MMA News
Lauren Murphy reflects on Valentina Shevchenko loss, reveals she battled with infection: "I 100 percent wish I had withdrawn from that fight"
Josh Evanoff - July 14, 2022
UFC women’s flyweight contender Lauren Murphy wishes she hadn’t fought Valentina Shevchenko. ‘Lucky’ faced ‘Bullet’ last September at UFC 266. In the co-main event, Shevchenko dominated the contest. In the fourth round, the women’s flyweight champion landed a devastating combination to secure the victory.
Joanna Jedrzejczyk happily retired, but admits she may return for one fight: "I could come back for the female BMF title"
Josh Evanoff - July 14, 2022
Former UFC strawweight champion Joanna Jedrzejczyk could possibly return for one fight. Last month at UFC 275, the 34-year-old faced off against Weili Zhang for the second time. While the first outing was an incredible fight, the second encounter was more one-sided. The Poland-native was brutally knocked out in round two by ‘Magnum’.
Alexander Volkanovski says he's got his "eye on" Brian Ortega vs. Yair Rodriguez: "I'll be watching"
Cole Shelton - July 14, 2022
Alexander Volkanovski will be paying close attention to this Saturday’s UFC main event. In the headliner of UFC Long Island, top-three featherweights clash as Brian Ortega takes on Yair Rodriguez in a massive fight for the division. Rodriguez has said he has been promised a title shot with a win and now Volkanovski says the winner of this fight could very well be next in line.
Daniel Cormier disapproves of Jiri Prochazka vs. Glover Teixeira 2: "What about Jan Blachowicz?"
Josh Evanoff - July 14, 2022
Daniel Cormier doesn’t want to see Jiri Prochazka and Glover Teixeira go again. Last month at UFC 275, the two light-heavyweights faced off in Singapore. The bout was a back-and-forth war. With the Brazilian winning on the cards, Prochazka secured a submission victory in the waning seconds of round five.
Yair Rodriguez reacts to Zabit Magomedsharipov’s retirement from MMA: “There was a lot of things between him and I that was said”
Susan Cox - July 14, 2022
Yair Rodriguez has weighed in on Zabit Magomedsharipov’s retirement from MMA. Zabit (18-1 MMA) has not been in the Octagon since November of 2019, when he fought and defeated Calvin Kattar (23-6 MMA) by unanimous decision. The Russian’s only career loss was back in 2013 when he went down to defeat against Igor Egorov (13-8 MMA).
Chael Sonnen questions Jiri Prochazka’s call for a rematch with Glover Teixeira: “Why Do You Want To Fight A 42-Year-Old?”
Susan Cox - July 14, 2022
Chael Sonnen is questioning Jiri Prochazka’s call for a rematch with Glover Teixeira. It was Jiri Prochazka (29-3 MMA) vs Glover Teixeira (33-8 MMA) this past June at UFC 275 in Singapore. The result was Jiri Prochazka becoming the UFC light heavyweight champion with a stunning late submission of Glover Teixeira.
Nate Diaz reveals the two opponents who are “worthy” of being his final UFC fight
Susan Cox - July 14, 2022
Nate Diaz is revealing the two opponents he feels are ‘worthy’ of entering the Octagon with him for his final UFC fight. Diaz (20-13 MMA) has not fought since June of 2021 at UFC 263, where he was defeated by unanimous decision in his welterweight bout with Leon Edwards (19-3 MMA).
Pro fighters make their picks for Brian Ortega vs. Yair Rodriguez
Cole Shelton - July 14, 2022
In the main event of UFC Long Island, a pivotal featherweight scrap headlines the card as top-three featherweights collide as Brian Ortega takes on Yair Rodriguez. Heading into the fight, Ortega is a -180 favorite while the Mexican is a +140 underdog on FanDuel. Ahead of the fight, BJPENN.com reached out to pro fighters to get their prediction for the scrap. The majority of pros are leaning towards Ortega getting his hand raised and likely doing it by submission.
Former flyweight title challenger John Dodson opens up on his UFC release: “I was like, ‘What the hell? First fight in and I’m done?”
Harry Kettle - July 14, 2022
John Dodson has opened up on how surprised he felt upon being released by the Ultimate Fighting Championship. From the moment he knocked out TJ Dillashaw to win The Ultimate Fighter 14, it was clear to see that John Dodson had some real potential. Then, immediately after conquering the bantamweight tournament, he swiftly moved down to flyweight in search of gold.
Darren Till says he’s at a “f**king low point” in his UFC career: “It’s so f*cking frustrating for me at the same time because I know my potential”
Harry Kettle - July 14, 2022
UFC star Darren Till has admitted he’s at a low point in his career after withdrawing from his UFC London fight against Jack Hermansson. In the wake of four losses in his last five bouts, it was clear to see that Darren Till needed to go back to the drawing board. So, that’s exactly what he did, mixing up his training in Liverpool with some work in Sweden at Allstars – with a particularly notable friendship brewing between himself and Khamzat Chimaev.
Alex Pereira says UFC middleweight champion Israel Adesanya would “never give” him props: “Ask him if he was impressed when I knocked him out”
Harry Kettle - July 14, 2022
UFC middleweight Alex Pereira continues to go after rival Israel Adesanya as speculation regarding a fight between them grows. The rivalry between Alex Pereira and Israel Adesanya had been dormant for a few years prior to ‘Poatan’ making his way over to the UFC from the world of kickboxing. In that particular martial art, Pereira managed to get the better of Adesanya on two separate occasions – one via knockout, and one via decision.
Brian Ortega still doesn't understand how Alexander Volkanovski didn't tap to his chokes at UFC 266: "How in the f**k did this man get out of that choke?"
Cole Shelton - July 13, 2022
Brian Ortega still can’t believe Alexander Volkanovski didn’t tap at UFC 266. In the third round of their featherweight title fight, Ortega appeared to lock in a guillotine and a triangle choke on two separate occasions and both appeared to be tight. Volkanovski’s face was going red but somehow the champ was able to escape and nearly a year later, ‘T-City’ doesn’t understand how.
Sean O'Malley works as a gas station attendant, and gives everything away (Video)
Josh Evanoff - July 13, 2022
UFC bantamweight contender Sean O’Malley has seemingly found a second calling. ‘Sugar’ is fresh off his no-contest with Pedro Munhoz at UFC 276 earlier this month. While that bout went down as a no-contest, O’Malley viewed the fight as a win. However, he didn’t receive his win bonus for his effort, as he had previously hoped he would.
Maycee Barber sees herself challenging for UFC gold within two years: "I want to make sure I'm fully prepared for that"
Josh Evanoff - July 13, 2022
UFC women’s flyweight contender Maycee Barber sees herself fighting for gold soon. ‘The Future’ is fresh off a unanimous decision victory over Jessica Eye at UFC 276 earlier this month. The win moved her current winning streak to three. Barber had previously captured victories over Montana De La Rosa and Miranda Maverick.
Yair Rodriguez believes "it’s going to be important to have a really good strategy and stick to it" against Brian Ortega at UFC Long Island
Cole Shelton - July 13, 2022
Yair Rodriguez knows Brian Ortega will be a tough out at UFC Long Island on Saturday. Rodriguez and Ortega are set to headline the card in a pivotal fight for the featherweight division as the winner could get a title shot. Although the Mexican is coming off a loss to Max Holloway last time out, he says that fight taught him a lot including having a good strategy.
Jan Blachowicz open to Kamaru Usman showdown: "Why not?"
Josh Evanoff - July 13, 2022
Jan Blachowicz is open to a fight with UFC welterweight champion Kamaru Usman. The Poland-native is fresh off a TKO victory over Aleksandar Rakic at UFC Vegas 54 in May. Blachowicz hopes that the win was enough to secure a title shot next time out. However, if he doesn’t end up fighting Jiri Prochazka, he’d be fine with another fight.
Kamaru Usman says Alex Volkanovski is “phenomenal” but not the pound for pound best: “The world has to just realize that, right now, I am P4P best fighter on the planet”
Susan Cox - July 13, 2022
Kamaru Usman is dismissing the idea that Alex Volkanovski is the best pound for pound fighter on the planet. Usman (20-1 MMA) has 19 wins in his last 19 fights, his latest victory coming against Colby Covington (17-3 MMA) at UFC 268 in November of 2021.
Chael Sonnen goes to bat for UFC middleweight champion Israel Adesanya: “We’re seeing greatness and we’re trying to beat him the only way we know how: verbally”
Susan Cox - July 13, 2022
Chael Sonnen has a message for fighters and fans critical of UFC middleweight champion Israel Adesanya. It was Israel Adesanya (23-1 MMA) who retained his title for a fifth time when he defeated Jared Cannonier (15-6 MMA) at UFC 276 on July 2nd of this year.