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Leon Edwards vs. Khamzat Chimaev will be rescheduled. Again.

The UFC Fight Island 8 main event will still feature welterweights… just not Leon Edwards or Khamzat Chimaev.

With news that Khamzat Chimaev is still dealing with the effects of COVID-19 and thus won’t fight Edwards on January 20th, the UFC has opted to reschedule Edwards vs. Chimaev (again) bump up Michael Chiesa vs. Neil Magny to headliner status. Dana White confirmed this in an interview with The Schmo.

Chiesa (17-4) is a perfect 3-0 since making the move up to welterweight. After submitting former interim champion Carlos Condit at UFC 232, he easily took care of Diego Sanchez at UFC 239, and then announced his arrival as a contender by taking a decision against Rafael dos Anjos at UFC Charlotte in January.

Magny (24-7) has also won three straight, although all of his are by unanimous decision. He outclassed Li Jingliang at UFC 248 in March, Anthony Rocco Martin at UFC 250 in June, and most recently dominated Robbie Lawler at UFC Vegas 8 in August. The latest UFC rankings have Magny at #9 and Chiesa at #8, so this is certainly worthy of being five rounds.

UFC Fight Island 8 streams on ESPN+ from Yas Island in Abu Dhabi.

Hopefully Walmart is still hiring.

Former UFC welterweight title contender Nick Diaz, who is no longer Stockton’s most celebrated party animal, has been teasing a potential return to the Octagon at some point in 2021 after completing a mock weight cut to evaluate his level of fitness.

UFC President Dana White isn’t holding his breath.

“Everything that I see from Nick Diaz doesn’t look like he wants to or is ready to compete in this sport,” White told The Schmo. “I don’t think anyone should want to see Nick Diaz fight. [He’s] been in a lot of wars, he’s accomplished a lot of great things in his career, he’s made a lot of money, he’s obviously super-famous. He’s gotten everything you could hope to get out of fighting. I just don’t know why, when I see his Instagram, why he would come back.”

Probably because that clout won’t chase itself.

Diaz turned 37 last August and would need to complete six-months of USADA drug testing before we can start talking about a potential comeback, which makes anachronistic tactics like herbal cleansers and waterboarding a thing of the past.

Then again, there’s always Bellator MMA.

Leon Edwards was hoping to stay atop the upcoming UFC Fight Island 8 welterweight main event, currently scheduled for Jan. 20 on “Fight Island” in Abu Dhabi. Instead, “Rocky” will return to the sidelines and wait for opponent Khamzat Chimaev to recover from COVID-19.

“Borz” is expected to resume training within the next few weeks.

“The doctor told him when he went back to the gym, I guess he was having problems with his lungs, whatever that was, so they told him to take some more time off and not start training until early January,” White told The Schmo. “We’re going to push that fight back.”

Taking over the five-round headliner will be the 170-pound showdown between longtime veterans Neil Magny and Michael Chiesa, who battle for a spot in the welterweight title chase. No word yet on who fills in the open co-main event slot.

To see the revised UFC Fight Island 8 fight card and lineup click here.

RIZIN Fighting Federation closed out 2020 with a stacked mixed martial arts (MMA) fight card, which in keeping with the standards set by PRIDE FC, also featured kickboxing bouts and mixed-rules showdowns across a variety of weight classes.

In the bantamweight main event, Kyoji Horiguchi recaptured his 135-pound title by smashing Kai Asakura in the opening frame. Elsewhere on the card, Tenshin Nasukawa kept his undefeated record intact by outpointing Kumandoi Phetjaroenvit, while Takanori Gomi scored a majority decision over Koji Tanaka.

Complete RIZIN 26 results from Saitama Super Arena below.

Kyoji Horiguchi def. Kai Asakura via TKO (strikes) – Round 1
Tenshin Nasukawa def. Kumandoi Phetjaroenvit via unanimous decision [kickboxing]
Mikuru Asakura def. Satoshi Yamasu via TKO (strikes) – Round 1
Takanori Gomi def. Koji Tanaka via majority decision
Ayaka Hamasaki def. Miyuu Yamamoto via submission (scissor choke) – Round 1
Naoki Inoue def. Yuki Motoyo via submission (rear-naked choke) – Round 1
Kleber Koike def. Kyle Aguon via submission (D’Arce choke) – Round
Kyohei Hagiwara def. Ren Hiramoto via TKO (corner stoppage) – Round 2
Hideo Tokoro def. Shinobu Ota via submission (armbar) – Round 2
Yoshinari Nadaka def. Petmalai Phetjaroenvit via TKO (strikes) – Round 1U
lka Sasaki def. Kenta Takizawa via unanimous decision
Kanna Asakura def. Ai Shimizu via unanimous decision
Shibatar def. Hiroya via submission (armbar) – Round 2
Kazuma Kuramoto def. Taiyo Nakahara via KO (strikes) – Round 1
Tsuyoshi Sudario def. Ikuhisa Minowa via TKO (strikes) – Round 1
Sakura Mori def. Eru Takebayashi via submission (armbar) – Round 1

Highlights:

Kyoji Horiguchi def. Kai Asakura

Tenshin Nasukawa def. Kumandoi Phetjaroenvit

Ayaka Hamasaki def. Miyuu Yamamoto

Kazuma Kuramoto def. Taiyo Nakahara

Not a bad way to close out 2020.

Lung problems stemming from his positive COVID-19 test forced Khamzat Chimaev out of his fight with Leon Edwards next month.

Khamzat Chimaev’s manager, Ali Abdelaziz, has released a statement explaining his fighter’s withdrawal from the main event of UFC Fight Island 8 next month.

Chimaev (9-0) was scheduled to fight top welterweight contender Leon Edwards (18-3) in the leading act of the UFC’s Jan. 20th event. Their original booking at UFC Vegas 17 on Dec. 19th was cancelled after both men tested positive for COVID-19.

Abdelaziz revealed in a statement to ESPN that Chimaev’ lungs have not fully recovered since he was diagnosed with the virus at the end of November, which is why he has pulled out of the fight.

“Khamzat had coronavirus and when he went back to gym, his lungs did not recover 100%,” the statement read. “He needs time for his lungs to recover, and right now it’s about taking that necessary time.”

Edwards has insisted that he still wants to fight at UFC Fight Island 8, which will be the second of three events the promotion is holding in a seven-day period on Fight Island. “Rocky” called out Jorge Masvidal after Chimaev’s withdrawal, and middleweight contender Kevin Holland has also campaigned to fill in for “Borz”.