MMA News
Report | UFC 249 set for Tribal Land in California
Cole Shelton - April 7, 2020
It appears the UFC has found the location for UFC 249 and it will be on Tribal Land in California. Although Dana White said he would be securing a private island, UFC 249 will not be happening out at sea. Instead, according to a report from Jeff Sherwood and later confirmed by the New York Times, UFC 249 will take place at the Tachi Palace Casino Resort on Tribal Land in California. It will also serve as the location for the next several UFC events.
Urijah Faber not ruling out another fight, mentions Frankie Edgar and Pedro Munhoz as opponents
Adam Martin - April 7, 2020
UFC Hall of Famer Urijah Faber says he is not officially retired and he would consider taking another fight in the Octagon under the right circumstances. Faber last competed at UFC 245 in December where he suffered a vicious knockout loss to Petr Yan. It was Faber’s second fight back after a short-lived retirement, having knocked out Ricky Simon in his comeback fight. But the Yan knockout loss was a huge setback for Faber and the way he lost led to some suggesting he should hang his gloves back up.
Justin Gaethje says he has "18 to 19 minutes of pure hell" for Tony Ferguson at UFC 249
Cole Shelton - April 7, 2020
Justin Gaethje knows he won’t be able to go a full 25 minutes against Tony Ferguson at UFC 249, but is confident he’ll earn a stoppage win. On Monday it was announced that Gaethje was stepping in on short notice against Ferguson on April 18 for the UFC’s interim lightweight title. The news came as a surprise to many, as “The Highlight” has opted against taking short-notice fights in the past. However, fighting for the belt was too big of a opportunity to pass up on.
Jessica Eye credits Billie Eilish's music and personality as motivation
Mike Pendleton - April 7, 2020
The sports and entertainment world always seem to mix, and in combat sports, fighters can truly show another side of themselves by the music they choose to walk out to. At UFC 245, flyweight Jessica Eye walked out too ‘You Should See Me In A Crown’ by Billie Eilish, and that was a message being sent to the entire division, but it was also much more than that. During her interview with BJPENN.com, Eye discussed why she chose that song for her walkout, how she got introduced to Eilish’s music, and how Eilish as an artist is a motivation not only for Eye’s career, but her personal life as well.
Justin Gaethje reveals current weight, plans to be over 170lbs at UFC 249
Christopher Taylor - April 7, 2020
Justin Gaethje came to the rescue of fight fans around the world by accepting a short-notice contest with Tony Ferguson at UFC 249 on April 18. Ferguson was originally slated to challenge undefeated lightweight kingpin Khabib Nurmagomedov at the event. However, due to the Covid-19 pandemic, ‘The Eagle’ was left grounded in Russia.
Dominick Cruz ready to step in and fight Henry Cejudo at UFC 250
Natasha Hooper - April 7, 2020
The former bantamweight champion, Dominick Cruz is preparing for a title shot against Henry Cejudo at UFC 250. The upcoming UFC 250 card on Saturday 9 May was expected to headline Cejudo’s first title defense against Jose Aldo. The event was scheduled to take place in the title challenger’s home country of Brazil.
Odds released for all 12 UFC 249 fights
Adam Martin - April 7, 2020
The sportsbooks have released the full card betting odds for UFC 249 after Dana White announced the new card that will take place at a location TBD. Despite the coronavirus pandemic ravaging the world, White has been adamant this whole time that the show will go on for the UFC. Indeed, the promotion announced a full slate of 12 fights on Monday, including a terrific main event for the interim UFC lightweight title between top contenders Tony Ferguson and Justin Gaethje. No location has been released yet, but White says he has a spot set up that will house the event, albeit with no fans.
Pro heavyweights name their 265-pound GOAT
Cole Shelton - April 7, 2020
One of the biggest questions in all of MMA is who is the GOAT? Is it someone who had the biggest impact on the sport or the person who won the most? It’s an interesting debate for fighters and fans alike to have at any time. So, with far less MMA on the calendar than normal, BJPENN.com reached out to several current and former heavyweights to ask who their divisional GOAT is. The pros were split between Stipe Miocic and Fedor Emelianenko.
Eddie Hearn believes Dana White's determination to promote UFC 249 is "bad taste"
Tom Taylor - April 7, 2020
Boxing promoter Eddie Hearn has been vocal about his admiration for UFC President Dana White in the past, but he can’t get behind White’s determination to promote the UFC 249 card amid the coronavirus pandemic. “It’s unbelievable, I’d like to think that in boxing, there’s no-one more roll your sleeves up and get on with it than me,” Hearn told Express Sport. “But even I wouldn’t consider staging an event right now. I’m not even thinking about options, not even on the radar.
Dana White says UFC 249 fighters will be safer than people sitting at home or going to the grocery store
Adam Martin - April 7, 2020
UFC president Dana White claims that the fighters competing at UFC 249 will be safer than fans sitting at home or going to the grocery store. White made UFC 249 official on Monday, booking 12 fights for the card including an interim lightweight title bout between Justin Gaethje and Tony Ferguson for the main event. The event will go on as planned despite the coronavirus pandemic ravaging the world, though White has not yet released a location for the card, instead deciding to keep it a secret.
Dana White explains why he's keeping the location of UFC 249 a secret
Adam Martin - April 7, 2020
UFC president Dana White explained why he’s keeping the location of UFC 249 a secret despite the event being less than two weeks away from happening. White announced the full card for UFC 249 on Monday, which includes a tremendous interim lightweight title bout between Tony Ferguson and Justin Gaethje at the top of the card. However, while the UFC announced 12 fights that will take place at the event, one thing the promotion did not reveal was the location of the event.
Justin Gaethje explains decision to "gamble" on short-notice Ferguson fight
Tom Taylor - April 7, 2020
Justin Gaethje has accepted a short-notice, interim lightweight title fight with Tony Ferguson, arguably the scariest man in the division. The pair will collide in the main event of UFC 249 on April 18. Speaking to TMZ Sports, Gaethje explained his decision to accept this fight with Ferguson — despite being admittedly “terrified” by the situation.
Gilbert Burns blasts “rapper” Tyron Woodley for ducking him at UFC 249
Harry Kettle - April 7, 2020
Gilbert Burns has taken a shot at Tyron Woodley on social media for allegedly ducking a fight against him at UFC 249 later this month. Burns, 33, is riding an impressive five-fight win streak with his last three coming at welterweight. Woodley, on the other hand, hasn’t fought since losing the UFC Welterweight Championship to Kamaru Usman last year.
Cage Warriors locks down 'private location' for upcoming events
Tom Taylor - April 7, 2020
It’s looking like MMA is back on the menu! Hours after UFC President Dana White announced that his promotion has locked down a “private island” for its upcoming shows, Cage Warriors boss Graham Boylan announced that he’s found a viable location for the his promotion’s upcoming event. See this announcement from the Cage Warriors boss below:
VIDEO | Daniel Cormier reacts after realizing he had been duped by fake account regarding UFC 249 news
Natasha Hooper - April 7, 2020
Fans weren’t the only ones duped by a fake Ariel Helwani account this week, as former two-division UFC champion Daniel Cormier was also tricked into believing a false announcement about Khabib Nurmagomedov. Over the weekend, a fraudulent account impersonating Ariel Helwani (spelled Helvani) reported some breaking news. The account announced that UFC president Dana White and Vladimir Putin had arranged for UFC lightweight champ Khabib Nurmagomedov to travel the US to fight Tony Ferguson in their scheduled UFC 249 bout. The Twitter account used the same profile picture as Helwani’s official account, so it certainly looked the part.
Jon Jones reacts to Anthony Smith's home invasion story: "No way dude would have left my house walking"
Tom Taylor - April 7, 2020
Jon Jones had an interesting reaction to Anthony Smith’s story about fighting off a home invader over the weekend. Smith, who fought Jones last year, shared this harrowing account during an interview with ESPN, going into detail about his tooth-and-nail brawl with the intruder, who reportedly entered his home around 4:00am on Sunday
Dana White details “total mishap” which lead to Khabib Nurmagomedov being removed from UFC 249
Harry Kettle - April 7, 2020
Dana White has revealed the mishap which caused Khabib Nurmagomedov to be removed from the UFC 249 main event. It’s been public knowledge for a while now that Nurmagomedov would not be able to compete at UFC 249, where he was scheduled to defend his UFC Lightweight Championship against Tony Ferguson with the fight being arranged for the fifth time – and subsequently falling apart for the fifth time.
Dana White confirms that the winner of Justin Gaethje vs. Tony Ferguson at UFC 249 will fight Khabib Nurmagomedov next
Christopher Taylor - April 6, 2020
Dana White has confirmed that the winner of UFC 249’s new main event between Justin Gaethje and Tony Ferguson will receive the next shot at Khabib Nurmagomedov. ‘The Eagle’ was originally slated to put his undisputed UFC lightweight world title on the line against Ferguson in the April 18 headliner. However, due to travel restrictions, the undefeated champion was forced to withdraw from the card while remaining in Russia.