Latest news with #Bellator
USA Today
2 days ago
- Sport
- USA Today
2025 PFL World Tournament 7 live results and highlights from Chicago
PFL continues second-round action Friday with 2025 PFL World Tournament 7, and you can keep up to date with live results and highlights throughout the event. 2025 PFL World Tournament 7 takes place at Wintrust Arena in Chicago, and broadcasts live on ESPN and ESPN+. The event features semifinal tournament bouts in the middleweight, light heavyweight and heavyweight divisions. In the main event, former Bellator title challenger Fabian Edwards (14-4) takes on Josh Silveira (14-4). In the co-feature, former Bellator champion Phil Davis (25-7) faces Sullivan Cauley (7-1). 2025 PFL World Tournament 7 results MAIN CARD (ESPN, ESPN+, 10:30 p.m. ET) PRELIMINARY CARD (ESPN+, 8:30 p.m. ET) 2025 PFL World Tournament 7 weigh-in gallery
Irish Daily Mirror
4 days ago
- Sport
- Irish Daily Mirror
Richie Smullen gearing up for Oktagon MMA debut
Irish MMA fighter Richie Smullen believes he is in good stead ahead of his upcoming Oktagon MMA debut. Speaking to the Irish Daily Mirror, the Arklow native said: "I'm feeling good, I'm looking forward to the big opportunity to fight in Oktagon in front of a sold out 15,000 seater arena, it's the stuff you dream of doing." The lightweight fighter explained how his fight prep had been going well in the build-up to facing Vojto Barborík in Hamburg on Saturday. "Camp's been great, it's been one of the better ones to be honest with you, there was no injuries, great training pattern with the weights being low. Everything fell into place for this camp. It just worked out perfect. "I pretty much finished up live training Saturday, so this week will just be sweating, light bit of pads, nothing crazy, just getting ready for the cut is all. The training's already been done - if that makes sense - over the past few weeks." He has been coached throughout his career by John Kavanagh who has coached a wide range of Irish MMA stars including Conor McGregor. Smullen said: "I actually started in MMA with Jon Kavanagh. I started doing MMA as a whole and then I just ran with Jiu Jitsu and Jon gave me rules. "I wanted to fight amateur MMA and he said go do some Jiu Jitsu competition experience and do a team called MMA League. So I started competing all the time and then I ended up having loads of Jiu Jitsu tournament matches and competitions and then I made my amateur debut in 2013. It was all like a big rollercoaster." The 33-year-old spoke on his graduation into professional MMA. He said: "I had a lot of amateur fights. They went pretty well in fairness. I had a good record at amateur and then, I don't know what happened with pro. I was just kind of, on the end, I had a few good wins over some of the better guys in the country. I thought I'd join a bout going pro and I was waiting for you to ask me. So then it happened. "I was meant to have my pro debut on BAMMA in Dublin, but it got cancelled. I ended up having my pro debut in Liverpool in Shinobi. I wasn't expecting to get this far. I ended up fighting in Bellator, I fought in the UFC, I fought in Brave, I fought in all the big shows and now it's Oktagon. "At the start I probably didn't think this would ever happen, but now I'm here, I'm doing it. It's hard to explain if that makes sense." After a solid start in pro MMA he was signed to the Ultimate Fighter, where he fought to compete for a UFC contract, losing in the final to Luis Pena in 2018. He learned from the experience, saying "Yeah, it was kind of crazy. It's one of those things, you can't really change the past. If I could go back now, it's all down to diet and looking after yourself. If you look at most of my career, it's always been 6 or 7 fights in Bellator as well, Brave. I've been quite lucky from the start to have big fights and big shows. It's all down to my coach, John. It's down to the opportunities I got as well. There's a lot of people to thank for everything along the way. A lot of really good fighters never get the chance, I've always got the chance and I'm very grateful for that." It has been nine months like Smullen's last fight but he has spent the time well, recuperating, training and most importantly, getting married. He said: "I wanted to fight early February but nothing was available. I got married and had holidays booked with the kids. I tried to get a fight in April or May but it just wasn't happening, I was offered this in June so I just took the time to improve and train and get ready to go again." He is looking forward to the bout this Saturday, and expects to have the edge on his opponent. He said: "My opponent is quite good. I think where he's good I'm better. It's going to be a fun Saturday night. "He's a grappler as well. I think it'll be a high level grappling match to be honest with you. It's a big opportunity, this guy I'm fighting has fought for the belt and all before. He's had a lot of fights in Oktagon and a lot of hype behind him. It's given me a big opportunity to take it off him. "I'm hoping to finish him at the end of the second or early third."
USA Today
6 days ago
- Entertainment
- USA Today
Photo: Aaron Pico looks absolutely shredded ahead of UFC debut
Aaron Pico is looking all-time swole ahead of his long-awaited, much-anticipated UFC debut. Perhaps it's the lighting, but I doubt it. Like, name a more vascular-looking human than the one pictured below. Pico (13-4 MMA, 0-0 UFC) has always been in tremendous shape, but perhaps never better than right now, per a photo posted to his Instagram story Saturday. The image, which went viral Monday, had every anonymous X user and troll hurling not-so-nice things toward Pico. Accusations of nefarious behaviors and comparisons to Michael Chandler flooded the comments. There seemed to be many more couch potato, armchair quarterbacks weighing in than concerned citizens, as is the case with most things on social media in 2025, of course. It should be noted that while Pico competed in Bellator for his entire pro MMA career up until now, he has been drug tested and has never had an issue. A staple of Bellator cards in his native California, Pico was subject to various California State Athletic Commission (CSAC) drug tests. Thus far, under UFC anti-doping (CSAD), he's been tested once. Pico, 28, will look to show that he has the abilities to match his appearance when he's thrown right into the featherweight mix July 26 vs. Movsar Evloev (19-0 MMA, 9-0 UFC) in Abu Dhabi. The Blue Corner is MMA Junkie's blog space. If you come complaining to us that something you read here is not hard-hitting news, that's on you.
Yahoo
6 days ago
- Entertainment
- Yahoo
Photo: Aaron Pico looks absolutely shredded ahead of UFC debut
Aaron Pico is looking all-time swole ahead of his long-awaited, much-anticipated UFC debut. Perhaps it's the lighting, but I doubt it. Like, name a more vascular-looking human than the one pictured below. Advertisement Pico (13-4 MMA, 0-0 UFC) has always been in tremendous shape, but perhaps never better than right now, per a photo posted to his Instagram story Saturday. The image, which went viral Monday, had every anonymous X user and troll hurling not-so-nice things toward Pico. Accusations of nefarious behaviors and comparisons to Michael Chandler flooded the comments. There seemed to be many more couch potato, armchair quarterbacks weighing in than concerned citizens, as is the case with most things on social media in 2025, of course. It should be noted that while Pico competed in Bellator for his entire pro MMA career up until now, he has been drug tested and has never had an issue. A staple of Bellator cards in his native California, Pico was subject to various California State Athletic Commission (CSAC) drug tests. Thus far, under UFC anti-doping (CSAD), he's been tested once. Advertisement Pico, 28, will look to show that he has the abilities to match his appearance when he's thrown right into the featherweight mix July 26 vs. Movsar Evloev (19-0 MMA, 9-0 UFC) in Abu Dhabi. The Blue Corner is MMA Junkie's blog space. If you come complaining to us that something you read here is not hard-hitting news, that's on you. This article originally appeared on MMA Junkie: UFC news: Aaron Pico looking freakishly shredded ahead of debut
USA Today
21-06-2025
- Sport
- USA Today
Myktybek Orolbai plays spoiler, cranks Tofiq Musayev into first-round tap at UFC Baku
Myktybek Orolbai was in position to play spoiler for the UFC debut of Tofiq Musayev in front of his home fans, and he did it in a big way. Orolbai (14-2-1 MMA, 3-1 UFC) submitted Musayev (22-6 MMA, 0-1 UFC) with a picture-perfect kimura with 25 seconds left in the first round of their lightweight fight on the main card at UFC on ABC 8. Musayev came out to a big ovation from the fans at Baku Crystal Hall in Baku, Azerbaijan, where the UFC set up shop for the first time, but Orolbai left them disappointed. In the buildup to the fight, Orolbai said he was planning a surprise for Musayev, and that may have come in the form of three takedowns in the opening minutes of the fight. Ultimately, that was his perfect path to the win. Check out the tail end of his finish below. Orolbai got back in the win column after a Fight of the Night loss to Mateusz Rebecki this past October, which snapped an eight-fight streak. Musayev, a former Bellator and Rizin standout, dropped his promotional debut and had a two-fight streak snapped. Up-to-the-minute UFC Baku results:
