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#UFC311 just keeps getting BETTER 😮‍💨

Jan 18 can't come soon enough! pic.twitter.com/jbiVNLdpRu

— UFC (@ufc) December 5, 2024 Ultimate Fighting Championship lightweight Renato “Money” Moicano is getting his wish, just a little later than he expected.

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The organization released the full bout listing and order for UFC 311 on Thursday, which is taking place on Jan. 18 at the Intuit Dome in Los Angeles. Many of the matchups had already been announced or reported, including its headliner of Islam Makhachev vs. Arman Tsarukyan rematching for the lightweight strap, and its co-main attraction of Merab Dvalishvili vs. Umar Nurmagomedov with bantamweight gold on the line. Of note, the promotion revealed that on the main card, Beneil Dariush (22-6-1) would be throwing down with Moicano (20-5-1) in the lightweight division. Additionally, Tagir Ulanbekov and Clayton Carpenter will serve as the flyweight curtain jerker.

Dariush wi…

First PPV of 2025 is a BANGER 🔥@MAKHACHEVMMA vs @ArmanUFC 2@MerabDvalishvil vs @UNmgdv #UFC311 at the @IntuitDome | 🎟️: https://t.co/dX45J0Cwpw pic.twitter.com/QE3Evz1uQr

— UFC (@ufc) December 5, 2024

Two title bouts will top the Ultimate Fighting Championship’s return to the City of Angels.

Dana White announced on Wednesday night that UFC 311 will be headlined by a lightweight championship clash between Islam Makhachev and Arman Tsarukyan. In the co-main event, Merab Dvalishvili will defend his bantamweight crown against Umar Nurmagomedov. UFC 311 takes place on Jan. 18 at the Intuit Dome in Los Angeles and airs on pay-per-view via ESPN+.

Makchev and Tsarukyan initially squared off at UFC Fight Night 149, with Makhachev winning via unanimous decision in the April 2019 bout. That was just part of an ongoing 14-fight winning streak for Makhachev, who captured the lightweight strap with a second-round submission of Charles Oliveira a…

The rematch between Mackenzie Dern and Amanda Ribas is getting a little bit more prominent placement on the upcoming Ultimate Fighting Championship schedule.

The strawweight bout, which was originally slated for the co-main event at UFC Tampa on Dec. 7, will now instead serve as the headliner for UFC Fight Night on Jan. 11. Multiple outlets confirmed the change following an initial report from MMA Mania. Ribas defeated Dern via unanimous decision in their first meeting at UFC Fight Night 161 on Oct. 12, 2019.

A Brazilian jiu-jitsu black belt, Dern snapped a two-bout skid in her last outing, when she took a three-round verdict over Lupita Godinez at UFC on ABC 7 on Aug. 3. The 31-year-old RVCA representative owns victories over the likes of Angela Hill, Tecia Pennington and Virna Jandiroba during her promotional tenure.

Ribas has competed at both strawweight and flyweight in the UFC. The Brazilian is coming off a five-round defeat to Rose Namajunas at 125…

Turki Alalshikh hints at potentially trying to make Francis Ngannou vs Jon Jones happen 👀

“In MMA, all the time we want to do the biggest things… we need to send Dana White to the moon.” 😅

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🎥 @DAZNBoxing #UFC #MMApic.twitter.com/SqJqqUtOGj — Championship Rounds (@ChampRDS) December 3, 2024

All hope isn’t lost when it comes to making arguably the biggest heavyweight fight in MMA.

When Jon Jones initially announced his plan to return to action at heavyweight, the most anticipated fight was a showdown against then UFC heavyweight king Francis Ngannou. However, a lengthy contract dispute with the UFC eventually led to Ngannou’s exit from the promotion in January 2023. The Cameroonian-Frenchman went on to join rival promotion Professional Fighters League, where he was also allowed to compete in boxing.

Meanwhile, Jones went on to win the vacant title with an easy submission win over Ciryl Gane at UFC 285 in March 2023…

As revealed this week on the Brazilian podcast Mundo da Luta, Rickson Gracie, currently fighting Parkinson's disease, will not be present in son Kron Gracie’s corner for his return to the Octagon at UFC 310.

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Gracie will square off against Bryce Mitchell in a featherweight pairing on the main card at the T-Mobile Arena in Las Vegas on Saturday night.

“I'm very hopeful that he will have a good fight,” Rickson said. “I want him to win, but now I'm giving him space and we have a certain understanding. And now he has space to decide his life in the best way. I pray for him, but now I’m going to stay at home and watch.”

However, Sherdog has learned that Helio Gracie’s grandson will have a strong team around him when he enters the Ocagon. In addition to training partner Nate Diaz, Kron will have the support of Sergio Zveiter, Rickson's best friend — the only one present for all of his fights.

“Rickson is like a brother to me. I was present in …

Shavkat Rakhmonov says he made Ian Garry tap during their sparring sessions 😳

“I wonder why they didn’t release the other part of the sparring.”

🎥 @arielhelwani #UFC #MMA #UFC310pic.twitter.com/5h2LtBLH93

— Championship Rounds (@ChampRDS) December 3, 2024

Shavkat Rakhmonov allegedly tapped out Ian Garry in sparring.

Rakhmonov and Garry will co-headline UFC 310 on Saturday at the T-Mobile Arena in Las Vegas. The undefeated welterweights have previously trained together at Kill Cliff FC in Florida. While “Nomad” continues to train there, Garry has since relocated to Chute Boxe Diego Lima in Brazil.

Leading up to the fight, Garry released old sparring footage with Rakhmonov where the Irishman seemed to be faring well. The Kazakh has since accused Garry of releasing only those parts of the footage where he looked good. Rakhmonov recently claimed to have choked Garry during the same session.

According to Rakhmonov, Ga…

American Top Team coach Marcus “Parrumpa” da Matta arrived in Las Vegas on Sunday with Alexandre Pantoja, who will defend his flyweight title against Kai Asakura in the UFC 310 main event on Saturday night.

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“We arrived on the Sunday before the fight to start the fight week well-rested and already getting used to the Vegas atmosphere. Pantoja´s weight is better than in the last fight, although he is much stronger,” the coach revealed.

“Parrumpa” claims that Pantoja just completed one of the best camps of his MMA career to date.

“Pantoja is (extremely popular) at ATT. Even the girls who do the cleaning were thrilled and excited when he became champion,” da Matta said. “When he goes to fight, all the lightweights line up to help him. This camp was one of the best we’ve ever done.”

The Brazilian coach, who is a black belt under the legendary master Carlson Gracie, does not shy away from talking about the tactics planned to neutralize the dangero…

🗣️ Petr Yan: “I don’t know what’s going on with [Sean O’Malley]. He’s out for 9-12 months, maybe he got pregnant.” 😭😭

🎥 @arielhelwani #UFC #MMA

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pic.twitter.com/IAI5XFsiOB — Championship Rounds (@ChampRDS) December 3, 2024

Petr Yan is plotting a rematch against Sean O'Malley.

O’Malley earned a title shot with a hard-fought split decision win over Yan at UFC 280 in 2022. “Suga” went on to knock out Aljamain Sterling to win the bantamweight title at UFC 292 the next year. O’Malley has since defended his title against Marlon Vera at UFC 299 this past March before losing it against Merab Dvalishvili via a lopsided decision at UFC 306 in September.

While Yan is eyeing a rematch against O’Malley, the Russian is worried about the former champ’s lack of activity. Yan jokingly wondered if the gaps of over nine months between O’Malley’s bouts means the former champ is pregnant.

“I would lean towards a rematch with Sean…

Jean Silva (14-2) will take on Melsik Baghdasaryan (8-2) at a UFC event on Feb. 22.

The featherweight matchup was first reported by Ag.Fight. The card doesn’t have an official location but is expected to be held in Seattle.

Silva has enjoyed a rapid rise in popularity since making his Octagon debut this past January. The Brazilian is unbeaten since 2018 and earned his contract with a unanimous decision win over Kevin Vallejos on Dana White's Contender Series last year. “Lord” has since racked a three-fight knockout streak, leaving behind Westin Wilson, Charles Jourdain and Drew Dober in his wake. Silva most recently made a two-week turnaround, also moving up to lightweight to earn a doctor-stoppage win over Dober at UFC Denver in July.

Meanwhile, Baghdasaryan is 3-1 since his graduating from the Contender Series in 2020. “The Gun” last fought in July 2023, earning a unanimous decision win over Tucker Lutz that saw him bounce back from a submission loss ag…

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While the exact reason for Nick Diaz’s withdrawal from UFC 310 is unclear, there has been speculation that the popular fighter isn’t in a good place in his life right now.

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That stems primarily from a video that recently appeared on social media, where a shirtless Diaz appears to be attempting to light grass on fire. At the time, Diaz was booked to face Vicente Luque at the T-Mobile Arena in Las Vegas at UFC 310. It wasn’t much later that Themba Gorimbo was announced as Diaz’s replacement in the welterweight bout.

Jason Miller is quite familiar with struggles outside the cage. The fighter known as “Mayhem” has run afoul of the law on numerous occasions, most recently in August 2023 for allegedly choking a fan. Shortly after that incident, Miller released a statement on Instagram addressing his troubles and how for a long time, it was difficult to ask anyone for help.

Miller seems to be doing better now, and he can empathize wi…

Igor da Silva is ready to move forward with his mixed martial arts career.

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Da Silva, who is also commonly known as Igor Severino, will return to action against Jonas Magard at Oktagon 65 on Dec. 29, the promotion recently announced. It is da Silva’s first bout since he was disqualified for biting opponent Andre Lima in their encounter at UFC on ESPN 53 on March 23. Severino vs. Magard will be contested at bantamweight.

As a result of his actions, the 21-year-old Brazilian was immediately released from his UFC contract. He was later suspended for nine months and fined $2,000 by the Nevada State Athletic Commission. That term will come to an end just a few days prior to his fight against Magard.

Prior to the biting incident, da Silva kicked off his professional career with eight consecutive triumphs. He competed primarily under the Jungle Fight banner before earning a UFC contract with a second-round TKO of Jhonata Silva on Dana White’s Conte…

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Kai Kara-France will be keeping a close watch on the upcoming title fight between Alexandre Pantoja and Kai Asakura.

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Asakura will make his promotional debut, challenging Pantoja for the flyweight title in the main event at UFC 310 on Saturday at the T-Mobile Arena in Las Vegas. Kara-France considers himself to be next in line for title contention and will be keeping a keen eye on the matchup.

Kara-France also believes he has the knockout power to shut the lights out on either Pantoja or Asakura. If Pantoja wins, “Don’t Blink” wants home crowd support to avenge his “Ultimate Fighter 24” loss against the Brazilian in 2016. Meanwhile, if Asakura wins, Kara-France wants to travel to enemy territory to challenge the Japanese flyweight.

“I feel like I could definitely knock out Kai or Pantoja,” Kara-France told Engage. “So that’s why I’ll be tuning in. Let’s say now if Pantoja wins, let’s fight in New Zealand. I’ll headline it, me…

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Aljamain Sterling (24-4) believes the UFC will regret not putting his matchup against Movsar Evloev (18-0) on the main card.

Sterling and Evloev will clash on the prelims at UFC 310 on Saturday at the T-Mobile Arena in Las Vegas. The former UFC bantamweight champ isn’t even part of the evening’s featured preliminary bout, as that position instead goes to Dominick Reyes and Anthony Smith.

While Sterling is confused by his placement on the card, he chooses to see the positive side of fighting on the prelims. “Funkmaster” is glad that he will be done early and hopefully get to celebrate a win with his friends while enjoying the rest of the card.

While both Sterling and Evloev are among the best featherweights in the world, neither has the most fan-friendly style. Both Sterling and Evloev have often been criticized for lackluster performances and the lack of finishes on their records. However, Sterling believes both fans and the promotion are in f…

Ian Garry continues to hold a grudge against Colby Covington.

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Garry will take on Shavkat Rakhmonov in a potential title eliminator in the co-main event at UFC 310 on Saturday at the T-Mobile Arena in Las Vegas. Meanwhile, Covington will headline a UFC Fight Night opposite rising contender Joaquin Buckley at the Amalie Arena in Tampa, Florida, on Dec. 14.

Garry’s feud with Covington started with “Chaos” taking unprovoked digs at the Irishman and his wife earlier this year. While Garry has since been calling Covington out, the former interim champ accepted a booking against Buckley after “The Future” was matched up with Rakhmonov. Garry has previously urged Buckley to knock Covington out, which he believes “New Mansa” is perfectly capable of doing. However, in an even more ideal scenario, Garry would love to make quick work of “Nomad” at UFC 310 and take on Covington at UFC Tampa the following week.

“I think Buckley starches him,” Garry told Arie…

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Shavkat Rakhmonov was allegedly turned down by a slew of opponents for UFC 310.

Rakhmonov was initially scheduled to challenge Belal Muhammad for the welterweight title at UFC 310 on Saturday before the champ was forced out with an infection. “Nomad” was eventually matched up against Ian Garry in the evening’s co-headliner at the T-Mobile Arena in Las Vegas.

Prior to that, there were rumors of a potential booking between Rakhmonov and Kamaru Usman. However, Rakhmonov recently revealed that Usman was not the only fighter who was offered a matchup against him at UFC 310. According to “Nomad,” Usman, Carlos Prates and Colby Covington all turned down bookings against him for various reasons. While Prates was injured, Covington simply turned it down and Usman backed out after initially accepting the fight.

“I wanted to fight Kamaru Usman. But he didn’t accept the fight,” Rakhmonov told Submission Radio. “Also, they offered to Prates, but he was inju…

It remains to be seen if or when Jake Paul will make his mixed martial arts debut, but there was one recent rumor involving the YouTube personality turned boxer that generated some discussion in the combat sports community.

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Last week, BJJ World published a report from justbleedmma.com that Paul would be making his MMA debut against retired UFC welterweight contender Demian Maia. The Brazilian jiu-jitsu ace, who works now as UFC Fight Pass Brazil commentator, replied immediately.

“I´m totally in,” Maia wrote, while tagging Paul.

Carlos Barreto, who is Maia’s broadcast partner, analyzed the report on his Papo de Luta podcast.

“Demian is retired, but he keeps training hard. He is totally in shape,” Barreto said. “I dont think it's true just because I think it would be a terrible choice for Jake. Demian would grab him fast, get his back and submit him with a rear-naked choke. People must understand that it’s one thing for an MMA fighter to …

👀🔥Jorge Masvidal announces his UFC return in April in Miami and hopes to know who his opponent will soon:

“Hopefully by December we got the opponent and April, Miami card”

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🎥@jakeshieldsajj 🔹 pic.twitter.com/s7T5qIQQ7a — Home of Fight (@Home_of_Fight) December 2, 2024

Jorge Masvidal has his sights set on making a Ultimate Fighting Championship return in his hometown.

“I’ll be back April next year in the UFC,” Masvidal recently said on the Fight Back podcast. “We don’t have the opponent yet. Hopefully by December we’ve got the opponent. April, Miami card.”

The 40-year-old Masvidal hasn’t competed in MMA since April 2023, when he dropped a unanimous verdict to Gilbert Burns at UFC 287, which also took place in Miami. “Gamebred” announced his retirement after the defeat, a decision which was which was endorsed by UFC CEO Dana White. However, Masvidal returned to combat sports this past July, losing a majority …

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Professional Fighters League isn’t slowing down anytime soon.

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In a recent interview with talkSPORT MMA, PFL CEO Peter Murray outlined the organization’s plans for expansion, which includes a significant increase in the total number of events held in the coming years.

“We have a regular cadence for every property. This year, we had 28 events,” Murray said. “Next year, we’ll have 36 events. Come 2026, we’ll have 50 events. So we’re focused on our global franchise events and then regional league events.”

This past year marked the debut of PFL MENA, which Murray said will soon be holding events “throughout the Middle East” after using Saudi Arabia as its home base to start. The overseas growth is far from complete, as PFL plans to have a total of “six international leagues up and running in the next two years,” according to Murray.

One of the biggest stories at the end of 2023 was PFL’s purchase of Bellator MMA. The organ…

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Ciryl Gane claims he wasn’t completely himself when he lost to Jon Jones at UFC 285.

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Gane was the interim heavyweight champ when Jones returned to the Octagon after a three-year hiatus to fight for the vacant title. “Bones” barely crossed the two-minute mark in the first round before taking Gane down and securing a guillotine submission victory. It was a disappointing performances from “Bon Gamin,” whose only other career loss came against Francis Ngannou.

Looking back at the loss, Gane doesn’t recognize himself. Gane claims he was totally disoriented on fight night, which was reflected in his performance. Known for his elusive movement and range control, Gane didn’t display any of that against Jones. However, Gane believes the loss was eventually beneficial, as it allowed him to refocus on himself and return with a vengeful spirit.

“When I look back at it, it was obvious that I was not there,” Gane said on the UFC 310 Count…

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Renowned coach Firas Zahabi believes Shavkat Rakhmonov won’t lose his perfect record against fellow undefeated contender Ian Garry.

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Rakhmonov and Garry will trade leather at UFC 310 on Saturday at the T-Mobile Arena in Las Vegas. The bout will see one of the undefeated welterweights lose their perfect record. And Zahabi doesn’t think it’ll be Rakhmonov, at least for now.

Zahabi has been impressed with Rakhmonov for a while now, acknowledging the Kazakh as the enigma that he is. Zahabi recently praised Rakhmonov’s toughness yet again, which he believes will be too much for Garry. While Zahabi has seen lapses in Rakhmonov’s defense, he believes “Nomad” will make up for it with sheer grit.

“I think Shavkat’s gonna beat [Ian Garry]. After watching his fights it’s kind of obvious,” the Tristar Gym coach said on YouTube. “He has a relentless pressure, the man is an animal. He doesn’t have the best defense, but when he gets hit, h…

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The origin of Kai Asakura’s MMA career is quite fascinating.

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Asakura will challenge Alexandre Pantoja for the flyweight strap in the main event at UFC 310 on Saturday at the T-Mobile Arena in Las Vegas. The former Rizin Fighting Federation champ will also be making his UFC debut against “The Cannibal.”

Asakura recently revealed how a street fight against his elder brother helped him realize his true MMA potential. Asakura’s elder brother, Mikuru Asakura, is a street fighter turned pro MMA fighter. On one fateful day, Mikuru challenged his younger brother to a street fight after he ran out of other opponents. Kai claims he was able to dodge almost every strike from Mikuru, who was throwing with serious intent. That’s when the future UFC title challenger realized he could earn his bread and butter through fighting.

“The story of how I got into MMA is quite crazy,” Asakura said on the UFC 310 Countdown show. “My older brother…

A bantamweight clash pitting Payton Talbott against Raoni Barcelos has been confirmed for UFC 311.

The promotion announced the booking over the weekend. UFC 311 takes place on Jan. 18 at the Intuit Dome in Los Angeles and includes a light heavyweight showdown between Jiri Prochazka and Jamahal Hill. A headliner has not been announced for the event.

Talbott has emerged as a prospect to watch since earning a UFC contract on Dana White's Contender Series in August 2023. The 26-year-old Reno, Nevada, native has kicked off his promotional tenure with finishes off Nick Aguirre, Cameron Saaiman and Yanis Ghemmouri in his first three Octagon appearances. Talbott is 9-0 since beginning his professional career in 2021.

Barcelos, meanwhile, was successful in his lone outing of 2024, as he scored a third-round submission triumph against Cristian Quinonez at UFC Fight Night 237 this past February. Prior to that, the 37-year-old Brazilian had lost four of his previous…

"When I am a champion, I would like to fight with Charles... I would like to finish him" 👀

Arman Tsarukyan foresees defending the lightweight belt against Charles Olivieira if he defeats Islam Makhachev...

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🎙️ @CarolinePearce pic.twitter.com/7W4zDt14DC — UFC on TNT Sports (@ufcontnt) November 29, 2024

Arman Tsarukyan wants a more decisive win over Charles Oliveira.

Tsarukyan is expected to challenge Islam Makhachev for the lightweight title at UFC 311 in January, although the promotion has yet to make the fight official. “Ahalkalakets” believes the UFC will officially announce the bout within the next week.

“My manager said I’m gonna fight for the title beginning of the next year,” Tsarukyan recently told TNT Sports. “I’m so excited. And hopefully after this event they gonna announce like official, when I’m gonna fight. But they already told me the place where I’m gonna fight, the date when I’m gonna fight. We know…

#UFC310 is right around the corner!

Flyweight gold is on the line! 😤

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[ WATCH Countdown on ESPN2 | SAT | 1pmET ] pic.twitter.com/DfdXKuzuYg — UFC (@ufc) November 30, 2024

Kai Asakura (21-4) believes knockout power is his greatest advantage over Alexandre Pantoja (28-5).

Asakura will challenge Pantoja for the flyweight title in his promotional debut in the main event of UFC 310 on Saturday at the T-Mobile Arena in Las Vegas. The former Rizin Fighting Federation bantamweight champ claims he can knock “The Cannibal” out cold with one clean shot. According to Asakura, Pantoja just needs to have one lapse for him to end the contest with his proven knockout power.

“My advantage over Pantoja is that I can finish him in one shot,” Asakura said on the UFC 310 Countdown show. “So if he makes even one mistake, I’m confident that I can KO him in one shot.”

Asakura has finished 16 of his 21 career wins, which incl…