MMA News

Josh Evanoff - December 7, 2023

UFC welterweight contender Vicente Luque has discussed his upcoming fight with Ian Garry. ‘The Silent Assassin’ and ‘The Future’ are currently slated to clash at UFC 296 later this month. For Vicente Luque, the bout will be his first since a unanimous decision win over Rafael dos Anjos in August. Meanwhile, Ian Garry has been out of action since a victory over Neil Magny in August.

Cole Shelton - December 7, 2023

UFC 297 has taken a hit as Jan Blachowicz is out of his rematch with Aleksandar Rakic. Blachowicz and Rakic were set to rematch on Jan. 20 in Toronto, Ontario, Canada in a pivotal fight for the division. The winner was immediately in the title conversation, and the fight was one many fans were looking forward to, given the first fight ended due to an injury.

Fernando Quiles - December 7, 2023

UFC featherweight champion Alexander Volkanovski doesn’t exactly agree with others who say that Ilia Topuria is already on an elite level. Topuria will be in for the biggest fight of his pro MMA career when he takes on Volkanovski for the UFC Featherweight Championship at UFC 298 on February 17, 2024. Up to this point, Topuria has garnered a pro MMA record of 14-0. He’s coming off a unanimous decision victory over Josh Emmett, which earned him a “Fight of the Night” bonus.

Fernando Quiles - December 7, 2023

Francis Ngannou believes Deontay Wilder would have a difficult time fighting him under MMA rules. Ngannou has made a huge dent in the boxing world. He scored a knockdown on Tyson Fury in their pro boxing match back in October. Fury narrowly escaped with a split decision victory, and now Ngannou is a hot ticket in boxing’s heavyweight division.

Harry Kettle - December 7, 2023

BKFC president David Feldman has revealed that over a million unique IP addresses streamed BKFC 56: Mike Perry vs Eddie Alvarez. Bare-knuckle boxing has taken off in the last few years and BKFC have been at the forefront of that. They have worked incredibly hard to put on some blockbuster events and last weekend, we saw another one. BKFC 56 went down in Salt Lake City with the main event pitting Mike Perry against Eddie Alvarez. In what proved to be an incredible bout, it was BKFC regular Mike Perry who got his hand raised in victory.

Harry Kettle - December 7, 2023

UFC middleweight champion Sean Strickland has detailed the run-in he had with fellow fighter Ian Garry at the UFC PI. Over the course of the last few weeks, Ian Garry has been taking a lot of heat. Between stories of why he left Leon Edwards’ gym and fans hating on his wife, it’s been a tricky road for the Irishman. Now, he has to focus his attention on Vicente Luque, who he’ll battle next weekend at UFC 296.

Harry Kettle - December 7, 2023

UFC featherweight contender Bryce Mitchell is set to step in on short notice to face Josh Emmett at UFC 296. At UFC 296, Josh Emmett was set to go head to head with Giga Chikadze in a major featherweight showdown. Unfortunately, as a result of a torn groin, Chikadze will no longer be able to compete in Las Vegas.

BJPENN.COM Staff - December 7, 2023

Smilla Sundell is at the top of the world, and she couldn’t be any happier to continue molding her promising career in ONE Championship. The 19-year-old Swede’s ascent has been nothing short of spectacular. She currently boasts an immaculate 4-0 record under the promotion’s banner.

Cole Shelton - December 6, 2023

Drakkar Klose was relieved to finally make the walk to the Octagon again. Klose was returning to action for the first time since tearing his ACL and when he squared off with Joe Solecki at UFC Austin. Heading into the fight, he said he wasn’t worried about the ring rust as he had full confidence in his training camp.

Cole Shelton - December 6, 2023

Brandon Moreno will be the backup fighter for the UFC 296 flyweight title fight between Alexandre Pantoja and Brandon Royval. In the co-main event of UFC 296, Pantoja is looking to defend his flyweight title for the first time when he rematches Royval on Dec. 16 at the T-Mobile Arena in Las Vegas, Nevada. Although that fight is official, MMA journalist Marcel Dorff revealed Moreno will be the backup fighter for the title fight.

BJPENN.COM Staff - December 6, 2023

When the new year kicks off, fans will be in for a treat when ONE Fight Night 18 on Prime Video features the pivotal bantamweight MMA showdown between Artem Belakh and Enkh-Orgil Baatarkhuu. The bout takes place at the iconic Lumpinee Boxing Stadium in Bangkok, Thailand, and it airs live in U.S. primetime on January 12.

Cole Shelton - December 6, 2023

Tim Elliott has opened up on why he decided to sponsor Tony Soto ahead of his BKFC fight against UFC veteran Kevin Croom. Elliott and Croom used to be teammates and close friends, but earlier this year, the former UFC flyweight title challenger claimed Croom allegedly slept with his wife, Gina Mazany on their wedding night. The two got a divorce but Elliott kept quiet about what happened until people kept continuously asking him about Gina and when she may be fighting again.

Cole Shelton - November 30, 2023

In the main event of UFC Austin, a battle of top-eight lightweights goes down as Beneil Dariush takes on Arman Tsarukyan. Heading into the fight, Dariush is a sizeable +250 underdog while the Armenian is a -310 favorite. Ahead of the scrap, BJPENN.com reached out to several pro fighters to make their picks for the fight. The pros slightly lean towards Dariush getting his hand raised at UFC Austin.

Cole Shelton - November 30, 2023

Joe Solecki is excited to fight a well-known guy like Drakkar Klose at UFC Austin. After Solecki picked up a submission win back in February, he said he likely needed some time off to deal with some nagging injuries and the pending birth of his second child.

Cole Shelton - November 29, 2023

Drakkar Klose is no stranger to dealing with injuries and layoffs. Klose was supposed to fight last October against Mark O. Madsen but he tore his ACL which forced him on the sidelines for over a year. Although Klose was able to return to training six months after the surgery, he says he was extra cautious to make sure he was 100 percent before returning to action.

Cole Shelton - November 28, 2023

Jimmie Rivera is excited to throw down with Jeremy Stephens at BKFC 56. Rivera hasn’t fought since May when he beat Bekhzod Usmonov by decision in his second BKFC fight. While Rivera admits he was hopeful to return sooner, he is glad he was patient and now gets to be on a massive BKFC 56 card.

Cole Shelton - November 22, 2023

Chase Hooper has his first win streak in the UFC. Hooper moved up to lightweight back in May and scored a decision win over Nick Fiore. He was then booked to face Jordan Leavitt at UFC Vegas 82 in a scrap he was a sizeable betting favorite.

Cole Shelton - November 17, 2023

Chad Anheliger wasn’t sure when he would be able to fight again. Anheliger suffered a shoulder injury during his loss to Alatengheili back at UFC 279 in September of 2022. After the loss, the Canadian knew he needed to get his shoulder healed which took a bit longer than expected.

Cole Shelton - November 15, 2023

Danny Sabatello called for a rematch with Raufeon Stots ever since they fought in October of 2022. Sabatello and Stots fought in the semi-finals of the bantamweight Grand Prix, and Stots ended up winning a split decision. Since then, Sabataello was adamant he won the fight and called for a rematch.

Cole Shelton - November 14, 2023

Patchy Mix wasn’t sure if he was going to get the chance to fight Sergio Pettis. After Mix knocked out Raufeon Stots back in April to become the interim champ and the grand prix winner, it secured him a title shot. He was booked to face the bantamweight champ, Sergio Pettis at Bellator 301. But, with all the rumors that the promotion would be sold, Mix wasn’t sure if this fight was going to happen.

Cole Shelton - November 10, 2023

John Castaneda is excited to walk to the Octagon in Madison Square Garden for UFC 295. Castaneda is coming off a decision win over Muin Gafurov back in June and after the win, he knew he wanted to fight one more time this year. He ended up getting the chance to face Kyung Ho Kang on Nov. 18, but after agreeing to the fight, it ended up getting moved to Nov. 11 at UFC 295.

Cole Shelton - November 9, 2023

In the co-main event of UFC 295, the interim heavyweight title is up for grabs as Sergei Pavlovich takes on Tom Aspinall. Heading into the fight, Pavlovich is a slight -104 underdog while the Brit is a -122 favorite on FanDuel. Ahead of the fight, BJPENN.com reached out to several pro fighters to get their predictions for the interim title fight. The pros slightly lean towards Pavlovich getting the KO, but the pros know this fight ends early regardless of who wins.

Cole Shelton - November 8, 2023

Loopy Godinez didn’t think she would fight again this year but was thrilled when she was offered to return at UFC 295. After Godinez submitted Elise Reed in the second round at Noche UFC, a week later she got the call to face Tabatha Ricci at UFC 295. It was an exciting opportunity and for Godinez, she’s honored to be able to fight at Madison Square Garden.

Cole Shelton - November 8, 2023

In the main event of UFC 295, the vacant light heavyweight title is up for grabs as Jiri Prochazka takes on Alex Pereira. Heading into the fight, Prochazka is a +100 underdog while the Brazilian is a -128 favorite on FanDuel. Ahead of the fight, BJPENN.com reached out to several pro fighters to get their predictions for the title fight. The pros slightly lean towards Prochazka becoming the light heavyweight champion again at UFC 295, but all expect this to be a very exciting scrap.