MMA News

Cole Shelton - May 5, 2020

Michelle Waterson believes her UFC 249 fight against former champion Carla Esparza has title implications on the line. Waterson will make her return to the Octagon after a decision loss to Joanna Jedrzejczyk back at UFC Tampa last October. She says she learned a lot about herself in that fight and says it proves she belongs at the top.

Mike Pendleton - May 5, 2020

Former UFC featherweight and lightweight champion Conor McGregor promised that he’d be active during his 2020 “season” while he was preparing for his return at UFC 246 in January, and then the COVID-19 pandemic changed everything. McGregor had a successful return to the Octagon when he defeated Donald “Cowboy” Cerrone with a 40-second first-round TKO victory and immediately jumped back into the conversation for big fights in 2020. With the UFC having to shuffle events and matchups due to the COVID-19 pandemic, there’s uncertainty around many of the superstars in the sport including McGregor.

Tom Taylor - May 5, 2020

The UFC will return to our screens with UFC 249 this Saturday, and UFC President Dana White promises safety is going to be a priority. White was asked about the precautions he’s taking for this event in the midst of the coronavirus pandemic during an interview with Sports Illustrated.

Adam Martin - May 5, 2020

UFC heavyweight champion Stipe Miocic says he requires a full training camp and is aiming to complete his trilogy with Daniel Cormier in the late fall. Miocic and Cormier first met at UFC 226 in July 2018 with Cormier taking home the title with a first-round KO. The pair then rematched at UFC 241 in August 2019, with Miocic winning back his belt with a fourth-round TKO. The UFC has been targeting a trilogy fight between the two rivals ever since, but to date, the fight has not been booked due to injuries to both men and also to the ongoing coronavirus pandemic.

Tom Taylor - May 5, 2020

Former United States presidential candidate Andrew Yang believes UFC fighters aren’t getting a big enough piece of the pie. Yang, who recently withdrew from the 2020 Democratic Party presidential primaries, opened up on the topic of fighter pay in an interview with Karim Zidan of BloodyElbow.

Tom Taylor - May 5, 2020

UFC bantamweight champ Henry Cejudo really wants to fight Jose Aldo. So much so that he recently joked he’s willing to “marry” the Brazilian to get him into the US for a fight. Cejudo was originally expected to battle Jose Aldo at UFC 250 in Sao Paulo, Brazil, on May 9. Regrettably, this event fell apart amid the coronavirus crisis.

Tom Taylor - May 5, 2020

UFC President Dana White recently divulged that a blockbuster showdown between BMF champion Jorge Masvidal and former two-division champ Conor McGregor is “a possibility” for his widely discussed Fight Island. White dropped this McGregor vs. Masvidal bombshell during an appearance on the Menace and The Man podcast with former UFC featherweight contender Dennis Bermudez.

Cole Shelton - May 5, 2020

In the main event of UFC 249, Tony Ferguson is taking on Justin Gaethje for the interim lightweight title. Heading into the fight, “El Cucuy” is a -190 favorite while Gaethje is a +155 underdog. Ahead of the fight, BJPENN.com reached out to several pro fighters to get their predictions for the scrap. The pros believe it is a pick’em fight but the majority believe we will see Gaethje pull off the upset.

Tom Taylor - May 5, 2020

Veteran MMA referee turned Bellator commentator John McCarthy believes the UFC’s second stab at promoting UFC 249 will be a success. UFC 249 was originally expected to go down in Las Vegas on April 18. As the coronavirus crisis took hold, however, the card was briefly relocated to the Tachi Palace Casino on the same date, and ultimately canceled altogether.

Natasha Hooper - May 5, 2020

Tyron Woodley is joining the cast of “The Titan Games,” a show created by pro wrestling legend Dwayne “The Rock” Johnson. According to The Rock, Woodley will be joining the cast of professional athletes for the upcoming season of The Titan Games on NBC. The sophomore season will premier on Memorial Day, May 25, with a two-hour episode.

Natasha Hooper - May 5, 2020

Matt Brown will return to action in a rescheduled welterweight matchup with Miguel Baeza on May 16. The UFC fan favorite will collide against “Caramel Thunder” Baeza at the VyStar Veterans Memorial Arena in Jacksonville, Florida. The card will air on ESPN/ESPN+.

Harry Kettle - May 5, 2020

UFC Bantamweight Champion Henry Cejudo appears to have suffered a nasty cut prior to UFC 249 this weekend. While Cejudo’s “cringeworthy” persona may have been at the forefront of the conversation over the last year or so in regards to his career, the focus has now shifted to his potentially career-defining showdown with Dominick Cruz this Saturday night. Cruz, the former king of the division, will challenge for the UFC Bantamweight Championship in the co-main event of UFC 249 in Jacksonville, Florida.

Cole Shelton - May 4, 2020

Justin Gaethje believes he will knock out Tony Ferguson in the main event of UFC 249 to win the UFC’s interim lightweight title. Gaethje originally stepped up on short notice to fight Ferguson on April 18 for the interim belt. But, the event was postponed and he will now get the fight with basically a full training camp under his belt. So, for “The Highlight” that gives him full confidence that he will ultimately knock Ferguson out.

Adam Martin - May 4, 2020

Alexander Volkanovski will have to wait a while to defend his belt in Australia as the upcoming UFC 251 pay-per-view event has been officially postponed. The UFC men’s featherweight champion Volkanovski was being targeted for a title defense against Max Holloway in the main event of UFC 251, which was set for June 6 at Perth Arena in Perth, Australia. Instead of having his first title defense come in his home country, Volkanovski won’t get that opportunity anymore as UFC 251 has been officially postponed.

Cole Shelton - May 4, 2020

Jairzinho Rozenstruik is expecting to continue his knockout streak on Saturday night when he takes on Francis Ngannou at UFC 249. Rozenstruik and Ngannou were expected to headline UFC Columbus and then fight on April 18, but those events were canceled. Now, for Rozenstruik, he finally gets his wish of fighting Ngannou on May 9.

Cole Shelton - May 4, 2020

Tony Ferguson is confident he’ll be able to beat Justin Gaethje in the main event of UFC 249. Ferguson will battle Gaethje for the interim lightweight title, where he enters the bout as a slight favorite. Although he was originally supposed to fight Khabib Nurmagomedov, “El Cucuy” says it doesn’t matter as he is always preparing for multiple opponents at once.

Mike Pendleton - May 4, 2020

Former UFC light heavyweight and heavyweight champion Daniel Cormier is eager to get his trilogy fight with Stipe Miocic. Cormier defeated Miocic back in 2018 at UFC 226 to become a two-weight world champion, holding both the light heavyweight and heavyweight titles at the time of his astonishing first-round knockout of Miocic. The two would eventually rematch in August of 2019 at UFC 241 and this time it would be Miocic who came away victorious, winning back the heavyweight title. With the matchups split between the two, the UFC and both fighters want a trilogy to happen and now “DC” is calling for the champion to hurry up.

Adam Martin - May 4, 2020

UFC bantamweight Marlon Vera fired back at the critics of UFC Jacksonville in an interview with CBC Sports, telling haters of the event to “f*ck off.” Despite the ongoing coronavirus pandemic, UFC president Dana White was adamant the show would go on, and he lived up to his promise. Starting this weekend, the UFC will hold four events in Jacksonville: UFC 249 plus three UFC Jacksonville Fight Night cards set to take place over the course of May. Considering the circumstances, the events are under intense scrutiny from a certain section of fans and the media who are worried about the potential spread of the coronavirus. Nevertheless, the show will go on for the UFC.