Author: mmafighting
The Tafa brothers substitution circle is complete. Multiple people with knowledge of the promotion’s plans confirmed to MMA Fighting that Justin Tafa will now face Karl Williams at UFC Vegas 89, which takes place March 23 at the UFC APEX in Las Vegas. Tafa replaces his brother Junior Tafa after Junior previously replaced Justin on just 24 hours’ notice at UFC 298 in February to face Marcos Rogerio de Lima. MMA Mania was first to report the switch. Justin Tafa suffered an undisclosed injury during UFC 298 fight week ahead of his scheduled matchup with de Lima before his younger…
With UFC 299 less than a week away, the countdown is on until Sean O’Malley makes his first defense of the UFC bantamweight title against Marlon “Chito” Vera. Watch the UFC 298 Countdown video above. O’Malley (17-1, 1 NC) faces Vera (23-8-1) in a long-awaited rematch on March 9 at the Kaseya Center in Miami in the main event of UFC 299. Vera previously defeated O’Malley via first-round TKO in August 2020 at UFC 252. That result remains the lone loss on O’Malley’s professional MMA record. O’Malley, 29, captured the UFC bantamweight title in August 2023 with a second-round knockout…
Nine-fight UFC veteran Jamie Pickett has called it a career. Pickett faced Eryk Anders in the featured prelim of Saturday’s UFC Vegas 87 event at the UFC APEX, where he dropped a unanimous decision. During his walkout, UFC play-by-play announcer Jon Anik revealed that Pickett would be making the walk to the octagon — or any cage — for the final time, as he was set to retire. Following his fifth consecutive loss, Pickett confirmed his desire to close the book on his MMA career during his post-fight media scrum. “I got a 6-year-old, I got kids who count on…
Umar Nurmagomedov would love to stay more active, but sometimes it’s just not possible. The 28-year-old bantamweight contender competed for the first time in more than a year on Saturday at UFC Vegas 87, defeating Bekzat Almakhan after being forced out of a previously scheduled bout this past August against Cory Sandhagen in a five-round main event. As it stands, Nurmagomedov has only fought twice in the past 14 months, and he responded to critics claiming he’s earned a reputation for pulling out of fights and not competing as often as required to deserve a reputation as one of the…
MMA veteran Marcin Sianos was disqualified from a boxing match against Artur Bizewski on Saturday after executing a takedown and scoring a brutal ground-and-pound knockout. Sianos (8-7 MMA, 0-1 boxing) faced off against undefeated prospect Bizewski (9-0 boxing) at Rocky Boxing Night in Koszalin, Poland. Sianos appeared to be on the verge of pulling off a dramatic upset after staggering Bizewski with a flurry of punches midway through the second round, however he then seized an illegal double-leg takedown, secured mount position, and pummeled his foe with a brutal ground-and-pound elbow that left Bizewski crumpled in a heap. Sianos was…
Renan Ferreira doesn’t plan on fighting until he faces Francis Ngannou. The 2023 PFL heavyweight champion walked through Ryan Bader in the main event of PFL vs. Bellator earlier this month in Saudi Arabia, which was promoted by PFL as a bout to determine who will welcome former UFC champion Ngannou to the company. Ferreira told MMA Fighting that he will not enter the 2024 PFL season and will instead opt to wait for Ngannou to resume his MMA career first. “The Predator” shocked the world in 2023 with a split decision defeat to Tyson Fury in boxing, and now…
Tyson Fury doesn’t care who wins the heavyweight matchup between Anthony Joshua and Francis Ngannou, but he believes Ngannou owes him a lot following their boxing match this past October. Joshua and Ngannou headline Friday’s Knockout Chaos event in Saudi Arabia, with the former UFC heavyweight champ looking to build upon an impressive showing that saw him lose a split decision to Fury after dropping the champion boxer in the bout. Ahead of the matchup, Fury was asked about Ngannou’s rise in the boxing world and essentially said to the PFL fighter, ‘You’re welcome.’ “It’s a good fight [between Joshua…
Merab Dvalishvili should be the next man up to fight for the bantamweight title, and he has two potential opponents in waiting. Behind one door is Sean O’Malley, who recently became champion with a second-round knockout of Dvalishvili’s close friend and teammate Aljamain Sterling at UFC 292; behind the other door is Marlon Vera, one of the division’s stoutest contenders and the only man to have beaten O’Malley. The two collide in the main event of UFC 299 in Miami next Saturday, with Dvalishvili expected to face the winner after defeating Henry Cejudo at UFC 298 to notch his 10th…
Tyson Pedro has fought his last fight for now. The light heavyweight veteran announced his retirement Saturday following a unanimous decision loss to Vitor Petrino in the co-main event of UFC Vegas 87. It was a disappointing performance for the 32-year-old Australia native, who was given a chance to address viewers following Petrino’s post-fight victory interview. “Thank you to all the fans, I want to say thank you very much to the UFC for everything they’ve done on this journey,” Pedro said. “Especially thanks to my team, anyone that’s helped me get to this stage of my martial arts career.…
Alex Pereira and Israel Adesanya could trade blows in the UFC again, but what about inside a gym instead? Pereira is leaving the door open for the idea, with one condition. Pereira and Adesanya have been huge rivals for years in both kickboxing and MMA. Pereira defeated Adesanya twice in the kickboxing ring before chasing him to the UFC and stealing his middleweight title. Adesanya finally defeated Pereira to reclaim his belt in 2023, then lost it to Sean Strickland afterward. Pereira now holds the UFC’s 205-pound title. After winning the UFC light heavyweight title with a knockout of Jiri…