Blog

Off to Las Vegas!@TeciaTorres meets the rising Weili Zhang at #UFC235! pic.twitter.com/UNYlbWHIxk

— UFC (@ufc) November 30, 2018

Coming off her huge win less than a week ago over Jessica Aguilar, Weili Zhang has been given a big step up in competition when she faces off against top ranked Tecia Torres.

The Ultimate Fighting Championship posted on social media Thursday night that at strawweight, Torres (10-3) will face off against the surging Zhang (18-1) at UFC 235 in Las Vegas in March.

Torres is looking to bounce back from a two-fight losing streak with decision losses to Jessica Andrade and former champ Joanna Jedrzejczyk. She started off her career with wins over Paige VanZant, Felice Herrig and current strawweight champion Rose Namajunas before signing with the UFC, where she then defeated the likes of Juliana Lima and Michelle Waterson. Torres has gone to the scorecards in 12 of her 13 career bouts, and she has never been finished. Read more about Weili Zhang To Meet Tecia Torres At UFC 235 In March

Breaking: Per multiple sources, UFC close to finalizing a rematch between Raphael Assuncao and Marlon Moraes to headline UFC Fight Night on Feb. 2 in Fortaleza, Brazil. Full story coming to @ESPN shortly. pic.twitter.com/IfeOyAJiJC

— Brett Okamoto (@bokamotoESPN) November 29, 2018

It appears Raphael Assuncao and Marlon Moraes are going to run it back in a five-rounder to headline an Ultimate Fighting Championship event in Brazil this coming February.

According to Brett Okamoto of ESPN, Raphael Assuncao (27-5) will be facing Marlon Moraes (21-5-1) in the main event at UFC Fight Night 144 in Fortaleza, Brazil, on Feb. 2.

Assuncao currently rides a four-fight win streak with wins over Moraes, Aljamain Sterling and Rob Font along the way. Despite a record of 11-2 with the promotion, Assuncao has never received that elusive title shot, with his lone loss across his last 12 fights coming against current champion T.J. Dillashaw. Once fighting as …

Cro Cop se neće boriti na staru godinu, otkrivamo zbog čega! https://t.co/XLrGtCjgo4

— Večernji list (@vecernji_list) November 29, 2018

In an interview with Croatian newspaper Vecernji List on Thursday, Mirko “Cro Cop” Filipovic stated that he would not be appearing on Rizin FF 14’s New Year’s Eve card in Japan due to budgetary reasons. Among the topics discussed in his interview was that the cost of bringing Floyd Mayweather to compete at Rizin Fighting Federation was so high, they were reportedly unable to bring in many other high-salaried fighters, including himself.

A translated excerpt of the interview reads: “Yes, this year I will not fight at Rizin’s New Year's Eve [event]. Rizin decided to bring the famous boxer Floyd Mayweather to perform an exhibition match with Tenshin Nasukawa, and considering that Floyd was the most expensive athlete of the day, he himself exhausted Rizin's budget by not calling any of the foreign fighters, but…

Anderson Silva recognizes Georges St. Pierre as a fellow all-time great, but he does not hesitate to point out what he feels is the major difference between them.

Silva returns to the Octagon next February at UFC 234 against the surging Israel Adesanya in what could determine the No. 1 contender to fight the winner of Robert Whittaker’s title defense against Kelvin Gastelum, which takes place on the same card.

Silva was interviewed on Wednesday by ESPN.com and said that during negotiations for his return to the Octagon, two former champions entered the discussion in Conor McGregor and Georges St. Pierre. According to Silva, a McGregor a bout may materialize in the future despite the size disparity between them.

“At first, I talked to Dana about a fight with McGregor, because McGregor challenged me,” Silva said. “Maybe that will be my second fight after this layoff. We’ll see.

While a McGregor versus Silva fight seems like a good chance of happening, the sam…

[youtube https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ljn6AgoKsy0&w=560&h=315]

UFC President Dana White didn't hold back when criticizing Oscar De La Hoya for his first venture as a mixed martial arts promoter. On Wednesday, the former boxing champion had some strong words for White in response.

In an interview on the “UFC Unfiltered” podcast, White called the Golden Boy MMA head a “f—-ing cokehead” and ripped him for allowing 48-year-old Chuck Liddell to fight following an eight-year hiatus. White led the effort to convince “The Iceman” to retire from the UFC in 2010 following three consecutive knockout losses in the Octagon. Liddell met a similar result in his return, as he suffered a first-round knockout loss to Tito Ortiz at Golden Boy MMA’s debut event at the Forum in Inglewood, Calif., this past Saturday night.

“I love Chuck Liddell and I don’t ever want to bad mouth Chuck Liddell,” White said. “People even think I’m remotely bad mouthing Chuck Liddell, but the reality is — fi…

Cynthia Calvillo will make a quick turnaround from her last Octagon appearance when she meet Cortney Casey at UFC 233.

The promotion confirmed the pairing to the Orange County Register on Wednesday. UFC 233 takes place at the Honda Center in Anaheim and features a flyweight championship clash between Henry Cejudo and T.J. Dillashaw.

Calvillo is coming off a first-round submission of Poliana Botelho at UFC Fight Night 140 on Nov. 17. Calvillo has been victorious in four of her five promotional appearances, with her lone defeat coming to Carla Esparza at UFC 219. The Team Alpha Male owns a 7-1 career record overall.

Casey halted a two-fight skid at UFC Fight Night 135, where she took a split verdict over Angela Hill on Aug. 25. The 33-year-old Phoenix native is 4-5 in the Octagon and 8-6 as a professional overall.

Renato Carneiro won’t be competing at UFC 231 after originally scheduled foe Mirsad Bektic was forced to withdraw due to injury. But “Moicano” will be in Toronto for the event in order to provide the promotion with a backup plan.

The Las Vegas-based organization announced on Wednesday that Carneiro vs. Bektic has officially been scrapped from UFC 231, and the Brazilian will not remain on the card against a replacement opponent. Instead, Carneiro will serve as an alternate for the featherweight championship headliner between Max Holloway and Brian Ortega.

“Moicano” will be in Canada during fight week and will go through the process of making weight to be ready in case either Holloway or Ortega is forced to withdraw from the bout. Holloway was supposed to defend his belt against Ortega at UFC 226 but was pulled from the card just days before the event due to concussion-like symptoms.

Carneiro is 13-1 as a professional and 5-1 in the UFC, with his only setback comin…

Four fighters from UFC Fight Night 141 could be looking at lengthy medical suspensions.

UFC Fight Night 141 took place at Cadillac Arena in Beijing, China on Nov. 24. The UFC, which regulated the event, released medical suspensions to mixedmartialarts.com.

Alex Morono (needs ophthalmologist clearance), Pingyuan Liu (needs orthopedist clearance), Martin Day (right hand) and John Phillips (left hand) were all suspended for 180 days pending medical clearance.

UFC Fight Night 141 saw Francis Ngannou defeat Curtis Blaydes via technical knockout 45 seconds into their headlining bout. Blaydes was suspended for 30 days due to the TKO defeat as well as a laceration to his left eyelid. Ngannou was given a mandatory seven-day sit for rest.

UFC Fight Night 141 Medical Suspensions: Francis Ngannou: Suspended seven days for mandatory rest.

Curtis Blaydes: Suspended 30 days for TKO and left eyelid laceration with 21 days no contact.

Alistair Overeem: Suspended…

As someone who urged Chuck Liddell to retire from the UFC, Dana White was never a fan of seeing “The Iceman” make a comeback.

The UFC president feels even more strongly after watching Liddell lose to Tito Ortiz via first-round knockout in the Golden Boy MMA headliner this past Saturday at the Forum in Inglewood, Calif. And he had plenty of choice words for lead promoter Oscar De La Hoya, who recently claimed White had no place telling fighters when to retire.

“I love Chuck Liddell and I don’t ever want to bad mouth Chuck Liddell,” White said on the "UFC Unfiltered” podcast. “People even think I’m remotely bad mouthing Chuck Liddell, but the reality is — first of all, I heard last week the cokehead ‘Oscar De La Weirdo’ is talking shit that I don’t have any place to tell guys when to retire. First of all, it’s called ‘friendship’ you f—-ing cokehead. I’ve been friends with Chuck Liddell for 20 years and the reality is that Chuck Liddell retired when he should have retired…

The trilogy bout between Tito Ortiz and Chuck Liddell drew plenty of criticism throughout the MMA community, particularly because Liddell was eight years removed from his last professional appearance.

“The Iceman” looked like a fighter nearing 50 years old this past Saturday, as he suffered a knockout loss to Ortiz 4:24 into the opening stanza of the Golden Boy MMA headliner at the Forum in Inglewood, Calif. Ortiz, while nowhere near his prime, still had 10 bouts to his credit since Liddell’s first retirement.

Ortiz recently attempted to justify the booking against Liddell in a lengthy Instagram post.

“I’ve had some time to think about this fight [vs. Chuck Liddell],” Ortiz wrote. “How [did] it come to be? This is something that Chuck wanted, I was OK doing my businesses. He called me out. Yes, I [agreed] and helped make it happen with [Golden Boy Boxing].”

After losing to Liddell in two previous Octagon bouts more than a decade earlier, Ortiz said he…

Anthony Getschel, the man accused in the hit-and-run death of former UFC fighter Ryan Jimmo, pleaded guilty to manslaughter in an Edmonton court on Monday, according to a report from CBC.

Jimmo was killed in a truck driven by Getschel following an argument in the parking lot of a bar in Edmonton on June 26, 2016. Jimmo was transported to a local hospital and died of his injuries at age 34.

According to a statement of facts read in court, Getschel was drinking at a bar with his friend and girlfriend but left after fighting with other patrons. Getschel encountered Jimmo’s jeep on the way to a different bar and followed him into the parking lot. That led to a confrontation between the two parties before Getschel struck Jimmo with his vehicle and drove away. Getschel and Jimmo reportedly did not know each other prior to the incident.

After fleeing the scene, Getschel hid his truck and returned for it a day later. He then removed the license plate and ordered a …

[youtube https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=LquIYF-2PiE&w=560&h=315]

As Jon Jones’ Octagon return against Alexander Gustafsson at UFC 232 draws near, the former light heavyweight champion will make more and more appearances on national media shows to address his history with USADA and two failed drug tests within the Las Vegas-based promotion.

During an appearance on ESPN’s “First Take” Monday, Jones responded to skeptics who don’t believe has been a clean athlete. “Bones” was specifically asked to address comments from rival Daniel Cormier, who has been outspoken in his belief that Jones is not innocent.

“Screw Daniel Cormier,” Jones said. “Screw Daniel Cormier. My last situation was a terrible situation, steroid allegation type of thing. It wasn’t an allegation — I did have a trace amount of steroids in my body. Thank goodness USADA went through their whole process to prove my innocence. Through science, we were able to prove that there was a very trace amount of s…

Credit: Pro Fight League Credit: Pro Fight League Credit: Pro Fight League

Olympic gold medalist Kayla Harrison will make her third mixed martial arts appearance when she faces Moriel Charneski at Professional Fighters League’s championship event on Dec. 31.

The promotion announced the lightweight matchup on Monday. The card takes place at Hulu Theater at Madison Square Garden and features world championship bouts in six different weight classes, with the winners receiving $1 million apiece. The headlining contest will see Ray Cooper III face Magomed Magomedkerimov for the welterweight crown. The card will be televised on NBC Sports Network.

Harrison began her MMA tenure with a first-round submission of Brittney Elkin at PFL 2 before earning a third-round technical knockout victory against Jozette Cotton at PFL 6 on Aug. 16. Harrison won gold medals in judo for the United States at the 2012 and 2016 Olympics.

Charneski, 29, owns a 3-4 professional mark. She…

It was never a sentiment rooted in reality, but Chuck Liddell’s performance at Golden Boy MMA’s inaugural event clinched it: Jon Jones won’t even humor “The Iceman” the next time the UFC Hall of Famer calls him out.

In recent years, Liddell has made it known that he would like a shot at Jones, and he reiterated that desire after announcing his comeback earlier this year.

However, Liddell looked far removed from his prime in a first-round knockout loss to Tito Ortiz in the Golden Boy MMA headliner at the Forum in Inglewood, Calif., on Saturday. Considering that Liddell is 48 years old and was eight years removed from his last bout, the result shouldn’t have been all that surprising. Nonetheless, Jones felt the need to close the book on any future speculation.

“Yeah it’s official, I am never replying to Chuck calling me out again,” wrote Jones, who in the past has replied to the former champion via social media.

Yeah it’s official, …

Chuck Liddell’s return to mixed martial arts following an eight-year absence went about as one might expect it would.

The 48-year-old “Iceman” looked slow and vulnerable against longtime rival Tito Ortiz in the Golden Boy MMA headliner at the Forum in Inglewood, Calif., on Saturday night, ultimately losing via knockout 4:24 into the opening frame of their bout. It was Liddell’s fourth consecutive KO/TKO defeat dating back to a second-round knockout loss against Rashad Evans at UFC 88 on Sept. 6, 2008.

“I showed up, no excuses,” Liddell said at a post-fight press conference on Saturday (video via MMAjunkie.com). “I was in great shape, ready to go, and he was the better man. So, there it is.”

In his prime, Liddell went 2-0 against Ortiz, winning via second-round knockout at UFC 47 and third-round technical knockout at UFC 66. While the two former friends haven’t seen eye to eye for years, Liddell said he respects “The Huntington Beach Bad Boy.”

“I don’t…

Tito Ortiz knocks out Chuck Liddell in 2018's neon trash fire. #LiddellOrtiz3 pic.twitter.com/3DdFSoBrH1

— Tanuki Usman (@Hamderlei) November 25, 2018

A day after two struggling past-their-prime legends dueled on the golf course in Las Vegas on pay-per-view, two Ultimate Fighting Championship hall of famers fought for what many observers hope will be the last time.

Tito Ortiz finally exacted some revenge against archrival Chuck Liddell in the inaugural main event for Golden Boy MMA on Saturday at The Forum in Inglewood, California, and he closed out “The Iceman” in vicious and unsettling fashion. Ortiz (20-12-1) took his time to feel out the 48-year-old Liddell at the start, but once he saw an opening to capitalize, he ended the fight.

Liddell (21-9) looked ancient inside the cage, as he stumbled and fumbled while trying to strike, his once-awesome striking prowess and speed long extinct. “The Iceman” never landed any of his vaunted …

Credit: Jason Burgos/Sherdog.com Credit: Jason Burgos/Sherdog.com Credit: Jason Burgos/Sherdog.com Credit: Jason Burgos/Sherdog.com

Rising prospect Israel Adesanya will lock horns with former middleweight champion Anderson Silva at UFC 234.

The promotion confirmed the 185-pound booking to ESPN on Saturday night. UFC 234 takes place at Rod Laver Arena in Melbourne, Australia, on Feb. 9 and is expected to feature a middleweight championship clash between Robert Whittaker and Kelvin Gastelum.

Adesanya has established himself as one of the sport’s up-and-coming stars while compiling a 15-0 professional mark. “The Last Stylebender” is 4-0 in the Octagon, including a first-round TKO of Derek Brunson in his last outing at UFC 230.

Silva, meanwhile, is returning from a one-year USADA suspension for a failed drug test ahead of a proposed bout against Gastelum at UFC Fight Night 122. The 43-year-old Brazilian hasn’t competed since February 2017, when he ended a five-…

Francis Ngannou went from being “The Next Big Thing” in the UFC to being labeled a bust in just a few short fights.

On Saturday at UFC Fight Night 141, “The Predator” took some steps to regain some of the luster he lost in forgettable performances against Stipe Miocic and Derrick Lewis earlier this year. Ngannou returned to his previous headhunting form at Cadillac Arena in Beijing, where he stopped the surging Curtis Blaydes in just 45 seconds.

Ngannou’s mentality was questioned after back-to-back bouts in which he looked nothing like the finishing machine he appeared to be during a six-fight winning streak to begin his UFC tenure. Ngannou’s performance against Lewis was especially troubling, as he looked tentative to pull the trigger on the heels of his first promotional defeat.

That was not an issue in Beijing.

“I came back tonight to have fun,” Ngannou said at Saturday’s post-fight press conference. “My last fight wasn’t that good, just because I …

career KOs!@AlistairOvereem hands the undefeated standout his first career loss! #UFCBeijing pic.twitter.com/xRgvc2ADhp

— UFC (@ufc) November 24, 2018

Alistair Overeem became a No. 1 contender in the UFC’s heavyweight division during his time at Jackson-Wink MMA in Albuquerque, N.M.

But after suffering back-to-back knockout losses at the hands of Curtis Blaydes and Francis Ngannou in his last two outings, “The Reem” decided a change in scenery was necessary, so he relocated to Elevation Fight Team in Colorado. The 38-year-old Netherlands native credited his new camp for his success at UFC Fight Night 141, where he earned a first-round stoppage of Octagon newcomer Sergei Pavlovich.

”We changed the gym and, I don’t know, it was a really good chemistry with all the coaches and I just started to work and we put in a lot of hours,” Overeem said at Saturday’s post-fight press conference. “I like the chemistry and I like all the things that t…

B O N U S E S

POTN: @Francis_Ngannou and @UFCJingliang

FOTN: @AlexMoronoMMA vs Song Kenan#UFCBeijing pic.twitter.com/JPmclqhCF6

— UFC (@ufc) November 24, 2018

Francis Ngannou, Jingliang Li, Alex Morono and Kenan Song all received $50,000 bonuses for their work at UFC Fight Night 141 in Beijing.

Ngannou earned a “Peformance of the Night” check for his first-round technical knockout victory over Curtis Blaydes in the evening’s heavyweight headliner at Cadillac Arena. An early overhand right from Ngannou floored Blaydes, and the American wrestler never recovered, succumbing to punches 45 seconds into the opening frame.

Elsewhere, Li garnered the card’s other “Performance of the Night” award for his third-round knockout of David Zwada in a featured welterweight affair. A kick to the body from “The Leech” put Zwada on his seat in the third stanza, and a barrage of follow-up blows finished the job at the 4:07 mark of the frame. Read more about UFC Fight Night 141 Bonuses: Ngannou, Li, Morono, Song Garner $50K

Sherdog's live UFC Fight Night 141 coverage kicks off Saturday at 3:30 a.m. ET.

Check out the MMA Forums to discuss the card or enter your comments and predictions below.

Round 1 Sherdog Scores Round 2 Sherdog Scores Round 3 Sherdog Scores The Result Round 1 Sherdog Scores Round 2 Sherdog Scores Round 3 Sherdog Scores The Result Round 1 Sherdog Scores Round 2 Sherdog Scores Round 3 Sherdog Scores The Result Round 1 Sherdog Scores Round 2 Sherdog Scores Round 3 Sherdog Scores The Result Round 1 Sherdog Scores Round 2 Sherdog Scores Round 3 Sherdog Scores The Result Round 1 Sherdog Scores Round 2 Sherdog Scores Round 3 Sherdog Scores The Result Round 1 Sherdog Scores Round 2 Sherdog Scores Round 3 Sherdog Scores The Result Round 1 Sherdog Scores Round 2 Sherdog Scores Round 3 Sherdog Scores The Result Round 1 Sherdog Scores Round 2 Sherdog Scores Round 3 Sherdog Scores The Result Round 1 Sherdog Scores Round 2 Sherdog Scores Round 3 Sherdog Scores …

[youtube https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=QLacv7A2wy0&w=560&h=315]

It’s on.

Chuck Liddell hit the scales at 203.4 pounds, as he prepares to face Tito Ortiz (204.8) for the third time in the Golden Boy MMA main event this Saturday at The Forum in Inglewood, CA. This is the first time Ortiz has weighed more than Liddell in any of their three bouts, with Liddell weighing 204 and 205 pounds compared to Ortiz at 202 and 205 in their previous respective meetings. Co-headlining the event will be a light heavyweight contest between former UFC fighter turned pro wrestler Tom Lawlor (199.6) and the undefeated Deron Winn (205.6), who both made weight without issue at Friday’s weigh-ins.

Golden Boy MMA: Liddell vs. Ortiz 3 will air on pay-per-view via Fite.tv, with the main card starting at 9 p.m. ET/6 p.m. PT. The event will also feature a 160-pound catchweight clash between bout between longtime UFC lightweights Gleison Tibau (159.4) and Efrain Escudero (159.8). Rounding ou…

At 48 years of age, one would think former Ultimate Fighting Championshiphall of famer Chuck Liddell would be enjoying retirement. However, Liddell got the itch to compete again and has decided to face-off in a trilogy fight against one of his biggest rivals in Tito Ortiz who he meets this Saturday night inside The Forum in Inglewood, California under Golden Boy Promotions which is owned by former professional boxer Oscar De La Hoya.

However, unlike the 43-year-old Ortiz, who has explicitly stated that he plans for this to be his last fight, this may not be a one-off for Liddell, who has plans on fighting a number of other veterans as part of his comeback.

“The Iceman” recently spoke to TMZ and said that depending on how he performs against Ortiz this weekend, he’d like to face-off with a number of other veterans, including a trilogy fight with Quinton Jackson.

“If I perform the way I think I’m going to on Saturday then I’m definitely going to be looking fo…

Santiago Ponzinibbio’s knockout victory at UFC Fight Night 140 in Buenos Aires, Argentina proved to be more valuable than anyone could have imagined.

On Thursday, Ponzinibbio posted on social media that he had received the key to the city of La Plata, capital city of the Argentinian province Buenos Aires, from Mayor Julio Garro.

According to MMAFighting, the key to the city had only been given to four other recipients prior to Ponzinibbio, all musicians: The Rolling Stones, Paul McCartney, Ed Sheeran and Alejandro Lerner. In addition, he was bestowed the honor of “Illustrious Citizen of Buenos Aires.” Given only to Argentine natives or longtime residents, that honor is bestowed by the legislature for exemplary work in the fields of culture, science, politics or sports. “Gente Boa” prevailed at the Ultimate Fighting Championship’s debut event in Argentina, knocking out Neil Magny in the fourth round of the main event. Having not suffered defeat since a “Fight of the N…