US MMA fans were not impressed when PPVs were put behind a double paywall - you first had to buy the ESPN+ app and then the PPV. It just got worse in England. Fans there bought the BT sports app which included big UFC events, but starting with UFC 239, there is an extra £20 ($25) fee, possibly for at least four events a year. Senior VP of International and Content Dave Shaw explained the league's thinking: “As part of the renewal and part of the rebuild of the partnership with BT Sport was giving them the ability to have a limited number of events on pay-per-view. For us, it seemed to, on paper, make a lot of sense. The UK is historically a pay-per-view market with sports, especially with combat sports. BT Sport has a lot of experience in that, most recently with Fury and Wilder match which I think was pay-per-view. There's still a number of details that need to be sorted out. There's more information coming in the next couple of weeks. Everything else will be available on the BT Sport package as normal. I don't want to say it's necessarily a test period, we just don't know yet what strategy they're going to pursue. But certainly, the lions share of numbered events and contest are going to continue to be offered on broadcast.” h/t The Express

Yaozong Hu, 24, of Beijing, China, has accepted a 10-month sanction for a violation of the UFC Anti-Doping Policy after testing positive for androsta-3,5-diene-7,17-dione (arimistane) and its metabolite 7β-hydroxy-androst-3,5-diene-17-one as the result of a urine sample provided out-of-competition on March 9, 2019.  Following an investigation into the circumstances of Hu’s case, USADA concluded that Hu’s positive test was caused by his use of a dietary supplement and that he was eligible for a minor reduction to the otherwise applicable one-year period of ineligibility for a doping offense involving a Specified Substance. The minor reduction is based on Hu’s cooperation throughout the results management process and efforts made to investigate the safety of the supplement prior to use, even though he subsequently realized that the product listed a prohibited substance on the label. Hu’s 10-month period of ineligibility began on March 9, 2019, the date his positive sample was collected. h/t USADA

In 1993, a relatively unknown Art Davie called up Campbell McLaren as a representative of Rorion Gracie and made his pitch for a ‘War of the Worlds’ style tournament. McLaren upon hearing the concept, started envisioning a Mortal Kombat style fight night and went on to green-light and produce the idea. Mixed martial arts was born. Since leaving the UFC, McLaren has slowly been building up a new MMA empire with Combate Americas; two things make Combate so unique. The first is the fact that it’s the only real MMA promotion in Latin America, a marketplace were boxing has usually dominated, yet MMA is a new breath of fresh air. The second is that Combate has put a real focus and emphasis on the idea of fighting for national pride, as the multiple nations compete against each other for bragging rights, similar to what would happen in soccer. Here's 4 reasons you should watch: 1. Truly amazing fights, 2. It’s on at good times and the pacing is good, 3. It’s on DAZN; 4. The more people watch, the freakier their fights and production will get. h/t StipeTapped