MMA

Ben Askren’s final match comes one year after double lung transplant

Published

1 hour ago

July 15, 2026

Ben Askren’s final match comes one year after double lung transplant

Ultimate Fighting Championship veteran Ben Askren
will have a fairytale ending to his wrestling career irrespective
of the outcome of his next match.

Askren is scheduled to face Belal
Muhammad in the co-main event at RAF 11 in front of his home
fans in Milwaukee. Most thought Askren would never compete again
when he was battling a life-threatening case of pneumonia last
year. The Olympic gold medalist looked nothing like himself after
undergoing a double lung transplant exactly a year ago. However,
Askren recovered well and gradually returned to the wrestling mats
at his training academy.

UFC veteran Ben Askren returns to wrestling after surviving a
major medical scare

Currently a commentator and ambassador at RAF, Askren had no plans
to compete while urging the promotion to come to his hometown.
However, he couldn't resist the idea when he learned that RAF would
come to Milwaukee on his birthday.

Askren has confirmed that he will hang up his wrestling shoes for
good after his match against Muhammad this weekend.

â€œI don't want to do any more matches. This is it for me,â€ Askren
told MMA Fighting. â€œI never really even had the idea. I did
encourage RAF to come to Milwaukee because we do have a strong
wrestling base hereâ€¦ I knew we would sell a bunch of tickets. So, I
said, â€˜Hey guys, Milwaukee's great in the summer; come to
Milwaukee.' We'll sell a bunch of tickets; we'll probably be able
to attract the Chicago crowd too, because they had a great show
there last November or whenever it was. And when they told me it
was going to be on my birthday, something just said, â€˜Ben, get out
there and wrestle. It's a year after your transplant. It's your
birthday; it's your hometown. Go do it.'â€

MMA

Cris Cyborg announces next chapter after MMA retirement: starting a family

Published

4 hours ago

July 15, 2026

The Punch Junkie™ News

Cris Cyborg announces next chapter after MMA retirement: starting a family

Former
Ultimate Fighting Championship champion Cris
Cyborg is ready to embrace a new chapter once her legendary
mixed martial arts career comes to an end.

The reigning
Professional Fighters League champion has revealed that she
plans to start a family after her retirement bout against Ketlen
Vieira at
PFL Tampa on Aug. 22. She also confirmed that she has one more
boxing match scheduled for later this year.

Cris Cyborg's final MMA chapter has a deeply personal goal

Speaking to Sherdog’s Marcelo Alonso ahead of her farewell MMA
fight, Cyborg explained that her decision to retire is fueled by a
personal goal.

â€œI’ll never stop training because I love competing,â€ she said.
â€œI’ve been training since I was 12 years old. I started fighting
professionally at 19. This healthy lifestyle has allowed me to
reach 41 years old in great health and still performing at an elite
level. It’s become part of who I am, and I won’t change that.â€

The Brazilian, who turned 41 on July 9, confirmed that she already
has a boxing bout booked after facing Vieira but intends to focus
on starting a family after her retirement.

A middleweight
title fight headlines PFL Austin: Tune on Saturday, July 18 at 8
p.m. ET on ESPN.

“But I’ve always wanted to become a mother. Now I plan to get
pregnant and begin this new chapter,” she added.

Cyborg also said that she's happy to have fellow Brazilian Vieira,
a top-ranked contender whom the UFC opted against re-signing, as
her last opponent in MMA.

“I believe Ketlen is in her prime,” Cyborg said. “Just a few months
ago, she was ranked in the top three, so I’m happy to have a ranked
and highly credible opponent for my final fight.”

Cyborg enters the bout as one of the most accomplished female
fighters in MMA history. She will look to cap off her career with a
30th professional victory before shifting her focus to motherhood.

MMA

Khabib declares Usman Nurmagomedov wouldn’t have reached the UFC at 21

Published

6 hours ago

July 15, 2026

The Punch Junkie™ News

Khabib declares Usman Nurmagomedov wouldn’t have reached the UFC at 21

Khabib
Nurmagomedov credits the
Professional Fighters League for building his cousin Usman
Nurmagomedov into the star that he is today.

Usman is considered one of the most sought-after fighters currently
competing outside the
Ultimate Fighting Championship. Khabib recently heaped praise
on the PFL for building Usman from the ground up. He believes Usman
wouldn't have made it to the UFC roster when he initially signed
with Bellator
MMA, which was later acquired by the PFL.

Khabib Nurmagomedov credits PFL for Usman Nurmagomedov's
rise

Khabib is grateful to the PFL for providing Usman with a platform
where he could gradually grow into a star. While the former UFC
lightweight champion admits that being his cousin helped Usman's
popularity, he notes that the PFL lightweight champion is an elite
fighter in his own right.

â€œWithout the PFL, who would have known Usman? At 21, he wouldn't
have made it to the UFC,â€ the UFC Hall of Famer said on the “Smol
Talk” podcast. â€œThey gave him a base, the roots, the opportunity to
grow. The PFL made him a star. Of course, being my [cousin] helped,
but first and foremost, Usman himself is an elite world-class
fighter. He spent the best years and had the best fights of his
early career under that banner, and the PFL helped make him what he
is today. Among the Top 10 fighters outside the UFC, Usman is No. 1
â€“ the â€˜most wanted' free agent, as people say. The PFL platform
gave him that position, and I'm deeply grateful to them.â€

Usman’s current PFL contract expires when he puts his lightweight
title on the line against Archie
Colgan on July 31 at UBS Arena in Long Island, New York. While
a UFC move is rumored, nothing is cemented yet. Khabib refused to
comment on Usman's immediate future, out of respect for the
PFL.

A middleweight
title fight headlines PFL Austin: Tune on Saturday, July 18 at 8
p.m. ET on ESPN.

â€œWhat happens next with Usman? Honestly, I can't discuss it now,
and out of respect for the PFL, I don't want to,â€ he added.

Usman joined Bellator with a record of 11-0 back in 2021 and has
since extended his record to 21-0 (1 NC). Notably, his brother,
Umar
Nurmagomedov, is already in the UFC and is among the top-ranked
bantamweights.

MMA

Shakur Stevenson reacts to viral Shannon Sharpe interview, Eddie Hearn spoiling Zuffa Boxing signing

Published

8 hours ago

July 15, 2026

The Punch Junkie™ News

Shakur Stevenson reacts to viral Shannon Sharpe interview, Eddie Hearn spoiling Zuffa Boxing signing

Shakur Stevenson is the biggest signing in the short history of Zuffa Boxing, but it was an interview with Shannon Sharpe that went viral.

Stevenson and Sharpe had a bit of a debate on the former NFL player's Nightcap podcast, where things got a little bit heated as Sharpe insinuated â€” then flat out said it to the 25-0 boxer â€” that Stevenson's style is â€œboring.â€ Things continued on with Stevenson challenging Sharpe's boxing credibility.

Shortly after his appearance on the show, Stevenson reacted to the situation.

â€œIt was an intense conversation,â€ Stevenson told MMA Fighting in Las Vegas. â€œI feel like it was an intense conversation with Unc because Unc really didn't understand that I have more knowledge in the sport of boxing than he does and you can't really debate boxing with me. So when you actually pay attention to the discussion, he was talking in circles. He kept bringing other things up instead of being focused on the exact thing that was talked about

â€œBut much respect to him. I wish I wouldn't have to correct somebody of my skin color. I feel like it's kind of crazy to me, but it is what it is.â€

Stevenson is thrilled with his new Zuffa Boxing deal, saying it's a combination of game-changing money and legacy promised to him that wasn't available anywhere else in the sport. It's unknown who Stevenson will face in his promotional debut or when it will happen.

As far as the actual signing goes, while it was made official last week, it was actually Eddie Hearn that broke the news a month prior.

The 29-year-old was asked about Hearn trying to outscoop White and Zuffa Boxing.

â€œI don't get into the promoter beef,â€ Stevenson said. â€œEddie's been good to me. Eddie is my guy. Nothing but love and respect for him. But yeah, he kind of like spoiled it. He shouldn't have never spoiled it.

â€œI was kinda like, â€˜Damn, Eddie, don't do that.' But, other than that, I appreciate Eddie. I got love for him, but now we over here doing business with Dana, and it's going to be an amazing journey.