Blog

Paul Hughes will fight on home soil this spring. | PFL MMA

A lightweight clash pitting Paul Hughes against Jay-Jay Wilson will headline Professional Fighters League’s return to Belfast, Ireland, the promotion announced Monday.

PFL Belfast takes place at the SSE Arena on April 16. The main card airs on ESPN2, the ESPN app and ESPN Deportes in the United States beginning at 7 p.m. ET/4 p.m. PT. The prelims will be broadcast on the ESPN app at 2:30 p.m.. ET/11:30 a.m. PT. More bout are expected to be revealed in the coming weeks.

Advertisement

Lightweight Contenders in Ireland A former Cage Warriors champion, Hughes was a high-profile free agent signee for the PFL in 2024. He has gone 2-2 under the PFL banner, with both of his losses coming against reigning lightweight champion Usman Nurmagomedov. He notably defeated former Bellator MMA featherweight king A.J. McKee via split decision at PFL “Battle of the Giants” in October 2024.

Wilson, meanwhile, …

Paddy Pimblett had an uneasy feeling just before walking out for his fight against Justin Gaethje. 

Pimblett (23-4) faced his biggest step up in competition to date in Gaethje for the vacant lightweight title at UFC 324 last month. Despite an immense display of grit, Pimblett suffered a beatdown en route to a unanimous decision loss against Gaethje. 

Advertisement

Pimblett says he is being lauded for the loss against Gaethje more than he has been praised for his seven UFC wins leading up to that. “The Baddy” also revealed that he got a weird feeling just before walking out for the fight. While Pimblett didn’t feel his usual confident self, he brushed off the feeling once his walkout music started playing. The Liverpudlian believes he might have been waiting too long backstage before walking out. Regardless, Pimblett had a perfect camp and weight cut and makes no excuses for his loss.Looking Back “I always watch me fights back,” Pimblett said on YouTube. …

Anthony Hernandez is taking his loss to Sean Strickland in stride.

“Fluffy” saw an eight-bout winning streak come to an end in the UFC Houston headliner, as he fell to Strickland via third-round technical knockout on Saturday at the Toyota Center. Hernandez struggled to match the volume of his opponent before a knee to the body from the ex-middleweight king set the stage for the finishing sequence. Strickland put the reeling Hernandez away with a barrage of punches at the 2:23 mark of Round 3.

Advertisement

“First things first, thank you guys so much everyone who came out,” Hernandez said in an Instagram Story. “Showing me a lot of love, that was f—ing awesome. Players f—k up. I mean, I was on an eight-fight win streak. Felt like things were going smooth until I got hit with a f—king body shot. Sh— happens. Part of the game. Took six years for someone to finally beat me. I’ll be back.”Paying Respect While a victory could have made Hernandez next in line for 185-po…

Welterweights with championship aspirations will square off in the main event of a UFC Fight Night card on April 25.

The promotion announced on Saturday that Sean Brady will meet Joaquin Buckley in a 170-pound tilt at the UFC Apex in Las Vegas. The card will also include a women’s bantamweight scrap pitting Norma Dumont against Yana Santos and airs in its entirety on Paramount+.

Advertisement

Looking to Rebound Brady had a three-bout winning streak snapped in his last outing, when he suffered a first-round technical knockout loss to Michael Morales at UFC 322 this past November. Prior to that, the Philadelphia Fight Factory representative had earned successive triumphs over Kelvin Gastelum, Gilbert Burns and Leon Edwards. The former Cage Fury Fighting Championships title holder is 7-2 during his UFC tenure overall.

Buckley, meanwhile, saw a six-fight promotional winning streak come to an end at UFC Atlanta, where he dropped a five-round verdict to ex-champ Kamar…

Chris Duncan will get his first main event opportunity on April 4. | Getty/UFC

A pair of American Top Team stablemates will lock horns in the UFC Fight Night 272 main event.

The Las Vegas-based promotion announced on Saturday that Renato "Moicano" Carneiro will lock horns with Chris Duncan in a five-round featherweight bout on April 4 at the UFC Apex in Las Vegas. UFC Fight Night 272 also includes a women’s strawweight showdown between Virna Jandiroba and Tabatha Ricci and will air on Paramount+.

“Moicano” was initially slated to face Brian Ortega at UFC 326 on March 7 before his opponent withdrew from the bout. After winning four straight fights from November 2022 to September 2024, Carneiro found himself in a short-notice lightweight title tilt against Islam Makhachev at UFC 311. The Brazilian was submitted in the first round of that contest. He returned at UFC 317 this past June, where he dropped a unanimous verdict to Beneil Dariush.

Duncan, …

The UFC allegedly offered Ronda Rousey a massive pay-per-view deal but not a guaranteed fight purse. 

Rousey (12-2) is scheduled to fight fellow veteran Gina Carano (7-1) on May 16 at the Intuit Dome in Los Angeles, California. The fight will take place on a Netflix card under Jake Paul’s Most Valuable Promotions. 

Advertisement

Rousey revealed that she was originally in talks with the UFC for her return to MMA after nearly a decade. According to “Rowdy,” Dana White offered her the highest percentage of pay-per-view shares in UFC history. However, White wanted more time to confirm the deal. Things permanently changed when the UFC’s ESPN deal ended last year, marking the end of the pay-per-view model as well. The UFC made a multi-billion dollar deal with Paramount, switching to a subscription-based streaming model starting in 2026.A Shift in FocusRousey claims that after the pay-per-view era ended, the UFC did not want to pay her the guaranteed amount th…

Islam Makhachev believes Usman Nurmagomedov is as good as any UFC lightweight. 

While most elite fighters of Makhachev’s team are in the UFC, Nurmagomedov is making waves in the Professional Fighters League. The undefeated PFL lightweight champion is inevitably being compared to top-tier UFC lightweights. Makhachev knows Nurmagomedov’s true potential, having trained with him since childhood. The UFC welterweight champion believes Nurmagomedov can pose a serious threat to the best UFC lightweights. 

Advertisement

Nurmagomedov has one fight left on his current PFL contract, which will expire at the end of 2026 regardless of whether he fights again. While Makhachev believes Nurmagomedov is already ready for the UFC, he doesn’t want his teammate to rush things. Makhachev believes it will be the perfect time for Nurmagomedov’s UFC career once his PFL contract expires in 2026.Plenty of Time Ahead “Honestly, I don’t think Usman is any worse than anyone [in the…

The level of competition Alden Coria faces in training is difficult match for his opponents inside the Octagon. 

Coria recently made his sophomore Octagon appearance in a flyweight matchup against Luis Gurule at UFC Houston on Saturday. Coria displayed impressive range control, picking his opponent apart from a distance, to earn a unanimous decision victory. 

Advertisement

Coria says the fight went exactly how he had expected. “Cobra” knew that Gurule was a tough customer and difficult to dispatch within three rounds. Coria knew that Gurule would pressure him from the onset, which he did. However, Coria trains with UFC flyweight champion Joshua Van, who is known for his pressure. Having trained with the champion of his division, Coria says it’s difficult to match Van’s pressure.No Surprises“It was exactly how I expected it,” Coria told the UFC. “I knew this guy was gonna be very tough, hard to get him out of there. That’s what he brought, really brough…

Professional Fighters League on Thursday revealed two bouts for its April 11 event at Chicago’s Wintrust Arena.

Headlining “The Windy City” card will be former Bellator MMA bantamweight king Sergio Pettis (25-7) against undefeated 135-pound prospect Mitchell McKee (10-0).

Advertisement

Pettis was last seen in competition with an incredible knockout of Magomed Magomedov back in October. McKee will be making his major league debut following a stint in the Legacy Fighting Alliance.

The event’s co-feature will host a middleweight clash pitting Jordan Newman (8-0) against former LFA two-division champion Joshua Silveira (15-5).

April 11’s main card will air live in the U.S. on cable network ESPN2 at 9:00 p.m. ET. The prelims will stream exclusively in the ESPN app via subscribers who have access to the ESPN Unlimited plan. Tickets for the event go on sale Friday, Feb. 20 through Ticketmaster.

𝗧𝗛𝗘 𝗣𝗛𝗘𝗡𝗢𝗠 𝗥𝗘𝗧𝗨𝗥𝗡𝗦@sergiopettis makes hi…

There came a moment when Khamzat Chimaev’s coach, Alan “Finfou” Nascimento, knew that his fighter could control the animal inside him.

Nascimento believes Chimaev substantially changed ahead of his fight against Robert Whittaker in 2024. While Chimaev once flipped off the crowd after missing weight by 7.5 pounds, “Borz” wore glasses and was respectful towards everyone going into his fight against Whittaker. This even had fans worried as they thought the wild and often unruly fighter had lost his hunger and aggression.

Advertisement

However, Nascimento wasn’t worried as he had been observing Chimaev change since the birth of his son a year ago. Nascimento assured others that, while Chimaev previously used to be controlled by the animal inside him, he was now in control of the beast and would unleash it when needed. Chimaev proved “Finfou” right by breaking Whittaker's jaw with a face-crank in the first round to earn a stoppage win.

“The biggest change in Khamzat …

Usman Nurmagomedov says the shoes of their late coach, Abdulmanap Nurmagomedov, have been filled nicely by his son, Khabib Nurmagomedov.

Usman, Khabib, Islam Makhachev, Umar Nurmagomedov and their entire team, filled with elite fighters, were initially trained by Abdulmanap in the mountains of Dagestan.

Advertisement

Abdulmanap later brought the team to the U.S. to train at American Kickboxing Academy under Javier Mendez. Khabib retired as undefeated Ultimate Fighting Championship lightweight champion after the death of his father in 2020. “The Eagle” has since taken up the responsibility of guiding the team alongside Mendez.

Usman believes Khabib has fit into Abdulmanap’s role extremely well. The Professional Fighters League lightweight champion says his cousin Khabib knows exactly how much a fighter must be pushed in training. With the team being filled with champions from every major MMA promotion, one would expect that they would train adequately by themse…

Raul Rosas Jr. doesn’t want to keep fighting after he achieves all his goals.

Rosas Jr. is the youngest ever fighter to enter the Ultimate Fighting Championship. The 21-year-old recently revealed that, like most modern mixed martial arts stars, he eventually wants to be a two-division champion. If “El Nino Problema” can win a second title and defend it a couple of times by 25, he will consider retirement.

Advertisement

Rosas Jr. clarified that he will continue past that age if he doesn’t accomplish all his goals by then. However, if he becomes a two-division champion, Rosas Jr. doesn’t want to keep fighting hungry opponents who want what he has already achieved.

“If I accomplish all my accomplishments by 25, like if I’m already able to try to challenge for the second belt on the second division and defend it a couple of times, if I still haven’t done that, then I’m gonna keep going,” Rosas Jr. told Dominick Cruz. “But if I’ve done what I wanted to do, I don’t wa…

Khamzat Chimaev had to part with his lucky shorts after joining the Ultimate Fighting Championship.

Chimaev’s (15-0) longtime grappling coach, Alan “Finfou” Nascimento, recently recalled giving his fighter a pair of shorts that would stay with him for a long time. “Finfou” gave Chimaev his own shorts ahead of his amateur debut against Khaled Laallam in 2017. While Nascimento wanted his shorts back if Chimaev lost, the future UFC champion was certain that he would win. Chimaev washed the shorts and hung them up to dry before sewing a patch of his coach’s logo on them.

Chimaev went on to submit his opponent in the first round with a brabo choke. Chimaev’s talent was evident in his first fight, and “Borz” turned pro the following year after two more amateur wins. “Finfou” recalls that Chimaev used to wear the same pair of shorts for every fight before he entered the UFC. Chimaev was inactive for a while during the COVID-19 pandemic when his manager suddenly secured a UFC…

Joaquin Buckley is disappointed with Ultimate Fighting Championship CEO Dana White for forgetting his name.

Buckley has recently been calling out Terence Crawford for a street fight. When asked about the idea, White started with, "Crawford and who?” White found the idea dumb that Crawford, who retired with $55 million for his last win over Canelo Alvarez, would fight Buckley in a street fight.

Advertisement

Buckley called out White for forgetting his name to begin with. “New Mansa” reminded White that his flying spinning back kick knockout win over Impa Kasanganay in 2020 still remains one of the most viral knockouts in UFC history. Buckley challenged the UFC head honcho to put him in a boxing match against Callum Walsh, WBC welterweight champ and Zuffa boxing’s star recruit.

“Dang, Dana. You done forgot who I was? You done forgot the dude with Knockout of the Year 2020? One of the most viral knockouts in the UFC… One of your most viral fighters?... It ain’t not…

Khamzat Chimaev’s coach, Alan “Finfou” Nascimento, believes detractors will always find something to criticize no matter how good a fighter is.

Chimaev was originally scheduled to fight Paulo Costa at UFC 294 in 2023. However, an injured Costa was replaced by Kamaru Usman on nine days’ notice. While Chimaev earned a majority decision victory, Usman was arguably his toughest test to date. As Chimaev was visibly exhausted in the final round, many believe that Usman could have won if the fight had been a five-round bout. However, Nascimento explains that they had specifically prepared for a three-round fight, which is completely different than preparing for a five-rounder.

Chimaev finally went five rounds while challenging Dricus Du Plessis for the middleweight title at UFC 319 last year. “Borz” ragdolled du Plessis for 25 minutes to earn a dominant, unanimous decision victory. While critics have stopped questioning Chimaev’s gas tank for now, he was slammed for a boring…

Vinicius Oliveira is calling out Aljamain Sterling for a featherweight matchup.

Oliveira had recently admitted that his days at bantamweight were numbered. Oliveira’s latest loss to Mario Bautista earlier this month was seemingly the final nail in the coffin. “LokDog” is now calling for a featherweight matchup against former Ultimate Fighting Championship bantamweight champion Aljamain Sterling.

Advertisement

“New category, common opponents with zero risk, fight more times in a year, make more money, reach the belt faster, not to mention that I’m hearing @funkmasterMMA has nightmares about me and already warned his friend @MerabDvalishvili about it — if he wants it, I want it,” Oliveira wrote on X.

Sterling downplayed the callout, saying:

“Lol bruuh… cmon man. Don’t do that.”

Oliveira responded:

“I want new challenges. You're still a champion, you spoke well of me, I admire that, but you're the only good guy in the 66kg weight class that I know, so t…

Anthony Hernandez believes he can overwhelm Khamzat Chimaev with his well-roundedness.

Hernandez is scheduled to headline UFC Houston against Sean Strickland on Feb. 21 in a potential middleweight title eliminator. A win over Strickland would potentially make “Fluffy” a frontrunner for the next middleweight title shot against Chimaev (15-0).

Advertisement

Hernandez believes his grappling defense would hold up well against Chimaev’s relentless wrestling. However, Hernandez is not wary of going to the ground against “Borz.” Hernandez believes he is way more well-rounded than the champion, whose wrestling is his bread and butter.

“My grappling defense is really good,” Hernandez told New York Post Sports. “I think I can force [Khamzat] to have to stay on his feet. Honestly, even with him, I don’t give a f*ck where it goes, grappling, striking, standing up, he’s got one thing and I’ve got a f*cking arsenal. So I really don’t give a f*ck. I want my time to prove that …

Ronda Rousey will undergo extensive medical testing prior to her return fight vs. Gina Carano. | Dave Mandel/Sherdog.com

A couple years ago, Ronda Rousey made a confession: That a history of concussions forced her to exit mixed martial arts.

Rousey hasn’t competed in MMA since a December 2016 loss to Amanda Nunes. During an Instagram Live session to promote her book “Our Fight” approximately two years ago, the Olympic judoka went in depth on her history of head trauma.

Advertisement

“My concussion history that I had to keep secret for years, so I would be able to continue to compete and perform,” Rousey said. “That’s basically why I had to retire.”

Rousey was particularly tight-lipped about those issues during her UFC tenure, even after a knockout loss to Holly Holm in November 2015. That philosophy continued when she transitioned to sports entertainment.

“I think that there was just so much to [that loss], that I couldn’t talk about it in the…

Justin Jaynes went 1-4 during his UFC stint. | Getty/UFC

Justin Jaynes is just about out of chances.

The UFC veteran was suspended for 18 months during a Nevada State Athletic Commission meeting on Wednesday after testing positive for a cocaine metabolite in relation to his victory over Marlon Gonzales at Tuff-N-Uff 149 on Oct. 25. Jaynes, who will not be eligible to compete again until April 25, 2027, was also fined $200, which amounts to 40% of his purse for the bout.

Advertisement

It was Jaynes’ third anti-doping violation in Nevada, but his first positive test for cocaine. Previously, the fighter known as “Guitar Hero” had failed drug tests for marijuana in June 2021 and for the diuretic furosemide in 2024. Though the marijuana test would no longer be penalized under current NSAC standards, the commission nonetheless vowed harsh consequences for Jaynes should he fail another drug test in the future.Zero Tolerance “I have a problem, the third dru…

Carlos Prates' next fight is likely to be revealed soon. | Getty/UFC

As Dana White said during the press conference at the most recent Zuffa Boxing event, the cards for the numbered UFC events in April, May and June are almost all decided.

The next steps of the welterweight division are among the most highly-anticipated decisions for UFC fans. After Spanish journalist Alvaro Colmenero leaked that Islam Makhachev is likely to fight Ian Garry next, The Fighting Nerds coach Flavio Alvaro told Sherdog.com that Carlos Prates may not fight Jack Della Maddalena as previously expected.

Advertisement

“Prates wanted to fight on the April or May card,” Alavaro said. “All I can say is that big news is coming about him soon. I personally wanted him to face Maddalena, but it looks like his new opponent will be announced soon.”

Alvaro did not offer further insight as to whether Michael Morales, Belal Muhammad or Kamaru Usman would be Prates’ next adversary.

…

Last week, Dana White revealed that meetings to form the UFC White House card have already begun.

That statement piqued the curiosity of fans and journalists, starting a series of debates about possible big names that will headline the event. Very close to Ilia Topuria, Spanish journalist Alvaro Colmenero confirmed the lightweight's presence on the card, possibly headlining against Justin Gaethje. Colmenero also indicated that Islam Makhachev would defend the welterweight title at a later date, probably facing Ian Garry.

A Clear Path to VictoryAlthough he did not confirm the information, Makhachev’s coach, Javier Mendez, did not refuse to analyze the possible confrontation between his athlete and the Irishman. In the American Kickboxing Academy coach's assessment, Garry is likely to struggle if the fight hits the canvas.

“Ian does well with Islam on his feet, he has reach and is unpredictable,” Mendez told Submission Radio. “On the ground, he does well, but doesn’t …

An influencer might have bitten off more than he could chew when he recently crossed paths with Tiki Ghosn.

At a party hosted by Quinton "Rampage" Jackson, streamer Deen the Great filmed a confrontation with the Ghosn, a former UFC fighter who is a longtime friend and coach of Jackson. The interaction between the two quickly becomes testy, and Deen threatens to “slap the s—t” out of Ghosn. Shortly thereafter, Ghosn appears to land an elbow that knocks Deen out of the shot.

The two men were then separated, though it appeared that Deen wanted to continue the scuffle.

“Ex UFC fighter elbowing me for the clip knowing I’m intoxicated,” Deen wrote in a caption of the video. “ight bet.”

Ex UFC fighter elbowing me for the clip knowing I’m intoxicated… ight bet 🫡 pic.twitter.com/Bv7A5cqFcA

— DeenTheGreat (@DeenTheGreat) February 18, 2026 Contrast in Backgrounds Ghosn had 18 professional fights from 1998 to 2008, including bouts in the UF…

Conor McGregor is once again hinting that a comeback is imminent. | Bellator MMA

Conor McGregor might be one step closer to a UFC return — or maybe not.

In a since-deleted post on social media, the Irishman claimed that he had accepted a date and opponent for his next fight.

Advertisement

“I have been offered an opponent and a date and I accept,” McGregor wrote. “Waiting on my contract.”

🚨 BREAKING: Conor McGregor revealed in a now-deleted tweet that he's been offered an opponent and date for his UFC return and has accepted the offer 👀 pic.twitter.com/QnozWDoLVK

— Championship Rounds (@ChampRDS) February 18, 2026

McGregor has been lobbying hard for a spot on the UFC White House card on June 14. The timing of his post coincides with UFC CEO Dana White’s recent remarks that the card was in the process of being finalized. This past October, McGregor stated that his participation at the highly-anticipated event was a …

The lineup is complete for Professional Fighters League’s upcoming visit to the Steel City.

The promotion on Wednesday unveiled the full card for PFL Pittsburgh, which takes place on March 28 at the UPMC Events Center and is headlined by a middleweight bout pitting former champ Johnny Eblen against UFC veteran Bryan Battle. In the co-main event, Dalton Rosta will lock horns with Impa Kasanganay in another middleweight contest.

𝗢𝗙𝗙𝗜𝗖𝗜𝗔𝗟: Your full #PFLPittsburgh Fight Card 👊

What fight are you looking forward to on Saturday, March 28th! #PFLPittsburgh Tickets available now!🎟️ https://t.co/lHUajKu2eV #PFLPittsburgh | Saturday, March 28th | UPMC Events Center | Pittsburgh, PA | 📺 Streaming… pic.twitter.com/dycUfB4USg

— PFL (@PFLMMA) February 18, 2026

Several other matchups were also confirmed for PFL Pittsburgh. In the opening main card bout, undefeated former Combate Global talent Lazaro Dayron will face 24-fight veteran Jacob…