FURY Pro Grappling 8 announced: Aljamain Sterling, 7 other UFC veterans to compete

The grappling series run by CFFC continues its tradition of a year-end event full of UFC notables.

FURY Pro Grappling’s tradition of a year-end card filled with UFC notables past and present continues.

Eight UFC veterans, including former UFC bantamweight champion [autotag]Aljamain Sterling[/autotag], have been booked for the FURY Pro Grappling 8 lineup, the promotion announced Tuesday.

FURY Pro Grappling 8 takes place Dec. 30 at 2300 Arena in Philadelphia and streams on UFC Fight Pass.

Sterling will compete against [autotag]Kevin Dantzler[/autotag], a Brazilian jiu-jitsu black belt who is 5-0 under the FURY Pro Grappling banner. Dantzer previously defeated Sterling’s friend and training partner Merab Dvalishvili at FURY Pro Grappling 2 in October 2021.

The co-feature is a big one, at least physically, as former UFC heavyweight [autotag]Chris Daukaus[/autotag] grapples current UFC heavyweight [autotag]Alexandr Romanov[/autotag]. Also on the card are [autotag]Eryk Anders[/autotag], [autotag]Kyle Daukaus[/autotag], [autotag]Niko Price[/autotag], [autotag]Pat Sabatini[/autotag], and [autotag]Charlie Campbell[/autotag].

The full FURY Pro Grappling 8 lineup includes:

  • Aljamain Sterling vs. Kevin Dantzler
  • Chris Daukaus vs. Alexandr Romanov
  • Eryk Anders vs. Kyle Daukaus
  • Niko Price vs. Pat Sabatini
  • Amanda Mazza vs. Elyse Shaw
  • Fatima Kline vs. Cindy Ung
  • Charlie Campbell vs. Lee Moringo
  • Aidan Burke vs. Santo Curatolo
  • Paul Capaldo vs. Cameron Scalio

UFC 295 medical suspensions: Jiri Prochazka, Sergei Pavlovich among 19 suspended indefinitely

Nineteen indefinite suspensions were handed out after UFC 295, per the New York State Athletic Commission.

UFC 295 took place Nov. 11 at Madison Square Garden in New York and featured 13 fights.

On Monday, MMA Junkie acquired a list of athlete medical suspensions from the New York State Athletic Commission, the sanctioning body that oversaw the event. Most injury specifics were not disclosed.

Nineteen of the 26 combatants were given indefinite suspensions and will need to be cleared by a doctor before they return. That’s a high number of indefinite suspensions compared to the average UFC event, although the NYSAC may have different safety protocols compared to other regulatory bodies. All 26 fighters were also given mandatory suspensions, which vary from seven days to 90 days.

Check out the full list of medical suspensions from UFC 295 below.

UFC 295 post-event facts: Alex Pereira joins exclusive two-title club in record time

The best facts from UFC 295, which saw Alex Pereira join the two-division title club in less fights than the eight names before him.

The UFC’s penultimate numbered event of the year, UFC 295 from Madison Square Garden in New York, proved to be arguably the best of the bunch.

Two new champions were crowned to close out a lineup that saw eight stoppages in 13 fights. In the main event, [autotag]Alex Pereira[/autotag] (9-2 MMA, 6-1 UFC) picked up the vacant light heavyweight title with a second-round knockout of [autotag]Jiri Prochazka[/autotag] (29-4-1 MMA, 3-1 UFC), while [autotag]Tom Aspinall[/autotag] (14-3 MMA, 7-1 UFC) claimed the interim heavyweight strap in the co-main event with a 69-second knockout of [autotag]Sergei Pavlovich[/autotag] (17-2 MMA, 6-2 UFC).

For more on the numbers behind the card, check below for MMA Junkie’s post-event facts from UFC 295.

UFC 295 Promotional Guidelines Compliance pay: Title fight athletes net $32,000 each

Fighters from Saturday’s UFC 295 took home UFC Promotional Guidelines Compliance pay totaling $272,500.

NEW YORK – Fighters from Saturday’s UFC 295 event took home UFC Promotional Guidelines Compliance pay totaling $272,500.

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 295 took place at Madison Square Garden. The main card aired on pay-per-view following prelims on ESPNews and ESPN+.

The full UFC 295 UFC Promotional Guidelines Compliance payouts included:

* * * *

[autotag]Alex Pereira[/autotag]: $32,000
def. [autotag]Jiri Prochazka[/autotag]: $32,000

[autotag]Tom Aspinall[/autotag]: $32,000
def. [autotag]Sergei Pavlovich[/autotag]: $32,000

[autotag]Jessica Andrade[/autotag]: $21,000
def. [autotag]Mackenzie Dern[/autotag]: $11,000

[autotag]Benoit Saint-Denis[/autotag]: $6,000
def. [autotag]Matt Frevola[/autotag]: $6,000

[autotag]Diego Lopes[/autotag]: $4,000
def. [autotag]Pat Sabatini[/autotag]: $6,000

[autotag]Steve Erceg[/autotag]: $4,000
def. [autotag]Alessandro Costa[/autotag]: $4,000

[autotag]Loopy Godinez[/autotag]: $6,000
def. [autotag]Tabatha Ricci[/autotag]: $6,000

[autotag]Mateusz Rebecki[/autotag]: $4,000
def. [autotag]Roosevelt Roberts[/autotag]: $6,000

[autotag]Nazim Sadykhov[/autotag]: $4,000
vs. [autotag]Viacheslav Borshchev[/autotag]: $4,500

[autotag]Jared Gordon[/autotag]: $11,000
def. [autotag]Mark Madsen[/autotag]: $6,000

[autotag]John Castaneda[/autotag]: $6,000
def. [autotag]Kyung Ho Kang[/autotag]: $11,000

[autotag]Joshua Van[/autotag]: $4,000
def. [autotag]Kevin Borjas[/autotag]: $4,000

[autotag]Jamall Emmers[/autotag]: $6,000
def. [autotag]Dennis Buzukja[/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 $4,500; 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: $7,305,500
2022 total: $8,351,500
2021 total: $6,167,500
Program-to-date total: $21,824,500

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

UFC 295 results: Diego Lopes smashes Pat Sabatini with brutal knockout in 90 seconds

Diego Lopes is a budding UFC star, and he showed why with a brutal knockout Saturday at Madison Square Garden.

NEW YORK – [autotag]Diego Lopes[/autotag] is approaching UFC star status, if he’s not there already.

Already with an increased level of popularity and buzz compared to his fellow two-UFC-fight counterparts, Lopes (23-6 MMA, 2-1 UFC) kicked off the UFC 295 main card vs. [autotag]Pat Sabatini[/autotag] (18-5 MMA, 5-2 UFC), whom he blasted with a brutal barrage of knockout blows until the stoppage at 1:30 of Round 1.

In the final moments of the fight, Lopes successfully defended a takedown attempt and cranked Sabatini with an uppercut. The blow sent Sabatini backward as he staggered and crashed into the cage. Sabatini hit the canvas, and Lopes continued to pound the consciousness out of him.

Lopes attracted initial attention from a loss in his short notice debut when he put forth a competitive decision outing against ranked Movsar Evloev, an above-average tough first assignment. In August, he submitted Gavin Tucker in 98 seconds to pick up his first promotional win.

Sabatini picks up his second loss in his three most recent outings.

Up-to-the-minute UFC 295 results include:

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

Diego Lopes def. Pat Sabatini at UFC 295: Best photos

Check out the best photos from Diego Lopes’ first-round knockout win over Pat Sabatini at UFC 295 at Madison Square Garden in New York.

Check out the best photos from [autotag]Diego Lopes[/autotag]’ first-round knockout win over [autotag]Pat Sabatini[/autotag] at UFC 295 at Madison Square Garden in New York. (Photos by Wendell Cruz, USA TODAY Sports; Sarah Stier, Getty Images; MMA Junkie)

Pat Sabatini expects ‘ferocious’ fight vs. Diego Lopes at UFC 295, but confident on winning

Pat Sabatini previews his fight against Diego Lopes at UFC 295.

NEW YORK – [autotag]Pat Sabatini[/autotag] expects a barn-burner in his return to the octagon, but that doesn’t mean he’s doubting his chances of winning.

The UFC featherweight takes on Brazil’s Diego Lopes in the opening bout of the UFC 295 pay-per-view main card, which goes down this Saturday at Madison Square Garden. This fight has been pit by many as one of the more exciting bouts of the card. Sabatini (18-4 MMA, 5-1 UFC) seems to agree.

“My hand is getting raised, and it’s going to be a ferocious one,” Sabatini told reporters at the UFC 295 media day on Wednesday.

Sabatini respects Lopes (22-6 MMA, 1-1 UFC), but he just feels he’s a better fighter everywhere.

“He’s well-rounded, but I just feel like I’m better on the feet and better on the ground,” Sabatini said.

He later added,

“He’s a great fighter, very well-rounded. It’s going to be a fun one on Saturday. I’m very, very excited for it.”

You can watch Sabatini’s full interview in the video above.

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

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

UFC 295 pre-event facts: Alex Pereira’s two-division title bid comes with historic twist

Check out the facts behind UFC 295, where Alex Pereira can join the two-division titleholder club in a way that differs from everyone else.

The UFC makes its annual stop in New York on Saturday with UFC 295, which takes place at Madison Square Garden with a pair of title fights that top the pay-per-view main card following prelims on ESPNews and ESPN+.

In the main event, [autotag]Jiri Prochazka[/autotag] (29-3-1 MMA, 3-0 UFC) will return to competition from a significant injury to face [autotag]Alex Pereira[/autotag] (8-2 MMA, 5-1 UFC) for the vacant light heavyweight belt. The co-headliner will see [autotag]Sergei Pavlovich[/autotag] (17-1 MMA, 6-1 UFC) clash with [autotag]Tom Aspinall[/autotag] (13-3 MMA, 6-1 UFC) in an interim heavyweight championship contest.

For more on the numbers behind the title-fight doubleheader, as well as the rest of the card, check below for MMA Junkie’s post-event facts from UFC 295.

Matchup Roundup: New UFC and Bellator fights announced in the past week (Sept. 11-17)

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 Sept. 11-17.

Diego Lopes returns at UFC 295 vs. Pat Sabatini

The UFC 295 lineup for Madison Square Garden continues to fill out.

Rising fan-favorite featherweight [autotag]Diego Lopes[/autotag] has his third UFC assignment.

Lopes (22-6 MMA, 1-1 UFC) will battle [autotag]Pat Sabatini[/autotag] (18-4 MMA, 5-1 UFC) on Nov. 11 at UFC 295, the promotion’s return to Madison Square Garden in New York. Both fighters recently confirmed the booking on social media following an initial report by ESPN Deportes.

Lopes, 28, burst into the international spotlight when he took a short notice bout vs. ranked Movsar Evloev at UFC 288 in May. Not only did Lopes go all three rounds with one of the promotion’s top featherweights, he put Evolev in several dangerous positions in the grappling department. Lopes lost the bout by unanimous decision, but stormed back in his second UFC outing when he quickly clubbed and subbed Gavin Tucker in 98 seconds.

Sabatini, 32, has quietly dominated his UFC tenure outside of a quick TKO loss to Damon Jackson in September 2022. His wins in the promotion include Tristan Connelly, Jamall Emmers, Tucker Lutz, T.J. Laramie and, in his most recent outing, Lucas Almeida.

With the addition, the UFC 295 lineup includes:

  • Champ Jon Jones vs. Stipe Miocic – for heavyweight title
  • Jessica Andrade vs. Mackenzie Dern
  • Kevin Borjas vs. Joshua Van
  • Stephen Erceg vs. Matt Schnell
  • Jared Gordon vs. Mark Madsen
  • Diego Lopes vs. Pat Sabatini
  • Nurullo Aliev vs. Mateusz Rebecki
  • Dennis Buzukja vs. Jamall Emmers

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