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As the year rolls forward, news and rumors will commence with updates on potential matchmaking, promotion updates and fight locations across UFC, PFL, Bellator and more. As such, we’ll have it all covered right here, with analysis and insight from our reporters and writers.
Check out our latest updates now and refresh often for the latest as the year unfolds.
Key links: MMA schedule | P4P rankings
Mar. 2: Could Mokaev be next in line for flyweight title shot?
Jeff Wagenheim: As one of only two Brazilians who own UFC belts, Alexandre Pantoja is targeting the May 4 fight card, UFC 301, in his hometown of Rio de Janeiro for his next men’s flyweight title defense. All he needs is an opponent.
Perfect timing for Muhammad Mokaev.
The 23-year-old from England remained undefeated on Saturday by edging onetime title challenger Alex Perez during the undercard of UFC Fight Night in Las Vegas. It would be fair to say Mokaev did not put on the kind of domineering performance that typically elevates a contender to a title shot. After submitting all but one of his previous UFC foes, Mokaev had difficulty getting Perez to the canvas.
However, the relentlessness of Mokaev made him look like a championship contender. He was successful on just three of his 20 takedown attempts, but he kept Perez on the defensive throughout. That resonated with the judges, all three of whom scored the bout 29-28 for Mokaev.
“Listen, 301, 10 weeks from today, I’m ready to fight for the belt,” he said afterward.
May 4 is actually nine weeks away, but Mokaev is not getting ahead of himself. He’s not even alone in calling for this fight.
“I think it makes total sense if he wins,” Pantoja said earlier in the week on MMA Fighting’s Portuguese-language podcast, “Trocação Franca.” The champ had just been cageside for last weekend’s flyweight showdown between Brandon Royval and ex-champ Brandon Moreno. Had Moreno won, he likely would have earned a title shot. But he didn’t win.
“Moreno had the ball in his court, and now Mokaev has it,” Pantoja said on the podcast. “Let’s see what happens.”
Mar. 2: Pedro walks away from UFC, leaves door open to MMA return
Brett Okamoto: Tyson Pedro left the UFC’s Octagon for the final time on Saturday, following a decision loss to Vitor Petrino.
The loss dropped Pedro’s record in the UFC to 6-5. He signed with the promotion in 2016 and got off to a hot start, finishing three of his first four opponents in the first round. Since then, however, he has struggled with injury and inconsistency.
“It’s always been my intention to show my daughter that as long as you work your ass off, you can do whatever your dreams are,” Pedro said. “I think my dreams have changed. That’s it for me in the UFC.
“I don’t think it’s ‘Goodbye,’ it’s ‘See you later.’ Until then.”
Pedro’s mention of a “See you later” leaves the door open for plenty of speculation. Will he continue to compete in MMA away from the UFC? Enter the boxing ring? Coach? He’s a popular guy with some name recognition, although you wonder if he’d have time to get a slot in the PFL’s demanding 2024 season, as it starts in less than two months.
Either way, it appears his time in the Octagon as a competitor is officially done. A three-year layoff from 2019 to 2022 interrupted the middle of his career, as he went 3-2 in the UFC following his return.
Feb. 29: Volkanovski says he’ll wait for Topuria rematch
Okamoto: Alexander Volkanovski says his next fight will “100%” be a rematch against Ilia Topuria.
Speaking in a video posted Wednesday on his YouTube channel, Volkanovski said he intends to take some time off after his second-round knockout loss to Topuria on Feb. 17, ending his reign as UFC men’s featherweight champion. It was Volkanovski’s second loss by knockout in a six-month span, and his fourth appearance overall in 12 months. Upon his return, however, he expects to run it back with Topuria immediately.
“I know my next fight is definitely going to be for the title and the rematch,” Volkanovski said. “If he has to go somewhere else because he [wants] to be active, I would be more than OK with [that]. Obviously, I’m not going to do that because of my head. You want to take that serious. But my next fight will definitely, 100% be the rematch.”
Topuria has said he will grant Volkanovski a rematch because he’s a “good person,” but has expressed interest in other matchups — including a move up to lightweight to face champion Islam Makhachev. Other likely options include former featherweight champ Max Holloway and highly ranked contender Brian Ortega.
Volkanovski acknowledged that his knockout loss to Makhachev in a short-notice October bout impacted his mindset going into the Topuria fight and that he would take the necessary time off this time around.
“Being champion, I felt like I had to be busy because that was the standard of a champion,” Volkanovski said. “Not only that, I wanted to capitalize on legacy. I wanted to get as many defenses, so I needed to get back in there. How much longer are you in your prime?
“Right now, a break is obviously good for the head, so it makes sense. And I know I ain’t fighting until the rematch, which isn’t going to be until later this year, so it’s perfect.”
Okamoto’s take: Everything Volkanovski is saying is smart, the correct approach and well justified. The biggest question is what the UFC wants to set up. Topuria is a hot commodity now and he’s targeting the biggest fish. Whether or not Volk is the biggest fish when he’s ready to come back is hard to say right now.
Feb. 27: Cejudo looking to take on Moreno at UFC 306
Andres Waters: Just weeks ago, Henry Cejudo announced that his then-upcoming fight against fellow UFC bantamweight title contender Merab Dvalishvili was “all or nothing” — stating that he could retire if he lost. The former double champ appears to have had a change of heart, following a unanimous decision loss to Dvalishvili.
Cejudo took to his YouTube channel to let MMA fans know that he is not done in the Octagon just yet. He then followed that announcement up with a call out of former flyweight champion Brandon Moreno, who is coming off a split decision loss to Brandon Royval at UFC Fight Night last weekend. Cejudo said he would like to face Moreno at UFC 306, which will take place on Mexican Independence Day at The Sphere in Las Vegas.
“What fight would be better than ‘Triple C’ vs. Brandon Moreno, the Mexican-American vs. the true Mexican [Moreno], and they come together, and they do a five-round showdown,” Cejudo said on his YouTube channel.
There is certainly a backstory to this fight if it were to happen. During Season 24 of “The Ultimate Fighter”, Cejudo, who trained with Moreno and advocated for him to be on the show, did not pick Moreno to be on his team. That situation sparked a feud that seems to still exist between them today. Moreno called for a fight against Cejudo last May, and Cejudo is finally ready to accept.
“I like it,” Cejudo said. “I think if there’s any way we should settle it, enough talking, enough cringing, enough antics, and enough all of that. The only way to get it on, Brandon Moreno, is I accept your challenge. Let’s do it: Mexican Independence Day.”
Feb. 22: PFL eyes Cyborg vs. Pacheco for summer or fall
Marc Raimondi: With Kayla Harrison leaving the promotion, PFL is refocusing on putting together a fight between Bellator featherweight champion Cris Cyborg and former PFL lightweight and featherweight champion Larissa Pacheco, PFL chairman Donn Davis told ESPN.
The plan, Davis said, is to have the two of them fight on a pay-per-view card in either the summer or early fall. PFL’s season will begin in April, and neither Cyborg nor Pacheco will be involved. Instead, Davis said they’ll be on PFL’s next pay-per-view, potentially in the co-main event of Francis Ngannou‘s first fight with the promotion.
PFL’s first big pay-per-view card since the acquisition of Bellator is Saturday in Saudi Arabia, which will pit top fighters from PFL against top fighters from Bellator, including several champion vs. champion matchups.
“We’ve told both Larissa and Cris: Great news, you guys get a mega fight, biggest women’s fight maybe this year against each other on the next PFL pay-per-view superfight, when that comes together,” Davis said. “We’re not going to shortchange you — you guys would be the co-main.”
Davis also said he’d love to see another fight at that same event: a matchup between kickboxing superstar Cedric Doumbé and former UFC lightweight champion Anthony Pettis.
Meanwhile, Cyborg is expected to do another boxing match this spring, before the Pacheco fight, sources said.
Feb. 20: Chandler callout of McGregor on Raw signals changing TKO landscape
WHOA! 😲😲😲@MikeChandlerMMA just called out @TheNotoriousMMA on #WWERaw! pic.twitter.com/pUN2dUFW1r
— WWE (@WWE) February 20, 2024
Raimondi: UFC star Michael Chandler made a surprise appearance Monday on WWE Raw in Anaheim, California — and cut a pretty darn good promo on Conor McGregor.
Chandler, who sat in the front row, was introduced by WWE ring announcer Samantha Irvin, and he proceeded to call out McGregor, who he has been scheduled to fight now for the better part of a year with no official date set yet. A WWE source said the segment happened “organically” and Chandler was impressive as “a showman.”
Sources said Chandler has an interest in doing more with WWE — perhaps even a match or more — and he posed for a photo afterward with WWE chief content officer Paul “Triple H” Levesque. Chandler also wrote on social media that a contract had been signed, but he was not specific as to what that meant.
The UFC was in Anaheim on Saturday for UFC 298, and WWE was in the same building on Monday for Raw. Look for more weekends and occurrences like this in the future, with the two promotions now under the same umbrella as TKO Group. The UFC and WWE signed a joint deal with OC Vibe to bring three events each to Honda Center in Anaheim over the next five years.
WWE stars CM Punk, Bianca Belair and Montez Ford were at UFC 298 Saturday, and many UFC people were at Raw, including Chandler, women’s strawweight fighter Tabatha Ricci, UFC 298 winner Oban Elliott, executives, behind-the-scenes personnel, and more. Callum Walsh, the up-and-coming Irish boxer backed by UFC CEO Dana White, was in attendance and shown on screen during the broadcast.
Outside Honda Center all weekend, there were two giant championship belts — one for UFC and one for WWE — there for photo ops.
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