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Islam Makhachev will not compete at UFC 254.

The Dagestani lightweight was supposed to face Rafael dos Anjos in Abu Dhabi on Oct. 24, but dos Anjos withdrew from the bout after testing positive for COVID-19. UFC president Dana White revealed to Yahoo Sports on Wednesday that a replacement opponent was not found for Makhachev, and a subsequent release from the promotion regarding the event did not include the Eagles MMA representative. As a result, UFC 254 will move forward with a five-bout main card.

Makhachev is currently on a six-bout winning streak in UFC competition. He went 2-0 in 2019, posting decision triumphs against Davi Ramos and Arman Tsarukyan. A training partner of lightweight champ Khabib Nurmagomedov, the 29-year-old is 18-1 since beginning his professional career in 2010.

UFC 254 takes place at the Flash Forum and is headlined by a 155-pound title unification bout between Nurmagomedov and interim champ Justin Gaethje. The main card airs on pay-…

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Petr Yan is expected to make his first bantamweight title defense against Aljamain Sterling in the UFC 256 co-headliner.

Yahoo Sports was first to report the matchup. Contracts have not been signed as of yet, but the promotion is working on finalizing the 135-pound bout. UFC 256 takes place on Dec. 12 and also includes a women’s featherweight title tilt between Amanda Nunes and Megan Anderson.

Yan takes a 10-bout professional winning streak into his matchup with Sterling. That stretch includes seven straight victories in the Octagon, with notable triumphs over the likes of Urijah Faber, Jimmie Rivera and John Dodson. “No Mercy” claimed the vacant bantamweight crown with a fifth-round TKO of Jose Aldo at UFC 251 on July 11.

Since suffering a first-round knockout defeat to Marlon Moraes in December 2017, Sterling has reeled off five consecutive wins in UFC competition. Most recently, “The Funk Master…

Hooray for expeditious heavyweight knockouts! Justin Tafa (4-1) detonates Juan Adams in about two minutes to notch his inaugural UFC win. #UFC247 pic.twitter.com/N57vBLERb0

— Kyle Johnson (@VonPreux) February 9, 2020

A heavyweight showdown pitting Carlos Felipe against Justin Tafa has been added to the lineup for an Ultimate Fighting Championship card on Jan. 16.

Combate was first to report the booking. A location and venue have not been announced for the event, which is also expected to include a bout between Brian Kelleher and Ricky Simon.

Felipe suffered his first professional defeat in his Octagon debut, dropping a majority decision against Sergey Spivak at UFC Fight Night 172 on July 18. The 25-year-old Brazilian rebounded at UFC on ESPN 16, where he outpointed Yorgan De Castro to improve to 9-1 as a professional.

Tafa, meanwhile, rebounded from a first-round KO loss to De Catro in his promotional debut to stop Juan Adams via …

Due to contract issues, Ante Delija has been removed from his heavyweight matchup against Ciryl Gane this Saturday at #UFCFightIsland6 and the bout has been canceled.

More info

— UFC Europe (@UFCEurope) October 14, 2020 UFC Fight Night 180 has lost its co-main event after “contract issues” caused Ante Delija to be pulled from a proposed heavyweight matchup with Ciryl Gane.

The Las Vegas-based promotion announced the news on Wednesday. As a result, a women’s flyweight clash pitting Katlyn Chookagian against Jessica Andrade has been elevated to the evening’s co-main event. Due to the short-notice nature of Delija’s exit, a replacement opponent will not be sought for Gane.

UFC Fight Night 180 takes place at the Flash Forum in Abu Dhabi on Saturday and is headlined by a featherweight scrap between Brian Ortega and the Korean Zombie. The main card airs on ESPN+ at 7 p.m. ET/4 p.m. PT, while the prelims stream immediately prior beginning …

.@LFAfighting brings the Women's #Strawweight Championship to #Kansas at #LFA94!

Champion@Monster_Demovs.Challenger@LoopyGodinez

: https://t.co/28e5sbk4AM

Friday, October 30@HartmanArena#ParkCity, #Kansas#MMA#LFANation@UFCFightPass pic.twitter.com/OFiHrG9PBE

— LFA (@LFAfighting) October 14, 2020

Crystal Vanessa Demopoulos will defend her strawweight crown against Lupita Godinez in the Legacy Fighting Alliance 94 main event on Oct. 30.

The promotion announced the matchup on Wednesday. LFA 94 takes place at Hartman Arena in Park City, Kansas, and will have a “limited” number of tickets on sale to attend the event, per a release. LFA 94 airs on UFC Fight Pass at 9 p.m. ET/6 p.m. PT.

Demopoulos became the promotion’s inaugural strawweight queen with a fourth-round submission of Sam Hughes at LFA 85 on July 17. She attempted to earn a UFC contract on the Contender Series in August but fell to Cory McKenna via unanimous dec…

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The women’s featherweight title bout between Cristiane Justino and Arlene Blencowe will proceed as planned after both competitors made weight on Wednesday.

“Cyborg” tipped the scales at 145 pounds, while Blencowe checked in at 144.5. Bellator 249 takes place on Thursday at Mohegan Sun Arena in Uncasville, Connecticut and will also see Patricky Freire (155.5) square off against Jaleel Willis (159) in the evening’s co-main event. The main card airs on CBS Sports Network and Dazn at 10 p.m. ET/7 p.m. PT, while the prelims stream on Bellator’s YouTube channel and Dazn at 7:15 p.m. ET/4:15 p.m. PT.

It wasn’t smooth sailing for everyone on the scales, as Willis missed weight by three pounds for his lightweight showdown with Freire, as did Leandro Higo (139) for a featured bantamweight clash against Ricky Bandejas (136).

A former 145-pound champion with the UFC, Strikeforce and Invicta, Justino captured …

Ronaldo Souza will lock horns with Marvin Vettori in a middleweight matchup at UFC 256.

Vettori’s trainer, Emanuele Lochner, announced the news on the The Scramble MMA Show, and the bout was also confirmed by UFC broadcast partner ESPN. Vettori was initially expected to face Omari Akhmedov at UFC 256, but that bout did not come to fruition.

UFC 256 takes place on Dec. 12 and features a women’s featherweight title tilt between Amanda Nunes and Megan Anderson. A location for the event has not been announced.

Souza was supposed to square off against Uriah Hall at UFC 249 on May, but a positive COVID-19 test forced “Jacare” to withdraw from the card. The 40-year-old Brazilian is coming off a brief foray to light heavyweight, where he dropped a split decision to current 205-pound champ Jan Blachowicz at UFC Fight Night 164.

Vettori, meanwhile, has won three consecutive Octagon appearances since dropping a split verdict to reigning middleweight king Israel Ade…

I don’t play fighting I fight so get your soft body to Vegas and I will smoke you on dec 19. You are a real fighter so let’s go @NateDiaz209

— Khamzat Chimaev (@KChimaev) October 13, 2020

Khamzat Chimaev is on the prowl for a marquee matchup, and he just added Nate Diaz to his list of potential targets.

On Tuesday, Diaz reacted to Conor McGregor’s proposal of a charity exhibition bout between the Irish star and Dustin Poirier this December outside the confines of the Octagon. The UFC has since countered by offering a rematch to the two contenders for an undetermined event.

“Let’s don’t get it twisted I already smoked these [two] now they play fighting,” Diaz wrote on Twitter.

Chimaev responded to Diaz’s post, calling for a December showdown with the Stockton, California, native.

“I don’t play fighting, I fight, so get your soft body to Vegas and I will smoke you on Dec. 19,” Chimaev wrote. “You are a real fighter so let’s go […

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After Magomed Ismailov defeated Aleksander Emelianenko by third-round technical knockout at Absolute Championship Akhmat 107, the promotion has found a new challenge for the 34-year-old Russian known as “Bald Hawk.”

Ismailov (16-2-1) will face Ivan Shtyrkov (17-1-1) in the ACA 115 main event on Dec. 12. A location and venue for the event will be announced at a later date.

The 34-year-old Ismailov will make his debut in the light heavyweight division to participate in this bout. Prior to facing Emelianenko in a heavyweight affair, Ismailov had previously only competed at middleweight. But in order to meet "The Grim Reaper, he gained nearly 29 pounds – and was still outweighed by approximately 44 pounds. Now, Ismailov seems to have found a middle ground in terms of weight.

Ismailov is currently on an 11-fight unbeaten streak, with a draw against Vladimir Mineev the only blemish on his ledger during t…

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Bellator MMA has signed the cousin of UFC heavyweight contender Jairzinho Rozenstruik.

Sherdog.com confirmed with a promotion official on Tuesday that the California-based organization has signed Gregory Milliard to a multi-fight contract. MMAjunkie.com was first to report the news. Milliard is expected to compete in the Bellator cage before the end of the year.

A light heavyweight, Milliard has been victorious in eight of his last nine professional appearances while competing on the regional circuit. “The Arubian Assassin” began his career with a 2-4 record, which included a loss to Francois Ambang at Bellator 68 in May 2012.

Milliard has finished six of his professional triumphs by KO/TKO, one via submission and three by decision. He last fought in April 2019, scoring a second-round TKO victory in the main event of a card staged in Aruba.

The lineup for One Championship “Inside the Matrix” is now complete.

The promotion announced Monday that a lightweight matchup between Eduard Folayang and Antonio Caruso and an atomweight clash pitting Ritu Phogat against Nou Srey Pov will round out the six-bout card on Oct. 30.

One “Inside the Matrix” will be held at Singapore Indoor Stadium behind closed doors with only athletes, officials and production crew at the venue. Four title bouts will top the card: Aung La N Sang vs. Reinier de Ridder at middleweight; Christian Lee vs. Iuri Lapicus at lightweight; Martin Nguyen vs. Thanh Le at featherweight and Jingnan Xiong vs. Tiffany Teo at strawweight.

A three-time one lightweight champion, Folayang has lost three of his last our appearance, including a split-decision setback against Pieter Buist on Jan. 31. Caruso lost for the first time in eight professional outings in his promotional debut, falling to Buist via unanimous decision at One “Dawn of Valor” in October 201…

Khabib Nurmagomedov has no interest in a reality TV gig opposite Conor McGregor.

The reigning lightweight champion confirmed a recent statement made by his manager, Ali Abdelaziz, that he vetoed the possibility of coaching a season of “The Ultimate Fighter” against the Irish superstar.

"'The Ultimate Fighter' with him is good attention for him," Nurmagomedov told ESPN. "I don't want to give him this. I never give him this. Even if they give me $5 billion -- even if they gave me the UFC -- I never do this. This is good attention for him.

"It's done. Everything is done Oct. 6, 2018. I finish him. I finish everything about him.”

After months of bad blood, Nurmagomedov submitted McGregor in the fourth round of their 155-pound title bout at UFC 229 on that aforementioned date. After his victory, the Dagestani jumped out of the Octagon to confront McGregor’s corner, prompting a melee that resulted in fines and suspensions for both fighters as well as members o…

Orion Cosce, the card's biggest underdog, got the third-round finish from the crucifix #DWCS pic.twitter.com/xLxvijmznH

— ESPN MMA (@espnmma) August 19, 2020

Dana White’s Contender Series alum Orion Cosce will make his Octagon debut against Nicolas Dalby at UFC 255.

Cosce initially announced the booking via social media. UFC 255 takes place on Nov. 21 and is headlined by a flyweight title clash between Deiveson Figueiredo and Alex Perez. In the co-main event, Valentina Shevchenko defends her 125-pound belt against Jennifer Maia.

Cosce earned a UFC contract by rallying for a third-round TKO victory against Matt Dixon in a Contender Series bout on Aug. 18. The 26-year-old Californian is 7-0 as a professional, with all of his triumphs coming inside the distance.

Dalby, meanwhile, had a five-bout unbeaten streak snapped at UFC on ESPN 14, where he was submitted by Jesse Ronson in the opening stanza on July 25. A former Cage Warriors tit…

It appears that Cory Sandhagen did not emerge unscathed from his highlight-reel victory over Marlon Moraes at UFC Fight Night 179.

The Elevation Fight Team member is facing a potential 180-day medical suspension unless he receives clearance from an ophthalmologist. At a minimum, Sandhagen is suspended 30 days with 21 days no contact. Moraes, who was stopped by a spinning wheel kick and follow-up punches in the second round of Saturday’s bantamweight headliner, is suspended 45 days with 21 days of no contact.

The UFC, which acted as its own regulating body for the event, recently released a full list of medical suspensions to mixedmartialarts.com. UFC Fight Night 179 took place at the Flash Forum in Abu Dhabi on Saturday night. Everyone who competed received at least a seven-day mandatory suspension.

Five other fighters from the card are facing potential 180-day sits: Tom Breese, Rodrigo Nascimento Ferreira, Impa Kasanganay, Tony Kelley and Omar Morales.

…

A proposed middleweight clash between Joe Schilling and Curtis Millender has been removed from Bellator 249.

Sherdog.com confirmed the news with a promotion official on Monday following an initial report from MMAjunkie.com. The bout was canceled after the Mohegan Tribe Department of Athletic Regulations denied Schilling a license to fight at the event for undisclosed reasons. Millender will not receive a replacement opponent.

As a result, Bellator 249 will proceed with 11 bouts. The event takes place on Thursday at Mohegan Sun Arena in Uncasville, Connecticut, and is headlined by a women’s featherweight title tilt between Cristiane Justino and Arlene Blencowe. The main card airs on CBS Sports Network at 10 p.m. ET/7 p.m. PT following prelims on Bellator’s YouTube channel at 7:15 p.m. ET/4:15 p.m. PT.

Millender rejoined Bellator after a 3-2 UFC stint and has kicked off his 2020 campaign with a decision win over Moses Murrietta at Bellator 238 and a decision los…

Initially scheduled for UFC 254 on Oct. 24, the lightweight fight between Rafael dos Anjos and Islam Makhachev had to be postponed due to Brazilian testing positive for COVID-19 two weeks before traveling to Abu Dhabi.

Dos Anjos spent his camp for the postponed bout at Nova Uniao, where he wowed the likes of former UFC featherweight champion Jose Aldo and head trainer Andre Pederneiras.

"Unfortunately he was caught by COVID-19. He was in such a great shape. But I can guarantee that as soon as he recovers, the fans will see the best Rafael dos Anjos ever,” Aldo told Sherdog.com backstage at a launch event for Wanderlei Silva’s biography last week.

Aldo revealed that he also participated in the camp with dos Anjos and already has his next opponent decided.

"Unfortunately the UFC did not authorize me to release the name, but we will fight in November,” Aldo said. “By December 2021, I want to be the owner of bantamweight belt.”

Pederneiras…

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While some visual evidence does exist, what exactly happened in the locker room at Pride “Shockwave” on December 31, 2005?

The entire martial arts world has already seen the YouTube video where Charles Bennett and Cristiano Marcello, jiu-jitsu trainer of Chute Boxe team, had a fight in the Pride locker room a few hours before the grudge match between Wanderlei Silva and Ricardo Arona.   

Everything happened shortly after “Krazy Horse” submitted Japanese fighter Ken Kaneko, who also made his camp in Chute Boxe. Marcello, who was in Kaneko’s corner, had a discussion with Bennett, who was sharing a locker room with the Chute Boxe team that night, right after that fight ended. What resulted was a confrontation where Marcello applied a triangle choke that rendered Bennett unconscious, as seen in the video.

However, perhaps the most controversial part of that history occurs when Bennett re…

Konfrontacja Sztuk Walki’s next event will include a pair of champions on the card.

The Polish promotion announced on Monday that KSW 56 will feature welterweight king Roberto Soldic and light heavyweight title holder Tomasz Narkun on the Nov. 14 bill. Former professional boxer and reality TV star Karolina Owczarz, who is a training partner of Karolina Kowalkiewicz, will also compete at the event. Opponents for the trio have yet to be announced.

Soldic claimed the welterweight crown with a stoppage of Borys Mankowski in his promotional debut at KSW 41. After losing the title to Dricus Du Plessis in his next appearance, “Robocop” regained the crown in a rematch and has since won three more bouts under the KSW banner.

Narkun, meanwhile, has held the KSW light heavyweight crown since 2015 — defending the title four times in the process. “Giraffe” has won eight of his last nine outings, a streak that includes a pair of triumphs over KSW legend Mamed Khalidov. His on…

THE MOST UNBELIEVABLE KO IN UFC HISTORY #UFCFightIsland5 pic.twitter.com/O7BOJg8h9c

— UFC (@ufc) October 10, 2020

It was a surreal moment for Joaquin Buckley at UFC Fight Night 179 after he authored a finish that figures to top many “Knockout of the Year” lists at the end of 2020.

The aftermath included a conversation with UFC president Dana White, who was seated cageside at the Flash Forum in Abu Dhabi and was understandably impressed by Buckley’s work.

“The boss just told me that he wants to give me all of the bonuses, so I’m welcome to it, I want all of it. To be honest with you, it’s surreal. A cloud came over my head when he was talking to me, so I couldn’t hear nothing, but once that money came in, once he talked about that, then it cleared up a little bit,” Buckley said. “But it’s awesome, it’s surreal that Dana White came over and talked to me.”

Although he would ultimately receive just one “Performance of the Night” bonus,…

A women’s flyweight tilt pitting Roxanne Modafferi against Viviane Araujo is in the works for a UFC event on Jan. 30.

MyMMANews.com was first to report the matchup. A location and a headliner for the card have yet to be announced.

Modafferi was victorious in two of her three Octagon appearances in 2020. Most recently, “The Happy Warrior” outpointed Andrea Lee in a rematch at UFC Fight Night 177 on Sept. 12. Modafferi also scored a notable triumph over highly-touted prospect Maycee Barber at UFC 246 in January.

Araujo, meanwhile has won three of her first four UFC bouts, with her lone setback coming at the hands of Jessica Eye. In her last outing, the 33-year-old Brazilian earned a unanimous verdict over Montana De La Rosa at UFC Fight Night 176 on Sept. 5.

Otro KO histórico!!!!! Cómo ver viral? @Cors_Life lo sabe! #UFCFightIsland5 pic.twitter.com/SUy0aZMvEl

— ufcespanol (@UFCEspanol) October 11, 2020

Marlon Moraes thought things were going fairly well early on his UFC Fight Night 179 main event showdown with Cory Sandhagen.

That, of course, was before Sandhagen leveled him with a spinning wheel kick early in Round 2. The blow sent Moraes into a backward somersault, and a barrage of follow-up punches from Sandhagen prompted referee Marc Goddard to wave off the bantamweight bout 63 seconds into the period.

Sandhagen landed about four unanswered punches before the stoppage, but Moraes believes he could have been granted a little more time to recover.

“I thought we had a very good first round. But I thought I won the round,” Moraes said during the post-fight show on ESPN+. “And then he started the second and I don’t know, I think he kind of catch me with a kick and bloodied my eye a littl…

Edson Barboza didn’t feel like a man on a three-fight losing streak heading into his matchup with Makwan Amirkhani at UFC Fight Night 179.

However, that’s exactly what the Brazilian’s record showed following a skid that included back-to-back split-decision defeats at the hands of Paul Felder and Dan Ige. So one can’t blame Barboza if he felt a sense of relief after a unanimous decision victory in Saturday’s co-main event at the Flash Forum in Abu Dhabi on Saturday.

“I feel like I take a couple hundred thousand pounds off my shoulder,” Barboza said at Saturday’s post-fight press conference. “It’s hard. I thought I win my last two fights against Paul and Ige. Thank God I’m back to get my ‘W,’ and I’m very, very happy.”

Barboza was explosive and efficient against Amirkhani, flooring his opponent twice in the second stanza in a convincing performance. Making the performance more impressive was the fact that Barboza had to make some adjustments when Amirkhani replac…

Cory Sandhagen provided the type of finish on Saturday night that gives him serious leverage in the Ultimate Fighting Championship’s bantamweight division.

The Elevation Fight Team standout dispatched Marlon Moraes in spectacular fashion, knocking out the former 135-pound title challenger with a spinning wheel kick and follow-up punches 63 seconds into Round 2 of their headlining bout at UFC Fight Night 179 in Abu Dhabi.

While it seems inevitable that the Las Vegas-based promotion will eventually book Aljamain Sterling against reigning bantamweight king Petr Yan, there’s always a possibility Sandhagen could skip to the front of the line – even with a first-round submission loss to “The Funkmaster” on his resume. It wouldn’t be the first time merit took a backseat in a sport that places a premium on entertainment.

“I would feel really bad if they did me and Yan, and they did that to Sterling,” Sandhagen said at Saturday’s post-fight press conference. “That being…

THE MOST UNBELIEVABLE KO IN UFC HISTORY #UFCFightIsland5 pic.twitter.com/O7BOJg8h9c

— UFC (@ufc) October 10, 2020

Joaquin Buckley could have received the UFC’s entire allotment of bonus money on Saturday night and few outside of those competing on the card would have complained.

As it stands, Buckley received a $50,000 “Performance of the Night” bonus for a “Knockout of the Year” candidate against Impa Kasanganay in a preliminary middleweight contest at UFC Fight Night 179 in Abu Dhabi. After Kasanganay caught a kick from his opponent, Buckley capitalized with a jumping spinning back kick to the face. The blow rendered Kasanganay unconscious before he hit the canvas, and the contest ended at the 2:03 mark of Round 2.

Meanwhile, headliner Cory Sandhagen received a $50,000 “Performance of the Night” award for a spectacular knockout of his own. The Elevation Fight Team product finished former World Series of Fighting champ Marlon Moraes wit…