Matchup Roundup: New UFC, PFL, Bellator fights announced in the past week (Feb. 26-March 3)

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 Feb. 26-March 3.

Fresh Ink: Meet the 6 fighters the UFC signed in April 2023

Find out who joined the UFC in April and learn more about them here.

The UFC roster is bigger than ever – and it continues to expand.

Fresh faces appear on nearly every card, whether onboarded as short-notice opening fillers, Dana White’s Contender Series signees, or the increasingly rare straight-up additions. Sometimes, it’s hard to keep track of the hustle and bustle of the mixed martial arts news beat, but here at MMA Junkie, we’ve got you covered.

“Fresh Ink” is your list of fighters added to the UFC roster the previous month and provides background on who they are and where they came from.

Check out the April 2023 list below.

Trey Waters credits patience, strength for short-notice win at UFC Fight Night 223

Trey Waters won the LFA’s welterweight title two weeks ago. Saturday, he was in the UFC for a short-notice debut win over Josh Quinlan.

LAS VEGAS – [autotag]Trey Waters[/autotag] beat Josh Quinlan with a unanimous decision Saturday to open up the main card at UFC Fight Night 223 in Las Vegas.

Take a look inside the fight with Waters, who made his UFC debut just two weeks after he won LFA’s welterweight title.

UFC Fight Night 223 post-event facts: Song Yadong climbs KO list at 135 pounds

Check out the numbers to come out UFC Fight Night 223, where Song Yadong climbed the bantamweight knockout list with a main event finish.

The UFC closed its April schedule Saturday with UFC Fight Night 223 at the UFC Apex in Las Vegas.

The card, which was thin on paper, saw [autotag]Song Yadong[/autotag] (20-7-1 MMA, 9-2-1 UFC) shine in the main event when he outworked and eventually finished [autotag]Ricky Simon[/autotag] (20-4 MMA, 8-3 UFC) with a fifth-round TKO in their bantamweight showdown.

For more on the numbers to come out of the main event, as well as the rest of the card, check below for MMA Junkie’s post-event facts from UFC Fight Night 223.

UFC Fight Night 223 Promotional Guidelines Compliance pay: Marcos Rogerio de Lima tops card with $16k

UFC Fight Night 223 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 223 event took home UFC Promotional Guidelines Compliance pay totaling $144,500.

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 Fight Night 223 took place at the UFC Apex. The main card streamed on ESPN+ following prelims on ESPN2.

The full UFC Fight Night 223 UFC Promotional Guidelines Compliance payouts included:

* * * *

[autotag]Song Yadong[/autotag]: $11,000
def. [autotag]Ricky Simon[/autotag]: $11,000

[autotag]Caio Borralho[/autotag]: $4,500
def. [autotag]Michal Oleksiejczuk[/autotag]: $11,000

[autotag]Rodolfo Vieira[/autotag]: $6,000
def. [autotag]Cody Brundage[/autotag]: $4,500

[autotag]Fernando Padilla[/autotag]: $4,000
def. [autotag]Julian Erosa[/autotag]: $11,000

[autotag]Marcos Rogerio de Lima[/autotag]: $16,000
def. [autotag]Waldo Cortes-Acosta[/autotag]: $4,000

[autotag]Trey Waters[/autotag]: $4,000
def. [autotag]Josh Quinlan[/autotag]: $4,000

[autotag]Martin Buday[/autotag]: $4,000
def. [autotag]Jake Collier[/autotag]: $11,000

[autotag]Cody Durden[/autotag]: $6,000
def. [autotag]Charles Johnson[/autotag]: $4,500

[autotag]Irina Alekseeva[/autotag]: $4,000
def. [autotag]Stephanie Egger[/autotag]: $6,000

[autotag]Marcus McGhee[/autotag]: $4,000
def. [autotag]Journey Newson[/autotag]: $6,000

[autotag]Jamey-Lyn Horth[/autotag]: $4,000
def. [autotag]Hailey Cowan[/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 2231 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: $2,556,000
2022 total: $8,351,500
2021 total: $6,167,500
Program-to-date total: $17,145,000

For more on the card, visit MMA Junkie’s event hub for UFC Fight Night 223.

UFC Fight Night 223 video: Hear from each winner, guest fighters backstage

Check out what the UFC Fight Night 223 winners and guest fighters had to say backstage at Saturday’s event.

LAS VEGAS – UFC Fight Night 223 took place Saturday with 11 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 Fight Night 223 winners by checking out their post-fight news conferences below.

For more on the card, visit MMA Junkie’s event hub for UFC Fight Night 223.

UFC Fight Night 223 predictions: See our three unanimous picks in Vegas

Check out our staff members’ picks for the UFC Fight Night 223 main card, featuring Song Yadong vs. Ricky Simon at bantamweight.

Yadong
vs.
Simon
Borralho
vs.
Oleksiejczuk
Brundage
vs.
Vieira
Erosa
vs.
Padilla
Cortes-Acosta
vs.
Rogerio
Quinlan
vs.
Waters
MMA Junkie readers’
consensus picks
63-41
simon2023
Simon
(59%)
borralho2023
Borralho
(79%)
vieira2023
Vieira
(75%)
erosa2023
Erosa
(70%)
cortesacosta2023
Cortes-Acosta
(60%)
quinlan2023
Quinlan
(86%)
Matt Erickson
@MattE
67-37
yadong2023
Yadong
borralho2023
Borralho
vieira2023
Vieira
padilla2023
Padilla
cortesacosta2023
Cortes-Acosta
quinlan2023
Quinlan
Simon Samano
@SJSamano
67-37
simon2023
Simon
borralho2023
Borralho
vieira2023
Vieira
padilla2023
Padilla
cortesacosta2023
Cortes-Acosta
quinlan2023
Quinlan
George Garcia
@MMAjunkieGeorge
66-38
simon2023
Simon
borralho2023
Borralho
vieira2023
Vieira
erosa2023
Erosa
cortesacosta2023
Cortes-Acosta
quinlan2023
Quinlan
Nolan King
@mma_kings
66-38
yadong2023
Yadong
borralho2023
Borralho
vieira2023
Vieira
padilla2023
Padilla
cortesacosta2023
Cortes-Acosta
quinlan2023
Quinlan
Matthew Wells
@MrMWells
64-40
simon2023
Simon
borralho2023
Borralho
vieira2023
Vieira
padilla2023
Padilla
cortesacosta2023
Cortes-Acosta
quinlan2023
Quinlan
Mike Bohn
@MikeBohn
63-41
trophy copy 2014 Champion
simon2023
Simon
borralho2023
Borralho
vieira2023
Vieira
erosa2023
Erosa
cortesacosta2023
Cortes-Acosta
quinlan2023
Quinlan
Abbey Subhan
@kammakaze
60-44
simon2023
Simon
borralho2023
Borralho
vieira2023
Vieira
padilla2023
Padilla
cortesacosta2023
Cortes-Acosta
quinlan2023
Quinlan
Ken Hathaway
@kenshathaway
-60-44
trophy copy 2018, 2022 Champion
simon2023
Simon
borralho2023
Borralho
brundage2023
Brundage
padilla2023
Padilla
cortesacosta2023
Cortes-Acosta
quinlan2023
Quinlan
Brian Garcia
@thegoze
58-46
trophy copy 2017 Champion
simon2023
Simon
borralho2023
Borralho
vieira2023
Vieira
erosa2023
Erosa
cortesacosta2023
Cortes-Acosta
quinlan2023
Quinlan
Danny Segura
@dannyseguratv
58-46
simon2023
Simon
borralho2023
Borralho
vieira2023
Vieira
padilla2023
Padilla
cortesacosta2023
Cortes-Acosta
quinlan2023
Quinlan
Farah Hannoun
@Farah_Hannoun
57-47
yadong2023
Yadong
borralho2023
Borralho
vieira2023
Vieira
erosa2023
Erosa
cortesacosta2023
Cortes-Acosta
quinlan2023
Quinlan

The UFC stays in Las Vegas this week with a key bantamweight matchup atop the card.

UFC Fight Night 223 takes place Saturday at the UFC Apex in Las Vegas. The main card streams on ESPN+ following prelims on ESPN2 and ESPN+.

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

In the main event, [autotag]Ricky Simon[/autotag] (20-3 MMA, 8-2 UFC) takes on [autotag]Song Yadong[/autotag] (19-7-1 MMA, 8-2-1 UFC) in a 125-pound matchup originally set for a co-main event this past Saturday. Simon is a slight -120 favorite at the betting window. The comeback on Yadong is +100, making these some of the stickiest main event odds in the UFC this year. Our 11 editors, writers, radio hosts and videographers have Simon with a big eight ahead of Yadong, who has just three head nods.

In the co-feature, [autotag]Caio Borralho[/autotag] (13-1 MMA, 3-0 UFC) is the biggest favorite on the card at nearly 4-1 in his middleweight bout against [autotag]Michal Oleksiejczuk[/autotag] (18-5 MMA, 6-3 UFC). He’s also one of our three unanimous picks.

Also on the main card, [autotag]Cody Brundage[/autotag] (8-3 MMA, 2-2 UFC) takes on [autotag]Rodolfo Vieira[/autotag] (8-2 MMA, 3-2 UFC) in a middleweight bout. Vieira is about a -250 favorite and is a near-unanimous pick at 10-1.

[autotag]Julian Erosa[/autotag] (28-10 MMA, 6-6 UFC) is a slight favorite with the oddsmakers in his featherweight bout against [autotag]Fernando Padilla[/autotag] (14-4 MMA, 0-0 UFC). But it’s Padilla who has a 7-4 picks lead.

Although unbeaten heavyweight [autotag]Waldo Cortes-Acosta[/autotag] (9-0 MMA, 2-0 UFC) is a slight underdog against [autotag]Marcos Rogerio[/autotag] (20-8-1 MMA, 9-6 UFC), he’s the second of our three unanimous picks.

And to open the main card, [autotag]Josh Quinlan[/autotag] (6-0 MMA, 1-0 UFC) is our third unanimous pick in his welterweight bout against short-notice opponent [autotag]Trey Waters[/autotag] (7-1 MMA, 0-0 UFC). Quinlan nearly is a 2-1 favorite in the fight.

In the MMA Junkie consensus picks, Simon (59 percent), Borralho (79 percent), Vieira (75 percent), Erosa (70 percent), Cortes-Acosta (60 percent) and Quinlan (86 percent) are the choices.

Check out all the picks above.

For more on the card, visit MMA Junkie’s event hub for UFC Fight Night 223.

UFC Fight Night 223 hit with four changes in days leading up to fight card

The UFC fight card for Saturday in Las Vegas was hit with four changes in recent days.

Saturday’s UFC Fight Night 223 looks a little different than it did one week ago.

Two bouts originally scheduled for the event have been postponed to later dates, while two others have been canceled with one fighter rebooked against a new opponent. One affected bout was scheduled for the main card, while the other three were prelims.

UFC Fight Night 223 takes place Saturday at the UFC Apex in Las Vegas. The main card streams on ESPN+ following prelims on ESPN2 and ESPN+.

Matchup Roundup: New UFC and Bellator fights announced in the past week (April 17-23)

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 April 17-23.

DWCS 53 video: Gabriel Bonfim turns the tables on submission attempt, Von Flue chokes Trey Waters

Brazilian prospect Gabriel Bonfim made history on Dana White’s Contender Series.

LAS VEGAS – [autotag]Gabriel Bonfim[/autotag] kept his unbeaten record intact Tuesday when he became the first fighter to win by Von Flue choke submission in Dana White’s Contender Series history.

At DWCS 53, Bonfim (13-0) submitted [autotag]Trey Waters[/autotag] (6-1) at 4:13 of Round 1. He was the second of his surname to compete on the card, as his brother Ismael Bonfim (8-3) defeated Nariman Abbasov (28-4) earlier at the UFC Apex in Las Vegas.

The finish came after an attempt at a guillotine by the back-on-the-canvas Waters. As Bonfim took him to the canvas, Waters squeezed Bonfim’s neck. Bonfim shifted into side control. Waters returned him to half guard and committed to the squeeze. Bonfim flipped the script and leaned into Water’s neck. The tap came shortly thereafter.

Check out video of the finish below (via Twitter):

The up-to-the-minute DWCS 53 results include:

  • Gabriel Bonfim def. Trey Waters via submission (Von Flue choke) – Round 1, 4:13
  • Karl Williams def. Jimmy Lawson via unanimous decision (30-27, 30-27, 30-27)
  • Ismael Bonfim def. Nariman Abbasov via unanimous decision (30-27, 30-27, 29-28)
  • Tereza Bleda def. Nayara Maia via unanimous decision (30-26, 30-26, 30-26)

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