MMA

Last week, Republican senator Ted Cruz posted a photo of himself alongside UFC legend Chuck Liddell. The photo, which showed the two men posing with raised fists, was the latest example of a politician using an athlete’s star power, in this case to pander to a younger demographic. It also underscored the American right’s ongoing

9:35 PM ET Jamahal Hill‘s nickname is “Sweet Dreams.” It’s not because of his propensity for singing lullabies. The top light heavyweight prospect put another highlight-reel finish on his résumé Saturday night after putting Johnny Walker to sleep with a knockout punch at 2:55 of the first round in the main event of UFC Fight

Bellator MMA Logan Storley may have stamped his pass to a Bellator welterweight championship title fight following a thrilling five-round showdown with Neiman Gracie at Bellator 274. Storley and Gracie threw grappling out the window and exchanged leather for 25 minutes in front of the Mohegan Sun crowd in Uncasville, Connecticut, on Saturday night. Storley,

Jamahal Hill made quick work of Johnny Walker on Saturday at UFC Vegas 48. (Photo by Jeff Bottari/Zuffa LLC) LAS VEGAS — Jamahal Hill’s nickname is “Sweet Dreams,” but it was Johnny Walker who took a very violent nap on Saturday at UFC Vegas 48 inside the Apex. Hill caught Walker with a crushing right

Traveling isn’t Jamahal Hill’s favorite thing to do, which is a bit unfortunate given his job. Hill fights for the UFC, which means his days of competing in or near his hometown of Grand Rapids, Michigan, are long over. A 6-foot-4 light heavyweight brimming with potential, Hill opened his career by fighting his first four

Getty Images Michael Chandler expects to cross paths with Tony Ferguson this summer. UFC president Dana White previously expressed hopes of booking Chandler vs. Ferguson, and that is the fight that Chandler is training for. Chandler and Ferguson are both ranked UFC lightweights in need of a momentum swing. While Chandler has yet to officially

7:30 AM ET Israel Adesanya showed he belongs among the top pound-for-pound fighters in MMA when he defended his UFC middleweight championship against a fellow top-10 fighter, ex-champ Robert Whittaker, and won a unanimous decision in the main event of UFC 271. The problem for Adesanya, who was No. 2 in the ESPN rankings going

Getty Images UFC 271 wrapped up on Saturday night with the reaffirmation that Israel Adesanya is the best middleweight in the world. The champion beat beating a game Robert Whittaker by decision in their rematch atop the card. Meanwhile, Jared Cannonier emphatically stamped his place as the UFC middleweight championship title challenger by elbowing Derrick Brunson into

Sometimes it appears we can’t accept the legends for what they are and we place them under a more powerful microscope for a longer period of time than we do others. It’s almost as if we can’t believe what we see so we try to search for flaws in some sort of misguided effort to

1:26 AM ET Israel Adesanya continued his dominance over the UFC’s middleweight division with another convincing win over Robert Whittaker in Houston, Texas at UFC 271. Adesanya stifled Whittaker’s offense in the rematch affair to earn his fourth successful title defense. With Whittaker finally removed from the title picture, who will get the next shot

Robert Whittaker is one of the best middleweights in the world. Unfortunately for the Australian star, he fights in the same division as the absolute best. Israel Adesanya retained his middleweight title with a unanimous decision Saturday at the Toyota Center, beating Whittaker for a second time. This time, it went to the judges, who

When Tai Tuivasa began the long walk to the Octagon from the dressing room at T-Mobile Arena in December for a bout against Augusto Sakai, the attitude of the crowd notably changed. When Tuivasa was visible on the video screens inside the arena, the crowd erupted, many of them on their feet. Maybe it was

Israel Adesanya has lost once in 22 professional MMA fights and has never lost at middleweight. He’s scored 15 knockouts among his 21 wins, including a second-round TKO of Robert Whittaker at UFC 243 in 2019. He’ll meet Whittaker again in the main event of UFC 271 on Saturday in a rematch for the middleweight

Getty Images On Saturday night, the UFC returns with another big pay-per-view event as UFC 271 heads to Houston’s Toyota Center. In the main event, Robert Whittaker looks to regain the middleweight championship when he rematches titleholder Israel Adesanya. Adesanya and Whittaker met for the first time at UFC 243 in October 2019, when Adesanya,

7:49 AM ET Jeff Wagenheim After Derrick Lewis and Tai Tuivasa finish flinging menacing leather in each other’s direction on Saturday night in Houston, in the co-main event of UFC 271, it will be time for the real show. That’s not a reference to the main event between UFC middleweight champion Israel Adesanya and former

Sean Strickland won. He got his win bonus. He’ll probably jump from No. 7 to 6 in the middleweight rankings. He’s now on a six-fight winning streak But beyond that, it was mostly blah. His split decision victory Saturday over Jack Hermansson in the main event of UFC Vegas 47 at Apex was a largely

Getty Images Sean Strickland and Jack Hermansson met on Saturday night in the main event of UFC Fight Night knowing the middleweight division was in need of fresh title challengers. It was Strickland who managed to make his mark at the UFC Apex in Las Vegas, taking a split decision win to extend an impressive

1:38 PM ET Two title fights are now official for UFC 273. Alexander Volkanovski will defend his UFC featherweight title against Chan Sung Jung, “The Korean Zombie,” in the main event of the pay-per-view card April 9 in Jacksonville, Florida, UFC chief business officer Hunter Campbell confirmed to ESPN on Friday. The co-main event will