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While Nate Diaz and Khamzat Chimaev didn’t end up meeting in the UFC 279 main event as originally anticipated, both gave performances to remember on Saturday night.

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Diaz submitted Tony Ferguson with a guillotine choke in the fourth round of the card’s new headliner to fulfill the final fight on his UFC contract. After the victory, Diaz hinted that he would be willing to return to the UFC some time in the future after he explores other options. If that’s the case, UFC president Dana White would welcome him back with open arms.

“No matter what Nate does from here on out, this is his house,” White said at the post-fight press conferene. “He’s been here forever. It’s been a blast having him here. I wish him well. He and I had this discussion months ago at the offices. Whatever he moves on to do, I wish him nothing but the best. If he’s starting his own organization or getting into promoting or doing something else, I wish him nothing but the best of lu…

For someone who missed weight by a considerable amount, Khamzat Chimaev wasn’t exactly remorseful following his victory over Kevin Holland at UFC 279.

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Chimaev was initially supposed to face Nate Diaz in Saturday’s headliner, but the card was restructured when “Borz” tipped the scales at 178.5 pounds on Friday. As a result, the Allstars Training Center product was booked against Holland in a 180-pound catchweight clash.

While Chimaev claimed the he could have made weight but was advised by doctors to stop his cut, he also didn’t seem to think it mattered all that much. That ultimately led to fans at T-Mobile arena showering Chimaev with boos, which also didn’t seem to bother him.

"You care about that s—t? I don't care,” Chimaev said at Saturday’s post-fight press confernece. I care about my family, I care about my family, I care about my career, I care about my money... One day they're with me, one day they're not with me.”

In his post-fight i…

Irene Aldana made history and padded her bank account in the process at UFC 279.

The Lobo Gym MMA representative became just the third UFC fighter to finish a bout with an upkick — and the first to do so by going to the body — when she dispatched Macy Chiasson with a heel kick to the liver from her back 2:21 into the third round of their 140-pound catchweight bout at the T-Mobile Arena in Las Vegas on Saturday night. That effort earned Aldana of $50,000 “Performance of the Night” bonus — one of four handed out by the promotion.

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Meanwhile, Nate Diaz garnered a $50,000 “Performance of the Night” award thanks to his submission of Tony Ferguson in the evening’s welterweight main event. The Stockton, Calif., upped the volume of his punching combinations in Round 4, forcing Ferguson to shoot for a takedown. That allowed Diaz to lock in a guillotine choke and force a tapout at the 2:52 mark of the period.

Order UFC 279 "Chimaev vs. Diaz" exclusively on ESP…

Nate Diaz saw the opening and threaded the needle.

“The Ultimate Fighter” Season 5 winner dismissed Tony Ferguson with a guillotine choke in the fourth round of their UFC 279 headliner on Saturday at T-Mobile Arena in Las Vegas, where he fulfilled the final bout on his current Ultimate Fighting Championship contract and gazed towards greener pastures. Diaz (21-13, 16-11 UFC), who sounds very much like a man who intends to enter professional boxing at some level, sewed up the submission 2:52 into Round 4.

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Ferguson (25-8, 15-5 UFC) was effective in spurts, especially with repeated kicks to his opponent’s legs. Diaz weathered the damage to his lower extremities, uncorked some of his patented multi-punch volleys and stayed competitive as the fight drifted into the fourth round. There, Ferguson moved in for an ill-advised takedown and wandered into the awaiting guillotine. Diaz tightened his grip, brought his hips into play and let his squeeze do the rest…

Order UFC 279 "Diaz vs. Ferguson" exclusively on ESPN+ Sherdog's live UFC 279 coverage will begin Saturday at 6 p.m. ET.

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Check out the MMA Forums to discuss the card or enter your comments and predictions below. Round 1 The UFC was blessed with a drama-free week for this fight card, with absolutely no funny business taking place the last few days leading up to UFC 279. It’s a good thing, too, because this event might not have been able to afford some shakeups or bout changes. We start this totally normal fight card off in the welterweight division, with two men searching for their first win inside the Octagon. Weeks (5-2, 0-2 UFC), who came into the UFC in 2021 undefeated only to lose his first two fights, wants the third time to be the charm at the expense of Canada’s Lainesse (8-1, 0-1 UFC). Weeks celebrates a 100% finish rate, while “White Lion” responds with a 75% knockout rate, so the judges may not be needed while referee Mike Beltran almost certainly…

Juicy J closing out the prelims 👏

Here’s your 𝑺𝑯𝑶𝑻 𝑶𝑭 𝑻𝑯𝑬 𝑵𝑰𝑮𝑯𝑻 📸

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[ #UFC279 | B2YB by @JoseCuervo ] pic.twitter.com/cHlXt2IgZL — UFC (@ufc) September 11, 2022

Hakeem Dawodu failed on the scales, then failed in the cage.

“The Ultimate Fighter” Season 22 semifinalist Julian Erosa shined as an underdog in perhaps his most complete performance as a member of the Ultimate Fighting Championship roster, as he cruised to a one-sided unanimous decision over Dawodu in their featured UFC 279 featherweight prelim on Saturday at T-Mobile Arena in Las Vegas. All three cageside judges scored it 30-27 for Erosa (28-9, 6-5 UFC), who suddenly finds himself on a three-fight winning streak.

Dawodu (13-3-1, 6-3 UFC)—who missed weight for the bout by nearly four pounds—endured a difficult first round in which he was twice badly hurt by right hands and never seemed to recover. Erosa incorporated takedowns in the second and third rou…

He does it again!

KSW HW Champion@phildefriesmma #AndStill #KSW74 pic.twitter.com/H4xvpDnPQh

— KSW (@KSW_MMA) September 10, 2022

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Philip De Fries' dominant reign as the Konfrontacja Sztuk Walki heavyweight champion continued on Saturday in Poland. 

In the KSW 74 headliner, De Fries (22-6, 1 NC; 8-0 KSW) notched his seventh title defense after overcoming Ricardo Prasel. After some quick exchanges, De Fries stuffed a timid takedown attempt from Prasel (13-4, 2-1 KSW), and from there, the Brazilian was more than willing to fight off his back. On the mat, De Fries landed several shots from half-guard as he controlled his foe. In turn, Prasel worked to close the guard from where he unsuccessfully attempted to sweep De Fries. Once he stabilized a dominant position, De Fries started hitting Prasel with heavy shots that left an immediate mark on the Brazilian’s face. During a scramble phase, Prasel left an opening for his…

#UFC279 has a new top part of its card, per UFC president Dana White on the @SportsCenter Instagram.

-- Diaz vs. Ferguson-- Chimaev vs. Holland-- Li vs. Rodriguez

— Marc Raimondi (@marcraimondi) September 9, 2022 Khamzat Chimaev’s failure on the scales has forced the Ultimate Fighting Championship to scramble in unexpected ways.

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On Friday, Chimaev tipped the scales at 178.5 pounds at the early UFC 279 weigh-ins, for 7.5 pounds above the non-title welterweight cap. His headlining matchup against Nate Diaz, who weighed 171 pounds, has been scuttled as a result, as first reported by BJPenn.com. In the new five-round UFC 279 main event, per UFC President Dana White on UFC's Instagram page, Diaz (20-13) will now be squaring off Tony Ferguson (25-7), who also weighed in at welterweight. This event, which remains a pay-per-view will carry on at the T-Mobile Arena in Las Vegas on Saturday.

Diaz will be looking to get back on…

[embedded content] Editor's note: The article has been updated at 5:15 p.m. ET on Friday to add additional information.

Khamzat Chimaev has fumbled the biggest opportunity of his career.

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The Ultimate Fighting Championship was slated to return to the T-Mobile Arena in Las Vegas with a highly anticipated welterweight clash between Khamzat Chimaev and Nate Diaz, but that may not be the case for long. Weight concerns plagued many competitors ahead of UFC 279, and even though only three officially missed weight, one of the most important players tipped the scales way over the limit.

This marks the first UFC main event for Chimaev, who is a perfect 11-0 as a professional mixed martial artist. "Borz" faced the first significant obstacle of his career in his last outing as Gilbert Burns gave the Allstars Training Center fighter everything he could handle in a back-and-forth war. However, Chimaev passed that test and will look to prove he's ready for a titl…

[embedded content] Editor's note: The article has been updated at 7:30 p.m. ET on Friday to add additional information.

Khamzat Chimaev has fumbled the biggest opportunity of his career.

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The Ultimate Fighting Championship was slated to return to the T-Mobile Arena in Las Vegas with a highly anticipated welterweight clash between Chimaev and Nate Diaz, but that has now changed. Weight concerns plagued many competitors ahead of UFC 279, and even though only three officially missed weight, one of the most important players tipped the scales way over the limit. As a result, the final three bouts of the evening have changed, with new matchups in each. Now, Diaz will fight in the five-round main event against Tony Ferguson.

Despite losing his last two fights, and with his last win coming in 2019, Diaz (20-13) finds himself in another pay-per-view main event. The fan-favorite fighter from Stockton, Calif., is on the last fight of his UFC contract and will…

[embedded content] The Konfrontacja Sztuk Walki heavyweight championship will be on the line at KSW 74.

Philip De Fries is looking to make his seventh straight defense of the KSW heavyweight title. In his way is Ricardo Prasel, who has put together back-to-back wins in the promotion. Both heavyweights had no trouble making weight, although two fighters down the card missed weight. Pawel Politylo came in heavy for his bantamweight bout against Werlleson Martins Ribeiro and has been fined 40 percent of his purse, plus Anita Bekus has been fined 30 percent of her purse for coming in heavy for her strawweight bout against Sofiia Bagishvili.

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Having not lost since 2017, De Fries (21-6, 1 NC) is currently on a roll with a nine-fight win streak. The champion will be the larger man by 26 pounds after weighing in at 264 pounds. Meanwhile, Prasel (13-3) is coming off a TKO win over Michal Kita and an ankle lock submission victory against Daniel Omielanczuk. The…

The 𝐁𝐈𝐆𝐆𝐄𝐒𝐓 rematch in UAE Warriors history is official!! 🤩

UAEW Featherweight Title 🏆🇨🇦 @bigcatsreal vs. AlQaisi 🇯🇴

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Sept 17 | @etihadarena_ae | @UFCFightPass #UAEWarriors33 #UAEW33 #UAEWarriors pic.twitter.com/2lMyL7mt5S — UAE Warriors (@uae_warriors) August 11, 2022

Jesse Arnett will defend his featherweight championship against Ali AlQaisi when their rematch headlines UAE Warriors 33 on Sept. 17 at Etihad Arena in Abu Dhabi, United Arab Emirates. Meanwhile, Tahir Abdullaev risks his welterweight crown against Josh Togo in the co-main event.

Arnett heads in to show on a two-fight winning streak. The 38-year-old Canadian has not competed since he prompted what some viewed as a controversial doctor stoppage against AlQaisi in the second round of their UAE Warriors 30 pairing on July 2. Arnett has delivered 15 of his 20 career victories by knockout, technical knockout or submission. AlQaisi, meanwhile, has ra…

[embedded content] Chaos ensued ahead of the Ultimate Fighting Championship’s latest pay-per-view press conference.

On Thursday night, the UFC staged its regular press conference for fans and media ahead of its marquee show. UFC 279 will go down on Saturday at the T-Mobile Arena in Las Vegas, and as is tradition two days before the fights, the promotion brought all the fighters together to place on stage and take questions, followed by a staredown, for the last gathering before the ceremonial weigh-ins on Friday. Things did not go according to plan, as the UFC’s streamed press conference cut in unexpectedly, with president Dana White trying to keep things together. On the stage with him were only main card combatants Kevin Holland and Daniel Rodriguez.

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“Absolute s---show back there,” an exasperated White remarked when asked about what just happened. “Ask them [Holland and Rodriguez] questions.”

After a brief topic for Holland – who was allegedly inv…

The Professional Fighters League has scooped a big name for next year’s tournament season.

In a surprise announcement on Thursday, ESPN broke the news that former Ultimate Fighting Championship title challenger Thiago Santos (22-11) is no longer under contract with the UFC. He has signed with the PFL, where he plans on competing in its 205-pound division starting in 2023. Per ESPN, in interviews with PFL president Ray Sefo and Santos’ manager Alex Davis, Santos’ contract had not ended, but the UFC allowed for his release. The organization celebrated his signing on social media shortly after the story came out.

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“It was an amicable separation with the UFC,” Davis explained to ESPN. “Thiago is very grateful for everything the UFC did for him, and he’s very grateful toward the PFL for signing with him. He’s looking forward to winning a million dollars.”

The Rio de Janeiro native has struggled as of late, falling short by razor-close split decision to c…

The UFC Fight Night 210 card has taken a hit, as Giga Chikadze has withdrawn from a proposed co-main event clash against Sodiq Yusuff on Sept. 17.

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MMAjunkie.com was first to report the news. A reason for Chikadze’s exit is currently unclear. The promotion is reportedly seeking a replacement opponent for Yusuff. UFC Fight Night 210 takes place at the UFC Apex in Las Vegas and is headlined by a bantamweight scrap between Cory Sandhagen and Yadong Song.

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Chikadze had an eight-fight professional winning streak halted in his last outing, when he dropped a five-round verdict against Calvin Kattar in the UFC on ESPN 32 headliner on Jan. 15. The 34-year-old Georgian earned notable wins over Cub Swanson and Edson Barboza before falling to Kattar.

Yusuff has been victorious in five of six promotional appearances. Most recently, the 29-year-old Team Lloyd Irvin export outpointed Alex Caceres …

The vídeo of the altercation between Paulo Costa and Khamzat Chimaev posted on Costa´s YouTube channel earlier this week led to mixed reactions in the MMA community.

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Some fans thought it was theater created by both teams in order to make a potential matchup for UFC 283 in Rio de Janeiro, while others thought the conflict was real since it would make no sense for Chimaev to fight Costa in Brazil when he’s already so close to the welterweight title.

Chimaev’s coach, Alan “Finfou” Nascimento, told Sherdog.com that the altercation was real. The black belt added that the bad blood began when Costa published a video on social media cheering on Nate Diaz while badmouthing Chimaev.

"Khamzat didn’t like the things he said about him and when we arrived at [the UFC Performance Institute], ‘Borrachinha’ was there working with Diaz’s coach, Jake Shields, in the same area,” Nascimento said. “Khamzat immediately wanted to go there to talk to him, but I told …

Alexa Grasso and Viviane Araujo will now have five rounds in which to settle their differences.

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The flyweight bout will now serve as the main event for UFC Fight Night 212 on Oct. 15, the promotion announced Wednesday. UFC Fight Night 212 was originally expected to be headlined by a middleweight clash pitting Jared Cannonier against Sean Strickland, but that bout was canceled when Strickland was forced to withdraw due to an infected finger.

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Grasso and Araujo were scheduled to meet at UFC on ESPN 41 on Aug. 13 but was removed due to visa issues for Grasso. Prior to that, an Araujo injury nixed a proposed bout between the two at UFC 270.

Grasso has won three straight fights since moving up to 125 pounds, including a first-round submission triumph against Joanne Wood in her last outing at UFC on ESPN 33 on March 26.

Araujo, meanwhile, has been victorious in three of her last fou…

Kamaru Usman didn’t leave UFC 278 with the welterweight belt, but he did take home the highest disclosed payday of anyone on the card.

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“The Nigerian Nightmare” earned $500,000 for his fifth-round knockout loss to Leon Edwards in the main event of the Aug. 20 card, which took place at Vivint Arena in Salt Lake City. Edwards, the newly crowned champion, garnered $350,000 in victory. The Pete Suazo Utah Athletic Commission recently released a full list of salaries from the event.

Elsewhere, ex-featherweight king Jose Aldo earned $400,000 in a unanimous decision loss to Merab Dvalishvili ($198,000) in a 135-pound matchup on the evening’s main card. All told, seven fighters secured six-figure salaries, including Paulo Costa ($130,000), Luke Rockhold ($200,000) and Marcin Tybura ($240,000).

Order UFC 279 "Chimaev vs. Diaz" exclusively on ESPN+ Note: The disclosed purses reported by state athletic commissions do not include any performance-based or di…

A previously rumored lightweight clash between Dustin Poirier and Michael Chandler now has a date and venue.

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UFC chief business officer Hunter Campbell informed promotion broadcast partner ESPN on Wednesday that the fight will take place at UFC 281 on Nov. 12 at Madison Square Garden in New York. In addition to that news, Chandler has signed a new, multi-fight deal with the UFC. Poirier vs. Chandler will be contested over three rounds, although Poirier reportedly wanted it to be a five-round bout. Chandler, meanwhile, initially hoped for the matchup to take place in December.

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Tensions are already high between the two lightweights. Poirier and Chandler were involved in a brief confrontation while attending UFC 276 at the T-Mobile Arena in Vegas on July 2. While it’s unclear what started the altercation, both men had to be separated by security while they yelled obscenities and threats at…

One on Prime Video 3 will feature a pair of title fights at the top of the bill.

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Reinier de Ridder will defend his middleweight (205-pound) strap against Shamil Abdulaev in the headliner, while John Lineker will put his bantamweight (145-pound) belt on the line against Fabricio Andrade in the co-main event. The Singapore-based promotion confirmed the bookings following an initial report from MMAFighting.com.

One on Prime Video 3 takes place at Axiata Arena in Kuala Lumpur, Malaysia on Oct. 21, and the card airs live in the United States on Amazon Prime Video beginning at 8 p.m. ET/5 p.m. PT.

A title holder at both light heavyweight and middleweight in One, de Ridder is 16-0 as a professional. In his most recent outing, “The Dutch Knight” submitted Vitaly Bigdash in the opening round of their bout at One Championship 159 to defend his middleweight crown.

Dagestan’s Abdulaev will make enter his One debut with a 13-1 career mark. The CSKA…

Credit: Getty/UFC Credit: Getty/UFC Credit: Getty/UFC

Darren Till and Dricus Du Plessis have agreed to a middleweight bout at UFC 282.

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ESPN was first to bring word of the pairing, which is close to being finalized. UFC 282 takes place at the T-Mobile Arena in Las Vegas on Dec. 10 and is expected to feature a light heavyweight championship rematch between Jiri Prochazka and Glover Teixeira.

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Till has yet to compete in 2022 after being forced to withdraw from a proposed matchup against Jack Hermansson in July due to injury. The former welterweight title challenger has lost four of his last five Octagon appearances and is coming off a third-round submission defeat to Derek Brunson at UFC Fight Night 191 in September 2021.

A former KSW champion, Du Plessis is 3-0 thus far in UFC competition. Most recently, the South African defeated Brad Tavares via uanimous decision at UFC 276 to ru…

Vitor Petrino Salvo left nothing to chance.

The undefeated Brazilian was one of four fledgling mixed martial artists to nail down an Ultimate Fighting Championship contract during Week 7 of Dana White’s Contender Series, as he disposed of Rodolfo Bellato with punches in the second round of their light heavyweight showcase on Tuesday at the UFC Apex in Las Vegas. Salvo (7-0) tagged his countryman’s figurative toe 3:36 into Round 2.

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Bellato (8-2) knocked down the CM System standout and climbed to his back in the first round but failed to net the desired finish. It did not turn out well for the Team Nogueira export. Salvo ducked an ill-advised spinning backfist in the middle stanza and countered with a left hook that sent “Trator” crashing to the canvas in a supine position. A diving standing-to-ground right hand froze Bellato in place before referee Mark Smith could arrive on the scene. In addition to Salvo, the UFC signed welterweight Gabriel Souza…

The super atomweight grand prix semifinals are set for Rizin 38, as Ayaka Hamasaki will face Si Woo Park, while Seika Izawa will square off against Anastasiya Svetkivska on Sept. 25.

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The Japanese promotion recently announced the pairings. Svetkivska is a replacement for Rena Kubota, who withdrew from the bracket due to injury. Rizin 38 takes place at Saitama Super Arena in Saitama, Japan, and features a bantamweight clash pitting Kyoji Horiguchi against Yuto Hokamura. The event also includes a Super Rizin portion of the card that is topped by an exhibition boxing match between Floyd Mayweather and Mikuru Asakura. A featherweight showdown between Kota Miura and Bunchuai Phonsungnoen was recently added to that portion of the bill.

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A former Rizin champion, Hamasaki advanced to the semifinals with a three-round verdict over Jessica Aguilar at Rizin 37. That snapped a two-fight skid for the 40…

After Robert Whittaker earned a dominant decision win over Marvin Vettori at UFC Paris on Saturday, Paulo Costa called out the former champion for a fight at UFC 283 in Rio de Janeiro this January.

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when I fight whittaker it won't be by decision, I'll go for the knockout. I hope he doesn't change divisions before then.

— Paulo Costa ( Borrachinha ) (@BorrachinhaMMA) September 4, 2022

While Brazilian fans were intrigued by the possibility, Whittaker’s coach, Alex Prates told Sherdog.com that there is no chance that “The Reaper” will face Costa in Brazil.

“I have no idea where that came from, but it's not true,” Prates said.

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According to Prates, Whitaker is planning to return to action in February in his home country with a belt on the line.

“It´s almost confirmed. UFC is planning to hold an event in Perth, Australia, in February and we are going to …