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Despite having a light heavyweight title tilt at the top of the bill, Bellator 244 was not a ratings success for the California-based promotion.

According to ShowBuzz Daily, Friday’s main card averaged just 275,000 viewers on Paramount Network — the lowest of five cards held in 2020 by Bellator. The event was simulcast on Dazn, but viewership figures for the paid streaming service are not released.

Bellator 244 took place at the Mohegan Sun in Uncasville, Connecticut, and was headlined by a 205-pound championship clash between Vadim Nemkov and Ryan Bader. Nemkov claimed the light heavyweight throne with a second-round knockout of the former UFC standout, while former women’s featherweight queen Julia Budd earned a dominant three-round verdict over Jessy Miele in the co-main event.

The previous low for a Bellator card came on July 24, when Bellator 242 “Pettis vs. Bandejas” averaged 277,000 viewers on Paramount Network. Just two weeks prior, however, a Bellator…

Give him credit. He's dodges questions like Silva dodged punches vs. Griffin

Dana: Oh, Pitbull?Media: Yes, what do you think of him as a fighter.Dana: I don't know. I honestly couldn't tell you.#UFC pic.twitter.com/Av6hzcbEYx

— Jed I. Goodman (@jedigoodman) August 23, 2020 Patricio Freire didn’t take kindly to Dana White’s dismissal of a potential cross-promotional bout between fighters from Bellator MMA and the UFC.

White not only scoffed at the notion of Bellator’s light heavyweight division being superior to the UFC’s, but he also claimed not to be aware of other top talents on the California-based promotion’s roster, including the two-division champion Freire.

First, Freire reminded the world that he defeated Michael Chandler, a fighter whom White has recently expressed interest in signing as a free agent.

Hi [Dana White], I’m the one who destroyed steroids machine [Michael Chandler], whom you said deserves a talk, in 61 sec…

[youtube https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=uey2Bl2rZsU&w=560&h=315]

Thor Silva, the son of mixed martial arts legend Wanderlei Silva, was victorious in his amateur boxing debut this past Saturday.

Wanderlei was in Thor’s corner along with Evolução Thai head coach Andre Dida. The 17-year-old Thor squared off against the far more experienced Vinicius Vina, who is also 17 but has 14 bouts under his belt.

“I followed a good part of Wand´s prime in Pride and the UFC and never saw him so nervous,” Dida told Sherdog.com.

The fight was the main event of a Venum Private Fight amateur card. Both Thor and his opponent were aggressive throughout the three-round affair, but the younger Silva ended up winning via decision.

“What impressed me the most about Thor is his mental toughness. It looks like he doesn’t feel the pressure to be Wanderlei Silva´s son,” Dida said. “Now we will have him train jiu-jitsu with Sergio Moraes and next year we want to make his MMA debut in an…

Air Machaev operating normally!#BRAVECF40 pic.twitter.com/1bZoSNhmdm

— BRAVE Combat Federation (@bravemmaf) August 24, 2020

Mochamed Machaev kept his perfect record intact against Shoaib Yousaf in the Brave Combat Federation 40 headliner in Sweden on Monday.

The opening stanza was the most competitive of the featherweight fight, with Yousaf (7-2) coming for-ward with his striking, while Machaev (10-0) answered with his wrestling skills. Starting the second stanza, it was pretty clear that "The Beast" had the edge over his opponent thanks to his relentless takedowns. Machaev dominated Yousaf on the mat over the course of the bout’s final 10 minutes, and all three judges rewarded Machaev with 30-27 scorecards for a unanimous decision victory.

In a post-fight interview, the Austrian fighter asked to compete for the vacant featherweight belt in his next cage appearance.

Who knew a submission win would make someone s…

HOLLAND ENDS IT WITH ONE SHOT!! #UFCVegas6 pic.twitter.com/fgjtLxlkbM

— UFC Canada (@UFC_CA) August 9, 2020

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A middleweight showdown between Kevin Holland and Darren Stewart is slated for the Ultimate Fighting Championship’s Sept. 19 offering.

Holland announced the pairing in an Instagram post. The card is expected to take place at the UFC Apex in Las Vegas and is headlined by a welterweight clash pitting Colby Covington against Tyron Woodley.

Holland has posted a 2-0 mark in UFC competition during the pandemic, earning technical knockout triumphs over Anthony Hernandez and Joaquin Buckley. The 27-year-old Texan has won five of his last six Octagon appearances after falling to former light heavyweight title contender Thiago Santos in his promotional debut.

Stewart, meanwhile, has won…

Well-traveled veteran Satoshi Ishii will get a chance to capture the inaugural Elite MMA Championship heavyweight crown when he faces Stuart Austin on Sept. 5 in Dusseldorf, Germany.

The fledgling promotion announced on Monday that Ishii and Austin will square off in the EMC 5 main event. Two other bouts were confirmed for the event: Konrad Dyrschka vs. Walter Pugliesi at welterweight and Erko Jun vs. Damian Olszewski at heavyweight.

EMC is founded by Ivan and Tomi Dijakovic, who manage and coach notable MMA fighters such as Roberto Soldic, Antun Racic, Thiago Silva, David Zawada and Abus Magomedov. According to a release, more former UFC, PFL and Cage Warriors competitors will be announced for the card in the coming days.

Ishi, 33, has compiled a 23-11-1 career mark while competing for organizations such as Bellator MMA, Rizin Fighting Federation and Professional Fighters League. Most recently, the Osaka, Japan, native halted a three-bout skid with a first-roun…

[youtube https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=A32pv7n2TRI&w=560&h=315]

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Ricardo Lamas has a new opponent at UFC Fight Night 175, as former Dana White’s Contender Series competitor Bill Algeo announced on Sunday that he will face the former featherweight title challenger.

Algeo, who revealed the news via social media, steps in for Ryan Hall after the jiu-jitsu ace pulled out of the clash due to injury. UFC Fight Night 175 takes place at the UFC Apex in Las Vegas on Saturday and is headlined by a three-round light heavyweight showcase pitting Anthony Smith against Aleksandar Rakic. The card will stream on ESPN+.

A former Cage Fury Fighting Championships and Ring of Combat featherweight titlist, Algeo will make his promotional debut with a 13-4 career mark. He appeared on Season 3 of the Contender Series, dropping a three-rou…

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Daniel Rodriguez’s resilience made his action-packed scrap with Dwight Grant at UFC on ESPN 15 a solid contender for 2020’s “Round of the Year.”

Grant nearly made it a short night, as he dropped Rodriguez with a right hook and flurried for a finish on his reeling foe at the outset of the bout. Fortunately for Rodriguez, referee Chris Tognoni gave him plenty of leeway to recover. What followed was an impressive rally in which Rodriguez floored the American Kickboxing Academy product three times en route to a knockout victory at the 2:24 mark of Round 1.

“I knew he had power I didn’t expect to get hit with it so early,” Rodriguez said. “I kind of expected I might get hit eventually, because he had these wild, loopy punches… He caught me and I had never been in that situation before, ever. Especially when he pounced on m…

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. This past week, Bellator MMA president Scott Coker proudly proclaimed that his organization possessed the best 205-pound talent pool in mixed martial arts. That statement was based both on pound-for-pound king Jon Jones’ decision to move up to heavyweight in the UFC along with Bellator’s own growing stockpile of fighters at light heavyweight – a stable that now includes recent free-agent signee Corey Anderson.

Not surprisingly, UFC president Dana White isn’t buying it.

“Isn’t he cute?” White said of Coker at Saturday’s UFC on ESPN 15 post-fight press conference.

“Everybody they have in their light heavyweight division we let go of. He’s got the best light heavyweight division? We let those guys all go. It’s like the f---ing dumbest thing I’ve ever heard,” he later added. “But I get it. He’s got to try to f--ing do his…

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 15 headliner between Pedro Munhoz and Frankie Edgar was undeniably a closely-contested fight.

While the cageside judges awarded Edgar a split-decision triumph, 17 of the 21 unofficial media scorecards tracked by MMADecisions.com had Munhoz winning the bantamweight fight. Munhoz also held the statistical edge, outlanding “The Answer” by a 166-to-135 count in significant strikes — a figure that included a 44-to-7 advantage in leg kicks.

“Not even [just] the leg kicks,” Munhoz said at the UFC on ESPN 15 post-fight press conference. “I was hurting him with jabs. I chase him (for) five rounds. He got a couple takedowns, but he couldn’t do anything with the takedowns. I got back up right away. I was looking for the finish.”

While Munhoz seemed to land with more power when he connected, Edgar certainl…

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Frankie Edgar became just the 11th fighter in UFC history to win a bout in three different weight classes when he earned a split-decision triumph over Pedro Munhoz in the UFC on ESPN 15 headliner on Saturday night in Las Vegas.

Making the feat even more impressive was the fact that the Toms River, N.J., native did so at 38 years old and as the third largest underdog on the card. Edgar, who did not attend Saturday’s post-fight press conference, was well aware of the naysayers heading into his matchup with Munhoz.

“It’s good to be on the winning side. That was a hell of a fight, Pedro is a stud,” Edgar said in a post-fight interview with UFC commentator Jon Anik. “I heard a lot of people barking that I’m old, I’m slow. I definitely proved them all wrong.

“I still got some fight in this tank and we’re going to mak…

“Cocaine isn't cheap. It's expensive. You've got to make money." - UFC President Dana White on Oscar De La Hoya making a comeback in boxing. pic.twitter.com/SV7rCNnL5W

— Chamatkar Sandhu (@SandhuMMA) August 23, 2020

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Dana White has publicly feuded with Oscar De La Hoya off-and-on in recent years and has never been shy about taking a shot at the longtime boxing star.

The UFC president was not thrilled that De La Hoya brought former light heavyweight champion Chuck Liddell out of retirement when “The Iceman” suffered a first-round knockout loss to Tito Ortiz at Golden Boy MMA’s first — and only — event in November 2018. Prior to the pay-per-view, De La Hoya criticized the UFC boss for telling fighters such as Liddell when it was time to call it a career.

“I love Chuck Liddell and I don’t eve…

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The UFC on ESPN 15 headliner was high-level MMA at its finest, and Frankie Edgar and Pedro Munhoz were appropriately rewarded for their efforts.

Edgar and Munhoz received “Fight of the Night” honors and $50,000 apiece for their headlining bout at the UFC Apex in Las Vegas on Saturday night. The two men set a UFC bantamweight record with 301 combined significant strikes landed in the five-round affair, but ultimately it was Edgar who emerged with a split-decision triumph.

Elsewhere, Shana Dobson garnered a $50,000 “Performance of the Night” check for her upset of Mariya Agapova in a featured women’s flyweight scrap. The largest underdog on the card, Dobson rallied after a difficult first round to put her fading opponent away with punches from top position at the 1:38 mark of Round 2.

Finally, short-notice newcom…

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. Frankie Edgar forced those intent on writing his career epitaph to put down their chisels and hammers a little while longer. The former Ultimate Fighting Championship lightweight titleholder marked his territory at 135 pounds, as he eked out a split decision over Pedro Munhoz in the UFC on ESPN 15 main event on Saturday at the UFC Apex in Las Vegas. Scores were 48-47 and 48-47 for Edgar, 49-46 for Munhoz.

Neither man was willing to give ground in what turned into a war of wills. Edgar (24-8-1, 18-8-1 UFC) let his hands go in crisp, multi-punch volleys and routinely snapped back the former Resurrection Fighting Alliance titleholder’s head with straight rights and sneaky uppercuts. Munhoz (18-5, 8-5 UFC) answered with suffocating pressure, a thudding jab and a steady stream of leg kicks. It appeared to be anyone’s fight in the lat…

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 on ESPN 15 coverage will begin Saturday at 6 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 Critchfi…

Lemos wins by UD. #UFCVegas7 pic.twitter.com/z9QGU8GjUa

— UFC (@ufc) August 23, 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. Amanda Lemos simply had more weapons at her disposal.

The former Jungle Fight champion deepened her footprint in the Ultimate Fighting Championship strawweight division, as she took a unanimous decision from Mizuki Inoue in the featured UFC on ESPN 15 prelim on Saturday at the UFC Apex in Las Vegas. All three judges scored it 30-27 for Lemos (8-1-1, 2-1 UFC), who won for the third time in four appearances.

Lemos floored the Japanese standout with a chopping right hand in the first round and landed the cleaner strikes throughout the 15-minute battle. Inoue (14-6, 1-1 UFC) responded with a stifling clinch and trapped her Brazilian counterpart along the fence repeatedly, but she failed to do enough damage in close quarters to curr…

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.

Today’s UFC on ESPN 15 card has taken another hit, as Ovince St. Preux has tested positive for COVID-19 ahead of his co-main event showdown with Alonzo Menifield.

As a result, the light heavyweight bout has been postponed until Sept. 5. St. Preux’s management brought word of the fighter’s exit from the card on Saturday. The former University of Tennessee football player previously tested positive for COVID-19 and submitted both positive and negative test during the week. Despite being asymptomatic, St. Preux was removed from the card for precautionary reasons.

For safety precautions the @003_OSP fight will be removed from the card tonight and reschedule for 9/5. He battled Covid previously and presented both + and - tests this week. He currently has no symptoms and his cornermen are all clear. #u…

#AndNew #Bellator244 pic.twitter.com/dDD5R4n1Fx

— ShayMyName (@ImShannonTho) August 22, 2020

There was a shift atop the Bellator MMA light heavyweight division, and it was seismic in nature.

Vadim Nemkov cut down Ryan Bader with a head kick and follow-up punches in the second round of their Bellator 244 headliner on Friday at the Mohegan Sun Arena in Uncasville, Connecticut, as he became the seventh 205-pound champion in company history. Bader (27-5, 5-1 Bellator) succumbed to blows 3:02 into Round 2, suffering his first setback in nearly four years.

Nemkov (12-2, 5-0 Bellator) conceded a takedown in the first round but was responsible for virtually all of the meaningful offense. He stung Bader with a straight right hand in Round 2, reset after an inadvertent eye poke paused the action and floored “The Ultimate Fighter” Season 8 winner with a perfectly placed high kick. Nemkov chased the fallen champion to the floor, showered him wit…

Both claim victory! But who is taking the belt home??? #LFA88 pic.twitter.com/A3GXDGZIgR

— UFC FIGHT PASS (@UFCFightPass) August 22, 2020

The Legacy Fighting Alliance crowned a new welterweight champion at LFA 88.

The promotion pitted prospects Vinicius de Jesus and Jaleel Willis against one another for the vacant belt and it was Willis (13-2) that came out on top. The two men had a back-and-forth battle on the feet over five rounds. Ultimately, de Jesus (9-3) couldn't keep up with his foe according to the judges, who all awarded Willis the victory with scores of 49-46, 50-45, and 48-47.

The co-main event saw Aaron McKenzie win a thrilling bout against Glaucio Eliziario. McKenzie (8-2-1) was rocked early against Eliziario (9-6) after getting hit with a flying knee but managed to battle back into the bout. McKenzie would blast Eliziario and then lock in a rear-naked choke that forced his opponent to tap out 4:15 into Round 1.

In …

Frankie Edgar successfully weighed in for his bantamweight debut, coming in at 135.5 pounds.

His opponent Pedro Munhoz tipped the scales at 136 pounds, making the #UFCVegas7 main event official. pic.twitter.com/B3irdEr038

— ESPN MMA (@espnmma) August 21, 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. In this era of the Ultimate Fighting Championship, fights are not official until the cage door closes.

The UFC rolls on with its busy August with UFC on ESPN 15. The card is headlined by former lightweight champion Frankie Edgar making his bantamweight debut against Pedro Munhoz. Despite two straight losses to Chan Sung Jung and Max Holloway, Edgar (23-8-1) once again finds himself headlining a UFC event. “The Answer” has spent the past seven years at featherweight and had plenty of success despite never gaining a second title. He’ll l…

Breaking: Darren Till (@darrentill2) vs. Jack Hermansson (@jackthejokermma) will headline UFC Fight Night on Dec. 5, pending medical clearance on Till’s left knee (which is looking good). MW matchups are fire right now. Adesanya/Costa. Whittaker/Cannonier. Hermansson/Till. pic.twitter.com/O7rIN7ABM2

— Brett Okamoto (@bokamotoESPN) August 21, 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. The Ultimate Fighting Championship will be rolling every weekend well into December now. The news first breaking from ESPN on Friday, Jack Hermansson (21-5) will be locking horns with Darren Till (18-3-1) for the middleweight headliner of a UFC Fight Night card on Dec. 5. There is no destination currently set for the event, although it would likely be held at either Yas Island in Abu Dhabi, United Arab Emirates, or the UFC Apex in Las Vegas. Although the fig…

Breaking: The GOAT returns on Dec. 12. Amanda Nunes (@Amanda_Leoa) vs. Megan Anderson (@MeganA_mma) has been agreed to for UFC 256 in December, per sources. pic.twitter.com/XUEQQ1W17t

— Brett Okamoto (@bokamotoESPN) August 21, 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. Ultimate Fighting Championship two-division champ Amanda Nunes will stay at featherweight for her next title defense. ESPN announced on Friday that Nunes (20-4) will put her featherweight throne up for grabs against Megan Anderson (11-4) in December. The two will square off at the newly announced UFC 256, which will go down on Dec. 12 at an undetermined location. The two have agreed to the match, and it is not certain whether they will be headlining the pay-per-view event.

Nunes is on an unprecedented 11-fight win streak, where “The Lioness” has claimed the pelts of most …

José Aldo revela que Rafael Dos Anjos fará camp na Nova União https://t.co/b3ItmBjShk

— Ag. Fight (@AgFight) August 20, 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. Iron will once again sharpen iron, as two Brazilian legends will train together to prepare for a big matchup. Following the story released on Wednesday, former lightweight king Rafael dos Anjos (29-13) has confirmed his return to the lightweight division against Islam Makhachev (18-1) at UFC 254. The two will be squaring off on Oct. 24, and the location has not yet been determined although it is likely slated for Yas Island in Abu Dhabi, United Arab Emirates. In his return to the division he ruled from 2014 to 2015, dos Anjos will be changing up his training and going to Nova Uniao.

Ex-featherweight champ Jose Aldo revealed to Brazilian outlet Ag. Fight on Thursday that dos…

That's it!

Did @JoshParisian finally earn his spot?

Watch the rest of the card on ESPN+ pic.twitter.com/SqOiKZ8eLD — UFC (@ufc) August 19, 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. Josh Parisian will finally be able to call himself a Ultimate Fighting Championship fighter after his debut in November.

The news first coming from MMA Junkie on Friday, Parisian (13-3) will be setting foot in the Octagon for the first time against Parker Porter (9-6) in the heavyweight division. The two will be squaring off at the UFC Fight Night event on Nov. 28 at an undetermined location, likely to be either the UFC Apex in Las Vegas or Yas Island in the United Arab Emirates. Parisian has since confirmed the booking on his Instagram.

Parisian will be finally making his promotional debut with a pair of first-round knockout victories on Dana …