MMA News
Georges St-Pierre explains why he believes Conor McGregor will KO Dustin Poirier at UFC 264
Cole Shelton - June 29, 2021
Georges St-Pierre believes it will be Conor McGregor getting his hand raised at UFC 264. McGregor is set for his trilogy match against Dustin Poirier in the main event of UFC 264 on July 10. They had their rematch back in January where “The Diamond” scored a second-round TKO. In the lead-up to the trilogy, Poirier has said he will finish McGregor again, but St-Pierre believes it will be the Irishman winning early by KO.
Dustin Poirier on Conor McGregor trilogy: "You can have all the money in the world but you can't buy heart and I got that"
Cole Shelton - June 29, 2021
Dustin Poirier has a reason as to why he will finish Conor McGregor again at UFC 264. Poirier and McGregor had their highly-anticipated rematch on Fight Island in January at UFC 257. Early on in the fight, the Irishman had success but Poirier kept landing leg kicks which opened up the head, and “The Diamond” capitalized with a second-round TKO win.
UFC Vegas 30 rankings update: Julia Avila among winners on the move upwards following big win
Adam D Martin - June 29, 2021
The official UFC rankings have been updated following UFC Vegas 30, and women’s bantamweight contender Julia Avila is among those moving up. Avila submitted Julija Stoliarenko in a women’s 135lbs bout on the preliminary card. After two close rounds which actually had the judges split heading into the third and final round, Avila put a stamp on the victory by catching a rear-naked choke submission late in the final stanza. It was a tremendous performance by Avila, and she afterward took to social media to vent that she wasn’t one of the card’s $50,000 bonus winners. Regardless of whether or not she got a bonus, Avila looked good and is now the No. 14 ranked fighter at 135lbs.
Sean O'Malley needs new opponent after Louis Smolka withdraws from UFC 264
Adam D Martin - June 29, 2021
UFC bantamweight star Sean O’Malley is in need of a new opponent after Louis Smolka withdrew from their scheduled upcoming bout at UFC 264. O’Malley and Smolka were set to meet on the main card of UFC 264, which is scheduled to take place on July 10 at T-Mobile Arena in Las Vegas, Nevada. However, the fight is now off, according to MMA journalist Ariel Helwani. He confirmed the news that Smolka has withdrawn from the fight following a cryptic tweet from O’Malley suggesting a change.
Conor McGregor "didn't give Dustin the respect he deserved" at UFC 257, but will KO him in round one at UFC 264, says Artem Lobov
Cole Shelton - June 29, 2021
Artem Lobov believes Conor McGregor overlooked Dustin Poirier back in January at UFC 257. Although Lobov says McGregor was focused on the fight, he says he was also preparing to box Manny Pacquiao which was a done deal. With that, Lobov says McGregor didn’t give Poirier the respect he deserved as he expected to be able to walk through him.
Charles Rosa believes Justin Jaynes only added more pressure on himself with his bet, eyes fall return
Cole Shelton - June 29, 2021
Charles Rosa was shocked when he saw that Justin Jaynes was betting his entire fight purse on himself. Rosa and Jaynes were set to fight on the prelims of UFC Vegas 30 and on paper, it was a competitive fight. Yet, the fight garnered major attention on fight week when Jaynes revealed he was betting his entire fight purse on himself. For Rosa, he says he doesn’t know why he did that as he believes it added more pressure on him than necessary.
Ali Abdelaziz says Kayla Harrison is "Ronda Rousey 6.0."
Adam D Martin - June 29, 2021
MMA manager Ali Abdelaziz says that his client, PFL women’s lightweight star Kayla Harrison, is “Ronda Rousey 6.0.” Harrison is currently running through the field in the PFL season three women’s lightweight tournament and looks to be one of the best female fighters in the sport right now. A former Olympic gold medalist in judo, Harrison’s MMA career has always — fairly or unfairly — been compared to Rousey’s since she was also an Olympic gold medal judoka before turning over to mixed martial arts. Since making the transition to MMA in 2018, Harrison is a perfect 10-0 in MMA with eight wins by stoppage. She has been dominating everyone in her weight class, and she doesn’t appear to be on the verge of losing any time soon.
Khabib Nurmagomedov says Dana White and the UFC still want him to fight again
Adam D Martin - June 29, 2021
Former UFC lightweight champion Khabib Nurmagomedov says UFC president Dana White and co. still want him to fight in the Octagon again. Nurmagomedov first revealed his intentions to retire from MMA following his submission win over Justin Gaethje at UFC 254 last October. After taking several months to consider his future, Nurmagomedov vacated his title earlier this year and retired from the sport. However, even though “The Eagle” is no longer flying, it isn’t stopping White and the rest of the UFC’s top executives from trying to convince the Russian to fight one more time.
Ciryl Gane calls Jon Jones the GOAT, interested in future heavyweight fight with "Bones"
Adam D Martin - June 29, 2021
UFC heavyweight contender Ciryl Gane called Jon Jones the GOAT, and says he is interested in a future heavyweight fight with “Bones.” Gane defeated Alexander Volkov via unanimous decision last weekend to improve to 9-0 in MMA and 6-0 overall in the UFC. The win was so impressive to UFC president Dana White and the promotion’s top executives that Gane was given an interim title shot against Derrick Lewis at UFC 265 this summer with Francis Ngannou out. The Gane vs. Lewis winner will likely be in line to face Ngannou sometime later this year for the undisputed title. Of course, there’s one other factor in the heavyweight equation, and that’s Jones.
Conor McGregor flaunts his physique 12 days away from UFC 264 (Photo)
Adam D Martin - June 29, 2021
UFC superstar Conor McGregor flaunted his incredible physique 12 days away from his UFC 264 main event trilogy fight against Dustin Poirier. McGregor and Poirier meet in the main event of UFC 264, which takes place on July 10 at T-Mobile Arena in Las Vegas, Nevada. This will be the third and, presumably, the final meeting between these two bitter rivals. McGregor took home the first fight between these two back in 2014 when he knocked Poirier out at UFC 178. Seven years later and they met again earlier this year at UFC 257, this time with Poirier knocking McGregor out. With the all-time series between the two now 1-1, the trilogy fight next weekend will be massive.
Sarah Alpar starts GoFundMe for next fight camp expenses, 'I cannot do it without you'
Drake Riggs - June 28, 2021
UFC flyweight Sarah Alpar is calling for some help from the fans ahead of her sophomore appearance in the promotion. Alpar is set to compete against top debuting prospect Erin Blanchfield on September 18. But before that, “Too Sweet” took to Instagram to share her current GoFundMe campaign.
Pros react after Derrick Lewis vs. Ciryl Gane is announced as interim heavyweight title fight at UFC 265
Christopher Taylor - June 28, 2021
Dana White shocked fight fans this afternoon when he announced that Derrick Lewis would be fighting Ciryl Gane for the interim heavyweight title at UFC 265. After weeks of the UFC President insinuating that a rematch with ‘The Black Beast’ would be next for reigning UFC heavyweight champion Francis Ngannou, ESPN’s Brett Okamoto announced that Lewis vs. Gane was official for August 7 in Houston.
GSP’s coach Firas Zahabi says Nate Diaz is the 'scariest street fighter in MMA'
Andrew Whitelaw - June 28, 2021
As coach of arguably the greatest mixed martial artist of all-time, Firas Zahabi is well-placed to judge what makes a good fighter. In this case, the Canadian heaped praise on the resilience of Nate Diaz. Speaking in a Q&A on the Tristar Gym YouTube channel, Zahabi said,
Derrick Lewis and Ciryl Gane react after being booked in interim heavyweight title fight at UFC 265
Chris Taylor - June 28, 2021
Derrick Lewis and Ciryl Gane have reacted after being booked in a interim heavyweight title fight at UFC 265. After weeks of Dana White insinuating that a rematch with ‘The Black Beast’ would be next for reigning UFC heavyweight champion Francis Ngannou, the promotion shocked fight fans today with the announcement of Lewis vs. Gane.
Khabib Nurmagomedov makes prediction for Conor McGregor vs. Dustin Poirier 3 at UFC 264
Cole Shelton - June 28, 2021
Khabib Nurmagomedov has given his prediction for the trilogy bout between Conor McGregor and Dustin Poirier. McGregor and Poirier fought back in January where Poirier exacted his revenge with a second-round TKO win over the Irishman. After the fight, both men called for the trilogy and it will headline UFC 264 from the T-Mobile Arena on July 10. According to Nurmagomedov, who fought and beat both of them, believes if McGregor can’t finish Poirier in the first round he will lose the fight.
Ciryl Gane opens as heavy favorite to defeat Derrick Lewis at UFC 265
Cole Shelton - June 28, 2021
Ciryl Gane has opened as a sizeable favorite over Derrick Lewis for the interim heavyweight title. The hope for the UFC was to have Ngannou defend his heavyweight title for the first time at UFC 265 on August 7 against Lewis. Yet, the timing didn’t work so the promotion went to an interim belt between Gane and Lewis and the undefeated Frenchman has opened as a sizeable favorite.
Derrick Lewis vs. Ciryl Gane interim heavyweight title fight set to headline UFC 265 in Houston
Cole Shelton - June 28, 2021
Derrick Lewis will be fighting for UFC gold on August 7 in Houston, it just won’t be for the undisputed belt. Lewis was reportedly set to face Francis Ngannou in the main event of UFC 265 for the heavyweight title. Yet, the promotion couldn’t come to terms with Ngannou on the timeframe and now the UFC is set for an interim title. According to UFC president, Dana White, who told ESPN’s Brett Okamoto, Lewis will face Ciryl Gane for the interim heavyweight title in the main event of UFC 265.
Joe Schilling brutally knocks out bar patron, claims self-defense (Video)
Adam D Martin - June 28, 2021
Former Bellator fighter and GLORY kickboxer Joe Schilling brutally knocked out a patron at a bar in a video going viral on social media. The video of Schilling knocking a man out has been making the rounds. Watch the video below and see what you think for yourself. In the video, it appears as though Schilling and a man bump into each other, the man says something, then he gets knocked out cold.