Andres Waters Jul 24, 2023, 04:01 PM ET After a near-clean sweep of the quarterfinals of “The Ultimate Fighter” Season 31, the remaining members of Michael Chandler’s team were offered a chance to train with Conor McGregor’s team ahead of their semifinal matchups. Brad Katona, who trains at SBG Ireland with McGregor and Lee Hammond,

Marc Raimondi, ESPN Staff WriterJul 26, 2023, 01:03 AM ET Bellator’s franchise fighter, Patricio “Pitbull” Freire, will fight this weekend on short notice as part of the Bellator-Rizin co-promotional card at Saitama Super Arena in Japan, it was announced Wednesday. Freire, the Bellator featherweight champion, will face Japanese kickboxer Chihiro Suzuki at a 154-pound catchweight

Jeff Wagenheim, ESPNJul 24, 2023, 09:32 AM ET Fighters looking forward to this weekend as their big chance to draw attention to themselves should head back to the gym to work on their timing. They picked the wrong Saturday to expect to make the night’s biggest splash with fans, since they will be competing for

Marc Raimondi, ESPN Staff WriterJul 22, 2023, 06:51 PM ET Almost one year ago to the day, in the same arena, Tom Aspinall suffered a freak knee injury when he threw a leg kick on the first strike of his fight against Curtis Blaydes and lost via TKO in just 15 seconds. After 364 days

Eddie Maisonet Jul 21, 2023, 07:00 AM ET Dustin Poirier would’ve been justified in saying no to the request. Poirier, the former interim UFC lightweight champion who’s currently ranked as one of the 10 best pound-for-pound fighters in the world, is in the midst of preparation for his main event clash with ESPN’s No. 4

Brett Okamoto, ESPN Staff WriterJul 21, 2023, 07:06 AM ET Close MMA columnist for ESPN.com Analyst for “MMA Live” Covered MMA for Las Vegas Sun Tom Aspinall always figured that when his right knee eventually gave out, it would happen in the practice room. Probably during a wrestling or grappling session. There’d be a shift

Marc Raimondi, ESPN Staff WriterJul 19, 2023, 11:23 PM ET Islam Makhachev‘s next title defense is no longer a mystery. The UFC lightweight champion will defend his belt against former champ Charles Oliveira in a rematch in the main event of UFC 294 on Oct. 21 in Abu Dhabi, UFC president Dana White announced Wednesday

Marc Raimondi, ESPN Staff WriterJul 20, 2023, 03:36 PM ET UFC bantamweight contender Rob Font will replace the injured Umar Nurmagomedov and fight Cory Sandhagen in the main event of UFC Nashville on Aug. 5, sources told ESPN on Thursday. Sandhagen vs. Font will take place at a catchweight of 140 pounds rather than the

Marc Raimondi, ESPN Staff WriterJul 20, 2023, 11:00 AM ET After a successful debut in the United States, ONE Championship is coming back for more. The Asia-based fight promotion, which holds bouts in MMA, Muay Thai, kickboxing and grappling, will return to the U.S. with four shows in 2024, officials told ESPN on Wednesday. No

Marc Raimondi, ESPN Staff WriterJul 19, 2023, 11:38 PM ET Two of the most popular fighters in the UFC middleweight division will face off this fall. Undefeated Khamzat Chimaev will return to the Octagon at 185 pounds and fight Paulo Costa at UFC 294 on Oct. 21 in Abu Dhabi, United Arab Emirates, UFC president