9:59 AM ET It’s Monday, time for another edition of Ariel Helwani’s MMA Show, which airs live starting at 1 p.m. ET on Twitter and YouTube. Following the show, the entirety can be heard via the ESPN podcast center. Boy, that was some kinda weekend in MMA. From UFC to Bellator to KSW to Cage

1:23 AM ET The UFC is officially headed to Abu Dhabi for the first time since 2014. A UFC 242 pay-per-view event has been scheduled for Sept. 7 in Abu Dhabi, the promotion announced Sunday. The event is part of a new five-year partnership with the Abu Dhabi Department of Culture and Tourism, that will

10:51 PM ET A rematch between Bellator’s and Rizin’s best will play out in June at Madison Square Garden. Darrion Caldwell vs. Kyoji Horiguchi has officially been booked for Bellator 222 on June 14 in New York City, Bellator president Scott Coker told ESPN. The rematch will be for Caldwell’s Bellator bantamweight title. The pair

4:46 PM ET It was a good weekend for Norwegian mixed martial arts. The UFC is now on ESPN and ESPN+. Subscribe to ESPN+ to get: exclusive live UFC events, weigh-ins and more; Ariel and the Bad Guy; Dana White’s Contender Series; and more exclusive MMA content. Middleweight Jack Hermansson, of Oslo, Norway, scored the

2:45 AM ET Bellator welterweight champion Rory MacDonald sounded unsure about his future after he retained his title following a majority draw with Jon Fitch on Saturday night in the quarterfinals of the Welterweight Grand Prix tournament. Fitch (32-7-2, 1 NC), a former UFC contender and Professional Fighters League champion, mauled MacDonald, as expected, and

5:34 PM ET Jeff WagenheimESPN The UFC clearly wanted to shine a spotlight on Greg Hardy, putting the disgraced former NFL star in Saturday’s co-main event in Sunrise, Florida, despite him being 0-1 in the promotion with only four professional fights. And in the end, the glare of that spotlight did not expose him as

12:32 AM ET Tito Ortiz is back. The UFC hall of famer has signed a multi-fight deal with Combate Americas, a promotion official told ESPN. Ortiz is expected to debut in the fall, though his opponent isn’t finalized at this time. It is also unknown which weight class he’ll initially compete in. Ortiz, 44, said

10:13 AM ET Ronaldo “Jacare” Souza and Jack Hermansson both made weight Friday for their UFC Fight Night main event on Saturday in Sunrise, Florida. Souza (26-6, 1 NC), who has been promised a shot at the middleweight championship with a victory, hit the scale at 185.5 pounds. Hermansson (19-4) weighed 185. The UFC is

8:25 PM ET Sean O’Malley is back. The undefeated prospect will meet Marlon Vera at UFC 239 on July 6 in Las Vegas, sources told ESPN. The 24-year-old O’Malley (10-0) hasn’t fought since his March 2018 win over Andre Soukhamthath. Since then, he had surgery on his right foot and hip. He also failed two

11:36 PM ET Tony Ferguson is starting a new chapter. The former UFC interim lightweight champion has left Paradigm Sports Management to sign with Ballengee Group to manage his MMA career, Audie Attar, Paradigm CEO and president, told ESPN. “Tony Ferguson is a talented athlete, and we hope his future brings him personal happiness both