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Former Ultimate Fighting Championship middleweight champ Chris Weidman is not ready to call it quits just yet.

Weidman (15-7) will be returning to action on March 30 at the unnumbered UFC on ESPN event in Atlantic City, New Jersey. The former kingpin of 185 pounds will battle it out against Bruno Silva (23-10) at middleweight inside of the Boardwalk Hall. News of this pairing first came from Brazilian journalist Laerte Viana, and Sherdog has confirmed from sources close to the situation that the fight is currently in the works. Both men have verbally agreed to the bout, and they are awaiting contracts from the promotion.

This will be Weidman’s second appearance in the Octagon since a gruesome leg injury suffered against Uriah Hall in April 2021. “The All-American” took over two years off to recoup from his broken leg, and he returned at UFC 292 to face perennial contender Brad Tavares. Weidman, 39, lost a decision and endured a whopping 41 leg kicks from his foe to rea…

Those that say former Ultimate Fighting Championship heavyweight champ Francis Ngannou “fumbled the bag” could not be more wrong.

According to Ariel Helwani on Friday, Ngannou (0-1 Box) will take on Anthony Joshua (27-3, 24 KOs) at a currently undisclosed date in Riyadh, Saudi Arabia. This news has been confirmed by Turki Al-Sheikh, the Chairman of General Authority for Entertainment in Saudi Arabia. The two heavyweights will battle it out over the course of 10 professional rounds, and no belts will be on the line. Per MMA Junkie, the match will reportedly be held on March 9.

This will be Ngannou’s second trip to the boxing ring, with his first a razor-close split decision loss to Tyson Fury in October 2023. “The Predator” made shockwaves in the boxing—and MMA—community by knocking Fury down in Round 3, but two of three judges awarded the bout in favor of Fury. Ngannou famously departed the UFC at the beginning of 2023, where he was signed by Professional Fighters Lea…

My opponent for my ONE debut at January 28th Rotang has been canceled and changed to Superlek and I’m going to fight for the one championship world title.I have been preparing to fight Rotang for a long time and sacrificed many things for this fight so I was shocked and… pic.twitter.com/SvpjyQk8c5

— 武尊 takeru (@takerusegawa) January 5, 2024 Switching top-tier opponents is no problem for a star like Takeru Segawa.

According to the Japanese kickboxer on Friday morning, his One Championship kickboxing matchup against Rodtang Jitmuangnon is no longer in the cards. Atop ONE 165 on Jan. 28 at the Ariake Arena in Tokyo, Takeru (42-3) will instead throw down with Superlek Kiatmoo9 (136-29-4). This match will put Superlek’s ONE flyweight (135 pounds) kickboxing belt on the line.

Superlek was gearing up to defend his throne against Elias Mahmoudi at ONE Fight Night 18, however, Mahmoudi was also forced out of their meeting due to an injury. In h…

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Anthony Smith believes he needs to alter his approach following a recent loss to Khalil Rountree at UFC Fight Night 233 in December.

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Smith (37-19) stepped up on 10 days’ notice to face Rountree (13-5) in the co-main event of UFC Fight Night 233 after Azamat Murzakanov was forced out of his original meeting with the Tiger Muay Thai representative on Dec. 2 due to pneumonia.

On a four-fight win streak, Rountree managed to land with more authority in the first two rounds, even hurting Smith during an exchange in Round 2. Ultimately, “The War Horse” landed a crisp uppercut followed by a left hook in the opening minute of the third round that sent “Lionheart” crashing to the canvas. Smith is now 1-3 in his last four Octagon outings.

Having had the time to reflect on the loss over the holidays, “Lionheart” admitted that taking a short-notice fight against a ferocious adversary such as Rountree was perhaps not the best idea. Mor…

[embedded content] At least three of One Championship’s title fights in Qatar will be under MMA rules.

Per the organization on Tuesday, Kai Tang (17-2) and Thanh Le (14-3) will run it back for the unified ONE featherweight (155 pounds) throne. The two will square off on March 1 at the Lusail Sports Arena in Lusail, Qatar, as part of the promotion’s first card in the Middle Eastern nation. It will join a pair of championship rematches of Reinier de Ridder vs. Anatoliy Malykhin—this time at 205 pounds—and Jarred Brooks vs. Joshua Pacio at 125 pounds.

Tang has not competed since claiming a victory over Le in August 2022, where he outworked the Louisiana native across five rounds. In the process, Tang pushed Le to the final bell for the first time in the latter’s career. The fighter from China has not tasted defeat since 2017, running a span of 10 victories including seven under the ONE banner. Tang sports a knockout rate of 76% as a pro, while never winning—or losing—a ma…

Ultimate Fighting Championship heavyweight Jailton Almeida is prepared to deliver a feel-good moment in the sport at the end of January.

Almeida is set to return to action on March 9 in Miami against Curtis Blaydes, during the main card of UFC 299. Before then, “Malhadinho” will enter into exhibition, charity match against Alvaro Borges, a fighter with Down syndrome, on Jan. 27. He and Borges will compete at the Bahia Boxing and Martial Arts Training Center—also called the Centro de Treinamento de Boxe e Artes Marciais da Bahia—in Salvador, Brazil. This matchup, along with the other fights on the Demo Fight 18 billing, were announced by the league on Instagram.

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“We know that sport is one of the biggest weapons of social inclusion we have,” the promotion wrote [via Google Translate]. “Thinking about it, we decided to present an exhibition fight with the 2023 MMA revelation athlete Jailton 'Malhadinho' [UFC] and athlete Alvaro Borges with Down Syndr…

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Josh Emmett is hoping to make his way to a title shot by taking on former Ultimate Fighting Championship featherweight king Max Holloway next.

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A long-time Top 10 featherweight, Emmett (19-4) was on the way to championship contention with a five-fight win streak back in 2022. However, he had his momentum halted courtesy of Yair Rodriguez in an interim title fight at UFC 284, followed by a decision loss against Ilia Topuria, who is set to challenge Alexander Volkanovski for the crown at UFC 298 on Feb. 17.

The Phoenix native returned to the win column at UFC 296 last month against Bryce Mitchell, who replaced an injured Giga Chikadze on short notice. Emmett put “Thug Nasty” to sleep with an overhand right in the opening frame. The scene captured Sherdog’s 2023 “Knockout of the Year” honors.

“I don’t care who was in front of me, I was going in there to put someone away and get my hand raised and end 2023 on a high note,” th…

Crazy turn of events at #KSWColosseum2 earlier. Krzysztof Glowacki, who has fought Oleksandr Usyk in boxing, made his MMA debut and knocked his opponent out from the bottom of full mount! 🤯pic.twitter.com/qASt2YJV25

— Sherdog (@sherdogdotcom) June 3, 2023

Former World Boxing Organization cruiserweight champ Krzysztof Glowacki, who recently made a sensational mixed martial arts debut for Konfrontacja Sztuk Walki, has been banned for four years.

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The ban was handed out by UK Anti-Doping, which oversees anti-doping in the United Kingdom and is compliant with World Anti-Doping Agency protocols. Glowacki (32-4 in boxing) was banned after his urine sample reportedly tested positive for Boldenone, an anabolic androgenic steroid.

Glowacki’s alleged failed test dates back to January 2023, following his fourth-round Technical Knockout loss to Richard Riakporhe in Manchester, England. The Polish standout was initially handed a …

[embedded content] One prominent mixed martial arts coach has lofty ambitions for his team this coming year.

One month after cornering Ultimate Fighting Championship flyweight king Alexandre Pantoja through his first title defense against Brandon Royval, American Top Team coach “Parrumpa,” born Marcos da Matta, will be back in business preparing another one of his fighters for a belt. He will back Mayra Bueno Silva at UFC 297 at the end of January, in her vacant bantamweight championship collision against Raquel Pennington. Da Matta spoke to Sherdog on Wednesday, discussing his team’s tough upcoming agenda, their victories in 2023, the UFC’s new anti-doping system and what he perceives to be a little disrespect.

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“To tell you the truth, I didn’t have Christmas or New Years,” Da Matta admitted. “Besides, half of my athletes are Muslims, who don’t celebrate those dates, I have [Movsar] Evloev and ‘Sheetara’ [Bueno Silva] fighting in UFC 297 [on] Jan. 20…

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Bryce Mitchell has decided to take a short hiatus following his brutal knockout loss to Josh Emmett last month.

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Mitchell (16-2) stepped in on short notice, replacing an injured Giga Chikadze against Emmett (19-4) at UFC 296. Emmett, known as one of the hardest punchers in the entire sport, knocked out Mitchell with an overhand right in the very first frame. As such, “Thug Nasty” has decided to go on his own “concussion protocol” as a result, which will consist of a six-month rest.

“I’m on my own concussion protocol. I’ll consult with my coaches, too, and we’re basically just saying, ‘You know, don’t spar for six months.’ I’ve got to [build a new house] and [expecting my first child], but then I’m right into my next training camp after that. The good thing is that I don’t have to rush into it,” the 29-year-old told ESPN.

Sherdog’s 2023 “Knockout of the Year” was also the first KO of Mitchell’s career. The featherweight was …

A middleweight showdown pitting Brendan Allen against Marvin Vettori will serve as the headliner for an Ultimate Fighting Championship card on April 6.

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The Las Vegas-based promotion announced the booking on Wednesday. A location and venue for the event were not confirmed.

Allen has been victorious in his last six Octagon appearances dating back to February 2022, with five of those triumphs coming by way of submission. Most recently, the Dana White's Contender Series alum tapped out Paul Craig with a rear-naked choke 38 seconds into Round 3 of the UFC Fight Night 232 main event on Nov. 18. Allen is 11-2 over the course of his UFC tenure.

A former middleweight title challenger, Vettori went 1-1 in UFC competition in 2023. After outpointing Roman Dolidze at UFC 286 in March, “The Italian Dream” dropped a five-round verdict to Jared Cannonier in the UFC on ESPN 47 headliner this past June. Vettori owns other notable wins against the likes of Pa…

Khamzat Chimaev posted and then deleted a picture of himself saying he was very sick pic.twitter.com/RDQnhmnOce

— MMA Mania (@mmamania) January 3, 2024

There appears to be good reason why Khamzat Chimaev was left out of the middleweight title picture at the beginning of the year.

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In addition to suffering a torn ligament in his hand in his hand during a victory over Kamaru Usman at UFC 294, Chimaev revealed that he was recently “very sick” in a since-deleted post on social media.

“I was very sick, my hand was injured, so I couldn’t return right away,” Chimaev wrote in the translated post, which was accompanied by several concerning images. “I want to tell all the fountains, I want to see myself in battle more than all of you. I love this job. I will do and prove that I am the best, as always we do, and I will be back soon to Insha’Allal training.”

While Chimaev appeared to be a leading candidate to face reigning m…

Ian Garry has taken a jab at Sean Strickland after the outspoken middleweight champion declared that there are lines one must not cross during trash talk.

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Strickland and Garry have been feuding ever since the middleweight champ questioned the Irishman’s relationship status with his wife, who is 14 years his senior. Last month during a seasonal press conference, Strickland once again broached the topic while slamming Garry for turning off Instagram comments amid backlash despite having trash talked others.

During the same presser, Dricus Du Plessis brought up Strickland’s abusive childhood after the champ alleged a sexual relationship between the South African and his coach. Strickland subsequently attacked Du Plessis while attending UFC 296 the next day.

Strickland recently admitted that Du Plessis’ comments had triggered him as they crossed certain boundaries. The 32-year-old also shared vivid details about his abusive childhood in an emot…

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While Sean Strickland is known for his unabashed trash talk, the middleweight champion believes some topics are off limits.

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Strickland slammed Colby Covington for bringing up Leon Edwards’ deceased father in the lead-up to their UFC 296 clash. The American felt similar boundaries were crossed by his upcoming UFC 297 opponent, Dricus Du Plessis, during a recent seasonal presser.

Bringing up Strickland’s abusive childhood, Du Plessis told the champ that he would put on a worse beating on him than his father. “Tarzan” was admittedly triggered by Du Plessis’ comments, which led to him attacking the South African while attending UFC 296 a day after the presser.

Strickland discussed his feelings said during an appearance on comedian Theo Von’s “This Past Weekend” podcast.

“There’s some things that are off limits. You don’t really talk about a man’s wife, you don’t talk about a man’s kids, and you don’t talk about a kid being abu…

Charles Johnson will replace the injured Nathan Maness and take on Azat Maksum on a month’s notice at UFC Fight Night 235.

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Maness was scheduled to take on Maksum in a flyweight bout on Feb. 3 at the UFC Apex in Las Vegas. Johnson has reportedly agreed to step up on short notice, according to MMAjunkie.com. The matchup has not been officially announced by the promotion.

Johnson has lost three straight within the Las Vegas-based promotion, including a unanimous decision defeat against Rafael Estevam in his most recent appearance at UFC Fight Night 232 this past November. He is 2-4 in UFC competition overall.

A former Octagon Promotion flyweight champ, Maksum notched a split decision win over flyweight veteran Tyson Nam in his promotional debut at UFC on ESPN 49 in July.

UFC Fight Night 235 is headlined by a middleweight meeting between ranked Roman Dolidze and ranked Nassourdine Imavov. Meanwhile, the co-main event will feature a lightwe…

Ian Garry is aiming for the top in 2024.

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Garry is set to clash against welterweight veteran Geoff Neal at UFC 298 on Feb. 17 at the Honda Center in Anaheim, California. Should the Irishman get past Neal, he is eyeing a matchups against former interim champ Colby Covington and reigning middleweight champ Sean Strickland.

Garry revealed his potential hit list in a recent post on social media, writing out Neal’s and Covington’s names on a piece of paper with J. Cole’s “Middle Child” playing in the background. The video ends before Garry can complete the third name on his list, but it seems likely that the “Sean” in question is Strickland. Recent online and media feuds have led Garry to target both Covington and Strickland.

Covington is coming off a lopsided title loss against Leon Edwards at UFC 296 last month in what was his third bid at undisputed gold. “Chaos” subsequently posted a callout to Garry, taking a jibe at his relationship with his …

Things hit a boiling point between the coaches tonight on #TUF31 🤬

[ Watch new episodes every Tuesday on ESPN & ESPN+ ] pic.twitter.com/yyz5iE7ft1

— The Ultimate Fighter (@UltimateFighter) July 5, 2023

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Although he hasn’t competed in more than two years, Conor McGregor is still slightly favored against “The Ultimate Fighter 31” coaching rival Michael Chandler.

According to BetOnline, McGregor is currently listed as a -130 favorite, while Chandler checks in as a +110 underdog. The Irish star recently announced that he will face Chandler in a middleweight bout on June 29 as part of the UFC’s International Fight Week. The promotion has not confirmed a date for the bout at this time.

McGregor, 35, is 1-3 in his last four Octagon appearances dating back to October 2018. In his last outing, the former two-division champion broke his leg in the opening round of a technical knockout loss to Dustin Poirier at UFC 264 …

pic.twitter.com/eoUqZJhBZ4

— Sean Strickland (@SStricklandMMA) December 23, 2023

Dricus Du Plessis’ coach, Niel Geyser, claims Sean Strickland was partly right in throwing his jiu-jitsu black belt into the garbage bin.

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The effectiveness of jiu-jitsu in MMA has been questioned by several fighters, including some notable mentions like Derrick Lewis. Strickland was latest to mock BJJ by uploading a video of him throwing his black belt into the garbage.

“Over 10 years of my life wanting a piece of fabric,” the UFC middleweight champion wrote.

Strickland is set to defend his strap against Du Plessis in the main event at UFC 297 in Toronto on Jan. 20. Geyser agrees with Strickland’s stance, although only somewhat. Geyser claims pure gi jiu-jitsu is very different than MMA grappling and a black belt is likely to suffer a beatdown in an MMA bout. However, Geyser also believes there is the possibility of Strickland just p…

If he can’t fight for undisputed gold, Tom Aspinall would prefer to defend his Ultimate Fighting Championship interim heavyweight title instead of sitting on the sidelines.

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Aspinall won the title with an emphatic knockout victory over Russian knockout machine Sergei Pavlovich at UFC 295 in November. The matchup was put together at the last minute after Jon Jones was forced out of his scheduled title clash against Stipe Miocic due to an injury.

Despite Aspinall having won interim gold, UFC CEO Dana White has made clear that Miocic will still get the next shot when Jones returns to competition. While Aspinall had initially rallied for Jones to be stripped off the title, the Englishman has now seemingly shifted focus. Aspinall recently expressed interest in defending his interim strap against the winner of the UFC 299 clash between Curtis Blaydes and Jailton Almeida at the Kaseya Center in Miami on March 9.

The idea of facing the Blaydes-Almeida…

Gilbert Burns is excited by the fact that upcoming opponent Jack Della Maddalena poses a serious threat on the feet.

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Burns is slated to meet Della Maddalena at UFC 299 on March 9 at the Kaseya Center in Miami. The Brazilian contender will look to return to the win column after a decision loss to Belal Muhammad at UFC 288 last May. With his title hopes on the backburner, “Durinho” noted there weren’t many options left for him at 170 pounds outside of Della Maddalena.

“Colby [Covington] just fought. He’s not going to fight for a while. Leon [Edwards] just won. Belal [Muhammad] is next. Kamaru [Usman] is not fighting right now. If we’re kind of looking for the numbers, a lot of guys that the number makes sense [to fight me], they’re not there,” Burns said on the JAXXON podcast. “So the way I see it, I’m coming from a loss. I’ve got to go in there and get a win, and then I’m in the conversation again.”

Meanwhile, Della Maddalena hasn’t lost a fig…

CEO Sakakibara: "Could you please fight against Floyd Mayweather?"

Manny Pacquiao: "I'm ready."

📡 Watch on @FITEtv !🔻https://t.co/eEpfmslhPp pic.twitter.com/gwod6x8wKm

— RIZIN FF English (@rizin_English) December 31, 2023

The highest selling bout in combat sports history could be in line for a rematch in 2024 under the Rizin Fighting Federation banner.

Manny Pacquiao was in attendance for Rizin 45 on New Year’s Eve at the Saitama Super Arena in Japan. “Pacman” was invited to the ring by Rizin CEO Nobuyuki Sakakibara, who asked if he would fight fellow boxing legend Floyd Mayweather.

“Thank you so much for inviting me here again,” Pacquiao said. “I’m sorry for the last time, we [were] meant to fight last year as Mr. Sakakibara explained. Next year I hope to see you here in Japan for a big fight against ... Floyd Mayweather! I thought you wouldn’t want me to [announce] that. But I am excited for that.”

The two former …

Jorge Masvidal’s retirement from combat sports didn’t last long.

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The former UFC welterweight contender announced that he is “unretired” on social media Monday night. Masvidal offered no further details beyond that brief statement.

Unretired

— Jorge Masvidal (@GamebredFighter) January 2, 2024

While it’s unclear where “Gambred” might compete, last year the Miami native indicated that he had interest in boxing. Masvidal made his professional boxing debut in 2005.

“No names right now,” Masvidal told ESPN this past October, “But I can tell you it’s early next year, and I can tell you somebody is going to get killed.”

Masvidal last fought in MMA at UFC 287, where he dropped a unanimous verdict to Gilbert Burns in April 2023. It was the fourth consecutive loss for the American Top Team standout, who rose to superstardom in 2019 after successive finishes of Darren Till, Ben Askren and Nate Diaz. He officially anno…

It appears that Leon Edwards will make his next title defense against Belal Muhammad at UFC 300 on April 13.

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Edwards recently attended the Aston Villa vs. Burnley soccer game in Birmingham on Saturday, where he received a hero’s welcome. The champion also made an announcement about defending his belt at UFC 300 during an on-pitch interview. Additionally, “Rocky” revealed plans of bringing the UFC to his hometown of Birmingham next year.

“I will defend my belt in April at UFC 300 in Vegas again,” Edwards said. “Then hopefully in the summertime get a fight back home in Birmingham at Villa Park. I’m in talks with the UFC, so hopefully we can get it done.”

While Edwards didn’t name his opponent, Muhammad has been targeted for the title defense, according to a report from Ariel Helwani. Undefeated welterweight contender Shavkat Rakhmonov was also considered as a potential opponent for Edwards. The UFC has not confirmed Edwards’ next title defense …

Francis Ngannou’s coach, Eric Nicksick, recently revealed that “The Predator” made sure the effects of his life-changing payday for the boxing match with Tyson Fury were felt by everyone close to him.

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The former Ultimate Fighting Championship heavyweight king exited the promotion on Jan. 14, 2023, after a lengthy contract dispute. Ngannou subsequently signed with rival promotion Professional Fighters League and also secured a boxing match with the lineal and WBC heavyweight champion, Tyson Fury. Ngannou not only shocked the world by taking “The Gypsy King” to a controversial split decision but also reportedly earned a $10 million payday, which is more than all of his UFC career earnings combined.

According to Nicksick, the payment he received for helping prepare Ngannou for the Fury fight brought him to tears.

“It was the most money I’ve ever been paid by a fighter – it was unbelievable,” Nicksick told MMAjunkie.com. “It was more than I expecte…