MMA

8:31 AM ET In the past six months, the UFC has seen records fall for the fastest 3-0 start in modern history, most middleweight wins during that span and fastest turnaround for a champ. There have been viral knockouts, stunning submissions and dominance of title contenders. ESPN’s MMA Hot List features the top fighters over

11:13 AM ET A featherweight title fight between two-weight champion Amanda Nunes and Megan Anderson has been rebooked to March 6, according to UFC officials. The 145-pound championship fight was originally scheduled to take place at UFC 256 on Dec. 12, however Nunes was forced to withdraw because of health issues. The UFC has not

12:55 PM ET A UFC strawweight bout between Nina Ansaroff and Mackenzie Dern is in the works for April 10, according to multiple sources. Contracts have not been signed, but both sides have agreed to the opponent and date. The UFC has not formally announced an event or location on April 10. Ansaroff (10-6), the

8:30 AM ET MMA fans who have seen recent social media posts by Jon Jones know that he’s nearly ready to compete at heavyweight. He has stated he weighs around the 240-pound mark, and at 6-foot-4, the former UFC light heavyweight champ is looking to pack more muscle onto his frame. He should be ready

11:35 PM ET ESPN’s panel of Ariel Helwani, Brett Okamoto, Marc Raimondi and Jeff Wagenheim breaks down the biggest stories coming out of Saturday’s UFC Fight Night, including Stephen Thompson‘s convincing unanimous decision win over Geoff Neal and two former champions earning key victories. Helwani: ‘Wonderboy’ is no steppingstone Considering what Geoff Neal overcame just

10:43 PM ET Geoff Neal chased Stephen Thompson down near the cage. When he got close, Thompson ripped off a lightning-quick punching combination and then angled off before Neal could even start throwing punches. That sequence — Thompson playing matador and Neal the hapless bull — occurred over and over again Saturday in the main

11:35 PM ET ESPN’s panel of Ariel Helwani, Brett Okamoto, Marc Raimondi and Jeff Wagenheim breaks down the biggest stories coming out of Saturday’s UFC Fight Night, including Stephen Thompson‘s convincing unanimous-decision win over Geoff Neal and two former champions earning key victories. Helwani: “Wonderboy” is no stepping-stone Considering what Geoff Neal overcame just three

LAS VEGAS — If Jose Aldo is showing any signs of slowing down at age 34, it was not apparent this weekend in Las Vegas. Aldo (29-7) snapped the longest skid of his career on Saturday, as he picked up his first win in four appearances by defeating Malon Vera (18-7-1) via unanimous decision. All

2:32 PM ET The UFC is finalizing an important bantamweight fight for early 2021, as Cory Sandhagen and Frankie Edgar have verbally agreed to meet on Feb. 6, sources told ESPN on Friday. The fight represents a meeting between two of the best 135-pounders in the world. Sandhagen (13-2) is coming off a second-round TKO

8:50 AM ET The UFC’s final event of 2020, which takes place Saturday in Las Vegas, was originally supposed to feature one of the scariest unranked welterweights on the planet against an established, veteran opponent. Well, even though the main event did change, the storyline around it remained the same. Two-time 170-pound title challenger Stephen

11:10 PM ET Two fights from Saturday’s UFC Fight Night card in Las Vegas have been canceled after positive coronavirus tests, the UFC announced on Thursday. Another bout has been changed this week for an undisclosed reason. On Thursday, Aiemann Zahabi announced on social media that he tested positive for COVID-19 prior to flying to

9:18 AM ET Stephen “Wonderboy” Thompson is no stranger to UFC main events, but there is one role the two-time welterweight challenger doesn’t want to get accustomed to: gatekeeper. Thompson faces Geoff Neal in Saturday’s Fight Night headliner in Las Vegas, and it’s the second time in a row Thompson, 37, will be fighting a

11:45 AM ET Yoel Romero said his release from the UFC was “completely unexpected,” explaining that he was training with the hope that he would be one or two wins from another title shot. Instead, Romero will now work toward getting a shot at a Bellator title, and he said there’s a “huge possibility” his

4:52 PM ET UFC strawweight champion Zhang Weili‘s next fight is still up in the air. Most expected Zhang to fight former 115-pound champion Rose Namajunas in 2021, but UFC president Dana White recently told BT Sport that fight wasn’t finalized. “What I’m hearing is Rose does not want a title shot,” White said. “Rose

7:48 AM ET Stephen “Wonderboy” Thompson is no stranger to UFC main events, but there is one role the two-time welterweight challenger doesn’t want to get accustomed to: gatekeeper. Thompson faces Geoff Neal in Saturday’s Fight Night headliner in Las Vegas, and it’s the second time in a row Thompson, 37, will be fighting a

1:35 PM ET Philip Mulpeter posted bad news Friday on Instagram. The gym he owns, SBG Portarlington in County Laois, Ireland, would have to close its doors due to financial concerns brought upon by COVID-19 lockdowns in the country. “We’ve had three lockdowns now, and I think after each lockdown it’s hard to get the

10:37 PM ET Approximately 24 hours before UFC flyweight champ Deiveson Figueiredo defended his belt in a vicious fight-of-the-year candidate Saturday night, he was so sick, his manager didn’t think he would be able to fight at all. Figueiredo had stomach issues that sent him to the hospital on two different occasions Friday, the day

8:00 AM ET Deiveson Figueiredo put in the work as 2020 wound down, and it has elevated him in ESPN’s pound-for-pound rankings — a small boost with huge symbolic significance. Figueiredo, who became UFC men’s flyweight champion in July with a choke-out victory over longtime contender Joseph Benavidez, defended his belt on Nov. 21 and