11:41 AM ET The end of 2018 MMA is nearly upon us. Daniel Cormier had one of the most dominant years ever for a fighter, going 3-0 while retaining the light heavyweight belt and claiming the heavyweight title. We laughed, we cried — there was no super, mega, crossover boxing match to compete with what
MMA
7:46 PM ET Associated Press LOS ANGELES — Demetrious Johnson and Eddie Alvarez will make their One Championship debuts at the mixed martial arts promotion’s first show in Japan on March 31. One Championship on Wednesday revealed several bout matchups to The Associated Press for its landmark event in Tokyo. The show at the Ryogoku
3:44 PM ET Robin van Roosmalen remembers the first time he knew, without question, he had to eventually compete in MMA. It’s a pretty simple story, really. An easy memory to recall. The veteran kickboxer knew he had to compete in MMA the first time he hit pads with four-ounce gloves. “I didn’t really like
10:59 AM ET Daniel Cormier redefined his legacy in 2018. And for that, he is ESPN’s Fighter of the Year. To be clear, that legacy was already rock solid before 2018. He was already an Olympian and a two-time defending UFC champion. He was one of the most respected men in combat sports — a
5:18 PM ET Jeff WagenheimESPN Dominick Cruz has another lengthy injury recovery ahead of him. The former two-time UFC bantamweight champion, who last week pulled out of next month’s scheduled bout with John Lineker, revealed Monday on Ariel Helwani’s MMA Show that he tore two ligaments in his right shoulder during sparring and will undergo
4:48 PM ET Former UFC light heavyweight champion Vitor Belfort, who announced his retirement in May after a knockout loss to Lyoto Machida, now plans to fight again. “I am a free agent,” Belfort said on ESPN’s Ariel Helwani’s MMA Show. “We are in conversation (with promotions). In 2019 I will come back.” Belfort, 41,
10:00 PM ET Hold the phone on a Nick Diaz comeback fight. Last month, UFC president Dana White told ESPN that Diaz had agreed to fight Jorge Masvidal at UFC 235 on March 2 in Las Vegas. The fight would mark his first in four years. The news sent shockwaves throughout the sport, considering how
1:50 AM ET Bellator MMA became the first major MMA promotion to visit the state of Hawaii since 2008 this week, and it did so behind Hawaiian flyweight champion Ilima-Lei Macfarlane. She did not let the promotion down. Macfarlane (9-0) defended her 125-pound title for the second time on Saturday with a third-round submission against
11:05 PM ET What a year it has been for UFC lightweight Al Iaquinta. The Long Island native picked up a huge victory against Kevin Lee on Saturday, defeating the former title challenger in a five-round unanimous decision. The 155-pound contest headlined UFC Fight Night in Milwaukee, in the final event of the UFC’s expiring
2:23 AM ET Michael Chandler, one of the longtime faces of Bellator MMA, is a lightweight champion again. Chandler (19-4) became the first three-time champion in Bellator history on Friday, defeating Brent Primus (8-1) via unanimous decision at Bellator 212 in Honolulu. Chandler won back his 155-pound title, which he surrendered to Primus in a