John Lineker released from UFC contract after 16-fight tenure
(https:)Bantamweight contender John Lineker has been released from his UFC contract.
After pleading for a fight, Lineker (31-9 MMA, 12-4 UFC) was given a co-main event spot against Rob Font at UFC on ESPN+ 12 this past month. He withdrew from the fight just days out, though, after allegedly suffering a facial laceration during his weight cut.
That withdrawal seemingly didn’t put the Brazilian in the UFC’s good graces, because just weeks later he is no longer with the company, MMA Junkie confirmed with a person close to the situation.
Derek Brunson vs. Ian Heinisch on tap for UFC 241 in Anaheim
ufc middleweight ian heinisch is on the fast track following a win over antonio carlos junior earlier this month.
heinisch (13-1 mma, 2-0 ufc) today announced he will fight octagon veteran derek brunson (19-7 mma, 10-5 ufc) at august’s ufc 241 event (via instagram):
UFC middleweight Ian Heinisch is on the fast track following a win over Antonio Carlos Junior earlier this month.
Heinisch (13-1 MMA, 2-0 UFC) today announced he will fight octagon veteran Derek Brunson (19-7 MMA, 10-5 UFC) at August’s UFC 241 event (via Instagram):
Moggly’ Benitez to fight Sodiq Yusuff at UFC 241
(https:)When Gabriel Benitez returns to the cage, he’ll be facing an opponent who is also on a win streak.
“Moggly” looks for his third straight win when he takes on Sodiq Yusuff, who has won four straight, in a featherweight bout at UFC 241 on Aug. 17 at Honda Center in Anaheim, Calif. The matchup was first reported by Farah Hannoun.
This will be Benitez’s first fight since May 2018. The former Ultimate Fighter: Latin America 1 cast member needed just 39 seconds to KO Humberto Bandenay in his last outing and improve his UFC record to 5-2 (15-2 overall as a pro).
Bellator 222 bout order finalized with six-fight main card; Caldwell vs. Horiguchi opens
(https:)A sixth fight has been added to Friday’s Bellator 222 main card, which features two championship matchups.
One of those bouts will kick off the main card, which streams on DAZN following prelims on MMA Junkie from Madison Square Garden in New York. The bantamweight title rematch between Darrion Caldwell (13-2 MMA, 10-1 BMMA) and Kyoji Horiguchi (27-2 MMA, 0-0 BMMA) will open the six pack of fights headlined by a welterweight title showdown of Rory MacDonald(20-5-1 MMA, 2-1-1 BMMA) vs. Neiman Gracie (9-0 MMA, 7-0 BMMA) in the promotion’s grand prix semifinals.
Classic Diego Sanchez vs. Clay Guida bout announced for UFC 2019 Hall of Fame
(lhttps:)The latest Fight Wing inductee to the UFC Hall of Fame is one of the wildest fights in MMA history.
During Saturday’s UFC 238 broadcast, it was announced that Diego Sanchez vs. Clay Guida from The Ultimate Fighter 9 on June 20, 2009, will be honored during international fight week this July. That lightweight main event saw Sanchez defeat Guida by split decision after three rounds of non-stop action.
Cynthia Calvillo out, Brianna Van Buren In Against Livinha Souza At UFC Sacramento
(https:)The Ultimate Fighting Championship's return to Sacramento, California, is reorganizing, as Cynthia Calvillo has been forced to pull out of her strawweight fight against Livinha Souza, and will reportedly be replaced by Brianna Van Buren.
According to MMAJunkie on Friday, Calvillo (8-1) broke her foot and was forced to withdraw from her strawweight contest against Souza (13-1) at UFC Fight Night 155. This event will take place on July 13 at the Golden 1 Center in Sacramento, California, and according to MMA Brazil, the promotion has selected Van Buren (8-2) as Calvillo's replacement.
Calvillo was looking to raise her win streak to three, as she has beaten Cortney Casey and Poliana Botelho in her last two outings. With three rear-naked choke victories inside the Octagon, she is tied with Rose Namajunas for the most tapouts with that submission by a female UFC fighter.
Gavin Tucker ends nearly two-year layoff, meets Seungwoo Choi at UFC 240
(https:)A featherweight bout between Gavin Tucker and Seungwoo Choi is the latest addition to July’s UFC 240 lineup.
UFC officials today announced the bout between Tucker (10-1 MMA, 1-1 UFC) and Choi (7-2 MMA, 0-1 UFC).
UFC 240 takes place July 27 at Rogers Place in Edmonton, Alberta, Canada. The fight card is headlined by a featherweight title bout between champ Max Holloway and ex-lightweight champ Frankie Edgar. The main card airs on pay-per-view following prelims on ESPN and UFC Fight Pass/ESPN+.
Andy Ruiz Jr. upsets Anthony Joshua with seventh-round TKO to claim heavyweight titles
(https:) A late replacement and massive underdog, Andy Ruiz Jr. just shook up the world.
Ruiz (33-1, 22 KOs) spoiled the long-awaited U.S. debut of unified heavyweight champion and British star Anthony Joshua to score four knockdowns and record a spectacular upset via seventh-round TKO at Madison Square Garden.
Not only did Ruiz get up off the canvas early in Round 3 in order to do what oddsmakers felt was nearly impossible, he showed tremendous poise, power and fearlessness in systematically dismantling Joshua (22-1, 21 KOs) to flip the heavyweight division upside down.
UFC Stockholm bonuses: Anthony Smith’s main event submission leads $50K winners
(https:)The action delivered on arrival earlier today (Sat., June 1, 2019) at UFC on ESPN+ 11 live on ESPN+ from inside Ericsson Globe in Stockholm, Sweden, as Anthony Smith put an unexpected stop to Alexander Gustafsson via fourth-round submission in the main event.
In order to sift through the action and see which fighters took home an extra $50,000, we take a closer look at the official UFC on ESPN+ 11 bonus winners below:
Performance of the Night: Anthony Smith
Performance of the Night: Aleksandar Rakic
Performance of the Night: Makwan Amirkhani
Performance of the Night: Leonardo Santos
Deontay Wilder vs. Tyson Fury rematch signed for early 2020
(https:)In some totally unexpected news, Deontay Wilder vs. Tyson Fury II appears to be on tap for a TBD date in 2020.
It won’t happen in 2019, but Deontay Wilder vs. Tyson Fury II is apparently a done deal.
Wilder announced on Friday that after his expected September rematch with Luis Ortiz, he is going to face Fury next year.
Ilir Latifi injured, bout vs. Volkan Oezdemir scratched from UFC Stockholm
(https:)Saturday’s UFC on ESPN+ 11 event has lost its co-main event just two days out.
Ilir Latifi (14-6 MMA, 7-4 UFC) has been forced to withdraw from his scheduled light heavyweight matchup with Volkan Oezdemir (15-4 MMA, 3-3 UFC) due to a back injury.
UFC officials announced the news Thursday.
The specifics of Latifi’s back injury are unknown and the promotion did not detail how the situation arose on such short notice.
Josh Emmett vs. Mirsad Bektic among official additions to UFC Sacramento
(https:)On Wednesday, the UFC made several bouts official for its upcoming visit to Sacramento.
Per a release, featherweights Josh Emmett (14-2) and Mirsad Bektic (13-1) will fight on the July 13 card at Golden 1 Center. The matchup was first reported by FloCombat.
Other bouts announced Wednesday include Andre Fili (19-6) vs. Sheymon Moraes (11-3), Gian Villante (17-11) vs. Mike Rodriguez (10-3), and Pingyuan Liu (15-4) vs. Jonathan Martinez (10-2).
Aspen Ladd vs. Germaine de Randamie set as UFC Sacramento main event
(https:)UFC Sacramento has its headlining fight.
Less than two weeks ago, Aspen Ladd was on the prelims of UFC Rochester against fellow contender Sijara Eubanks. After a Fight of the Night performance and another win, Ladd has been elevated to headliner status after previously never appearing on a UFC main card.
