MMA

Marc Raimondi, ESPN Staff WriterJul 22, 2023, 06:51 PM ET Almost one year ago to the day, in the same arena, Tom Aspinall suffered a freak knee injury when he threw a leg kick on the first strike of his fight against Curtis Blaydes and lost via TKO in just 15 seconds. After 364 days

Marc Raimondi, ESPN Staff WriterJul 20, 2023, 03:36 PM ET UFC bantamweight contender Rob Font will replace the injured Umar Nurmagomedov and fight Cory Sandhagen in the main event of UFC Nashville on Aug. 5, sources told ESPN on Thursday. Sandhagen vs. Font will take place at a catchweight of 140 pounds rather than the

Marc Raimondi, ESPN Staff WriterJul 20, 2023, 11:00 AM ET After a successful debut in the United States, ONE Championship is coming back for more. The Asia-based fight promotion, which holds bouts in MMA, Muay Thai, kickboxing and grappling, will return to the U.S. with four shows in 2024, officials told ESPN on Wednesday. No

Marc Raimondi, ESPN Staff WriterJul 19, 2023, 11:38 PM ET Two of the most popular fighters in the UFC middleweight division will face off this fall. Undefeated Khamzat Chimaev will return to the Octagon at 185 pounds and fight Paulo Costa at UFC 294 on Oct. 21 in Abu Dhabi, United Arab Emirates, UFC president

Marc Raimondi, ESPN Staff WriterJul 19, 2023, 11:23 PM ET Islam Makhachev’s next title defense is no longer a mystery. The UFC lightweight champion will defend his belt against former champ Charles Oliveira in a rematch in the main event of UFC 294 on Oct. 21 in Abu Dhabi, UFC president Dana White announced Wednesday

Marc Raimondi, ESPN Staff WriterJul 19, 2023, 05:50 PM ET The UFC is looking for a new main event for its first card of August. Umar Nurmagomedov is out of his scheduled headliner against Cory Sandhagen because of undisclosed reasons, sources confirmed Wednesday with ESPN. The UFC is seeking a new opponent for Sandhagen, a

Andres Waters Jul 18, 2023, 05:12 PM ET It took until the final week of the quarterfinals, but, in the last fight of the first round, coach Conor McGregor got his first win on “The Ultimate Fighter” Season 31. Team McGregor’s Rico DiSciullo ended Team Chandler’s seven-fight win streak with a knockout win over Hunter

Marc Raimondi, ESPN Staff WriterJul 18, 2023, 01:40 PM ET ONE Championship has one of its most original cards yet coming this fall, headlined by four women’s fights in four different disciplines. Stamp Fairtex will face UFC veteran Seo Hee Ham for the interim ONE women’s 115-pound title in the main event Sept. 29 in

Marc Raimondi, ESPN Staff WriterJul 17, 2023, 07:58 PM ET Michael “Venom” Page has been one of the most popular and recognizable fighters in Bellator MMA for nearly a decade. Now, he’s hitting the open market. Page announced Monday on “The MMA Hour” that he is a free agent and will be exploring his options

Jul 17, 2023, 09:40 AM ET The first half of the MMA year came and went, leaving us with some special moments and memories, including the UFC 290 and International Fight Week, the event that marks the midway point on the MMA calendar. Now it’s time to look ahead to the biggest questions that need

Brett Okamoto, ESPN Staff WriterJul 16, 2023, 01:18 AM ET Close MMA columnist for ESPN.com Analyst for “MMA Live” Covered MMA for Las Vegas Sun The UFC’s female bantamweight division is in need of new blood following the recent retirement of dominant champion Amanda Nunes — and it seems to have found new blood in

Marc Raimondi, ESPN Staff WriterJul 14, 2023, 02:30 AM ET The UFC light heavyweight title is vacant — again. Jamahal Hill, who has been champion for six months, announced Thursday night on his YouTube page that he ruptured an Achilles tendon and will be relinquishing the belt. Hill said in the video that he will

Marc Raimondi, ESPN Staff WriterJul 12, 2023, 11:00 AM ET The Professional Fighters League is coming back to New York for its final two semifinal dates, with matchups now set for the entire cards, officials told ESPN. Knockout artist Renan Ferreira will take on Maurice Greene in the Aug. 18 main event, a heavyweight semifinal.

Marc Raimondi, ESPN Staff WriterJul 13, 2023, 02:34 PM ET Social media influencers have been all the rage in boxing over the past several years. Now, one is going into MMA. Jawy Mendez, a Mexican reality show star and recording artist, has signed with Combate Global to compete as a pro mixed martial arts fighter,

Jul 13, 2023, 09:23 AM ET The UFC has put on 23 events featuring 11 title fights this year, plus one in which an interim belt was at stake. We’ve seen five new champions crowned. There have been a couple of high-profile retirements: Amanda Nunes, the greatest fighter in the history of women’s MMA, vacated

Marc Raimondi, ESPN Staff WriterJul 12, 2023, 07:40 PM ET Former UFC star Chael Sonnen took a plea deal Wednesday in a criminal case stemming from an incident that happened in December 2021 at the Four Seasons Hotel Las Vegas, according to his attorney Dayvid Figler. Sonnen pleaded no contest to a charge of misdemeanor

Marc Raimondi, ESPN Staff WriterJul 12, 2023, 08:10 PM ET UFC heavyweight Walt Harris is out of his scheduled UFC Fight Night bout Saturday against Josh Parisian after testing positive for a banned substance, he posted Wednesday on Twitter. The United States Anti-Doping Agency (USADA) confirmed to ESPN that Harris has been notified of the

Jul 12, 2023, 09:40 AM ET Jon Jones will face Stipe Miocic at UFC 295 on Nov. 11 at Madison Square Garden in New York. Their matchup is set to be one of the biggest MMA fights of the year and one of the biggest heavyweight MMA fights in some time. Jones is the longtime