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While Steve Erceg found Alexandre Pantoja to be respectful leading up to their UFC 301 fight, he didn’t like the champ’s post-fight demeanor.

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Erceg earned the opportunity of a lifetime, jumping several spots in the rankings for a title shot against Pantoja at UFC 301 in Brazil on May 4. While Pantoja retained his flyweight strap with a unanimous decision win, Erceg showed that he can hang with the best by giving the champ a real run for his money.

While Erceg had nothing but respect for Pantoja leading up to the fight, the Australian has now developed mixed feelings due to some post-fight comments “The Cannibal” made. During an appearance on the "Show Me the Money" podcast, Pantoja said that Erceg hits like a girl. Taking issue with Pantoja’s comments, Erceg notes that the Brazilian certainly didn’t look like he had been hit by a girl after their fight.

“He’s a nice guy, obviously to his family. I liked the way he carried hi…

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Michael Chandler recently weighed in on his canceled fight with Conor McGregor.

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After months of anticipation, Chandler was finally scheduled to headline UFC 303 against McGregor on June 29. However, Dana White confirmed last week that the fight was off, as McGregor pulled out due to an injury. Chandler addressed the situation for the first time since that announcement in a video on social media.

“Well it’s Monday morning, on the trail right now, getting my mind right, thinking about what has transpired over the last couple of days…Got the rug pulled out from underneath me at the last possible moment,” Chandler said. “I had just got done with my last sparring session Thursday morning. I’d been hearing rumblings since Monday obviously but really got the call about an hour after my last sparring session was completed… The happiest and healthiest and hardest to kill, most dangerous man I have ever been in my entire life in that moment…

A matchup of middleweight prospects has been added to a UFC Fight Night event in August.

Zachary Reese (7-1) will face Bolivian debutant Jose Medina (11-3) at the UFC Apex in Las Vegas on Aug. 24. The matchup was first reported by MMA Latinoamerica.

It will be a quick turnaround for Reese after he knocked out veteran Julian Marquez in 20 seconds at UFC on ESPN 57 in Louisville earlier this month. The bonus-winning victory saw “Savage” bounce back from his lone pro loss, which came via a slam KO against Cody Brundage in his UFC debut in December 2023.

Meanwhile, Medina gets his UFC call despite coming up on the short side of a unanimous decision in his Dana White's Contender Series bout against Magomed Gadzhiyasulov in October 2023. Medina has finished 10 of his 11 pro wins so far and was riding a six-fight winning streak before the Contender Series loss.

Things definitely haven’t gone as planned for the Ultimate Fighting Championship in June.

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The biggest setback for the promotion occurred last week, when Conor McGregor officially withdrew from his headlining clash against Michael Chandler at UFC 303 due to injury. The former two-division champ is the UFC’s biggest star, but he hasn’t competed for nearly three years since breaking his leg in July 2021. While McGregor vowed to be back soon in a statement released on social media, the exact nature of his injury — as well as a timeline for his recovery — is unclear.

After a hectic couple of weeks, UFC CEO Dana White won’t speculate on when McGregor might be ready to return to action.

“It’s the business, man. This is the way it goes,” White told the Sports Business Journal. “And from here on I’m not going to talk about it until when he’s healed and he’s right. Then we’ll look at the landscape and see what we can figure out.”

The promotion w…

While Khamzat Chimaev has not been especially active in recent years, the Chechen-born Swede has no plans of stepping away from mixed martial arts.

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In a brief statement issued to MMAjunkie.com, Chimaev’s manager, Majdi Shammas, denied retirement rumors that have persisted since the middleweight withdrew from a headlining clash against Robert Whittaker at UFC on ABC 6 due to a severe illness.

“It’s absolutely not true,” Shammas said. “We’re planning on getting to the bottom of this situation, the problems. He will be back.”

Shammas painted a grave picture of Chimaev’s status in a separate post on social media over the weekend. However, he also stated in that post Chimaev’s UFC return would be “immediately rescheduled” once the fighter was healthy.

“The persistent illness that Khamzat has been battling for major parts of training camp could not be cured in time. He has been in and out of hospitals several times,” Shammas wrote on Instagram. “T…

☀️🌍🌘The SUN of Africa is the same sun that lights up our planet.The SUN will set and will rise again until you walk into it. 🌅The SUN, enjoy while it shines. Darkness falls when it’s gone. pic.twitter.com/u5Swlzr6TW

— Israel Adesanya (@stylebender) June 17, 2024

It appears that Israel Adesanya will have a chance to regain the Ultimate Fighting Championship middleweight crown later this year.

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“The Last Stylebender” announced on social media that he will face reigning middleweight champion Dricus Du Plessis at UFC 305 in Perth on Aug. 17. Du Plessis subsequently confirmed the news in a series of posts on his Instagram Stories. UFC CEO Dana White later confirmed the pairing during an appearance on "The Jim Rome Show" on Monday.

EXCLUSIVE: UFC President @danawhite confirms Israel Adesanya will fight Dricus Du Plessis at UFC 305 on August 17th in Perth. pic.twitter.com/mUkcGPGxaK

— Jim Rome (@jimrom…

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Bo Nickal claims to have been offered a short-notice booking against Robert Whittaker at UFC Saudi Arabia, which he couldn’t accept due to some unfortunate circumstances.

Whittaker was originally scheduled to fight Khamzat Chimaev in the main event at UFC on ABC 6 on Saturday. However, Chimaev pulled out of the fight nine days before the event due to health concerns. Chimaev will now be replaced on short notice by Ikram Aliskerov.

While the fight has now been finalized, Nickal revealed that he was also on the list of potential contenders to replace Chimaev. Nickal claims to have received a call to step up for UFC Saudi Arabia, which he couldn’t answer as he didn’t have service. After three days in the mountains of Montana with no network signal, Nickal returned to multiple messages requesting callbacks. However, by then it was too late, as the UFC had already finalized the new main event for Saudi Arabia. Besides, Nickal wasn’t too keen on tra…

Ultimate Fighting Championship veteran Marc Diakiese recently explained the reasoning behind his move to rival promotion Professional Fighters League.

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Diakiese announced his move to the PFL earlier this month after a 15-fight UFC career. Diakiese revealed that his UFC contract had expired following his second-round submission loss to Joel Alvarez at UFC London in July 2023. While exploring free agency, the Englishman was offered a short-notice clash against Kaue Fernandes at UFC Sao Paulo in November 2023, which he went on to win via split decision.

Diakiese expected the UFC to renew his contract in time for the promotion’s pay-per-view event in Manchester on July 27. However, that offer never arrived, and “Bonecrusher” instead accepted a deal with the PFL.

“So, the fight in London, that was the last fight on my contract,” Diakiese told MMAjunkie.com. “And I got sent to Brazil last minute and it was just there, so I knew I was a free agent. B…

Rose Namajunas recently detailed an “uncalled for” interaction with the father of upcoming opponent Maycee Barber.

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Namajunas and Barber will meet in a flyweight contender matchup in the main event at UFC on ESPN 59 on July 13. Thanks to a six-fight winning streak, Barber is oozing confidence going into her clash against the two-time UFC champ. While Namajunas has no issue with Barber’s confidence, she felt that “The Future’s” father was disrespectful towards her.

“I love when fighters are confident. I like when they believe in themselves,” Namajunas told MMAjunkie.com. “To me, as long as she ain’t being disrespectful I’m cool with it. Her dad was kind of disrespectful I kind of felt, like back in the day. But that’s him. You know, so whatever. But her, I think she should keep doing what she’s doing, and I respect everything that she’s done. I think she’s really developed into an impressive prospect that I’m looking forward to facing.”

The inc…

UFC on ABC 6 has taken yet another hit with less than a week to go before fight night.

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Melsik Baghdasaryan announced via Instagram Stories that he is out of his featherweight matchup against Muhammadjon Naimov due to a torn labrum in his left shoulder. UFC on ABC 6 takes place on Saturday at Kingdom Arena in Riyadh, Saudi Arabia. It is currently unknown if Naimov will remain on the card against a replacement opponent.

“Hello everyone, I have bad news,” Baghdasaryan said. “My fight got canceled. I got injured, torn labrum on my left shoulder. Thanks everyone for support. I’ll be back as soon as possible.”

Melsik Baghdasaryan confirms he is out of his scheduled fight in Saudi Arabia against Muhammad Naimov. #UFCSaudiArabia

📽 Baghdasaryan IG Stories pic.twitter.com/5bErTE6lMP

— Marcel Dorff 🇳🇱🇮🇩 (@BigMarcel24) June 17, 2024

This is the latest in a series of last-minute blows for the UFC Saudi Arabia card, sta…

Brady Hiestand and Garrett Armfield evidently harbored no ill feelings for each other after their UFC on ESPN 58 clash on Saturday.

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Hiestand survived a knockdown from Armfield in the second round and pulled off a third-round submission win in one of the most competitive outings of the night. Both fighters subsequently shared screenshots of Instagram DMs revealing the mutual respect between the two, along with other things.

After an initial show of respect, Armfield asked Hiestand if his armbar attempt on “Bam Bam” in the first round was tight.

“You got some heart bro. Was the armbar tight at least?” Armfield wrote.

Hiestand replied that an alleged fart from Armfield during the armbar attempt was the most fatal move of the fight.

“Bro that fart was more deadly than anything! All jokes aside that was a good one,” Hiestand replied.

Armfield didn’t dispute the accusation in his response.

“Bahahahhahahhha. I’m dead,” he wrote. Read more about Brady Hiestand, Garrett Armfield Share Humorous Post-Fight Exchange via DMs

Heading into the UFC on ESPN 58 main event, Tatsuro Taira had designs on testing himself in the championship rounds.

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That goal ultimately went unrealized when opponent Alex Perez suffered a knee injury, resulting in a technical knockout victory for the Japanese prospect at the 2:59 mark of Round 2. The finishing sequence occurred after Taira executed a standing back take and then dragged Perez to the canvas, a move that resulted in his opponent wrenching his knee on the way down to the floor.

“I came here to fight all five rounds. I haven’t got to fight all five rounds yet,” Taira said through a translator at Saturday’s post-fight press conference. “It’s a shame he got injured, but I am happy with the win.”

As the flyweights fell to the canvas, Taira wasn’t initially aware of what had happened to his opponent.

“Actually, I didn’t realize that [he was injured],” Taira said. “I was trying to get his back and trying to finish. Then he [started] …

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Alex Pereira is no stranger to traveling across continents to fight on short notice.

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Pereira will put his light heavyweight title on the line against Jiri Prochazka in the main event at UFC 303 on June 29. Both fighters stepped in on 15 days’ notice to save the card after the originally scheduled main event between Conor McGregor and Michael Chandler fell through due to a McGregor injury.

It will be a quick turnaround for Pereira after a first-round knockout win over Jamahal Hill at UFC 300 in April. However, Pereira’s Glory kickboxing career has prepared him for showing up to fight night under adverse conditions.

Pereira, who has two kickboxing wins over former UFC middleweight champ Israel Adesanya, recalled a similar situation going into their initial matchup. Pereira encountered numerous obstacles going into the fight, which he went on to win via unanimous decision. As a result, “Poatan” believes he is mentally condition…

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Robert Whittaker is simply glad to be fighting Ikram Aliskerov even though he had never heard of his opponent before their booking was announced.

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Whittaker was originally scheduled to headline UFC on ABC 6 in Saudi Arabia against Khamzat Chimaev on June 22. However, Chimaev was replaced by newcomer Ikram Aliskerov on nine days’ notice after the Chechen-born Swede fell “violently ill.”

Whittaker claims to have found out about Chimaev pulling out at the same time as the rest of the MMA community. While “Bobby Knuckles” had prepared for months for Chimaev’s unique style, the former champ didn’t hesitate to accept a fight against an unknown opponent.

“I had a pretty Chimaev-ready game plan,” Whittaker told the New York Post Sports. “Chimaev’s a pretty unique fighter, and he fights a unique way. So I had a game plan I’d worked for months leading into that. But Ikram brings a different threat to the table. I hadn’t heard of him o…

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Sharabutdin Magomedov has some big shoes to fill in if he wants to be the new face of Dagestani striking.

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Magomedov is an elite striker from Dagestan, which is more famous for producing some of the greatest grapplers in MMA history. Commonly known as “Shara Bullet,” Magomedov made his UFC debut at UFC 294 in October 2023, putting on a striking clinic to earn a unanimous decision win over Bruno Silva. After the fight, UFC CEO Dana White expressed surprise at the undefeated Dagestani’s unwillingness to wrestle. Instead of being deterred, Magomedov was motivated by White’s comments.

“It’s a sort of hype for me,” he told Red Corner MMA. “People must be tired of Dagestani wrestling; they want to see Dagestani striking! Here you go, I have arrived!”

Prior to Magomedov, Zabit Magomedsharipov was arguably the torchbearer of elite Dagestani striking. A highly versatile mixed martial artist, Magomedsharipov displayed a unique mix of e…

UFC on ESPN 58 was a memorable night for Tatsuro Taira in more ways than one.

Not only did the Japanese prospect earned his first main event triumph in UFC competition, but he also secured a $50,000 “Performance of the Night” bonus for his efforts. Taira improved to 16-0 as a professional with a second-round technical knockout victory against Alex Perez on Saturday at the UFC Apex in Las Vegas. Taira used a body triangle and back control to wrench his foe to the canvas, a maneuver that resulted in a knee injury for Perez at the 2:59 mark of Round 2.

Elsewhere, Brady Hiestand rallied from a second-round knockdown to earn a $50,000 “Performance of the Night” check for a submission triumph against Garrett Armfield in a featured bantamweight affair. Hiestand brought an end to the contest with a rear-naked choke at the 1:52 mark of Round 3.

Finally, Gabriella Fernandes and Carli Judice received “Fight of the Night” honors and $50,000 apiece for putting on a striking …

Tatsuro Taira took another significant step toward title contention in the Ultimate Fighting Championship’s flyweight division.

The Japanese prospect kept his undefeated record intact in the UFC on ESPN 58 headliner with a second-round stoppage victory against former title challenger Alex Perez on Saturday night at the UFC Apex in Las Vegas. While the fight ended in unfortunate fashion due to a knee injury, Taira certainly played a part in making that happen when he wrenched his foe to the canvas while making Perez carry him like a backpack. With 16 consecutive victories to begin his professional tenure, Taira has emerged as one of the most intriguing talents in the sport at 125 pounds.

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Here is a by-the-numbers look at UFC on ESPN 58, with statistics courtesy of UFCStats.com.

5: Consecutive flyweight victories for Taira, the third-longest active winning streak in the division behind reigning champ Alexandre Pantoja (six) and Muhammad Mokaev (six).…

Tatsuro Taira entered the cage on Saturday looking to complete the transition from prospect to contender, and he succeeded, though not in the way anyone would have wished for.

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In the flyweight headliner of UFC on ESPN 58 at the UFC Apex, Taira faced resurgent former title challenger Alex Perez. Perez immediately took the fight to the young phenom, coming at him with big punches and some hard low kicks, shoving him to the fence with underhooks, and generally putting on a frantic pace. Taira was up to the test, holding his own in the clinch and sticking Perez with long, straight punches in space. Perez scored a takedown late in the round, scooping the Okinawan up and depositing him on his back in the center of the cage, but Taira popped right back to his feet. Taira was cautioned for eye pokes twice in the first round and a half of the fight, but his composure was otherwise exemplary for a 24-year-old in his first UFC main event. Nonetheless, Perez se…

Sherdog's live UFC on ESPN 58 coverage will begin Saturday at 7 p.m. ET. BETTING PREVIEW | SCOUTING REPORT | ODDS: Knutsson (-225), Polastri (+185)Round 1 Sherdog Scores Jay Pettry scores the round:Ben Duffy scores the round:Tristen Critchfield scores the round:Round 2 Sherdog Scores Jay Pettry scores the round:Ben Duffy scores the round:Tristen Critchfield scores the round:

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Round 3 Sherdog Scores Jay Pettry scores the round:Ben Duffy scores the round:Tristen Critchfield scores the round:The Official Result BETTING PREVIEW | SCOUTING REPORT | ODDS: Costa (-170), Shayilan (+142)Round 1 Sherdog Scores Jay Pettry scores the round:Ben Duffy scores the round:Tristen Critchfield scores the round: Round 2 Sherdog Scores Jay Pettry scores the round:Ben Duffy scores the round:Tristen Critchfield scores the round:Round 3 Sherdog Scores Jay Pettry scores the round:Ben Duffy scores the round:Tristen Critchfield scores the round:The Official Result BETTING PREVIEW…

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Nathan Maness appears to be a growing problem for the Ultimate Fighting Championship flyweight division.

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Maness (16-3) outworked Jimmy Flick (17-8) in a flyweight attraction that felt much closer than the final scores indicated, or than the nearly 5-to-1 odds in Maness’ favor seemed to predict. Maness plied his huge frame for the division, working with his jab from the outset to keep dangerous submission artist Flick on the outside. Flick seemed more than willing to engage in a striking battle, throwing big punches and trying to close the distance. Maness defended Flick’s first real takedown attempt with a standing guillotine choke attempt, managing to stay upright. Flick secured a takedown later in the round, taking advantage of another guillotine attempt to set up a Von Flue choke, but the round expired before the sequence could play out. The second and third rounds followed a similar pattern, with Maness and Flick bo…

Very tough to be ruled out of my scheduled return bout. I picked up an injury prior to the press conference that required more time to heal than was available to me. The decision to postpone the fight was not made lightly, but one made in consultation with my doctors, the UFC,… pic.twitter.com/ACNnbvr27p

— Conor McGregor (@TheNotoriousMMA) June 15, 2024

While Conor McGregor’s absence from mixed martial arts will now extend beyond three years, the Irishman remains optimistic regarding his future.

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The former two-division champion released a statement on Saturday addressing his withdrawal from the UFC 303 headliner against Michael Chandler. The June 29 welterweight bout was expected to be McGregor’s first Octagon appearance since breaking his leg in a loss to Dustin Poirier at UFC 264 in July 2021.

“Very tough to be ruled out of my scheduled return bout,” McGregor wrote on social media. “I picked up an injury prior to the …

A number of ailments will keep Jamahal Hill from competing at UFC 303.

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The former light heavyweight champion recently revealed on social media that two tears in his meniscus, a sprained ACL and a Baker’s cyst — which leaked fluid into the back of his knee — led to him withdrawing from a proposed clash against Carlos Ulberg on June 29.

“This is only making me hungrier,” Hill added on Instagram. “Be back soon!!!”

Hill captured the vacant 205-pound belt with a unanimous decision triumph over Glover Teixeira at UFC 283 in January 2023. However, a ruptured Achilles tendon suffered in a pickup basketball game sidelined him for more than a year, forcing him to vacate the belt. His bid to regain the title at UFC 300 came up short, as he suffered a first-round knockout loss to reigning champion Alex Pereira on April 13.

Hill was initially slated to face Khalil Rountree in the UFC 303 co-main event before Rountree was removed from the event due t…

Ultimate Fighting Championship middleweight Brunno Ferreira has learned that there is a certain value to making yourself available.

Brazil’s Ferreira (12-1) is coming off his third win in the Octagon, where he blasted Dustin Stoltzfus with a spinning back elbow to claim a “Performance of the Night” bonus along with his show and win money. “The Hulk” revealed to Sherdog that he decided to stay in Las Vegas to attend Wanderlei Silva’s Hall of Fame induction ceremony on June 27.

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“Besides being a friend and a longtime training partner of my master Dida [Andre Amado], Wanderlei is an idol to all Brazilian fighters. So, I wouldn't lose the opportunity to stay two more weeks in Vegas and testify to such an important moment of his career,” Ferreira said gleefully.

Ferreira’s team has already informed the promotion that he is available to serve as a late replacement in a fight in the middleweight division falls through in the next few weeks. While one oppor…

The sky might be the limit for grappling great Beatriz Mesquita as she crosses over into MMA this weekend.

A 10-time jiu-jitsu world champion, Mesquita is joining the ranks of MMA on Saturday at Spaten Fight Night. She faces fellow debutant Jorgina Ramos, in a matchup highly anticipated by the BJJ community as well as a litany of fans in Brazil. Considered one of the greatest female champions in the history of jiu-jitsu, the IBJJF Hall of Famer has been training MMA at American Top Team for nearly a year with coach “Parrumpinha” Marcos da Matta.

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“She arrived raw but her evolution is impressive,” Da Matta told Sherdog. “She helped Kayla [Harrison], ‘Sheetara’ [Mayra Bueno Silva]. She started getting beaten up a lot, and today she’s already making girls like Michelle [Montague], who has five MMA fights, look like [a] white belt training with her.”

According to the Carlson Gracie black belt, while training at ATT, Mesquita took matches at various …