MMA

Oct 8, 2023, 06:31 PM ET Three champions put their titles on the line at Bellator 300 on Saturday. Three champions dominated. The event at Pechanga Arena in San Diego showed off some high-level command from two champs and a little workmanlike mastery from the third. Lightweight champ Usman Nurmagomedov did the improbable in the

Jeff Wagenheim Oct 8, 2023, 12:42 AM ET The name Nurmagomedov has long been associated with undefeated fight careers and dominant lightweight performances. Usman Nurmagomedov, cousin of former UFC champion Khabib, continued the family tradition Saturday night in San Diego, successfully defending his Bellator lightweight championship with a one-sided unanimous-decision victory over former champ Brent

Marc Raimondi, ESPN Staff WriterOct 6, 2023, 09:00 AM ET Jorge Masvidal was looking for a grappling transition, something that would give him an advantage in the second round of a fight against Toby Imada. Masvidal went for what looked like a single-leg takedown attempt. But Imada’s entire body went with it, up into the

Brett Okamoto, ESPN Staff WriterOct 6, 2023, 09:17 AM ET Close MMA columnist for ESPN.com Analyst for “MMA Live” Covered MMA for Las Vegas Sun Longtime UFC middleweight Derek Brunson has signed an exclusive deal with the PFL and will face two-time welterweight champion Ray Cooper III in his promotional debut Nov. 24. PFL officials

Oct 2, 2023, 10:24 AM ET Grant Dawson meets Bobby Green in the lightweight main event of UFC Fight Night on Saturday in Las Vegas. The fights at UFC Apex are on ESPN+, with the 7 p.m. ET main card preceded by prelims at 4 p.m. Dawson (20-1-1) is unbeaten in his most recent 12

Brett Okamoto, ESPN Staff WriterOct 4, 2023, 01:56 PM ET Close MMA columnist for ESPN.com Analyst for “MMA Live” Covered MMA for Las Vegas Sun Alexa Grasso recently underwent surgery on a previously undisclosed hand injury, the UFC flyweight champion revealed Tuesday. Grasso (16-3-1) posted about the surgery online and said she suffered a fractured

Brett Okamoto, ESPN Staff WriterOct 3, 2023, 05:09 PM ET Close MMA columnist for ESPN.com Analyst for “MMA Live” Covered MMA for Las Vegas Sun UFC lightweight champion Islam Makhachev is scheduled to defend his title against a familiar foe at UFC 294 on Oct. 21, and would like to challenge for the welterweight strap

Brett Okamoto, ESPN Staff WriterOct 3, 2023, 11:56 AM ET Close MMA columnist for ESPN.com Analyst for “MMA Live” Covered MMA for Las Vegas Sun Former UFC heavyweight champion Cain Velasquez will be a licensed corner for Bellator MMA lightweight champion Usman Nurmagomedov at Bellator 300 on Saturday in San Diego. California State Athletic Commission

Jeff Wagenheim, ESPNOct 2, 2023, 12:05 PM ET Bellator 300 was to be headlined by an unprecedented four championship bouts. Now it’s down to three. Linton Vassell, who was to challenge heavyweight champion Ryan Bader at Saturday’s event in San Diego, withdrew from the fight because of illness, a Bellator official confirmed Monday. The fight

Oct 2, 2023, 09:20 AM ET The final quarter of the year is upon us. Things have been hectic — and newsworthy — in the sport of MMA in 2023. From a business perspective, the UFC has merged with WWE to form the publicly traded company TKO, under Endeavor. In the cage, UFC titles have

Marc Raimondi, ESPN Staff WriterSep 30, 2023, 12:33 AM ET Angela Lee, one of ONE Championship’s top stars for years, will retire and vacate her ONE women’s 115-pound MMA title, she announced Friday night during the ONE Fight Night 14 broadcast in Singapore. Lee’s announcement had a significant effect on the ONE Fight Night 14

Sep 29, 2023, 07:57 AM ET Back in October 2019, Stipe Miocic was the UFC heavyweight champion. Jon Jones ruled at light heavyweight. Israel Adesanya was the newly crowned king of middleweights. And, well, let’s just cut to the chase and say that all 12 of the fight promotion’s weight classes had champions who do

Sep 27, 2023, 09:00 AM ET There have been eight UFC title changes this year, if you include championships being vacated due to retirement or injury. Undoubtedly, 2023 has been marked by fluidity and perhaps a passing of the torch to the next generation. With all the fluctuations, it’s an excellent time to look at

Marc Raimondi, ESPN Staff WriterSep 26, 2023, 05:39 PM ET Rafael Fiziev suffered a torn left ACL during the UFC Fight Night main event Saturday in Las Vegas, the lightweight contender said on Instagram. Fiziev threw a kick with his right leg in the second round of the fight with Mateusz Gamrot and went down

Brett Okamoto, ESPN Staff WriterSep 25, 2023, 02:21 PM ET Close MMA columnist for ESPN.com Analyst for “MMA Live” Covered MMA for Las Vegas Sun The Orleans Parish District Attorney’s office will not pursue criminal charges against former UFC star Nate Diaz related to his involvement in a street brawl earlier this year on Bourbon

Jeff Wagenheim, ESPNSep 23, 2023, 07:04 PM ET The storyline going into Bellator 299 centered upon Fabian Edwards and his attempt to join his brother Leon as a world champion. The storyline in the wake of Saturday’s fight card in Dublin is that his opponent, Johnny Eblen, remains undefeated and is still Bellator middleweight champ.

Brett Okamoto, ESPN Staff WriterSep 25, 2023, 10:06 AM ET Close MMA columnist for ESPN.com Analyst for “MMA Live” Covered MMA for Las Vegas Sun After seventeen consecutive weekends with fights, the UFC will be dark for the first time since May. In fact, it’s a quiet weekend across every major MMA promotion, outside of

Marc Raimondi, ESPN Staff WriterSep 24, 2023, 10:11 PM ET Deiveson Figueiredo will make his long-awaited move up to bantamweight before the end of the year. The former two-time UFC bantamweight champion will face Rob Font in a contender bout at UFC Fight Night on Dec. 2, sources told ESPN on Sunday, confirming a report