Konfrontacja Sztuk Walki lightweight title and set up an eventual title unification showdown with champion Salahdine Parnasse. Mircea (30-8-1) notched his fourth straight win, but it didn’t come easy.

The fight opened up like a chess match, with Britcha holding the edge on the feet. Mircea’s guard was held low at Brichta (12-4) and routinely made him pay for it. To even the odds, Mircea took the fight to the ground and had his way.

Soon the fight became a battle of wills. Whenev…

PFL vs. Bellator Loses Jesus Pinedo-Patricio Freire Featherweight Pairing

The PFL vs. Bellator main card has taken a hit, as Jesus Pinedo has withdrawn from a proposed featherweight clash against Patricio Freire for undisclosed reasons.

As a result, the PFL announced Saturday that the fight is off the card. It is unclear if Pinedo vs. Freire will be rebooked at a later date. PFL vs. Bellator takes place on Feb. 24 at Kingdom Arena in Riyadh, Saudia Arabia, and is headlined by a heavyweight showdown between Renan Ferreira and Ryan Bader. The main card airs on pay-per-view via ESPN+.

Pinedo captured the 2023 PFL featherweight championship by ending his season with successive victories over Brendan Loughnane, Bubba Jenkins and Gabriel Braga. The two-time UFC veteran has complied a 23-6-1 career mark over the course of a professional tenure that began in 2013.

Freire, who is Bellator MMA’s reigning featherweight champion, is coming off back-to-back losses to Chihiro Suzuki and Sergio Pettis. Prior to that, “Pitbull” …

Stephanie Luciano vs. Julia Polastri Booked for UFC on ESPN 53 on March 23

A strawweight clash pitting Stephanie Luciano (5-1) against Julia Polastri (12-3) has been added to UFC on ESPN 53.

The news was first reported by Ag.Fight.Prior to the booking of this matchup, both women were set to face separate opponents in the same month. Luciano was initially slated to take on Shauna Bannon on the same card, while Polastri was gearing up for a meeting with undefeated prospect Josefine Lindgren Knutsson on March 2. However, with the other bouts falling apart due to undisclosed reasons, Luciano and Polastri are now set to battle inside the Octagon.

Both fighters will make their UFC debuts after earning their way into the promotion through Dana White's Contender Series. Luciano will enter the Octagon on the heels of a unanimous draw against Talita Alencar in their DWCS 2023 Week 7 clash in September last year. Prior to that, the Brazilian was on a two-fight winning streak in Jungle Fight.

On the other hand, Polastri will …

Coach on Possibility of Israel Adesanya Competing at UFC 300: ‘We’re Ready to Go’

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The speculation surrounding the main event of UFC 300 has reached a fever pitch in the last few weeks. One of the matchups that has been on the radar is Israel Adesanya vs. Dricus Du Plessis for the middleweight title.

Eugene Bareman, Adesanya’s longtime head trainer at City Kickboxing, told The MacLife that “The Last Stylebender” is already in camp for a possible clash at UFC 300.

“I can say that we are ready to fight. Israel is ready to fight.” Bareman said. “He is in camp, has been in camp, and we answered that call. ‘Can you be ready for this?’ And we assessed it because Israel is coming off an injury... And we decided as a team that, yeah, let's get into camp. Let’s come back a little earlier at, some risk, some proper risk. There is a strong possibility that this fight could happen on this date and let's act as if we are fighting on that date. So, we are ready to go.”

The City Kickboxing head also explained the reason…

ONE Championship Inks Exclusive Deal with Japanese Streaming Service U-Next

━━━━＼お知らせ／━━━━ONE Championshipとパートナーシップ契約締結━━━━━━━━━━━━━━𝐎𝐍𝐄 𝐅𝐢𝐠𝐡𝐭 𝐍𝐢𝐠𝐡𝐭／𝐎𝐍𝐄 𝐅𝐫𝐢𝐝𝐚𝐲 𝐅𝐢𝐠𝐡𝐭𝐬年間通して全大会を日英解説版で独占見放題ライブ配信詳細👉 https://t.co/oHfAITbpAn

重大発表、引き続きご期待下さい

— U-NEXT 格闘技公式 (@UNEXT_fight) February 14, 2024

ONE Championship has taken another step towards expanding its ever-growing audience by signing an exclusive deal with Japanese streaming platform U-Next.

The deal will provide Japanese viewers exclusive live and on-demand access to ONE Championship's events. What's more, all programming will be available with both English and Japanese commentary, undoubtedly enhancing accessibility to the cards presented by the Singapore-based promotion.

Discussing the implications of the deal, Tenshin Tsutsumi, President and CEO of U-Next, stated:

“We are delighted to announce that the world's largest martial arts organization, ONE Championship, with …

Champ Jonathan Haggerty Wallops Felipe Lobo in Thriller at One Fight Night 19

#ONEFridayFights19 highlight video: Jonathan Haggerty clobbers Felipe Lobo pic.twitter.com/ZZT4dKNwQe

— Sherdog (@sherdogdotcom) February 17, 2024 Kickboxing and muay thai champ Jonathan Haggerty is already looking to a new horizon: mixed martial arts.

One Championship made sure to put one of its stars on the marquee of ONE on Prime Video 19, allowing two-sport champion Haggerty (22-4, 8-2 ONE) to defend his 145-pound muay thai throne. Aggressive challenger Felipe Lobo (22-9, 3-2 ONE) was not remotely afraid of the man with the hefty gold belt, and gave Haggerty everything he had for two-plus rounds until Haggerty found the finishing blow in the form of a devastating right hand.

As Haggerty calmly fired off body kicks from a safe distance in the early going, Lobo grew tired of absorbing the blows and crashed the pocket with fiery fists. The Brazilian laid into the champ with a lengthy surge of punches, stringing body s…

ONE Fight Night 19 ‘Haggerty vs. Lobo’ Play-by-Play & Results

ONE Championship’s next Amazon Prime event is set to unfold at the iconic Lumpinee Boxing Stadium in Bangkok for ONE Fight Night 19 “Haggerty vs. Lobo.” Sherdog will have live play-by-play coverage of every thrilling moment, ensuring you don't miss out on any of the excitement starting at 8 p.m. ET.

The event is built around two-sport king Jonathan Haggerty, who will put his skills to the test against Felipe Lobo for the promotion’s muay thai bantamweight world championship. The battle of wills has an exciting backstory scripted around the time Haggerty fought Fabricio Andrade at ONE Fight Night 16. Lobo was cornering Andrade in that fight and after “The General” had just dispatched his charge, Lobo seized the opportunity to challenge the champ.

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 …

Ilyas Eziev Outguns Asset Anarbaev at ONE Friday Fights 52

Despite not getting the finish, Ilyas Eziev put on a scintillating performance in his promotional debut at ONE Friday Fights 52.

The 22-year-old went up against undefeated Kazakh prospect Asset Anarbaev (7-1) in a three-round bantamweight clash at the Lumpinee Boxing Stadium on Friday and walked away with a one-sided unanimous decision victory on the scorecards.

Eziev’s constant pressure kept Anarbaev on his heels for the majority of Round 1 while the Russian kept unleashing blistering straight lefts time and again. Halfway through the opening frame, Eziev managed to take Anarbaev to the ground and land several knees before the Kazakh found a way back to his feet and successfully disengaged.

In the second round, Eziev managed to replicate his success in the previous frame, regularly tagging his opponent with strikes from the outside while keeping his opponent’s back against the ropes. Anarbaev seemed to have nothing for the Belarusian apart from a …

Junior Tafa In for Injured Justin Tafa Against Marcos Rogerio de Lima at UFC 298

Against all odds, the Ultimate Fighting Championship will still have 12 fights on the UFC 298 billing.

On Friday morning, the UFC announced during the UFC 298 weigh-in show that Justin Tafa had suffered an injury that would be keeping him from his heavyweight fight with Marcos Rogerio de Lima (21-9-1). An hour later, the promotion stated that it was working on a replacement fighter to keep Lima on the card. That fighter would be Tafa’s brother, Junior Tafa (5-1), who was cleared and allowed to weigh in and serve as the replacement. This is the first such occasion of one brother replacing another in organizational history, but not the first overall in the sport of MMA.

Lima stays on the lineup in hopes of putting a 33-second knockout loss to Derrick Lewis in July 2023 behind him. Before getting lamped by “The Black Beast,” the Brazilian had strung together two wins over Andrei Arlovski and Waldo Cortes-Acosta—while landing a rare submission on the former in quick fashi…

UFC 298 Weigh-in Results: Title Fight Set; Junior Tafa Replaces Justin Tafa

[embedded content] On extremely short notice, the Ultimate Fighting Championship has pulled off the 'ol switcheroo.

Headlining the 12-fight UFC 298 event is a featherweight title tilt between champion Alexander Volkanovski and challenger Ilia Topuria. Both men successfully made weight for the fight, as did the remainder of the lineup. While one fight was nixed before the weigh-ins when Justin Tafa suffered an injury, Tafa's brother, Junior Tafa (249), was cleared to replace him against Marcos Rogerio de Lima (261.5).

Volkanovski (26-3) is looking to make his sixth successful title defense. However, "The Great" has lost two of his last three fights as he fell short against Islam Makhachev in two bids to win the lightweight championship. The 35-year-old is coming off his first knockout defeat since 2013 and will look to show he still has plenty left in the tank. Volkanovski officially weighed 144.5 pounds.

Meanwhile, the undefeated Topuria (14-0) is…

Wanderlei Silva Plans to ‘Hang’ Quinton Jackson on the Ropes in Fifth Fight

Rarely has a rivalry been so prolific that the competitors want to face one another a fifth time.

At Pride Final Conflict 2003, Wanderlei Silva and Quinton Jackson battled it out in the finals of the 2003 middleweight (205 pounds) tournament. After six-plus minutes of combat, Silva emerged the victor courtesy of a seemingly unending series of knees and soccer kicks. The two met again nearly one year later at Pride 28, this time for the Pride middleweight strap on the line. Silva ultimately decimated his rival with knees in the second stanza, causing a bloodied “Rampage” to fall through the ropes after getting knocked out.

The story was not over despite two knockout victories in favor of the Brazilian, as both former Pride Fighting Championships fighters made their way to the Ultimate Fighting Championship after the former’s dissolution. At UFC 92 in December 2008, the 205-pound sluggers met for a third time in a title eliminator, and Jackson got t…

Blanchfield-Fiorot Elevated to UFC Atlantic City Headliner; Luque vs. Buckley Co-Main

After some rejiggering, the Ultimate Fighting Championship is now making a flyweight title eliminator a five-rounder in Atlantic City.

At the end of January, the scheduled main event of UFC on ESPN 54 between Sean Brady and Vicente Luque fell through due to the former’s injury. While Luque is getting a new opponent, per the Boardwalk Hall in Atlantic City, New Jersey—the venue of the fight card—it will not remain as the main attraction. In its place will be the 125-pound tilt between Erin Blanchfield (12-1) and Manon Fiorot (11-1), likely for a shot at the belt. The UFC announced this change on Thursday.

Since joining the promotion in 2021, New Jersey native Blanchfield has been a woman possessed as she moved up through the division. Starting with a pair of decisions that year over Sarah Alpar and Miranda Maverick, Blanchfield began finishing women in the Octagon the following year. In her 2022 campaign, “Cold Blooded” tapped J.J. Aldrich with a guillotine choke and …

Paulo Costa Expects to Show ‘Better Version of Myself’ at UFC 298

It’s been approximately a year and a half since Paulo Costa last competed under the Ultimate Fighting Championship banner, but that doesn’t mean “Borrachinha” has been stagnant in his development.

Costa will face former middleweight champ Robert Whittaker in the UFC 298 co-main event on Saturday at the Honda Center in Anaheim, California. It will be his first appearance since he defeated Luke Rockhold via unanimous decision at UFC 278 in August 2022. In the meantime, the Brazilian was sidelined by a combination of prolonged negotiations with the promotion and injury. Costa notably lost a high-profile booking against Khamzat Chimaev at UFC 294 this past October when he was forced to pull out of the event due to an infection in his elbow.

“I tried really hard to keep the fight, but doctors don’t allow me to keep the fight,” Costa said during UFC 298 media day. “Right after that, I just tried to be healthy and in shape to fight as soon as I could.”<…

Henry Cejudo Confirms He’ll Retire with Loss at UFC 298: ‘This is All or Nothing’

A few weeks back, Henry Cejudo indicated that he would call it a career if things didn’t go his way at UFC 298.

At media day on Wednesday, the Olympic gold medalist and former UFC two division champion doubled down on that statement. If he beats Merab Dvalishvili at the Honda Center in Anaheim, California, on Saturday, Cejudo would eventually like to make a run at featherweight gold — event though the winner of their bout would be perhaps the top contender at 135 pounds. A loss, however, would lead to Cejudo retiring for a second time.

“My goal, and you guys are probably gonna give me a lot of s—t for this, the goal is still 145 pounds,” Cejudo said. “I’ve already defended my 135-pound [title]. Yeah, I lost my last fight by split decision, but I’m not wavering from the goal of going up. I feel like a win over Merab and then get the winner out of [Marlon Vera and Sean O’Malley]. [Then] I want whoever has that belt at 145 pounds. I feel like I’ve e…

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