MMA

7:55 AM ET UFC middleweight Kevin Holland broke out in 2020 and has a chance to break out again in 2021 — if that’s even possible. Holland (21-5) will headline his first UFC event on Saturday when he takes on Derek Brunson (21-7) at UFC Fight Night in Las Vegas. The main card airs on

12:00 AM ET Khabib Nurmagomedov, arguably the greatest mixed martial artist of all time, is officially retired, and even UFC president Dana White is ready to move on. White told ESPN on Thursday that he and Nurmagomedov met in Las Vegas, and the undefeated lightweight champion reiterated he does not intend to fight again. As

9:34 PM ET Australian Robert Whittaker admits Paulo Costa’s withdrawal from their UFC middleweight showdown “played with his OCD” but says that he has since reconciled himself to the change and is primed for a physical encounter with replacement Kelvin Gastelum. Whittaker (22-5) also says he has a couple of things “up his sleeve” should

2:23 PM ET Junior dos Santos is no longer on the UFC roster and now he is challenging the loss that ultimately led to his release. The former UFC heavyweight champion’s team filed an appeal with the Nevada State Athletic Commission (NSAC) on Wednesday over his second-round TKO loss to Cyril Gane at UFC 256

8:58 PM ET The UFC will be running its first show in front of a full crowd in more than a year. And the promotion will do so with a huge main event. Kamaru Usman will defend his UFC welterweight title in a rematch against Jorge Masvidal in the headliner of UFC 261 on April

7:46 AM ET The bantamweight division is perhaps the deepest and most intriguing in the UFC. Aljamain Sterling‘s recent dethroning of Petr Yan did nothing to clarify the division’s hierarchy. Yan was ahead on two scorecards in the fourth round when he landed an illegal knee to the head of a grounded Sterling, who became

6:27 PM ET One of the most notable UFC title fights to have ever been canceled has a new date. Former middleweight champion Robert Whittaker (22-5) will face Kelvin Gastelum (17-6) in a five-round main event at UFC Fight Night on April 17 in Las Vegas, multiple sources told ESPN. Gastelum has agreed to replace

2:13 PM ET UFC welterweight Belal Muhammad is thankful he avoided serious injury from an inadvertent eye poke during a fight against Leon Edwards last weekend, and he is now telling ESPN he wants an immediate rematch as well as harsher penalties for eye pokes. On Saturday, the UFC Fight Night main event between Muhammad

11:26 AM ET Retired two-weight UFC champion Henry Cejudo is not committed to a return to competition, but says there is one name that would entice him to come back more than any other: Max Holloway. Cejudo (16-2) shocked the mixed martial arts world when he announced his retirement last May, following a 135-pound title

11:29 PM ET UFC 261 seems to be about giving people what they want. Welterweight champ Kamaru Usman wanted his next defense to be against Jorge Masvidal, and he got it. Masvidal wanted another crack at the title, and he got it. And fans wanted to return to a live UFC event, and they got

7:23 AM ET Leon Edwards‘ first fight since mid-2019 ended prematurely in Saturday’s UFC Fight Night main event when he accidentally poked Belal Muhammad in the eye, ending the bout in a no contest. After such a long period of inactivity, one major question hangs in the air — how far away is Edwards from

11:27 PM ET Helwani: Not the type of ending anyone wanted How depressing was that? I mean, I really can’t decide whom I feel worse for at the moment: Belal Muhammad, who just suffered what appears to be a gruesome eye injury in the biggest fight of his life, or Leon Edwards, who had his

11:01 PM ET Leon Edwards had not competed in nearly two years. This was obviously not the result he hoped for in his return. Edwards accidentally poked Belal Muhammad in the right eye in the opening seconds of the second round Saturday in the main event of UFC Fight Night in Las Vegas. Muhammad dropped

4:40 PM ET UFC welterweight contender Leon Edwards will finally step back into the cage to face Belal Muhammad in the main event of Saturday’s Fight Night in Las Vegas. Edwards has not fought since July 20, 2019, more than 19 months ago. The layoff has been due to myriad reasons, including COVID-19 lockdowns, canceled

3:00 PM ET If good things come to those who wait, both of the welterweights headlining UFC Fight Night on Saturday have a lot to look forward to. This weekend, the often-overlooked Leon Edwards (18-3) will take on the often-overshadowed Belal Muhammad (also 18-3) in the main event inside the UFC Apex facility in Las

2:03 PM ET The UFC is working on a lightweight bout between Tony Ferguson and Beneil Dariush on May 15, sources confirmed to ESPN. Contracts have not been signed, but the bout will take place on the UFC 262 pay-per-view event once finalized. MMAJunkie first reported the pairing and date. Ferguson (25-5) is coming off

6:40 AM ET LAS VEGAS — UFC welterweight Leon Edwards has won eight consecutive fights since 2016. The last time he lost was on Dec. 19, 2015, and that was to current champion Kamaru Usman, who happens to be the only welterweight with a longer active UFC win streak — 13 straight — than Edwards.

7:42 PM ET The launch of ONE Championship’s women’s atomweight tournament will be on an all-women’s fight card. The four quarterfinal matchups of ONE’s women’s atomweight grand prix will take place May 28 in Singapore, officials told ESPN on Thursday. The event itself will be named ONE: Empower. In the main event, ONE women’s strawweight