MMA

12:35 PM ET Editor’s note: This story was originally published prior to Brian Ortega’s fight against Max Holloway at UFC 231. HARBOR CITY, California — On Aug. 8, 2008, Brian Ortega held one of his dearest friends on the side of the street as he bled to death from a gunshot wound. A local report

9:30 AM ET Saturday’s battle to determine the UFC’s next No. 1 featherweight contender is officially on, as Brian Ortega and Chan Sung Jung each successfully made weight during Friday’s weigh-in. Ortega (14-1), who hasn’t fought since December 2018, weighed in at 146 pounds. Jung (16-5), of South Korea, also came in at 146 pounds.

7:47 AM ET Angela Hill was sitting in the second row at T-Mobile Arena in Las Vegas on March 7 as Joanna Jedrzejczyk was walking out to challenge women’s strawweight champion Zhang Weili in the co-main event of UFC 248. Out of the corner of her eye, Hill saw UFC featherweight Brian Ortega coming toward

10:44 PM ET Jeff Wagenheim Bellator MMA announced on Thursday that it will resume its featherweight grand prix next month, starting with Patricio Freire defending his 145-pound championship in a grand prix quarterfinal against Pedro Carvalho in the main event of Bellator 252 on Nov. 12. Freire, who competes under the nickname “Pitbull,” is No.

8:23 PM ET UFC flyweight Cynthia Calvillo has been forced to withdraw from a scheduled bout against Lauren Murphy at UFC 254 next week in Yas Island, Abu Dhabi, and has been replaced by UFC newcomer Liliya Shakirova. Calvillo (9-1-1) was forced to pull out of the bout after testing positive for COVID-19 on Thursday,

7:38 PM ET Fresh off one of the most spectacular — and most-viewed — knockouts in mixed martial arts history, UFC middleweight Joaquin Buckley is ready to get back to work. Buckley (11-3) has agreed to face Jordan Wright (11-0) at UFC 255 on Nov. 21. Both sides have agreed to the bout, according to

7:30 PM ET UFC superstar Conor McGregor announced Wednesday that he will return to the Octagon and face Dustin Poirier as the main event of UFC 257 on Jan. 23, and he’s hoping the fight will be held at AT&T Stadium, the home of the Dallas Cowboys. Will the UFC, which hasn’t hosted an event

6:58 PM ET Conor McGregor is in. McGregor revealed on Twitter that he has accepted a Jan. 23 fight against Dustin Poirier. However, he also said he wanted the fight to happen at AT&T Stadium in Arlington, Texas, home of the Dallas Cowboys. “Jerry Jones is a friend and the stadium can hold our crowd,”

9:20 AM ET Jeff Wagenheim Cris “Cyborg” Justino has for years expressed a burning desire to venture beyond mixed martial arts and test herself in professional boxing. But the fact that she will be facing a two-time boxing world champion on Thursday night is not what she’s most excited about for Bellator 249. “No, it’s

11:44 AM ET For years, Khabib Nurmagomedov looked at Tony Ferguson as perhaps his greatest challenge in the UFC’s lightweight division. Those days, however, have come to an end. Nurmagomedov (28-0) will defend his 155-pound championship against Justin Gaethje (22-2) at UFC 254 on Oct. 24 in Yas Island, Abu Dhabi. He was scheduled to

12:45 PM ET Ronaldo “Jacare” Souza was the first UFC fighter to be pulled from a bout due to coronavirus back in May. Now, he will make his Octagon return. Souza, a perennial contender, will meet surging middleweight Marvin Vettori at UFC 256 on Dec. 12, sources told ESPN. No location has been officially set

7:57 PM ET Never say never in combat sports, but it appears Khabib Nurmagomedov is done with Conor McGregor. In an exclusive interview with ESPN, Nurmagomedov confirmed he nixed any plans of a reboot of “The Ultimate Fighter” reality series in 2021, which would have featured McGregor and him as opposing coaches. UFC president Dana

10:16 AM ET The UFC isn’t lacking intriguing main events for its remaining 2020 schedule. One of those, however, the Kamaru Usman–Gilbert Burns welterweight title fight, was recently postponed, and the UFC 256 card on Dec. 12 needs a new main event. Will the UFC turn to one of its most highly anticipated matchups —

11:46 PM ET It seemed as if Cory Sandhagen could sense that a finish was coming. The ESPN+ broadcast picked up Sandhagen shouting to his corner, “His orbital’s broke” in the second round of his fight with Marlon Moraes on Saturday. Moments later, wham! A spinning wheel kick from Sandhagen landed on the top of

4:42 PM ET The UFC bantamweight contender picture will gain some clarity Saturday night. Marlon Moraes meets Cory Sandhagen in the main event of UFC Fight Night in Abu Dhabi, United Arab Emirates. The card will take place at the Flash Forum on Yas Island, which the UFC has dubbed “Fight Island,” the promotion’s international

10:40 PM ET Cory Sandhagen, like many other UFC fighters, wasn’t able to go to his gym early this year at the start of the COVID-19 pandemic. During that time, the bantamweight contender was home, working striking techniques on an inanimate “body opponent bag.” One of the techniques he drilled ended up paying dividends at

7:00 PM ET Jeff Wagenheim Bellator MMA made history in Paris on Saturday, but many of the local fans at Accor Arena went home disappointed. Timothy Johnson eked out a split-decision victory over Paris-born veteran heavyweight Cheick Kongo in the main event of the first major mixed martial arts card ever held in France. France,

9:27 AM ET There were no weight-cutting issues for a pair of top bantamweights. Marlon Moraes and Cory Sandhagen both successfully made weight at 136 pounds Friday morning for their UFC Fight Night headliner. The two will meet Saturday in the main event of the card on “Fight Island” in Abu Dhabi on ESPN+ (main