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When it came to Dagestan vs. Ireland, to paraphrase the great Tito Ortiz, there was never no rivalry.

The Professional Fighters League introduced itself to Dubai in the United Arab Emirates with a showcase event pitting competitors from Dagestan against their Irish counterparts. The Russians largely ran through their opposition, culminating with a Bellator MMA lightweight championship defense. Usman Nurmagomedov (19-0, 1 NC; 1-0 PFL) carried the weight of the defunct league on his shoulders, and he approached that challenge with a stoic intensity. In the face of the toughest test of his professional career, Nurmagomedov held on and secured the victory by majority verdict.

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ARE YOU NOT ENTERTAINED?!?!#RoadToDubai | LIVE NOW🇺🇸 MAX🇬🇧🇮🇪 DAZN🇷🇺 OKKO pic.twitter.com/6evoCG5cgl

— PFL (@PFLMMA) January 25, 2025 The champ and Paul Hughes (13-2, 1-1 PFL) chewed up the lead legs of one another with kicks in the opening round when no…

Sherdog's live Professional Fighters League PFL Champions Series: Road to Dubai coverage will begin Saturday at 11 a.m. ET. The event streams live on the Max app in the U.S. Round 1 Sherdog Scores Brian Knapp scores the round:Tristen Critchfield scores the round:Tyler Treese scores the round:

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Round 2 Sherdog Scores Brian Knapp scores the round:Tristen Critchfield scores the round:Tyler Treese scores the round:Round 3 Sherdog Scores Brian Knapp scores the round:Tristen Critchfield scores the round:Tyler Treese scores the round: The Official Result Round 1 Sherdog Scores Brian Knapp scores the round:Tristen Critchfield scores the round:Tyler Treese scores the round:Round 2 Sherdog Scores Brian Knapp scores the round:Tristen Critchfield scores the round:Tyler Treese scores the round:Round 3 Sherdog Scores Brian Knapp scores the round:Tristen Critchfield scores the round:Tyler Treese scores the round:The Official Result Round 1 Sherdog Scores Brian Knapp …

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Watch the inaugural Global Fight League Draft will in the player above on Jan. 24 at 8 p.m. ET/5 p.m. PT with six teams and cities:

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Los Angeles: Known as a hub and home for world-class gyms and athletes, this city will be led by Manager Wanderlei Silva and Coach Rafael Cordeiro, a legendary duo synonymous with Brazilian MMA excellence.

New York: Home to the most sports fans in the world, New York embodies history and grit. Led by legendary Coach Ray Longo, renowned for training champions, the team’s manager will be announced soon.

Miami: Where cultural vibrancy meets fight tradition, Miami thrives under Manager Thiago Alves and Coach Marcus “Conan” Silveira, icons of Brazilian and American MMA with roots in the legendary American Top Team.

Sao Paulo: Sao Paulo embodies the rich heritage of Brazilian Jiu-Jitsu and Vale Tudo—the very foundations of modern MMA—guided by former champion Manager Lyoto Machida and legendary Coac…

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Watch the inaugural Global Fight League Draft will in the player above on Jan. 24 at 8 p.m. ET/5 p.m. PT with six teams and cities:

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Los Angeles: Known as a hub and home for world-class gyms and athletes, this city will be led by Manager Wanderlei Silva and Coach Rafael Cordeiro, a legendary duo synonymous with Brazilian MMA excellence.

New York: Home to the most sports fans in the world, New York embodies history and grit. Led by legendary Coach Ray Longo, renowned for training champions, the team’s manager will be announced soon.

Miami: Where cultural vibrancy meets fight tradition, Miami thrives under Manager Thiago Alves and Coach Marcus “Conan” Silveira, icons of Brazilian and American MMA with roots in the legendary American Top Team.

Sao Paulo: Sao Paulo embodies the rich heritage of Brazilian Jiu-Jitsu and Vale Tudo—the very foundations of modern MMA—guided by former champion Manager Lyoto Machida and legendary Coac…

Two Ultimate Fighting Championship strawweights with an eye on the prize will tangle for a possible crack at gold.

Brazilian outlet Ag. Fight announced on Thursday that Xiaonan Yan (19-4, 1 NC) and Virna Jandiroba (21-3) would be throwing down on UFC 314. The top-ranked 115-pounders might be vying for the next shot at the crown that will be held by either Weili Zhang or Tatiana Suarez. Jandiroba had been calling for this match on social media for the past month, and according to her on Friday, she will get her wish come April 12 in Miami.

Yan fought for the strawweight crown at UFC 300 in April 2024, and she came up short to Zhang by a one-sided decision. That put an end to a win streak that saw the Team Alpha Male representative beat Mackenzie Dern by five-round decision and wreck Jessica Andrade in half a round. Since joining the roster in 2017, finishes have come at a premium for Yan, who holds one knockout victory against a knockout loss on a ledger otherwise popu…

A pair of Ultimate Fighting Championship middleweight contenders will get two extra rounds to handle their business in March.

On Friday, the pairing of Marvin Vettori (19-7-1) vs. Roman Dolidze (14-3) 2 was posted on social media, as first reported by MagicM. The light heavyweight headliner was confirmed by other outlets shortly thereafter, setting up a rematch for the main attraction of UFC Fight Night 254, also known as UFC Vegas 104. The two first collided at UFC 286 in 2023, with the Italian getting the upper hand and winning by close decision.

Since that matchup nearly two years ago, Vettori has entered the cage just once, facing Jared Cannonier in a potential title eliminator atop UFC on ESPN 47 and coming up short on the scorecards. That too took place in 2023, so “The Italian Stallion” will be coming off a layoff of nearly 21 months in his return outing. Having alternated wins and losses in his last six, Vettori has heard the final bell in seven bouts in a r…

The Ultimate Fighting Championship is making sure its 2025 return to the 305 will be a memorable one.

According to MMA Fighting on Friday, light heavyweight contenders Nikita Krylov (30-9) and Dominick Reyes (14-4) will be throwing down at UFC 314 on April 12. The two 205ers will likely tangle in the city of Miami in the Kaseya Center, although the location has not been officially announced yet. The report of this high-stakes pairing has since been confirmed by other outlets.

Krylov, the higher-ranked fighter of the two, will come in on a three-fight win streak. This will be his first appearance in over two years, however, as he last tapped out Ryan Spann in March 2023. The Russian born in Ukraine was previously booked against Azamat Murzakanov towards the end of 2024, but the latter pulled out for undisclosed reasons. As a professional, Krylov abhors judges’ decisions, only going the distance four times in 39 outings.

Former title challenger Reyes has been a …

𝗗𝗔𝗚𝗘𝗦𝗧𝗔𝗡 𝗩𝗦 𝗜𝗥𝗘𝗟𝗔𝗡𝗗 𝟮 🇷🇺🇮🇪

The time for talk is over!

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Usman Nurmagomedov and Paul Hughes had a intense face-off in front of the Dubai crowd! #RoadToDubai | Sat Jan 25 | Coca-Cola Arena | Dubai, UAE | 11AM ET | Streaming on @SportsonMax pic.twitter.com/tLgu1MttXZ — PFL (@PFLMMA) January 24, 2025

The Professional Fighters League's first event of the year will feature a lightweight title fight.

The PFL Road to Dubai Champions Series weigh-ins took place this morning, which locked in the card. The event will be headlined by Bellator MMA lightweight champion Usman Nurmagomedov putting his title on the line against Paul Hughes. Both men made weight, as did most of the card with the exception of Kenny Mokhonoana (147) and Ahmed Sami (199.6). While the former eclipsed the featherweight cap by one pound for his fight against Ibragim Ibragimov, Sami was unable to reach the pre-agreed 195-pound catchweight with Tarek Sule…

There are no longer any “Pitbull” brothers competing under the Professional Fighters League banner.

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On Tuesday, Patricky Freire announced his release from the PFL, and a day later, his signing with the fledging Global Fight League become official. Freire confirmed the news following an initial report from MMAFighting.com.

The GFL is expected to launch a team-based MMA format beginning in April. The draft to select the fighters to represent each team — a pool which now includes Freire — is scheduled for Friday at 8 p.m. ET. In recent weeks a number of notable former champions and veterans have been linked to the organization.

Freire competed twice for the PFL during its 2024 season, falling to Clay Collard and Bruno Miranda. The elder “Pitbull” brother was best known for a lengthy stint with Bellator MMA, where he enjoyed a brief reign as lightweight champion. During his Bellator tenure, Freire bested the likes of Benson Henderson, Josh Thoms…

Bantamweight prospect Payton Talbott is taking his first career defeat as a learning experience.

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The 26-year-old Dana White's Contender Series alum entered his UFC 311 matchup as a significant betting favorite against Brazilian veteran Raoni Barcelos, but Talbott struggled to remain upright in a unanimous decision loss this past Saturday at the Intuit Dome in Los Angeles. When all was said and done, Talbott surrendered eight takedowns and nearly 10 minutes of control time to his 37-year-old opponent.

Talbott reacted to the performance in a brief statement via Instagram on Tuesday.

“The vet gave me my first scar. May the skin heal itself to be strong and never split again,” Talbott wrote. “Lucky to have such people in my life. Fortunate to be able to learn valuable lessons. Still had fun.”

The Reno Academy of Combat product had been victorious in his first nine professional outings, including finishes of Nick Aguirre, Cameron Saaiman an…

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Yadong Song believes Henry Cejudo didn’t time his career trajectory well.

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Cejudo was at the peak of his career when he abruptly announced his retirement after defending his bantamweight title against Dominick Cruz at UFC 249 in 2020. At the time, there was speculation that “Triple C” made the announcement to have an edge in contract negotiations. However, things didn’t pan out as planned if Cejudo had indeed tried to do so.

The former flyweight champ ended his retirement and returned to action in 2023. Cejudo came up on the short side of split decision in a bantamweight title fight against Aljamain Sterling at UFC 288 in 2023. The Olympic gold medalist followed it up with a unanimous decision loss against future champ Merab Dvalishvili at UFC 298 last year. Cejudo initially hinted at retirement in case of a loss against “The Machine” but has since changed course. While Cejudo’s losses came against arguably the two best fighters of…

When Dana White said that Arman Tsarukyan wouldn’t get the next lightweight title shot after pulling out of the UFC 311 main event, attention immediately shifted to Charles Oliveira as the next potential contender for Islam Makhachev’s belt.

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However, shortly after this past Saturday’s event, Oliveira gave an interview to UFC Brasil suggesting a different rematch.

“If Islam just wants to return in October, I want to fight before that,” Oliveira said. “Why not Max [Holloway] for the BMF belt? I suffered an injury in the beginning of our first fight. I think we both deserve to make it happen.”

Holloway immediately responded in the affirmative via X: “International Fight week?”

International Fight Week?

— Max Holloway (@BlessedMMA) January 21, 2025

Diego Lima, Oliveira’s manager and head coach, clarified everything in an interview with Ag.Fight on Tuesday.

“The most important thing for Charles is without a…

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Javier Mendez couldn’t believe the pace Merab Dvalishvili set at UFC 311.

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Mendez’s pupil, Umar Nurmagomedov, challenged Dvalishvili for the bantamweight title in the co-main event at UFC 311. Dvalishvili’s coach, John Wood, predicted that the champ would have a hard couple of rounds and take over as the fight progressed. It played out exactly like that, with Nurmagomedov just being unable to keep pace with the champ despite being highly skilled. Dvalishvili took away Nurmagomedov’s perfect record and defended his title with a unanimous decision win.

While Nurmagomedov also broke his hand in the opening round, Mendez isn’t taking anything away from Dvalishvili. The American Kickboxing Academy head coach was awed by Dvalishvili’s gas tank as the fight progressed. However, Mendez also notes that “The Machine’s” showmanship in the last round could have slightly influenced the judges’ scorecards.

“He [Nurmagomedov] didn’t get t…

Anthony Smith’s bid to compete in Power Slap was immediately rejected by the Ultimate Fighting Championship.

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Run by Dana White, Power Slap has emerged as a controversial sport with participants taking direct shots to the head without any form of defense. While most UFC fighters haven’t been very supportive of the idea, Smith has attempted to defend it as a legitimate sport.

The former UFC title challenger even took the liberty to approach the promotion with the offer to compete in Power Slap. However, UFC exec Hunter Campbell immediately shut down the idea without even discussing it with Dana White White.

“I tried, they told me no. Straight up,” Smith recently told Ariel Helwani. “I asked Hunter and he told me no. He wouldn’t even bring it to Dana. I don’t know, he said no.”

Anthony Smith says he asked Hunter Campbell if he could compete on a Power Slap event, but Hunter said no.#HelwaniShow pic.twitter.com/NhCI1Kw…

The California State Athletic Commission has revealed the fight night weights for UFC 311 fighters.

There is usually a significant difference between fighters’ weights on the day of the weigh-ins and on fight night, when they have rehydrated. This also led to the coining of the term “weight bully,” for those to cut a lot of weight only to come in much heavier on fight night.

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While both Islam Makhachev and Renato Moicano weighed in at 155 pounds for the main event, Makhachev came in at 178 pounds and the challenger weighed 181.5 pounds on fight night. Meanwhile, the co-main event saw both bantamweights Merab Dvalishvili and Umar Nurmagomedov weighing exactly the same at 156.8 pounds.

A light heavyweight clash between Jiri Prochazka and Jamahal Hill saw one of the biggest weight differentials on fight night. Prochazka came in at a mere 208.2 pounds after weighing in at 205 lbs. Meanwhile, Hill came in 221.8 pounds. Considering how little Prochazka cut…

After being submitted by Islam Makhachev in the first round of the UFC 311 main event, Renato "Money Moicano" Carneiro returned to routine, recording a video on his YouTube channel.

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Moicano’s usual sincerity and humor is evident in the title of the video, “Fui Jambrolhado,” which translates to: “I got my ass kicked.” The Brazilian lightweight began the 18-minute video by making it clear that he was only there because he didn't win the fight.

“Since I lost, let's return to YouTube,” he said. “If I had won, I obviously wouldn't be here talking to you today. So if you like this channel, thank f—ing Makhachev.”

After providing all the details of how he found out he would take Arman Tsarukyan's place, “Moicano” made an interesting comparison between the styles of Beneil Dariush — his original opponent — and Makhachev.

“I was very well-trained for a southpaw with excellent jiu-jitsu who was not so good at takedowns and who had two defeats by KO. Ou…

The hand injury Umar Nurmagomedov apparently suffered early on in the UFC 311 co-main event could sideline him for a significant period of time.

According to medical suspensions recently released by the California State Athletic Commission, Nurmagomedov is facing a 180-day suspension unless he receives physician clearance for a potential fracture to his left hand or index finger. Nurmagomedov lost a unanimous decision to Merab Dvalishvili in a bantamweight title bout on Saturday night at the Intuit Dome in Los Angeles. Dvalishvili, like everyone on the card, received a seven-day mandatory term for rest.

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Three other fighters from UFC 311 were handed 180-day suspensions pending doctor clearance: Jailton Almeida (possible fracture to left foot), Serghei Spivac (possible right foot fracture, broken jaw) and Bogdan Guskov (possible fracture to right hand).

UFC 311 Medical Suspensions:

Umar Nurmagomedov: 180-day suspension unless cleared by a physicia…

Manager Ali Abdelaziz recently hinted at Islam Makhachev’s future plans.

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According to Abdelaziz, the UFC’s immediate plans for Makhachev don’t include Arman Tsarukyan, Charles Oliveira or Ilia Topuria — all of whom seemed to be potential opponents for the reigning lightweight champion. However, Abdelaziz also admitted that the unpredictable nature of the sport leaves everything uncertain.

“The UFC has a completely different plan for Islam which doesn’t include Oliveira, Arman or Ilia,” Abdelziz wrote on social media. “But it’s an unpredictable sport and you don’t know what could happen.”

The UFC has a completely different plan for Islam which doesn’t include Oliveira, Arman or Ilias. But it’s an unpredictable sport and you don’t know what could happen.

— Ali Abdelaziz (@AliAbdelaziz00) January 20, 2025

Makhachev was originally scheduled to defend his lightweight strap against Tsarukyan in the main event at UFC 3…

Jiri Prochazka and Jamahal Hill shared a drink at the bar after their fight at #UFC311 🤝

(via @JamahalH) pic.twitter.com/FINC1QPcq5

— ESPN MMA (@espnmma) January 20, 2025

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Jamahal Hill and Jiri Prochazka have no bad blood between them after sharing the Octagon at UFC 311.

Hill took on Prochazka in a high stakes light heavyweight matchup at UFC 311 this past weekend in Los Angeles. Prochazka hurt “Sweet Dreams” multiple times before knocking him out in the third frame. Hill subsequently posted a clip of himself drinking with Prochazka and congratulated “BJP” on his victory.

“First of congratulations to [Jiri Prochazka]. You made great adjustments and gave me a hell of a fight!!!” Hill wrote on Instagram. “I want to thank everybody that reached out with love and support I truly appreciate you all!!! My fire has never burned hotter or brighter for my future and growth!! Fighting against the elite of the elite is an hon…

𝗢𝗙𝗙𝗜𝗖𝗜𝗔𝗟: Your updated #RoadToDubai Fight Card 🔐

•Yakub Sulimanov vs. Jarrah Al-Selawe is off the card•𝗡𝗘𝗪 𝗦𝗧𝗔𝗥𝗧 𝗧𝗜𝗠𝗘: 11am ET #RoadToDubai | Sat Jan 25 | Coca-Cola Arena | Dubai, UAE | 11AM ET | Streaming on @SportsonMax pic.twitter.com/RKt0kVcrdn

— PFL (@PFLMMA) January 21, 2025

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Professional Fighters League’s first event of 2025 is down one fight.

The promotion announced on Monday that a proposed middleweight clash between Yakub Sulimanov and Jarrah Al-Silawi is off the Road to Dubai card. A reason for the cancellation was not revealed. As a result, Road to Dubai will proceed with 11 bouts and now begins at 11 a.m. ET/8 a.m. PT on Max.

Chechnya’s Sulimanov is unbeaten in eight professional outings, with the majority of his fights coming under the Absolute Championship Akhmat banner. He went 2-0 in 2024 and is coming off a first-round stoppage of Vahid Kord Manjiri at Middle East Fighting Championship 4 last …

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According to Alex Pereira, he got exactly what he asked for at UFC 313.

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It was announced on Saturday that Pereira will defend his light heavyweight crown against Magomed Ankalaev in the UFC 313 headliner on March 8 at the T-Mobile Arena in Las Vegas. While Pereira has been accused of avoiding the fight by his opponent, he claims that he requested to face the Dagestani light heavyweight.

“I did say that I wanted to take a break, but I started training again. I started feeling good. I started seeing my evolution,” Pereira told ESPN through a translator. “So I called my managers right away and I said, ‘I want to fight. I want to fight in March. I want to fight Ankalaev.’ I know he keeps saying that I’m a just an employee of the UFC, I fight whenever they want, but I asked for him. I told them when I want to fight.”

Ankalaev will enter the bout on a 13-bout unbeaten streak in UFC competition. The 32-year-old is coming off a unanim…

It wasn’t necessarily evident during his performance in the Octagon, but Merab Dvalishvili endured his fair share of difficulties leading up to his first bantamweight title defense.

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After relying on his relentless pace to pull away from Umar Nurmagomedov for a unanimous decision triumph in the UFC 311 headliner at the Intuit Dome in Los Angeles on Saturday night, Dvalishvili revealed some of the ailments that limited his training. While Nurmagomedov revealed that he might have broken his hand in the opening stanza, “The Machine” claims to have dealt with with plenty of adversity of his own.

“I broke my back in training camp and it was some days I cannot get up from the bed,” Dvalishvili said at the post-fight press conference. “I was laid down and I don’t have a training camp and I don’t have a Khabib Nurmagomedov to help me to train. Some days the [UFC Performance Institute] was closed. It was Christmas and it was New Year’s and weekends and it ha…

Umar Nurmagomedov is seemingly undeterred by his loss against Merab Dvalishvili.

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Nurmagomedov challenged Dvalishvili for the bantamweight title in the co-main event at UFC 311 this past Saturday. While the challenger did well in the first two rounds, Dvalishvili took over as the fight got into deeper waters. “The Machine” eventually defended his strap via unanimous decision in a bout that received “Fight of the Night” honors. Speaking of his loss against Dvalishvili, Nurmagomedov stated that doesn’t have any excuses. However, the Dagestani also feels like he didn’t completely lose the fight.

“There are no excuses,” Nurmagomedov wrote on Instagram. “InshaAllah i will become the champion .The rest is not important. Praise Allah in any situation. And I don't think I've lost this battle If even the whole world will convince me otherwise.”

Nurmagomedov losing his undefeated record was the only setback for the Dagestani contingent at UFC 311. Nurma…

Arman Tsarukyan is ready to put in the work to get back into the UFC lightweight title picture.

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Tsarukyan earned his gold bid against Islam Makhachev with a split-decision win over former champ Charles Oliveira at UFC 300 last year. “Ahalkalakets” was scheduled to challenge Makhachev in the main event at UFC 311 at the Intuit Dome in Los Angeles this past Saturday. However, Tsarukyan pulled out on the day of the weigh-ins due to a back injury.

Renato "Money" Moicano, who was originally supposed to fight Beneil Dariush on the same card, got a last-minute title shot against Makhachev. While “Moicano” tagged Makhachev a couple of times, the champ eventually made quick work of the Brazilian with a brabo choke in the first round.

UFC CEO Dana White didn’t seem too happy with Tsarukyan and clarified that the Russian won’t be receiving the next title shot at lightweight. And Tsarukyan isn’t complaining. The lightweight contender is ready to fight his…