MMA

12:47 AM ET Saturday’s UFC Fight Night card was a cold dose of reality for a pair of fighters who appeared to be on the precipice of major breakthroughs. Edmen Shahbazyan ran into the stiff offense of Derek Brunson and suffered the first loss of his career, while Joanne Calderwood saw her immediate title hopes

5:55 PM ET There is plenty of talk about what Edmen Shahbazyan can do in the future. At 22 years old, the surging middleweight still has one year to become the youngest champion in UFC history, surpassing Jon Jones‘ record. Many think that could be within his reach. But Shahbazyan knows it would not be

11:43 PM ET The only way to the top of UFC’s middleweight division is through Derek Brunson. On Saturday, he slammed that door shut for a red-hot prospect. Brunson stopped Edmen Shahbazyan via TKO 26 seconds into the third round in the main event of UFC Fight Night in Las Vegas. The previously undefeated Shahbazyan

9:43 PM ET A scheduled UFC middleweight bout between Trevin Giles and Kevin Holland was canceled Saturday night when Giles fainted backstage right before the fighters were set to walk out. Giles’ manager, Oren Hodak, told ESPN that Giles seemed fine afterward but was taken to the hospital for precautionary reasons. Giles was released on

6:15 PM ET Another fight on Saturday’s UFC Fight Night card has been canceled. The Ed Herman vs. Gerald Meerschaert fight was a late scratch Saturday afternoon after Meerschaert tested positive for COVID-19, UFC announced. The card will now proceed with nine fights. Herman was originally supposed to fight Da Un Jung, however, Jung withdrew

1:00 AM ET The UFC is finalizing a middleweight contest between former champion Robert Whittaker and Jared Cannonier for its UFC 254 pay-per-view event, UFC president Dana White told ESPN on Friday. UFC 254 is scheduled to take place on Oct. 24 at a location to be determined. Whittaker (21-5) is fresh off a unanimous

Jul 30, 2020 The UFC is targeting a 125-pound bout between former strawweight champion Jessica Andrade and Jessica Eye for a UFC Fight Night event on Oct. 17, sources told ESPN on Thursday. The promotion has not announced the flyweight contest but is close to finalizing it, sources said. The UFC Fight Night event will

12:59 PM ET A crucial middleweight headliner is now official. Derek Brunson and Edmen Shahbazyan both weighed in successfully Friday morning in Las Vegas for the main event of UFC Fight Night on Saturday at the UFC Apex. Brunson weighed 186 pounds and Shahbazyan weighed 185.5. This is the UFC’s first event back in the

7:45 AM ET Edmen Shahbazyan already has his own identity, with his own career and his own athletic accolades — but admittedly, the Ronda Rousey connection is, for now, hard to ignore. Shahbazyan (11-0, 4-0 in the UFC) is the middleweight phenom who will face the toughest test of his career on Saturday when he

8:33 PM ET The UFC has added a heavyweight matchup between Alexander Volkov and Walt Harris to its UFC 254 pay-per-view lineup in October, sources confirmed to ESPN. UFC 254 is scheduled to take place on Oct. 24 at a location to be determined. UFC president Dana White revealed this week it will feature a

Jul 27, 2020 Edmen Shahbazyan, 22 years old and undefeated, will get his first big test on Saturday when he faces veteran middleweight Derek Brunson in the main event of UFC Fight Night at the promotion’s Apex facility in Las Vegas. The fight was moved to the top of the bill from the co-main event

6:51 AM ET Roman ModrowskiESPN.com Ronda Rousey believes undefeated middleweight Edmen Shahbazyan will win UFC gold one day, and when that day comes, the man who coached both fighters will unload a burden he has been carrying since Rousey’s last loss. “Once he wins the title, I’m going to tell everybody to shut up and

6:11 PM ET Bellator MMA two-weight champion Ryan Bader will defend his light heavyweight title for the first time in nearly three years at Bellator 244 on Aug. 21. Bader (27-5) told ESPN on Wednesday that he has signed a contract to face Vadim Nemkov in a 205-pound title fight at Bellator 244 at Mohegan

5:46 PM ET UFC heavyweight champion Stipe Miocic acknowledges the smaller Octagon he will fight Daniel Cormier at UFC 252 on Augus. 15 in Las Vegas probably benefits his opponent if anyone. But he does not see it having an impact on the result. Miocic (19-3) will face Cormier (22-2) for the third time at

9:06 AM ET It was not the rock-’em-sock-’em thriller that fans were hoping for when they saw that Jorge Masvidal was challenging for the UFC welterweight championship, but that was the whole point for Kamaru Usman. Making his second defense of the 170-pound belt in the UFC 251 main event on July 11, Usman relentlessly

5:27 PM ET UFC newcomer Khamzat Chimaev has already set the world on fire, recording two wins in 11 days this month at Fight Island in Abu Dhabi. It was the quickest successful turnaround in UFC history — and both the company and the fighter are looking to keep that momentum going. 1 Related UFC

1:29 PM ET The UFC’s lightweight title will be unified on Oct. 24, Dana White announced on Tuesday, and compelling storylines surrounding Khabib Nurmagomedov defending his belt against interim champ Justin Gaethje serve as a backdrop for what is likely to be one of the biggest fights in UFC history. The most poignant question mark

8:05 AM ET Ronda Rousey said it’s not a matter of whether Edmen Shahbazyan will become a UFC champ — it’s just a matter of when. But that hype train has a legitimate roadblock on Saturday night in the person of Derek Brunson. The main event of the first Fight Night back in Las Vegas