Luke Rockhold News

Adam D Martin - September 14, 2021

Former UFC middleweight champion Luke Rockhold called out Israel Adesanya and Kamaru Usman for not backing Francis Ngannou. Rockhold makes his return to the Octagon after more than two years away in November at UFC 268 when he takes on Sean Strickland. Ahead of his comeback to the cage, Rockhold has been doing the media rounds and one of his stops was Ariel Helwani’s The MMA Hour.

Drake Riggs - September 13, 2021

The bad blood between Luke Rockhold and Sean Strickland is heating up. Before their upcoming bout was made official, Strickland (24-3) took to Instagram to address the idea of him taking on Rockhold (16-5). In the video, the surging 185-pound contender let it be known that if he sees Rockhold in the RVCA gym parking lot, he will “walk up to you and smack you in the f*cking face.”

Adam D Martin - September 5, 2021

Former UFC middleweight champion Luke Rockhold shared his thoughts on Jake Paul, saying “he’s not a real fighter. He’s a tough kid.” Paul has become one of the bigger names in combat sports over the last few years. The YouTuber-turner-boxer has turned heads with a 4-0 professional boxing record, which includes back-to-back wins over former UFC fighters Tyron Woodley and Ben Askren. Still, not everyone is sold on him becoming some sort of champion boxer or MMA fighter. If you ask Rockhold, while there’s a lot to like about Paul, he’s still a very flawed fighter.

Adam D Martin - August 17, 2021

Former UFC middleweight champion Luke Rockhold sized up his “stupid” opponent Sean Strickland ahead of their upcoming fight at UFC 268. Rockhold takes on Strickland in an important fight at 185lbs on UFC 268 in November. Strickland has won all four of his fights since moving up to middleweight last year — over Uriah Hall, Krzysztof Jotko, Brendan Allen, and Jack Marshman — while Rockhold is returning to middleweight after several years away from the cage. It is an intriguing matchup between two California natives who are known for their entertaining fights inside the Octagon, as well as some of the things that both men have said outside of the cage.

Harry Kettle - August 9, 2021

Sean O’Malley has claimed that a drunk Luke Rockhold mocked him during a recent interaction with O’Malley’s father. There are many rising figures within the sport of mixed martial arts but you could argue few are as unique as Sean O’Malley. From his fight style to the manner in which he carries himself, he really does stand out amongst the pack at bantamweight.

Harry Kettle - August 5, 2021

Sean Strickland has hit out at Luke Rockhold after news broke of their potential match-up later this year. Strickland, who is coming off the back of a dominant win over Uriah Hall last weekend, seems to be more than ready to step up to the next level in the middleweight division. Some would’ve preferred to see him get an opponent in the top five, but instead, he’ll lock horns with a former 185-pound champion in the form of Luke Rockhold.

Chris Taylor - August 4, 2021

Luke Rockhold was not happy with the “stupid” matchmaking tactics used by Dana White for his upcoming fight with Sean Strickland at UFC 268. Earlier this week the UFC President told reporters that he had offered Rockhold a fight with recent main event winner Sean Strickland. However, according to the former UFC middleweight champion no formal offer was ever made and White’s remarks were just a negotiation tactic.

Cole Shelton - August 4, 2021

Luke Rockhold will make his UFC return in November. For months now, Rockhold has hinted at a possible return to the Octagon but he claimed all the top middleweights were turning him down. On Tuesday, however, it was revealed the UFC offered him a fight against Sean Strickland.

Harry Kettle - July 15, 2021

Former UFC middleweight champion Luke Rockhold has come out firing with an ultimatum for the promotion. Throughout the course of his tenure in the UFC, and mixed martial arts in general, Rockhold has been able to establish himself as one of the most exciting middleweights on the planet. He’s been to a decision just twice throughout his 21 professional fights and while his last two bouts have been knockout defeats, he’s still a dangerous man whether it be at 185 or 205.

Cole Shelton - June 23, 2021

Luke Rockhold was offered a UFC main event in August against Khamzat Chimaev but he claims the undefeated fighter turned it down. Rockhold has talked about a return to the Octagon for quite some time and wanted a top-ranked middleweight. Yet, the former UFC middleweight champion revealed he was offered to headline the August 28 Fight Night card but Chimaev turned it down. He was also offered a three-round fight against Chimaev at UFC 265 on August 7, but that too was declined by the Swede, Rockhold revealed to Ariel Helwani.

Adam D Martin - June 8, 2021

Former UFC middleweight champions Michael Bisping and Luke Rockhold, once bitter rivals, posted a video of them grappling at the RVCA Gym. Bisping and Rockhold fought twice in the Octagon and had one of the most heated rivalries in the UFC during their primes. In November 2014, Bisping and Rockhold met for the first time, with Rockhold winning the fight via second-round submission. They then rematched in June 2016 at UFC 199 and, in one of the greatest upsets in MMA history, Bisping knocked out Rockhold in the first round to take home the UFC middleweight title. Both men were not friendly with each other for many years after that, but as of late they have become more cordial as both men are now training at Jason Parillo’s RVCA Gym.

Cole Shelton - May 25, 2021

Luke Rockhold is confident he would beat Israel Adesanya if he gets the chance to face him. Rockhold has recently revealed he is looking to return to the middleweight but many of the divisions top-15 have turned him down. However, he is still eager to return and knows if he works his way to a title shot he would be able to beat Adesanya as he thinks the middleweight champ is beatable in so many ways.

Chris Taylor - May 20, 2021

Luke Rockhold believes “feminine shins” are to blame for Chris Weidman’s horrific leg break against Uriah Hall at UFC 261. Rockhold (16-5 MMA) and Weidman (15-6 MMA) have had a long standing rivalry ever since ‘Rocky’ dethroned the ‘All American’ in brutal fashion back at UFC 194.

Christopher Taylor - May 12, 2021

Former UFC middleweight champion Luke Rockhold (16-5 MMA) is having trouble booking an opponent for his return to the Octagon. Rockhold, who has not competed since suffering a knockout loss to Jan Blachowicz in July of 2019, announced his intentions of making a UFC comeback early last fall.

Adam D Martin - April 1, 2021

Veteran boxing coach Jason Parillo said that middleweight Luke Rockhold is “one of the most gifted fighters that’s ever entered the UFC.” The former UFC middleweight champion is geared to make a comeback to the Octagon after taking two years off following a brutal KO loss to Jan Blachowicz at UFC 239. Since then, Rockhold has been dealing with a shoulder injury that has kept him on the shelf. But now that he’s starting to feel better, we have seen Rockhold in the RVCA in Costa Mesa, California, training under the tutelage of Parillo and alongside his former rival Michael Bisping. The hope is that Rockhold will be able to make a comeback this summer at 185lbs.

Christopher Taylor - March 30, 2021

Luke Rockhold has called out Dana White for “belittling” his fighters, this while suggesting the UFC President previously tried to beat him down mentally. White recently made headlines when he suggested that former UFC light heavyweight kingpin Jon Jones should consider dropping down to middleweight after Francis Ngannou captured the promotions heavyweight title at UFC 260.

Adam D Martin - March 22, 2021

Former UFC middleweight champion Luke Rockhold says he has that “fire” back ahead of his comeback to the Octagon later this year. Rockhold hasn’t fought since UFC 239 in July 2019, when he suffered a brutal KO loss to Jan Blachowicz. The former Strikeforce and UFC champ has taken the last two years off to heal his mind and body after years of fighting at the elite level, and he plans on making his comeback to the Octagon sometime later this year. At age 36, Rockhold is hoping that after taking two years off, his injuries have been healed up and he’ll be ready to do damage again inside the Octagon. He’s been training at RVCA Gym in preparation for his return.

Adam Martin - March 21, 2021

Former UFC lightweight champion Khabib Nurmagomedov wants to be the MMA coach of the year, says his longtime teammate Luke Rockhold. Nurmagomedov announced his official retirement from the UFC this week, finishing his MMA career with a perfect 29-0 record. While a return down the road can’t be ruled out, at least for the time being we have seen the last of “The Eagle” inside the Octagon. But just because he doesn’t plan on competing anymore doesn’t mean he won’t stick around the game. Instead of fighting, Nurmagomedov plans on putting his focus on coaching instead.