MMA

Andreas Hale, ESPNJul 12, 2024, 03:40 PM ET Open Extended Reactions After coming to the rescue to save UFC 303, light heavyweight champion Alex Pereira has a date in mind for his return and plans to defend his light heavyweight title in his next fight, but he is still focused on challenging Jon Jones for

Jul 11, 2024, 10:35 AM ET Open Extended Reactions Former UFC strawweight champion Rose Namajunas meets Tracy Cortez in the women’s flyweight main event of UFC Fight Night on Saturday in Denver. The fights at Ball Arena will be on ESPN and ESPN+, with the main card starting at 10 p.m. ET and prelims at

Associated Press Jul 10, 2024, 03:20 PM ET Open Extended Reactions ATLANTIC CITY, N.J. — It might have seemed too good to be true, but there it was, and on April Fool’s Day, no less: One of the country’s leading sportsbooks was taking bets on mixed martial arts fights that had already happened a week

Brett Okamoto Close Brett Okamoto ESPN Staff Writer MMA columnist for ESPN.com Analyst for “MMA Live” Covered MMA for Las Vegas Sun Andreas Hale Jul 8, 2024, 10:00 AM ET Open Extended Reactions There have been 36 fight cards put on thus far in 2024 by the three biggest MMA promotions — UFC, PFL and

Brett Okamoto, ESPN Staff WriterJul 7, 2024, 10:21 AM ET Close MMA columnist for ESPN.com Analyst for “MMA Live” Covered MMA for Las Vegas Sun Open Extended Reactions It took almost five years, but Nate Diaz finally got his revenge over Jorge Masvidal in a professional boxing ring Saturday. Diaz defeated Masvidal by majority decision

Brett Okamoto, ESPN Staff WriterJul 3, 2024, 03:00 PM ET Close MMA columnist for ESPN.com Analyst for “MMA Live” Covered MMA for Las Vegas Sun Open Extended Reactions Dan Ige was about as mentally removed from a fight as one could get on a Saturday afternoon. He’d just spent the last hour on a massage

Brett Okamoto, ESPN Staff WriterJun 30, 2024, 11:00 AM ET Close MMA columnist for ESPN.com Analyst for “MMA Live” Covered MMA for Las Vegas Sun Open Extended Reactions Though the fight card for UFC 303 was continually shuffling until the last minute, the UFC still managed to produce a pay-per-view event that featured star power

Jun 30, 2024, 01:44 AM ET Open Extended Reactions A 13-fight card at UFC 303 in Las Vegas was headlined by a dominant title fight performance from Alex Pereira-Jiri Procházka. In the co-main event, Dan Ige stepped in on short notice, but Diego Lopes put the promotion on notice that he’s ready for the center

Brett Okamoto, ESPN Staff WriterJun 29, 2024, 08:34 PM ET Close MMA columnist for ESPN.com Analyst for “MMA Live” Covered MMA for Las Vegas Sun Open Extended Reactions Michelle Waterson-Gomez, one of the most influential figures in women’s mixed martial arts history, retired at UFC 303 on Saturday in Las Vegas. Waterson-Gomez, 38, announced her

Andreas Hale, ESPNJun 30, 2024, 01:01 AM ET Open Extended Reactions LAS VEGAS — The legend of Poatan continues to grow. Alex Pereira (11-2 MMA, 8-1 UFC) scored a vicious second-round knockout of Jirí Prochazka (30-5-1 MMA, 4-2 UFC) with a devastating head kick and brutal follow-up strikes to retain his light heavyweight championship in

Jun 29, 2024, 05:30 PM ET Open Extended Reactions Alex Pereira defends his light heavyweight championship in a rematch with former champion Jiri Prochazka in the main event of UFC 303 on Saturday, June 29, in Las Vegas. The main card at T-Mobile Arena is on ESPN+ pay-per-view at 10 p.m. ET, with prelims and

Brett Okamoto, ESPN Staff WriterJun 28, 2024, 08:01 AM ET Close MMA columnist for ESPN.com Analyst for “MMA Live” Covered MMA for Las Vegas Sun Open Extended Reactions UFC LIGHT HEAVYWEIGHT champion Alex Pereira and his coach, Plinio Cruz, were preparing to board a plane from Newark, New Jersey, to Australia on the morning of

Jeff Wagenheim, ESPNJun 26, 2024, 07:57 AM ET Open Extended Reactions The date of UFC 303 has been circled on many a calendar for months. Even sports fans who rarely watch an evening of mixed martial arts had made plans to do just that on June 29, if only for the pomp and spectacle. This

Brett Okamoto, ESPN Staff WriterJun 25, 2024, 02:36 PM ET Close MMA columnist for ESPN.com Analyst for “MMA Live” Covered MMA for Las Vegas Sun Open Extended Reactions UFC lightweight Arman Tsarukyan was suspended and fined Tuesday, for throwing a punch at a fan during his walkout at UFC 300 in April. The suspension will

Andres Waters, ESPNJun 24, 2024, 05:30 PM ET Open Extended Reactions MMA fighters can upcycle too. UFC featherweight contender Bryce Mitchell, who goes by the moniker “Thug Nasty,” is outspoken about his lifestyle as a farmer when he is not competing in the Octagon. The fighter who hails from Arkansas has found a couple of

Andreas Hale, ESPNJun 24, 2024, 11:45 AM ET Open Extended Reactions THE FANTASY BECAME a reality as Floyd Mayweather and Conor McGregor stood face-to-face on in a memorable picture taken on July 12, 2017, by lauded combat photographer Esther Lin. The two fighters were at the Budweiser Stage in Toronto on the second stop of

Brett Okamoto, ESPN Staff WriterJun 22, 2024, 06:10 PM ET Close MMA columnist for ESPN.com Analyst for “MMA Live” Covered MMA for Las Vegas Sun Open Extended Reactions If anyone ever doubted Robert Whittaker‘s willingness to fight anyone at any time, he proved them wrong and then some Saturday. In what was arguably the riskiest

Jeff Wagenheim Jun 22, 2024, 06:44 PM ET Open Extended Reactions Bellator MMA has a new undefeated champion. Ramazan Kuramagomedov took a big step up in competition Saturday in Dublin and rose to the occasion, taking the welterweight championship from Jason Jackson by building an early advantage and holding on for a unanimous decision victory.