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Michael Morales is not in awe of Islam Makhachev. 

Makhachev won the welterweight title with a dominant unanimous decision victory over Jack Della Maddalena at UFC 322 this past November. Morales (19-0) also emerged as a fresh contender on the same card with a brutal knockout win over Sean Brady. 

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While other contenders like Carlos Prates and Ian Garry are also waiting in the wings, Makhachev wants to defend his title against former champion Kamaru Usman. However, Morales is also being considered a frontrunner for the next title shot against Makhachev. Morales is not buying into the air of invincibility around Makhachev. The undefeated Ecuadorian sees Makhachev as just another athlete who hurts and bleeds like he does. Morales just wants the title and is happy to have Makhachev keep his legacy.‘He Can Have His Legacy’ “I don’t see Islam as a threat,” Morales told Hablemos MMA. “… He’s an athlete just like me, he’s a person just like me. He b…

Khabib Nurmagomedov believes his cousin, Usman Nurmagomedov, can hold his own against the best UFC lightweights. 

Usman became the inaugural Professional Fighters LeagueL lightweight champion with a victory over Paul Hughes last year. While the UFC is considered the pinnacle of MMA success, Khabib believes Usman is on par with any UFC lightweight. Khabib admits that he wouldn’t have said the same of Usman a year back. However, having trained and sparred with Usman over the past year, Khabib claims the PFL lightweight champion is on the same level as UFC lightweight champion Ilia Topuria and No. 1 contender Arman Tsarukyan.

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Rapid Improvement “I have my own opinion on this, but it’s not right to talk about the UFC being a PFL fighter. In one year, Usman has grown a lot,” Khabib told Team Gorilla Fighting. “I’m fighting with him myself, I’m working personally. And from the outside, he’s at least on the same level as them [Ilia and Arman]. A year a…

Alexander Volkanovski and Diego Lopes were caught in a weird position in the final seconds of their rematch. 

Volkanovski put his featherweight title on the line in a rematch against Lopes at UFC 325 last weekend in Sydney, Australia. Volkanovski showed superior technique to stifle Lopes’ offense and earn a unanimous decision. Volkanovski and Lopes were caught in a bizarre north-south position against the fence just before the final bell. 

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Volkanovski kept swinging while sitting on Lopes with his back towards the Brazilian’s face. “The Great” revealed that he didn’t realize that he was precisely sitting on Lopes’ face. Volkanovski light heardtedly apoligized to Lopes for the position.‘Why Can’t I Hit His Head’ “I didn’t realize my ass was actually on his face,” Volkanovski said on YouTube. “I thought that I was sitting on his chest. That’s why I was trying to swing back these punches, thinking his head’s there. And I’m like, ‘Why can’t I hit…

Jon Jones wants to save whatever is left of his arthritis ridden hip.

Jones is currently coaching the ALF Reality Series opposite archrival Daniel Cormier. This has led to talks of a potential wrestling match between the UFC veterans at the new RAF wrestling league. 

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However, Jones recently revealed that he has severe arthritis while shutting down the idea of wrestling “DC.” Jones claims his left hip is so severely affected by arthritis that he has qualified for hip replacement surgery. “Bones” wants to save the rest of his hip to play with his 3-year-old son.Aging Rapidly? “I have severe arthritis,” Jones said (video via Home of Fight). “Most people don’t know that. My left hip is covered in arthritis. I actually already qualified for hip replacement. My last training camp I went to bed in so much pain… I have a 3-year-old baby boy. I want to use what I got left from my hips to play with his ass.”

This comes as a slight surprise, as Jones (28…

Cory Sandhagen has a tongue-in-cheek theory as to why Sean O'Malley doesn’t want to fight him. 

Sandhagen believed O’Malley was not deserving of an immediate rematch after losing his title against Merab Dvalishvili. However, O’Malley waited for his turn and failed to reclaim his title against Dvalishvili at UFC 316 last year. Dvalishvili then went on to defend his title against Sandhagen at UFC 320 last October. Sandhagen has since been calling for a matchup against O’Malley at the White House in June. 

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Sandhagen believes O’Malley doesn’t want to fight him as his ginger hair resembles that of “Suga’s” longtime coach and friend, Tim Welch. Sandhagen also jokes that the former bantamweight champion could be sexually attracted to him.Calling Out ‘Suga’ “Me and Sean O’Malley should absolutely fight at the White House,” Sandhagen says. “There is literally no reason not to. Why does this dude not really want to fight me? Is he scared of me? I’m li…

Tai Tuivasa came up short against Tallison Teixeira at UFC 325. | Getty/UFC

Even after a hiatus that lasted more than a year, Tai Tuivasa’s slump continued at UFC 325.

The popular Aussie heavyweight struggled to remain upright, dropping a unanimous decision to Tallison Teixeira in a featured bout this past Saturday at Qudos Bank Arena in Sydney. It was Tuivasa’s sixth consecutive defeat within the Octagon, a skid that dates back to September 2022.

“Bam Bam” expressed disappointment in the defeat in a statement released on his Instagram account.

Hurts the Soul “That hurts the soul more than any punches,” Tuivasa wrote. “I tried I had a great camp looking forward to getting back in camp with the boys at Tripl3 MMA so much to work on. Always big love to my supporters especially the Aussie fans/crowd always cheering me on. I’m sorry for falling short again. F—king s—t feeling.

“My poor boy has watched me get a hiding a few too many times now, but just l…

Asu Almabayev is 6-1 in the UFC. | Getty/UFC

Asu Almabayev has been forced to withdraw from the UFC Mexico City headliner a little more than three weeks before the event.

Almabayev revealed that he suffered a hand injury in a post on Instagram, confirming an Ag.Fight report that the Kazakh fighter had been forced to withdraw from a proposed flyweight booking against ex-UFC champion Brandon Moreno. It is currently unclear if Moreno, a Mexico native, will remain on the Feb. 28 card against a replacement opponent.

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'Many Interesting Battles Ahead' “The situation is like this: I injured my hand two days before our flight,” Almabayev wrote on Instagram (via Google Translate). “I don't want to talk about the injury, I've never refused a fight, no matter who I fight, no matter what the situation, the preparation is at a good level, it's done, no matter how much you kick, I can't change it.

“I still have five fights left in this [organization]…

Daniel Cormier never wanted to fight Cain Velasquez.

Velasquez (14-3) was on the cusp of UFC heavyweight title contention when Cormier joined him at the American Kickboxing Academy in San Jose, California, in 2009. Cormier saw Velasquez as the definition of a teammate and never wanted to fight him. After joining the UFC in 2013, Cormier decided to move down to light heavyweight after his sophomore outing in the promotion. “DC” recently revealed that Velasquez never saw him as a threat when he joined AKA. When Cormier started rising up the UFC rankings, he felt compelled to avoid Velasquez.

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‘He Uplifted Me’ “I went to AKA to train. I walked in as an Olympian and a heavyweight, and Cain Velasquez was the champion at the time,” Cormier told the UFC. “He never saw me as a potential opponent down the line, and because of that, when it was time, when I worked myself up to No. 2 in the world, I said, I'm gonna go to 205 pounds because he set the standard f…

Kamaru Usman believes Khamzat Chimaev might have outgrown his current weight class. 

Chimaev dominantly won the middleweight title against Dricus Du Plessis at UFC 319 in August 2025. While Chimaev is yet to defend his title, he is now calling for a light heavyweight title shot against Alex Pereira. Usman believes Chimaev’s call for a light heavyweight title shot might not be fueled just by double championship aspirations. Usman believes “Borz” is struggling to cut down to middleweight. Considering Chimaev’s size, “The Nigerian Nightmare” finds it ridiculous that the undefeated Chechen-born used to cut down to welterweight at one point. Usman also conjectures that Chimaev wouldn’t mind opening the door at middleweight for Nassourdine Imavov by moving up to light heavyweight.

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Too Big for Middleweight? “For Khamzat Chimaev to continue to call [Pereira] out, I think Khamzat potentially has outgrown the weight class again, to where now he’s like, ‘L…

Justin Gaethje doesn’t celebrate every win with a backflip. 

While Gaethje (27-5) rarely lands perfectly, his backflip celebrations after his wins have become a part of MMA lore. However, Gaethje didn’t do a backflip after winning the interim lightweight title with a beatdown of Paddy Pimblett at UFC 324 last month. 

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Gaethje recently revealed that his backflip celebrations are only reserved for knockout wins. Gaethje has only broken his policy once and celebrated with a backflip without knocking someone out. Gaethje explains that a knockout gives him a surge of emotions that he needs to vent with a backflip. Gaethje is now expected to fight lightweight champion Ilia Topuria in a title unifier. “The Highlight” hopes to fight Topuria at the White House in June and backflip on the White House lawn after knocking him out.A Rush of Emotions “It’s pretty much my only rule – I’ve only done it once outside of knocking somebody out,” Gaethje told Mar…

Lerone Murphy is not confident about earning the next featherweight title shot even if he beats Movsar Evloev. 

Murphy (17-0) and Evloev (19-0) are scheduled to headline UFC London on March 21 at the O2 Arena. Either Murphy or Evloev were originally expected to challenge Alexander Volkanovski for the title in his last fight. However, Volkanovski successfully defended the title in a rematch against Diego Lopes at UFC 325 last weekend in Australia. Considering Volkanovski acknowledges Murphy and Evloev as the most deserving contenders, the UFC London headliner in March should be guaranteed title eliminator. 

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‘Nothing’s Concrete’ However, Murphy doesn’t think a title shot is neccessarily guaranteed with a potential win over Evloev.

“At this point, words are wind, innit?” Murphy said on "The Ariel Helwani Show.” “It’s like, the division’s forever changing and it’s a performance-based company, someone’s gotta go out there and put on a good fi…

Carlos Prates is pure class inside and outside of the Octagon. 

Prates (23-7) was recently attending a promotional Q&A session alongside flyweight champion Joshua Van ahead of UFC 325. A fan asked Prates an indecent question about his former foe Ian Garry’s wife.

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“How many times do you reckon you’ve f---ed Ian Garry’s wife?” the fan asked.

Prates refused to entertain the vulgar question, warning the fan that disrespecting someone’s family can prove fatal where he comes from. Prates clarified that he and Garry have immense mutual respect even though they are fierce rivals inside the Octagon.

A Taboo Topic “I’m the kind of guy, where I come from, you can’t say bad things about somebody’s wife and family,” Prates said. “They can literally kill you if you say something about the family. We are big rivals inside the cage, but outside of the cage, we have respect for each other.”

Prates made his UFC debut in 2024 and quickly rose to stardo…

Robert Whittaker is almost certain about moving up to light heavyweight for his next fight. 

Whittaker (26-9) has long been a perennial UFC middleweight contender, even when he hasn’t held the title. However, “The Reaper” revealed that his last two weight cuts to make 185 pounds left him weak by the end of the camp. Whittaker is now considering a move up to light heavyweight, where he believes he can outclass some opponents with his style. While Whittaker admits that he can still be convinced against moving up, he is 90% sure that he will fight at light heavyweight next.

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‘The Division is Open’ “The last couple of cuts have been hard … I feel like the division is open,” Whittaker said on "The Ariel Helwani Show.” “I feel like there are a lot of guys that my skill set can prevail on. I’m at a point where I could be convinced out of [moving up] but… I feel so weak by the end of the 185 pound camp. It takes a lot of fun out of it… I’m 90% there [tow…

Umar Nurmagomedov believes having Khabib Nurmagomedov in the corner is a bonus advantage. 

According to Umar, his cousin’s presence is mental warfare on his opponents by itself. Throughout his career, Umar has seen his opponents feeling the pressure of Khabib being in his corner.

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It’s In the Eyes “Khabib's influence puts more pressure on your opponents,” Umar ssaid in a recent interview with mr.kingsman (via Red Corner MMA). “I felt that throughout my career. I always saw it in my opponents’ eyes. That pressure when Khabib is there with our team. It’s like a bonus advantage.”

Khabib is widely regarded as one of the greatest mixed martial artists of all time. “The Eagle” defended the UFC lightweight title thrice before retiring as the undefeated champion in 2020, following the death of his father and coach, Abdulmanap Nurmagomedov. Khabib’s teammates, Umar, Usman Nurmagomedov, Islam Makhachev and others were all originally honed by Abdulmanap. …

Lerone Murphy kept wondering what he would have done instead of Diego Lopes as he watched the Brazilian lose to Alexander Volkanovski last weekend. 

Murphy and Movsar Evloev, even according to Volkanovski, are the most deserving featherweight title contenders. However, Volkanovski was scheduled to defend his title in a rematch against Diego Lopes at UFC 325 on Saturday in Sydney, Australia. Volkanovski displayed exemplary footwork in outclassing Lopes to earn a unanimous decision win. 

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Murphy saw some improvements in Lopes since he lost to Volkanovski in their first encounter last year. However, Murphy believes everyone knew how the rematch would eventually play out. Murphy believes Father Time catches up with everyone, and Volkanovski is no exception. While “The Iceman” means no disrespect to Volkanovski, he believes he could have dethroned the champion if given an opportunity at UFC 325.Volk Has His Number “I think everybody knew what was…

Niko Price will fight on less than one week's notice at UFC Fight Night 266. | Getty/UFC

The UFC Fight Night 266 lineup has undergone a change with less than a week to go before the event.

The Las Vegas-based promotion announced on Monday that Niko Price will replace Jose Henrique and face Nikolay Veretennikov at the UFC Apex in Las Vegas on Saturday. UFC Fight Night 266 is headlined by a bantamweight clash pitting Mario Bautista against Vinicius Oliveira and airs in its entirety on Paramount+.

In Need of a Win The 36-year-old Price has lost four of his last five Octagon appearances. In his lone outing of 2025, “The Hybrid” suffered a second-round submission defeat to Jacobe Smith at UFC 317 on June 28. Price debuted with the organization at UFC 207 in December 2016 and has compiled an 8-9 mark with two no contests during his tenure.

Veretennikov, meanwhile, has lost three of his four UFC bouts, with his lone victory coming against Francisco Prado last Ju…

Alexander Volkanovski appeared to be in peak form at UFC 325. | Getty/UFC

There was a point during Alexander Volkanovski’s training camp for UFC 325 where it looked like the featherweight champ wasn’t going to make it to fight night.

That’s according to coach Joe Lopez, who revealed on Daniel Cormier's YouTube channel that Volkanovski injured his shoulder about a month before facing Diego Lopes this past Saturday at Qudos Bank Arena in Sydney, Australia.

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"To be fair, Alex, four weeks ago, we didn't think he was going to fight," Lopez said. (transcription via MMAjunkie.com) "He pulled his shoulder out, really. He's been compromised for the last four weeks with a busted shoulder."The Old Volk While Volkanovski might not have been 100 percent, that didn’t prevent the Aussie from securing a relatively clear-cut unanimous decision triumph over Lopes in their rematch. “The Great” also defeated Lopes via unanimous decision at UFC 314. The coa…

A change of scenery did Mauricio Ruffy some good ahead of UFC 325. | Getty/UFC

After rebounding from a loss to Benoit St. Denis with a impressive TKO win over Rafael Fiziev last Saturday at UFC 325, Mauricio Ruffy revealed how important it was for him to spend two months training with featherweight champion Alexander Volkanovski in Australia.

"In my mind I had a very good takedown defense — at least that what I´ve always heard. But after my last fight, I decided to go after improvement. Those two months in Australia were really important. Training with Volkanovski, I found out that I know nothing about grappling,” Ruffy told Laerte Viana.

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Ruffy also praised the UFC for having confidence in him after his first loss within the promotion.

"They trusted in my potential and gave me a more difficult opponent than the previous one,” he said.

An Illness Scare After beating Fiziev and winning a $100,000 “Performance of the Night” bous, Ruf…

The Champ is on point! 🎯@AlexVolkanovski | 144.5lbs

[ #UFC325 | JAN 31 | 9pmET on @ParamountPlus ] pic.twitter.com/vXBxFtyySi

— UFC (@ufc) January 30, 2026 The Ultimate Fighting Championship goes abroad for the first time in 2026 and returns to Australia for a fun UFC 325 fight card, which is now official following the weigh-ins.

The main event will see featherweight champion Alexander Volkanovski inexplicably facing Diego Lopes again. This rematch comes after "The Great" won the vacant featherweight title over Lopes in April 2025 via a unanimous decision. Both men made weight for the title fight rematch. The only fighter to miss weight was would-be flyweight Aaron Tau, who came in 3 pounds overweight for his fight against Namsrai Batbayar. The fight has been canceled as a result.

The 37-year-old champion reclaimed his featherweight title by soundly beating Lopes (27-7) over five rounds last year. Prior to the defeat, Volkanovsk…

Editor's note: The article has been updated to reflect some good news announced by the fighter in question.

One Ultimate Fighting Championship fan-favorite just proved that the squeaky wheel gets the grease.

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On Thursday, Dan Ige—who is currently the No. 14 featherweight on the UFC’s Official Rankings—posted on social media that he was disallowed to wear red shorts for his upcoming tussle with Melquizael Costa at UFC Houston in February. According to the Hawaiian, his request for shorts is limited to the locales he is permitted to represent.

The man once known as “Dynamite” posted a segment of a message from UFC or Venum staff, who explained that he is only allowed to represent the U.S. or “universal,” meaning no country, when he walks out on Feb. 21. This obstacle hearkens back to the bizarre situation that middleweight Anthony Hernandez faced where he was allegedly forced to prove his family lineage to rep Mexico. Ige claimed that the promotion …

A champion across several major MMA organizations, the legendary Cristiane Justino knows her remaining time as a fighter is limited.

Former Ultimate Fighting Championship, Strikeforce, Bellator MMA and Invicta Fighting Championships beltholder has done what no one else has in mixed martial arts: win titles across five major promotions. Currently serving as PFL’s featherweight champ, she claimed that throne by trumping Larissa Pacheco in 2024 across five rounds, and defended it by mollywhopping Sara Collins at the end of 2025. At the age of 40, “Cris Cyborg” wants one more MMA match, and she has already made her thoughts known.

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The Brazilian traveled to Rio de Janeiro recently and appeared on the Wednesday edition of Combate’s “Mundo da Luta” podcast. There, the longtime veteran confirmed that 2026 would be the last year she steps into a cage or a ring as a pro. “Cris Cyborg” solidified her plan to compete just once more in MMA, and only one more time…

Ultimate Fighting Championship 115-pounder Ketlen Souza has her back against the wall, and she is changing things up accordingly.

Souza (15-6) will be facing fellow countrywoman Bruna Brasil (11-5-1) on Saturday at UFC Vegas 113, also known as UFC Fight Night 266. The two Brazilians will collide at the UFC Apex in Las Vegas as part of the preliminaries. Souza, 31, spoke to Sherdog recently, where she discussed her new training regimen away from her traditional team of the Carioca Academy.

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Seeking her third victory inside the organization, Souza enters the matchup at a pivotal moment in her UFC career following two consecutive losses. In preparation for the Feb. 7 fight, the Amazonian athlete joined the Ribas Family team in Varginha, Minas Gerais. The striker by trade completed her entire training camp alongside established UFC fighters like top-ranked strawweight Amanda Ribas and Alexia Thainara.Looking for Evolution According to Souza, the move was m…

A pair of de facto Professional Fighters League vs. Ultimate Fighting Championship matchups are headed to Steel City.

According to the PFL on Thursday, its upcoming event in Pittsburgh has just added two matchups with newly ranked participants. The organization released its own official rankings on Tuesday, and all combatants booked have numbers next to their names. At flyweight, Sumiko Inaba (8-2) will square off with Ariane Lipski da Silva (17-11), with the two ladies toeing the line at the UPMC Events Center in the second-largest city in Pennsylvania on March 28.

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Inaba, 34, will be looking to bounce back from a one-sided decision defeat to Dakota Ditcheva that some considered a “Beatdown of the Year” candidate. That loss to the British striker ended a two-fight win streak for the Hawaiian, who took a win on the scorecards against Saray Orozco and stopped Mackenzie Stiller with strikes. The former Bellator MMA player has never competed outside of…