Blog

Uriah Hall became a part of history on Saturday night when he shared the Octagon with Anderson Silva in what will likely be the legendary Brazilian’s final UFC bout.

After a slow start, Hall gathered his composure and floored “The Spider” twice en route to a technical knockout victory at the at the 1:24 mark of Round 4. Shortly after the finish, the two middleweights shared an emotional moment of mutual respect in the cage. Hall was brought to tears by the exchange.

“It’s hard to describe when you’re in it. But just to share that moment, knowing it could be his last bout and him knowing how much I respect him, I couldn’t hold [the emotion] back. I feel good to have shared that moment. That was really important,” Hall said.

“I know for a fact that we respected each other. We were both trying not to show that as much. But we have so much respect for each other. We had to separate that. There’s nothing bad I can say about the guy. He knew I looked up to him and fol…

pic.twitter.com/VChhQnd97M

— Israel Adesanya (@stylebender) October 31, 2020

If all goes as planned, 2021 will be the biggest year of Israel Adesanya’s mixed martial arts career.

Shortly after the conclusion of UFC Fight Night 181, Dana White revealed that the reigning middleweight champion’s next step would be to move up a weight class to challenge 205-pound king Jan Blachowicz. White did not give a timeframe for the champion vs. champion superfight.

Adesanya, who is in Las Vegas to support a teammate on Wednesday’s Contender Series show, confirmed on the ESPN+ post-fight show that he had a productive meeting with the UFC president, adding that he will become “champ squared” in 2021.

“Me and Dana had a meeting yesterday in the war room. We went to his office, he showed me around. We hashed it out. Within two minutes we got the fight figured out, who I’m gonna fight next,” Adesanya said. “It’s said and done.

“I’ve been playin…

Dana White tells @bokamotoESPN that @stylebender will challenge @JanBlachowicz for the UFC light heavyweight title in his next fight, with a date and location still to be determined. pic.twitter.com/ENrcpECAyJ

— ESPN MMA (@espnmma) November 1, 2020

It appears that Israel Adesanya will get the opportunity to become a two-division UFC champ in the near future.

In an interview with ESPN, UFC president Dana White revealed that Adesanya will move up to challenge reigning 205-pound king Jan Blachowicz in his next Octagon appearance. Adesanya is coming off a second-round technical knockout of Paulo Costa to defend his middleweight crown at UFC 253 on Sept. 26.

“He and I met yesterday. Had a great time, had a great meeting,” White said of Adesanya. “I was adamant on him fighting [Robert] Whittaker for the title; it’s the thing that makes the most sense. And then Whittaker comes out after the fight and says he doesn’t want to fight him, which is wa…

Throughout the week and the evening of the event, UFC Fight Night 181 was billed as Anderson Silva’s farewell bout.

However, during a post-fight interview with former foe and current UFC commentator Michael Bisping following his loss to Uriah Hall in Saturday’s main event, “The Spider” hesitated when asked if he was 100 percent ready to call it a career.

“I don't know, first I go back home and I go see with my team everything,” Silva said. “Let's go see because it's tough to say it's my last or not because this is my air. This is what I do for my entire life and with my heart. Let's go see.”

Silva held his own with Hall for the bout’s opening 10 minutes, but meaningful moments were few and far between during the initial two stanzas. Hall turned the tide when he floored the 45-year-old Brazilian late in Round 3 and flurried with strikes in search of a finish before the horn sounded. A counter right hook by Hall dropped Silva again in the fourth frame, and this t…

Do you want to be a fighter!?

TUF returns March 2021 - exclusively on #ESPNPlus pic.twitter.com/zSvCHrP27a

— UFC (@ufc) November 1, 2020 “The Ultimate Fighter” will make its return in 2021.

The Las Vegas-based promotion announced during the UFC Fight Night 181 broadcast Saturday that Season 29 of the reality show will premiere on ESPN+ in March. “TUF 29” will feature bantamweights and middleweights, with tryouts for the show beginning in November.

Coaches for “TUF 29” will be announced at a later date. Initially, the promotion floated a possibility of Khabib Nurmagomedov and Conor McGregor as opposing coaches, but Nurmagomedov rejected that idea and then announced his retirement after UFC 254.

According to a release, the previous 28 seasons of “TUF” will be available for fans to watch on ESPN+.

The most recent iteration of the series, “TUF 28,” premiered in August 2018 and featured Robert Whittaker and Kelvin Gastelum as…

Kevin Holland, Alexander Hernandez, Adrian Yanez and Miles Johns each received a $50,000 “Performance of the Night” check for their work at UFC Fight Night 181 on Saturday.

Holland overpowered Charlie Ontiveros in their featured middleweight showdown at the UFC Apex in Las Vegas. Early in Round 1, Holland secured a body lock and slammed the Fury Fighting Championship veteran to the canvas. The slam caused an apparent neck injury, which forced Ontiveros to verbally submit 2:39 into Round 1.

Hernandez earned his performance bonus on the strength of a first-round stoppage of Chris Gruetzemacher in a preliminary lightweight clash. The Factory X product had Gruetzemacher reeling early, as he dropped him with a left hook, and when his opponent returned to his feet, Hernandez teed off with a multi-punch combination for the TKO win at the 1:46 mark of Round 1.

Elsewhere, Dana White’s Contender Series alum Adrian Yanez took home some extra income for a quick finish of V…

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. Sherdog's live UFC Fight Night 181 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:Tristen Critchfield scores the round:Tyler Treese scores the round:Round 2 Sherdog Scores Jay Pettry scores the round:Tristen Critchfield scores the round:Tyler Treese scores the round:Round 3 Sherdog Scores Jay Pettry scores the round:Tristen Critchfield scores the round:Tyler Treese scores the round:The Official Result Round 1 Sherdog Scores Jay Pettry scores the round:Tristen Critchfield scores the round:Tyler Treese scores the round:Round 2 Sherdog Scores Jay Pettry scores the round:Tristen Critchfield scores the round:Tyler Treese scores the round:Round 3 Sherdog Scores Jay Pettry scores the round:Tristen Cri…

Uriah Hall sent his idol out on his shield.

The Fortis MMA standout overcame a slow start and perhaps some star-struck reverence, as he brought down former Ultimate Fighting Championship middleweight titleholder Anderson Silva with punches in the fourth round of their UFC Fight Night 181 headliner on Saturday at the UFC Apex in Las Vegas. Silva (34-11, 17-7 UFC) — who stopped short of announcing his retirement in the immediate aftermath — bowed out 1:24 into Round 4 in what may have been his final appearance inside the Octagon.

"You're the reason why I'm doing this. Thank you so much."

Incredible. #UFCVegas12 pic.twitter.com/764LPSdgiF

— UFC Canada (@UFC_CA) November 1, 2020 Hall (16-9, 9-7 UFC) let the Brazilian icon lead the dance for two-plus rounds, as “The Spider” leaned on lateral movement, a steady stream of leg kicks and occasional bursts of punches. Everything turned in the waning seconds of Round 3. There, Hall dropped the …

Absolute Championship Akhmat title contender Magomedrasul Khasbulayev, who was supposed to fight reigning featherweight king Felipe Froes at ACA 113 on Nov. 6 in Moscow, was injured during training and has withdrawn from the bout.

ACA President Alexey Yatsenko recently informed Sherdog.com of Khasbulaev’s withdrawal.

“Magomedrasul Khasbulaev was diagnosed with a tear in the muscle fibers of the gastrocnemius muscle of his left leg, and will not be able to fight until the end of this year. However, the featherweight championship fight will certainly take place at the December ACA event,” Yatsenko said. “Froes will fly to Russia [soon] and will stay to train for the bout. He will fight Marat Balaev in ACA 116 headliner on Dec. 18.

“We will announce later the city of this event. And Magomedrasul Khasbulaev will have a chance after he recovers to face the champion.”

For Felipe Froes, this will be the first defense of the championship belt, which he took away f…

What a fight! We are headed to the 5th and final round! #LFA94 pic.twitter.com/VIcmA3eToT

— UFC FIGHT PASS (@UFCFightPass) October 31, 2020 Inaugural Legacy Fighting Alliance strawweight champion Crystal Vanessa Demopoulos came up short in her first title defense against Lupita Godinez at LFA 94.

From the opening bell, Godinez (5-0) had a clear advantage on the feet against Demopoulos (5-3). "Loopy" continued landing at will in Round 2 and bloodied up the champion. "Lil Monster" showed tremendous heart as she never stopped coming forward. Godinez would drop Demopoulos in Round 4, but the champ would fire back for her best round of the fight to that point.

Thanks to Kansas using open scoring, it was known that the champion needed a finish if she wanted to retain the belt. Demopoulos hit a takedown mid-round, which gave her a clear path to victory. However, Godinez was able to hang on and reversed position. After five rounds of action, Go…

For the final time.

@SpiderAnderson hits the scales for one last dance. #UFCVegas12 pic.twitter.com/iDE2EhDGun

— UFC (@ufc) October 30, 2020 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. Editor's note: The article has been updated at 3:00 p.m. ET on Oct. 30 to reflect that Greg Hardy officially made weight.

A few Ultimate Fighting Championship fighters may have cracked into their Halloween candy a little early this weekend.

After another eventful stint on Yas Island, Abu Dhabi, the UFC returns to Las Vegas. Headlining the first-ever UFC Halloween event is former middleweight king Anderson Silva taking on Uriah Hall. It’s been over seven years since Silva (34-10, 1 NC) has held UFC gold. He’s won only one fight in his last eight, having been awarded a decision over Derek Brunson. His last two fights saw “The Spider” lose a decisio…

Now that the #LFA94 weigh-in is in the books, which fight are you looking forward to the most tonight?

: https://t.co/kNlYKe9wVP

: https://t.co/tgI7oFbNCd@PsoRite@ShellsDotCom@AthleticCBD@GLCDirect2000@USENDmoney@IncaKolaUSA@FredLoyaIns@HartmanArena@UFCFightPass pic.twitter.com/XWsNTxZ42A — LFA (@LFAfighting) October 30, 2020 The Legacy Fighting Alliance ends the month and its third phase with a title fight on Halloween weekend.

LFA 94 is headlined by a women’s strawweight title tilt as Crystal Vanessa Demopoulos (113.4) returns from an unsuccessful outing on Dana White's Contender Series to defend her LFA 115-pound crown. Demopoulos won the title in a thrilling battle against Sam Hughes in July, where she put “Sampage” to sleep with an ultra-rare inverted triangle choke. Her opponent Lupita Godinez (114.6) has yet to lose as a professional, with most of her bouts going the distance including a victory at Combate Americas show in 2019.…

After the dust settled, two of four championship belts up for grabs changed hands at One ‘Inside the Matrix’ on Friday.

In the main event, Aung La N Sang (26-11) put his One middleweight title on the line against Reinier de Ridder. It took less than a round to "The Dutch Knight" to tame "The Burmese Python" and inflict Aung La his first loss in three years. The defending champion started the bout by landing an uppercut, to which De Ridder answered with a takedown. Once on the canvas, the unbeaten Dutchman took his opponent’s back in no time. Aung La attempted to get out of the sticky situation, even by grabbing the fence, but there was nothing he could do. At the 3:26 mark, Aung La was forced to tap after De Ridder’s neck crank slid under the chin into a rear-naked choke. In the process, De Ridder became the first Dutch champion in One history.

Christian Lee finishes undefeated phenom Iuri Lapicus with DEVASTATING ground and pound to retain the …

The Bellator MMA middleweight championship is no longer vacant. Fighting for the belt previously held by Rafael Lovato Jr. were former 185-pound champion Gegard Mousasi and current welterweight champion Douglas Lima. In the end, Mousasi's hands were raised at the end of Bellator 250.

The superior grappling of Mousasi (47-7-2) was the story early as he took Lima (32-8) down and easily controlled the first round. The next three frames were contested on the feet, which saw Mousasi show off his slick jab and Lima was uncharacteristically tentative. Round 5 saw Mousasi go back to his grappling to secure the fight in his favor. After five rounds, Mousasi was awarded a unanimous decision (48-47, 49-46 and 49-46) and became a two-time middleweight champion in the promotion.

The co-main event saw Henry Corrales defeat Brandon Girtz. Corrales (18-5) was able to slightly outland Girtz (16-10) on the feet in what was a competitive bout spanning all three rounds. Two judges awar…

I have 15 minute interview with @ufc President @danawhite that will air tonight on @CBSSportsRadio at 8 PM Eastern/5 Pacific.

Dana told The Zach Gelb Show on CBS Sports Radio that he and @TeamKhabib have been talking & he expects Khabib to return & go for 30-0.

WOW! pic.twitter.com/UqAM19Y1SF — Zach Gelb (@ZachGelb) October 29, 2020 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 retirement in the Ultimate Fighting Championship and a dollar can get you a cup of coffee in the morning.

Lightweight king Khabib Nurmagomedov (29-0) put Justin Gaethje to sleep with a triangle choke last Saturday at UFC 254, and he unexpectedly announced his retirement after the win. In his post-fight interview, “The Eagle” claimed that he made a promise to his mother to stop fighting after facing Gaethje, and that he could not continue competing without…

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. Ultimate Fighting Championship lightweight contender Charles Oliveira wants to go old school to determine a new champ in his division. Oliveira, who has won his last seven bouts all by stoppage, spoke to Sherdog on Wednesday about his thoughts on the future of the UFC lightweight class. As Khabib Nurmagomedov defended his title against Justin Gaethje at UFC 254 and retired, the belt is presumably vacant. Like many fans, fighters and media members alike, Oliveira believes the best way to settle it is through a grand prix tournament.

“I [am a] guy who is coming from a sequence of seven wins, just beat the record of most submission wins in UFC history and never leaves the fights in judges’ hands. [I] should be at least respected [by] receiving some opponent placed above [me] in [the] ranking[s],” Oliviera stated firmly. “But I need…

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. Kevin Holland is still on track to have three Ultimate Fighting Championship fights in three months, no matter what. Late Wednesday night, MMA Fighting first reported that Holland (19-5) will no longer be facing Makhmud Muradov (24-6) at UFC Fight Night 181 on Saturday. Muradov’s removal was due to a positive COVID-19 test, the fighter announced this on Instagram shortly after the report came out. In Muradov’s stead will be newcomer Charlie Ontiveros (11-6), who will be stepping up a weight class to face Holland at middleweight on just a few days’ notice.

Ontiveros was previously tapped once before to step in and make his UFC debut in July, when he was planning on replacing Eric Spicely against Markus Perez. Ontiveros was not cleared for competition in time, so Perez had to wait several more months to compete. The former F…

Join DAZN free for 30 days and live-stream fight night anywhere!

Bellator MMA has just seen its big event shaken up on fight day.

First reported by MMA Fighting on Thursday, two bouts have been scratched from Bellator 250. Both Veta Arteaga and Nick Newell have tested positive for COVID-19, and they have been pulled from their respective pairings against Desiree Yanez and Zach Zane. The news has since been confirmed by ESPN, and Yanez has since posted about the scrapped Oct. 29 fight on her Instagram.

Yanez, who was aiming to make her promotional debut, wrote the following:

“*sigh* well guys…my fight is unfortunately canceled tonight due to my opponent getting tested positive for COVID. I really don’t know what to say other than I was more than ready to battle and still am. Bellator MMA is going to get this matchup back as soon as they possibly can. I am beyond devastated, but everything happens for a reason. More time to prepare. I love you all and the sup…

[youtube https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=LfeZLF0O9m0&w=560&h=315]

With legendary middleweight Anderson Silva potentially having his last UFC bout on Saturday, Gegard Mousasi was asked to reflect on the decorated career of “The Spider.”

“He had a great career. I think in his prime he looked unbeateable,” Mousasi said during a virtual media day for Bellator 250. “He provided a lot of memorable fights. He’s definitely a legend in the sport. Maybe continued a little bit longer than he should, tarnished his legacy just at the end. In his prime — that’s what people are going to remember him as — definitely one of the greatest.”

While Silva, who is currently 45 years old, has indicated that UFC Fight Night 181 might not be the end of the line if he gets his way, the 35-year-old Mousasi doesn’t plan on following in the Brazilian’s footsteps in terms of longevity.

“At this moment I feel great. To be honest, in training I was better than ever,” said Mousasi, who will face…

An undisclosed injury has forced Robbie Lawler to pull out of a welterweight clash with Mike Perry at UFC 255.

Perry initially revealed Lawler’s exit on Twitter, and it has since been confirmed by multiple outets. Perry wants to remain on the card and requested a matchup with surging prospect Khamzat Chimaev, but Chimaev is currently slated to face Leon Edwards in the UFC Fight Night headliner on Dec. 19.

So @Ruthless_RL pulled out due to an injury. Looking for a replacement I asked for @KChimaev and we can do it at middleweight @ufc @FirstRoundMgmt

— Platinum Mike Perry (@PlatinumPerry) October 28, 2020

UFC 255 takes place on Nov. 21 and is headlined by flyweight title tilt between Deiveson Figueiredo and Alex Perez. In the co-main event, Valentina Shevchenko will defend her 125-pound belt against Jennifer Maia.

Lawler is currently on a four-bout skid in UFC competition. The former 170-pound king last appeared at UFC Fight Night 17…

Ilima-Lei Macfarlane will put her flyweight belt on the line against Juliana Velasquez in the headliner of a Bellator MMA event on Dec. 10.

Sherdog.com confirmed the booking with a promotion official following an initial report from ESPN. The card is expected to take place at the Mohegan Sun Arena in Uncasville, Connecticut and air on CBS Sports Network.

Unbeaten in 11 professional appearances – all but one of which have occurred under the Bellator banner – Macfarlane will be making her fifth 125-pound title defense. After claiming the inaugural crown with a fifth-round submission of Emily Ducote at Bellator 186, “The Ilimanator” has vanquished Alejandra Lara, Valerie Letourneau, Veta Arteaga and Kate Jackson in succession. Only Jackson made it to the final horn against the 30-year-old Team Hurricane Awesome representative.

Velasquez has been victorious in her first 10 professional outings. Five of those wins have come in Bellator competition, including a three…

A showdown between two-time title challenger Dominick Reyes and ex-Rizin champ Jiri Prochazka is expected to headline an Ultimate Fighting Championship event on Feb. 27.

UFC president Dana White initially confirmed the light heavyweight booking to ESPN. A location and venue for the card has yet to be announced.

Reyes is coming off back-to-back losses in 205-pound title bouts. After dropping a narrow five-round verdict to Jon Jones at UFC 247 — a contest many thought he deserved to win — “The Devastator” suffered a second-round TKO loss to Jan Blachowicz in a clash for the vacant belt at UFC 253 on Sept. 26. Reyes began his professional tenure with 12 consecutive triumphs, six of which have come in UFC competition.

Prochazka made his Octagon debut in spectacular fashion, as he knocked out former No. 1 contender Volkan Oezdemir 49 seconds into Round 2 of their UFC 251 matchup on July 11. The 28-year-old Czech Republic native is on an 11-bout winning streak that i…

Junior dos Santos will square off against Ciryl Gane in a heavyweight bout at UFC 256.

MMAFighting.com was first to report the pairing. UFC 256 takes place at the UFC Apex in Las Vegas on Dec. 12 and features a women’s featherweight title tilt pitting Amanda Nunes against Megan Anderson.

A former heavyweight champion, dos Santos has fallen on hard times of late. “Cigano” is currently on a three-fight losing streak in which he has been finished in succession by Francis Ngannou, Curtis Blaydes and Jairzinho Rozenstruik. Prior to that skid, the 36-year-old Brazilian had been victorious in four of his last five Octagon appearances.

After taking a three-round verdict over Tanner Boser at UFC Fight Night 165, Gane has had four fights fall through for various reasons. Most recently, a prosposed clash with Ante Delija was at UFC Fight Night 180 was scrapped due to contract issues for Gane’s opponent. The 30-year-old Frenchman is 6-0 as a professional — including three …

Three new bouts have been added to the lineup for Invicta Fighting Championships 43.

The all-female promotion announced the following contests on Wednesday: Stephanie Geltmacher vs. Trisha Cicero at flyweight; Juliana Miller vs. Kendal Holowell at strawweight and Courtney King vs. TBA at featherweight.

Invicta FC 43 takes place in Kansas City on Nov. 20 and is headlined by a championship doubleheader, as Pearl Gonzalez square off against Erin Blanchfield for flyweight gold, while Emily Ducote meets Montserrat Ruiz for the strawweight crown.

Invicta FC 43 takes place behind closed doors and airs on UFC Fight Pass beginning at 8 p.m. ET/5 p.m. PT. The event will utilize open scoring.