Latest news with #UFC318
Yahoo
2 days ago
- Sport
- Yahoo
UFC 318 adding Kevin Holland
UFC 318 goes down on July 19th in New Orleans and today we learned about a really fun matchup in the welterweight division that's been added to the card. Kevin K was the first to report that 14th ranked welterweight Kevin Holland (28-13, 1 NC) will be defending his spot in the rankings against 'D-Rod' Daniel Rodriguez (19-5). This is a fight that was actually supposed to take place at UFC 279 in September 2022. Of course, Khamzat Chimaev massively missed weight for his fight with Nate Diaz which caused the entire fight card to shift. Holland ended up fighting and losing to Chimaev while Rodriguez fought Li Jingliang and won a split decision. Advertisement After that win over Li, Rodriguez hit tough times losing three fights in a row. However, he's bounced back well since the end of last year with a decision win over Alex Morono then a big time knockout win over Santiago Ponzinibbio in May. Kevin Holland will be making the walk for the fourth time already in 2025 on July 19th. Holland said that he wanted to fight up to six times this year and it looks like he's going to. Holland started the year with a loss to Reinier De Ridder at middleweight prompting him to drop back down to 170. Holland said that he's really dedicated to this welterweight run and that's shown in his last two fights. He defeated Gunnar Nelson back in May and then just a few weeks ago at UFC 316, he submitted Vicente Luque in the second round of their fight. Holland called out some bigger names, but the desire to fight again soon won out and now he's facing D-Rod. Related Headlines
USA Today
2 days ago
- Sport
- USA Today
Big men headed to 'Big Easy': Lukasz Brzeski vs. Ryan Spann set for UFC 318 in New Orleans
The UFC's return to "The Big Easy" continues to build with a little lagniappe at heavyweight. A bout between big men Lukasz Brzeski (9-6-1 MMA, 1-5 UFC) and Ryan Spann (22-11 MMA, 8-6 UFC) has been added to UFC 318 next month. A person with knowledge of the matchup confirmed the fight to MMA Junkie, but asked to remain anonymous because the UFC has not yet made a formal announcement of the fight. UFC 318 takes place July 19 at Smoothie King Center in New Orleans. The card features a trilogy bout between the retiring local Dustin Poirier and Max Holloway for the BMF title. Spann will try to bounce back from a second-round TKO loss to Waldo Cortes-Acosta in March. That setback was his fourth in five fights, but also his first at heavyweight after years at 205 pounds. His final bout at light heavyweight, though, was a bonus-winning submission of Ovince St. Preux at UFC 307. Brzeski has a recent TKO loss to Cortes-Acosta on his resume, too. But after that 2023 setback, he bounced back with a win over Valter Walker – which stands as his only win in the UFC. The 33-year-old Polish fighter got into the UFC through a DWCS win that was flipped to a no contest for a failed drug test, and once in, he's struggled with losses in five of six fights. With the addition, the UFC 318 lineup now includes:
USA Today
2 days ago
- Sport
- USA Today
Kevin Holland's crazy pace continues with Daniel Rodriguez booking at UFC 318
Kevin Holland said he wanted to stay busy this year, and he'll do just that. Holland (28-13 MMA, 15-10 UFC) has been booked for a welterweight fight against Daniel Rodriguez (19-5 MMA, 9-4 UFC) next month at UFC 318, which takes place July 19 at Smoothie King Center in New Orleans. The card features a trilogy bout between the retiring local Dustin Poirier and Max Holloway for the BMF title. MMA Junkie confirmed the matchup with a person with knowledge of the fight, and Holland confirmed the booking on social media. The UFC has not yet made a formal announcement of the bout, which first surfaced on social media. The two were booked to fight at UFC 279 nearly three years ago, but a weigh-in day abnormality pushed Holland into a new fight with Khamzat Chimaev, which he lost, and Rodriguez into a new fight with Jingliang Li, which he won. Holland has fought three times already this calendar year. In the UFC's first event of 2025, he was submitted by promotional newcomer Reinier de Ridder, a former two-division ONE Championship titleholder. But in March, he rebounded with a bonus-winning decision over Gunnar Nelson, and earlier this month he submitted Vicente Luque at UFC 316 for a second straight bonus. Rodriguez has bounced back from a rough patch of three straight losses to Neil Magny, Ian Machado Garry and Kelvin Gastelium with a decision win over Alex Morono this past fall and a third-round knockout of Santiago Ponzinibbio in May. That was his first stoppage win in nearly four years. With the addition, the UFC 318 lineup now includes:
USA Today
5 days ago
- Sport
- USA Today
Paulo Costa vs. Roman Kopylov officially moved from UFC 317 to next month's UFC 318
UFC 317 loses Paulo Costa vs. Roman Kopylov due to illness. UFC 317 has lost a notable bout. The middleweight clash between former UFC title challenger Paulo Costa and Roman Kopylov has been moved to next month's UFC 318, which goes down on July 19 at Smoothie King Center in New Orleans, La. Costa won't be able to compete this Saturday in Las Vegas due to illness, thus postponing the bout for the next UFC pay-per-view. The UFC officially announced the news of the change on Monday. Costa is looking to get himself out of a career rut. Since getting a middleweight title shot after going 13-0 in his professional career, Costa has gone 1-4 with his lone win being a unanimous decision victory over Luke Rockhold in 2022. Costa was last seen in action in June 2024 when he lost a split decision to Sean Strickland. In a much more different position, Kopylov attempts to build on his current winning streak. Being 6-1 in his past seven bouts and on a two-fight winning streak, Kopylov looks to establish himself as a contender and add the biggest name he's faced to date in Costa. Kopylov is coming off a TKO win over Chris Curtis in January. Updated UFC 317 fight card
USA Today
20-06-2025
- Sport
- USA Today
Charles Oliveira unsure UFC 317 backup Arman Tsarukyan gets title fight winner
Charles Oliveira is content with Arman Tsarukyan being positioned as the title fight alternate at UFC 317, but doesn't know if that means he will face the winner of his clash with Ilia Topuria. Oliveira (35-10 MMA, 23-10 UFC) will meet Topuria (16-0 MMA, 8-0 UFC) for the vacant lightweight championship in the main event of the June 28 card at T-Mobile Arena in Las Vegas (ESPN+ pay-per-view, ESPN, ESPN+), and as insurance for the matchup, Tsarukyan (22-3 MMA, 9-2 UFC) will weigh in as the official backup. Although the ideal scenario would be for the fight with Topuria to go forward as planned, if something chaotic happens before stepping into the octagon and Tsarukyan's services are needed, then Oliveira said he would proceed with UFC's secondary plan. "I didn't know he was the backup, but if that's what the UFC decides, then that's what we're going to do," Oliveira told MMA Junkie through an interpreter. "He's also a great guy and a great opponent. So, we'll see." Oliveira suffered a split decision loss to Tsarukyan at UFC 300 in April 2024. The victory sent Tsarukyan into a title shot against then-champ Islam Makhachev at UFC 311 in January, but he withdrew on weigh-in day due to a back injury and has been trying to restore his image with the UFC brass ever since. Whether Tsarukyan doing the job as UFC 317 backup fighter puts him in better standing with executives remains to be seen, but there will be multiple fighters clamoring for the winner of Oliveira vs. Topuria. Tsarukyan is among them, but there is also Justin Gaethje, who has made his desire very clear to challenge for the belt next, and BMF champ Max Holloway has also staked his claim if he beats Dustin Poirier at UFC 318 on July 19 in New Orleans. Oliveira said he can't pinpoint who is going to be the first challenger to the new champion crowned at UFC 317, but he admits there's multiple viable candidates. "The reality is that everyone is right there," Oliveira said. "Everyone is in that position, so everyone wants an opportunity. It's hard for me to say who it is that deserves it or not."
