Brunno Ferreira

Former UFC bantamweight champion Aljamain Sterling has pushed back on California Athletic Commission Director Andy Foster's plan to look at banning the oblique kick. The proposal followed Brunno Ferreira's use of the technique against Edmen Shahbazyan in a prelim bout at UFC 331, which Shahbazyan won without suffering a major injury. Sterling argued the commission should fix referee accountability for enforcing existing rules before adding new ones, and said fighters can simply move their leg out of the way. UFC CEO Dana White has previously voiced support for a ban, while other fighters have come out against it.

Shahbazyan, Sterling, White

UFC President Dana White has expressed support for the California State Athletic Commission's effort to ban oblique kicks to the knee in MMA. The CSAC raised the issue following UFC 331, where a middleweight prelim between Edmen Shahbazyan and Brunno Ferreira brought the strike's legality into question after Shahbazyan mistakenly believed the kick was already illegal. The oblique kick has been a long-standing controversy in the sport, with fighters such as Jon Jones and Ian Machado Garry notably employing it — the latter having contributed to Shavkat Rakhmonov's ongoing knee problems with the technique.

Rakhmonov, Jones, Shahbazyan+1

Disclosed fighter salaries for UFC 331 show Patricio Pitbull and Marlon Vera each earning $400,000, while Tai Tuivasa took home $350,000. Gable Stevenson received $160,000 and Edmen Shahbazyan $250,000, with show-and-win splits applying to most fighters on the card. At the lower end of the scale, Ju Sang Yoo earned $12,000 and Ozzy Diaz $25,000, figures that exclude bonuses and undisclosed incentives.

O'Neill, Sharaf, Despaigne+11

Edmen Shahbazyan returned to winning ways at UFC 331, defeating Brunno Ferreira by unanimous decision to improve his record to 17-6. The victory snaps a losing streak for Shahbazyan, who had previously dropped a fight to Brendan Allen. Ferreira suffered his third consecutive defeat, having also lost to Alaskarov and Gregory Rodrigues in his prior outings.

Shahbazyan