MMA

5:21 PM ET GLENDALE, Ariz. — UFC 263 headliner Israel Adesanya defends his middleweight title against Marvin Vettori in the main event of Saturday’s stacked card. Adesanya defeated Vettori by split decision in 2018, a close fight that was one of Adesanya’s most difficult en route to the title. Vettori firmly believes he won that

8:30 AM ET For the past three years, Marvin Vettori has lived with the belief that he beat Israel Adesanya in a non-title fight back in 2018. This weekend, Adesanya intends to shatter that belief. Adesanya (20-1) will seek his third middleweight title defense at UFC 263 on Saturday, when he meets Vettori (17-3-1) for

12:19 AM ET Jeff Wagenheim Yaroslav Amosov found a successful formula early on and went back to it again and again on Friday night, grinding out a dominant decision victory to dethrone Bellator welterweight champion Douglas Lima in the main event of Bellator 260 at Mohegan Sun Arena in Uncasville, Connecticut. All three judges scored

1:21 PM ET PHOENIX — The trash talk will stop Saturday night. The UFC middleweight title clash between Israel Adesanya and challenger Marvin Vettori is now official. Adesanya (183.5 pounds) and Vettori (184.5) both successfully made weight Friday morning for Saturday’s main event of UFC 263 in Glendale, Arizona. The middleweight title fight limit is

7:15 AM ET The private jet taxied into its hangar in Phoenix on Sunday, shortly after 5 p.m. local time. It carried passengers who had boarded a couple of hours earlier in Stockton, California. But they’ve been on a long, strange trip for years. Nate Diaz arrived for UFC 263 with friends who remember when

1:39 AM ET Jeff Wagenheim Claressa Shields is a champion. She has showed that for years in the boxing ring, winning gold medals in two Olympics and becoming a three-division world champion (twice undisputed) in an undefeated professional in-ring career. On Thursday night, she showed a different side of her championship mettle by surviving a

7:23 PM ET Jeff Wagenheim The main event will transform one of the most decorated champions in sports into a fresh-faced neophyte. Claressa Shields, the undefeated two-division boxing champion, will make her mixed martial arts debut in the PFL main event on Thursday in Atlantic City, New Jersey. But Shields’ lightweight bout against Brittney Elkin

8:23 AM ET Saturday’s UFC 263 main event in Glendale, Arizona will feature middleweight champion, Israel Adesanya, defending his belt against Marvin Vettori. It is a rematch of a non-title bout that took place in April 2018, coincidentally, in Glendale. Adesanya (20-1) defeated Vettori (17-3-1) via split decision in a three-round fight in which Adesanya

5:45 PM ET Jeff Wagenheim Anthony Pettis was scheduled to fight for his PFL season on Thursday night. Now the former UFC lightweight champion’s last-ditch effort to make the playoffs will have to wait two weeks. Pettis is among four fighters whose bouts have been rescheduled for June 25, the PFL announced Wednesday. The promotion

7:47 AM ET Jeff Wagenheim Late in the evening of March 19, 2019, there was a defining moment for a pair of fighters, both already well established in their careers. It happened at a UFC event in London, but the two men were not fighting each other. At least not officially. Leon Edwards had done

8:35 AM ET UFC 263 kicks off a busy summer Saturday with a pair of title fights between familiar foes. Three years ago, Israel Adesanya squeezed out the only split decision win of his career against Marvin Vettori. Adesanya went on to win the UFC middleweight championship, and Vettori has won five straight fights. Could

11:22 AM ET Alistair Overeem is returning to his kickboxing roots. The former UFC heavyweight title contender, as well as former Strikeforce and DREAM champion, has signed a multifight deal with the Glory Kickboxing promotion, his management team told ESPN on Tuesday. Overeem is considered one of the greatest heavyweight MMA fighters of all time

7:35 PM ET CLARESSA SHIELDS RETURNED to JacksonWink MMA in Albuquerque, New Mexico, in late March, fresh off making boxing history by becoming the first two-division undisputed champion in the four-belt era. Time was running low, though, with Shields scheduled to make her MMA debut in the Professional Fighters League on June 10. The only

10:59 PM ET Brett Okamoto Close ESPN Staff Writer MMA columnist for ESPN.com Analyst for “MMA Live” Covered MMA for Las Vegas Sun Marc Raimondi Saturday’s UFC Fight Night card was built around heavyweights looking to build (or rebuild) momentum, and it delivered for first-round winners Jairzinho Rozenstruik and Marcin Tybura in their TKO victories

10:31 PM ET Jairzinho Rozenstruik has a knack for getting finishes right before the bell. Less than two years after he earned the latest finish in UFC heavyweight history, Rozenstruik uncorked another buzzer beater Saturday. The kickboxing standout stopped Augusto Sakai via TKO with punches at 4:59 of the first round in the main event

7:58 PM ET The UFC is finalizing a light heavyweight bout between Anthony Smith and Ryan Spann to headline an event in September. Smith (35-16) announced the fight himself this week, and sources close to Spann told ESPN he has also agreed. The 205-pound contest will serve as the main event of UFC Fight Night

3:50 PM ET Brett Okamoto Close ESPN Staff Writer MMA columnist for ESPN.com Analyst for “MMA Live” Covered MMA for Las Vegas Sun Marc Raimondi Jairzinho Rozenstruik was 10-0 in December 2019 following a Hail Mary knockout victory over Alistair Overeem. It seemed at the time that the accomplished kickboxer was on the precipice of

2:14 AM ET Former UFC middleweight title challenger Paulo Costa has withdrawn from a scheduled bout against Jared Cannonier in August, sources told ESPN. Costa (13-1) was scheduled to headline UFC Fight Night on Aug. 21 but will no longer appear on the card, sources said. Kelvin Gastelum (17-7) has agreed to step up in