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Win or lose at UFC 251, Paige VanZant is set on testing free agency following her July 11 bout against Amanda Ribas on “Fight Island.”

VanZant is on the last fight of her current contract, and she hopes to secure a more lucrative deal no matter where she might land.

“I have my heart set and nobody is going to change my mind that I’m fighting my contract out,” VanZant told ESPN. “I don’t know where my future lies – I truly don’t. I think that’s kind of an exciting thing in my life. I’ve been with the UFC for six years now, and through this time I’m still – which is crazy – on the same contract before I fought Rose [Namajunas] at 22 years old, and I’m 26 now.

“…I just feel like a regular extension isn’t what I want. I want to prove my worth and my value and I want a brand new contract. I’m really excited to get the…

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Invicta FC veteran Miranda Maverick will have to wait to make her UFC debut.

The flwyeight has suffered an injury and was forced to pull out of a scheduled clash with Mara Romero Borella at UFC on ESPN 12 this Saturday. Combate was first to report the news. It is currently unknown if Borella will receive a replacement opponent.

Maverick completed her run through the Invicta Phoenix Rising Series 2 flyweight tournament by submitting DeAnna Bennett with a neck crank in the third round of the bracket’s finals last September. The 22-year-old Springfield Fight Club representative then outpointed former UFC talent Pearl Gonzalez in her next bout at Invicta FC 39 on Feb. 7 to run her professional mark to 7-2.

UFC on ESPN 12 takes place at the UFC Apex in Las Vegas and is headlined by a lightweight tilt between Dustin Po…

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It took more than a year and a half, but Chas Skelly finally has justice for a controversial defeat to Bobby Moffett at UFC Fight Night 139.

Skelly revealed on social media that the Colorado Combative Sports Commission recently overturned the loss to a no contest. Moffett earned a submission victory over Skelly on Nov. 10, 2018 in Denver after securing a brabo choke. However, referee Tim Mills mistakenly assumed Skelly was unconscious and prematurely called for the stoppage. Despite Skelly’s protests at the time, the verdict stood.

Skelly shared a letter from the Colorado commission announcing the ruling.

“In reviewing the bout video in its entirety, as well as the video submitted by you, I have concluded that the mechanics of the referee helped in creating an untimely stoppage of the fight, which resulted in an …

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A middleweight matchup pitting Yoel Romero against Uriah Hall is in the works for a UFC event on Aug. 22.

ESPN was first to report the bout, and MMAFighting.com later confirmed a date. The UFC card is expected to take place at the UFC Apex in Las Vegas and is also expected to include a women’s flyweight clash between Mariya Agapova and Shana Dobson.

Romero is currently on a three-bout skid that includes a unanimous decision defeat to Israel Adesanya in a middleweight championship bout at UFC 248 on March 7. Prior to that skid, “The Soldier of God” began his promotional tenure with victories in nine of his first 10 outings.

Hall, meanwhile, has been victorious in three of his last four Octagon appearances. Most recently, the 35-year-old known as “Primetime” garnered a split verdict over Antonio Carlos Jr. at UFC F…

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The ratings for UFC on ESPN 11 were very similar to the event one week prior.

This past Saturday’s main card averaged 912,000 viewers, according to ShowBuzz Daily. UFC on ESPN 11 took place at the UFC Apex in Las Vegas and saw Curtis Blaydes capture a unanimous verdict against Alexander Volkov in the evening’s heavyweight headliner. In the co-main event, Josh Emmett defeated Shane Burgos in a “Fight of the Year” contender at featherweight.

That figure represents only a slight increase from UFC on ESPN 10 on June 13, which averaged 908,000 viewers for a card featuing a much more maligned main event between Cynthia Calvillo and Jessica Eye.

Overall, UFC on ESPN 11 ranks seventh of the promotion’s 11 cards broadcast on ESPN. Like many other recent events, it was also simulcast on ESPN+. The main card broadcast began…

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 is changing a few aspects of its COVID-19 testing protocol ahead of its series of “Fight Island” events next month. MMAFighting.com was first to report on the updates and ESPN added further details regarding the testing. The UFC will hold events on July 11, 15, 18 and 25 at Yas Island in Abu Dhabi, which is designed to accommodate international athletes who were unable to enter the United States and compete at the UFC Apex in Las Vegas due to travel restrictions.

According to the reports, fighters, coaches and staff will be tested for COVID-19 prior to traveling. Fighters based in the United States will initially go to Las Vegas for testing, and the UFC will charter flights to Abu Dhabi from there. A similar procedure is in place for those outside of the U.S., as Brazilian-based fighters and…

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Daniel Pineda is coming back to the Ultimate Fighting Championship.

Pineda’s management, Iridium Sports Agency, announced Tuesday on social media that the featherweight has signed a contract with the Las Vegas-based promotion. A date for Pineda’s next fight was not revealed.

Pineda returns to the UFC riding a six-fight unbeaten streak, but that comes with some controversy. Pineda defeated Movlid Khaybulaev and Jeremy Kennedy this past October to advance to the Professional Fighters League featherweight finals. However, a drug test revealed a high level of testosterone to epitestosterone in his system, and those victories were overturned by the Nevada State Athletic Commission. A six-month suspension ended on April 18.

Pineda went 3-4 in the UFC from 2012 to 2014. He has compiled a 26-13 professional record that a…

[youtube https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Irh73-uS66A&w=560&h=315]

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A little more than a month ago, many observers pleaded with Anthony Smith’s corner to stop the fight as “Lionheart” endured a pummeling at the hands of Glover Teixeira in the UFC Fight Night 171 headliner.

Smith ultimately lost via TKO in the fifth round, and UFC president Dana White admitted at the post-fight press conference that he was surprised the light heavyweight was allowed to come out for the final frame. In later interviews, Smith took full responsibility and emphasized that he was not a victim because he wanted to stay in the fight as long as he possibly could.

However, Smith has a different perspective on what went down at UFC on ESPN 11 last weekend, when newcomer Max Rohskopf asked repeatedly for his fight with Austin Hubbard to be stopped p…

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Abdulmanap Nurmagomedov no longer has the coronavirus, but he remains in serious condition at the hospital.

UFC lightweight champion Khabib Nurmagomedov provided an update on his father in an interview with Channel One Russia (translation via Tass reporter Igor Lazarin).

“Now father’s condition is still serious, he is in intensive care,” Khabib said. “The coronavirus is gone, but the infection has left consequences on the kidneys and on the heart. Now [the] virus [is] gone. I come to hospital, he recognizes me, but there is no communication, because he is under the hospital devices. Every day I visit him for half an hour, hold his hand, talk, he gestures to understand that he recognizes me.”

Abdulmanap initially fell ill with pneumonia at the end of April and was transported from a medical facility in Dagestan to…

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

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Josh Emmett had reason to be frustrated after his victory over Shane Burgos in the UFC on ESPN 11 co-main event this past Saturday.

According to ESPN, the Team Alpha Male product completely tore the ACL in his left knee in the opening moments of the first round of the featherweight bout at the UFC Apex in Las Vegas. In addition to that injury, Emmett also suffered a partial MCL tear, a Baker’s cyst rupture (fluid leakage into the calf), a focal impact fracture of the femur, cartilage damage and severe swelling. Emmett speculated that it was an ACL tear in the immediate aftermath of the fight.

A timeframe for Emmett’s recovery is currently unclear. The 35-year-old has won three straight fights and five of his last six overall…

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Jim Miller was the highest paid competitor at UFC on ESPN 11.

The 35-fight Octagon veteran took home $208,000 for his first-round submission of Roosevelt Roberts in a featured lightweight encounter at the UFC Apex in Las Vegas on Saturday night. Roberts earned $25,000 in defeat.

UFC on ESPN 11 took place at the UFC Apex in Las Vegas and saw Curtis Blaydes ($180,000) defeat Alexander Volkov ($80,000) via unanimous decision in the evening’s heavyweight headliner. The Nevada State Athletic Commission released salaries from the event on Monday.

Elsewhere on the card, Josh Emmett garnered $152,000 for his “Fight of the Night” victory over Shane Burgos ($75,000) in the featherweight co-main event, while former title challenger Raquel Pennington earned $126,000 for a three-round verdict against Marion Reneau ($38,000).<…

[youtube https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=psk4Q5rtuPQ&w=560&h=315]

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Dana White’s Contender Series was expected to begin its fourth season this week, but the COVID-19 pandemic changed those plans.

According to a report from MMAjunkie.com, Season 4 is now expected to debut on Aug. 4 at the UFC Apex in Las Vegas and stream via ESPN+ on Tuesdays through September. Previous seasons of the Contender Series featured 10 episodes, but it’s currently unclear if the upcoming iteration will follow suit.

Fighters such as Adrian Yanez, Josh Parisian, Leomana Martinez, Joseph Pyfer, Chad Johnson and Jerome Rivera that were targeted for the upcoming season are still expected to compete, per the report. Others, like Brandon Royval, Anthony Ivy and Kyle Daukaus were tabbed as short-notice replacements for UFC bouts.

The Contender Ser…

Inside the corner of Max Rohskopf before the fight is called off at #UFCVegas3 pic.twitter.com/hZrfnaMObt

— ESPN MMA (@espnmma) June 20, 2020

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Max Rohskopf endured a rough promotional debut at UFC on ESPN 11.

After accepting a fight against Austin Hubbard on less than one week’s notice, the previously unbeaten prospect gassed out in the second round and was battered on the feet by his opponent in an increasingly lopsided bout. Prior to the third round, Rohskopf asked for the fight to be halted, but cornerman Robert Drysdale can be overheard telling his fighter to push through. “I don’t have it. Call it,” Rohskopf responded.

Ultimately, Rohskopf’s reticence caught the attention of referee Mark Smith, who confirmed with the lightweight that he did not want to continue, and the fig…

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Josh Emmett was victorious in a “Fight of the Year” candidate against Shane Burgos in the UFC on ESPN 11 co-main event, but you wouldn’t have known it by listening to him in the aftermath on Saturday night.

“I just have to go back and watch it. In my mind, I’m a tough critic on myself,” Emmett said at the post-fight press conference. “I didn’t get to move. I didn’t get to do what I wanted to do. I use a lot of lateral movement. I really wanted to mix up the wrestling and do a lot of things. I hurt my knee in the first 45 seconds so I felt like I had to just stand there and play sock ‘em, rock ‘em robots and just slip and rip. People are saying it’s a good fight, I guess.

“A lot of journalists, all these guys are counting me out. I see everything. I love it though. Everyone was saying I’m gonna lose. I can beat anyone i…

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Curtis Blaydes set a heavyweight record for takedowns against Alexander Volkov in the UFC on ESPN 11 main event, but it wasn’t a flawless performance.

The Elevation Fight Team product fatigued down the stretch, allowing Volkov to have some life in the championship rounds. While Blaydes still earned a clear-cut unanimous decision, UFC president Dana White doesn’t think it measured up to the heavyweight’s comments on Twitter earlier in the week when he vowed to ragdoll his Russian opponent.

“He won. He talked a lot of s—t coming in this week,” White said at Saturday’s post-fight press conference. “I don’t think you can talk the s—t that he talked this week and come in and perform like that. Talking about ragdolling people and not getting paid. Yada yada. He should be getting a title shot. He gassed out at the end of 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. Sherdog's live UFC on ESPN 11 coverage will begin Saturday at 5 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 Critchfiel…

By UD for @BobbyKGreen!

What did your scorecard look like? #UFCVegas3 pic.twitter.com/y1HIzxNKWg

— UFC (@ufc) June 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. Solid takedown defense and a varied striking arsenal carried Bobby Green to a unanimous decision over Clay Guida in a lightweight bout at UFC on ESPN 11 at the UFC Apex in Las Vegas on Saturday night. Two judges scored the fight 29-28 and a third had it 30-27 for Green, who won for just the second time in his last eight Octagon appearances.

Guida was his typical relentless self, but his dogged pursuit of the takedown often resulted in him absorbing knees and punches to the head and body from Green. “The Carpenter” found his greatest success in Round 1, when he was briefly able to ground Green twice. For the most part, however, Green (25-10-1, 6-5-1 UFC) confoun…

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A knee injury has forced bantamweight Aspen Ladd to withdraw from a scheduled encounter with Sara McMann at UFC on ESPN 12 next week.

Ladd announced the news on her Instgram account Friday night. The 25-year-old Californian had been victorious in four of her first five UFC bouts, a stretch that includes TKO triumphs over Yana Kunitskaya, Tonya Evinger and Lina Lansberg.

“Unfortunately, for the first time in my career I'm being pulled due to injury. This is me right now, finally home after an [MRI] today and a long talk with a very good doctor,” Ladd wrote. “So here's the timeline: I got injured on my last hard day of training last week but still planned on toughing it out and fighting, I didn't realize quite how bad it was. I have been training on it since the initial injury to the best of my abilities and my weight wa…

@RazorBlaydes265 makes our main event official #UFCVegas3 pic.twitter.com/LIXXezRFCP

— UFC (@ufc) June 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. All fighters ahead of UFC on ESPN 11 successfully made weight except for Frank Camacho, who came in two pounds north of the lightweight limit. The Ultimate Fighting Championship will keep its busy June going on Saturday as UFC on ESPN 11 takes place at the UFC Apex in Las Vegas. Headlining the card is a heavyweight tilt between contenders Curtis Blaydes and Alexander Volkov.

Blaydes (13-2, 1 NC) will put his three-fight win streak on the line against "Drago" and will look to cement himself as a future title contender. "Razor" is coming off an impressive TKO victory over former champion Junior dos Santos, and also holds wins over Alistair Overeem, Mark Hunt and Alexey Oleynik on …

MMAPLAY365 EXCLUSIVE:

The UFC are working on a huge Light Heavyweight fight with Aleksandar Rakic vs. Anthony Smith.

Per sources, both fighters have signed to fight on August 29th in Las Vegas.#UFC #UFCFightNight pic.twitter.com/ZZ2pk7LCdb— mmaplay365 (@mmaplay365) June 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. A key light heavyweight matchup is being planned for the Ultimate Fighting Championship’s Aug. 29 event.

According to a report from betting odds site MMAPlay365 on Friday, Anthony Smith (33-15) will square off against Aleksandar Rakic (12-2) at the UFC’s event on Aug. 29. The card is scheduled to go down at the UFC Apex in Las Vegas, and it is unclear whether this bout will serve as the headliner.

Both men will be looking to rebound from losses. Smith suffered a fifth-round knockout at the hands of Glo…

The Ultimate Fighting Championship has signed one of the top flyweight prospects in the sport and is putting her straight to work, as she will make her Octagon debut on barely a week’s notice.

On Thursday, MMA DNA was the first to report the signing and booking of former Invicta FC flyweight contender Miranda Maverick. The 7-2 Maverick, who fought most recently at Invicta FC 39 in February, will make her first appearance under the UFC banner at UFC on ESPN 12, which is scheduled for June 27. Welcoming the 22-year-old Maverick to the Octagon will be Mara Romero Borella. The 11-8 Romero Borella is on a three-fight skid in the UFC, most recently tapping to a Cortney Casey armbar in the first round of their meeting at UFC on ESPN 8 last month.

UFC on ESPN 12 takes place at the UFC Apex in Las Vegas on Saturday, June 27. While the card is still taking final shape, it currently stands at 10 bouts, to be headlined by a high-stakes lightweight scrap between former interi…

Ultimate Fighting Championship flyweight Rachael Ostovich has received an eight-month suspension from the United States Anti-Doping Agency for a failed drug test administered in January.

The out-of-competition test, which was administered on Jan. 3, came back positive for ostarine and GW1516, also known as cardarine or endurobol. The suspension, which was originally set at one year from the date of the failed test, was reduced to eight months after additional testing of one of Ostovich’s training supplements. According to a statement from USADA, “Although ostarine and GW1516 were not listed on the supplement label, the analysis revealed that the product contained ostarine and GW1516, the substances for which Ostovich tested positive. The product label listed another prohibited substance, but Ostovich did not realize at the time that it was prohibited. Consistent with other cases with similar circumstances, USADA determined that a small reduction from the default two-ye…

The UFC has pulled me from my fight due to one of my cornerman testing positive for COVID-19. We did everything possible to make this fight happen. They tested me twice and both results came back negative. I also… https://t.co/M89T1XOh7S

— SteamRolla_Frevola (@MattFre16) June 18, 2020

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The Ultimate Fighting Championship is treading a very fine line when it comes to the coronavirus.

On Thursday morning, Matt Frevola posted on social media that he has been pulled by the UFC from his match against Frank Camacho at UFC on ESPN 11. The two were set to square off on the prelims on June 20, but Frevola’s corner and fellow UFC fighter Billy Quarantillo tested positive for COVID-19. Sources have informed Sherdog that Justin Jaynes is being tapped as a replacement for Camacho, and Jaynes will…

LFA: July residency in #SouthDakota!

July 10#LFA84: Gonzales vs. ChildersFeatherweight

July 17#LFA85: Hughes vs. DemopoulosWomen's Strawweight

July 24#LFA86: Fischer vs. FlickFlyweight

July 31#LFA87: Logan vs. RosalesLightweight

: https://t.co/x5yJ5Eo3cu pic.twitter.com/UazbKTup6d— LFA (@LFAfighting) June 17, 2020

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Legacy Fighting Alliance will make Sioux Falls, South Dakota, its home for the entirety of July.

The promotion announced Wednesday that it will hold four events — each headlined by title fights — behind closed doors at the Sanford Pentagon in Sioux Falls, South Dakota. Every Friday night, the cards will air on UFC Fight Pass beginning at 9 p.m. ET/6 p.m. PT.

“I am excited to announced that LFA will be returning with live weekly MMA event…