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Jack Hermansson will look to continue his momentum built in recent bouts, as he will step in on short notice to face Ronald Souza in the UFC on ESPN 3 main event.

Hermansson replaces Yoel Romero, who withdrew from the middleweight contest due to illness. Multiple outlets have confirmed the new booking following an initial report from ESPN. Souza will reportedly receive a 185-pound title shot if he wins. UFC on ESPN 3 takes place at the BB&T Center in Fort Lauderdale, Fla., on April 27 and also includes the sophomore Octagon appearance for controversial former NFL star Greg Hardy.

Hermansson last fought at UFC on ESPN 2, where he submitted former World Series of Fighting two-division titlist David Branch with a guillotine choke in just 49 seconds. “The Joker” has won five of his last six UFC bouts, finishing all of his wins inside the distance – including four in the opening round.

A former Strikeforce champion, Souza is coming off a third-round knockout of Ch…

Shawne Merriman announced that he’s starting a mixed martial arts promotion called Lights Out Xtreme Fighting. The former San Diego Chargers linebacker has been a longtime fan of the sport and trains in martial arts himself. Merriman already has a television deal in place and will be holding the first event on May 11 in Burbank, California.

The former football star isn’t just trying to jump into the business of MMA because he's a fan. According to TMZ, he wants to fight as well. He even called out World Wrestling Entertainment star and “Guardians of the Galaxy” actor Dave Bautista, who has a 1-0 MMA record and a purple belt in Brazilian jiu-jitsu. Merriman believes a bout between the two would bring in a lot of casual fans to the new promotion. Given the commercial success of other WWE stars crossing over to MMA, there’s merit to his claim. Merriman was also briefly signed to the World Bare Knuckle Fighting Federation but they allegedly had issues with the contract. Read more about Shawne Merriman Launches MMA Promotion, Challenges Dave Bautista to Fight

Bellator is adding a welterweight title fight to its MSG return on June 14. More: https://t.co/hREejF5kk0

— Ariel Helwani (@arielhelwani) April 5, 2019

DAZN is the exclusive streaming partner of Bellator MMA. You can sign up for a free trial here.

Bellator MMA is rapidly adding to its recently announced event in New York City this summer, placing a combined welterweight Grand Prix semifinal match and title fight on the card.

According to ESPN late Thursday, Neiman Gracie (9-0) will be competing in the welterweight Grand Prix semifinal as well as for the welterweight title on June 14 at a Bellator event in Madison Square Garden in New York. Gracie will face off against the winner of Rory MacDonald (20-5) and Jon Fitch (31-7-1, 1 NC), where MacDonald will be defending his belt in the last quarterfinal of the tournament against Fitch at Bellator 220 in April. As the turnaround will be less than two months, if the winner is not cleared to comp…

BKFC5 | Saturday, April 6th | 9PM ET

Jason Knight and Artem Lobov toe-the-line LIVE from Biloxi, MS

Who ya got? @RusHammerMMA or @Jasonthekid23

https://t.co/1SmsWhc9du for details pic.twitter.com/svVMZA9gnZ— Bare Knuckle FC (@bareknucklefc) March 19, 2019

Bare Knuckle Fighting Championships is making its return to the state of Mississippi, where it is putting a belt on the line, the lightweight tournament semifinals and a big headliner between ex-UFC fighters Jason Knight and Artem Lobov.

Knight hit the scales at 145.9 pounds, as he prepares to face "The Ultimate Fighter" Season 22 finalist Lobov (145.6) in the BKFC 5 main event this Saturday at the Mississippi Coast Coliseum in Biloxi, Miss. Co-headlining the card will be a scrap between "The Ultimate Fighter" Season 1 standout Chris Leben (195.9) and Justin Baesman (188.2), and all four made weight without issue at Friday's official weigh-ins.

Appearing in the commentar…

Sterling v Munhoz, Rivera v Yan. UFC 238 is turning into a bantamweight tournament of sorts. More: https://t.co/mpzy55Ww1P

— Ariel Helwani (@arielhelwani) April 5, 2019

The Ultimate Fighting Championship appears to be putting together a de facto tournament at bantamweight, adding two huge divisional matchups to UFC 238 in June.

According to ESPN late Thursday, two major bouts at bantamweight are being targeted for the UFC 238 card in Chicago on June 8. Aljamain Sterling (17-3) will face Pedro Munhoz (18-3, 1 NC), and Jimmie Rivera (22-3) will clash with Petr Yan (12-1) at the event. Serving as the headliner of UFC 238 will be a vacant bantamweight title fight between flyweight champion Henry Cejudo and Marlon Moraes, so the winners of the aforementioned bouts could very well be in title contention.

Sterling has won his last three, with decisions over Rivera and Brett Johns and a rare "Suloev Stretch" modified kneebar over Cody Stamann alon…

Shinya Aoki is making a quick turnaround to defend his new One Championship lightweight strap, when he faces Christian Lee in the main event of One Championship: Enter the Dragon.

The promotion announced via press release on Friday that Aoki (43-8, 1 NC) will be facing rising star and Singapore native Lee (11-3) at One Championship: Enter the Dragon on May 17 at the Singapore Indoor Stadium in Kallang, Singapore. Additionally, the organization revealed that newly-signed former Ultimate Fighting Championship standout Sage Northcutt (11-2) would be fighting under the One banner for the first time at this event. Northcutt will meet longtime kickboxer Cosmo Alexandre (7-1).

Aoki earned his lightweight belt back from the man who took it from him in 2016, by putting Eduard Folayang to sleep in the main event of One Championship: A New Era at the end of March. The submission specialist notched his 28th career win via tapout or technical submission, and has submitted twice as man…

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You can sign up for a free seven-day trial of ESPN+ right here, and you can then stream UFC on ESPN+ live on your computer, phone, tablet or streaming device via the ESPN app.

Colby Covington is back in the news as he waits for the Ultimate Fighting Championship to officially announce his welterweight title challenge against the newly-crowned champion Kamaru Usman later this year. However, “Chaos” will need to be patient, as the promotion is unlikely to announce anything until Usman recovers from his recent hernia surgery.

Covington was a guest on Submission Radio and was asked if he would consider taking a catchweight fight against the undefeated lightweight champion Khabib Nurmagomedov. “The Eagle” has been in the news thanks to his ongoing Twitter feud with former two-division champion Conor McGregor.

Covington said that if he were to fight Nurmagomedov, it would be the easiest challenge for him…

[youtube https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ro7ynLzml0s&w=560&h=315]

You can sign up for a free seven-day trial of ESPN+ right here, and you can then stream UFC on ESPN+ live on your computer, phone, tablet or streaming device via the ESPN app.

Ultimate Fighting Championship middleweight contender Kelvin Gastelum returns to the Octagon next weekend at UFC 236 to take on Israel Adesanya for the interim UFC middleweight title. Gastelum was previously scheduled to face the champion Robert Whittaker at UFC 234 before the Aussie was forced to withdraw from the fight to undergo emergency surgery.

Gastelum was at a media event on Thursday promoting his upcoming title shot and was asked by reporters about his thoughts on the current feud between Khabib Nurmagomedov and Conor McGregor. Their controversial Twitter exchange has been labeled by UFC President Dana White as “unacceptable.”

Gastelum said both fighters have been reckless. “I think there are some lines that shouldn’…

Changing lives, #ChangingTheGame.The 2019 #PFLmma season starts Thursday, May 9. https://t.co/4sBhZubzlv pic.twitter.com/YtXgJuA4d5

— #PFLmma (@ProFightLeague) April 4, 2019

The Professional Fighters League has revealed the first three events from their 2019 regular season schedule, with each of the three events focusing on two specific weight classes.

On Thursday, the promotion announced the lineup in their official press release of the first three events making up the first half of their regular season. All six of the weight classes will be featured throughout these events. PFL 1 on May 9 will feature welterweights and women's lightweights, while PFL 2 on May 23 will focus on featherweights and lightweights, and PFL 3 on June 6 will play host to the light heavyweight and heavyweight divisions. Each of their men's divisions will hold 12 total fighters, while the women's lightweight division has eight participants. Throughout the past few mo…

В главном бою на турнире UFC в Санкт-Петербурге заменили участника.

Как это случилось:https://t.co/96xegFR84I

globallookpress pic.twitter.com/1tqxGFypYd— Матч ТВ (@MatchTV) April 3, 2019

Alexander Volkov was reportedly removed from his main event bout at UFC Fight Night 149 in April due to an alleged USADA violation.

According to Russian site Match TV late Wednesday, heavyweight Volkov (30-16-1) withdrew from his headliner battle against Alistair Overeem (44-17, 1 NC) at UFC Fight Night 149 in St. Petersburg, Russia, on April 20 due to an alleged and potential anti-doping violation. The site claimed, "As it became known to 'Match TV', the reason for removing the Russian from the [fight] was the violation of the [promotion's] anti-doping policy." In an official statement by the UFC on Wednesday, the promotion said differently, stating, "Due to health issues, Alexander Volkov has been forced to withdraw from his bout against Alistair O…

Madison Square Garden will host its fifth major MMA event on Friday, June 14.

Bellator is coming back to NYC, and it’s bringing Chael Sonnen vs. Lyoto Machida, among others. More: https://t.co/lgkrt3xJfV

— Ariel Helwani (@arielhelwani) April 4, 2019 DAZN is the exclusive streaming partner of Bellator MMA. You can sign up for a free trial here.

Bellator MMA is returning to Madison Square Garden this summer, bringing back the man who headlined their first jaunt to the Big Apple in Chael Sonnen, who will face Lyoto Machida.

According to ESPN on Thursday, heavyweight tournament semifinalist Sonnen (30-16-1) will be returning to light heavyweight to compete against former Ultimate Fighting Championship light heavyweight champ Machida (25-8) at a Bellator event on June 14 at Madison Square Garden in New York City. ESPN previously reported in February the two would meet in the summer, and the date and location have now been set.

Sonnen…

Alexander Volkanovski faces the biggest test of his career so far when he faces off against former featherweight king Jose Aldo at UFC 237 on May 11 in Rio de Janeiro, Brazil, and he's making the argument that it should be for bigger stakes.

The Aussie, who is currently riding a 16-fight winning streak, believes if he beats Aldo next month and the current champion Max Holloway delays his return to featherweight, the promotion should reward him with an interim title.

As it stands, two interim titles will be on the line at UFC 236 next week including a fight at lightweight between Holloway -- who will be moving up a weight division -- and Dustin Poirier for the interim 155-pound belt.

“The Great” is aware the UFC are not against awarding interim titles to fighters if the division will be held up by the current champion and the 30-year-old wants one for himself if he can upset the Brazilian next month (via MMA Junkie).

“We know how this game works now. How man…

Aleksei Oleinik vs. Alistair Overeem is the new main event for UFC Fight Night St. Petersburg on April 20, per sources. Overeem’s original opponent Alexander Volkov recently withdrew. Oleinik was scheduled to fight Walt Harris on 5/4. Harris will get a new foe.

— Ariel Helwani (@arielhelwani) April 3, 2019

Alexey Oleynik will now co-headline UFC Fight Night in St. Petersburg on April 20 against Alistair Overeem after Alexander Volkov was forced off the card. The reason for his removal from the bill in currently unknown.

Oleynik and Overeem are Top-10-ranked in Sherdog’s official mixed martial arts heavyweight rankings and both are coming off wins; Oleynik last saw action in a submission win over Mark Hunt in September and Overeem put away Sergei Pavlovich in November.

Oleynik was slated to lock horns with Walt Harris on May 4 at UFC Fight Night 150. Harris is now expected to receive a new opponent.

UFC St. Petersburg, also know…

It’s crazy! No one needs to be doing illegal shit. Teammate or not. It’s not cool. What did he pop for? https://t.co/NUHqL56HiE

— Daniel Cormier (@dc_mma) April 2, 2019

Ultimate Fighting Championship heavyweight Ruslan Magomedov has become the first fighter in MMA history to receive a lifetime ban from the United States Anti-Doping Agency.

The ban handed to Magomedov was a result of failing two USADA drug tests in 2016 and 2018 before refusing to take a third test.

Magomedov is a teammate of UFC heavyweight champion Daniel Cormier at American Kickboxing Academy (AKA). In tweet sent by “DC” yesterday, the champ condemned his teammate before asking what substances he was flagged for.

“It’s crazy! No one needs to be doing illegal s---. Teammate or not. It’s not cool. What did he pop for?”

Cormier is no stranger to seeing failed USADA tests, especially involving his long-time rival Jon Jones.

Cormier’s first bout against Jone…

Conor McGregor, who just last week retired from the sport of MMA, has reignited his rivalry against the last man to beat him inside the Octagon, Khabib Nurmagomedov.

McGregor took on Nurmagomedov at UFC 229 last October and was dominated for four rounds by the undefeated lightweight before being submitted. On Tuesday, “The Notorious” sent out a tweet to his rival insinuating that he is potentially eyeing a rematch with “The Eagle.”

“Don’t be scared of the rematch you little scurrying rat,” McGregor tweeted. “You will do what you are told like you always do.”

Before that tweet, McGregor had posted two photos from Nurmagomedov’s wedding day featuring his wife, who was completely obscured by a full-face veil in the photos. McGregor decided to make it personal and took aim at her.

“Your wife is a towel mate,” McGregor said.

MMA Junkie captured the tweet before it was removed, presumably by McGregor.

The reaction from McGregor is most likely driven b…

Ricardo Lamas will get to fight in his hometown when he faces Calvin Kattar at UFC 238 in Chicago.

The promotion initially confirmed the featherweight bout to the Chicago Tribune. UFC 238 takes place at the United Center on June 8 and is headlined by a clash between Henry Cejudo and Marlon Moraes for the vacant bantamweight title. The main card airs on pay-per-view via ESPN+ following prelims on ESPN and ESPN+.

Lamas, 36 halted a two-bout skid with a third-round technical knockout of Darren Elkins in his most recent outing at UFC Fight Night 140 on Nov. 17. The former title challenger is 10-5 during his promotional tenure and 19-7 as a professional overall.

Kattar has been victorious in three of his four Octagon appearances, including a first-round TKO stoppage of Chris Fishgold at UFC Fight Night 138 on Oct. 27. The former CES MMA competitor owns a 19-3 career mark that includes 11 victories inside the distance.

Perhaps the most surprising result of the past weekend in MMA was Eddie Alvarez’s loss in his One Championship debut.

The former UFC and Bellator MMA champion suffered a technical knockout defeat against the unheralded Timofey Nastyukhin in the opening round of the lightweight grand prix at One “A New Era” in Tokyo on Sunday, his third setback in his last five fights.

Including a no contest against Dustin Poirier at UFC 211, Alvarez has won just once in his last five bouts overall. However, prior to facing Nastyukhin, those setbacks had come against Poirier and Conor McGregor, with a win over Justin Gaethje in between.

Alvarez released a statement regarding his performance via Instagram on Tuesday, expressing disappointment in his inability to pull the trigger during the abbreviated contest.

Hey guys, first and foremost congrats to Timofey in his victory. He is very deserving of everything that comes with victory and I wish him the best in the continued tou…

Bellator MMA will kick off a 16-man featherweight grand prix this fall.

The promotion announced during a press conference in London on Tuesday that the 145-pound bracket will begin in October, with the eight first-round fights taking place on one card. Bellator President Scott Coker revealed that the grand prix winner will receive $1 million and that he hopes to complete the tournament by the end of 2019.

For now, it is unclear if reigning featherweight champion Patricio Freire will take part in the grand prix. Freire is moving up to lightweight to challenge reigning champion Michael Chandler at Bellator 221 on May 11.

Some of the top competitors in Bellator’s featherweight division include A.J. McKee, Henry Corrales, Aaron Pico, Darrion Caldwell, Emmanuel Sanchez, Daniel Straus, Leandro Higo and Pat Curran, among others.

Bellator welterweight champion Rory MacDonald is currently taking part in the California-based organization’s 170-pound bracket, and his …

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When Conor McGregor initially tweeted his retirement announcement last week, UFC President Dana White seemed to be on board with the decision.

“He has the money to retire, and his whiskey is KILLIN’ it,” White said last week in a statement released to multiple outlets. “It totally makes sense. If I was him, I would retire too. He’s retiring from fighting, not from working. The whiskey will keep him busy, and I’m sure he has other things he’s working on. He has been so fun to watch. He has accomplished incredible things in this sport. I am so happy for him, and I look forward to seeing him be as successful outside of the octagon as he was in it.”

However, in a recent interview with news station Las Vegas Channel 8, White admitted that he believes McGregor’s announcement is more of a negotiating ploy than a sincere sentiment. The UFC boss added that he expects to meet with the Irish star in the coming weeks…

UFC PhiladelphiaCredit: Getty/UFC UFC PhiladelphiaCredit: Getty/UFC UFC PhiladelphiaCredit: Getty/UFC UFC PhiladelphiaCredit: Getty/UFC UFC PhiladelphiaCredit: Getty/UFC UFC PhiladelphiaCredit: Getty/UFC UFC PhiladelphiaCredit: Getty/UFC UFC PhiladelphiaCredit: Getty/UFC UFC PhiladelphiaCredit: Getty/UFC UFC PhiladelphiaCredit: Getty/UFC UFC PhiladelphiaCredit: Getty/UFC UFC PhiladelphiaCredit: Getty/UFC UFC PhiladelphiaCredit: Getty/UFC UFC PhiladelphiaCredit: Getty/UFC UFC PhiladelphiaCredit: Getty/UFC

Both Paul Craig and Jessica Aguilar received potential indefinite medical suspensions following their bouts at UFC on ESPN 2 this past Saturday.

The Pennsylvania State Athletic Commission released medical suspensions from the event, which took place at the Wells Fargo Center in Philadelphia. The commission did not reveal the specific nature of each suspension.

Craig defeated Kennedy Nzechukwu via triangle choke in the third round of their light heavyweight bout, while…

Nick Hein will square off against Luigi Vendramini in a lightweight bout at UFC Stockholm, promotion officials announced Monday.

UFC Fight Night 152 takes place at Ericsson Globe in Stockholm, Sweden, on June 1 and is headlined by a light heavyweight tilt pitting Alexander Gustafsson against Anthony Smith. The card will stream in its entirety on ESPN+.

Hein went 0-2 during his 2018 campaign, losing to Davi Ramos via first-round submission at UFC 224 before dropping a split verdict against Damir Hadzovic at UFC Fight Night 134. The 34-year-old German began his UFC tenure with victories in four of his first five appearances.

Vendramini had a rough Octagon debut, as he was knocked out by an Elizeu Zaleski dos Santos flying knee in the second round of their bout at UFC Fight Night 137 on Sept. 22. The 23-year-old Italian began his pro career with eight straight victories, all coming inside the distance.

After losing two consecutive bouts inside the Octagon in 2017, the future became somewhat bleak for Michelle Waterson. A submission loss to Rose Namajunas and a decision loss to Tecia Torres morphed “The Karate Hottie” from would-be superstar to yesterday’s news.

But then things changed.

Waterson (17-6) turned things around against Cortney Casey at UFC on Fox 29 last April. She entered the bout as an underdog, won a split decision and then entered her next bout against Felice Herrig as an underdog. Waterson won that one bya unanimous nod and then made her way to Philadelphia on Saturday against Poland’s Karolina Kowalkiewicz. Even though the Pole was coming off a loss, the MMA experts were a bit bullish on Waterson and, for the third time in a row, she was the underdog.

Waterson was masterful against Kowalkiewicz on Saturday. She picked her apart on the feet with her karate kicks to the legs and body. She peppered her with scattered punches upstairs. And after sh…

Justin Gaethje once again proved he is arguably the most exciting fighter in the UFC when he vanquished Edson Barboza in the main event of UFC on ESPN 2 on Saturday night.

Gaethje lived up to his nickname by delivering yet another thrilling, highlight-reel knockout when he torched Barboza with a crushing right hook to the jaw. The punch sent Barboza, one of the fiercest strikers in all of MMA, flat onto his back, completely removed from consciousness.

But it wasn’t a walk in the park for the Genesis Training Center star. He was rocked a few times by Barboza punches and his leg was battered early from the Brazilian’s shins.

“That son on a gun kicks hard,” Gaethje said immediately following his spectacular triumph in Philadelphia. “My leg’s going to be sore tomorrow. This is the toughest sport on Earth and the best show on planet Earth. I would not recommend this sport to my enemy. I was born and raised to do this.”

Since Gaethje didn’t absorb a ton of damage…

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

With time winding down in the third round at UFC on ESPN 2, Josh Emmett needed to do something drastic in order to win.

Emmett was down two rounds to none on the majority of the scorecards – both official and unofficial – against perennial contender Michael Johnson. He was getting beaten to the punch and kick often, and the Team Alpha Male fighter just couldn’t get things going. With time ticking away, Emmett had to do something monumental.

Good thing he has dynamite in his right hand.

Johnson was sticking to his game plan and was about to win a unanimous decision until Emmett unleashed one of the most sinister right hands of the year. Johnson didn’t do anything wrong; Emmett just detonated his fist on Johnson’s jaw. It was perfect timing with the perfect punch and once it connected, Johnson was toast. Emmett knew he had to unfurl hell and he knew if he did, he’d preva…