UFC veterans in MMA and karate action Dec. 14-17

Check out which veterans of the UFC are competing in combat sports across the globe this weekend.

This week, the UFC wraps up its year with a pay-per-view event in Las Vegas.

UFC 296 takes place at T-Mobile Arena, and features a pair of title fights. In the main event, [autotag]Leon Edwards[/autotag] looks to defend his welterweight title against [autotag]Colby Covington[/autotag], and [autotag]Alexandre Pantoja[/autotag] defends his flyweight crown against [autotag]Brandon Royval[/autotag].

Elsewhere, many other combat sports events are taking place that feature a number of familiar names that have competed under the UFC banner.

Check out which veterans of the global MMA leader are competing Dec. 14-17.

Scroll below to see how the UFC veterans fared last week, and see the names and details of this weekend’s competitors.

Upcoming event information from Tapology.

UFC veterans in MMA, bareknuckle boxing and karate action Sept. 15-16

Check out which veterans of the UFC are competing in combat sports across the globe this weekend.

This week, the returns to its home base in Las Vegas for Noche UFC.

The event celebrating Mexican Independence Day takes place at T-Mobile Arena and features a women’s flyweight title rematch between champion [autotag]Alexa Grasso[/autotag] and [autotag]Valentina Shevchenko[/autotag].

Elsewhere, many other combat sports events are taking place that feature a number of familiar names that have competed under the UFC banner.

Check out which veterans of the global MMA leader are competing in MMA, bareknuckle boxing and karate this week from Sept. 15-16.

Check out the names and details about their bouts below.

Upcoming event information from Tapology.

These 10 UFC veterans are in MMA and bareknuckle action Aug. 26-28

Check out which veterans of the UFC are competing in promotions across the globe this weekend.

The UFC is idle this week before it takes the show to Paris for UFC Fight Night 209.

However, there are a number of MMA and bareknuckle events taking place that feature many familiar names that have competed under the UFC banner.

From one of the greatest of all time to a one-time appearance in a finale of The Ultimate Fighter, there are 11 veterans of the global leader competing this weekend from Aug. 26-28.

Check out the names and details about their bouts below.

Thomas Almeida, Emily Whitmire among 5 fighters no longer on UFC roster

The UFC has parted ways with five fighters, including Thomas Almeida and Emily Whitmire.

Five fighters are no longer on the UFC roster, including a former bantamweight contender.

Multiple people with knowledge of the releases recently informed MMA Junkie of the roster moves but asked to remain anonymous since the promotion hasn’t made an official announcement. The roster changes came to light after the fighters were moved to the “former fighters” section of the UFC’s website (h/t UFC Roster Watch).

Check out the recent UFC departures below. The roster moves, unless explicitly noted, are not necessarily a “cut.” The UFC may have elected not to re-sign certain fighters who were at the end of their contracts.

UFC Fight Night 192 post-event facts: Anthony Smith becoming an all-time great finisher

Check out all the facts and figures from UFC Fight Night 192, which saw Anthony Smith extend his winning streak with a main event finish.

UFC Fight Night 192 featured a rare first-round submission finish in the main event as [autotag]Anthony Smith[/autotag] put away [autotag]Ryan Spann[/autotag].

Saturday’s event, which took place at the UFC Apex in Las Vegas, featured a key light heavyweight matchup in the headliner. Smith (35-16 MMA, 11-6 UFC) shined once again to close a fight card, as he managed to hurt Spann (19-7 MMA, 5-2 UFC) on the feet before closing the show with a rear-naked choke.

“Lionheart” almost never sees the judges, and that track record is starting to show itself on his overall UFC resume.

For more on the numbers, check below for 35 post-event facts to come out of UFC Fight Night 192.

UFC Fight Night 192 Promotional Guidelines Compliance pay: Anthony Smith’s $16k tops card

UFC Fight Night 192 fighters took home UFC Promotional Guidelines Compliance pay, a program that continued after the UFC’s deal with Venum.

LAS VEGAS – Fighters from Saturday’s UFC Fight Night 192 event took home UFC Promotional Guidelines Compliance pay totaling $162,000.

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 Fight Night 192 took place at the UFC Apex. The entire card streamed on ESPN+.

The full UFC Fight Night 192 UFC Promotional Guidelines Compliance payouts included:

* * * *

[autotag]Anthony Smith[/autotag]: $16,000
def. [autotag]Ryan Spann[/autotag]: $6,000

[autotag]Ion Cutelaba[/autotag]: $11,000
def. [autotag]Devin Clark[/autotag]: $11,000

[autotag]Ariane Lipski[/autotag]: $6,000
def. [autotag]Mandy Bohm[/autotag]: $4,000

[autotag]Arman Tsarukyan[/autotag]: $4,500
def. [autotag]Christos Giagos[/autotag]: $6,000

[autotag]Nate Maness[/autotag]: $4,000
def. [autotag]Tony Gravely[/autotag]: $4,500

[autotag]Joaquin Buckley[/autotag]: $4,500
def. [autotag]Antonio Arroyo[/autotag]: $4,000

[autotag]Tafon Nchukwi[/autotag]: $4,000
def. [autotag]Mike Rodriguez[/autotag]: $6,000

[autotag]Raquel Pennington[/autotag]: $11,000
def. [autotag]Pannie Kianzad[/autotag]: $6,000

[autotag]Rong Zhu[/autotag]: $4,000
def. [autotag]Brandon Jenkins[/autotag]: $4,000

[autotag]Montel Jackson[/autotag]: $6,000
def. [autotag]JP Buys[/autotag]: $4,000

[autotag]Erin Blanchfield[/autotag]: $4,000
def. [autotag]Sarah Alpar[/autotag]: $4,000

[autotag]Carlston Harris[/autotag]: $4,000
def. [autotag]Impa Kasanganay[/autotag]: $4,500

[autotag]Gustavo Lopez[/autotag]: $4,500
vs. [autotag]Heili Alateng[/autotag]: $4,500

[autotag]Hannah Goldy[/autotag]: $4,000
def. [autotag]Emily Whitmire[/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: $3,592,500
Program-to-date total: $3,592,500

UFC Fight Night 192 video: Viral sensation Joaquin Buckley storms to TKO of Antonio Arroyo

The Joaquin Buckley highlight reel continues to grow after another big finish at UFC Fight Night 192.

The [autotag]Joaquin Buckley[/autotag] highlight reel continues to grow after another big finish Saturday at UFC Fight Night 192.

After a back-and-forth middleweight fight for more than two rounds, Buckley (13-4 MMA, 3-2 UFC) came out eager to do something big in the third round of his bout with [autotag]Antonio Arroyo[/autotag] (9-5 MMA, 0-3 UFC). He got that with a TKO at the 2:26 mark of Round 3.

Buckley stormed Arroyo with a combination and landed a right hook and short uppercut combination that floored Arroyo. He landed a few follow-up blows to force the referee to step in.

Check out the replay of Buckley’s finish (via Twitter):

After recording the 2020 “Knockout of the Year” with his viral finish of Impa Kasanganay, Buckley had some of the wind taken out of his sails with a brutal knockout loss to Alessio Di Chirico in January. He bounced back strong, though.

It was an important fight for both Buckley and Arroyo, and while Buckley admitted post-fight he would’ve likely lost a decision (one judge had Arroyo up 20-18 after two rounds, and the other two had the fight even), he took that element out of the equation by stopping the fight with strikes.

“That was a beautiful fight for me and Antonio, man,” Buckley said in his post-fight interview with Michael Bisping. “I know he was fighting for his job. UFC, keep this man. Keep him.”

[vertical-gallery id=1027824]

[vertical-gallery id=1027790]

Matchup Roundup: New UFC and Bellator fights announced in the past week (July 19-25)

All the UFC and Bellator fight announcements that were broken or confirmed by MMA Junkie in the past week.

MMA fight announcements are hard to follow. With so many outlets and channels available, it’s nearly impossible to organize.

But here at MMA Junkie, we’ve got your back.

Each week, we’ll compile all the newly surfaced fights in one spot. Every Monday, expect a feature listing everything you might have missed from the UFC or Bellator.

Here are the fight announcements that were broken or confirmed by MMA Junkie from July 19-25:

UFC adds Antonio Arroyo vs. Joaquin Buckley to Sept. 18 event

A middleweight fight involving the owner of one of the most viral KOs in UFC history is on tap for this fall.

One of the viral stars of 2020 is back as he seeks to rebound from the second knockout loss of his UFC career.

[autotag]Joaquin Buckley[/autotag], known for his wild spinning back kick knockout of Impa Kasanganay, will return to action Sept. 18 when he battles Brazil’s [autotag]Antonio Arroyo[/autotag] in a middleweight bout at a location and venue to be announced.

Two people with knowledge of the matchup recently informed MMA Junkie of the booking but asked to remain anonymous as the promotion has yet to make an official announcement.

Buckley (12-4 MMA, 2-2 UFC) most recently competed at UFC on ABC 1 in January when Alessio Di Chirico finished him with a head kick. The defeat snapped a two-fight winning streak for “New Mansa.”

Arroyo (9-4 MMA, 0-2 UFC) also looks to turn his luck around as he looks to pick up his first promotional win. After he earned a contract on Dana White’s Contender Series in 2019, Arroyo lost his first two UFC bouts to Andre Muniz and Deron Winn.

With the addition, the Sept. 18 lineup includes:

  • Anthony Smith vs. Ryan Spann
  • Tafon Nchukwi vs. Mike Rodriguez
  • Devin Clark vs. Ion Cutelaba
  • Jim Miller vs. Nikolas Motta
  • Dakota Bush vs. Zhu Rong
  • Danaa Batgerel vs. Montel Jackson
  • Sarah Alpar vs. Erin Blanchfield
  • Carlston Harris vs. Impa Kasanganay
  • Pannie Kianzad vs. Raquel Pennington
  • Heili Alateng vs. Gustavo Lopez
  • Antonio Arroyo vs. Joaquin Buckley

[mm-video type=playlist id=01eqvpne7c1q486dvv player_id=01eqvpqbw4ymnv0rjh image=https://mmajunkie.usatoday.com/wp-content/plugins/mm-video/images/playlist-icon.png]

UFC Fight Night 183 post-event facts: Anthony Pettis breaks out of post-title funk

Check out all the facts and figures from UFC Fight Night 183, which saw Stephen Thompson beat Geoff Neal in Las Vegas.

The UFC closed out its 2020 schedule on Saturday with UFC Fight Night 183, which took place at the UFC Apex in Las Vegas.

The 41st and final headliner of the year saw [autotag]Stephen Thompson[/autotag] (16-4-1 MMA, 11-4-1 UFC) put on a classic striking clinic against [autotag]Geoff Neal[/autotag] (13-3 MMA, 5-1 UFC) to secure a unanimous decision victory in the matchup of ranked welterweights.

For more on the numbers behind the card, as well as the rest of the event, check below.