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Don’t let the split-decision outcome fool you: Sean Strickland was clearly in control during his victory over Jack Hermansson in the UFC Fight Night 200 main event.

However, Strickland’s five-round verdict was not the type of performance that launches a fighter into the next level of stardom. Strickland, who has garnered more than his fair share of attention for his off-color comments outside of the cage, admitted at Saturday’s press conference that the notion of headlining a UFC card with potential title ramifications got into his head a little bit.

“You know what it is, man? I let the pressure get the better of me,” Strickland said. “I knew I was better than him. You guys knew I was better than him. He was a guy that I should have, maybe not finished, but he should’ve been more bloody and messed up after the fight. But he wasn’t. That was because I took my foot off the gas. I just coasted through that fight. I don’t really even think I was trying that hard. I kind …

You already knew who was getting that FOTN honor tonight #UFCVegas47

[ B2YB @ToyoTires ] pic.twitter.com/a9e5pUfqJW

— UFC (@ufc) February 6, 2022 The Ultimate Fighting Championship stayed home for UFC Fight Night 200, where three competitors pocketed some serious bonus money on Saturday at the UFC Apex in Las Vegas.

Julian Erosa doubled dipped, as “Juicy J” was awarded $100,000 for his “Fight of the Night” with Steven Peterson. The two tore into each other for three rounds, with Erosa walking away as a split decision winner. Peterson was ineligible for his share of the bonus money—it went to his counterpart instead—due to his failure to make weight for the match.

Meanwhile, Shavkat Rakhmonov nabbed a $50,000 “Performance of the Night” bonus for his vicious knockout of Carlston Harris in their showcase affair at 170 pounds. Rakhmonov knocked the Renovacao Fight Team member to the canvas with a spinning hook kick, then finished him…

Sign up for ESPN+ right here, and you can then stream the UFC, PFL, Dana White’s Contender Series and “The Ultimate Fighter” live on your smart TV, computer, phone, tablet or streaming device via the ESPN app. It equated to little more than a walk in the park for Sean Strickland. A soul-stealing jab, airtight takedown defense and sublime footwork spurred the ascending Ultimate Fighting Championship middleweight contender to a split decision over Jack Hermansson in the UFC Fight Night 200 headliner on Saturday at the UFC Apex in Las Vegas. Two judges saw it 49-46 for Strickland, while Sal D’Amato struck a head-scratching 48-47 scorecard for Hermansson (22-7, 9-5 UFC).

The 30-year-old Strickland (25-3, 12-3 UFC) ate a number of leg kicks from the former Cage Warriors Fighting Championship titleholder but otherwise dominated the vast majority of their exchanges. He slipped out of range with surprising ease, cut off Hermansson’s bids for takedowns and piled up points with one…

Sherdog's live UFC Fight Night 200 coverage will begin Saturday at 4 p.m. ET.

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

Round 1 Sherdog Scores Jay Pettry scores the round:Tudor Leonte scores the round:Tyler Treese scores the round:Round 2 Sherdog Scores Jay Pettry scores the round:Tudor Leonte scores the round:Tyler Treese scores the round:Round 3 Sherdog Scores Jay Pettry scores the round:Tudor Leonte scores the round:Tyler Treese scores the round:The Official Result Round 1 Sherdog Scores Jay Pettry scores the round:Tudor Leonte scores the round:Tyler Treese scores the round:Round 2 Sherdog Scores Jay Pettry scores the round:Tudor Leonte scores the round:Tyler Treese scores the round:Round 3 Sherdog Scores Jay Pettry scores the round:Tudor Leonte scores the round:Tyler Treese scores the round:The Official Result Round 1 Sherdog Scores Jay Pettry scores the round:Tudor Leonte scores the round:Tyler Treese scores the…

GOOD NIGHT! John Castaneda locks in the sub in R3 😴 #UFCVegas47 pic.twitter.com/NiYvIhaLBX

— UFC Canada (@UFC_CA) February 5, 2022

John Castaneda sent a pointed message to anyone who dares to overlook him in the Ultimate Fighting Championship bantamweight division.

The former Combate Global champion choked Miles Johns unconscious with an arm-triangle in the third round of their featured UFC Fight Night 200 prelim on Saturday at the UFC Apex in Las Vegas. Johns (12-2, 3-2 UFC) went to sleep 98 seconds into Round 3, as the Fortis MMA prospect suffered the second setback of his 14-fight career.

After a closely contested first round, Castaneda (19-5, 2-1 UFC) found another gear and ultimately wore down the onetime Legacy Fighting Alliance titleholder with relentless forward pressure. He staggered Johns with a right hook early in the third round, gave chase, connected with a knee and forced him to retreat to the canvas. Castaneda pounced w…

The ref has seen enough! #LFA123 pic.twitter.com/Yn8y8fJSct

— UFC FIGHT PASS (@UFCFightPass) February 5, 2022 Dan Argueta stayed undefeated after his first Legacy Fighting Alliance main event atop the LFA 123 card.

Argueta showed off his superior grappling early as he took down Mairon Santos Alves and that became a theme of the fight. In Round 2, Argueta (7-0) rained down punches from top position and put Alves (12-1) in danger. The final frame was more of the same as "The Determined" obtained another takedown and punished Santos with punches and elbows until the referee mercifully stopped the beating at 2:40 of Round 3.

The co-main event saw Askar Askar gain some pivotal momentum at bantamweight. "AK-47" was able to outstrike Ryskulbek Ibraimov over three rounds with neither fighter ever being in danger of being finished. The work of Askar (13-2) on the feet led to three 29-28 scorecards in his favor. Ibraimov falls to 19-10 with the def…

ONE: FULL CIRCLE goes down on 25 February, headlined by THREE World Title fights and the highly-anticipated trilogy between Aung La N Sang and Vitaly Bigdash! @AungLANsang #WeAreONE #ONEChampionship#ONEFullCircle | 25 February pic.twitter.com/RZMCjnKOin

— ONE Championship (@ONEChampionship) February 4, 2022 One Championship is stacking the deck for its event at the end of February.

The promotion announced via press release the fight card for One: “Full Circle” that will take place on Feb. 25. Fourteen matches, including seven under MMA rules, will fill out a lineup that is capped off by a trio of championship affairs. The main event will see two-division champ Reinier de Ridder (14-0) attempt to defend his 205-pound crown against hard-charging Kyrgyzstani contender Kiamrian Abbasov (23-4).

The two other title fights take place in kickboxing and muay Thai, with Roman Kryklia defending his 225-pound belt against Murat Aygun, and champ Pe…

Contract is signedFight in March 26

— Alexey Oleynik (@oleynikufc) February 4, 2022 Sign up for ESPN+ right here, and you can then stream the UFC live on your smart TV, computer, phone, tablet or streaming device via the ESPN app. With this fight, Ultimate Fighting Championship heavyweight Alexey Oleynik will hope to end a losing streak while recording the 60th win of his career. On previous events, Oleynik (59-16-1) was booked against Greg Hardy, while Ilir Latifi (15-8, 1 NC) was expected to take on Alexander Romanov. Hardy withdrew from the match due to a finger injury, while Romanov pulled out from his fight for currently undisclosed reasons. Instead of preserving the matchups, the promotion pushed the fights back and booked Oleynik against Latifi at UFC on ESPN 33 on March 26 in Columbus, Ohio. The news first broke from BJPenn.com on Friday, and both heavyweights subsequently confirmed the new billing on social media.

Oleynik has not got…

Don’t miss the champ @VenezuelanVixen on @TheEllenShow airing today at 3pm PT pic.twitter.com/XyPbCNXVtu

— UFC (@ufc) February 4, 2022 Sign up for ESPN+ right here, and you can then stream the UFC live on your smart TV, computer, phone, tablet or streaming device via the ESPN app. “The Ultimate Fighter” will truly never die. The Ultimate Fighting Championship released the news on Friday that TUF 30 will commence on May 3. All 12 episodes of the season will air on ESPN+, and coaches for the teams will be bantamweight champ Julianna Pena against featherweight queen Amanda Nunes. The lineup will consist of heavyweights as well as women’s flyweights, with eight participants in the ranks of each division.

In the heavyweight division, the cast members include: unbeaten up-and-comer Nyle Bartling, Professional Fighters League vet Chandler Cole, ex-Legacy Fighting Alliance powerhouse Jordan Heiderman, former UFC light heavyweight Rob MacDonald, LFA and…

The second Triad Combat show from Triller Fight Club will no longer be taking place at the end of February.

Ariel Helwani broke the news on Friday that Triad Combat 2 had been scratched. The event was slated to take place at the Toyota Center in Houston on Feb. 26, and the Toyota Center confirmed the fight card is canceled. Per the organization, the reason for its cancelation came from rising COVID-19 cases in the Houston area. There is no current date on the calendar for it to return.

The Triller team released a short statement regarding the postponement of the fight card on Thursday, writing, “Triller Fight Club has decided to reschedule the upcoming Triad Combat 2 event slated for February 26th at the Toyota Center in Houston, Texas. We made this hard decision out of an abundance of caution for the Fight Club athletes and fans of Triad and Jason Aldean; we determined that, given the current state of the Omicron virus, it was in our collective interest to postpone …

On weight and ready to rock 💪

[ @SStricklandMMA | #UFCVegas47 | Saturday | Prelims 4pmET | Main Card 7pmET | LIVE on @ESPNPlus ] pic.twitter.com/4rc48pHckT

— UFC (@ufc) February 4, 2022 Sign up for ESPN+ right here, and you can then stream the UFC live on your smart TV, computer, phone, tablet or streaming device via the ESPN app. The Ultimate Fighting Championship hits another milestone with UFC Fight Night 200, which is now official after the weigh-ins took place.

While the 200th UFC Fight Night event isn't stacked like the promotion's pay-per-view milestones, it does feature an intriguing middleweight headliner between Jack Hermansson and Sean Strickland. It is joined by 12 other bouts, and not every fighter made weight. Steven Peterson came in three pounds overweight for his featherweight bout against Julian Erosa, he has been fined 30% of his purse and the bout will still proceed.

This is the fourth UFC main event for Herma…

Sign up for ESPN+ right here, and you can then stream the UFC live on your smart TV, computer, phone, tablet or streaming device via the ESPN app. A big Ultimate Fighting Championship bout at 205 pounds will have to wait a bit longer. In the light heavyweight division, Ryan Spann (19-7) and Ion Cutelaba (16-6-1) were set to throw down at UFC Fight Night 202 on Feb. 26. The 205-pound banger has been postponed as of Thursday, when Sherdog learned of the fight’s removal from the UFC Apex-based card. Cutelaba has since posted on his Instagram that Spann suffered an injury, and that the fight will be pushed back to a later date instead of seeking a replacement opponent.

Spann was looking to get back in the win column after alternating victories and setbacks in his last four. While he has beaten Sam Alvey and Misha Cirkunov in the last two years, a pair of first-round stoppages against Johnny Walker and Anthony Smith has blunted his momentum as of late. “Superman” burst on to…

Sign up for ESPN+ right here, and you can then stream the UFC live on your smart TV, computer, phone, tablet or streaming device via the ESPN app. Newly minted Ultimate Fighting Championship flyweight champ Deiveson Figueiredo has experienced a litany of attacks from fans on the internet since beating Brandon Moreno. Following his fiery interview on the MMA Hour, where Figueiredo asked for one million dollars to make a fourth fight with Brandon Moreno, the champ discarded the possibility for revenge in Mexico. At the end of UFC 270, “Daico” claimed he would be willing to face Moreno in his home country of Mexico, but he has since changed his mind. On Thursday, the flyweight champion held a press conference at his Team Figueiredo gym in Belem, Brazil, where he spoke of racist attacks he has suffered from fans online.

“Since Moreno said I was a great fighter but a terrible human being, I’ve been suffering attacks from Mexicans who are being racist with me, calling me a ‘mo…

[youtube https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=p43GrO_2Tjg&w=560&h=315]

The heavyweights will be in the spotlight for Week 6 of the PFL Challenger Series on March 25.

The promotion announced on Wednesday the matchups for all four heavyweight bouts: former UFC middleweight talent Bevon Lewis vs. Brazilian jiu-jitsu champion Marcelo Nunes; undefeated Brazilian prospect Giacomo Lemos vs. 2019 Legacy Fighting Alliance heavyweight tournament champion Brett Martin; undefeated Bellator veteran Adam Keresh vs. ex-Dana White’s Contender Series competitor Chad Johnson and former Temple University fullback Daiqwon Buckley vs. Jackson-Wink MMA representative Jon Cunningham.

One winner will be selected to compete in the heavyweight division for the 2022 PFL season or will receive a developmental contract in hopes of appearing in a future PFL campaign.

The PFL Challenger Series takes place at Universal Studios in Orlando, Fla., and airs on Fubo Sports Network at 9 p.m. ET/6 p.m. PT…

It’s not exactly a retirement announcement, but it doesn’t sound like Megan Anderson will be resuming her mixed martial arts career anytime soon, either.

The former UFC featherweight title challenger and Invicta FC champion released a statement via social media providing an update on her fight plans, or in this case — a lack thereof.

“For all those that are asking and continue to ask me daily, I have no plans to fight right now,” Anderson wrote on Instagram. “I'm not saying that I will never fight again, but at this point in my life, I'm loving everything else I'm doing. From gaming and streaming, working as an analyst for ESPN and Invicta, and currently filming my first major feature film. I couldn't be happier and fighting really isn't on my mind.

“I'm currently not affiliated with any gym, I'm not signed to any promotion right now and haven't been pursuing a new fight contract. I appreciate the love and interest from everyone hoping to see me in the cage…

The ground game of @AndreMunizUFC is NO JOKE #UFC269 pic.twitter.com/oWFvJ2Cw4h

— UFC (@ufc) December 12, 2021

Andre Muniz will take a four-fight promotional winning streak into his matchup with “The Ultimate Fighter 17” finalist Uriah Hall at UFC Fight Night on April 16.

“Hall is very tough, experienced guy who already had great fights against top opponents,” Muniz told Sherdog.com. “We already studied some of his fights against jiu-jitsu opponents and we know how hard it is to take him down. He has good takedown defense and strong jabs and spinning kicks.

“So there is no easy way to fight him. I will have to brawl with him, answering every single strike, pressuring him and when I get the right timing, take him down.”

Muniz, who lives in Minas Gerais, Brazil, came to Rio de Janeiro on Jan. 30 to begin his camp at Tata Fight Team.

“I’m already in Rio doing my camp at TFT with my masters Philipe Lima and Tata Duarte,” Muniz sai…

More PFL Challenger Series Matchups are Set #PFLonFuboTV pic.twitter.com/VX4Clb65tz

— PFL (@PFLMMA) February 2, 2022

The pairings are in place for two more PFL Challenger Series events.

The promotion on Wednesday announced the matchups for the women’s lightweight card on March 4 and men’s featherweight bill on March 11. Both events air on the Fubo Sports Network at 9 p.m. ET/6 p.m. PT on their respective dates.

The four 155-pound female bouts for the PFL Challenger Series are as follows: Martina Jindrova vs. Jacqueline Cavalcanti; Jackie Cataline vs. Evelyn Martins; Julia Dorny vs. Jeslen Michelle and Michelle Montague vs. Olivia Parker. Jindrova vs. Cavalcanti will receive top billing on the card.

Noticeably absent from the lineup is French Olympic wrestler Cynthia Vescan, who was originally announced as part of the lightweight field. A reason for Vescan’s departure was not given in the PFL release.

Meanwhile, the four men’s …

[youtube https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=0-7Bn741KFg&w=560&h=315]

After the controversy surrounding his inability to make the middleweight limit for his last fight with Marvin Vettori, Paulo Costa surprised the MMA community by demanding an immediate rematch with “The Italian Dream.”

Vettori ultimately agreed to face Costa at 205 pounds in the UFC Fight Night 196 main event this past October and defeated the Brazilian via unanimous decision. It was Costa’s second consecutive loss within the Las Vegas-based promotion.

“I don't respect him. I want to end his life. He's an asshole, a fool. He had this victory over me and he thinks he's 'the man,’” Costa told Brazilian outlet Ag Fight. “But he's an asshole, he can't even wear his shorts right. But I will fight him again. Well, at least I intend to.”

Costa revealed that he has one fight remaining on his UFC contract, but he is only interested in facing Vettori. “Borrachina” says he has made his wishes very clear.

<…

Marlon Moraes will attempt to snap the first losing streak of his Ultimate Fighting Championship tenure when he faces Yadong Song at UFC Fight Night 203 next month. His plans were threatened a few weeks ago, however, when he grew ill en route to Phuket, Thailand for training, an illness that ended up being COVID. In an exclusive conversation with Sherdog, Moraes talked about the nightmarish situation of being sick and under quarantine in another country, the reasons the American Top Team mainstay was in Thailand in the first place, and whether it affected his preparations for the Song fight.

You last fought in September of 2021. You’re currently booked to fight again in March. Around Jan. 12, you revealed that you were COVID-positive in Thailand. Can you provide an update since that time?I caught COVID. I got a bit sick. I was isolated for some time. I was afraid that I wouldn’t have sufficient time to get ready for my fight but thankfully, I recovered fast. I’ve been i…

Jiri Prochazka is the latest big name to head to Fight Ready to prepare for an upcoming bout.

ESPN first reported that Prochazka would train at the Arizona-based camp, and former two-division UFC champ Henry Cejudo posted a photo alongside Prochazka on social media. Prochazka joins a growing list of notable fighters who have spent time at Fight Ready, including former 205-pound king Jon Jones, flyweight champ Deiveson Figueiredo, ex-strawweight queen Weili Zhang and featherweight contender Chan Sung Jung, to name a few.

Prochazka, who is normally anchored at Jetsaam Gym Brno, is scheduled to challenge for light heavyweight gold against reigning champion Glover Teixiera at UFC 274 on May 7. The event was originally slated for Rio de Janeiro but is expected to relocated to an as yet to be announced venue in the United States.

A former Rizin Fighting Federation title holder, Prochazka is currently on a 12-bout winning streak that includes 11 victories via knockou…

The UFC Fight Night card on May 21 has its main event, as Holly Holm is expected to square off against Ketlen Vieira in a women’s bantamweight bout.

Both fighters have agreed to a five-round headlining bout, which was initially reported by Ariel Helwani. Additionally, two-time light heavyweight title challenger Alexander Gustafsson will remain at heavyweight for a matchup with Ben Rothwell. Frontkick Online initially brought word of the Gustafsson-Rothwell pairing.

A former bantamweight champion and featherweight title challenger, Holm hasn’t seen action since a convincing five-round verdict over Irene Aldana in the UFC on ESPN 16 main event in October 2020. Since then, injuries have forced the Jackson-Wink MMA product to withdraw from proposed bouts against Julianna Pena on May 8 and against Norma Dumont on Oct. 16. Holm has won three of her last four Octagon appearances.

Vieira is coming off a 1-1 2021 campaign that saw her drop a unanimous decision to Yana …

After nearly two years on the sidelines, Blagoy Ivanov will return to the Octagon to face Marcos Rogerio de Lima at UFC 274.

De Lima confirmed the heavyweight booking on social media following an initial report from BJPenn.com. UFC 274 takes place at an as yet to be announced location and features a pair of title bouts at the top of the card: Glover Teixeira vs. Jiri Prochazka at light heavyweight and Charles Oliveira vs. Justin Gaethje at lightweight.

A former World Series of Fighting Champion, Ivanov hasn’t competed since a split-decision defeat against Augusto Sakai at UFC on ESPN 9 in May 2020. The Bulgarian heavyweight is 2-3 in UFC competition, with victories over Tai Tuivasa and Ben Rothwell. His 18-4 career mark includes a 6-1 stint in Bellator MMA.

De Lima, meanwhile, has been victorious in three of his last four Octagon appearances. Most recently, the 36-year-old Brazilian stopped Rothwell via TKO in 32 seconds at UFC Fight Night 197 this past Novemb…

While it wasn’t surprising to see Jon Jones weigh in on the UFC 270 headliner via social media, reigning heavyweight king Francis Ngannou isn’t holding his breath regarding a potential fight with the former 205-pound champion.

“If this is the Apex of heavyweight fighting, I’m excited about it,” Jones wrote following Ngannou’s unanimous decision win over Ciryl Gane on Jan. 22. “Got some more records to break.”

If this is the Apex of heavyweight fighting, I’m excited about it. Got some more records to break

— BONY (@JonnyBones) January 23, 2022

Jones, of course, hasn’t fought since February 2020, when he edged Dominick Reyes in a light heavyweight title defense at UFC 247. In the meantime, “Bones” has often mused about his long-awaited heavyweight debut, but thus far, nothing has come to fruition.

That fact isn’t lost on Ngannou, who has been linked to a mega-fight with Jones since before he won the heavyweight title. “The Predator” is…

[youtube https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Xun2eFO9h2I&w=560&h=315]

A middleweight clash pitting Sam Alvey against Phil Hawes won’t happen at UFC Fight Night 200 as originally planned.

Alvey announced the bout’s cancellation on his YouTube page, revealing that Hawes had been forced to withdraw due to an undisclosed injury.

“I hope he’s OK. I heard he’s injured. I don’t know exactly what happened,” Alvey said. “My prayers are with him. I hope he heals.”

Now, Alvey will square off against Brendan Allen at UFC Fight Night 200 on short notice. Multiple outlets confirmed the new middleweight booking following an initial report from Eurosport. Hawes was the second proposed opponent for Alvey at UFC Fight Night 200, as Ian Heinisch also withdrew from the event.

“Smile’n” Sam is currently mired in a seven-bout winless streak in which a draw against Da Un Jung at UFC 254 is the only non-defeat during that period. Alvey hasn’t won a bout in the Octagon since June 201…