MMA

7:39 PM ET Every weight class in the UFC has its intrigue, but nowhere are the twists and turns as dramatic and volatile at the top as they are in men’s bantamweight. Merab Dvalishvili put on a historic performance in winning a lopsided unanimous decision over former champion Petr Yan in the main event of

There are a lot of so-called feuds in mixed martial arts, but rare is the one in which the two fighters intensely dislike each other. Usually, what’s at stake in a bout is enough to spur the athletes to peak performance. And there is plenty at stake for both former bantamweight champion Petr Yan and

7:55 AM ET It could have been decision time, if only the timing were different. When Jon Jones won the UFC championship on Saturday night, did that make him the best heavyweight in the world? Not according to fans of Francis Ngannou, who relinquished the title in January after fighting out his UFC contract to

Getty Images Michael Page is deeply troubled by the financial disparity between mixed martial arts fighters and the organizations that contract them. The fallout between Francis Ngannou and the UFC is the most high-profile example of a problem that Page sees permeating all throughout the sport. Ngannou and UFC’s split dominated the news cycle in

Getty Images Jon Jones is your new UFC heavyweight champion and the path is clear for a dream fight with Stipe Miocic. Jones and Miocic are arguably the greatest light heavyweight and heavyweight fighters in mixed martial arts history, respectively. Jones ran through Ciryl Gane at UFC 285 on Saturday and immediately set his sights

LAS VEGAS — In the last 15 months, Amanda Nunes, who was widely acclaimed as the greatest women’s mixed martial artist ever, lost her championship. On Saturday in the co-main event of UFC 285 at T-Mobile Arena, Valentina Shevchenko, who is clearly the greatest flyweight of all time, was submitted and lost her championship to

LAS VEGAS, NEVADA – MARCH 04: (L-R) Jon Jones kicks Ciryl Gane of France in the UFC heavyweight championship fight during the UFC 285 event at T-Mobile Arena on March 04, 2023 in Las Vegas, Nevada. (Photo by Jeff Bottari/Zuffa LLC via Getty Images) LAS VEGAS — Jon Jones took longer to enter the Octagon

Bo Nickal didn’t need much time to beat Jamie Pickett, but did he use a low blow? (AP Photo/David Becker) Bo Nickal, one of the UFC’s most-hyped prospects in recent memory, opened his career with the promotion with a bang, but not without controversy. The former Penn State wrestler defeated Jamie Pickett by first-round submission

Jake Gyllenhaal put on some muscle for a UFC fighter role. (AP Photo/David Becker) The following story contains potential spoilers for the upcoming “Road House” remake. The return of Jon Jones is the dominant story of UFC 285, but the former light heavyweight champion wasn’t the most famous person to enter the Octagon on Saturday.

Jon Jones faces Ciryl Gane of France inside the Octagon in the UFC heavyweight championship fight during the UFC 285 event at T-Mobile Arena on March 04, 2023 in Las Vegas, Nevada. (Photo by Jeff Bottari/Zuffa LLC via Getty Images) Jon Jones, one of the most talented and polarizing fighters in UFC history, returned Saturday

10:38 PM ET LAS VEGAS — The most successful heavyweight fighter in UFC history will be waiting in the wings for the winner of this weekend’s title bout. Stipe Miocic, the former two-time UFC heavyweight champion, will get the next heavyweight title shot, UFC president Dana White told reporters Friday. Jon Jones and Ciryl Gane

LAS VEGAS — It was late 2008 or early 2009 when the phone rang and a young fighter was on the other line. It was a promising light heavyweight who turned a lot of heads as a last-minute replacement in his UFC debut. He wanted to talk, so we met in the food court at

Getty Images Any discussion about the greatest mixed martial artists in history must include Jon Jones.  Jones has terrorized the light heavyweight division since joining the UFC in 2008, with his lone loss coming by questionable disqualification against Matt Hamill in 2009. Jones won the light heavyweight championship in March 2011 and only ever lost

Nearly 17 years ago, the UFC signed a heavily hyped fighter nicknamed “The Spider,” and Anderson Silva went on to somehow exceed the lofty expectations for him. He became the longest-reigning champion in history and his name was in the UFC record books only slightly less frequently than Wayne Gretzky’s was in the NHL record

Feb 27, 2023 Jeff Wagenheim Jon Jones returns this weekend. Allow me to repeat that with appropriate emphasis and enthusiasm: Jon Jones! Returns! This weekend! I had to resist the urge to go all caps there, because this is BIG. Jones will be fighting for the first time in over three years when he steps

Nikta Krylov got ill on Saturday and was forced to withdraw from his light heavyweight main event with Ryan Spann. (Photo by Chris Unger/Zuffa LLC via Getty Images) The main event of UFC Vegas 70 on Saturday at Apex in Las Vegas between Nikita Krylov and Ryan Spann was canceled only moments before the main

Bellator MMA Yaroslav Amosov and Logan Storley arguably delivered the Fight of the Night as top contenders for the Bellator welterweight championship in 2020. They run it back two years later, but this time with the undisputed world title at stake. Amosov (26-0) makes the first defense of his Bellator welterweight championship against Storley at

8:44 AM ET The UFC schedule is about to enter a monster stretch, with marquee pay-per-view events in Las Vegas and London within the next three weeks. UFC 285, March 4: Jon Jones at heavyweight, finally. UFC 286, March 18: Leon Edwards–Kamaru Usman trilogy bout — in London! There are other fantastic fights on those