MMA

7:00 AM ET IN THE SUMMER of 2017, at a cramped desk parked in a cluttered office, Dominick Reyes pulls up a video of one of the biggest MMA stars on the planet and starts to dream. Maybe that’ll be him soon. All around him is the detritus of academia. His office, for all intents

8:21 AM ET I want to be clear about something right off the bat: I think a lot of people are sleeping on Dominick Reyes this weekend. I think of Jon Jones‘ past three opponents (Alexander Gustafsson, Anthony Smith and Thiago Santos), Reyes has the best shot to unseat Jones. In fact, I’m getting a

7:25 AM ET Katlyn Chookagian will board the shuttle at her Houston hotel on Saturday en route to the Toyota Center for UFC 247. At some point during the ride she will likely turn to her coaches and crack a joke. “I’m always like, maybe the bus will get in a car accident on the

3:48 PM ET Bellator’s next show in Ireland will go on without its biggest draw. James Gallagher is out of his scheduled main event with Cal Ellenor at Bellator 240 on Feb. 22 due to an undisclosed injury, the promotion said on Tuesday. The new main event at 3Arena will be a women’s featherweight bout

1:24 PM ET Jeff Wagenheim Jon Jones was 20 years old and just seconds into his professional MMA career. He was locked inside a cage with an unsuspecting soul named Brad Bernard. They were clinched against the fence, pressed chest to chest, when Jones suddenly took his opponent airborne with a dazzling suplex throw. As

4:49 PM ET UFC light heavyweight contender Anthony Smith said Monday he was ready to have his left index finger amputated in order to keep fighting. Scar tissue that built up after two surgeries prevented him from closing his hand following his win over Alexander Gustafsson on June 1, 2019. “We were going to amputate

2:36 PM ET If UFC light heavyweight champ Jon Jones successfully defends his title Saturday against Dominick Reyes at UFC 247, his postfight callout could feature a name outside of his division. “I feel like I really want to fight [heavyweight champion] Stipe Miocic,” Jones told ESPN in an interview that aired Monday on Ariel

12:04 PM ET The participants in Saturday night’s UFC 247 main event are set to appear on Ariel Helwani’s MMA Show on Monday. A recent sit-down interview with light heavyweight champion Jon Jones will be followed by a chat with challenger Dominick Reyes. Ahead of those interviews, Colby Covington will join the show. Covington, who

7:27 PM ET When Dominick Reyes woke up Monday morning, he was greeted by Jon Jones. It wasn’t a physical presence, but it was impactful nonetheless. Jones posted a series of tweets criticizing Reyes’ athletic background, the opponents he’s beaten and even his small-town roots. “I woke up to it,” Reyes said Monday on Ariel

4:44 PM ET Kamaru Usman vs. Jorge Masvidal is the fight the UFC wants. Now there is a targeted date for that potential clash as well. UFC president Dana White said Friday on “The Jim Rome Show” that the promotion is targeting Usman to defend his welterweight title against Masvidal in July. The bout has

4:15 PM ET UFC strawweight champion Zhang Weili, who is scheduled to defend her title at UFC 248 on March 7 in Las Vegas, is working on getting out of her home country as soon as possible. Weili, who trains out of Beijing, originally planned to finish her entire fight camp in China, but is

3:24 PM ET A pair of UFC veterans — Diego Sanchez and Ovince Saint Preux — were given retroactive three-month suspensions by USADA on Friday for anti-doping violations. Sanchez tested positive for the banned substances ostarine and S-23, while Saint Preux failed for ostarine, di-hydroxy-LGD-4033 (a metabolite of LGD-4033), as well as GW1516 sulfone and

2:49 PM ET Ronda Rousey has never said she won’t return to the UFC. The word “retirement” has not come out of her mouth. But the former UFC women’s bantamweight champion said this week that she no longer feels any kind of pressure to return and prove herself as the best women’s MMA fighter ever.

12:36 PM ET Another prospect from the Barber family has been acquired by a major MMA promotion. Bellator has signed Wyatt Barber, brother of UFC up-and-comer Maycee Barber, to a contract, sources told ESPN on Friday. Wyatt Barber, 18, has yet to make his pro debut. Like his sister, he is considered a blue-chipper. Maycee

3:15 PM ET ESPN’s MMA Insiders The year has already gotten off to a bang. A couple of the biggest stars in the sport — Conor McGregor and Cris Cyborg — have already made headlines with huge TKO stoppages. The next few months don’t slow down at all, with Jon Jones, Israel Adesanya and Khabib

4:38 PM ET Josh Barnett‘s long-awaited return to the cage has been rebooked. A bout between Barnett, the former UFC heavyweight champion, and Ronny Markes is now targeted for Bellator 241 on March 13 at Connecticut’s Mohegan Sun, promotion officials confirmed with ESPN. MMA Fighting was the first to report the news. Barnett, who has

4:54 PM ET LOS ANGELES — Dominick Reyes is from San Bernardino County, about 85 miles northeast of downtown Los Angeles. Like many in his generation who grew up in Southern California, Reyes was a huge Lakers fan and his favorite player was Kobe Bryant. On Sunday, Reyes woke up and checked his phone and

7:56 AM ET ESPN’s MMA Insiders The year has already gotten off to a bang. A couple of the biggest stars in the sport — Conor McGregor and Cris Cyborg — have already made headlines with huge TKO stoppages. The next few months don’t slow down at all, with Jon Jones, Israel Adesanya and Khabib