Josh Koscheck vs. Mauricio Alonso added to Bellator 172 main card with Piccolotti-Primus canceled
(mmajunkie.com)Next month’s Bellator 172 card has lost a fight but gained two more, including the long-delayed promotional debut of former UFC title challenger Josh Koscheck.
Bellator officials today announced Koscheck will fight fellow welterweight Mauricio Alonso. That bout takes the main-card slot initially reserved for lightweights Adam Piccolotti and Brent Primus; Piccolotti was forced out of the event with an undisclosed injury.
Officials also added a middleweight bout between Francisco France vs. Anatoly Tokov to Bellator 172’s prelims.
Bellator 172 takes place Feb. 18 at SAP Center in San Jose, Calif. The main card airs on Spike following prelims on MMAjunkie.
Indiana newcomer Jarred Brooks in for Neil Seery vs. Ian McCall at UFC 208 in Brooklyn
(mmajunkie.com)A day after undergoing a big change to his fight, which is becoming a familiar refrain for him, Ian McCall has a new opponent for UFC 208.
On Sunday, McCall (13-5-1 MMA, 2-3-1 UFC) had flyweight opponent Neil Seery (16-12 MMA, 3-3 UFC) drop out after the death of Seery’s mother-in-law. But McCall will remain on the card, which is less than two weeks away, to take on promotional newcomer Jarred Brooks (11-0 MMA, 0-0 UFC). UFC officials announced the new booking today.
UFC 208 takes place Feb. 11 at Barclays Center in Brooklyn, N.Y.
UFC 208's Ian McCall loses an opponent – again
(mmajunkie.com)Ian McCall’s UFC comeback seems to get more and more depressing with each attempt.
The flyweight’s UFC 208 fight against Neil Seery has been scrapped. Seery announced the withdrawal via Facebook, citing the passing of his mother-in-law as his reason for pulling out of the event. A UFC official subsequently confirmed the news with MMAjunkie.
“I pulled out of my fight in 2 weeks due to losing my mother in law today sorry to everyone who bought tickets but family comes first,” Seery wrote.
There’s still a chance he competes at UFC 208, though, and company officials are actively searching for a replacement.
Jimi Manuwa vs. Corey Anderson headlines UFC Fight Night 107 in London
(mmajunkie.com)With less than two months until the event, UFC Fight Night 107 finally has a headliner.
A light heavyweight showdown between Jimi Manuwa (16-2 MMA, 5-2 UFC) and Corey Anderson (9-2 MMA, 6-2 UFC) tops March’s UFC Fight Night 107 lineup in London.
MMAjunkie confirmed the news with a UFC official. The fight has yet to be formally announced by the promotion as the headliner.
UFC Fight Night 107 takes place March 18 at The O2 in London. The entire event streams on UFC Fight Pass.
UFC on FOX 23 post-fight facts: Francis Ngannou overtakes lead for consecutive UFC finishes
(mmajunkie.com)For the first time since UFC on FOX 4 in August 2012, every fight on a FOX-televised main card ended in a stoppage.
Saturday’s UFC on FOX 23 event at Pepsi Center in Denver featured four finishes in four fights, with Valentina Shevchenko (14-2 MMA, 3-1 UFC) closing the show with a second-round submission of fellow bantamweight Julianna Pena (8-3 MMA, 4-1 UFC) to secure her position as the next title challenger.
Although Shevchenko’s performance was the most relevant on the card in terms of title stakes, several other competitors turned in key victories. For more on the UFC’s sixth visit to Denver, check below for 50 post-fight facts to come out of UFC on FOX 23...
‘Formerly promoted’ - Has World Series of Fighting been transferred or folded?
(bloodyelbow.com)The entity doing business as WSOF is now a former MMA promoter, according to court documents.
MMAWC, LLC filed a lawsuit on Monday in Clark County District Court describing itself as the “Las Vegas-based company that formerly promoted professional events in the sport of mixed martial arts,” seemingly suggesting that either a new entity has acquired WSOF assets or WSOF’s days as an MMA promoter are over.
Blachowicz vs. Cummins, Aldana vs. Chookagian among new UFC 210 bookings
(mmajunkie.com)April’s UFC 210 event in New York has three new additions.
Officials today announced the trio of bouts: light heavyweights Jan Blachowicz (19-6 MMA, 2-3 UFC) vs. Patrick Cummins (8-4 MMA, 4-4 UFC), featherweights Shane Burgos (8-0 MMA, 1-0 UFC) vs. Charles Rosa (11-2 MMA, 2-2 UFC), and women’s bantamweights Irene Aldana (7-3 MMA, 0-1 UFC) vs. Katlyn Chookagian (8-1 MMA, 1-1 UFC).
UFC 210 takes place April 8 at KeyBank Center in Buffalo, N.Y. The main card airs on pay-per-view following prelims on FS1 and UFC Fight Pass
Ronda Threatened Lawsuit For Training Partners Who Punched Her In Sparring
(mmaimports.com)“She’s not allowed to get hit in sparring. These girls have to sign these waivers to say that we’ll never hit Ronda, and we’ll never talk about this type of training ever and all this stuff. She’s not really taking the toll in the fight camp with getting punched in the face legitimately so she doesn’t really know what that feels like.”
“She’s a superstar and they don’t want to see her get any damage. So, it’s like whenever the girls would go hard on her [during sparring] — whenever they’d come forward and start banging it out on her, they’d tell them, ‘Hey. Knock it off, stop it. Don’t hit her so hard. And sign this waiver and say that you were never here and that you never punched her. Don’t ever talk about how well you did in training because you have to sign this dotted line and if you don’t we’ll sue you for a million dollars.'”
*around 6 min mark*
Chael Sonnen addresses ‘embarrassing’ end to Tito Ortiz fight, SUG 3 pullout
(mmafighting.com)Chael Sonnen was just as disappointed as his supporters on Saturday with the way his Bellator 170 main event against Tito Ortiz played out.
Sonnen tapped out from an early rear-naked choke at the hands of Ortiz, ending his comeback from a three-year absence at Bellator 170 with an anticlimactic flourish. And while some critics online have questioned whether the submission that forced the tapout was fully locked in, Sonnen soundly dismissed that talk on Thursday.
Ranked flyweights Ali Bagautinov, Zach Makovsky no longer on UFC roster
(mmajunkie.com)Two of the world’s best flyweights are no longer under UFC contract.
Former UFC title challenger Ali Bagautinov (14-5 MMA, 4-3 UFC) and middling contender Zach Makovsky (19-8 MMA, 3-4 UFC) both completed their respective deals with the promotion with their most recent fights. Both men are no longer listed under the organization’s official rankings and are currently not being considered for new deals.
A UFC official confirmed the moves to MMAjunkie on Thursday.
George Sullivan fails drug test, facing second UFC anti-doping violation
(mmafighting.com)George Sullivan’s toughest opponent over the last year has been USADA.
The UFC welterweight failed a drug test and is facing a second UFC anti-doping policy violation, the promotion announced Thursday. Sullivan is the first athlete to be flagged by USADA twice since it became the UFC’s anti-doping partner in July 2015.
The positive test stems from a sample collected Jan. 14. Sullivan, who is currently serving a one-year suspension by USADA, has been provisionally suspended on top of that.
Michael McDonald is so broke he can’t even afford to accept a fight from the UFC right now
(mmamania.com)It's pretty common knowledge at this point that making it into the UFC doesn't result in immediate riches and financial security. In fact, more and more stories continue to pour out featuring fighters struggling and going broke fighting for the organization. Here's the latest disheartening tale: #8 ranked bantamweight Michael McDonald can't even afford a camp right now, so he's stuck working a second job until he can save up enough to train.
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