Tag: Josh Fremd

Dylan Budka makes UFC debut vs. Cesar Almeida on short notice

The UFC Fight Night on April 6 has faced a change as Dylan Budka replaces Josh Fremd against Cesar Almeida.

Two Dana White’s Contender Series standouts will debut against one another in the UFC.

With [autotag]Josh Fremd[/autotag] out, [autotag]Dylan Budka[/autotag] (7-2 MMA, 0-0 UFC) steps in on less than one month’s notice to fight former Glory Kickboxing standout [autotag]Cesar Almeida[/autotag] (4-0 MMA, 0-0 UFC) at a UFC Fight Night event April 6 from the UFC Apex in Las Vegas.

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. It is unclear why Fremd withdrew.

Budka, 24, is a former LFA title challenger who did enough to earn a UFC contract after his performance on DWCS. Budka defeated Chad Hanekom by unanimous decision in a fairly uneventful bout, but UFC CEO Dana White attributed the low excitement level to the opposition. Budka has three finishes in seven pro fights.

Almeida, 35, defeated Lucas Fernando on DWCS in August to earn his UFC deal. Despite his striking prowess, Almeida showed off an educated ground game that wowed White. Almeida was scheduled to debut vs. Christian Leroy Duncan in November, but withdrew due to an infection.

With the change, the UFC Fight Night lineup for April 6 includes:

  • Marvin Vettori vs. Brendan Allen
  • Norma Dumont vs. Germaine de Randamie
  • Alexander Hernandez vs. Damon Jackson
  • Heili Alateng vs. Victor Hugo
  • Charlie Campbell vs. Trevor Peek
  • Lukasz Brzeski vs. Valter Walker
  • Ignacio Bahamondes vs. Christos Giagos
  • Nora Cornolle vs. Melissa Mullins
  • Cynthia Calvillo vs. Piera Rodriguez
  • Dan Argueta vs. Jean Matsumoto
  • Court McGee vs. Alex Morono
  • Morgan Charriere vs. Jose Marsical
  • Cesar Almeida vs. Dylan Budka

For more on the card, visit MMA Junkie’s event hub for the UFC Fight Night event April 6.

Matchup Roundup: New UFC, PFL, Bellator fights announced in the past week (Jan. 15-21)

Check out the UFC, PFL, and Bellator fights 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, PFL, and Bellator.

Here are the fight announcements that were broken or confirmed by MMA Junkie or officially announced by the promotions from Jan. 15-21.

Noche UFC post-event facts: Alexa Grasso, Valentina Shevchenko fight to rare title draw

Check out all the facts from Noche UFC, which saw Alexa Grasso vs. Valentina Shevchenko join the shortlist of title bouts to end in a draw.

The inaugural Noche UFC event proved to be a massive success for the company, with the Mexican Independence Day celebration going down Saturday at T-Mobile Arena in Las Vegas.

Although she didn’t get the victory, Mexico’s [autotag]Alexa Grasso[/autotag] (16-3-1 MMA, 8-3-1 UFC) still left as women’s flyweight champion after she battled [autotag]Valentina Shevchenko[/autotag] (23-4-1 MMA, 12-3-1 UFC) to a split draw in their main event rematch.

It was a rare result for a title bout, and for more on the numbers, check below for MMA Junkie’s post-event facts from Noche UFC.

Noche UFC Promotional Guidelines Compliance pay: 2023 total passes $6 million

Noche UFC 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 Noche UFC event took home UFC Promotional Guidelines Compliance pay totaling $185,500.

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.

Noche UFC took place at T-Mobile Arena. The entire card streamed on ESPN+.

The full Noche UFC UFC Promotional Guidelines Compliance payouts included:

* * * *

[autotag]Alexa Grasso[/autotag]: $42,000
vs. [autotag]Valentina Shevchenko[/autotag]: $32,000

[autotag]Jack Della Maddalena[/autotag]: $6,000
def. [autotag]Kevin Holland[/autotag]: $16,000

[autotag]Raul Rosas Jr.[/autotag]: $4,000
def. [autotag]Terrence Mitchell[/autotag]: $4,000

[autotag]Daniel Zellhuber[/autotag]: $4,000
def. [autotag]Christos Giagos[/autotag]: $11,000

[autotag]Kyle Nelson[/autotag]: $6,000
def. [autotag]Fernando Padilla[/autotag]: $4,000

[autotag]Loopy Godinez[/autotag]: $6,000
def. [autotag]Elise Reed[/autotag]: $6,000

[autotag]Roman Kopylov[/autotag]: $6,000
def. [autotag]Josh Fremd[/autotag]: $4,500

[autotag]Edgar Chairez[/autotag]: $4,500
vs. [autotag]Daniel Lacerda[/autotag]: $4,500

[autotag]Tracy Cortez[/autotag]: $4,500
def. [autotag]Jasmine Jasudavicius[/autotag]: $4,500

[autotag]Charlie Campbell[/autotag]: $4,000
def. [autotag]Alex Reyes[/autotag]: $4,000

[autotag]Josefine Knutsson[/autotag]: $4,000
def. [autotag]Marnic Mann[/autotag]: $4,000

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 2261 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 2023 UFC Promotional Guidelines Compliance payouts:

Year-to-date total: $6,130,000
2022 total: $8,351,500
2021 total: $6,167,500
Program-to-date total: $20,719,000

For more on the card, visit MMA Junkie’s event hub for Noche UFC.

Noche UFC play-by-play and live results

Check out live play-by-play and official results from Noche UFC in Las Vegas, featuring Alexa Grasso vs. Valentina Shevchenko 2.

LAS VEGAS – Noche UFC took place Saturday at the UFC Apex in Las Vegas.

Women’s flyweight champion Alexa Grasso (16-3-1 MMA, 8-3-1 UFC) took on former champ Valentina Shevchenko (23-4-1 MMA, 12-3-1 UFC), whom she submitted earlier this year to win the title, in the main event rematch. In the co-feature, Jack Della Maddalena (16-2 MMA, 6-0 UFC) put his unbeaten UFC record on the line against Kevin Holland (25-10 MMA, 12-7 UFC) at welterweight.

Check out full results and play-by-play below.

Roman Kopylov def. Josh Fremd at Noche UFC: Best photos

Check out the best photos from Roman Kopylov’s second-round TKO win over Josh Fremd at Noche UFC at T-Mobile Arena in Las Vegas.

Check out the best photos from [autotag]Roman Kopylov[/autotag]’s second-round TKO win over [autotag]Josh Fremd[/autotag] at Noche UFC at T-Mobile Arena in Las Vegas. (Photos by Stephen R. Sylvanie, USA TODAY Sports; MMA Junkie; and UFC)

Matchup Roundup: New UFC and Bellator fights announced in the past week (Aug. 21-27)

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 or officially announced by the promotions from Aug. 21-27.

With Anthony Hernandez out of Noche UFC, Josh Fremd steps in to fight Roman Kopylov

Just 10 days after his most recent octagon win, Josh Fremd has signed on to make a quick turnaround at Noche UFC.

Just 10 days after his most recent octagon win, [autotag]Josh Fremd[/autotag] has signed on to make a quick turnaround.

Anthony Hernandez has been forced out of the inaugural Noche UFC event due to injury. Stepping in on short notice will be Fremd (11-4 MMA, 2-2 UFC), who takes on [autotag]Roman Kopylov[/autotag] (11-2 MMA, 3-2 UFC) on Sept. 16 at T-Mobile Arena in Las Vegas.

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

After dropping his first two UFC fights, Fremd has rebounded with back-to-back wins over Sedriques Dumas, and most recently Jamie Pickett less than two week ago at UFC on ESPN 51.

Kopylov was also able to turn things around after a rough UFC start. After losing his first two bouts, the Russian fighter has won three straight – including a head-kick knockout of Claudio Ribeiro at UFC 291 in July.

The latest Noche UFC lineup now includes:

  • Alexa Grasso vs. Valentina Shevchenko – for women’s flyweight title
  • Jack Della Maddalena vs. Kevin Holland
  • Josh Fremd vs. Roman Kopylov
  • Santiago Ponzinibbio vs. Daniel Rodriguez
  • Loopy Godinez vs. Sam Hughes
  • Edgar Chairez vs. Daniel Lacerda
  • Cynthia Calvillo vs. Elise Reed
  • Tracy Cortez vs. Jasmine Jasudavicius
  • Christos Giagos vs. Daniel Zellhuber

[lawrence-auto-related count=3 category=420030788]

For more on the card, visit MMA Junkie’s event hub for Noche UFC.

UFC on ESPN 51 Promotional Guidelines Compliance pay: Two veterans earn max non-title sum of $21,000

UFC on ESPN 51 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 on ESPN 51 event took home UFC Promotional Guidelines Compliance pay totaling $173,000.

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 on ESPN 51 took place at the UFC Apex in Las Vegas. The card aired on ESPN and streamed on ESPN+.

The full UFC on ESPN 51 UFC Promotional Guidelines Compliance payouts included:

* * * *

[autotag]Vicente Luque[/autotag]: $16,000
def. [autotag]Rafael dos Anjos[/autotag]: $21,000

[autotag]Cub Swanson[/autotag]: $21,000
def. [autotag]Hakeem Dawodu[/autotag]: $6,000

[autotag]Khalil Rountree[/autotag]: $11,000
def. [autotag]Chris Daukaus[/autotag]: $6,000

[autotag]Iasmin Lucindo[/autotag]: $4,000
def. [autotag]Polyana Viana[/autotag]: $6,000

[autotag]AJ Dobson[/autotag]: $4,000
def. [autotag]Tafon Nchukwi[/autotag]: $6,000

[autotag]Josh Fremd[/autotag]: $4,500
def. [autotag]Jamie Pickett[/autotag]: $6,000

[autotag]Marcus McGhee[/autotag]: $4,000
def. [autotag]JP Buys[/autotag]: $4,500

[autotag]Terrance McKinney[/autotag]: $6,000
def. [autotag]Mike Breeden[/autotag]: $4,000

[autotag]Francis Marshall[/autotag]: $4,000
def. [autotag]Isaac Dulgarian[/autotag]: $4,000

[autotag]Martin Buday[/autotag]: $4,500
def. [autotag]Josh Parisian[/autotag]: $6,000

[autotag]Jaqueline Amorim[/autotag]: $4,000
def. [autotag]Montserrat Conejo[/autotag]: $4,000

[autotag]Da’Mon Blackshear[/autotag]: $4,500
def. [autotag]Jose Johnson[/autotag]: $4,000

[autotag]Luana Santos[/autotag]: $4,000
def. [autotag]Juliana Miller[/autotag]: $4,000

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 $4,510; 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 $51,000 while title challengers get $51,000.

In addition to experience-based pay, UFC fighters will receive in perpetuity royalty payments amounting to 20-51 percent of any UFC merchandise sold that bears their likeness, according to officials.

Full 2023 UFC Promotional Guidelines Compliance payouts:

Year-to-date total: $5,395,000
2022 total: $8,351,500
2021 total: $6,167,500
Program-to-date total: $19,984,000

For more on the card, visit MMA Junkie’s event hub for UFC on ESPN 51.

UFC on ESPN 51 video: Hear from each winner, guest fighters backstage

Check out what the UFC on ESPN 51 winners and guest fighters had to say backstage at Saturday’s event.

LAS VEGAS – UFC on ESPN 51 took place Saturday with 13 bouts on the lineup. We’ve got you covered with backstage winner interviews from the UFC Apex in Las Vegas.

You can hear from all the UFC on ESPN 51 winners by checking out their post-fight news conferences below.

For more on the card, visit MMA Junkie’s event hub for UFC on ESPN 51.