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[ #UFCWinnipeg | APRIL 18 | 8pmET LIVE on @ParamountPlus ] pic.twitter.com/ou3V3Bjxzp

— UFC (@ufc) April 17, 2026 The Ultimate Fighting Championship's return to Canada is now officially set following the UFC Winnipeg weigh-ins.

Headlining the UFC Fight Night event is a welterweight fight between Gilbert Burns and Mike Malott. Both men successfully made weight for the five-round bout, which sees them meet at very different points in their careers. All 12 bouts are now official after every fighter on the card made their contracted weight.

Burns (22-9) enters his latest UFC main event in desperate need of a win. "Durinho" has come up short against the cream of the crop at welterweight as Belal Muhammad, Jack Della Maddalena, Sean Brady and Michael Morales all handily defeated the 39-year-old. The fan-favorite Brazilian fighter will look to show he still has gas in the tank against a less-…

If anyone knows just how bad Ultimate Fighting Championship light heavyweight champ Carlos Ulberg’s injury is, it is someone who is going through the same thing.

The newly minted 205-pound king Ulberg starred in one of the most remarkable and improbable scenes in recent memory when he sustained a major injury to his knee in his championship bout atop UFC 327. What very well could be a serious ligament rupture was no reason for Ulberg to quit the fight, as he continued fighting and managed to knock out Jiri Prochazka to claim the vacant belt. His timetable for recovery is currently unknown, but he has already completed surgery, posting about it on Thursday on his Instagram Stories.

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Ulberg is far from the only top-tier fighter to go through this, and not even the lone combatant to blow out his knee recently. Former lightweight champion Rafael dos Anjos ruptured his ACL in his last outing, succumbing to the knee injury 90 seconds into his UFC 308 conte…

If the lineup holds together, the next Professional Fighters League card in Europe will have the majority of red corner athletes sporting surnames starting with the letter “a.”

Per a press release on Thursday, the PFL has finalized its 12-fight lineup for the May 23 show at the ING Arena in Brussels, Belgium. PFL Brussels will be headlined by a non-title, non-tournament main event pitting undefeated Belgian up-and-comer Patrick Habirora (8-0) against 42-year-old former champion Benson Henderson (30-12).

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Making his pro debut in January 2024, Habirora has rattled off eight victories, seven inside the distance, including four under the PFL Europe banner. The 25-year-old exploded onto the PFL scene last year thanks to a pair of first-round knockouts of Danny Roberts and Kevin Jousset. He has only fought beyond the first round twice as a professional.

While Habirora got his start at the beginning of 2024, it has been since March 2023 that Henderson ha…

This time, it was Darragh Kelly who got mauled.

Taking over for Paul Hughes in the PFL Belfast main attraction, Kelly (9-1, 2-1 PFL) put his flawless record on the line in a dangerous lightweight outing against Jay-Jay Wilson (12-2, 2-1 PFL). Kelly may not have closed as the betting favorite, as lines moved quite closely coming into fight night, but he was the favored man at the SSE Arena in Belfast, Northern Ireland. Fans were on the side of the “Moville Mauler” from the get-go, even with Wilson attempting to win the crowd over with his walkout of Neil Diamond’s singalong “Sweet Caroline.” All that proved for naught when Wilson smashed Kelly in the ribs with his shin and knocked Kelly into unconscious with his left hand.

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The main event for Professional Fighters League’s second trip to Northern Ireland did not end quite as successfully for local audiences as their first, when the aforementioned Hughes smashed his foe in 42 seconds. Wilson proudly s…

Sherdog's live PFL Belfast coverage will begin Thursday at 2:30 p.m. ET.

A high-stakes lightweight clash headlines PFL Belfast: Tune in Thursday, April 16 at 7 p.m. ET on ESPN2.

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Round 1 Women’s flyweights kick off festivities at PFL Belfast, as Hackett (4-3-1, 1-2 PFL) squares off with a promotional newcomer in Vazquez (8-2, 0-0 PFL) at 125 pounds. Bryan Miner officiates. No glove touch between the two participants. Hackett claims the center, paws with her jab and whiffs on an inside leg kick. Slow start through the first 30 seconds, as they circle each other in the middle of the cage. Hackett misses on an overhand right. The Aussie feints, ducks in and out of the pocket and lands with a body kick. Vazquez not offering much in return. Inside leg kick from Hackett. Vazquez blocks a head kick and stomps at the lead leg. They exchange right hands, though neither woman landed cleanly. Outside leg kick from Hackett, who then slips out of range. Vazquez s…

At times, it seems like Ronda Rousey is more focused on waging war against anyone other than Gina Carano.

While Rousey will square off against Carano in the main event of a Most Valuable Promotions card on Netflix on May 16, “Rowdy” took aim at fellow judoka Kayla Harrison during a press conference on Wednesday. During a recent interview on the ”Death Row MMA” podcast, Harrison, the current UFC bantamweight queen, expressed disappointment that Rousey vs Carano has been touted by some as the biggest fight in women’s MMA history. Harrison also called Rousey “irrelevant.” Harrison was supposed to face Amanda Nunes at UFC 324 before she had to withdraw from the event to undergo neck surgery.

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Rousey was in prime form as she fired back at Harrison during Wednesday’s promotional event.

“If she thinks that her fight is the biggest women’s fight of all-time, why is she getting paid less now than I was 10 years ago?” Rousey said. “So riddle me this, bitch,…

Professional Fighters League’s return to Belfast is now official, as all 24 fighters slated to compete made weight without issue on Wednesday.

PFL Belfast takes place on Thursday at the SSE Arena in Belfast, Northern, Ireland and is headlined by a ligthweight clash between Darragh Kelly (155.3 pounds) and Jay-Jay Wilson (156). The prelims air on the ESPN app at 3 p.m. ET/noon PT, while the main card airs on ESPN2 at 7 p.m. ET/4 p.m. PT.

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⚖️PFL Belfast Official Weigh In

Lightweight Main EventDarragh Kelly: 155.3 lbsJay Jay Wilson: 156#PFLBelfast | Thursday , April 16th | SSE Arena | Belfast, N. Ireland | Early Card 3PM EST on ESPN App | Main Card 7PM EST | ESPN 2 pic.twitter.com/xD8cLZKLYz

— PFL (@PFLMMA) April 15, 2026

Ireland’s Kelly is unbeaten in nine professional outings. He went 2-0 under the PFL banner in 2025, scoring submission victories against Mike Hamel and Bakhtiyar Abdulloev. “The Moville Mauler” a…

Gina Carano fighting in the UFC never became a reality. | Dave Mandel

Before Gina Carano and Ronda Rousey were booked to fight on Netflix as part of Most Valuable Promotions’ first MMA event, there was some discussion that the fight might happen under the UFC banner.

According to Rousey, that possibility ended with the Paramount deal — which eliminated the UFC pay-per-view model for numbered events. Now, Rousey and Carano will meet on May 16 as part of the first ever MMA card on Netflix.

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It wasn’t the first time Rousey vs. Carano in the UFC was discussed. When “Rowdy” was still UFC champion, Dana White confirmed that there were discussions to bring Carano into the promotion for a high-profile fight between the two stars more than a decade ago. Ultimately, the bout didn’t come to fruition.

As for Carano, she admits that competing in the UFC would have been a big deal.

“I really wanted to. I really wanted to do the UFC, make that w…

Conor McGregor has settled the lawsuit filed by former friend and training partner Artem Lobov. | Idris Erba/Mayweather Promotions

Conor McGregor has reached a settlement with Artem Lobov in a lawsuit regarding profits from the sale of the Proper No. 12 whiskey brand, according to a report from the Irish Independent.

McGregor, along with partners Audie Attar and Ken Austin, sold their majority share of the whiskey brand for $600 milion in 2021. Lobov was was initially suing for five percent of the revenue from the sale. McGregor admitted to offering Lobov $1 million — which was declined — but denied making an agreement with his teammate regarding a certain percentage of the sale. Lobov claimed that he was the initial creator and co-founder of the whiskey and that he was “muscled out” of the deal. McGregor reportedly made $100 million from the sale.

Moving Forward Lobov’s attorney, Andrew Walker appeared in court on Wednesday and announced that a settlement…

Patricio Freire came up short against Aaron Pico at UFC 327. | Getty/UFC

Three days after suffering a unanimous decision defeat against Aaron Pico at UFC 327, Patricio Freire posted a video on Instagram thanking fans for their support and providing more details about the fight held last Saturday.

"Congratulations to my opponent, he was well-trained and very fast," the Brazilian acknowledged at the beginning of the video.

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Freire then addressed a common observation that his overall performance dropped after a strong opening stanza. As it turns out, there was a good reason for that.

“I saw many analysts saying that I started the first round well and had a very strong drop in performance from the first to the second,” he said. “In reality, right at the beginning of the second round, I took a clean punch to the eye, with my eye open, a jab and straight punch sequence, and it ended up fracturing the orbital bone along with the side of my no…

Mike Malott gets his first UFC headlining opportunity on Saturday. | Getty/UFC

If it wasn’t for one “bad minute,” Mike Malott might still be an undefeated fighter in UFC competition.

Likely up on the scorecards against Neil Magny at UFC 297, the 34-year-old Canadian faded badly in the waning moments en route to losing via technical knockout at the 4:45 mark of Round 3. What turned out to be a monumental comeback for Magny was a learning experience for Malott.

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“Ran into an issue in that one fight I lost; stuff came up in that one and I grew a lot from it, learned to humble myself in certain ways,” Malott told UFC.com. “I know I’m an elite-level fighter, but recognizing that ‘Hey man — sometimes you’re fighting the best guys in the world and you don’t need to force a finish’ [is really important]. I didn’t need to force a finish in that fight; I could have coasted to a decision and won, and looking back, that’s one of the things I changed……

Mark Hunt was arrested on alleged domestic violence charges on Tuesday. | Dave Mandel/Sherdog.com

Former UFC and Pride Fighting Championships heavyweight Mark Hunt was arrested on domestic violence charges in Australia, according to the Sydney Morning Herald.

Hunt was arrested in the Northern Rivers region of Australia on Tuesday evening on charges of stalking or intimidation with intent to cause physical harm. Per the report, Hunt allegedly threatened to physically assault a family member at the property. The 52-year-old was denied police bail ahead of a court appearance on Wednesday.

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It revealed during Wednesday’s testimony, according to the report, that Hunt was helping the family member with an unspecified task when he began acting in an “intimidating and berating manner” that caused “fear and distress” for the woman and another witness. Hunt also allegedly previously sent the woman a threatening text: “I’m just going to murder you…

Carlos Ulberg lost the UFC belt he won on Saturday night in Miami. | Getty/UFC

Carlos Ulberg apparently misplaced a key piece of hardware during the euphoria of his championship celebration.

“I lost the belt, bro,” Ulberg told Fox Sports Australia on Monday.

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Ulberg defeated Jiri Prochazka via first-round knockout in the UFC 327 headliner at the Kaseya Center in Miami, capturing the vacant light heavyweight title in the process. The City Kickboxing stalwart didn’t seem too concerned regarding the whereabouts of his belt, as he speculated that it was likely left behind at some point during a night of partying.

I don’t know exactly where it is,” Ulberg said. “Initially after winning, the plan was to not have a drink. But you know how these things go, right? First, someone gives you a champagne to celebrate. Then one thing leads to another and you’re doing shots. So it’s ‘OK, I’ll have another, and another, and another …’

“We’ve got …

Lorenz Larkin recently suffered a knee injury that will keep him off the MVP Netflix card. | Dave Mandel

Most Valuable Promotions’ first MMA card has suffered its first setback.

UFC and Bellator MMA veteran Lorenz Larkin announced on Tuesday that he has been forced to withdraw from the May 16 event slated for the Intuit Dome in Los Angeles. Larkin was scheduled to face former Bellator champ Jason Jackson in a welterweight bout. It’s currently unknown if a Jackson will receive a replacement opponent.

Injury Woes "I'm sorry to all the fans but I had to pull out of the Netflix card due to knee injury," Larkin wrote on Instagram Stories. "Will be rehabing it back to 100% and will be back.”

Larkin, 39, hasn’t competed in MMA since 2024 when he earned a pair of first-round stoppage victories over Alan Dominguez and Levan Chokheli. More recently, “Monsoon” split a pair of bouts under the Karate Combat banner in 2025.

The 35-year-old Jackson last appeared…

The Octagon will return to the City of Brotherly Love for the first time in more than seven years this summer.

The Las Vegas-based promotion announced on Tuesday that /events/UFC-330-August-15-112557 will take place at the Xfinity Mobile Arena in Philadelphia on Aug. 15. No bouts were confirmed for the card, but the event is expected to include a title fight atop the bill, per a release.

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“Pennsylvania is thrilled to host UFC 330 in Philadelphia, the first time a championship bout is coming back to the Commonwealth in fifteen years,” said Pennsylvania governor Josh Shapiro. “This is a huge year for Pennsylvania – all eyes are on the Commonwealth as we celebrate America 250 and host some of the biggest sporting events in the world in the place where it all started. From UFC and March Madness to the FIFA World Cup and the NFL Draft, we’re excited to host world class sporting events that will bring with them incredible opportunities for our businesses, …

Josh Hokit is making a name for himself in the UFC. | Getty/UFC

Josh Hokit’s most recent performance has earned him some respect in the eyes of oddsmakers.

According to BetOnline.ag, Hokit is currently a -300 favorite against Derrick Lewis in their heavyweight clash at the UFC White House card. Lewis, meanwhile, checks in as a +250 underdog. The odds are subject to change as the fight approaches.

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Hokit emerged as a star at UFC 327, where he took a unanimous decision triumph over Curtis Blaydes in a “Fight of the Year” candidate. “The Incredible Hok” is 9-0 as a professional — including three triumphs under the UFC banner.

The booking against Lewis came together as the UFC 327 card took place. UFC CEO Dana White revealed that President Donald Trump, who was seated cageside, asked why Lewis wasn’t part of the White House event. After Hokit’s standout effort against Blaydes, booking the upstart prospect against the UFC’s all-time knockou…

Max Griffin boasts a wealth of UFC experience. | Getty/UFC

There will be a significant gap in big-fight experience when Max Griffin and Victor Valenzuela lock horns on April 25.

Griffin, an 18-time Octagon veteran, and Valenzuela, a promotional newcomer, will meet in a welterweight contest at UFC Fight Night 274. The bout was first reported by MMAFighting.com. UFC Fight Night 274 takes place at the UFC Apex in Las Vegas and is headlined by a bantamweight scrap pitting Aljamain Sterling against Youssef Zalal.

Veteran vs. Rookie Griffin has last three of his last four outings. Most recently, the 40-year-old Californian dropped a split verdict to Chris Curtis at UFC on ESPN 70 on July 12. Griffin is 8-10 during his UFC tenure, with notable wins over the likes of Tim Means, Carlos Condit and Mike Perry.

Valenzuela, meanwhile, suffered a second-round TKO loss to Michael Oliveira on Dana White’s Contender Series last October. He has since rebounded with a stopp…

Most Valuable Promotions could be in it for the long haul when it comes to staging mixed martial arts events.

Of course, much will hinge on the company’s May 16 debut: a Netflix card at the Intuit Dome in Los Angeles headlined by Ronda Rousey and Gina Carano. MVP’s MMA debut also features a number of notable names such as Francis Ngannou, Nate Diaz, Mike Perry, Junior dos Santos and Muhammad Mokaev, to name a few.

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MVP co-founder Nakisa Bidarian recently discussed the organization’s future in an interview with the Sports Business Journal and admitted that the promotion is interested in MMA beyond one-off events.

“I think a lot of it depends on May 16, right?” Bidarian said. “We’re putting a lot of fire power, star power, distribution to the event. If it works, and I’m very confident it will work, yes -- MVP will be involved in MMA over the long term.”

Netflix will provide MVP will a significant platform for its debut event. The Jake Paul vs. Mi…

Paulo Costa was impressive in his move up to light heavyweight. | Getty/UFC

Two-time “Coach of the Year” honoree Rafael Cordeiro was impressed by Paulo Costa´s performance at UFC 327.

According to Kings MMA founder, Costa should stay in the light heavyweight division following his third-round stoppage of the previously undefeated Azamat Murzakanov this past Saturday at the Kaseya Center in Miami.

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“‘Borrachinha’ is a guy that, love him or hate him, you will like to see his fights. And give me three names of the division that sell fights like him,” Cordeiro told Sherdog.com.

Based on his performance last Saturday, where he knocked out Murzakanov with a head kick in the third round, the former Chute Boxer believes that Costa would also beat Jiri Prochazka if he was fighting for the interim title. Prochazka suffered a first-round knockout loss to Carlos Ulberg in clash for the vacant light heavyweight strap at UFC 327. However, Ulberg co…

Fares Ziam has won six straight in UFC competition. | Getty/UFC

Two lightweights looking to make a statement will square off at UFC Fight Night 278.

Fares Ziam will lock horns with Tom Nolan in an intriguing 155-pound matchup on June 6 at the UFC Apex in Las Vegas. Both fighters confirmed the booking on social media following an initial report from MMA Odds Breaker. UFC Fight Night 278 is headlined by a welterweight showdown between Belal Muhammad and Gabriel Bonfim and airs in its entirety on Paramount+.

On a Roll Ziam has been victorious in six consecutive Octagon appearances. The 29-year-old Frenchman is coming off a 2-0 campaign in 2025 in which he defeated Mike Davis via unanimous decision at UFC Fight Night 250 and scored a second-round TKO over Nazim Sadykhov at UFC 323. The Frenchman known as “Smile Killer” is 8-2 in the Las Vegas-based promotion overall.

Australia’s Nolan has won four straight contests since dropping his UFC debut against Nikol…

Curtis Blaydes gave everything he had against Josh Hokit at UFC 327, but ultimately it wasn’t enough.

The 35-year-old heavyweight veteran dropped a unanimous decision to Hokit in a “Fight of the Year” contender on Saturday at the Kaseya Center in Miami. After nearly being finished early by his upstart opponent, Blaydes rallied for a strong finish in Round 1. However, Hokit gradually took control over the final 10 minutes to capture a unanimous decision triumph in a memorable slugfest.

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Blaydes paid tribute to his opponent in a brief statement on social media.

“Emptied the clip, threw the gun,” Blaydes wrote on Instagram. “That SOB is tougher to kill than he looks.”

One for the Record Books When all was said and done, Blaydes (177) and Hokit (174) combined to land 351 significant strikes, the most ever for a three-round UFC heavyweight fight. They also set a record for most combined significant strikes attempted (595). The bout took its toll on Bla…

Daniel Rodriguez is ready to resume his career after spending eight months in Mexican jail. | Getty/UFC

UFC welterweight Daniel Rodriguez paid dearly for attempting to take marijuana into Mexico.

Shortly after defeating Kevin Holland at UFC 318 last July, Rodriguez planned a vacation to Rosarito, Mexico, to celebrate his victory. However, “D-Rod” was arrested at the U.S.-Mexico border for possession of weed, and he ended up spending the past eight months in Mexican prison. The 39-year-old Californian was finally released last week. During an appearance on "The Ariel Helwani Show,” Rodriguez detailed his experience.

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“This is my first time in Mexican jail and I can tell you one thing for sure, it’s the worst possible situation,” Rodriguez said. “Fortunately, I was able to make the best of it. I was able to pull a couple of strings and get a little bit of workout equipment there and I was able to work out and try and stay in shape, but i…

Cub Swanson enjoyed a memorable farewell at UFC 327. | Getty/UFC

Cub Swanson went out on a high note.

The 42-year-old Palm Springs, California, native wrapped up a 22-year mixed martial arts career at UFC 327, where he defeated Nate Landwehr via technical knockout 4:06 into Round 1 of their featherweight clash at the Kaseya Center in Miami on Saturday night. Swanson made it look easy against the former M-1 Global champion, dropping him twice en route to earning the stoppage.

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“I wasn't expecting that,” Swanson told the UFC. “I was really worried about him picking up the pace late in the fight. And I was expecting him to to come after me a little bit more. And I was trying to calm it down. And so once I kind of realized that he wasn't having a lot of success, I was like, all right, I need to I need to start pulling the trigger.”

Farewell fights don’t always go as planned, but with his family in attendance, Swanson couldn’t have scripted …

Plenty eyes will be on Gable Steveson at UFC 329. | Mexico Fight League

Gable Steveson isn’t doing anything to temper the hype ahead of his highly-anticipated Ultimate Fighting Championship debut.

The promotion announced on Saturday that Steveson has signed to make his first Octagon foray at UFC 329 on July 11 at the T-Mobile Arena in Las Vegas. An heavyweight opponent for Steveson is expected to be announced at a later date.

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Ready for the Next Step "Man, I feel amazing," Steveson told the UFC after his signing was annoucned. "This is going to be the biggest debut on earth and I'm ready. The butterflies, the jitters, it's all part of the game, and I'm ready to take that big step to the UFC and do what I need to do. Man, I think International Fight Week is going to be crazy. You know, maybe a crazy headliner that might come back that you guys might know so, who knows?”

As for the “crazy headiner,” Steveson is likely referencing the re…