MMA

5:12 PM ET LAS VEGAS — UFC president Dana White told reporters Wednesday that no one should be defending his actions after he was caught on camera on New Year’s Eve in Mexico slapping his wife in a nightclub’s VIP section. Appearing before media members at the UFC’s Apex to answer questions about the physical

3:09 PM ET Jeff WagenheimESPN Usman Nurmagomedov has been Bellator lightweight champion for less than two months, and already he is being asked to run a gantlet of challengers. Bellator MMA announced Wednesday that it will launch a Lightweight World Grand Prix in March, with Nurmagomedov defending his title as part of an eight-fighter field

9:21 AM ET With the UFC returning to action this weekend with its first card of 2023, it’s time once again for ESPN’s annual MMA rank. A two-step voting process involving ESPN’s MMA team set out to project which 30 fighters will have the best 2023. The final list features fighters across multiple promotions —

11:35 PM ET Carlos Contreras Legaspi Former MMA fighter Phil Baroni was charged by a state judge in Mexico with aggravated femicide Monday. Baroni, 46, was living in the coastal region of Sayulita and San Francisco in Bahía de Banderas, Nayarit, when he called police Jan. 1, after finding his girlfriend, a woman from Mexico

10:40 PM ET The California Legislative Women’s Caucus on Monday called for the removal of Dana White as UFC president in a public letter addressed to the head of the promotion’s parent company. The letter, sent to Endeavor CEO Ari Emanuel, comes after video surfaced last week of White slapping his wife, Anne, at a

5:42 PM ET The UFC’s first main event of 2023 has taken a hit, as Kelvin Gastelum has withdrawn from a five-round middleweight bout against Nassourdine Imavov on Saturday in Las Vegas. Gastelum withdrew due to an injury to his mouth, sources told ESPN. Middleweight contender Sean Strickland has agreed to replace Gastelum on the

8:37 AM ET Just days into the new year, MMA has already staked its claim once again for the title of most unpredictable sport. After all, Jake Paul is now an MMA fighter with the PFL. Big questions loom ahead in 2023. What will Nate Diaz’s next move be after stepping away from the UFC

8:16 PM ET Victoria Lee, one of the most promising young prospects in all of mixed martial arts, has died at age 18. Lee, who was the younger sister of ONE Championship’s Angela Lee and Christian Lee, died Dec. 26, according to a social media post made by Angela. Victoria was born in Hawai’i but

4:27 PM ET The televised debut of Dana White’s Power Slap League has been delayed by one week, less than four days after White admitted to a physical altercation with his wife on New Year’s Eve. A UFC official told ESPN that the Power Slap League will now debut Jan. 18 on TBS, rather than

8:21 AM ET So much goes into a “breakout season” in mixed martial arts. One could argue, more so than in any other sport. A breakout season in MMA requires skill and preparation, but it also involves timing, health, luck and maybe a viral moment here and there. If you want to break out in

7:42 PM ET Associated Press MEXICO CITY — Former mixed martial arts fighter Phil Baroni has been arrested in Mexico for allegedly killing his girlfriend, the prosecutors’ office in the Pacific coast state of Nayarit said Wednesday. The office said a woman was found dead on Sunday in the beach town of San Fernando, just

10:47 AM ET The UFC has rebooked a welterweight matchup between Geoff Neal and Shavkat Rakhmonov for UFC 285 on March 4, multiple sources told ESPN. The 170-pound bout will take place in Las Vegas. It was originally scheduled for a UFC Fight Night on Jan. 14, but Neal was forced to withdraw due to

8:34 AM ET SAITAMA, JAPAN — MANNY PACQUIAO, flanked by family and security, came out of an elevator and passed through a holding area for MMA fighters before they made their ring walk. To the boxing legend’s right, former UFC champion Quinton “Rampage” Jackson was on a knee, trying to help Bellator’s AJ McKee put

9:14 PM ET UFC president Dana White issued a public apology Monday for a physical altercation between him and his wife that was captured on video during their New Year’s Eve celebration in Cabo, Mexico. The video, published by TMZ, shows White, 53, and his wife, Anne, in a VIP area of a nightclub. Dana

3:07 AM ET All right, here we go. One of my favorite pieces of the year: the fights I would love to see most in 2023. I’ve done this annual piece for years at ESPN. You can find last year’s list here, and we did see a few (most of the ones we did see,

10:11 AM ET SAITAMA, Japan — AJ McKee felt a bit of pressure heading to the ring Saturday night. And it wasn’t just the weight of the black samurai costume he wore for his elaborate walk out. With a McKee win, his Bellator promotion would sweep its competition with Japan’s Rizin. On top of that,

7:43 AM ET Jeff Wagenheim Seven appears to be the lucky number. Or unlucky, depending on whether or not you start the year with a UFC championship belt wrapped around your waist. Exactly a year ago, I made predictions for ESPN on what fighter would be champion at the end of 2022 in each of

7:50 AM ET Bob Sapp crouched down on the ramp with his team behind him — torches brimming with fire on either side. The 6-foot-4, 320-pound former NFL lineman exploded his torso upright, sending his green robe off him into the waiting arms of a coach. It was Dec. 31, 2003, and the Nagoya Dome