Blog

Credit: Richard Burmaster/Legacy Fighting Alliance Credit: Richard Burmaster/Legacy Fighting Alliance Credit: Richard Burmaster/Legacy Fighting Alliance Credit: Richard Burmaster/Legacy Fighting Alliance

Former UFC heavyweight Juan Adams could potentially get his shot in Professional Fighters League later this month.

Advertisement

Adams announced via Facebook that he has signed with the promotion as an alternate and will weigh in ahead of the PFL 5 event on June 24. PFL 5 takes place at Overtime Elite Arena in Atlanta and features primarily heavyweight and featherweight competitors in the second regular season event for both weight classes.

CATCH EVERY MOMENT OF UFC 275 ON ESPN+

“Just signed the contract for [PFL]. I will be an alternate, meaning that if anyone can’t fight for whatever reason i get my shot,” Adams wrote. “I weigh in June 23 either way in Atlanta. My sponsors are set and i just want to thank all of them, as well as my fans for staying …

Even though he is in the midst of a later-career resurgence with a six-bout winning streak, light heavyweight champ Glover Teixeira is an underdog against Jiri Prochazka in the UFC 275 main event.

Advertisement

Whether that’s betting odds or a recent poll on the Sherdog website, the MMA world seems to expect Prochazka to emerge from Saturday’s fight with the light heavyweight belt in tow. Some 19 months after facing the champion in a UFC on ESPN 17 headliner that featured knockdowns from both fighters before Teixeira emerged with a submission win in Round 3, Thiago Santos envisions a similar ending at UFC 275.

"Styles make fights. If Prochazka keeps fighting the same way he has been, always walking forward, he will fit perfectly into Glover´s gameplan,” Santos told Sherdog.com. “[He] will use that to take him down and, believe me, once he is on the top it is very hard to remove him from there. Jiri´s best chance in that fight would be to move laterall…

Two of KSW's most battle-tested fighters square-off in the main event!

Lightweight champ Marian Ziółkowski defends his title against Sebastian Rajewski at #KSW71!

Advertisement

June 18 | @eBiletPL | @viaplaysportpl pic.twitter.com/FxWS5WmUtL — KSW (@KSW_MMA) June 3, 2022

A lightweight championship clash pitting reigning title holder Marian Ziolkowski against Sebastian Rajewski will serve as the headliner for KSW 71.

The Polish promotion recently announced the booking. KSW 71 takes place on June 18 in Torun, Poland, and will also see former heavyweight champ Marcin Rozalski return from a five-year absence to face kickboxing standout Errol Zimmerman in the co-main event. Rozalski vs. Zimmerman will be contested under K-1 rules while using MMA gloves. KSW 71 is available on pay-per-view via KSWTV.com.

CATCH EVERY MOMENT OF UFC 275 ON ESPN+

Ziolkowski claimed the vacant lightweight strap with a fourth-round technical knocko…

Jiri Prochazka will enter the UFC 275 main event with a 12-fight winning streak that includes 11 victories by knockout or technical knockout.

Advertisement

Since only two of those triumphs — Dominick Reyes and Volkan Oezdemir — have come within the Las Vegas-based promotion, reigning light heayvweight champion Glover Teixeira is not especially impressed with the achievement. When Teixeira initially challenged for 205-pound gold, he took a 20-bout professional winning streak into his matchup with Jon Jones at UFC 172. He would go on to lose a clear-cut unanimous decision to “Bones,” and it would be more than seven years before he reached the top of the mountain in the division.

“It’s different … It’s very hard to do in the UFC. When I fought Jon Jones I was coming off a [long winning streak] — something like that too. With many knockouts," Teixeira said at UFC 275 media day (video via MMAjunkie.com). "It’s not in UFC. It’s hard to do in UFC. That doesn’t mean muc…

On the most basic level, the UFC 275 headliner seems to boil down to the classic striker vs. grappler matchup.

Advertisement

Reigning champion Glover Teixeira claimed the light heavyweight strap with a rear-naked choke victory against Jan Blachowicz at UFC 267, and prevailing logic suggests that the ground game is his best path to victory against Jiri Prochazka, a former Rizin title holder with 25 career knockout or technical knockout victories to his credit. Prochazka himself is well aware of Teixeira’s abilities and he’s spent a significant period shoring up his weaknesses in preparation for their championship clash.

“That started in the beginning of this year, preparation to be better in wrestling and jiu-jitsu,” Prochazka said at UFC 275 media day (video via MMAjunkie.com) “How to react, to change my the nature of my reaction to include wrestling in my standup style. I think that was the hardest thing I had to accept. After some time, I found some keys to h…

Once again, Valentina Shevchenko will enter her latest title defense as a considerable favorite.

Advertisement

Shevchenko, who has long been regarded as one of the top female pound-for-pound talents in the sport, will defend the 125-pound belt against Taila Santos in the UFC 275 co-main event at Singapore Indoor Stadium in Kallang, Singapore, on Saturday night. “Bullet” has authored six consecutive title defenses — all in dominant fashion — but Santos stated that she has found some holes in the champion’s game leading up to their clash.

Shevchenko has heard it all before.

“I think it’s kind of hypnotizing herself, trying to convince there is something there should be,” Shevchenko told reporters at UFC 275 media day (video via MMAjunkie.com). “Like everyone is not perfect. Definitely not everyone is perfect, but all my opponents, they were saying the same – the same over and over.

“It’s like, ‘No one is unbeatable. She has some holes in her game.’ But once …

The increasingly frequent variation between judges’ scorecards in individual rounds has been a hot topic for debate in mixed martial arts.

Advertisement

Nova Uniao coach Andre Pederneiras and prominent manager Alex Davis have both recently voiced their support for open scoring. Meanwhile, Joe Rogan weighed in on judging criteria as well, telling Aljamain Sterling on his podcast that he “definitely” won his rematch against Petr Yan. (For the record, Sterling did win a contentious split decision at UFC 273.)

Meanwhile, Brazilian judge Guilherme Bravo, author of the book “In the Judges’ Hands” and recognized by “Big” John McCarthy as one of the best in the business, not only agreed with Rogan but also emphasized the importance of normalizing 10-10 and 10-8 scorecards.

“The 10 point system is perfect, I dont see any need to change rules. The problem is not the rules system. The scores 10-10 and 10-8 are in the rules and must be used more,” Bravo told Sherdog.com…

It appears that the winner of the Weili Zhang-Joanna Jedrzejczyk rematch will be the next No. 1 contender in the UFC strawweight division.

Advertisement

UFC president Dana White said in an interview with MMA Underground that the winner of the UFC 275 bout will receive a title shot against recently-crowned champion Carla Esparza.

“This would definitely be that whoever wins this will definitely fight Esparza for the title,” White said.

CATCH EVERY MOMENT OF UFC 275 ON ESPN+ 

Zhang and Jedrzejczyk initially squared off at at UFC 248 in March 2020. Zhang retained the 115-pound belt in a memorable split-decision triumph that was selected as Sherdog.com's “Fight of the Year.” Zhang would go on to lose the belt in a first-round knockout loss to Rose Namajunas at UFC 261 before dropping a split verdict to Namajunas in a rematch at UFC 268. Jedrzejczyk, who defended the bel five times before relinquishing it to Namajunas in 2017, hasn’t fought since the loss to Zha…

One familiar face will be absent from the UFC 275 pay-per-view broadcast this Saturday.

Advertisement

Former UFC middleweight champion Michael Bisping will step in for Joe Rogan as one of the color commentators at the event. Bisping will join fellow ex-champ Daniel Cormier and play-by-play man Jon Anik on the broadcast.

CATCH EVERY MOMENT OF UFC 275 ON ESPN+

Rogan typically doesn’t work the UFC’s international events due to a busy schedule that includes his podcast and stand-up comedy tour dates. MMAjunkie.com was first to report Rogan’s absence from the event.

UFC 275 takes place at Singapore Indoor Stadium in Kallang, Singapore and is headlined by a light heavyweight championship tilt between Glover Teixeira and Jiri Prochazka. In the co-main event, Valentina Shevchenko defends her flyweight crown against Taila Santos. The main card is available on pay-per-view via ESPN+ beginning at 10 p.m. ET/7 p.m. PT, while prelims stream on ESPN2 and ESPN+ a…

While fans are waiting for a trilogy bout between Patricio Freire and A.J. McKee, it’s possible that featherweight contender Adam Borics may receive the next title shot against the Brazilian champion.

Advertisement

Borics is coming off a five-round decision win against Mads Burnell at Bellator 276 in a bout that was billed as a featherweight title eliminator by the California-based promotion. Freire’s karate coach, Mano Santana, believes a fresh face might be the next logical step for “Pitbull.”

“Patricio has cleaned out the division. It would make all the sense if Bellator gives the opportunity to Borics,” Santana told Sherdog.com.

CATCH EVERY MOMENT OF UFC 275 ON ESPN+ According to Santana, who also works with Lyoto Machida and Rodolfo Vieira, a potential change in plans could be attributed to the attitude of McKee.

"First A.J. denied [interest in] the trilogy, saying he was going up [a weight class]. Later, he changed his mind,” Santana said. “In my exp…

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

Brian Kelleher will lock horns with Mario Bautista in a bantamweight clash at UFC on ESPN 38.

Advertisement

Bautista’s management, Iridium Sports Agency, first brought word of the bout. UFC on ESPN 38 takes place at the UFC Apex in Las Vegas on June 25 and is headlined by a lightweight tilt pitting Mateusz Gamrot against Arman Tsarukyan.

CATCH EVERY MOMENT OF UFC 275 ON ESPN+

Kelleher is 1-1 thus far in 2022. After outpointing Kevin Croom at UFC on ESPN 32 on Jan. 15, “Boom” was submitted in the opening round by Umar Nurmagomedov at UFC 272 on March 5. The New Yorker is 8-6 during his tenure with the Las Vegas-based promotion after stints with Riong of Combat, Cage Fury Fighting Championships and Bellator MMA.

Bautista enters the matchup having won three of his last four Octagon appearances. Most recently, the 28-year-old MMA Lab representative earned a unanimous decision over Jay Perrin at UF…

A bantamweight showdown pitting Marlon Vera against Dominick Cruz is in the works to headline an Ultimate Fighting Championship event on Aug. 13.

Advertisement

ESPN Deportes was first to report that both parties have verbally agreed to the five-round bout. The UFC Fight Night event is likely to be held at the UFC Apex in Las Vegas and will also see Alexa Grasso square off against Viviane Araujo in the evening’s co-main event.

CATCH EVERY MOMENT OF UFC 275 ON ESPN+

This will be Vera’s second consecutive headlining engagement after he took a five-round verdict over Rob Font at UFC on ESPN 35 on April 30. “Chito” has been victorious in four of his last five Octagon appearances, with other wins coming against the likes of Frankie Edgar, Davey Grant and Sean O’Malley.

Cruz, a former 135-pound champion, is coming off a 2-0 2021. The Alliance MMA standout garnered a split verdict over Casey Kenney at UFC 259 before defeating Pedro Munhoz via unanimous de…

Greg Hardy is the latest mixed martial artist to try his hand at the Sweet Science.

Advertisement

Hardy is expected to make his professional boxing debut under the Black Sheep Boxing banner on Oct. 8 in Delray Beach, Fla. An opponent was not announced.

CATCH EVERY MOMENT OF UFC 275 ON ESPN+

“When you got the dream locked in your sights and all you gotta do is pull the trigger,” Hardy captioned an Instagram post in which he is wearing boxing gloves.

A former NFL Pro Bowl defensive lineman, Hardy made his way to the UFC after a pair of victories on Dana White’s Contender Series. “The Prince of War” trained out of American Top Team and went 4-5 with one no contest during his tenure with the Las Vegas-based promotion. Hardy parted ways with the UFC in March after his contract was not renewed.

Credit: Getty/UFC Credit: Getty/UFC Credit: Getty/UFC Credit: M-1

Movsar Evloev was in complete control throughout his unanimous decision triumph over Dan Ige in the UFC Fight Night 207 co-main event, and he believes he made a statement with his performance.

Advertisement

“I think this performance today tells a lot about me,” Evloev said at the post-fight press conference. I’m a real, top fighter and next champ. MMA fans like this with a lot of blood and a lot of punching. It’s good when you finish early, but sometimes it’s good when you fight very hard for three rounds.”

CATCH EVERY MOMENT OF UFC 275 ON ESPN+

Evloev battered Ige for three rounds while blending his striking and grappling to perfection. He even rattled his opponent with a flying knee in Round 1, but a finish never arrived despite Evloev’s best efforts. Ige has never been stopped in 21 professional appearances.

“I wanted an early finish, but everybody knows about my opponent,” Evlo…

According to Alexander Volkov, it’s not up to him to decide if a referee is making the right call in the heat of the moment.

Advertisement

Volkov rocked Jairzinho Rozenstruik with a right hand during a frenetic exchange in the UFC Fight Night 207 headliner, then pummeled his foe with a barrage of power punches to get the finish at the 2:12 mark of Round 1. Though Rozenstruik’s mouthpiece was dislodged during the assault, he only went down to one knee before referee Herb Dean stepped in to halt the bout. That led to Rozenstruik briefly protesting the stoppage in the aftermath. Volkov believes he would have continued the onslaught had Dean not made his call.

CATCH EVERY MOMENT OF UFC 275 ON ESPN+

“In the moment, I hit him, he was a little bit knocked out so he wasn’t being fully fresh. Anyway, it was a big opportunity to knock him out, to land because he was almost on the mat. I was ready to throw him down and continue my work,” Volkov said at Saturday’s post…

Felice Herrig returned to the Octagon for the first time in nearly two years on Saturday, but it was only temporary.

Advertisement

Herrig announced her retirement in the cage following a second-round submission loss to Karolina Kowalkiewicz in a preliminary strawweight clash at UFC Fight Night 207 at the UFC Apex in Las Vegas. For Herrig, it was important to return from injury, but she also had to see if her passion for the sport still burned strong.

CATCH EVERY MOMENT OF UFC 275 ON ESPN+

“It’s been an honor being in the UFC in eight years and fighting for 20. I had two ACL surgeries and I really wanted to not go out like that,” Herrig said. “I wanted to prove to myself that I can overcome two knee surgeries and come back and still fight at the highest level.

“I felt better than ever in training. My mind felt great… But I knew that if I wasn’t feeling it in the cage, it was going to be my last fight. Not in a bad way, I just feel like there’s somet…

Lucas Almeida and Michael Trizano engaged in a back-and-forth battle at UFC Fight Night 207, and now both featherweights are $50,000 richer for their efforts.

Advertisement

Almeida and Trizano received “Fight of the Night” honors for their slugfest, which featured a combined three knockdowns between the two combatants. Trizano struck the first blow in Round 1, when he blasted his foe with a knee and followed him to the canvas. Almeida survived until the horn and rallied to drop Trizano once apiece in Rounds 2 and 3. The second occasion — when he slipped a punch and dropped Trizano with a left hook — set the stage for a stoppage 55 seconds into the final stanza.

CATCH EVERY MOMENT OF UFC 275 ON ESPN+

Elsewhere, Karine Silva pocketed a $50,000 “Performance of the Night” check in her promotional debut thanks to a first-round submission of Poliana Botelho in a featured flyweight encounter. Silva rocked Botelho with an overhand right, powered her foe to the c…

Sherdog's live UFC Fight Night 207 coverage will begin Saturday at 1 p.m. ET.

Check out the MMA Forums to discuss the card or enter your comments and predictions below.

Advertisement

Sign up for ESPN+ right here, and you can then stream UFC Fight Night 207 "Volkov vs. Rozenstruik" live on your smart TV, computer, phone, tablet or streaming device via the ESPN app. BETTING PREVIEW | SCOUTING REPORT | ODDS: Blanchfield (-525), Aldrich (+385)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 BETTING PREVIEW | SCOUTING REPORT | ODDS: Fakhretdinov (-280), Michailidis (+225)Round 1 Sherdog Scores Jay Pettry scores the round:Tristen Critchfield scor…

Alexander Volkov went toe-to-toe with Jairzinho Rozenstruik and got the better of it.

The former Bellator MMA and M-1 Global champion showcased the power in his hands, earning a technical knockout victory over Rozenstruik in the UFC Fight Night 207 headliner at the UFC Apex in Las Vegas on Saturday. Volkov (35-10, 9-4 UFC) ended the contest with a volley of power punches 2:12 into the opening round.

Advertisement

Volkov blended punches and kicks in typical fashion in the early going, but the action really picked up when Rozenstruik attempted to counter one of the kicks with a wild haymaker. “Bigi Boy” became reckless at that point, winging power punches at his taller opponent. Volkov took everything Rozenstruik (12-4, 6-4 UFC) had to offer, stood in the pocket and backed him up with a right hand. “Drago” then walked the Suriname native down against the fence and sent him staggering with another right. A series of heavy alternating lefts and rights followed — inclu…

Karolina Kowalkiewicz was overcome with emotion after earning her first finish in the UFC 😤 #UFCVegas56 pic.twitter.com/FvdpCjdrda

— ESPN MMA (@espnmma) June 4, 2022

Karolina Kowalkiewicz is back in the win column for the first time in four years.

Advertisement

The former strawweight title challenger snapped a five-bout skid at UFC Fight Night 207, as she submitted Felice Herrig with a rear-naked choke 4:01 into Round 2 of their preliminary clash at the UFC Apex in Las Vegas on Saturday. Herrig has lost four straight fights and falls to 0-2 against Kowalkiewicz.

Looking sharper than she has in years, Kowalkiewicz (13-7, 6-7 UFC) attacked her foe with crisp punching combinations, close quarter elbows and knees in an impressive opening stanza. She shifted gears in Round 2, when she stuffed a Herrig (14-9, 5-5 UFC) takedown, assumed top position and transitioned to her opponent’s back. From there, the former KSW champion alternated …

The Legacy Fighting Alliance featherweight title was on the line at LFA 133 but only Michael Stack was eligible to win it after Jose Mauro do Amaral Delano missed weight by five pounds.

The title fight saw an aggressive start from Stack (7-1), who didn't mind taking punches to close the gap against Delano (10-2). While Stack was able to repeatedly clinch with Delano, the American was unable to get any meaningful takedowns in the opening rounds. Delano would come close to submitting the wrestler with a guillotine choke in Round 3, but Stack would be saved by the bell. The Brazilian would get a takedown of his own in a dominant Round 4 and cruise through Round 5. After five rounds, the LFA featherweight title stayed vacant after Delano took a decision with scores of 50-45, 49-46 and 50-45 in the Brazilian's favor.

Advertisement

The co-main event saw Haris Talundzic record the first blemish on the record of Bahatebole Batebolati. It was a competitive, back-and-fort…

Fight announcement for RIZIN.36

Kai Asakura vs. Ji Yong Yang#RIZIN #RIZIN36 pic.twitter.com/YxLR471cjT

— RIZIN FF English (@rizin_English) June 1, 2022 Sign up for ESPN+ right here, and you can then stream UFC Fight Night 207 "Volkov vs. Rozenstruik" live on your smart TV, computer, phone, tablet or streaming device via the ESPN app.

Advertisement

Rizin Fighting Federation is putting a little more into its sophomore trip to the Japanese island of Okinawa.

On Wednesday, the promotion released the lion’s share of its 13-bout Rizin 36 lineup on Twitter, one that includes 11 MMA matches and two under kickboxing rules. On Friday, via press release, Rizin confirmed the fights, made official the bout order and provided a statement from the head of the company. The event will be held inside the Okinawa Arena in Okinawa, Japan, on July 2. According to the press release, the broadcast will only be available with Japanese commentary and texts…

Sign up for ESPN+ right here, and you can then stream UFC Fight Night 207 "Volkov vs. Rozenstruik" live on your smart TV, computer, phone, tablet or streaming device via the ESPN app.

The gloves are coming off for former Ultimate Fighting Championship title challenger John Dodson.

Bare Knuckle FC posted on social media on Friday that the bare-knuckle boxing league had signed ex-UFC mainstay Dodson to a contract. Dodson moved on from the UFC in 2020, competing twice more in MMA in 2021 and 2022. This contract, which is not necessarily exclusive, will put Dodson in the “squared circle” for BKFC later this year with an undetermined opponent. His debut has been announced for the Aug. 27 event in his hometown of Albuquerque, N.M. Of note, BKFC also recently signed former Dodson foe Jimmie Rivera.

“The Magician” left the confines of the UFC after going 1-3 in his last four from 2018 to 2020, and he departed for the XMMA organization. A bantamweight pairing with former…

Sign up for ESPN+ right here, and you can then stream UFC Fight Night 207 "Volkov vs. Rozenstruik" live on your smart TV, computer, phone, tablet or streaming device via the ESPN app.

One of these talented Ultimate Fighting Championship flyweights may be in shouting distance of a title shot with a win in this matchup.

Advertisement

Back in May, Instagram account MMA Fight Universe first posted of the renewed flyweight encounter between Alexa Grasso (14-3) and Viviane Araujo (11-3). The fight was initially set for UFC 270, but Araujo withdrew from the pairing due to an injury. Grasso has since confirmed the newly remade bout on Thursday on her Instagram Stories. They will come to blows at a currently unnamed UFC Fight Night event on Aug. 13, one that will likely go down inside of the UFC Apex in Las Vegas.

Grasso is currently riding the longest win streak of her UFC career, having claimed a pair of decisions over Ji Yeon Kim and Maycee Barber in 2020 and 2021, re…