Daniel Weichel – Syndication Server

2023 MMA retirement tracker: A list of former UFC champions, legends and more who hung up the gloves

The MMA world already has said goodbye to many retiring fighters in 2023, from former UFC champions to icons of the sport.

MMA is a constantly evolving sport with a revolving door of athletes entering and exiting. Currently, fighters from the era who helped make the sport so popular are beginning to trickle away from competition and hang up their gloves in order to move on to the next chapter in life.

If there’s one thing that’s well known about combat sports retirements, though, it’s that they often don’t last long. The urge to compete, and perhaps more importantly get a payday, will continue to drive fighters back even well beyond their expiration dates.

2023 has seen an uptick in notable fighters announcing they are done with the sport, and we have a list of those who have opted to walk away this year (the list will update as new retirements are announced).

Matchup Roundup: New UFC and Bellator fights announced in the past week (May 8-15)

All the UFC and Bellator fight announcements that were first reported 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 May 8-15.

Bellator books Mads Burnell vs. Daniel Weichel on Dublin card

Mads Burnell asked for Daniel Weichel and now he’s got him at Bellator Dublin.

Ask and you shall receive.

[autotag]Mads Burnell[/autotag] called for a fight with former Bellator featherweight title challenger [autotag]Daniel Weichel[/autotag] and now he’s got one. The two fighters will face off Sept. 23 at 3Arena in Dublin, Bellator officials informed MMA Junkie on Monday.

Denmark’s Burnell (17-5 MMA, 4-2 BMMA) snapped a two-fight losing skid when he defeated Justin Gonzales by unanimous decision at Bellator 295 in April. Thus far in his Bellator tenure, Burnell has lost only decisions to title challengers Adam Borics and Pedro Carvalho. Ten of his 17 career victories have come inside the distance.

Germany’s Weichel (42-14 MMA, 11-6 BMMA) has alternated wins and losses since September 2019 – with a 3-3 record during that stretch. Following a knockout win over Robert Whiteford in May 2022, Weichel lost a unanimous decision to Timur Khizriev in November.

Give me the church mouse Daniel Schnitzel for Dublin! I want my sauerkraut, don’t try to run and take other fights now pussy, lets find out who the real king of the north is? 🇩🇰🇩🇪👑 @danielweichel #kingofthenorth
–@ScottCoker @AliAbdelaziz00 @MMAJunkie @BellatorMMA pic.twitter.com/OYA4TIsiNF

— Mads Burnell (@Burnellmma) April 29, 2023

With the addition, the Bellator lineup for Dublin includes:

Champion Johnny Eblen vs. Fabian Edwards – for middleweight title
Brian Moore vs. Otto Rodrigues
Mads Burnell vs. Daniel Weichel

For more on the card, visit MMA Junkie’s event hub for Bellator Dublin.

Mads Burnell aggressively calls out Daniel Weichel after Bellator 295 win: ‘Answer me, motherf*cker’

Back in the win column after Bellator 295, Mads Burnell wasted no time making his next callout.

HONOLULU – Back in the win column, [autotag]Mads Burnell[/autotag] wasted no time in making his next callout.

Burnell (17-5 MMA, 4-2 BMMA) defeated Justin Gonzales by unanimous decision in Saturday’s Bellator 295 event at Neal S. Blaisdell Arena in Honolulu.

Following his win, Burnell proceeded to call out fellow top-10 ranked featherweight [autotag]Daniel Weichel[/autotag] (42-14 MMA, 11-6 BMMA), accusing him of ducking the fight.

“Daniel Weichel, stop f*cking running,” Burnell told MMA Junkie and other reporters. “I’ve been making f*cking memes about you all year, sh*t like that, saying I’ll make you Wiener schnitzel quicker than you could say auf Wiedersehen and you’ve been quiet like a f*cking church mouse. Answer me, motherf*cker.”

Burnell rebounded after suffering back-to-back losses to Adam Borics and Pedro Carvalho. The 29-year-old Xtreme Couture fighter acknowledges that his back could have been against the wall but wants to fight the toughest competition regardless.

“I asked to fight Justin, because I know he’s a great fighter,” Burnell said. “He has a great record, and I was like, ‘I know I’m one of the best featherweights, I can hang with everybody.’ I do it at my gym with Xtreme Couture. I f*cking stand and bang with middleweights, and all the motherf*ckers there can vouch for me.

“I got it on video and everything. I know I can hang with the best of the best of them. So I just told myself when that little b*tch on my shoulder starts to get nervous, I told myself, ‘Hey, this is what you want.’ You asked for this.”

[lawrence-auto-related count=3 category=420030791]

For more on the card, visit MMA Junkie’s event hub for Bellator 295.

Bellator 288 post-event facts: Usman Nurmagomedov makes history with title win

Check out all the facts and figures from Bellator 288, which saw Usman Nurmagomedov move to 16-0 while claiming gold.

The penultimate Bellator event of 2022 went down Saturday with Bellator 288 at Wintrust Arena in Chicago.

With two title fights on the card, one champ defended while another belt changed hands.

[autotag]Vadim Nemkov[/autotag] (15-2 MMA, 8-0 BMMA) earned a unanimous decision win over [autotag]Corey Anderson[/autotag] (16-5 MMA, 3-1 BMMA) to defend light heavyweight gold in the main event, while [autotag]Usman Nurmagomedov[/autotag] (16-0 MMA, 5-0 BMMA) outpointed [autotag]Patricky Freire[/autotag] (24-11 MMA, 15-9 BMMA) on the scorecards to claim the lightweight strap.

For more on the numbers behind the card, check below for MMA Junkie’s post-event facts from Bellator 288.

Bellator 288 predictions: Nemkov or Anderson, Freire or Nurmagomedov in Chicago title fights?

Check out our staff members’ picks for the Bellator 288 main card in Chicago, which features light heavyweight and lightweight title fights.

	Nemkov vs. Anderson	Freire vs. Nurmagomedov	Khizriev vs. Weichel	Fortune vs. James	Chokheli vs. Faraldo
MMA Junkie readers’ consensus picks 180-106	Anderson (57%)	Nurmagomedov (87%)	Khizriev (75%)	Fortune (91%)	Faraldo (90%)
Ken Hathaway @kenshathaway 190-101 2018 Champion	Anderson	Nurmagomedov	Khizriev	Fortune	Faraldo
Abbey Subhan @kammakaze 182-109	Anderson	Nurmagomedov	Weichel	Fortune	Faraldo
Matthew Wells @MrMWells 182-109	Anderson	Nurmagomedov	Khizriev	Fortune	Faraldo
Farah Hannoun @Farah_Hannoun 179-112	Anderson	Nurmagomedov	Weichel	Fortune	Faraldo
Mike Bohn @MikeBohn 178-113 2014 Champion	Anderson	Nurmagomedov	Khizriev	Fortune	Faraldo
Matt Erickson @MMAjunkieMatt 176-115	Anderson	Freire	Khizriev	Fortune	Faraldo
Simon Samano @SJSamano 175-116	Anderson	Freire	Khizriev	Fortune	Faraldo
Nolan King @mma_kings 170-121	Anderson	Nurmagomedov	Weichel	Fortune	Faraldo
Brian Garcia @thegoze 169-122 2017 Champion	Anderson	Freire	Weichel	Fortune	Faraldo
George Garcia @MMAjunkieGeorge 157-134	Anderson	Nurmagomedov	Khizriev	Fortune	Faraldo
Danny Segura @dannyseguratv 142-149	Anderson	Nurmagomedov	Khizriev	Fortune	Faraldo

Bellator makes its return to Chicago this week with a pair of title fights leading the card in the “Windy City.”

Bellator 288 takes place Friday at Wintrust Arena in Chicago. The main card airs on Showtime following prelims on MMA Junkie.

(Click here to open a PDF of the staff picks grid in a separate window.)

In the main event, light heavyweight champion [autotag]Vadim Nemkov[/autotag] (15-2 MMA, 7-1 BMMA) puts his title on the line against [autotag]Corey Anderson[/autotag] (16-5 MMA, 3-0 BMMA). The fight is a rematch from an April title fight that ended in a no contest after an accidental clash of heads left Nemkov with too deep of a cut to continue. The fight also is the $1 million final of Bellator’s light heavyweight tournament. Anderson was the underdog in the first fight, but now is a -230 favorite at Tipico Sportsbook; the comeback on Nemkov is +175. Our 11 editors, writers, radio hosts and videographers have Anderson as one of three unanimous picks at 11-0.

In the co-feature, lightweight champion [autotag]Patricky Freire[/autotag] (24-10 MMA, 15-8 BMMA) puts his belt up for the first time when he takes on the unbeaten [autotag]Usman Nurmagomedov[/autotag] (15-0 MMA, 4-0 BMMA). Usman is the biggest favorite on the main card at a whopping -750, but he’s not a unanimous pick. Three of our staff members are taking “Pitbull” Freire in what would be a major upset.

Also on the main card, [autotag]Timur Khizriev[/autotag] (11-0 MMA, 0-0 BMMA) meets [autotag]Daniel Weichel[/autotag] (42-13 MMA, 11-5 BMMA) in a featherweight bout. Khizriev is a big -320 favorite at the betting window, but he has just a 7-4 picks lead.

[autotag]Tyrell Fortune[/autotag] (12-2 MMA, 12-2 BMMA) is one of our three unanimous picks in his heavyweight bout against Chicago native [autotag]Daniel James[/autotag] (13-6-1 MMA, 1-0 BMMA). Fortune is a 3-1 favorite in the fight.

And to open the main card, [autotag]Roman Faraldo[/autotag] (8-0 MMA, 5-0 BMMA) is our third unanimous pick at 11-0 in his welterweight bout against [autotag]Levan Chokheli[/autotag] (10-2 MMA, 1-2 BMMA) – even though he’s the smallest main card favorite at about 2-1.

In the MMA Junkie reader consensus picks, Anderson (57 percent), Nurmagomedov (87 percent), Khizriev (75 percent), Fortune (91 percent) and Faraldo (90 percent) are the choices.

Check out all the picks above.

For more on the card, visit MMA Junkie’s event hub for Bellator 288.

Bellator 288 pre-event facts: Patricky Freire can take sole possession of all-time knockout record

Check out the numbers behind Bellator 288, where all four title competitors are fighting for history.

Bellator returns on Friday for its penultimate event of 2022 with Bellator 288, which takes place at Wintrust Arena in Chicago with a main card that airs on Showtime following prelims on MMA Junkie.

A championship doubleheader serves at the top of the card. In the main event, [autotag]Vadim Nemkov[/autotag] (14-2 MMMA, 7-0 BMMA) and [autotag]Corey Anderson[/autotag] (16-4 MMA, 3-0 BMMA) will try for a second time to determine the Bellator light heavyweight and grand prix champion when they meet in a rematch of their April fight that ended in a no contest due to a head butt.

The co-headliner, meanwhile, will see lightweight gold up for grabs as [autotag]Patricky Freire[/autotag] (24-10 MMA, 15-8 BMMA) looks to kick off his reign with a defense against the unbeaten Khabib Nurmagomedov pupil [autotag]Usman Nurmagomedov[/autotag] (15-0 MMA, 4-0 BMMA).

For more on the title fights, as well as the rest of the card, check below for MMA Junkie’s pre-event facts about Bellator 288.

Matchup Roundup: New UFC and Bellator fights announced in the past week (Oct. 31-Nov. 6)

All the UFC and Bellator fight announcements that were first reported 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 Oct. 31-Nov. 6.

Undefeated Timur Khizriev, Sullivan Cauley, Jairo Pacheco among new additions to Bellator 288 in Chicago

Four undefeated fighters have been added to Bellator 288, an event scheduled for Nov. 18 in Chicago headlined by two title fights.

Less than three weeks away, Bellator 288 has some new additions.

Undefeated Russian prospect [autotag]Timur Khizriev[/autotag] (11-0 MMA, 0-0 BMMA) has officially signed with Bellator and will fight [autotag]Daniel Weichel[/autotag] (42-13 MMA, 11-5 BMMA) on the Nov. 18 main card, filling in for [autotag]Akhmed Magomedov[/autotag], who withdrew for undisclosed reasons.

In addition, rising light heavyweight [autotag]Sullivan Cauley[/autotag] (4-0 MMA, 4-0 BMMA) returns to fight [autotag]Jay Radick[/autotag] (3-0 MMA, 0-0 BMMA). Also on the prelims, Glover Teixeira underling [autotag]Killys Mota[/autotag] (13-3 MMA, 2-2 BMMA) fights [autotag]Jairo Pacheco[/autotag] (7-0 MMA, 0-0 BMMA) in a lightweight bout and featherweights [autotag]Laird Anderson[/autotag] (2-0 MMA, 2-0 BMMA) and [autotag]Rob Fenicle[/autotag] (2-2 MMA, 1-0 BMMA) collide.

A promotion official informed MMA Junkie of the additions Tuesday.

Bellator 288 takes place at Wintrust Arena in Chicago with the main card airing on Showtime following prelims on MMA Junkie.

The card is headlined by two title fights including the light heavyweight grand prix final rematch between champion Vadim Nemkov (14-2 MMA, 7-0 BMMA) and challenger Corey Anderson (16-5 MMA, 3-0 BMMA).

In the co-main event, lightweight champion Patricky Freire (24-10 MMA, 15-8 BMMA) will attempt to defend the title for the first time against undefeated challenger Usman Nurmagomedov (15-0 MMA, 4-0 BMMA).

With the addition, the Bellator 288 lineup includes:

MAIN CARD (Showtime, 9 p.m. ET)

Champion Vadnim Nemkov vs. Corey Anderson – grand prix final for light heavyweight title
Champion Patricky Freire vs. Usman Nurmagomedov – for lightweight title
Timur Khizriev vs. Daniel Weichel
Tyrell Fortune vs. Daniel James
Levan Chokheli vs. Roman Faraldo

PRELIMINARY CARD (MMA Junkie, 6 p.m. ET)

Khasan Askhabov vs. Otto Rodrigues
Imamshafi Aliev vs. Sean Fallon
Killys Mota vs. Jairo Pacheco
Jaylon Bates vs. Jornel Lugo
Archie Colgan vs. Jesse Hannam
Lucas Brennan vs. Nick Talavera
Sullivan Cauley vs. Jay Radick
Jordan Newman vs. Jayden Taulker
Laird Anderson vs. Rob Fenicle
Isaiah Hokit vs. Matias Nader
Wladimir Gouvea vs. Kory Moegenburg

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Matchup Roundup: New UFC and Bellator fights announced in the past week (Oct. 3-9)

All the UFC and Bellator fight announcements that were first reported 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 Oct. 3-9.