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Now that the #LFA81 weigh-in is in the books, which fight are you looking forward to the most tomorrow night?@IncaKolaUSA@FredLoyaIns@WWP@buyVPNservice@GLCDirect2000@USENDmoney@OCFair @UFCFightPass pic.twitter.com/s7Ffgy9JUc

— LFA (@LFAfighting) January 31, 2020 The Legacy Fighting Alliance returns to California for its second event of 2020 with LFA 81, which is headlined by a featherweight bout between Jamall Emmers and Rafael Barbosa.

Emmers (16-4) has rebounded from getting knocked out on the second season of the Dana White's Contender Series by finishing Fard Muhammad, Caio Machado and Jay Cucciniello. The 30-year-old will look to extend his win streak in what will be his third appearance with the organization. "Prettyboy" looked great on the scales and came in at 145.2 pounds.

A training partner of Lyoto Machida, Barbosa (12-2) is coming off a split decision defeat to Luis Alberto Nogueira in October. The Brazilian was pre…

The Ultimate Fighting Championship will reportedly be adding a big heavyweight matchup to its upcoming Brazil card in May.

According to a report from Combate on Thursday, heavyweights Blagoy Ivanov (18-3, 1 NC) and Augusto Sakai (14-1-1) will square off at UFC 250 in Sao Paulo, Brazil. The bout will mark Ivanov's first appearance in South America, while his opponent Sakai has taken nearly half of his career fights in his home country of Brazil.

Ivanov suffered a setback in his recent performance, losing a split decision to Derrick Lewis in November. The durable Ivanov has never been knocked out as a professional, and sports exactly six victories by knockout, another six by submission and six more on the scorecards. Since joining the UFC in 2018, Ivanov has two decision wins over Ben Rothwell and Tai Tuivasa bookended by decision defeats to Junior dos Santos and the aforementioned Lewis.

Sakai has yet to taste defeat since dropping a split verdict to eventual Bel…

Bellator MMA is looking to put a fight back together that was scratched hours before it was set to go down.

According to MMA Fighting on Thursday, the promotion is looking to match Josh Barnett (35-8) against Ronny Markes (19-7) once more at Bellator 241 in March. The promotion has since confirmed that this bout is being targeted for this event, but that the agreement is not yet in place. The two were originally booked to headline Bellator 235, but on the night of the fight, Barnett was not cleared to compete by the medical staff due to illness.

Barnett as not appeared in a pro MMA bout since he handed Andrei Arlovski his first career submission defeat in September 2016. “The Warmaster” went on to fail a post-fight drug test and was kept out of action for over a year. The U.S. Anti-Doping Agency went on to reverse its decision and not suspend Barnett, on the grounds that he tested positive for a contaminated supplement. Barnett sought and received his release from the…

Rafael Lovato Jr.’s mixed martial arts career could be in jeopardy due to a hereditary brain condition.

Prior to facing Gegard Mousasi at Bellator 223 this past June, Lovato was required to undergo a brain scan for the first time in his professional career. It was then that he was diagnosed with cavernoma, which is known as a “cluster of abnormal blood vessels, usually found in the brain and spinal cord.”

In an interview on Joe Rogan’s JRE MMA podcast, Lovato recalls sensing something was amiss when it took a while for him to be summoned from the examination room.

“The radiologist, with really no candor or an easy or soft way of saying it, was like, ‘Dude, have you seen your brain before? There’s some stuff in here you need to see.’ He pulls me into the room and shows me on the screen, pointing out what looked like little balls,” Lovato said. “It looked like something was wrong – it didn’t look like a normal scan. But I don’t know – like shades of discoloration. …

Jorge Masvidal & Kamaru Usman CLASH at Super Bowl Media Row in Miami!!! @GamebredFighter @USMAN84kg @joerogan @danawhite pic.twitter.com/BOcjooQy1L

— Fanatics View (@fanaticsview) January 29, 2020

Kamaru Usman and Jorge Masvidal aren’t currently booked to fight each other, but the tension is building between the two welterweight stars.

Usman and Masvidal recently engaged in a brief altercation that was caught on camera during a Super Bowl media day event. The welterweight champion approached Masvidal as both fighters did interviews on radio row and shouted at the Miami native.

“Do something,” Usman said. “That’s all I hear you talking. Do something. You come up talking. Do something.”

Officials held both fighters back to prevent the incident from getting physical as Masvidal fired back at the champ while blowing kisses in his direction.

“You got a cast on, b--h,” Masvidal said. “I ain’t going to take advantage o…

Credit: Mike Sloan/Sherdog.com Credit: Mike Sloan/Sherdog.com Credit: Mike Sloan/Sherdog.com

A bantamweight clash between Cody Stamann and Raoni Barcelos has been targeted for UFC Columbus.

Combate was first to report the bout. UFC Columbus takes place at Nationwide Arena and is headlined by a heavyweight showdown between Francis Ngannou and Jairzinho Rozenstruik. Raphael Assuncao will square off against Cody Garbrandt in the co-main event.

Stamann last appeared at UFC on ESPN 7, where he battled Yadong Song to a majority draw on Dec. 7. The 30-year-old Michigan native is 4-1-1 in the UFC and 18-2-1 over the course of his professional career.

A former Resurrection Fighting Alliance champion, Barcelos has kicked off his UFC tenure with four consecutive triumphs. Most recently, the 32-year-old Brazilian outpointed Said Nurmagomedov at UFC Fight Night 165 to run his career mark to 15-1.

[youtube https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ZJp0xr6CFyQ&w=560&h=315]

Professional Fighters League is scouring the globe to improve its roster.

The promotion confirmed to ESPN that it has partnered with promotions from United Arab Emirates, Russia, Germany, Brazil and Australia to eventually add five new fighters to its roster for the upcoming season.

Each organization will host a four-fighter tournament, and the winner of each respective bracket will receive a spot on the PFL’s 2020 season. One tournament date has been confirmed, as UAE Warriors in Abu Dhabi has scheduled its event for March 20. The dates for the other tournaments have yet to be determined.

The UAE Warriors event will feature fighters from the featherweight division. Lightweight, light heavyweight and women’s lightweight are also expected to be included in future tournaments, although the weight classes could change.

"We're excited to accelerate growth outside of the United States through the I…

Josh Thomson has officially announced his retirement from mixed martial arts.

The UFC, Strikeforce and Bellator veteran revealed his decision during the "Weighing In” podcast with co-host John McCarthy. Thomson hadn’t competed since a knockout loss to Patricky Freire in February 2017 but he also hadn’t made a definitive statement regarding his career since then.

“I can say that I’m officially retired. I can finally say it,” Thomson said (transcription via MMAFighting.com). “And the thing is that you have to say it sometimes just to say what you just said, because I realized I was taking more shots than I should have been taking. And I don’t want to live that lifestyle, I didn’t want to be in there as a punching bag to anybody. I was taking more in training – that’s the thing, people only see the ones you take in the fight. They don’t realize that you’re taking more in training too, because there’s young, talented studs in my gym. And those guys are whooping your ass to…

Mackenzie Dern will attempt to bounce back from her first professional defeat when she locks horns with Ariane Carnelossi at UFC Lincoln.

Combate was first to report the booking, and Carnelossi also announced the bout on her Instagram account. UFC Lincoln takes place on April 25 and is headlined by a light heavyweight duel between Anthony Smith and Glover Teixeira.

After taking more than a year off due to pregnancy, Dern returned to action at UFC Fight Night 161, where she dropped a unanimous verdict to Amanda Ribas this past October. The 26-year-old Brazilian jiu-jitsu black belt is 7-1 as a professional and owns wins over Amanda Bobby Cooper and Ashley Yoder in UFC competition.

Carnelossi, meanwhile, made her Octagon debut at UFC Fight Night 159, where she suffered a third-round TKO loss to Angela Hill. That snapped a 12-fight winning streak for the 27-year-old Sao Paulo, Brazil, native.

Juan Archuleta is one of four fighters from the Bellator 238 card who is facing six months on the shelf.

Archuleta is suspended for 180 days with 180 days of no contact for a potential fractures to his right shoulder and left hand. That term can be shortened with physician clearance. Archuleta garnered a unanimous verdict over Henry Corrales in a featherweight bout on Saturday’s main card.

The California State Athletic Commission recently released a full list of medical suspensions from the event. Bellator 238 took place at The Forum in Inglewood, Calif., and saw Cristiane Justino claim featherweight gold with a stoppage of Julia Budd in the evening’s main event. Everyone on the card, including “Cyborg,” received at least a seven-day mandatory suspension.

Three other fighters are facing 180-day suspensions pending doctor clearance: Joshua Jones (jaw), Adel Altamimi (hand) and Miguel Jacob (thumb).

Bellator 238 Medical Suspensions:

Julia Budd: suspende…

Paul Daley will square off against Sabah Homasi at Bellator 241.

MMAjunkie.com was first to report the booking. Bellator 241 takes place at Mohegan Sun Arena in Uncasville, Conn., and is topped by a featherweight grand prix quarterfinal matchup between Patricio Freire and Pedro Carvalho.

Daley enters the bout on a two-fight winning streak, as he earned a unanimous verdict over Erick Silva at Bellator 223 before scoring a second-round TKO against Saad Awad at Bellator 232 this past October.

Homasi has also won his last two fights, including a 17-second knockout of Micah Terrill at Bellator 225. The 31-year-old American Top Team representative went 0-3 during a brief UFC stint from 2016 to 2018.

Tim Means will be facing a new adversary at UFC Rio Rancho on Feb. 15.

Means’ original opponent, Ramazan Emeev, withdrew from the welterweight bout due to undisclosed reasons. As a result, Dana White’s Contender Series alum Daniel Rodriguez will step in and face Means. ESPN was first to report the change.

UFC Rio Rancho takes place at the Santa Ana Star Center and is headlined by a light heavyweight rematch between Jan Blachowicz and Corey Anderson. The card will stream on ESPN+.

A New Mexico native, Means has compiled an 11-8 mark while competing in the Las Vegas-based promotion. He last appeared at UFC on ESPN 7, where he submitted Thiago Alves in the opening stanza.

Rodriguez enters his promotional debut on a five-fight winning streak. The 33-year-old Combate Americas veteran earned a decision over Rico Farrington on the Contender Series in his last outing this past July.

Stipe Miocic’s management has indicated that when the UFC heavyweight champion is ready to return, he’d prefer something different than a trilogy bout with Daniel Cormier. Not surprisingly, that doesn’t sit well with “DC.”

"After his health is cleared, we hope to have Stipe back in competition this year in a fight that makes sense and against an opponent that Stipe has not beaten before," Miocic’s agent, Jim Walter, recently told ESPN. "He is more than willing to defend his belt. If an opportunity presents itself outside the UFC, Tyson Fury and Stipe spoke face-to-face in Las Vegas at the Conor McGregor fight."

Following the Greater Cleveland Sports Awards ceremony last week, Miocic revealed that he had been medically cleared after suffering a retina injury in a win over Cormier at UFC 241 last August. However, Walter told ESPN that a second surgery could be necessary. Both Miocic and Walter said there is not a set timetable for the champion’s UFC return at this point …

At first, Alex Perez didn’t even know how to pronounce the name of his next preferred opponent following a submission win over Jordan Espinosa at UFC Fight Night 166 in Raleigh, N.C., on Saturday night.

Nonetheless, the message was clear enough. Perez was watching Askar Askarov’s victory over Tim Elliott at UFC 246 the previous week, and he believes that 27-year-old Dagestani would be an ideal dance partner for his next Octagon appearance. Once he had a little bit more time to compose himself, Perez selected a date and venue for the contest.

“I’d like Askar Askarov next. He’s a wrestler, I’m a wrestler and we both like to stand, so why not?” Perez said. “I’d love to get on that Khabib vs. Tony Ferguson card. That’d give me a little break and then come back ready to work.”

The card Perez suggests is UFC 249, which takes place on at the Barclays Center in Brooklyn, N.Y., on April 18 and is headlined by a lightweight title bout between reigning champion Khabib Nurma…

.@CrisCyborg caps off her brilliant Bellator debut with a round 4 TKO! #Bellator238 pic.twitter.com/byDfekcas7

— DAZN USA (@DAZN_USA) January 26, 2020

Cristiane Justino made a little bit of history on Saturday night when she vanquished Julia Budd to claim the Bellator featherweight crown.

The title was the fourth career championship win for “Cyborg,” adding to a collection that already includes belts in the UFC, Invicta FC and Strikeforce. The 34-year-old Brazilian took a moment to reflect on the accomplishment during the Bellator 238 post-fight press conference.

“I was never thinking this is going to happen,” she said. “When I start, I have a dream. I have a dream I want to do my best. One thing I have in my heart, I want to prove that girls can fight like the guys. We can be violent, we can be technical, you can make the people like you and watch your fights. … I’m thankful. I feel blessed I have the opportunity to hold four …

Curtis Blaydes was more than effective in the opening round against Junior dos Santos, but he wasn’t succeeding in what he was trying to do. 

All that changed in the second frame.

Blaydes (13-2), typically a monstrous wrestler with insane takedown ability, was a miserable 0-for-6 on takedown attempts against the former heavyweight champion during their main event tilt at UFC Fight Night 166. Though he backed up the Brazilian with right hands in that first stanza, it was clear he wanted to take his foe down and pound him into oblivion. But when that initial game plan backfired, the Elevation Fight Team contender switched things up and obliterated the one-time titleholder.

  “Obviously the game plan was the wrestling, but he wasn’t letting that happen, so I had to adjust and rely on my striking more,” Blaydes said after his win. “I’ve always had hands, but no one could stop my wrestling, so why wouldn’t I keep going to that?”

Blaydes avoided a wild uppercu…

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. Curtis Blaydes has become a grave threat to the rest of the Ultimate Fighting Championship’s heavyweight division. The Elevation Fight Team export brought down former champion Junior dos Santos with punches in the second round of their UFC Fight Night 166 headliner on Saturday at PNC Arena in Raleigh, North Carolina. His best days clearly behind him, dos Santos (21-7, 15-6 UFC) bit the dust 66 seconds into Round 2.

Blaydes (13-2, 8-2 UFC) whiffed on all six of his takedown attempts and instead turned to his ancillary skills. He backed up dos Santos with a number of clean right hands in the first round, then cracked the code in the second. Blaydes countered an errant uppercut from the Brazilian with an overhand right that marked the beginning of the end. The impact wobbled dos Santos and left him defenseless against a burst of follow-up …

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 166 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 Tonight's the night for the UFC's debut in Raleigh, North Carolina, and we begin in the featherweight division. Two UFC newcomers come head-to-head as Dana White's Contender Series contract winner Burns (9-2, 0-0 UFC) against former M-1 Global champ Landwehr (13-2, 0-0 UFC). All of Burns' finishes have come by tapout, while all of Landwehr's have been by strikes; the referee for this interesting style matchup is Larry Carter. There is no touch of gloves, as the two instead greet one another with jabs to the face. Burns throws a body kick, and then a high kick that makes him topple over. Burns nearly flops down to lure Landwehr, but the American is not intereste…

[youtube https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Ut24LkRaGT4&w=560&h=315] Dazn is the exclusive streaming partner of Bellator MMA. You can sign up here and live stream 100+ fight nights a year. Bellator MMA's first event of 2020 is set to take place as Bellator 238 emanates from The Forum in Inglewood, California, on Saturday. Headlining the card is the debut of former Strikeforce, Invicta Fighting Championships and Ultimate Fighting Championship women's featherweight champion Cristiane Justino as she challenges Bellator's featherweight queen Julia Budd for her belt. Every fighter has successfully made weight, all is set for tomorrow’s event. Budd (13-2) won the inaugural Bellator women's featherweight title back in 2017 after finishing Marloes Coenen with punches. "The Jewel" has notched up three defenses since then, with the most recent a TKO win over Olga Rubin. Budd's only losses have come to Nunes, who knocked her out in just 14 seconds back in 2011, and Ronda Rousey, who submitte…

#UFCRaleigh Official Weigh-in Results - Curtis Blaydes (@RazorBlaydes265): 248

Full results: https://t.co/qkEwJIc52G

— UFC News (@UFCNews) January 24, 2020 The Ultimate Fighting Championship returns after its first pay-per-view event of the year with an ESPN+ card featuring a heavyweight bout between former champion Junior dos Santos and Curtis Blaydes. The card is now official as every fighter has successfully made weight prior to Saturday's event in Raleigh, North Carolina. Dos Santos (21-6) will be looking to rebound from a quick knockout loss at the hands of Francis Ngannou. The 35-year-old had been on a three-bout win streak before that having picked up victories over Derrick Lewis, Tai Tuivasa and Blagoy Ivanov. "Cigano" has no trouble making the heavyweight limit and came in at 247 pounds.

Blaydes (12-2, 1 NC) will have a chance to notch the biggest victory in his career against dos Santos. He was also stopped by Ngann…

Wales in the house! @JackShoreMMA vs @EspartanoUFC is on for #UFCLondon

https://t.co/wg9VkLIZbA pic.twitter.com/qijmGKf6ja

— UFC Europe (@UFCEurope) January 23, 2020 An exciting bantamweight feature between two promising prospects has been added to the Ultimate Fighting Championship's next trip to London. On Thursday morning, the promotion announced that Welsh prospect Jack Shore (12-0) and Geraldo de Freitas Jr. (12-5) will lock horns at UFC London.

The undefeated Shore made his UFC debut after a long run in Cage Warriors Fighting Championship, where he won the bantamweight crown. In his UFC debut, "Tank" overcame Nohelin Hernandez thanks to a slick rear-naked choke submission at UFC Fight Night 160.

In his latest Octagon appearance, “The Spartan" Freitas dropped a split decision to Chris Gutierrez in a bantamweight affair that went down at UFC Fight Night 156. Prior to that, the Nova Uniao representative defeated Feli…

Official

Undefeated Croatian light heavyweight Ivan Erslan @ThePolishBear_ Przemyslaw Mysiala at #KSW53: Fight Code on March 21 pic.twitter.com/vB62ocd7Gc

— KSW (@KSW_MMA) January 23, 2020 The first KSW event in 2020 is taking shape, as the Polish promotion has just announced three bouts for KSW 53. Croatian light heavyweight prospect Ivan Erslan (8-0, 1 NC) will put his undefeated record on the line when he faces Bellator MMA veteran Przemyslaw Mysiala (23-10-1). Erslan made his debut in the Polish promotion at KSW 51, when he destroyed Darwin Rodriguez in under 90 seconds. Previously, the 28-years old Erslan had a successful run in Croatia's Final Fight Championship, where he scored a TKO victory over Roger Carroll and captured a split decision over Ivica Tadijanov.

The upcoming bout is the second KSW fight for "The Ultimate Fighter" Season 28 cast member Mysiala as well. In his promotional debut, the Polish fighter had to b…

Ciryl Gane contre le Daghestanais Shamil Abdurakhimov (N.10 heavyweight) pour l'#UFC249, le 18 avril prochain à Brooklyn, sur la carte de Khabib vs. Ferguson ! pic.twitter.com/rigqcpaTMN

— La Sueur (@lasueur_off) January 23, 2020 The Ultimate Fighting Championship is building up its yearly trip to Brooklyn, New York, in a big way.

On Wednesday, a pair of reports from MMA Fighting and French publication La Sueur indicated that two major matchups at UFC 249 are currently in the works. First, Jeremy Stephens (28-17,1 NC) will now be facing Calvin Kattar (20-4) at this event at featherweight, while heavyweights Ciryl Gane (6-0) and Shamil Abdurakhimov (20-5) will square off as well. Sherdog.com has since confirmed the bout between Gane and Abdurakhimov with sources familiar to the situation.

Stephens will be looking to turn around a lengthy skid that has seen him lose three of his last four, with the other a no-contest to Yair Rodri…

The most active fighter in Bellator MMA history is moving on from the promotion to fight bare knuckle.

On Wednesday night, KO Reps, the management team for David Rickels, posted on Instagram that "The Caveman" would be moving on from Bellator for now to join Bare Knuckle FC. He does not yet have an opponent booked, but he will be competing in the headliner of BKFC 11 on March 11 in Wichita, Kansas. According to MMA Junkie, Rickels' manager Oren Hodak confirmed this information and stated that Rickels was not finished in MMA or with Bellator permanently.

With 15 wins inside the Bellator cage, Rickels currently holds the fourth-most victories in company history. His 23 appearances are the most in organizational history, and Rickels made his last walk under the Bellator banner when he took on Yaroslav Amosov at Bellator 225 in August. Competing both at lightweight and welterweight through his career, Rickels won the Season Eight lightweight tournament in 2013 to earn a…