TMZ just dropped a clip of UFC President Dana White going head-to-head with TMZ founder Harvey Levin in a $10,000 blackjack game, playing for charity. It’s a fun crossover of high-stakes gambling, UFC star power, and celebrity competition.
Read more about it here, or watch the video above.
Have you ever wondered why an MMA fighter, someone who literally stares down a physical threat for a living, looks so incredibly calm at a high-stakes blackjack table? It isn’t just about having nerves of steel; it’s about a deeply ingrained psychological conditioning toward risk management. When these athletes aren’t in the gym, many seek reliable entertainment options like Pinco, where the rush of the game meets a secure environment. Much like a perfectly timed counter-punch, gambling requires a mix of intuition and cold, hard logic. For many fans, a platform like Pinco casino offers that same blend of thrill and reliability, making it a top choice for those who understand the value of a calculated move.
Interim Lightweight Championship (155 lbs)
January 24, 2026
T-Mobile Arena, Las Vegas, Nevada, United States
[#5][#4 UFC] 
Justin Gaethje (26–5–0) vs. [#8][#5 UFC] 
Paddy Pimblett (23–3–0)
Stylistic Breakdown
Justin Gaethje
Pressure-based striker with high output, emphasis on leg kicks and mid-range exchanges. Defensive wrestling and takedown awareness have improved, particularly against single-shot entries. Historically effective over extended durations. Primary risk area remains prolonged grappling sequences and transitional control.
Paddy Pimblett
Submission-oriented finisher with strong positional awareness in scrambles. Most effective when converting chaos into back control or dominant top positions. Striking output has increased, though defensive gaps remain, particularly against sustained pressure and leg-kick damage.
MMA Promoter | Event Organizer | Analyst
Founder & President of Real Fight Promotion (RFP) – one of the longest-running and most recognized MMA organizations in Ukraine. Organizer of 100+ MMA events. Contributor, analyst, and Trusted Promoter collaborating with leading global MMA platforms.
Over nearly two decades of continuous operation, Real Fight Promotion (RFP) has established itself as one of the most authoritative and consistent MMA promotions in Eastern Europe. Founded in 2007, the organization has played a significant role in the development of professional MMA in Ukraine, building a clear and effective athlete pathway—from debut to international competition.
Despite the full-scale war in Ukraine, RFP has never suspended its operations. Since February 24, 2022, the promotion has successfully delivered 15 professional events, maintaining sporting standards, safety requirements, and principles of international transparency.
MMA Promoter | Event Organizer | Analyst
Founder & President of Real Fight Promotion (RFP) – one of the longest-running and most recognized MMA organizations in Ukraine. Organizer of 100+ MMA events. Contributor, analyst, and Trusted Promoter collaborating with leading global MMA platforms.
FightMatrix’s Current MMA Rankings are built to surface talent globally, regardless of promotion size, geography, or hype. With thousands of active fighters tracked and ranked weekly through the CIRRS system, the data often reveals elite prospects long before they become widely known.
This article highlights the 20 highest-ranked professional MMA fighters in the world under the age of 20, based on the latest FightMatrix rankings. Each athlete listed here is already ranked globally and within their division, reflecting real competitive results — not projection.
In the world of full contact sports, there is a diverse range of fighting disciplines that each pose their own unique challenges. From boxing to judo, kickboxing, Muay Thai, Brazilian jiu-jitsu and mixed martial arts, each discipline requires its own skill set, understanding of the rules and judging criteria, and athletic build.
There are of course similar traits that belong to the whole family of full contact sports such as strength, resilience, and peak conditioning, but in terms of a sport that requires such a well-rounded fighter, no fight compares to one in a mixed martial arts cage.
The Ultimate Fighting Championship (UFC) has established itself as the leader in MMA, due to its global outreach, with the world’s best fighters looking to secure the various weight category titles. In the heavyweight category, England’s Tom Aspinall was elevated to undisputed champion on 21st June 2025 after Jon Jones retired.
Lightweight Championship (155)
[#5][#5UFC] Justin Gaethje (26-5-0, +191) vs. [#8][#7UFC] Paddy Pimblett (23-3-0, -235)
Justin Gaethje is the All-Time #9 ranked Lightweight and #49 ranked Absolute fighter.
Last 3 Fights: Justin Gaethje (2-1-0)
2025-03-08: W vs. [#12LW] Rafael Fiziev (13-4-0) via UD (29-28, 29-28, 29-28)
2024-04-13: L vs. [#4LW] Max Holloway (27-8-0) via KO (Punch) in 4:59 of round 5
2023-07-29: W vs. [*] Dustin Poirier (30-10-0) via KO (Head Kick) in 1:00 of round 2
Last 3 Fights: Paddy Pimblett (3-0-0)
2025-04-12: W vs. [#25LW] Michael Chandler (23-10-0) via TKO (Elbows and Punches) in 3:07 of round 3
2024-07-27: W vs. [#49LW] Bobby Green (33-17-1) via Technical Submission (Triangle Choke) in 3:22 of round 1
2023-12-16: W vs. [*] Tony Ferguson (25-11-0) via UD (30-27, 30-27, 30-27)
| System | Favorite | Rating | Rating Diff | Win % |
| Betting Odds | Paddy Pimblett | -235 | 67.12% | |
| Elo K170 | Justin Gaethje | 2286.80 | +188.51 | 74.75% |
| Elo Modified | Justin Gaethje | 2234.53 | +168.55 | 72.52% |
| Glicko-1 | Justin Gaethje | 2284.76 | +131.23 | 68.04% |
| WHR | Paddy Pimblett | 2025.84 | +0.07 | 50.01% |
Fighter Ages on Fight Day: Justin Gaethje 37.2, Paddy Pimblett 31.0
Days Since Last Pro Fight: Justin Gaethje 322, Paddy Pimblett 287
Previous Match-up Record: No previous match-ups.
Wins Against Common Opposition: Even: Both have 2 win(s) against common opposition.
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Bantamweight (135)
[#3][#3UFC] Sean OMalley (18-3-0, -206) vs. [#6][#6UFC] Yadong Song (22-9-1, +168)
Sean OMalley is the All-Time #10 ranked Bantamweight fighter.
Yadong Song is the All-Time #50 ranked Bantamweight fighter.
Last 3 Fights: Sean OMalley (1-2-0)
2025-06-07: L vs. [#3DD][#7P4P][#2BW] Merab Dvalishvili (21-5-0) via Submission (North-South Choke) in 4:42 of round 3
2024-09-14: L vs. [#3DD][#7P4P][#2BW] Merab Dvalishvili (21-5-0) via UD (49-46, 48-47, 48-47)
2024-03-09: W vs. [#12BW] Marlon Vera (24-11-1) via UD (50-45, 50-45, 50-44)
Last 3 Fights: Yadong Song (2-1-0)
2025-02-22: W vs. [*] Henry Cejudo (16-6-0) via TUD (29-28, 29-28, 30-27)
2024-03-09: L vs. [#1DD][#4P4P][#1BW] Petr Yan (20-5-0) via UD (29-28, 29-28, 29-28)
2023-12-09: W vs. [#37BW] Chris Gutierrez (22-7-2) via UD (50-44, 50-45, 50-45)
| System | Favorite | Rating | Rating Diff | Win % |
| Betting Odds | Sean OMalley | -206 | 64.34% | |
| Elo K170 | Sean OMalley | 2094.90 | +55.55 | 57.93% |
| Elo Modified | Sean OMalley | 2059.31 | +30.67 | 54.40% |
| Glicko-1 | Sean OMalley | 2115.11 | +23.44 | 53.37% |
| WHR | Sean OMalley | 1949.75 | +35.98 | 55.16% |
Fighter Ages on Fight Day: Sean OMalley 31.2, Yadong Song 28.1
Days Since Last Pro Fight: Sean OMalley 231, Yadong Song 336
Previous Match-up Record: No previous match-ups.
Wins Against Common Opposition: Sean OMalley leads 2-1
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Heavyweight (265)
[#8][#7UFC] Waldo Cortes-Acosta (16-2-0, -340) vs. [#13][#10UFC] Derrick Lewis (29-12-0, +260)
Derrick Lewis is the All-Time #28 ranked Heavyweight fighter.
Last 3 Fights: Waldo Cortes-Acosta (2-1-0)
2025-11-22: W vs. [#23HW+] Shamil Gaziev (14-2-0) via KO (Punch) in 1:22 of round 1
2025-11-01: W vs. [#16HW+] Ante Delija (26-7-0) via KO (Punches) in 3:59 of round 1
2025-08-23: L vs. [#4HW+] Sergei Pavlovich (20-3-0) via UD (30-27, 29-28, 30-27)
Last 3 Fights: Derrick Lewis (2-1-0)
2025-07-12: W vs. [#83HW+] Tallison Teixeira (8-1-0) via TKO (Punches) in 0:35 of round 1
2024-05-11: W vs. [#26HW+] Rodrigo Nascimento (13-4-0) via TKO (Punches) in 0:49 of round 3
2023-11-04: L vs. [#6HW+] Jailton Almeida (22-4-0) via UD (50-44, 50-44, 50-45)
| System | Favorite | Rating | Rating Diff | Win % |
| Betting Odds | Waldo Cortes-Acosta | -340 | 73.55% | |
| Elo K170 | Waldo Cortes-Acosta | 1969.65 | +104.60 | 64.62% |
| Elo Modified | Waldo Cortes-Acosta | 1969.93 | +115.38 | 66.02% |
| Glicko-1 | Waldo Cortes-Acosta | 2042.19 | +104.30 | 64.57% |
| WHR | Waldo Cortes-Acosta | 1888.33 | +89.51 | 62.61% |
Fighter Ages on Fight Day: Waldo Cortes-Acosta 34.3, Derrick Lewis 40.9
Days Since Last Pro Fight: Waldo Cortes-Acosta 63, Derrick Lewis 196
Previous Match-up Record: No previous match-ups.
Wins Against Common Opposition: Even: Both have 1 win(s) against common opposition.
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Keep Reading
Do you ask yourself how fighters stay steady, sharp, and confident year after year, even when training looks long and demanding? Many fans and learners feel curious about what truly builds success in combat sports, and the answer often points to one simple habit that stays with every strong athlete: training discipline. This article talks in a friendly and easy way about how steady practice habits guide fighters toward steady growth, calm focus, and lasting results. The idea here is simple: keep showing up, follow the plan, and trust the process with a positive mind.
Modern MMA is no longer just about technique and physical strength. It’s about characters — fighters whose image is instantly readable by the audience. A strong archetype amplifies a fighter’s presence, makes them memorable, and turns a fight into a story. Here are three fighters whose images work as powerfully as their skills.
Predicting the result of a professional fight is never as simple as comparing records on paper. Some fans believe that a competitor riding a wave of recent victories has a natural advantage, while others trust detailed performance numbers collected over many years. The truth is that both momentum and statistics influence outcomes in different ways, and understanding how they interact gives a clearer view of what really decides a contest.
While completing our MMA Awards post for 2025, I started to wonder what the biggest upsets of all-time were. We have four different upset awards, each using different rules and/or rating systems.
In this post, we will consider all pro fights with only one exception — the winner must have a pro loss prior to the fight date. I will however, post some notable fights that would’ve otherwise qualified.
To determine the order, we will use ratings from the Elo and Glicko systems, total the pre-fight ratings for each fighter, then order by the difference.
Prepare to read about some fighters you’ve probably never heard of…
#5 – (1497pts) [3-4-0] Shana Dobson W(TKO) [9-1-0] Mariya Agapova
UFC on ESPN 15 (September 22, 2020)
I’m a little surprised that a UFC fight made the cut, especially in the women’s list. As far as the outcome, ESPN referred to it as a “historic upset”. From what I recall, Agapova came into the UFC with a ton of hype and a pretty nice 9-1 record. Dobson, at around +850, derailed the hype train.
MMA fans will often take the enthusiasm they have for a fight and apply it to watching entertainment in its various forms. Your favorite type of combat may well have a bearing upon your favorite type of gambling experience.
Mixed martial arts brings together passion, unpredictability and strategic brilliance. Audiences appreciate a particular type of fight because it resonates with either their passion or their strategy. Unexpectedly, such desires will highlight a type of game at a casino that is most enjoyable for you.
Our awards are very similar to those given by other outlets, but for more specifics, see the MMA Awards page.
Men’s Fighter of the Year
This year was a strange one for the category. Merab Dvalishvili fought four times, and was in the lead for essentially the entire year before ending it with a loss against Petr Yan. His only competition for the award was Islam Makhachev, who wrote his name in the history books by becoming a “champ-champ”, but was only half as active as Merab. I’ve said many times that I’d rather more draws be awarded than watch judges score fights for the wrong guys. And for that very reason, Merab and Islam will share the award for 2025.
Winner [tie] – Merab Dvalishvili, Islam Makhachev
3rd Place – Joshua Van
Honorable Mention – Petr Yan
Calculated chances unite two seemingly opposite things – level-headed, data-based information and the thrill of the risk associated with every bet. Fans can easily engage in discussions without sacrificing either the emotional, unpredictable excitement or the intellectual involvement. In a way, we get to be both smart and responsible as well as courageous and adventurous.
The following article will delve into the art of having your cake and eating it, by providing reasons why gambling fans and fighters are drawn to calculated chances, such as those offered at a 10 dollar deposit casino NZ, where players get to bet while simultaneously being responsible with their assets.
