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Aaron Pico will return to action for the first time since injuring his shoulder this past October when he faces Otto Rodrigues at Bellator 295.

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MMAjunkie.com was first to report the featherweight booking. Additionally, MMFighting.com has confirmed that a 145-pound clash pitting Mads Burnell against Justin Gonzales is also set for the event. Bellator 295 takes place at the Neil S. Blaisdell Center in Honolulu, Hawaii, on April 22 and is headlined by a bantamweight grand prix final matchup between Raufeon Stots and Patrick Mix.

Pico suffered a first-round TKO loss to Jeremy Kennedy at Bellator 286 due to a shoulder injury suffered in the bout. That snapped a six-bout Bellator winning streak for the 26-year-old Jackson-Wink MMA product.

A 34-year-old native of Rio de Janeiro, Rodrigues has compiled a 13-1 mark since beginning his professional tenure in 2007. Most recently, Rodrigues outpointed Carlos Augusto Santos da Silva at LFA 112 in July …

Final Week of the 2023 PFL Challenger Series is HERE7⃣Weeks of Challenger Series7⃣PFL Contracts Awarded1⃣PFL Contract 𝐒𝐓𝐈𝐋𝐋 𝐎𝐍 𝐓𝐇𝐄 𝐓𝐀𝐁𝐋𝐄

Fights are 𝗟𝗜𝗩𝗘 & 𝗙𝗥𝗘𝗘 on @fuboSports

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[ #PFLonFubo | Second Chance Night | Fri, March 17th | 9pm ET] pic.twitter.com/zMOPsSooMA — PFL (@PFLMMA) March 13, 2023

The second season of PFL Challenger Series will conclude with its “Second Chance” event on Friday night.

The promotion on Tuesday announced the full lineup for the card, which features athletes who failed to earn PFL conracts on previous editions of the Challenger Series. PFL Challenger Series “Second Chance” will be headined by a lightweight showdown between Kendly St. Louis and Paulo Henrique Laia. In the co-main event, Jackie Cataline will face Evelyn Martins in a women’s featherweight contest.

Other bouts announced for the card are as follows: Denzel Freeman vs. Raiden Kovacs at heavyweight; Quemuel Ottoni vs…

A flyweight showdown pitting Kai Kara France against Amir Albazi is on tap for an Utimate Fighting Championship event on June 3.

MMAFighting.com confirmed the booking after Albazi announced it on social media. The UFC Fight Night card doesn’t yet have an official location or venue. It is also expected to include a women's bantamweight clash between Miesha Tate and Mayra Bueno Silva.

Kara France last appeared at UFC 277, where he suffered a third-round technical knockout loss to current flyweight king Brandon Moreno last July. He was supposed to face Alex Perez at UFC 284 but was forced to withdraw from the card due to injury.

Albazi, meanwhile, has lost just once in 17 professional outings. The Baghdad, Iraq, native has kicked off his promotional tenure with four straight triumphs, including a third-round KO of Alessandro Costa in his most recent appearance at UFC Fight Night 216.

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Stephen Thompson recently got to spend some time with Conor McGregor in Las Vegas, and it was an interesting experience, to say the least.

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The fighters share the same management, and “Wonderboy” was able to work with the former UFC two-division champion as he prepares to face Michael Chandler after coaching on “The Ultimate Fighter 31.” No date has been set for the fight, but it will be McGregor’s first appearance since breaking his leg against Dustin Poirier at UFC 264 in July 2021. When it happens, Thompson expects to see some familiar elements return to the Irish star’s game.

“For someone to come off of an injury like that, his mindset is like it didn’t even happen,” Thompson said in an interview with Submission Radio. “He’s getting back to his roots, his karate. He’s never trained in karate, but he’s trained with a lot of karate fighters and that’s where he gets a lot of his movement from. For instance, when he fought Jose Ald…

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While Jon Jones only just made his triumphant return to the Octagon at UFC 285, there’s plenty of mystery surrounding how long the newly-crowned heavyweight king will stick around the sport.

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So far, “Bones” has said he wants to face former heavyweight champion Stipe Miocic in a legacy-defining bout, but he hasn’t made his plans known beyond that. Jones vs. Miocic is rumored for UFC 290 on July 8, but the fight has not been made official at this point in time. Still, it seems all but guaranteed the matchup will happen — it’s just a matter of settling on a date and venue.

“Here’s the thing that makes this so awesome, you have the greatest mixed martial artist of all-time facing the greatest heavyweight of all-time,” UFC president Dana White recently told TMZ Sports. “It literally doesn’t get any better than that. These are the kinds of fights you dream about making.”

While it was recently revealed that Jones signed a new eight-f…

Raphael Assuncao was perhaps mere seconds away from winning a decision against Davey Grant at UFC Fight Night 221.

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That all changed when Grant rocked him with a spinning back fist, setting the stage for the Englishman to finish the contest with an inverted triangle at the 4:43 mark of Round 3. Prior to that finish, Assuncao had banked two rounds two of the three cageside judges scorecards. Instead, the Brazilian veteran left his gloves in the cage and announced his retirement following a heartbreaking defeat.

“This sport is so crazy, you know. Anything can turn around in a flick of a second,” Assuncao said in a backstage interview with the UFC. “It feels like it happened to me today. I have never been in that type of situation. Either I lose or win, or I control the fight. It’s a mix of emotions right now. Crazy job.

“I’ve had a great career. I don’t feel super accomplished. You can always do more. I’m very critical of myself. I was able to …

Michael Page made a strong impression at the expense of Goiti Yamauchi at Bellator 292 on Friday night.

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The British striker landed one devastating leg kick that connected directly with his opponent’s knee, ending the welterweight contest just 26 seconds into Round 1. The injury could have long-term ramifications for Yamauchi.

“Based on the x-ray, it’s a patella tendon rupture,” Bellator president Scott Coker said at the Bellator 292 post-fight press conference. “So that sounds very painful.”

It’s the second time that a Page opponent has suffered a serious injury under the Bellator banner: In July 2016, the London Shootfighters star landed a flying knee on Evangelista Santos that cracked the Brazilian’s skull in their Bellator 158 bout. That ultimately led to Santos announcing his retirement.

In the more recent instance, seeing Yamauchi seriously injured muted Page’s celebration.

“I saw him go down and I just thought, I don’t know – ner…

Even after securing the signature victory of his career to date, Merab Dvalishvili made one thing clear: He has no interest in fighting friend and teammate Aljamain Sterling.

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“Whenever [Sterling] decides to go up in weight class … I will fight for the title,” Dvalishvili said in the Octagon following a win over Petr Yan in the UFC Fight Night 221 headliner. “Of course I want to be champion, and now I [proved] it again … I am hungry.”

In most cases, Dvalishvili’s performance against Yan would solidify him as the bantamweight division’s No. 1 contender. However, Sterling still reigns atop the division, though that could change following his scheduled clash with Henry Cejudo in the UFC 288 main event. If Sterling defends the crown, Dvalishvili might have to explore other options.

However, UFC president Dana White doesn’t think it’s in Dvalishvil’s best interest to avoid a fight with Sterling.

“You know, back in the early days, the camps were so …

Alexander Volkov was nearly flawless in the UFC Fight Night 221 co-main event.

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The 6-foot-7 Russian denied multiple takedown attempts from Alexander Romanov before putting his opponent away with ground-and-pound just 2:16 into Round 1 of their heavyweight clash at The Theater at Virgin Hotels in Las Vegas on Saturday night. In addition to failing on all of his takedown tries, Romanov didn’t land a strike in the abbreviated bout. Even then, Volkov thought his win could have arrived earlier than it did.

“You always feel good after the victory, so I feel great that I won. Really what I’d like to say is everything that we’ve worked on in the camp, everything we’ve put so much time into, I really feel that it’s great that it happened the way that it happened,” Volkov said through a translator at the post-fight press conference. “Exactly what we expected him to do, he did in the fight. This is what we worked on.

“So I feel like it wasn’t as fast as …

These two put on a SHOW 👏👏👏@BrunoBuldogUFC and @DaveyGrantMMA securing the bag with their performances tonight at #UFCLasVegas! pic.twitter.com/bkxRfMp6sZ

— UFC (@ufc) March 12, 2023

The performance bonuses for UFC Fight Night 221 are in and four fighters are heading home $50,000 richer.

Vitor Petrino (8-0) kept his undefeated record intact in a three round slugfest with Anton Turkalj in Las Vegas on Saturday. Petrino traded hard shots with “The Pleasure Man” for 15 minutes but pushed the pace in securing the unanimous decision (30-26, 30-27, 30-27). Both fighters were awarded $50,000 a piece after receiving the Fight of the Night honors.

Davey Grant and Bruno Silva won $50,000 performance bonuses for their efforts. Grant picked up his second straight win after choking out Raphael Assuncao in the third round with an inverted triangle. Silva notched his third straight win with a rear-naked choke on Tyson Nam.

After a fight week full of bad blood, Merab Dvalishvili got the last laugh.

The Serra Longo Fight Team product relied on relentless pressure and the constant threat of the takedown to wear down Petr Yan and capture a unanimous decision triumph in the UFC Fight Night 221 headliner at the Theater at Virgin Hotels in Las Vegas, Nev., on Saturday night. Dvalishvili (16-4, 9-2 UFC) received a trio of 50-45 tallies from the cageside judges to secure his ninth straight victory in the Octagon.

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While Dvalishvili didn’t come close to landing all of his takedown attempts, the constant threat of his wrestling created openings for “The Machine” to succeed in other aspects of the bout. That was especially evident on the feet, as Dvalishvili attacked with punching combinations, standing elbows and kicks to various levels. Most notably, a calf kick from the Georgian seemed to compromise Yan’s left leg in the second stanza, and the Russian was often forced to switch …

Sherdog's live UFC Fight Night 221 coverage will begin Saturday at 3 p.m. ET. BETTING PREVIEW | SCOUTING REPORT | ODDS: Harris (-300), Gooden (+250)Round 1 Sherdog Scores Jay Pettry scores the round:Tristen Critchfield scores the round:Tyler Treese scores the round:

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Round 2 Sherdog Scores Jay Pettry scores the round:Tristen Critchfield scores the round:Tyler Treese scores the round:Round 3 Sherdog Scores Jay Pettry scores the round:Tristen Critchfield scores the round:Tyler Treese scores the round: The Official Result BETTING PREVIEW | SCOUTING REPORT | ODDS: Silva (-195), Nam (+165)Round 1 Sherdog Scores Jay Pettry scores the round:Tristen Critchfield scores the round:Tyler Treese scores the round:Round 2 Sherdog Scores Jay Pettry scores the round:Tristen Critchfield scores the round:Tyler Treese scores the round:Round 3 Sherdog Scores Jay Pettry scores the round:Tristen Critchfield scores the round:Tyler Treese scores the round:The Official Result …

Davey Grant with the reverse triangle submission 😱 #UFCLasVegas pic.twitter.com/XIPSrJ5Ab8

— ESPN MMA (@espnmma) March 11, 2023

Davey Grant showed a flair for the dramatic at UFC Fight Night 221.

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“The Ultimate Fighter 18” alum rallied for a third-round submission victory over Raphael Assuncao in their preliminary bantamweight clash at The Theater at Virgin Hotels in Las Vegas, Nev., on Saturday. The 37-year-old Englishman used an inverted triangle choke to render Assuncao (28-10, 12-7 UFC) unconsicous at the 4:43 mark of Round 3. Assuncao, who has lost five of his last six Octagon appearances, left his gloves in the center of the cage and announced his retirement following the defeat. Assuncao blended grappling with smart counterstriking to rack up an early lead on the scorecards, but action really picked up in the final stanza. Grant (15-6, 6-5 UFC) stumbled Assuncao with a right hand early on, a blow that seemed to s…

Benson Henderson called it a career on Friday night, laying his gloves in the cage following a first-round submission loss to Usman Nurmagomedov in the Bellator 292 main event.

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“These last four fights I signed with Bellator, I told myself that if I lose at all any of these last four fights, then it’s about that time,” Henderson said in the cage immediately after the bout.

“I’ve had a nice, long run. I’ve done a lot of great things and was able to do a lot of amazing accomplishments, and thank you to everybody around the world. Thank you guys for your love and support, I appreciate that.”

The 39-year-old former UFC and WEC lightweight champion further elaborated on his decision at the Bellator 292 post-fight press conference. He said that while he’ll still be involved with the sport, the focus will be on his wife’s fighting career. Maria Henderson is scheduled to make her second pro appearance against Mackenzie Stiller at Bellator 293 on Marc…

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A documentary starring inaugural UFC women’s flyweight champion Nicco Montano is now available for viewing on multiple platforms.

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The film, which is entitled "Warrior Spirit," is directed by Landon Dyksterhouse and focuses on the dangers of extreme weight cutting in the UFC. The documentary was featured in a segment on “Real Sports with Bryant Gumbel.” It was also an official DOC NYC selection and was recognized as the ImagineNative “Best Doc Feature.”

“Warrior Spirit” followed Montano as she prepared for her scheduled title defense against Valentina Shevchenko at UFC 228. Montano’s difficulty with her weight cut led to her being hospitalized and as a result, the fight was canceled and she was stripped of her belt.

The film also examines issues such as fighter pay, insurance and unionization and includes appearances from Ariel Helwani, Justin Gaethje, Tim Means and Dana White. It is available to rent or buy on the following …

Usman Nurmagomedov could not have been more imposing in starting his run in the Bellator MMA lightweight grand prix.

The undefeated American Kickboxing Academy standout retained his undisputed lightweight championship and did so in spectacular fashion, as he submitted Benson Henderson with a rear-naked choke in the first round of their Bellator 292 headliner on Friday at the SAP Center in San Jose, California. Henderson (30-12, 7-7 Bellator) raised the white flag of surrender 2:37 into Round 1, as he was submitted for the first time since 2013. Afterward, the 39-year-old MMA Lab cornerstone announced his retirement from mixed martial arts.

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Nurmagomedov (17-0, 6-0 Bellator) decked the former Ultimate Fighting Championship and World Extreme Cagefighting titleholder with an exquisite question mark kick inside the first minute. He then pounced with punches, attached himself to the dazed Henderson’s back and continued to apply his ground-and-pound whi…

In what ultimately turned into a battle of the highlights, light heavyweight Impa Kasanganay secured himself a Professional Fighters League contract during PFL Challenger Series 2023 Week 7 on Friday at Universal Studios in Orlando, Florida.

Kasanganay (11-3) closed the show with a devastating first-round knockout of Osama ElSeady in the final bout of the four-fight card on FuboTV. ElSeady (8-3) and Kasanganay traded blows early in the round before the former’s gas tank depleted. The 29-year-old fighting out of Charlotte walked ElSeady across the cage before knocking him out cold with 45 seconds left in the opening frame.

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Kasanganay won his second consecutive fight and secured the contract, but it’s debatable that he won the night.

In the fight prior, Taylor Johnson buried Trey Williams with an overhand right from the underworld in round 1.

Johnson ate several crisp shots before eventually timing Williams with an overhand right to the temple. …

Sherdog's live Bellator 292 coverage will begin Friday at 7:30 p.m. ET. Round 1 Sherdog Scores Tyler Treese scores the round:Brian Knapp scores the round:Edwin Ayala scores the round:

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

Sherdog's live PFL Challenger Series 7 coverage kicks off Friday at 9 p.m. ET. The action will be broadcast live and free on fuboTV. Round 1 Sherdog Scores Lev Pisarsky scores the round:J.L. Kirven scores the round:Mike Fridley scores the round:

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Round 2 Sherdog Scores Lev Pisarsky scores the round:J.L. Kirven scores the round:Mike Fridley scores the round:Round 3 Sherdog Scores Lev Pisarsky scores the round:J.L. Kirven scores the round:Mike Fridley scores the round: The Official Result Round 1 Sherdog Scores Lev Pisarsky scores the round:J.L. Kirven scores the round:Mike Fridley scores the round:Round 2 Sherdog Scores Lev Pisarsky scores the round:J.L. Kirven scores the round:Mike Fridley scores the round:Round 3 Sherdog Scores Lev Pisarsky scores the round:J.L. Kirven scores the round:Mike Fridley scores the round:The Official Result Round 1 Sherdog Scores Lev Pisarsky scores the round:J.L. Kirven scores the round:Mike Fridley scores the round:Round 2…

First to the scale this morning!@PetrYanUFC in at 136lbs for tomorrow's #UFCLasVegas main event 💪 pic.twitter.com/J21q00CqTk

— UFC (@ufc) March 10, 2023 Ultimate Fighting Championship featherweight Ricardo Ramos seems to have forgotten his weight class.

Headlining UFC Fight Night 221 is a top contender match between former 135-pound titleholder Petr Yan and the surging Merab Dvalishvili. Both main event fighters made weight for their five-round affair, although a few members of the undercard weren't entirely as professional.

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Notably, Ramos and Jared Gooden checked in nowhere close to their weight limits for their respective fights. Ramos came in eight pounds overweight at 154 pounds for his featherweight scrap against Austin Lingo. Meanwhile, late replacement Gooden hit the scales at 177 pounds for his welterweight fight against Carlston Harris, or six pounds above the non-title cap. Ramos vs. Lingo has since been canc…

Credit: Getty/UFC Credit: Getty/UFC Credit: Getty/UFC Middleweight Sedriques Dumas will carry a 7-0 professional mixed martial arts record into his Ultimate Fighting Championship debut on Saturday in Las Vegas, where he clashes with Josh Fremd at UFC Fight Night 221. The 27-year-old Floridian signed with the UFC in 2022 after a 47-second submission win over Matej Penaz on Dana White’s Contender Series.

Dumas’ fight in front of UFC President Dana White took place on Aug. 30, less than two months after a previously unreported altercation involving the fighter spilled out of the Seville Quarter—a bar in Pensacola, Florida. According to a Pensacola Police Department report filed on July 3, which was obtained by Sherdog.com, Dumas allegedly struck Alyssa Lewis, a 21-year-old woman, in the face during an incident that unfolded across several blocks of downtown Pensacola.

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The case was closed days later without arrests being made. However, eyewitness acc…

𝐌𝐚𝐢𝐧 𝐞𝐯𝐞𝐧𝐭 𝐨𝐧 𝐰𝐞𝐢𝐠𝐡𝐭! 🔥@Usmannmgdv (154.8) and @BensonHenderson (154.6) have weighed in ahead of the #BellatorLWGP. #Bellator292 pic.twitter.com/MTUwwlxz3h

— Bellator MMA (@BellatorMMA) March 9, 2023 The Bellator MMA lightweight championship will be on the line as the undefeated Usman Nurmagomedov takes on former UFC champion Benson Henderson in the Bellator 292 main event.

The weigh-ins were relatively drama free as Nurmagomedov and "Smooth" both had no issue making weight. Only one fighter had trouble making weight, but they certainly made it count. Would-be bantamweight Cass Bell came in an entire division over, as he weighed 145.2 pounds for his fight against Josh Hill. The fight will continue with Bell being fined half of his purse.

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Nurmagomedov (16-0) is coming off an impressive title win over Patricky Freire in his last outing. After picking up a dominant unanimous decision victory, he'll look to take on a toug…

Weighed In and Ready ✅

Week 7⃣Light Heavyweights are ready to put on a show for a PFL contract!

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Fights are 𝗟𝗜𝗩𝗘 & 𝗙𝗥𝗘𝗘 on @fuboSports

[ #PFLonFubo | Light Heavyweights | Fri, March 10th | 9pm ET] pic.twitter.com/kPogNt5NRY

— PFL (@PFLMMA) March 9, 2023 This week's Professional Fighters League Challenger Series event will feature eight fighters in the light heavyweight division.

All PFL Challenger Series Week 7 fighters made weight for the four-fight card. Headlining the card will be a fight between UFC veteran Impa Kasanganay and Osama ElSeady.

Since being released from the UFC after going 2-2, Kasanganay (10-3) has had mixed results. After suffering a split decision defeat to Raimond Magomedaliev, "Tshilobo" bounced back with a TKO win over Jared Gooden. Now the 29-year-old will look to secure a PFL contract against Egypt's ElSeady, who posts an 8-2 professional record. The Brave Combat Federation v…

Even ex-Ultimate Fighting Championship title challenger Thiago Santos was surprised at how easy Jon Jones’ win was at UFC 285.

Ahead of Jones’ heavyweight championship encounter with Ciryl Gane, Jones invoked Santos’ name when discussing his former opponents. When Jones suggested Santos was arguably his toughest test, Santos replied positively about their five-round battle UFC 239 in 2019. Telling Sherdog about his expectations about Jones’ performance, Santos believed Jones would prevail. What he did not expect was the speed in which "Bones" did it, and he spoke again with Sherdog following the event.

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“When Gane said he was lazy to train wrestling out of camp, I thought it was like a trap for Jones. But in the fight, we found out that it was true, and thanks to that JJ made it look so easy, which brightened [his win even more],” Santos remarked.

While Jones was able to handle Gane thanks to superior wrestling, “Marreta” believes that Jones’ next o…