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Georges St. Pierre believes Aiemann Zahabi beats Sean O'Malley if he avoids making mistakes. 

Zahabi will take on O’Malley in a bantamweight tilt at UFC White House on Sunday. Zahabi’s brother, Firas Zahabi, is often credited for shaping St. Pierre into one of the greatest fighters to have ever graced the sport. St. Pierre and Firas will be in Aiemann’s corner at the White House on Sunday. 

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St. Pierre is impressed with Zahabi’s preparation for the matchup against O’Malley. The former UFC double champ and Hall of Famer believes Zahabi will beat “Suga” if he performs as he does in the gym. “Rush” says Zahabi, just has to avoid “f—-ing it up” to get his hands raised against O’Malley.‘Just Be Yourself’ “I feel good about this,” St. Pierre told UFC on TNT Sports. “After seeing how he recuperated in a very small amount of time after his weight cut, it’s just amazing. He looks like the Hulk right now… Aiemann will be successful tomorrow; he just …

Islam Makhachev was struggling in a street fight when Khabib Nurmagomedov stepped in to change the outcome. 

Makhachev (28-1) and Nurmagomedov (29-0) grew up together in the mountains of Dagestan, which are known for a tough upbringing. Both UFC stars have repeatedly mentioned how they had to stand their ground in street fights to avoid being bullied. 

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Makhachev recently recalled a massive fight involving rival schools with around 500 guys on each side. Makhachev’s side was struggling as the other side had older guys. It was then that Nurmagomedov, three years older than Makhachev, stepped in with some of his friends. The tide swayed, and the other side took heel, which boosted the confidence of Makhachev and his friends.‘We Needed Some Fire’ “Once we had a scuffle 500 vs. 500, school vs. school,” Makhachev told Red Corner MMA. “And we were too young, but on the other side they had older guys, so we struggled against them. We needed some fi…

Tom Aspinall and Manchester City midfielder Phil Foden are both not in the United States, which is currently hosting major events in their respective sports. 

UFC heavyweight champion Aspinall (15-3) is currently sidelined due to an eye injury suffered in his first title defense against Ciryl Gane last year. Meanwhile, Gane is scheduled to fight Alex Pereira for an interim heavyweight title in the co-main event of the iconic UFC White House card on Sunday. While the champion of the division is typically present in the interim title fights, Aspinall has not been invited to the White House. 

Meanwhile, Foden has failed to make it to the English national soccer squad for the FIFA World Cup 2026 in America. Aspinall recently met Foden, finding common ground over not being in the U.S. during crucial events in their respective sports.

Uncertain Future The winner of the fight between Gane and Pereira should ideally fight Aspinall in a title unifier. However…

Diego Lopes is always ready to save the day for the UFC.

Lopes is scheduled to open the iconic UFC White House card in a featherweight clash against Steve Garcia on Sunday. Lopes successfully made the non-title limit of 146 pounds for his matchup against Garcia. 

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However, Lopes reappeared at the weigh-ins to step on the scale for another weight class. Lopes later successfully weighed in at 154 pounds as the backup fighter for the lightweight title fight between Ilia Topuria and Justin Gaethje. The Brazilian reveals that he contacted Hunter Campbell when he heard that the originally planned backup fighter, Arman Tsarukyan, wouldn’t be weighing in. Campbell gave the green light to Lopes, who stands a chance at a lightweight title shot if any of the main event fighters are forced out for some reason. 

Diego Lopes officially comes in at 145lbs…AND 155lbs for tomorrow’s #UFCWhiteHouse card!

[ 8pmET | LIVE on @Para…

Josh Hokit claims he is trying to help Justin Gaethje by getting Ilia Topuria riled up. 

Hokit has recently developed animosity with Topuria leading up to their respective fights at UFC Freedom 250 on Sunday at the White House. Hokit went off on Topuria at the pre-fight press conference at the  Lincoln Memorial. Hokit briefly praised Topuria and apologized for previous comments before insulting the lightweight champion’s ex-wife. Dana White shut down the presser immediately after Hokit’s comments about Topuria’s ex-wife. 

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Hokit claims he was trying to get Topuria riled up. While Hokit fights at heavyweight, he believes the fighters in the lower weight classes were in a foul mood as they were already enduring weight cuts during the press conference. Hokit hopes he got under Topuria’s skin enough to affect his performance against Gaethje in the main event.Necessary Assistance “You wanna be a weight bully? That’s the consequence,” Hokit t…

#UFCWhiteHouse main event is official!@Topuriailia weighs in at 155lbs 💪

[ SUN JUN 14 | LIVE on @ParamountPlus | Title Fights Presented by @Cryptocom ] pic.twitter.com/NkIs2vyo9W

— UFC (@ufc) June 13, 2026 The Ultimate Fighting Championship's historic card is officially set for Sunday following the UFC White House weigh-ins.

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Headlining the first professional sporting event to take place on the White House lawn is a lightweight title unification fight between Ilia Topuria and Justin Gaethje, while Alex Pereira vs. Ciryl Gane for the interim heavyweight championship serves as the co-main event. All four fighters successfully made the championship weight without any issue. Now, all seven bouts on the monumental event are officially moving forward after no fighters on the card had issues on the scale. Additionally, Diego Lopes came back a second time to make lightweight championship weight of 154 pounds to qualify as a re…

Official #PFLNigeria Decision: Nacho Campos def. Wasi Adeshina via Submission (Rear Naked Choke) at 1:45 of Round 1!

Nacho Campos makes a statement on African soil. 🇪🇸🔥#PFLNigeria | LIVE | Eko Convention Centre | Live on SuperSport pic.twitter.com/pLPtV8i8DD

— PFL Africa (@PFLAfrica) June 13, 2026

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Ignacio Campos silenced the home crowd as he finished the local favorite in the first round at PFL Nigeria.

Campos (8-2, 2-1 PFL) locked horns with Wasi Adeshina (10-4, 3-1 PFL) in an intriguing featherweight clash. After a brief feeling-out process where both fighters alternated between wrestling phases against the fence and exchanges in the center of the cage, “Nacho” landed a perfectly timed knee that dropped his opponent. The Spaniard followed up with several heavy punches from half-guard before taking his opponent’s back as Adeshina was looking to escape. Once Campos gained the favorable position, it was only a matte…

Ultimate Fighting Championship welterweight ace Islam Makhachev believes a win over Michael Morales adds more to his legacy than a win over Ian Garry.

Makhachev (28-1) is expected to defend his welterweight title in August, although an opponent has yet to be finalized. While the division is teeming with contenders, Makhachev recently admitted that Garry is the frontrunner. However, Makhachev would prefer to defend his title against Morales (19-0) rather than Garry (17-1). Makhachev believes a win over Morales would add more to his legacy, as the Ecuadorian is undefeated, unlike Garry.

Makhachev was initially looking to defend his title against former champion Kamaru Usman. Everyone, including Usman himself, has counted him out of the race for the title shot. However, Makhachev still believes that “The Nigerian Nightmare” beats both Morales and Garry.

“If we pick between Morales and Ian, to be honest with you, in terms of my legacy, I would go with Morales,” Makh…

Dillon Danis is making some bold predictions about Conor McGregor.

McGregor (22-6) is set to return to action in a welterweight matchup against Max Holloway (27-9) in the main event at UFC 329 on July 11 at T-Mobile Arena in Las Vegas. McGregor has opened as a +300 underdog, with fans and pundits expecting Holloway to dominate the former double champ.

However, McGregor’s training partner, Danis, believes otherwise. Danis believes McGregor’s dedication is getting underestimated before his return. McGregor’s fight against Holloway marks his return to action after five years. However, Danis believes ring rust is a mindset that McGregor can definitely beat. Danis predicts that “Notorious” will knock Holloway out within three rounds. “El Jefe” even predicts that McGregor will fight Islam Makhachev after beating Holloway.

“He’s always been a dedicated guy… Him not going to the White House card… He is living in the gym,” Danis told MMA Fighting. “He is bringing in tough…

Ultimate Fighting Championship welterweight king Islam Makhachev doubled down on his claims of having accepted a fight against Ilia Topuria.

Topuria is scheduled to defend his lightweight title against interim champion Justin Gaethje in the UFC White House: Freedom 250 main event on Sunday. According to reports, the original plan was for Topuria to challenge Makhachev for the welterweight title.

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Topuria (17-0) initially blamed Makhachev (28-1) for the matchup falling through. Even Dana White said that Makhachev was out with a hand injury. However, Makhachev has thoroughly denied being injured or turning down a fight against Topuria. Makhachev recently reiterated that he had accepted the offer without any hesitation. However, Makhachev’s manager, Ali Abdelaziz, called him the very next day to inform that the booking was off. Makhachev claims negotiations failed when Topuria’s manager, Malki Kawa, demanded an insane fight purse. The Dagestani champ al…

Steve Garcia is hoping that an eight-fight win streak after prevailing at the White House will be enough to punch his ticket to gold.

Garcia opens the UFC White House card against two-time title challenger Diego Lopes on Sunday. Residing in the No. 3 and No. 12 spots at featherweight, respectively, on Sherdog’s Official Rankings, Garcia believes an upset over the top-ranked Brazilian immediately makes him relevant in the 145-pound title picture.

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Garcia plans to dominate Lopes from the opening bell. While “Mean Machine” doesn’t want to divulge much, he advises fans not to blink. Garcia said in an interview with the UFC:

“Having an opponent like Diego Lopes, knowing where his ranking is at. Having the opportunity to fight someone that high, challenging myself, but also being able to put myself in a position where I could challenge for the title… I’m just gonna go out there and dominate him. Dominate him from the start of the bell to the end of the b…

Josh Hokit believes he is not leaving the Ultimate Fighting Championship anytime soon.

Hokit (9-0) is scheduled to fight Derrick Lewis (29-13) in a heavyweight tilt at UFC White House: Freedom 250 on Sunday. Meanwhile, Alex Pereira (13-3) fights Ciryl Gane (13-2) for the interim heavyweight title in the co-main event.

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Hokit has launched an unprovoked tirade on Pereira, targeting “Poatan” verbally during press conferences and run-ins at the fighter hotel. Pereira recently said Hokit’s UFC career might be in jeopardy. According to Pereira, while it is too late to boot Hokit from the White House card, it could be his last fight in the UFC. However, Hokit has shut down Pereira’s claims. “The Incredible Hok” says he recently signed an eight-fight deal with the UFC. Hokit believes he is not going anywhere, and Pereira is just being hopeful, as is scared.

“Pereira can say whatever,” Hokit said on UFC Embedded. “When you put on a fight like I put on last …

Sherdog's live PFL Nigeria coverage will begin Saturday at 1 p.m. ET. Women’s Strawweight Showcase Bout:Shelda Chipito (116) vs. Haidy Ahmed (116) Round 1 Ahmed rushes in after a couple of low kicks by each woman and looks for the takedown against the fence. She turns away from the fence and tries a headlock throw. Chipito defends well, and throws a knee up the middle. Ninety seconds in, they are still jocketing against the fence. Chipito is close to taking Ahmed’s back standing against the fence, but Ahmed turns in towards her and they are back to stalemate. Half the round down and Chipito gets a trip takedown. Ahmed elevates her hips from full guard and looks for offense, but Chipito stands out of her guard for a moment. Chipito dives back into guard and Ahmed looks for an armbar. It looks dangerous, but Chipito defends as Ahmed goes belly-down, and manages to get her arm out of danger. Chipito stands and kicks the legs for a few moments before the referee stands them up. …

Brendan Allen wants to avenge his loss against Sean Strickland.

Allen (27-7) was just 25 when he suffered his first loss in the Ultimate Fighting Championship against Strickland (31-7) in 2020. While Allen has since grown into a middleweight contender, Strickland has won the title twice, most recently against Khamzat Chimaev at UFC 328 last month.

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Allen now wants to avenge his loss against Strickland. Allen believes that while he has developed substantially since his loss against Strickland, the champion is still the same fighter he faced in 2020. “All In” recently earned a unanimous decision win over Strickland’s teammate, Edmen Shahbazyan. Allen considers Shahbazyan a better version of Strickland. According to Allen, Shahbazyan is technically more sound than Strickland, even though his resume might not reflect that.

“[Strickland] is the same guy that I fought then, and I’m not,” Allen told Home of Fight. “Not even close to the same guy. I’m more …

The Ultimate Fighting Championship could use a little more transparency.

In a backstage interview ahead of UFC Freedom 250, former two-division champ Alex Pereira spoke with fellow ex-two weight class kingpin Daniel Cormier, with Pereira’s coach Plinio Cruz translating. During their conversation, the subject of the World Cup came up, as Cruz was sporting the Brazilian national football team’s shirt. The most successful team in FIFA World Cup history, Brazil is matched in Group C against Morocco, Haiti and Scotland within the next few weeks.

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North America will play host to the World Cup this year, with Mexico and Canada sharing sites with the U.S. to run the matches. Taking advantage of the atmosphere, “DC” suggested a bet to the Brazilian on which team would go further in the competition: the U.S. or Brazil.How about $20KWhether swept up in the moment, overly enthusiastic to be leading up to the big tentpole show or genuinely filled with national p…

The last-ditch effort to stop the Ultimate Fighting Championship’s tentpole show at the White House has gone up in smoke.

Federal judge Amit Mehta from the District Court for the District of Columbia issued an opinion on the lawsuit filed by the Public Integrity Project to halt the UFC White House card. The memorandum was filed on Friday, which denied the motion to establish a temporary restraining order to halt the event until the court can fully rule on the matters. The court indicated that the plaintiffs had not fully demonstrated standing—that is, the right to bring a lawsuit—or that they have suffered a demonstrable, actual harm that they would suffer should this show carry on.

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In order to establish standing, the plaintiffs have to establish that they were or are about to be injured physically, financially, etc. They must also show a link between that injury and what they are suing about, to show the causal connection between the two. Finally…

⚖️ #PFLNigeria Official Weigh In Results:

Wasi Adeshina - 144.8 lbs ✅Nacho Campos - 145.8 lbs ✅

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The main event is on!#PFLNigeria | Saturday, June 13 | Live on SuperSport pic.twitter.com/v5em2pWyK7 — PFL Africa (@PFLAfrica) June 12, 2026 The Professional Fighters League Africa returns this week with the opening rounds of its lightweight and bantamweight tournament.

The main event of PFL Nigeria will see Wasi Adeshina take on Ignacio Campos in a featherweight showcase. Both men successfully made weight without issue for the three-round fight. All other fighters hit their marks, including the 16 tournament fighters and the lone bantamweight alternate.

"The Nigerian Jaguar" will look to make his home country proud in the headliner. Adeshina (10-3) is on a six-fight win streak that includes three straight victories inside the promotion. Meanwhile, Campos (7-2) is 1-1 inside the PFL, with his lone win coming over …

Elisandra Ferreira enjoys proving the doubters wrong. The diminutive Brazilian, a former Invicta Fighting Championships atomweight queen, makes her Professional Fighters League debut Saturday in Lagos, Nigeria.

Early on, due to a relatively late start in mixed martial arts, “Lili” fought her first professional bout on a wing and a prayer. A technical knockout win reinforced the idea that, despite still having much to learn, this was going to be her chosen path.

“I’ve never been one to turn down a fight. I wanted to see how it would go,” she shared in her native Portuguese.

“I had competed in muay thai and jiu-jitsu, separately. I lost two bouts as an amateur, but it wasn't a bad thing. It was more of a wakeup call. I now knew I wanted to pursue this, and that I needed to improve. I wished I had had more fights as an amateur, but age counts for a lot in MMA. When the opportunity came for me to fight as a pro, now that I was training seriously, we decided to go for it.…

Two all-time great Ultimate Fighting Championship champs share their differing thoughts on how Sunday’s co-main event will go.

Despite sitting in the second-to-last slot on the UFC White House event on Sunday, the duel between Brazilian Alex Pereira and Frenchman Ciryl Gane for the interim UFC heavyweight title has generated as much if not more debate than the main event. between American Justin Gaethje and Spaniard Ilia Topuria. One of the reasons for this is Ilia Topuria’s status as a massive betting favorite over Justin Gaethje while ‘Poatan’ and Gane currently see odds that are dead even.

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In the opinion of former UFC heavyweight champions, Fabricio Werdum and Junior dos Santos, the confrontation could become a closely contested affair between two great strikers, but the Brazilian’s game plan will make the difference. With the experience of having faced Gane in his last UFC fight, at UFC 256 in 2020 when he was stopped with elbow strikes, dos Sa…

Montana is coming to New York.

The Professional Fighters League has announced another bout for their upcoming show in Long Island, New York, on July 31. A women’s flyweight contest between Montana De La Rosa (13-9-1) and Tatiana Postarnakova (5-0) is set for PFL New York at the UBS Arena, per sources close to the situation.

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Top notch featherweights headline PFL San Diego: Tune in Saturday, June 27 at 9 p.m. ET on ESPN.

The fight will be the second of the year for Postarnakova, who made her PFL debut in March and picked up a unanimous decision victory over Elora Dana. The Russian spent the earlier stages of her career fighting in promotions in her home country. This includes a number of appearances with the quasi-MMA promotion Nashe Delo, one that for most of its existence, limited grappling to 30-second engagements and forced exhibition tags to be applied to the matches. In professional outings, she is perfect with five wins opposite zero defeats, …

Josh Hokit’s trash talk is foreign in Alex Pereira’s home country of Brazil.

Pereira (13-3) fights Ciryl Gane (13-2) for the interim heavyweight title in the co-headliner of UFC White House: Freedom 250 on June 14. Hokit (9-0) also takes on Derrick Lewis (29-13) in a heavyweight tilt on the same card.

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During a press conference for the card last month in New Jersey, Hokit went on an unprovoked rant on Pereira. Ilia Topuria, who was sitting next to Pereira, stood up in his defense and threw a glass of water at Hokit. The American heavyweight was escorted out of the presser before things could escalate. Pereira believes Hokit crossed a line when he said, “I will chama on your mama.’ While Pereira has heard a lot of trash talk over the years, he believes people rarely bring up their opponents’ mothers. In Pereira’s home country of Brazil, even between kids, all is fun and games until someone’s mother is mentioned.

Hokit has now been banned from the off…

Tensions continue to rise between Ilia Topuria and Justin Gaethje just days ahead of their matchup at UFC White House: Freedom 250.

Topuria (17-0) puts his lightweight title on the line against interim champion Gaethje (27-5) in the main event on June 14. Both Topuria and Gaethje are known to be respectful towards their opponents, hardly even engaging in trash talk. While things were initially the same in the lead-up to their upcoming fight, Topuria and Gaethje are now going at each other.

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It started with Gaethje’s father calling Topuria a short guy. Topuria responded by promising to knock Gaethje out in front of his father. Gaethje hit back by taking a dig at Topuria’s recent divorce, which the Georgian-Spaniard took personally. After a heated exchange on X, Topuria and Gaethje recently traded barbs over a video call on Pat McAfee’s talk show.

While Topuria is oozing with confidence going into the fight, Gaethje promises to make him look human. Read more about Ilia Topuria doubles down on vow to knock Justin Gaethje out in first round

Sean Strickland claims he isn’t upset about not being invited to the UFC Freedom 250 card.

The Ultimate Fighting Championship’s June 14 event at the White House has been the talk of the sport for months, with countless fighters jockeying for the chance to fight on the card, then once the lineup was finalized, for a spot in the very limited on-site seating. According to rumor, UFC middleweight champ Strickland (31-7), who is well known for voicing his unfiltered opinions, recent rumors suggested that the reigning middleweight champion has been barred from the event, potentially due to incendiary remarks he made last week about Israel and its longtime leader, Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu.

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However, UFC CEO Dana White dismissed the rumors, acknowledging Strickland’s penchant for controversy but maintaining that nobody had been banned and that attendance was constrained by space and seating. White also pointed out that Strickland had already voiced …

Professional Fighters League CEO John Martin is trying to build a brand that is not dependent on a single fighter.

PFL lightweight champion Usman Nurmagomedov (21-0) will look to defend his title against fellow undefeated fighter Archie Colgan (13-0) on July 31 at UBS Arena in Long Island, New York. This is the last fight on the current contract of Nurmagomedov.

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Martin recently revealed that the PFL hasn’t talked to Nurmagomedov yet about the renewal of his contract. Martin wants to see how things play out after Nurmagomedov’s fight against Colgan. While Martin would love for Nurmagomedov to continue with the PFL, he is not too bothered about the concept of a longtime lightweight champion going elsewhere. Martin believes that, like the Ultimate Fighting Championship, PFL should prioritise its brand over any single athlete. Martin is looking to build a system where they can build multiple stars under the PFL brand.

“For Nurmagomedov, his legacy is …