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[embedded content] After a rocky build that saw late changes to the main and co-main event, the UFC 294 card is finally set.

The main event will see Ultimate Fighting Championship featherweight champion Alexander Volkanovski move up in weight to challenge Islam Makhachev for the lightweight belt on short notice. The headliners had no trouble making weight, although the same couldn't be said for two preliminary participants. Victoria Dudakova and Mike Breeden came in heavy for their respective bouts, and both fighters have been fined percentages of their respective purses. Dudakova came in .6 pounds over the strawweight limit for her fight against Jinh Yu Frey, while Breeden clocked in 3.5 pounds above the lightweight cap for his bout against Anshul Jubli.

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Makhachev (24-1) was supposed to rematch Charles Oliveira in the main event, but will instead face off against another familiar face in Volkanovski (26-2). The pair faced off earlier this year in F…

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Georges St. Pierre fans will have to wait to witness the former Ultimate Fighting Championship two-division king in action on submission grappling mats.

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Known for leading a martial arts lifestyle despite his retirement from combat sports, GSP (26-2) was set to return to competition against an unnamed opponent in December, as was confirmed during an announcement by the Canadian at UFC International Fight Week back in July.

However, in an interview with TSN reporter Aaron Bronsteter following his induction into the Canadian Sports Hall of Fame, St. Pierre revealed he won't be able to compete in December due to a shoulder injury. As per the former champion, the event has been canceled, with the chance of it being postponed to a later date.

Interestingly, GSP also revealed that he was gearing up to take on another MMA legend and former rival Nick Diaz (26-10) at the event.

“They had an opponent, his name was Nick Diaz. P…

The Ultimate Fighting Championship will be keeping the United Arab Emirates on its yearly schedule for the foreseeable future.

On Thursday, the promotion announced in a press release that it had signed a deal with the Department of Culture and Tourism of Abu Dhabi that extends to 2028. The UFC is staging UFC 294 at the Etihad Arena on Oct. 21 as part of its current annual arrangement. The terms have changed, however, as the UFC is planning on putting more into the area. The specifics are currently unknown, but the UFC will be staging Fight Night cards in future years around the Middle East as well as some nations in North Africa.

UFC head Dana White spoke highly of the deal, writing in a statement, “Abu Dhabi is one of my favorite places in the world; the people, the restaurants, the hotels, it’s incredible. I have been so excited to be able to put on some of the biggest fights in the history of the UFC in Abu Dhabi and it’s only going to get even bigger from here wit…

Updated #Bellator301 card on Friday, Nov. 17 in Chicago pic.twitter.com/XLNKUd6W7S

— Bellator Public Relations (@BellatorPR) October 19, 2023 Bellator MMA has rounded out its slate to 18 fights for its next show.

In a press release provided by the organization on Thursday, Bellator announced that three additional preliminary bouts have been set for Bellator 301. Currently the only event on the promotion’s schedule, it will be held at the Wintrust Arena in Chicago on Nov. 17. On the main card, two title fights and a five-round lightweight semifinal will make up three of its five matchups. The main attraction will see unbeaten Yaroslav Amosov defend his welterweight strap against Jason Jackson.

The additional three fights – all on the prelims, with the bout order still to be decided – include a few undefeated fighters and a couple other company veterans. The top-billed fight of the three comes at the featherweight division, as former Divi…

Fast-rising Canadian star Mike Malott is getting his shot at a name in January.

The news coming courtesy of MMA Fighting on Thursday, Malott (10-1) will come to blows with grizzled veteran Neil Magny (28-11) at UFC 297. The two welterweights will battle it out inside of the Scotiabank Arena in Toronto, and the bout will likely be placed on the main card. Malott confirmed the matchup on his Instagram shortly after its announcement.

Winner of six straight – all by stoppage – Malott surged into the Octagon in 2022 and has rattled off finishes over Mickey Gall, Yohan Lainesse and Adam Fugitt in the span of about 14 months. As a professional, “Proper Mike” has only heard the final bell one time, in a draw with Ousmane Thomas Diagne at Bellator 142 in 2015. With 10 wins inside the distance on his ledger, all but one have taken place in Round 1.

Magny has alternated wins and losses in his last six outings dating back to 2022. While he succumbed to submissions from …

Kamaru Usman claims he is battle-ready for his middleweight debut against Khamzat Chimaev on Saturday in Abu Dhabi—no matter what you may have thought you heard.

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Usman (20-3) steps on nine days’ notice to face “Borz” (12-0) in the co-main event at UFC 294 after Chimaev’s original opponent, Paulo Costa, was forced out due to a staph infection. “The Nigerian Nightmare” recently had fans concerned while drilling a takedown sequence with teammate Justin Gaethje during the open workouts. Some media outlets attempted to decipher words exchanged between the two from ringside footage of the workout, with some observers believing they had witnessed an injury to Usman. Rumors spread like wildfire, given Usman’s history of knee injuries. Shakiel Mahjouri of CBS Sports wrote, “Did I hear that right at 0:18,” claiming that he had heard Gaethje ask, “Are you alright?” followed by Usman saying, “No, something popped.”

Gaethje clarified immediately afterwards that…

An intriguing matchup at lightweight has been added to Ultimate Fighting Championship’s upcoming return to the Lone Star State.

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Perennial lightweight contender Beneil Dariush (22-5) will take on surging prospect Arman Tsarukyan (20-3) on Dec. 2, in Austin, Texas. The matchup was first reported by MMA Mania. Dariush is fresh off a first-round knockout loss against former champ Charles Oliveira that snapped a spectacular eight-fight win streak. Oliveira earned a title rematch with his win over Dariush while ending the hopes of a title shot that many believe should have come much earlier for “Benny.” Regardless, a gold bid shouldn’t be far off for the 34-year-old, provided he gets his hand raised against Tsarukyan.

Meanwhile, Tsarukyan made his promotional debut against reigning champ Islam Makhachev back in 2019, coming up on the short side of a “Fight of the Night” unanimous decision. “Ahalkalakets” bounced back with a five-fight win streak that in…

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Israel Adesanya has some bold picks for UFC 294.

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Adesanya’s City Kickboxing teammate, Ultimate Fighting Championship featherweight titleholder Alexander Volkanovski (26-2), will challenge lightweight champ Islam Makhachev (24-1) in the main event on Saturday in Abu Dhabi. Volkanovski steps up on 10 days’ notice to attempt to avenge a unanimous decision loss in their first meeting in February. “The Last Stylebender” believes “The Great” will be more confident going into the rematch as he is already acquainted with Makhachev’s skill set, while Volkanovski himself has repeatedly declared that he’ll be seeking a finish. While Adesanya expects Volkanovski to secure a finish by the third round, he is also confident that the featherweight champ’s gas tank will hold up should the contest enter the championship rounds. The former UFC middleweight champ said on his YouTube channel:

“I think he’s [Volkanovski] gonna finish him [Makhachev]…

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Kamaru Usman is set on a collision course with Ultimate Fighting Championship middleweight king Sean Strickland, provided he can get past his upcoming opponent.

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Former welterweight champ Usman (20-3) has stepped up on nine days’ notice to make his middleweight debut in a title eliminator against Khamzat Chimaev (12-0) at UFC 294 on Oct. 21., and the winner has been promised an immediate title shot. In 2017, Usman notched a unanimous decision win over Strickland, one of the many up-and-comers he left in his wake while rising to the top of the welterweight division. Strickland subsequently moved up to 185 pounds, where he went on a win streak and eventually earned a last-minute title shot against Israel Adesanya when Dricus Du Plessis was forced out due to injury. “Tarzan” shocked the world with an elite defensive display to cruise to a lopsided unanimous decision victory in a major upset. While “The Nigerian Nightmare” admits that …

Islam Makhachev isn’t happy with his standing in the UFC’s pound-for-pound rankings.

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Makhachev, who currently ranks third in the promotion’s poll, took at shot at No. 1 Jon Jones, who regained the top spot when he returned from a three-year hiatus to beat Ciryl Gane at UFC 285. Makhachev will face Alexander Volkanovski on short notice in Saturday’s UFC 294 headliner after original foe Charles Oliveira withdrew from the event last week. Makhachev defeated Volkanovski, the reigning featherweight champion, at UFC 284 in February.

“This is what UFC champions have to do,” Makhachev said on Wednesday at a UFC media event “If you’re a real champion, you have to take fight, doesn’t matter how many days, who it’s going to be. Not like your pound-for-pound champion when they give him Chael Sonnen. If you’re a real champion, you have to fight.

“They put him [Jon Jones] No.1, the No. 1 guy right now, (but) who he beat in his last five fights? We don’t have…

Josh Emmett will face Giga Chikadze in a featherweight contest at UFC 296.

The promotion confirmed the pairing in a release on Wednesday. UFC 296 takes place on Dec. 16 at the T-Mobile Arena in Las Vegas and is headlined by a welteweight championship clash between Leon Edwards and Colby Covington.

Emmett began his 2023 campaign with a second-round submission loss to Yair Rodriguez in an interim title bout. He returned to action in the UFC on ABC 5 headliner on June 24, when he dropped a five-round verdict to surging contender Ilia Topuria. The Team Alpha Male product had won five straight bouts prior to his current skid.

Chikadze, meanwhile, has been victorious in eight of his nine promotional outings. After more than a year and a half away, “Ninja” enjoyed a successful return at UFC Fight Night 225, where he outpointed Alex Caceres on Aug. 26.

After 20 bouts inside the Octagon, John Makdessi’s tenure with the Ultimate Fighting Championship has come to an end.

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The UFC recently parted ways with the Canadian lightweight and eight other fighters, including Andre Fialho, Hannah Goldy, J.P. Buys, Carl Deaton, A.J. Fletcher, Kamuela Kirk, Tucker Lutz and Shane Young.

Roster Tracker initially reported the departures on social media, and they were later confirmed by MMAFighting.com. This does not necessarily mean that all of the aforementioned fighters were released by the promotion. In some cases, they simply might not have had their contracts renewed.

Makdessi is the most prominent of the group. The 38-year-old Tristar Gym representative debuted in the Octagon in 2010 and compiled an 11-9 record in UFC competition. He earned notable wins against the likes of Ross Pearson, Daron Cruickshank and Sam Stout, among others. Makdessi lost three of his last four promotional outings, most recentl…

A bantamweight showdown pitting Cody Garbrandt against Brian Kelleher has been added to the UFC 296 lineup.

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Eurosport NL was first to confirm the booking. UFC 296 takes place at the T-Mobile Arena in Las Vegas on Dec. 16 and is headlined by a welterweight title bout between Leon Edwards and Colby Covington.

A former 135-pound champion, Garbrandt last appeared at UFC 285, where he earned a unanimous decision triumph over Trevin Jones on March 4. “No Love” was supposed to return against Mario Bautista at UFC 292, but the Team Alpha Male product was forced to withdraw from the event due to injury.

Kelleher will be back in action for the first time since June 2022, when he suffered a first-round submission defeat against Bautista at UFC on ESPN 38. The New York native is coming back after recently undergoing neck surgery, a procedure that put his career in jeopardy.

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Conor McGregor won’t face criminal charges for an alleged sexual assault of a woman in a bathroom during a Miami Heat game earlier this year.

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According to a closeout memo obtained by TMZ Sports, prosecutors determined that there was “insufficient evidence” as well as “contradicting and/or no corroborating witnesses” to prove that McGregor raped a women in the bathroom during an NBA Finals game between the Miami Heat and Denver Nuggets on June 9.

Prosecutors reportedly reviewed video footage from the Kaseya Center on the night of the incident. Video confirmed that McGregor and the woman entered the men’s restroom together for approximately five minutes, and they were later seen together at a club within the venue. However, when prosecutors interviewed a bathroom attendant, he revealed that he “did not hear any signs of distress or sounds that corroborate that whatever was occurring was not consensual” when McGregor and his accuse…

Alexander Volkanvoski believes his legacy is on the line when he takes on reigning Ultimate Fighting Championship lightweight champion Islam Makhachev at UFC 294.

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Ever since Volkanovski stepped up on 12 days' notice to replace Charles Oliveira in the main event for UFC 294, there has been talk of Volkanovski not having much to lose considering the last-minute nature of the booking.

While "The Great" isn't putting too much pressure on himself going into the last-minute rematch with Makhachev, the Aussie is aware of the impact of another" loss against the Dagestan native.

“This whole 'nothing to lose' type thing is silly,” Volkanovski said during a recent media scrum in Abu Dhabi. “Don’t get me wrong, there's still a lot of pressure on Islam and I understand that, but I mean I have to take this rematch that I want so bad, this lightweight title, you know. We talk about legacy, if I was to lose my legacy takes a big hit, I don't get another sho…

Puja Tomar has made history by becoming the first-ever Indian-born female fighter to earn an Ultimate Fighting Championship contract.

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Tomar announced the signing on Instagram and it was confirmed by her management firm, First Round Management.

“The Cyclone” isn’t new to the global stage, as she competed in One Championship from 2017 to 2020, where she picked up one victory in four mixed martial arts bouts and one muay thai outing. She then went on to rack up a four-fight win streak including three finishes in Indian mixed martial arts promotion Matrix Fight Night.

In her most recent bout, Tomar defeated Anastasia Feofanova of Russia via fourth-round stoppage at MFN 12 in July to be crowned the inaugural MFN strawweight champ.

Tomar reps the Soma Fight Club in Bali, the same gym as Anshul Jubli, who won last year's “Road to UFC” in the lightweight bracket and is set to make his promotional debut against Mike Breeden at UFC 294 in Abu Dha…

One of the greatest performances in Professional Boxing this was. I landed more shots on Floyd than Canelo.I’d love another go. https://t.co/Abfx7Pcpze

— Conor McGregor (@TheNotoriousMMA) October 17, 2023

It seems that former two-division Ultimate Fighting Championship king Conor McGregor is fired up over boxing super middleweight ace Saul “Canelo” Alvarez’s (60-2) recent comments.

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The beef initially started when McGregor shared footage on social media of Alvarez’s 2013 clash against boxing icon Floyd Mayweather (50-0), when he was outpointed by “Money” en route to a majority decision. Labeling it as one of the greatest performances in pro boxing, McGregor also claimed to have landed more shots on Mayweather during their blockbuster outing in 2017.

“One of the greatest performances in professional boxing this was,” McGregor (22-6) wrote. “I landed more shots on Floyd than Canelo [did.] I'd love another go.”

Alvar…

HyunSungPark will fight ShannonRoss at #UFCShanghai on December 9th. (first rep. @mmaecosystem) #UFC #MMA #UFCESPN #UFC2023 pic.twitter.com/JwWyChJfHN

— Marcel Dorff 🇳🇱🇮🇩 (@BigMarcel24) October 17, 2023

A matchup of flyweights with starkly contrasting momentum has been added to the Ultimate Fighting Championship’s upcoming return to China.

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Undefeated South Korean prospect Hyun Sung Park (8-0) will take on Australia’s Shannon Ross (12-8) in the 125-pound weight class on Dec. 9 in Shanghai. The matchup was first reported Tuesday by MMA Ecosystem followed by Marcel Dorff of Eurosport. Park was crowned the flyweight winner of last year’s “Road to UFC,” the promotion’s venture for scouting Asian talent. “Peace of Mind” has not had a fight go the distance since his professional debut in 2018, where he earned a unanimous decision win over Min Soo Kwon. The 27-year-old defeated Seung Guk Choi via third-round submission in t…

"Every year I try and find new things in the offseason to get better at..

I did three rounds of sparring with SeanStrickland and we beat the s*** out of each other" ~ @CrosbyMaxx #PMSLive pic.twitter.com/Zr40tEMEqI

— Pat McAfee (@PatMcAfeeShow) October 17, 2023

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National Football League defensive end Maxx Crosby recently got to spar with Ultimate Fighting Championship middleweight king Sean Strickland (28-5) for three rounds.

Crosby is a longtime fight fan and as a two-time Pro Bowl defensive end for the Las Vegas Raiders, enjoys the proximity to the UFC’s home base, where is one of the more regular celebrity faces in attendance for pay-per-view cards. When the NFL wanted to film some footage of him sparring, Crosby decided to call up his friend and newly crowned middleweight champion Strickland, who is notorious for happily sparring with partners of any size or experience level. According to Crosby, who shared his e…

Former Ultimate Fighting Championship light heavyweight ace Jiri Prochazka has issued some harsh critique based on his perception of upcoming opponent Alex Pereira’s abilities as a mixed martial artist.

Prochazka (29-3) will take on Pereira (8-2) for the vacant light heavyweight title in the UFC 295 co-main event on Nov. 11. The bout will mark Pereira’s second Octagon title bid -- in a new weight class -- all within the span of a year. While Prochazka acknowledges Pereira’s elite striking, “BJP” believes the former Glory Kickboxing champ is lacking in the grappling aspect of combat.

“I have to say, Alex, he’s not a good martial artist like on the ground on the wrestling but one thing he can do and knows what to do is his striking,” Prochazka told CBS Sports’ Shakiel Mahjouri. “It will be a pleasure to compete with him in the stand-up. He’s good in stand-up but not good in wrestling and all these things. He’s too much focused on striking. He’s very good at that but on …

Walt Harris’ comeback was derailed before it could get started.

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“The Big Ticket” on Tuesday received a one-year suspension from the Nevada State Athletic Commission after testing positive for the anabolic agent drostanolone in an out-of-competition sample submitted on June 24. Harris will be eligible to return on June 24, 2024. He was also ordered to pay $392.60 in legal fees. Since the test occurred out-of-competition, he was not fined a percentage of his purse.

Harris was supposed to face Josh Parisian at UFC on ESPN 49 in his first fight since June 2021, but the bout was canceled when the positive test came to light.

“I believe this came from a supplement that I’ve trusted my entire career, but at the end of the day it was never USADA approved,” Harris wrote in a statement on Instagram this past July. “I’m a complete idiot for not checking prior, but I’m definitely not a cheater.”

Meanwhile, UFC welterweight Daniel Rodriguez was handed a s…

Official speech about the medical impediment and remove from the fight on October 21st in Abudhabi. I will be back sooner than later . Thanks! 🧃🙏🏼 pic.twitter.com/m0Rqe6fEAG

— Paulo Costa ( Borrachinha ) (@BorrachinhaMMA) October 17, 2023

Paulo Costa’s elbow is not a pretty sight.

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On Tuesday, the middleweight shared a photo of the elbow infection that caused him to withdraw from his co-main event showdown against Khamzat Chimaev at UFC 294. Costa initially planned to remain on Saturday’s card after undergoing surgery a few weeks before the event, but “Borrachinha” ultimately had to undergo another procedure.

“This is what my elbow looks like at this exact moment,” Costa said in a video on social media. “It is open exactly as it is in this photo …The hole needs to stay like this, open and closing from the inside out. You cannot close an injury with stitches when you have an infection like this.

“This was not a medi…

Mayra Bueno Silva’s victory over Holly Holm at UFC on ESPN 49 has been overturned to a no contest.

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During a meeting on Tuesday, the Nevada State Athletic Commissioned also suspended the bantamweight for four-and-a-half months and fined her $11,250 after Bueno Silva tested positive for ritalinic acid in relation to the bout. Bueno Silva submitted Holm with a ninja choke 38 seconds into Round 2 of their July 15 fight, which would have made the Brazilian one of the top contenders for the 135-pound title vacated by the retired Amanda Nunes earlier this year.

Bueno Silva previously admitted to the NSAC that the substance was consistent with the prescription medication she takes for ADHD. However, she did not have an therapeutic-use exemption for the drug.

“I am so happy that the NSAC understood the battles of mental health I overcome daily and that with this agreement they have acknowledged I was in no way, shape or form looking for a competitive…

Showtime is getting out of the combat sports business.

Paramount president and CEO Chris McCarthy sent an email to employees stating that Showtime Sports will no longer move forward with its mixed martial arts and boxing content at the conclusion of 2023. Instead, the focus will shift toward “premium scripted services that drive subscribers.” Yahoo Sports was first to report the news.

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Showtime Sports was responsible for showing Bellator MMA cards and numerous major boxing events. This adds to the uncertainty surrounding the future of Bellator MMA, which in recent months has been linked to Professional Fighters League in regards to a potential sale of the California-based promotion. Thus far, promotion head Scott Coker hasn’t offered much information regarding the sale, but he did recently confirm that Bellator was “looking to take a partner” and that PFL was “definitely in the conversation.”

Bellator announced an exclusive partnership with Showtim…