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Steve Erceg passed his first serious test in the Ultimate Fighting Championship.

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The 28-year-old Australian operated behind efficient standup and a tactical clinch game, as he was awarded a unanimous verdict over Alessandro Costa in their featured UFC 295 flyweight prelim on Saturday at Madison Square Garden in New York. All three cageside judges scored it the same: 29-28 for Erceg (11-1, 2-0 UFC), who has now strung together 10 straight victories.

Costa (13-4, 1-2 UFC) made his presence known in the middle stanza, where he mucked up the proceedings, turned it into a brawl and rocked the onetime Eternal MMA champion with a series of sweeping right hooks. Erceg withstood those efforts, lured him into the clinch in the third round, chewed up valuable time and piled up points while staying out of danger in tight spaces.

Meanwhile, former Legacy Fighting Alliance champion Lupita Godinez became t…

The Ultimate Fighting Championship’s first pay-per-view card of 2024 has been graced with a matchup of elite light heavyweights.

Former champ Jan Blachowicz (29-10) will take on contender Aleksandar Rakic in a rematch (14-3) at UFC 297 on Jan. 20 in Toronto. The booking was announced by the promotion during the UFC 295 broadcast on Saturday night.

Blachowicz and Rakic previously shared the Octagon in the main event of UFC on ESPN 36 in May 2022. It was an evenly-matched affair before Rakic blew out his knee in the third round, bringing the bout to an anti-climactic end. The Austrian has since undergone ACL surgery and has been rallying for this booking to settle unfinished business.

Meanwhile, Blachowicz missed out on a bid for the vacant title against Magomedov Ankalaev at UFC 282 in December with a split draw. The Pole then welcomed former middleweight champ Alex Pereira to the 205-pound weight class at UFC 291 in July. “Poatan” eked out a razor-thin spl…

Bellator lightweight champion Usman Nurmagomedov has been suspended six months by the California State Athletic Commission after testing positive for a banned substance in relation to his Bellator 300 bout against Brent Primus.

As a result, Nurmagomedov’s victory over Primus has been overturned to a no contest and he has been fined $50,000 in addition to his six-month sanction. He was also pulled from Bellator’s lightweight grand prix. Multiple outlets confirmed the news following an initial report from Ariel Helwani. According to ESPN, Nurmagomedov will not be stripped of his 155-pound title.

Nurmagomedov’s positive test reportedly came from a prescription medication, which resulted in a reduced suspension. CSAC executive officer Andy Foster declined to reveal the substance, while confirming that Nurmagomedov will enroll in Voluntary Anti-Doping Agency program as a condition of his settlement.

Nurmagomedov defeat Primus via unanimous decision at Bellator…

The Battle for Radom has been decided!

🇵🇱 @kaczmarczykmma jumps into the crowd to celebrate! XTB #KSW88 pic.twitter.com/tBzPrp0VqR

— KSW (@KSW_MMA) November 11, 2023

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What promised to be a showdown between two of Poland’s favorite sons, No. 6 featherweight Patryk Kaczmarczyk upset No. 2 Daniel Rutkowski by narrow unanimous decision (29-28, 29-28, 29-28) in the KSW 88 main event at the RCS Hall in Radom, Poland.

In a card that produced eight finishes, five in the first round, Kaczmarczyk (11-2) nearly produced the fastest finish of the night after dropping Rutkowski (16-4) in the first 10 seconds with a flush switch knee. Rutkowski played off his back for the rest of the round and recovered nicely.

Kaczmarczyk’s striking prowess continued into Round 2 as the 25-year-old once again floored Rutkowski with a rear roundhouse kick off the temple. Kaczmarczyk followed Rutkowski to the ground, squandering his opportunity…

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Welterweight contender Belal Muhammad is rooting for Leon Edwards to defeat Colby Covington in their UFC 296 title fight.  

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Edwards (21-3) and Covington (17-3) are slated to compete for the welterweight title on Dec.16 at the T-Mobile Arena in Las Vegas. While many fans were critical of the American receiving the title shot, UFC CEO Dana White was adamant that the former interim champion was worthy of a title shot despite his inactivity in the division.  

Muhammad, who is currently on a 10-fight unbeaten streak, was hoping to secure a title shot against Edwards before Covington. However, the promotion had other plans.  

Muhammad and Edwards faced each other in the Octagon back in 2021. The bout was ruled a no-contest after Edwards accidentally poked Muhammad's eye 18 seconds into the second frame, rendering "Remember The Name" unfit to continue.   

Considering his history w…

A flyweight meeting between Julija Stoliarenko and Luana Carolina has been confirmed for a UFC Fight Night card set to take place at the UFC Apex in Las Vegas on Feb. 3.

The booking was first announced by Carolina’s management on Instagram. A heavyweight bout between Thomas Petersen (8-1) and Jamal Pogues (10-4) is also set for the event.

Stoliarenko (11-7) is coming off a Round 1 armbar submission victory against English fan favorite Molly McCann this past July. The Lithuanian fighter has a record of 2-4 in the Las Vegas-based promotion and will look to rack up a few wins to secure her spot on the roster.

Meanwhile, Brazil's Carolina (9-4) will enter the Octagon following a hard-fought unanimous decision victory against Ivana Siric Petrovic. That win snapped a two-fight losing streak that included a split-decision loss to Joanne Wood and a knockout loss against McCann.

Alan Belcher defeats Roy Nelson via split decision, do you guys agree with the decision? #GamebredBareknuckle | @GamebredFC pic.twitter.com/eHsLhsTCXb

— Combat Sports Today 📰 (@CSTodayNews) November 11, 2023

Alan Belcher secured his first bareknuckle mixed martial arts victory against Roy Nelson in their three-round Gamebred Fighting Championship 6 main event clash at the Mississippi Coast Coliseum in Biloxi, Mississippi, on Friday night.

Both Ultimate Fighting Championship veterans put on an impressive display of grit and perseverance in a bout that could have been scored for either side. While Belcher (19-8) had significant success in the standup portion of the bout, especially in the first frame, Nelson (24-20) managed to log an overwhelming amount of control time on the ground.

Much to the surprise of many observers, Belcher went home with a split-decision victory (28-29, 29-28, 29-28).

Just 1:41 of pure ch…

[embedded content] Two Ultimate Fighting Championship championship fights are now official after the UFC 295 weigh-ins.

Two fighters missed weight for the 13-fight card. First was Jamall Emmers, who came in one pound over for his featherweight fight against Dennis Buzukja. Additionally, Roosevelt Roberts came in two pounds over for his lightweight fight against Mateusz Rebecki. The two weight offenders have been fined currently undisclosed percentages of their purses.

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The main event will be for the vacant light heavyweight title as former champion Jiri Prochazka takes on former middleweight king Alex Pereira. Meanwhile, the interim heavyweight championship will be on the line in the co-main event that sees Sergei Pavlovich go up against Tom Aspinall. At 261.6 pounds, Aspinall will be the slightly heavier fighter, weighing in 1.8 pounds more than the 259.8-pound Pavlovich.

Having previously vacated the title due to injury, Prochazka (29-3-1) return…

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Henry Cejudo sees Sean O'Malley coming up short against Marlon “Chito” Vera once again in their title fight at UFC 299.

O'Malley (17-1) recently secured the bantamweight title at UFC 292 with an impressive Round 2 technical knockout against Aljamain Sterling. Soon after becoming champion, “Sugar” declared that he intended to face Vera (23-8) in his first title defense and avenge his only professional mixed martial arts loss.

Back in 2020, Vera defeated a surging O'Malley via Round 1 TKO. The Ecuador native came out with a leg-kick-heavy game plan, eventually dinging O'Malley's peroneal nerve and finishing him by ground-and-pound.

According to Cejudo, their second meeting won’t turn out to be any different.

“Chito Vera beats him just based on endurance,” Cejudo said on his YouTube channel. “There’s another problematic thing that Sean is not accustomed to, is taller guys. It’s not like Chito’s a giant either, but he’s about (5-foot-8…

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Ultimate Fighting Championship featherweight king Alexander Volkanovski is eager to remind everyone why he’s been on top of the featherweight division for almost five years.

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Volkanovski (26-3) is booked to face Ilia Topuria (14-0) at UFC 298, which is set to go down Feb. 17 at T-Mobile Arena in Las Vegas.

While the two were initially rumored to be the main event for UFC 297, Volkanovski's UFC 294 knockout loss against lightweight ruler Islam Makhachev understandably led to the postponement of the featherweight title matchup.

“The Great” decided to bet on himself when he challenged Makhachev on 10 days’ notice in a rematch for the lightweight title. Things didn't pan out for the Aussie as he went on to suffer a devastating Round 1 knockout loss at the hands of the Dagestani.

With Topuria now predicting a first-round finish against him, “The Great” can't help but feel that his undefeated opponent might be coming in …

Title Dreams on the Line ?

Brown ? Bachar in our #CW163 London Main Event on @UFCFightPass tomorrow night! pic.twitter.com/2T6HMuEWPL

— Cage Warriors (@CageWarriors) November 10, 2023 Cage Warriors Fighting Championship is set to return to London with Cage Warriors 163.

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Headlining the 12-fight card is a vacant welterweight title fight between Giannis Bachar and Omiel Brown. All fighters on the card made weight except for Gerardo Fanny, who came in .6 pounds over the flyweight limit for his fight against Shawn da Silva. Additionally, a strawweight fight between Rhi Rhi Hudson and Annalisa La Bella was canceled after La Bella wasn't medically cleared.

Brown (6-2) has won four out of his last five fights. After losing a decision to Daniel Skibinski, the English fighter bounced back with a knockout of Jesse Urholin. Meanwhile, Bachar (8-2) has won six straight fights, which include TKO wins over Corey Davis and Carlo Pe…

🚨🚨BREAKING🚨🚨

Another Canadian added to the Toronto card on January 20th. Charles Jourdain (@JourdainAir) takes on Sean Woodson (@STL_Sniper_314) at #UFC297 in the featherweight division. pic.twitter.com/VOEl1bNfi7

— Marcel Dorff 🇳🇱🇮🇩 (@BigMarcel24) November 9, 2023 Two featherweights on the outside of the Ultimate Fighting Championship’s top 15 looking in will do battle in Toronto early next year.

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Canada's Charles Jourdain (15-6) will throw down with Dana White's Contender Series alum Sean Woodson (10-1) at the UFC 297 card set to take place on Jan. 20 at the Scotiabank Arena in Toronto. The event will be the company’s first in Canada’s most populous city since UFC 231 in 2018. The booking was first announced by Eurosport Nederland on Wednesday, and subsequently confirmed by Woodson and the promotion on Thursday.

Jourdain is currently on a two-fight winning streak and is coming off a first-round submission victory ov…

Ben Royle showed no signs of ring rust after a yearlong layoff.

The well-rounded Phuket Top Team product reasserted himself in the One Championship bantamweight division, as he outstruck Ivan Parshikov to a unanimous decision in their three-round ONE Friday Fights 40 showcase on Friday at Lumpinee Boxing Stadium in Bangkok, Thailand. All three members of the judiciary sided with Royle (7-2, 2-1 ONE), who has rattled off four wins in five outings.

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Parshikov (11-4, 3-1 ONE) struck for a takedown in the first round, applied heavy ground-and-pound and successfully navigated his opponent’s spidery guard. He lost his way from there. Royle forced him into extended standup exchanges, operated behind a potent jab, leaned on effective counters and targeted the body with sadistic punches, knees and kicks. He nearly finished it in the waning seconds of Round 3, as he lured Parshikov into a corner, scrambled to the back and locked in a rear-naked choke. The Russi…

[embedded content] To say Norma Dumont is not concerned about prospective opponents in her new division is an understatement.

With the conclusion of the Ultimate Fighting Championship’s women’s featherweight division, Dumont (10-2) has been forced to move down to 135 pounds. “The Immortal” is booked against Yana Santos (14-8, 1 NC) at the UFC Fight Night event on Jan. 13, and she plans on bringing some spice to her new weight class.

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Participating on the “Nem Me Viu” podcast run by Fabricio Werdum, Dumont criticized the level of her opponents in the her division of 135 pounds. Known for her ability to create new insulting slang terms, recently calling Chelsea Chandler “p---y face” backstage after their fight, Dumont did not mince words about the slate of bantamweight contenders that will soon stand before her.

“I see bantamweight pretty much as a ‘sausage water division,’ Dumont noted harshly. “I really don’t see any girl in that division being able …

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Fighting on less than three weeks’ notice at UFC 295, Tom Aspinall is confident of getting his hands raised against Sergei Pavlovich, whom he believes is “the scariest guy in MMA.”

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Pavlovich (18-1) was supposed to be the backup fighter for the originally scheduled UFC 295 main event between Jon Jones and Stipe Miocic. However, Aspinall (13-3) chose to step up on short notice when the Ultimate Fighting Championship put together an interim title fight with Pavlovich after Jones was forced out due to an injury.

Aspinall admits “two weeks” aren’t enough to prepare for a fight and believes he is fighting Pavlovich under the worst possible circumstances. However, the Brit is a slight favorite as of publication time on many sportsbooks and has absolute confidence in his ability to find a way to win despite the deck being stacked against him.

“I’m fighting the scariest guy in MMA in my opinion, in the worst circumstances possible…

Former Ultimate Fighting Championship light heavyweight king Jamahal Hill is confident he will face the winner of the upcoming UFC 295 vacant title fight between Jiri Prochazka and Alex Pereira next year.

Hill (12-1) vacated the title after suffering a torn Achilles tendon during a pickup basketball game in July. The American was the second consecutive UFC light heavyweight champ to vacate the strap after Prochazka (29-3) needed shoulder surgery following his title victory.

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While Hill admits that he was inclined to retain the title until he could recover and return to action, vacating was the right thing to do under the circumstances. “Sweet Dreams” also claimed that Prochazka didn’t vacate the strap before him out of benevolence as was initially advertised.

According to Hill, it was “heavily suggested” to Prochazka, who has also previously admitted that he didn't relinquish the belt of his own volition.

“Originally when it happened, that was …

Let’s get these contract written up asap..Real fight s--t respect to a real fighter down to fight for real. All love to boxingBut this is different REAL 👊🏼 s--t LFG1993 🥋 pic.twitter.com/IFzcMx4Fpd

— Nathan Diaz (@NateDiaz209) November 9, 2023

While mixed martial artists switching to boxing has become commonplace in recent times, Deontay Wilder might soon become the first high-level pugilist to compete in MMA in over a decade.

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Crossover fights are a hot topic of discussion right now with Francis Ngannou putting on a stunning performance in a near upset of World Boxing Council champ Tyson Fury in Riyadh, Saudi Arabia last month. Considering the lack of MMA opponents for Ngannou in Professional Fighters League, Wilder’s name immediately popped up as a potential boxing opponent for the former Ultimate Fighting Championship heavyweight champ.

Ngannou and Wilder’s camps have stated that talks of a potential clash have al…

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The women in UFC 295’s feature bout share an unfortunate similarity—one they might be able to bond over once they settle their business in the Octagon.

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Jessica Andrade (24-12) and Mackenzie Dern (13-3) are slated for a strawweight clash on Saturday at Madison Square Garden. Both fighters have gone through turmoil in their personal lives with recent divorces and opened up on the subject at the UFC 295 media day on Wednesday. According to Dern, this fight is an opportunity for both of them to channel those negative feelings into an entertaining scrap for the fans. Andrade agreed, adding that the fight will also help with the financial impact of the divorces.

“Without a shadow of a doubt,” Andrade said. “I know she’s going through that. I’m going through it as well. It basically going to be a session where we go out and let the demons out…First of all, I actually have gone through what she’s gone through, for even longer cause my d…

For the second time, a proposed booking between Kayla Harrison and Julia Budd has fallen through.

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As a result, Aspen Ladd will step in a face Harrison at the 2023 PFL Championships on Nov. 24. According to a release from the PFL, the bout was changed because “Budd refused to fulfill her contractual obligation.” Further specifics were not given. While Harrison vs. Budd was to slated to take place at featherweight, the new pairing will be contested at a 150-pound catchweight. Harrison was previously scheduled to face Budd during the 2022 PFL season before the ex-Bellator champ withdrew from the bout.

Ladd has been in training as an alternate, according to the release. The 28-year-old Folsom, California, native signed with the PFL following a 4-3 stint in the UFC that included numerous issues making weight. Ladd competed in the 2023 PFL season at featherweight, where she dropped a majority decision to Olena Kolesnyk in April before scoring a first-ro…

Cristiane Justino’s next combat sports appearance will be in the Sweet Science.

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“Cyborg” will face Kelsey Wickstrum in a six-round boxing match at 154 pounds on Jan. 19 at Pechanga Resort & Casino in Temecula, California. ESPN was first to report the booking.

Justino has two boxing matches — one professional and one exhibition — under her belt already. In her official pro debut, the Brazilian defeated Gabrielle Holloway via unanimous decision this past December. The 36-year-old Wickstrum, meanwhile, is 2-0 as a pro boxer with one knockout.

Justino, who is currently Bellator’s reigning featherweight champion, returned to MMA on Oct. 7, when she defeated Cat Zingano via first-round technical knockout at Bellator 300. “Cyborg” has held belts in Bellator, the UFC, Strikeforce and Invicta FC over the course of an MMA career that began in 2005.

Her next move in MMA is unclear with Bellator facing an uncertain future. The California-based…

From the TKO Group Holdings Earnings Call:

Competition is good. Not only do we have over 600 fighters, we have the premier fighters.

I mean, ultimately, you're trying to get to the UFC, which is akin to the XFL trying to ultimately get their players into the NFL.

Those are… pic.twitter.com/0M47DYFYCo

— Jed I. Goodman © (@jedigoodman) November 7, 2023

Executives of TKO Group Holdings — the result of the merger between the Ultimate Fighting Championship and World Wrestling Entertainment – claim to have no issues with competitors of the world’s premier mixed martial arts organization.

During the merger’s first earnings call, TKO CEO Ari Emanuel and TKO President and COO Mark Shapiro recently addressed Saudi Arabia’s investment into the Professional Fighters League, a direct competitor to the UFC. Saudi Arabia, which is emerging as a global player in sports and entertainment, recently invested $100 million in the Professional Figh…

YouTube personality-turned-fighter Jake Paul will square off against Andre August in his next professional boxing match on Dec. 15.

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The bout will be contested over eight rounds at cruiserweight (200 pounds) and takes place at Caribe Royale Resort in Orlando. While most of Paul’s fights have been available via pay-per-view, this one will be part of the DAZN subscription package.

August, who owns a 10-1-1 mark in boxing with five knockouts, is the most experienced opponent Paul has faced to date. “The Problem Child” has made his name primarily by facing mixed martial artists thus far in his career.

“I’m a professional boxer and I want to be world champion, so I need to pursue the path towards greatness against people who have been boxing their whole life,” Paul said in a release. “So far, my entire boxing career has been on pay-per-view, but now it’s about more than business. Now I want to build my experience in the ring against seasoned fighte…

Dan Hooker isn’t looking forward to five rounds against Bobby Green for a co-main event.

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Hooker initially expected that his bout against Green, which is slated for UFC on ESPN 52 at the Moody Center in Austin, Texas, on Dec. 2, whould be the event’s headliner. Instead, the fight will be the co-main event but is still scheduled for five rounds. The Kiwi is not happy with losing out on all the benefits that come with being in the evening’s featured bout.

“That pissed me right off,” Hooker told the NZ Herald. “It’s a funny one. You call up anyone and ask, ‘You want to do twice as much work for the same money?’ No, brother. After three I’m going home. The main event is five rounds. You can’t chuck it to co-main and still keep the five rounds. It’s just not a thing. It’s a sport of risk versus reward. You give me the main event and everything that comes with that. With winning a main event comes bigger opportunities and you get a lot more exposure — I l…

Two of MMA’s most quotable trash talkers have recently taken aim at one another.

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Former Ultimate Fighting Championship contenders Chael Sonnen and Jorge Masvidal are in a war of words following their recent appearances on “The MMA Hour.” The roots of the conflict trace back to last week, when Sonnen got into a shouting match with host Ariel Helwani, with Helwani lauding Francis Ngannou’s success outside the UFC and Sonnen accusing the journalist of having a bias against the promotion. On a subsequent episode, Masvidal sided with Helwani while ridiculing Sonnen.

One of the most renowned trash talkers and heels in the history of the sport, Sonnen didn’t let Masvidal’s dig go unanswered. The 46-year-old went on a relentless online tirade, bringing up Masvidal’s history with Colby Covington, whom Masvidal assaulted in the street last March, two weeks after losing to him in lopsided fashion at UFC 272. Sonnen wrote:

“Jorge if you wanna scrap. You h…