Aljamain Sterling, Sean O’Malley fight confirmed for UFC 292 in August, co-main event title clash announced

Aljamain Sterling vs. Sean O'Malley confirmed for UFC 292 in AugustAljamain Sterling will make a quick turnaround after defending his bantamweight world championship against former two-division titleholder Henry Cejudo at UFC 288. As announced by Dana White on social media, ‘Funk Master’ will return to defend his title once again against No. 2 ranked bantamweight contender Sean O’Malley. The highly anticipated 135-pound clash will headline […]

Aljamain Sterling vs. Sean O'Malley confirmed for UFC 292 in August

Aljamain Sterling will make a quick turnaround after defending his bantamweight world championship against former two-division titleholder Henry Cejudo at UFC 288.

As announced by Dana White on social media, ‘Funk Master’ will return to defend his title once again against No. 2 ranked bantamweight contender Sean O’Malley. The highly anticipated 135-pound clash will headline the promotion’s return to Bostom for UFC 292. White also revealed the evening’s co-main event. Reigning UFC strawweight women’s champion Zhang Weili will defend her title against No. 4 ranked contender, Amanda Lemos.

Sean O’Malley will go into his first UFC title opportunity 8-1 inside the Octagon and riding a four-fight win streak. Sugar’ scored his spot as the next man in line with a closely-contested split decision victory over former champion Petr Yan at UFC 280 in October.

Aljamain Sterling looks to defend his bantamweight title for the fourth time against O’Malley after successfully dispatching former titleholders Petr Yan, T.J. Dillashaw, and Henry Cejudo in his last three outings. Sterling is currently on a nine-fight win streak dating back to 2018. On Monday, ‘Funk Master’ played coy when asked about a potential meeting with O’Malley this August, suggesting that he had some injuries to heal before he could adequately estimate his timetable for a return. Clearly, Sterling was simply doing his best to not spoil Dana White’s announcement.

Aljamain Sterling vs. Sean O’Malley Will Be Joined By a Can’t-Miss Strawweight Women’s Title Fight

As for Zhang Weili, the Chinese sensation will defend her title for the first time since reclaiming the crown against former two-time champion Carla Esparza last year. Zhang holds an impressive 7-2 record under the UFC banner with her only losses coming against another former champion, ‘Thug’ Rose Namajuna. In March 2020, Zhang competed in what many consider to be the greatest fight in women’s MMA history, going toe-to-toe with Joanna J?drzejczyk.

Her opponent, Amanda Lemos, is an equal 7-2 inside the Octagon. After coming up short in her promotional debut, Lemos has since won seven of her last eight, earning wins over Angela Hill, Michelle Waterson-Gomez, and Marina Rodriguez. ‘Amandinha’ has finished her last two opponents, including an impressive third-round knockout of Rodriguez to solidify her position as the next strawweight contender.

UFC 292 will air from TD Garden in Boston on August 19. The only other bout announced for the lineup will feature a bantamweight showdown between Cody Garbrandt and Mario Bautista.

Zhang Weili promises future ‘banger’ fight against Valentina Shevchenko: “It’s a must, for sure.”

weili zhangUFC strawweight champion, Zhang Weili feels that a matchup against flyweight champion Valentina Shevchenko is inevitable. Now in her second reign as champion, Weili plans on moving up 10lbs to take on Shevchenko in a bid to become the promotion’s latest double-champ. ‘Magnum’ dominated Carle Esparza in her most recent performance, ultimately stopping the American […]

weili zhang

UFC strawweight champion, Zhang Weili feels that a matchup against flyweight champion Valentina Shevchenko is inevitable.

Now in her second reign as champion, Weili plans on moving up 10lbs to take on Shevchenko in a bid to become the promotion’s latest double-champ. ‘Magnum’ dominated Carle Esparza in her most recent performance, ultimately stopping the American in the second round all while displaying her newly evolved skills.

Weili feels like it is time now to attempt to snatch the belt of the long-reigning flyweight champion, whose last loss came against Amanda Nunes back in 2017

Yes. It’s a must, for sure,” Weili said regarding the potential Shevchenko fight through a translator. “No question.”

“I thought about this a couple of years back. Eventually, we will run into each other in the octagon because the weight divisions are so close.”

Weili would not go as far as guaranteeing a victory but did promise to put on a show.

I don’t know for sure if I’ll take the belt away from her,” she said on TheMMAHour. “But one thing I can guarantee is it’s going to be a banger if me and the champ get in the octagon. It will be a great performance, regardless of the outcome.” (H/TBloodyElbow)

Neither woman has a fight booked and there is no clear-cut contender for either in their respective divisions.

The matchup could make for one of the biggest in women’s MMA history and has the potential to be an exciting matchup.

Zhang Weili on TheMMAHour

Do you want to see Zhang Weili vs. Valentina Shevchenko?

Zhang Weili Wants To Know Why Carla Esparza Was Getting Booed

Freshly reinstated women’s straw weight champion Zhang Weili is not sure why Carla Esparza is getting the kind of hate that she has been. There have been very few fighters in the history of the UFC who have become a two-time champion but still ca…

Freshly reinstated women’s straw weight champion Zhang Weili is not sure why Carla Esparza is getting the kind of hate that she has been. There have been very few fighters in the history of the UFC who have become a two-time champion but still cannot seem to get respect, in the way that Esparza has….

Continue Reading Zhang Weili Wants To Know Why Carla Esparza Was Getting Booed at MMA News.

MMA News’ Top 10 Finishes Of The Week (11/6-11/12)

Welcome to this week’s edition of MMA News’ Top 10 Finishes of the week! Every week there’s highlight-reel finishes all across the MMA world, and we’ve found some of the absolute best ones to showcase. This week already had plenty of highlights to fill…

Welcome to this week’s edition of MMA News’ Top 10 Finishes of the week! Every week there’s highlight-reel finishes all across the MMA world, and we’ve found some of the absolute best ones to showcase. This week already had plenty of highlights to fill out the Top 10 thanks to action-packed events from promotions like…

Continue Reading MMA News’ Top 10 Finishes Of The Week (11/6-11/12) at MMA News.

UFC 281 Betting Tips and Plays

Welcome back to our weekly betting series. This week we cover one of the biggest cards this year in our UFC 281 betting tips and plays article. The card is stacked top to bottom, with the headliner being a middleweight mammoth clash between Israel Ades…

Welcome back to our weekly betting series. This week we cover one of the biggest cards this year in our UFC 281 betting tips and plays article. The card is stacked top to bottom, with the headliner being a middleweight mammoth clash between Israel Adesanya and Alex Pereira. It is their first meeting in MMA,…

Continue Reading UFC 281 Betting Tips and Plays at MMA News.

Zhang Identifies What Makes Carla Esparza Bout A “First”

Weili Zhang expects her UFC 281 matchup with Carla Esparza to provide a unique challenge that the Chinese strawweight hasn’t encountered yet. “Magnum” delivered a Knockout of the Year candidate in her last bout when she stopped former champion Jo…

Weili Zhang expects her UFC 281 matchup with Carla Esparza to provide a unique challenge that the Chinese strawweight hasn’t encountered yet. “Magnum” delivered a Knockout of the Year candidate in her last bout when she stopped former champion Joanna J?drzejczyk with a spinning back fist at UFC 275. J?drzejczyk subsequently retired after the loss,…

Continue Reading Zhang Identifies What Makes Carla Esparza Bout A “First” at MMA News.