MMA News

Tom Taylor - April 16, 2020

UFC President Dana White is working on orchestrating a triumphant return for the promotion on May 9. He’s already stacked this revamped UFC 249 card with three title fights, and from the sounds of it, it could get even bigger “It could get better,” White told Yahoo! Sports of the May 9 event. “It really could. You look at that card and it’s stacked, but I have some fights I’m working on, if I get them done, this card is going to be absolutely crazy.”

Tom Taylor - April 16, 2020

Michael Bisping is taking the coronavirus pandemic very seriously, but admits he was looking forward to the recently canceled UFC 249 card.

Harry Kettle - April 16, 2020

UFC bantamweight star Sean O’Malley has said he’d love to compete on the proposed Fight Island, but that a July return is more likely. O’Malley made his return to the Octagon back at UFC 248, scoring an impressive TKO win over José Alberto Quiñónez in a little over two minutes. The win took him to 4-0 in the UFC, including his appearance on Dana White’s Contender Series, and marked his first fight with the promotion since UFC 222 in March 2018.

Tom Taylor - April 16, 2020

At one point, Michael Bisping and Luke Rockhold were two of the most bitter rivals in MMA. From the sounds of it, the animosity between them has diminished. The pair went 1-1 across two bouts, with Rockhold winning the first by submission and Bisping winning the second — a short-notice title opportunity — by knockout. In the lead-up to and fallout of these bouts, the pair exchanged tons of trash talk and clearly got under each other’s skin.

Natasha Hooper - April 16, 2020

Irish superstars Connor McGregor and Sinead O’Connor have engaged in a Twitter debate over the country’s response to the coronavirus pandemic. Singer O’Connor accused McGregor of racism and xenophobia after he tweeted a message, encouraging Irish citizens to take up 1500 farming jobs. The former champion’s announcement was a response to an article published in the Irish Independent, that claimed the farming industry would be flying in thousands of foreign workers to complete the harvest. The original post by the newspaper has since been deleted, but “The Notorious” encouraged Irish natives to step up.

Natasha Hooper - April 16, 2020

Bellator featherweight champion Cris Cyborg has called out her former boss Dana White and his proposed “fight island.” In response to the coronavirus pandemic, all Bellator and UFC fights have been postponed. However, that hasn’t stopped the UFC president from doing whatever it takes to resume business. White has even claimed he’ll host several upcoming events on private island. He says it is currently in the works and expects to host live events from the island as soon as next month.

Cole Shelton - April 15, 2020

Ben Askren is retired from competing in mixed martial artists and wrestling but he still isn’t done trash-talking. Askren became massively popular in his UFC run for his ability to trash-talk his first two opponents in Robbie Lawler and Jorge Masvidal. Although “Funky” is retired, one of his wrestling rivals in Jordan Burroughs is still taking shots at the former Bellator and ONE champion.

Adam Martin - April 15, 2020

Alex Pereira, the man who knocked out UFC middleweight champion Israel Adesanya in a kickboxing match, could soon be UFC bound. Pereira finished Adesanya in devastating fashion in April 2016 under the Glory of Heroes banner. Adesanya, of course, has gone on to accomplish great things in the UFC Octagon while Pereira has continued to ply his trade as a kickboxer in the years since. He does have three MMA fights under his belt and has racked up a 2-1 record, but he hasn’t fought in MMA since 2016. That could soon change.

Mike Pendleton - April 15, 2020

After claiming the lightweight title at UFC 223, Khabib Nurmagomedov did not immediately look to get a fight against top contenders in the division for his title defense, he had his sights set on former welterweight champion Georges St-Pierre. St-Pierre has been away from MMA since UFC 217 when he defeated Michael Bisping to become the middleweight champion, the second title he claimed in his legendary career. The former welterweight champion relinquished his middleweight title after defeating Bisping and has not competed since.

Natasha Hooper - April 15, 2020

Jon Jones’ daughter is following in her father’s footsteps by developing her striking during the coronavirus lockdown. In recent weeks, the light heavyweight champion was hitting the headlines for a Driving While Intoxicated (DWI) arrest in his hometown of Albuquerque New Mexico. Now, “Bones” is in the news for positive reasons as he spends his time productively during the lockdown.

Cole Shelton - April 15, 2020

Khabib Nurmagomedov has never lost in MMA and only lost one round to Conor McGregor in his entire UFC tenure. He has been as dominant as you can be as a champion, yet his road ahead at lightweight is certainly a tough one. When the UFC returns to holding events, Nurmagomedov’s next title defense should come against the winner of Tony Ferguson vs. Justin Gaethje. Both of them pose problems for the champ. He also could see a rematch with Conor McGregor down the line and looking down the rankings, Charles Oliveira’s style could pose some threats to the champ. So, who has the best chance to end the Nurmagomedov’s reign?

Mike Pendleton - April 15, 2020

Michael Chiesa is currently riding a three-fight winning streak in the welterweight division with wins over Carlos Condit, Diego Sanchez, and Rafael dos Anjos. With his current win streak in place, Chiesa is looking to be smart and strategic with his upcoming opponents. During an interview on The Luke Thomas Show, Chiesa laid out his plans for the welterweight division and says he is confident he will fight this year despite the ongoing COVID-19 pandemic.

Tom Taylor - April 15, 2020

While most of the world is still locked down to combat the spread of the coronavirus pandemic, UFC President Dana White has been defiantly attempting to keep his company running throughout the crisis. Former two-division UFC champ Randy Couture isn’t sure how to feel about that. Couture delved into the topic on an episode of Weighing In with John McCarthy and Josh Thomson.

Tom Taylor - April 15, 2020

For many years, Dominick Cruz and Urijah Faber were two of the most heated rivals in MMA. From the sounds if it, however, their mutual animus has diminished. Speaking on MMA Fighting’s The A-Side, Faber was asked by a fan if he’d rather be on a sinking life boat with Cruz, or his teammate-turned-nemesis TJ Dillashaw.

Tom Taylor - April 15, 2020

Georges St-Pierre has a bit of advice for any fighters that end up competing during the coronavirus pandemic: get creative with your training. While the pandemic continues to wreak havoc across the globe, it’s looking increasingly likely that live fights will resume in the coming weeks. That’s promising news for fighters seeking paydays, but it will not be easy for them to prepare for their fights. Social distancing is still being encouraged the world over as the risk of infection is still very high, which means fighters are likely to run into difficulties when attempting to train with others. Furthermore, many gyms remain closed to combat the spread of the virus.

Mike Pendleton - April 15, 2020

Former UFC heavyweight turned combat sports analyst Brendan Schaub recently commented on the cancelation of UFC 249 and Dana White’s plans to resume business despite the coronavirus pandemic. Schaub weighed in on the topic during his podcast “Below The Belt” saying that a move like ESPN and Disney stepping in to cancel fights is the downside to the deal that the UFC has with these companies.

Tom Taylor - April 15, 2020

Former UFC welterweight and middleweight champion Georges St-Pierre is widely regarded as one of the greatest fighters of all time. In fact, at the height of his dominance, he was viewed by many fans as the best fighter on earth. Speaking with ESPN recently, however, St-Pierre refuted the notion that any fighter can truly call themselves the best fighter alive. By his estimation, even the most dominant fighter can be beaten by somebody — though many are lucky enough to avoid crossing paths with that person.

Tom Taylor - April 15, 2020

Anthony Smith was recently the victim of a violent home invasion. Shortly after Smith shared the story of this ordeal, his former foe, UFC light heavyweight champ Jon Jones, took to Twitter to boast that, if his home had been broken into, the intruder wouldn’t have left on his feet. Glad Anthony is OK, no way dude would have left my house walking https://t.co/U6wSr8KmA8