2 months ago
ONE Championship's loss is the UFC's gain – maybe.
ONE contender Akbar Abdullaev is headed to Dana White's Contender Series, as he's slated for a battle vs. Urijah Faber A1 Combat standout Anthony Figueroa at the Sept. 15 event at the Meta APEX in Las Vegas.
Two people with knowledge recently informed MMA Junkie of the booking but asked to remain anonymous as the promotion has yet to make an official announcement.
Kyrgyzstan's Abdullaev (13-0) allegedly split from ONE in the spring. Abdullaev is deemed "the uncrowned champion" by fans, as he defeated champion Tang Kai by fifth-round TKO stoppage but failed the hydration test, making him ******* le-ineligible. Abdullaev has a 100 percent finishing rate through 13 professional fights with 12 knockouts and one submission.
Figueroa (9-1) is a second-generation fighter. His father, who shares the same name, competed six times for Strikeforce from 2006 to 2008. In nine professional wins, Figueroa has four finishes, including three knockouts and one submission. Former UFC double champion Daniel Cormier has taken Figueroa under his wing.
#abdullaev #champion #professional
ONE contender Akbar Abdullaev is headed to Dana White's Contender Series, as he's slated for a battle vs. Urijah Faber A1 Combat standout Anthony Figueroa at the Sept. 15 event at the Meta APEX in Las Vegas.
Two people with knowledge recently informed MMA Junkie of the booking but asked to remain anonymous as the promotion has yet to make an official announcement.
Kyrgyzstan's Abdullaev (13-0) allegedly split from ONE in the spring. Abdullaev is deemed "the uncrowned champion" by fans, as he defeated champion Tang Kai by fifth-round TKO stoppage but failed the hydration test, making him ******* le-ineligible. Abdullaev has a 100 percent finishing rate through 13 professional fights with 12 knockouts and one submission.
Figueroa (9-1) is a second-generation fighter. His father, who shares the same name, competed six times for Strikeforce from 2006 to 2008. In nine professional wins, Figueroa has four finishes, including three knockouts and one submission. Former UFC double champion Daniel Cormier has taken Figueroa under his wing.
#abdullaev #champion #professional
3 months ago
Raymond Muratalla will defend his IBF lightweight ***** le against former super featherweight ***** list Robson Conceicao in the first-half of a world ***** le doubleheader this Saturday night on DAZN and TNT.
Muratalla, 29, is coming off of a career-best win over Andy Cruz, and Conceicao is definitely in what should be his declining years, but could this matchup contain some surprises?
by Scott Christ
Raymond Muratalla featured on Top Rank undercards for years, taking the little bitty steps that often come with Top Rank's more old school approach to matchmaking, which is also suited to their many non-blue chip type prospects, who need time to train, get better, and go fight-to-fight.
He took a decent jump in class against Zaur Abdullaev in May 2025, winning the interim IBF ***** le via wide decision, and then upset Andy Cruz with the full ***** le on the line in January of this year. That "upset" tag is maybe more dependent on our ideas of how good of a pro Cruz could be over what he's actually proven in the paid ranks, but either way it was an impressive performance by Muratalla (24-0, 17 KO), against a highly-skilled, in-prime opponent.
#raymond #years
Muratalla, 29, is coming off of a career-best win over Andy Cruz, and Conceicao is definitely in what should be his declining years, but could this matchup contain some surprises?
by Scott Christ
Raymond Muratalla featured on Top Rank undercards for years, taking the little bitty steps that often come with Top Rank's more old school approach to matchmaking, which is also suited to their many non-blue chip type prospects, who need time to train, get better, and go fight-to-fight.
He took a decent jump in class against Zaur Abdullaev in May 2025, winning the interim IBF ***** le via wide decision, and then upset Andy Cruz with the full ***** le on the line in January of this year. That "upset" tag is maybe more dependent on our ideas of how good of a pro Cruz could be over what he's actually proven in the paid ranks, but either way it was an impressive performance by Muratalla (24-0, 17 KO), against a highly-skilled, in-prime opponent.
#raymond #years
4 months ago
Portugal and Uzbekistan face each other this Tuesday at the NRG Stadium of the World Cup. The match will be broadcast live at 18:00 on ITV 1.
In their last fixture, Portugal shared the spoils 1-1 with DR Congo (World Cup 2026). In their last game, Uzbekistan lost 1-3 against Colombia (World Cup 2026).
Portugal ( vs DR Congo 2026-06-17): Diogo Costa, João Cancelo, Renato Veiga, Tomás Araújo, Nuno Mendes, Vitinha, João Neves, Bruno Fernandes, Bernardo Silva, Cristiano Ronaldo, Pedro Neto
Uzbekistan ( vs Colombia 2026-06-18): Utkir Yusupov, Abdukodir Khusanov, Abdulla Abdullaev, Rustamjon Ashurmatov, Behruz Karimov, Akmal Mozgovoy, Otabek Shukurov, Sherzod Nasrullaev, Oston Urunov, Eldor Shomurodov, Abbos Fayzullaev
In their last fixture, Portugal shared the spoils 1-1 with DR Congo (World Cup 2026). In their last game, Uzbekistan lost 1-3 against Colombia (World Cup 2026).
Portugal ( vs DR Congo 2026-06-17): Diogo Costa, João Cancelo, Renato Veiga, Tomás Araújo, Nuno Mendes, Vitinha, João Neves, Bruno Fernandes, Bernardo Silva, Cristiano Ronaldo, Pedro Neto
Uzbekistan ( vs Colombia 2026-06-18): Utkir Yusupov, Abdukodir Khusanov, Abdulla Abdullaev, Rustamjon Ashurmatov, Behruz Karimov, Akmal Mozgovoy, Otabek Shukurov, Sherzod Nasrullaev, Oston Urunov, Eldor Shomurodov, Abbos Fayzullaev
