Outside the late Anthony ‘Rumble’ Johnson, Bader has only been defeated by former world champions including current heavyweight king Jon Jones.

Bader has been fighting under the Bellator banner for the last several years, winning two belts there with multiple title defenses before the promotion was eventually acquired by PFL in 2023.

The American became a free agent following a TKO loss to then-champ Renan Ferreira last year.

Ryan Bader’s last dance

Bader’s next fight would be his 40th as a pro and at the age of 41, he knows he’s on the brink of retirement.

Even so, ‘Darth’ Bader believes he has more fight left in him, saying there’s a 70% chance he’ll compete in MMA again.

“I wanna do one more,” the former Bellator champion told Submission Radio.

“We’re even going through a couple opportunities that look pretty fun. I see myself doing one more kind of, at least felt farewell MMA fight.

“I’m always gonna be competing, whether that’s grappling or something cool comes along, boxing-wise or anything like that.”

Bader says his final fight would have to be at heavyweight.

Ryan Bader open to UFC retirement fight

While a promotion like the GFL seems like a realistic next option for the free agent, seeing as though most of their roster are former UFC stars, Bader is also open to the idea of a UFC return after all of these years.

“My manager and I, we kind of talked about that and talked about how cool it would be, full-circle, come back and at least, retire in the UFC,” Bader said.

“Even have one fight. I don’t know if they’re in the business of doing that, but it’s definitely, we have thought about it and it’d be a cool scenario but we’ll just see if that even comes across our plate.”

“I don’t wanna be in there fighting five times and whatnot; UFC looking at that, it’d be like, okay, so what are you doing? Just to get a fight to retire?

“So, that comes across my desk, definitely open to it,” Bader said of one more UFC fight.

The UFC doesn’t usually sign fighters over the age of 35 but they have done so more often in recent years. The promotion signed Bellator imports Michael ‘Venom’ Page at 36 and Patricio Pitbull at 37.

As far as one-fight contracts go, Jeremy Stephens, 38, was re-signed on a special one-and-done deal for his homecoming at UFC Des Moines.

We’ll see if ‘The Ultimate Fighter 8’ winner Ryan Bader is afforded the same kind of opportunity in his forties.

Bader has wins over the likes of Quinton ‘Rampage’ Jackson, Fedor Emelianenko (twice), Rashad Evans, Phil Davis (twice), Antônio Rogério Nogueira (twice) among many others.

UFC Mexico City featured wild knockouts, some controversy, and a high-octane main event between two flyweight stars. Former UFC flyweight champion Brandon Moreno capped off the evening with a largely dominant win over Steve Erceg to cement his place in the title picture.

During the festivities of UFC Mexico City, Cormier had the chance to meet one of his childhood idols while on the call.

Daniel Cormier felt like a kid meeting Julio Cesar Chavez Sr. at UFC Mexico City

Julio Cesar Chavez Sr. is considered boxing royalty after a legendary career in the ring. He’s also a national hero in Mexico, as evidenced by the wild ovation he received while attending UFC Mexico City.

As Chavez entered the arena, Cormier had childlike glee meeting the boxing legend.

During a recent episode of Good Guy/Bad Guy with Chael Sonnen, Cormier explained what went through his mind meeting Chavez at UFC Mexico City.

“There are a lot of times I don’t understand how, or why, a fan gets so excited to meet you. When they do, I’m always gracious, because I’m lucky to have fans as we all are, we’re just people. But because I haven’t been a fan for a while…we don’t have that reaction. I had one [at UFC Mexico City],” Cormier admitted. “It was the craziest thing…I was sitting at the commentary desk, and in walks Julio Cesar Chavez. Chavez walks in, the place goes nuts, Chavez is dressed to the nines and he’s the man.

“Chavez walks in, I jump out of my seat, waving at him…I’m seriously standing there waving at Chavez [like a kid], looks at me and goes ‘Hi!’,” Cormier continued. “And then he goes and asks the UFC to get a picture with me! I had no idea that he knew I was the champ…I’m waving like ‘Cesar Chavez! Cesar Chavez!’. I had an involuntary reaction to Julio Cesar Chavez. So fans, if you want to freak out, I’m never stopping you anymore. Because I had that reaction!”

Chavez walked out with UFC flyweight Ronaldo Rodriguez for his fight at UFC Mexico City. Unfortunately, Chavez couldn’t give Rodriguez his magic, as Rodriguez lost by unanimous decision for his first UFC defeat.

UFC Mexico City featured ‘middleweight Francis Ngannou’s jaw-dropping debut

The UFC Mexico City prelims featured the middleweight debut of Ateba Gautier. If you don’t know Gautier’s credentials, now is a great time to start getting familiar with his immense talent.

Gautier flattened Jose Medina with a knee to earn the walk-off knockout in his UFC debut. He earned a post-fight performance bonus and cemented himself as a middleweight to watch after featuring on Dana White’s Contender Series in September.

UFC Octagon announcer Bruce Buffer had a rare blooper when he announced the incorrect winner of one of the UFC Mexico City prelim fights. The mistake led Buffer to address speculation of a looming retirement from fans on social media.

As for Cormier, the old saying ‘don’t meet your idols’ didn’t apply in meeting Chavez, and the Mexican boxing legend continues to make old souls feel young.

It was June 2023, Topuria’s first five-round main event in Jacksonville, Florida. At 26, the #9-ranked Topuria had never faced a imposing force quite like Emmett’s, the former title challenger with KO power in both of his hands.

Nevertheless, Ilia Topuria would beat Josh Emmett at his own game.

Josh Emmett is the only fighter to go 5 rounds with Ilia Topuria

Emmett was all-heart across 25 minutes of action. Like so many of his other fights, Emmett tried to take Topuria’s head off from the opening bell with Topuria taking his time, utilizing his movement to find his jabs.

The opening round was competitive between the featherweights with Topuria picking up the pace in round 2. Topuria peppered Emmett with the jab, rocking him with punches against the cage. Topuria nearly finished Emmett again towards the end of round 2.

Battered and bloody, Emmett held strong in the third round. The American was willing eat shots to land some of his own, swelling the eye of Topuria.

Ilia Topuria scored a ’10-7′ score with dominating round

Emmett survived to see round 4, which no one had ever seen with Topuria.

90 seconds left to go in the round, Topuria took control with a thudding knockdown, following a hurt Emmett to the mat. Topuria landed ground and pound with Emmett taking loads of punishment as he tried his best to return to his feet.

Once he was up, Emmett kept on swinging. Topuria used his aggression against him, countering with a shot to put him down.

Topuria swarmed Emmett on the ground, hunting for the finish with his strikes. Emmett tried to escape, covering up as little as he could.

The bell sounded right as Topuria was fishing for a submission. Josh Emmett had survived another round, somehow able to see round 5 and the judges’ scorecards with his left eye almost completely shut and blood running down his face.

Judge Chris Lee had the fight scored 50-42 for Topuria, scoring round 3 ’10-8′ and round 4 ’10-7′ because of how one-sided it was for Topuria.

The two other judges scored round 4 ’10-8′ with Eric Colón thinking Emmett did enough to win round 1 against Topuria.

Josh Emmett was already known as one of the most feared knockout artists in the UFC but from his war of attirition with Ilia Topuria, we can see he also has one of the biggest hearts.

Emmett returns in the main event of UFC Vegas 105 across from another undefeated contender in Lerone Murphy.

As for Topuria, he will no longer be the UFC Featherweight Champion as of next month, relinquishing his title for a lightweight move.

Murphy is knocking on the door of a potential featherweight title shot, and his timing couldn’t be better. As Ilia Topuria vacates the belt, the featherweight division is in desperate need of new, fresh stars, and Murphy is one of the top candidates.

It’s been almost four full years since Murphy last earned a knockout win. At UFC 267 against Makwan Amirkhani, Murphy landed a knockout blow comparable to Jorge Masvidal‘s one-shot win over Ben Askren.

Lerone Murphy sent Makwan Amirkhani to the shadow realm with one knee

Murphy and Amirkhani clashed on the UFC 267 prelims on a card headlined by then-UFC light heavyweight champion Jan Blachowicz against Glover Teixeira. Not a lot was expected by the featherweight matchup, but it delivered massively with one of the card’s biggest highlights.

A back-and-forth first round between Murphy and Amirkhani set up a frantic pace to begin Round 2. Amirkhani, one of the top featherweight grapplers at the time of the fight, shot for a takedown in hopes of getting some momentum on his side.

But Murphy countered Amirkhani’s shot perfectly with a knee that knocked his opponent out cold. It was a finish reminiscent of Masvidal’s wild knockout of Askren with a five-second flying knee.

Inexplicably, Murphy’s wild knockout didn’t earn a post-fight performance bonus. You can catch the finishing sequence below.

Jorge Masvidal eyes UFC return as he lays out two-fight plan

After announcing his MMA retirement at UFC 287, Masvidal eyes a return to the Octagon in 2025, if the UFC matchmakers oblige. He wants a long-awaited showdown with Leon Edwards for his return, after Edwards’s recent defeat to Sean Brady at UFC London.

Masvidal is looking to earn his first combat sports win since winning the inaugural BMF belt over Nate Diaz at UFC 244. If he returns to the UFC Octagon, an unbeaten prospect is ready to be his return opponent.

Masvidal lost to Diaz in his most recent combat sports venture, lost year in the boxing ring. He was briefly linked to a potential showdown with Jake Paul before falling to Diaz.

But Masvidal has also teased a potential run in politics amidst his relationship with U.S. President Donald Trump. Masvidal plans to run for a Florida State Senate seat.

As Murphy prepares for his return at UFC Vegas 105, one of his signature wins was inspired by Masvidal’s brutal five-second knockout. Don’t be surprised if he adds to the highlight reel this weekend.

Former UFC flyweight champion Alexa Grasso also returns against Natalia Silva on the UFC 315 main card. Grasso returns after losing the flyweight belt to Valentina Shevchenko at UFC 306, and Shevchenko will make the first title defense of her second title reign on the same card.

Gilbert Burns, Mike Malott, and other UFC fan favorites will fight at UFC 315. But the card also got some great news this week after a star knockout artist announced his addition to the event.

Benoit Saint-Denis announces UFC 315 booking just weeks out from pay-per-view

Looking to bounce back after two lopsided defeats, UFC lightweight contender Benoit Saint-Denis will return to the Octagon against a to-be-announced opponent at UFC 315. Saint-Denis lost back-to-back fights by stoppage in 2024, including a knockout to Dustin Poirier at UFC 299.

Saint-Denis announced the news of his UFC 315 booking in a recent YouTube video. As of this writing, the UFC has yet to disclose Saint-Denis’s addition and an opponent for his comeback fight.

Joel Alvarez is a rumored opponent fit for Saint-Denis, although nothing has been confirmed. Alvarez has won three straight fights, including a flying knee knockout against Drakkar Klose in his most recent matchup in December.

Saint-Denis has defeated the likes of Matt Frevola, Ismael Bonfim, and Thiago Moises during his UFC tenure.

UFC 315 star forced to raise money to cover team’s travel expenses

As Saint-Denis gets ready to make the trip across the Atlantic Ocean for UFC 315, another top name on the card went to uncommon lengths to support his team ahead of the event. Maddalena hosted a recent fundraiser to help cover travel expenses for his team, resulting in fans going up in arms over the UFC’s perceived lack of financial support.

Maddalena got the title shot over other contenders like Shavkat Rakhmonov and Sean Brady. He returns after finishing Burns in his most recent outing at UFC 299.

Luckily, it appears Maddalena and his team will be able to make the trip to Montreal for UFC 315, diverting a potential crisis for the main event slot. But that hasn’t stopped fight fans from remaining highly critical of the UFC’s business practices.

In his last two fights in 2019, Magomedsharipov defeated perennial contenders Jeremy Stephens and Calvin Kattar before hanging up the gloves at the age of 31.

Magomedsharipov held an impressive pro record of 18-1 and was ranked as high as #4 in the UFC featherweight division, leaving many to wonder what he would’ve accomplished if he never left – some fans clamoring for his comeback.

Zabit Magomedsharipov’s team teases “he will be back soon”

Time away from the Octagon hasn’t kept the Russian out of the gym.

Nearly six years removed from a rare three-round main event in Moscow, there’s a possibility Magomedsharipov could return later this year.

“He will be back soon,” teammate Muskhab Kudiev wrote of Magomedsharipov on Monday.

“His cam back [comeback],” Kudiev posted to his story.

“As always, in perfect form.”

Magomedsharipov was seen shadowboxing and throwing kicks from Buka Gym in Dubai.

“Please come back,” one UFC fan commented.

Where does Zabit Magomedsharipov fit in the UFC today?

As of this writing, Zabit Magomedsharipov has yet to submit any drug test samples to the UFC Anti-Doping Program, which he’d need to be eligible to fight again.

Known for his striking prowess, athleticism and unpredictable kicks, Magomedsharipov’s style is a puzzle no one has solved in six UFC appearances.

Magomedsharipov is one of the tallest featherweights ever at 6’1″, riding a 14-fight winstreak at 34 years old in 2025.

With champ Ilia Topuria gone and Alexander Volkanovski and Diego Lopes soon fighting for the vacant title, a UFC comeback for Magomedsharipov could shake things up even more in the featherweight division. After all, the Russian left the company as a top-5 contender.

Magomedsharipov was last booked to fight Yair Rodriguez back in 2020. However, the exciting standup battle was scrapped due to an injury for Rodriguez.

A flashy, unpredictable style like Magomedsharipov’s, the Mexican Rodriguez still remains among the top of the division years later, set to fight Patricio Pitbull at UFC 314 next month.

Prates was supposed to face a fellow UFC fan favorite, Geoff Neal, on the UFC 314 main card on April 12th in Miami. But just weeks away from the event, Neal withdrew due to an injury, and Prates isn’t expected to get a short-notice replacement opponent.

But Prates teased some big news regarding his UFC return, although it’s uncertain if it will occur against Neal or another contender. In either case, Prates has a concerning habit that has some fight fans worried about his long-term future in and out of the cage.

Carlos Prates smokes multiple packs a day amidst meteoric UFC rise

Prates isn’t afraid to divulge his love for cigarettes, sometimes smoking just before making the walk to the Octagon on fight day. Ahead of his most recent fight against Neil Magny, Prates attempted to smoke just minutes before making the walk, before UFC personnel intervened.

In a recent Vlog published by Full Violence, Prates was asked how many cigarettes he smokes on a typical day in his life.

“Normal day? Maybe 10, 15 cigarettes,” Prates answered.

After Prates’s admission went viral, fans expressed their concerns for the UFC star’s fighting future.

“Lung Cancer soon,” one fan wrote on X.

“There’s no way this s— doesn’t impact his cardio in the long term,” another said.

“This is going to age really badly when he gasses out against [Belal] or any other wrestler.”

“Gonna die before becoming champ.”

Prates is 21-6 in his professional MMA career with four-straight wins to begin his UFC tenure. He earned a shot in the UFC via Dana White’s Contender Series in 2023, knocking out Mitch Ramirez with one punch.

UFC 314 star’s mindset questioned ahead of vacant featherweight title fight

While Prates’s UFC 314 showcase bout is canceled, the card still has many marquee fights that are sure to entertain fans, including a star-studded main event. But some fans wonder if Alexander Volkanovski still has what it takes to win a UFC title after back-to-back knockout defeats.

Volkanovski raised some eyebrows when he recently said that the only way he loses at UFC 314 is by way of a ‘puncher’s chance’. His comments came after back-to-back brutal knockout defeats to Islam Makhachev and Ilia Topuria.

Volkanovski faces Diego Lopes, one of the UFC’s rising stars alongside Prates, in the UFC 314 main event for the vacant featherweight title. Topuria will vacate the belt for a full-time move to lightweight.

Volkanovski has a lot to prove at UFC 314, but in the meantime, speculation continues to run rampant as to how the UFC 314 headliner will play out.

Gooden went 1-2 in his second UFC run with his last win, a submission over Wellington Turman, coming at UFC Austin more than a year ago. Gooden was released from the roster following a defeat to Chidi Njokuani in October.

‘NiteTrain’ had his 33rd MMA fight on Saturday at Shogun Fights 30 against Mahamed Aly. Little did we know it would be his last.

Jared Gooden’s career comes to an end after 14 years

Suffering his second-straight loss last weekend, Gooden announced his MMA retirement on Monday.

“I wanna take this time to let everybody know that my time has come,” Gooden said in a video posted to X.

“I’m walking away from the sport. Thank you to everybody who’s helped me along my journey to get me where I have been in life and everything. But man, to be honest with you guys, man, I just don’t have the love or the passion I have for it anymore like I used to when I was younger, man.”

Gooden retires at the age of 31. He had his first amateur fight at 18 and made his pro debut at 21.

The UFC veteran fought the likes of Alan Jouban, Randy Brown, Impa Kasanganay, and Abubakar Nurmagomedov, Khabib Nurmagomedov’s cousin.

Gooden went 2-5 in the Octagon across two UFC runs.

‘My focus is on her now’ … Why Jared Gooden is retiring

What made Gooden walk away from a sport that sees so many other fighters retire later in life?

One word: family.

“Me and this amazing woman brought a beautiful baby girl into this world and my focus is on her now,” Gooden explained his decision to retire at 31.

“So, I’m gonna hang up my gloves for now, man. And can’t wait to let you guys know what I’m gonna do next in life.

“Thank you guys. Thank you to everybody for everything you did for me, man. I can’t say it enough. Hope you guys stay easy,” Gooden added.

She was touted to spearhead the next generation of UFC stars during her time with the promotion, however, she shockingly left in 2020 after suffering three losses from her last four fights.

Since her exit from the UFC, ’12 Gauge’ has gotten involved in several different combat sports, having competed in Misfits Boxing, BKFC, and even in Dana White’s Power Slap.

The 31-year-old did, however, return to the UFC recently as she cornered her husband, Austin Vanderford, for his debut in the promotion, stepping back into the UFC Octagon for the first time in five years.

Paige VanZant’s GFL debut announced for May 25

Following her stints in several other promotions outside of the UFC, VanZant was officially signed by a new MMA promotion, Global Fight League, earlier this year.

Along with VanZant, the GFL signed several other former UFC stars, including Tony Ferguson, Luke Rockhold, Chad Mendes, and more.

When the 31-year-old was officially signed to the promotion, she didn’t immediately have an opponent, although it seemed as though she would have her pick from a small pool of fighters.

Despite that, in a press release this Monday, the promotion announced that VanZant will take on Canadian fighter Randi Field at the Shrine Auditorium in Los Angeles on May 25.

Field is currently 5-1 as a professional fighter who most notably fought for Bellator, going 2-1 in the promotion.

VanZant’s GFL debut comes during two-day event launch

VanZant’s debut comes as part of a two-day event launch with several of the promotion’s stars set to compete a day before on May 24.

Urijah Faber and Renan Barao will clash for a third time when they lock horns on day one, with Anthony Pettis vs Benson Henderson also scheduled to go down on the event.

The aforementioned Mendes will also make his promotional debut on day one when he takes on Maike Linhares, a prospect fighting out of Brazil.

Following her shock exit from the UFC, Holly Holm also has her inaugural bout confirmed as she will take on Julia Budd.

On day two, the highly anticipated bout between Ferguson and Dillon Danis is set to go down, with the promotion labeling the fight as ‘the perfect lead-in’.

Now they can look forward to ‘Brawler’, which will be supported by Dana White’s new boxing business partner, His Excellency Turki Alalshikh.

The film will follow a young fighter from the rough streets of Los Angeles, who finds himself challenging for the UFC championship, whilst also battling inner demons during a story about redemption.

Dana White approves new UFC film

On Monday, a press release about the new UFC movie was shared online by Ring Magazine.

It contained Dana White‘s initial reaction to his promotion teaming up with an acclaimed filmmaker.

“HE Turki Alalshikh and Zack Snyder have shared a vision to create a film about UFC,” the MMA mogul said.

“They were both very passionate about this project to show fans what it takes to become a UFC champion.

“It’s an incredibly ambitious project, and I look forward to seeing it come to life.”

Dana White brutally snubbed Logan Paul’s UFC 300 offer

White has been doing everything possible to make the UFC a mainstream sports league for decades.

However, he has seemingly drawn the line at inviting YouTubers to compete inside the famous Octagon.

Logan Paul recently revealed he was brutally snubbed by White after offering to fight at UFC 300.

“I told Dana for UFC 300, I texted him, ‘Hey man, consider me available to fight on the undercard in the Sphere,” the influencer said.

“Basically, completely ignored me, which I think speaks volumes. I haven’t bothered him about it since.”