MMA News

Jose Aldo
Jose Aldo

Jose Aldo focused on becoming UFC champion again, not interested in fighting YouTubers in boxing

Adam D Martin - August 13, 2021

Former UFC featherweight champion Jose Aldo says he is focused on becoming a UFC champion again, not in fighting YouTubers in boxing. Aldo — one of the greatest MMA fighters of all time — has always openly embraced the idea of taking his skills to the boxing ring, but that hasn’t happened at this point. After a three-fight losing skid in 2019 to 2020 that left some feeling like Aldo was on the downside of his career, “Junior” has rebounded since then with back-to-back wins over Marlon Vera and Pedro Munhoz. After winning his last two fights over top contenders at 135lbs, Aldo believes that he still has what it takes to make a run for the UFC bantamweight title.

Paulo-Costa
Paulo Costa

Paulo Costa explains why he got drunk the night before Israel Adesanya fight at UFC 253

Adam D Martin - August 13, 2021

Paulo Costa explains why he got drunk the night before his UFC middleweight title fight against champion Israel Adesanya at UFC 253. Costa was knocked out by Adesanya at UFC 253 in what was an uncompetitive fight from the Brazilian. Although Costa was unbeaten heading into the Adesanya fight and looking every bit the part of a legitimate title contender, he had a lackluster outing against “Stylebender” and was put to sleep for his efforts. After the fight, Costa admitted that he was drunk on wine the night before and that it played a role in his poor performance that night. Speaking to ESPN in a recent interview, Costa elaborated on what happened to him.

Stevie Ray
UFC

Stevie Ray ending retirement, in talks with Bellator and Brave CF

Cole Shelton - August 13, 2021

Former UFC lightweight, Stevie Ray will be ending his retirement. Ray retired from MMA in September of 2020 which he said at the time was due to knee injuries. However, he told BJPENN.com this week that there was much more to it, and it was due to the UFC forcing him out of the organization and making him retire.

Chris-Weidman
UFC

Chris Weidman shares latest health update after undergoing second surgery on broken leg suffered at UFC 261

Adam D Martin - August 13, 2021

Former UFC champion Chris Weidman shared his latest health update after undergoing a second surgery on the broken leg he suffered at UFC 261. Weidman suffered one of the most horrific injuries we have ever seen inside the Octagon back in April when his leg snapped on a checked kick against Uriah Hall. Weidman immediately went down in pain and was rushed to the hospital to undergo emergency surgery on the broken limb. The initial thought was that the surgery was successful, and Weidman even started getting back into the gym, but he suffered a setback in his recovery, and “The All-American” was forced to undergo a second surgery on the shattered limb.

Conor McGregor, Dana White
Dustin Poirier

Conor McGregor encourages Nate Diaz to continue his trolling of Dustin Poirier: “I am entertained”

Adam D Martin - August 13, 2021

UFC superstar Conor McGregor encouraged Nate Diaz to continue his trolling of rival Dustin Poirier, telling him that “I am entertained.” McGregor has, of course, fought both Diaz and Poirier multiple times each. The Irishman had a pair of memorable fights with Diaz in 2016, where he went 1-1 in the pair of bouts, while “Notorious” ended up losing 2-1 overall to Poirier during their own trilogy. In the last fight against Poirier at UFCC 264, McGregor broke his leg, and he’s expected to be out for the next year while he heals up his wounds. During his time off, McGregor has spent much of it on social media trolling several other fighters including Poirier, Diaz, and Daniel Cormier. But according to McGregor, he’s having more fun watching Diaz troll Poirier.

Jake Paul
Jake Paul

Jake Paul says Conor McGregor’s ego won’t allow him to accept that “it’s over”

Adam D Martin - August 13, 2021

YouTuber-turned-boxer Jake Paul says that UFC superstar Conor McGregor’s ego won’t allow him to accept that “it’s over,” meaning his career. McGregor lost via first-round TKO when he broke his leg against Dustin Poirier back at UFC 264 in July. That was his second straight defeat following a TKO loss to Poirier earlier this year at UFC 257. When looking at McGregor’s MMA record, he is just 1-3 over his last four fights, plus he has a loss to Floyd Mayweather Jr. in boxing during that stretch, as well. Other than a quick TKO win over Donald Cerrone at UFC 246 last year, McGregor has not looked like his old self, and the man who was a double UFC champ is now long gone.

Fedor-Emelianenko-Tim-Johnson
Fedor Emelianenko

Fedor Emelianenko specifically chose Tim Johnson for Bellator Moscow bout, says Scott Coker

Drake Riggs - August 12, 2021

Tim Johnson is the last person the MMA community expected as the next opponent of Fedor Emelianenko in Bellator’s debut in Russia. On Oct. 23 in Moscow, Emelianenko and Johnson will lock horns. The announcement revealed a few weeks back gave fans and the fighters alike time to fantasize about possible matchups with Josh Barnett, Junior dos Santos, Alistair Overeem, and even Anderson Silva. So what happened?

Gable-Steveson-Derrick-Lewis
UFC

Olympic gold medalist wrestler Gable Steveson favored over Derrick Lewis in hypothetical UFC matchup

Drake Riggs - August 12, 2021

Gable Steveson hasn’t even committed to an MMA career yet and he’s already having fight odds made in his favor. Bovada released odds for hypothetical UFC bouts featuring the recent Team USA Olympic gold medalist wrestler against some of the heavyweight division’s best. One of which sees him as the very slight favorite against “The Black Beast” Derrick Lewis.

Yoel Romero
Yoel Romero

Yoel Romero medically cleared to make Bellator debut

Cole Shelton - August 12, 2021

Yoel Romero can resume his fighting career. Romero was supposed to fight Anthony Johnson in the light heavyweight grand prix but he was removed after failing his physical. The hope for Bellator was he would get cleared in a few months and that ended up being the case.

Jon Jones
Daniel Cormier

Jon Jones poses the most "problems" for Ciryl Gane at heavyweight, says Daniel Cormier

Cole Shelton - August 12, 2021

Ciryl Gane just recently claimed the interim heavyweight title and will face Francis Ngannou next, yet for Daniel Cormier, he believes Jon Jones poses the biggest problem for him. Gane is a perfect 10-0 in MMA and has dominated everyone he has fought. Against Lewis, he didn’t let the hometown fighter get going and just picked him apart en route to a third-round stoppage. It was a dominant performance but for Cormier, he believes Jones has all the tools to pose problems for the Frenchman.

Jordan-Williams
UFC

Jordan Williams stops car thief while wearing fanny pack (Video)

Adam D Martin - August 12, 2021

UFC welterweight Jordan Williams shared a video of him stopping a car thief from stealing his vehicle while he was wearing a fanny pack. Williams most recently competed last month when he was submitted by Mickey Gall in his UFC welterweight debut. Prior to that, “Bomaye” lost a decision to Nassourdine Imavov in his UFC debut at middleweight. He previously competed three times on Dana White’s Contender Series, losing a split decision to Ramazan Kuramagomedov before returning to the show and picking up a big first-round knockout win over current UFC fighter Gregory Rodrigues. He also had a No Contest against Tim Caron on the second season of DWCS.

Stevie Ray
UFC

Stevie Ray details the "shady" tactics the UFC used which forced him to retire

Cole Shelton - August 12, 2021

Stevie Ray announced his retirement from MMA in September 2020, which many thought was due to his knee injuries. However, there is much more to the story, which Ray has never spoken publicly about. Ray competed in the UFC from 2015 and had a 7-4 record where in his last fight, he picked up what he calls the biggest win of his career as he defeated Michael Johnson. He also fought the likes of Paul Felder, and Leonardo Santos as well as defeating Joe Lauzon and Ross Pearson among others. Yet, for quite some time, Ray had heard rumblings the UFC wanted him out of the organization, and that finally happened when they released him, but he covered it up with him announcing his retirement.

Ciryl Gane
Exclusive MMA Interviews

Ciryl Gane wants Francis Ngannou fight in Paris in December or January: "It will be a really big fight"

Cole Shelton - August 12, 2021

Ciryl Gane is hoping his heavyweight title unification fight against Francis Ngannou happens in Paris, France. Gane claimed the interim heavyweight title at UFC 265 with a TKO victory over Derrick Lewis. It was the Frenchman’s fourth fight since December of 2020 and now with his wife set to give birth, he is looking to take some time off but is interested in the fight happening late this year or early next.

Dan Hardy
Kenny Florian

Dan Hardy praised as “true martial artist” by Kenny Florian ahead of comeback against John Wayne Parr

Adam D Martin - August 12, 2021

Former UFC welterweight Dan Hardy was praised as a “true martial artist” by Kenny Florian ahead of his comeback against John Wayne Parr. Hardy has not fought since September 2012 when he defeated Amir Sadollah in the UFC. Since then, the Brit has dealt with a heart issue that has left him unable to compete for the UFC. However, he has always wanted to make a comeback to combat sports and was recently given his full release by the UFC. Now that he’s a free agent and free to fight anywhere around the world, “The Outlaw” has zeroed in on a potential Muay Thai bout against Parr in ONE Championship. That fight is not yet official, but there appears to be a good chance of it going down, and if that’s the case, Hardy’s friend Florian will be watching.

Kevin Lee, UFC Rochester
Daniel Rodriguez

Kevin Lee gets short-notice replacement opponent for UFC Vegas 35, takes on rising contender Daniel Rodriguez

Adam D Martin - August 12, 2021

UFC welterweight Kevin Lee got a short-notice replacement opponent for UFC Vegas 35, as he now takes on rising contender Daniel Rodriguez. Lee was expected to fight top prospect Sean Brady at UFC Vegas 35, which is set to take place on August 28 at the UFC Apex in Las Vegas, Nevada. Unfortunately for fight fans who were very much looking forward to that fight, Brady pulled out with an injury, which temporarily left Lee without an opponent. “The Motown Phenom” then took to his social media, where he called out several other fighters including Mike Perry, but in the end, he will end up facing the man who last defeated Perry in Rodriguez. ESPN broke the news.

Tito-Ortiz
Boxing News

Tito Ortiz reacts to boxing match with Anderson Silva: "I’ve been working extensively on my boxing over the past 10 years"

Adam D Martin - August 12, 2021

Tito Ortiz reacted to his boxing match with Anderson Silva, saying that “I’ve been working extensively on my boxing over the past 10 years.” Coming out of left field, the Ortiz vs. Silva boxing match was officially announced on Wednesday by Triller. It will take place on September 11 at the Staples Center in Los Angeles, California, and will be a 195lbs professional boxing match set for eight rounds or less. The main event of the card features former UFC champion Vitor Belfort against Oscar de la Hoya. With the addition of Ortiz vs. Silva, this is expected to be one of Triller’s biggest boxing events to date, one that features a number of combat sports legends.

Claressa-Shields
Professional Fighters League (PFL)

Claressa Shields returns to the cage in PFL against promoter newcomer

Adam D Martin - August 12, 2021

Boxer-turned-MMA fighter Claressa Shields will make her second walk to the PFL cage later this year when she faces a promotional newcomer. The Washington Post revealed that Shields will take on Abigail Montes at the PFL Championship on Wednesday, October 27. Montes is 2-0 as a professional MMA fighter and is just 21 years old. She has previously competed in the Combate Americas and iFF organizations in her native Mexico, where she has defeated both of her opponents.

Gegard Mousasi
Gegard Mousasi

Gegard Mousasi open to fighting Yoel Romero in Bellator

Adam D Martin - August 12, 2021

Bellator middleweight champion Gegard Mousasi says he is open to fighting former UFC standout Yoel Romero in the Bellator cage. Mousasi returns to the Bellator cage on Friday night when he takes on John Salter for the Bellator middleweight title. While “The Dream Catcher” knows he can’t look too far ahead, when the media asked him who he wants to fight next, he had to give them a name. That name would be Romero, the former UFC middleweight title challenger who recently signed with Bellator. “The Soldier of God” was supposed to take part in the promotion’s 205lbs tournament, but he was forced out of the tournament due to a medical issue. Once he’s healthy, Mousasi says that he is open to fighting the man that no one else wants to fight.