List of All Articles with Tag 'ufc'

The United States Anti-Doping Agency (Usada) will end its partnership with the UFC in January after Conor McGregor’s return to its testing pool this week, claiming that the saga has made the organisations’ relationship ‘untenable’. Usada announced on Wednesday (11 October) that McGregor had re-entered its testing pool, as the former champion prepares for his first fight since July 2021, when he suffered a broken leg in a second straight loss to Dustin Poirier. In order to compete in the UFC, athletes must have been in the pool for six months while returning zero positive test results and at least two negatives. That means McGregor’s earliest possible return date is in April, but Usada admitted that it would not be able to ensure that the Irishman serves the full six months, because it will not be renewing its partnership with the UFC in January. Usada clarified that the move was the result of its discomfort with the McGregor saga, after the UFC and the fighter suggested earlier this year that Usada might grant the 35-year-old an exemption to facilitate an earlier in-ring return. “We can confirm that Conor McGregor has re-entered the Usada testing pool as of Sunday 8 October 2023,” said Usada CEO Travis Tygart in a statement. “We have been clear and firm with the UFC that there should be no exception given by the UFC for McGregor to fight until he has returned two negative tests and been in the pool for at least six months. The rules also allow Usada to keep someone in the testing pool longer before competing based on their declarations upon entry in the pool and testing results. “Unfortunately, we do not currently know whether the UFC will ultimately honor the six-month or longer requirement because, as of 1 January 2024, Usada will no longer be involved with the UFC Anti-Doping Program. “Despite a positive and productive meeting about a contract renewal in May 2023, the UFC did an about-face and informed Usada on Monday 9 October that it was going in a different direction. We are disappointed for UFC athletes, who are independent contractors who rely on our independent, gold-standard global program to protect their rights to a clean, safe, and fair Octagon. The UFC’s move imperils the immense progress made within the sport under Usada’s leadership. “The relationship between Usada and UFC became untenable given the statements made by UFC leaders and others questioning Usada’s principled stance that McGregor not be allowed to fight without being in the testing pool for at least six months. “Fighters’ long-term health and safety – in addition to a fair and level playing field – are more important to Usada than short-term profits at the expense of clean athletes. Usada is proud of the work we’ve done over the past eight years to clean up the UFC, and we will continue to provide our unparalleled service to UFC athletes through the remainder of our current contract, which ends 31 December 2023. “As always, we will continue to uphold the rights and voices of clean athletes in all sport.” Click here to subscribe to The Independent’s Sport YouTube channel for all the latest sports videos. Read More Kamaru Usman to face Khamzat Chimaev at UFC 294 after Paulo Costa withdraws Charles Oliveira replaced by Alexander Volkanovski in Islam Makhachev fight UFC schedule 2023: Every major fight happening this year

Kamaru Usman will face Khamzat Chimaev in the co-main event of UFC 294, after replacing Paulo Costa on 10 days’ notice. Usman, who reigned as welterweight champion from 2018 until 2022, will make his middleweight debut in the bout, which pits him against one of the most dominant prospects in mixed martial arts. Swedish-born Russian Chimaev is 12-0 as a professional with 11 stoppage wins. The match-up was confirmed on Wednesday (11 October), when Costa revealed that he would need two elbow surgeries this week, having already undergone one two weeks ago. As such, the Brazilian is out of UFC 294, which takes place in Abu Dhabi on 21 October. The 32-year-old’s withdrawal was the second by a Brazilian in the space of two days; on Tuesday (10 October), Charles Oliveira withdrew from the main event of UFC 294 due to a severe cut over his right eye. Oliveira was due to challenge Islam Makhachev for the lightweight title in a rematch – 12 months after the Russian submitted him in the same venue in Abu Dhabi. Alexander Volkanovski, who holds the featherweight title, is stepping in to replace Oliveira and contest his own rematch with Makhachev, who narrowly outpointed him to retain the lightweight belt in February. Usman, 36, last fought in March, suffering a decision loss to Leon Edwards while challenging for the welterweight title, which Edwards took from the Nigerian-American with a brutal head kick last August. Chimaev, 29, last fought in September 2022, submitting Kevin Holland in Round 1. Chimaev was originally set to face Nate Diaz on that occasion but missed weight, leading the card to be altered on short notice. Diaz instead fought and submitted Tony Ferguson in the main event. Click here to subscribe to The Independent’s Sport YouTube channel for all the latest sports videos. Read More Usada ends UFC partnership over ‘untenable’ Conor McGregor situation Charles Oliveira replaced by Alexander Volkanovski in Islam Makhachev fight UFC schedule 2023: Every major fight happening this year

VIDEO: Francis Ngannou made a shop door explode.

Conor McGregor has hinted that he has returned to the testing pool of the United States Anti-Doping Agency (Usada), setting him up for a UFC comeback. It was announced in February that McGregor would fight Michael Chandler this year, in the Irishman’s first bout since he suffered a broken leg while losing to Dustin Poirier in July 2021. Since the announcement, however, McGregor has remained absent from Usada’s testing pool, ruling out a 2023 return to the ring. That is because, in order to fight, athletes must be in the Usada pool for six months while returning zero positive results and at least two negatives. But on Thursday (5 October), McGregor took to Instagram to share photos of himself training at Crumlin Boxing Club in Dublin, and his caption read: “Find my targets. Hit them. F*** the consequences. You’re going down. This is fighting. Submitted my stuff to Novitzky. Ball rolling.” McGregor, 35, was referring to Jeff Novitzky, the UFC’s Senior Vice-President of Athlete Health and Performance. McGregor added, “See you soon you little light work b***h,” seemingly taking aim at Chandler. If McGregor has in fact re-entered Usada’s testing pool, he could be in line to return at UFC 300, which may take place in April. McGregor’s last win came in January 2020, when the former dual-weight champion stopped Donald Cerrone in 40 seconds. He then suffered the first knockout defeat of his career in January 2021, when he faced Dustin Poirier in a rematch of their 2014 clash. Six months later, McGregor fought the American in a trilogy bout, suffering a broken leg at the end of Round 1 – handing Poirier a TKO victory. Meanwhile, American Chandler last fought in November 2021, when he was submitted to Poirier. Chandler, 37, is a former three-time Bellator lightweight champion. This summer, McGregor and Chandler served as opposing coaches on the newest season of The Ultimate Fighter, the UFC’s reality television show. Chandler’s team of fighters dominated McGregor’s, with Kurt Holobaugh ultimately winning the lightweight finale in August. On the same night, Brad Katona won the bantamweight finale for Team McGregor, but only after switching from Chandler’s team. Click here to subscribe to The Independent’s Sport YouTube channel for all the latest sports videos. Read More Let’s get ready to rumble! Inside the ropes with boxing’s ring announcers Tyson Fury vs Oleksandr Usyk undisputed rematch ruled out after major call Anthony Joshua could fight on same card as Eubank Jr vs Benn, claims Eddie Hearn UFC schedule 2023: Every fight happening this year When is the next UFC event? The Independent’s pound-for-pound UFC rankings

A decade ago, Zhang Weili was handing out flyers to rushing commuters in front of her local subway station. Now she's considered one of the best women's mixed-martial arts (MMA) fighters in history.

Francis Ngannou admitted he has held on to “a little bit of hope” that the possibility of a fight with Jon Jones could materialise. Ngannou is due to meet Tyson Fury in the boxing ring on 28 October, in a big money fight due to take place in Saudi Arabia. Fury is the favourite heading into the clash, but Ngannou has reportedly been working with experts, including former boxer Mike Tyson to try and fing a way to land a knockout blow to the English boxer. The highly-anticipated bout is schedule for 10 rounds and is a fully professional affair, although Fury’s WBC heavyweight title will not be competed for. The former UFC Heavyweight Champion also signed an MMA contract with the PFL this calendar year, but many hope he will takes on Jones. “I don’t know. Maybe he’ll be a special fight, a special belt or something?” Ngannou said regarding a potential fight with Jones on the Joe Rogan Experience. “Maybe not like a UFC belt. To be honest, I don’t worry about the title. The title is not what I worry about. “I worry about that fight, that challenge. I wouldn’t care if it was a fight without a title. In my [mind], I don’t need a UFC title. That fight is bigger than a title. The fight is bigger than a title.” Ngannou added: “Deep inside me, I still have a little bit of hope (about a Jones fight), even though I know it’s gonna be hard. But, you never know.” Fury has not competed so far this calendar year, and his last bout was when he defended the WBC belt in December 2022 against Derek Chisora. While Ngannou has never taken part in a professional boxing match, but has 20 professional MMA fights to his name, including a win to claim the UFC heavyweight title in January 2022. Read More What is an exhibition fight and how is it different to a professional bout? Tyson Fury ‘tried to pay’ to halt Netflix filming of At Home With The Furys Tyson Fury explains why he will ‘probably’ fight Jon Jones instead of Oleksandr Usyk next

UFC President Dana White has seemingly quashed rumours that Conor McGregor would make his return to the Octagon in December at UFC 296. “Notorious” hasn’t fought since suffering a broken leg in his second straight loss to Dustin Poirier in 2021, but had seemed confident he would make his return at the end of this year against Michael Chandler. White did not include McGregor, however, when he announced the headline bout for the upcoming UFC 296 event in December, although he did say that more fights were to be announced. In a video on social media, White confirmed that Britain’s Leon Edwards will defend the welterweight title against Colby Covington in the UFC 296 main event in Las Vegas. Covington is a former interim champion. He also revealed that Alex Pereira vs Jiri Prochazka will be the co-main event for UFC 295 in New York in November, as the pair clash over the vacant light-heavyweight title. Pereira is a former middleweight champion, while Prochazka won the light-heavyweight title in 2021 but vacated it due to injury later that year. Irishman McGregor missed the deadline for re-enrollment into the United States Anti-Doping Agency’s (Usada) testing pool in July, which made his return this year questionable, given fighters must be in this pool for a minimum of six months before they can fight. Brock Lesnar was famously given an exemption to this rule in 2016 when he returned for UFC 200, but the official UFC-Usada policy states this can only be for “exceptional circumstances or where the strict application of that rule would be manifestly unfair to an athlete”. It now looks like McGregor’s long-awaited return will have to wait until 2024, when his fight with Chandler may precede bouts against Justin Gaethje and Nate Diaz. The 35 year-old’s current gap between fights is the longest since he made his UFC debut in 2013. Read More UFC schedule 2023: Every fight happening this year Khabib coach predicts Conor McGregor vs Michael Chandler outcome When is the next UFC event?

Olivia Wilde threw shade at Harry Styles, the Vikings traded for Cam Akers, Lionel Messi left an Inter Miami match with fatigue and more in the Roundup.

Manchester United has announced that star winger Jadon Sancho will remain away from the club after his fallout with Erik Ten Hag.

Alexa Grasso will defend the UFC women’s flyweight title against Valentina Shevchenko this weekend, nine months after dethroning the longtime champion. Grasso submitted Shevchenko in the fourth round in March, ending the Kyrgyzstani fighter’s five-year reign atop the division – as well as her nine-fight win streak. In doing so, 30-year-old Grasso became just the second Mexican champion in UFC history, and she is now her nation’s only reigning title holder. Can Shevchenko, 35, reverse the result on Saturday? Fans will find out as she and Grasso headline a Fight Night event in Las Vegas – marking a rare move for the UFC, which typically saves title bouts for pay-per-views. Here’s all you need to know. We may earn commission from some of the links in this article, but we never allow this to influence our content. This revenue helps to fund journalism across The Independent. When is the event? This week’s UFC Fight Night will take place on Saturday 16 September, at the T-Mobile Arena in Las Vegas. The prelims are set to begin at 12am BST on Sunday 17 September (4pm PT, 6pm CT, 7pm ET on Saturday), with the main card following at 3am BST (7pm PT, 9pm CT, 10pm ET on Saturday). How can I watch it? The card will air live on TNT Sports in the UK, with the broadcaster’s app and website also streaming the fights. In the US, ESPN+ will stream the action live, as will the UFC’s Fight Pass. If you’re travelling abroad and want to watch the event, you might need a VPN to unblock your streaming app. Our VPN round-up is here to help: Get great deals on the best VPNs in the market. Odds Grasso – 13/10 Shevchenko – 8/13 Full odds via Betway. • Get all the latest UFC betting sites’ offers Full card (subject to change) Main card Alexa Grasso (C) vs Valentina Shevchenko 2 (women’s flyweight title) Kevin Holland vs Jack Della Maddalena (welterweight) Raul Rosas Jr vs Terrence Mitchell (bantamweight) Daniel Zellhuber vs Christos Giagos (lightweight) Fernando Padilla vs Kyle Nelson (featherweight) Prelims Loopy Godinez vs Elise Reed (women’s strawweight) Roman Kopylov vs Josh Fremd (middleweight) Edgar Chairez vs Daniel Lacerda (flyweight) Tracy Cortez vs Jasmine Jasudavicius (women’s flyweight) Natan Levy vs Alex Reyes (lightweight) Josefine Knutsson vs Marnic Mann (women’s strawweight) Read More Sean Strickland shocks Israel Adesanya and MMA world with title win at UFC 293 Israel Adesanya’s coach reveals strange request after shock loss to Sean Strickland Two fighters apologise for using homophobic slurs at UFC 293 What is TKO? The UFC and WWE merger explained How to watch Grasso vs Shevchenko 2 and what time is fight this weekend? The Independent’s pound-for-pound UFC rankings

Valentina Shevchenko will try to regain the UFC women’s flyweight title from Alexa Grasso this weekend, nine months after the Mexican took the belt from her. Shevchenko, 35, was on a nine-fight win streak and seen as one of the most dominant champions in the UFC, until Grasso shocked the Kyrgyzstani fighter in March. Grasso, 30, submitted Shevchenko in the fourth round to become Mexico’s second undisputed UFC champion, and she is now her nation’s only reigning title holder. She will bid to retain the gold against Shevchenko on Saturday, as the pair headline a Fight Night event in Las Vegas – marking a rare move for the UFC, which typically saves title bouts for pay-per-views. Here’s all you need to know. We may earn commission from some of the links in this article, but we never allow this to influence our content. This revenue helps to fund journalism across The Independent. When is the event? This week’s UFC Fight Night will take place on Saturday 16 September, at the T-Mobile Arena in Las Vegas. The prelims are set to begin at 12am BST on Sunday 17 September (4pm PT, 6pm CT, 7pm ET on Saturday), with the main card following at 3am BST (7pm PT, 9pm CT, 10pm ET on Saturday). How can I watch it? The card will air live on TNT Sports in the UK, with the broadcaster’s app and website also streaming the fights. In the US, ESPN+ will stream the action live, as will the UFC’s Fight Pass. If you’re travelling abroad and want to watch the event, you might need a VPN to unblock your streaming app. Our VPN round-up is here to help: Get great deals on the best VPNs in the market. Odds Grasso – 13/10 Shevchenko – 8/13 Full odds via Betway. • Get all the latest UFC betting sites’ offers Full card (subject to change) Main card Alexa Grasso (C) vs Valentina Shevchenko 2 (women’s flyweight title) Kevin Holland vs Jack Della Maddalena (welterweight) Raul Rosas Jr vs Terrence Mitchell (bantamweight) Daniel Zellhuber vs Christos Giagos (lightweight) Fernando Padilla vs Kyle Nelson (featherweight) Prelims Loopy Godinez vs Elise Reed (women’s strawweight) Roman Kopylov vs Josh Fremd (middleweight) Edgar Chairez vs Daniel Lacerda (flyweight) Tracy Cortez vs Jasmine Jasudavicius (women’s flyweight) Natan Levy vs Alex Reyes (lightweight) Josefine Knutsson vs Marnic Mann (women’s strawweight) Read More Sean Strickland shocks Israel Adesanya and MMA world with title win at UFC 293 Israel Adesanya’s coach reveals strange request after shock loss to Sean Strickland Two fighters apologise for using homophobic slurs at UFC 293 What is TKO? The UFC and WWE merger explained Grasso vs Shevchenko 2 card in full as title fight headlines this weekend The Independent’s pound-for-pound UFC rankings

Israel Adesanya’s coach Eugene Bareman has revealed that he asked the UFC’s head matchmaker for a rematch in one week’s time, after Sean Strickland stunned Adesanya to win the middleweight title on Saturday. Strickland, a huge underdog in Sydney, beat Adesanya on all three scorecards in the main event of UFC 293, making the Nigerian-New Zealander’s second title reign a short one. Adesanya, 34, only spoke to the media briefly after the fight, saying: “I had a different plan for this, but life throws curveballs at you. Win or lose, I wasn’t going to say much anyway, but right now, I lost to the better man on the night, and I just want to be with people who care about me, my team, so I’m going to go do that. “But I’ll leave you in the capable hands of a man who is much smarter than me... I’ll leave it with Eugene Bareman, who will handle this for the first time.” Bareman then explained that he and his coaching team had struggled to connect with Adesanya during the fight with American Strickland. Bareman also revealed that he had approached Mick Maynard, the UFC’s chief matchmaker, later in the night, asking if they could set up a rematch in a week’s time. “I think Sean’s a great fighter, and I never once thought that Sean wasn’t capable of beating Israel,” said Bareman, “[but] it was an alternate kind of universe where Israel performed poorly, where Sean could win, and I’m sitting in that universe right now.” Adesanya first won the UFC middleweight title in 2019, before losing it to old kickboxing rival Alex Pereira via TKO last November. Adesanya regained the belt with a knockout of Pereira in April, before dropping it again on Saturday. Meanwhile, 32-year-old Strickland suffered his own stoppage loss to Pereira last July, before winning back-to-back fights this January and July. He then trained with Pereira ahead of Saturday’s main event. Click here to subscribe to The Independent’s Sport YouTube channel for all the latest sports videos. Read More Sean Strickland shocks Israel Adesanya and MMA world with title win at UFC 293 Two fighters apologise for using homophobic slurs at UFC 293 UFC schedule 2023: Every major fight happening this year