Van will face off against Tatsuro Taira at UFC 327 on April 11, 2026 in Miami, Florida. The flyweight champ announced the news himself during the UFC Houston Fan Q&A, after the bout had been the subject of rumors from the likes of Krazy Kev MMA on social media. Van claimed flyweight gold during a bizarre scene at UFC 323, when reigning champion Alexandre Pantoja injured his arm early in their co-main event fight.
One of Japan's best hopes for a UFC champion, the former title challenger Horiguchi started the fight tying Albazi up along the fence, firing knees to the leg. He could not get Albazi down, however, and "The Prince" soon escaped out. He'd wind up eating a right hand from Horiguchi, with the later then exchanging heavy overhand shots. The Japanese veteran had the edge in speed, but an Albazi punch had him falling backwards over himself.
Speaking to media outlets including Cageside Press, Cong (9-1) said after the win over Eduarda Moura that she was "reviewing this fight right now" in her mind, and felt she was a bit conservative in the cage. Nor did she believe in herself a hundred percent, added Cong, speaking via translator at the Meta Apex in Las Vegas.
At least early, both women seemed ready to engage. Cong targeted the body, Moura had her moments, and arguably was pulling ahead. But it was Wang Cong, towards the end of the round, dropping Brazil's Moura, and getting on top. Follow-up strikes rained down following that blow to the chin, with Cong landing a nasty elbow. Moura, inexplicably, survived, even grabbing an ankle just before the bell.
"I don't know if it was ring rust, but I definitely think I underperformed that fight, and I never got to show Amir Albazi, the real Amir Albazi, The original Amir Albazi. So I'm happy to be here to finally be able to show people that this is the real Amir Albazi, this is the problem in the division. I can't wait to show you guys on Saturday."
Former UFC strawweight Cynthia Calvillo has announced her retirement from mixed martial arts. Calvillo (10-6-1), who competed for the UFC from 2017 to 2023, was last in action a year ago, winning the HEX women's flyweight championship in regional action. In her heyday, she was considered a contender at 115lbs, winning her first three bouts with the company before running into former (and future) women's strawweight champion Carla Esparza. More wins would follow that setback, with Calvillo going 4-0-1 over her next five fights.
A Contender Series fight is one that has stakes like none other, where fighters must showcase their skills to impress the UFC president enough for a contract with the promotional giant. Holding the Contender Series with a smaller cage inside the UFC Apex venue makes for a tense atmosphere, and with only close friends and family of the competing fighters in attendance as spectators.
The Big Apple gets two massive title fights for UFC 322 on Nov. 15 at Madison Square Garden as Jack Della Maddalena defends his welterweight title against Islam Makhachev in the main event. The co-main event will see Valentina Shevchenko defend her flyweight title against Weili Zhang in New York. UFC CEO Dana White made the announcement on social media on Thursday.
Kavanagh started with an low leg kick early that got Johnson's attention. Johnson seemed considerably bigger in the cage but the lightning fast kicks of Kavanagh were finding a home. A short left hook by Kavanagh landed right on the eye of Johnson. Starting to retreat, Johnson seemed visibly affected by the shot. Midway through the round, Johnson entered the clinch but was pushed off by Kavanagh seconds later. The speed of Kavanagh was very impressive
"We got boosted up to the main card cause of Joshua Van... three weeks ago, it was Joshua Van's fight week and me and the boys were ready to watch. Now I gotta go fight him and be a part of it."
