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Photo by Mike Ehrmann/Getty Images When Tyron Woodley got the call that he was joining the cast for Cobra Kai season 5, it was a dream come true. The former UFC welterweight champion, who had been acting in numerous high-profile projects while still active in his fight career, actually got involved in martial arts largely thanks to the inspiration he received watching The Karate Kid when he was growing up. To end up landing a role in the hugely popular follow up TV series on Netflix felt like Woodley was coming full circle with his career. “The Karate Kid was the reason why I started martial arts in general,” Woodley told The Fighter vs. The Writer.

Mounir Lazzez (right) will face Gabriel Bonfim in Brazil. | Photo by Jeff Bottari/Zuffa LLC Mounir Lazzez and Gabriel Bonfim are set to meet at the UFC’s upcoming pay-per-view show in Rio de Janeiro, Brazil, on Jan. 21, multiple people with knowledge of the booking told MMA Fighting after Bonfim announced the match-up on his social media. Lazzez (11-2) won a decision over short-notice replacement Ange Loosa in his most recent octagon appearance this past April, bouncing back from a stoppage defeat to Warlley Alves in January 2021. The former Brave CF super lightweight (165 pounds) title contender is 2-1 in the UFC at welterweight. Bonfim (13-0) won the LFA welterweight belt the past March and

Photo by Chris Unger/Zuffa LLC Michael Chandler knew that despite all of his accomplishments in Bellator MMA, he would still have to prove himself after signing with the UFC. He’s done that time and again, with all four of his fights coming against top-10 ranked competition, including three opponents who have held at least a piece of the lightweight title, while earning two knockouts and three performance bonuses along the way. Understanding that he couldn’t live on past accolades, Chandler asked the UFC for the biggest fights against the toughest opposition as soon as he joined the promotion — and that’s exactly what he’s faced thus far. That’s also why Chandler isn’t entirely sold on the

Sean O’Malley | Photo by Jeff Bottari/Zuffa LLC/Zuffa LLC via Getty Images Sean O’Malley thinks the bookmakers are getting it wrong. O’Malley fights former bantamweight champion Petr Yan in the featured main card bout at UFC 280. It’s the biggest opportunity of the young star’s career but, at least according to the numbers, it’s also the biggest challenge, as oddsmakers have installed O’Malley as a +310 underdog (implying a 24.4 percent win probability), something “Suga” was not expecting. “I think if you asked the smartest guys, the best fighters in the world, ‘What do you guys think?’ They’re like, ‘God, I don’t know. It’s a tough one!’ But if you ask the casuals it’s like, ‘Oh,

Cris Cyborg worked eight rounds to win a decision over Simone Silva in her first time in a boxing ring Sunday at Fight Music Show 2 in Curitiba, Brazil. The reigning Bellator featherweight champion, Cyborg holds 20 knockouts in 26 MMA wins en route to title wins in the UFC, Strikeforce, and Invicta FC, and was expected to walk through Silva in the squared circle, especially with “Cat Woman” still serving a 60-day medical suspension after losing via knockout in Texas this past August. Announced by Fight Music Show as a professional bout despite the boxing commission OBBoxe refusing to oversee the match and Associação Paranaense de Lutas being called to oversee that match only, it’s