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The Ultimate Fighting Championship may be quietly allowing its 135-pound women’s division to wind down.

MMA Fighting initially reported on Friday that Irene Aldana (15-8), former bantamweight title challenger and top-ranked athlete, has retired at the age of 38. The news has since been confirmed by ESPN Deportes, who further indicated that Aldana is not done with combat sports overall.

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The perennial contender leaves this sport behind with her name littered throughout the record books in her division. One of the more active competitors in UFC women’s bantamweight history, Aldana boasts a litany of top-10 distinctions in categories like most appearances, knockdowns and many more. Despite her last appearance in September 2024, the Mexican boxer still holds the second-most significant strikes landed in her division’s history, 1,028 compared to the leader of Raquel Pennington at 1,148.[embedded content]Blood for the Blood God, skulls for the Skull Thro…

Ultimate Fighting Championship heavyweight Valter Walker is not the type of guy who keeps his opinions to himself.

Parked outside of the UFC’s top 10 at heavyweight looking in, Walker spoke with Brazilian journalist Laerte Viana on Thursday to discuss the plight of his division. With no active champion—Tom Aspinall has stated he informed the UFC he will be coming back soon, but there is no date on the calendar—and an interim title back in the works again, Walker sees that the division may be wide open. Even so, he sees a chasm of talent in his class, while holding off-and-on training partner Sergei Pavlovich in extremely high regard.

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Walker first spoke about his own prospects, where he freely admitted that he is not where he feels he needs to be to challenge the best in his weight category.

“You have to know which doors to open,” Walker said in regards to what heavyweight has to offer him in the immediate future. “For example, I don’t think I’m read…

Prepare for a dance-off before, after or even during the matchup.

The fourth Ultimate Fighting Championship card of September was announced by ESPN Knockout’s fighter-turned-commentator Gaston Reyno, who declared on social media on Friday the first pairing slotted into UFC Fight Night 289. The event, which will likely also be titled UFC Vegas 121, will go down at the UFC Apex in Las Vegas on Sept. 26. That matchup, which is not expected to be the main attraction, comes at 135 pounds between Norma Dumont (13-3) and Ailin Perez (13-2). The Argentinian has since confirmed this potential title eliminator on Instagram.

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War of the asses The two ladies have been eying one another in the logjammed bantamweight division since 2024, when Perez defeated Joselyne Edwards to push her win streak to three. Perez has called for the match repeatedly, even titling it “the war of the asses” in a past interview with MMA Junkie. Dumont has suggested that the matchup has…

A grand don't come for free.

Perennial Ultimate Fighting Championship contender Volkan Oezdemir made a statement on Instagram Friday revealing the news of his failed drug test. He does so prior to any statements from the organization or its anti-drug testing wing of Combat Sports Anti-Doping. In February, he failed an out-of-competition test for EPO. The Swiss athlete assumed full responsibility for his actions and explained in detail what took place in this unusual situation. The UFC and CSAD have yet to provide a public statement on the matter, but indicated to MMA Junkie that they worked alongside the World Anti-Doping Agency to review this matter.

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The former light heavyweight title challenger will be out of action for 16 months effective his failed testing date, with CSAD reducing his suspension from 18 months, two years or greater due to his alleged complete cooperation in handling the case. In his statements, Oezdemir indicated that he was app…

The Ultimate Fighting Championship had to dig deep to find someone to face Jan Blachowicz.

On Tuesday, the promotion indicated that the UFC Belgrade co-headliner of Blachowicz vs. Bogdan Guskov would no longer be happening. Due to an injury to Khalil Rountree prior to his main attraction matchup against Magomed Ankalaev the week before, Guskov was pulled from that pairing and slotted against Ankalaev.

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With Blachowicz needing a new dance partner, the organization announced on Friday that stepping up on a late notice will be Navajo Stirling (10-0). The two light heavyweights will tangle in the second-to-last match at UFC Fight Night 283, which will go down on Aug. 1 at the Belgrade Arena in the Serbian capital city.From Guskov to Stirling: A Serbian filmThe former champ from Poland was expecting to rematch Guskov following a surprising majority draw in December. On the UFC 323 main card opener, Guskov dropped his foe in the second stanza and picked u…

Jared Cannonier isn't bothered by the impression that he's become a gatekeeper in the Ultimate Fighting Championship's middleweight division.

A former title challenger and longtime contender at 185 pounds, Cannonier will look to defend his place in the rankings when he meets rising prospect Christian Leroy Duncan at UFC Oklahoma City on July 18. Rather than viewing the matchup as a springboard for Duncan, "The Killa Gorilla" sees it as another opportunity to prove he still belongs among the division's elite.

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Jared Cannonier says facing Christian Leroy Duncan is another chance to protect his UFC middleweight ranking and restart his title pursuit While many veteran fighters see being a divisional gatekeeper as a negative, Cannonier is taking it in his stride. The 42-year-old acknowledges that he’s struggled with consistency in his last few bouts, which set up the clash against the 30-year-old Brit riding a four-fight win streak.

“So here I am, the g…

The Professional Fighters League has finalized the lineup for its upcoming event in Austin, Texas, with one late change to the main card.

The promotion recently announced that Levy Saul Marroquin has been removed from the PFL Austin card on July 18 at Moody Center. As a result, Joey Ruquet will now face former PFL featherweight champion Jesus Pinedo in a 145-pound bout.

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Sergio Pettis withdrawal and Levy Saul Marroquin removal alter the PFL Austin lineup The main event features former Bellator MMA middleweight king Johnny Eblen running it back with 2023 PFL light heavyweight tournament winner Impa Kasanganay for the interim PFL middleweight championship. The bout was booked after undisputed champion Costello van Steenis was forced to the sidelines with an injury.

The co-headliner has undergone a change, with Rafael do Nascimento stepping in to face 2024 PFL Europe bantamweight champion Lewis McGrillene-Evans following Sergio Pettis' withdrawal due …

Khamzat Chimaev is eager to settle unfinished business with Sean Strickland.

The former Ultimate Fighting Championship middleweight champion suggested on Instagram that Strickland is avoiding a rematch following their clash at UFC 328 earlier this year.

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Sean Strickland vs. Khamzat Chimaev rematch talk heats up after UFC 328 Chimaev had previously claimed the 185-pound belt with a dominant unanimous decision victory over Dricus Du Plessis, using his renowned ground game to dethrone the South African. However, "Borz" then dropped the championship to Strickland in a lackluster performance that he seemingly gassed out in, picking up the lone blemish on his pro record.

In pursuit of a rematch, Chimaev has now shared four photos from his five-round battle with Strickland along with a brief caption.

“Someone is running, I'm ready, just tell me where and when I'll be there,” he captioned his post.

Strickland previously revealed that he is reco…

Kamaru Usman isn't limiting himself to a single division in the Ultimate Fighting Championship.

The former UFC welterweight champion returns to middleweight against former champion Dricus Du Plessis in the UFC Oklahoma City main event on July 18. Rather than committing to one division, Usman says he’s interested in certain matchups across the 170 and 185-pound brackets.

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Kamaru Usman explains plans for welterweight and middleweight fights ahead of UFC Oklahoma City "The Nigerian Nightmare" snapped a three-fight skid with a unanimous decision over170-pound contender Joaquin Buckley in his most recent outing. Instead of staying at welterweight, he opted for a high-stakes matchup against du Plessis next. Usman wants to keep his options open, rather than restricting himself to just one division.

"For me, I've always said this. I'm a moneyweight fighter," Usman said in a recent interview. "So, it's not about '85 or '70. I can hit both. I'm not the bigge…

Dricus Du Plessis claims he forgot what losing felt like before his first defeat in the Ultimate Fighting Championship.

The former middleweight champion returns to action against ex-welterweight king Kamaru Usman in the UFC Oklahoma City main event on July 18, his first appearance since dropping the 185-pound championship to Khamzat Chimaev at UFC 319 last year. The defeat snapped an eight-year unbeaten streak dating back to a knockout loss during his time on KSW.

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Dricus Du Plessis reflects on losing the UFC middleweight title and his return against Kamaru Usman Ahead of his return to the Octagon nearly a year after his loss to Chimaev, du Plessis has opened up about losing his middleweight crown, revealing initial disappointment followed by a surge of motivation to regain the title.

“Yeah, so I haven't lost in quite some time -- eight years -- and I kind of forgot how it felt," du Plessis said in a recent interview. “Now, I know exactly why. I …

Demetrious Johnson has no regrets about walking away from mixed martial arts.

Unlike many fighters who continue competing well past their prime, the former Ultimate Fighting Championship and One Championship titleholder retired on his own terms after defending his One title in 2023. "Mighty Mouse" recently claimed that the transition has been easier because he never allowed fame to define him.

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Demetrious Johnson discusses UFC Hall of Fame induction and MMA retirement Johnson (25-4-1) is content with his career and retirement. Speaking on the UFC Hall of Fame red carpet, the new inductee revealed that having humility and staying humble served him well in the long run.

“I think for me, probably because my whole career, I've stayed humble and had humility. You know, I never let the lights get to me.”

Johnson then recalled winning the UFC flyweight title at UFC 152 before quickly returning to everyday life.

“After I'll have a big amazing fi…

Dricus Du Plessis believes that the winner of his upcoming bout deserves to fight Sean Strickland next for the Ultimate Fighting Championship middleweight title.

The South African is set to face fellow former champion Kamaru Usman in the main event of UFC Oklahoma City on July 18. With both fighters gunning for another outing against current champ Strickland, du Plessis has laid out his case for a title shot.

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Dricus Du Plessis explains his path back to Sean Strickland Ahead of his fight with Usman, du Plessis discussed the title picture at middleweight. When asked whether the winner of his next bout should fight for the belt next, "Stillknocks" replied in the affirmative, citing how he already has two wins over Strickland.

“Absolutely, because I have defended my belt against two of the best fighters in the world, the current champion being one of them,” du Plessis said in a recent interview.

However, a win might not be enough, as du Plessis …

Jared Cannonier claims he has earned the right to get paid much more than the Ultimate Fighting Championship is currently paying him.

Cannonier is scheduled to fight at UFC Oklahoma City against Christian Leroy Duncan (14-2) in the co-main event. It will mark his 21st Octagon outing, having competed in the UFC since 2015, across three different divisions. Considering how many fights he has in the premier MMA promotion, he believes his compensation is below par.

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Jared Cannonier discusses UFC fighter pay, sponsorship changes and his middleweight career Cannonier would love all MMA fighters to earn more in general. However, "The Killa Gorilla" believes there are varying levels of skill sets even in the UFC. Considering his own pedigree, Cannonier believes he deserves a much better contract with the UFC.

“I would love to get paid more,” Cannonier told Full Send MMA. “I would love all of us MMA fighters to get paid more. But there is big differentiatio…

Ultimate Fighting Championship star Jon Jones is willing to “let bygones be bygones” to do business with Dana White.

They recently had a falling out. White was strongly backing Jones when the former two-division champion was being accused of trying to avoid interim champion Tom Aspinall. White kept assuring fans that Jones would eventually fight Aspinall. However, Jones ultimately vacated the belt, creating tension between himself and the UFC CEO.

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Jones (28-1) returned to the drug testing pool just weeks later, when plans for the UFC Freedom 250 were first mentioned. "Bones" repeatedly campaigned for a spot on the card, but failed to do so as White made it clear that Jones was never even in consideration to fight at the White House. This drew the ire of Jones, who claimed he was indeed in negotiations for the historic event and started publicly asking for his UFC release.Jon Jones addresses Dana White fallout after UFC Freedom 250 controversy The te…

Israel Adesanya believes Conor McGregor might’ve entered his last bout in the Ultimate Fighting Championship injured.

McGregor's comeback ended after just 69 seconds when he appeared to suffer a knee injury early in the opening round, resulting in a loss to Max Holloway in their rematch at UFC 329. There’s growing discourse surrounding whether the Irishman was carrying an injury into the bout, as he did in his trilogy fight against Dustin Poirier, which also ended in anticlimactic fashion.

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The former UFC middleweight champion pointed to footage from the pre-fight inspection, saying McGregor appeared reluctant to put weight on his right leg before stepping into the Octagon.Israel Adesanya discusses Conor McGregor’s right leg concerns before UFC 329 loss to Max Holloway Speaking on his "Precision with Mighty & Izzy" podcast alongside former UFC star Demetrious Johnson, Adesanya emphasized that McGregor was clearly dealing with some leg-related iss…

Former Ultimate Fighting Championship champion Jon Jones would consider competing against Oleksandr Usyk, but not in boxing.

Usyk vacated his IBA, WBC and WBA heavyweight boxing titles last month. However, the Ukrainian legend isn’t hanging up his gloves just yet. Usyk’s advisor, Sergey Lapin, subsequently revealed that they are considering Jon Jones and Deontay Wilder as potential opponents for one last fight.

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Jon Jones explains why an MMA fight with Oleksandr Usyk interests him more than boxing While Jones (28-1) isn’t interested in boxing Usyk, he’s open to an MMA bout. "Bones" notes that wrestling is an important part of Usyk’s training regimen and that he’d gladly share the cage with him.

Jones doesn’t want to limit his arsenal by entering the squared circle against Usyk. While he doesn’t consider himself an elite boxer, he also doesn’t think of Usyk as a complete fighter. The American then claimed that he would definitely come out on top if t…

Bogdan Guskov is now used to the chaotic package that is Valter Walker.

Ultimate Fighting Championship fighters Guskov and Walker are training partners at Gor MMA under head coach Gor Azizyan. The latter has a loud personality and rarely hesitates to pull off embarrassing pranks in public, and the former was his latest victim.

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Bogdan Guskov reacts to Valter Walker prank ahead of UFC Abu Dhabi In his latest prank, the Brazilian bizarrely touched Guskov’s manhood on camera. However, Guskov has learned to be unfazed by Walter’s antics.

Guskov believes Walker has chaos inside his head. While Guskov doesn’t understand Walker, he considers “The Foot Hunter” a friend. The Uzbek fighter neither took the incident seriously in any way nor tried to stop Walker from posting it on social media.

“He is a f*cking moron. A fool. A f*cking idiot. I didn’t expect that. I don’t understand him at all,” Guskov told Red Corner MMA. “He’s got chaos in his head. We’…

Ultimate Fighting Championship legend Jon Jones believes Ciryl Gane’s confidence will play a key role in a rematch against Tom Aspinall.

Gane (14-2) challenged Aspinall (15-3) for the heavyweight title in their first meeting at UFC 321 last October. However, the fight ended in an unfortunate no-contest after a double eye poke by Gane in the first round rendered Aspinall unable to continue.

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While Aspinall subsequently underwent eye surgery, Gane defeated Alex Pereira to win the interim heavyweight title at UFC Freedom 250. "Bon Gamin" is now expected to challenge Aspinall in a title unification bout next and Jones believes the Frenchman will come out on top.Why Jon Jones believes Ciryl Gane has the edge over Tom Aspinall According to Jones, Gane’s confidence is soaring after his win over Pereira. The former champion also notes that Aspinall was looking invincible until he faced Gane at UFC 321. Notably, many, including UFC CEO Dana White, opined that…

The Ultimate Fighting Championship nearly beat its record set a few weeks ago.

Per a release from the UFC’s broadcast partner of Paramount+, the official viewership numbers for UFC 329 are now out. According to the release, viewers in the U.S. and Latin America combined for a whopping 15.9 million total viewers. The breakdown for the U.S. totaled 14.3 million while the other countries combined for 1.6 million on the streaming service. This total does not eclipse the 17 million reached by the UFC White House card

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Even as it brought in an average of 6.5 million average viewers, that tally falls far short of the number on the June 14 spectacle show. The UFC White House event saw 8.2 million average viewers—it has since corrected the number previously submitted of seven million—throughout that Sunday night, one where the event started late due to a weather delay.UFC 329 beat UFC White House in one major metricWhile the UFC White House show largely su…

Jake Paul believes a mixed martial arts debut could be in his future once he returns from the jaw injury that has sidelined him since losing to Anthony Joshua.

Paul recently revealed that he expects to be medically cleared for full-contact sparring within the next few weeks as he continues recovering from the broken jaw he suffered against Joshua last December. Apart from his return to boxing, "The Problem Child” said that he also plans to make his MMA debut under the Most Valuable Promotions banner.

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Paul says the proposed Nate Diaz matchup remains a possibility as MVP expands into MMA. Now weeks away from getting cleared for full-contact sparring, Paul has revealed that he is planning a switch to the cage, with Nate Diaz as the likely opponent. Notably, Diaz has already fought under MVP, losing to Mike Perry at the promotion’s inaugural MMA event.

“Maybe I'll do some MMA. We've got a lot of stuff with MVP coming soon, big promotions getting more i…

Scott Coker's new global mixed martial arts promotion has further strengthened its leadership team ahead of its planned 2027 launch.

The organization recently announced that longtime sports media executive Steve Bornstein has joined its advisory board. Bornstein will advise the promotion on media strategy, distribution, technology, fan engagement and commercial development as the league continues preparations for its inaugural season.

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Steve Bornstein joins Scott Coker's new MMA promotion According to a press release, Bornstein has joined an advisory group assembled to help guide the promotion's global rollout.

“Steve Bornstein is one of the great builders in the history of sports media," Coker said in the release. “His experience connecting fans to premium live sports is invaluable as we continue to build.”

Bornstein previously served as the youngest president and CEO in ESPN history. He later worked as president and CEO of NFL Network and execu…

The Ultimate Fighting Championship's light heavyweight division is reportedly set to welcome an accomplished regional champion.

Reigning Legacy Fighting Alliance light heavyweight titleholder Lucas Fernando has signed with the promotion and is scheduled to make his Octagon debut against Rafael Tobias at UFC 330 on Aug. 15.

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Lucas Fernando gets second shot at UFC following Contender Series setback, per report Fernando (13-3), who featured on Dana White’s Contender Series three years ago, will finally get to fight in the famed Octagon, as reported by Guilherme Cruz.

He suffered a decision loss to Cesar Almeida on DWCS in 2023 and lost his next bout on LFA as well. The Brazilian then bounced back with four consecutive wins, with his last two bouts ending in finishes.

Meanwhile, Fernando’s opponent, Tobias (14-2), will be looking to notch his first UFC win at the next numbered event. He earned a UFC contract with a submission victory over Jair d…

Ultimate Fighting Championship star Alex Pereira’s criticism of referee Herb Dean hasn’t ceased following Michel Pereira’s UFC exit.

"Poatan" suggested that the officiating in his compatriot's unanimous decision loss to Sharabutdin Magomedov contributed to his departure from the promotion. The UFC Baku bout had its share of controversies, with Magomedov grabbing his opponent's hair without receiving a point deduction.

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Notably, Pereira previously slammed Dean over his loss to Ciryl Gane.Alex Pereira criticizes Herb Dean’s officiating after Michel Pereira’s UFC departure Michel had fought out his previous contract with the UFC and was offered a one-fight deal to take on Magomedov in the UFC Baku co-headliner, which he lost. Dean’s inaction towards the Russian’s repeated fouls has drawn the ire of the former two-division champion, who voiced his frustration in a lengthy Instagram post.

“They could have released him earlier, and maybe that would have …

Sports medicine physician Brian Sutterer believes there are early signs suggesting Ultimate Fighting Championship star Conor McGregor's knee injury may not be as severe as initially feared.

McGregor injured his knee while throwing the first strike of his rematch with Max Holloway at UFC 329. The Irishman then struggled to stay upright and repeatedly fell over, prompting a referee stoppage over a minute into the bout. Dr. Sutterer, who has not treated or evaluated McGregor in person, has now shared his assessment.

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Brian Sutterer breaks down Conor McGregor’s UFC 329 knee injury signs, ACL concerns and possible recovery outlook The initial suspicion was that McGregor blew out his ACL at UFC 329. The commentators speculated an ACL injury and UFC CEO Dana White did the same at the post-fight presser.

McGregor recently shared a video of himself addressing fans, drawing a reaction from Dr. Sutterer on X. The latter noted that the former two-division cham…