Larissa Pacheco Knocks Out Amber Leibrock to Earn No. 1 Seed in PFL Featherweight Playoffs

Posted on June 18, 2023 by Tom Castaneda

Larissa Pacheco looks poised to claim a second Professional Fighters League championship…

The 28-year-old Brazilian mixed martial artist – who shocked the world in 2022 with her upset win over Kayla Harrison in the lightweight finals to win her first PFL title – seized the No. 1 seed in the PFL playoffs on Friday with a resounding first-round knockout of Amber Leibrock.

The featherweight bout headlined PFL 5 inside Overtime Elite Arena.

Leibrock (7-5) went into the bout with a lot of momentum, after scoring a highlight-reel head kick knockout in the opening round of the season. She looked out of her league Friday, however, as Pacheco (21-4) bombarded her with punches early.

Pacheco’s win sets up a rematch against Ukraine’s Olena Kolesnyk in the first round of the playoffs in August. Pacheco beat Kolesnyk last August via first-round TKO.

Marina Mokhnatkina earned the No. 2 seed and will face Leibrock as the 145-pound’s No. 3 seed.

Former UFC bantamweight Aspen Ladd defeated Karolina Sobek via submission but still missed the playoffs in a tiebreaker to Kolesnyk.

In the heavyweight division, Denis Goltsov (31-7) secured the No. 1 seed with a devastating 18-second knockout of Yorgan De Castro. It was the fastest knockout in PFL heavyweight history.

Brazil’s Renan Ferreira (10-4) also scored a big knockout on the main card, taking out Matheus Scheffel in 50 seconds. The win was good enough to earn him the No. 2 seed at heavyweight, and he’ll face Marcelo Nunes in the opening round of the playoffs. Goltsov will square off with Jordan Heiderman, who also picked up a first-round victory.

In the main event, Maurice Greene (11-8) came up short in a bid to topple 2022 champion Ante Delija. Delija, who missed the first round of the regular season because of injury, defeated Greene via unanimous decision. It was an impressive showing but earned him only three points, leaving him out of the playoffs.

UFC Signs Up & Coming MMA Fighter Montserrat Rendon

Posted on June 8, 2023 by Tom Castaneda

Montserrat Rendon is joining the roster of Ultimate Fighting Championship fighters.

Five women’s MMA prospects, including the Mexican professional mixed martial artist, were signed by the UFC this week.

Rendon, an undefeated bantamweight, has fought for Invicta FC and Combate Global.

The UFC also signed flyweight Luana Santos.

The 23-year-old Brazilian mixed martial artist (5-1) has won two straight in LFA.

Other new signees include undefeated British women’s bantamweight fighter Melissa Dixon, LFA women’s bantamweight champion Jacqueline Cavalcanti and undefeated Irish strawweight Shauna Bannon.

Jailton Almeida to Fight Curtis Blaydes in Upcoming UFC Fight Night

Posted on June 1, 2023 by Tom Castaneda

Jailton Almeida has locked in a new opponent.

The 31-year-old Brazilian mixed martial artist will face off against Curtis Blaydes in a marquee heavyweight matchup that will headline a UFC Fight Night in November, according to ESPN.Contracts have not been issued, but both sides have verbally agreed to a five-round main event on November 4. The UFC has not yet announced the event; however, it is expected to take place in Sao Paulo, Brazil.

Blaydes and Almeida are the Nos. 4 and 9 ranked heavyweights in the UFC, respectively. Although Blaydes has the more established résumé, there is a lot of hype building around Almeida, particularly after a first-round submission win over Jairzinho Rozenstruik in the main event of a UFC on ABC card last month.

Almeida (19-2) is 5-0 in the UFC with five finishes. He has fought at light heavyweight and heavyweight, and he is best known for his submission skills on the ground.

Blaydes (17-4) has been one of the most consistent heavyweights of the past seven years, but he’s suffered major losses in key moments against names like Francis Ngannou, Derrick Lewis and Sergei Pavlovich. He lost to Pavlovich via first-round TKO in his most recent appearance in April.

Jon Jones is the UFC’s current heavyweight champion. There are expectations he might face Stipe Miocic in late 2023, however the UFC has not officially booked that matchup as of yet.

Cris Cyborg Re-Signs with Bellator MMA

Posted on May 4, 2023 by Tom Castaneda

Cris Cyborg is staying put…

Bellator MMA has announced that it has re-signed the 37-year-old Brazilian mixed martial artist, one of the greatest women’s MMA fighters of all time, to a new, multi-fight contract.

Cyborg had been a free agent since last summer, though she has remained the Bellator women’s featherweight champion. She competed in two boxing matches during her time out of contract, winning both.

While Cyborg returning to Bellator has always been the most likely scenario, she was entertaining other opportunities and even attended a PFL event in person recently.

PFL has been trying to make a huge fight between Cyborg and two-time PFL women’s lightweight champion Kayla Harrison for more than a year.

Cyborg re-signing with Bellator doesn’t necessarily completely harpoon that fight, because PFL has expressed a willingness to co-promote with Bellator to make it happen.

“After receiving multiple offers from several promotions, I’m very happy that I was able to come to terms with Bellator and remain the face of their women’s featherweight division,” Cyborg said in a statement. “Scott Coker is a promoter that I’ve worked with and respected for many years. He’s done so much to further women’s MMA and give us a platform to showcase our skills. When making this decision, it was important to me that I was signing with the organization that I felt had the biggest names and the top talent at 145 pounds for me to challenge myself against. There is no question that all the top female featherweights are signed with Bellator and I can’t wait to get back in there and defend my belt.”

Bellator did note in its news release that Cyborg re-signing sets her up for title defenses against Cat Zingano and Sara McMann, two former UFC title challengers who are undefeated since signing with the promotion.

Cyborg (26-2, 1 NC) has lost just once since her pro debut in 2005, a knockout defeat to UFC double champion Amanda Nunes at UFC 232 in December 2018. She lives and trains in California and has been Bellator women’s featherweight champion since 2020 and has four successful title defenses. Cyborg is the only fighter to ever win championships in four different major promotions: the UFC, Bellator, Strikeforce and Invicta FC.

ESPN has her ranked No. 4 pound-for-pound in its women’s MMA rankings.

Irene Aldana Replaces Injured Julianna Peña in UFC 289 Fight Versus Amanda Nunes

Posted on May 3, 2023 by Tom Castaneda

Irene Aldana is stepping up to take on a champion…

The 35-year-old Mexican mixed martial artist will face UFC double champion Amanda Nunes at UFC 289 on June 10.

Aldana is filling in for Nunes’ previously scheduled opponent Julianna Peña, who suffered a rib injury.

UFC president Dana White broke the news via social media.

The new 135-pound matchup will headline the pay-per-view event, which takes place at Rogers Arena in Vancouver.

“Unfortunately, [Peña] broke her ribs and she can not compete,” White said on Instagram. “We have Irene Aldana coming in, who has won four of her last five and three of those were finishes. We could have another Mexican world champion.”

Aldana (14-6) is a former Invicta FC title challenger with an 8-4 record in the UFC. She has won six of her past eight, including a first-round knockout of Ketlen Vieira in 2019.

Her most recent loss came at the hands of former champion Holly Holm in October 2020. She is vying to become the fourth active Mexican-born champion, alongside flyweight Brandon Moreno, interim featherweight champ Yair Rodriguez and flyweight Alexa Grasso, her teammate at Lobo Gym.

Nunes (22-5) is universally considered the No. 1 pound-for-pound female fighter in the world. She suffered a shocking upset against Peña in December 2021 but bounced back in dominant fashion with a decision win over her last July.

The UFC 289 card also features a lightweight matchup between Charles Oliveira and Beneil Dariush, which was supposed to take this weekend in Newark but was postponed due to an Oliveira injury.

Rafael dos Anjos to Fight Vicente Luque in UFC Fight Night Headliner This Summer

Posted on April 29, 2023 by Tom Castaneda

Rafael dos Anjos has lined up his next opponent…

The the 38-year-old Brazilian professional mixed martial artist and former UFC lightweight champion has agreed to a welterweight fight against Vicente Luque this summer.

dos Anjos and Luque’s fight will headline UFC Fight Night on July 15, sources have confirmed with ESPN.

The card doesn’t have an official location, but it is likely to be in Las Vegas.

MMA Fighting was the first to report the news.

Dos Anjos (32-14) has won three of his past four fights. He returned to welterweight with a second-round submission win over Bryan Barberena back in December.

Dos Anjos held the UFC lightweight title in 2015 and 2016 and has the longest fight time in UFC history, more than eight hours in the Octagon.

Luque (21-9-1) is looking to snap a two-fight losing streak. Before that skid, the New Jersey-born Brazilian MMA fighter who lives and trains in Florida had won four in a row. Luque, 31, has the second most finishes in UFC welterweight history (13).

Irene Aldana to Fight Raquel Pennington in Rematch at UFC Fight Night in May

Posted on April 18, 2023 by Tom Castaneda

Irene Aldana is readying for a rematch…

The 35-year-old Mexican professional mixed martial artist will meet Raquel Pennington in a rematch on May 20 in the main event of a UFC Fight Night card in Las Vegas, with the next UFC women’s bantamweight No. 1 contender likely to be decided with that fight.

Aldana and Pennington fought in July 2019, with Pennington winning a split decision.

ESPN has Pennington ranked No. 3 and Aldana ranked No. 6 in the world at women’s bantamweight.

The champion in that weight class, Amanda Nunes, will defend her title in a trilogy fight with Julianna Peña at UFC 289 on June 10 in Vancouver.

The Pennington vs. Aldana winner will likely fight the victor in that bout.

Pennington (15-8) has won five straight. The Colorado native has not lost since a 2020 bout with former champ Holly Holm. Pennington, 34, has the most bouts in UFC women’s bantamweight history (16).

Aldana (14-6) has won two in a row and four of her past five. The Mexican-born fighter is coming off a knockout of Macy Chiasson at UFC 279 in September.

Aldana has won seven of her past nine fights overall.

Nate Diaz to Make Pro Boxing Debut Against Jake Paul This Summer

Posted on April 12, 2023 by Tom Castaneda

Nate Diaz is preparing for his first-ever boxing match this summer…

The 37-year-old half-Mexican American professional mixed martial artist and ex-UFC bad boy will fight YouTuber-turned-prizefighter Jake Paul in a boxing match on August 5 at American Airlines Center in Dallas.

The bout will be contested at 185 pounds and is contracted for eight rounds with 10-ounce gloves. The pay-per-view bout will be distributed globally by DAZN.

The event will be a 50-50 collaboration between Paul’s Most Valuable Promotions and Diaz’s Real Fight Inc.

It will be the first time Diaz has ever promoted himself, the first time he’ll fight outside the UFC in 15 years and his first career pro boxing match. Diaz has competed in some of the biggest pay-per-view events in UFC history, and Paul has made a name for himself as a boxing draw despite his experience level.

Diaz and Paul have exchanged trash talk on social media and in interviews over the past 18 months. In October, during a boxing event headlined by Paul and UFC legend Anderson Silva, Diaz’s team and Paul’s team got into an altercation backstage. And Paul challenged Diaz in his post-fight interview after defeating Silva.

Diaz has typically fought in MMA at 155 pounds and more recently at 170 pounds. Paul has fought as heavy as 191.5 pounds as a pro. He weighed in at 183.6 pounds for Fury.

Paul (6-1) lost his first career boxing match in his last bout to Tommy Fury, the brother of heavyweight great Tyson, back in February via split decision. The Ohio native, who trains out of Puerto Rico, is undefeated against MMA fighters, including Silva, Tyron Woodley and Ben Askren; he beat the latter two by knockout. Paul, 26, has only been a pro since 2020.

“My last fight didn’t end the way I wanted, but the result was the best thing that could have happened to my professional boxing aspirations,” Paul said in a statement. “Now, the world thinks I am vulnerable, when all I am is more focused than ever. My team wanted me to take an easy fight like KSI next, but that’s not how I am built. Nate Diaz is considered one of the most bad-ass fighters of all time, but he and his team have been running their mouths for too long.”

Diaz (21-13) fought out his UFC contract with a submission win over Tony Ferguson at UFC 279 in September. The Stockton, California, native handed Conor McGregor his first UFC loss back in 2016. Diaz has headlined 10 UFC events and won The Ultimate Fighter 5 tournament in 2007. He’s one of the most popular fighters in MMA history and is a former sparring partner of top boxer Andre Ward.

“Besides Canelo, he’s the biggest thang in boxing,” Diaz said in a statement. “I’m here to conquer that. I’m the King of combat sports and then I’m headed back to get my UFC belts. I f—ed up Conor for acting out and now here I am again, like a Super Hero of the Real Fight game, the King of the Real Fight game.”

Diaz has made it known that he plans on returning to the UFC in the future with a McGregor trilogy fight still on the table down the road. Paul, meanwhile, had talked about a Tommy Fury rematch next or the aforementioned bout with fellow YouTube star KSI. But Paul vs. Diaz was too big of a matchup to pass up.

“Jake’s star power and popularity continue to command massive audiences worldwide,” Most Valuable Promotions co-founder Nakisa Bidarian said in a statement. “His most recent bout, Paul vs. Fury, surpassed more than 800,000 pay-per-view purchases and was a commercial success for all our partners. Jake remains one of the most avidly followed fighters in the sport and all eyes are on him, wondering what’s next. Well, what’s next is one of the most vicious men ever in the cage.”

No other fights have been announced for the event, though given the bad blood between the two teams it wouldn’t be surprising to see Paul and Diaz teammates on the undercard.

“Nate’s departure from the UFC made him the most sought-after free agent in combat sports history with all eyes looking to see what his next move would be,” Real Fight Inc. president Zach Rosenfield said in a statement. “In choosing to make his boxing debut against Jake Paul, Nate found an opponent where there is an organic, non-scripted backstory that motivates him and will clearly capture the excitement of audiences throughout the world.”

Christian Rodriguez Defeats Raul Rosas Jr. by Unanimous Decision at UFC 287

Posted on April 9, 2023 by Tom Castaneda

Christian Rodriguez has taken down a hot prospect…

The 25-year-old Latino MMA fighter, nicknamed “CeeRod,” came back from losing the first round to win a unanimous decision (29-28, 29-28, 29-28) over the previously undefeated Raul Rosas Jr. to open the UFC 287 main card on Saturday at Kaseya Center.

Rosas has been one of the best and most hyped prospects on the UFC roster at only 18 years old. He was the youngest fighter ever signed to the UFC last year at 17. He has also developed quite the fan following, getting a big pop for his walkout Saturday night.

“I just stopped a hype train,” Rodriguez said in his postfight interview. “I hope you guys can follow my journey.”

Rosas looked good early. He’s a ground specialist, and it’s never a secret that he’s going to try to take the fight to the canvas. He did so repeatedly in the first round and nearly snared a rear-naked choke while on Rodriguez’s back on several occasions. But Rodriguez survived some very disadvantageous situations.

Rosas was clearly exhausted going into the second round, and Rodriguez took over. He was able to out-scramble Rosas on the ground in the second and third rounds, stay on top and land some ground and pound.

“I respect his skillset,” Rodriguez said of Rosas, adding, “That kid brings it.”

Rodriguez (9-1) has won two straight now after dropping his UFC debut to Jonathan Pearce in January 2022.

The 25-year-old Milwaukee native, who trains out of Roufusport, is a veteran of Dana White‘s Contender Series.

Rosas (7-1), who lives and trains in Las Vegas, won his UFC debut at UFC 282 back in December, a first-round submission win.

Yair Rodriguez to Face Alexander Volkanovski in Featherweight Title Unification Bout at UFC 290

Posted on April 8, 2023 by Tom Castaneda

Yair Rodriguez has lined up his next opponent…

The 30-year-old Mexican professional mixed martial artist, interim champion, has verbally agreed to fight featherweight champion Alexander Volkanovski at UFC 290 on July 8, according to multiple sources.

The UFC is targeting the featherweight title unification bout as part of its annual International Fight Week in Las Vegas.

Contracts have not yet been issued or signed.

The 145-pound fight could serve as the pay-per-view headliner, although the UFC has not yet made that official.

Volkanovski (25-2) is coming off a failed bid to become a two-weight champion in February. The Australian moved up to 155 pounds at UFC 284 and lost a unanimous decision to lightweight champ Islam Makhachev.

Volkanovski and his team have been campaigning for an immediate rematch against Makhachev, as the five-round fight was extremely competitive. In the absence of an immediate rematch, however, Volkanovski wishes to stay active and defend his title.

ESPN ranks Volkanovski as tied for the No. 1 pound-for-pound fighter in the world with Makhachev.

Rodriguez (15-3), of Chihuahua, Mexico, won the interim title by submitting Josh Emmett in February. That fight also took place on the UFC 284 card in Perth, Australia.

Rodriguez is 4-1 in his past five official bouts, with the only loss coming to former champion Max Holloway.

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