11/27/16

QUICK RESULTS:

Victory FC 43 (Waterloo, Iowa)

135 lbs: Raufeon Stots def Jeff Curran via unanimous decision.
155 lbs: Mike Plazola def Nick Bartels via rear naked choke at 1:53 of rd 1.
205 lbs: Rakim Cleveland def Calley Kruger via submission (strikes) at 1:37 of rd 1.

UFC Fight Night 101 (Melbourne, Australia)

185 lbs: Robert Whittaker def Derek Brunson via TKO at 4:07 of rd 1.
185 lbs: Andrew Holbrook def Jake Matthews via split decision.
170 lbs: Omari Akhmedov def Kyle Noke via unanimous decision.
155 lbs: Alex Volkanovski def Yusuke Kasuya via TKO at 2:06 of rd 2.

NEWS:

Titan FC featherweight champion Andre Harrison has signed with WSOF. His promotional debut will be against Bruce Boyington at WSOF 34.

UFC welterweight Kyle Noke has announced his retirement from MMA following his loss on Saturday.

Bellator 167 has been reworked following an injury to Patricky Freire. Darrion Caldwell and opponent Joe Taimanglo will now headline the fight card.

UFC light heavyweight champion Daniel Cormier was forced to withdraw from his scheduled bout with Anthony Johnson after suffering an injury. The new UFC 206 headliner will be for the interim featherweight belt, as Anthony Pettis takes on Max Holloway.

11/20/16

QUICK RESULTS:

Invicta FC 20 (Kansas City Missouri)

135 lbs: Yana Kunitskaya def Tonya Evinger via armbar at 1:59 of rd 1.
115 lbs: Angela Hill def Kaline Medeiros via unanimous decision
105 lbs: Herica Tiburcio def Simona Soukupova via unanimous decision

UFC Fight Night 99 (Belfast, Northern Ireland)

185 lbs: Gegard Mousasi def Uriah Hall via TKO at 4:31 of rd 1.
155 lbs: Stevie Ray def Ross Pearson via split decision.
265 lbs: Alexander Volkov def Timothy Johnson via split decision.
145 lbs: Artem Lobov def Teruto Ishihara via unanimous decision.

UFC Fight Night 100 (Sao Paulo, Brazil)

205 lbs: Ryan Bader def Antonio Nogueira via TKO at 3:51 of rd 3.
135 lbs: Thomas Almeida def Albert Morales via TKO at 1:37 of rd 2.
115 lbs: Claudia Gadelha def Cortney Casey via unanimous decision.
185 lbs: Krzysztof Jotko def Thales Leites via unanimous decision.

Bellator 165 (San Jose, California)

155 lbs: Michael Chandler def Benson Henderson via split decision.
170 lbs: Michael Page def Fernando Gonzalez via split decision.
155 lbs: Adam Piccolotti def Brandon Girtz via unanimous decision.
125 lbs: Keri Anne Taylor-Melendez def Sheila Padilla via KO at :47 of rd 1.

NEWS:

Former UFC light heavyweight champion Lyoto Machida has accepted an 18 month sanction after declaring his use of a banned substance.

Fedor Emelianenko will headline his first Bellator event when he faces off against fellow heavyweight Matt Mitrione at Bellator 172 in February.

11/13/16

QUICK RESULTS:

ONE Championship 49 (Kallang, Singapore)

155 lbs: Eduard Folayang def Shinya Aoki via TKO at :41 of rd 3.
145 lbs: Marat Gafurov def Narantungalag Jadambaa via rear naked choke at 4:51 of rd 1.
145 lbs: Amir Khan def Vaughn Donayre via rear naked choke at 2:22 of rd 3.
155 lbs: Roger Huerta def Adrian Pang via split decision.

Legacy FC 62 (Oklahoma City, Oklahoma)

185 lbs: Rafael Lovato Jr. def Cortez Coleman via armbar at 4:04 of rd 3.
145 lbs: Justin Rader def Mike Maldonado via TKO at 2:21 of rd 1.
155 lbs: Manuel Muro def Derrick Adkins via unanimous decision.

Bellator 164 (Tel Aviv, Israel)

170 lbs: Douglas Lima def Andrey Koreshkov via KO 1:21 of rd 3.
145 lbs: Noah Lahat def Scott Cleve via rear naked choke at 2:26 of rd 1.
145 lbs: Georgi Karakhanyan def Kirill Medvedovsky via TKO at 3:40 of rd 1.
125 lbs: Lena Ovchynnikova def Karla Benitez via unanimous decision.

Cage Warriors: Unplugged (London, England)

155 lbs: Paddy Pimblett def Julian Erosa via unanimous decision.
145 lbs: Chris Fishgold def Nic Herron-Webb via unanimous decision.
170 lbs: Matt Inman def Che Mills via triangle choke at 4:09 of rd 2.

UFC 205 (New York City, New York)

155 lbs: Conor McGregor def Eddie Alvarez via KO at 3:04 of rd 2.
170 lbs: Tyron Woodley retains belt with a majority draw against Stephen Thompson.
115 lbs: Joanna Jedrzejczyk def Karolina Kowalkiewicz via unanimous decision.
185 lbs: Yoel Romero def Chris Weidman via TKO at :24 of rd 3.
135 lbs: Raquel Pennington def Miesha Tate via unanimous decision.

NEWS:

Former UFC Light Heavyweight champion Jon "Bones" Jones was handed a one year suspension by USADA because of a contaminated sexual enhancement pill.

A number of Rizin FF 3 fight cards have been announced including Mirko "Cro Cop" against Wanderlei Silva and Shane Carwin against Amir Aliakbari.

11/6/16

QUICK RESULTS:

Deep Jewels 14 (Tokyo, Japan)

105 lbs: Mina Kurobe def Saori Ishioka via unanimous decision.
105lbs: Tomo Maesawa def Emi Tomimatsu via rear naked choke at 1:24 of rd 3.
125 lbs: Emiko Raika def Jen Hee Gan via unanimous decision.
115 lbs: Ayaka Miura def Sachiko Fukimori via armlock at :35 of rd 2.

CES MMA 39 (Plymouth, Massachusetts)

170 lbs: Wilfredo Santiago JR def Chuck O'Neil via KO at :41 of round 1.
145 lbs: Manny Bermudez def Saul Almeida via split decision.
145 lbs: Peter Barrett def Jeremy Davis via TKO at 1:55 of rd 2.
190 lbs: Kevin Haley def Mike Rodriguez via toe hold at 1:08 of rd 1.

Bellator 163 (Uncasville, Connecticut)

205 lbs: Phil Davis def Liam McGeary via unanimous decision.
155 lbs: Brennan Ward def Saad Awad via KO at 1:26 of rd 1.
170 lbs: Neiman Gracie def Rudy Bears at armbar at 4:39 of rd 1.
265 lbs: Javy Ayala def Sergei Kharitonov via KO at :16 of rd 1.

UFC Fight Night 98 (Mexico City, Mexico)

155lbs: Tony Ferguson def Rafael dos Anjos via unanimous decision.
155 lbs: Diego Sanchez def Marcin Held via unanimous decision.
145 lbs: Ricardo Lamas def Charles Oliveira via rear naked choke 2:13 of rd 2.
115 lbs: Alexa Grasso def Heather Jo Clark via unanimous decision.


NEWS:

Featherweight Tatsuya Kawajiri has signed with Rizin FF following his release from his UFC contract. He will fight Kron Gracie at Rizin NYE.

Former UFC heavyweight Shane Carwin has also joined Rizin FF.

The much anticipated rematch between middleweight Luke Rockhold and Ronaldo "Jacare" Souza has been canceled.

10/9/16

Another big weekend of MMA is in the books. Here is what happened.

At ONE Championship 48, Phoe Thaw won the Featherweight tournament when he defeated Saw Yan Paing via TKO at 3:23 of round 1. Myanmar's own Aung La Nsang took out fellow Middleweight Michal Pasternak by way of unanimous decision. And in the main event Yoshitaka Naito retained his Strawweight belt with a third round rear naked choke of Joshua Pacio at 1:13.

WSOF 33 saw Lightweight Brian Foster get one more step closer to a rematch with Justin Gaethje when he submitted Luiz Firmino via triangle choke at 3:14 of round 1. Lightweight Joao Zeferino defeated Jason High in impressive fashion when he won by TKO at :51 of round 3. David Branch defended one of his two belts - this time the Light Heavyweight one - against Vinny Magalhaes by unanimous decision.

Next up was Legacy FC 60 where Welterweight Dakota Cochrane defeated Joe Eichelberger via rear naked choke at 4:47 of round 2. Heavyweight veteran Brian Heden won against Tyler East with a TKO at 1:51 of round 1.

The UFC made its way to England for UFC 204. Heavyweight Stefan "Skyscrapper" Struve defeated Daniel Omielanczuk via D'Arce choke at 1:41 of round 2. Light Heavyweight Jimi Manuwa obliterated Ovince Saint Preux with a KO at 2:38 of round 2. Middleweight Gegard Mousasi defeated Vitor "The Phenom" Belfort with a TKO at 2:43 of  round 2. Middleweight champion Michael "The Count" Bisping avenged his loss to Dan Henderson and defended his title in the process with a very close unanimous decision.

TUF competitor and UFC Middleweight Josh Samman passed away after being in a coma for nearly a week.

Light Heavyweight champion Daniel Cormier will look to defend his belt at UFC 206 against former title challenger Anthony "Rumble" Johnson.

UFC Fight Night 97 has been canceled after it was announced that B.J. Penn had to withdraw from his main event fight with Featherweight Ricardo Lamas.

 

10/2/16

Resurrection Fighting Alliance was surrounded by big news this past week but still had to hold, what we now know to be, one of their last events as an independent organization. At RFA 44 Lightweight Drakkar Klose remained undefeated with a unanimous decision over Hugh Pulley. Flyweight Nick Urso won a unanimous decision against Ken Porter. And in the main event Thiago Moises held on to his Lightweight belt when he got past Zach Freeman. Moises won by unanimous decision.

UFC Fight Night 96 saw Flyweight Brandon Moreno earn the biggest win of his career when he defeated Louis Smolka via guillotine at 2:23 of round 1. Welterweight newcomer Zac Ottow defeated Josh Burkman by split decision. Lightweight Alex Oliveira defeated "ill" Will Brooks via TKO after Brooks suffered an injury early on in the fight. In the main event John "Hands of Stone" Lineker won a split decision against John "The Magician" Dodson.

An open-weight fight between Mirko "Cro Cop" and Wanderlei Silva will take place on Dec. 29. The bout serves as the Rizin FF Grand Prix quarterfinals.

UFC Featherweight champion "The Notorious" Conor McGregor will fight Eddie Alvarez for the Lightweight belt at UFC 205 in NYC. The fight marks the third title that will be on the line during the promotions debut in New York.

Interim Featherweight champion Jose Aldo has requested his release from the UFC.

The UFC has welcomed new owners to the promotion, though their shares are very abysmal. Some of the new owners include the likes of Tom Brady, Guy Fieri and Ben Affleck.



I, Spencer "Pablo Diablo" Kirksey, would like to thank everyone who has followed along with the Five Round Review these past few years as this marks the one hundred fiftieth one.    

9/18/16

Texas was the place to be this weekend as Bellator, Legacy FC and the UFC all held events in the Lone Star state.

Starting things off was Legacy FC 59. Lightweight Justin Reiswerg sunk in a triangle on Jason Langellier at 3:20 of round 2. And in the main event, Middleweight Trevin Giles remained undefeated when he choked out Isaac Villanueva via arm triangle at 1:45 of round 3.

At Bellator 161 Women's Flyweight Anastasia Yankova earned a narrow split decision over a game Veta Arteaga. Bantamweight Joe Warren took out Sirwan Kakai via guillotine at 1:04 of round 3. And Cheick Kongo got one step closer to claiming the Heavyweight belt when he won a unanimous decision over Tony Johnson.

UFC Fight Night 94 saw Lightweight Evan Dunham defeat last minute replacement Rick Glenn by unanimous decision. Middleweight Derek Brunson continued his knockout streak when he KO'd Uriah Hall at 1:41 of round 1. Capping things off was Lightweight Michael Johnson knocking out Dustin "Diamond" Poirier at 1:35 of round 1.

Former UFC Light Heavyweight champion "Suga" Rashad Evans will return to action at UFC 205 iin NYC against Tim Kennedy.

Ex Middleweight champs Luke Rockhold and Chris Weidman also got their next matchups. Rockhold will take on "Jacare" Souza at UFC Fight Night 101 and Weidman will face off against Yoel Romero at UFC 205.

Former UFC Middleweight and Light Heavyweight title challenger Chael Sonnen has signed with Bellator.

9/4/16

Only two major promotions were in action this weekend and both could be seen exclusively by online pay per view.

ONE Championship 47 saw Women's Strawweight April Osenio earn a huge win over Ann Osman via guillotine at 4:09 of round 1. ONE veteran Shannon Wiratchi defeated fellow Featherweight Peter Davis by way of TKO at 3:32 of round 2. In the main event Featherweight Ev "E.T." Ting won a unanimous decision against Rob Lisita.

The UFC made its way to Germany for UFC Fight Night 93. Fellow German and Lightweight fighter, Nick Hein defeated Tae Hyun Bang by unanimous decision. Light Heavyweight Ryan "Darth" Bader looked impressive with a KO of Ilir Latifi at 2:06 of round 2. Light Heavyweight Alexander Gustafsson returned to the win column with a unanimous decision over Jan Blachowicz. And in the main event former UFC Heavyweight champion Josh Barnett submitted fellow veteran Andrei Arlovski via rear naked choke at 2:53 of round 3.

Bellator Lightweight prospect Marcin Held has signed with the UFC. He will make his debut against Diego Sanchez.

ONE Lightweight champion Shinya Aoki will look to defend his title against Eduard Folayang at their Nov. 11 event.

 UFC Featherweight champion Conor McGregor will have a role in the video game "Call of Duty: Infinite Warfare."

8/28/16

Bellator 160, which took place in Anaheim, California, kicked off a stellar weekend of fights. Featherweight A.J. McKee remained undefeated with a first round guillotine against Cody Walker at just :32. Featherweight Georgi "Inane" Karakhanyan refused to give Bubba Jenkins revenge when he defeated him via KO at :53 of round 1. Top Lightweight, Derek Anderson earned a unanimous decision over Saad Awad. And in the main event, Benson Henderson received a Lightweight title shot after defeating Patricio "Pitbull" Freire via TKO (injury) at 2:26 of round 1. 

In one of the most exciting fight cards of the weekend, ONE Championship 46 saw Featherweight Edward Kelly take out Vincent Latoel at just :57 of round 1. In the main event Welterweight Luis "Sapo" Santos survived a slow start to defeat Igor Svirid by unanimous decision.

At UFC on FOX 21 Lightweight legends Jim Miller and Joe Lauzon battled to a decision that went Miller's way, though only by the narrowest of margins. Women's Strawweight Paige VanZant came off of Dancing With the Stars only to KO "Rowdy" Bec Rawlings at :17 of round 2. Anthony "Showtime" Pettis made a successful Featherweight debut when he defeated Charles Oliveira by way of guillotine at 1:49 of round 3. In the main event Damian Maia made quick work of Carlos Condit with a rear naked choke at 1:52 of round 1. 

Former Bellator Middleweight champion Alexander "Storm" Shlemenko will return to the promotion and fight Kendall Grove at Bellator 162. 

Welterweight superstar Michael "Venom" Page will return to take on Fernando Gonzalez at Bellator 163. 

UFC Welterweight Donald "Cowboy" Cerrone has resigned with the promotion while former title challenger Rory MacDonald has decided to sign with Bellator.     

8/7/16

Two titles were on the line at Titan FC 40, shown exclusively on UFC Fight Pass. But before that, Heavyweight D.J. Linderman snapped a two fight losing streak by defeating Derrick Mehmen via unanimous decision. Welterweight Desmond Green won a unanimous decision against James Freeman. In the first title fight Jose Torres claimed the inaugural Flyweight belt after stopping Abdiel Velazquez via TKO at 3:52 of round 2. In the main event Freddy Assuncao defeated Gesias Cavalcante and took home the Lightweight strap in the process. Assuncao won by putting Cavalcante to sleep by way of guillotine at :27 of round 4.

UFC Fight Night 92 featured a main card with numerous decision victories. Maryna Moroz, Trevor Smith, Santiago Ponzinibbio and Dennis Bermudez all won by decision. Middleweight Thales Leites defeated fellow UFC veteran Chris Camozzi via rear naked choke at 2:58 of round 3. Capping off the night, Featherweight Yair Rodriguez won a rather weird split decision against Alex "Bruce Leeroy" Caceres.

Kevin "Kimbo Slice" Ferguson's son, Kevin Ferguson Jr (also known as Baby Slice) will make his Bellator debut at Bellator 160 against Johnny Tomasian.

Former Lightweight champion Rafael dos Anjos will look to rebound against a surging Tony "El Cucuy" Ferguson at the TUF Latin American 3 Finale.

Cris "Cyborg" Justino will compete in her second UFC bout against Lina Lansberg at a UFC Fight Night event in Brazil on Sept 24.

7/31/16

It was an important weekend for WMMA and it was only right that Invicta FC 18 kicked it off. Bantamweight Cindy Dandois defeated Jessamyn Duke with an armbar that came at 1:33 of round 1. Strawweight Mizuki Inoue echoed the fight before her when she submitted Lynn Alvarez by armbar at 3:00 of round 2. Young Polish phenom Agnieszka Niedzwiedz defeated fellow Flyweight Christine Stanley via unanimous decision. And finally, Strawweight Alexa Grasso remained undefeated when she took home a unanimous decision against Jodie Esquibel.

At RFA 41 Lightweight Alexander Hernandez took out Chris Pecero via rear naked choke at 1:27 of round 1. Featherweight Jamall Emmers bounced back from a loss with a unanimous decision win over Rivaldo Junior. And in the main event Middleweight Trevin Giles looked impressive against Josh Clark, defeating him via rear naked choke at 1:10 of round 2.

Two titles were on the line at WSOF 32. But before all of that, brother took on brother as Welterweight superhero Ben "Phoenix" Jones fought Caros Fodor. Caros took home bragging rights with a unanimous decision. In the first of two title fights, Lance Palmer reclaimed his Featherweight belt when he defeated Alexandre Almeida via majority decision. Marlon Moraes dramatically retained his Bantamweight belt when he knocked out Josh Hill with a head kick at :38 of round 2.

Finishing off a busy weekend of fights was UFC 201. Bantamweight Erik Perez out slugged Francisco Rivera for a unanimous decision victory. Welterweight Jake Ellenberger defeated Matt Brown via TKO at 1:46 of round 1. Karolina Kowalkiewicz set up a future date with Joanna Jedrzejczyk when she defeated "Thug" Rose Namajunas by split decision. And in the main event Tyron Woodley captured the Welterweight belt with a nasty KO of "Ruthless" Robbie Lawler at 2:12 of round 1.

UFC commentator Joe Rogan has resigned with the promotion. However, Rogan will commentate less fights than before.

A matchup between MMA legends Gegard Mousasi and Vitor Belfort has been scheduled for UFC 204.

7/24/16

At a submission filled Legacy FC 58, Lightweight Josh Quayhagen defeated Reynaldo Trujillo by unanimous decision. Robert Drysdale took home the vacant Light Heavyweight belt when he submitted Ryan Spann via rear naked choke at 2:58 of round 2.

Bellator 159 saw Featherweight Daniel Weichel win an odd split decision against Emmanuel Sanchez. Women's Flyweight Emily Ducote looked impressive when she defeated Bruna Vargas via rear naked choke at :29 of round 2. Lightweight (soon to be Welterweight) Melvin Guillard finally got his first Bellator win when he knocked out David Rickels at 2:14 of round 1. And in the main event Bantamweight Joe Taimanglo came back to submit Darrion Caldwell at :09 of round 3.

UFC on FOX 20 featured the return of two popular female fighters, though one fared much better than the other. One of them, Women's Strawweight Felice Herrig, won by way of rear naked choke against Kailin Curran at 1:59 of round 1. Heavyweight Francis Ngannou kept his streak alive against UFC newcomer Bojan Mihajovic when he won via TKO at 1:34 of round 1. Edson Barboza earned a unanimous decision win over former Lightweight champion Gilbert Melendez. And Women's Bantamweight Valentina Shevchenko upset Holly Holm by unanimous decision.

The NSAC confirmed that UFC Light Heavyweight champion Jon Jones tested positive for estrogen blockers and has been temporarily suspended.

UFC Heavyweight Brock Lesnar also tested positive for a banned substance following his UFC 200 victory over Mark Hunt.

The TUF 24 cast has been announced and will feature two former UFC Flyweight fighters, Tim Elliot and Damacio Page. The winner of the tournament will get a title shot against Demetrious "Mighty Mouse" Johnson.

7/17/16

This weeks MMA action actually kicked off on Wednesday with UFC Fight Night 91. And while the viewership was not very good, the fights were. Welterweight Keita "K-Taro" Nakamura defeated Kyle Noke via rear naked choke at 4:59 of round 2. Middleweight Tim Boetsch rebounded from a three fight losing skid by finishing Josh Samman via TKO at 3:49 of round 2. Lightweight Tony "El Cucuy" Ferguson survived a near upset defeat with a D'arce choke of UFC newcomer Lando Vannata at 2:22 of round 2. And in the main event John Lineker made his case for a Flyweight title shot with an impressive first round KO of Michael McDonald at 2:43.

RFA 40 saw Bantamweight Terrion Ware win a unanimous decision over Marvin Blumer. And in the main event former Flyweight Chico Camus made it look easy against Czar Sklavos, winning by unanimous decision.

At Victory FC 52, which aired on UFC Fight Pass, Welterweight Dakota Cochrane took out Jason Witt via rear naked choke at 3:17 of round 2. Maki Pitolo remained undefeated with the promotion and took home the Welterweight belt in the process when he defeated Kassius Holdorf by unanimous decision.

Finishing off the weekend was Bellator 158, the promotions debut in London, England. Welterweight phenom Michael "Venom" Page knocked out Evangelista "Cyborg" Santos at 4:31 of round 1. Light Heavyweight Francis Carmont defeated Lukasz Klinger via D'arce choke at 3:54 of round 1. In what was the most exciting fight of the night, Heavyweight Matt Mitrione knocked out Oli Thompson at 4:21 of round 2. And in the main event, former Welterweight champion Douglas Lima upset Paul "semtex" Daley's homecoming with a unanimous decision.

The UFC has been sold to WME-IMG. Dana White will remain on board as president.

UFC and Bellator veteran Paul Bradley has signed with WSOF.

The World MMA Association has overturned the results of the Fedor Emelianenko and Fabio Maldonado fight to a draw.

A Lightweight contest between Patricio "Pitbull" Freire and Benson Henderson will headline Bellator 160.

7/10/16

Boy do we have a lot to go over...

Let's kick things off with UFC Fight Night 90, the first of three UFC events this past week. Lightweight Joseph Duffy choked out Mitch Clarke with a rear naked choke at just :25 of round 1. Welterweight Alan Jouban defeated Belal Muhammad by unanimous decision. Despite knocking out his opponents tooth, Heavyweight Derrick Lewis only won a split decision against Roy "Big Country" Nelson. And in the main event, Lightweight Eddie Alvarez became the first fighter ever to hold a belt in Bellator and the UFC by defeating Rafael dos Anjos via TKO at 3:49 of round 1.

Two titles were up for grabs in the most overlooked fight card of the weekend. Cage Warriors 77 in London, England saw Chris Fishgold claim the vacant Lightweight strap with a rear naked choke of opponent Adam Boussif at 1:33 of round 1. Jack Marshman won the vacant Middleweight belt when he dispatched of Christopher Jacquelin via TKO at 4:58 of round 1.

At The Ultimate Fighter 23 Finale - the second of three UFC events - former Bellator Lightweight champion Will Brooks made a successful debut with a unanimous decision over Ross Pearson. Tatiana Suarez won the TUF Women's Strawweight tournament in impressive fashion when she sunk in a D'arce choke on Amanda Cooper at 3:23 of round 1. The TUF Light Heavyweight tournament was won by Andrew Sanchez when he completely dominated Khalil Rountree for three rounds. Sanchez won by unanimous decision. Joanna Jedrzejczyk came back from a slow start to out strike Claudia Gadelha. Jedrzejczyk won by unanimous decision to retain her Strawweight belt.

Finally, UFC 200. Kicking off the main card, Heavyweight Cain Velasquez took out Travis Browne via TKO at 4:57 of round 1. Jose Aldo rebounded from his loss to Conor McGregor by claiming the vacant Featherweight title against Frankie Edgar. He did so by unanimous decision. Daniel Cormier defeated late replacement Anderson Silva by unanimous decision in a Light Heavyweight non title bout. Heavyweight Brock Lesnar returned to MMA after five years. Lesnar won a unanimous decision against Mark Hunt. In the main event, Amanda Nunes snatched the Women's Bantamweight title from Miesha Tate by utilizing pinpoint striking and her ground skills. Nunes won via rear naked choke at 3:16 of round 1.

Former Heavyweight champion Frank Mir has requested release from the UFC.

Michael Bisping will look to defend his Middleweight belt in a rematch against MMA legend Dan Henderson.  

7/3/16

Twas the week before UFC 200 and all through the land, people were preparing, but wait just one minute... there were still other MMA events to be watched!

A lot went down at ONE Championship 44 in China, including a Flyweight tournament and a title fight. Starting with the Flyweight tournament, Bu Huo You Ga won it all by first dispatching of Wan Jian Ping via guillotine at 1:24 of round 2 and then defeating Li Hao Jie by unanimous decision. Mongolian MMA veteran Narantungalag Jadambaa made quick work of Eric Kelly, winning the Featherweight belt in the process, with a KO coming at :44 of round 1.

At Legacy FC 57, Middleweight Charles Byrd took out Quentin Henry in a quick but back and forth fight that ended by TKO at 2:50 of round 1. Welterweight Derrick Krantz furthered the fight cards streak of finishes with a first round rear naked choke of Dave Burrow at 4:22. In the main event Kevin Aguilar claimed with vacant Featherweight title with a split decision win over Tony Kelley.

Three major match-ups have been added to UFC 202 including two Welterweight fights that see Donald "Cowboy" Cerrone take on Rick "The Horror" Story and Carlos Condit versus Damien Maia. The third fight sees Light Heavyweight contenders Anthony "Rumble" Johnson and Glover Teixeira go to war.

"JZ" Cavalcante will defend his Lightweight title against challenger Freddy Assuncao at Titan FC 40.

A Light Heavyweight super fight between UFC veterans Dan Spohn and Matt Hamill will headline CFFC 60.

6/26/16

Bellator held its second ever DYNAMITE event this past weekend, and while - like the first - it featured both MMA and kickboxing, we shall focus exclusively on the MMA.

Former UFC Heavyweight Matt Mitrione survived a near KO to comeback and defeat Carl Seumanutafa by KO at 3:22 of round 1. In a Women's Flyweight contest, Ilima MacFarlane submitted Rebecca Ruth in round 2 via standing rear naked choke. The stoppage came at exactly 3:00. Michael Chandler reclaimed his Lightweight belt from Patricky "Pitbull" Freire when he knocked him out at 2:14 of the very first round. In the main event Light Heavyweight turned Heavyweight, Quinton "Rampage" Jackson defeated Satoshi Iishi by way of narrow split decision.

At Legacy FC 56, surging Bantamweight Jason Sampson dominated Ryan Hollis for three rounds, leading to a unanimous decision victory. In the main event, long time Legacy FC competitor Steven Peterson claimed the Bantamweight strap with a rear naked choke against Manny Vazquez at 3:08 of round 4.

Two titles were on the line at Victory FC 51. But before that, WSOF veteran Rick Glenn won a narrow split decision over fellow Featherweight Ramiro Hernandez. Mike Rhodes won the vacant Middleweight belt over Rakim Cleveland with a guillotine choke that came at 2:42 of round 2. And Robert Emerson won the vacant Bantamweight belt when he sunk in a rear naked choke on Shawn West at 1:30 of round 2.

ONE Championship 44 is scheduled for July 2 and will feature a headliner between former Featherweight champion Narantungalag Jadambaa and Eric Kelly.

Invicta FC 18 will see undefeated Alexa Grasso fight Jodie Esquibel in the main event. Also on the card is Megan Anderson, Peggy Morgan and Jessamyn Duke.

6/12/16

Only a few more weeks away from UFC 200. But don't forget, there are plenty of action packed fight cards from around the world before then.

At CES MMA 36 Featherweight Levan Makashvili got back on track after a two fight win-less skid against Ryan Sanders. Makashvili won by unanimous decision. Featherweight Matt Bessette defeated last minute replacement Ran Weathers via guillotine at 4:50 of round 1. Finally, Lightweight Nate "The Snake" Andrews took out Luis Muro by way of rear naked choke at 1:59 of round 3.

Titan FC 39 saw Dhiego Lima defeat David Michaud to win the vacant Welterweight belt by unanimous decision. Andre Harrison remained undefeated and defended his Featherweight title in the process. Harrison did so when his opponent, XFC star Deivison Francisco Ribeiro, broke his leg in round 3. In the main event Gesias Cavalcante claimed the vacant Lightweight belt with a KO of Pat Healy at 2:07 of round 1.

Former UFC Heavyweight champion Brock Lesnar - under much controversy - will return to the promotion for UFC 200 and will take on Mark Hunt. The bout will serve as the co-main event.

UFC, Bellator and Elite XC veteran Kevin "Kimbo Slice" Ferguson died at age 42.

Former Bellator Welterweight champion Douglas Lima will replace Josh Koscheck against Paul "Semex" Daley at Bellator 158.

6/5/16

At RFA 38, Lightweight Christos Giagos snapped a two fight skid with a devastating KO of Karen Darabedyan at 1:42 of round 1. In the Bantamweight division, Vinicius Zani won a unanimous decision against Joe Murphy. Capping off the night, Thiago Moises retained his Light Heavyweight title by TKOing Jamall Emmers at 2:52 of round 5.

Cage Warriors 76 was filled with finishes from fight one to the main event. Featherweight Nad Narimani choked out Daniel Requeijo with a guillotine at 1:21 of round 3. Andreas Stahl defeated fellow Welterweight Lewis Long via TKO at :31 of round 3. And in the main event Middleweight Jack Marshman kept his win streak alive with a victory against Ali Arish. Marshman won by way of guillotine at 3:25 of round 1.

With many fight fans looking forward to UFC 200, many forgot just how great of a card UFC 199 was. They were reminded on Saturday. Kicking off the pay-per-view, Lightweight Dustin Poirier took out Bobby Green with a KO that came at 2:53 of round 1. Light Heavyweight legend Dan Henderson won after a lackluster first round against Hector Lombard. His comeback was completed with nasty elbows that led to a KO at 1:27 of round 2. Featherweight Max Holloway won his ninth straight fight by defeating former title challenger Ricardo Lamas by unanimous decision. Dominick Cruz successfully defended his Bantamweight belt with a unanimous decision over Urijah Faber. The loss marked Faber's fourth when fighting for a belt in the UFC. The main event saw twenty-six fight veteran Michael "The Count" Bisping claim the Middleweight title with a KO of now former champion Luke Rockhold. The finish came at 3:36 of round 1.

A Bantamweight contest between Darrion Caldwell and Joe Taimanglo will headline Bellator 159.

The UFC announced during UFC 199 (though Ariel Helwani beat them to it in a way) that former Heavyweight champion Brock Lesnar will fight on the UFC 200 fight card. His opponent has yet to be named.

UFC 202 will be headlined by a Welterweight rematch between Nate Diaz and Conor McGregor.

    

5/29/16

Memorial Day Weekend brought with it a couple of action packed fight cards. 

First, heading far away from the land of red, white and blue was ONE Championship 43. In the most impressive win of his career, Featherweight Timofey Nastyukhin defeated Rob Lisita in just six seconds with a KO brought on by a punch and followed up by soccer kicks. The first of two title fights saw Marat Gafurov successfully defend his Featherweight belt over Kazunori Yokota via rear naked choke at 4:45 of round 2. In the main event Yoshitaka Naito claimed the Strawweight title by getting past Dejdamrong Sor Amnaysirichoke. Naito won with a rear naked choke at 4:00 of round 4. 

On Sunday night, back in America, UFC Fight Night 88 took place. Welterweight Rick Story returned with a unanimous decision victory against Tarec Saffiedine. Jeremey Stephens welcomed former Bantamweight champion Renan Barao to the Featherweight division. Stephens landed heavy shot after heavy shot but was unable to take out Barao. Nevertheless, Stehpens won a unanimous decision. The main event saw two young Bantamweight prospects fight as Cody Garbrandt went up against Thomas Almeida. Garbrandt was the one to keep his record unblemished with a KO of Almeida at 2:53 of round 1. 

Cage Warriors 76 will be headlined by Middleweights Jack Marshman and Ali Arish.

WSOF Global will now feature Swedish promotion IRFA. 

Heavyweights Andrei Arlovski and Josh Barnett will headline UFC Fight Night in Hamburg, Germany on Sept. 3. 

5/15/16

The weekend of MMA events began with Legacy FC 55. Welterweight Bilal Williams sunk in a rear naked choke on Artenas Young at 3:25 of round 3 to earn his third straight win. Light Heavyweight Isaac Villanueva won a unanimous decision over Brandon Farran. The main event between Justin Ledet and Brice Ritani-Coe ended in less than impressive fashion when an eye poke led to a no contest.

The first of the two major events held on Saturday was Bellator 154. Lightweight Adam Piccolotti remained undefeated when he took out late notice replacement Ray Wood with a rear naked choke at 3:17 of round 1. Lightweight Saad Awad made a successful return, defeating Evangelista "Cyborg" Santos via TKO at 4:31 of round 1. In the main event Light Heavyweight Phil Davis solidified his spot as a title challenger by earning a decision against Muhammed "King Mo" Lawal.

Around the same time, only in Brazil, UFC 198 was taking place. Legendary Light Heavyweight Mauricio "Shogun" Rua won a split decision against Corey Anderson. Cristiane "Cyborg" Justino obliterated Leslie Smith in a Catchweight fight that ended by way of TKO at just 1:21 of round 1. Ronaldo "Jacare" Souza made his case for a shot at the Middleweight belt when he defeated Vitor Belfort via TKO at 4:38 of round 1. In the main event Stipe Miocic became the latest of many Heavyweight champions. Miocic shocked the world with a first round KO of Fabricio Werdum at 2:47.

Bellator 155 no longer has a Women's Featherweight title fight as Julia Budd was forced out due to injury. Instead, Marloes Coenen will face off against UFC vet Alexis Dufresne in a non title fight.

UFC President Dana White denied rumors that they were looking to sell the promotion. The public statement came after reports that a Chinese business would possibly be purchasing the MMA organization.

Flyweight title contenders Joseph Benavidez and Henry Cejudo have been selected to coach TUF 24. The winner of the show will earn an automatic title fight against current kingpin Demetrious "Mighty Mouse" Johnson.

5/8/16

It's safe to say that this past weekend of MMA action was pretty bad ass. Innovative finishes and lighting fast knockouts were among some of what fans witnessed.

Kicking things off on Friday was ONE Championship 42 in Singapore. Featherweight Narantungalag Jadambaa defeated Kotetsu Boku via Von Flue choke at 1:27 of round 1. Light Heavyweight Roger Gracie won his second straight fight with the promotion with an arm triangle choke of Michal Pasternak at 2:13 of round 1. In the main event Women's Strawweight standout Angela Lee remained undefeated when she won a unanimous decision over Mei Yamaguchi.

Invicta FC 17 just might have been the best event for the promotion thus far. Lightweight Charmaine Tweet delivered a timely spinning back fist on Latoya Walker that led to a TKO at 3:41 of round 1. In the first of two title fights, former TUF competitor Angela Hill became the new Strawweight champion when she won a split decision over now former title holder Livia Renata Souza. Tonya Evinger successfully defended her Bantamweight belt against challenger Colleen Schneider via unanimous decision.

The UFC made its way to Rotterdam, Netherlands for UFC Fight Night 86. Women's Bantamweight Germaine da Randamie, in front of her home crowd, defeated Anna Elmose via TKO at 3:46 of round 1. Welterweight Gunnar Nelson rebounded from a loss to take out a surging Albert Tumenov by way of rear naked choke at 3:15 of round 2. Heavyweight Stefan Struve made quick work of Antonio Silva when he earned a TKO at just :16 of round 1. In the main event Alistair Overeem defeated fellow Heavyweight legend Andrei Arlovski via TKO. The stoppage came at 1:12 of round 2.

WSOF 32 is set with a title rematch between new Featherweight champion Alexandre Almeida and former champion Lance Palmer. Additionally, two (adopted) brothers will be fighting as "Phoenix" Jones faces off against fellow Lightweight Caros Fodor.

Titan FC has signed former TUF competitor Dhiego Lima.

Former UFC Women's Bantamweight champion Holly Holm will look to rebound from her title loss when she faces off against Valentina Shevchenko at UFC on FOX 20.

5/1/16

There may not have been any major promotions in action this past weekend, but that doesn't mean there wasn't any great fights to be watched.

In one of the biggest local fight cards on the map - Valor Fights 32 in Tennessee - Lightweight Damir Ferhatbegovic took out Robert Covington with a TKO at just :24 of round 1. In the main event Lightweight Nick Gehrts got back on the right track with a first round heel hook win against Steven New.

Flying all the way over to Russia, Absolute Championship Berkut 34 saw a total of 19 fights take place. Lightweight Khamzat Aushev defeated Magomed Dzhabarov via triangle choke at 3:18 of round 1. In the main event Middleweight Ibragim Chuzhigaev took out Vadim Orischak by way of arm triangle at 2:33 of round 1.

On Saturday, Titan FC 38 took place and aired exclusively on UFC Fight Pass. Flyweight Pedro Nobre won a narrow split decision over Sid Bice. In a very rare result, Lightweights Yosdenis Cedeno and Jason Novelli fought to a draw. Despite the two lackluster fights that came before it, the main event for the Welterweight title brought some excitement. Belal Muhammad claimed the vacant Welterweight title with a TKO of WSOF veteran Steve Carl at 4:07 of round 4.

A rematch between Light Heavyweight champion Daniel Cormier and interim Light Heavyweight champion Jon Jones is now set to headline a stacked UFC 200.

Featherweight Diego Brandao has been released from the UFC following an incident taking place at a strip club.

Josh Thomson will have to forgo his homecoming fight against former Bellator Lightweight champion Michael Chandler due to injury. The two were originally supposed to fight in San Jose at Bellator 154.  

4/24/16

The next few months are jam packed with action from all the major MMA promotions and it all started this past weekend.

Legacy FC 54 saw undefeated Middleweight Andrew "The Sniper" Todhunter keep his streak alive with a first round rear naked choke of Even Thompson at 2:28. In the main event Rafael Lovato claimed the vacant Middleweight title by defeating Marcelo Nunes via TKO at 4:51 of round 2.

Bellator made its way back to the states for Bellator 153 after last weeks successful debut in Italy. Welterweight Evangelista Santos shocked opponent Brennan Ward with a heel hook coming at just :30 of round 1. Former Lightweight champion Patricio "Pitbull" Freire took another step closer to regaining his title when he defeated Henry Corrales via guillotine at 4:09 of round 2. Welterweight champion Andrey Koreshkov destroyed former UFC and WEC champion Benson Henderson in a five round assault that ended with a Koreshkov unanimous decision.

Two belts were on the line at UFC 197. But before that, Featherweight Yair "Pantera" Rodriguez knocked out Andre Fili at 2:15 of round 2, earning him a spot on the Sports Center top 10 in the process. Lightweight Edson Barboza earned an impressive unanimous decision win over fromer champion Anthony Pettis. Demetrious "Mighty Mouse" Johnson successfully defended his Flyweight belt with a TKO of Henry Cejudo at 2:45 of round 1. In the main event Jon Jones made his return. Jones got past Ovince Saint Preux by way of unanimous decision, which got him the interim Light Heavyweight strap.

The wait is over. A rematch between Welterweights Josh Koscheck and Paul "Semtex" Daley has been booked as the co-main event for Bellator 158 in London.

All week long a confusing controversy with UFC Featherweight champion Conor McGregor has unfolded. The result of said controversy is that McGregor will no longer be fighting Nate Diaz at UFC 200.

4/17/16

From the Philippines to London, from Italy to Tampa, this past weekend was rocking with fights all around the world. If you missed out, don't worry, I have you covered.

Starting off with ONE Championship 41, Flyweight Geje Eustaquio dominated Gianni Subba for a unanimous decision victory. Welterweight champion Ben Askren won via unanimous decision in a non title fight against Nikolay Aleksakhin.

After what seemed like a lifetime of being absent from the scene, Cage Warriors returned with Cage Warriors 75. Young Featherweight prospect Paddy Pimblett defeated Asleigh Grimshaw by way of unanimous decision. In the main event Jack Hermansson kept his Middleweight title with a KO of Alan Carlos at 4:45 of round 3.

Two titles were on the line at RFA 37. Leandro Higo claimed the vacant Bantamweight belt over Joey Miolla with a rear naked choke at just 2:07 of round 1. The inaugural Light Heavyweight title went to Devin Clark after Rafael Viana failed to answer the third round bell due to a broken finger. Clark got the official victory by TKO at 5:00 of round 2.

Bellator made its international debut (not counting the Canadian fight cards early in its history) with Bellator 152. Featherweight A.J. McKee defeated Danilo Bellurado via TKO at 2:44 of round 1. Light Heavyweight Alessio Sakara out struck Brian Rogers in front of his home crowd for a second round TKO win at 2:29. In a lackluster main event, Lightweight Patricky "Pitbull" Freire won a unanimous decision against Kevin Souza.

Finishing off the weekend was UFC on FOX 19. Lightweight Khabib Nurmagomedov made his comeback (finally) against UFC newcomer Darrell Horcher. Nurmagomedov outclassed his opponent on his way to a TKO at 3:38 of round 2. Women's Strawweight Rose Namajunas defeated Tecia Torres via unanimous decision. In the main event Light Heavyweight Glover Teixeira knocked out former champion Rashad Evans at 1:48 of round 1.

4/10/16

In a weekend dominated by two huge European events, Legacy FC 53 snuck under the radar. While the beginning of the fight card was submission heavy, the night closed with three straight decisions. Flyweight C.J. Hamilton defeated Jacob Hebeisen by split decision. Welterweight Dave Vitkay utilized take downs to secure a decision over Cody Wilson. And in the main event former UFC and TUF fighter Dhiego Lima defeated fellow Welterweight Antonio Trocoli via decision.

At M-1 Challenge 65 Alexey Kunchenko claimed the Welterweight title by defeating fellow Russian Murad Abdulaev via corner stoppage at 3:12 of round 4. The main event saw Ramazan Emeev move on in the M-1 Grand Prix Middleweight tournament after submitting Maiquel Falcaio at 2:50 of round 1. Emeev will now face former Bellator champion Alexander "Storm" Shlemenko in the championship.

The UFC made its first ever trip to Croatia this past Sunday for UFC Fight Night 86. Heavyweight Derrick Lewis - despite having no idea where Croatia was on a map - knocked out Gabriel Gonzaga in devastating fashion at 4:48 of round 1. The main event saw Junior "Cigano" Dos Santos land body shot after body shot on Ben Rothwell on his way to a unanimous decision.

Bellator 157: Dynamite 2 is set for St. Louis, Missouri on June 24 and will feature a Catchweight bout between Quinton "Rampage" Jackson and Satoshi Ishii.  

A second title will be on the line at Invicta FC 17, as Livia Renata Souza looks to defend her Strawweight belt against TUF veteran Angela Hill. The event is headlined by Bantamweight champion Tonya Evinger and Colleen Schneider.

Miesha Tate will defend her Women's Bantamweight belt for the first time at UFC 200 against Amanda Nunes. Julianna Pena and Cat Zingano will also face off on the card. The event, which takes place July 9, is headlined by a Welterweight rematch between "Notorious" Conor McGregor and Nate Diaz.

3/27/16

While many MMA fans were complaining about the lack of fights this weekend, hardcore fans were enjoying some great regional action from around the world.

Legacy FC 52 was full of finishes and excitement from start to finish. With UFC Featherweight Dustin Poirier in his corner, Lightweight Thomas Webb earned an upset win over Sean Soriano with a TKO that came at 1:25 of round 3. In the main event Matt Schnell won the Flyweight title when he submitted Klayton Mai via armbar at 2:14 of round 1.

At ACB 32 in Moscow, Russia Light Heavyweight Denis Goltsov defeated former Strikeforce and WSOF fighter Mike Kyle by way of triangle choke at 1:00 of round 1. Magomed Magomedov won a controversial split decision over fellow Bantamweight Petr Yan. And in the main event Welterweight Abdul Aziz Abdulvakhbov defeated Eduard Vartanyan via TKO at 1:37 of round 1.

The title fight between Bantamweight champion Marcos Galvao and challenger Eduardo "Dudu" Dantas which was previously scheduled earlier this year but was dropped due to injury has been rescheduled for Bellator 156.

Former WEC and UFC fighter George Roop has signed with ROAD FC.

After a long and hard fought battle, MMA has finally been legalized in New York as the bill was passed. The final vote was 113-25.

Well known MMA journalist Ariel Helwani has parted ways with UFC on FOX.

RIZIN FF has signed former UFC fighter Daron Cruickshank. He will make his debut against Shinji Sasaki at their April 17 event.

3/20/16

The MMA world was focused on the Eastern Hemisphere this weekend with two major events in action in Myanmar and Australia respectively.

First up was ONE Championship 40 in Yangon, Myanmar. Flyweight Adriano Moraes rebounded from a split decision loss with a submission victory over Eugene Toquero. The submission (Brabo choke) came at 4:53 of round 1. Myanmar's own, Aung La N Sang defeated Mohamed Ali - no not that one - via guillotine at 2:38 of round 1 in the main event.

Heading south to Australia, UFC Fight Night 85 saw Lightweight Jake Matthews get a late finish over Johnny Case with a rear naked choke at 4:45 of round 3. Welterweight Neil Magny continued his impressive streak with a TKO of Hector Lombard at :46 of round 3. And in the main event Heavyweight Mark Hunt defeated Frank Mir via walk off KO at 3:01 of round 1.

Bellator has signed former TUF competitor and UFC Heavyweight Matt Mitrione.

Following his signature flip off the cage after a win, WSOF Lightweight champion Justin Gaethje is still battling a potential suspension at the hands of the Boxing Commission in Colorado. The commission is said to have warned him not to do the celebration before the fight.

Former UFC Bantamweight champion Renan Barao will be moving up to Featherweight and facing Jeremy "Little Heathen" Stephens at UFC Fight Night 88.

3/13/16

At CES MMA 33, Middleweight Chuck O'Neil defeated Dennis Olson via unanimous decision. And in the main event Andre Soukhamthath won the Bantamweight title in impressive fashion with a flying knee KO of Kody Nordby at 1:35 of round 5. 

It's hard to talk about Invicta FC 16 without mentioning every fight. That is how great the event shown on UFC Fight Pass was. Strawweight Angela "Overkill" Hill won her second straight fight with the promotion with a blood spilling KO victory over Stephanie Eggink at 2:36 of round 2. With the first championship fight of the night, Jennifer Maia won the interim Flyweight belt against Vanessa Porto via unanimous decision. Ayaka Hamasaki defended her Atomweight title with an armbar over Amber Brown at 2:52 of round 3. Other notable winners at Invicta FC 16 included Roxanne Modafferi, Irene Aldana and Jinh Yu Frey. 

The final major event of the weekend was WSOF 29. Middleweight Louis Taylor made quick work of Cory Devela with a guillotine coming at just :29 of round 1. In a Heavyweight contest, Josh Copeland got past Mike Hayes by way of unanimous decision. And in the main event top ranked Lightweight Justin Gaethje defended his belt yet again with an impressive TKO win over veteran Brian Foster. The stoppage came after several unanswered kicks to the knee dropped Foster. 

Rizin MMA has signed veteran fighter Wanderlei Silva to a multi-year contract and has announced that he will make his promotional debut on April 17. Silva is also singed with Bellator. 

WSOF Middleweight and Light Heavyweight champion David Branch has signed a new multi-fight deal with the promotion. 

Both Ken Shamrock and Kimbo Slice have failed their post Bellator 149 drug tests. 

3/6/16

After a weekend like that, its no wonder you're reading this to catch up on all the exciting action that took place in the world of MMA this past week.

Titan FC 37, which aired exclusively on UFC Fight Pass, saw Tim Elliot successfully defend his Flyweight strap with a unanimous decision win over challenger Pedro Nobre. Andre Harrison barely held on to his Featherweight belt with a split decision victory against Steven Siler. The main event was meant to be a title fight for Bantamweight gold, but because Anderson dos Santos missed weight, the belt could only be retained by Ricky Simon. Unfortunately for Simon, dos Santos won by (a recently very popular) rear naked choke that came at 2:38 of round 2.

Bellator 151 was a fight card filled with many decisions but it still entertained. Featherweight wrestler Bubba Jenkins came back from a poor first round and defeated Goiti Yamauchi by way of unanimous decision. Welterweight Fernando Gonzalez kept his hot streak alive with a unanimous decision win over former TUF competitor Gilbert Smith. Darrion Caldwell remained a force to be reckoned with at Bantamweight when he took out self proclaimed baddest man on the planet Joe Warren. Caldwell, after exciting the crowd with a suplex of Warren, took him out via rear naked choke at 3:23 of round 1. Caldwell is now 9-0 and will most likely get the next shot at the Bantamweight title.

RFA 36 lost its main event the day before the card and couldn't quite rebound. Despite that, Bantamweight Melvin Blummer had a good night with a rear naked choke win over opponent Matt Murphy at 1:23 of round 2. In the (new) main event, UFC vet, Flyweight Chico Camus, got past Matt Brown on his way to a unanimous decision.

UFC 196 was definitely a night for the underdogs. However, before that there were a pair of Light Heavyweight fights. Despite getting dropped in the first round, Corey Anderson rebounded and defeated Tom Lawlor via unanimous decision. In the other Light Heavyweight fight Ilir Latifi won by unanimous decision over Gian Villante. Miesha Tate stole the Women's Bantamweight belt in the fifth and final round when she sunk in a rear naked choke on now former champion Holly Holm at 3:30 of the round. Up until that point, Tate was losing the fight. Nate Diaz won a Welterweight contest against "The Notorious" Conor McGregor via rear naked choke at 4:12 of round 2.

MMA legend Wanderlei "The Axe Murderer" Silva has signed with Bellator.

UFC 198 will be headlined by a Heavyweight title fight between champion Fabricio Werdum and challenger Stipe Miocic.

2/28/16

The two biggest promotions in the world had the spotlight this weekend, as Bellator and the UFC each had events. Bellator 150 kicked things off on Friday.

A title fight between Bantamweight champion Marcos Galvao and former champ Eduardo "Dudu" Dantas was originally going to headline Bellator 150 but Galvao withdrew due to sickness. Instead a Heavyweight contest between Cheick Kongo and Vinicius Queiroz headlined. Before that though, Middleweight Kendall Grove won in vicious fashion with a KO victory over Francisco France at :35 of round 2. Lightweight David "Caveman" Rickels rebounded from a loss when he defeated - in what was most likely the fight of the night - Bobby Cooper via TKO at 3:49 of round 1. Cheick Kongo won his second straight fight with a narrow split decision over Vinicius Queiroz.

UFC Fight Pass had its biggest event in history with UFC Fight Night 84. In a Middleweight contest that received boos from the crowd, Gegard Mousasi defeated Thales Leites by unanimous decision. In the main event former UFC Middleweight title holder Anderson "Spider" Silva lost, in a fight that he thought he won in the third round, to Michael "The Count" Bisping. Bisping won by unanimous decision despite looking like his face rubbed again a cheese grater.

UFC Lightweight champion Rafael Dos Anjos will no longer be fighting Featherweight champion Conor McGregor at UFC 196 after breaking his foot. McGregor will now fight Nate Diaz at Welterweight.

ONE Championship Welterweight Ben Askren will defend his title at ONE: Global Rivals against Nikolay Aleksakhin on April 15.

A Heavyweight fight between recently resigned Alistair Overeem and Andrei Arlovski will headline UFC Fight Night 87 in Rotterdam.

2/21/16

The first truly busy weekend of 2016 in MMA took place the last couple of days. From Indonesia to Utah, if you complained about there being no fights to watch, you obviously were not looking hard enough.

Though the weekend was exciting, Bellator 149 was not the greatest way to kick it off. Light Heavyweight Linton Vassell won his rematch against former champion Emanuel Newton despite taking several illegal groin shots. Vassell won by unanimous decision. Lightweight Derek Campos snapped a two fight losing streak when he knocked out Melvin "The Young Assassin" Guillard at :32 of round 2. In a Heavyweight contest that turned out to be a snooze fest, Kevin "Kimbo Slice" Ferguson won by TKO against fellow street fighter Dhafir "Dada5000" Harris at 1:32 of round 3. The main event saw MMA pioneer and legend Royce Gracie win a controversial fight against Ken Shamrock. The Light Heavyweight contest ended by way of TKO when Gracie, who didn't even have his hands wrapped for the fight, utilized ground and pound following a unnoticed groin strike. The stoppage came at 2:22 of round 2.

A much more exciting RFA 35 saw Thiago Alves Cavalcante Rodrigues defeat David Putvin by decision in a Lightweight contest. In the main event Thiago Moises took home the Lightweight belt after an armbar victory over David Castillo at 3:19 of round 2.

At ONE Championship 37 Welterweight Luis Santos looked impressive with a devastating TKO (knee, soccer kicks) over Rafael Silva at 1:17 of round 1. Featherweight Kotetsu Boku took out Vincent Latoel with a TKO at 4:04 of round 2.

One of the more questionable decisions of the weekend took place at WSOF 28. Bantamweight Timur Valiev lost a split decision to Chris Gutierrez. There was no question about who won the main event though. Bantamweight champion Marlon Moraes successfully defended his belt again, this time against Joseph Barajas. Moraes won via TKO at 1:13 of round 1.

UFC Fight Night 83 capped off the weekend in impressive fashion. Flyweight Cody Garbrandt moved up to a catchweight of 140 pounds to take on Augusto Mendes. Garbrandt came out on top with a TKO coming at 4:18 of round 1. Middleweight Derek Brunson made quick work of Roan Carneiro with a TKO at just 2:38 of round 1. The main event saw a match-up between two "Cowboys." Lightweight Donald "Cowboy" Cerrone won the battle of the nicknames over Alex "Cowboy" Oliveira when he pulled off a slick triangle choke at 2:33 of round 1.

Light Heavyweight legend Quinton "Rampage" Jackson will be returning to Bellator after his contract dispute was figured out.

Invicta FC 16 has been announced for March 11 and will feature a title fight between Atomweight champion Ayaka Hamasaki defending her belt against Amber Brown.

2/7/16

While most sports fans were looking ahead to the Super Bowl, MMA fans were enjoying a pretty entertaining weekend of MMA. Only two major fight cards took place, but both had their moments.

Legacy FC 51 kicked things off. Dana White was in attendance, filming for his YouTube show "Looking for a Fight." Welterweight Jacob Volkman won a unanimous decision over Antonio Trocoli. MMA veteran Brock Larson defeated fellow Welterweight Travis Coyle via TKO at 2:03 of round 1. And in the main event, Manuel Vasquez claimed the vacant Bantamweight belt in an upset win over young prospect Ricardo Lucas Ramos. Vasquez won by way of rear naked choke at 1:45 of round 1.

UFC Fight Night 82, which was originally meant to be a pay-per-view, saw a number of significant wins in various divisions. Flyweight Joseph Benavidez out struck Zach Makovsky on his way to a unanimous decision win. Despite suffering an early ankle injury, Light Heavyweight Ovince Saint Preux was able to keep his composure and earn a decision win over Rafael Cavalcante. In one of the weekends most boring fights, Roy "Big Country" Nelson snapped a three fight losing streak with a unanimous decision against fellow Heavyweight Jared Rosholt. The main event stole the show as Welterweight Stephen "Wonderboy" Thompson kncoked out former champion Johny Hendricks. The KO was at 3:31 of round 1.

Former WEC and UFC Lightweight champion Benson Henderson has signed with Bellator. He will make his debut fighting for the Welterweight title against Andrey "Spartan" Koreshkov at Bellator 153.

Bellator also signed Heavyweight Sergei Kharitonov, a PRIDE and Strikeforce veteran.

A rematch between former Middleweight champion Chris Weidman and new champion Luke Rockhold will headline UFC 199.

The UFC announced a pair of fight cards during Saturday's event. UFC 197 will be headlined by a Light Heavyweight title fight between champion Daniel Cormier and Jon "Bones" Jones. Additionally, the co-main event will be Flyweight title holder Demetrious "Mighty Mouse" Johnson defending his belt against Henry Cejudo.

The second fight card announced was UFC on FOX 19. The main event will feature what is presumed to be a Lightweight title eliminator fight between Tony Ferguson and Khabib Nurmagomedov.  

1/31/16

ONE Championship held its second event in a week with ONE Championship 38. Lightweight Eduard Folayang got past Tetsuya Yamada for a unanimous decision win. The main event saw Ev Ting dominate Eric Kelley in a Lightweight contest. Ting won via guillotine choke at 1:58 of round 3.

Bellator kicked off their 2016, which is sure to bring fireworks, with Bellator 148. Lightweight Patricky "Pitbull" Freire continued his up and down Bellator career with a vicious KO of Ryan Couture that came at 3:00 of round 1. Welterweight Paul Bradley snapped Chris Honeycutt's unblemished record with a TKO win at just :40 of the opening round. In the main event, flashy Welterweight Paul "Semtex" Daley took out Andy Uhrich via KO at 2:00 of round 1.

At UFC on FOX 18 Lightweight Sage Northcutt moved up to Welterweight but lost to last minute replacement Bryan Barberena by way of arm triangle at 3:06 of round 2. Bantamweight prospect Jimmie Rivera looked impressive in his unanimous decision win against seasoned veteran Iuri Alcantara. Heavyweight Ben Rothwell continued his win streak with a slick guillotine of Josh Barnett. The submission came at 3:48 of round 2. Finally, Light Heavyweight Anthony "Rumble" Johnson defeated Ryan "Darth" Bader via TKO at 1:26 of round 1.

With the multiple injuries resulting in fighters pulling out, UFC 196 has shifted from a pay-per-view to airing on Fox Sports 1.

Former UFC Middleweight title challenger Chael Sonnen will be a contestant on next seasons Celebrity Apprentice.

Titan FC 37 has been scheduled for March 4 and will feature three title fights. Champion Tim Elliot will defend his Flyweight belt against Pedro Nobre, Featherweight title holder Andre Harrison welcomes title challenger Steven Silver and Brett Johns will face off against Ricky Simon for the vacant Bantamweight strap. The fights will air on UFC Fight Pass.

1/24/16

Three entertaining fight cards took place this past weekend, and not one happened to be in the UFC.

Kicking things off was a monumental event for Legacy FC. Legacy FC 50 saw long time promotional man Justin Reiswerg defeat fellow Lightweight Jonathan Harris via rear naked choke at 1:43 of round 1. In another Lightweight battle, Ray Blodget took out Jared Chaffee by way of guillotine at 3:38 of round 1. The main event marked the return of Welterweight Evangelista "Cyborg" Santos. Cyborg made it a successful one with a unanimous decision victory over Artenas Young.

ONE Championship 36 went down early in the morning for us here in the states. Ma Hao Bin won the Changsha Bantamweight tournament (winning both fights in similar fashion) with a semifinal win over Wu Ting Shen that came by way of guillotine at just :27 of round 1. His finals win was also with a guillotine choke, this time against Bu Huo You Ga at 1:08 of round 1. ONE Bantamweight champion Bibiano Fernandes made his title defense look easy when he dispatched Kevin Belingon with a kimura at 4:04 of the opening round.

At WSOF 27 Light Heavyweight Shamil Gamzatov looked impressive as he TKO'd Teddy Holder at 2:32 of round 1. In the main event Lightweight Luiz Firmino won a unanimous decision over Caros Fodor.

The UFC announced that a Middleweight match-up between Vitor Belfort and Ronaldo "Jacare" Souza will headline UFC Fight Night 87.

Saturdays SNL was hosted by former UFC Women's Bantamweight champion Ronda Rousey. It marked the first time an MMA fighter hosted the show.

Heavyweight Cain Velasquez is injured and has withdrawn from his title rematch against champion Fabricio Werdum. Instead Werdum will meet Stipe Miocic for the belt at UFC 196.

1/17/16

Well it has definitely been awhile. The Five Round Review is back and hopefully here to stay. To answer anyone who is wondering why this review has been so inconsistent over the past two months, I am wrapping up college while simultaneously traveling... a lot. But that is neither here nor there. Let's get to what you clicked here for.

Opening up this weekend of MMA was RFA 34 which took place in Broomfield, Colorado. The fight card was headlined by a title fight for the vacant Welterweight belt between Bojan Velickovic and Benjamin Smith. Velickovic finished the bout before it reached the championship rounds with a guillotine choke at 1:51 of round 3.

Invicta FC 15 was non stop action with six of the seven fights ending with a finish. Two of those finishes took place in the two title fights. The first, for the Strawweight strap, saw Livia Renata Souza remain undefeated by earning a TKO over DeAnna Bennett at just 1:30 of round 1. In the main event Cristiane "Cyborg" Justino dominated Daria Ibragimova, keeping the Featherweight title. Justino won via KO at 4:58 of round 1.

A lot of big fights took place at Sunday's UFC Fight Night 81. Heavyweight Travis Browne busted up Matt Mitrione's eye on his way to a TKO victory at 4:09 of round 3. Lightweight Eddie Alvarez won his second split decision in a row, this one against former champion Anthony "Showtime" Pettis. And capping off the night was the return of Dominic Cruz. Cruz regained his Bantamweight belt with a split decision over now former champion T.J. Dillashaw.

UFC Middleweight Yoel Romero has been flagged by the USADA for a positive drug test following his UFC 194 win over Ronaldo "Jacare" Souza.

Bellator announced its headliner for their first event in Europe, which will take place in Italy. UFC vet Alessio Sakara will fight Brian Rogers on April 16 in Torino.