Paige VanZant wasn’t happy with the result in her latest slap fighting match but she takes responsibility for the foul that ultimately led to her draw against Chelsea Dodson on Thursday in Abu Dhabi.

The former UFC fighter and BKFC veteran landed an illegal blow in the second round of her sophomore match in Power Slap, which cost her a point and ultimately the decision. It was VanZant’s second strike thrown when she was penalized for “clubbing” after connecting more of her wrist and arm than the hand, which actually opened a small cut on Dodson’s face.

As a result, VanZant lost a point and without a knockout or knockdown to help even the score in the final round, she could only earn a draw.

“Well guys, Power Slap is over,” VanZant said on her Instagram. “Went home with the draw. I accidentally clubbed. That was my fault. Still learning. I was a little bit too close on one of my shots. Just got to get my distance right for the next one. Power Slap, you’re going to see me again.”

The match, which ended with 28-28 scores across the board, was VanZant’s second appearance in the Dana White owned promotion after she debuted there back in June. On that night, VanZant earned a unanimous decision win after she ate all three shots from her opponent and actually delivered a brutal knockdown along the way.

VanZant later stated that Power Slap was supposed to be a “bucket list” item to check off for her combat sports career but she enjoyed it so much that she booked a second match ahead of UFC 308 weekend in Abu Dhabi.

Despite the disappointing result, VanZant has now vowed to return with hopes to return to the win column in her next appearance.

ABU DHABI – Dana White might have other plans, but Khamzat Chimaev isn’t opposed to the idea of changing his mind after Saturday.

UFC CEO White recently said a rematch with former champion Sean Strickland will be the next title defense for middleweight champion Dricus Du Plessis, who recently defended the belt with a submission of former champ Israel Adesanya.

Du Plessis beat Strickland by unanimous decision in January to win the 185-pound strap. But among the fighters waiting in the wings is Chimaev (13-0 MMA, 7-0 UFC), who on Saturday takes on another former champ, Robert Whittaker (27-7 MMA, 17-5 UFC), in the UFC 308 (pay-per-view, ESPN+) co-main event at Etihad Arena.

If Chimaev, more than a 2-1 favorite to stay unbeaten against Whittaker, can win impressively, is it possible he could skip past Strickland? Stranger things have happened than upheaval at the top of a UFC title picture after things apparently had been settled.

But Chimaev certainly won’t count on the idea of being next.

“I hope so, but they said that before, as well,” Chimaev said at Wednesday’s UFC 308 media day in Abu Dhabi. “When I beat Gilbert Burns, I didn’t have my chance. After that was (Kamaru) Usman, and ‘if he beats Usman, he’s going to fight for the title.’ I haven’t fought (for the title) yet, so we’ll see.”

One of the things that has been holding Chimaev back in that regard, almost certainly, has been his inactivity due to health issues. He beat Burns in April 2022, but for a September fight with Nate Diaz, he botched his weight cut severely and fought Kevin Holland at middleweight, instead. But then he didn’t fight again for more than a year when he beat Usman, and his fight with Whittaker already was delayed from June.

Chimaev has dealt with lingering COVID-19 issues in the past, to go along with a mysterious illness that took him out of commission over the summer.

He’s apparently done well enough financially to not stress about his lack of activity, and insists having more money isn’t making him less hungry for a title.

“I’m happy with the money. I’m making more money than any champions,” he said before he added: “Money is not changing (me). People will be the same. I’m staying humble as I was before.”

Check out Chimaev’s full media day interview above.

For more on the card, visit MMA Junkie’s event hub for UFC 308.

ABU DHABI – Muhammad Mokaev still has faith that he’ll make his way back to the UFC.

Despite improving to 7-0 in the octagon with a win over Manel Kape at UFC 304, the UFC opted not to re-sign Mokaev (13-0 MMA, 7-0 UFC). Dana White announced the news in harsh fashion during the post-fight news conference.

As an undefeated fighter on the cusp of flyweight title contention, Mokaev knew something was off when he wasn’t offered a new contract during his UFC deal.

“I was feeling this because it was my last fight on the contract. I was feeling something not going right,” Mokaev told MMA Junkie. “I don’t think it’s because of what happened between me and Manel at the hotel because usually they change the contract not on the last fight, maybe like two fights left. But I was on my last fight, and I asked for a new contract, I couldn’t get it, and I felt something was going on.”

Mokaev thinks the UFC’s decision came because of a mix of things – his behavior, which included multiple altercations with Kape, as well as his fighting style. He has since signed with BRAVE CF, his home prior to joining the UFC.

“I’ve been told I need to have more finishes inside the octagon,” Mokaev said. “But I’m 7-0, four finishes, I was 23 years old, I don’t know what else? I cannot get seven out of seven. I tried my best. I came out from all big injuries, still competing, still accepting the big names. Now in the UFC, I have five fighters who I beat, all in top 15, and I think I just need to sit down and speak to Dana.

“I spoke to Hunter (Campbell) straight after what happened in Manchester. He said, ‘We will see you back in the UFC,’ but maybe they want to see me mature more outside the octagon, but whatever happened, I’m ready to come back now. I’m fighting in BRAVE, so whenever they call me, I’m ready. I want to become UFC champion, and I knew I could because I was very, very close to it.”

Mokaev, who competes in Friday’s ADXC 6 event when he takes on fellow ex-UFC fighter Rogerio Bontorin in a no-gi grappling match, hopes he can call the octagon his home again next year.

“I think one or two fights,” Mokaev said. “I think that’s the amount of fights that I need to do, but I just want to stay busy.”

Ilia Topuria and Max Holloway meet in the featherweight championship main event this Saturday at UFC 308, a fight the MMA community has been waiting for since it was announced.

Watch MMA Fighting’s UFC 308 Timeline video for an in-depth look at how both headliners got to this weekend’s pay-per-view at Etihad Arena in Abu Dhabi.

The undefeated Topuria captured the UFC featherweight title with a Knockout of the Year contending finish of Alexander Volkanovski in the main event of UFC 298 in February. Prior to that, Topuria competed in his first promotional headliner at UFC Jacksonville, earning a lopsided unanimous decision victory against Josh Emmett in June 2023.

Holloway looks to once again call himself 145-pound champ. Since losing to Volkanovski for the third time at UFC 276 in July 2022, “Blessed” has been on a roll, winning all of his fights, including a knockout for the ages of Justin Gaethje at April’s UFC 300 event to win the BMF title.

Will Topuria’s streak of dominance continue, or will the Blessed Express begin another championship journey?