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Islam Makhachev is expecting an easy night at the office in his upcoming title defense against Dustin Poirer.

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Makhachev is scheduled to defend his lightweight title against Poirier in the main event at UFC 302 on June 1 at the Prudential Center in Newark, New Jersey. While Makhachev acknowledges Poirier’s experience and elite striking, the lightweight champ believes he’ll dominate “The Diamond” on the ground. Makhachev’s mentor and teammate, Khabib Nurmagomedov, ragdolled Poirier before submitting him in the third round of their title unification clash at UFC 242 in September 2019. Thanks to his own elite grappling skills, Makhachev is expecting similar results.

“Dustin, he is a warrior, legend, and he have more than everybody, experience in this sport,” Makhachev told TMZ Sports. “But his problem is his style. That’s one problem this guy have. His weak point is wrestling and grappling. And I have the key for the easy fight, and I…

Steve Erceg is thrilled by the potential jeers and boos that will come his way as he challenges Alexandre Pantoja in front of the champion’s home crowd at UFC 301.

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The stars aligned for Erceg to receive a flyweight title shot against Pantoja in the main event at UFC 301 on Saturday in Rio de Janeiro, Brazil. Known to be among the most passionate MMA fans in the world, Brazilians don’t go easy on visiting fighters. Brazilian fans were even criticized for pelting Brandon Moreno with bottles after his split-decision win over Deiveson Figueiredo in their trilogy clash at UFC 283 in January 2023.

Erceg is definitely expecting a hostile crowd going into enemy territory and is even somewhat excited about it.

“I’m definitely prepared for it,” he told Submission Radio. “I’m honestly excited for the opportunity to get yelled at and asked to die and bottles thrown at me. I think it’s gonna be very exciting. I can’t wait to take the belt, get straight on…

While he is about to exhaust his Ultimate Fighting Championship contract, Jose Aldo isn’t interested in other MMA promotions — despite having lucrative offers on the table.

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Aldo announced his retirement following a unanimous decision loss against Merab Dvalishvili in August 2022 that snapped a three-fight winning streak. “Junior” is now coming out of retirement to take on Jonathan Martinez in a bantamweight tilt at UFC 301 in Rio de Janeiro, Brazil, on Saturday.

Aldo recently confirmed reports that the Martinez booking is the last fight on his UFC contract, which he hasn’t considered renewing yet. While Aldo expects his upcoming fight to decide his future in the organization, the Brazilian is also considering a switch to boxing.

“Yeah, this is my last fight on my contract,” Aldo told CBS Sports. “When I started talking to Sean [Shelby] and Dana [White] back in January, we had talked about signing a new deal. But I decided against it because…

AND STILL!💥

Chihiro Suzuki gets the 1st round TKO to make his first defense!

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Order the replay on #RIZIN TV!🔗https://t.co/CXiPKkswl0

[ #RIZIN46 ] pic.twitter.com/Ift9z9PHqX

— RIZIN FF English (@rizin_English) April 29, 2024 Chihiro Suzuki made a successful first defense of his featherweight title with a first-round TKO stoppage on Sunday at Rizin Fighting Federation 46 in Tokyo, Japan. The 24-year-old Suzuki overwhelmed veteran challenger Masanori Kanehara with a barrage of ground punches at the 4:20 mark of Round 1. Following an early timeout due to an accidental groin strike, Suzuki (13-3, 1 NC, 8-1, 1 NC Rizin) began to target the lower left leg of Kanehara (29-13-5, 4-2 Rizin) with kicks that slowed him down. With 75 seconds remaining in the first round, Suzuki abruptly picked up the pace, and he swarmed on Kanehara with punches — including a right hook to the temple that wobbled him. When Kanehara fell to the m…

Alex Perez just wanted to remind the rest of the flyweight division of his presence.

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The Team Oyama product did so in emphatic fashion at UFC on ESPN 55, as he knocked out Matheus Nicolau 2:16 into the second round of their headlining encounter at the UFC Apex in Las Vegas on Saturday night. On the heels of a three-bout skid and multiple fight cancellations, it was a much-needed performance for the former title challenger.

“It just shows that I’m still here. I never thought I went anywhere. I think the division kind of did, Perez said at the post-fight press conference. “Obviously coming off all those fights getting canceled and obviously my last three fights not going the way I wanted to. Thank God for my team and my friends and family that kept pushing me in the right direction. Just show the division I’m back in it.”

To earn his first UFC victory since June 2020, Perez admitted that he had to change his mindset. To do that, the 32-year-ol…

A bantamweight clash pitting Vinicius Oliveira against Ricky Simon has been added to the UFC 303 lineup.

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Oliveira recently confirmed the booking following an initial report from Ag.Fight. UFC 303 takes place on June 29 at the T-Mobile Arena in Las Vegas and is headlined by a welterweight bout between Conor McGregor and Michael Chandler.

After earning a contract on Dana White's Contender Series this past September, Oliveira made a strong first impression in his Octagon debut when he authored a flying knee knockout of Bernardo Sopai at UFC Fight Night 238 on March 2. The Brazilian has been victorius in nine of his last 10 professional appearances.

A veteran of 12 promotional appearances, Simon is coming off back-to-back losses to Yadong Song and Mario Bautista in UFC competition. Prior to that, Simon authored a five-bout winning streak in the Las Vegas-based organization.

Conor McGregor announces he and McGregor Sports & Entertainment are now an owner of @bareknucklefc! pic.twitter.com/CFOP0a5xWM

— The Mac Life (@TheMacLife) April 28, 2024

The Ultimate Fighting Championship’s biggest star now has a stake in another combat sports organization.

Former UFC two-division champion Conor McGregor announced on Saturday night that he is a part owner of Bare Knuckle Fighting Championships. The news was revealed in a video message during the BKFC Knucklemania 4 broadcast.

“’The Notorious’ Conor McGregor here. Ladies and gentlemen, the huge announcement that I have for you today, Conor McGregor myself and McGregor Sports and Entertainment is now an owner of Bare Knuckle Fighting Championships,” McGregor said in the video. “Welcome to the big leagues. David Feldman, baby, we did it.”

According to MMAFighting.com, McGregor Sports and Entertainment becomes a part owner of BKFC, while Triller will remain t…

Uros Medic recently revealed that fight purses are not his favorite part of being a UFC athlete.

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The welterweight prospect scored a first-round knockout win over Tim Means at UFC on ESPN 55 at the UFC Apex in Las Vegas on Saturday night. During the post-fight media scrum, Medic revealed that he was making more money in his previous job than he does in the UFC. However, Medic also acknowledged that the promotion does provide fighters with the opportunity to earn massive paydays with time.

“It’s not the money that’s [most enjoyable] for sure,” Medic said. “I was making more money before the UFC. I quit a really good job that I had just to go be a fighter. So it’s not the money, that’s one thing. But I knew there was an opportunity to make a lot of money in the UFC. You don’t get paid a lot of money right off the bat, but as you progress and you make your time in the company, you can make a very good amount of money.”

The win saw Medic bounce b…

Bogdan Guskov has revealed that his plan was to knock Ryan Spann out in the second round of their UFC on ESPN 55 clash.

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Guskov took a significant step up in competition against Spann in the co-main event at the UFC Apex in Las Vegas on Saturday. The Uzbekistan native was easily taken down and controlled on the ground by Spann in the opening round. However, Guskov turned the tables in the second frame, coming from behind to score an upset knockout over an exhausted Spann.

Guskov claimed that the manner of victory over Spann was premeditated. Guskov had planned to concede the first round to Spann, who would tire in the second round. Apart from being surprised by the size of the visibly bigger “Superman,” Guskov seemingly had an easy night at the office.

“You know, before fight we have small plan,” Guskov said at the post-fight press conference. “Give first round [to] this guy [to] work. Because on second round he [he would be a] little bit tire…

63 days…. Plotting with @machinegunkelly #ufc303 pic.twitter.com/nDpX3oGl0h

— Michael Chandler (@MikeChandlerMMA) April 28, 2024

Michael Chandler is seemingly playing mind games with Conor McGregor ahead of their upcoming fight.

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Chandler’s long-awaited fight against McGregor is slated to headline UFC 303 on June 29 at the T-Mobile Arena in Las Vegas. “Iron” recently posted a picture with musician Machine Gun Kelly (also known as Colson Baker), who has history with McGregor.

“Plotting with [Machine Gun Kelly],” Chandler wrote on social media.

McGregor and “MGK” got into an altercation at the MTV Video Music Awards red carpet at Barclays Center in Brooklyn in September 2021. Multiple videos showed “Notorious” lunging at the rapper and also throwing a drink at him. The origin of the altercation remains a mystery to this day, as both parties have chosen not to divulge much on the matter.

Initial reports stated…

It was worth the wait for Alex Perez.

The Team Oyama standout posted his first win in 1,421 days and did so with some pizzaz, as he steadied himself within the Ultimate Fighting Championship flyweight division with a sensational one-punch knockout of Matheus Nicolau in the UFC on ESPN 55 headliner on Saturday at the UFC Apex in Las Vegas. A short-notice substitution for Manel Kape, Perez (25-8, 7-4 UFC) folded the Brazilian 2:16 into Round 2.

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Nicolau (19-4-1, 7-3 UFC) was content to circle on the outside and unleashed an occasional lightning-quick counter. Perez preyed on his lack of aggression, stayed busy, chipped away with leg kicks and probed for openings with active hands. He pressured Nicolau backward midway through the second round and walked him into a crushing right hook. The Nova Uniao product hit the deck where he stood, necessitating an immediate stoppage.

The victory closed the book on Perez’s three-fight losing streak.

Meanwhile…

Saturday’s UFC on ESPN 55 play-by-play kicks off at 4 p.m. ET. Round 1 The third man in the cage for the opening bout is Jason Herzog. Benitez opens with two hard leg kicks on Hayisaer. A jumping switch kick and then a right high kick answer back from Hayisaer. A straight left slips the guard for Benitez, who is still having success with leg kicks. Hayisaer eats another leg kick but stays out of range of the punches from his opponent. A sneaky left hook connects for Hayisaer. Benitez throws a front kick to the body and walks into a right hand. A big overhand left lands for Benitez. Best punch of the fight so far. Hayisaer blocks a left high kick. Another hard leg kick for Benitez. Hayisaer is largely reactive and lets Benitez dictate the pace of the fight. Benitez connects to the body and then eats a body kick of his opponent's. Leg kicks still trouble Hayisaer, who doesn't have a good answer to them. Hayisaer makes Benitez pay for missing and lands with his right hand. Ben…

Patience, persistence and precision worked in concert for Victor Henry.

The longtime Josh Barnett protégé drove deeper into the Ultimate Fighting Championship bantamweight division, as he disposed of Rani Yahya with a head kick and follow-up punches in the third round of their featured UFC on ESPN 55 prelim on Saturday at the UFC Apex in Las Vegas. Henry (24-6, 3-1 UFC) prompted referee Jason Herzog to intervene 2:36 into Round 1.

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Yahya (28-12-1, 13-6-1 UFC) pressured and outworked the former Deep champion in the first round, only to slowly wilt from that point forward. Henry decked the 2007 Abu Dhabi Combat Club Submission Fighting World Championships gold medalist with a pair of right hands late in the second round, then swarmed with elbows and punches for a near-finish. Yahya survived, but it soon became clear he was a spent force. Henry picked him apart from the outside in Round 3, dropped him again with a right hand and then invited him to sta…

Alex Perez bet on himself, and it paid off handsomely.

The Team Oyama product ended a three-bout skid in emphatic fashion, as he scored a second-round knockout of Matheus Nicolau in the UFC on ESPN 55 headliner at the UFC Apex in Las Vegas on Saturday night. A short-notice replacement for the injured Manel Kape, Perez folded his opponent with a right hook at the 2:16 mark of Round 2 — earning himself a $50,000 “Performance of the Night” bonus in the process.

Meanwhile, Bogdan Guskov garnered a $50,000 “Performance of Night” check for his finish of Ryan Spann in the co-main event at lightweight. After being controlled on the canvas in Round 1, the Uzbekistan dropped Spann and then sealed his victory with a barrage of unanswered strikes on the ground to force a stoppage at the 3:16 mark of Round 2.

Elsewhere, Jhonata Diniz captured a $50,000 “Performance of the Night” award by rallying for a second-round knockout of Austen Lane at heavyweight. The Brazilian kickbox…

Former light heavyweight title contender Dominick Reyes is slated to return to action a little less than two years since his last Octagon appearance.

“The Devastator” (12-4) will lock horns with Dustin Jacoby (19-8) at UFC Louisville on June 8, which is set to go down at the KFC Yum! Center in Louisville, Kentucky. The matchup was announced by the Las Vegas-based promotion in a recent press release.

Reyes is currently on a four-fight losing streak that includes a controversial unanimous decision loss against former light heavyweight king Jon Jones and three consecutive knockout losses at the hands of Jan Blachowicz, Jiri Prochazka and most recently, Ryan Spann at UFC 281 in November 2022. While Reyes was initially rumored to make his return to the Octagon in March against Carlos Ulberg, the Victorville, California, native was forced to withdraw from the booking due to the presence of blood clots in one of his legs, a medical issue that required careful monitori…

Canada’s Mike Malott is set to return to the Octagon following his first Ultimate Fighting Championship loss against promotional veteran Neil Magny at UFC 297 in January.

“Proper” (10-2) will take on “The Ultimate Fighter” Season 29 finalist Gilbert Urbina (7-3) in a three-round welterweight clash at a UFC Fight Night event set to go down on July 13 at the UFC Apex in Las Vegas. The news was first reported by Canadian outlet Sportsnet in a post to X (formerly known as Twitter). The clash was confirmed by Malott in an Instagram post.

As mentioned earlier, Malott is coming off an upset Round 3 technical knockout loss at the hands of Magny on home soil in Toronto, Ontario, Canada. Although “Proper” succeeded at outclassing “The Haitian Sensation” for the first two rounds, in the last minute of the bout, an exhausted Malott found himself in the bottom position, with Magny unloading a barrage of punches from top. With only 15 seconds remaining, referee Kevin MacDon…

Jamahal Hill is taking his UFC 300 knockout loss to Alex Pereira in stride and is looking forward to his upcoming clash with Khalil Rountree at UFC 303.

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The buildup to the bout saw Hill repeatedly call out those doubting his ability to defeat Pereira, with things even getting heated between the two competitors during the UFC 300 press conference. Now, following a bitter loss to the reigning divisional champion, Hill has no intentions of obsessing over the defeat and is eager to get back in the win column.

“I mean, I’ve dealt with it by just moving forward,” Hill told Middleasy . ”At the end of the day, fighting is what I do, it's not who I am. It's not my entire life, you know? It's just benefitted other areas of my life in very significant ways. I’ve just got to focus on that and understand that this isn't the end of the road for me. Yeah, it sucks. Yeah, it's unfortunate. Yeah, I saw things going another different way, but it’s an opportunity fo…

Kaito Oda put on a grappling masterclass in his ONE Championship debut, as he pounded his way to a unanimous decision over previously undefeated Australian prospect Coopar Royal in their ONE Friday Fights 60 flyweight showcase on Friday at Lumpinee Boxing Stadium in Bangkok, Thailand.

The opening round witnessed Oda press his adversary against the ropes and eat a few sneaky shots before grabbing a body lock and taking his Australian opponent for a ride. Although Royal tried his best to inflict damage and go for submissions from the bottom, Oda’s top pressure was quick to nullify his attempts and allowed him to commence with peppering ground-and-pound offense. Halfway through the first frame, Royal managed to make it back to his feet, only to be taken down once again and controlled on the canvas for the rest of the round.

The remainder of the bout saw Oda continue to impose his will on the MMA Family Fight Team product, who seemed content to stay in bottom position wh…

[embedded content] One Championship is adding a new championship to the mix in its kickboxing suite.

According to sources close to the situation, ONE on Prime Video 23 on July 5 will be headlined by an inaugural 125-pound kickboxing championship match. Anissa Meksen (103-6, 33 KOs) will toe the line against Jackie Buntan (6-1, 1 KO) for the newly created strap. Meksen will be moving up to 125 pounds for this contest, while Buntan will be switching gears from muay thai to kickboxing. The two ladies will battle it out atop an evening that will be held in Lumpinee Boxing Stadium in Bangkok.

Meksen saw an impressive four-fight win streak, one that included her first three victories under the ONE banner, come to a halt in December when she came up short against Phetjeeja, born Ninlada Meekun, for the interim ONE 115-pound kickboxing title.

California’s Buntan worked her way up the amateur circuit until turning pro in 2021, where she outworked Nat Jaroonsak, Ekaterina…

Looking to move up the flyweight rankings 💪@AlexPerezMMA hits the scale at 126lbs!

[ #UFCVegas91 | TOMORROW on @ESPNPlus | 7pmET/4pmPT ] pic.twitter.com/lzusJ1dldS

— UFC (@ufc) April 26, 2024 The Ultimate Fighting Championship returns following its historic card two weeks ago with a flyweight main event at the UFC Apex in Las Vegas.

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Sitting atop the UFC on ESPN 55 card is a 125-pound fight between contenders Matheus Nicolau and Alex Perez. Both headliners successfully made weight for the five-round fight. As for the rest of the card, two fighters missed weight. David Onama came in 2.5 pounds over the featherweight limit, and James Llontop came in half a pound over the lightweight cap. Both fighters will be fined 20% of their respective purses.

This marks the first UFC main event for Nicolau (19-3-1). The Brazilian is coming off a knockout loss to Brandon Royval in his lone fight of 2023. Prior to the setback, the 31…

Presenting to you your SHOWCASE FIGHTS happening this May 10! 🔥

Showcase Featherweight: 🇪🇬 Mido Mohamed vs Yazeed Hasanain 🇯🇴

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Showcase Flyweight: 🇸🇦 Malik Basahel vs Harsh Pandya 🇮🇳

Female Atomweight: 🇸🇦 Hattan AlSaif vs Nada Faheem 🇪🇬 pic.twitter.com/UD1uv6oU2L

— PFL MENA (@PFLMENA) April 25, 2024 The Professional Fighters League is opening up to a region of the world that could use some developing.

The organization announced the commencement of the Middle East, North Africa (MENA) tournament on Thursday, declaring that the first fight card of its season will kick off on May 10. The show will be held at The Green Halls in Riyadh, Saudi Arabia, and combatants from the bantamweight and featherweight divisions will look to advance to the playoffs with a victory. Broadcast plans for North American audiences have not yet been determined.

Headlining the offering will be a featherweight contest putting local Sau…

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Zubaira Tukhugov recently shared an endearing instance of Khabib Nurmagomedov looking out for him.

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Tukhugov and Abubakar Nurmagomedov were the two Nurmagomedov Team members suspended for jumping the cage and attacking Conor McGregor during the infamous UFC 229 brawl. The Nevada State Athletic Commission later reduced their suspension by 35 days after reaching a community service agreement.

However, the reduced sentence was no coincidence as it made them eligible to compete at UFC 242 on Sep. 7, 2019. The Ultimate Fighting Championship was keen on Nurmagomedov defending his lightweight strap against Dustin Poirier in the main event at UFC 242. Meanwhile, “Eagle” refused to return to action until his teammates were cleared to fight on the same bill.

Tukhugov further revealed that Nurmagomedov went to bat for him, insisting on a spot for “Warrior” on the same card. When Dana White instead offered Tukhugov a fight at UFC Mosc…

Jamahal Hill recently shared his take on the now iconic scene where Alex Pereira brushed off referee Herb Dean moments before putting “Sweet Dreams” to down and out.

Hill (12-2) challenged Pereira for the light heavyweight title in the main event at UFC 300 earlier this month. Pereira absorbed a glancing low blow from Hill in the first round, brushed it off, stopped Dean from intervening, and proceeded to knock “Sweet Dreams” out immediately after.

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Many, including former double champ Daniel Cormier, have questioned Dean’s handling of the situation, criticizing him for letting Pereira continue right after he had called time. Hill also believes Dean could have done things differently.

According to Hill, the intriguing moment had a role to play in his knockout loss against “Poatan.” Hill claims he slacked a little on hearing Dean call time, giving up angles, while Pereira kept advancing. While Hill doesn’t want to make excuses and credits Pereira for c…

The Ultimate Fighting Championship took the pieces of two scuttled fights and made something exceptional.

On Monday, UFC flyweight Joshua Van (10-1) posted on social media that his pairing with Su Mudaerji on UFC 302 was off. The Myanmar-born fighter hoped to stay on June 1 event in Newark, New Jersey, and he has gotten his wish. In on short notice will be ranked contender Tatsuro Taira (15-0). Taira was initially slated to battle Tim Elliott at UFC Fight Night 241 on May 18, but Elliott sustained an injury in training to knock him out of that fight. Van’s management team, Iridium Sports Agency, broke this news on Thursday.

Fury Fighting Championship mainstay Van surged into the UFC with a litany of stoppages on his ledger. While he ultimately went to the scorecards in two of his last three, Van has won eight straight bouts dating back to 2021. In the Octagon, Van introduced himself to the top brass by picking up a split decision over Zhalgas Zhumagulov. A few month…