MMA News

Tom Taylor - March 4, 2020

You have to scroll a long way down Weili Zhang’s 20-1 record to find her only loss. That solitary L occurred all the way back in 2013, in her very first fight, when she was defeated by a woman named Meng Bo at a regional mixed martial arts show in Xuchang, China. The bout was Meng’s first, too. Although she and Zhang began their careers on the same night, the pair have had traveled different paths in the years since.

Adam Martin - March 4, 2020

UFC president Dana White threw some shade at Joanna Jedrzejczyk, saying she’s been at the beaching soaking up the sun while Weili Zhang has been training. Jedrzejczyk meets Zhang this weekend at UFC 248 in the co-main event of the evening with the UFC women’s strawweight title up for grabs. The two rivals do not like each other and have been looking for months to get into the cage and settle their differences. Jedrzejczyk threw more fire on the rivalry when she joked about the coronavirus, and Zhang is sure to want to avenge those comments for the Chinese people.

Tom Taylor - March 4, 2020

The official UFC rankings have been updated after last weekend’s UFC Norfolk card, and there have been some interesting changes. Most notably, Deiveson Figueiredo has swiped the No. 1 spot at flyweight after stopping Joseph Benavidez in the main event. Had Figueiredo made weight for the fight, he could now call himself the UFC flyweight champ, but his scale fail made him ineligible to win the division’s vacant title.

Tom Taylor - March 4, 2020

Judging is a hot-button issue in MMA of late, and UFC middleweight champion Israel Adesanya has a suggestion that he believes could help mitigate the problem. MMA is scored using the 10 point must system. The winner of each round receives 10 points—unless there’s a point deduction—while the user receives 9 or less. That said, we really see a disparity greater than 10-9. 10-8 rounds are a real rarity. A 10-7 round is unheard of.

Tom Taylor - March 4, 2020

UFC strawweight champion Weili Zhang and UFC middleweight champ Israel Adesanya come from different worlds, but the two fighters definitely have one notable thing in common: they both have the potential to become massive stars for the UFC. At least, that’s what Dana White thinks. White commented on Zhang and Adesanya’s potential superstardom ahead of UFC 248 in Las Vegas, where the former will defend her title against Joanna Jedrzejczyk, and the latter will defend his belt against Yoel Romero.

Adam Martin - March 4, 2020

UFC women’s strawweight champion Weili Zhang admits she’s still irritated by Joanna Jedrzejczyk making fun of the coronavirus on social media. Jedrzejczyk made a joke about the coronavirus on her Instagram in January which ruffled the feathers of Zhang — not to mention those in the MMA community who felt like joking about the coronavirus was an error to do considering how many people around the world have died from the outbreak.

Cole Shelton - March 4, 2020

In the main event of UFC 248, Israel Adesanya is looking to defend his middleweight title for the first time when he battles Yoel Romero. Heading into the fight, the champion is a -275 favorite while the challenger is a +215 underdog. Ahead of the fight, BJPENN.com reached out to several pro fighters to make their predictions for the scrap. There, the majority are leaning towards Adesanya but they know Romero only needs one punch to end it.

Tom Taylor - March 4, 2020

The UFC’s debut in Kazakhstan, scheduled for June 13, now has a main event — and it’s a good one. The card will reportedly be topped by a bantamweight contender bout between Russia’s Petr Yan and Brazil’s Marlon Moraes, which has been rumored for some time and has now been confirmed by MMA Junkie. Petr Yan will step into the cage in Kazakhstan, a country with a huge Russian population, on a fantastic nine-fight win-streak. His last six victories have occurred in the UFC’s Octagon, where he’s defeated the likes of John Dodson, Jimmie Rivera, and most recently, former bantamweight title challenger Urijah Faber, who he knocked out on the main card of UFC 245 in December. The Russian is 14-1 overall.

Natasha Hooper - March 4, 2020

On Friday night, Kansas City will host a monumental night in MMA history, and Max Holloway wants to be a part of it. The former UFC featherweight champion will be in attendance for the Invicta FC show at the Memorial Hall in Kansas. It will be the first time in modern MMA that an open scoring system—or real-time scoring system—is used in major competition.

Natasha Hooper - March 4, 2020

The UFC has cultivated some of the biggest sports stars in the world, including Conor McGregor and Ronda Rousey. UFC president Dana White recently explained why fighters so often become superstars.

Harry Kettle - March 4, 2020

Urijah Faber and Dustin Ortiz are set to headline Copa Podio: California this Sunday at Vacaville High School in Vacaville, California. The pair will compete against one another in a submission grappling match that will serve as the main event, whereas UFC veterans Danny Castillo and Carlos Rocha will also be squaring off in a no-gi fight in Cali.

Christopher Taylor - March 3, 2020

Earlier today UFC President Dana White revealed his intention to book a rematch between flyweight standouts Deiveson Figueiredo and Joseph Benavidez. The pair collided in last weekend’s UFC Norfolk event headliner with the promotions vacant 125-pound title on the line, but only for Benavidez to capture. That was due to the fact that Figueiredo missed weight for the bout by 2.5lbs.

Cole Shelton - March 3, 2020

Weili Zhang doesn’t know if Joanna Jedrzejczyk will make weight for their strawweight title fight. In the co-main event of UFC 248, Zhang is set for her first title defense when she battles Jedrzejczyk. The Pole is looking to reclaim the strawweight title she held from March of 2015 to November of 2017.

Christopher Taylor - March 3, 2020

Nate Diaz has taken aim at longtime rival Conor McGregor. The Stockton Native took to Twitter earlier this evening where he seemingly asked the Irish star what had happened to his proposed “season” in 2020.

Cole Shelton - March 3, 2020

Dan Hardy believes Justin Gaethje can pose a lot of problems for Conor McGregor in a potential fight. McGregor and Gaethje have traded shots at one another and a rumor recently circulated that a fight between the two could take place this summer. And, if it does, Hardy believes Gaethje can look at the Chad Mendes fight to see where he can have success.

Cole Shelton - March 3, 2020

Henry Cejudo believes he made history on Saturday as he became the first person to defend their title while sitting on the couch. In the main event of UFC Norfolk, Deiveson Figueiredo was taking on Joseph Benavidez for the flyweight title that Cejudo vacated. Yet, the Brazilian missed weight and ended up winning the scrap leaving the belt to still be vacant. So, Cejudo counts that as a title defense for himself.

Adam Martin - March 3, 2020

A featherweight bout between Ryan Hall and Ricardo Lamas has been added to the upcoming UFC Fight Night 174 card in Oklahoma City. The card takes place May 2 at Chesapeake Energy Arena in Oklahoma City, Oklahoma. The main event of the card is a five-round middleweight bout between Chris Weidman and Jack Hermansson. Hall vs. Lamas will likely slot in as one of the main card bouts.

Adam Martin - March 3, 2020

UFC president Dana White has confirmed the promotion is looking at booking a flyweight title rematch between Joseph Benavidez and Deiveson Figueiredo. Figueiredo knocked out Benavidez in the main event of UFC Norfolk, but because Figueiredo missed weight, he was not eligible to win the vacant UFC flyweight championship. The title remains officially vacated with no current champion.