Jul 4, 2020 Alexander Volkanovski found out he’s a part of the new main event for UFC 251 upon landing in Abu Dhabi on Saturday. A source confirmed to ESPN that Gilbert Burns would not compete against welterweight champion Kamaru Usman in the original main event on July 11. As a result, Volkanovski’s fight against
MMA
8:00 PM ET A day after Gilbert Burns was forced out of the UFC 251 main event, there is renewed hope that next week’s welterweight title fight can be saved with an even bigger fight. According to multiple sources, there are active negotiations to book Kamaru Usman vs. Jorge Masvidal as the new main event
9:25 AM ET Gilbert Burns will not compete in the main event of UFC 251, a source confirmed to ESPN. Burns had been set to face welterweight champion Kamaru Usman in a title fight July 11 that was the headliner of the first card at UFC’s Fight Island in Abu Dhabi, United Arab Emirates. The
12:50 PM ET UFC 251 on Fight Island continues to evolve. From visions of palm trees surrounding an Octagon on a beach with Kamaru Usman defending his welterweight belt against Gilbert Burns to what looks like an indoor venue with a possible main event of Alexander Volkanovski defending his featherweight title against Max Holloway. And
2:40 PM ET Abdulmanap Nurmagomedov, father of UFC lightweight champion Khabib Nurmagomedov, died Friday after battling COVID-19, and his impact on the world of mixed martial arts was evident by the outpouring of respect that immediately followed on social media. Abdulmanap was not just the father of Khabib, the undefeated phenom who is ESPN’s top-ranked
4:43 PM ET Max Holloway traveled Wednesday from Hawaii to Las Vegas. At the airport was the first time the former UFC featherweight champion has seen his coaches in person for months. Holloway told ESPN’s Ariel Helwani on Friday that he didn’t go to the gym or see his coaches during his UFC 251 training
1:31 PM ET Abdulmanap Nurmagomedov, the father and trainer of undefeated UFC lightweight champion Khabib Nurmagomedov, has died in Moscow, the fighter’s manager Ali Abdelaziz confirmed to ESPN on Friday. The elder Nurmagomedov had been hospitalized in Moscow since May, when he was diagnosed with coronavirus. He also underwent heart surgery for a pre-existing condition
8:18 AM ET As the giant screens hanging from the roof of the T-Mobile Arena in Las Vegas went from blank to an Irish flag, and Sinead O’Connor’s version of “Foggy Dew” played over the house system, it was obvious 2020 would be a memorable year for the UFC with the return of Conor McGregor
7:51 AM ET There were times during the first half of 2020 when the idea of voting for midyear awards in any sport seemed ill-conceived, and it was no different for the UFC. Would there even be enough events from which to garner candidates for the various categories? The coronavirus pandemic canceled sports around the
9:01 PM ET When UFC president Dana White announced that he would be putting cards on Fight Island, it was natural to envision an Octagon set up on a tropical paradise. So when the announcement was made that Fight Island was Yas Island in Abu Dhabi, and the events would be held in an arena,