MMA News
Conor McGregor vs. Dustin Poirier 3 sells out in "seconds"
Cole Shelton - April 16, 2021
Conor McGregor and Dustin Poirier will have their trilogy fight in front of a sold out crowd. McGregor and Poirier are set to meet in the main event of UFC 264 on July 10 at the T-Mobile Arena in Las Vegas. On Friday, tickets went on sale, and to no surprise, given it is the first UFC event with fans in Vegas since the pandemic, they went quickly.
Francis Ngannou to return favor, will corner Kamaru Usman at UFC 261
Cole Shelton - April 16, 2021
Francis Ngannou will be in Kamaru Usman’s corner at UFC 261 on April 24. When Ngannou had his rematch against Stipe Miocic at UFC 260, he added Usman to his corner for some wrestling advice. It ended up working as Ngannou stuffed the takedown attempts and had some nice scrambles and went on to KO Miocic in the second.
Ben Askren and Jake Paul face off before their big boxing match (Video)
Adam Martin - April 16, 2021
YouTuber-turned-boxer Jake Paul and his rival, former MMA fighter Ben Askren, stared off at the final weigh-in ahead of their boxing match. After months of anticipation, Paul and Askren meet this weekend in a huge boxing match. The paydays were released on Friday, with Askren set to take home at least $500,000 for this fight and Paul set to take home a minimum of $690,000. Later in the day, the two fighters made weight, with Paul coming in at 191.5lbs and Askren weighing in at 190lbs. After both fighters made weight, they had their final staredown before Saturday’s fight.
Ben Askren guaranteed $500,000 to fight Jake Paul in boxing as full card salaries revealed
Adam D Martin - April 16, 2021
Former UFC and Bellator star Ben Askren is guaranteed to make $500,000 when he fights Jake Paul on Saturday night in their boxing match. Triller Fight Club is promoting another huge event for this Saturday, one that features Askren and Paul in the main event in a boxing grudge match. We knew they were both about to make some serious coin for the fight, and now we have the disclosed salaries. According to MMAFighting.com, Askren is guaranteed a purse of $500,000, while Paul is getting at least $690,000 for this fight. And that’s just the guaranteed portion, as they will both likely be in line for pay-per-view bonus points depending on how well the show does.
Frank Mir uncertain when he will retire, still plans to compete for BKFC
Cole Shelton - April 16, 2021
Frank Mir knows he doesn’t have much longer in his career. The former UFC heavyweight champion is 41-years-old and is set to turn 42, isn’t putting a timeline on his retirement. Mir admits three years ago when he was in Bellator, he wanted to retire, but after taking care of his body, he says he’s in really good shape and isn’t sure when he will retire now.
Jorge Masvidal explains why he can't get behind Ben Askren in boxing: "He really disrespected striking" during his MMA career
Adam D Martin - April 16, 2021
Jorge Masvidal explained why he can’t get behind Ben Askren in boxing, suggesting “he really disrespected striking” during his MMA career. On Saturday, Askren makes his pro boxing debut when he faces off against YouTuber Jake Paul. For Askren, it’s his first boxing match after spending the last decade-plus in mixed martial arts, and so he will be somewhat representing the sport of MMA when he steps into the ring this weekend. However, not everyone is convinced he’s truly representing MMA.
Ben Askren says it's "highly unlikely" he will take another MMA fight, but would consider it if "the right opportunity presented itself"
Cole Shelton - April 16, 2021
Ben Askren is ending his retirement to box Jake Paul on Saturday night, and given he’s getting back into combat sports, many wondered if he would return to MMA. When Askren retired in November of 2019, he cited a hip injury, however, he said he was just retiring from being a professional fighter, and would take one-off fights. That is exactly how the Paul fight came to be. It’s a unique opportunity where Askren gets the chance to beat up a YouTuber for a ton of money.
Jorge Masvidal introduces his own platform: “I will also be traveling the world looking for the next Kimbo”
Harry Kettle - April 16, 2021
Jorge Masvidal has introduced his own video platform after seemingly being hit with copyright strikes or perhaps even bans on multiple social media sites. “Gamebred” has never been shy when it comes to voicing his opinion, and he also doesn’t hold back when given the opportunity to call someone out – and in this case, it seems to be the likes of YouTube and Instagram that he’s got a problem with.
Eddie Alvarez to make quick turnaround after DQ loss, fights at ONE on TNT 4
Adam D Martin - April 16, 2021
ONE Championship lightweight contender Eddie Alvarez will make a quick turnaround after his recent DQ loss when he returns at ONE on TNT 4. Alvarez fought at ONE on TNT 1 earlier this month and the ending to his fight with Iuri Lapicus was extremely controversial, to say the least. After Alvarez took Lapicus to the ground and started to land some heavy shots, the referee deemed the punches illegal shots to the back of the head and, when Lapicus couldn’t continue, Alvarez was given a red card and disqualified. It was a very strange ending to a fight that Alvarez was dominating, and it led to figures such as Big John McCarthy blasting the referee for disqualifying the fighter.
Tony Ferguson labeled betting underdog for UFC 262 fight with Beneil Dariush
Adam D Martin - April 16, 2021
UFC lightweight contender Tony Ferguson is currently a rare betting underdog for his fight against Beneil Dariush at UFC 262. Ferguson and Dariush meet on the UFC 262 main card on May 15 in Houston, Texas. It’s an awesome fight between the No. 5 ranked Ferguson and the No. 9 ranked Dariush, and the winner seems destined to take a big step towards fighting for the belt in a stacked division. Both Ferguson and Dariush are two of the most exciting fighters in the UFC lightweight division and it feels like fans everywhere can’t wait for these two to throw down on May 15.
Aljamain Sterling shares X-ray photo of neck injury ahead of pending surgery
Harry Kettle - April 16, 2021
UFC bantamweight champion Aljamain Sterling has shared an X-ray photo of his neck injury as he awaits his impending surgery. Sterling has made it known that this surgery was coming after making a note of how badly damaged his neck has been for the last few years. In the same breath, he’s also tried to reassure fans that the reports of him being out of action for up to nine months are false.
Bellator 257: 'Nemkov vs. Davis 2' Live Results and Highlights
Chris Taylor - April 15, 2021
Tonight’s Bellator 257 event is headlined by a light heavyweight rematch between current champion Vadim Nemkov and former title holder Phil Davis. Nemkov (12-2 MMA) and Davis (22-5 MMA) originally collided at Bellator 209 in November of 2018, with the Russian emerging victorious by way of split decision.
Bellator matchmaker Rich Chou steps down from role after six year run
Drake Riggs - April 15, 2021
It’s been a good run for longtime Bellator matchmaker Rich Chou, but now he’s moving on to work with Wimp 2 Warrior. Revealed on Thursday just ahead of tomorrow night’s big Bellator 257 event, the promotion informed the public of Chou’s coming departure as their matchmaker.
Jake Paul says a Conor McGregor fight is closer to happening "than anyone thinks"
Cole Shelton - April 15, 2021
Jake Paul believes he will fight Conor McGregor within the next two years. After Paul had a highlight-reel KO over Nate Robinson he called out several MMA fighters including McGregor. He began taking shots at the Irishman and on Saturday night, he will face Ben Askren, and many believe if he wins, he will call out McGregor again.
Santiago Ponzinibbio set to return to the Octagon against top prospect Miguel Baeza
Adam Martin - April 15, 2021
UFC welterweight contender Santiago Ponzinibbio is set to return to the Octagon in the coming months when he faces top prospect Miguel Baeza. Marcelo Barone of Combate was the first to report the Ponzinibbio vs. Baeza fight, which will take place at a UFC Fight Night card set for June 5. That event currently does not have the main event set for it, but other bouts scheduled for the card include Roman Dolidze vs. Alessio Di Chirico, Ilir Latifi vs. Tanner Boser, and Muslim Salikhov vs. Francisco Trinaldo.
Tony Ferguson tells Khabib Nurmagomedov to "quit running" and "sign on the dotted line"
Cole Shelton - April 15, 2021
Tony Ferguson is still chasing the Khabib Nurmagomedov fight. Ferguson and Nurmagomedov have been scheduled to fight each other five times but due to fluke injuries, botched weight cuts, and a pandemic, the fight never took place. It is one of the fights many fans wanted to see and although Nurmagomedov is retired, Ferguson still hopes it happens.
Jake Paul claims he has "early signs of CTE" ahead of Ben Askren fight
Cole Shelton - April 15, 2021
Jake Paul is already showing the effects of being a professional boxer. Paul, the former Disney Channel host and YouTube star, has made the transition to boxing. He had his first pro fight in January of 2020 and he scored a first-round TKO win over AnEsonGib who is also a YouTuber. He then returned in November and scored a highlight-reel KO win over Nate Robinson.
Amanda Nunes to defend bantamweight title at UFC 265 against Julianna Pena
Cole Shelton - April 15, 2021
Amanda Nunes will attempt to defend her bantamweight title for the first time since 2019 this summer. According to ESPN’s Brett Okamoto, Nunes will defend her 135-pound strap against Julianna Pena at UFC 265. The date or the location of the event is no certain, but August 7 is the most likely date.