MMA News

BJPENN.COM Staff - December 22, 2025

Isi Fitikefu knows what it’s like to watch an opportunity slip away. But the Australian-Tongan welterweight gets a second chance to prove his worth. The 33-year-old meets undefeated American newcomer Chase Mann at ONE Fight Night 39: Rambolek vs. Dayakaev on Friday, January 23, inside Bangkok, Thailand’s Lumpinee Stadium. The event broadcasts live in U.S. primetime on Amazon Prime Video.

BJPENN.COM Staff - December 21, 2025

Fabricio Andrey’s explosive grappling style has made him a fan favorite in just two appearances. The Brazilian submission hunter gets another showcase opportunity against elite competition. Andrey meets Joao Mendes in a featherweight submission grappling clash at ONE Fight Night 40 on Friday, February 13, 2026, inside Bangkok’s Lumpinee Stadium. The all-Brazilian showdown broadcasts live in U.S. primetime and features two grapplers hungry to prove supremacy on the global stage. The 25-year-old Manaus native arrived in ONE Championship with massive hype surrounding his highlight-reel style.

Fernando Quiles Jr. - December 21, 2025

One UFC Hall of Famer believes Jake Paul should get some credit for his efforts against Anthony Joshua. Paul and Joshua collided inside the boxing ring this past Saturday. Paul was initially going to face Gervonta “Tank” Davis, but he removed the far smaller fighter from the event due to accusations of domestic abuse. Joshua stepped up and he delivered a crushing sixth-round knockout victory, breaking Paul’s jaw in the process.

Fernando Quiles Jr. - December 21, 2025

Fresh off his TKO finish over Tyron Woodley, Anderson Silva has no plans of leaving combat sports behind. The 50-year-old legend continued his boxing journey this past Saturday. Silva and Woodley, who is a former UFC Welterweight Champion, fought on the undercard of Jake Paul vs Anthony Joshua inside the Kaseya Center in Miami. “The Spider” demonstrated his superior boxing skills, as well as his reach advantage to stop “The Chosen One” in the second stanza.

Fernando Quiles Jr. - December 21, 2025

Jake Paul’s team at Most Valuable Promotions continues to be baffled over Francis Ngannou turning down a fight with “El Gallo.” When Paul and MVP pulled Gervonta “Tank” Davis from a previously planned bout due to a civil suit, “The Problem Child” looked for a new opponent. One of the potential names that surfaced was Ngannou, who publicly trashed the opportunity. Former heavyweight champion Anthony Joshua stepped up and he knocked Paul out in the sixth round.

Fernando Quiles Jr. - December 21, 2025

Darren Till had no interest in sticking around for the conclusion of Andrew Tate’s Misfits Boxing debut against Chase DeMoor. There were moments when Tate was simply trying to survive the barrages of DeMoor during their bout on Saturday. Ultimately, DeMoor defeated Tate via majority decision. Till, a former UFC title contender, was at Dubai Duty Free Tennis Stadium to witness the fight, but he left the venue early.

Chris Taylor - December 20, 2025

Today’s Misfits 23 event in Dubai is co-headlined by a middleweight bout between Tony Ferguson and Warren Spencer. Ferguson (25-11 MMA, 1-0 Boxing) will be returning to action for the first time since scoring a third-round TKO victory over Salt Papi this past August in Manchester (see that here). The former UFC interim lightweight champion will be looking to claim the promotion’s undisputed middleweight title this evening at the Dubai Duty Free Tennis Stadium.

Chris Taylor - December 19, 2025

Tonight’s ‘Paul vs. Joshua’ main card featured a cruiserweight bout between former UFC champions Anderson Silva and Tyron Woodley. Silva (34-11 MMA, 4-2 Boxing) was competing for the first time since suffering a unanimous decision loss to Jake Paul in October of 2022. Prior to that setback, ‘The Spider’ had reeled off three straight wins inside of the squared circle, a streak which included knockout victories over Julio Cesar De Jesus and Tito Ortiz.

Dylan Bowker - December 19, 2025

Mario Bautista recently weighed in on Petr Yan’s upset win that saw him regain 135-pound gold from Merab Dvalishvili at UFC 323. Speaking with James Lynch of Inside Fighting, the surging bantamweight contender touched upon Yan’s incredibly dominant underdog win over the Georgian native that saw the Russian tie up their series at one win apiece. As the ranked UFC contender discussed the changing of the guard discussed the changing of the guard at the top of his division, Bautista said,

Dylan Bowker - December 19, 2025

Jack Della Maddalena dropped his 170-pound strap to Islam Makhachev at UFC 322, with a fellow Australian martial artist thinking there may be a better methodology JDM could have used than what Craig Jones gave him. Reece McLaren is an individual who has represented Australia well in his own MMA career and the former ONE Championship stalwart weighed in on his combat compatriot JDM losing his UFC crown. With Craig Jones previously also training Alexander Volkanovski ahead of his own fighting efforts with Makhachev, he has fashioned himself as someone who has a strong strategy to counteract the thorough dominance of submission grappling pressure-oriented fighting from the Caucasus mountains. When touching on the title loss for his Australian combat compatriot at UFC 322 and his thoughts on that particular fight, McLaren said [via Bowks Talking Bouts],

Curtis Calhoun - December 19, 2025

Former UFC bantamweight champion Cody Garbrandt will look to snap a two-fight skid at UFC 326 against another dangerous finisher. Amidst significant changes stop the UFC bantamweight division, one of the division’s former champions will look to make a statement on the Max Holloway vs. Charles Oliveira 2 undercard.

Curtis Calhoun - December 19, 2025

Matchroom Boxing CEO Eddie Hearn alleges Dana White is at the center of a new controversy over fighter pay under Zuffa Boxing. UFC CEO Dana White’s long-teased adventure into boxing is set to come to fruition in 2026.

Curtis Calhoun - December 22, 2025

Ilia Topuria’s recent interviews drew the attention of former UFC lightweight champion Islam Makhachev’s team amidst his absence. UFC lightweight champion Ilia Topuria’s timeline for his first title defense remains uncertain, as he navigates personal issues outside the Octagon. UFC 324 is headlined by an interim lightweight title bout between Justin Gaethje and Paddy Pimblett next month, amidst Topuria’s ongoing hiatus.

Curtis Calhoun - December 22, 2025

UFC lightweight champion Ilia Topuria and top contender Arman Tsarukyan continue to go at it from afar. Ilia Topuria’s first lightweight title defense hit an indefinite delay as the champion deals with personal issues outside of the Octagon. Justin Gaethje and Paddy Pimblett will fight for the interim lightweight title next month at UFC 324 for the right to welcome Topuria back to the cage.

Fernando Quiles Jr. - December 22, 2025

Robert Whittaker is mulling over a potential run in the boxing world once he wraps up his time with UFC. Whittaker is a former UFC Middleweight Champion and while most would argue he’s no longer in his prime, “The Reaper” continues to be a tough out for most 185-pounders. Still, at the age of 35, Whittaker is closer to the end of his pro MMA run than ever before.

Harry Kettle - December 22, 2025

Ilia Topuria has discussed his submission prowess and how he could use it in a possible showdown against Islam Makhachev. Right now, Ilia Topuria is the UFC lightweight champion. At UFC 324, he will be watching closely as Justin Gaethje and Paddy Pimblett collide for the interim UFC lightweight championship, with the winner going on to face ‘El Matador’ for the undisputed belt at some point later in 2026.

Harry Kettle - December 22, 2025

UFC flyweight contender Maycee Barber has called for a rematch against Alexa Grasso in February next year. For the longest time now, Maycee Barber has been viewed as someone who could legitimately become a future world champion in the UFC. That much goes without saying, but at the same time, she has also had her fair share of injury setbacks, leaving many to wonder whether she’ll ever be healthy enough to really go after the gold.

Fernando Quiles Jr. - December 21, 2025

Jorge Masvidal is coming to the defense of Kamaru Usman amid recent comments from Ian Machado Garry. Garry has been clamoring for a shot at the UFC Welterweight Championship, ripping Usman along the way. Current titleholder Islam Makhachev has admitted he’d rather put his gold at stake against Usman, but Garry believes “The Nigerian Nightmare” is irrelevant going into 2026.

Dylan Bowker - December 19, 2025

Mario Bautista recently weighed in on Petr Yan’s upset win that saw him regain 135-pound gold from Merab Dvalishvili at UFC 323. Speaking with James Lynch of Inside Fighting, the surging bantamweight contender touched upon Yan’s incredibly dominant underdog win over the Georgian native that saw the Russian tie up their series at one win apiece. As the ranked UFC contender discussed the changing of the guard discussed the changing of the guard at the top of his division, Bautista said,

Dylan Bowker - December 19, 2025

Jack Della Maddalena dropped his 170-pound strap to Islam Makhachev at UFC 322, with a fellow Australian martial artist thinking there may be a better methodology JDM could have used than what Craig Jones gave him. Reece McLaren is an individual who has represented Australia well in his own MMA career and the former ONE Championship stalwart weighed in on his combat compatriot JDM losing his UFC crown. With Craig Jones previously also training Alexander Volkanovski ahead of his own fighting efforts with Makhachev, he has fashioned himself as someone who has a strong strategy to counteract the thorough dominance of submission grappling pressure-oriented fighting from the Caucasus mountains. When touching on the title loss for his Australian combat compatriot at UFC 322 and his thoughts on that particular fight, McLaren said [via Bowks Talking Bouts],

Curtis Calhoun - December 19, 2025

Matchroom Boxing CEO Eddie Hearn alleges Dana White is at the center of a new controversy over fighter pay under Zuffa Boxing. UFC CEO Dana White’s long-teased adventure into boxing is set to come to fruition in 2026.

Curtis Calhoun - December 19, 2025

UFC heavyweight champion Tom Aspinall doesn’t understand the critics of the upcoming Jake Paul vs. Anthony Joshua boxing match. Jake Paul and former heavyweight boxing titleholder Anthony Joshua are hours away from squaring off in the ring on Friday night in Miami. The upcoming fight marks easily the toughest test of Paul’s boxing career, and would be an all-time upset in boxing if he gets it done against Joshua.

Fernando Quiles Jr. - December 19, 2025

Anderson Silva is happy that his relationship with Chael Sonnen is on far better terms these days. At one time, Silva and Sonnen had the most intense rivalry in all of combat sports. Sonnen made his share of disparaging remarks about Silva and Brazil to the point where the UFC brass feared for his safety. Ultimately, Silva defeated Sonnen twice inside the Octagon and the two squashed their beef. By the time Silva and Sonnen fought once more inside a boxing ring, there was no animosity at all.

Fernando Quiles Jr. - December 19, 2025

Daniel Cormier didn’t enjoy seeing that one top champion has dismissed being featured on the UFC White House card. UFC Light Heavyweight Champion Alex Pereira had been pounding the table for a spot on the White House card. Jon Jones, who is planning to ditch retirement plans, has called for a clash with “Poatan” at the historic event. Despite Dana White’s hesitancy, Ariel Helwani reported that UFC officials were hoping to book the fight for the event.