Andre Muniz off UFC on ESPN 34 after Uriah Hall’s withdrawal

Andre Muniz will not be competing at UFC on ESPN 34 after all.

[autotag]Andre Muniz[/autotag] will not be competing at UFC on ESPN 34.

Muniz (22-4 MMA, 4-0 UFC) was scheduled to face [autotag]Uriah Hall[/autotag] (17-10 MMA, 10-8 UFC) on April 16 at the UFC Apex in Las Vegas, but Hall withdrew for undisclosed reasons.

The 32-year-old Brazilian was hoping to remain on the card, but the promotion wasn’t able to find him a replacement, MMA Junkie confirmed Wednesday after an initial report from MMA Fighting.

Muniz, MMA Junkie’s 2021 Under-the-Radar Fighter of the Year, was looking to continue building on his momentum. He became the first man to submit ADCC champion Ronaldo Souza in an MMA fight when he broke “Jacare’s” arm with a grueling armbar in the first round at UFC 262. He followed that up with another first-round armbar of Eryk Anders at UFC 269, extending his winning streak to eight.

With the change, the UFC on ESPN 34 lineup now includes:

  • Vicente Luque vs. Belal Muhammad
  • Chris Barnett vs. Martin Buday
  • Elizeu Zaleski dos Santos vs. Mounir Lazzez
  • Brandon Jenkins vs. Drakkar Klose
  • Rafa Garcia vs. Jesse Ronson
  • Caio Borralho vs. Gadzhi Omargadzhiev
  • Pannie Kianzad vs. Lina Lansberg
  • TJ Laramie vs. Pat Sabatini
  • Mayra Bueno Silva vs. Wu Yanan
  • Jordan Leavitt vs. Trey Ogden
  • Sam Hughes vs. Istela Nunes
  • Miguel Baeza vs. Andre Fialho
  • Heili Alateng vs. Kevin Croom
  • Devin Clark vs. William Knight

Report: Uriah Hall out of Andre Muniz matchup at UFC on ESPN 34

A key middleweight fight has been scrapped from the UFC’s return to Las Vegas later this month.

A key middleweight fight has been scrapped from the UFC’s return to Las Vegas later this month.

[autotag]Uriah Hall[/autotag] (17-10 MMA, 10-8 UFC) is out of his planned fight against [autotag]Andre Muniz[/autotag] (22-4 MMA, 4-0 UFC) at UFC on ESPN 34. Although the UFC has yet to make an official announcement that Hall is out, Muniz’s manager, Alex Davis, confirmed an initial report from MMA Fighting by saying on Twitter that Dricus du Plessis did not accept a matchup with Muniz.

Du Plessis on Friday stepped in on short notice to face Kelvin Gastelum at UFC 273 in a week. But not long after the bout agreement was signed, Gastelum had to pull out of the fight, leaving du Plessis without a fight just hours after he had one.

UFC on ESPN 34 takes place April 16 at the UFC Apex in Las Vegas. The card will air on ESPN and stream on ESPN+.

“Ultimate Fighter 17” finalist Hall was set to attempt to bounce back after a decision loss to Sean Strickland in a July 2021 main event. Prior to that set back, Hall was on a four-fight winning streak, including victories over former middleweight champions Anderson Silva and Chris Weidman.

Muniz, MMA Junkie’s 2021 Under-the-Radar Fighter of the Year, was hoping to keep his unbeaten UFC run intact against Hall. He has four straight UFC wins to open his tenure with the promotion, three of which were armbar submissions.

With the change, the UFC on ESPN 34 lineup now includes:

  • Vicente Luque vs. Belal Muhammad
  • Chris Barnett vs. Martin Buday
  • Andre Muniz vs. TBA
  • Elizeu Zaleski dos Santos vs. Mounir Lazzez
  • Brandon Jenkins vs. Drakkar Klose
  • Rafa Garcia vs. Jesse Ronson
  • Caio Borralho vs. Gadzhi Omargadzhiev
  • Pannie Kianzad vs. Lina Lansberg
  • TJ Laramie vs. Pat Sabatini
  • Mayra Bueno Silva vs. Wu Yanan
  • Jordan Leavitt vs. Trey Ogden
  • Sam Hughes vs. Istela Nunes
  • Miguel Baeza vs. Andre Fialho
  • Heili Alateng vs. Kevin Croom
  • Devin Clark vs. William Knight

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Uriah Hall set to face Andre Muniz at April 16 UFC Fight Night event

An interesting middleweight clash of styles is set for the UFC Fight Night event on April 16.

An intriguing middleweight matchup has been added to an upcoming UFC Fight Night event.

Dangerous striker Uriah Hall is set to meet surging submission specialist Andre Muniz on April 16. Two people with knowledge of the matchup confirmed the booking with MMA Junkie following an initial report from MMA Fighting.

The event is headlined by a welterweight matchup between Vicente Luque and Belal Muhammad, but does not yet have a confirmed venue or location.

“The Ultimate Fighter 17” finalist Hall (17-10 MMA, 10-8 UFC) will attempt to bounce back into the win column following a decision loss to Sean Strickland in his last outing. Prior to the set back, Hall was on an impressive win streak of four, including victories over former champions Anderson Silva and Chris Weidman.

MMA Junkie’s 2021 Under-the-Radar Fighter of the Year, Muniz (22-4 MMA, 4-0 UFC) will look to keep his undefeated UFC run intact. Entering the UFC following a first-round submission win on Dana White’s Contender Series, Muniz has rattled off four straight wins, three of which were finished early by armbar submissions.

With the addition, the April 16 event includes:

  • Vicente Luque vs. Belal Muhammad
  • Uriah Hall vs. Andre Muniz
  • Brandon Jenkins vs. Drakkar Klose
  • Miguel Baeza vs. Dhiego Lima
  • Chris Barnett vs. Martin Buday
  • Pannie Kianzad vs. Lina Lansberg

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MMA Junkie’s 2021 awards: A complete list of winners

Check out our complete list of 2022 award winners in MMA.

The MMA Junkie staff came together to hand out 15 awards for the 2021 calendar year. Congratulations to all the winners. The complete list can be seen below.

MMA rankings report, 2021 review: Who made the biggest leap during the year?

Bellator champ Yaroslav Amosov and UFC champ Glover Teixeira were among those who shot up the USA TODAY Sports/MMA Junkie rankings in 2021.

Before another exciting year of fights begin in 2022, John Morgan and “Gorgeous” George Garcia look back at the biggest movers in the USA TODAY Sports/MMA Junkie rankings during 2021.

Which fighters stood out in shooting up their respective divisions this past year? You can watch the video above for discussion on the fighters who made the biggest jumps this year including:

  • [autotag]Ciryl Gane[/autotag], UFC heavyweight
  • [autotag]Jiri Prochazka[/autotag], UFC light heavyweight
  • [autotag]Glover Teixeira[/autotag], UFC light heavyweight
  • [autotag]Anthony Johnson[/autotag], Bellator light heavyweight
  • [autotag]Andre Muniz[/autotag], UFC middleweight
  • [autotag]Sean Brady[/autotag], UFC welterweight
  • [autotag]Yaroslav Amosov[/autotag], Bellator welterweight
  • [autotag]Islam Makhachev[/autotag], UFC lightweight
  • [autotag]AJ McKee[/autotag], Bellator featherweight
  • Julianna Peña, UFC women’s bantamweight
  • Amanda Lemos, UFC women’s strawweight

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Andre Muniz believes he can tap Israel Adesanya, calls for fight against Darren Till

Andre Muniz is ready for big things in the middleweight division.

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LAS VEGAS – After pulling off another incredible armbar finish, [autotag]Andre Muniz[/autotag] has his next opponent in mind.

At UFC 269 on Saturday at T-Mobile Arena, Muniz trapped Eryk Anders’ arm, forcing him to tap from a tight armbar submission in the first round. In Muniz’s previous bout, he broke Ronaldo “Jacare” Souza’s arm using the same technique.

The Dana White’s Contender Series veteran has his sights set on big things going forward. Not only does he believe he has the skills to hang with the middleweight champ, Israel Adesanya, but he has also called out a big name who has headlined a number of UFC cards in the past.

Go inside Muniz’s third-straight submission victory below.

UFC 269 Promotional Guidelines Compliance pay: Second highest payout in program history

Fighters from Saturday’s UFC 269 took home UFC Promotional Guidelines Compliance pay totaling $323,500.

LAS VEGAS – Fighters from Saturday’s UFC 269 event took home UFC Promotional Guidelines Compliance pay totaling $323,500.

The program, a comprehensive plan that includes outfitting requirements, media obligations and other items under the fighter code of conduct, replaces the previous payments made under the UFC Athlete Outfitting Policy.

UFC 269 took place at T-Mobile Arena. The main card aired on pay-per-view following prelims on ESPN2 and ESPN+.

The full UFC 269 UFC Promotional Guidelines Compliance payouts included:

* * * *

[autotag]Charles Oliveira[/autotag]: $42,000
def. [autotag]Dustin Poirier[/autotag]: $32,000

[autotag]Julianna Pena[/autotag]: $32,000
def. [autotag]Amanda Nunes[/autotag]: $42,000

[autotag]Geoff Neal[/autotag]: $6,000
def. [autotag]Santiago Ponzinibbio[/autotag]: $11,000

[autotag]Kai Kara-France[/autotag]: $6,000
def. [autotag]Cody Garbrandt[/autotag]: $11,000

[autotag]Sean O’Malley[/autotag]: $6,000
def. [autotag]Raulian Paiva[/autotag]: $6,000

[autotag]Josh Emmett[/autotag]: $6,000
def. [autotag]Dan Ige[/autotag]: $11,000

[autotag]Dominick Cruz[/autotag]: $16,000
def. [autotag]Pedro Munhoz[/autotag]: $16,000

[autotag]Tai Tuivasa[/autotag]: $6,000
def. [autotag]Augusto Sakai[/autotag]: $6,000

[autotag]Bruno Silva[/autotag]: $4,000
def. [autotag]Jordan Wright[/autotag]: $4,500

[autotag]Andre Muniz[/autotag]: $4,500
def. [autotag]Eryk Anders[/autotag]: $11,000

[autotag]Erin Blanchfield[/autotag]: $4,000
def. [autotag]Miranda Maverick[/autotag]: $4,500

[autotag]Ryan Hall[/autotag]: $6,000
def. [autotag]Darrick Minner[/autotag]: $4,500

[autotag]Tony Kelley[/autotag]: $4,000
def. [autotag]Randy Costa[/autotag]: $4,500

[autotag]Gillian Robertson[/autotag]: $11,000
def. [autotag]Priscila Cachoeira[/autotag]: $6,000

Under the UFC Promotional Guidelines Compliance program’s payout tiers, which appropriate the money generated by Venum’s multi-year sponsorship with the UFC, fighters are paid based on their total number of UFC bouts, as well as Zuffa-era WEC fights (January 2007 and later) and Zuffa-era Strikeforce bouts (April 2011 and later). Fighters with 1-3 bouts receive $4,000 per appearance; 4-5 bouts get $4,500; 6-10 bouts get $6,000; 11-15 bouts earn $11,000; 16-20 bouts pocket $16,000; and 21 bouts and more get $21,000. Additionally, champions earn $42,000 while title challengers get $32,000.

In addition to experience-based pay, UFC fighters will receive in perpetuity royalty payments amounting to 20-30 percent of any UFC merchandise sold that bears their likeness, according to officials.

Full 2021 UFC Promotional Guidelines Compliance payouts:

Year-to-date total: $5,929,000
Program-to-date total: $5,929,000

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UFC 269 video: Andre Muniz overwhelms Eryk Anders, scores third consecutive armbar finish

Watch Andre Muniz submit Eryk Anders with ease at Saturday’s UFC 269.

[autotag]Andre Muniz[/autotag] is quickly establishing himself as one of the biggest submission threats at 185 pounds.

The rising UFC middleweight contender scored a third consecutive armbar finish at Saturday’s UFC 269 in Las Vegas. Muniz (22-4 MMA, 4-0 UFC) submitted Eryk Anders (14-6 MMA, 6-6 UFC) with ease, getting the tap at the 3:13 mark of Round 1.

Muniz overwhelmed Anders from the start, closing the distance and engaging the grappling exchanges. The Brazilian quickly got Anders to the ground, got his back, and from there transitioned to the armbar.

You can watch Muniz’ finish in the video below (via Twitter):

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This marks Muniz fourth consecutive victory since joining the UFC in 2019 and his third consecutive armbar finish. He was coming off a big win where he broke veteran and grappling standout Ronaldo “Jacare” Souza’s arm in just four minutes.

Muniz is currently on an eight-fight winning streak and he’s 16-1 in his past 17 fights.

Up-to-the-minute results of UFC 269 include:

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UFC 269 play-by-play and live results (6 p.m. ET)

Check out live play-by-play and official results from UFC 269 in Las Vegas.

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LAS VEGAS – MMA Junkie is on the scene for Saturday’s UFC 269 event.

UFC 269 takes place at the T-Mobile Arena in Las Vegas. The main card airs on pay-per-view following prelims on ESPN/ESPN+ and early prelims on ESPN+.

In the main event, Charles Oliveira will look to record his first lightweight title defense against former interim champion Dustin Poirier. In the co-feature, two-division champion Amanda Nunes will put her women’s bantamweight title on the line against Julianna Pena. Also, former bantamweight champion Cody Garbradnt drops down to flyweight for the first time where he will meet Kai Kara-France. The eccentric Sean O’Malley takes on Raulian Paiva to kick things off the pay-per-view main card.

To discuss the show, be sure to check out our UFC 269 discussion thread. You can also get behind-the-scenes coverage and other event notes from on-site reporters John Morgan (@MMAjunkieJohn) and Mike Bohn (@MikeBohnMMA) on Twitter.

Enjoy the fights, everyone.

Eryk Anders fills in for injured Dricus Du Plessis, faces Andre Muniz at UFC 269

Eryk Anders will fill in for the injured Dricus Du Plessis at UFC 269.

The injury bug has hit the final UFC pay-per-view event of 2021.

A middleweight contest between Dricus Du Plessis and Andre Muniz scheduled to take place at UFC 269 in December has been altered after Du Plessis pulled out of the bout due to an injury. MMA DNA first reported the news of the withdrawal.

All is not lost for Muniz (21-4 MMA, 3-0 UFC), however, because a replacement opponent has been found. [autotag]Eryk Anders[/autotag] will step up on a month’s notice to compete in the middleweight contest. In addition to Muniz acknowledging the change on his Instagram story, MMA Junkie confirmed the new matchup with sources familiar with the situation.

The bout will be the third fight of the calendar year for Anders, who faced Darren Stewart twice. Their first meeting in March resulted in a no contest due to an illegal knee. The pair immediately ran it back three months later at UFC 263 where Anders would win via unanimous decision.

Muniz, a two-time Dana White’s Contender Series veteran, competed in his third UFC bout in May at UFC 262, when he broke Jacare Souza’s arm during an inverted armbar in the first round. Muniz is undefeated in his UFC tenure thus far and is currently riding a seven fight win streak.

With the change, the UFC 269 lineup includes:

MAIN CARD (Pay-per-view, 10 p.m. ET)

  • Charles Oliveira vs. Dustin Poirier – for lightweight title
  • Amanda Nunes vs. Julianna Pena – for women’s bantamweight title
  • Leon Edwards vs. Jorge Masvidal
  • Cody Garbrandt vs. Kai Kara-France
  • Sean O’Malley vs. Raulian Paiva

PRELIMINARY CARD (ESPN, ESPN+, 8 p.m. ET)

  • Geoff Neal vs. Santiago Ponzinibbio
  • Dominick Cruz vs. Pedro Munhoz
  • Josh Emmett vs. Dan Ige
  • Eryk Anders vs. Andre Muniz
  • Erin Blanchfield vs. Miranda Maverick

PRELIMINARY CARD (ESPN+, 6 p.m. ET)

  • Alex Perez vs. Matt Schnell
  • Ryan Hall vs. Darrick Minner
  • Priscila Cachoeira vs. Gillian Robertson
  • Randy Costa vs. Tony Kelley
  • Bruno Silva vs. Jordan Wright

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