7:16 PM ET UFC fighter Irwin Rivera has been granted a conditional release from custody after a judge approved his plea of not guilty by reason of insanity to two counts of attempted murder. Rivera was arrested in January on the two felony charges, accused of stabbing his two sisters. A judge approved the adjudication
MMA
Sep 25, 2020 Editor’s note: This story was originally posted ahead of Paulo Costa’s fight against Israel Adesanya. Costa lost that fight and will make his first appearance since that bout against Marvin Vettori on Oct. 23. In February 2012, a 20-year-old realtor from Contagem, Brazil, made a quiet professional debut in mixed martial arts
5:01 PM ET No charges will be filed against UFC legend Chuck Liddell after a domestic violence arrest Oct. 11, per a document obtained by ESPN from the Los Angeles County District Attorney’s office. The listed reason for why prosecution will not be pursued was “lack of sufficient evidence,” and the comments stated that “the
7:49 AM ET Last week, the UFC announced that top-10 welterweights Leon Edwards and Jorge Masvidal will meet on Dec. 11. This announcement was a long time coming — as in, more than 2½ years. It was way back in March 2019 that Edwards and Masvidal had a confrontation backstage after both had won bouts
12:46 AM ET Jeff WagenheimESPN The question of who is the best light heavyweight in Bellator MMA might have been answered on Saturday night. That answer might or might not have come in the headlining title bout. Vadim Nemkov successfully defended his championship with a fourth-round submission of Julius Anglickas in the main event of
5:19 PM ET The UFC’s women’s featherweight division is in an interesting spot, in that one terrific performance at 145 pounds can catapult a fighter into title contention. That is the backdrop for Saturday’s main event, featuring Aspen Ladd (9-1) and Norma Dumont (6-1). Both Ladd and Dumont have competed in the UFC’s 135-pound division,
8:00 AM ET The UFC has several monster events on its schedule to close out 2021. Before the year is done, we will have seen six more title fights, as well as some blockbuster matchups such as Justin Gaethje vs. Michael Chandler, Jorge Masvidal vs. Leon Edwards, Max Holloway vs. Yair Rodriguez and Paulo Costa
1:58 PM ET Two of Bellator MMA’s top featherweight prospects have agreed to meet at Bellator 271 on Nov. 12, multiple sources told ESPN. The promotion is currently finalizing a bout between Aaron Pico and Justin Gonzales for the event, which will take place at Seminole Hard Rock Hotel & Casino in Hollywood, Florida. The
10:56 PM ET The UFC has released fighter Luis Pena following two arrests related to domestic violence since June. In a statement provided to ESPN through a spokesperson, the UFC said it is aware of the “disturbing allegations” regarding Pena’s arrest Saturday on two charges of battery and thinks that Pena’s personal and legal issues
3:36 PM ET Former UFC light heavyweight champion Jon Jones is not currently allowed inside the confines of his longtime mixed martial arts gym following an arrest last month in Las Vegas. Jackson Wink MMA spokesperson James Hallinan wrote in a statement to ESPN that Jones is “temporarily suspended” from the Albuquerque, New Mexico, gym