MMA

7:00 AM ET Jiri Prochazka became a champion in just his third Octagon appearance, dethroning Glover Teixeira in a wild light heavyweight title bout in the UFC 275 headliner Saturday in Singapore. Along with the shiny belt that was wrapped around his waist, the entertainingly inventive Czech fighter also has earned a spot in the

Jun 11, 2022 Kamaru Usman will defend his UFC welterweight title against Leon Edwards in the main event of UFC 278 on Aug. 20 in Salt Lake City, Utah, it was announced Saturday during the UFC 275 broadcast. Usman vs. Edwards was the expected title matchup, and the UFC was just waiting on Usman to

1:29 AM ET Associated Press TOKYO — Floyd Mayweather Jr. will fight in Japan again in another exhibition, this time against MMA fighter Mikuru Asakura. Promoters on Tuesday said the bout is scheduled for September. The rules and length of the bout have not yet been made public. Mayweather retired undefeated from professional boxing almost

Jun 12, 2022 Glover Teixeira passed into mount with 15 seconds left in the second round. Jiri Prochazka had been picking Teixeira apart on the feet, but the durable champion got Prochazka down, took his back and then worked his way into the most dominant position in MMA. In response, as Teixeira attempted to rain

Jun 11, 2022 One of the best women’s MMA fighters ever will be hanging up the gloves. Joanna Jedrzejczyk, the former UFC women’s strawweight champion, announced her retirement Saturday following a knockout loss to Zhang Weili at UFC 275 in Singapore. Jedrzejczyk was in line for a title shot if she beat Zhang but was

2:04 PM ET Taila Santos suffered a broken right orbital bone in her UFC 275 fight with Valentina Shevchenko on Saturday in Singapore, Santos’ manager, Tiago Okamura, confirmed with ESPN. Santos and Shevchenko clashed heads several times accidentally in the third and fourth rounds of their UFC women’s flyweight title fight, causing the damage to

Jun 12, 2022 Valentina Shevchenko defended her flyweight championship for the seventh time at UFC 275 on Saturday in Singapore, but her aura of invincibility might have taken a hit in doing so. Shevchenko (23-3) edged Brazilian contender Taila Santos (19-2) by split decision in the co-main event of UFC 275. Two judges scored the

1:55 AM ET What were the biggest moments at UFC 275? Jeff Wagenheim, Brett Okamoto and Marc Raimondi offer up their takeaways from a highlight-packed event in Singapore. Are you not entertained? The UFC has a dozen champions, and there is not one as inventive as its newest, light heavyweight Jiri Prochazka. It took the

1:27 AM ET Jiri Prochazka hit Glover Teixeira with everything he had — hard jabs, uppercuts, knees up the middle and combinations to the body. Teixeira gave it all back and then some. He landed huge overhand rights and left hooks, took Prochazka down and opened up a gnarly cut with an elbow. Both men

8:00 AM ET Before UFC 248, fans were still learning about the UFC’s new women’s strawweight champion. Seven months earlier, Zhang Weili had dethroned Jessica Andrade in her home country of China in August 2019, becoming the first Chinese champion in UFC history. While that win was historic, that fight wasn’t held on the promotion’s

10:05 AM ET The main event of the UFC’s first pay-per-view card in southeast Asia is official. Glover Teixeira and Jiri Prochazka both weighed in successfully Friday for their light heavyweight title fight, each coming in at 205 pounds. Teixeira will defend his belt against Prochazka in the UFC 275 headliner Saturday in Singapore. ESPN

8:13 PM ET Bare Knuckle Fighting Championship has put together one of the most unique fight bookings of the year. Bellator star Michael “Venom” Page will take on former UFC veteran Mike Perry at Bare Knuckle Fighting Championship 27 on Aug. 20 in London, the promotion announced Thursday. Page, a karate specialist, will remain with

1:25 PM ET He may only be one fight into his UFC career proper, but Jack Della Maddalena says he is ready to emerge as the next star MMA athlete from Oceania and follow the path being forged by Alexander Volkanovski, Israel Adesanya and Robert Whittaker. Della Maddalena gets his first taste of a UFC

8:04 AM ET JIRI PROCHAZKA PUT his arms at his side and curled his lanky, 6-foot-4 frame into a bow. In front of him was a Shinto priest, wearing a white robe and traditional black cap, called a tate-eboshi. It was October 2019, just days after Prochazka had knocked out Fabio Maldonado on a Rizin

7:03 PM ET Two of the best bantamweights in the world will face off this summer. A bout between former champion Dominick Cruz and Marlon Vera is being targeted for a UFC Fight Night headliner, UFC president Dana White confirmed Tuesday to Barstool Sports. The bout is scheduled for Aug. 13, and White said the

9:17 AM ET Kelsey Puckett LAS VEGAS — It’s Dec. 28, 2020, and UFC flyweight champion Valentina Shevchenko is invited to a Roaring ’20s-themed party to celebrate New Year’s Eve in Kyrgyzstan. “I’m like, oh my god, it’s three days before the New Year and I don’t have a dress,” Shevchenko recalled to ESPN two

9:04 AM ET Jeff WagenheimESPN We often hear fighters say that it’s the punch you don’t see coming that knocks you out. It makes sense. Fighters train for months ahead of a bout to tune up their skills and prepare for their opponent’s tendencies. So when something unexpected comes flying in, it can be a

6:52 PM ET Alexander Volkov landed a big straight hand, then another. He followed with a massive left hook that sent Jairzinho Rozenstruik‘s mouthpiece flying from his jaw to the Octagon canvas. Volkov kept pumping that long punching combination until referee Herb Dean put a stop to things. The TKO finish for the 6-foot-7 heavyweight