Blog

Dan Hooker is one of the hottest fighters in the lightweight division, and he continued his torrid winning streak Saturday night in the UFC Fight Night 168 headliner.

Hooker (20-8) has been on a roll inside the Octagon, having won two straight and six of seven overall entering Saturday’s bout with Paul Felder. As expected, Hooker and “The Irish Dragon” slugged it out for 25 minutes in arguably the best fight of the young 2020 campaign thus far. Both men had to dig deep and each took as good as he gave, but “The Hangman” was the one who had his hand raised in victory, the beneficiary of a split decision.

The fight was better than advertised and the official verdict of the war could have gone to either competitor. However, Hooker landed the more telling blows, scored a timely takedown late and won on two of the three judges’ cards. The City Kickboxing standout delighted his hometown fans inside the packed Spark Arena in Auckland, New Zealand, something he said helped him…

THE GYPSY KING IS THE KING OF BOXING! #WilderFury2 pic.twitter.com/3qDbApeXsH

— ESPN (@espn) February 23, 2020 When Tyson Fury and Deontay Wilder first met back in December 2018, it was a nip-and-tuck boxing match that ended in a draw, but Saturday night in Las Vegas was vastly different.

When the heavyweights first collided at Staples Center, Fury boxed beautifully and had Wilder guessing throughout. However, a knockdown of Fury in the ninth and then a near-decapitation of the Brit in the 12th moved the scores closer and neither man was declared the victor. Inside the MGM Grand Garden Arena in the rematch, though, Fury made sure it never came close to going to the scorecards.

Fury backed “The Bronze Bomber” up right off the bat behind his jab and he kept Wilder at bay. The 2008 Olympic bronze medalist was a step behind Fury early and often and was having a terrible time landing his crushing right hand. Fury (30-0-1, 21 KO) flus…

Dan Hooker and Paul Felder put on a show at UFC Fight Night 168 that won’t soon be forgotten.

The two lightweights received “Fight of the Night” honors and $50,000 apiece for their headlining affair at Spark Arena in Auckland, New Zealand, on Saturday night. The five-round contest featured multiple momentum swings and plenty of action, but ultimately it was Hooker who emerged with a split-decision triumph in front of his home crowd.

Elsewhere, Dana White’s Contender Series alum Jim Crute garnered a $50,000 “Performance of the Night” bonus for a dominant triumph against Michal Oleksiejczuk in the evening’s light heavyweight co-main event. Crute landed eight takedowns in less than a round before submitting his Polish opponent with a kumura at the 3:29 mark of Round 1.

Finally, Priscila Cachoeira halted a three-bout skid in emphatic fashion, as she received the evening’s other $50,000 “Performance of the Night” check for a quick knockout of Shana Dobson in a prelimi…

Sign up for ESPN+ right here, and you can then stream UFC on ESPN+ live on your computer, phone, tablet or streaming device via the ESPN app. Sherdog's live UFC Fight Night 168 coverage will begin 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:Ben Duffy scores the round:Round 2 Sherdog Scores Jay Pettry scores the round:Tristen Critchfield scores the round:Ben Duffy scores the round:Round 3 Sherdog Scores Jay Pettry scores the round:Tristen Critchfield scores the round:Ben Duffy scores the round:The Official Result Round 1 Sherdog Scores Jay Pettry scores the round:Tristen Critchfield scores the round:Ben Duffy scores the round:Round 2 Sherdog Scores Jay Pettry scores the round:Tristen Critchfield scores the round:Ben Duffy scores the round:Round 3 Sherdog Scores Jay Pettry scores the round:Tristen Critchfield scores the round:Ben D…

Sign up for ESPN+ right here, and you can then stream UFC, boxing and the PFL live on your computer, phone, tablet or streaming device via the ESPN app. Deontay Wilder and Tyson Fury are expected to make their way to the ring at approximately 11:20 p.m. ET. Check out the Forums to discuss the card or enter your comments and predictions below. Have a question for Sherdog.com's medical expert? Tweet The Fight Doctor via @FightMedicine. Round 1 Round 2 Round 3 Round 4 Round 5 Round 6 Round 7 Round 8 Round 9 Round 10 Round 11 Round 12 The Official Result

All fighters make weight. RIZIN.21 officially set with 13 Fights at the Hamamatsu Arena.https://t.co/wHDYm3U4SU#RIZIN21

Feb 22, 2020Hamamatsu arena

— RIZIN FF English (@rizin_English) February 21, 2020 Rizin Fighting Federation will hold its first event of 2020 on Saturday, and all fighters on the card have successfully made weight. Headlining Rizin 21 in Hamamatsu, Japan, will be a 150-pound catchweight bout between Mikuru Asakura and Daniel Salas. Asakura (12-1) has been perfect inside the Rizin ring, going 6-0 in the promotion. His impressive 2019 saw him win decisions over Luiz Gustavo Felix dos Santos, Yusuke Yachi and John Teixeira. He’ll look to carry his momentum into 2020, and successfully made the catchweight limit by weighing in at 149.8 pounds.

Salas (16-6-1) is making his Rizin debut and is looking to throw a wrench into the Japanese promotion’s plans. “El Cazador” has won his last two bouts against Jhon Zarate an…

Legacy Fighting Alliance returns to the Mystic Lake Center in Prior Lake, Minnesota, for another night of mixed martial arts action, and all pro fighters successfully made weight.

While it’s the promotion’s third event of the year, it will be headlined by its first title fight of 2020. Undefeated light heavyweight prospect Alex Polizzi will take on Jamal Pogues for the promotion’s vacant light heavyweight championship. The belt was previously held by Julius Anglickas, who relinquished the strap once he signed with Bellator MMA.

Polizzi (5-0) might be lacking experience, but the Wisconsin native has impressed in his career by finishing every opponent he’s faced. He’s fought once before in LFA as he quickly dispatched Pierre Walters in the first round and followed that up with a TKO victory over Daniel Jolly. The three-time NCAA Division I national qualifier looked ready coming into his first title fight well under the 205-pound limit at 203.2 pounds.

Pogues (7-2) won o…

[youtube https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=cIgjlsDndWs&w=560&h=315] Combate Americas returns to Mexicali, Mexico, for its second event of the decade, and while the title fight is official, three fighters on the card did miss weight.

Headlining the event is a lightweight title bout as the undefeated Rafa Garcia will put his belt on the line against 2019 Copa Combate winner Humberto Bandenay. Garcia (11-0) has won seven straight fights inside “La Jaula,” most recently capturing the inaugural lightweight belt in September after defeating Erick Gonzalez in a fight that went the full 25 minutes. Prior to that, “Gifted” wowed in submission victories over Estevan Payan and Edgar Escarrega. The champ hit the lightweight championship limit perfectly at 155 pounds.

Despite being the same age as the champ, challenger Bandenay (18-7, 1 NC) will look to use his experience to his advantage. The Peruvian fighter had four fights inside the Ultimate Fighting Championship, where he went 1-3,…

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

Kicking off a busy doubleheader weekend for Bellator MMA is Bellator 239, and all but two fighters made weight successfully for the Winstar World Casino event.

The Thackerville, Oklahoma, card is headlined by an intriguing welterweight matchup between Ed Ruth (8-1) and Yaroslav Amosov (22-0). Ruth rebounded from his submission defeat to Neiman Gracie by beating Kiichi Kunimoto and Jason Jackson in his last two bouts. The former Penn State wrestler will look to show off his skills and get into title contention with a big win here. “Easy” had no trouble making weight and came in at 170.9 pounds.

Amosov posts an impressive unbeaten record and has looked great against veteran opposition in Bellator so far. The Ukrainian fighter won decisions over Gerald Harris and Erick Silva and submitted David Rickels in his last bout. He’ll look to cement himself as one of the best prospects in the world at the expense o…

Valentina Shevchenko will continue her quest to clean out the women’s flyweight division when she defends her crown against Joanne Calderwood at UFC 251.

ESPN reported on Wednesday that both Shevchenko and Calderwood have agreed to the fight, although it has not been officially confirmed by the promotion. UFC 251 is expected to take place on June 6. A venue has not been selected for the event, but Australia is reportedly the frontrunner.

Shevchenko is coming off a dominant third-round technical knockout victory over Katlyn Chookagian in the UFC 247 co-main event on Feb. 8. The former bantamweight title challenger claimed 125-pound gold with a five-round verdict over Joanna Jedrzejczyk at UFC 231 and has since defended the belt with victories over Jessica Eye, Liz Carmouche and Chookagian.

Calderwood has won three of four UFC appearances since moving up to flyweight following a two-bout skid at 115 pounds. Most recently, the Scotland native took a split verdict ov…

Lauren Murphy has no time for boredom these days.

After she edged Andrea Lee by split decision at UFC 247, she wasted no time beginning the renovation of her new house with her husband.

“We just bought a house and we are remodeling it before we move in,” she explained. “We have to move by the end of the month, so we are kind of on a time crunch.”

The former Invicta FC bantamweight champion defeated Lee on the prelims of a UFC 247 card headlined by a light heavyweight title bout between Jon Jones and Dominick Reyes.

“It was fun, it wasn’t that much of a big a deal,” she said. “Actually, the walk to the Octagon was shorter than I was expecting. The nerves weren’t that bad.”

Murphy is now riding a two-bout winning streak. Prior to her latest Octagon appearance, she overcame Mara Romero Borella via third-round technical knockout at UFC on ESPN 5. “Lucky” is pretty sure that her performance has improved a lot after she started working with Dr. Matteo Capodaglio o…

FLYING TRIANGLE!

When @PaddyTheBaddy goes for the kill, he is spectacular

'The Baddy' has promised to make a statement at #CWLondon against new opponent Davide Martinez pic.twitter.com/Hq7ATFxIih— Cage Warriors (@CageWarriors) February 19, 2020

It’s not meant to be for Paddy Pimblett and Donovan Desmae to clash in the cage, at least not for now.

According to an official press release by the Cage Warriors Fighting Championship, Desmae has pulled out of his scheduled fight with Pimblett due to personal reasons. “The Baddy” will now lock horns with Italy’s Davide Martinez in a 155-pound clash at Cage Warriors 113. 

Pimblett (14-3) is looking to bounce back after a loss to former Cage Warriors champion Soren Bak in his most recent bout at CW 96 in 2018. Prior to that, “The Baddy” submitted with a highlight-reel flying triangle choke Alexis Savvidis at CW 90. 

Martinez will arrive at the most important fi…

Elias Theodorou has become the first professional mixed martial artist to receive a therapeutic use exemption (TUE) for medical cannabis, according to a statement released by Paradigm Sports Management on Tuesday.

Theodorou was granted a TUE by the British Columbia Athletic Commission. According to the release, he is allowed “to continue his doctor-prescribed use of medicinal cannabis and protects him from penalty if he tests above the previous threshold for in-competition use. He will follow the guidelines provided by the athletic commission regarding fight-week medical use.”

Theodorou previously applied for a medical exemption for cannabis during his UFC tenure, but he was denied by the promotion’s anti-doping partner, USADA. However, the release states “his application and subsequent advocacy garnered positive interest on the matter.”

“I am grateful both as a patient and an athlete for the approval of my medical cannabis TUE by the BC Athletic Commission, reco…

Eryk Anders will square off against Krzysztof Jotko in a middleweight clash at UFC Portland.

The Las Vegas-based promotion confirmed the booking on Tuesday. UFC Fight Night 172 take place at the Moda Center in Portland, Ore., on April 11 and is headlined by a heavyweight showdown between Alistair Overeem and Walt Harris. The card will stream on ESPN+.

Anders enters the matchup on a two-bout winning streak. After scoring a first-round knockout of Vinicius Moreira Castro at UFC on ESPN 3, the former University of Alabama football player garnered a split verdict against Gerald Meerschaert at UFC Fight Night 161. The 32-year-old Spartan Fitness product is 5-4 in the UFC and 13-4 as a professional overall.

Jotko is also on a two-fight winning streak after earning decision wins over Alen Amedovski and Marc-Andre Barriault in his only two UFC appearances of 2019. Jotko has experienced an up-and-down promotional tenure, winning six of his first seven outings before endur…

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

Up-and-coming light heavyweight Aleksandar Rakic has signed a new six-fight contract with the Ultimate Fighting Championship.

The 28-year-old Austrian announced the news via social media on Monday. Financial terms of the deal were not disclosed.

“Pleased to announce I have signed a new long-term contract with [six] fights in the UFC,” he wrote. “This is the [third] contract with the company in [two] years.”

Rakic saw a 12-fight winning streak come to an end in his last outing at UFC Fight Night 165, where he dropped a split decision to former title challenger Volkan Oezdemir on Dec. 21. Rakic outlanded his foe by a 75-to-63 count in significant strikes, and seven of the eight media scorecards tracked by MMADecisions.com saw the fight in favor of the American Top Team representative.

Rakic began his UFC tenure with four consecutive triumphs, a streak that included first-round KO/TKO wins over D…

Tight squeeze by @TOOSWEET_Alpar #DWCS pic.twitter.com/YZMIdKvmYx

— ESPN MMA (@espnmma) August 14, 2019

Vanessa Melo will replace Duda Santana and face Sarah Alpar at UFC Oklahoma City on May 2.

Both Melo and Alpar confirmed the new bantamweight booking on their Instagram stories Monday following an initial report from Combate. UFC Oklahoma City takes place at Chesapeake Energy Arena and also features a strawweight showdown between Claudia Gadelha and Marina Rodriguez. The Fight Night event does not yet have a headliner.

Melo is still looking for her first Octagon triumph after dropping unanimous verdicts against Irene Aldana at UFC Fight Night 159 and Tracy Cortez at UFC Fight Night 164 in 2019. The 31-year-old Sao Paulo, Brazil, native owns a 10-7 professional mark that includes eight wins by decision and two via submission.

Alpar, meanwhile, will be making her promotional debut after submitting Shanna Young on Season 3…

One Championship “King of the Jungle” will be a spectator-less event.

One CEO Chatri Sityodtong announced on Monday that the Feb. 28 card will be closed to the public due to the outbreak of the coronavirus in Singapore. Instead, it will be a broadcast only event.

“In light of the coronavirus situation in Singapore, I have made the decision to convert ONE: King of the Jungle on February 28 into a closed event for broadcast only,” Sityodtong wrote. “The Singapore Indoor Stadium will not be open to the general public, but the event will proceed behind closed doors as scheduled live on all TV and digital platforms across 150+ countries around the world. If you purchased tickets to attend the event at the Singapore Indoor Stadium, you will receive a full refund.”

The coronavirus outbreak originated in China, where it has reportedly killed 1,770 people and infected 70,000. There have been more than 71,000 cases of coronavirus worldwide, with the largest outbreaks outsi…

Israel Adesanya apparently has designs on moving up in weight once he extends his reign at middleweight, but the targeted opponent does not reside in the division one might expect.

In a recent interview with Submission Radio, City Kickboxing coach Eugene Bareman revealed that Adesanya would eventually like to square off against heavyweight titlist Stipe Miocic.

“Israel stated, and I think it’s a very good plan, he’s gonna do his thing in the middleweight division. There’s some really tough challenges,” Bareman said. “He should clear those out. There’s at least three or four more good challenges. But three or four more fights for Israel is like maybe within this year. So, after that, what’s the next challenge? For him, and we’ve done it in all the sports that we’ve participated in, it’s to move up in weight. And trust me, if he has these three or four more middleweight fights, we will push to fight Stipe [Miocic], 100 percent.

“If Israel can get the business done …

Corey Anderson saw his light heavyweight championship dreams go up in smoke at UFC Rio Rancho.

The fighter known as “Overtime” entered Saturday’s card on a four-bout winning streak, but a powerful right hook from Jan Blachowicz brought an emphatic conclusion to their headlining bout just 3:08 into the opening stanza. Anderson, who was favored in the bout, previously defeated Blachowicz via unanimous decision at UFC 191 in 2015.

While a victory would have positioned Anderson for a crack at reigning 205-pound king Jon Jones, it was Blachowicz who was able to posture for his own opportunity with the reigning champion seated cageside in his adopted home state.

Anderson is taking the loss in stride, however. The 30-year-old released a statement on social media, and he seems to be ready to move forward.

“A great coach once told me ‘You have 5 minutes to sulk and then it's on to the next one.’ We live and we learn,” Anderson wrote. “Back to the drawing board. I ap…

Jon Jones was front and center for Jan Blachowicz’s attempt to lay claim to the No. 1 contender spot at light heavyweight, and the reigning champion was more than pleased to see a new challenger emerge.

After Blachowicz vanquished Corey Anderson via first-round knockout in the UFC Fight Night 167 headliner in Rio Rancho, N.M., on Saturday night, Jones appeared to be fired up as he and the Polish fighter shared a moment in the aftermath of the bout.

“I though he [Blachowicz] looked great. He looked tremendous. Crisp boxing, great takedown defense. He just looked really good,” Jones said during a backstage interview on ESPN+. “I was happy to see Corey Anderson eat his words. He’s been talking so much trash.”

Prior to UFC Fight Night 167, Anderson mentioned that he was looking forward to being the one to defeat Jones after the champion had a close call against Dominick Reyes at UFC 247 one week prior . However, a short right hook from Blachowicz sent Anderson to the…

John Dodson had no intention of serving as a steppingstone for Nathaniel Wood.

Dodson halted the eight-fight winning streak of the Englishman known as “The Prospect,” winning via third-round technical knockout in a preliminary bantamweight tilt at UFC Fight Night 167 in Rio Rancho, N.M., on Saturday.

“The Ultimate Fighter 14” winner entered the contest having lost three of his last four Octagon appearances, and he had an inkling the promotion was looking to build upon Wood’s momentum.

“Feels amazing to get back into the win column. It wasn’t easy. Nathaniel Wood is a tough opponent and I want to make sure I continue trashing these young opponents that they are giving me,” Dodson said. “I keep giving them the wins and then they are getting the title contention spots and now I want the same thing for myself. This win builds me back up.

“They keep giving me these tough opponents. When I lost to Marlon Moraes, they started boosting him up. When I lost to Petr Y…

Jan Blachowicz put a lasting stamp on a card that had been mostly memorable for all the wrong reasons.

The 36-year-old Pole earned a $50,000 “Performance of the Night” bonus for his first-round knockout of Corey Anderson in the UFC Fight Night 167 main event at the Santa Ana Star Center in Rio Rancho, N.M., on Saturday night. A right hook from Blachowicz sent Anderson to the canvas, and one follow-up hammerfist ended the contest at the 3:08 mark of Round 1.

Elsewhere, Daniel Rodriguez received the evening’s other $50,000 “Performance of the Night” check thanks to his upset of of local favorite Tim Means in a preliminary welterweight affair. Rodriguez, who took the bout on short notice, floored “The Dirty Bird” at the end of the first round and hurt his opponent with punches again in Round 2 before securing a guillotine choke submission 3:37 into the period.

Finally, Scott Holtzman and Jim Miller garnered “Fight of the Night” honors and $50,000 apiece for their pr…

Sign up for ESPN+ right here, and you can then stream UFC on ESPN+ live on your computer, phone, tablet or streaming device via the ESPN app. Sherdog's live UFC Fight Night 167 coverage will begin at 5 p.m. ET. Check out the MMA Forums to discuss the card or enter your comments and predictions below. Round 1 Hello fight fans, welcome to the UFC Rio Rancho play-by-play. We kick things off in the flyweight division, as De La Rosa (11-3, 2-3 UFC) -- one half of the first married couple in UFC history competing on the same card together -- takes on Raulian Paiva (18-3, 0-2 UFC). Both men are trying to snap two-fight skids, and our referee is Robert Romero. A touch of gloves clocks them in, and the fight night is underway. De La Rosa opens up with a leg kick, as Paiva looks to set up his jab. Paiva strings together a combination, and De La Rosa throws right back at him but largely comes up short. The two clash legs together, but the shin-to-shin contact does not appear to make eithe…

Bellator MMA has beefed up its March event in Connecticut in a big way on Friday.

Sherdog.com has confirmed on Friday a series of fights from a promotional official for its upcoming Bellator 241 card on March 13. Most notably is a main card offering, as Anatoly Tokov (29-2) locks horns with Fabio Aguiar (17-1) in the middleweight division.

Tokov has won all five of his bouts under the Bellator banner since signing with the promotion in 2017, including four finishes. His two defeats coming to current Ultimate Fighting Championship fighter Ramazan Emeev and 2018 Professional Fighters League champ Magomed Magomedkerimov, he also dropped a one-round bout in 2012 deemed an exhibition. Tokov sports a finish rate of 79 percent, with eight of his last 10 victories coming by stoppage.

Aguiar will be making his organizational debut after 15-month layoff -- the longest in his career. The Brazilian's only defeat came to recent UFC signee Bruno Silva, and he has rattled off nine con…