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During fight week in the lead up to his bout at UFC London, Welsh-born middleweight and British Army paratrooper Jack Marshman told reporters that he was competing without receiving official clearance from his superiors.

The 29-year-old snapped a two-fight losing streak, defeating John Phillips by split decision, but not without professional consequences. Marshman was a guest on “The MMA Hour” on Monday, told host Luke Thomas that he had received a formal warning from the army and claimed that if he receives another, it could result in him being discharged.

“I’m leaving anyway, I’ve given my year’s notice because on the 4th of November that will be my 12-year point, so that’s me signing off now,” Marshman said.

Marshman said his immediate supervisor had given him the all-clear to compete but then his participation was flagged by another superior.

“My officer in command knew that I was fighting and he had basically okay’d it,” Marshman said. “But it came fro…

A welterweight rematch pitting Tyron Woodley against Robbie Lawler will serve as the headliner for UFC on ESPN 4 in Minneapolis.

UFC President Dana White confirmed the bout to ESPN on Wednesday. UFC on ESPN 4 takes place at the Target Center on June 29. The main card will air on ESPN following early prelims on ESPN+.

Woodley claimed the welterweight throne first-round knockout of Lawler at UFC 201 in July 2016. He defended the belt four times thereafter before relinquishing the strap to Kamaru Usman in a five-round decision defeat at UFC 235.

Lawler has lost three of his last four Octagon appearances dating back to his setback against Woodley. Most recently, “Ruthless” fell to Woodley teammate Ben Askren in controversial fashion, when referee Herb Dean ruled that Lawler was unconscious from a bulldog choke 3:20 into the opening round. Prior to that, Lawler was nearly on the verge of a stoppage victory himself after slamming his opponent to the ground and unloadin…

Just hours after teasing a potential bout with Stipe Miocic in July, Jon Jones has agreed to defend his light heavyweight crown against Thiago Santos at UFC 239.

ESPN first reported that the Jones-Santos bout, along with a women’s bantamweight championship clash between Holly Holm and Amanda Nunes, have been verbally agreed to for the July 6 event. UFC 239 takes place at the T-Mobile Arena in Las Vegas as part of the promotion’s International Fight Week. The main card will air on pay-per-view, with Jones vs. Santos serving as the headliner.

Jones returned from his latest USADA suspension at UFC 232 in December, when he defeated Alexander Gustafsson via third-round knockout to claim the vacated light heavyweight belt. He successfully defended the title with a dominant five-round verdict over Anthony Smith at UFC 235 on March 1.

Santos, meanwhile, has enjoyed great success since moving up from middleweight, posting a trio of KO/TKO victories over Jan Blachowicz, Ji…

Pedro Munhoz’s temporary suspension for jumping over the Octagon fence following his victory at UFC 235 has been extended by the Nevada State Athletic Commission.

The NSAC voted unanimously on Wednesday to extend the temporary suspension, which was enacted when Muhnoz jumped over the Octagon fence following his knockout victory against Cody Garbrandt at the T-Mobile Arena in Las Vegas on March 2.

Munhoz will remain on temporary suspension until he appears before the NSAC for a formal disciplinary hearing. “The Young Punisher” is accused of ignoring the commission’s instructions to remain in the Octagon after the fight.

“Our inspectors were specifically advised by me to make sure the fighters knew they were not authorized to jump out of the cage,” NSAC executive director Bob Bennett recently told MMAFighting.com.

The NSAC policy is in place to prevent fighters from injuring themselves or others in the vicinity. It existed prior to the post-fight melee that e…

[youtube https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Mjf0bsR0Dyk&w=560&h=315]

While Conor McGregor has on a couple occasions expressed interest in UFC ownership in the media, Dana White said he has never had a formal discussion with the Irish superstar on the topic.

However, the subject was broached during a recent text message exchange between White and McGregor. After the former two-division champion announced his retirement on Twitter early Tuesday morning, it was considered by many in the MMA community to be a negotiating ploy against the UFC. White denies that, but he did admit to TMZ sports that he briefly discussed potential ownership stake with McGregor.

“A lot of people were speculating that it [the retirement announcement] was posturing because of negotiations, but we really haven’t been negotiating that hard,” White said. “He said that [he wanted a UFC share] in Chicago. I saw that and he sent me a text.

“He said, ‘I feel like I should own a piece of the company.’ …

Mike Perry will replace Jingliang Li and face Alex Oliveira in a welterweight clash at UFC on ESPN 3.

ESPN was first to report the new bout. UFC on ESPN 3 takes place on April 27 at the BB&T Center in Fort Lauderdale, Fla., and is headlined by a middleweight rematch between Yoel Romero and Ronaldo Souza. The card will air on ESPN following early prelims on ESPN+.

Perry has lost three of his last four bouts and is coming off a first-round submission defeat to Donald Cerrone at UFC Fight Night 139 on Nov. 10. “Platinum” began his promotional tenure with victories in four of his first five appearances, with all of those triumphs coming by KO or TKO.

Oliveira had a two-bout winning streak snapped at UFC 231, where he was submitted in the second round by Gunnar Nelson. The Brazilian “Cowboy” is 9-4 with one no contest in UFC competition.

Conor McGregor is under investigation in Ireland for an alleged sexual assault of a woman in December, according to a report from The New York Times.

The former Ultimate Fighting Championship ace was reportedly arrested in January, questioned by authorities and then released. McGregor has not been formally charged with a crime. Irish news outlets reported on the arrest of a national sports star for allegedly raping a woman at a Dublin hotel in January but did not specifically name McGregor, perhaps due to laws that restrict the media from identifying a suspect if they are not convicted of a crime.

According to the Times, “some newsrooms in Ireland have barred employees at meetings from even mentioning his name in connection with the case. Managers have asked staff members to refer to him as the ‘famous sportsman,’ according to a journalist at one of Ireland’s national newspapers.”

The alleged victim claims that the assault occurred at the Beacon Hotel, which is l…

For the second time in his combat sports career, Conor McGregor has used Twitter to send the MMA community into a frenzy with a retirement announcement.

Whether it actually holds up this time around remains to be seen.

“Hey guys quick announcement, I’ve decided to retire from the sport formally known as ‘Mixed Martial Art’ today,” McGregor wrote. “I wish all my old colleagues well going forward in competition. I now join my former partners on this venture, already in retirement. Proper Pina Coladas on me fellas!”

Hey guys quick announcement, I’ve decided to retire from the sport formally known as “Mixed Martial Art” today.I wish all my old colleagues well going forward in competition.I now join my former partners on this venture, already in retirement.Proper Pina Coladas on me fellas!

— Conor McGregor (@TheNotoriousMMA) March 26, 2019

The former UFC two-division champion’s announcement came early Tuesday morning on the heels of an appe…

Mixed martial arts retirements are very rarely permanent, and Urijah Faber could be just the latest example of a fighter returning to the Octagon after calling it a career.

The 39-year-old UFC Hall of Famer appeared on "Ariel Helwani’s MMA Show” on Monday and admitted that he is contemplating a return after retiring from the sport in December 2016. “The California Kid” recently became a father and is in the process of preparing for a grappling match in Polaris against Nicky Ryan on May 25.

He believes training for that match will help get him into the proper condition if the right opportunity arises.

"With the baby in my life, and with the rejuvenation of my body, and seeing why I stood out for so long, it's just really, really tempting," Faber said. "And I'm going to take this time to prepare for this May 25 matchup with one of the best jiu-jitsu players on the planet, to get my body into shape. And I'm going to continue with that and get my body back into [bein…

The Ultimate Fighting Championship’s upcoming trip to Sweden is shaping up to be a light heavyweight showcase.

Ilir Latifi will square off against Volkan Oezdemir, while Jimi Manuwa will meet Aleksandar Rakic in a pair of 205-pound bookings on the June 1 card. ESPN was first to report the bouts. UFC Stockholm takes place at Ericsson Globe in Stockholm, Sweden and is headlined by a light heavyweight encounter between Alexander Gustafsson and Anthony Smith.

Latifi last appeared at UFC 232, where he lost a unanimous decision to Corey Anderson. The 35-year-old Swede had won five of his previous six fights before that defeat. After skyrocketing to title contention in 2017, Oezdemir has lost three straight, including a split-decision setback against Dominick Reyes in his most recent outing at UFC Fight Night 147.

Manuwa is also looking to halt a three-bout skid. Most recently, the 39-year-old “Poster Boy” suffered a second-round KO loss to Thiago Santos at UFC 231. The…

One moment, Stephen Thompson appeared on his way to a 20-18 lead on the scorecards against Anthony Pettis. The next, he was out cold courtesy of a spectacular Superman punch from “Showtime” that ended the UFC Nashville main event with five seconds left in round two.

Thompson did not attend post-fight media events, as he was taken to a nearby hospital immediately following the knockout loss. Instead, “Wonderboy” discussed his defeat in a Facebook Live video.

“I don’t even remember a dang thing,” he said. “All I just remember is punching him in the face, his nose bleeding, and then I wake up in the back. ... But I’m okay, everything’s good.”

Thompson had never been finished in 17 previous professional MMA bouts – including two matchups with heavy-handed former champion Tyron Woodley. According to the South Carolina native, his streak of durability also dates back to his kickboxing career. Pettis was making his first career appearance at 170 pounds after competing a…

It appears that Dana White now has a plan in place for both the bantamweight and flyweight divisions.

The UFC president outlined those plans during an interview on ESPN+ following UFC Fight Night 148 in Nashville on Saturday night. First and foremost, the promotion is targeting a future showdown between Henry Cejudo and Marlon Moraes for the vacant bantamweight crown. Former champ T.J. Dillashaw relinquished the belt after failing a drug test in relation to UFC Brooklyn.

“I now have a plan. I didn’t have a plan before, but I now have a plan,” White. “It looks like we’re going to do the Moraes-Cejudo fight. They both want that fight really bad, seems like a good fight to make with the whole Dillashaw thing now. And then you do [Jussier da Silva] versus [Joseph] Benavidez on the same card. Anything goes wrong, one of them can step up and take the fight, and then the winner of that fight is the guaranteed No. 1 contender for the next shot.”

White did not offer detai…

He’s had one of the best professional tenures a lighter-weight fighter could ever ask for, but Anthony Pettis’ career was largely in flux as he entered a new division heading into Saturday night’s UFC Fight Night 148 main event.

Everything changed in the blink of an eye.

Pettis pulled off yet another amazing win, living up to his classic nickname by rocketing Stephen Thompson’s consciousness into the stratosphere. Bleeding from his nose and mouth and getting pelted by an array of kicks to the legs, body and head, “Showtime” literally backed himself against a wall. He was in peril of possibly being taken out, but in a split second, the Roufusport legend saw and opening and went for it.

Pettis unfurled a magnificent Superman punch by exploding forward with his back nearly against the Octagon’s fencing. His right hand landed cleanly on Thompson’s face, sending him to the canvas. “Wonderboy’s” head bounced off the canvas and Pettis followed him down, crushing two mor…

Anthony Pettis’ latest addition to the highlight reel proved to be quite lucrative.

“Showtime” appeared to be down on the scorecards as time ticked down in the second stanza of the UFC Nashville headliner before he launched himself at Stephen Thompson with a hooking superman punch, knocking “Wonderboy” out cold with five seconds remaining in the period. As a result, Pettis earned a $50,000 “Performance of the Night” bonus for his successful welterweight debut.

Meanwhile, Bryce Mitchell and Bobby Moffett garnered “Fight of the Night” honors and $50,000 apiece for their back-and-forth preliminary featherweight scrap. In a competitive bout that featured a few momentum swings, Mitchell sealed his victory by threatening with a tight rear-naked choke late in the final stanza to sweep the scorecards by identical 29-28 counts.

Finally, Randa Markos received the evening’s other $50,000 “Performance of the Night” check for her first-round submission of former Invicta FC ch…

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. Anthony Pettis knows how to leave jaws ajar. The former Ultimate Fighting Championship and World Extreme Cagefighting lightweight titleholder moved up to 170 pounds and knocked out Stephen Thompson late in the second round of their UFC Fight Night 148 headliner on Saturday at Bridgestone Arena in Nashville, Tennessee. Thompson (14-4-1, 9-4-1 UFC) bit the dust 4:55 into Round 2, as the South Carolina-based karateka was finished for the first time in his 19-fight career.

Initially, Pettis (22-8, 9-7 UFC) found the going rough. Thompson kept him at bay with check hooks, jabs and kicks that ran the spectrum from traditional to exotic, all while alternating between orthodox and southpaw stances. He also bloodied Pettis’ nose with straight punches down the middle and appeared to be on his way to coasting to a…

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.

UFC Fight Night 148 airs live in its entirety on ESPN+. The prelims will begin at 5 p.m. ET and the main card starts at 8 p.m. ET.

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

Round 1 Sherdog Scores Adam Martin scores the round:Tyler Treese scores the round:Scottie Smith scores the round:Round 2 Sherdog Scores Adam Martin scores the round:Tyler Treese scores the round:Scottie Smith scores the round:Round 3 Sherdog Scores Adam Martin scores the round:Tyler Treese scores the round:Scottie Smith scores the round:The Official Result Round 1 Sherdog Scores Adam Martin scores the round:Tyler Treese scores the round:Scottie Smith scores the round:Round 2 Sherdog Scores Adam Martin scores the round:Tyler Treese scores the round:Scottie Smith scores the …

Left hand from Mitchell drops Moffett! #UFCNashville pic.twitter.com/iNrqAVCecu

— UFC (@ufc) March 23, 2019

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.

Rising featherweight contender Bryce Mitchell had to dig deep to prevail against Bobby Moffett in a fight that was fought tooth-and-nail until the very end.

It seemed as though “Thug Nasty” was going to crush Moffett (14-4) when he rocked him with a clean punch upstairs in the first, but “The Wolfman” never wavered and fought the Arkansas native with everything he had in the UFC Fight Night 148 featured preliminary bout. They traded takedowns, exchanged punches and threatened with submissions in every round. However, when Mitchell (11-1) scrambled from a takedown and seized the Illinois fighter’s back, he threatened with and nearly finished him with a rear-nake…

Get off my back! #Bellator218 pic.twitter.com/Y8BEVZmwgu

— Bellator MMA (@BellatorMMA) March 23, 2019 Aesthetically pleasing it was not, but Emmanuel Sanchez nevertheless laughed last.

The Roufusport standout won for the fifth time in six outings, as he posted a unanimous decision over former World Series of Fighting champion Georgi Karakhanyan in the Bellator 218 headliner on Friday at the Winstar World Casino in Thackerville, Oklahoma. All three judges sided with Sanchez (18-4, 10-3 Bellator), awarding him 29-28 scores across the board.

Karakhanyan (28-9-1, 6-7 Bellator) -- who lost a majority decision to Sanchez in 2017 -- built a quick lead with a strong first round, where he secured a takedown, maintained a dominant position for three-plus minutes and mixed in some ground-and-pound for good measure. Prosperity was short-lived, however. Sanchez made the necessary adjustments in the second and third rounds, incorporated some takedowns of h…

Official Results: Kenney def. Cachero via KO at 1:38 into Round 1. pic.twitter.com/0nayEn9BTe

— AXS TV Fights (@AXSTVFights) March 23, 2019 The LFA has crowned its first-ever two-division champion.

Casey Kenney, the reigning LFA interim flyweight champ, snatched up the promotion's interim bantamweight title in the main event of LFA 62 on Friday night inside The Bomb Factory in Dallas. Kenney, an established jiu jitsu player and judoka, scored the biggest win of his career without the use of his throws or ground skills.

Vince Cachero wanted to stand and trade with Kenney, but that wound up being his downfall. Kenney, who hails from Tucson, got inside on Cachero (6-1) and briefly clinched. From there, Kenney (11-1-1) detonated his left knee square on "The Anomaly's" face, knocking him completely out. Cachero fell flat onto his back, forcing referee Aladin Martinez to intervene, ending the battle at the 1:38 mark of the first.

Bantamweight con…

The Main EventChamp vs. Champ@phildefriesmma vs. @TomaszNarkun!! #KSW47 live around the world tomorrow on https://t.co/F6vAzlDmE2!! pic.twitter.com/X2ExKsVsbL

— KSW (@KSW_MMA) March 22, 2019 Join DAZN free for 30 days and live-stream fight night anywhere!

KSW is making a splash in their first event of 2019 by putting on a superfight, with light heavyweight champ Tomasz Narkun moving up to heavyweight to challenge the divisional king Philip De Fries.

De Fries hit the scales at 257 pounds, as he prepares to defend his heavyweight strap against light heavyweight kingpin Narkun (230) in the KSW 47 main event this Saturday at the Atlas Arena in Lodz, Poland. Co-headlining the card is a bout titled "The Strongest MMA Fight of All Time" between five-time World's Strongest Man winner Mariusz Pudzianowski (257) and 2008 Olympic gold medalist weightlifter Szymon Kolecki (226), and all four made weight without issue at Friday's weigh-ins.

KSW 47 airs …

We got ourselves a title fight TOMORROW at #LFA62! @CKMMA125 (134.6)vs.@VinceTheAnomaly (133.8)

TICKETS: https://t.co/cdUkQEghx5@IncaKolaUSA@USENDmoney@ButcherBox@FredLoyaIns@GLCDirect2000@buyVPNservice@TheTerpHouse@ZebraMat@Cambria_Hotels@BombFactoryDFW pic.twitter.com/n7IkRMvy1p

— LFA (@LFAfighting) March 22, 2019 The Legacy Fighting Alliance is ready to explode at the Bomb Factory, bringing with it a fighter attempting to become the promotion's first simultaneous two-division interim champ, as Casey Kenney moves up in weight to face Vince Cachero at bantamweight.

Interim flyweight champion Kenney hit the scales at 134.6 pounds, as he contends for the interim bantamweight title against Cachero (133.8), in the LFA 62 main event this Friday at the Bomb Factory in Dallas. Co-headlining the card will be a catchweight bout between Levi Mowles (136.8) and Ahmet Kayretli (137.8), with the two agreeing before the weigh-ins that they would both co…

Former Ultimate Fighting Championship champion Frank Shamrock is under investigation for animal cruelty, according to Dallas, Texas police.

The 46-year-old Shamrock is accused of abandoning his mother’s dog, Zelda, in a pickup truck left at Love Field airport in Dallas earlier this month. Police believe the dog was alone in the truck for at least five days, starting March 2.

For his part, Shamrock does not deny any of the allegations thus far. In a telephone interview with Dallas television outlet WFAA, he said “They can charge me with whatever. I will show up. It is what it is. I'm not hiding in any way. It's an unfortunate and terrible thing. I'm an animal lover and I ran away crying.”

The longtime California resident claims that he had only been in Dallas to help his ailing mother move out of her home, and had tried to find someone to take in the dog. In a public Facebook post on March 2, Shamrock wrote, “Need help. Can anyone take a dog today in Dallas, Texas…

Antônio Cara de Sapato enfrenta Ian Heinisch no UFC Rochester, no dia 18 de maio | combate | Sportv https://t.co/oQKu9Pp96y

— Raphael Marinho (@raphamarinho) March 21, 2019

Losing his opponent on fight day before their UFC Fight Night 147 meeting, Ian Heinisch is electing for a short turnaround to take a new matchup against Antonio Carlos Jr. this May.

According to Combate on Thursday, Carlos Jr. (10-2) and Heinisch (12-1) will be squaring off at UFC Fight Night 151 on May 18 at the Blue Cross Arena in Rochester, N.Y. Heinisch was originally scheduled to face Tom Breese at UFC Fight Night 147 but Breese pulled out the day of the fight due to a medical issue.

Carlos Jr. has tapped his last three foes by rear-naked chokes, and is riding a five-fight win streak dating back to 2016. With his last win a submission over Tim Boetsch, Carlos Jr. currently holds the third most rear-naked choke wins in UFC history with five, and the most of any midd…

A pair of former lightweight standouts will square off at welterweight in the main event of UFC Rochester.

The Las Vegas-based promotion confirmed to the Democrat and Chronicle on Wednesday that Rafael dos Anjos will meet Kevin Lee in a 170-pound affair at the Blue Cross Arena in Rochester, N.Y., on May 18. UFC Rochester airs in its entirety on ESPN+ and will also include a women’s bantamweight tilt pitting Aspen Ladd against Sijara Eubanks.

A former UFC lightweight champion, dos Anjos began his welterweight tenure with successive triumphs against Tarec Saffiedine, Neil Magny and Robbie Lawler. Since then, the Brazilian has encountered some struggles going against the division’s top wrestlers, dropping five-round decisions to Colby Covington and current champ Kamaru Usman in his last two Octagon appearances.

Lee will be making his 170-pound debut on the heels of a unanimous decision defeat to Al Iaquinta at UFC on Fox 31 this past December. “The Motown Phenom” we…