The 35-year-old Brazilian professional mixed martial artist and former kickboxer will defend his middleweight championship back in a fourth fight against rival against Israel Adesanya this spring.
Pereira and Adesanya will face each other in the co-main event of UFC 287 on April 8, UFC president Dana White has announced.
Jorge Masvidal will return against Gilbert Burns in the other co-main event, while popular welterweight Kevin Holland will take on Santiago Ponzinibbio on the main card, White said.
A location for UFC 287 has yet to be announced.
Perira has beaten Adesanya twice in kickboxing and knocked him out last November in the fifth round of their first MMA fight against one another at UFC 281 to win the belt.
Adesanya is No. 4 in ESPN‘s pound-for-pound rankings.
Pereira (7-1) is 4-0 in the UFC with three victories via KO/TKO. The Brazilian-born fighter, who trains out of Connecticut, only started his full-time MMA career in 2020. Pereira, 35, was once one of the best kickboxers in the world, holding Glory titles at middleweight and light heavyweight.
Adesanya (23-2) had been the UFC middleweight champion since 2019 prior to Pereira’s victory. The Nigerian-born New Zealander had only one MMA loss prior to November, at light heavyweight in a 2021 title fight against Jan Blachowicz.
Adesanya, 33, had five successful middleweight title defenses.
Masvidal (35-16) has lost three straight but remains one of the biggest stars on the UFC roster. The 38-year-old Miami native owns the fastest knockout in UFC history — a five-second flying knee win over Ben Askren in 2019.
Burns (21-5), a 36-year-old former title contender from Brazil who trains out of Florida, is coming off a first-round submission victory over Neil Magny on Saturday at UFC 283.
The 37-year-old Cuban and Peruvian American mixed martial artist has signed a new contract with the UFC just days before one of the biggest fights of his career.
While terms of the deal weren’t disclosed, Masvidal’s co-agent, Malki Kawa of First Round Management, announced on social media that Masvidal penned an extension that would make him one of the top-five highest-paid fighters on the UFC roster.
Masvidal, who has been a pro fighter since 2003, fights his former best friend and roommate Colby Covingtonin a heated grudge match Saturday at UFC 272 at T-Mobile Arena.
Kawa wrote on Instagram that Masvidal’s deal was signed after five months of negotiations with UFC chief business officer Hunter Campbell.
Masvidal has become one of the biggest stars in MMA after a late-career renaissance that was jump-started in 2019 with knockouts of Darren Tilland Ben Askrenand a TKO win over Nate Diaz. Masvidal’s five-second running knee KO of Askren was the fastest finish in UFC history.
“His contract pays him like a champion and then some,” Kawa, who represents Masvidal along with his brother Abe Kawa, told ESPN. “And the length of time will be that he will finish his career in the UFC.”
Masvidal (35-15) has dropped two straight, both in UFC welterweight title fights against Kamaru Usman, ESPN‘s top pound-for-pound fighter. A Miami native, he has been in the UFC for nine years. Masvidal fought all over the world before that and began his career doing backyard fighting in South Florida alongside the likes of the late Kimbo Slice.
At the UFC 272 news conference Thursday, Masvidal noted that he’ll be getting a portion of the pay-per-view revenue from the card, while Covington, his opponent, will not. Covington has said this fight, because of how personal it is, is not about the money.
“My kids’ kids are gonna be good for a long time,” Masvidal said of his new contract. “So you sell that pay-per-view, boy.”
Rafael dos Anjos’ return is being postponed slightly…
The 37-year-old Brazilian professional mixed martial artist and former UFC lightweight champion will now face off against Rafael Fizievin the lightweight co-main event of UFC 272 on March 5 in Las Vegas, according to ESPN.
dos Anjos was initially scheduled to take on Fiziev for the UFC Fight Night headliner on February 19 in Las Vegas.
Fiziev reportedly had a visa delay, leading to the change. dos Anjos vs. Fiziev will remain a five-round fight, per sources.
The new UFC Fight Night main event on February 19 will be a five-round light heavyweight bout between Johnny Walkerand Jamahal Hill, sources said.
Walker vs. Hill was initially scheduled as the UFC Fight Night co-main event.
dos Anjos (30-13) has not fought since a split-decision win over Paul Felder in November 2020.
The Brazilian-born fighter, who lives in California, moved back to lightweight for that bout after three years at welterweight. dos Anjos had dropped four of five fights against top 170-pound fighters before moving back down to 155, where he was the UFC champ in 2015 and 2016.
Fiziev (11-1) has won five in a row after dropping his UFC debut in 2019. The Kazakhstan-born fighter of Kyrgyzstani descent has won two of his last three fights via knockout, the most recent a third-round spinning wheel kick finish of Brad Riddell in December. Fiziev, 28, is considered one of the top young strikers in MMA.
UFC 272 will be headlined by a welterweight grudge match between former interim welterweight champion Colby Covington and Jorge Masvidal, owner of the mythical BMF title.
Jorge Masvidalis returning to the Octagon in March…
The 37-year-old Cuban and Peruvian American professional mixed martial artist will headline UFC 272, in a welterweight grudge match against Colby Covington, on March 5, UFC Chief Business Officer Hunter Campbell has announced.
While contracts haven’t been signed yet for the 170-pound scrap, the bout is nearly finalized, per Campbell.
The UFC 272 pay-per-view will take place at T-Mobile Arena in Las Vegas. The match will be a five-round, nontitle bout.
“He better f—ing show up,” Covington said in a text message to ESPN Tuesday.
The UFC originally targeted featherweight and bantamweight title fights for the event, however those bouts are no longer on the March 5 date. Part of that was due to an injury to featherweight challenger Max Holloway.
Masvidal (35-15) is one of the UFC’s most popular figures. He hasn’t fought since he suffered a knockout loss to Kamaru Usman in a welterweight championship fight at UFC 261 last April.
Masvidal’s past two fights have been against Usman. He also lost to the champ via unanimous decision in July 2020.
Covington (16-3) is also coming off a failed title bid against Usman in his last fight. The 33-year-old also has lost twice to Usman, both via decision. His most recent win came against Tyron Woodleyin September.
Masvidal and Covington trained together at American Top Team in South Florida, and even lived together for a period of time. The two had a falling out in 2018, and Covington left ATT in 2020.
Both welterweights still fight out of the Miami area.
One of the most infamous backstage scuffles in UFC history will be revisited in December, when the 36-year-old Cuban and Peruvian American mixed martial artist and fellow UFC welterweight Leon Edwards have agreed to meet inside the Octagon.
Edwards and Masvidal will square off at UFC 269 on December 11, UFC chief business officer Hunter Campbell told ESPN. Contracts have not yet been signed, but bout agreements have been sent to both parties.
This fight has held personal implications since March 2019, when Edwards and Masvidal were involved in a backstage incident at a UFC Fight Night event in London. Masvidal struck Edwards in the face after Edwards interrupted him during a postfight interview.
Later in the night, Masvidal would infamously describe the punches he landed on Edwards as a “three-piece and soda.”
Masvidal wrote in a tweet Monday: “You’re welcome #supernecessary”
In addition to settling a long-standing grudge, the matchup will have major implications on the welterweight division. Edwards (19-3) is riding a nine-fight win streak and is a strong candidate for a title shot in 2022. Masvidal (35-15) is coming off back-to-back failed title bids against Kamaru Usmanin 2020 and 2021 but has said his goal is still to claim the UFC championship.
“Despite earning the next title shot, [Edwards] has always been willing to fight Jorge first, provided the terms were correct,” Edwards’ manager, Tim Simpson, told ESPN. “We are very happy with the deal, and excited to compete in December, and then for a world title thereafter.”
As a result of the UFC adding this high-profile bout to the card, a trilogy flyweight title fight between Brandon Moreno and Deiveson Figueiredo has been moved to UFC 270 on January 22, according to the UFC.
UFC 270 on January 22 does not have an official location yet, but sources told ESPN the promotion is looking at Anaheim, which is only about 100 miles north of Moreno’s hometown of Tijuana, Mexico.
Diaz, one of the most popular fighters in MMA, will fight Leon Edwards at UFC 262 on May 15 in Houston, according to ESPN.
Both fighters have verbally agreed to the fight, though the contract isn’t signed yet.
The fight will serve as a five-round co-main event for the card headlined by Charles Oliveira versus Michael Chandler for the vacant UFC lightweight title, sources said.
This will mark the first five-round, non-title co-main event in UFC history.
Diaz (20-12) hasn’t fought since his November 2019 loss to Jorge Masvidal at Madison Square Garden.
Edwards (18-3, 1 NC) is unbeaten in his past nine fights. He had won eight fights in a row; however, earlier this month, his bout against Belal Muhammad ended in a no contest after he hit Muhammad with an accidental eye poke in the second round, which resulted in Muhammad no longer being able to continue.
Edwards’ last loss was to Kamaru Usman, before Usman became UFC welterweight champion, in December 2015.
The promotion had hoped to book Edwards to face Colby Covington next, but couldn’t get Covington to agree to the fight for undisclosed reasons, sources said. The UFC pivoted to an Edwards-Diaz fight late last week.
UFC 262 will take place at the Toyota Center, home of the Houston Rockets.
It looks like Jorge Masvidal could be getting the chance for a repeat…
The UFC is eyeing a welterweight rematch between the 35-year-old Cuban and Peruvian American mixed martial artist and Nate Diaz, according to UFC president Dana White.
Bout agreements haven’t been signed, but both sides are reportedly interested in the rematch.
The UFC is looking to book the rematch as the next bout for both Masvidal and Diaz, but a date hasn’t been set. TMZ has reported that the fight is targeted for UFC 256 on December 12. But sources tell ESPN the fight could also take place in January.
Masvidal and Diaz squared off last November in the main event of UFC 244 at Madison Square Garden for the inaugural BMF Championship. Masvidal (35-14) defeated Diaz via TKO when ringside physicians stopped the bout after the third round due to a facial cut. Diaz protested the stoppage.
Diaz (20-12) has not fought since the loss to Masvidal. The 35-year-old Mexican American welterweight fought twice in 2019 after a three-year layoff. He defeated Anthony Pettisin August of 2019 before losing to Masvidal in November.
The 35-year-old Cuban and Peruvian American mixed martial artist, who lost his fight to Kamaru Usman this weekend, is the first Latino to grace the cover of the mixed martial arts fighting video game EA Sports UFC.
Masvidal shares the cover of EA Sports UFC 4 with Israel Adesanya.
“I’m honored to be on the cover,” tweeted Masvidal. “I’m even prouder to be the first #Latino to grace the cover. Es para mi gente. #theresurrection.”
The game will be released for PlayStation 4 and Xbox One on August 14. There’s no word yet on PlayStation 5 or Xbox Series X versions of the game.
The 35-year-old Cuban and Peruvian American mixed martial artist has signed a new multi-fight contract with the UFC ahead of his bout against Kamaru Usman at UFC 251.
Masvidal tells ESPN the UFC didn’t give him every single thing he asked for but that the deal came “very, very close” to that and he’s “happy” with it.
Masvidal had been one of the most vocal UFC stars in years on the topic of fighter pay. Last month, the welterweight star tweeted that if the UFC didn’t think he was worth it, the promotion should release him.
Those tweets were made as the negotiations between the UFC and Masvidal for a welterweight title fight against Usman fell apart.
On Sunday — just six days before the fight — the two sides finally came to an agreement.
Usman will defend his welterweight belt against Masvidal in the main event of UFC 251 on Saturday in Abu Dhabi.
Usman’s previous opponent, Gilbert Burns, withdrew Friday because of illness. Masvidal is stepping in on six days’ notice, though he was the challenger the UFC tabbed in the first place before contract talks stalled out.
“I’m happy more than anything because I get to break this guy’s face and get paid for it,” Masvidal said.
Masvidal said the UFC’s first offer last month for him to fight Usman was a “s— deal on the pay-per-view end and on the guaranteed side.”
“I can understand you don’t want to give me that much on the guaranteed,” Masvidal said. “But on the pay-per-view, what I bring in, what people purchase, I want more money on that, and they weren’t budging. And that was that. So, all this craziness had to happen for them to come to their senses.”
Masvidal said he won’t stop speaking up about what he perceives as an issue with how much fighters get paid. But he said things have gotten closer to an understanding between him personally and the UFC.
“We’re not there yet, but we’re headed in that direction,” Masvidal said. “Moving forward after this fight, they’re gonna treat me accordingly. Or I’ll just step in last minute six days to go and get paid then, I guess. That’s the new scheme I have to do, whatever. But I’m gonna get paid every time out.”
Masvidal flew to Las Vegas on Sunday and passed a COVID-19 test. He was quarantining in his hotel room Sunday night and will be taking a private jet to Abu Dhabi on Monday.
Usman is expected to leave Las Vegas on Monday as well.
Regarding training and being ready to fight, Masvidal said he wasn’t in a full training camp because he didn’t know he’d be competing in a fight until this weekend. But “Gamebred” said he had been at his American Top Team gym two or three times a week and lifting and staying active. Masvidal said he weighed 192 pounds on Saturday. He’ll have to weigh 170 pounds at maximum this coming Friday for the title fight to be official.
“I never stopped training,” Masvidal said. “I’m always training. But I’m not always in the gym doing the specifics.” Masvidal said that he believes he’s in adequate shape to fight Saturday, while taking a shot at Usman compared with two of Masvidal’s recent opponents.
“If you’re asking me, are you in shape?” Masvidal said. “… Maybe not to fight Ben Askren. I’m not in Ben Askren shape, because he’s a hell of a wrestler. Or even to fight a guy like Darren Till. But am I in shape for this bum I’m about to decapitate and baptize? Hell yeah.”
Masvidal will have 48 career pro fights Saturday when he makes the walk against Usman (pending further COVID-19 protocols in Abu Dhabi). That’s the second most ever for a fighter appearing in his or her first UFC title fight.
If he wins, Masvidal already knows whom he wants to defend the welterweight belt against: Nate Diaz and Stephen “Wonderboy” Thompson.
The 35-year-old Cuban and Peruvian American mixed martial will fight Kamaru Usman in a welterweight title fight on Saturday at UFC 251 on Yas Island in Abu Dhabi in the United Arab Emirates.
Masvidal passed his coronavirus test, and both he and Usman will be leaving Las Vegas for Abu Dhabi later Monday, sources said.
Usman will be on a charter flight, and Masvidal will fly on a private jet, according to sources.
After arriving in Las Vegas on Sunday, both fighters had to take a coronavirus test and then quarantine while awaiting the results. Had they not passed the tests, the fight wouldn’t have been able to happen.
The UFC worked to salvage Usman’s presence on the card after Gilbert Burns was forced to withdraw Friday night.
For the past two months, the UFC and Masvidal were far apart on contract talks to make this fight happen. In the end, the UFC decided to walk away from negotiations about a month ago and gave the title fight to Burns, who recently beat former champion Tyron Woodley.
Afterward, Masvidal posted a series of tweets criticizing the UFC for its business practices and questioning whether the relationship would be severed for some time. But once Burns was forced off the card late Friday, momentum started to build for the original plan, which is a grudge match months in the making.
Usman and Masvidal have been embroiled in a heated feud that saw the duo get into a shouting match at Super Bowl media row earlier this year in Miami.
On Saturday afternoon, Usman tweeted, “Might be time for the pig to squeal.” Masvidal’s co-manager posted a series of Instagram stories showing Masvidal on the phone, with the caption “negotiating.”
Of course, during the coronavirus pandemic, it isn’t as simple as just agreeing to a fight. Masvidal took and passed a coronavirus antibody test Saturday afternoon. That test shows whether an individual has been exposed to the coronavirus but doesn’t indicate whether the person currently has the virus. The fighters still have to pass more coronavirus tests before fight night, as will all the fighters competing this month in Abu Dhabi.
Masvidal is considered one of the most popular fighters in the sport, with many believing that he was the 2019 fighter of the year after he picked up impressive wins over Darren Till, Ben Askren and Nate Diaz.
Pereira and Adesanya will face each other in the co-main event of UFC 287 on April 8, UFC president Dana White has announced.
