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Credit: Getty/UFC Credit: Getty/UFC

UFC Fight Night 191 has a new co-main event.

The promotion confirmed on Saturday night that Sergey Spivak will step in for Sergei Pavlovich and meet Tom Aspinall on Sept. 4 at the UFC Apex in Las Vegas. According to a report from MMAjunkie.com, Pavlovich was forced out of the card due to visa issues. UFC Fight Night 191 is headlined by a middleweight showdown between Derek Brunson and Darren Till.

Spivak has built some momentum since a loss to Marcin Tybura at UFC Fight Night 169, as he has won his last three promotional appearances. Most recently, “The Polar Bear” outpointed Alexey Oleynik at UFC on ESPN 25.

Aspinall, meanwhile, is on a six-bout winning streak that includes finishes of Jake Collier, Alan Baudot and Andrei Arlovski in UFC competition.

[youtube https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=BRvRSXi3s2M&w=560&h=315]

The time has arrived for Jake Paul and Tyron Woodley to settle their beef in the ring.

Both fighters made weight without issue on Saturday ahead of their headlining bout. Paul checked in at 190 pounds, while Woodley tipped the scales at 189.5 for the 190-pound catchweight affair. The fight will take place on Sunday at Rocket Mortgage Fieldhouse in Cleveland, Ohio, and airs on pay-per-view for $59.99 via Showtime at 8 p.m. ET/5 p.m PT. The contest is scheduled for eight three-minute rounds.

Paul, who recently inked a multi-fight deal with Showtime, is coming off a first-round knockout off former Bellator and One Championship title holder Ben Askren in April. Woodley was in Askren’s corner for that bout. After rising to prominence as a YouTube personality, Paul has gone 3-0 as a professional boxer, including a KO of NBA veteran Nate Robinson.

on weight pic.twitter.com/nzfZafvxYO<…

Movlid Khaybulaev remains an unsolved mystery.

Repeated takedowns and suffocating control carried the Dagestani grappler in the 2021 Professional Fighters League featherweight semifinals, as he took a split decision from Brendan Loughnane in the PFL 9 main event on Friday at the Seminole Hard Rock Hotel and Casino in Hollywood, Florida. Judges John Rupert and Eliseo Rodriguez cast 30-27 and 29-28 scorecards for Khaybulaev, while Daniel Torres saw it 29-28 for Loughnane.

With few exceptions, the unbeaten Khaybulaev (18-0-1, 4-0-1 PFL) was the dominant participant. He executed a takedown inside the first 20 seconds, corralled Loughnane on the canvas and applied his ground-and-pound. Khaybulaev was at peak strength in the middle stanza, where he dragged the Dana White’s Contender Series alum back to the mat, handcuffed his arm behind his back and unleashed a volley of punches to his exposed face. Loughnane (21-4, 4-1 PFL) managed to bloody his counterpart’s nose with an …

The main event is in the judges hands! #LFA114 pic.twitter.com/4dQ1alpJNZ

— UFC FIGHT PASS (@UFCFightPass) August 28, 2021 The main event of LFA 114 saw a new Legacy Fighting Alliance featherweight champion crowned.

Javier Garcia made the most of his shot at the vacant title out the gate as he was able to damage Bruno Souza on the feet and look for submissions on the ground. However, Souza (10-1) started to find momentum on the feet in Round 2 and was able to control the action standing. Souza continued to land the harder shots in the final three rounds, while Garcia (7-4) was able to land several takedowns. In the end, the judges preferred Souza's work on the feet and awarded him a unanimous decision with score of 49-46, 49-46 and 49-46.

The co-main event saw interim flyweight champion Charles Johnson defend his belt against Joao Antonio Camilo Neto. Johnson (10-2) repeatedly hurt Neto (7-5) on the feet while the Brazilian repeatedly loo…

Sign up for ESPN+ right here, and you can then stream the UFC, PFL and “The Ultimate Fighter” live on your smart TV, computer, phone, tablet or streaming device via the ESPN app. Sherdog's live PFL 2021 9 coverage will begin at 6:50 p.m. ET. Check out the MMA Forums to discuss the card or enter your comments and predictions below. Round 1 Opening the card, Brandon "The Human Highlight Reel" Jenkins (13-6) faces very recent UFC veteran Jacob Kilburn (8-4), who fought in that organization in January of this year. Keeping a close eye on them will be referee Gary Copeland. Jenkins starts the fight with a leg kick, and Kilburn returns one, only harder. Kilburn lands a sneaky left hook soon after. They get into a clinch, and the longer Jenkins gets a Thai clinch, partially landing a few knees. Eventually, Kilburn gets out of it and pushes Kilburn into the fance, with Kilburn holding an underhook. They jockey for position, and eventually Jenkins gets away, landing a nice knee to the…

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. An all-action Ultimate Fighting Championship bantamweight brawl is on the slate for Madison Square Garden. Per the promotion’s broadcast partner of ESPN on Friday, Frankie Edgar (24-9-1) will be returning to competition after a nine-month layoff to take on Marlon Vera (17-7-1) at bantamweight on UFC 268. The two will throw down inside of Madison Square Garden in New York on Nov. 6 for the organization's first New York-based event since 2019. The bout is not yet official, per ESPN, but both have agreed to face one another.

Edgar has dropped three of four dating back the last three years, but a pair of setbacks to Max Holloway and Chan Sung Jung led to “The Answer” searching for the answer at bantamweight. His debut at 135 pounds came against Pedro Munhoz, in a five-round thriller where the two pocketed “Fight of the Night” honors, …

Dumped #ONEBattleground3 #WeAreONE #ONEChampionship pic.twitter.com/OKQi8SgRzg

— ONE Championship (@ONEChampionship) August 27, 2021 The pre-recorded third part of the “One: Battleground” series featured some entertaining striking clashes that took place nearly a month ago.

The One: Battleground 3 main event saw former Lumpinee Stadium champ and Glory kickboxing champion Sitthichai Sitsongpeenong edging Tawanchai P.K.Saenchaimuaythaigym in a One featherweight muay Thai clash. Sitthichai pushed forward in the first exchanges, but it was the 22-year-old Tawanchai who landed the more precise shots in the opening stanza. In the second frame, Tawanchai landed a well-executed roundhouse kick on his opponent, and proceeded to sting him with kicks for much of the next few minutes. “Killer Kid” turned to his boxing combinations, while mixing in elbows as he kept advancing and scoring with his hands. It all came down to Round 3, where Sitthichai bloc…

Hittin' the scales at 145 @EdsonBarbozaJr makes your main event official for #UFCVegas35!

[ #UFCVegas35 | Tomorrow | Live on @ESPN & @ESPNPlus ] pic.twitter.com/v8rgIfPkxy

— UFC (@ufc) August 27, 2021 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 UFC on ESPN 30 weigh-ins were largely devoid of drama, although Leomana Martinez blew weight by four pounds.

The 12-fight Ultimate Fighting Championship card is headlined by a featherweight bout pitting Edson Barboza against Giga Chikadze. The card also features two "The Ultimate Fighter 29" finals as Bryan Battle faces Gilbert Urbina at middleweight, and Brady Hiestand goes up against Ricky Turcios in the bantamweight finals.

Going into his third UFC main event, Barboza (22-9) is riding a two-fight win streak. The Brazilian most recently knocked out Shane Burgos and won a decis…

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. Two fringe top-10 Ultimate Fighting Championship flyweights looking to climb back up the division will be meeting in a few months. Late Thursday night, MMA Junkie broke the news that Jessica Eye (15-10, 1 NC) would be taking on Andrea Lee (12-5) at flyweight on Nov. 13. The UFC Fight Night card on that date should go on inside the UFC Apex. The pairing has been confirmed by other outlets since its announcement.

Eye’s UFC career has been anything but consistent, recording just a single victory in her first seven tries inside the Octagon. A drop down to flyweight in 2018 prompted a three-fight win streak that culminated in a title shot against Valentina Shevchenko, but that was not meant to be when Shevchenko leveled her early into the second round in 2019. “Evil Eye” has struggled of late, missing weight on multiple occasions wh…

[youtube https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=aAJ7h4pRvbg&w=567&h=319] The Legacy Fighting Alliance is back for its only card in August, and all 26 fighters made weight for LFA 114, which is headlined by two title bouts.

The main event features a featherweight title bout that will see Bruno Souza and Javier Garcia battling for the vacant belt. Souza (9-1) has been perfect since dropping his first professional fight, and most recently picked up a split decision over Elijah Johns. Meanwhile, Garcia (7-3) has won three straight, while submitting Timothy Teves in his last outing. Souza weighed in at 145 pounds on the dot, while Garcia came in at a lean 144.4 pounds.

The co-main event draws an interim championship affair as Charles Johnson looks to defend his interim strap against Joao Antonio Camilo Neto. Johnson (9-2) won the interim belt with a split decision over Yuma Horiuchi in July, and has won two straight bouts. Neto (7-4) is 2-2 in his last four, and is coming off of a …

[youtube https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=oVDRMjkSYc8&w=640&h=360] After today's weigh-ins, the featherweight and light heavyweight semifinals are now set for the Professional Fighters League's third season. The 10-fight card features four semifinal bouts in the two divisions with Brendan Loughnane vs. Movlid Khaybulaev atop the card. While all semifinalists made weight for PFL 9, Bobby Moffett missed weight by 2.2 pounds for his featherweight bout against Jason Knight.

Loughnane has been perfect inside the PFL having won four straight bouts and picking up an impressive knockout win over Sheymon Moraes. Meanwhile, the undefeated Khaybulaev (17-0-1, 1 NC) is coming off a decision win over former PFL champion Lance Palmer. The other featherweight semifinal sees two veterans battle as Chris Wade (19-6) takes on Bubba Jenkins (16-4). On the light heavyweight side, submission specialist Antonio Carlos Jr. (11-5, 2 NC) will face off against Emiliano Sordi (23-8-1), and Cezar Ferr…

Updated fight card for Bellator 266: Davis vs. Romero - Saturday, Sept. 18 - @SAPCenter in San Jose. pic.twitter.com/uFXOfVc1H5

— Bellator Public Relations (@BellatorPR) August 26, 2021 The next Bellator MMA event in September is beginning to shape up nicely.

Per MMA Fighting on Thursday, the promotion has added several matches to its upcoming Bellator 266 show. The event, which will take place inside the SAP Center in San Jose, Calif., has gained Neiman Gracie (10-2) vs. Mark Lemminger (12-3) at welterweight as its co-headliner. A Bellator official has since confirmed this booking and a few others to Sherdog.

Gracie will be looking to rebound from a contentious decision loss to Jason Jackson in April, which marked the first non-title tilt he had ever lost. The Renzo Gracie Jiu-Jitsu prodigy has largely excelled in the Bellator cage, racking up seven submissions in eight victories, including tapouts of Ed Ruth and Jon Fitch over the years…

[youtube https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=wQdhYLH4nA0&w=640&h=360] A duo of title fights are now official as Invicta Fighting Championships returns to pay-per-view with Invicta FC 44: A New Era.

A duo of title fights for vacant championships headline the card. The bantamweight title bout will main event as Emily Ducote faces Danielle Taylor, while the co-main event sees strawweight Lisa Verzosa square off against Taneisha Tennant. All fighters made weight except for Liz Tracy, who was 1.2 pounds over the strawweight limit for her bout against Jodie Esquibel. She's been fined 25 percent of her purse as a result.

This is the second vacant title fight for Ducote (9-6), who rebounded from a split decision loss to Kanako Murata by winning a decision against Juliana Lima. Taylor (11-5) hasn't shown much "Dynamite" as late, as her last eight bouts have all gone to the scorecards. She has won two of her last three since being cut by the Ultimate Fighting Championship. Both made…

2nd fight contract signed in less than a week. Anyone anywhere anytime.pic.twitter.com/tU8eig2vIa

— Jack 'Tank' Shore (@jackshoremma) August 25, 2021 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 competitor on the most recent season of “The Ultimate Fighter” will be getting a shot in the Ultimate Fighting Championship on short notice. MMA DNA and MMA Fighting were the first to report the news that Zviad Lazishvili has suffered an ankle injury and has been forced out of his bantamweight match against Jack Shore (14-0). In his stead at UFC Fight Night 191 will be Liudvik Sholinian (9-1-1), who is in turn the second replacement for Said Nurmagomedov. The portion of the report that claimed that Lazishvili has been released from the promotion altogether has been disputed, while the news of this booking itself has been subsequently confirmed by the …

Stipe Miocic is a little bit upset that he wasn’t part of the conversation when the UFC decided to book an interim heavyweight title fight between Ciryl Gane and Derrick Lewis earlier this month.

After all, Miocic is the owner of the longest heavyweight championship reign in promotion history and is coming off a loss to Francis Ngannou in a title bout at UFC 260 on March 27.

"It does bother me, because I just wish they would have at least came to me," Miocic told ESPN. "Even if I wasn't able do it, I would have just loved to be given the opportunity. I think I deserved it. But I'm not gonna bitch and moan about it.”

Miocic’s next move is to fly to Las Vegas for a meeting with UFC president Dana White, where he will express his disappointment at being excluded from the heavyweight title picture.

"I just have to sit down and have a conversation with him," Miocic said. "And everything will fall into place.”

Gane defeated Lewis via third-round technical…

Two of the big winners from UFC on ESPN 29 could be facing potentially lenghty medical suspensions.

Jared Cannonier, who captured a unanimous decision win over Kelvin Gastelum in Saturday’s headliner at the UFC Apex in Las Vegas, must have a right foot X-ray after his latest middleweight triumph. If the result is positive, he needs orthopedic clearance or he will be sidelined until Feb. 18. Gastelum, meanwhile, is suspended until Sept. 21 with no contact until Sept. 12.

Meanwhile, Alexandre Pantoja is also facing a six-month term following a submission victory over Brandon Royval in a battle of flyweight contenders. Pantoja must have a left knee MRI and receive doctor clearance or he too will be out of action until Feb. 18. At a minimum, the Brazilian is sidelined until Sept. 21. Royval is also facing a six-month suspension pending the result of an orbital catscan and doctor clearance.

The Nevada State Athletic Commission recently released a full list of medica…

After an exciting back and forth first round, Mohamad Said Maalem lands a beautiful counter follow up with devastating GnP to finish Fakhreddine and become the BRAVE CF Light Heavyweight World Championship pic.twitter.com/iUBK05hV0b

— BRAVE Combat Federation (@bravemmaf) August 1, 2021

Brave Combat Federation’s first foray into Italy wasn’t without controversy.

In the Brave CF 52 headliner, Mohamed Said Maalem locked horns with Mohammad Fakhreddine with the vacant 205-pound championship on the line. The clash ended after “L’Ambiance” stopped Fakhreddine with ground-and-pound punches in the opening stanza. However, the Algerian fighter landed multiple punches behind his Lebanese opponent’s head, changing the fate of the fight. Considering that referee Declan Larkin didn’t warn Maalem nor interrupted the action, Fakhreddine filed a formal complaint to the Italian Federation of Grappling and Mixed Martial Arts (Federazione Italiana Gr…

OH MY GOODNESS!!!!!!!

What a debut from Terrance McKinney! #UFC263 pic.twitter.com/dJrXCD8pCg

— UFC (@ufc) June 12, 2021 Terrance McKinney will face Fares Ziam in a lightweight contest at an Ultimate Fighting Championship event on Nov. 20.

Both fighters confirmed the booking on social media following an initial report from MMA DNA. The event does not yet have an official location or headliner.

McKinney is coming off a spectacular Octagon debut, where he knocked out Matt Frevola in seven seconds at UFC 263 on June 12. The Sikjitsu representative is currently on a four-fight winning streak in which he has finished all four of his opponents by knockout or technical knockout inside of a round.

After falling to Don Madge in his Octagon debut, Ziam has rebounded to post consecutive decision victories over Jamie Mullarkey and Luigi Vendramini. The 24-year-old Frenchman has won seven of his last eight professional outings.

Credit: Dave Mandel/Sherdog.com Credit: Dave Mandel/Sherdog.com Credit: Dave Mandel/Sherdog.com Credit: Dave Mandel/Sherdog.com

A potential all-action welterweight scrap between Niko Price and Alex Oliveira will go down at UFC Fight Night 193.

MMAjunkie.com was first to report the fight. UFC Fight Night 192 takes place at the UFC Apex in Las Vegas on Oct. 2 and is headlined by a light heavyweight bout pitting Thiago Santos against Johnny Walker.

Price will attempt to halt a three-bout winless streak when he steps into the Octagon with Oliveira. In his last appearance, “The Hybrid” dropped a three-round verdict to Michel Pereira at UFC 264 on July 10. Price is 6-5 with two no contests during his promotional tenure and has earned finishes over the likes of James Vick, Tim Means, Randy Brown, George Sullivan, Alan Jouban and Brandon Thatch.

Oliveira has struggled of late as well, losing five of his last seven UFC fights — including back-to-back submission losses …

Despite being the higher seed in his featherweight semifinal matchup with Bubba Jenkins, Chris Wade enters the Professional Fighters League playoffs as an underdog, both according to oddsmakers and popular opinion.

“I can’t lie. I’m extremely motivated by the fact that people find him to be a clear-cut, in their mind, favorite in this bout,” Wade said during a virtual media day. “I think that at best, if you really know what you’re talking about in fighting, you could give him a coin flip situation…But to be calling him a clear-cut favorite is absurd.

“He doesn’t really do anything that stylistically poses a huge threat to people other than hold on to them in wrestling situations, which I’m very familiar with being a wrestler myself. I’m struggling to see where the real threat is in this bout, let alone how he’s gonna survive it.”

Wade, a veteran with two PFL playoff appearances already under his belt, went 2-0 during the 2021 season with victories over Anthony …

Credit: Getty/UFC

Kris Moutinho will get a second opportunity in the UFC after giving a valiant short-notice effort in his Octagon debut.

Moutinho will meet Aaron Phillips in a bantamweight contest at UFC Fight Night on Oct. 23. MMAjunkie.com was first to report the booking. The card is headlined by a middleweight tilt pitting Paulo Costa against Marvin Vettori.

Moutinho stepped up to face Sean O’Malley at UFC 264, losing via third-round TKO in what will likely end up as a “Beatdown of the Year” candidate. Still, Moutinho absorbed most of what O’Malley had to offer right up until the stoppage near the end of the fight. The CES MMA veteran is 9-5 over the course of a professional tenure that began in 2016.

Phillips, meanwhile, had a five-fight winning streak snapped in his last outing, when he was submitted by Jack Shore in the second round at UFC on ESPN 13. The Louisiana native is still looking for his first Octagon triumph after going 0-2 in UFC competition d…

Once upon a time, Antonio Carlos Jr. put together a five-bout winning streak in the UFC’s middleweight division.

Despite that success, he didn’t feel like he was close to a title shot, and he wasn’t quite sure what it would take him to get to that point. There is no such confusion for Carlos Jr. in Professional Fighters League. Carlos Jr. will meet Emiliano Sordi in the a light heavyweight semifinal bout in the PFL playoffs on Friday at Seminole Hard Rock Hotel and Casino in Hollywood, Fla. Should he win, Carlos Jr. will get a shot to compete for a 205-pound championship and a $1 million prize.

That clarity has definitely made a different in Carlos Jr.’s mindset.

“When you feel you’re close to the belt, you feel more motivated. You’re always thinking about the title,” Carlos Jr. said during a PFL virtual media day. “That’s what I want to reach in my career.

“I never could fight for the belt in the UFC. They see things a little different. Some time ago, I w…

It appears that the Ultimate Fighting Championship is parting ways with Demian Maia and Jimmie Rivera.

According to a report from MMAFighting.com, Maia, Rivera and Christian Aguilera are no longer under contract with the UFC. While Maia fought the last fight on his existing deal, it is unclear if Rivera and Aguilera completed their contracts or were released.

A title challenger at both middleweight and welterweight, Maia exits the organization on a two-bout losing streak. In his last outing, the Brazilian jiu-jitsu ace dropped a three-round verdict to Belal Muhammad at UFC 263. Maia went 22-11 during his UFC tenure, falling to Anderson Silva in a middleweight title bid at UFC 112 in April 2010 and losing to Tyron Woodley in a welterweight title bout at UFC 214 in July 2017. After his latest defeat, UFC president Dana White said that Maia had probably competed in the Octagon for the last time.

Rivera, meanwhile, leaves the UFC having lost four of his last six a…

A strawweight bout pitting Cheyanne Buys against Konklak Suphisara is in the works for a Nov. 20 Ultimate Fighting Championship event.

MMA journalist John Hyon Ko first brought word of the fight on Twitter. The UFC event doesn’t yet have an official location or headliner but is expected to include a flyweight showdown between Joanne Calderwood and Alexa Grasso.

Buys earned her first promotional triumph at UFC on ESPN 28, when she defeated Gloria de Paula via first-round technical knockout. In her Octagon debut, the Dana White’s Contender Series alum was outpointed by Montserrat Ruiz at UFC on ESPN 21.

Suphisara, who is more commonly known as “Loma Lookboonmee,” has been victorious in three of her first four Octagon appearances. Most recently, the Tiger Muay Thai product captured a unanimous verdict over Sam Hughes at UFC on ESPN 23. She also owns wins over Jinh Yu Frey and Aleksandra Albu in UFC competition.