Halfway through 2026 and MMA has seen no shortage of memorable manglings.
MMA
MMA Fighting’s 2026 Submission of the Midyear: Murtazali Magomedov’s mind-blowing Scottish twister
Published
3 weeks agoon
Sure, we've yet to see a major title fight decided by a submission yet, but what's great about the mixing of the martial arts is that sometimes you see some of the most amazing finishes happen when you least expect it, and that's doubly true when it comes to fighters forcing their opponents to tap out.
Six months into the year, we've seen all kinds of submissions from airtight chokes to body-bending holds to classic armbars, so we had plenty of options to choose from when deciding which was the best for our Midyear awards. In the end, we landed on a Dana White Contender Series signing making a debut that will be tough to top, a talented flyweight contender putting an exclamation point on an impressive performance against one of his division's most dangerous spoilers, and never-before-seen-in-the-UFC leg lock courtesy of a streaking strawweight who's proving she's more than just a meme machine.
So let's look at MMA Fighting's top-3 submissions of 2026 so far.
No. 1: Murtazali Magomedov vs. Melsik Baghdasaryan (UFC Vegas 119)
You could be forgiven for mistaking Murtazali Magomedov for a striker.
For many fans, their first introduction to Magomedov came on the Contender Series, where he showed slick hands to put away Brahyam Zurcher and earn a UFC contract. Even his last Octagon League featherweight championship defense came courtesy of a hellacious knockout knee up the middle. Magomedov might be a wrestler, but he certainly doesn't shy away from throwing hammers on the feet.
However, his UFC debut reminded everyone he has a dangerous submission game. Once Magomedov put Melsik Baghdasaryan on the mat, he didn't settle for a pedestrian rear-naked choke or hunt for a joint lock; no, that wouldn't be satisfying enough. Instead, he waited for Baghdasaryan to turn into his body lock, trapping him halfway through, and then twisting him in such a way that his upper half threatened to separate from his lower half.
The official call was Scottish twister and the official result was Magomedov putting the 145-pound division on notice that he is not to be messed with when it comes to grappling.
No. 2: Asu Almabayev vs. Charles Johnson (UFC Baku)
Asu Almabayev is so close to breaking into that elite tier of flyweights and he moved one step closer to cementing a spot with his latest win.
Kazakhstan's Almabayev has been a healthy favorite in his past couple of fights, but it's one thing to look good on paper and another to look good inside the octagon. For two rounds, against flyweight kingmaker Charles Johnson, Almabayev showed off a complete game, especially his superior wrestling.
Up on the cards heading into Round 3, Almabayev could have cruised to a decision win. Why risk giving Johnson even the slightest window for a comeback considering his history of upsets (UFC champion Joshua Van and Lone'er Kavanagh know all too well how dangerous Johnson is) when you're in control of the cards? With less than two minutes left in the fight, Almabayev took advantage of Johnson attempting to stand up out of back control, snatched Johnson's leg to break his base, and then utilized a classic Suloev stretch to yank his foot way over his head. Tap or say goodbye to your hamstring.
With just one loss in eight UFC appearances, don't be surprised if this is the performance that pushes Almabayev towards an eventual title shot.
No. 3: Alice Ardelean vs. Polyana Viana (UFC Vegas 117)
Is Alice Ardelean… good?
Even the most positive-minded fight fan (me!) had a difficult time reconciling Ardelean being signed to the UFC in 2024. Her two claims to fame were her considerable social media following (millions are subscribed to Ardelean's socials for her viral reaction face) and having previously lost to Zhang Weili. Her pro record was 9-5. And then she lost to Shauna Bannon and Melissa Martinez. Like, what are we doing?
Then something weird happened. Ardelean stuck to it. She could have settled for using a brief UFC run to further boost her profile, but she actually started winning fights. A Fight of the Night-winning performance against Rayanne dos Santos. Another decision nod over Montserrat Conejo. And then a matchup with Polyana Viana, a struggling veteran, but a woman that knows a thing or too about internet notoriety.
Ardelean made sure both of them went viral again. With Ardelean in top position, Viana countered with a body lock from bottom position, aiming to control Ardelean's posture. However, what she didn't know was that Ardelean is terminally online and guess what? That's a pretty dangerous base for MMA in 2026.
With Viana's foot tucked between her legs, Ardelean turned body lock defense into leg lock offense and soon it was Viana being forced to signal her submission.
I don't know if Ardelean ever becomes a serious contender. I don't know if she even comes close to cracking the top 15. But she's already made her mark, becoming the first fighter ever to say that they successfully scored a Capsule Lock submission in a UFC fight.
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MMA
UFC finalizes Aug. 8 Fight Night card with Darren Elkins farewell
Published
41 minutes agoon
July 24, 2026
After 15 years, Darren Elkins is set for his final UFC bout. |
📷: Getty/UFC
The
Ultimate Fighting Championship has finalized the lineup for its
next Fight Night at Meta Apex in Las Vegas, including Octagon
veteran Darren
Elkins' final appearance in the promotion.
The card, headlined by Mateusz
Gamrot and Quillan
Salkilld, is scheduled for Aug. 8.
UFC Fight Night lineup features Darren Elkins vs. Yadier Del
Valle and Gamrot vs. Salkilld
Elkins (29-12) will square off against
Dana White's Contender Series alum Yadier Del
Valle.
The 42-year-old has been on the UFC roster since 2010, earning
memorable victories over the likes of Mirsad
Bektic, Michael
Johnson, Dennis
Bermudez and Luiz
Eduardo Garagorri. Furthermore, Elkins has shared the cage with
several former champions and fan favorites, albeit in losing
efforts, against Alexander
Volkanovski, Charles
Oliveira, Chad Mendes
and UFC Hall of Famer Cub
Swanson.
New matchups added to the card include Ty Cole
Miller vs. Billy Goff,
Juliana
Miller vs. Ravena
Oliveira, Diego
Ferreira vs. Billy
Quarantillo and Diyar
Nurgozhay vs. Bruno
Lopes, among others. Gamrot and Salkilld lock horns in the main
event, with former strawweight title challenger Amanda
Lemos facing Alexia
Thainara in the co-headliner.
The updated card as of June 23 is as follows:
Mateusz
Gamrot vs. Quillan
Salkilld (lightweight main event)
Amanda
Lemos vs. Alexia
Thainara (women's strawweight)
Diego
Ferreira vs. Billy
Quarantillo (lightweight)
Steven
Asplund vs. Guilherme
Pat (heavyweight)
Diyar
Nurgozhay vs. Bruno Lopes
(light heavyweight)
Louie
Sutherland vs. Jose Luiz
(heavyweight)
Juliana
Miller vs. Ravena
Oliveira (women’s flyweight)
Darren
Elkins vs. Yadier Del
Valle (featherweight)
Ty
Cole Miller vs. Billy Goff
(welterweight)
MMA
Mateusz Gamrot secures new UFC deal before Quillan Salkilld showdown
Published
2 hours agoon
July 24, 2026
Mateusz Gamrot (right) has reupped with the UFC. | 📷:
Getty/UFC
Mateusz
Gamrot has extended his stay in the
Ultimate Fighting Championship.
Gamrot recently announced on X that he has signed a new multi-fight
deal with the promotion, ensuring that his tenure will continue
beyond his upcoming main event assignment.
Mateusz Gamrot signs a new UFC contract before facing Quillan
Salkilld in the UFC Fight Night 284 main event.
While he didn't divulge the exact number of bouts on his new deal,
Gamrot is ecstatic to continue fighting in the promotion. The
Polish lightweight claims he's “grateful†for the new contract and
is excited for what lies ahead.
“I've signed a multi-fight deal with UFC! Another step begins in
just two weeks, let's gooo,†Gamrot wrote on X. “I'm grateful to
the UFC for the trust and for recognizing my hard work. Thank you
for believing in me and giving me the opportunity to keep proving
myself on the biggest stage in the world.â€
The new contract comes ahead of Gamrot's Aug. 8 showdown against
rising Australian contender Quillan
Salkilld in the main event of
UFC Fight Night 284 at Meta Apex in Las Vegas.
Gamrot has established himself as one of the division’s top
contenders during his four-year UFC tenure, compiling notable
victories over Arman
Tsarukyan, Rafael dos
Anjos and Jalin
Turner. His UFC record stands at 9-4.
I've signed a multi deal with UFC! Another
step begins in just two weeks, let's gooo 🚀🚀I'm grateful to the UFC for the trust and for recognizing my hard
work. Thank you for believing in me and giving me the opportunity
to keep proving myself on the biggest stage in the world… pic.twitter.com/MTf4CBByT4— Mateusz
Gamrot (@gamer_mma)
July 23, 2026
MMA
Rose Namajunas reveals the questions she must answer before UFC comeback
Published
3 hours agoon
July 24, 2026
Namajunas wants to rediscover her motivation before returning
to competition in the
Ultimate Fighting Championship.
The 34-year-old admitted during a recent podcast appearance that
she has spent the past few months evaluating her future after
multiple disappointing results and the lengthy recovery from
injuries sustained in her last bout.
Rose Namajunas discusses injuries, recent losses and her UFC
future
Namajunas still intends to fight again, but she wants to make sure
she has the right reason for returning. The former strawweight
champion lost to Natalia
Silva at
UFC 324 in January and had to undergo surgery shortly after her
fight with Silva to repair damage caused by an accidental eye
poke.
“It was like a three-month process,†Namajunas said on the
“Weighing In” podcast. “After the fight, I had to get this surgery
right away. They put this weird silicone tube in my eye. It was a
really easy surgery, though. It was just kind of uncomfortable. I
couldn't blow my nose. I couldn't rub my eye because it could pop
out, so I had to be off — no contact training for three
months.â€
She also revealed that she suffered a torn ulnar collateral
ligament in her thumb during the recovery process. Namajunas was
finally cleared to resume training in April, but has yet to
schedule her next bout. The aforementioned setbacks have left her
contemplating her future.
“That's why I've been sitting out for a while because I'm trying to
rediscover, OK, what am I doing now?†Namajunas added. “The last
three opportunities that I had — the Natalia fight, the Erin
Blanchfield fight and the Manon
[Fiorot] fight — I was told that I would get a title shot with
a win. I came up short in all three of those. I'm at a point in my
life where I'm thinking about family stuff and all these things,
and next steps, future things. So, I do want to compete and I still
want to fight again, but I want to make sure that when I'm going in
there, I'm going for a purpose and a reason.â€
Namajunas is 1-2 in her last three bouts and 3-3 since moving up to
flyweight.
UFC finalizes Aug. 8 Fight Night card with Darren Elkins farewell
Mateusz Gamrot secures new UFC deal before Quillan Salkilld showdown
Rose Namajunas reveals the questions she must answer before UFC comeback
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