Longtime kickboxing rivals Badr Hari and Alistair Overeem will finally complete their trilogy in the GLORY: “Collision 4” main event, a heavyweight showdown recently made official for Sat., Oct. 8, 2022 inside GelreDome in Arnhem, Netherlands.

“Bad Boy” came face-to-face with “Demolition Man” at today’s media press conference.

Hari was stopped by Overeem when they first went to war at Fields Dynamite! back in late 2008 (see it here). They would rematch roughly a year later and the Moroccan striker scored his first-round revenge as part of the K-1 World Grand Prix Final (replay here).

Hari, 37, has not seen the win column since summer 2018, racking up four losses and a pair of No Contests, including his bizarre battle against Arkadiusz Wrzosek last March, which came to a halt when the crowd went into business for itself.

As for Overeem, who turned 42 just a few weeks back, he’s been inactive since parting ways with UFC in early 2021. “Demolition Man” was expected to compete against Rico Verhoeven last October; however, a late injury brought a hasty end to that fan-friendly fight.

Expect more fight card announcements for GLORY: “Collision 4” in the coming weeks.

Former lightweight champion Conor McGregor is no longer a Top 10 fighter.

“Notorious” was recently replaced by surging 155-pound prospect Mateusz Gamrot, who blasted his way to No. 8 by outlasting fellow division upstart Arman Tsarukyan in the UFC Vegas 57 main event last weekend in “Sin City,” the fourth straight win for “Gamer.”

The surgically-repaired McGregor tumbled to No. 12.

Elsewhere on the charts, undefeated welterweight sensation Shavkat Rakhmonov cracked the 170-pound Top 10 by turning away longtime veteran Neil Magny. In addition, Rogerio Bontorin was removed from the flyweight lineup after parting ways with UFC.

Here’s how UFC compiles its official rankings:

Rankings were generated by a voting panel made up of media members. The media members were asked to vote for who they feel are the top fighters in the UFC by weight-class and pound-for-pound. A fighter is only eligible to be voted on if they are in active status in the UFC. A fighter can appear in more than one weight division at a time. The champion and interim champion are considered to be in the top positions of their respective divisions and therefore are not eligible for voting by weight-class. However, the champions can be voted on for the pound-for-pound rankings.

Take a look at what the latest rankings field looks like courtesy of UFC.com. Note: (+/- = movement in rankings, T = tie, *NR = Not previously ranked).

MEN’S POUND-FOR-POUND

1. Kamaru Usman
2. Alexander Volkanovski
3. Israel Adesanya
4. Charles Oliveira
5. Francis Ngannou
6. Max Holloway
7. Dustin Poirier
8. Aljamain Sterling
9. Jon Jones
10. (T) Deiveson Figueiredo
10. (T) Jiri Prochazka
12. Stipe Miocic
13. Petr Yan
14. Robert Whittaker +1
15. Glover Teixeira -1

FLYWEIGHT

Champion: Deiveson Figueiredo

1. Brandon Moreno
2. Kai Kara France
3. Askar Askarov
4. Alexandre Pantoja -1
5. Brandon Royval
6. Alex Perez
7. Matheus Nicolau
8. Matt Schnell +1
9. David Dvorak +1
10. Tim Elliott +1
11. Su Mudaerji +1
12. Amir Albazi +1
13. Manel Kape +1
14. Tagir Ulanbekov +1
15. Jeffrey Molina *NR

BANTAMWEIGHT

Champion: Aljamain Sterling

1. Petr Yan
2. T.J. Dillashaw
3. Jose Aldo
4. Cory Sandhagen
5. Marlon Vera
6. Merab Dvalishvili
7. Rob Font
8. Dominick Cruz
9. Pedro Munhoz +1
10. Song Yadong -1
11. (T) Frankie Edgar
12. Ricky Simon -1
13. Sean O’Malley
14. Jack Shore
15. Umar Nurmagomedov *NR

FEATHERWEIGHT

Champion: Alexander Volkanovski

1. Max Holloway
2. Brian Ortega
3. Yair Rodriguez
4. Josh Emmett
5. Calvin Kattar
6. Arnold Allen +1
7. Chan Sung Jung -1
8. Giga Chikadze
9. Bryce Mitchell
10. Dan Ige
11. Sodiq Yusuff
12. Edson Barboza
13. Movsar Evloev
14. Shane Burgos
15. Ilia Topuria

LIGHTWEIGHT

Champion: VACANT

1. Charles Oliveira
2. Dustin Poirier
3. Justin Gaethje
4. Islam Makhachev
5. Michael Chandler
6. Beneil Dariush
7. Rafael dos Anjos
8. Mateusz Gamrot +4
9. Tony Ferguson
10. Rafael Fiziev
11. Arman Tsarukyan
12. Conor McGregor -4
13. Dan Hooker
14. Brad Riddell
15. Diego Ferreira

WELTERWEIGHT

Champion: Kamaru Usman

1. Colby Covington
2. Leon Edwards
3. Khamzat Chimaev
4. Gilbert Burns
5. Belal Muhammed
6. Vicente Luque
7. Stephen Thompson
8. Jorge Masvidal
9. Sean Brady
10. Shavkat Rakhmonov +5
11. Michael Chiesa
12. Neil Magny -2
13. Geoff Neal -1
14. Li Jingliang -1
15. Michel Pereira -1

MIDDLEWEIGHT

Champion: Israel Adesanya

1. Robert Whittaker
2. Jared Cannonier
3. Marvin Vettori
4. Sean Strickland
5. Derek Brunson
6. Paulo Costa
7. Jack Hermansson
8. Darren Till
9. Uriah Hall
10. Kelvin Gastelum
11. Nassourdine Imavov
12. Brad Tavares
13. Andre Muniz
14. Chris Weidman
15. Edmen Shahbazyan

LIGHT HEAVYWEIGHT

Champion: Jiri Prochazka

1. Glover Teixeira
2. Jan Blachowicz
3. Aleksandar Rakic
4. Magomed Ankalaev
5. Anthony Smith
6. Thiago Santos
7. Dominick Reyes
8. Paul Craig
9. Volkan Oezdemir
10. Jamahal Hill
11. Nikita Krylov
12. Ryan Spann
13. Johnny Walker
14. Jim Crute
15. Dustin Jacoby

HEAVYWEIGHT

Champion: Francis Ngannou

1. Ciryl Gane
2. Stipe Miocic
3. Tai Tuivasa
4. Curtis Blaydes
5. Derrick Lewis
6. Tom Aspinall
7. Alexander Volkov
8. Jairzinho Rozenstruik
9. Chris Daukaus
10. Marcin Tybura
11. Sergei Pavlovich
12. Shamil Abdurakhimov
13. Alexandr Romanov
14. Augusto Sakai
15. Blagoy Ivanov

WOMEN’S POUND-FOR-POUND

1. Valentina Shevchenko
2. Amanda Nunes
3. Julianna Pena
4. Rose Namajunas
5. Weili Zhang
6. Carla Esparza
7. Jessica Andrade
8. Marina Rodriguez
9. Holly Holm
10. Katlyn Chookagian
11. Ketlen Vieira
12. Yan Xiaonan
13. Mackenzie Dern
14. Taila Santos
15. Raquel Pennington

WOMEN’S STRAWWEIGHT

Champion: Carla Esparza

1. Rose Namajunas
2. Zhang Weili
3. Marina Rodriguez
4. Mackenzie Dern
5. Yan Xiaonan
6. Jessica Andrade
7. Nina Nunes
8. Tecia Torres
9. Amanda Ribas
10. Michelle Waterson
11. Amanda Lemos
12. Virna Jandiroba
13. Angela Hill
14. Jessica Penne
15. Luana Pinheiro

WOMEN’S FLYWEIGHT

Champion: Valentina Shevchenko

1. Katlyn Chookagian
2. Talia Santos
3. Lauren Murphy
4. Jessica Andrade
5. Alexa Grasso
6. Viviane Araujo +1
7. Manon Fiorot -1
8. Jennifer Maia
9. Andrea Lee
10. Joanne Wood
10. (T) Cynthia Calvillo
10. (T) Jessica Eye
12. Casey O’Neill +1
13. Maycee Barber +1
14. Erin Blanchfield +1
15. Tracy Cortez *NR

WOMEN’S BANTAMWEIGHT

Champion: Julianna Pena

1. Amanda Nunes
2. Ketlen Vieira
3. Holly Holm
4. Irene Aldana
5. Raquel Pennington
6. Yana Kunitskaya
7. Aspen Ladd
8. Sara McMann
9. Pannie Kianzad
10. Miesha Tate
11. Macy Chiasson
12. Lina Lansberg
13. Karol Rosa
14. Julia Avila
15. Norma Dumont

There you have it.

You can expect these rankings to change around this time next week, particularly in the middleweight and featherweight divisions, thanks to the championship doubleheader at the UFC 276 pay-per-view (PPV) event this Sat. night (July 2) at T-Mobile Arena in Las Vegas.

For much more on that upcoming fight card click here.

Jake Paul will continue his boxing career against fellow up-and-coming pugilist Tommy Fury in an eight round, cruiserweight contest set for Sat., Aug. 6, 2022 at Madison Square Garden (MSG) in New York City, a Showtime pay-per-view (PPV) lineup co-headlined by the Amanda Serrano vs. Brenda Carabajal featherweight title fight.

Wanna go see it live?

Tickets will go on sale to the general public this Weds. (June 29) at 11 a.m. ET at MSG.com, the same date and time as the kickoff press conference held for the combat sports media inside “The World’s Most Famous Arena.” Paul, Fury, Serrano, and Carabajal are all expected to be in attendance for tomorrow’s gathering in “The Big Apple.”

“The Paul brothers’ boxing charade is about to come to an end once and for all,” said Fury, the half-brother of WBC heavyweight champion Tyson Fury. “I am a boxer. My opponent plays boxing. Jake Paul has been dressed up to look like a boxer against retirees from other sports. On Aug. 6, I will show the world that he does not belong in the ring. I look forward to headlining Madison Square Garden and knocking out this clown.”

Fury was scheduled to box Jake Paul last Dec. in Tampa, but “TNT” was hit with a chest infection — then broke his rib in training — and was forced to withdraw. That opened the door for Tyron Woodley, who looked to avenge his Aug. 2021 loss to “The Problem Child” but instead went face first into the canvas.

“I wasn’t sure I was going to say yes to another potential matchup against Tommy after he pulled out of our matchup last year,” Paul said. “But ultimately, knocking out a Fury was too appealing to pass up. I’ve proven I am dedicated to boxing in and out of the ring, from promoting fights, championing fighters and fighter pay, to knocking out my opponents. The Furys cannot say the same, they are selfish tossers. On August 6, at the mecca, Madison Square Garden, the world will see why I am on my way to being a world champion.”

Expect the rest of the “Paul vs. Fury” fight card to be revealed in the coming days.

Ultimate Fighting Championship (UFC) Bantamweight sluggers Sean O’Malley and Pedro Munhoz will throw down this weekend (Sat., July 2, 2022) at UFC 276 inside T-Mobile Arena in Las Vegas, Nevada.

For all O’Malley’s talk about a slow rise and fighting easy opponents, this is no gimme fight. “Suga” is taking a considerable step up in competition here versus an experienced Top 10-ranked foe, one who’s going to try to take his head off. O’Malley is officially trying to break into the title mix with this fight, which stands as his biggest challenge since Marlon Vera ... and we all remember how that fight ended. As for Munhoz, times have been tough for the Brazilian veteran. He’s been giving a good account of himself against the best in the world, but that hasn’t produced all that many victories as of late. To remain inside the Top 10, “Young Punisher” has to turn away O’Malley.

Let’s take a closer look at the keys to victory for each man:

Sean O’Malley

Record: 15-1
Key Wins: Raulian Paiva (UFC 269), Thomas Almeida (UFC 260), Eddie Wineland (UFC 250), Jose Alberto Quinonez (UFC 248), Andre Soukhamthath (UFC 222)
Key Losses: Marlon Vera (UFC 252)
Keys to Victory: There’s a lot of hype and flash around O’Malley, but don’t let that distract from the facts. “Suga” is a great kickboxer, a crafty and dangerous puncher with some really unique set ups.

Eleven career knockouts at 135 pounds is nothing to scoff at.

In this match up, O’Malley has a pair of distinct advantages, and he’s accustomed to utilizing both. Opposite the Brazilian, O’Malley will be significantly longer and faster, which is a pretty deadly combination. At range, O’Malley should be peppering Munhoz with quick jabs and snap kicks while feinting often to draw out Munhoz’s calf kicks and counters.

O’Malley does have to be aware that Munhoz is incredibly durable — he’s yet to be knocked down in nearly 30 professional fights! As such, managing his output and avoiding injuring himself on any of his own kicks (a semi-frequent issue for O’Malley) should be a priority, because Munhoz isn’t going away.

Pedro Munhoz

Record: 19-7 (1)
Key Wins: Rob Font (UFC Fight Night 119), Cody Garbrandt (UFC 235), Jimmie Rivera (UFC Vegas 20), Bryan Caraway (TUF 28 Finale), Justin Scoggins (UFC Fight Night 100), Brett Johns (UFC 227)
Key Losses: Aljamain Sterling (UFC 238), Jose Aldo (UFC 265), Dominick Cruz (UFC 269), Frankie Edgar (UFC on ESPN 15), Jimmie Rivera (UFC Fight Night 77), Rafael Assuncao (UFC 170)
Keys to Victory: Munhoz is about as tough as they come. The Brazilian veteran has considerable power in his hands, some brutally effective kicks and the best guillotine choke at 135 pounds.

Tracking down O’Malley is going to be the key here. He’s going to be shifting directions, landing range strikes, and trying to walk Munhoz into heavy counter shots — dealing with all that isn’t easy. Fortunately, Munhoz has the jawline to absorb some heavy blows without getting deterred, an attribute which is likely to be necessary here. Whenever Munhoz does get cracked, he has to keep advancing and firing, otherwise O’Malley is going to build a lead quickly.

On the whole, cutting off the cage is going to be so pivotal here. Munhoz may not be able to match O’Malley’s foot speed, but if he can stay in front of “Suga,” he doesn’t have to. Again, that will involve taking some shots, but that’s a fair trade if Munhoz can start touching his opponent as a result.

Finally, the calf kick might be the great equalizer here. It’s a proven weapon versus O’Malley, and there’s no better tool than the low kick to inhibit an opponent’s lateral movement.

Bottom Line

A spot in the Top 10 is on the line.

O’Malley is already one of the bigger stars on UFC’s roster. If he can break into the Top 10 and become a genuine title contender, that’s only going to elevate his name so much further. He’s talked about following the McGregor path to super stardom, and a major element of that trajectory involves taking out elite opposition in high-profile fights.

This match up is a step in that direction.

As for Munhoz, his back is against the wall. “The Young Punisher” is now 35 years of age, and he’s fought most of the division’s best without consistent success. At this point, he’s been forced into something of a gatekeeper role. If he’s to escape that position and start climbing once more, there is no more room for setbacks.

At UFC 276, Sean O’Malley and Pedro Munhoz will open the main card. Which athlete will have his hand raised?

Remember that MMAmania.com will deliver LIVE round-by-round, blow-by-blow coverage of the entire UFC 276 fight card right here, starting with the early ESPN+ “Prelims” matches online, which are scheduled to begin at 6 p.m. ET, then the remaining undercard balance on ABC/ESPN+ at 8 p.m. ET, before the PPV main card start time at 10 p.m. ET on ESPN+ PPV.

To check out the latest and greatest UFC 276: “Adesanya vs. Cannonier” news and notes be sure to hit up our comprehensive event archive right here.

Bringing you the weird and wild from the world of MMA each and every weeknight!

Welcome to Midnight Mania!

Both Ronda Rousey and Gina Carano are long retired. Rousey left the sport in 2016 after consecutive knockout losses ended her title reign, whereas Carano walked away in 2009 after her first professional loss to Cris Cyborg. Despite the fact that neither woman ever fought in the same year, the pair actually did nearly come to blows in 2014 before “pain in the ass lawyers” ruined everything.

Since walking away, both women have found success in other enterprises. “Rowdy” is a WWE superstar, while Carano is now best known for her acting roles in films like Deadpool and Disney’s The Mandalorian. Though public backlash to controversial social media posts lost her the latter gig, the uncanceled actress has still found allies (like Ben Shapiro) in the media industry.

None of that has much to do with fighting, however. Despite their retirement status, Rousey recently revealed Carano as the only possible fight that could draw her back into action. In response, Carano has revealed that she’s not against working with Rousey, whether that’s in film or a real fist fight.

“You know what? Just never put it past me,” Carano told FOX News (via MMAJunkie). “It could happen. It would be like, you know, six months from now, because I have a lot of stuff I need to do. But my fight really is with I really want to create, I want to direct, I want to produce, I want to give Ronda Rousey a job in one of my movies, so maybe there is something we can do there.”

Insomnia

Though the date is still up for debate, both Francis Ngannou and Tyson Fury are still set on throwing down.

Is Miesha Tate vs. Lauren Murphy more relevant to its division’s title picture? Yes. Will Robbie Lawler vs. Bryan Barberena surely be a way better viewing experience? Also yes.

Josh Emmett shows off a bit of Wolverine-esque healing.

Tony Ferguson is bulking up for a potential Welterweight move.

As was widely expected, Takeru is (at a minimum) taking a break following THE MATCH.

Conor McGregor’s staying power in the UFC Lightweight rankings is insane.

Next level nonsense from PFL — I love it!

Slips, rips, and KO clips

It didn’t end well, but getting rock and then immediately firing a spinning elbow is admirable.

Man ran into three hard counter punches straight to the jaw and just kept going forward ... until number four!

You love to see it.

Random Land

Taking flight in the Alps!

Wedding update! Technically, I could justify putting this in the actual column given the officiant ...

Midnight Music: Indie pop, 2022

Sleep well Maniacs! More martial arts madness is always on the way.

Ultimate Fighting Championship (UFC) is bringing more “Prelims” fights to ABC/ESPN and ESPN+ this weekend (Sat., July 2, 2022) when UFC 276: “Adesanya vs. Cannonier” storms T-Mobile Arena in Las Vegas, Nevada. MMAmania.com’s Patrick Stumberg kicks off the UFC 276 “Prelims” party with the first installment of a two-part undercard preview series below.

Two of the most dominant Ultimate Fighting Championship (UFC) champions put their belts on the line this Saturday (July 2, 2022) when Israel Adesanya meets lethal contender Jared Cannonier and Alexander Volkanovski attempts to finally settle the score with Max Holloway. T-Mobile Arena in Las Vegas, Nevada, will also see Alex Pereira look to fast-track his way into contention at Sean Strickland’s expense and Sean O’Malley square off with the always-dangerous Pedro Munhoz.

UFC 275 features seven “Prelims” undercard bouts this time that will set the pay-per-view (PPV) stage; however, since we don’t know which of the original eight will get shunted to the main card after the latest reshuffle, we’re just doing all of ‘em. Here’s the batch on ESPN+ ...

185 lbs.: Uriah Hall vs. Andre Muniz

Uriah Hall (17-10) went from losing four of five to winning four straight, among them violent knockouts of Bevon Lewis and Anderson Silva. His efforts earned him a main event slot opposite Sean Strickland, who out-worked and out-wrestled him to a wide decision victory.

“Prime Time” fights for the first time in more than 11 months.

Andre Muniz (22-4) — whose only defeat since 2013 came at the hands of Light Heavyweight prospect Azamat Murzakanov — rode a four-fight win streak into the Octagon that featured two victories on Contender Series. “Sergipano” has since extended it to eight and racked up three first-round submissions along the way, one of them over the legendary “Jacare” Souza.

Thirteen of his 15 submission victories have come in the first round.

If Hall wins this, it’ll be by miraculous comeback. The Strickland fight showed that he’s still vulnerable to pressure and wrestling, and while Muniz doesn’t have the stand up prowess to set up his shots the way Strickland did, he’s consistently shown that he doesn’t need a lot of time on top to end things. All signs point to “Sergipano” dragging him to the mat in the first couple of minutes and finding his neck (or arm) in short order.

Hall is, admittedly, better than most at miracle comebacks. He’s also fighting a man who’s been stopped four times as a professional. I just don’t see him keeping it standing long enough to find an opportunity. In short, make that four consecutive first round submissions for “Sergipano.”

Prediction: Muniz via first round submission

125 lbs.: Jessica Eye (15-10) vs. Maycee Barber (10-2)

Jessica Eye (15-10) — once in the midst of a 1-5 (1 NC) skid that had her fighting for her UFC life — started her Octagon Flyweight tenure with a 4-1 run marred only by a loss to Valentina Shevchenko. The magic wasn’t to last, though, entering the cage this Saturday having lost three straight.

This bout ends a nearly year-long layoff.

Maycee Barber (10-2) “lost some luster after following a 3-0 UFC start with consecutive losses to Roxanne Modafferi and Alexa Grasso, and her subsequent bogus split decision over Miranda Maverick didn’t help things. A subsequent clash with Montana De La Rosa worked out a bit better for her, though, as she cruised past The Ultimate Fighter (TUF) veteran for a comfortable victory.

“The Future” steps in for the injured Casey O’Neill on just over two months’ notice.

Premature though Barber’s nickname turned out to be, this is a very winnable fight for her. Eye’s takedown defense remains a prominent weakness that allowed four of her last five opponents to drag her to the mat, and if there’s one aspect of Barber’s game that’s genuinely solid, it’s her top control.

It wouldn’t be too outlandish to see Eye box her up, but Barber landed three of five takedowns against a very tough customer in Grasso, so she should have what it takes to drag Eye into her world and cruise to victory.

Prediction: Barber via unanimous decision

185 lbs.: Brad Tavares vs. Dricus Du Plessis

Brad Tavares (19-6) put together a solid four-fight win streak from 2016-2018 before running afoul of Israel Adesanya and Edmen Shahbazyan in quick succession. His 2021 campaign fared a bit better, featuring consecutive decision wins over Antonio Carlos Junior and Omari Akhmedov.

He fights for the first time since July 2021 and faces a two-inch reach disadvantage against “Stillknocks.

Dricus Du Plessis’ (16-2) pre-UFC efforts earned him two EFC titles and a brief reign as KSW Welterweight champion, an honor he claimed by flattening the lethal Roberto Soldic. His UFC efforts have been similarly destructive, netting him two knockouts and a “Performance of the Night” bonus for his finish of Trevin Giles.

He’s never seen the judges as a professional, submitting nine.

Full disclosure: I want Du Plessis to win this. He’s such a weird, unique fighter, and it would please me to no end to see his wonky style carry him into contention.

Luckily for him (and me), he’s got the tools to do it. Even if Tavares’ takedown defense figures to take “Stillknocks’” ground game out of the equation, the latter’s countering skills and raw power look sufficient to exploit the rare openings in Tavares’ meat-and-potato striking. Plus, Tavares’ chin has failed him on multiple occasions, which bodes ill against Du Plessis’ murderous left hook. I say Du Plessis catches him late in the first.

Prediction: Du Plessis via first round knockout

135 lbs.: Jessica-Rose Clark vs. Julija Stoliarenko

While she entered UFC in the midst of a 2-3 (1 NC) slump, Jessica-Rose Clark (11-7) proved she belonged, winning four of her first six in the promotion. She wasn’t quite so fortunate against Stephanie Egger, unfortunately, suffering the first submission loss of her career in Feb. 2022.

“Jessy Jess” gives up two inches of height and 1.5 inches of reach to Julija Stoliarenko (9-6-1).

Though unsuccessful at TUF 28 Finale, Stoliarenko fought her way back to the big show with five straight wins, among them a decision over unbeaten Lisa Verzosa to claim Invicta’s interim Bantamweight championship. She’s still chasing her first Octagon victory, having lost three straight since her return.

Armbars account for all eight of her professional submission finishes.

For her sake, Clark better have learned her lesson against Egger. She did the one thing that could have lost her that fight, namely getting lazy in the clinch, and Stoliarenko is similarly equipped to punish any lapses in decisive fashion. Stoliarenko also looks to be the more capable striker, as she held her own on the feet against Julia Avila and Alexis Davis.

That said, she’s been controlled and beaten up on the mat before. Indeed, once opponents are wise to her armbar, she runs out of options in a hurry. So long as Clark stays committed to the takedown and minds her P’s and Q’s on top, she should be able to grind it out.

Prediction: Clark via unanimous decision

Four more UFC 276 “Prelims” undercard bouts remain to preview and predict, including a pair of guaranteed bangers at 155- and 170-pounds. Same time tomorrow, Maniacs.

Remember that MMAmania.com will deliver LIVE round-by-round, blow-by-blow coverage of the entire UFC 276 fight card right here, starting with the early ESPN+ “Prelims” matches online, which are scheduled to begin at 6 p.m. ET, then the remaining undercard balance on ABC/ESPN+ at 8 p.m. ET, before the PPV main card start time at 10 p.m. ET on ESPN+ PPV.

To check out the latest and greatest UFC 276: “Adesanya vs. Cannonier” news and notes be sure to hit up our comprehensive event archive right here.

Boxing continues to get weird.

ESPN confirmed today (Mon., June 27, 2022) that an exhibition boxing match on July 30, 2022, in Los Angeles, California is set to go down between National Football League (NFL) running backs, Adrian Peterson and Le’Veon Bell. The match will be fought at Heavyweight on an event known as Social Gloves 2, hosted by YouTuber Austin McBroom.

McBroom will main event the card opposite former Jake Paul boxing victim (watch highlights), Ali Loui Al-Fakri, also known as “AnEsonGib.” Rapper Blueface also fights that night, taking on National Basketball Association (NBA) player, Nick Young. Because why the hell not?

With the 2022 season starting this September, Peterson and Bell are both currently free agents in the NFL. Peterson, 37, is most famously known for his time spent as the lead back for the Minnesota Vikings from 2007 to 2016. The one-time most valuable player (MVP) and all-time great has played for six different teams since then, most recently getting reps in with the Seattle Seahawks for one game in 2021. However, he did play three games with the Tennessee Titans before that as well.

Bell, 30, on the other hand, is recognized for having his best years during his five-year stretch with the Pittsburgh Steelers from 2013 to 2017 before holding out for the entire 2018 season with hopes of getting a better contract. Bell was traded to the New York Jets in the following offseason and hasn’t been able to produce the same type of results, having bounced around to three other teams since.

The pair of once-dynamic rushers will follow in the footsteps of their fellow running back, Frank Gore, who had his first exhibition match in Dec. 2021 against former NBA player, Deron Williams (watch highlights). Gore most recently debuted as a pro, scoring a vicious fourth-round knockout vs. Olaseyinde Olorunsola in May 2022 (watch highlights).

Cat Zingano and Cris “Cyborg” Justino may finally be getting the chance to settle their differences.

Following Zingano’s first-round armbar submission win over Olivia Parker in April 2021, the former Ultimate Fighting Championship (UFC) Bantamweight title challenger had seemingly earned a crack at Featherweight gold in Bellator. Instead, fans waited and waited as Zingano was eventually matched with Pam Sorenson before injury delayed her February return until this past weekend (Fri., June 24, 2022) at Bellator 282.

Still matched with Sorenson, Zingano picked up a dominant unanimous decision victory, extending her current streak as a Bellator Featherweight to three.

Ahead of the fight, Zingano reiterated her only reluctance to square off with the champion, calling for independent drug testing. Cyborg was notoriously suspended and stripped of her Strikeforce title after testing positive for stanozolol following her fight with Hiroko Yamanaka in 2011. In seven appearances with UFC, Cyborg never tested positive under the watch of United States Anti-Doping Agency (USADA).

Seeing the comments from Zingano, Cyborg was quick to highlight her rival’s record pre and post-USADA tweeting; “Cat Zingano 9-0 with wins over Miesha [Tate] and [Amanda] Nunes. Enters USADA in 2015 and goes 1-4 competing. Now she’s 2-0 after leaving USADA and fighting on YouTube Friday night and thinks I care what she wants.”

Zingano responded to Cyborg after her win over Sorenson.

“Drug testing’s not new to me,” Zingano said in her post-fight media scrum at Bellator 282 (h/t MMA Junkie). “I’ve been wrestling since I was in college and working through that — I think she said something about ever since 2014 is when things changed for me but I don’t know if you remember my life in 2014, that was a really f—ked up time. So, she wants to overlook those kinds of things and think that you can walk through those without problems, like f—k her. I figured out what I’m doing here, I haven’t needed to do the things she’s needed to do in order to win. I just work hard and have the right people and believe in myself and whatever.

“I don’t know what all she’s saying but I didn’t come here to fight with a sword with my mouth, I’m fighting with a sword in a fight,” she concluded. “I put my focus and energy on fighting her and that’s what I’m doing here.”

Originally scheduled to coach opposite Ronda Rousey on The Ultimate Fighter 18 (TUF) culminating with a title shot, Zingano instead suffered a torn anterior cruciate ligament (ACL) that left her out of action for the majority of 2013 up until Sept. 2014. During that time, her husband committed suicide.

Zingano very much seems to be the next in line for Cyborg at this stage, however, she limped out of the cage with seemingly another knee injury after defeating Sorenson. Updates on the severity are yet to be provided.

For more Bellator MMA-related news and notes be sure to hit up our comprehensive archive right here.

Jon Jones’ Heavyweight debut may finally be on the horizon.

The former two-time Ultimate Fighting Championship (UFC) Light Heavyweight kingpin vacated his title in early 2020 after a unanimous decision victory over Dominick Reyes (watch highlights). Since then, Jones has been bulking up for what has been a long-anticipated run at Heavyweight. There have been discussions for a potential mega-fight with the current champion, Francis Ngannou, in the meantime, but disagreements on the payouts for both parties led to nothing coming together.

With Jones rapidly approaching age 35, it appears he may finally be getting closer than ever to making a return, according to UFC President, Dana White.

“Jon Jones is ready to go,” White told The Jim Rome Show (h/t MMA Fighting). “We’re just waiting for an opponent. It’s either going to be Francis depending on how long his knee is going to take to recover, or Stipe Miocic.”

Due to the status of Jones, facing Ngannou has always been the clear move to make in the minds of most. As mentioned by White though, it depends on when the champion will be ready. Recently addressing the matter, Ngannou believes he could be ready to return from his knee injuries around Dec. 2022.

For Miocic, the former champion hasn’t fought since he dropped the title in his rematch with Ngannou in March 2021 (watch highlights). So, no matter what match-up gets made, the men involved will both be dealing with some decently sized layoffs.

“It’s very interesting because I’m a huge believer in ring rust,” White said. “But for all the negative things you could say about Jon Jones and his personal life and things that have happened, he’s the best. He’s definitely the best of all time.”

Don’t expect Israel Adesanya to train with Sean Strickland any time soon.

This weekend (Sat., July 2, 2022) at UFC 276 in Las Vegas, Nevada, both Adesanya and Strickland will be in action. Main eventing the card, the champion, Adesanya, seeks a fifth Middleweight title defense when he battles Jared Cannonier. Strickland, on the other hand, looks to solidify his spot as the next man in line for whoever comes out as the winner of that bout, facing Alex Pereira just a few fights prior.

Despite being under the same management group, it’s obvious why the two may not be friendly with each other considering their statuses at 185 pounds. However, there’s more to it than that for Adesanya who has seen some of the videos of Strickland’s rather rough training sessions.

“Sean Strickland. He’s a bad motherf—ker,” Adesanya said on his YouTube channel. “Like, literally bad. Rotten apple. But I like the guy, he’s funny and he likes to talk s—t as well. And his stand-up, I’ve seen him do more damage on YouTube in sparring than in his fights. Put it that way. I’ve seen his sparring footages and I would never spar with an idiot like that. I’ve hurt people in sparring before and I’m just like, ‘Oh, s—t, my bad.’ Or I’ll pull back with the body shot or whatever but I’ve seen what he does ... and he’s talking s—t, I’m just like, yo. Whatever floats your boat, yes.

“It’s funny coming from us, but I don’t like to hurt people,” he continued. “Even though that’s our job. I like to make sure they’re able to come back the next day and do their work and also to give me work. Because you need your teammates. He’s got many screws loose, many screws loose.”

Making the two Middleweight scraps all the more interesting is the history Adesanya has with Strickland’s opponent. Two of Adesanya’s five total kickboxing losses came against the Brazilian with the most recent being Adesanya’s last kickboxing match in March 2017 where he suffered a brutal third-round knockout.

Against Strickland, and most in the division, Pereira is expected to have a striking advantage. While Strickland doesn’t particularly lean on his grappling all too often, the champion believes it could be a key to victory in this match-up.

“He might [try and take it to the ground],” Adesanya said of Strickland vs. Pereira. “He’ll have to in this fight. He might do it early on just to get him tired. If I’m going to pick, I feel like it’s that first round he has to worry about. That’s the most dangerous round with Pereira. If I’m thinking of Sean, I’m thinking his ego might get the better of him. If I’m going to bet money I’m gonna bet Pereira, but it’s a pick ‘em fight.”

MMAmania.com will deliver LIVE round-by-round, blow-by-blow coverage of the entire UFC 276 fight card right here, starting with the early ESPN+ “Prelims” matches online, which are scheduled to begin at 6 p.m. ET, then the remaining undercard balance on ABC/ESPN+ at 8 p.m. ET, before the PPV main card start time at 10 p.m. ET on ESPN+ PPV.

For the rest of the UFC 276 fight card and PPV lineup click here. To check out the latest and greatest UFC 276: “Adesanya vs. Cannonier” news and notes be sure to hit up our comprehensive event archive right here.

BROADENED HORIZIN brings you discussion with your favorite Japanese and RIZIN personalities… in English!

With The Match 2022 now in the rear-view mirror, RIZIN 36 and RIZIN 37 are set to bring the fireworks in July 2022.

The latest installment of BROADENED HORIZIN features three of the athletes competing this weekend (July 2, 2022) in Okinawa, Japan.

Before the fighters, we spoke with RIZIN Ambassador, Kurumi Kahn, who recently had her first grappling match. Taking on Natsuki Kawamura, Kahn secured an early triangle armbar to get the victory. She detailed the experience and shared if she’ll be continuing to pursue grappling matches.

In the main event of RIZIN 36, Kai Asakura returns and welcomes South Korea’s Ji-Yong Yang. The undefeated Yang (4-0) discussed his background in martial arts and why he’ll upset Asakura. He also intends to make it clear that farmer strength is indeed a real thing.

Fighting earlier in the night making their RIZIN debut along with Yang will be 17-year-old Atomweight prodigy, Moeri Suda. The high school student enters the organization off a tough learning experience against Saori Oshima in what was her first career title opportunity. Looking to rebound, Suda faces fellow Deep Jewels roster member, Mizuki “Nisse” Oshiro. Suda discussed her goals in MMA and how she got into the sport at such a young age.

Closing out the show is one-half of RIZIN 36’s co-main event, Hiroaki Suzuki. The former kickboxer turned MMA fighter takes on another crafty striker, Ren Hiramoto. With Hiramoto still seeking his first MMA win, Suzuki expects this to be his most dangerous challenge yet inside the RIZIN ring.

Watch the full episode in the video embedded above or you can listen on Spotify.

BROADENED HORIZIN Ep. 16 ENGLISH AUDIO:

以下の日本語版 (JAPANESE VERSION):

Reigning UFC middleweight champion Israel Adesanya is being housed off campus ahead of his upcoming UFC 276 title fight against Jared Cannonier this Sat. night (July 2, 2022) at T-Mobile Arena in Las Vegas, Nevada, and while it wasn’t on par with the “Mac Mansion,” it did come with an in-ground swimming pool and a zombie stripper.

Which served no purpose other than to prank an unsuspecting “Stylebender.”

Terrorizing your friends and teammates is part of the MMA culture and is often a big part of The Ultimate Fighter (TUF) experience. I do think the funniest part of the prank is watching Adesanya crash through the door in hopes of finding a stripper, though a small part of me was expecting one of those ”Days of Thunder” type pranks.

Also featured in Ep. 1 of UFC 276 “Embedded” is current featherweight champion Alexander Volkanovski. “The Great” defends his 145-pound strap against former titleholder Max Holloway in the pay-per-view (PPV) co-main event. In addition, bantamweight sensation Sean O’Malley gets some airtime ahead of his Pedro Munhoz fight.

MMAmania.com will deliver LIVE round-by-round, blow-by-blow coverage of the entire UFC 276 fight card right here, starting with the early ESPN+ “Prelims” matches online, which are scheduled to begin at 6 p.m. ET, then the remaining undercard balance on ABC/ESPN+ at 8 p.m. ET, before the PPV main card start time at 10 p.m. ET on ESPN+ PPV.

For the rest of the UFC 276 fight card and PPV lineup click here. To check out the latest and greatest UFC 276: “Adesanya vs. Cannonier” news and notes be sure to hit up our comprehensive event archive right here.

Reigning middleweight champion Israel Adesanya is not afraid to get walloped in training camp if it helps make him a more resilient fighter when it counts; namely, in the UFC 276 pay-per-view (PPV) main event this Sat. night (July 2, 2022) in Las Vegas, Nevada.

And for all you tough guys who think Wandy-era Chute Boxe is the gold standard for rough-and-tumble training, just remember the goal is to make improvements as a fighter, not spend the holidays in adult diapers drinking turkey through a straw.

Helping “The Last Stylebender” in this recent “iron sharpens iron” video is fellow kiwi Dan Hooker, who looks nothing like a 145-pound fighter in between camps. While “The Hangman” doesn’t possess the bludgeoning power of Jared Cannonier, who looks to upset the 185-pound apple cart this weekend in “Sin City,” he certainly does an admirable job of putting the screws to Adesanya.

“Everyone’s [saying] ‘what’s the game plan? How are you going to beat Jared?’” Adesanya said during the UFC Vegas 57 post-fight show (via MMA Fighting). “I’m like look, I’m going to fuck him up. That’s the main thing. I’m going to fuck him up and I’m saying that because I want that. I want people to be like ‘let’s see, let’s see.’ Because I know what I’m doing.”

Adesanya (22-1) is 11-0 in the middleweight division, having recently outpointed former champion Robert Whittaker at UFC 271 in Houston. The only blemish on “The Last Stylebender’s” record is a light heavyweight decision loss to Jan Blachowicz at UFC 259 in early 2021. As for the hot-and-cold Hooker (21-12), he’s coming off back-to-back losses to Islam Makhachev and Arnold Allen.

UFC 276 is a big night for the middleweight division. In addition to the “Adesanya vs. Cannonier” headliner, top contenders Sean Strickland and Alex Pereira hook ‘em up for a potential shot at the 185-pound title, while Uriah Hall looks to keep himself afloat in the division Top 10 at the expense of No. 13-ranked Andre Muniz.

For the rest of the UFC 276 fight card and PPV lineup click here.

Former UFC women’s bantamweight champion Miesha Tate will have to wait just a little bit longer to make her flyweight debut opposite former division title contender Lauren Murphy, originally planned for the UFC 276 pay-per-view (PPV) this Sat. night (July 2) in Las Vegas.

The promotion cited “COVID-19 protocols” for the delay and will ship both combatants to the UFC Long Island fight card on July 16 in Elmont, New York. The placement of their 125-pound affair has yet to be determined but is likely to air on the ABC main card.

Tate (19-8) found the motivation to change weight classes after last November’s loss to Brazilian standout Ketlen Vieira. Murphy (15-5), meanwhile, ended her five-fight win streak at the hands of current division champion, Valentina Shevchenko, at UFC 266.

UFC Long Island will be headlined by the featherweight showdown between Brian Ortega and Yair Rodriguez. Elsewhere on the card, Jack Shore and Ricky Simon collide at bantamweight while Amanda Lemos and Michelle Waterson hook ‘em up at 115 pounds.

See the rest of the UFC Long Island fight card and ABC lineup right here.

Former UFC featherweight champion Max Holloway dropped his division title to Alexander Volkanovski at UFC 245 back in late 2019, a five-round unanimous decision loss that ended a “Blessed” 14-fight winning streak at 145 pounds.

Cageside judges Mike Bell and Chris Lee both gave “Blessed” a pair of rounds on the official UFC 245 scorecards (see them here); however, judge Junichiro Kamijo had a 10-9 sweep across the board in favor of Volkanovski.

Holloway had done enough as champion to warrant an immediate rematch and when their 25-minute do-over came to a close, the Hawaiian expected to leave Yas Island in Abu Dhabi as newly-crowned champion. Instead, the UFC 251 scorecards (posted here) awarded the Aussie a split-decision victory.

Holloway (23-6) remains convinced he won both fights.

“For sure, both times,” Holloway told ESPN. “Especially the second one. Dana White, like half the UFC roster said what they said. They thought I did enough. I wasn’t there to add any more gas to the fire. It happens, you let it go and move on. We’re here now. Why cry over spilled milk? I don’t know in what world or any world that someone thinks that he did it convincingly because we’re here for a third time. We’re here for a reason and you’re gonna find out that reason on July 2nd.”

That reason could be dominant wins over Calvin Kattar and Yair Rodriguez.

It also helped that Volkanovski (24-1) cleaned out most of the division. Aside from his pair of Holloway wins, “The Great” also disposed of Brian Ortega and Chan Sung Jung in somewhat violent fashion. The only remaining contender to have not been defeated by either Volkanovski or Holloway is No. 4-ranked Josh Emmett.

A loss in the UFC 276 pay-per-view (PPV) co-main event this Sat. night (July 2) at T-Mobile Arena in Las Vegas, which brings an end to the much-ballyhooed International Fight Week, will likely tie a ribbon around the Volkanovski-Holloway rivalry for the foreseeable future. Or maybe forever, if “The Great” is able to secure an early (and convincing) finish.

For much more on this weekend’s UFC 276 event click here.

We’re just a couple of days away from the upcoming UFC 276: “Adesanya vs. Cannonier” pay-per-view (PPV) event, scheduled for Sat., July 2, 2022 at T-Mobile Arena in Las Vegas, Nevada. As the name suggests, UFC 276 will be headlined by the five-round middleweight title fight pitting reigning 185-pound kingpin Israel Adesanya opposite power-punching ex-heavyweight Jared Cannonier. The winner could end up defending the division title against the winner of this UFC 276 showdown.

In the UFC 276 co-headliner, current featherweight champion Alexander Volkanovski will look to rid himself of former 145-pound titleholder Max Holloway. “The Great” holds two decision victories over “Blessed” but an argument can be (and has been) made that Volkanovski was handed a gift from the judges in their championship rematch. Their upcoming trilogy is also featured prominently in the UFC 276 “Countdown” video preview, embedded above for your viewing pleasure.

Also getting some “Countdown” screen time is bantamweight power puncher Sean O’Malley, who is on the cusp of (finally) breaking into the Top 10 against grizzled veteran Pedro Munhoz. “Suga” will open the PPV main card this weekend in “Sin City” and attempt to build on his three-fight win streak, with all three of those victories ending by way of knockout. As for Munhoz, he’ll undoubtedly look to follow the Marlon Vera blueprint and upset the 135-pound apple cart.

For the rest of the UFC 276 fight card and PPV lineup click here.

UFC may not need an interim heavyweight title after all.

That’s because reigning division champion Francis Ngannou could return for the promotion’s year-end pay-per-view (PPV) in December, assuming his recovery process continues on its current timeline.

Ngannou underwent knee surgery to repair his ACL and MCL last March.

“It’s getting better,” Ngannou told TMZ Sports. “It’s been pretty good. It wasn’t easy, but we’re getting there. It’s been only three months, so yeah, I’m still doing physical therapy. If everything goes well I’ll be ready by the end of the year because it’s going to be nine months. So let’s say late December or early next year.”

Ngannou is coming off a successful title defense over Ciryl Gane at UFC 270.

As of this writing, there is no clearcut contender for the division title. Gane is ranked No. 1 at 265 pounds, one spot above former champion Stipe Miocic, who lost the heavyweight title to Ngannou at UFC 260 back in early 2021.

Perhaps a victory for Tai Tuivasa at UFC Paris could take care of that problem.

UFC Vegas 57 went down last Saturday night (June 25, 2022) from inside UFC Apex in Las Vegas, Nevada featuring a thrilling night of fights. Plenty of fighters were sent home feeling the post-fight blues, including Tafon Nchukwi, who was stopped by Carlos Ulberg in just 75 seconds.

Also, Neil Magny got a first-hand encounter of the phenom that is Shavkat Rakhmonov, who dominated him with ease before sinking in an air-tight guillotine choke (see it again here). But which fighter is suffering from the worst post-fight hangover, now a few days removed from show?

Arman Tsarukyan.

Coming into his showdown against Mateusz Gamrot, Tsarukyan was in search of his sixth straight win to potentially crack the Top 10. With his lone loss coming against top contender Islam Makhachev, Tsarukyan had already garnered some attention as legit future title contender. Gamrot, however, was receiving similar praise, so something had to give.

Once the fight started, both men came out aggressive and what ensued was an all-out technical war for the ages between two young up-and-comers ready to make their imprint on a stacked Lightweight division. Both men showed their well-rounded arsenal, scoring points throughout, and wowing fans and colleagues in the process.

Unfortunately, one man’s momentum had to come to an end and much to his disapproval, it was Tsarukyan who came up shorts on all of the judges’ scorecards. While it was a tough, close defeat that could have gone the other way, it wasn’t a clear-cut robbery, despite what many irate fans (and Tsarukyan) were screaming after the fight.

“I don’t know but I thought I won this fight,” Tsarukyan said during his post-fight interview. “I thought I won three rounds. I don’t know what happened with the judges.

“I’m going to watch again my fight and I can understand better. It’s OK, I’m going to [make] mistakes. I’ll come back, I’m very young. I can’t lose because I know I am better.”

The bright side for Tsarukyan is that he is still just 25 years of age and hasn’t even scratched the surface as to how great he can truly be. And that’s not necessarily a good thing for the rest of the 155-pound contenders. He showed that he has all of the talent in the world to make it to a title fight one day, and since he has youth on his side, he is bound to get there, though his road has been delayed a bit longer.

As far as what’s next for him, perhaps a showdown against the loser of the upcoming fight between Rafael dos Anjos and Rafael Fiziev is in order. I really like the idea of Gamrot facing the winner, so why not let Tsarukyan get the loser? Either man would be a great stylistic matchup for Tsarukyan, and a win over either one would get him back into the mix.

For complete UFC Vegas 57 results and highlights click here.

Event: Bellator 284: “Gracie vs Yamauchi”
Date: Fri., Aug. 12, 2022
Location: Sanford Pentagon in Sioux Falls, S.D.
How To Watch: Showtime (watch it here)

Bellator 284 Main Event:

170 lbs.: Neiman Gracie (11-3) vs. Goiti Yamauchi (27-5)

Bellator 284 Main Card (7 p.m. ET):

265 lbs.: Valentin Moldavsky (11-2) vs. Steve Mowry (10-0)
125 lbs.: Ilima-Lei Macfarlane (11-2) vs. Bruna Ellen (6-3)
265 lbs.: Said Sowma (8-3) vs. Gokhan Saricam (7-1)

Bellator 284 ‘Prelims’ Card (5 p.m. ET)

145 lbs.: Weber Almeida (6-1) vs. Ilias Bulaid (3-0)
125 lbs.: Deanna Bennett (12-7-1) vs. Justine Kish (8-5)

To check out the latest Bellator MMA-related news and notes be sure to hit up our comprehensive news archive right here.

The UFC Vegas 57 main event between Mateusz Gamrot and Arman Tsarukyan was an entertaining and technical fight that rightfully earned the $50,000 fight of the night bonus. While judges handed the win to Gamrot with identical 48-47x3 scorecards, most fans agree there really wasn’t a loser in this bout (watch the highlights here).

Well ... some argue that Gamrot should have lost, and Tsarukyan deserved the win.

Arman Tsarukyan certainly believes he did enough to earn the victory. Early Sunday morning he took to Instagram to send a message: “I didn’t lose this fight, only upwards from here!”

There’s no way to call this a robbery — the fight was just too close. Both fighters fought hard for all five rounds and this is another case where it’s a real shame one man goes home with half his paycheck. The bonus check will hopefully be a salve on that wound for Tsarukyan. That and the number of fans he picked up off that gutsy performance in the later rounds against Gamrot.

The UFC lightweight division continues to be one of the deepest in the promotion. Tsarukyan came into UFC Vegas 57 at #11 and Mateusz Gamrot at #12. With what we saw from both of them on Saturday, both could be in the top five in another year or so.

Khabib Nurmagomedov certainly thinks so. During the post-fight press conference, Gamrot relayed the conversation he had with ‘The Eagle’ following his win.

“He said to me, ‘Congratulations on your fight. You are a nice guy. For sure, in the future you will meet with Islam in a fight,’” Gamrot said. “So I keep my fingers crossed for Islam, I think Islam beats Charles Oliveira next fight, and I want a next fight with Justin [Gaethje] and next fighting with Islam. Simple plan.”

Of course, ask any other fighter in the lightweight division how easy it is to lock up a title shot and they’ll tell you it’s a war of attrition and test of patience. It will certainly be a pleasure watching Gamrot and Tsarukyan continue to climb through the division.