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"The Phoenix” will be eligible to fight again in April 2022.

On Wednesday, USADA announced that former Ultimate Fighting Championship contender Erik Koch had accepted his 18-month suspension. "The Phoenix” tested positive for a metabolite of stanozolol called 3′-hydroxy-stanozolol. The test was carried on Oct. 3, 2020, coinciding with the date when his period of ineligibility begins.

Koch (16-6) most recently competed at UFC 240 in July 2019, when he outpointed Kyle Stewart via unanimous decision. That night, the World Extreme Cagefighting vet snapped a two-bout skid in addition to registering his first win since May 29, 2016. Previously, he dropped back-to-back decisions to Clay Guida and Bobby Green.

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On Dec. 23, 2020, the news broke out that “The Phoenix” was laid off by the UFC. Th…

Per sources, Khalil Rountree will take on Modestas Bukauskas in a 205lbs clash in an upcoming UFC Fight Night card on Sept. 4. Sources couldn't confirm the location, but previous reports indicated the UFC is targeting London, England, for the event. More coming on @sherdogdotcom.

— Tudor Leonte (@MrTudorLeonte) June 16, 2021

Ultimate Fighting Championship light heavyweights will collide in the Octagon soon. According to Sherdog sources, Khalil Rountree will face Modestas Bukauskas in a 205-pound showdown in an upcoming UFC Fight Night card, which will go down on Sept. 4. Sources couldn't confirm the location of the fight.

Rountree (8-5, 4-5 UFC) dropped a decision to Marcin Prachnio during their tilt on the preliminary UFC 257 preliminary card in his last action. Previously, the 31-year old fighter was stopped with elbows by Ion Cutelaba at UFC Fight Night 160. The latest victory of “The War Horse” dates back to April 2019, when he upende…

Upper Deck and the Professional Fighters League announced today a multi-year deal for licensed collectibles and memorabilia products and exclusive for trading cards. Collectors will be able to buy, open, collect, and trade their first PFL card beginning on June 18, 2021.

— Ariel Helwani (@arielhelwani) June 16, 2021

It appears that fans will be able to collect their favorite Professional Fighters League fighters.

On Wednesday morning, PFL announced that it had signed a multi-year deal with Upper Deck for memorabilia products for its athletes and licensed collectibles, including trading cards. It will be Upper Deck’s first foray into professional fighting trading cards. The partnership will include collectibles that feature autographs and trading cards available in both physical and digital forms.

“Professional Fighters League is excited to partner with Upper Deck to provide MMA fans with unique collectibles of their favorite fighters as…

BREAKING

Unfinished business in the Octagon will be settled on September 18th. Ion Cutelaba vs. Devin Clark is rescheduled for that date in the Light-Heavyweight division. Location TBA.

The fight was originally supposed to happen earlier this year on May 1st. pic.twitter.com/A4315GhELp — MMA DNA (@MMADNANL) June 16, 2021

A light heavyweight clash has been added to the upcoming Sept. 18 UFC Fight Night card in Las Vegas.

Ultimate Fighting Championship 205-pound contenders Ion Cutelaba and Devin Clark will lock horns in the Octagon on Sept. 18, a person with knowledge of the situation confirmed to Sherdog. MMA DNA reported was the first to report the pairing. “The Hulk” and Clark should have clashed at UFC on ESPN 23, but Clark pulled out of the contest due to an undisclosed injury and was replaced by Dustin Jacoby.

Unfortunately for Cutelaba (15-6-1 1NC, 4-5-1 UFC), his clash with Jacoby ended in a split draw. That night, “Th…

Tim Means and Nicolas Dalby will square off at UFC Fight Night 190 after both men lost previously scheduled opponents.

The promotion announced the new welterweight bout on Tuesday. UFC Fight Night 190 takes place at the UFC Apex in Las Vegas on June 26 and is headlined by a heavyweight clash between Ciryl Gane and Alexander Volkov.

Means was originally slated to meet Danny Roberts at UFC on ESPN 25 this Saturday, but Roberts had to exit the card due to COVID-19 protocols. Meanwhile, Sergey Khandozhko, Dalby’s original foe, suffered an injury and had to withdraw from UFC Fight Night 190.

Means has been victorious in three of his last four promotional appearances. “The Dirty Bird” is coming off a unanimous decision triumph over Mike Perry at UFC 255 this past November. The 37-year-old FIT-NHB stalwart is 31-12-1 over the course of a pro career that began in 2004.

Dalby is unbeaten in his last seven professional outings. He is 2-0 with one no contest during …

A pivotal welterweight bout between Michael Chiesa and Vicente Luque is on tap for UFC 265.

Multiple outlets confirmed the booking following an initial report from Cageside Press. UFC 265 takes place on Aug. 7 at an as yet to be announced location and is headlined by a women’s bantamweight title tilt pitting Amanda Nunes against Julianna Pena.

Chiesa is 4-0 since moving to 170 pounds from lightweight in 2018. The 33-year-old Sikjitsu representative kicked off his 2021 campaign with a lopsided five-round verdict over Neil Magny in the UFC on ESPN 20 headliner on Jan. 20. “Maverick” also owns welterweight triumphs against Rafael dos Anjos, Diego Sanchez and Carlos Condit.

Luque has won nine of 10 Octagon appearances dating back to October 2017, with his only defeat during that time coming at the hands of Stephen Thompson. Luque’s current three-bout winning streak features finishes of Niko Price, Randy Brown and Tyron Woodley.

I could fight this Moron if he show to fight like that. pic.twitter.com/xQnS3rcqaN

— Paulo Costa ( Borrachinha ) (@BorrachinhaMMA) June 14, 2021

Paulo Costa has responded to Marvin Vettori’s challenge.

“The Italian Dream” called out the Brazilian middleweight shortly after his loss to Israel Adesanya in the UFC 263 headliner.

“To be honest, I’d like to really destroy this drunk guy that can’t even stay off drinking,” Vettori said of Costa. “It’s ‘Borrachinha’ … I’d definitely like to smack this guy.”

Costa replied in turn, accepting Vettori’s callout while mockingly posting a photo of Vettori from a Venum photo session.

“I can fight this moron if he shows up like that,” Costa wrote.

Costa has not stepped into the Octagon since September, when he suffered a second-round technical knockout loss to Adesanya in a title bout at UFC 253. Since then, “Borrachina” has been involved in a public dispute with the promotion regardin…

I will not be fighting the 19th. New fight news on the way.

— tim means (@MeansTim) June 15, 2021

A welterweight clash pitting Tim Means against Danny Roberts has been removed from UFC on ESPN 25.

MMAFighting.com initially confirmed that cancellation following a post from Means on social media. UFC on ESPN 25 takes place at the UFC Apex in Las Vegas on Saturday and is headlined by a featherweight tilt between Chan Sung Jung and Dan Ige.

Means has been victorious in three of his last four Octagon appearances. Most recently, “The Dirty Bird” outpointed Mike Perry at UFC 255 on Nov. 21.

Roberts, meanwhile, halted a two-bout skid with a second-round knockout of Zelim Imadaev in his most recent outing at UFC Fight Night 163 on Nov. 9.

One of the biggest fights in Bellator MMA history now has a date.

On Thursday night, MMA Fighting reported that the featherweight grand prix final will take place on July 31. At the event expected to be named Bellator 263, Patricio Freire (32-4) will come to blows with A.J. McKee (17-0) with the 145-pound throne, the million-dollar prize and significant pound-for-pound consideration on the line. Sherdog.com has since confirmed the date of the event with a source close to the situation.

Current two-division champ Freire – “Pitbull” is the featherweight and lightweight champ concurrently – will put his title up for grabs at 145 pounds and look to extend his promotional record for the most consecutive defenses in one reign. Since suffering a broken leg against Benson Henderson in 2016, Freire has looked nigh-unbeatable as he racked up wins over the likes of Michael Chandler, Daniel Straus and Emmanuel Sanchez twice. “Pitbull” holds or is in contention for most of the to…

A heavyweight matchup between Curtis Blaydes and Jairzinho Rozenstruik has been targeted for UFC 266.

MMAFighting.com was first to report that both parties have verbally agreed to the booking. UFC 266 takes place at an as yet to be announced location and features a light heavyweight championship tilt between Jan Blachowicz and Glover Teixeira. A location for the event has not been revealed. MMAFighting.com also reported that the date for UFC 266 has been moved from Sept. 4 to Sept. 25.

Blaydes had a four-bout winning streak snapped in his last outing, when he suffered a second-round KO defeat to Derrick Lewis at UFC Fight Night 185 on Feb. 20. Prior to that, the man known as “Razor” had earned successive triumphs over Alexander Volkov, Junior dos Santos, Shamil Abdurakhimov and Justin Willis.

Rozenstruik is 2-2 in his last four Octagon appearances. Most recently, “Bigi Boy” defeated Augusto Sakai via technical knockout 4:59 into Round 1 of their headlining bout…

A light heavyweight main event clash between Thiago Santos and Johnny Walker has been moved back one week.

According to a report from MMAFighting.com, the Santos vs. Walker will now take place at a UFC card on Oct. 2. The bout was originally slated for Sept. 25, which is now reportedly the date for the UFC 266 pay-per-view card.

Santos will look to end a three-bout losing streak when he squares off against Walker. After fallling to then champion Jon Jones in a competitive split decision at UFC 239, “Marreta” returned from multiple knee surgeries to drop back-to-back fights against Glover Teixeira and Aleksandar Rakic. The 37-year-old Brazilian was victorious in eight of nine Octagon appearances from February 2017 to February 2019.

Walker, meanwhile, snapped a two-fight skid with a first-round knockout of Ryan Spann at UFC Fight Night 178 in September 2020. The former Brazilian Contender Series competitor began his promotional tenure with three straight first ro…

A bantamweight showdown pitting Marlon Moraes against Merab Dvalishvili has been targeted for UFC 266.

Dvalishvili’s coach, Ray Longo, first brought word of the matchup on the Anik and Florian podcast. UFC 266 takes place on Sept. 25 at an as yet to be announced location and is headlined by a light heavyweight title bout between Jan Blachowicz and Glover Teixeira.

A former 135-pound title challenger, Moraes has lost three of his last four Octagon appearances. Most recently, the former WSOF champion suffered a first-round TKO defeat to Rob Font at UFC Fight Night 183 on Dec. 19.

Dvalishvili has been on a roll, winning six consecutive UFC outings dating back to September 2018. “The Machine” is coming off a three-round verdict against Cody Stamann at UFC on ESPN 23 on May 1.

https://t.co/u7LZPJGvJ2 pic.twitter.com/HGFx17Aa69

— Anik & Florian Podcast (@AnikFlorianPod) June 15, 2021

What a fight!

29-2829-2829-28

Brad Riddell does enough to score a unanimous decision victory at #UFC263 pic.twitter.com/sNgxQEU1d6 — UFC on BT Sport (@btsportufc) June 13, 2021

Brad Riddell showcased his mettle at UFC 263.

After nearly being knocked out by Drew Dober in the first round of their lightweight bout, the City Kickboxing representative took control over the final 10 minutes, repeatedly landing a solid right hand while also forcing his opponent to defend against multiple takedown attempts. The end result was a unanimous decision triumph, Riddell’s fourth consecutive victory within the Las Vegas-based promotion.

“I had to mix up that stand-and-brawl style between the stick and move. I think that’s what won it for me and those random shots and takedowns,” Riddell said. “I think the striking was making him like not too tired. It was the wrestling that made him a little more tired maybe.

“I could feel and hear him …

[youtube https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=oAldssU886g&w=560&h=315]

If he gets his way, Deiveson Figueiredo will have a third meeting with Brandon Moreno in the near future.

Shortly after his submission loss to Moreno in the UFC 263 co-main event, the former flyweight champion spoke to UFC Brasil.

“I had a terrible time in the weight cut process,” he said. “I was really slow in the fight, but I don’t want to make excuses. Tonight was Moreno´s night. He fought a great fight and deserved the belt. All I want is toreturn home, sit down with my team, correct my mistakes and fight the trilogy with Moreno.”

Figueiredo’s manager, Wallid Ismail, was upset that the translator didn’t pass along Figueiredo’s request for “four months to train to have an immediate rematch with Moreno” during his in-cage interview following the bout. Still, Ismail also gave Moreno his due.

“That´s what fight business is about. Deiveson just didn’t show up Saturday and Moreno had a great fi…

De locos la reacción en el gimnasio Entram de Tijuana al ganar @theassassinbaby #UFC263 pic.twitter.com/Z7hI5VQdnT

— UFC Español (@UFCEspanol) June 13, 2021

Brandon Moreno’s championship triumph set off a raucous celebration at his home gym in Tijuana, Mexico.

After battling Deiveson Figueiredo to a majority draw at UFC 256 this past December, Moreno claimed flyweight gold with a third-round submission victory in the rematch at UFC 263 this past Saturday. The win made Moreno the first Mexican-born champion in UFC history, and led to a rowdy scene at his home base, Entram Gym. Check out a video of the celebration above.

While virtually any observer who witnessed the UFC 263 headliner would have given the nod to Israel Adesanya without any question, Marvin Vettori has remained in denial about the final verdict.

“The Italian Dream” was seen arguing with Adesanya over the scorecards in the aftermath of their middleweight title bout on Saturday night, and he reiterated that sentiment in an interview with BT Sport following the event. At the end of the night, “The Last Stylebender” received a trio identical 50-45 tallies from the cageside judges.

“I think I did a lot of good things,” Vettori said. “I was having a lot of success with the boxing exchanges. Story of this fight was the leg kick, I guess. I went back and I talked to my coaches, I think the 50-45 was definitely not the right decision but it is what is.”

Vettori’s game plan was to use his wrestling to neutralize the versatile striking arsenal of the reigning champion. Though the Kings MMA product landed four takedowns in t…

A strawweight rematch between Tecia Torres and Angela Hill has been booked for UFC 265.

MMA DNA was first to report the bout. UFC 265 takes place on Aug. 7 at an as yet to be announced location and features women’s bantamweight title tilt between Amanda Nunes and Julianna Pena. Torres defeated Hill via unanimous decision in their first meeting at UFC 188 in June 2015.

Torres and Hill were initially supposed to square off for a second time at UFC 256 this past December before Hill withdrew due to a positive COVID-19 test. Torres instead faced Sam Hughes, winning via corner stoppage TKO after one round. “The Tiny Tornado” has won back-to-back fights in the Octagon after losing four straight appearances from February 2018 to August 2019.

Hill, meanwhile, snapped a two-bout skid with a decision triumph over Ashley Yoder at UFC Fight Night 187 on March 13. “Overkill” has won four of her last six promotional outings, with her defeats against Claudia Gadelha and Miche…

Nate Diaz didn’t win at UFC 263, but he nonetheless authored the most talk-about moment of his five-round clash with Leon Edwards on Saturday night.

After being outclassed for the first four rounds, the Stockton, Calif., native put Edwards in retreat mode when he staggered him with a left hand in the final frame. Diaz pursued a finish but was unable to put his opponent away in the waning moments of the bout, as he went on to lose a clear-cut unanimous decision.

“The fight was a wrap,” Diaz said. “In a real fight, in the real world, that fight’s a wrap. He was sleepwalking.”

For most of the bout, Edwards blended a varied striking arsenal with takedowns to keep Diaz off balance and remain unbeaten in his last 10 UFC welterweight appearances. The Cesar Gracie protege didn’t hesitate to credit his adversary, although he did so in the most Diaz way possible.

“At the end of the day I feel like he won or whatever, but I feel like I’m the better fighter still, reg…

A featherweight clash pitting Andre Fili against Daniel Pineda has been added to the UFC Fight Night 190 lineup.

BJPenn.com was first to report the booking. UFC Fight Night 190 takes place on June 26 at the UFC Apex in Las Vegas and is headlined by a heavyweight showdown between Ciryl Gane and Alexander Volkov. The card airs in its entirety on ESPN+ beginning at 1 p.m. ET/10 a.m. PT.

Fili has lost two of his last three promotional appearances and is coming off a decision defeat at the hands of Bryce Mitchell at UFC Fight Night 181 last October. The Team Alpha Male product is 9-6 over the course of his promotional tenure and 21-8 as a professional overall.

Pineda returned for a second stint in the Octagon last August, when he stopped Herbert Burns via TKO in the second round of their bout at UFC 252. In his last outing, “The Pit” suffered a second-round KO loss to Cub Swanson at UFC 256.

Demian Maia may have fought his final bout in the Ultimate Fighting Championship.

The Brazilian jiu-jitsu ace struggled mightily against Belal Muhammad in a featured welterweight bout at UFC 263, failing on 20 of 21 takedown attempts in a unanimous decision loss at Gila River Arena in Glendale, Ariz., on Saturday night.

After a three-bout winning streak in 2019, Maia has dropped back-to-back bouts and has lost five of his last eight Octagon appearances dating back to 2017. UFC president Dana White confirmed that Maia probably won’t compete for the Las Vegas-based promotion again at Saturday’s post-fight press conference.

“I think that was his last fight,” White said. “It was the last fight on his deal. He’s [43 years old]. He’s been so good at getting in there, securing the takedown, getting on top of people and just strangling them or grabbing something and twisting it until you quit, and he couldn’t get it done tonight. He’s [43 years old], he’s a great guy, he’s had…

Leon Edwards was well on his way to an uneventful, lopsided win against Nate Diaz at UFC 263 before the Stockton, Calif., native offered one final salvo in the fifth frame.

After failing to mount much in the way of significant offense for the majority of the fight, Diaz tagged Edwards with a left hand in the waning moments of their non-title affair. The blow sent “Rocky” stumbling across the cage, and Diaz stalked his man in hopes of a finish. While more punches were landed, Diaz couldn’t put Edwards away. It was a rare moment of suspense in a contest that was largely dominated by the well-rounded skills of the 29-year-old Brit.

“Like I said, it was a wild minute… To be dominant in a fight and then get caught with a shot out of the blue, I was like, ‘What the!?’” Edwards said. “There was one minute left, I was up four rounds but Nate is a legend, he’s been around in the sport for a long time and he knows how to ride his shots, he knows how to stay in there and fair pl…

According to Brandon Moreno, there was just something different in the lead-up to his rematch with Deiveson Figueiredo at UFC 263.

After their first bout ended in a draw at UFC 256 this past December, Moreno felt that he had a mental edge heading into Saturday night. It was something that he noticed during the pre-fight promotion.

“I have so much respect for Deiveson. Obviously, he tried to make it something special, to put more eyes on the fight, pushed me in the press conference. But actually, when he pushed me, I knew I won the fight. I won the fight there,” Moreno said at Saturday’s post-fight press conference.

“My confidence was very high and he looked different. He didn’t want to look me in the eyes, he put his sunglasses on, he just looked different. When the fight started, I started very, very hard, I started with really high pace. That was the game plan at first and that was it.”

While their first meeting was a “Fight of the Year” contender and to…

If it seemed like it was almost too easy for Israel Adesanya at UFC 263, well, that’s because it probably was.

“The Last Stylebender” closed the book on his rivalry with Marvin Vettori in convincing fashion, winning a five-round verdict on Saturday night to retain his middleweight crown at Gila River Arena in Glendale, Ariz. Outside of a handful of takedowns and a brief moment where he had Adesanya’s back, Vettori did little to test his opponent in their rematch.

“I actually was in cruise control,” Adesanya said. “There was a point my coach had to yell at me, ‘Don’t get bored!’ and I was like, ‘Oh yeah, true, stay focused.’ I don’t even know what round it was, but I had to stay focused. I had fun out there.

“I felt no threat. Even when he had my back, I was not threatened at all. Not even in the slightest.”

In the aftermath of his latest triumph, Adesanya took a moment to reflect on the moment he knew Vettori was a beaten man.

“There was a point when I reve…

サトシおめ

ムサエフが秒殺とは#RIZIN28 pic.twitter.com/dZKE1fbKaK

— ドナルドダックの左ジャブ (@donaldo_darouga) June 13, 2021 Roberto de Souza can now call himself Rizin Fighting Federation’s inaugural lightweight king.

The Brazilian jiu-jitsu ace known as “Satoshi” claimed the vacant 155-pound belt with a quick submission victory against lightweight grand prix winner Tofiq Musayev at Rizin 28 at the Tokyo Dome in Tokyo, Japan on Sunday. De Souza (12-1, 5-1 Rizin) has finished his last three opponents within the Japanese promotion inside of a round.

The 31-year-old Bonsai Jiu-Jitsu representative wasted little time in attempting to take the action to the mat. Although Musayev (18-4, 5-1 Rizin) denied his opponent’s first takedown attempt, he couldn’t remain upright for long. De Souza was able to ground the Azerbaijan native on his second try and then secured a triangle choke after ending up on bottom position to earn the tapout 72 seco…