7:41 PM ET The UFC is close to finalizing a bantamweight fight between Germaine de Randamie and Aspen Ladd on July 13 in Sacramento, California, sources told ESPN. Bout agreements have not been signed, but both sides have verbally agreed, sources said. This will be the five-round main event for the UFC Fight Night that
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May 30, 2019 Nick Newell will return to competition Friday in Hartford, Connecticut, nearly one year after he came up short in a bid to win a UFC contract. Newell (14-2), a congenital amputee, will face Antonio Castillo Jr. (9-9) in a show promoted by CES MMA, a regional company in the Northeast. The 33-year-old
May 30, 2019 This weekend’s UFC Fight Night main event between Alexander Gustafsson and Anthony Smith will take place in Stockholm (and will be broadcast on ESPN+) — but it’s also happening in the unmistakable shadow of light heavyweight champion Jon Jones. Both Gustafsson (18-5) and Smith (31-14) are coming off losses to Jones in
9:20 AM ET Richard Mann Hometown fighter Alexander Gustafsson is a sizable betting favorite against Anthony Smith in Saturday’s UFC Fight Night main event in Stockholm, and Gustafsson is also a clear favorite in many of the statistical comparisons between the two fighters. Smith has excelled recently despite his statistical shortcomings, though, so can he
8:14 PM ET Marc RaimondiESPN UFC middleweight contender Yoel Romero has won a lawsuit against a company he accused of producing contaminated dietary supplements. Romero, 42, won a default judgment against Gold Star Performance Products in Middlesex (N.J.) County civil court Tuesday, according to court records. Romero failed a drug test in 2015, but UFC
12:44 PM ET A UFC Hall of Famer is returning after a lengthy absence. Urijah Faber, a pioneer for lighter weight fighters in MMA, will fight Ricky Simon in a bantamweight bout at UFC Sacramento on July 13 at Golden 1 Center, sources confirmed with ESPN on Tuesday. The Wrestling Observer Newsletter was the first
8:40 AM ET It’s Tuesday, time for another edition of Ariel Helwani’s MMA Show, which airs live starting at 1 p.m. ET on Twitter and YouTube. After it ends, you can listen to the entire show via the ESPN podcast center. You know that feeling football fans experience in July when the dawn of a
12:48 PM ET Marc RaimondiESPN A UFC fighter is being accused of domestic violence, according to police in Rio de Janeiro. The ex-wife of Brazilian welterweight Alex Oliveira said he took their 5-month-old child away on a motorcycle while intoxicated, as well as punched her and pulled her hair, local police precinct chief Andre Lourenco
10:07 PM ET Marc RaimondiESPN The UFC has surprisingly released former ranked middleweight contender Elias Theodorou, sources confirmed to ESPN on Sunday night. Theodorou’s release was first reported by Brazilian website Combate. Theodorou (16-3) lost to Derek Brunson by unanimous decision in the co-main event of UFC Ottawa earlier this month. The Canada native was
6:46 PM ET Conor McGregor revealed on Friday that his left hand is currently in a cast after injuring it in a recent sparring session. The injury isn’t believed to be serious, according to sources, but they declined to discuss the severity and whether he required surgery. As a result, McGregor is currently targeting a