Dulatov knocked out Adam Fugitt to earn a Performance of the Night bonus on the UFC 318 prelims, in a fight originally booked for February. A long time coming, in other words (Dulatov agreed on Saturday that fight camp felt never-ending), but the outcome he was looking for. Even better than he imagined.

“I think it’s not comparable to reality, because it’s better than I ever had in my mind,” Dulatov (12-1) stated following the bout, speaking with media outlets including Cageside Press. “Unbelievable feeling, really. I trained so hard for this, over 10 years of my life.”

Sporting a cast following the win, Islam Dulatov revealed that he’d sustained in injury during training. “I think I broke my thumb last week in sparring already. In this fight I gave an uppercut… I don’t know what it is now, I have to check it.”

Of course, fighters never go into a bout 100% healthy, he acknowledged. “It’s okay. Part of the game.”

While he did have photoshoots booked this week, making it a good thing he didn’t take any damage to the face, Dulatov is currently focused on fighting. “I have some shoots coming up, all this stuff. A lot of things coming up. For me, it’s more important, what’s next for me in the UFC. Have to go back to the gym, start camp again, and fight soon again.”

As for when fights against ranked opponents might come for the talented welterweight prospect, he feels they’ll come when they come. No rush, in other words.

“I’m going to be honest with you guys, I want to take my time for this. I grow up, I make big steps in each fight. Actually, it will take as long as it will take. I waited so long for this opportunity to fight in the UFC. Two years or something like that. It will not change anything. I want to fight for the title when I’m in my prime. We will get there soon.”

Watch the full UFC 318 post-fight press conference with Islam Dulatov above.

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Perhaps even more remarkably given her lack of experience in MMA, Judice (5-2) has a 100% bonus-winning rate across her three UFC fights. After a Fight of the Night in her debut, a loss to Gabriella Fernandes, Judice has earned two consecutive Performance of the Night bonuses, for a head kick finish of Yuneisy Duben, and now a knee strike stoppage of Nicolle Caliari.

“I think my career is going just how it’s supposed to be, just how it was destined to be,” she stated during her UFC 318 post-fight media session, asked about her progress in comparison to her relative lack of experience. “I came off of two losses after having all wins and mostly knockouts, so I felt unstoppable as an amateur and an early pro.”

“Then I got stopped, and I realized all the holes that I had to fix, and I’m still fixing them but I think it’s coming along nicely so I’m going to fix all the holes that I have. Find holes, fix them, and hopefully be in the rankings one day,” she continued, adding “but I’m not rushing it, I’m taking my time. I know I have a long career, so I’m going to do whatever it takes to get to where I want to be.”

What’s next? Another fight, against whoever is willing. “I’d like to fight again this year, but no one specific,” stated Judice. “Whatever opportunities come next, I’m going to be ready for.”

Fighting at home in Louisiana, “I cherished every moment of it, and I’m glad I executed the way I did,” she later celebrated. And to celebrate? Donuts. “Glazed probably, I like glazed donuts. Keep it simple. Make sure it’s warm though.”

Watch the full UFC 318 post-fight press conference with Carli Judice above.

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It wasn’t the comeback Crute, winless since 2020, wanted, instead dropping him to 0-3-2 across five fights. That changed this past Saturday at UFC 318, however. Finally getting a particularly nasty monkey off his back, Australia’s Crute (13-4-2) put away Marcin Prachnio with an arm-bar.

“I’m happy to be alive every day, so victory is just the cherry on top,” Crute told media outlets including Cageside Press following the bout. Though he’d soon admit the win mattered more than he was letting on.

“This week was a roller coaster for sure. The nerves were up and down. I sort of played it off before, but getting a victory does mean a lot. Because I put so much work into this. I really put everything into this. Every waking moment, I’m training or I’m thinking about training. So for it to pay off, it’s nice.”

Crute is still just shy of 30, and didn’t have all that much experience prior to landing in the UFC. As a result, he’s done most of his growing on MMA’s biggest stage.

“I’ve been learning on the job. I had one amateur fight, seven pro wins, and outside of that I had like fifty jiu-jitsu matches on the regional scene in Australia. No striking matches,” noted Crute. “So I’ve been learning on the job pretty much in the UFC. I don’t have much experience in the way of fights, so I feel like it’s my time to shine now.”

With a win under him and now in his prime, Crute is starting to see bigger things moving forward. “I see a world title in my future for the first time in my career. I’ve never been able to visualize it.”

After his win on Saturday, he called out Dustin Jacoby, who he referred to as a “crafty dude.” It’s just the name that came to mind, he explained. “I just think it’s a good fight for both of us, it’s a good test for both of us.”

Watch the full UFC 318 post-fight press conference with Jimmy Crute above.

The post UFC 318: Jimmy Crute Has Been Learning on the Job in UFC appeared first on Cageside Press.

The move to heavyweight was less Spann’s choice, and more about trusting in his coaches, he revealed following the fight.

“I just show up, I’m the bullet. I just do whatever. I’m going to be ready whatever weight,” stated Spann, giving his team full credit while speaking with media outlets including Cageside Press. “They’re too good for me not to trust them.”

After his team encouraged him to make the switch in weight classes, Spann, a former middleweight, wound up knocked out by Waldo Cortes-Acosta. Asked about what went wrong in that March fight, Spann explained that “honestly I think the heavyweight debut was just me getting on the scale, thinking I didn’t have to weigh in, so the last three weeks of that was atrocious.”

In comparison, at UFC 318, “I wanted to make sure we finished, we executed, big part of the game plan. We wanted to finish and execute. Tonight was the final preparation.”

Might he ever make the drop back down to light heavyweight? It doesn’t seem to be in the cards currently, but neither is it entirely out of the question. “We’ll see.”

Spann, nicknamed “Superman,” was also asked for his thoughts on the current James Gunn big screen adaptation of the classic comic book character. Without giving any spoilers, Spann gave it a thumbs up, noting it stayed close to the source material.

Watch the full UFC 318 post-fight press conference with Ryan Spann below.

The post UFC 318: Ryan Spann on First Heavyweight Win, Superman Movie appeared first on Cageside Press.

Gautier (8-1) faced off with Valentin at ceremonial weigh-ins. The latter screamed in his face trying to get a reaction from Gautier, but got nothing more than a slight smirk.

“About the energy, you know, I didn’t really care. Everything he was doing for me was ok. You can do whatever you want, but in the cage you’re going to be just you and me. Whatever you can do it won’t change the results,” Gautier told reporters including Cageside Press at his post-fight scrum.

If earning a bonus was his plan well then it worked perfectly as he scored a 50k bonus. It was something he expected following the result.

“I’m going to get the bonus (the scrum was before those were announced). I was violent. Have you hear(d) the noise of my punch like BOOM, BOOM. Like a small explosion. So I’m going to get the bonus,” he said.

Not many people know that Gautier has actually attended university and earned degrees, but the reason behind it is interesting. Mama Gautier laid down the condition that, if he wants to fight, he must have a degree.

“I always used to fight, but not like proper fight. I always used to fight in the street in my country. For me it was normal. I wanted to fight, but my mom (was) like you can’t fight if you don’t get degrees,” he said.

“So that’s why I went to uni. I did physics just to make her like, ok, I’m smart, but fighting for me is for like stupid people. I’m smart, but I want to fight. I just enjoy it.”

Watch the entire post-fight scrum with Ateba Gautier above.

The post Ateba Gautier’s Mom Made Him Earn Degrees Before He Could Fight appeared first on Cageside Press.

Oliveira (23-3) has not been quiet about wanting a matchup with Umar Nurmagomedov for a while now. Nurmagomedov hasn’t been receptive to the callouts just yet, but maybe the win over Phillips will get ‘Lok Dog’ an answer.

“I’d like so much to face Umar Nurmagomedov, but I think…I’m sure he’s afraid of me,” Oliveira told reporters including Cageside Press at his post-fight scrum.

“He run away for a long time ago. So he’ll never face me, and he will fade out behind Ali (Abdelaziz) his manager. I’d like so much to fight against him (in) October in his country. In Abu Dhabi.”

Wasn’t just a call out of Nurmagomedov as Oliveira seems to be focused on poking at his potential opponent for a fight.

“I go there just me and my coach and my (training partner). If he has courage to face me, but he doesn’t have courage to face me. He’s afraid of me.”

So if not Nurmagomedov then who? Maybe some ‘Suga’ is in order.

“So next one can be I think Sean O’Malley. Sean O’Malley’s a real man. I think he will accept this fight,” he said.

“He would not run away from me, but my first one of course is Umar Nurmagomedov.”

Watch the entire post-fight scrum with Vinicius Oliveira above.

The post Vinicius Oliveira Calls Out Umar, Sean O’Malley To Fight In October appeared first on Cageside Press.

The end came about via arm-bar, Ferreira’s second straight arm-bar submission. He’s now 5-1 inside the octagon. “That’s a favorite position of mine, always doing that in training,” he stated following the bout, speaking via translator to media outlets including Cageside Press. “My corner just saw it and said ‘you got this, this is your position.'”

By the time Ferreira got on top, “when I got the arm, that was locked in like 99%. I knew there was a 99% chance I was going to get that arm.”

With McVey new to the promotion (and struggling to get an opponent after two dropped out of a fight at UFC 317 last month), a dominant win was probably the best case scenario for Ferreira. Still, he planned on a finish regardless.

“For sure. Whoever was going to be in front of me I was going to finish, and actually have a fight like that and just not give him any space. I knew that whenever any pressure was going to happen, I was just going to power through it, and take it over. Where ever it was at, I was going to come out with the win.”

Moving forward, Ferreira was keeping his eye on some of the other big middleweight fights at UFC 318, mainly Brendan Allen vs. Marvin Vettori, and Paulo Costa vs. Roman Kopylov. Allen and Costa were victorious in those; Ferreira believes he sent a message to the MMA world meanwhile.

“I think people saw today that I’m not just a knockout artist, I’m a finisher as well.”

Watch the full UFC 318 post-fight press conference with Brunno Ferreira above.

The post UFC 318: Brunno Ferreira Feels He’s Proved Himself a Finisher, Not Just KO Artist appeared first on Cageside Press.

Max Holloway

As Max said right after his hand was raised, this moment is not about him. So I won’t go too deep about what this win meant for his career, I’ll get right to the matchmaking.

In the UFC 317 edition of What’s Next, I had Ilia Topuria fighting Paddy Pimblett as I felt the UFC was still in need of big crossover fights. The only non-title fight I could see scratch Justin Gaethje’s fighting itch enough not to retire is a re-booking of the Dan Hooker matchup. That would leave Max with either Arman Tsarukyan or Charles Oliveira as potential dance partners. With Max just going 25 minutes with the hard-hitting Poirier, I doubt the timeline for his return matches Tsarukyan’s, who’s been on the shelf for a while now. That means I see “Blessed” returning in the first quarter of 2026 in a rematch against the former champion Oliveira.

Holloway’s next fight: Charles Oliveira

Paulo Costa

Paulo Costa didn’t have a single victory over a current UFC fighter on his record. He was in desperate need of a solid win to restore some of the name value he previously held. The Brazilian not only defeated a ranked contender under 35 who was 6-1 in his last 7 fights, he out-struck Kopylov more than two-to-one. An impressive win over a relevant contender in this division was precisely what the doctor ordered. Now, “The Eraser” can once again look up the rankings for his next opponent. I’ve always thought a fight between Costa and Jared Cannonier would be a lot of fun. It just so worked out that Cannonier is fighting Michael “Venom” Page on the very next Pay-Per-View.

Costa’s next fight: Cannonier/Page winner

Daniel Rodriguez

The 38-year-old D-Rod came into UFC 318 as a massive betting underdog against a Kevin Holland that looked rejuvenated at welterweight. After a massive second round where he knocked down “Trailblazer” twice, he then had to weather the storm in round three where he was hurt multiple times. After a three-fight skid, Rodriguez is now on a three-fight win streak and will enter the rankings once again. While I could see the UFC booking the veteran Rodriguez against the youngster Gabriel Bonfim who also just entered the rankings last week, I’d rather put D-Rod in a battle of the southpaws against the loser of the upcoming Geoff Neal and Carlos Prates bout at UFC 319.

Rodriguez’s next fight: Neal/Prates loser

Patricio Pitbull

It was years in the making, but we finally got to see Patricio Pitbull get his hand raised in the UFC. He defeated the perfect featherweight litmus test in Dan Ige at UFC 318. While his recent loss to Yair Rodriguez probably told us a lot more about Pitbull’s true ability to contend at this stage of his career, he should still be provided the opportunity to face known names in this division. Brian Ortega and Aljamain Sterling will be facing off in Shanghai next month. While the winner will most likely be looking upwards in the rankings, there’s nothing stopping the UFC from booking Pitbull against the loser.

Pitbull’s next fight: Ortega/Sterling loser

Michael Johnson

The enigma that is Michael Johnson is the gift that keeps on giving. A 39-year-old man with wins over Tony Ferguson and Dustin Poirier, who not too long ago was on a bad-looking four-fight skid, just cleanly defeated a highly touted 26-year-old as a nearly 6-to-1 underdog? Yes, that sounds exactly like something Michael Johnson would do.

While I’ve been wishing for Johnson to fight King Green for years, it seems the timing never aligns for those two to fight. Green, who is fighting Diego Ferreira next month, would still be my first choice if he wins. An Edson Barboza rematch could also be fun, now that the Brazilian is coming back up to lightweight. Ultimately, I went with another young prospect who will look to bounce back after a loss. Zellhuber was meant to get back in the win column against a recognizable name, but Johnson spoiled those plans. Can Ignacio Bahamondes do what Zellhuber couldn’t and get past the savvy veteran?

Johnson’s next fight: Ignacio Bahamondes

The post What’s Next: UFC 318 Winners appeared first on Cageside Press.

Allen (25-7) said a few words to Vettori following the decision. The two may have had bad blood, but they also both hold personal tragedies.

“I just told him, our problems aside, my heart goes out to him and his family. My brother has his accident and he totally lost his brother so I can’t imagine the pain that it feels to fully lose your brother,” Allen told reporters including Cageside Press at his post-fight scrum.

“I didn’t lose mine fully, but it still hurts.”

Vettor didn’t react outwardly to the comments, but one of his coaches sure did.

“His coach started talking sh*t and I told him ‘get the f*ck out of my face’. It’s just people sticking their nose between two grown men,” he said.

“I don’t have any bad blood with him (Vettori). He can say whatever he wants, he can feel how he wants before, after, that’s on him.”

Now Allen looks ahead from his #11 ranking for his next challenge.

“It (the fight) just happened. There’s still so many fights that can come. We’ll see what happens with the UFC and what they want from me. (Jared) Cannonier, MVP (Michael Venom Page), Roman (Dolidze), Fluffy (Anthony Hernandez),” he said.

“You got Caio (Borralho), (Nassourdine) Imavov. You got Sean Strickland still sitting out there. You got a lot of fights. For now I go home, see my kids and my wife, give them all a hug and kiss and tell them thank you. Be a dad and a husband for a little while.”

Watch the entire post-fight scrum with Brendan Allen above.

The post Brendan Allen Details Words Spoken To Vettori Following Win appeared first on Cageside Press.

In the main event the ‘The Diamond’ concluded his trilogy with Max Holloway in an epic five round battle for the BMF strap. In the co-main event, two ranked middleweights threw down, as former 185lbs. title challenger, Paulo Costa, faced off against Roman Kopylov. Six of the nine fights on the undercard ended with a finish while all of the five-fight main card bouts went the distance. Some of the most notable names from the Contender Series grace this special edition of our losers matchmaking piece.

Dustin Poirier

Max Holloway spoiled Dustin Poirier’s special last night in the octagon after a long storied career in the main event of UFC 318, Saturday. Poirier had long since announced that the bout would be his last, and specifically selected Max to finish the pair’s trilogy for the occasion. Dustin ends his pro MMA career at 22-9, 1 NC with the UFC.  Poirier had lost three of his last four fights including a title shot against Islam Makhachev at UFC 302. Saturday marks the first time that Poirier has ever lost two bouts in a row in his MMA career. Happy Retirement to the legend.

Poirier’s next fight: Retirement 

Roman Kopylov

Paulo Costa bested Roman Kopylov over the course of three rounds to secure a crucial victory in the co main event of UFC 318, Saturday. The loss snapped Kopylov’s two fight win streak and is only the second fight he’s lost in 8 fights. Roman entered the fight ranked at #14 in the middleweight division while his opponent was ranked at #13.

Kopylov shouldn’t look far for his next fight, a good opponent would be Marvin Vettori. Marvin fought Brendan Allen on the undercard of UFC 318 losing the heated battle via unanimous decision. Marvin is currently ranked at #10 in the middleweight division but is sure to slide a little once they are updated. The loss marked Vettori’s third straight unanimous decision loss (Jared Cannonier, Roman Dolidze and Brendan Allen). This one would be a good one for the division as Costa is now a mutual opponent for the pair. Could see this fight being on the main card of a PPV or a fight night card.

Kopylov’s next fight: Marvin Vettori

Kevin Holland

Kevin Holland was out-gunned and defeated in a wild war with Daniel Rodriguez on Saturday. Holland started the night off ranked at #13 in the welterweight division while D-Rod was unranked. Kevin has now gone 2-1 since moving back down to welterweight after his January loss to Reinier de Ridder. Holland has faced seemingly everyone so finding a matchup for him may be a little tricky.

For Kevin’s next fight he should definitely remain at welterweight and face the winner of Muslim Salikhov vs Carlos Leal.

That bout goes down on July 26th so the timing would be perfect. Carlos is 1-1 since being signed to the UFC in October 2024. He lost in his debut to Rinat Fakhretdinov and in his most recent bout, finished Alex Morono in the first round. Salikhov is 8-4 within the UFC and riding a 2-fight win steak. In his most recent bout, he earned a performance bonus for his first round KO of Kenan Song back in November of 2024. Kevin could draw a 41-year-old vet or a new face to the division over 10 years younger. Both men are strikers, but both pose different threats. Muslim has flashy kicks and Leal’s hands are lethal. Winner would be a fitting matchup for Kevin especially if he somehow slides out of the rankings at welterweight.

Holland’s next fight: Winner of Muslim Salikhov vs Carlos Leal 

Dan Ige

Former Bellator champion, Patricio Pitbull, finally found his groove as he snagged a unanimous decision victory over Dan Ige on Saturday.  Ige entered the fight ranked at #11 in the featherweight division while Pitbull was unranked. Dan has now lost three of his last four fights though they have all been decisions to elite competition (Diego Lopes, Lerone Murphy, Patricio Pitbull). Ige’s lone win in this stretch was against Sean Woodson back in April.

For his next fight, Dan Ige should square off against Giga Chikadze. Ige faced a 6’3″ fighter then a 5’6″ fighter, let’s give him another taller guy. Giga is ranked at #14 within UFC‘s featherweight division. Chikadze has also lost three of his last four fights. Though it’s worth noting that Giga is on a two-fight skid since returning from a couple of injuries. Giga was featured on losers back in April and still doesn’t have a bout, so this is a matchup that makes sense. Giga did miss weight his last time out, but the 6’0″ fighter will likely stay in the weight class.

Ige’s next fight: Giga Chikadze

Daniel Zellhuber

Michael Johnson turned back the hands of time, defeating Daniel Zellhuber to open up the main card of UFC 318. With the loss Zellhuber is now on a two-fight skid since starting his UFC career at 3-1 off receiving a contract on the 2021 season of the Contender Series.

For his next fight, Daniel should take on Jordan Leavitt. Jordan is also a veteran of the Contender Series as well and is 5-3 within the promotion. Leavitt is a grappling specialist and last competed at the end of May taking 99 seconds to submit Kurt Holobaugh. The slick sub earned Jordan a performance bonus. This matchup would offer a classic grappler vs striker matchup which changes up what Zellhuber has faced in his past couple. Regardless, this fight has real stakes attached as the winner would move up heavily in visibility within the division. High probability of this matchup being fight of the night material too as both guys have yet to be in boring fights.

Daniel’s next fight: Jordan Leavitt

The post What’s Next: UFC 318 Losers appeared first on Cageside Press.