MMA

Bellator MMA Riding an almost scary level of momentum, Corey Anderson continues to turn heads in the Bellator MMA cage. Saturday’s first-round TKO of former champion Ryan Bader has him on the verge of his first title shot.   Anderson (16-5) needed just 51 seconds of his Bellator Light Heavyweight World Grand Prix semifinal bout

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

LAS VEGAS — Guys like Jim Miller are why mixed martial arts has become so popular. Yeah, UFC fighters like Conor McGregor, Israel Adesanya, Francis Ngannou and Nate Diaz are the big names, attract the most headlines and make the most money, but it’s the rank-and-file guys who are the heart of the promotion. They’re

The end of Benson Henderson’s career is fast approaching. The former UFC lightweight champion will face ex-Bellator champion Brent Primus on the main card of Bellator 268 on Saturday at the FootPrint Center in Phoenix. But the 15-year MMA veteran is still experiencing career firsts. On Saturday, he’ll fight on the same card as his

Getty Images As the end of 2021 approaches, the UFC is looking to build on an already incredible year with a series of exciting fights to close things out. From big championship fights on pay-per-view to thrilling battles between contenders on Fight Night cards, there’s a lot for mixed martial arts fans to look forward

4:12 PM ET One of the most infamous backstage scuffles in UFC history will be revisited in December, as UFC welterweights Leon Edwards and Jorge Masvidal have agreed to meet inside the Octagon. Edwards and Masvidal will square off at UFC 269 on Dec. 11, UFC chief business officer Hunter Campbell told ESPN on Thursday.

UFC Hall of Famer Chuck Liddell was arrested and charged with domestic violence in Los Angeles early Monday.  TMZ Sports reported that Liddell was in an argument with his wife that became physical. He’s being held at the Malibu/Lost Hills Sheriff’s Station in Agoura Hills, California, outside of Los Angeles. It’s a misdemeanor and bail

Marina Rodriguez keeps climbing up the UFC women’s strawweight rankings. The Brazilian beat highly touted grappler Mackenzie Dern on Saturday at UFC Fight Night 194. Rodriguez (15-1-2 MMA, 5-1-2 UFC) went the distance with Dern (11-2 MMA, 6-2 UFC) and took 49-46 across the three judges’ scorecards. The women’s strawweight bout was the UFC Fight

USATSI Two of the top women’s strawweight fighters will square off when Mackenzie Dern takes on Marina Rodriguez in a scheduled five-round bout on Saturday. The final match of UFC Fight Night: Dern vs. Rodriguez will mark Rodriguez’s first appearance on the main card. Rodriguez enters the Octagon ranked No. 6 in the division. Dern

7:32 AM ET When Brazilian jiu-jitsu black belt Mackenzie Dern made her full transition into mixed martial arts in 2016, the sheer potential of it was intoxicating. Granted, so many things need to go right for any prospect to fully realize his or her potential, but in the case of Dern, her submission grappling is

LAS VEGAS — Mackenize Dern was one of the most heralded prospects to join the UFC when she signed a contract and made her debut on March 3, 2018. Dern’s jiu-jitsu credentials were impeccable — she’s a multi-time world champion and won gold at the 2015 ADCC World Championships in Sao Paulo, Brazil — and

(Editor’s note: This post originally published on Oct. 6, 2020.) It’s the anniversary of one of the most significant and memorable events in UFC history. Khabib Nurmagomedov successfully defended his lightweight title against nemesis Conor McGregor in the UFC 229 main event at T-Mobile Arena in Las Vegas on Oct. 6, 2018. The grudge match

8:04 AM ET October got off to a less explosive than expected start in the world of MMA, as powerful strikers Thiago Santos and Johnny Walker fought cautiously and went the distance in Saturday’s UFC Fight Night main event. But a busy month of October has just begun. Holly Holm returns to featherweight and main

Two of the UFC’s biggest, and most dangerous, strikers squared off Saturday with much at stake in the bout between light heavyweights Thiago Santos and Johnny Walker. Walker entered the fight with 18 wins in his 23 bouts, 15 of those knockouts. He’d also had three bouts go to submission, two of which were wins.

Getty Images UFC fights viewed as sure-fire slugfests have a bad way of disappointing once the bell rings. Unfortunately, that was true again for fans tuning in to see the UFC Fight Night main event between light heavyweight bangers Thiago Santos and Johnny Walker on Saturday night. After five rounds of lackluster action, Santos took

The crowd at SSE Arena, Wembley, in London roared Friday as the final horn sounded to end the rematch between hometown hero Michael “Venom” Page and his nemesis, ex-champion Douglas Lima. It was almost as if they were trying to will him to victory after an agonizingly close and difficult-to-score bout. The flashy Page had

Getty Images There aren’t many better action fights the UFC could make than Saturday’s Fight Night headliner between Thiago Santos and Johnny Walker. Both light heavyweight strikers have 15 career victories by knockout and less than 20% of their combined fights have gone to the judges’ scorecards. Both Walker and Santos are in need of

Oct 30, 2019 Anna Katherine Clemmons Close Anna Katherine Clemmons is a contributing writer for ESPN The Magazine. Editor’s note: This story was originally published before UFC 244. Walker’s next fight takes place on Oct. 2 against Thiago Santos. Good luck finding a recent UFC fighter who’s had quite the rapid rise as that of