MMA

12:21 AM ET The UFC is finalizing a bantamweight bout between Brazilian legend Jose Aldo and Marlon “Chito” Vera for a UFC Fight Night on Dec. 19, sources confirmed to ESPN. The 135-pound bout will take place on the main card of UFC Fight Night in Las Vegas, which is the final event on the

4:16 PM ET A potentially major news story happened behind closed doors last week, as PFL lightweight champion Kayla Harrison made the 146-pound featherweight limit for the first time in her career. A former two-time Olympic gold medalist in judo, Harrison (8-0) is under contract with PFL, but received permission to fight Courtney King (4-1)

7:44 AM ET UFC women’s flyweight champ Valentina Shevchenko once again showed her brilliance in a unanimous-decision win over Jennifer Maia at UFC 255 on Saturday night in Las Vegas. Things were a little dicey for Shevchenko through two rounds. She actually — gasp — lost the second round. But then Shevchenko used her precision

1:31 AM ET The UFC’s flyweight division, once maligned for having fighters too small and bouts that were too dull, has been completely turned on its head by the man nicknamed “God of War.” Deiveson Figueiredo finished Alex Perez via guillotine choke at 1:57 of the first round Saturday night to retain the UFC flyweight

3:29 AM ET UFC flyweight champion Deiveson Figueiredo is getting right back to work. Less than two hours after he successfully defended the 125-pound title against Alex Perez at UFC 255 on Saturday night in Las Vegas, Figueiredo verbally agreed to defend the belt against top contender Brandon Moreno in the co-main event of UFC

1:51 AM ET ESPN’s panel of Brett Okamoto, Phil Murphy, Marc Raimondi and Jeff Wagenheim breaks down the biggest stories coming out of UFC 255 on Saturday night, including what’s next for the headliners and the rise of Joaquin Buckley. Who’s next after UFC 255? Deiveson Figueiredo, UFC flyweight (defeated Alex Perez via first-round submission)

2:02 AM ET What does it take to become a star in MMA? Well, for starters, you have to win fights. Obviously. But, as we all know, that’s not enough. You have to finish fights. No doubt about it. You have to be well-rounded. For sure. You have to be flashy. That always helps. And

6:03 PM ET The finish might have been a bit anticlimactic. But it was exactly what Brandon Moreno needed as he pushes toward a title shot. Somewhere in a wild grappling scramble, Moreno’s opponent Brandon Royval dislocated his shoulder. Moreno, in top position, rained down blows to Royval’s head and Royval called out in pain,

7:48 AM ET When Alex Perez appeared as a contestant on Dana White’s Contender Series in 2017, he went in thinking it was his last chance in MMA. At that time, Perez was more than six years into his pro career. That’s a long time for someone to fight on the regional circuit and never

12:06 AM ET The UFC is finalizing a lightweight matchup between former interim lightweight champion Tony Ferguson and Charles Oliveira for Dec. 12, UFC president Dana White told ESPN on Friday. Ferguson (25-4) has been campaigning for one more fight before the end of the year, and he will get his wish, according to White.

12:40 PM ET Three of the four UFC 255 title headliners have had notable weight issues in the past. But none of those problems reared their ugly heads Friday morning. Deiveson Figueiredo and Alex Perez each successfully made weight ahead of their UFC flyweight title fight. Figueiredo, the flyweight champ, weighed 125 pounds even, while

7:30 AM ET It comes with the territory at 125 pounds. Not only is UFC flyweight champion Deiveson Figueiredo tasked with defending his title, but he also needs to draw attention to the weight class — something flyweights have generally struggled to do since the UFC added the division in 2012. Former champion Demetrious Johnson

9:58 PM ET A.J. McKee is creating quite a highlight reel early in his career. And this latest addition happened against his toughest opponent to date. McKee, one of the top up-and-coming fighters in MMA, finished Darrion Caldwell with a rare submission, performing a neck crank from bottom position to get the tap at 1

1:19 PM ET Editor’s note: This has been updated with Thursday’s news that Conor McGregor has signed his bout agreement to face Dustin Poirier on Jan. 23. UFC superstar Conor McGregor will return to the Octagon and face Dustin Poirier as the main event of UFC 257 on Jan. 23. The site has not yet

8:55 AM ET AJ McKee was 12 years old at his childhood home in Long Beach, California, when he wrote himself a mock check for $1 million. The check was from McKee to McKee. The verbiage the then-preteen used to indicate the amount was “1 mil.” “I just always wanted to be a millionaire,” McKee

5:12 PM ET Canadian fighter Jesse Ronson, who returned to UFC in July after six years and picked up his first victory in the promotion, has been suspended for 20 months due to a failed drug test, USADA announced Wednesday. The UFC anti-doping partner said Ronson tested positive for a metabolite of the banned substance

8:40 PM ET Former Bellator MMA champion Michael Chandler is eagerly looking forward to making his UFC debut, but it will not be against Tony Ferguson next month. “There is a 0% chance I’ll fight Tony Ferguson in December,” Chandler told ESPN on Tuesday. “And I 100% know he knew that, because the UFC already

7:24 AM ET Will Valentina Shevchenko fight Amanda Nunes in 2021? Will Deiveson Figueiredo breathe new life into the flyweight division? Can Joaquin Buckley sustain the momentum he created with his viral knockout? These are some of the questions surrounding UFC 255 on Saturday in Las Vegas, where Shevchenko defends her flyweight belt against Jennifer