Former UFC welterweight champion Kamaru Usman has brushed off Joaquin Buckley’s callout.

Buckley (21-6 MMA, 10-4 UFC) issued a challenge to Usman (20-4 MMA, 15-3 UFC) after scoring a third-round knockout of former title challenger Stephen Thompson on Saturday at UFC 307. Buckley is now 5-0 at welterweight in the UFC and was praised by Daniel Cormier for his callout. Usman dismissed Buckley but didn’t imply that he wouldn’t fight him if offered.

“Take a number and get in line,” Usman said on his “Pound 4 Pound” podcast with Henry Cejudo. “I believe he’s probably, what, the 10th, 11th guy? I don’t know how many guys have called me out. It is what it is. It’s obviously, like DC said, it’s a more reasonable callout for him because he is on the streak. He’s been doing good work inside there. I believe he was losing that fight, and it was just a way to be relentless and find the shot eventually to get that finish. So, you know, hats off to him.

“He did a great job. If that’s the fight, then that’s the fight. If it’s not, it’s not. Obviously right now I’m working on myself and trying to get myself back, because I’ve fought injured for so long to where I achieved all the things I’ve achieved, but at some point it does catch up to you. You have to sit down and correct some of those mistakes. But, like I said, I ain’t going nowhere. I’m still here, and eventually I will get in there and show the people that I am once again the king.”

Usman, 37, hasn’t competed since a majority decision loss to Khamzat Chimaev at middleweight in October 2023. The short-notice setback to Chimaev was his third straight after suffering back-to-back title losses to Leon Edwards.

For more on the card, visit MMA Junkie’s event hub for UFC 307.

Ipswich Town defender Axel Tuanzebe is expected to be out for at least a month after sustaining a freak hand injury while doing the washing up.

The 26-year-old DR Congo international sustained a deep cut to his thumb while he was washing the dishes last week.

The former Manchester United and Aston Villa player had started the first six Premier League games of the season for promoted Ipswich before missing Saturday’s 4-1 loss to West Ham.

Ipswich boss Kieran McKenna said on Saturday Tuanzebe’s injury was a “very unfortunate accident”.

“He’s naturally a miss with the way he’s started the season. He’s going to be out for a little while,” McKenna said.

Ipswich told BBC Sport the accident had occurred at home and Tuanzebe has had successful surgery.

Ben Johnson replaced Tuanzebe at London Stadium, where defeat left Ipswich still winless after seven league games.

Michael Bisping believes UFC light heavyweight champion Alex Pereira’s strength of schedule is what makes him the pound-for-pound best fighter in the world.

Pereira (12-2 MMA, 9-1 UFC) notched his third title defense in the span of seven months when he scored a fourth-round TKO of Khalil Rountree in Saturday’s UFC 307 main event. Pereira is currently No. 2 in the official UFC pound-for-pound rankings behind lightweight champion Islam Makhachev.

“Pereira is going through everybody,” Bisping said on his YouTube channel. “Three title defenses in seven months and taking the world by storm. So, if you go through the top 10, it’s really hard to deny Alex Pereira is No. 1.”

Bisping’s only asterisk on Pereira’s resume is that he’s yet to face a strong grappler during his title reign. However, he does commend “Poatan” for the fashion in which he’s been winning his fights, knocking out his past four opponents.

“He is very active. He is taking on the top competition,” Bisping said. “Yes, sure, granted, maybe Magomed Ankalaev should’ve been in there Saturday night, but he wasn’t. That’s not (Pereira’s) fault. You can’t hold that against him. But the people that he is beating, he’s doing it in sensational fashion, and he’s finishing them.

“And that’s partly what I want to see. To be pound-for-pound No. 1, you’ve got to be finishing people. You can’t be scraping by them with split decisions. You’ve got to do it in emphatic fashion, and I don’t think there’s anyone out there with the finishing ability of Alex Pereira. It is frightening what he can do.”

For more on the card, visit MMA Junkie’s event hub for UFC 307.

Michael “Venom” Page is back, but this time it’s not in the cage.

On Monday, Polaris announced that Page will face former WEC welterweight champion Carlos Condit in a grappling match at its upcoming Polaris 30 event, which takes place on November 2.

A former Bellator standout, Page signed with the UFC in 2023 and made his promotional debut earlier this year, with a unanimous decision win over Kevin Holland at UFC 299. Page then lost a decision to Ian Machado Garry in his sophomore outing at UFC 303 in June. Page was an accomplished kickboxer before making the move to MMA, and also has experience in boxing and bare-knuckle boxing, but this will be his first foray into professional grappling.

A former WEC welterweight champion and UFC interim welterweight champion, Condit is one of the most beloved fighters of the 2010s, and best known for his 2016 Fight of the Year battle with Robbie Lawler that is widely regarded as one of the greatest fights in MMA history. This will be Condit’s return to professional competition since retiring from MMA in 2021.

Polaris 30 takes place on Nov. 2 at Fairfield Halls in London and will be streamed live on UFC Fight Pass.

Liverpool have confirmed Sofie Lundgaard suffered an anterior cruciate ligament (ACL) injury in Sunday’s Women’s Super League win over Tottenham.

The 22-year-old went down in the first half following a 50-50 challenge with Spurs defender Amanda Nilden.

The Danish midfielder signed a new contract for the Reds in September and had featured in their opening three WSL fixtures, but will now undergo knee surgery.

Reds boss Matt Beard said to the official Liverpool website, external: “We’re all devastated for Sofie.

“We have to rally around her because it’s going to be tough at times during the rehabilitation programme. Sometimes these things happen in football and it can be so cruel.

“This is going to be a test of her character but I’m sure she will come back stronger from it with the support network she has here and the closeness of our group of players and staff.”

Lundgaard has become the third player in the WSL this season to rupture her ACL following injuries to Everton duo Aurora Galli and Inma Gabarro.

Prior to UFC 307, Kayla Harrison hadn’t bled in 18 career fights. Then she did in her 19th after Ketlen Vieira landed two hard elbows to her face in the second round of their bantamweight bout this past Saturday, and what immediately crossed Harrison’s mind was her kids sitting cageside.

“I mean, honestly, my kids can’t come to my fights anymore. Because my first thought was, ‘Oh, my kids are seeing this,’” Harrison said Monday in an interview with TMZ. “That is not a thought I need to be having when I’m inside of a cage. I don’t need to be thinking of my kids watching me bleed. I went into mom mode. I was like, ‘Oh my God, I hope they know I’m OK.’”

Harrison, 34, became a single mom through adoption in 2019 when unfortunate family circumstances served as a calling to take in her niece and nephew. The thought of how her kids would react lasted for only a moment. Once it left her mind, Harrison went back to being all business for Round 3.

“After I got that thought out of the way, it was just kind of like – in between the second and third round, I was bleeding, and I kind of hawked a loogie, and I spit,” Harrison said. “There was blood on it, and I just bit down on my mouthguard like, ‘All right, let’s f*cking go.’”

Harrison went on to win the third round on all three judges’ scorecards and secured a unanimous decision win in her second UFC appearance. The former two-time PFL champion expects to fight for the UFC title next against newly crowned champion Julianna Peña.