UFC

Wins over Joaquin Buckley, Edmen Shahbazyan and Ian Heinisch have proven the potential is there. The light heavyweight contest should not affect the rankings at ...

Strickland is the more technical boxer and lands more frequently. Fighting again so soon was the furthest thing from Strickland's mind, but money talks and a call from UFC vice president of talent relations Mick Maynard was the catalyst for his quick turnaround. Strickland enters UFC Fight Night having lost consecutive fights for the first time in his 30-fight career. Siding with Strickland is the safe choice. Who wins UFC Fight Night: Strickland vs. "I think I just have to be careful of what he's saying, the world that he's using. Sean Strickland had no fight scheduled at the week's start and Nassourdine Imavov planned a cut to 185 pounds. The impromptu booking shifted the fight from 185 pounds to 205 pounds, likely to allow Strickland an easier weight cut on such short notice. Strickland (25-5) is officially in need of repairs after losing the momentum he built with six straight wins. Imavov is aware of Strickland's notoriously big mouth when it comes to pre-fight trash talk and in-ring talk as well. Strickland, less than 30 days removed from headlining the final UFC event of 2022, stepped in for Gastelum on four days' notice. Imavov has pieced together a strong 5-1 run in UFC with only a majority loss sullying that record.

See How The Judges Scored Every Round Of UFC Fight Night: Strickland vs Imavov, Live From The UFC APEX In Las Vegas.

[Results, Highlights & More](https://www.ufc.com/news/ufc-fight-night-strickland-vs-imavov-results-highlights-winner-interviews-vegas-67) [UFC Fight Night: Strickland vs Imavov](/event/ufc-fight-night-january-14-2023), live from the UFC APEX in Las Vegas, Nevada on January 14, 2023. 13 ranked featherweight contender [Dan Ige](/athlete/dan-ige) squares off with streaking [Damon Jackson](/athlete/damon-jackson). 12 ranked [Nassourdine Imavov](/athlete/nassourdine-imavov). The entire card will be available on [ESPN+](https://plus.espn.com/ufc?ex_cid=DSS-OFF-UFC-INARTICLE-EN) in English and Spanish, with the main card starting at 7 pm ET / 4 pm PT and the prelims at 4 pm ET / 1 pm PT. [Dan Ige](https://www.ufc.com/athlete/dan-ige) [Roman Kopylov](http://www.ufc.com/athlete/Roman-Kopylov) [Watch on ESPN+](https://plus.espn.com/ufc?ex_cid=DSS-OFF-UFC-INARTICLE-EN) [Damon Jackson](https://www.ufc.com/athlete/damon-jackson) [Watch on ESPN+](https://plus.espn.com/ufc?ex_cid=DSS-OFF-UFC-INARTICLE-EN) [Ketlen Vieira](https://www.ufc.com/athlete/ketlen-vieira) [UFC FIGHT NIGHT: STRICKLAND vs IMAVOV](/event/ufc-fight-night-january-14-2023) will take place Saturday, January 14 at UFC APEX in Las Vegas. [Raquel Pennington](https://www.ufc.com/athlete/raquel-pennington) [Watch on ESPN+](https://plus.espn.com/ufc?ex_cid=DSS-OFF-UFC-INARTICLE-EN) [Sean Strickland ](/athlete/sean-strickland)take on No.

Our picks are in — UFC Vegas 67 kicks off 2023 for the UFC, and we've given our picks for the five main card fights at Saturday's Strickland vs.

Strickland vs. Ige vs. Soriano vs.

Enjoy the fights, everyone. Jimmy Flick vs. Charles Johnson. Round 1 – Alright, here we go with the first fight of 2023. Both fighters very cautious here ...

Vieira closes the distance and pins her against the cage. Alhassan closes the distance and pins Ribeiro against the cage. Rebecki closes the distance and punishes Fiore against the cage. Mendonca pushes Basharat against the fence. And Nascimento sinks in the rear-naked choke! And Argueta out-grapples Aguirre until the final bell. Argueta now presses and takes down Aguirre against the cage. And Aguirre loses the back and ends on bottom. Now Argueta presses Aguirre against the cage. Once again, Argueta presses Aguirre against the cage. And he gets the takedown and transitions to the back of Johnson. The card streams on ESPN+.

The UFC returns tonight (Jan. 14, 2023) after a holiday hiatus. Kelvin Gastelum is out of Saturday's main event due to injury so Sean Strickland will step ...

New York came in 10th place with ‘UFC fight night’ and ‘UFC tonight’ showing as the most popular searches. In fourth position is Arizona with a total search percentage of 3.6%. Rounding up the top five is New Mexico. The state’s high interest in UFC could be attributed to UFC featherweight star Max Holloway, a Hawaii native and world champion who defended his title three times. The state has many fighters representing it, past and present legends such as Chuck Lidell, Cain Velazquez and the Diaz brothers. A recent study shows that, to no surprise, Nevada is the state with the highest interest in the UFC. Nevada showed high interest in ‘UFC fight night’ and ‘UFC tonight.’ A total of 4.8% are searching for UFC or UFC related terms ranking Nevada in first place. Nine of his 12 wins are by KO or submission. He’s on a three-fight win streak and has won 9 of his last 10 fights. ESPN+ costs $9.99 a month. ET with prelims beginning at 4 p.m. The main card starts at 7 p.m.

The ad referred to the Jones-Gane bout as for the "world heavyweight championship," and there is no reference to interim.

With the UFC's all-time submission wins leader Charles Oliveira in his corner, Allan Nascimento got a slick finish at UFC Fight Night 217.

The long-awaited heavyweight debut of UFC star Jon Jones appears to be on the horizon, and it will be for a title. Jones confirmed to MMA content creator...

The graphic was later taken down, and MMA Fighting's [Steven Marrocco](https://twitter.com/MMAFightingSM/status/1614379795995045893) reported that it was a "behind-the-scenes mistake." [Ariel Helwani](https://twitter.com/arielhelwani/status/1614400996834414597) reported that heavyweight champion Francis Ngannou is likely to be stripped of his title. The fight against Gane was the last one remaining on his UFC deal. The 35-year-old had other run-ins with the law throughout his career, as he'd previously been arrested for a hit-and-run, driving under the influence, and negligent use of a firearm, among other charges. He vacated the title a few months later before announcing his intentions to move up to heavyweight, taking some time to #UFC285 pic.twitter.com/3ItpnKY4ni

The UFC is finalizing a lightweight bout between Justin Gaethje and Rafael Fiziev to its UFC 286 lineup in London in March, and the 155-pound contest is ...

[Rafael dos Anjos](http://www.espn.com/mma/fighter/_/id/2335687/rafael-dos-anjos) in the final round of his first main event appearance in July. Usman and Gaethje are teammates, fighting out of Denver. [Leon Edwards](https://www.espn.com/mma/fighter/_/id/3152929/leon-edwards) and [Kamaru Usman](http://www.espn.com/mma/fighter/_/id/3088812/kamaru-usman). The former interim champ 5-2 in his past seven appearances, and his only losses have come against two of the best lightweights of all time in Oliveira and Khabib Nurmagomedov. He's also picked up wins over the likes of [Brad Riddell](http://www.espn.com/mma/fighter/_/id/4575873/brad-riddell), [Bobby Green](http://www.espn.com/mma/fighter/_/id/2502364/bobby-green) and [Renato Moicano](http://www.espn.com/mma/fighter/_/id/3028863/renato-moicano). Contracts have not been signed, but the 155-pound contest is expected to be shored up shortly, multiple sources told ESPN on Saturday.

Umar Nurmagomedov maintains the undefeated streak shared by him, former UFC lightweight champion Khabib Nurmagomedov and Bellator lightweight champion Usman ...

Nurmagomedov improved to 16-0 with the first KO of his UFC career and second KO overall. Nurmagomedov stepped in with a failed knee to the head and immediately followed with a sneaky left hand that put Barcelos to sleep. Umar Nurmagomedov kicked off the UFC Fight Night main card with an emphatic knockout in Las Vegas on Saturday night.

The original main event for this card was supposed to be Kelvin Gastelum vs. Nassourdine Imavov, however, Kelvin had to pull out of the match. The ever-ready ...

He worked the way to the back and threatened with a rear-naked choke, but Aguirre hung tough and found a way out. The jab of Nurmagomedov was finding a home, and was the most landed strike of the round. It was then Argueta’s turn to take the back, and although he went for an RNC, he wasn’t able to land it. Ribeiro went right back to the calf kick to start the round, but went to the well too many times. They started to grapple from there, with Mendonça working for the takedown and Basharat refusing to be on his back. A glove to the eye resulted in a timeout, and the referee was brought in to check on Jackson. Nurmagomedov was also throwing a lot of teep kicks to try and keep Barcelos on the outside.Behind that teep, Nurmagomedov connected with a clean left hand that briefly stunned Barcelos. They broke apart and exchanged more punches in the middle of the Octagon, and then it was Rocky’s turn to press Vieira against the cage. Vieira reversed the position, and after eating a knee to the midsection, she landed a big cross of her own. A big punch from Ige opened up a cut on the forehead of Jackson, and to make things worse, it was dripping into the eye that was gloved in the previous round. She was connecting with her hands, and then used the moment to enter into the clinch. The fighters started to trade in the pocket at the start of the third frame.

Heavyweight Gold Will Be On The Line In Las Vegas When Jon Jones Faces Ciryl Gane Inside T-Mobile Arena On March 4. Tickets Go On Sale Friday, January 20.

](https://www.axs.com/events/460337/ufc-285-tickets?skin=tmobile) [Click here to buy tickets! Interviews

White also announced the rematch of Leon Edwards and Kamaru Usman.

Edward’s finish will go down as one of the best in UFC history and certainly the best of the last year. That has to live in the head of Usman a bit — he will see it over and over in the lead up to this matchup — but I’ll take Usman in this one. He has the speed and footwork to win against an aging Jones. Jones, 35, is 26-1 and holds the UFC record for most wins in title fight history. White also announced that the title fight rematch between Leon Edwards and Kamaru Usman will headline UFC 286 on March 18 in London. Jon Jones will officially move up to heavyweight and take on Ciryl Gane for the vacant heavyweight title at UFC 285 on March 4, UFC president Dana White announced Saturday.

Jon Jones' long-awaited return will come March 4 for the heavyweight title against Ciryl Gane, a bout that comes after the UFC failed to reach terms with ...

[Derrick Lewis](https://www.espn.com/mma/fighter/_/id/2560713/derrick-lewis) in August 2021. In his most recent appearance, he knocked out [Tai Tuivasa](http://www.espn.com/mma/fighter/_/id/3722422/tai-tuivasa) in the main event of a UFC Fight Night in September. White said Jones was "ready, willing and able" to fight any heavyweight, including Ngannou. He went on to hold the light heavyweight championship off and on from 2011 to 2020. He became the youngest UFC champion of all time in 2011 at age 23. White said the highest-paid heavyweight in UFC history remains

Dana White said the UFC offered Ngannou a contract that would have made him the highest-paid heavyweight in UFC history, but that Ngannou had turned it ...

Francis Ngannou is no longer UFC heavyweight champion and now free to sign with any other combat sports promotion. Ngannou's split from the UFC comes after ...

"We offered Francis a deal that would have made him the highest paid heavyweight in the history of the company. [press conference](https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=66uRauzIx6g) on Saturday in the immediate aftermath of [UFC Fight Night](https://www.cbssports.com/mma/news/ufc-fight-night-results-highlights-sean-strickland-pieces-up-nassourdine-imavov-for-decision-win/). Ngannou is currently on a six-fight winning streak defeating the likes of Gane, Stipe Miocic, Cain Velasquez and Curtis Blaydes. Jon Jones](https://www.cbssports.com/mma/news/ufc-285-fight-card-jon-jones-vs-ciryl-gane-set-for-heavyweight-title-clash-in-las-vegas-in-march/) will be contested for the vacant UFC heavyweight championship at UFC 285 in Las Vegas on March 4. And Jon Jones has been willing, and ready, and able to fight anybody. Francis Ngannou is no longer UFC heavyweight champion and now free to sign with any other combat sports promotion.

Albuquerque resident and longtime former UFC light heavyweight champion Jon “Bones” Jones will face France's Cyril Gane for that organization's heavyweight ...

Gane (11-1) lost to N’Gannou by unanimous decision in a bid for the title in January 2022. All three judges scored the fight 30-27 for Argueta, who trains at Jackson-Wink. Since defeating Reyes in Houston, Jones was banned from training at Albuquerque’s Jackson-Wink MMA by J-W co-owner Mike Winkeljohn after Jones’ September 2021 arrest in Las Vegas on domestic-violence charges.

Sean Strickland is back in the win column and Nassourdine Imavov is back to the drawing board. Strickland boxed and brawled his way to victory in a ...

Gastelum exited the event due to a mouth injury and Strickland stepped in on four days' notice. Strickland, less than one month after losing to Jared Cannonier in the final UFC fight of 2022, headlined the first card of 2023. Imavov showed a lot of determination in his first main event, fighting fatigue and landing nice elbows and knees on Strickland in Round 5. The pace slowed in the third, despite a similar output of strikes, as both fighters tried to recover from the stamina dump in Rounds 1 and 2. Strickland won on all three scorecards with a pair of 49-46s and a 48-47. Strickland boxed and brawled his way to victory in a short-notice performance against Imavov at UFC Fight Night in Las Vegas on Saturday night.

Sean Strickland, fighting on just five days' notice, started his 2023 on the right foot, outpointing Nassourdine Imavov by unanimous decision in the UFC ...

[Nassourdine Imavov](http://www.espn.com/mma/fighter/_/id/4690539/nassourdine-imavov) (12-4) by unanimous decision in the main event of UFC Fight Night on Saturday. He forced Imavov to fight him at a boxing range and kept up a steady repertoire of jabs and front kicks to the body. He suffered a decision loss to [Jared Cannonier](https://www.espn.com/mma/fighter/_/id/3154860/jared-cannonier) four weeks ago at a UFC Fight Night inside the Apex. Strickland snapped a two-fight skid with the win. Despite the lack of notice, Strickland led the dance for the most part on Saturday. Almost the entire 25-minute fight took place on the feet.

UFC welterweight champ Leon Edwards and Kamaru Usman will run it back for a third time at UFC 286 on March 18 in London.

The Nigerian-born fighter, who lives in Florida and trains out of Colorado, had five successful welterweight title defenses, tying him for second-most ever in the UFC 170-pound division with [Matt Hughes](https://www.espn.com/mma/fighter/_/id/4425995/matt-hughes). Edwards (20-3, 1 NC) is unbeaten in 11 straight fights dating back to that loss to Usman eight years ago. Usman had beaten Edwards previously in a nontitle fight in 2015.

Results As They Happen, Winner Interviews And More From UFC Fight Night: Strickland vs Imavov, Live From The UFC APEX In Las Vegas.

[Official Scorecards ](https://www.ufc.com/news/official-judges-scorecards-ufc-fight-night-strickland-vs-imavov-ufc-vegas-67) [Watch on ESPN+](https://plus.espn.com/ufc?ex_cid=DSS-OFF-UFC-INARTICLE-EN) [UFC Fight Night: Strickland vs Imavov](/event/ufc-fight-night-january-14-2023), live from the UFC APEX in Las Vegas, Nevada on January 14, 2023. [Sean Strickland](/athlete/sean-strickland)(25-5, fighting out of Las Vegas, Nev.) looks to break into the middleweight Top 5 for the first time in his career. by way of Oahu, Hawaii) takes on [Roman Kopylov](http://www.ufc.com/athlete/Roman-Kopylov)(9-2, fighting out of Bachatsky, Kemerovo, Russia) [Watch on ESPN+](https://plus.espn.com/ufc?ex_cid=DSS-OFF-UFC-INARTICLE-EN) [Dan Ige](/athlete/dan-ige)(15-6, fighting out of Las Vegas, Nev. [Damon Jackson](/athlete/damon-jackson)(22-4-1 1NC, fighting out of Dallas, Texas) looks to make the most of his first UFC co-main event opportunity. [Ketlen Vieira](https://www.ufc.com/athlete/ketlen-vieira)(13-2, fighting out of Manaus, Amazonas, Brazil) looks to stake her claim for a title shot when she takes on former title challenger and current No. by way of Accra, Ghana) in an intriguing middleweight bout [Watch on ESPN+](https://plus.espn.com/ufc?ex_cid=DSS-OFF-UFC-INARTICLE-EN) 13 ranked featherweight contender [Dan Ige](/athlete/dan-ige) squares off with streaking [Damon Jackson](/athlete/damon-jackson). [Carlos Hernandez](/athlete/carlos-hernandez), the Chute Boxe Diego Lima representative landed a front kick up the middle that caused Hernandez to pause and gave Nascimento the space he needed to get around to a back body lock. 12 ranked [Nassourdine Imavov](/athlete/nassourdine-imavov).

Sean Strickland stepped up on short notice and won a unanimous decision over Nassourdine Imavov in the main event of UFC Fight Night 217.

UFC president Dana White has announced Leon Edwards vs. Kamaru Usman 3 for the welterweight title is a done deal for UFC 286 in London.

In a corresponding move, Francis Ngannou has been removed as heavyweight champion and released from his contract. Ngannou is now a free agent and free to sign ...

After rattling off seven straight wins in the Octagon and winning the interim title, Gane got a shot at Francis Ngannou for the full world championship. From a no-contest against Daniel Cormier as a result of a failed drug test, which also resulted in Jones being stripped of the title in 2017, to other failed drug tests and legal trouble outside of the cage. Jones will face former interim heavyweight champion Ciryl Gane for the heavyweight championship in the main event of UFC 285 on March 4 at T-Mobile Arena in Las Vegas.

"Bones" Jones will finally make his return to the Octagon for the UFC heavyweight title in March against Gane. Our experts break down the matchup.

Even if Gane is significantly quicker, Jones will still have the wrestling advantage in his back pocket. That was always a strength for Jones at light heavyweight when he was in his 20s. That opens the door for Jones, who attacks with front kicks to the knee and with elbows and long left hands. [Dominick Reyes](https://www.espn.com/mma/fighter/_/id/4233039/dominick-reyes) in February 2020, Jones seemed more focused on the heavyweight king of the time. Gane will be well aware of that and concerned with it, perhaps to the degree that it'll make him less slick and aggressive on the feet. Gane is a tough matchup for most heavyweights, but Ngannou would have likely presented a much harder code for Jones to crack. And yet what a night it will be on March 4 if Jones can step inside the Octagon for the first time in more than three years, do so with a totally remade bulky physique that he hasn't yet test-driven and make his heavyweight debut a smashing success. And while adding a second divisional championship to his résumé would situate Jones among an exclusive club of UFC greats, even that accomplishment would come with an asterisk, because having the UFC belt wrapped around his waist would not make him the No. The one thing Jones has had in this move to heavyweight is time. Let's not forget that the past two light heavyweight title defenses for Jones were a bit lackluster in 2019 and 2020 (before the coronavirus pandemic started, by the way). And it seems like, by all accounts, he has been working hard and putting on the weight the correct way while adapting to it from an MMA training standpoint. The bout will be a title fight, as the UFC announced it had stripped the champ, Ngannou, of his belt and released him from the roster.

Jon Jones will face France's Cyril Gane for the UFC heavyweight title at the T-Mobile Arena on March 8 after champion Francis Ngannou vacated the belt to ...

His replacement as champion will be crowned when American Jones, a former light heavyweight champion who has previously been banned for doping, meets Gane, who held the interim heavyweight championship until he was beaten by Ngannou for the undisputed title in January 2022. Jan 15 (Reuters) - Jon Jones will face France's Cyril Gane for the UFC heavyweight title at the T-Mobile Arena on March 8 after champion Francis Ngannou vacated the belt to enter free agency, UFC president Dana White told a news conference. "We offered Francis a deal that would have made him the highest-paid heavyweight in the history of the company, more than (former champion Brock) Lesnar, more than anybody, and he turned the deal down," White said.

Francis Ngannou will be released from his contract and is no longer the UFC heavyweight champion after he turned down a contract that would have made him ...

“We did everything we could to make the fight happen and give him the fight. He can go wherever he wants and do whatever he wants.” Ngannou had been in negotiations for a new agreement for two years, White said, and plans were in place for the 36-year-old to fight Jones.

Early into Saturday's UFC event, the sign on the front of the T-Mobile Arena in Las Vegas featured a fight between Jon Jones and Ciryl Gane for UFC 285 on ...

While the former interim champion came up short that night, “Bon Gamin” returned to action in September where he headlined the UFC’s first event in France and stopped surging contender Tai Tuivasa in the third round. While a bout between former light-heavyweight champion Jones and current heavyweight king Ngannou has been targeted for some time now, Ngannou’s coach spoke earlier this week to say that the bout was still “50/50” in terms of the likelihood of it happening on the March 4 date. Instead, the three years since his departure have led many to wonder if it will happen at all or if Jones will even compete again in mixed martial arts. Notably, it is not unusual for Gane to be in attendance to corner and support Imavov as he was in attendance to support his teammate at events such as UFC 268 in 2021 as well. Long-considered the best pound-for-pound fighter in mixed martial arts, Jones has teased a move up in weight for ten years now but his decision to vacate his title in 2020 led many to believe the move would finally happen in short order. Several other sources have said the fight is a done deal, with verbal agreements in place.

Sean Strickland stepped in on short notice to fight Nassourdine Imavov at UFC Vegas 67 for the first UFC main event of 2023, less than a month after also ...

Sean wore on Imavov some more in the clinch in the second minute of the round but Imavov hit him with an elbow on the break again. Imavov landed a big knee to the head of a ducking Strickland in the final minute but Sean stayed on his feet. Although he did not dominate the round, he comfortably paced the action in the round and the round seemed to be the clearest to score of the fight so far. Midway through the round Strickland landed his biggest punch of the fight, a right hand that hurt Imavov and put him on the back foot. Strickland upped his work rate after that and when the round came to a close he had stolen the momentum. As a result, Strickland stepped in and the bout moved from middleweight to light-heavyweight at the last minute to accommodate him.