Dana White announces shocking UFC 296 fights, UFC vet to make debut as judge, Bradley Martyn chips sparring partner's tooth: MMA News Roundup

Welcome to Sportskeeda's daily MMA News Roundup, where we present the biggest UFC news updates and other stories from the world of mixed martial arts.

In today's issue, we will discuss Dana White's bombshell announcements for UFC 296 as well as a former fighter making their judging debut. Also, fans react to Bradley Martyn sparring.

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#3. Dana White drops huge announcements for UFC 296

UFC 296 is now set to be one of the biggest cards of the year as Dana White confirmed a host of exciting matchups for the pay-per-view on December 16.

Leon Edwards will defend his welterweight title against the returning Colby Covington in the main event, with the co-main also featuring a title bout. Alexandre Pantoja will make his first title defence as he puts the men's flyweight belt on the line in a rematch versus Brandon Royval.

With the fights at the top of the card already exciting, the UFC president then turned it up another gear by revealing that Stephen Thompson would face the undefeated Shavkat Rakhmonov, and Paddy Pimblett would be taking on the veteran fan favorite Tony Ferguson.

Catch the announcements here:

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#2. Former UFC vet to make Nevada debut as judge at UFC Vegas 79

UFC Vegas 79 is scheduled to take place on September 23 at the Apex facility in Las Vegas and will be headlined by lightweights Rafael Fiziev and Mateusz Gamrot.

With fans understandably excited about another night of fights, there has also been an interesting development that has peaked fan attention. According to MMA reporter Marc Raimondi, former UFC middleweight Chris Leben is set to make his debut as a judge on Saturday night.

Leben competed in the promotion from 2005 to 2013 and has since worked a professional referee and judge in California.

With the current state of judging a hot topic for the MMA world, Leben's inclusion at UFC Fight Night 228 has seen a positive response from fans. One wrote:

"Finally, the Universe is healing!!!"

Another added:

"We need more Chris Lebens out there. 👏🏼"

Check out more reactions here.

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#1. Fans react to Bradley Martyn sparring with Sneako

Social media influencer and bodybuilder Bradley Martyn is being criticized by fans after footage of him sparring fellow influencer Sneako went viral.

In the clip, the two men took part in a boxing session at the gym. The exchanges show Martyn getting the better of Sneako due to their major weight difference, with the 34-year-old also dropping his opponent after a heavy right hook.

It was later revealed that the controversial Sneako had suffered a chipped tooth as a result of the sparring, with many fans opting to condemn Bradley Martyn for fighting against somebody significantly smaller than he is.

One fan wrote on X (formerly Twitter):

"260 vs 140 this is embarrassing"

Another wrote:

"Are they drunk?"

Catch more reactions here.