Aug 28, 2019 Darren ArthurESPN New Zealand’s Kai Kara-France is feeling comfortable as he prepares in Shenzhen Shi for his August 31 fight with Mark de la Rosa. The 26 year-old enjoys China, a country where the popularity of UFC continues to soar. “I have fought in China six times, so this is all familiar
MMA
8:22 AM ET Richard Mann UFC strawweight champion Jessica Andrade puts her title on the line against Zhang Weili in Shenzhen, China, on Saturday. Andrade has been statistically dominant since moving down to the 115-pound division, and captured the title in her most recent outing. Zhang is only three fights into her UFC career, but
11:30 PM ET Jeff WagenheimESPN Make it an even 30 new fighters for the UFC this summer. Season 3 of Dana White’s Contender Series concluded on Tuesday night in Las Vegas with three more prospects earning contracts and another walking away with the evening’s most effusive praise. The UFC deals went to unbeaten middleweight Dusko
9:02 PM ET On Saturday, Jessica Andrade will defend her UFC women’s strawweight title against Zhang Weili in Shenzhen, China. It will be the second UFC title fight outside of North America in a month. It’ll also begin a run of three straight UFC title fights held outside the continent and will be the first
6:16 PM ET Retired UFC veteran Anthony Johnson is planning a comeback. Johnson, 35, intends to return to competition in 2020, according to his manager, Ali Abdelaziz. The plan is for Johnson, a former two-time title challenger at light heavyweight, to compete in the heavyweight division. According to Abdelaziz, Johnson (22-6) will file the necessary
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6:40 PM ET Former UFC welterweight title challenger Darren Till has decided to move to middleweight and will face Kelvin Gastelum at UFC 244 in November, sources told ESPN. Both sides have agreed to the 185-pound matchup, sources said. The UFC 244 pay-per-view event will take place on Nov. 2 at Madison Square Garden in
6:19 PM ET The third season of Dana White’s Contender Series comes to a close Tuesday night after 10 episodes. Five fighters signed from the show this summer already have UFC fights booked. Contender Series has been well received for its no-frills format: five fights, a small audience at UFC Apex in Las Vegas and
12:09 AM ET It’s Monday — time for another edition of Ariel Helwani’s MMA Show, which airs live at 1 p.m. ET on Twitter and YouTube. After it ends, you can listen to the show as a podcast. The UFC makes its debut in Shenzhen, China, this weekend with a very interesting main event. Jessica
6:02 PM ET Two of the best pure grapplers in MMA history will face off in October. Ben Askren will fight Demian Maia in the main event of UFC Singapore on Oct. 26, ESPN’s Ariel Helwani confirmed with sources on Friday. Askren tweeted earlier this week that the fight was a done deal. Askren is