Boston Salmon Faces Khalid Taha At UFC 236
(https:)A bantamweight division attraction has been re-booked for the upcoming UFC 236 card according to My MMA News as Boston Salmon is going to be in action against Khalid Taha.
The bout was originally set to happen at the UFC Ultimate Fighter 28 Finale, but Taha pulled out of that fight due to a knee injury.
Salmon (6-1-0) is going to be making his UFC debut in this fight and is also returning to action for the first time in almost two years. Salmon competed on Dana White's Tuesday Night Contender Series Episode 1, defeating Ricky Turcios by unanimous decision. Salmon is also a longtime veteran of the Resurrection Fighting Alliance, winning five of six bouts in the promotion.
Roxanne Modafferi Faces Antonina Shevchenko At UFC Fight Night St. Petersburg
(https:)A women's flyweight division attraction has been added to UFC Fight Night St. Petersburg according to My MMA News as #8 Roxanne Modafferi is in action against Antonina Shevchenko.
Modafferi (22-15-0) has won just one of three bouts during her second UFC run, with that lone win coming over Barb Honchak at the UFC Ultimate Fighter 27 Finale. Modafferi has previously challenged for the UFC Women's Flyweight Title, losing to then champion Nicco Montano in the finals of the UFC Ultimate Fighter 26. Modafferi has competed a total of thirty seven times as a professional MMA fighter and more than half of her fights went the distance.
Michel Tractor faces Ismail Naurdiev at UFC Prague
(mmabrasil.com.br)Brazilian midfielder Michel Tractor had no opponent after the injury of Russian Ramazan Emeev , but the UFC has already agreed to hire a fighter to enter as a substitute. As determined exclusively by MMA Brazil , the Austrian Ismail Naurdiev is the one who will face Tractor at UFC Prague on 23 February.
Ian Heinisch steps in to fight Tom Breese at UFC London
(https:)Tom Breese has another new opponent for UFC London.
The UFC announced Thursday that Ian Heinisch has signed on as a replacement for an injured Cezar Ferreira to fight Breese in a middleweight bout at The O2 Arena on March 16. Ferreira himself was a replacement for an injured Alessio Di Chirico.
Paul Daley thinks he's solved the 'MVP' puzzle, promises a 'simple victory' at Bellator 216
(https:)Paul Daley has been something of a cult figure among U.K. MMA fans for more than a decade, but now he thinks he is finally about to hit pay dirt with the biggest win of his career.
Daley (40-16-2 MMA, 6-3 BMMA) developed his reputation as a terrifyingly powerful striker who would test his skills against anyone in the world. He says he has solved the puzzle so many of Michael Page’s (13-0 MMA, 8-0 BMMA) previous opponents failed to master, and that he’s ready to halt the hype train of his countryman.
Former UFC champ Joanna Jedrzejczyk returning to strawweight
(https:) Joanna Jedrzejczyk is returning to the division where she long held UFC gold.
After a one-fight stop in the women’s flyweight division, Jedrzejczyk (15-3 MMA, 9-3 UFC) said she will return to strawweight. First, though, she intends on taking more time to relax following her 125-pound title-fight loss to Valentina Shevchenko at UFC 231 in December.
Ben Askren vows never to fight UFC champ Tyron Woodley
(https:)Former Bellator and ONE Championship welterweight champ Ben Askren has called out a lot of fighters on the UFC roster.
Now that he resides on it, he’s got the chance to realize those matchups (some even want to fight him outside the octagon). But there’s one fight he’ll never pursue, and that’s UFC champ Tyron Woodley (19-3-1 MMA, 9-2-1 UFC).
Khabib Nurmagomedov, Conor McGregor suspended for UFC 229 brawl
(https:)UFC lightweight champion Khabib Nurmagomedov and Conor McGregor have been suspended by the Nevada State Athletic Commission for their roles in the infamous UFC 229 brawl.
Nurmagomedov received nine months, while McGregor received six months. The suspensions are retroactive to the Oct. 6 fight card, which took place at T-Mobile Arena in Las Vegas, meaning Nurmagomedov is able to return to the cage as soon as July 6 and McGregor on April 6.
UFC makes Jon Jones vs. Anthony Smith official for UFC 235 main event
(https:)It didn’t take the UFC long after learning Jon Jones’ fate to formalize its main event for a March return to Las Vegas.
Not long after light heavyweight champion Jones was given a conditional one-fight license by the Nevada State Athletic Commission at a hearing today in Las Vegas, the UFC made official the UFC 235 headliner.
Sam Alvey Replaces Ryan Spann vs. Jim Crute at UFC 234
(pwpnation.com)With Ryan Spann out, enter Sam Alvey.
With a history of accepting fights on short notice, Alvey (33-11 MMA, 10-6 UFC) will be making his way to Melbourne, Australia on Feb. 9 for UFC 234. First reported by News.com.au, Alvey will look to bounce back from his most recent loss to Antonio Rogerio Nogueira via TKO last September. Before the loss, Alvey rolled off back-to-back wins over Marcin Prachnio and Gian Villante in 2018. Alvey was originally scheduled to fight Gadhimurad Antigulov at UFC on ESPN+ 3.
LFA 58 video highlights with back-to-back highlight-reel KOs not to miss
(https:)If it was highlight-reel knockouts you were looking for Friday night, LFA 58 had you covered.
Harvey Park (11-2) took out Jaleel Willis (9-3) with a first-round TKO in the LFA 58 main event at Route 66 Casino Hotel in Albuquerque, N.M. The main card aired on AXS TV.
But the two biggest highlights came back-to-back, and they came quickly into their fights. First, Flavian Pilgrim (5-1) needed just 50 seconds to KO Sherwin Price (5-2) with a massive punch in their lightweight bout. And in the next fight, Luiz Gavinho (9-4) put out Vince Fricilone’s (8-2) lights with a flying knee in just 40 seconds.
UFC on ESPN+ 1 bonuses: Donald Cerrone doubles up for $100K
(https:)Henry Cejudo, Donald Cerrone and Alexander Hernandez each earned $50,000 bonuses for their performances at Saturday’s UFC on ESPN+ 1 event. In the case of Cerrone, it was times two.
Winners Cejudo and Cerrone both took home “Performance of the Night” bonuses, and “Cowboy” also received a “Fight of the Night” bonus along with Hernandez.
UFC President Dana White announced the winners following the event, which MMAjunkie attended.
Stephen Thompson vs. Anthony Pettis in works for UFC Nashville
(https:)Maybe Stephen Thompson and Anthony Pettis have a future as matchmakers.
Following a social media exchange that saw Pettis asking fans if he should step up to welterweight to fight Thompson, and Thompson welcoming Pettis to try, MMA Fighting’s Marc Raimondi confirmed with sources that the two have verbally agreed to fight at 170 pounds on March 23 at a UFC on ESPN+ show in Nashville, Tenn.
Kyle Stewart in for Dwight Grant, meets Chance Rencountre at UFC Brooklyn
(https:)The game of musical chairs that will be the UFC’s first fight of 2019 continues, but now may be finally set.
After Dwight Grant (8-2 MMA, 0-1 UFC) was not cleared to compete by the New York State Athletic Commission, newcomer Kyle Stewart (11-1 MMA, 0-0 UFC) will take on Chance Rencountre (12-3 MMA, 0-1 UFC) to open UFC on ESPN+ 1 on Saturday.
Dwight Grant steps in vs. Chance Rencountre to finalize UFC on ESPN+ 1 lineup
(https:)Dwight Grant will be fighting on just six days’ notice when he steps into the octagon against Chance Rencountre on Saturday at UFC on ESPN+ 1.
Grant (8-2 MMA, 0-1 UFC) will fill in for Randy Brown, who was pulled from the card for still unknown reasons, against Rencountre (12-3 MMA, 0-1 UFC) in a welterweight bout at the first UFC event of the year.
MMAjunkie verified Grant as the replacement opponent for Rencounter with a person close to the situation following an initial report from ESPN.com. The person requested anonymity because the UFC has yet to make an official announcement.
