MMA

Tony Ferguson is NOT fighting for his UFC life this weekend -- despite losing his last three fights -- with UFC boss Dana White telling TMZ Sports "El Cucuy" is still an elite level fighter in the world's top MMA promotion.

"[Tony's] still the number 7 ranked guy in the world," White said. "Still in the top 10. Still in the top 15. Still one of the most elite fighters in the world. If you look at who he's fought, he's fought everybody. So, I wouldn't say he's fighting for his UFC life."

38-year-old Ferguson -- the #7 ranked UFC lightweight -- is taking on #5 ranked Michael Chandler at UFC 274 Saturday night in Phoenix.

FYI, Tony's lost his last three fights ... the first to Justin Gaethje by TKO at UFC 249 in May 2020. Next was Charles Oliveira ... who, like Justin, thoroughly beat Tony at UFC 256 in December 2020. His last defeat was against Beneil Dariush ... who beat Tony by unanimous decision at UFC 262 in May 2021.

Prior to the losing streak ... TF put together an impressive win streak, scoring 12 straight against everyone from "Cowboy" Cerrone, Anthony Pettis, Kevin Lee, Rafael dos Anjos, and Edson Barboza.

But, sure, the last three are losses ... but losses to top guys. Oliveira went on to be the champion, and Gaethje is the #1 ranked contender. Dariush is ranked #4.

And, that's why White says Tony is still a high-level fighter.

The days of pursuing a belt may be passed -- or maybe not -- but the dude can still fight in a locked cage.

We also talked to Dana about the other fights on the card ... including two of Ferguson's last opponents fighting each other, Gaethje and Oliveira.

"Charles Oliveira has a 91% finish rate, and Gaethje has an 87% finish rate," White says, believing someone's likely going to sleep.

Fights go down Saturday night ... the fireworks are coming! 💥💥💥💥

Michael Chandler was seconds away from UFC gold, and despite now being ranked 5th in the lightweight division, the UFC star still believes he's the best fighter at 155 pounds, and because of that, he tells TMZ Sports he deserves a title shot after he beats Tony Ferguson.

But, if he doesn't get that ... Michael's got a Plan B -- Conor McGregor!

"There's not an MMA fan, combat sports fan, TMZ Sports fan, that doesn't want to see me fight Charles Oliveira again or Justin Gaethje again," Chandler says.

"And, if the UFC does have a momentary lapse of judgment and gives the title shot to someone else, Conor's gotta beat somebody when he comes back to make himself into relevant status. So, Conor or some big fights. We'll see!"

Of course, 36-year-old Chandler has lost two fights in a row ... but that doesn't nearly begin to tell the story.

At UFC 262 in May, Michael was on the verge of defeating Oliveira with the UFC belt on the line ... dropping do Bronx with a left hook in the first round. Unfortunately for MC, Charles survived the last two minutes of the round.

Then, in the second, Oliveira hurt Chandler ... and ultimately ended the fight via TKO from strikes.

You could argue Chandler was one punch from being the champ.

Then, MC squared off against Gaethje -- now the #1 ranked contender -- at UFC 269 in November 2021 ... a fight that was guaranteed to be amazing.

The fight -- one of the greatest ever -- somehow surpassed expectations ... and although most fans and experts declared no one the loser, Chandler's record says different.

Two losses ... against two beasts, in incredibly close fights. So, a title shot is certainly not out of the equation.

If that's not the direction Dana White and the UFC go, Michael's down to welcome McGregor back to the Octagon.

Conor hasn't fought since July 2021 when he snapped his leg against Dustin Poirier in their trilogy fight. Dana previously told us he expected "The Notorious" to make his Octagon return sometime toward the end of 2022.

Whether it's McGregor or another top fighter, Michael tells us he still believes he's destined for greatness ... not to simply have come close.

"The number one weapon that you can have is not the X's and the O's and the punches and the kicks or the wrestling -- it's self-confidence. I believe in the calling on my life, I believe I got into this sport in 2009 not just to be good, but to be great, not to be great but to be extraordinary and do some extraordinary things. I think UFC gold is still very much in my future."

First things first, Michael has to beat "El Cucuy" at UFC 274 Saturday night. Then, we'll see ... Gaethje? Oliveira? McGregor? Someone else?

This is a huge bummer.

UFC lightweight champ Charles Oliveira just missed weight by HALF A POUND at weigh-ins on Friday ... which means he's no longer the lightweight champ.

Oliviera is slated to fight Justin Gaethje at UFC 274 in Phoenix on Saturday ... a fight that many have been excited about for months.

Charles initially weighed in at 155.5 pounds earlier on Friday ... and in title fights, you HAVE to make weight.

Do Bronx was given one hour to shed the 1/2 pound ... but unfortunately, he was unable to make it happen.

Now, if Oliveira wins against The Highlight, the championship will be vacant ... but if Gaethje is able to come out on top, he'll get the belt.

Charles was confident he was going to make weight earlier in the day ... even tweeting, "weight ✔️ peso✔️ #UFC274."

Oliveira is 32-8 in his career ... and just won the belt after beating Michael Chandler in May 2021 at UFC 262. He has one title defense after choking out Dustin Poirier in the 3rd round in December.

Gaethje is the former interim champ, who came up short against Khabib Nurmagomedov in October 2020.

Cain Velasquez might be behind bars, but he's still finding a way to let his daughter know he's thinking about her on her birthday ... penning a sweet message to the 13-year-old from jail.

The UFC legend posted the note to his Twitter page on Friday ... while attaching several photos of the father and daughter enjoying past times together.

"Happy 13th birthday Coco!" Velasquez said. "I miss you so much! Te amo mucho."

As part of his note, Velasquez also said he was hoping to be released from jail at a hearing on Friday.

"I hope God grants us the ultimate gift for your birthday," Velasquez said, "for me to be home with you."

Sadly for Velasquez, a judge didn't grant him bail at the hearing ... instead, the matter was continued and pushed back to May 16 -- which means he'll be locked up for at least another 10 days.

The 39-year-old has been behind bars since February ... when he was arrested for allegedly shooting at a man who had been accused of molesting one of his family members.

Kayla Harrison attempts to defend her PFL crown once again Friday night, but, she tells TMZ Sports she was originally scheduled to fight two weeks ago ... against Cris "Cyborg" Justino!

"I thought I was gonna be fighting Cris Cyborg on April 22 in Hawaii. So, yes, I'm interested in the fight," the 2-time PFL champ says, adding ... "I'm more than ready and willing to step up for that opportunity. I think the fans want it, I know I want it, I know PFL wants it. I'm ready! I thought that that was gonna happen this year, I thought it was gonna happen last week."

Then, why's 31-year-old Kayla fighting Marina Mokhnatkina tonight?

It all goes back to Harrison's free agency a few months ago. She and manager, Ali Abdelaziz, tested the waters amongst the major MMA promotions, and actually struck a deal to face Cris.

But, Harrison's contract dictated PFL had an opportunity to meet any offer she received elsewhere, and that's exactly what they did.

"I accepted [against Cyborg] and PFL had the right to match and ultimately they did. I'm happy, I'm very happy with where I'm at. I'm excited about the season, you know, I'm excited for the potential fight with Cyborg but I have four fights in front of me in five and a half months. It's no easy feat. It's a grind."

The fight with Cris is super important to Kayla ... as she's made it crystal clear her desire is to show she's the baddest MF'er in MMA.

How do Kayla and 36-year-old Cris match up? Justino, regarded as one of best female MMA fighters of all-time, has only lost twice in her career. One L was to the G.O.A.T., Amanda Nunes in 2018. The other was literally her first ever pro fight ... in 2005.

Kayla, who got into the sport in 2018 following two Olympic gold medals in Judo, is undefeated at 12-0. She's twice entered, and won, the Professional Fighters League tourney.

Those of you who wanna see Francis Ngannou box Tyson Fury -- the world's best heavyweight fighter -- ear muffs ... 'cause Dana White tells TMZ Sports it's just silly talk.

"Nobody is beating my door down for this fight. And I love Tyson Fury, I'm friends with Tyson. He's one of the greatest boxers of all time. One of the greatest heavyweight boxers of all time going in against one of my MMA guys. We saw this movie before. We know how this story ends," the UFC president plainly told us.

There's been some discussion around Francis and Tyson boxing in the past ... but it really heated up once Ngannou went into the ring following Fury's brutal 6th round knockout of fellow British heavyweight star Dillian Whyte.

The champs in their respective sports exchanged some friendly talk ... and hinted they'd face each other in a hybrid boxing match (say MMA gloves, boxing rules).

The issue for Francis ... he's currently under contract with the UFC. So, in order to box Fury, Dana's got to give the fight his blessing.

And, of course, White's done it before ... allowing, and then promoting, Conor McGregor in his quest to defeat the undefeated legend, Floyd Mayweather.

But, Dana doesn't believe the interest in Ngannou-Fury is anywhere near where it was for McGregor and Mayweather.

"The difference was the Conor-Floyd thing became bigger than -- everywhere I went people were talking about it. All the media was talking about it, fans wanted to see it."

FWIW, according to stats online, Conor and Floyd is the 2nd most bought pay-per-view fight ever ... with 4.2 million buys at $100 a pop.

Dana also mentioned Francis' last fight ... when he took on interim champ Ciryl Gane. Ngannou used more wrestling in that fight against Ciryl -- an incredibly athletic striker -- than ever before in his MMA career. It's also worth noting the UFC champ sustained a serious leg injury leading up to the bout.

As good as Gane is, Fury's boxing ability is so freakin' good it's hard to imagine an MMA fighter, even with otherworldly power like Francis, have the ability to land flush shots on Tyson ... a sentiment with which Dana agrees.

"100% and he just fought Ciryl Gane and wrestled him. Silly conversation."

😬😬😬😬😬😬😬

There's more.

We also talked to Dana about Tuesday's premiere of The Ultimate Fighter 30 (a show near and dear to  ... starring coaches Amanda Nunes and Julianna Peña.

The UFC honcho talks about everything from Peña still believing she's the underdog to the Lioness, to Julianna's desire to fight on the same card as her buddy Jon Jones -- something Dana says isn't happening.

Julianna Peña beat the greatest female fighter to ever grace an MMA cage ... but the UFC champion tells TMZ Sports she still feels like the underdog against Amanda Nunes -- and that's why she's planning on proving she truly is the baddest woman on the planet.

"Everyone thinks it's a fluke, There's a ton of naysayers out there and negative people that think I just fell out of the blue sky and just ended up winning on that night because she hurt her knee or whatever," Peña says.

"The reality is that I won that fight fair and square and if you don't believe me, then you're gonna have to watch me do it again the second time and then maybe you guys will quit doubting me."

Peña says this is a fight she didn't have to take.

"I could've rode off into the sunset and fought somebody else."

Of course, Julianna beat Amanda by submission in the 2nd round of their UFC 269 fight in December 2021.

But, Julianna -- who has an immense amount of respect for Amanda -- believes a champ ain't a champ until they've defended the strap.

"I still feel like a contender. I still feel like there's a target on my back and I still feel like there's more work to be done. I'm not content with just 'oh you got the belt.' No! You're not a champ until you defend it and until you solidify that this is my belt."

"So for me, I'm waking up every morning thinking I still haven't hit my goal. I still haven't hit my goal yet and so as long as I can keep that mindset of just grinding, staying humble and just nose to the grindstone and just putting in that work, then I'll be able to confidently say, 'Yeah, maybe I got a leg up on her,' but right now I absolutely do not. I still have work to be done."

Before the rematch (the date isn't yet set -- more on that after), Julianna and Amanda are serving as coaches The Ultimate Fighter 30 ... which premiers Tuesday night.

FYI, Peña won season 18 of the show.

As for the date for the rematch, Julianna says she wouldn't mind fighting on the same card as Jon Jones ... who could be fighting Stipe Miocic this fall.

"We're still working on it," Peña tells us, "I don't have a date but I saw that Jon [Jones] wants to come back in September and I thought that would be a great card to jump on."

Prior to the L, Nunes hadn't lost since 2014 ... a span where she won 12 fights in a row, beating the who's who of MMA, including Valentina Shevchenko (two times), Ronda Rousey, Miesha Tate, Holly Holm and Cris Cyborg.

So, beating Amanda once is insane ... let alone twice.

TMZ Sports has obtained pictures of Colby Covington's face following his alleged March altercation with Jorge Masvidal ... and in one of the photos, you can see the UFC star's front tooth is clearly broken.

The pics were taken a short time after Covington alleged Masvidal punched him in the head and mouth area on March 21 outside of a restaurant in Miami.

In the photos, Covington's right cheek appears to be red ... while his front left tooth is obviously fractured.

The pictures were included as exhibits in docs filed by Masvidal's attorney, Bradford Cohen, on Monday.

"Interestingly," Cohen wrote of the pictures in the docs, "the images do not demonstrate an injury aside from a small chip in [Covington's] fake tooth."

In the docs, Cohen is asking the judge to order Covington to take independent medical exams to determine the extent of the alleged "brain injury" that Colby said he suffered in the incident with Masvidal.

Cohen also asked the court in further documents filed on Monday to have Colby's Rolex watch inspected.

Cohen claims the timepiece that Covington said Masvidal damaged in the alleged attack is actually a "FOLEX." Cohen says there are doubts that it's worth anywhere remotely near $95,000 ... and he's asking the court to issue an order that would allow them to inspect the watch.

He also said pictures of the watch taken after the alleged incident with Masvidal show "simple wear-and-tear scratches."

As we reported, Masvidal has been hit with two felony charges following Covington's allegations -- one count of aggravated battery and one count of criminal mischief.

Rob Font will absolutely take the fight, but the UFC contender tells TMZ Sports he doesn't believe a win over Chito Vera on Saturday will propel him to a title shot ... he thinks he still has work to do.

We talked to the 34-year-old, #5 ranked bantamweight as he began to cut weight earlier this week (Note: Font ended up missing weight, and will lose 20% of his purse) for his fight with Vera at UFC Fight Night -- and we asked if he believed a win sets him up for title shot against Aljamain Sterling.

"It's a great opportunity to get back out there, get some exposure, get another main event. I appreciate that. But, it's not like I go out there and put this guy away, 'I'm getting a title shot,'" Font says.

"But, that's cool, too. I'm coming off a loss. I'm not in denial. Like 'Oh yeah, I deserve a title.' That's why I'm saying one or two away. My main focus is obviously Chito."

It's not the typical response.

In fact, we also talked to Chito ... and although the 29-year-old is ranked a few spots lower than RF at #8, when we asked if a win would put him within one fight of the belt, Vera says the dub over Font could catapult him into the Octagon with Sterling.

"Or, I can fight straight for the belt. You never know what's gonna happen."

Chito continued ... "Winning is everything. You go in there and put on a good performance, you probably get what you wish for."

And, Vera's logic isn't crazy ... "I get in there, put on a great performance, go through him and I become number 5 by next week. And, we go from there. Once you're in the top 5 you're a title contender."

The UFC's bantamweight division is competitive. Aljo just defeated #1 contender, Petr Yan, at UFC 273 a few weeks ago. T.J. Dillashaw, former champion, recovering from ligament injuries he had fixed last summer, is ranked #2. The legend Jose Aldo, #3. Cory Sandhagen, #4. Then Font at 5# ... followed by Merab Dvalishvili, Dominick Cruz, and Marlon at #8.

No easy fights in the top 10 ... but both these men are badasses.

Chito's beaten Sean O'Malley (we know, "still undefeated") and Frankie Edgar. Meanwhile, Font's racked-up wins over Cody Garbrandt, Sergio Pettis and Marlon Moraes.

Check out the clips ... there's more talk about the actual fight.

Even Shakur Stevenson -- one of the most talented boxers in the world -- is admittedly surprised he's a big favorite over undefeated opponent, Oscar Valdez, straight-up telling TMZ Sports he doesn't get it.

"I actually don't understand it. I'm thinking like the odds are gonna be closer. I was willing to go put my whole fight check up for this fight, but you gotta give him the respect he deserves ... but I don't think the fans are," Stevenson says.

"Well, not the fans but the betting odds and the people and all that, I don't think they giving him a fair shake which I understand 'cause it's me but at the end of the day, I don't understand it either."

But, don't mistake Shakur's honesty for a lack of confidence in his ability ... he's just keeping it a buck, saying what educated fans know -- Valdez has hands.

FYI, 31-year-old Valdez, who has been working with Canelo Alvarez, has never lost a professional fight ... he's 30-0 with 23 knockouts.

Stevenson is younger ... just 24 years old, and is also undefeated at 24-0 with 9 KO's.

Despite the career accolades, Oscar is a sizeable underdog ... especially for a champion. In fact, many sportsbooks require you to lay down (-)$800 simply to win $100. Believe Valdez will win (like Canelo)? You'll only have to risk $100 to win (+)$500.

Obviously, Shakur's not overlooking Valdez ... and when we asked him if it was the toughest fight of his career, Stevenson was inclined to agree.

"On paper. On paper when they look at the records and what Valdez has done in the sport of boxing already, it looks like it's the hardest fight of my career but we never know until we get into the ring."

"Stylistically, it might be one of the easiest fights or it may be the hardest fight at the end of the day. You never know until you get in the ring."

Jake Paul's bet with Eddie Hearn for this weekend's matchup between Amanda Serrano and Katie Taylor will NOT involve any tattoos -- just a million freakin' dollars!!

It all went down during the final presser for the huge fight going down this Saturday at Madison Square Garden ... with Hearn igniting the wager after he asked Paul about his fighter.

"You're fully confident that your charge will be victorious and become undisputed lightweight world champion?" Hearn asked Paul on Friday.

Of course, JP doubled down on his belief Serrano will come out on top -- and that's when the 25-year-old boxer placed his bet.

"I got a bet for you Eddie," Paul said. "I bet you all the jewelry that I'm wearing right now that Amanda wins the fight."

Hearn hit him back with a couple of jokes ... saying "10 grand is not a lot" -- but Paul insists his diamond chain is worth $500k!

"Maybe we can talk a million," Hearn replied ... and the two shook hands.

Of course, Paul is known for making bets when it comes to the boxing ring -- remember, Tyron Woodley had to get an "I Love You Jake Paul" tattoo after he lost to the 5-0 boxer last August.

The $1 million bet ain't the only big-money deals being made this week ... the two female boxers' purse will be more than that, Paul previously said.

"This is just historic for the sport in general."

Jorge Masvidal has just been ordered by a judge to stay away from Colby Covington ... TMZ Sports has confirmed.

The Miami-Dade County judge just issued the order at a hearing on Thursday morning, according to a court spokesperson.

Masvidal's attorneys, Bradford Cohen and Mauricio Padilla, tell us the UFC fighter appeared at the hearing over Zoom. They said Covington was on the call as well.

The two attorneys say as part of the order, Masvidal has now been barred from going within 25 feet of Colby.

We're told Cohen, Padilla and Masvidal had no objections to the order ... with the attorneys telling us they "understand [Colby] is scared of Masvidal."

At the hearing, Masvidal also formally pled not guilty to charges that he attacked Covington outside of a restaurant in Miami on March 21.

As we reported, Masvidal has been hit with one count of felony aggravated battery and one count of felony criminal mischief after Covington alleged Jorge punched him multiple times in the attack.

Covington has yet to publicly comment on the incident.

Tyson Fury just whooped Dillian Whyte in the 6th round of their WBC championship fight at Wembley Stadium on Saturday ... and celebrated his victory by teasing an epic hybrid fight with UFC heavyweight champ Francis Ngannou.

Fury hit Whyte with a vicious right uppercut that sent him falling to the canvas ... and as Whyte stumbled back to his feet, the ref called the fight.

The 33-year-old champ -- who's been teasing his retirement leading up to Saturday's event -- seemingly declared that he was content with his career and ready to hang up the gloves after the win ... saying, "I think this is it. This might be the final curtain for the Gypsy King."

Despite the retirement talk, Fury brought Ngannou in the ring during his celebration ... and the two teased an epic heavyweight bout between the baddest from both combat sports -- with Francis suggesting a fight with MMA gloves in a boxing ring.

There are a couple challenges -- first, Ngannou is dealing with a leg injury and will need months to get back to 100% ... and second, he's also in the midst of a contract dispute with the UFC. If he's under contract, he will need Dana White's stamp of approval before taking a fight with Fury.

Alexander Volkanovski vs. ... Conor McGregor??

Maybe ... if the featherweight champ gets to call his next shot, 'cause during a recent conversation with Volkanovski, TMZ Sports asked if he was interested in a scrap with the Irish superstar.

"Oh yeah, I mean [a McGregor fight always interests me], and it's always going to interest a lot of people," Alex, who hasn't lost a fight since 2013, tells us.

"It's always going to be a big fight, there's always going to be money, there's going to be a circus, it's going to be entertaining, it's going to be fun, I'll enjoy that whole f***ing thing."

Of course, Conor hasn't fought since July 2021 ... when he snapped his leg during his third fight with Dustin Poirier.

McGregor is clearly getting closer to making his Octagon return ... and Dana White previously told us he expects the UFC superstar will fight towards the end of the year.

Regarding Conor, there are several potential opponents ... welterweight champ Kamaru Usman, lightweight contender Justin Gaethje, and Volkanovski.

If you've seen Conor lately, you'll know he ain't making 145 lbs. anymore ... but that might play into Alex's hands, as the champ says he wants to move up a weight class and achieve champ-champ status.

FYI, Conor, Daniel Cormier, Amanda Nunes and Henry Cejudo are the only UFC fighters to hold two belts at one time.

Check out the extended cut with Alex ... where he and Babcock talk everything from the beatdown of "Korean Zombie" (warrior!) at UFC 273, a trilogy fight with Max Holloway, and whether or not AV's the greatest featherweight ever -- plus much more!

Full interview ⬇️⬇️⬇️⬇️

Bare Knuckle Fighting star Joey Beltran was nearly KO'd before his Thursday night fight -- 'cause the #1 ranked heavyweight tells TMZ Sports he literally began choking at breakfast, and would probably be dead if someone didn't step in and save him.

And, guess who played hero? Bare Knuckle executive David Feldman!!

If you're a fight fan, you know 'The Mexicutioner.' Before joining BKFC (where he has a 5-2-1 record) a few years ago, Joey spent time in the UFC and Bellator.

Beltran was eating breakfast in his hotel room in Ft. Lauderdale when his coach showed him a funny internet video.

"An old school Fear Factor video or something and I started laughing," Beltran tells us.

"Next thing you know, I started choking."

The 40-year-old scrapper says he started panicking when he couldn't cough up the food -- and that's when Feldman came to the rescue.

"Of all people, the boss man had to come up and bust a Heimlich," JB said. "Couple of pumps and I spit it out and I was all good."

"So, contrary to popular people, David Feldman cares about us fighters!"

Despite the scary incident, JB is still scheduled to fight Frank Tate (1-1-1) tonight -- the main event for a loaded fight card.

It's arguably a must win for Beltran ... who's gunning for a rematch with Arnold Adams, the #3 ranked heavyweight fighter who recently beat him in a title fight.

Bellator star Corey Anderson -- who was dominating his light heavyweight title fight before an inadvertent headbutt ended the fight without a decision -- tells TMZ Sports Vadim Nemkov's mentor and trainer, MMA legend Fedor Emelianenko, was talking s**t after the fight.

"When I got worked up that's cause of Fedor came in and said 'You don't win. You headbutt. You don't win.' Like motherf***er, what? Excuse my language. Like, really Fedor? You gonna say that? So you're trying to tell me I wasn't beating your guy? I wasn't winning this fight?"

32-year-old Anderson faced 29-year-old Nemkov in the finals of the Bellator Light Heavyweight Grand Prix ... with the title, and a million bucks on the line.

With 3 seconds left in the 3rd round (it was a 5 round fight), Corey accidentally headbutted the Russian fighter who was previously undefeated in Bellator's promotion.

Anderson -- who previously fought in the UFC and has beaten the likes of Glover Teixeira and Jan Blachowicz -- was clearly dominating the fight before the headbutt.

Unfortunately for Corey, the ringside doctor ruled the cut was too severe, and Nemkov couldn't continue.

Anderson says he was initially told he won the fight (they even brought in the giant $1 million check) ... before telling Corey they screwed up, and the fight would actually be ruled a "no contest."

That's when Corey says Fedor -- who coaches Nemkov -- started running his mouth.

"I even told Nemkov when I got up, I helped him up earlier, like 'Yo, my bad. That was an accident, nobody's fault.'"

"But [Fedor] came in saying 'You don't win, you only headbutt.' Like really?' Instead of just owning up saying, 'Bro, helluva fight. Sorry about the headbutt. We're running it back.' He gonna say 'You don't win, you only headbutt.'"

"Bro, I don't give a damn who you are, if you're a legend or not."

There's much more with Anderson in the extended interview below!