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Renzo Gracie revealed that he loaned his Abu Dhabi apartment to Paulo Costa and his team ahead of UFC 294.

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“He was using four rooms in a local hotel with his team, and I told him to stay in my apartment,” Gracie said.

Gracie also told Sherdog.com that Costa recently underwent surgery for an injury on his elbow but guaranteed that the Brazilian’s fight with Khamzat Chimaev would still proceed as planned.

“Costa had a little problem on his elbow that required a small surgery,” Gracie said. “But everything is fine now, and later this week he is returning to the normal training. ‘Borrachinha’ brought an excellent team of [sparring partners] to help him there. [Eric] Albarracin brought two wrestlers from Uzbequistan.”

Shortly thereafter, Albarracin sent a message to Sherdog.com correcting Gracie on the nationalities of Costa’s training partners.

“Actually we brought wrestlers from Mongolia, Kyrgyzstan and Kazakhstan,” Albarracin wrote…

Going into enemy territory to reclaim the lightweight title wasn’t Charles Oliveira’s first choice.

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Oliveira will challenge Islam Makhachev for the 155-pound belt at the Ultimate Fighting Championship's annual event in Abu Dhabi next month. However, UFC 294 on Oct. 21 isn’t the first time Oliveira and Makhachev will meet at the Etihad Arena in Abu Dhabi.

The Brazilian was on an 11-fight win streak and the uncrowned champ of the 155-pound division when Makhachev submitted him almost exactly a year prior at the same venue. Even back then, Oliveira had openly voiced his displeasure at having to go to Abu Dhabi, which Makhachev’s mentor and teammate Khabib Nurmagomedov famously labeled “our territory.”

The Brazilian also doesn’t think it's “necessarily fair” that the rematch is taking place in Abu Dhabi. However, having been in the fight game for a long time, "do Bronx" understands his position as a challenger well.

“I don’t necessarily thi…

Aljo has a message for the bantamweight champ 🗣️ #POLARIS25 pic.twitter.com/fUyJ9oY3rh

— UFC FIGHT PASS (@UFCFightPass) September 30, 2023

Aljamain Sterling took the opportunity to demand a rematch against Sean O’Malley after winning a grappling match at Polaris 25 in Wales on Saturday.

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“Funk Master” picked up a decision win over Mike Grundy in a 10-minute match to return to the win column after losing his Ultimate Fighting Championship bantamweight title to O’Malley last month.

“Sugar” floored Sterling in the second frame, ultimately securing a technical knockout victory in their UFC 292 headliner clash on Aug. 19. This also opened up the title picture for Sterling’s close friend and training partner, Merab Dvalishvili, who had avoided fighting for the strap during his friend’s title reign. “The Machine” has since clarified that he will only fight for the title next, even if he must wait for Sterling to get a rematch.…

Alex Pereira has seemingly moved on from the Ultimate Fighting Championship's middleweight division for good.  

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Pereira was just three fights and a year into his stint with the promotion when he secured a middleweight title shot against Israel Adesanya. “Poatan” won the strap, lost it in a rematch, moved up to light heavyweight and is now slated to make another gold bid — all within the span of another 12 months.  

As Pereira goes into his UFC 295 clash against Jiri Prochazka for the vacant light heavyweight belt, the Brazilian seems to have moved on from the prospect of competing for the middleweight strap down the line.  

The former two-division kickboxing champion recently shared that he has no plans of cutting back down to 185 pounds, especially with the recent change in the title picture.  

“Poatan” would have considered a trilogy clash against former champ and long-time rival Adesanya, who w…

A tough fight until the final bell!

[ @FiteTV PPV https://t.co/eEpfmslhPp ] pic.twitter.com/oLif6Jre3Z

— RIZIN FF English (@rizin_English) October 1, 2023 Grappling specialist Alan Yamaniha outworked 23-year veteran Hideo Tokoro to take a unanimous decision victory in Sunday’s bantamweight main event at Rizin Fighting Federation Landmark Vol. 6 in Nagoya, Aichi, Japan.

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Yamaniha (20-10-4, 4-2 Rizin) took advantage of an early mistake from Tokoro (35-33-1, 3-5 Rizin), who slipped while attempting a stomp and gave up his back in the process. Yamaniha maintained back control for the rest of the round, and then continued his dominance in Round 2 by hurting Tokoro with a punching flurry and following up with elbows to Tokoro’s face after taking him down.

Tokoro’s best success came during the final five minutes. While working from Yamaniha’s guard, Tokoro used body punches to set up a tight shoulder choke that had Yamaniha in s…

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Bobby Green appears to have zero doubt regarding the winner of a potential fight between him and National Basketball Association superstar LeBron James.  

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The 5-foot-10 lightweight is scheduled to take on Grant Dawson in the UFC Fight Night 229 headliner on Saturday.  

Nicknamed “King,” Green recently found out that his opponent’s nickname “KGD” stands for “King Grant Dawson.” That prompted Green to issue a challenge to Dawson.  

“There can only be one King,” Green said in an interview with TMZ Sports. “I just found out that Grant Dawson's fight name is ‘KGD.’ There can only be one king. Let's go find out. The other one's going to get his head cut off!” 

Of course, the most famous athlete to use the “King” moniker is James, the star forward for the Los Angeles Lakers. Although speaking in good humor, Green is confident regarding the outcome of a potential scrap against the NBA’s all-time l…

HOLY 🤬! DOUMBE WITH THE FINISH IN SECONDS!#PFLParis🇫🇷 EN EXCLUSIVITE sur RMC Sport🇪🇺 INTERNATIONALLY LIVE on DAZN pic.twitter.com/UTRWWAF9qL

— PFL Europe (@PFLEurope) September 30, 2023

Cedric Doumbe raised the bar for himself, perhaps exponentially.

The former Glory champion dazzled in his Professional Fighters League debut, as he punched out Jordan Zebo in the first round of their PFL Europe 3 headliner on Saturday at Zenith Paris La Villette in Paris. Zebo (4-1, 0-1 PFL) crashed and burned just nine seconds into Round 1, a ripple of shock-and-awe electricity rippling through the crowd.

Doumbe (5-0, 1-0 PFL) caught a head kick, countered with a leg kick and sent a blazing left hook crashing into his opponent’s face. Zebo collapsed and ate a right hook on his way down to the mat. A few hammerfists followed before referee Marc Goddard could arrive on the scene.

In the co-main event, former Brave Combat Federation titleholder Abdo…

Ultimate Fighting Championship featherweights Jonathan Pearce and Joanderson Brito are reportedly set to face off at UFC Fight Night 232, scheduled for Nov. 18 at the UFC Apex in Las Vegas. News of the pairing broke on Friday and was first reported by MMA Junkie.

Currently on a five-fight winning streak, Pearce (14-4) will look to continue his winning ways as he returns to the Octagon following his decision victory over Darren Elkins in December 2022.

While Pearce was slated to face Bryce Mitchell at UFC 288 after his win over Elkins, the Fight Ready product suffered an ACL, PCL and meniscus tear leading up to the match, ultimately causing his exit from the card.

Brito (15-3) is coming off an impressive Round 1 knockout over Westin Wilson back in July. The Brazilian is on a three-fight winning streak with all wins coming via finish in the first frame.

Stamp Dance x “Fast Forward” 💃🎵

Tune in to Prime Video NOW to catch the rest of ONE Fight Night 14!#ONEFightNight14 | 🔴 Live Now🇺🇸🇨🇦 Watch live on Prime 👉 https://t.co/Il4tPmkSbR🌍 Live TV broadcast in 190+ countries (check local listings)🌍 Also available on… pic.twitter.com/37YUIYrsl3

— ONE Championship (@ONEChampionship) September 30, 2023 Stamp Fairtex picked up One Championship's atomweight mixed martial arts world championship in the main event of ONE on Prime Video 14.

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The fight was preceded by an announcement from Angela Lee that she was retiring from mixed martial arts and relinquishing the atomweight title. Fairtex had a stern test in Seo Hee Ham, who withstood many thudding kicks early on. However, Ham would knock Fairtex down with a counter punch and make a statement in the second frame. Fairtex would strike back in a major way in the third frame as a right hand to the body would stun Ham, and follow-up punch…

Sherdog's live ONE Fight Night 14 coverage kicks off Friday at 8 p.m. ET. Round 1 Lightweights get the party started, as the unbeaten Cooper (2-0, 0-0 ONE) makes his promotional debut opposite Maurice Abevi (6-1, 0-1 ONE) at 170 pounds. Abevi finds himself on the rebound following his first professional setback—a unanimous decision loss to Halil Amir in April. Mohamad Sulaiman draws the officiating assignment. Abevi paws with his jab and tries to use his length and reach to his advantage. Cooper closes the distance with a powerful right hand, shoots on a takedown and briefly capitalizes on a failed flying submission attempt from his counterpart. Cooper clinches, then dives on a single-leg but cannot get it to the floor. Abevi fires front kicks to the body, drifts into open space and once again zeroes in on the midsection with some sharp shin-to-skin contact. Abevi sticks the Hawaiian with a straight right, forces him onto the back foot and denies another takedown. Cooper lan…

[embedded content] Time truly heals all wounds.

When anyone recalls the most remarkable episodes of the jiu-jitsu and luta livre rivalry on the streets of Rio de Janeiro in the ‘80s and ‘90s, three chapters are always remembered as the most violent and tense ones: The fight between the luta livre head Hugo Duarte and Rickson Gracie in Pepe Beach in 1988; the invasion of Gracie Academy by almost 100 luta livre students led by Duarte one week later; and the historic riot of Pentagon Combat in 1997 during the main event between Renzo Gracie and Eugenio Tadeu that led to the prohibition of vale tudo for almost six years.

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In all of those instances, Renzo Gracie and Duarte were two of the most important leaders of both sides. In August, Gracie and Duarte shocked the Brazilian mixed martial arts world by announcing a partnership for a new academy in Texas.

“Definitely the world turns around, after years of war, I found out that one of my biggest rivals …

Dan Ige held his own despite not remembering the second half of his recent bout.

Renowned mixed martial arts coach Eric Nicksick offered his take on his student, Ige's (17-7) performance against Bryce Mitchell (16-1) at UFC Fight Night 228. Coming off two back-to-back victories against Nate Landwehr and Damon Jackson, Ige failed to secure the victory against Mitchell, dropping a hard-fought decision.

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“50k” managed to cut Mitchell under the eye in the first round and displayed his defensive grappling by stopping his opponent's takedown attempts until the last few minutes of Round 1. However, it was a left hand landed by Mitchell in Round 2 which seemingly hurt Ige. “Thug Nasty” followed the strike up with a takedown and went on to control the Xtreme Couture product for the remainder of the round.

Discussing his student's performance in his Thursday appearance on “Remember the Show,” Nicksick said:

“Looking back at it now, we watched the fight …

OFFICIAL: Updated #PFLParis fight card 🇫🇷

•Alex Chizov is out. Geisym Derouiche is in•New Semifinal Matchup: John Mitchell vs. Geisym Derouiche

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•Manuela Marconetto did not meet the Women’s Flyweight Limit•Valentina Scatizzi v. Manuela Marconetto is off•New Start Time:… pic.twitter.com/3CsQBv0tI5 — PFL (@PFLMMA) September 29, 2023 The Professional Fighters League continues its European season with a playoff event in Paris, France.

PFL Europe 3 will be headlined by a welterweight fight between Cedric Doumbe and Jordan Zebo. Both men successfully made weight, as did most of the card. However, a few last-minute changes were made to the event as Manuela Marconetto did not make weight, and her flyweight fight against Valentina Scatizzi was called off. Additionally, Alex Chizov was forced out of his lightweight semifinal fight against John Mitchell and has been replaced by Geisym Derouiche.

The main event will see tw…

Danielle Kelly and Jessa Khan run it back for the inaugural ONE Atomweight Submission Grappling World Title! 🏆 Who you got?#ONEFightNight14 | Friday at 8PM ET🇺🇸🇨🇦 Watch live on Prime 👉 https://t.co/Il4tPmkkmj🌍 Live TV broadcast in 190+ countries (check local listings) pic.twitter.com/vTvnLvlHcC

— ONE Championship (@ONEChampionship) September 28, 2023 Jessa Khan’s confidence could not be higher heading into her rematch against Danielle Kelly for the inaugural One Championship atomweight submission grappling title in a ONE on Prime Video 14 co-feature this Friday at Singapore Indoor Stadium in Kallang, Singapore.

Khan captured her first world title in June at the International Brazilian Jiu-Jitsu Federation World Championship in Long Beach, California. Preparing for the two-day tournament took months of dedicated training and game planning for the best grapplers on the planet. Khan claims shifting her focus from a tournament to a single match ha…

Credit: Getty/UFC Credit: Getty/UFC Credit: Getty/UFC A place in the Ultimate Fighting Championship’s top 15 at flyweight looms for the victor.

On Thursday, Ag. Fight first broke the news that Casey O'Neill (9-1) will be stepping into the Octagon against Ariane Lipski (16-8) on Dec. 16. The two flyweights will tangle likely on the preliminary portion of UFC 296, which will be held at the T-Mobile Arena in Las Vegas. This 125-pound affair has been confirmed by both women via their Instagram Stories pages.

Born in Scotland and trained in Australia, O’Neill suffered her first career defeat in March. Her nine-fight win streak, which included four triumphs inside the Octagon, fell by the wayside courtesy of Jennifer Maia. On her way up the 125-pound ladder, O’Neill rapidly ascended when she dispatched Shana Dobson, Lara Procopio and Antonina Shevchenko in the span of less than eight months. A lone 2022 effort against Roxanne Modafferi also went her way by split decisio…

"I think the deal is, when I fight Shavkat, they're going to add on what they owed me for the last fight."@WonderboyMMA explains how the Shavkat Rahkmonov matchup came about and what a win does for him. #UFC296

Full convo w/ @chrisweidman 🔗 https://t.co/beImfQJIXw pic.twitter.com/E9BqEJXcZr

— MMA on SiriusXM (@MMAonSiriusXM) September 25, 2023

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Stephen Thompson was slated to fight Michel Pereira at UFC 291 back in July. However, the match fell through a day before the event as the Brazilian missed the welterweight limit by three pounds. Thompson refused to take the bout at catchweight after weighing in at 170.5.

However, Thompson (17-6) didn’t receive his show money despite having made weight. “Wonderboy” has since remained upbeat that the Ultimate Fighting Championship will do good by him and continues to do so.

Regardless, Thompson believes the perceived debt will be paid along with the payout for his upcomi…

[embedded content] Despite working together in 2017, Ultimate Fighting Championship chief Dana White and Showtime’s Stephen Espinoza are anything but friends.

On Tuesday, following the eighth episode on the 2023 season of Dana White's Contender Series, White conducted a post-fight press conference to discuss various matters from the bouts that night to current events around combat sports. Among the many topics included a rumor that came about on social media regarding Showtime’s future in boxing, specifically that Showtime would be getting out of the boxing business after 2024. White was not surprised.

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“That’s incredibly unfortunate,” White remarked while wearing a wry grin. “Production of that show is fantastic, the guy who runs Showtime Boxing is a great human being…it’s unfortunate to hear this. F--- Espinoza, and it’s about time that sh--ty product is off the air.”

The President of Showtime Sports was not about to let that slide, although his re…

And nowww, introducing, Donovan Lomeli! 9-23-23 😍💙💙💙Best day of my life 🥰.5 hours of active labor, 20 minutes of pushing with zero tearing, and our healthy baby boy was here! We are now resting at home, and loving on our little guy. So in love 🥰💙 pic.twitter.com/ObRQtpECWx

— Carla Esparza (@CarlaEsparza1) September 28, 2023

Former Ultimate Fighting Championship strawweight queen Carla Esparza and her husband, Matthew Lomeli, have revealed the birth of their first child on social media.

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Donovan Lomeli, born at 7:20 p.m. local time on Sept. 23, registered a healthy seven pounds and six ounces and entered the world at 19.6 inches.

“Best day of my life,” the 35-year-old said on X, the social media platform previously known as Twitter. “Five hours of active labor, 20 minutes of pushing with zero tearing, and our healthy baby boy was here! We are now resting at home and loving on our little guy.”

The Team Oyama expo…

A potential middleweight barnburner has been added to an Ultimate Fighting Championship card set in China this December.

Per Jun Yong Park’s (17-5) management team of First Round Management on Thursday, Park and Andre Muniz (23-6) will collide at the UFC’s return event to Shanghai on Dec. 9. The middleweights will meet, presumably inside of the Mercedes-Benz Arena, in what will be the promotion’s first show in China in four years. The matchup has since been confirmed by other outlets.

Currently the UFC’s 14th-ranked competitor at 185 pounds, Muniz started his career with the organization by amassing a five-fight win streak which included three armbars. However, the Brazilian has since been on a rough patch, suffering a pair of stoppage losses to Brendan Allen and Paul Craig this year. While “Sergipano” maintains a finish rate of 83%, however, he has never heard the final bell in defeat.

South Korea’s Park will look to enter the middleweight rankings by adding to…

An edge-of-your-seat Main Event 🤩

James Hendin 🆚 Tobias Harila at #CW160 live on @UFCFightPass tomorrow night from 9PM! pic.twitter.com/d51TCYkrO2

— Cage Warriors (@CageWarriors) September 28, 2023 Cage Warriors Fighting Championship returns to Manchester, England, on Friday for CW 160.

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The 10-fight card is headlined by a featherweight bout between James Hendin and Tobias Harila. Both main event fighters successfully made weight, as did the rest of the card, with the exception of Adam Wilson. The would-be bantamweight came in 1.3 pounds over the limit at 137.3 pounds and will be fined a percentage of his purse as a result. Additionally, a fight-week medical issue forced Nathan Fletcher out of the co-main event fight against Thomas Bryan.

Hendin (7-2) has won two of his last three fights, with wins over Araik Margarian and Paull McBain sandwiched between a submission defeat to Jordan Vucenic. "The Honeybadger" offici…

Irene Aldana will fight Karol Rosa at #UFC296 on December 16th. (first rep. @damadeferromma) #UFC #MMA #UFCESPN #UFC2023 pic.twitter.com/yOAoRHdtze

— Marcel Dorff 🇳🇱🇮🇩 (@BigMarcel24) September 27, 2023 After her first bid for Ultimate Fighting Championship ended in misery, Irene Aldana now has a first step back to contention—and it may be in a different division.

Aldana (14-7) will take on up-and-comer Karol Rosa (17-5) at UFC 296 on Dec. 16 in Las Vegas. It will be the first Octagon appearance for the 35-year-old Mexican since her unsuccessful challenge of UFC bantamweight champ Amanda Nunes at UFC 289 in June. That fight ended in a five-round drubbing by the champ, to the tune of two 50-44 scorecards and one 50-43. Afterward, Nunes retired as a two-division champion at bantamweight and featherweight.

Aldana had won four of her last five leading up to that title shot, including back-to-back finishes of Yana Santos and Macy Chiasson, …

After multiple delays, there is a tentative timeline in place to begin Cain Velasquez’s trial for attempted murder.

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During a pre-trial hearing on Wednesday at Santa Clara County (Calif.) Hall of Justice, Judge Daniel T. Nishagaya extended the trial setting date to Dec. 6. This was done on the condition that a trial date would be set for sometime in January at the next hearing.

“I am willing to give this another setting date with the understanding that I will be intending to set a trial date in the middle to later part of January on Dec. 6,” Nishagaya told the defense and prosecution.

The trial setting date has been extended multiple times since January. The former UFC heavyweight champion was not in attendance on Wednesday.

Velasquez is facing attempted murder and other charges after allegedy chasing and shooting at Harry Goularte, who has been accused of molesting Velasquez’s young son. During a high-speed chase, Velasquez fired at the…

When the Tony Ferguson-Paddy Pimblett booking was announced, it raised some eyebrows in the mixed martial arts community.

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Ferguson, a former interim lightweight champion, will enter UFC 296 on a six-bout losing streak. That might be construed as favorable matchmaking for Pimblett, a fighter who has received a strong push from the promotion. However, all of Ferguson’s losses — Justin Gaethje, Charles Oliveira, Beneil Dariush, Michael Chandler, Nate Diaz and Bobby Green — have come against competition that is more proven than Paddy “The Baddy.” That’s why UFC CEO Dana White thinks the fight is compelling.

“I think a lot of people think that Paddy is unproven, and I think a lot of people feel that Tony isn’t in deep water like he’s been in, in his last several fights. I think the matchmaking and the timing on this fight is excellent and couldn’t be more perfect,” White said at the Contender Series post-fight press conference on Tuesday night.

“I…

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Daniel Cormier will be enshrined in another Hall of Fame in the very near future.

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The former UFC two-division champion will be inducted into the Louisiana Sports Hall of Fame as part of the class of 2024, it was recently announced. Cormier, a native of Lafayette, Louisiana, joins notables such as ex-New Orleans Saints star quarterback Drew Brees and Olympic gold medalist and UFC veteran Kevin Jackson in the nine-person class. The inductees were chosen out of 149 nominees by a 40-member Louisiana Sports Writers Association committee. The date for the ceremony will be announced soon.

Cormier and Jackson are the first amateur wrestlers to be inducted in to the LSHOF. Jackson also coached Cormier for Team USA in the 2004 and 2008 Olympic Games.

“DC” made his name on the mats at Lafayette’s Northside High School, where he compiled a 101-9 record and won three straight state titles. He went on to earn All-American honors at Oklaho…