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UFC 310 no longer boasts two title fights as Belal Muhammad has pulled out of the main event because of a toe injury. While some fans want the newly crowned champion to be stripped for inactivity already, others are more concerned with finding a new opponent for Shavkat Rakhmonov.

Several contenders in the UFC welterweight division could benefit by stepping in and winning on UFC 310. Former champs Leon Edwards and Kamaru Usman would want to re-enter the title race by beating a top prospect. On the other hand, fresh talents like Ian Garry, Sean Brady, and Jack Della Maddalena should be interested in securing their first title shots.

While discussing how UFC 310 should be dealt with, Michael Bisping pointed out that replacing Muhammad could help Edwards get his rematch quickly. “Rocky” gave the new champ his props after losing the welterweight belt at UFC 304 but also admitted to feeling fatigued due to the unusual timing.

Here’s why Bisping expects Edwards to take a risk by fighting Rakhmonov at UFC 310:

“For Leon Edwards, this does everything. You beat Shavkat Rakhmonov, you are the man. You step up, you are the man. You beat this man that’s finishing everybody. What does that do for you? Well, then you’re right back in the title conversation. In fact, you will be probably getting a rematch against Belal Muhammad.” He continued, “He wants to get his hands on Belal Muhammad once again. He wants to right the wrongs, he wants to prove to the world and himself that he’s the better man. But more importantly, to get back to becoming the welterweight champion of the world.”

Edwards holds two wins over Usman, and “The Count” claims beating an intimidating opponent with a 100% finish rate would be another feather in his cap. Additionally, a rematch with Muhammad in the United States would ensure he gets a chance to avenge his loss and fight at a more favorable time.

The former UFC champ understands that losing to “Nomad” is a huge risk for the English fighter as it would further extend his path back to the title. However, he thinks that the rewards outweigh the risks in this situation.

Bisping lastly called UFC 310 a great card regardless of the main event falling out. Like countless other fans, though, wouldn’t mind seeing the undefeated Rakhmonov put to the test again.

• Read More: Ilia Topuria Reveals The One Thing That Surprised him About Max Holloway Fight

Continue Reading Former UFC Champ Argues Leon Edwards Should Fight Shavkat Rakhmonov At UFC 310: ‘Rematch Against Belal Muhammad…’ at MMA News.

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The UFC’s return to Madison Square Garden, and the massively hyped heavyweight championship main event between Jon Jones and Stipe Miocic is less than two weeks away.

Jones and Miocic are set to battle for the UFC heavyweight title to cap off UFC 309 on Nov. 16 in New York City. “Bones” puts his belt on the line for the first time since capturing his second divisional title at UFC 285 in March 2023, while Miocic competes for the first time in nearly four years.

During Saturday’s UFC Edmonton event, the UFC released a new promo video hyping up the Jones vs. Miocic championship encounter. Watch the video below.

Miocic seeks his first victory since defeating Daniel Cormier in their trilogy bout at UFC 252 in August 2020. The multi-time heavyweight champion lost the title in his next fight, suffering a brutal knockout at the hands of Francis Ngannou at UFC 260.

Jones makes the walk to the octagon for the just the second time since retaining the light heavyweight title — which he vacated shortly after to move to heavyweight — in a controversial decision against Dominick Reyes at UFC 247 in February 2020.

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No wonder Tom Breese had such a disappointing tenure in the PFL.

Back in April, Breese face Rob Wilkinson in the opening round of the PFL’s 2024 light heavyweight season and things could not have gone much worse as Wilkinson demolished him in just 70 seconds. It was a disappointing outcome for the British fighter but perhaps not an unexpected one as Breese recently told Polish Fighters Info that he was actually under the influence on fight night.

“I was on drugs in the fight,” Breese said. “I did magic mushrooms. I was taking drugs all week. That’s honest. [Laughs] It is what it is. It was a rough time.”

While the PFL does test for performance-enhancing drugs via USADA, psilocybin mushrooms are not currently prohibited.

But Breese’s substance use doesn’t stop there. During the interview, Breese also revealed that he struggled with drug use for some time, which blames for his underwhelming performances the past few years.

“For me, obviously I’ve had some ups and downs, but I was always a very disciplined person, and then I started letting some bad habits come into my life,” Breese said. “Smoking, some drugs, stuff like that. And that was he cause of a lot of these issues, to be honest. Now I’m back on the straight and narrow. It’s not really going to be a thing. I’m going to blow through all my competition. I just had some problems with drugs.”

Undefeated in his first nine professional fights, Breese made a name for himself in the UFC but was released from the promotion in 2020 after a fight day withdrawal from a scheduled bout with Antonio Arroyo at UFC Vegas 28. He then competed for Levels Fight League before signing with KSW for three fights. Most recently Breese competed for Levels Fight League again, winning a unanimous decision over Renato Rangel back in October.

And with his PFL career seemingly over for now and his personal life now in a better spot, Breese hopes to return to KSW in the near future.

“I’d like to come back to KSW,” Breese said. “I really enjoyed my time in KSW, and I feel like there’s a lot of good fights there for me. I’d love to fight Pawel [Pawlak] again. I’d really like that fight.”

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Former flyweight champion Deiveson Figueiredo looks to continue his march toward a second world title in his new home at 135 pounds, but the path to the promised land includes a head-on collision with former bantamweight champion Petr Yan atop the UFC Macau fight card on ESPN+!

Event: UFC Macau: “Yan vs. Figueiredo”
Date: Sat., Nov. 23, 2024
Location: Galaxy Arena in Macau
Broadcast: ESPN+
Start Time: 3 a.m. ET Prelims Card | 6 a.m. ET Main Card

UFC Macau Main Event On ESPN+:

135 lbs.: Petr Yan vs. Deiveson Figueiredo

UFC Macau Main Card on ESPN+ (6 a.m. ET):

115 lbs.: Xiaonan Yan vs. Tabatha Ricci
205 lbs.: Ozzy Diaz vs. Mingyang Zhang
170 lbs.: Kenan Song vs. Muslim Salikhov
125 lbs.: Cong Wang vs. Gabriella Fernandes
205 lbs.: Volkan Oezdemir vs. Carlos Ulberg

UFC Macau ‘Prelims’ Card on ESPN+ (3 a.m. ET):

125 lbs.: Carlos Hernandez vs. Nyamjargal Tumendemberel
115 lbs.: Xiaocan Feng vs. Ming Shi
125 lbs.: Kiru Sahota vs. Dong Hoon Choi
135 lbs.: Su Young You vs. Balgyn Jenisuly
145 lbs.: Kangjie Zhu vs. Bin Xie
125 lbs.: Lone’er Kavanagh vs. Jose Ochoa
105 lbs.: Long Xiao vs. Quang Le
155 lbs.: Maheshate Hayisaer vs. Nikolas Motta

*Fight card, bout order and amount of fights remain subject to change.*

To check out the latest and greatest UFC Macau news and notes be sure to hit up our comprehensive event archive right here.

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Elizeu Zaleski’s rematch with Nicolas Dalby is off.

The UFC announced Tuesday that Dalby has been forced out of a scheduled welterweight bout with Zaleski that was to take place Saturday at UFC Vegas 100. Stepping in for Dalby on just days’ notice is UFC newcomer Zach Scroggin.

Dalby’s withdrawal was first reported by MMA Junkie.

Zaleski and Dalby previously fought in May 2015 at an event in Brazil that served as the debut for both fighters. It was Dalby who was victorious on that day, leaving the octagon with a split decision victory in hand. There is no word yet on whether the rematch is being considered for a re-booking in the future.

Saturday’s bout is a pivotal one for Zaleski (24-8-1), who turns 38 this month. The Brazilian veteran is winless in his past two bouts, a loss to Randy Brown and a majority draw against Rinat Fakhretdinov.

Scroggins, 28, is undefeated in seven pro bouts. He has spent his entire career competing for Missouri’s Fighting Alliance Championship and in his most recent outing, he won a vacant welterweight title with a unanimous decision win over former Bellator and Strikeforce fighter Zak Bucia.

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