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UFC 315 is inching toward its pay-per-view climax, but the event took a slight detour with the promotion's latest edition to the 2025 Hall of Fame class.
Set to take place next month in Las Vegas on Thursday, June 26, the UFC Hall of Fame adds another dynamic striker who competed in every era of MMA with several UFC stints attached to it: Vitor Belfort.
Belfort, a 41-fight MMA veteran with 26 of those coming inside the Octagon, enters the Pioneer Wing with a long-winded resume that still impresses UFC CEO Dana White.
"Vitor Belfort was 19 years [old] when he was signed by UFC and he quickly made an impact by becoming the youngest athlete to win a UFC fight, and UFC tournament," White said in a statement Saturday night. "Vitor was a pioneer of the sport and is definitely a UFC legend. It will be an honor to induct him into the UFC Hall of Fame this summer.”
A name we won't forget
— UFC (@ufc) May 11, 2025
Welcome @VitorBelfort to the Pioneer Wing of the #UFCHOF pic.twitter.com/hTHt254JD0
Vitor Beltort's Career Time Capsule
Belfort was one of the greatest fighters of his era, competing in several high-profile bouts while winning the UFC Light Heavyweight Championship in 2003. Belfort's track record includes fights against Randy Couture, Chuck Liddell, Jon Jones, and Michael Bisping, to name a few.
Belfort ended his MMA career losing four of his last five, but decided to try his hand at boxing by beating Evander Holyfield (an exhibition in Sept. 2021) and Ronaldo "Jacare" Souza in April 2023.
Belfort was best known for his quick hands and willingness to fight anyone at any time. What makes Belfort unique is there are few like him remaining, if any, who competed in every known era in the sport's history.
Vitor Belfort Enters UFC HOF
Belfort finished his career with 18 KO wins, arguably never competing in a boring fight.
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UFC 319: Du Plessis vs Chimaev – Main Card Results, Highlights & Reactions
Full UFC 319 main card recap with results, big moments, and reactions from Chicago UFC 319 brought high drama to Chicago with a stacked main card that delivered in every fight. From Chimaev’s suffocating ground game against Du Plessis to Murphy’s viral knockout of Pico, fans were treated to a night of unforgettable moments. Each bout carried its own storyline, making UFC 319 a card that will be talked about long after the lights went down at the United Center. Middleweight Title Fight (Main Event): Dricus du Plessis (c) vs. Khamzat Chimaev Chimaev wasted no time, scoring an instant takedown and locking Du Plessis in a crucifix. The ground-and-pound wasn’t thunderous, but it was relentless, keeping the champ pinned and frustrated. By the middle rounds, Du Plessis looked drained as Chimaev went 6-for-6 on takedowns early, showing complete dominance. Du Plessis tried to rally in round five with a couple of desperate submission attempts, but nothing stuck. In the end, Chimaev cruised to a lopsided 50-44 decision, snatching the belt in a performance that screamed total control. Featherweight Co-Main Event: Lerone Murphy vs. Aaron Pico Pico came out fast and aggressive, ripping shots to the body and head while mixing in multiple takedowns. Murphy held his ground with sharp counters before turning the tide with a brutal spinning back elbow that landed perfectly. Pico was out cold before he even hit the canvas. A devastating finish that sent shockwaves through the arena and cemented Murphy’s viral moment. Welterweight Bout: Geoff Neal vs. Carlos Prates Neal came out sharp, but Prates eventually found his rhythm—mixing in punishing leg and body kicks along with clean strikes. Then, out of nowhere, Prates unleashed a spinning elbow that connected flush and sent Neal crashing down. The ref waved it off instantly. A highlight-reel KO that had the arena roaring. Prates, a proud member of the Fighting Nerds team, bounced back strong after his tough loss to Ian Machado Garry in his last outing. Middleweight Bout: Jared Cannonier vs. Michael “Venom” Page MVP came out sharp, controlling the pace with his point-karate style and even scoring a knockdown with a crisp right hand. Cannonier tried to smother him against the cage to wear him down, but MVP kept letting him off the hook. In round two, MVP turned up the heat with big strikes, another knockdown, and slick angle work—his counter shots had Cannonier swinging at air. Cannonier did rally in the final round with heavy ground-and-pound, but the judges rewarded MVP’s flash and precision. Winner by decision (29-28) MVP. Flyweight Bout: Tim Elliott vs. Kai Asakura Elliott’s awkward movements threw Asakura off in the earlier rounds. Elliott scored a solid takedown early, and again in round two—this time securing a guillotine for a submission victory. A crafty, gutsy finish that had the crowd buzzing—an impressive victory that showed Elliott still has plenty of fight left.
Vikings GM Kwesi Adofo-Mensah's biggest find is ready to take a huge step forward, and it could be huge for Brian Flores' defense
After joint practice on Wednesday between the Minnesota Vikings and New England Patriots, I was asked by some members of the Patriots beat about just one player. "Who's 61? He's a dude." That player is Jalen Redmond, who has quite the story heading into his second season with the Vikings. He was playing in the UFL in the spring of 2024 with the Arlington Renegades. He was a signing the Vikings made on June 18th, 2024, which came after mandatory minicamp. Redmond was the 90th player on the roster and excelled throughout training camp to earn a roster spot. That ability is showing up once again. Jalen Redmond is taking another step forward The signing of Redmond was a massive win for general manager Kwesi Adofo-Mensah and his scouting staff, especially Ryan Grigson, who was given a lot of credit for finding him. "I remember he [Grigson] called me and said, 'I like this guy.' I think it was late May," Adofo-Mensah explained. "You have to ask yourself, what's your standard for bringing people in, because a lot of good players are on teams already, so there's going to be something there that's not perfect, not clean, and earlier he had injuries, so you've got to understand why he's available, but ultimately here's why he might be a good bet. "And you saw the flashes for an interior guy with burst, his run defense kind of jumped out to me. That's the other thing, when you've been together for two or three years, and my history with Grigson before, he knows how to communicate with me, makes a cut-up, knows exactly what we look for." You can see the power and explosiveness in Redmond's game. He rarely gets washed out by the offensive line, and often penetrates the backfield with his ability. Where things have gotten really interesting with Redmons is seeing how good he can be from a short and long-term perspective. Last season, Redmond played in 13 games and flashed in a major way. While he went undrafted out of Oklahoma, it wasn't so much due to talent, but a health issue that kept him from being selected. He certainly looks like a player who should have been selected. Over the course of the season, Redmond got one sack and 6.0 tackles for loss to pair with 18 tackles. His ability to be a penetrating force on the line earned him a starting role at the end of the season, with two starts in his first year with the Vikings. Going into year two, Redmond shouldn't be overlooked. He won't be a starter with the additions of Jonathan Allen and Javon Hargrave, but it shouldn't be much of a surprise if he approaches 500 snaps as a rotational player. His teammates believe he's a stud, something that Jonathan Greenard emphasized last week. "Redmond is a dog," said Greenard after Redmond's great practice on Thursday. "Jalen's been a dog since last year in training camp. I knew he was a dog when he got thrown out of practices last year. So I was like, listen, from that day forward, he got thrown out, he came back in just completely, just dominating. And at that point even to see it during the season and see him continuously build. Now I'm like, man, everybody knows, but when you see, obviously, you bring in two guys like JA [Jonathan Allen] and Grave [Javon Hargrave], you kind of think that he gets put in the wayside, making the same place he was last year, if not more. And that just helps us out to know that it's not gonna drop off whenever those guys get a breather or something like that. If I'm coaching, I'm putting him in." Don't sleep on Redmond going into this season, as he's only getting better.
Dallas Cowboys' top-rated players for NFL preseason Week 2 vs. Ravens
A 31-13 loss to the Baltimore Ravens dropped the Dallas Cowboys to 0-2 this preseason. While the records don't matter, it's still unsettling to see the Cowboys lose a game in such fashion. As was the case in their Week 1 loss to the Los Angeles Rams, the Cowboys were bullied at the line of scrimmage on both sides of the ball. They also saw quarterback Joe Milton III continue to struggle with accuracy. The good news, however, was that several players stood out with solid individual play. Here's a look at which Cowboys graded the highest on offense and defense, according to PFF. Cowboys top-5 rated players on offense Princeton Fant, TE (83.4) Malik Davis, RB (74.6) Jonathan Mingo, WR (70.3) Deuce Vaughn, RB (67.1) John Stephens Jr., TE (66.2) The offense was responsible for just six points, but there were still some bright spots. Princeton Fant had a 33-yard reception and held his own in blocking. Malik Davis showed some burst when he was on the field, and Jonathan Mingo had an excellent catch to set up a field goal. Unfortunately, Mingo was injured on the play but has been one of the bright spots throughout the offseason. Cowboys top-5 rated players on defense Andrew Booth, CB (91.8) Troy Pride Jr., CB (83.8) Jack Sanborn, LB (79.2) Earnest Brown IV, DT (76.7) Kemon Hall, CB (75.6) Andrew Booth not only led the way on defense, but was the highest-graded player on the team. Two other cornerbacks, Troy Pride Jr. and Kemon Hall, made it into the top five as well. Linebacker Jack Sanborn and defensive tackle Earnest Brown IV were there as well. Sanborn had three tackles while Brown recorded two. —
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Progress of young WR could be huge development for Steelers offense
Even though the names of the players on the roster have changed, the Pittsburgh Steelers' wide receiver room is facing the same big question it did a year ago. It is a question of depth. Going into both seasons, they had a very good No. 1 wide receiver (George Pickens a year ago; DK Metcalf this season) and then a lot of uncertainty over who the No. 2 wide receiver would be and if they had enough talent to piece together a solid depth chart. While they could still potentially be in the market for another veteran addition, the emergence of second-year player Roman Wilson this preseason has been one of the biggest early-season developments for the Steelers offense. The Steelers selected Wilson in the third round (No. 84 overall) of the 2024 NFL Draft, but did not get anything out of him during his rookie season due to injury. He appeared in just one game and did not receive a single target. It was the NFL equivalent of a redshirt season. That seems to be rapidly changing this preseason. Not only is Wilson healthy, but he is starting to emerge as a legitimate target in their passing game and has flashed big-time potential in each of the team's first two preseason games. In their first preseason game against Jacksonville, he caught two passes for 24 yards (including a 19-yard reception), and followed that up with a two-catch, 72-yard performance against Tampa Bay on Saturday. That included a 42-yard catch from Mason Rudolph, where he showed his ability to get downfield. He also demonstrated his ability to get open over the middle later in the game for a 30-yard reception from Skylar Thompson. Wilson has the potential to be a real X-factor in the Steelers' passing game. Even though Metcalf is new to the offense, he is a proven veteran, and there should be some expectation as to what he can do. They know they have at least one good option. They also have a very deep group of tight ends with Pat Freiermuth, Jonnu Smith and Darnell Washington on their depth chart. But they still need another wide receiver to emerge and take some of the pressure and attention away from Metcalf. Wilson doesn't have big-time size (5-10, 186 pounds), but he ran a 4.3 40 at the combine, is a willing blocker and can line up both outside and in the slot. There is serious potential with him, and he is finally starting to show it after what was a lost rookie season. If he can keep building on this preseason performance, it will give quarterback Aaron Rodgers and the Steelers offense a much-needed playmaker. He is certainly off to a promising start.
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