Lipeng Zhang vs. Maurice Abevi Set for ONE on Prime Video 18 on Jan. 12

Lipeng Zhang will square off against Maurice Abevi in a 170-pound tilt at ONE on Prime Video 18 on Jan. 12.

Promotion officials confirmed the booking to Sherdog.com. ONE on Prime Video 18 takes place at Lumpinee Boxing Stadium in Bangkok and features a 135-pound kickboxing title bout between Superlek Kiatmoo9 and Elias Mahmoudi. Additionally, UFC veteran John Lineker will compete in muay thai against Liam Harrison at 145 pounds.

Zhang has been victorious in three of his four appearances under the ONE banner. Most recently, the 33-year-old China native scored a first-round technical knockout win against Timofey Nastyukhin at ONE on Prime Video 15 on Oct. 6. “The Warrior” notably went 2-2 during a four-bout UFC stint from 2014 to 2015. Zhang is 25-3-1 since parting ways with the Las Vegas-based promotion.

After winning his first six professional outings on the regional circuit, Abevi split a pair of appearances with ONE in 2023. The Swiss fighter began his …

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Police Report: Jamahal Hill Allegedly Hit Brother, Knocked Tooth Loose During Dispute

Further details have emerged regarding Jamahal Hill’s alleged assault of his brother in Michigan last month.

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According to a police report initially obtained by MMAFighting.com, the former UFC light heavyweight champion and his brother, James, had a dispute stemming from an agreement Hill had for his brother’s wife to clean his vacant house for $300.

That reportedly progressed into “other family matters,” including James accusing Jamahal of not texting his daughter on Thanksgiving and “being disrespectful to women and abandoning his own daughter.” The situation allegedly escalated when Jamahal took off his shirt and got in James’ face before allegedly punching his brother.

The confrontation continued when James returned to his feet and his wife attempted to stand between the brothers. According to the police report, Jamahal “reached around James’ wife and punched James in the face once again causing him to fall and become dazed.” The report a…

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Tim Elliott Replaces Allan Nascimento, Faces Su Mudaerji at UFC Fight Night 233

Tim Elliott will take his next Ultimate Fighting Championship assignment on less than a week’s notice.

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The former flyweight challenger will replace Allan Nascimento and lock horns with Su Mudaerji at UFC Fight Night 233 on Saturday. Elliott recently confirmed the news on social media. The new matchup was initially reported by Patrick McCorry, while Ag.Fight brought word of Nascimento’s withdrawal. Elliott vs. Mudaerji will be contested at bantamweight.

UFC Fight Night 233 takes place at the UFC Apex in Las Vegas and is headlined by a bantamweight scrap pitting Yadong Song against Chris Gutierrez. The main card airs on ESPN+ at 10 p.m. ET/7 p.m. PT, while prelims stream on ESPN+ beginning at 7 p.m. ET/4 p.m. PT.

Elliott will make a relatively quick turnaround after suffering a third-round submission defeat to Muhammad Mokaev at UFC 294 on Oct. 21. Prior to that, “The Ultimate Fighter 24” winner had been victorious in four of his previous fi…

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UFC Veteran Darren Till Targeted for Karate Combat Debut in 2024

Former Ultimate Fighting Championship star Darren Till might grace the Karate Combat pit sometime next year, according to company president Asim Zaidi.

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Till was granted his UFC release earlier this year on the heels of three consecutive losses. While “The Gorilla” revealed that he was still on good terms with the promotion, his future in MMA remains unclear.

A longtime muay thai practitioner, Till recently sounded dismissive of Karate Combat fighters, claiming he could beat anyone on the roster. The promotion’s 185-pound champ, Ross Levine, challenged Till in response, leading to the promotion courting the Liverpudlian regarding a title fight debut.

Zaidi recently revealed that Till’s title fight with Levine was originally being targeted for Karate Combat 43 on Dec. 15 in Las Vegas. However, that fell through and Levine will now defend his strap against UFC vet Sam Alvey. The card will be headlined by a rubber fight between former UFC champs…

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Dan Hooker: Islam Makhachev Will Retire Before Fighting Arman Tsarukyan

Dan Hooker believes Ultimate Fighting Championship lightweight champ Islam Makhachev won’t risk having his throne challenged by Arman Tsarukyan.

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Tsarukyan recently announced his arrival in the lightweight title picture with a spectacular knockout win over Beneil Dariush in the main event at UFC Austin on Dec. 2. “Ahalkalakets” subsequently called for a rematch against Makhachev, who defeated Tsarukyan in his UFC debut in 2019. UFC CEO Dana White also admitted that Tsarukyan’s win over Dariush complicates the question of the next title shot at lightweight, which was expected to be given to Charles Oliveira until now.

Hooker, a former opponent of Makhachev’s, said on "The MMA Hour” that he believes the champ will hang up his gloves before facing Tsarukyan. Hooker also thinks that Tsarukyan is too risky a stylistic matchup for Makhachev while not being a big draw.

“He ain’t gonna fight him. I guarantee he’ll retire,” Hooker said. “He’ll retire b…

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Stephen Thompson Doubts Shavkat Rakhmonov Will Strike with Him at UFC 296

Regardless of the outcome of his upcoming clash against Shavkat Rakhmonov, Stephen Thompson is looking forward to having a few battle scars after their fight.

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After turning down a booking against Rakhmonov on multiple occasions in the past, “Wonderboy” is slated to meet the undefeated Kazakh sensation with a 100% finish rate at UFC 296 at the T-Mobile Arena in Las Vegas on Dec. 16.

Rakhmonov is heavy -500 betting favorite going into the clash, which could be attributed to his superior grappling skillset. One of the most elite strikers in MMA, Thompson believes “Nomad” will eventually prefer going to the ground against him. However, “Wonderboy” is glad that Rakhmonov is the kind of fighter who Will Hunt for the finish, giving him the opportunity to go out on his shield.

“Now, do I feel like Shavkat is going to stand there bang with me? I don’t think so,” Thompson told Submission Radio. “I think eventually he’s going to shoot. He’s going to s…

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Gilbert Burns Reveals Potential Return Timeline, Eyes Colby Covington

Gilbert Burns claims to have fully recovered from his shoulder injury and is plotting a return to the Octagon, with a specific foe in mind.

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Burns (22-6) is coming off a decision loss against Belal Muhammad at UFC 288 in July after appearing to damage his left hand early in the fight. “Durinho” went on to severely injure his shoulder in training, which has kept him on the shelf ever since. The Brazilian now claims to have fully recovered from the injury and is now back to training. Burns told MMA Junkie:

“I’m 100 percent and back to training. I’m in no pain and injury free. I didn’t get surgery. I almost did. My ligament was barely hanging on my shoulder. My deltoid and my AC joint was very compromised, so I had to rest a lot. I couldn’t do anything for like three months, and then I started my (physical therapy), and then I put a couple of stem cells, and now I’m back to training.”

While Burns is eyeing a return in March or April and is alread…

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Jon Jones Fires Back After Tom Aspinall Calls for Him to Be Stripped of UFC Title

Jon Jones has taken notice of Tom Aspinall’s suggestion that he be stripped of the UFC heavyweight crown.

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Jones, who was forced to withdraw from the UFC 295 headliner against Stipe Miocic due to a torn pectoral, issued a strong response on Monday to the recently-crowned interim champion on social media.

“I’ve faced the absolute toughest competition this world had to offer for 15 years now,” Jones wrote. “During camp for a title defense I sustained a major injury that required surgery for the first time in my career. Now I have newcomers requesting I get my championship stripped. Zero wins over legends, zero title defenses and already thinking you can call the shots to Dana, that’s hilarious.

“In my 15 year career I have seen so many guys who are supposed to be the next big thing. There’s ever only been one Jon Jones, never forget that.”

I’ve faced the absolute toughest competition this world had to offer for 15 years now…

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Giga Chikadze Withdraws from UFC 296 on Dec. 16

Giga Chikadze has withdrawn from a proposed UFC 296 clash against Josh Emmett on Dec. 16.

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Emmett initially announced that Chikadze had pulled out of the event on social media, and it has since been confirmed by multiple outlets. The exact nature of Chikadze’s exit is currently unknown.

Giga’s Out ❌-Who’s ready Dec 16th? #UFC296

— JOSH EMMETT (@JoshEmmettUFC) December 4, 2023

UFC 296 takes place at the T-Mobile Arena in Las Vegas and is headlined by a welterweight title tilt between Leon Edwards and Colby Covington. In the co-main event, Alexandre Pantoja will defend the flyweight crown against Brandon Royval.

After a hiatus that lasted more than a year and a half, Chikadze returned to action at UFC Fight Night 225, where he outpointed Alex Caceres on Aug. 26. The 35-year-old Kings MMA product is 8-1 during his tenure with the Las Vegas-based promotion.

Emmett, meanwhile, is coming off back-to-back losses a…

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Ex-UFC Champ Jamahal Hill Releases Statement on Alleged Assault of Brother

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Jamahal Hill has broken his silence regarding his arrest for allegedly assaulting a family member.

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Hill was arrested on charges of misdemeanor aggravated domestic violence in Michigan for inflicting “serious or aggravated injury” upon his brother, James Anthony Hill Jr. The former UFC light heavyweight champion recently released a brief statement on his YouTube channel regarding the situation.

“There’s been a lot of reports out today about the situation that happened when I was back home in Michigan, visiting for the holidays,” Hill said. “I will just say this, at this time it is an open case. I’ve been advised not to speak on it, which I know not to speak on it.

“I just can’t wait for the truth to be told in court. I will wait for that day and I look forward to that day. The people who know me and know my character and truly, truly rock with me and know who I am, hold onto that and stay true to that. That’s all I’m a say on …
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Deiveson Figueiredo Discusses Options After Successful Bantamweight Debut

Deiveson Figueiredo is weighing his options after a successful bantamweight debut at UFC on ESPN 52 this past Saturday night.

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Figuereido, who defeated Rob Font via unanimous decision at UFC Austin, discussed his desire to face some of the bantamweight division’s biggest names in an exclusive interview with Sherdog.com.

"Font had great fights with former champions and some top of the division,” he said. “Many people thought I was too small for him, and I showed what I'm capable of when I’m happy and healthy.

“As a former champion, if UFC wanted to set me up to challenge for the title I would surprise many fans again. [Sean] O’Malley is an excellent striker, but I believe a lot in my team’s strategy. When I enter the Octagon I love to exchange, but against O'Malley I believe my jiu-jitsu would make the difference. If I get a hold of him, I would submit him.”

Figueiredo realizes that the UFC is more likely to want him to face another Top 1…

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Alexandre Pantoja ‘More Connected’ to Leon Edwards Than Ex-Teammate Covington

Alexandre Pantoja doesn’t have a high opinion of former American Top Team training partner Colby Covington.

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Covington will challenge Leon Edwards for the welterweight crown in the UFC 296 main event, while Pantoja will defend his flyweight strap against Brandon Royval in the evening’s co-headliner on Dec. 16 at the T-Mobile Arena in Las Vegas.

Pantoja recently revealed on MMAFighting’s Trocação Franca podcast that he wants to have nothing to do with Covington during fight week and would rather like to meet Edwards, whose story he relates to and respects.

“I don’t care,” Pantoja said. “I was born in Copacabana and we are disgusting towards everybody [laughs]. There’s an artist right next to you and you don’t care. I respect him a lot as an athlete, but in a way I’m more connected to Leon Edwards because of his life story and everything he’s done. Leon Edwards is definitely someone I would go out of my way to shake hands and wish him a good fi…

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Sean Brady Calls Ian Garry ‘The Easiest Fight in the Division’

Sean Brady doesn’t think highly of Ian Garry and believes he can dominate the Irishman in a potential clash.

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Brady welcomed Kelvin Gastelum back to welterweight on Saturday at UFC on ESPN 52 at the Moody Center in Austin, Texas. Brady thoroughly dominated Gastelum for the entirety of the fight before submitting him in the third round. With the win, Brady bounced back from his first career defeat at the hands of Belal Muhammad at UFC 280 last year.

The standout grappler subsequently redirected a callout to Garry, whom he had also mentioned in the lead-up to UFC Austin. Brady had previously highlighted Garry’s questionable gym etiquette, which includes consistently recording sparring sessions.

Brady reiterated his dislike for “The Future,” and expressed confidence in his ability to impose his will on Garry during a post-fight media scrum on Saturday.

“Just the way he went about his whole thing with his team, it rubbed me the wrong way. He…

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UFC Signs 6-foot-7 Cuban Heavyweight Robelis Despaigne

WHAT JUST HAPPENED!? #FuryFC84 pic.twitter.com/XPs41Vm9kr

— UFC FIGHT PASS (@UFCFightPass) December 3, 2023

The Ultimate Fighting Championship has added 6-foot-7 Cuban heavyweight Robelis Despaigne to its roster.

In his most recent outing, Despaigne scored a five-second technical knockout win over Miles Banks at Fury Fighting Championship 84 in Houston on Sunday. Shortly thereafter, it was confirmed on the broadcast that Despaigne had signed with the Las Vegas-based promotion.

Known as “The Bad Boy,” Despaigne won a bronze medal in taekwondo at the 2012 Summer Olympics. Despaigne made his pro MMA debut in 2022 and has finished all four of his opponents inside of a round. This includes three stoppages in 12 seconds or less.

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Undefeated Australian Prospect Tom Nolan Booked for UFC Debut in January

Australian lightweight Tom Nolan is set to make his Ultimate Fighting Championship debut early next year.

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Nolan is slated to enter the Octagon against Nikolas Motta at UFC Fight Night 234 on Jan. 13 at the UFC Apex in Las Vegas. Nolan confirmed the bout on social media following an intial report from Eurosport.

Nolan earned a UFC contract with a first-round knockout of Bogdan Grad on Dana White’s Contender Series this past August. The 23-year-old Team Compton Training Centre representative has finished his last four victories by knockout or technical knockout.

Also a former competitor on the Contender Series, Motta has gone 1-2 with one no contest thus far in his UFC tenure. His most recent appearance came at UFC Fight Night 232, when his bout against Trey Ogden was waved off prematurely by referee Mike Beltran, who incorrectly determined that Motta had been rendered unconscious by an arm-triangle choke. That resulted in the fight being over…

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Mayra Bueno Silva: UFC 297 Foe Raquel Pennington ‘Doesn’t Like to Fight’

Mayra Bueno Silva believes upcoming opponent Raquel Pennington will quit in their upcoming title fight.

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Bueno Silva will face Pennington in the co-main event at UFC 297 on Jan. 20 in Toronto with the vacant women’s bantamweight strap on the line. Silva believes the fight will go out of Pennington in their upcoming clash like it did when “Rocky” faced Amanda Nunes at UFC 224 back in 2018.

En route to a lopsided fifth-round stoppage loss, Pennington was heard telling her corner that she was “done” after the fourth round.

“Do you remember Raquel fought with Amanda, Raquel said, ‘Alright, I’m done. I don’t want to fight anymore.’ Do you remember? For this reason, she doesn’t want to fight,” Bueno Silva said during an appearance on "The MMA Hour.”

“She doesn’t like to fight. She wants to hold [during] the fight because she doesn’t like fighting. Remember, when she was done, ‘I don’t want no more.’ In the first round, when I punch her hard, s…

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Arman Tsarukyan Confident He Earned Title Shot Ahead of Charles Oliveira

Arman Tsarukyan believes he did enough to warrant another crack at reigning lightweight champion Islam Makhachev.

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Tsarukyan lost a hard-fought decision to Makhachev in his Octagon debut at UFC Fight Night 149 in April 2019, but he has been victorious in nine of his 10 promotional appearances since then. Perhaps none of those was more impressive than his work on Saturday, when he vanquished Beneil Dariush in just 64 seconds in the UFC on ESPN 52 headliner. The American Top Team product didn’t hesitate to point out that Oliveira needed longer to defeat Dariush in their matchup at UFC 289, which “Do Bronx” ended at the 4:10 mark of Round 1.

“Charles knocked him out, and if I won by decision, how am I going to fight for the title?” Tsarukyan said at Saturday’s post-fight press conference. “But I knocked him out faster than Charles, and he didn’t take me down like he did with Charles. I performed better than Charles. Charles already had the opportunity,…

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Bobby Green Says ‘I’m Not Going Nowhere’ Following Knockout Loss at UFC Austin

Bobby Green had nothing but praise for short-notice foe Jalin Turner following their co-main event bout at UFC on ESPN 52.

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Turner, who was a late replacement for Dan Hooker, knocked out Green 2:49 into the opening stanza of their lightweight clash at the Moody Center in Austin, Texas, on Saturday night. That snapped a two-bout winning streak for Green, who was coming off back-to-back finishes of Tony Ferguson and Grant Dawson.

Green appeared to absorb some unnecessary punishment before referee Kerry Hatley stepped in to wave off the bout, but “King” didn’t mention the stoppage in a post-fight statement on his Instagram stories.

“What up, guys?” Green said. “You win some, you lose some. I guess I want to show people that you’ve got to keep it G and you’ve got to keep it G when you lose.

“Shout out to Jalin, you did your thing, brother. I’m so happy for you. It means the world that you stepped up on short notice and you had your success, …

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Neil Magny Reveals How Ian Garry’s Child Abuser Dig Impacted Custody Battle

Neil Magny claims Ian Garry’s trash talk during the lead-up to their UFC 292 clash profoundly impacted his life outside the Octagon.

Magny said he’d put on a father-like “ass whooping” on Garry leading up to their bout in August, which “The Haitian Sensation” went on to lose via decision. “The Future” turned Magny’s trash talk against him, implying that that the veteran was a child abuser during the same presser.

Magny recently revealed that the label had far-reaching impacts on his personal life as he was going through a custody battle for his children. According to Magny, headlines of articles associating him with “child abuse” were admissible as evidence against him in court.

“[Garry’s comments] in itself had a lot more consequences than just nonsense at the press conference. There were literally screenshots being taken of headlines saying that I'm a child abuser and I'd do this to my kids. There were screenshots being taken and put into apps and thin…

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Dana White Dismisses PFL’s ‘Co-Leader’ Claim Despite Bellator Purchase

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Ultimate Fighting Championship CEO Dana White isn’t impressed with rival promotion Professional Fighters League’s recent acquisition of Bellator.

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The PFL officially announced the purchase earlier this month with plans of hosting separate one-off events under the Bellator banner in the near future. PFL founder Donn Davis subsequently laid claim to industry “co-leader” status alongside the UFC based on their new roster.

When asked about Davis’ comments, White dismissed the deal as one failing company buying another.

“Good for them. I wish them all of the luck in the world... One s——y organization that sells no tickets and nobody watches buys another s----y organization that sells no tickets and nobody watches,” White said at the UFC Austin post-fight press conference. “Sounds like a f---ing winner to me, boy”

The UFC frontman further sounded off on a reporter who said PFL now has a “sound” roster. The 54-year-old went…

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Dana White Calls UFC Austin Co-Main Stoppage ‘One of the Worst I’ve Ever Seen’

Jalin Turner KO’s Bobby Green! 😱 #UFCAustin pic.twitter.com/fDsmqhXyvD

— bjpenndotcom (@bjpenndotcom) December 3, 2023

Jalin Turner’s Round 1 knockout win over Bobby Green at UFC Austin was marred by a stoppage that came much later than it needed to be.

Turner stepped up on 10 days’ notice after Dan Hooker pulled out of the event due to an injury. Not only did “The Tarantula” make weight despite a worrisome cut, the 28-year-old went on to dismantle Green 2:49 into the opening frame.

Turner dropped “King” with a devastating right hand and then landed a series of follow-up punches on the canvas, which were more than enough to call the fight. However, referee Kerry Hatley elected to let Green turn his back and take a barrage of unanswered shots before deciding to step in.

UFC CEO Dana White called the stoppage one of the worst ever at Saturday’s post-fight press conference. However, White also revealed that Hatley, a veteran offi…

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Former UFC Fighter Jimmie Rivera Explains Why He Became a Police Officer

Former Ultimate Fighting Championship competitor Jimmie Rivera now juggles his roles as a Bare Knuckle Fighting Championship star and a police officer.

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Rivera parted ways with the Las Vegas-based promotion in August 2021 before signing with BKFC last year. “El Terror” co-headlined BKFC 56 on Saturday in Salt Lake City, Utah, where he suffered a technical knockout loss to Jeremy Stephens at the end of the third frame via doctor stoppage.

When he is not slugging it out in bare knuckle contests, Rivera is also a cop at the Elmwood Park Police Department. Rivera, who admittedly needs to keep himself busy, initially tried his hand at dispatch during the pandemic as a sense of uncertainty engulfed the world of sports.

“I won’t say I have ADHD, but I can’t stop. I always have to work. I’ve always got to do something. I’m all about the grinding. … It’s also very bad mentally, to not do anything. You see people who retire and they don’t do anything. The…
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UFC on ESPN 52 Bonuses: $500,000 Handed Out for Finishes, ‘Fight of the Night’

The Ultimate Fighting Championship was feeling especially generous following a memorable evening in the Lonestar State.

When all was said and done, $500,000 in bonus money was given out to the athletes from UFC on ESPN 52 in Austin, Texas, on Saturday night. This included $50,000 “Performance of the Night” checks to eight fighters on the card who secured finishes: Arman Tsarukyan, Jalin Turner, Sean Brady, Dustin Stoltzfus, Miesha Tate, Cody Brundage, Drakkar Klose and Jared Gooden.

Particularly noteworthy in this group were the efforts of Brundage and Klose, who became the first two fighters in UFC history to win bouts via slam KO on the same card. Elsewhere, Tsarukyan stopped Beneil Dariush in just 64 seconds in the evening’s lightweight headliner, while Turner dispatched Bobby Green 2:49 into the opening stanza of their 155-pound co-main event.

The only finisher who didn’t receive a “Performance of the Night” check was Rodolfo Bellato, but that was because he …

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Arman Tsarukyan Caps Off Finish-Heavy UFC on ESPN 52 Card With a Bang

The Ultimate Fighting Championship’s return to Austin was a violent affair.

Nine out of 12 bouts fell short of the distance at UFC on ESPN 52, but the finish in the main event still stole the show. No. 8 ranked lightweight Arman Tsarukyan exploded into the the Top 5 with a cataclysmic first-round knockout over No. 4 Beneil Dariush to close out one of the best cards of the year at the Moody Center.

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On paper, the fight was between two extremely skilled grapplers with sneaky striking but we never got to see it. Both fighters instantly looked to take center cage and land their power. Tsarukyan (21-3, 8-2 UFC) closed the show fast with a right knee that lined Dariush up perfectly for a flush right hand over top.

Dariush (22-6-1, 16-6-1) hit the ground with a thud before the bout was stopped 1:04 into the round. A year ago, Dariush was the hottest lightweight in the world riding the momentum of an eight-fight win streak. 2023 has been a disaster. Dariu…

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