TUF 22 Team McGregor vs Team Faber Cast Revealed
(mmaweekly.com)Competitors from 11 different countries have been cast for the next season of The Ultimate Fighter led by UFC interim featherweight champion and proud Irishman Conor McGregor, opposite former WEC featherweight champion Urijah “The California Kid” Faber. The premiere episode, debuting on September 9 at 10 p.m. ET on FOX Sports 1, will showcase 32 fighters competing for one of 16 spots featuring eight Europeans and eight Americans and the opportunity to be coached by two of the sport’s best athletes...
Arkansas, California commissions leading the way with historic new rules for weight-cutting
(mmafighting.com)Arkansas is leading the charge against dangerous, drastic weight cutting.
The Arkansas State Athletic Commission (ASAC) temporarily passed a new regulation two weeks ago that intends to temper the practice of extreme weight cutting among amateur MMA fighters and boxers. Starting from Aug. 19, competitors are no longer able to gain more than 7.5 percent of their body weight back from the day of weigh-ins to the day of the fight. Also, a fighter cannot weigh more than one weight class above him or her the day of the fight...
Shoulder surgery forthcoming for ex-UFC champ 'Shogun' Rua
(mmajunkie.com)Mauricio Rua’s next fight will have to wait until 2016. The former UFC light heavyweight champion is scheduled to undergo surgery on his right shoulder this week.
As first reported by FOX Sports 1’s “UFC Tonight,” “Shogun’s” injured shoulder requires surgery that will keep him out of action until next year. Rua’s manager, Eduardo Alonso, subsequently confirmed the report with MMAjunkie...
Michelle Waterson vs. Tecia Torres slated for UFC 194 in Las Vegas
(mmajunkie.com)A major strawweight bout will be part of UFC 194’s lineup with Michelle Waterson (13-4 MMA, 1-0 UFC) vs. Tecia Torres (6-0 MMA, 2-0 UFC).
UFC officials today announced the fight.
UFC 194 takes place Dec. 12 at MGM Grand Garden Arena in Las Vegas. The main card, including featherweight champion Jose Aldo vs. interim titleholder Conor McGregor and middleweight champ Chris Weidman vs. Luke Rockhold, airs on pay-per-view following prelims on FOX Sports 1 and UFC Fight Pass.
UFC considered Joanna vs. Letourneau for 193 co-main
(bloodyelbow.com)It's unclear now if the Jedrzejczyk vs. Letourneau fight is still in the works for UFC 195, as Dana White told Iole, "I just have to rethink all of this. There are a lot of ways we can go, but we'll make this a kick-ass event and we'll get back at it and figure out [UFC 195] and do the same thing with that." But, for now it sounds like Claudia Gadelha isn't going to be the next woman fighting for the 115 lb title.
Melvin Guillard suffers 'shattered' hand in Bellator 141 loss, expected to undergo surgery
(mmajunkie.com)
Melvin Guillard’s Bellator debut did not go according to plan. The former UFC lightweight contender dropped a split decision to handpicked opponent Brandon Girtz in the main event of Bellator 141 on Friday.
Girtz’s (13-4 MMA, 5-3 BMMA) combination of punching power and explosive takedowns gave Guillard (34-14-2 MMA, 0-1 BMMA) fits for the majority of the contest. “The Young Assassin” nearly scored a finish in the final minutes of the 155-pound contest, but throughout most of the fight his strike count was below the norm.
A “shattered” right hand was likely a contributing factor.
Sage Northcutt gets call after Legacy FC 44 win, debuts at UFC 192 in Houston
(mmajunkie.com)After his latest stoppage victory, Sage Northcutt got some pretty big news in front of his home fans.
Northcutt (5-0 MMA, 0-0 UFC), a 19-year-old welterweight from nearby Katy, Texas, tapped out Rocky Long (21-34-1) on the main card of Legacy FC 44 on Friday night in Houston.
After the win, it was announced that Northcutt had secured a UFC contract and will make his promotional debut this fall – also in Houston at UFC 192. No first opponent was announced for Northcutt, though his fight is likely to take place on the UFC Fight Pass portion of the preliminary card.
With Kunimoto out, Nakamura Keita returns to face Li Jingliang at UFC Fight Night 75
(mmajunkie.com)An injury has forced a change to the main card of next month’s UFC Fight Night 75 in Japan.
Kiichi Kunimoto (18-6-2 MMA, 3-1 UFC) has been forced out of his welterweight bout against Li Jingliang (10-3 MMA, 2-1 UFC). Stepping in for Kunimoto will be three-fight UFC veteran Nakamura Keita (30-6-2 MMA, 0-3 UFC). UFC officials recently announced the change.
The lineup is set for next month’s UFC Fight Night 75 event in Japan, which includes bouts on FOX Sports 1, FOX Sports 2 and UFC Fight Pass.
Hayder Hassan meets Vicente Luque in 'TUF 21' rematch at UFC on FOX 17
(mmajunkie.com)A rematch of the most important fight of Season 21 of “The Ultimate Fighter” has been booked for the UFC’s return to Florida in December.
Hayder Hassan (6-2 MMA, 0-1 UFC), from American Top Team, will meet the Blackzilians’ Vicente Luque (7-5 MMA, 0-1 UFC) in a welterweight bout at UFC on FOX 17. UFC officials announced the fight booking after an initial report from the South Florida SunSentinel.
With the addition to the card, UFC on FOX 17 now includes:
Champ Rafael dos Anjos vs. Donald Cerrone – for lightweight title
Junior Dos Santos vs. Alistair Overeem
Nate Diaz vs. Michael Johnson
C.B. Dollaway vs. Nate Marquardt
Tamdan McCrory vs. Josh Samman
Danny Castillo vs. Nik Lentz
Hayder Hassan vs. Vicente Luque
Report: Jim Alers vs. Cole Miller headed to UFC on FOX 17 in Orlando
(mmajunkie.com)A pair of Florida-based fighters will get bouts on their home turf when the UFC returns to Orlando in December.
Jim Alers (13-2 MMA, 1-1 UFC), who trains in Orlando, is set to meet Cole Miller (21-9 MMA, 10-7 UFC), a longtime trainee at American Top Team in South Florida, according to a report from FOXSports.com. UFC officials have not yet announced the featherweight matchup.
With the addition to the card, UFC on FOX 17 now includes:
Champ Rafael dos Anjos vs. Donald Cerrone – for lightweight title
Junior Dos Santos vs. Alistair Overeem
Nate Diaz vs. Michael Johnson
C.B. Dollaway vs. Nate Marquardt
Tamdan McCrory vs. Josh Samman
Danny Castillo vs. Nik Lentz
Hayder Hassan vs. Vicente Luque
Jim Alers vs. Cole Miller
Travis Browne reinstated after 'inconclusive evidence' in domestic violence investigation
(mmajunkie.com)UFC heavyweight Travis Browne is free to return to competition after an investigation into an alleged domestic violence incident came back with “inconclusive evidence.”
Browne (17-3-1 MMA, 8-3-1 UFC) was temporarily suspended by the organization in early July after his wife, fitness model Jenna Renee Webb, posted multiple photos of her bruised body on Instagram and accused Browne of assaulting her.
Although Webb did not press charges, UFC’s officials announced the promotion hired “a former FBI agent with more than 25 years of experience” to investigate the situation.
Bellator 142 tourney matches set with Lawal vs. Vassell, Davis vs. Newton
(mmajunkie.com)The opening round matchups for next month’s four-man, single-night Bellator MMA light heavyweight tournament have been set, as Muhammed Lawal meets Linton Vassell, and Phil Davis faces Emanuel Newton.
The pairings, which were conducted via random draw following Thursday’s Bellator 141 weigh-ins, were announced on Friday’s Spike TV telecast.
Bellator 142 takes place Sept. 19 at San Jose’s SAP Center. The main card airs live on Spike TV. The “Dynamite” event features both MMA and kickboxing matches.
Ronda Rousey vs. Holly Holm moved to UFC 193 stadium show in Australia
(bloodyelbow.com)In a surprise announcement on ESPN's 11 PM ET edition of SportsCenter, UFC president Dana White confirmed that Ronda Rousey vs. Holly Holm, originally scheduled to headline UFC 195 in January, is now the new main event for UFC 193 in Melbourne, Australia on November 15th (November 14th in North America). Just last week, Rousey made her own announcement on ABC's Good Morning America that her next title defense would be against Holm in Las Vegas on the UFC's traditional New Year's weekend PPV.
At the time, the original main event was a welterweight title fight between champion Robbie Lawler and Carlos Condit, with a co-main heavyweight rematch between Mark Hunt and Antonio Silva. Unfortunately, dreams of a Rousey vs. Holm/Lawler vs. Condit twinbill have been dashed, as a thumb injury has forced Lawler off the card.
Justin Wren has returned from the Congo, but his fight for the Pygmies has just begun
(mmafighting.com)
Justin Wren stroked his prodigious beard, scratched the dry, red skin on his arm and squinted.
"It's kind of crazy we're here," he said. "All that green."
The ivy-covered coffee shop patio about two miles from the campus of UCLA brought Wren back to the Democratic Republic of the Congo. And, more specifically, the vision he had that led him to the African nation in the first place.
Four years ago, Wren was an MMA fighter struggling with addiction and depression, looking for something else of value in his life. During a spiritual retreat, he found it even if he didn't know where it was.
Rousey vs. Correia looks to have topped 900,000 pay-per-view buys
(mmafighting.com)UFC 190, headlined by Ronda Rousey's 34-second title defense against Bethe Correia, became perhaps the most surprising pay-per-view hit in U.S. company history.
Current estimates have the show doing a little more than 900,000 buys on pay-per-view, the largest number for a UFC show since UFC 168, on Dec. 28, 2013, the show headlined by the second Chris Weidman vs. Anderson Silva fight and the second Rousey vs. Miesha Tate fight.
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