According to reports, Ngannou will have his first PFL fight at some point in 2024. His contract will see him have “two or three fights” for the promotion, with each fight coming with a “high seven-figure purse.” The 36-year-old player will also have a salary as PFL’s ambassador.

“The PFL is excited to announce its groundbreaking strategic partnership with Francis Ngannou, the greatest heavyweight fighter in the world,” said PFL CEO Peter Murray said in a statement. “Ngannou will anchor the PFL’s star-studded PPV Super Fight Division, serve on PFL’s Global Athlete Advisory Board, and will be a Chairman and equity owner in PFL Africa.”

Francis Ngannou was the biggest MMA free agent in recent memory. He previously rejected a new deal with UFC, one that would make him the highest-paid heavyweight in UFC history, according to the promotion’s president Dana White.

Ngannou won the UFC Heavyweight Championship in 2021 at UFC 260 after knocking out Stipe Miocic. He later defended the title against Ciryl Gane via unanimous decision at UFC 270 before being stripped of the belt following unsuccessful contract negotiations. Ngannou has a 17-3 MMA record and is 11-2 in UFC.

The post Francis Ngannou, Ex-UFC Heavyweight Champ, Signs With PFL appeared first on yoursportspot.com.

Prior to the fight, Masvidal said that the loss to Burns would lead him to end his career, while the win would mean things are “headed in the right direction.” Unfortunately, nothing went in the right direction for the 38-year-old Miami native as Burns dominated most of the fight and turned it into a one-sided affair. 

“I love everybody here,” said Masvidal at the end of the night. “This is where I started my career. It’s been a long 20 years, 50-some fights. Sometimes your favorite basketball player ain’t got that 3-pointer no more. Your favorite quarterback loses that rifle. I don’t feel the same when I get in here no more. It’s been 20 long years.”

Masvidal will retire from UFC on a four-fight losing streak. His overall MMA record is 35-17, while he’s now 12-10 since joining the promotion. While he never managed to become a UFC champion, he did receive a symbolic UFC “BMF” Championship belt after TKO win over Nate Diaz at UFC 244.

Burns, on the other hand, won his two consecutive fights and improved to a 22-5 MMA record. He is now in good shape to get a chance to fight for UFC Welterweight Championship once again.

The post Jorge Masvidal Keeps His Word, Retires After Loss to Gilbert Burns appeared first on yoursportspot.com.

The fight against Oliveira was the first shot at a UFC title for Makhachev, and he made sure he didn’t waste it. The 31-year-old absorbed the early pressure from the reigning champ and kept looking for ways to move the fight to the ground. 

Oliveria looked like he wanted to get the job done early on, and his eagerness left windows of opportunity for Makhachev. The Dagestan fighter used one of them in the second round, dropping Oliveira to the canvas with a hard right punch.

Makhachev didn’t let Oliveira catch his breath, getting on top and managing to get a choke triangle on him. The Brazilian tried to fight it off for a few seconds before tapping out.

This was the 23rd win out of 24 fights for Makhachev in his MMA career. His only loss came against Adriano Martins at UFC 192 in 2015, and he has since 11-0, counting the win over Oliveira.

On the other hand, Oliveira dropped to 33-9 and saw his 11-win streak come to an end.

The post Islam Makhachev Submits Charles Oliveira to Take the UFC Lightweight Title appeared first on yoursportspot.com.

McGregor had his last fight in July at UFC 264, losing via TKO to Dustin Poirier in the first round. The 33-year-old fighter broke his leg in the process and now “needs to heal up” before stepping in the octagon again, according to White.

“It’s basically going to be all about when can he start kicking again and, more importantly, when can he start taking kicks again. That will determine when he fights again,” said White during a recent appearance on The Jim Rome Show.

McGregor, on the other hand, said earlier this month that he “could kick” again while sharing an update about his health. Despite this, the Irish fighter doesn’t seem keen on fast-tracking his return, revealing that he doesn’t “want to get too ahead of himself.”

Conor McGregor has been in and out of the UFC in recent years, even retiring from MMA a couple of times before going backing out on his decision. His last UFC win came against Donald Cerrone at UFC 246 in January 2020, after which he took a one-year break. McGregor lost twice after that, with both defeats coming in 2021 against Poirier.

The post Dana White Shares Update About Conor McGregor’s Return appeared first on yoursportspot.com.

The winner of season 29 of The Ultimate Fighter is due to be awarded a six-figure contract with the UFC. As confirmed by UFC President Dana White, Gore will also be given the opportunity to fight in the UFC once he recovers from his knee injury.

As a member of Brian Ortega’s team, Gore would have been the only fighter to represent Ortega in either TUF final. Both Gilbert Urbina and Bryan Battle are members of the team coached by UFC featherweight champion Alexander Volkanovski.

En route to the final bout, Gore defeated both Ryder Newman and Urbina, earning himself the title of the top young prospect for the season.

The TUF final on August 28 is not the only highly-anticipated fight spurred by the show, however. On September 25, coach Brian Ortegao will be challenging Alexander Volkanovski for his featherweight title at UFC 266 in Las Vegas.

The post Tresean Gore Ruled Out Of TUF Middleweight Final appeared first on yoursportspot.com.

In a recent chat with ESPN, White revealed that he’d meet with Nurmagomedov in Abu Dhabi in the coming days and hopes to convince him to do one more fight for UFC.

“I’m obviously meeting with him because I think that he should fight again,” said White. “I think he should fight again and I’m going to press him as hard as I can for one more.”

Khabib Nurmagomedov announced his retirement in October after defeating Justin Gaethje to defend his UFC lightweight belt for the third consecutive time. At the time, Nurmagomedov said that his mother doesn’t want him to fight without his father Abdulmanap, who died earlier this year.

Nurmagomedov retired undefeated but lacked just one more win to have a 30-0 record in MMA. This is where White sees his chance.

“He’s been through so much, and losing his dad was a major blow to him. Yet, his dad wanted him to hit 30-0,” he added.

In case that Nurmagomedov remains set on retirement, Conor McGregor will get a chance to fight for the title if he beats Dustin Poirier later this month.

The post UFC President Hopes to Convince Khabib Nurmagomedov to Fight One More Time appeared first on yoursportspot.com.

According to multiple reports, Usama is set to defend the title against Gilbert Burns in February at UFC 258. The two fighters already verbally agreed to a five-round fight, although no contracts have been signed yet.

Kamara Usman and Gilbert Burns were set to fight back in July, but Burns contracted COVID-19, and the fight was canceled. Jorge Masvidal stepped in as a challenger, but Usman managed to keep his belt by winning via unanimous decision.

Usman is 17-1 in his MMA career and 12-0 since coming to the UFC. The 33-year-old fighter won the UFC Welterweight Championship at UFC 235 against Tyron Woodley and has since defended it twice.

Burns, on the other hand, has a 19-3 career record while being 12-3 in the UFC. He has fought in both lightweight and welterweight competitions during his time with the promotion but has yet to have a title fight.

The fight between Usman and Burns will not only be interesting due to the fact that they are considered UFC’s best welterweight fighters. The two also share a history, having trained together in the same gym for years.

The post Kamaru Usman to Defend UFC Welterweight Belt Vs. Gilbert Burns in February appeared first on yoursportspot.com.

Pettis completed his UFC contract earlier this month with a win over Alex Morono at UFC Fight Night: Thompson vs. Neal. The 33-year-old later fighter announced that he decided not to accept the offer to stay with the promotion and will instead see what the market offers.

Reportedly, Bellator and ONE showed a strong interest for Pettis, but he ended up choosing PFL as they came in with the best offer.

“I’m looking to make a run at another world championship, and the PFL format will allow me to do that in 12 months and do it again the following year at 170 pounds,” said Pettis. “The offer the PFL gave me was extremely fair and they presented it as a partnership. Ready for a new chapter and a fresh start. Gonna be a fun ride.”

Anthony Pettis made his MMA debut in 2007 with GFS and went on an 8-0 run that saw him win the GFS Lightweight Championship. In 2009, Pettis joined the WEC, where he also won a belt while posting a 5-1 record.

Pettis signed with the UFC in 2011 following an appearance on the reality show The Ultimate Fighter, and needed only three fights to get a UFC Lightweight champion belt. He defended his title once, before losing it against Rafael dos Anjos at UFC 185.

Pettis had three fights in 2020, starting the year with a loss to Carlos Diego Ferreira but winning against Donald Cerrone and Morono. He has a 24-11 record in MMA, with 11 of his wins coming via knockout.

The post Ex-UFC Lightweight Champ Anthony Pettis Signs With PFL appeared first on yoursportspot.com.

According to ESPN’s Ariel Helwani, Bellator initially passed on the opportunity to bring in Romero, opting to go in another direction. However, the two sides met again in recent days and managed to strike a deal.

Romero’s first opponent under the new promotion is yet to be determined. However, multiple reports suggest that former UFC Light Heavyweight Championship-challenger Anthony Johnson is the most probable pick. Johnson also joined Bellator just recently, signing a deal in early December.

Yoel Romero, who won a silver medal in freestyle wrestling at the 2000 Olympics, spent the last seven years with UFC. Although he never managed to get a belt, despite having multiple championship fights, he was still popular among MMA fans due to his attractive style.

Romero has a career 13-5 MMA record while being 9-4 in UFC. He lost four out of his last five fights, with the most loss coming against Israel Adesanya in a fight for UFC Middleweight Championship.

The post Ex-UFC Star Yoel Romero Signs with Bellator appeared first on yoursportspot.com.

While recently speaking with SportsCenter, UFC president Dana White said that McGregor is set for a comeback in 2021.

“We’re actually working on some fun stuff for Conor at the beginning of next year,” said White.

White couldn’t confirm that McGregor will fight, but promised his involvement with UFC in some manner.

“He should be back next year,” he added. “I’m not saying he’s coming back to fight, guaranteed, but we’re talking right now about some stuff.”

When approached about White’s comments, McGregor’s agent Audie Attar confirmed that his client had “some very interesting talks with the UFC recently.”

“We are excited about the future and working on some fun things. Exciting things to come in the near future,” Attar revealed.

Conor McGregor decided to retire from mixed martial arts back in June, saying at the time that the sport isn’t exciting to him anymore. However, the news was met with skepticism as McGregor retired and then staged a comeback several times before.

McGregor, who has a 22-4 career record, had his last fight in January when he defeated Donald Cerrone with TKO at UFC 246.

The post UFC and Conor McGregor Working “On Some Fun Stuff” appeared first on yoursportspot.com.

According to reports, Ngannou will have his first PFL fight at some point in 2024. His contract will see him have “two or three fights” for the promotion, with each fight coming with a “high seven-figure purse.” The 36-year-old player will also have a salary as PFL’s ambassador.

“The PFL is excited to announce its groundbreaking strategic partnership with Francis Ngannou, the greatest heavyweight fighter in the world,” said PFL CEO Peter Murray said in a statement. “Ngannou will anchor the PFL’s star-studded PPV Super Fight Division, serve on PFL’s Global Athlete Advisory Board, and will be a Chairman and equity owner in PFL Africa.”

Francis Ngannou was the biggest MMA free agent in recent memory. He previously rejected a new deal with UFC, one that would make him the highest-paid heavyweight in UFC history, according to the promotion’s president Dana White.

Ngannou won the UFC Heavyweight Championship in 2021 at UFC 260 after knocking out Stipe Miocic. He later defended the title against Ciryl Gane via unanimous decision at UFC 270 before being stripped of the belt following unsuccessful contract negotiations. Ngannou has a 17-3 MMA record and is 11-2 in UFC.

The post Francis Ngannou, Ex-UFC Heavyweight Champ, Signs With PFL appeared first on yoursportspot.com.

Prior to the fight, Masvidal said that the loss to Burns would lead him to end his career, while the win would mean things are “headed in the right direction.” Unfortunately, nothing went in the right direction for the 38-year-old Miami native as Burns dominated most of the fight and turned it into a one-sided affair. 

“I love everybody here,” said Masvidal at the end of the night. “This is where I started my career. It’s been a long 20 years, 50-some fights. Sometimes your favorite basketball player ain’t got that 3-pointer no more. Your favorite quarterback loses that rifle. I don’t feel the same when I get in here no more. It’s been 20 long years.”

Masvidal will retire from UFC on a four-fight losing streak. His overall MMA record is 35-17, while he’s now 12-10 since joining the promotion. While he never managed to become a UFC champion, he did receive a symbolic UFC “BMF” Championship belt after TKO win over Nate Diaz at UFC 244.

Burns, on the other hand, won his two consecutive fights and improved to a 22-5 MMA record. He is now in good shape to get a chance to fight for UFC Welterweight Championship once again.

The post Jorge Masvidal Keeps His Word, Retires After Loss to Gilbert Burns appeared first on yoursportspot.com.

The fight against Oliveira was the first shot at a UFC title for Makhachev, and he made sure he didn’t waste it. The 31-year-old absorbed the early pressure from the reigning champ and kept looking for ways to move the fight to the ground. 

Oliveria looked like he wanted to get the job done early on, and his eagerness left windows of opportunity for Makhachev. The Dagestan fighter used one of them in the second round, dropping Oliveira to the canvas with a hard right punch.

Makhachev didn’t let Oliveira catch his breath, getting on top and managing to get a choke triangle on him. The Brazilian tried to fight it off for a few seconds before tapping out.

This was the 23rd win out of 24 fights for Makhachev in his MMA career. His only loss came against Adriano Martins at UFC 192 in 2015, and he has since 11-0, counting the win over Oliveira.

On the other hand, Oliveira dropped to 33-9 and saw his 11-win streak come to an end.

The post Islam Makhachev Submits Charles Oliveira to Take the UFC Lightweight Title appeared first on yoursportspot.com.

McGregor had his last fight in July at UFC 264, losing via TKO to Dustin Poirier in the first round. The 33-year-old fighter broke his leg in the process and now “needs to heal up” before stepping in the octagon again, according to White.

“It’s basically going to be all about when can he start kicking again and, more importantly, when can he start taking kicks again. That will determine when he fights again,” said White during a recent appearance on The Jim Rome Show.

McGregor, on the other hand, said earlier this month that he “could kick” again while sharing an update about his health. Despite this, the Irish fighter doesn’t seem keen on fast-tracking his return, revealing that he doesn’t “want to get too ahead of himself.”

Conor McGregor has been in and out of the UFC in recent years, even retiring from MMA a couple of times before going backing out on his decision. His last UFC win came against Donald Cerrone at UFC 246 in January 2020, after which he took a one-year break. McGregor lost twice after that, with both defeats coming in 2021 against Poirier.

The post Dana White Shares Update About Conor McGregor’s Return appeared first on yoursportspot.com.

The winner of season 29 of The Ultimate Fighter is due to be awarded a six-figure contract with the UFC. As confirmed by UFC President Dana White, Gore will also be given the opportunity to fight in the UFC once he recovers from his knee injury.

As a member of Brian Ortega’s team, Gore would have been the only fighter to represent Ortega in either TUF final. Both Gilbert Urbina and Bryan Battle are members of the team coached by UFC featherweight champion Alexander Volkanovski.

En route to the final bout, Gore defeated both Ryder Newman and Urbina, earning himself the title of the top young prospect for the season.

The TUF final on August 28 is not the only highly-anticipated fight spurred by the show, however. On September 25, coach Brian Ortegao will be challenging Alexander Volkanovski for his featherweight title at UFC 266 in Las Vegas.

The post Tresean Gore Ruled Out Of TUF Middleweight Final appeared first on yoursportspot.com.

In a recent chat with ESPN, White revealed that he’d meet with Nurmagomedov in Abu Dhabi in the coming days and hopes to convince him to do one more fight for UFC.

“I’m obviously meeting with him because I think that he should fight again,” said White. “I think he should fight again and I’m going to press him as hard as I can for one more.”

Khabib Nurmagomedov announced his retirement in October after defeating Justin Gaethje to defend his UFC lightweight belt for the third consecutive time. At the time, Nurmagomedov said that his mother doesn’t want him to fight without his father Abdulmanap, who died earlier this year.

Nurmagomedov retired undefeated but lacked just one more win to have a 30-0 record in MMA. This is where White sees his chance.

“He’s been through so much, and losing his dad was a major blow to him. Yet, his dad wanted him to hit 30-0,” he added.

In case that Nurmagomedov remains set on retirement, Conor McGregor will get a chance to fight for the title if he beats Dustin Poirier later this month.

The post UFC President Hopes to Convince Khabib Nurmagomedov to Fight One More Time appeared first on yoursportspot.com.

According to multiple reports, Usama is set to defend the title against Gilbert Burns in February at UFC 258. The two fighters already verbally agreed to a five-round fight, although no contracts have been signed yet.

Kamara Usman and Gilbert Burns were set to fight back in July, but Burns contracted COVID-19, and the fight was canceled. Jorge Masvidal stepped in as a challenger, but Usman managed to keep his belt by winning via unanimous decision.

Usman is 17-1 in his MMA career and 12-0 since coming to the UFC. The 33-year-old fighter won the UFC Welterweight Championship at UFC 235 against Tyron Woodley and has since defended it twice.

Burns, on the other hand, has a 19-3 career record while being 12-3 in the UFC. He has fought in both lightweight and welterweight competitions during his time with the promotion but has yet to have a title fight.

The fight between Usman and Burns will not only be interesting due to the fact that they are considered UFC’s best welterweight fighters. The two also share a history, having trained together in the same gym for years.

The post Kamaru Usman to Defend UFC Welterweight Belt Vs. Gilbert Burns in February appeared first on yoursportspot.com.

Pettis completed his UFC contract earlier this month with a win over Alex Morono at UFC Fight Night: Thompson vs. Neal. The 33-year-old later fighter announced that he decided not to accept the offer to stay with the promotion and will instead see what the market offers.

Reportedly, Bellator and ONE showed a strong interest for Pettis, but he ended up choosing PFL as they came in with the best offer.

“I’m looking to make a run at another world championship, and the PFL format will allow me to do that in 12 months and do it again the following year at 170 pounds,” said Pettis. “The offer the PFL gave me was extremely fair and they presented it as a partnership. Ready for a new chapter and a fresh start. Gonna be a fun ride.”

Anthony Pettis made his MMA debut in 2007 with GFS and went on an 8-0 run that saw him win the GFS Lightweight Championship. In 2009, Pettis joined the WEC, where he also won a belt while posting a 5-1 record.

Pettis signed with the UFC in 2011 following an appearance on the reality show The Ultimate Fighter, and needed only three fights to get a UFC Lightweight champion belt. He defended his title once, before losing it against Rafael dos Anjos at UFC 185.

Pettis had three fights in 2020, starting the year with a loss to Carlos Diego Ferreira but winning against Donald Cerrone and Morono. He has a 24-11 record in MMA, with 11 of his wins coming via knockout.

The post Ex-UFC Lightweight Champ Anthony Pettis Signs With PFL appeared first on yoursportspot.com.

According to ESPN’s Ariel Helwani, Bellator initially passed on the opportunity to bring in Romero, opting to go in another direction. However, the two sides met again in recent days and managed to strike a deal.

Romero’s first opponent under the new promotion is yet to be determined. However, multiple reports suggest that former UFC Light Heavyweight Championship-challenger Anthony Johnson is the most probable pick. Johnson also joined Bellator just recently, signing a deal in early December.

Yoel Romero, who won a silver medal in freestyle wrestling at the 2000 Olympics, spent the last seven years with UFC. Although he never managed to get a belt, despite having multiple championship fights, he was still popular among MMA fans due to his attractive style.

Romero has a career 13-5 MMA record while being 9-4 in UFC. He lost four out of his last five fights, with the most loss coming against Israel Adesanya in a fight for UFC Middleweight Championship.

The post Ex-UFC Star Yoel Romero Signs with Bellator appeared first on yoursportspot.com.

While recently speaking with SportsCenter, UFC president Dana White said that McGregor is set for a comeback in 2021.

“We’re actually working on some fun stuff for Conor at the beginning of next year,” said White.

White couldn’t confirm that McGregor will fight, but promised his involvement with UFC in some manner.

“He should be back next year,” he added. “I’m not saying he’s coming back to fight, guaranteed, but we’re talking right now about some stuff.”

When approached about White’s comments, McGregor’s agent Audie Attar confirmed that his client had “some very interesting talks with the UFC recently.”

“We are excited about the future and working on some fun things. Exciting things to come in the near future,” Attar revealed.

Conor McGregor decided to retire from mixed martial arts back in June, saying at the time that the sport isn’t exciting to him anymore. However, the news was met with skepticism as McGregor retired and then staged a comeback several times before.

McGregor, who has a 22-4 career record, had his last fight in January when he defeated Donald Cerrone with TKO at UFC 246.

The post UFC and Conor McGregor Working “On Some Fun Stuff” appeared first on yoursportspot.com.