MMA News

Chris Taylor - April 25, 2020

Former UFC bantamweight champion Cody Garbrandt is set to make his highly anticipated return to the Octagon on June 6. According to the folks at MMAFighting.com, ‘No Love’ has been rebooked to fight Raphael Assuncao on the June 6 fight card.

Chris Taylor - April 25, 2020

Chael Sonnen believes it is up to fight fans to make sure that Tony Ferguson does not get screwed by the UFC for a second time. During a recent interview on Submission Radio, Sonnen was asked how committed he believes the promotion is to booking a McGregor vs. Nurmagomedov rematch and if it makes sense for Conor to have a trilogy bout with Nate Diaz while the dust settles at lightweight.

Chris Taylor - April 25, 2020

The father of current UFC lightweight champion Khabib Nurmagomedov, Abdulmanap, has been hospitalized due to a suspected pneumonia and flu. The news comes from Ramazan Rabadanov, a sports commentator from Dagestan, Russia.

Cole Shelton - April 24, 2020

Dana White plans on having Khabib Nurmagomedov fight in September of October against the winner of Tony Ferguson vs. Justin Gaethje. Nurmagomedov was expected to return to the Octagon at UFC 249 on April 18 against Ferguson. Yet, the COVID-19 pandemic halted those plans as the champion couldn’t get out of Russia, and the event was eventually canceled entirely.

Natasha Hooper - April 24, 2020

Dominick Reyes wants to be the judge, jury and executioner, as he serves up some overdue justice towards Jon Jones. “The Dominator” faced off against the light heavyweight champion in the main event of UFC 247. Jones ultimately claimed the decision victory, but many spectators believed Reyes delivered the stronger performance.

Cole Shelton - April 24, 2020

Valentina Shevchenko is one of the best female fighters of all-time and since the UFC created the 125-pound division she’s been unbeatable. Shevchenko dominates her opponents with her high-level striking, but has also shown a dominant ground game to earn wins. She’s currently 5-0 in the division with four stoppage victories. Many consider Shevchenko to be the most dominant UFC champion, so who has the best chance to end her reign?

Adam Martin - April 24, 2020

The UFC has revealed the headlining main events for two upcoming Fight Night cards on May 13 and on May 16 in Jacksonville, Florida, including Anthony Smith’s return. UFC president Dana White announced on Friday that the world’s biggest MMA promotion is ready to get rolling once again. White announced the full UFC 249 card that will take place on May 9 in Jacksonville, not to mention breaking the news that the UFC would hold two more cards on the 13th and 16th in the same venue. And now we have the headliners for both those cards.

Adam Martin - April 24, 2020

UFC president Dana White confirmed on Friday that Joe Rogan will be in the commentary booth for the upcoming UFC 249 event. The UFC announced on Friday that the promotion has reached a deal with ESPN to broadcast three upcoming events on May 9, 13, and 16 in Jacksonville, Florida. White has been trying for over a month now to hold a UFC event despite the coronavirus pandemic ravaging the world, and it appears as though he’s finally been able to accomplish his goal. And he’ll have his top color commentator along for the ride when he does it.

Tom Taylor - April 24, 2020

Speaking during a Friday Instagram live session with ESPN reporter Brett Okamoto, shortly after announcing the full UFC 249 card, UFC President Dana White dropped a few new details about his much discussed Fight Island plan. While White is hosting three consecutive events in Jacksonville starting on May 9, those events will only feature American-born fighters and fighters currently residing in the United States. In an effort to book fights featuring athletes living outside the US, White has repeatedly teased plans to promote an event on a private island.

Tom Taylor - April 24, 2020

On Friday afternoon, UFC President Dana White joined reporter Brett Okamoto on ESPN‘s official Instagram page to announce the full lineup for UFC 249 on May 9. White also announced the next two events following UFC 249: one on Wednesday, May 13, and another on Saturday, May 16. Here is the full May 9 card, per White’s announcement:

Tom Taylor - April 24, 2020

UFC light heavyweight champ Jon Jones has been in the headlines a lot over the last few weeks, both because he was recently arrested for DWI and aggravated use of a firearm, and because he’s been the target of trash talk from other fighters. Given the ongoing coronavirus pandemic that is currently causing death and chaos the world over, Jones feels the MMA media and his fellow fighters have their priorities mixed up.

Adam Martin - April 24, 2020

Bellator women’s flyweight champion Ilima-Lei Macfarlane and two other women are suing a former basketball coach for sexual abuse. Macfarlane and the two other student-athletes filed a lawsuit on Thursday in Honolulu Circuit Court that names Punahou School and their former basketball coach Dwayne Yuen among the defendants. Hawaii News Now was the first to report the story.

Alfredo Zullino - April 24, 2020

Being signed by the Ultimate Fighting Championship is the dream of many fighters around the world. Modestas Bukauskas recently achieve that dream. Back in January, Bukauskas’ management announced his signing with the UFC. Since then, though, the Brit hasn’t been able to step foot into the Octagon.

Tom Taylor - April 24, 2020

While Dana White and the UFC are determined to keep things running during the coronavirus pandemic, Bellator boss Scott Coker has pumped the brakes in the name of safety. Coker has postponed a host of Bellator events, and seems to be legitimately concerned with what is happening in the world right now.

Harry Kettle - April 24, 2020

Tyron Woodley and Dan Hooker continue to go back and forth on Twitter after Hooker defended his close friend Israel Adesanya earlier this week.  Despite the fact that he hasn’t fought since losing his Welterweight Championship to Kamaru Usman over a year ago, Woodley still seems to be the name on everyone’s lips in the world of mixed martial arts — probably because he’s been so active on social media.

Tom Taylor - April 24, 2020

Former UFC middleweight champion Robert Whittaker was expected to return to the cage against Jared Cannonier at UFC 248 last month, but ended up withdrawing from the card. It wasn’t immediately clear why Whittaker withdrew from this matchup, but when Dana White seemed to get emotional discussing the former UFC middleweight champ’s situation, the rumors started to fly. One website even reported that Whittaker had taken a step back to donate bone marrow to one of his children.

Tom Taylor - April 24, 2020

The UFC is feverishly attempting to get back to regularly scheduled programming despite the ongoing coronavirus pandemic. That means many fighters will be getting the call to compete during the pandemic. Not all fighters, of course, are going to be willing to put themselves and their loved ones at risk of infection. Speaking to MMA Fighting, MMA manager Brian Butler-Au explained that, to his knowledge, fighters aren’t being penalized or punished if they decline to fight during the pandemic.

Natasha Hooper - April 24, 2020

Aljamain Sterling feels “left behind by the UFC” due to Dominick Cruz’s title shot against Henry Cejudo. The bantamweight champion, Cejudo, was scheduled to defend his title against Jose Aldo at UFC 250. Due to the coronavirus pandemic, Aldo was forced to stop his training camp in Brazil and ultimately withdrew from their bout. The UFC rushed to find a replacement, and the division’s former champion, Dominick Cruz, stepped up to the plate.