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Cory McKenna found the weakness and exploited it.

The Team Alpha Male standout leaned on takedowns, positional dominance and spotty ground-and-pound, as she took a step forward in the Ultimate Fighting Championship women’s strawweight division with a unanimous decision over Cheyanne Vlismas in the featured UFC Fight Night 216 prelim on Saturday at the UFC Apex in Las Vegas. McKenna (8-2, 3-1 UFC) swept the scorecards with 29-28 nods from all three judges.

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Vlismas (7-3, 2-2 UFC) kept it standing for much of the first round, countered effectively and pieced together two- and three-punch combinations. McKenna wisely switched gears in the second, controlled the Xtreme Couture rep in the clinch and slowly but surely turned the tide in her favor. She powered into top position in Round 3 on an ill-advised choke attempt from Vlismas, attacked with short punches and walked away with her sixth win in seven outings.Semelsberger Handles Favored Matthews Crazy…

Former bantamweight queen Holly Holm will lock horns with Yana Kunitskaya at UFC on ESPN 43 on March 25.

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MMAFighting.com was first to report the pairing. UFC on ESPN 43 takes place at the AT&T Center in San Antonio, Texas. A headliner has not been announced, but the card is expected to include a middleweight tilt between Chidi Njokuani and Albert Duraev as well as a women’s flyweight duel pitting Maycee Barber against Andrea Lee.

Holm had a two-bout winning streak snapped in her lone appearance of 2022, as she fell to Ketlen Vieira in a closely-contested split-decision defeat at UFC Fight Night 206. Prior to that, the Jackson-Wink MMA standout had posted back-to-back decision triumphs over Irene Aldana and Raquel Pennington.

Kunitskaya sat out the entirety of 2022 after announcing her pregnancy with husband Thiago Santos. In her last outing, the 33-year-old Russian suffered a first-round TKO defeat to Aldana at UFC 264 in July 2021.

Size didn’t matter to Mamed Khalidov.

𝐌𝐀𝐌𝐄𝐃 𝐊𝐇𝐀𝐋𝐈𝐃𝐎𝐕 just beat 𝐌𝐀𝐑𝐈𝐔𝐒𝐙 𝐏𝐔𝐃𝐙𝐈𝐀𝐍𝐎𝐖𝐒𝐊𝐈!!! XTB #KSW77

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The King of the KSW Legends 👑 pic.twitter.com/RLqhKipBLr — KSW (@KSW_MMA) December 17, 2022

Billed as the biggest fight in Konfrontacja Sztuk Walki history, former KSW two-division champion Khalidov faced five-time “World’s Strongest Man” titleholder Mariusz Pudzianowski in the KSW 77 main event on Saturday at a fully-packed Arena Gliwice in Gliwice, Poland. Khalidov (36-8-2, 20-4-2 KSW), who weighed 53 pounds less than his foe on the scale, was lighter on the feet as he wisely opted to move around Pudzianowski (17-8, 1NC, 17-7, 1NC KSW) rather than directly attacking him. “Pudzian” shortened the distance and clinched with his foe, allowing Khalidov to showcase a remarkable judo throw that grounded the 259-pound colossus. On the mat, Khalidov quickly captured Pudzianowski’s back and poured a barrage of strikes on his flattened a…

A women’s flyweight showdown pitting Joanne Wood against Luana Carolina is on tap for UFC 286 in London.

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Multiple outlets confirmed the booking following an initial report from Ag.Fight. UFC 286 takes place on March 18 at the O2 Arnea in London and also includes a middleweight clash between Marvin Vettori and Roman Dolidze. A headliner has not been announced for the event.

A former strawweight competitor, Wood is 5-5 at 125 pounds in the Octagon. The 36-year-old Syndicate MMA representative has lost three straight bouts and is coming off a first-round submission loss to Alexa Grasso at UFC on ESPN 33 on March 26.

After a 2-0 campaign in 2021, Carolina was on the wrong end of a spinning backfist KO against Molly McCann at UFC Fight Night 204 in her lone appearance of 2022. The Dana White’s Contender Series alum is 3-2 during her tenure with the Las Vegas-based promotion.

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The California State Athletic Commission (CSAC) is limiting how far its judges and referees can travel when working consecutive events.

CSAC executive officer Andy Foster issued a memorandum on Friday that officials who work in the state can only travel as far as Nevada — or vice versa — if they are planning on working events on back-to-back days. Ariel Helwani was first to report the news. The memorandum is as follows: While the Commission understands that, as Officials you may also work in other states. It is imperative that you be at your best for those assignments and keep in mind the travel distance between locations when accepting consecutive assignments. If you work in California on a Friday, the Commission finds it acceptable for you to work as far as Nevada on Saturday or vice versa. If you accept an out of state assignment that is within one day of an assignment in California, you may be removed from the California assignment if you are being required to tr…

🚨 Breaking! Per source, The Ultimate Fighter 3 winner Kendall Grove is making his cage return to take on Michal Materla at #KSW78 on Jan. 21. The pair first collided in June 2013 in a hard-fought contest won by Materla via decision. Story coming to @sherdogdotcom. pic.twitter.com/tdwwLYWeRL

— Tudor Leonte (@MrTudorLeonte) December 17, 2022

“The Ultimate Fighter” Season 3 winner Kendall Grove will get a chance to avenge a defeat at the hands of former Konfrontacja Sztuk Walki titleholder Michal Materla on Jan. 21 in a rematch nearly-10-years-in-the-making at KSW 78. A source close to the situation informed Sherdog about the matchup.

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In their first clash, Materla (31-9, 20-7 KSW) upended Grove on all scorecards at KSW 23 on June 8, 2013, notching the second defense of his 185-pound championship. “Cipao” is coming off a nasty first-round knockout loss to Mariusz Pudzianowski at KSW 70 in May. Before that, he stopped Ja…

Our last main event of 2022 is official! ⚖️✅

Jared Cannonier in at 185.5lbs for #UFCVegas66 tomorrow pic.twitter.com/fELKHGiRsc

— UFC (@ufc) December 16, 2022 Editor's note: The article has been updated at 4:25 p.m. ET on Dec. 16 to reflect the purse fine amount.

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The final Ultimate Fighting Championship event of the year is now official.

UFC Fight Night 216 is headlined by middleweight contenders Jared Cannonier and Sean Strickland. While the main event fighters and the rest of the main card all made weight, preliminary competitor Maheshate Hayisaer came in 2.5 pounds over the lightweight limit for his bout against Rafa Garcia. He has been fined 20% of his purse, and the match will otherwise continue as scheduled.

"The Killa Gorilla" is coming off a unanimous decision defeat to Israel Adesanya, while Strickland (25-4) was knocked out by now-champion Alex Pereira. Both will look to bounce back into contention a…

Well I tore my meniscus, tore my MCL when I got the first takedown & fractured my fibula in the fight… but I still had a great vacation in the Turks and Caicos with my family pic.twitter.com/voVpA4LtLD

— Darren Elkins (@DarrenElkinsMMA) December 16, 2022 Ultimate Fighting Championship fan-favorite “The Damage” Darren Elkins put his nickname to the test in his last fight.

In early December, Elkins (27-11) faced off against Jonathan Pearce (14-4) at UFC on ESPN 42. Elkins made it to the final horn to ultimately lose a unanimous decision, but not before suffering a myriad of injuries and absorbing heavy damage from bell to bell. While the lacerations and ample plasma deposits across the Octagon floor looked daunting, the major issues for Elkins occurred internally. According to Elkins on social media on Thursday, he tore his meniscus and MCL when landing a takedown in Round 1, and also fractured his fibula sometime during the melee.

Acco…

🤩 The Main Event 🤩

Icon vs. Icon. Legend vs. Legend.🇵🇱 𝐊𝐇𝐀𝐋𝐈𝐃𝐎𝐕 🆚 𝐏𝐔𝐃𝐙𝐈𝐀𝐍 🇵🇱

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XTB #KSW77 | KSWTV | Viaplay pic.twitter.com/hz3ZqjSGGN — KSW (@KSW_MMA) December 16, 2022 The biggest fight in Konfrontacja Sztuk Walki history is now official as both Mamed Khalidov and Mariusz Pudzianowski weighed in for their superfight.

Fresh off a brutal knockout of Michal Materla, Pudzianowski (17-7, 1 NC) will bring his power to KSW legend Khalidov (35-8-2), a former light heavyweight and middleweight champion. The 45-year-old former strongman competitor weighed in at 259 pounds, and enters the main event on a five-fight win streak. Meanwhile, the 42-year-old Khalidov is coming off a defeat to Roberto Soldic, and is just 1-4 in his last five contests.

In addition to the main event, there are two title fights, as Sebastian Przybysz will put his bantamweight title on the line against Jakub Wiklacz, and light heavyweight champion …

Former Ultimate Fighting Championship champ Robert Whittaker will be ready no matter who gets thrown at him in Australia.

Back in October, the UFC confirmed the booking of Whittaker (24-6) against Paulo Costa (14-2) for UFC 284. The event will be held at the RAC Arena in Perth, Australia, in what is a home game of sorts for Whittaker. However, the middleweight matchup did not appear to be set in stone when Costa revealed on his social media that he had not signed to fight. Instead, he claimed he “politely” declined the multi-fight contract that the promotion offered. While the pairing has not been officially scrubbed, Whittaker and his team are already preparing for the possibility of other foes. Sherdog spoke to Whittaker’s coach, Alex Prates, about this situation on Thursday.

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“I see Costa using that fight to renegotiate his contract and I truly hope he can do that, [as] what [is good for him] is good for everybody,” coach Prates explained to Sherdog…

Editor's note: The article has been updated at 6:30 p.m. ET on Dec. 15 to reflect the match's total cancelation.

The year-end Ultimate Fighting Championship show is down one preliminary matchup.

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Deron Winn (7-3) was initially slated to take on Julian Marquez (9-3) in a middleweight pairing on the UFC Fight Night 216 prelims, but on Wednesday, disaster struck for Winn. Per a Thursday statement on his social media, Winn fell down stairs at the UFC Performance Institute on Wednesday, resulting in head and neck trauma and inflicting him with a concussion. Upon medical review at the hospital, Winn has been pulled from the fight. The promotion will not seek a replacement to face Marquez on short notice, despite Marquez posting about the ease of his weight cut on his own Instagram mere hours before Winn’s post.

“Hey all-,” the statement from Winn wrote, “yesterday at the UFC PI, I fainted and had a freak accident. I fell down the stairs, hit my head…

The Ultimate Fighting Championship’s return to London has its first fight put together, and it is quite a good one.

The UFC’s broadcast partner of ESPN broke the news on Thursday that UFC 286 has gained its first matchup of the billing. At the O2 Arena in London, top-10 middleweights collide as Marvin Vettori (18-6-1) battles it out with Roman Dolidze (12-1). Georgia’s Dolidze has since confirmed this pairing on his Instagram page.

Boisterous Italian Vettori has alternated wins and losses in his last four appearances, albeit against some of the best opposition his weight class has to offer. While he topped Kevin Holland in April 2021 to put him on a five-fight win streak, a title fight and rematch against Israel Adesanya three months later did not go his way, as he dropped a five-round verdict to the then-champ. In a victorious rebounding effort – albeit at 205 pounds when his opponent announced he would not make the middleweight limit – he topped Paulo Costa in a 25-m…

Seoul, South Korea, is no longer on the slate for the Ultimate Fighting Championship in early 2023.

Per MMA Fighting on Thursday, the promotion is moving on from a slated event in Seoul on Feb. 4. After Chan Sung Jung succumbed to a shoulder injury, the organization has decided to change this event’s location to the UFC Apex in Las Vegas. Headlining this UFC Fight Night event will be a rescheduled heavyweight battle as Derrick Lewis (26-10, 1 NC) takes on Sergey Spivak (15-3). Spivak has since confirmed this news on his Instagram Stories. Lewis and Spivak were initially set to throw down in the main event of UFC Fight Night 215 on Nov. 19, but Lewis suffered a medical issue on fight day that ejected him from the billing.

Lewis will be looking to rebound from a pair of knockout losses to Tai Tuivasa and Sergei Pavlovich in 2022, putting him on the first multiple-fight skid since 2019. The UFC’s all-time leader in knockouts, “The Black Beast” set that record in Decem…

“The partnership between Iowa wrestling and UFC is a perfect fit. We both celebrate tough, physical athletes who compete at the highest level." -- Tom Brands@ufc 🤝 #Hawkeyes

➡ https://t.co/QCZFwSc0yG pic.twitter.com/JO8eFGJIEw

— Iowa Hawkeye Wrestling (@Hawks_Wrestling) December 15, 2022 The Ultimate Fighting Championship is getting into the college wrestling business.

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According to a press release on Thursday, the promotion has issued its first-ever college sponsorship to the Iowa Hawkeyes. In particular, the UFC will be issuing support and marketing for the wrestling departments of the University of Iowa, which recently created a women’s wrestling program a year ago. The organization will place signs inside the Carver-Hawkeye Arena in Iowa City, Iowa, as well as running content on its radio shows and social media services.

The head coach of the men’s wrestling team, Tom Brands, was thrilled about the arrangement, say…

James Krause and Darrick Minner had temporary extensions extended by the Nevada State Athletic Commission during a Wednesday meeting.

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A full disciplinary hearing will take place at a later date. Currently, Krause, the head trainer at Glory MMA & Fitness, and Minner, a former UFC featherweight, are suspended for failing to disclose an injury to the fighter in relation to his first-round technical loss to Nuerdanbieke Shayilan at UFC Fight Night 214 on Nov. 5.

Those are potentially the least serious sanctions facing both Krause and Minner. The bout is currently under investigation for suspicious activity after the betting odds shifted significantly just hours before the fight — and manny bettors wagered on Shayilan to win inside of a round. Minner appeared to be hobbled during the bout, and speculation ensued that he entered the bout against Shayilan with a pre-existing knee injury.

During Wednesday’s meeting, Nevada deputy attorney general …

A bantamweight clash pitting Cody Garbrandt against Julio Arce has been booked for UFC 285.

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Eurosport was first to report the pairing. UFC 285 takes place at the T-Mobile Arena in Las Vegas on March 4 and includes a women’s flyweight showdown between Amanda Ribas and Viviane Araujo as well as a middleight tilt between Bo Nickal and Jamie Pickett. A headliner for the card has not been confirmed.

Garbandt has struggled since 2017, losing five of his last six UFC appearances — a slump that began when he relinquished the 135-pound belt to T.J. Dillashaw at UFC 217. Most recently, “No Love” came up short in his flyweight debut, as he suffered a first-round TKO defeat to Kai Kara France at UFC 269 last December. Four of his last five defeats have been via knockout or technical knockout.

Arce, meanwhile, has alternated wins and losses in his last eight promotional outings. The Team Tiger Schulmann representative went 1-1 in 2022, outpointing Daniel…

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Brazilian jiu-jitsu standout Lucas Barbosa will head a field of eight welterweights vying for a Professional Fighters League contract next year.

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The organization announced on Wednesday the welterweight lineup for the first PFL Challenger Series event on Jan. 17. Barbosa will square off against Itso Babulaidze in the card’s featured bout. The PFL Challenger Series airs on FuboTV on Friday nights, and contract winners are selected by a judging panel comprised of combat sports notables and other celebrity guests.

“The 2023 PFL Challenger Series provides world class talent a path to the PFL,” said PFL president of fighter operations Ray Sefo in a release. “The Challenger Series continues the PFL’s commitment to finding the best talent in MMA around the world.”

Three other 170-pound bouts were also confirmed for the event: Cage Fury Fighting Championships welterweight title holder Eric Alequin vs. undefeated Combate Global and L…

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Brazilian jiu-jitsu standout Lucas Barbosa will head a field of eight welterweights vying for a Professional Fighters League contract next year.

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The organization announced on Wednesday the welterweight lineup for the first PFL Challenger Series event on Jan. 27. Barbosa will square off against Itso Babulaidze in the card’s featured bout. The PFL Challenger Series airs on FuboTV on Friday nights, and contract winners are selected by a judging panel comprised of combat sports notables and other celebrity guests.

“The 2023 PFL Challenger Series provides world class talent a path to the PFL,” said PFL president of fighter operations Ray Sefo in a release. “The Challenger Series continues the PFL’s commitment to finding the best talent in MMA around the world.”

Three other 170-pound bouts were also confirmed for the event: Cage Fury Fighting Championships welterweight title holder Eric Alequin vs. undefeated Combate Global and L…

The lineup for Bellator 290 continues to take shape, as three bouts were recently added to the Feb. 4 event.

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The new matchups are as follows: Diana Avsaragova vs. Alejandra Lara at flyweight; Christopher Gonzalez vs. Max Rohskopf at lightweight and Jornel Lugo vs. Jaylon Bates at bantamweight. MMAjunkie.com was first to report Avsaragova vs. Lara, while FanSided MMA initially brought word of Gonzalez vs. Rohskopf and Lugo vs. Bates.

Bellator 290 takes place at the Forum in Inglewood, Calif., and is headlined by a heavyweight title tilt between Ryan Bader and Fedor Emelianenko. In the co-main event, Vadim Nemkov will defend the light heavyweight crown against Yoel Romero. The evening’s main card will air on CBS.

Avsaragova is undefeated in five professional outings and is coming off a three-round verdict over Kyra Batara in her third promotional appearance at Bellator 276. A former flyweight title challenger, Lara has dropped her last three …

A championship doubleheader is on tap for Invicta FC 51 on Jan. 18.

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The event will be headlined by a bantamweight championship clash between reigning title holder Taneisha Tennant and Talita Bernardo, while Kristina Williams and Ketlen Souza will vie for the vacant flyweight crown in the co-main event. The all-female promotion announced the bookings on Tuesday.

Invicta FC 51 takes place at Reelworks Denver in Denver, Colo., and airs on AXS TV and the Invicta FC YouTube channel beginning at 9 p.m. ET/6 p.m. PT. Five other bouts were also announced for the card: Serena DeJesus vs. Olga Rubin at bantamweight; Claire Guthrie vs. Auttumn Norton at bantamweight; Marisa Messer-Belenchia vs. Elisandra Ferreira at atomweight; Katie Saull vs. Rayanne Amanda at atomweight and Fatima Kline vs. Laura Gallardo at strawweight.

A former competitor on Dana White’s Contender Series, Tennant is 4-0 under the Invicta FC banner — including five-round verdicts ove…

Amanda Ribas now has a dance partner for UFC 285, as a clash against Viviane Araujo has been targeted for March 4.

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Multiple outlets confirmed the booking following an initial report from Dama de Ferro MMA. Sherdog.com previously reported that Ribas was expected to return to flyweight at UFC 285 and multiple opponent options — including Araujo — were under consideration.

UFC 285 takes place at the T-Mobile Arena in Las Vegas and is also expected to include a middleweight tilt pitting Bo Nickal against Jamie Pickett. A headliner for the event has not been announced.

Ribas will be making her third 125-pound appearance in the Octagon. In her last outing, the Brazilian dropped a competitive split decision to former flyweight title challenger Katlyn Chookagian at UFC on ESPN 36. She is 5-2 during her tenure with the Las Vegas-based promotion, which also includes a first-round submission of Paige VanZant at 125 pounds.

Araujo, meanwhile, is …

Thank y’all for the luv! pic.twitter.com/SCIJZSOK2I

— Bryce Mitchell (@ThugnastyMMA) December 12, 2022

The featherweight matchup pitting Ilia Topuria against Bryce Mitchell that opened the UFC 282 pay-per-view was billed as a clash between two of the top young contenders in the division.

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It turned out to be one-way traffic for Topuria, as “The Spaniard” battered his opponent on the feet and denied all but one of his takedowns before submitting Mitchell with an arm-triangle choke 3:10 into Round 2. Mitchell’s attempts at grappling were ineffective and he was outgunned on the feet in suffering his first setback in 16 professional outings.

According to “Thug Nasty,” there were more factors at play at the T-Mobile Arena on Saturday night.

“I definitely got to let you know that definitely wasn’t me out there,” Mitchell said in a video on Twitter. “I had the flu the week before, and I thought I’d just tough it out. I d…

In an ideal world, Bellator’s bantamweight grand prix final will go down early next year.

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The 135-pound championship is now set, as interim king Raufeon Stots will square off against Patrick Mix following their victories in the semifinals at Bellator 289this past Friday. Stots edged Danny Sabatello via split decision in one half of the bracket, while Mix submitted Magomed Magomedov in the other half.

As of now, a date has not been set for Stots vs. Mix, but Bellator president Scott Coker does have a timeline in mind.

“We’re going to have to see who’s injured, who’s not injured, and that’s going to determine when they fight,” Coker said at the Bellator 289 post-fight press conference. “We want them to be healthy, fresh and ready to go and not just training through injuries or having to cut weight too quick from this fight.

“We’re going to talk to all the managers Monday and see how everybody’s feeling and then we’ll decide when we throw…