MMA News

Adam Martin - July 30, 2020

Veteran MMA official Mario Yamasaki believes that Herb Dean could have stopped last weekend’s fight between Jai Herbert and Francisco Trinaldo sooner. After Trinaldo dropped Herbert with an overhand left in their catchweight bout at UFC Fight Island 3, Dean didn’t immediately stop the fight and instead required Trinaldo to land several ground strikes on a seemingly defenseless opponent before stepping in and waving off the contest. UFC color commentator Dan Hardy was quick to criticize Dean for the late stoppage, and Hardy and Dean were then caught on camera getting into a heated argument after the bout.

Tom Taylor - July 30, 2020

Sweden’s Khamzat Chimaev has taken another shot at former two-division UFC champion Conor McGregor. Earlier this week, in an interview with reporter Adam Zubayraev, Chimaev claimed that, in 2018, he flew to Ireland with the objective of attacking McGregor.

Tom Taylor - July 30, 2020

UFC bantamweight champion Petr Yan has sent a scathing message to Cody Garbrandt, who recently laid out plans to drop down to the flyweight division. Garbrandt, who recently burst back into bantamweight title contention with a knockout win over Raphael Assuncao, discussed his plans for a drop to flyweight in a recent interview with ESPN.

Harry Kettle - July 30, 2020

UFC champion Stipe Miocic is still working shifts as a firefighter with just over two weeks to go until he takes on Daniel Cormier in their highly anticipated trilogy fight at UFC 252. Miocic’s firefighting job has been public knowledge for a few years now, with many wondering how he can balance that role alongside being one of the best heavyweights in combat sports history. Either way, it doesn’t seem as if the impending threat of facing Cormier for a third time is impacting him all too much.

Natasha Hooper - July 30, 2020

Chael Sonnen has named his pick for the best UFC fighter to never receive a title shot. The MMA fighter turned analyst is known for his thorough breakdowns of MMA fights and his in-depth insights. Today is no exception as he shared the name of the man he believes is the greatest UFC fighter who never got the chance to fight for gold.

Cole Shelton - July 29, 2020

Stipe Miocic has a simple message for Daniel Cormier who told the champ he better bring his wrestling shoes when they fight again. On August 15, in the main event of UFC 252, Stipe Miocic is looking to defend his heavyweight title when he battles Daniel Cormier for the third time. It is a fight many fans are looking forward to, but when they do fight, it will be in the smaller Octagon.

Cole Shelton - July 29, 2020

Chris Weidman is expecting to snap his losing streak and get back to the win column in a big way. In the co-main event of the August 8 fight card, Weidman is dropping back down to middleweight to take on the 11th-ranked contender in Omari Akhmedov. For the former champion, he knows he will the bigger man in there and expects that to be a big advantage for him.

Cole Shelton - July 29, 2020

Edmen Shahbazyan is looking to turn some more heads when he headlines this Saturday’s card against Derek Brunson. Shahbazyan vs. Brunson was originally scheduled to be the co-main event, but after Irene Aldana tested positive for COVID-19,the bout was moved to headliner status.

Cole Shelton - July 29, 2020

Edmen Shahbazyan knows he is lucky to have Ronda Rousey as his manager. When Rousey was the UFC champion, one of her training partners was then 15-year-old, Edmen Shahbazyan who trained at the gym. At open workouts, Shahbazyan was the person Rousey would judo throw. But, since then, “Rowdy” knew he would be something special.

Jordy McElroy - July 29, 2020

The galactic forces that knocked Rafael dos Anjos out of a superfight with Conor McGregor over four years ago was a miniature big bang that indirectly spawned an iconic cross-promotional boxing match, a BMF UFC title and the most volatile rivalry in MMA history. Put on the tinfoil hats, ladies and gents. It’s time to go deep-diving into a dystopian world of what-ifs.

Tom Taylor - July 29, 2020

Red-hot UFC welterweight prospect Khamzat Chimaev claims that, in 2018, he flew to Ireland with the objective of attacking former two-division UFC champ Conor McGregor. At the time, McGregor was gearing up for a fight with UFC lightweight champion Khabib Nurmagomedov—and sparing nothing in the way of pre-fight trash talk. Chimaev, hellbent on defending Nurmagomedov’s honor, apparently flew to Ireland under the pretence of training with McGregor.

Adam Martin - July 29, 2020

Former UFC women’s bantamweight champion Ronda Rousey praised middleweight prospect Edmen Shahbazyan, calling him a “special” young talent. Rousey, the UFC Hall of Famer, is the manager for Shahbazyan, who also trains at Rousey’s old stomping grounds at Glendale Fighting Club. The young middleweight headlines his first UFC event this weekend when he takes Derek Brunson at UFC on ESPN+ 31. It’s a massive fight for the 22-year-old Shahbazyan, who is a perfect 11-0 in his MMA career thus far. In the biggest fight of his young career to date, Shahbazyan will be looking to jump into title contention at 185lbs with a win over the perennial contender Brunson this Saturday night.

Harry Kettle - July 29, 2020

Retired UFC star Henry Cejudo has issued a response to Amanda Nunes following a recent jab from her on social media. You want me to kick his ass? 🤪 Vamos para + uma guerra? #nunesvscejudo @HenryCejudo pic.twitter.com/CpLd0Tn4yx

Harry Kettle - July 29, 2020

UFC veteran Rafael dos Anjos has let the promotion know that he is ready to take a fight on short notice at either welterweight or lightweight. There are many fighters in the world of mixed martial arts that would be willing to take a fight on short notice in the UFC, especially under the current set of circumstances. RDA has been part of the UFC family for well over a decade now, and yet even after everything he’s been through, he’s still as determined as ever to climb up through the ranks.

Adam Martin - July 29, 2020

The full betting odds have been released for the 11 fights scheduled to take place this Saturday’s UFC on ESPN+ 31 event. The three-round main event sees middleweight prospect Edmen Shahbazyan face the toughest test of his career to date when he takes on perennial contender Derek Brunson. Shahbazyan is a perfect 11-0 in his young MMA career and is already 4-0 in the UFC, while Brunson is coming off of back-to-back wins over Ian Heinisch and Elias Theodorou. Should Shahbazyan win this fight, he could very well be fast-tracked towards a title shot at 185lbs.

Tom Taylor - July 29, 2020

Former UFC interim lightweight champion Tony Ferguson has laid out the options for his next opponent, and his suggestions are very exciting. Ferguson last fought in May, in the main event of UFC 249, when he collided with Justin Gaethje in an interim lightweight title fight. In a noteworthy upset, “El Cucuy” sustained a violent beating at the hands of Gaethje, and ultimately succumbed to a volley of fifth-round strikes. The loss marked the end of his stupendous, 12-fight winning streak, and nixed the possibility of his fighting Khabib Nurmagomedov for the undisputed lightweight title this year.

Tom Taylor - July 29, 2020

Khabib Nurmagomedov has made his intentions clear. He plans on fighting Justin Gaethje in October, and Georges St-Pierre in April. Nurmagomedov, the UFC lightweight champion, shared his plan in a comment on Instagram.

Tom Taylor - July 29, 2020

The medical suspensions for UFC Fight Island 3 are in, and neither Robert Whittaker nor Darren Till will be out long. Whittaker and Till met in the UFC Fight Island 3 main event, with Whittaker ultimately winning a closely contested decision.