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A “Little Mosquito” is starting to make a big buzz in the Ultimate Fighting Championship featherweight division.

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In the featured preliminary bout of UFC 312 on Saturday in Sydney, Gabriel Santos (12-2) survived an early scare, showed off a complete MMA skill set and earned a dominant finish over Jack Jenkins (13-4, 1 NC). A measured kickboxing match turned wild in a hurry when Jenkins uncorked a head kick that floored the “Mosquitinho.” Jenkins swarmed for the finish as the crowd exploded, but Santos recovered his wits and ensnared Jenkins in a deep triangle choke. It looked for a few tense moments as if Jenkins was going to be forced to tap or take a nap, but he managed to extricate his neck, only to have Santos switch to an armbar. Jenkins fought that off as well, and made it back to his feet, but Santos dragged him back down and finished the frame in top position. Santos wasted little time in bringing things back to the canvas…

"One of the greatest fights I've ever seen in my life." -Dana White@KelvinGastelum vs @Stylebender is the newest inductee to the #UFCHOF Fight Wing 👏 pic.twitter.com/YQIbgwNiNC

— UFC (@ufc) February 9, 2025

The middleweight classic between Israel Adesanya and Kelvin Gastelum will be the latest inductee into the UFC Hall of Fame’s “Fight Wing.”

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The promotion announced the news during UFC 312 on Saturday night. Adesanya and Gastelum squared off in an interim title bout at UFC 236 on April 13, 2019. While “The Last Stylebender” ultimately prevailed in a five-round unanimous decision, Gastelum gave Adesanya the most difficulty of any opponent up to that point in his UFC tenure. When all was said and done, Adesanya was credited with four knockdowns in the bout — including three in the final stanza. The Nigerian-born Kiwi would go on to unify the 185-pound belt with a second-round KO of Robert Whittaker in his next outing at …

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A previously rumored boxing match between Rashad Evans and Quinton Jackson is now official for the spring.

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On Friday, the New Mexico State Athletic Commission approved a boxing card to be held at The Pit in Albuquerque, New Mexico, on April 12. The event will be headlined by Evans and Jackson and is co-promoted by Albuquerque’s Tapia Promotions and Florida’s Signature Punch Promotions. The Albuquerque Journal was first to report the details of the event. No other bouts were announced for the card, but it will reportedly include a number of local boxers from New Mexico.

Evans and Jackson served as opposing coaches on “The Ultimate Fighter 10” before squaring off at UFC 114, where Evans took a unanimous decision triumph over his rival in May 2010. Neither Evans nor Jackson has previous professional boxing experience.

A former UFC light heavyweight champion and a “TUF 2” winner, Evans hasn’t competed in combat sports since out…

👀Dustin Poirier says the UFC is planning his retirement fight this summer in New Orleans

"Things are getting pretty close. Lat the gloves down where it’s all started would be an honour for me."

🎥 @TheSchmo312 ▫️ pic.twitter.com/dwUf1KD2xx

— Home of Fight (@Home_of_Fight) February 7, 2025

Dustin Poirier’s retirement could be drawing near.

Poirier revealed that his retirement fight is likely in the workds for the Ultimate Fighting Championship’s return to New Orleans this summer. It would be the perfect setting for “The Diamond” to hang up his gloves in front of his home fans in Louisiana.

“I actually have been having calls every week with the UFC,” Poirier recently told The Schmo. “But it’s looking like summer in New Orleans is close to happening for my retirement fight. The pay-per-view this summer in New Orleans would be incredible. That’s what I’m pushing forward for. That’s what the UFC is working towards and things a…

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Roman Dolidze and Sean Strickland needed outside intervention when they first sparred together.

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Dolidze and Strickland are now teammates at the Xtreme Couture gym in Las Vegas. While Dolidze now understands Strickland better, things weren’t always this cordial between the two middleweights.

Strickland is known for expressing his unabashed and controversial opinions on everything under the sun. Dolidze previously couldn’t fathom the former champ slamming his own family over issues like child abuse. However, the Georgian gradually stopped being critical of Strickland as he understands the difference in their upbringings.

In signature fashion, Strickland also went unnaturally hard at Dolidze in their very first sparring session. According to Dolidze, Strickland’s need to test every new guy in the gym stems from his own insecurities.

“In beginning I was very critical with him,” Dolidze recently told Home of Fight. “We had…

Middleweight champ hits the scale first 💪@DricusDuPlessis hits the scale at 185 pounds!

[ #UFC312 | Saturday 10pmET | Live on @ESPNPlus PPV ] pic.twitter.com/9F86OZwiud

— UFC (@ufc) February 7, 2025 The UFC 312 weigh-ins took place, finalizing the card for the pay-per-view and seeing one fight fall through.

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The Ultimate Fighting Championship's return to Australia will have one less fight than planned as a preliminary flyweight fight between Hyun Sung Park vs. Nyamjargal Tumendemberel was canceled due to Tumendemberel being unable to make weight. In more fortunate news, the middleweight title fight rematch between Dricus Du Plessis and Sean Strickland will go forward, as will the co-main event strawweight title fight pitting Weili Zhang against Tatiana Suarez.

Du Plessis (22-2) won the belt from Strickland via split decision in January of last year. The South African fighter followed up the victory with a face crank …

MONTREAL we are BACK 😤

The Octagon is heading up north for #UFC315 🇨🇦

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Tickets on sale Feb 28 | Learn more: https://t.co/nnDMHrujre pic.twitter.com/uzdX1BJjjg — UFC (@ufc) February 7, 2025 The Ultimate Fighting Championship is taking to an old stomping ground not reached in a decade.

The organization announced on Friday that it was making its return to the 514 for UFC 315, which will take place on May 10 inside of the city’s Bell Centre. No fights have been announced for the pay-per-view offering in Quebec’s largest city yet. It will be the first time the UFC has traveled to Montreal since UFC 186 in 2015.

At that fight card that April, Demetrious Johnson landed a buzzer-beater armbar on Kyoji Horiguchi to defend his flyweight strap. It was initially slated to be headlined by T.J. Dillashaw vs. Renan Barao, but the former fell out of the matchup due to injury. In the co-main attraction on UFC 186, Quinton Jackso…

Ultimate Fighting Championship great Dominick Cruz had a major impact on the development of MMA and fighter talent around the world.

News of Cruz’ retirement came Thursday courtesy of his announcement, shortly following the release that he had sustained injuries that ejected him a retirement bout with Rob Font. Instead of getting back on the mend, the 39-year-old decided it was time to move on. The Alliance MMA fighter serves as a coach and trainer as well as a commentator and analyst for the UFC.

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One of the many fighters Cruz had an impact on was future UFC beltholder Deiveson Figueiredo. Formerly a flyweight that captured the belt on more than one occasion, “Daico” has since moved to the 135-pound category where Cruz made his mark. The new division breathed life into the aging Brazilian, winning three straight until encountering Petr Yan and coming up short in November. Figueiredo spoke to Sherdog about Cruz’ retirement, speaking highly of “The D…

The round robin of opponents continues for Ultimate Fighting Championship flyweight Asu Almabayev.

In January, news broke that former title challenger Steve Erceg was booked against Almabayev (21-2) at UFC Vegas 103, also known as UFC Fight Night 253. The two flyweights were set to tangle, until Erceg was pulled to face Brandon Moreno in April and was replaced by Allan Nascimento.

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Now with former main attraction Brandon Royval bowing out of UFC Vegas 103 due to injury, Almabayev will be stepping into the main event. He will throw down with Manel Kape (20-7) in a 125-pound five-rounder on March 1 inside of the UFC Apex. News of this shuffling first came courtesy of Kazakhstan-based outlet Sportilinet on Thursday, and it has since been confirmed by multiple outlets.

Surging 31-year-old Almabayev earns this large opportunity on the heels of a successful 2024 campaign that saw him pick up three wins in the Octagon, albeit all at the hands of the …

The round robin of opponents continues for Ultimate Fighting Championship flyweight Asu Almabayev.

In January, news broke that former title challenger Steve Erceg was booked against Almabayev (21-2) at UFC Vegas 103, also known as UFC Fight Night 253. The two flyweights were set to tangle, until Erceg was pulled to face Brandon Moreno in April and was replaced by Allan Nascimento.

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Now with former main attraction Brandon Royval bowing out of UFC Vegas 103 due to injury, Almabayev will be stepping into the main event. He will throw down with Manel Kape (20-7) in a 125-pound five-rounder on March 1 inside of the UFC Apex. News of this shuffling first came courtesy of Kazakhstan-based outlet Sportilinet on Thursday, and it has since been confirmed by multiple outlets.

Surging 31-year-old Almabayev earns this large opportunity on the heels of a successful 2024 campaign that saw him pick up three wins in the Octagon, albeit all at the hands of the …

One of the greatest Ultimate Fighting Championship fighters in the history of the sport is deciding to hang up his gloves.

Ex-UFC and World Extreme Cagefighting bantamweight kingpin Dominick Cruz (24-4) was slated to return to the Octagon against Rob Font for his final MMA bout at UFC Fight Night 252 on Feb. 22. “The Dominator” sustained a shoulder injury and withdrew from the match on Wednesday. Rather than recover and attempt to rebook the Font matchup, Cruz elected to say farewell to the sport on Thursday. He will still remain as a color commentator and analyst for the UFC.

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Posting on Instagram, Cruz wrote a farewell message detailing his recent setbacks and thanking those involved in his career. ”To the fans worldwide, “I have poured every ounce of myself into this sport for the last 25 years. I was really hopeful for one final fight but unfortunately, two shoulder dislocations in 8 months calls an end to this guy’s career.

“I gave everythi…

A lot can change in a day.

During the Ultimate Fighting Championship’s media day for UFC 312, current featherweight kingpin Ilia Topuria (16-0)—who is in Australia cornering brother Aleksandre Topuria—suggested that he had one name in mind if he remained at 145 pounds: Alexander Volkanovski. He also continued floating the idea of moving up to lightweight to challenge Islam Makhachev. On Thursday, however, Topuria informed Sherdog he had a different name in mind.

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“Diego [Lopes] has this profile, he is aggressive and brings dynamism to the Octagon,” Topuria said to the surprise of some. “He does what the public wants to see: he fights for real, not to simply survive. And that’s what I want for my next fight. I don’t want an opponent who just controls the pace, I want someone who really challenges me.”

Whether this means Topuria has changed course, or if he is intentionally giving different outlets different answers to generate confusion or interest,…

Court grants FINAL approval in first of two UFC fighter pay lawsuits. pic.twitter.com/gv6Ja3cjDI

— Erik Magraken (@erikmagraken) February 6, 2025 The Ultimate Fighting Championship is officially settling the first of two antitrust cases for $375 million.

In September, the UFC agreed to up its amount for the settlement of the Le vs. Zuffa antitrust case for fighters that competed with the league from 2010 to 2017 to $375 million. This was subject to approval from Nevada judge Richard Boulware, who did so in October while scheduling the final approval hearing for February. First breaking from to combat sports attorney Erik Magraken on Thursday, Judge Boulware has granted final approval to the settlement and the first case will be closed.

Over a decade ago, the UFC’s former parent company of Zuffa was sued for violating antitrust laws, and accused of engaging in anticompetitive practices to harm fighters. The claims were that the UFC paid…

Dominick Cruz is out of the UFC Seattle co-main event due to an injury.

Cruz was expected to hang up his gloves after a matchup against Rob Font at UFC Fight Night 252 on Feb. 22 at the Climate Pledge Arena in Seattle, Washington. However, Cageside Press was first to report that “The Dominator” has been forced out of the booking due to an unspecified injury. It is currently unknown whether Cruz will step inside the Octagon again before retiring. Multiple outlets have since confirmed Cruz’s exit from the card.

Cruz’s legendary career saw him win the UFC bantamweight title on two separate occasions. Cruz won 13 consecutive fights from 2008 to 2016 before losing to Cody Garbrandt at UFC 207, after which he never found the same momentum. Cruz returned to action after a hiatus of over three years and suffered a stoppage loss against Henry Cejudo at UFC 249. Cruz rebounded with a two-fight win streak, which was snapped by a knockout loss against Marlon Vera in 2022 an…

UFC Vegas 103 is in need of a new headliner.

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Brandon Royval on Wednesday announced via Instagram that an injury has forced him to pull out of a proposed flyweight showdown against Manel Kape on March 1 at the UFC Apex in Las Vegas. Royval did not reveal the exact nature of the injury. It’s currently unclear if Kape will remain on the card against a replacement opponent.

“Unfortunately I’m going to have to pull out of my fight,” Royval wrote. “I’m sorry to Manel Kape and my fans. I’m facing an injury that has me questioning when I’ll be able to train again. This is absolutely a fight I think needs to happen for the flyweight division, but as of right now competing [next] month has been ill advised. Love y’all and I apologize from the bottom of my heart. I’ll have more details on my YouTube this week.”

Royval has won five of his last six Octagon appearances, with his only defeat coming against Alexandre Pantoja in a flyweight title bout at UFC …

Sharabutdin Magomedov recently offered further details on the aliments that hindered him against Michael Page at UFC Saudi Arabia last weekend.

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“Shara Bullet” dropped a unanimous verdict to Page in the card’s middleweight co-main event this past Saturday at ANB Arena in Riyadh, Saudi Arabia. Shortly thereafter, the Dagestani released a statement via social media revealing that he was dealing with a "nightmarish health condition” in the bout.

While Magomedov still hasn’t specified exactly what was wrong, he did provide more insight into those health issues during a recent interview with Red Corner MMA.

“I’ve never felt this sick in the cage,” Magomedov said. “My legs were gone, my arms felt weak, and I’ve got a lot of health issues I don’t want to reveal. It was a whole bunch of problems that affected my performance. My mind was there, but my body was off. I’ve got dysbacteriosis and parasitosis in my intestine, and I’ve got problems with my …

KEVIN WATCH OUT pic.twitter.com/jeBJxFsknL

— Spinnin Backfist (@SpinninBackfist) February 5, 2025

Kevin Lee isn’t especially pleased after footage of a recent sparring session went public.

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In a video making the rounds on social media, Lee is dropped by an overhand right after missing a flying knee attempt during practice at Kill Cliff FC in Florida. The UFC veteran returns to his feet but is still wobbly as Robbie Lawler attends to him. Lee can be overheard saying, “I’m good,” and Lawler responds by telling him to “Walk it off.”

While such instances aren’t necessarily uncommon during training, it’s rare for video of sparring to be released. It’s currently unclear how the footage became available, but Lee was understandably unhappy that it did.

“[I don’t know] who posted that video or why, but I’m heading right now to find out,” Lee wrote on X. “I can only blame myself for showing mercy and pulling my knee back bu…

Sean Strickland says that Alex Pereira hates Dricus du Plessis 😭

“For some reason he hates Dricus. I don’t know what you did to him, but he f***ing hates you dude.”

🎥 @ufc #UFC312 #UFC #MMApic.twitter.com/WIRKpdOwtU

— Championship Rounds (@ChampRDS) February 4, 2025

Sean Strickland believes Alex Pereira isn’t especially fond of Dricus Du Plessis.

Strickland will try to reclaim the middleweight title against Du Plessis in the main event at UFC 312 on Saturday at the Qudos Bank Arena in Sydney, Australia. The former champ is training with foe-turned-friend Pereira leading up to the fight.

According to Strickland, “Poatan” has hatred toward Du Plessis, though the source of that animosity is unknown.

“I think Alex is an angry motherf---er,” Strickland said at UFC 312 media day. “Like, Alex is angry and for some reason he hates Dricus. I don’t know what you did to him. But he f---ing hates you, dude. The way he looks at…

PHILIP KELLER, who shot and killed popular Merritt Island piercing artist Alicia “Red” Campitelli, has been sentenced to 50 years in prison. KELLER pleaded guilty to second-degree murder in agreement secured by ASAs Jason Andersen and Nader Hatoum. https://t.co/XzmVTURdLr pic.twitter.com/foGqSfGEaR

— State Attorney 18th Circuit FL (@SA18PIO) February 3, 2025

Eight-time MMA veteran Philip Keller was sentenced to 50 years in prison on Monday for murdering his fiancee, according to a release from the Florida Office of the State Attorney.

Keller pleaded guilty to second-degree murder, grand theft, fradulent use of a credit card and tampering with evidence. Keller shot and killed Alicia Campitelli, who worked as a piercing artist in Merrit Island, Florida, in 2021 during an argument over his drug use.

According to the release, Keller took the victim’s car and used her debit card to withdraw more than $1,400 to buy drugs. He later disposed…

Jailton Almeida wants to help Tom Aspinall add some fun to the heavyweight division.

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The interim heavyweight champion recently expressed some frustration following a lackluster fight between Sergei Pavlovich and Jairzinho Rozenstruik at UFC Saudi Arabia

"Heavyweight fights have been horrible lately. Let's bring back the entertainment and stop holding the division back," wrote the British fighter on his Instagram Stories.

Almeida, who is coming off back-to-back first-round finishes of Alexander Romanov and Serghei Spivac, offered his services for a fight against Aspinall.

“[Did] I read excitement? 22 wins in my career, 21 finishes (eight knockouts, 13 submissions), nine UFC wins, eight finishes (three knockouts, five submissions). I think I meet the requirements. Champ, if Jones doesn't make a deal with the UFC, I'm here and I'm ready. Let's do it!" wrote Almeida while tagging Aspinall, UFC CEO Dana White and matchmaker Mick Maynard.

Read more about Jailton Almeida Open to Pavlovich Fight, Backup Role for Jones vs. Aspinall

Jiri Prochazka isn’t looking beyond the Top 3 contenders at light heavyweight for his next fight.

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In an ideal world, Prochazka would like to fight for the title next. That will have to wait at least until Alex Pereira puts his light heavyweight crown on the line against Magomed Ankalaev in the main event at UFC 313 on March 8 at the T-Mobile Arena in Las Vegas. Prochazka is also willing to prove himself one more time if necessary. The Czech would like to fight either Pereira, Ankalaev or Jan Blachowicz in his next promotional appearance.

“I see three guys there who’s from Top 5 like [as a good] challenge for me,” Prochazka said on the "Overdogs with Mike Perry" podcast. “Because I don’t wait to fight other guys. There’s Alex, there is Ankalaev and third one is Jan Blachowicz. Because he showed a really nice performance against Alex too… This year I know I’m going to the top… Just give me an opponent and I want to show that I am the champion.”

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Dricus Du Plessis recently revealed the mental framework that he believes is key to being a champion.

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According to the middleweight champ, it’s a prerequisite for every fighter to be willing to die going into every fight. The South African believes it’s his willingness to kill, if need be, that sets him apart as the champion. “Stillknocks” coldly declared that he’ll be willing to mercilessly damage his opponent in front of their family, for as long as the referee doesn’t stop him.

“The mindset that you have to be willing to die when you get in there. You have to, but that’s a minimum requirement,” Du Plessis recently told Mark Bouris. “The harder part is, can you kill a man when you have to? Yes, I can. So I’m willing to die and I’m willing to take that life. I know that. When I go in there, if the ref doesn’t stop it, I’m not stopping. I can be sitting on you for 10 minutes, bashing your face and if the ref doesn’t stay, ‘Stop,’ I’m not stopping. …

Jairzinho Rozenstruik’s Ultimate Fighting Championship career has come to an abrupt end following his latest loss.

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Rozenstruik met fellow knockout artist Sergei Pavlovich at UFC Saudi Arabia at the ANB Arena in Riyadh, Saudi Arabia, last weekend. With both fighters boasting proven KO power, the odds for the fight to end inside the distance were a massive -650. However, the outing didn’t live up to advance billing, and the Russian eventually edged out a unanimous decision win over Rozenstruik.

UFC CEO Dana White labeled the fight “horrible,” while stating that Pavlovich was the clear winner. According to Twitter account UFC RosterWatch, Rozenstruik has been removed from the UFC roster. Rozenstruik’s release has since been confirmed by multiple outlets.

Rozenstruik racked up a 9-6 record since joining the UFC in 2019. “Bigi Boy” has notable wins over the likes of Alistair Overeem, Junior dos Santos, Shamil Gaziev and Tai Tuvasa, wwith losses a…

UFC star Conor McGregor spit in a guy's face at Wynn after he yelled "Let's go Khabib!"

Technically a crime (battery) under Nevada law. pic.twitter.com/weHD4Vr3Yz

— Las Vegas Locally 🌴 (@LasVegasLocally) February 3, 2025

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Conor McGregor continues to make headlines for all the wrong reasons.

On Monday, a video surfaced of the former Ultimate Fighting Championship two-division champion spitting in a man’s face outside Caffe Al Teatro in Wynn Las Vegas and Encore. The incident began after shouts of “Let’s go Khabib” can be overheard. McGregor then turns and walks toward a group of people and spits in one man’s face before walking away. The Irish star appears to be surrounded by security at the time.

“I spit in your face,” McGregor then says. “What’d you do? Nothing.”

Exactly when the incident occurred is currently unclear.

The video comes after McGregor tweeted and deleted a slur-filled rant directed at Khabib…