MMA

12:19 PM ET Zabit Magomedsharipov, one of the UFC’s most promising contenders, says he is retiring from the sport, stating on social media Thursday that he doesn’t “feel the way I used to” in regards to MMA competition. Magomedsharipov (18-1), a 31-year-old from Russia, hadn’t fought since November 2019, but there was still hope among

3:30 PM ET One of the greatest former champions in UFC history will take on a surging contender this summer. Jose Aldo, the former longtime UFC featherweight champion, and Merab Dvalishvili have verbally agreed to a bantamweight fight at UFC 278 on Aug. 20 in Salt Lake City, sources confirmed to ESPN on Thursday. MMA

12:18 PM ET Former NFL defensive end and UFC heavyweight Greg Hardy has signed an agreement to bare-knuckle box. Hardy, 33, has signed a multifight deal with Bare Knuckle Fighting Championship, the promotion announced Wednesday. It is Hardy’s first move in combat sports since the UFC opted not to re-sign him after a three-year run.

12:02 AM ET TJ Dillashaw will look to become a three-time UFC champion later this year. A bantamweight title fight between champion Aljamain Sterling and Dillashaw, the former champ, is being targeted for UFC 279 on Sept. 10 at a location to be determined, sources confirmed to ESPN on Wednesday night. Dillashaw’s manager, Tiki Ghosn,

7:58 AM ET Anitta, one of the hottest female pop stars in the world, posted a video on her Instagram story the morning of April 3. In the clip, Anitta was in a bed, still wearing the same outfit she wore the night before at her exclusive birthday party in Las Vegas. Talking into her

4:57 AM ET A recharged Tai Tuivasa says he is ready to upset the world again and earn a crack at the UFC heavyweight title in the process when he heads to France to fight the division’s No. 1 contender Ciryl Gane in September. The UFC Fight Night Paris showdown between the big-swinging duo was

9:26 PM ET Charles Oliveira is no longer the UFC lightweight champion, courtesy of missing weight before UFC 274 last month. But he is still expected to compete for the title in his next bout. And if he has his way, Oliveira would face Conor McGregor for the vacant belt. Oliveira told ESPN Brazil in

Jun 11, 2022 Kamaru Usman will defend his UFC welterweight title against Leon Edwards in the main event of UFC 278 on Aug. 20 in Salt Lake City, Utah, it was announced Saturday during the UFC 275 broadcast. Usman vs. Edwards was the expected title matchup, and the UFC was just waiting on Usman to

7:00 AM ET Jiri Prochazka became a champion in just his third Octagon appearance, dethroning Glover Teixeira in a wild light heavyweight title bout in the UFC 275 headliner Saturday in Singapore. Along with the shiny belt that was wrapped around his waist, the entertainingly inventive Czech fighter also has earned a spot in the

1:29 AM ET Associated Press TOKYO — Floyd Mayweather Jr. will fight in Japan again in another exhibition, this time against MMA fighter Mikuru Asakura. Promoters on Tuesday said the bout is scheduled for September. The rules and length of the bout have not yet been made public. Mayweather retired undefeated from professional boxing almost

Jun 12, 2022 Glover Teixeira passed into mount with 15 seconds left in the second round. Jiri Prochazka had been picking Teixeira apart on the feet, but the durable champion got Prochazka down, took his back and then worked his way into the most dominant position in MMA. In response, as Teixeira attempted to rain

Jun 11, 2022 One of the best women’s MMA fighters ever will be hanging up the gloves. Joanna Jedrzejczyk, the former UFC women’s strawweight champion, announced her retirement Saturday following a knockout loss to Zhang Weili at UFC 275 in Singapore. Jedrzejczyk was in line for a title shot if she beat Zhang but was

2:04 PM ET Taila Santos suffered a broken right orbital bone in her UFC 275 fight with Valentina Shevchenko on Saturday in Singapore, Santos’ manager, Tiago Okamura, confirmed with ESPN. Santos and Shevchenko clashed heads several times accidentally in the third and fourth rounds of their UFC women’s flyweight title fight, causing the damage to

Jun 12, 2022 Valentina Shevchenko defended her flyweight championship for the seventh time at UFC 275 on Saturday in Singapore, but her aura of invincibility might have taken a hit in doing so. Shevchenko (23-3) edged Brazilian contender Taila Santos (19-2) by split decision in the co-main event of UFC 275. Two judges scored the

1:55 AM ET What were the biggest moments at UFC 275? Jeff Wagenheim, Brett Okamoto and Marc Raimondi offer up their takeaways from a highlight-packed event in Singapore. Are you not entertained? The UFC has a dozen champions, and there is not one as inventive as its newest, light heavyweight Jiri Prochazka. It took the

1:27 AM ET Jiri Prochazka hit Glover Teixeira with everything he had — hard jabs, uppercuts, knees up the middle and combinations to the body. Teixeira gave it all back and then some. He landed huge overhand rights and left hooks, took Prochazka down and opened up a gnarly cut with an elbow. Both men

Jun 10, 2022 Jiri Prochazka has a “very simple” outlook on his fight with Glover Teixeira at UFC 275. “I am standup guy, and he’s ground game guy,” Prochazka said. “That’s all.” While there is an element of truth there, it’ll surely be a bit more complicated than that when Teixeira defends his UFC light

8:00 AM ET Before UFC 248, fans were still learning about the UFC’s new women’s strawweight champion. Seven months earlier, Zhang Weili had dethroned Jessica Andrade in her home country of China in August 2019, becoming the first Chinese champion in UFC history. While that win was historic, that fight wasn’t held on the promotion’s