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Big news coming from us in April. Stay tuned.
Really? Yes, the "King of Rio" is coming out of retirement. The UFC confirmed he'll fight #14 ranked Jonathan Martinez on the main card of UFC 301, which takes place in Rio De Janeiro, Brazil. This will be Aldo's first MMA fight in Brazil since May 2019.
Will this be his last fight? Aldo has not confirmed nor denied if he will fight again after UFC 301. With a victory, he'd be ranked again at Bantamweight. He holds wins over ranked contenders Rob Font, Marlon Vera, and Pedro Muhnoz. If he can beat Martinez, he'd prove that he's still one of the best in his division.
Details: Benoit Saint-Denis confirmed via The MMA Hour that he was suffering from a staph infection during the fight week ahead of his fight with Dustin Poirier. He was diagnosed on Thursday, two days before UFC 299. Was his performance affected? It's difficult to say. Saint-Denis said he was taking antibiotics to treat the staph, and the infection also led to a bad weight cut for the Frenchman. With all these factors in play, it's fair to assume his performance was somewhat affected.
Boxing or MMA? Donn Davis, the co-founder of the PFL, told Ariel Helwani that Francis Ngannou will headline a card in Riyadh, Saudi Arabia, between July and September against Renan Ferreira.
Will he box again? Francis Ngannou has already said he will return to boxing, but right now, he has business to attend to in MMA. This will be his first MMA fight since he fought Ciryl Gane in January 2022.
Details? CSAD (the new USADA) announced on Thursday that Walt Harris has tested positive for a myriad of different substances across multiple tests. The formerly ranked Heavyweight contender had drostanolone, testosterone, and anastrozole, the first two being anabolic steroids.
Why four years? Considering Harris had two positive tests between June and July of 2023 and a previous fight overturned to an NC due to a positive test for ligandrol, the CSAD doesn't want to let Harris off lightly. He will be 44 by the time he can compete again, meaning this could end his fighting career.
The injuries: Petr Yan returned to the win column at UFC 299, snapping his three-fight losing streak. However, "No Mercy" didn't do it without difficulties. Yan announced to social media that he suffered an ACL rupture in the first round vs. Song Yadong. He also suffered a meniscus tear and a groin injury.
When will he return? Yan underwent a successful surgery on Tuesday and will now begin the long road to recovery. The human body heals differently for everyone, but commonly, athletes can be sidelined for about a year following an ACL tear, meaning we may not see Yan until 2025.
The lawsuit: In 2014, Cung Le, backed by over 1,200 UFC fighters, sued the UFC. The lawsuit involved fighters voicing their opinions on the UFC limiting their wages, emphasizing complaints surrounding the promotion, buying out all other competition, closing off the market, and forcing them into long-term agreements.
The settlement: TKO, the group that owns UFC, agreed to pay out $335 million of the $1.6 billion requested by Cung Le, which will be paid out over time. There has yet to be confirmation on how this money will be split among the fighters.
What? Michael "Venom" Page made his highly anticipated UFC debut at UFC 299, dominating Kevin Holland to a unanimous decision victory. He took to The MMA Hour in the studio to call for a fight with Ian Garry next. Page is ranked #13 in the division, while Garry is ranked #7.
Where? Page called for the fight to happen in England. The fight could headline the rumored Fight Night card in Manchester, England, but it depends on what the UFC has an interest in, as Garry has been advocating to fight Colby Covington next, too.
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