MMA News

Harry Kettle - July 15, 2020

According to a recent report from Combate, Michael Chandler and Benson Henderson’s proposed rematch is set to go down on August 7. The two veterans last fought back at Bellator 165 in November 2016, and on that night, Chandler beat Henderson via split decision to retain the Bellator Lightweight Championship. They were first scheduled to run it back in December 2019 for Bellator’s co-promotion event with Rizin in Japan, but an injury for Henderson ensured that didn’t happen.

Natasha Hooper - July 15, 2020

Heavyweight MMA legend Alistair Overeem is set to return to the Octagon on September 5 against Augusto Sakai. News of the bout, which is expected to serve as the card’s main event, was first reported by ESPN.

Tom Taylor - July 15, 2020

Michael Bisping and Dan Henderson, former rivals in the UFC middleweight division, got into a heated Twitter skirmish during the UFC 251 broadcast last Saturday night. During this exchange, Henderson referenced his infamous UFC 100 knockout win over Bisping. He also took a shot at Bisping’s bad eye, which was effectively destroyed in a fight with Vitor Belfort.

Natasha Hooper - July 15, 2020

New UFC bantamweight champion Petr Yan has been getting into it with resurgent contender Cody Garbrandt on social media. “No Love” was less than impressed with Yan’s UFC 251 performance against Jose Aldo which he won by TKO in the fifth round. Garbrandt was quick to call out the star but “No Mercy” was just as quick to fire back.

Cole Shelton - July 14, 2020

Henry Cejudo may be retired, but he is still keeping a close eye on his former division. Following Petr Yan scoring a fifth-round TKO win over Jose Aldo to win the vacant bantamweight title, Cejudo took to Twitter to say he sucked. The Russian then told him if they were to fight, he would retire “Triple C” again.

Cole Shelton - July 14, 2020

Jorge Masvidal is focused on getting a rematch against Kamaru Usman. In the main event of UFC 251, Masvidal stepped up on six days’ notice to fight Usman for the welterweight title. It was the first time “Gamebred” would be fighting for UFC gold, but he ultimately came up short losing by decision.

Cole Shelton - July 14, 2020

Calvin Kattar expects to extend his winning streak and add another stoppage win to his record tomorrow night. In the main event of Wednesday’s July 15 Fight Island card, Kattar is set to battle rising contender, Dan Ige. It is a very interesting fight, but for many, they believe Kattar should’ve fought a higher-ranked opponent. For him, he says he will have to fight them at some point, so he might as well make it now.

Cole Shelton - July 14, 2020

Dan Ige is no stranger to being the betting underdog. Ige has been the underdog in his past three fights against Edson Barboza, Mirsad Bektic, and Kevin Aguilar and yet won all three contests. But, entering his July 15 main event against Calvin Kattar, it will be the toughest opponent he has faced and he’s excited Kattar took the fight given he is lower in the rankings.

Fernando Quiles Jr. - July 14, 2020

Chael Sonnen doesn’t believe there was a robbery at UFC 251 but he does think Max Holloway deserved the nod over Alex Volkanovski. In the co-main event of UFC 251, Holloway challenged Volkanovski in a rematch for the featherweight championship. Volkanovski captured the 145-pound gold back in Dec. 2019 with a unanimous decision win over “Blessed.” In the rematch, “The Great” had a tougher time with Holloway but was able to secure the split decision victory.

Adam Martin - July 14, 2020

UFC heavyweight Fabricio Werdum says he gave stitches to Alexander Gustafsson during a past sparring session between the two rivals. Werdum meets Gustafsson in an intriguing heavyweight bout at a UFC Fight Island event on July 25. Gustafsson will be moving up to heavyweight for the first time in his UFC career and will be looking to bounce back from a submission loss to Anthony Smith last June. As for Werdum, he recently returned to the Octagon with a split decision loss to Aleksei Oleinik at UFC 249 in what was a disappointing showing by the former UFC heavyweight champion.

Adam Martin - July 14, 2020

Former UFC women’s strawweight champion Jessica Andrade is staying on Fight Island in hopes of taking a short-notice fight in case someone falls off a card. Andrade lost a split decision to Rose Namajunas on the main card of UFC 251 in an entertaining bout that won her a share of “Fight of the Night” and a $50,000 bonus to boot. Although Andrade lost the decision on the judges’ scorecards, it was a very entertaining bout and it showed that she is still one of the top fighters in the division despite losing back-to-back fights to Namajunas and UFC women’s strawweight champion Weili Zhang.

Adam Martin - July 14, 2020

UFC president Dana White says it’s still possible Khabib Nurmagomedov fights in September following the death of his father Abdulmanap Nurmagomedov. Nurmagomedov, the UFC lightweight champion, is set to take on interim champ Justin Gaethje at UFC 253 on September 19. However, after his father passed away recently after a battle with COVID-19, many fans and media members speculated that the fight could be pushed back to a later date to give Nurmagomedov time to mourn his father’s passing.

Adam Martin - July 14, 2020

The opening betting odds have been released for the UFC 252 main card, including the odds for the bantamweight fight between Sean O’Malley and Marlon Vera. The UFC officially announced the main card for UFC 252 during the UFC 251 broadcast. The promotion’s next pay-per-view event takes place on August 15 at the UFC Apex in Las Vegas, Nevada. The main event of the evening features the trilogy fight between UFC heavyweight champion Stipe Miocic and rival Daniel Cormier. The odds for that bout were previously revealed last fall, with that fight opening as a Pick ’em.

Harry Kettle - July 14, 2020

UFC’s light heavyweight king Jon Jones is clearly keeping himself in good shape during his time away from the Octagon. Jones, 32, has not fought since he successfully defended his Light Heavyweight Championship against Dominick Reyes in UFC 247’s controversial main event back in February. Ever since then, “Bones” has been embroiled in a feud with the UFC and Dana White regarding fighter pay.

Tom Taylor - July 14, 2020

No. 1 UFC bantamweight contender Marlon Moraes and his wife have both tested positive for COVID-19. His children, thankfully, both tested negative. Moraes announced this news to ESPN Brazil. The Brazilian finisher says he began to feel symptoms about 10 days ago.

Tom Taylor - July 14, 2020

Paige VanZant experienced a tough loss at UFC 251, but Austin Vanderford still has unwavering confidence in her. VanZant met streaking strawweight contender Amanda Ribas in the UFC 251 pay-per-view opener. The bout marked the final obligation on her current UFC contract.

Tom Taylor - July 14, 2020

Former UFC welterweight and middleweight champ Georges St-Pierre may be retired, but he’s still in truly phenomenal shape. St-Pierre flaunted his rippling physique and jaw-dropping athleticism in a recent post to Instagram, which will no doubt fuel another wave of speculation about his potential comeback.

Adam Martin - July 14, 2020

Bellator veteran Jahreau Shepherd was murdered this past weekend in London, England when he was stabbed to death at his 30th birthday party. Shepherd, known as “The Nightmare,” was celebrating his birthday by having a barbeque with friends and family at The Black Prince Estate in Kennington around 10 pm on Saturday when he was attacked. The Evening Standard reports that paramedics arrived on the scene but were not able to save the life of Shepherd, who was stabbed to death.