Mairbek Taisumov, Dong Hyun Ma, Chance Rencountre, Matthew Lopez, Cyril Asker, Khalid Murtazaliev, Talita Bernardo, Jodie Esquibel, Marcos Mariano, Isabela de Padua, and Zhenhong Lu make up the remainder of the list.

Sherdog’s Tom Freely first reported the roster changes, based on profile removals from UFC.com

The UFC has not confirmed any of the changes. However, Prepolec confirmed his release on Thursday. “Was fun while it lasted once everything is done and settled I’ll get the ball rolling and get back in there,” he wrote on Twitter. “Thank you [UFC and UFC Canada] for the opportunity. I’ll prove myself worthy again. Time to get back to work. Time to be better then ever before.”

Lightweight Prepolec (12-7), a former BTC standout, joined the UFC off the strength of wins over Scott Hudson and former UFC fighter Cody Pfister. However, he stumbled out of the gate, going 0-2 inside the octagon, with losses to Nordine Taleb (who has also moved on from the promotion) at 170lbs, and Austin Hubbard at 155lbs.

Tonya Evinger (19-8, 1NC) entered the UFC as an opponent for Cris Cyborg, during Cyborg’s featherweight title reign. A former Invicta FC bantamweight champ, Evinger lost to Cyborg (as most do), then came up short against Aspen Ladd and Lina Lansberg. Both fights were definitive losses.

Among some of the most surprising names listed as removed from the roster, Mairbek Taisumov, who was 6-1 in his last seven fights. While coming off a loss to Carlos Diego Ferreira at UFC 242, it seemed as if he had plenty of fight left in him. A failed USADA test earlier in 2019 and struggles to obtain a visa to compete in the U.S. may have come into play. The lightweight, however, won three consecutive Performance of the Night bonuses from 2015 to 2017. Update: per an MMA Junkie report, Taisumov has confirmed his contract has expired, and he is a free agent fielding offers elsewhere — but is open to re-signing with the UFC.

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Mairbek Taisumov vs. Carlos Diego Ferreira opened up the PPV card at UFC 242 on Saturday. The lightweight fight pitted Brazil’s Ferreira, winner of four straight in the UFC, against Russia’s Taisumov, who had won six straight in the promotion. Ferreira entered the fight off a win over another Russian talent, Rustam Khabilov, in Prague this past February.

Ferreira had not tasted defeat since 2015, for Taisumov, he had not lost since 2014.

Round 1:

Taisumov stated the fight circling, moving constantly, with Ferreira walking him down. The Brazilian fired early but missed, while Taisumov looked to counter. Taisumov fired off a kick, and the pair then exchanged. Taisumov went to the body, Ferreira countered. Ferreira worked to cut off the cage, and worked his jab, adding front kicks. A low kick by Taisumov tripped up the Brazilian.  Taisumov fired off a head kick that was blocked. Ferreira doubled up with his jab. However Taisumov clipped him, and Ferreira scrambled back. They’d continue to battle, with Taisumov landing an overhand right clean later in the round. In the final minute, Ferreira attacked with his own right hand, setting it up with a jab. Taisumov hit home with another leg kick; Ferreira closed out the round on the attack, landing another big right.

Cageside Press scored the round 10-9 for Taisumov

Round 2:

The second round started scrappy, with both men throwing, and some big right hands from each. They switched to a grappling approach, but a headbutt from Ferreira drew a strong warning from Herb Dean. Ferreira would cap a combination with a right hand, and he’d begin walking Taisumov down. Taisumov, however, began finding his range with his counters. Still, the Brazilian was on the attack. He blocked a high kick, and continued moving forward, throwing. One-two combos, head movement, leg kicks, and constant forward momentum was the story for Carlos Diego Ferreira through much of the second.

A takedown put Ferreira out of position, but he survived the slip-up. He’d continue going on the attack to finish the round, with the pair trading to the buzzer.

Cageside Press scored the round 10-9 Ferreira

Round 3:

Ferreira opened with a jump attack but fell short. His corner’s advice between rounds had been to find a finish, and it looked as if he was taking that advice to heart. Ferreira attacked the leg, then shot for a takedown, which Taisumov stuffed. Taisumov was on the outside, circling. Were the fight to go to the scorecards, that could hurt him, as Ferreira had settled in as the aggressor. Ferriera fired off a right hand, an elbow, a kick to the body. Volume was being a factor, as Taisumov was simply not throwing with the same output.

A left landed for Ferreira, and he feigned a takedown. Moments later, he clipped Taisumov with a head kick behind the ear. Taisumov looked wobbled briefly, but remained on his feet. As Ferreira continued his forward march, he landed a right. Taisumov was bloodied. Ferreira landed a spinning kick to the body. They battled it out to the bell, with Ferreira holding a clear edge.

Cageside Press scored the round 10-9 for Ferreira

Official Result: Carlos Diego Ferreira def. Mairbek Taisumov by unanimous decision (29-28, 29-27, 29-27)

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The promotion announced both additions to UFC 242 on Twitter.

Islam Makhachev and Mairbek Taisumov both have a reputation as fearsome fighters in the lightweight division. They’ll both be taking on talented Brazilians in Davi Ramos and Carlos Diego Ferreira respectively.

Islam Makhachev still can’t get a ranked opponent despite continuously great performances in the Octagon that have earned him a 14th ranking in the stacked lightweight division. The Russian is on a five-fight win streak with a pair of first-round stoppages and is a training partner of Khabib Nurmagomedov. He recently defeated the debuting Arman Tsarukyan in April.

Davi Ramos is an incredible grappler with an ADCC world title to his name. After losing to fellow expert jiu-jitsu practitioner Sergio Moraes in his Octagon debut in 2017, Ramos secured three straight rear-naked chokes and a win over the debuting Austin Hubbard last month. He will be the best grappler Makhachev has faced to date.

Mairbek Taisumov is fantastic inside the cage, but has had multiple issues outside the Octagon. Repeated visa issues have forced the dynamic Russian out of multiple fights, he’s missed weight for one of his victories, and was recently handed a six-month suspension by USADA. Taisumov is on a six-fight win streak with five stoppages that dates back to 2014.

Carlos Diego Ferreira was supposed to fight at UFC 237 last month, but pulled out on weigh-in day due to a weight-cutting issue. The Brazilian started his UFC career at 2-2 before rattling off four-straight wins, with victories over Olivier Aubin-Mercier and Rustam Khabilov. He was, however, suspended by USADA and missed 2017.

UFC 242 will take place inside The Arena on Yas Island in Abu Dhabi, United Arab Emirates, on September 7. The card is headlined by a lightweight title unification bout between champion Khabib Nurmagomedov, and interim titleholder Dustin Poirier.

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A tainted supplement has once again resulted in a UFC fighter committing an anti-doping policy violation. On Thursday, USADA (U.S. Anti-Doping Agency), who oversee the UFC’s Anti-Doping Policy, announced that lightweight Mairbek Taisumov had accepted a six-month suspension after testing positive for metabolites of stanozolol. Stanozolol is an anabolic agent prohibited from use at all times for UFC fighters.

The findings stem from an in-competition drug test on September 15, 2018 at UFC Moscow. Taisumov (28-5) defeated Desmond Green at the event via unanimous decision.

Per a press release Thursday, Taisumov provided USADA with samples of all supplements he was taking at the time. In conjunction with the Russian Anti-Doping Agency (RUSADA), they then obtained unopened samples, and were able to identify a contaminated supplement. “Although no prohibited substances were listed on the supplement labels, product analysis conducted on both the open and independently sourced, unopened packages of the products by the WADA-accredited laboratory in Salt Lake City, Utah, indicated that they all contained stanozolol,” USADA stated.

The supplement in question, which was not specified, has been added to USADA’s list of high-risk supplements. In the meantime, Taisumov gets six months post-dated to October 8, 2018 when his provisional suspension began. Meaning he is eligible to return to action already. Had he knowingly taken the substance, the lightweight would have been looking at a suspension of up to two years.

One interesting question now is what happens to Taisumov’s win over Desmond Green. Per USADA, “under the rules, any decision concerning competition results is handled by the UFC.”

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The pieces continue to fall into place for the UFC’s march on Moscow. The promotion’s Russian debut will feature lightweight action between Des Green and Mairbek Taisumov, UFC officials announced on Tuesday. It’s a stiff test for Green, who will be taking on the Russian-born Austrian in enemy territory at UFC Moscow.

It's official! @Taisumov155 vs. @Predatortoon is going down at #UFCMoscow on Sept 15

🎟 https://t.co/NSJXjccitG pic.twitter.com/dkMe4gzYgC

— UFC Europe (@UFCEurope) August 7, 2018

Taisumov (27-5) is in the midst of a fantastic run at 155lbs, having won five straight, and six of seven overall in the UFC. His last three fights have all seen him capture Performance of the Night awards. In that span, he’s finished Alan Patrick, Damir Hadžović, and Felipe Silva. All of his last five victories, in fact, have been finishes, all via KO or TKO.

Des Green (21-7), meanwhile, snapped a two-fight losing streak when he battled Gleison Tibau to a unanimous decision at UFC Utica in June. Green joined the UFC in April of last year, winning his debut against Josh Emmett at UFC 210. Prior to that, he’d served as the Titan FC featherweight champion. Green previously competed for Bellator MMA.

UFC Moscow (UFC Fight Night 136) takes place September 15 at the Olimpiyskiy Stadium in Moscow, Russia.

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Just days after saying he was hoping to get on the UFC’s upcoming PPV card in Brooklyn, Canadian lightweight Olivier Aubin-Mercier has his wish. And it couldn’t have come at a better time. The fighter, whose UFC Orlando bout was scrapped when opponent Gilbert Burns came in extra heavy during fight week, had expressed surprise the UFC had rebooked Burns but not himself, noting he’d need money soon (‘OAM’ received compensation for the cancelled fight, but clearly not what he would have received had the fight gone forward). Now, he’s stepping in to replace Mairbek Taisumov at UFC 223 against Evan Dunham.

As previously announced by Taisumov himself on social media, the Russian-Austrian fighter was forced off the UFC 223 card as a result of VISA issues.

https://instagram.com/p/BgGy9HyAMFR/?utm_source=ig_embed&utm_campaign=embed_profile_upsell_control

As a result, the door was opened for Aubin-Mercier (10-2). ‘The Quebec Kid’ has won three straight, against Thibault Gouti, Drew Dober, and most recently Tony Martin. Another win, and the TUF: Nations veteran could very well find himself inside the top fifteen at 155lbs.

Dunham announced the news via his official Twitter account. Cageside Press subsequently verified the bout.

Thanks to @oliaubin for taking this fight. I will see you in the middle. #ufc223

— Evan Dunham (@evandunham155) March 9, 2018

Dunham (18–6–1) is undefeated in his past six fights. He will enter UFC 223 off a draw against Beneil Dariush at UFC 216. Prior to the draw, however, he won four straight unanimous decisions against the likes of Rick Glenn and Joe Lauzon, among others.

UFC 223 takes place April 7 at the Barclays Center in Brooklyn, NY.

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“Drago” — as Volkov is otherwise known as — overcame some early difficulty, including some hard uppercuts, a nasty gash under the left eye, and a pair of eye pokes, in order to come on strong as the fight progressed and finish fellow top ten heavyweight Stefan Struve. Volkov’s jab found a home more frequently as the fight progressed, and a couple of combos in the third round put the seven footer away, sending him slumping to the canvas as the ref waved off the action.

Struve and Volkov were awarded the Fight of the Night for their efforts.

In a stellar debut, meanwhile, Dagestan, Russia’s Zabit Magomedsharipov (13-1) shocked MMA fans with one of the flashiest displays of striking this side of Yair Rodriguez. Even pulling off a well-executed “Showtime” kick off the cage (that unfortunately for all but opponent Mike Santiago went high), Magomedsharipov jumped immediately into hot prospect status. Ironically, after a display of spinning attacks that felt straight out of a video game, Magomedsharipov wound up taking the back and finishing Santiago via a rear-naked choke, proving at least that he’s not a one-trick pony.

His efforts won him one of two Performance of the Night honors. The second Performance of the Night was awarded to Mairbek Taisumov, who like Zabit Magomedsharipov appeared on the evening’s preliminary card. Taisumov wasted little time in getting the job done, knocking out Felipe Silva in under ninety seconds.

All four athletes were awarded $50,000 U.S. for their efforts.

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