MMA News

Tom Taylor - March 16, 2020

Despite doing its very best to keep things running amid the threat of the COVID-19 pandemic, the UFC has reportedly elected to “indefinitely postpone” its next three events: shows originally scheduled for London, Columbus and Portland. Michael Carroll was first to report this news, citing an email from UFC President Dana White to all company employees.

Adam Martin - March 16, 2020

The sportsbooks have released betting odds on whether or not the government will force UFC president Dana White to stop holding fight cards. There aren’t too many sports to bet on at the moment, so the sportsbooks have to get creative in order to keep bettors betting. On Monday, the online sportsbook BetOnline released two props for bettors to consider concerning White and the UFC. Take a look at them below (via MMAMania.com).

Tom Taylor - March 16, 2020

Darren Till says he and UFC middleweight champion Israel Adesanya “speak every day” — despite the fact they could end up colliding in the Octagon in the near future. Speaking on MMAFighting.com’s Eurobash podcast recently, Till was asked if he had heard Adesanya call him a “p**sy” for jesting that he is afraid to fight Yoel Romero.

Natasha Hooper - March 16, 2020

Jared Cannonier and Darren Till have one thing in common, and that is their choice of nicknames. “The Killa Gorilla” Cannonier and “The Gorilla” Till have another thing in common too, they are both eyeing a shot at the middleweight title. The 185-pound contenders could both be one victory away from earning a fight against the division’s champion, Israel Adesanya. The Gorillas were rumoured to fight each other at UFC 248, but visa problems for Till and an injury from Cannonier meant the primate vs. primate matchup never happened.

Tom Taylor - March 16, 2020

Joe Rogan is impressed by the wrestling chops of YouTube celebrity Logan Paul. Paul has been the subject of many combat sports headlines over the last year, primarily due to his pair of boxing matches with rival YouTuber KSI — one amateur and one pro — but more recently due to a wild training session with top UFC middleweight contender Paulo Costa.

Natasha Hooper - March 16, 2020

Ben Askren has dubbed Colby Covington “a dips**t”. Covington’s outspoken support of Donald Trump and offensive insults towards other fighters have polarized fans. The 32-year old and Askren have also traded their fair share of insults. “Funky” doesn’t deny Covington’s fighting talents but believes he has alienated himself and is a “terrible person”.

Tom Taylor - March 16, 2020

Francis Ngannou is glad the UFC is moving forward with his fight with Jairzinho Rozenstruik. Ngannou and Rozenstruik were originally expected to fight in the main event of UFC Columbus on March 28. Amid the exploding COVID-19 pandemic, however, the fight was relocated to the UFC’s new Apex facility in Las Vegas — though that location is now up in the air as well, as the Nevada Athletic Commission has banned all combat sports events until March 25 and could extend the ban beyond that.

Tom Taylor - March 16, 2020

Gilbert Burns previously claimed he accepted a fight with Tyron Woodley, but now says Woodley has turned down the bout. https://twitter.com/GilbertDurinho/status/1239546539414077440

Tom Taylor - March 16, 2020

Colby Covington isn’t letting Tyron Woodley of the hook. Woodley, the former UFC welterweight champ, was originally expected to take on England’s Leon Edwards in the main event of UFC London this coming Sunday. Unfortunately, this fight—and the entire UFC London card—effectively disintegrated due to complications stemming from the COVID-19 outbreak.

Harry Kettle - March 16, 2020

Bellator MMA analyst Josh Thomson has revealed that he believes Cris Cyborg would convincingly defeat Amanda Nunes in a rematch between the two. Back at UFC 232, in one of the most highly anticipated women’s MMA fights of all time, Amanda Nunes knocked out Cris Cyborg to capture the UFC Women’s Featherweight Championship and become a two-division world champion.

Harry Kettle - March 16, 2020

UFC lightweight Kevin Lee has issued an apology for his unprofessional weight cut in the lead-up to UFC Brasilia last week. Lee was beaten in the main event down in Brazil on Saturday night, suffering a third round submission loss at the hands of Charles Oliveira who took his win streak in the Ultimate Fighting Championship up to seven.

Christopher Taylor - March 15, 2020

Former UFC welterweight champion Tyron Woodley was expected to square off with Leon Edwards this Saturday in the headliner of UFC London. Unfortunately for fight fans, that bout was called off after the highly anticipated UK event was cancelled on short-notice due to the recent Covid-19 pandemic.

Adam Martin - March 15, 2020

UFC welterweight contender Gilbert Burns says he wants to replace Leon Edwards and fight Tyron Woodley next weekend at the new UFC London card. Burns knocked out Demian Maia in devastating fashion at UFC Brasilia to emerge as a legitimate contender at 170lbs. With the UFC London card now in shambles with the withdrawal of Leon Edwards and several other fighters scheduled to compete, Woodley is currently without an opponent for the card, which the UFC says it plans to move to the United States.

Adam Martin - March 15, 2020

UFC welterweight contender Leon Edwards has released a statement on the cancelation of UFC London, calling it “truly heartbreaking.” The Brit was set to headline the event across from rival Tyron Woodley, but neither man will be able to put on a show now after Edwards was forced to withdraw from the event due to the coronavirus outbreak. Numerous other fights on the card have been canceled, and while the UFC has not scrapped the event yet, it may have no choice but to do so at this point in time.

Adam Martin - March 15, 2020

UFC welterweight contender Leon Edwards has withdrawn from the new UFC London card, and numerous other fighters have been pulled from the event. The coronavirus outbreak has led to the majority of sporting events in the world being canceled, but the UFC remains the lone outlier. After hosting UFC Brasilia without a crowd on Saturday, the promotion still plans on holding the UFC London card next Saturday. The UFC is currently in plans to relocate the London card to somewhere in the United States, leaving fighters like Edwards on the out looking in due to the UK travel ban.

Adam D Martin - March 15, 2020

UFC welterweight contender Gilbert Burns sent a bold message to Colby Covington following his first-round TKO win over Demian Maia at UFC Brasilia. Burns knocked out the Brazilian jiu-jitsu legend Maia in brutal fashion in the first round of their co-main event attraction and immediately took the microphone afterwards, where he called out Covington to be his next opponent. Both men are Florida-based fighters and after beating the No. 6 ranked Maia, Burns will be able to say that he deserves a fight with the top-5 ranked Covington based on merit.

Adam D Martin - March 15, 2020

UFC women’s strawweight contender Joanna Jedrzejczyk showed a video of the bruises on her face a week after her war with Weili Zhang at UFC 248. Jedrzejczyk and Zhang threw down for 25 minutes in one of the greatest MMA fights of all time. At the end of five rounds, Zhang was awarded the victory via split decision. But Jedrzejczyk certainly held her own in the fight, and fans gained a new level of respect for the former champion after going to war against Zhang in the middle of the Octagon.

Adam D Martin - March 15, 2020

UFC welterweight contender Gilbert Burns says it “hurt him” to have to put away legend Demian Maia with strikes at UFC Brasilia. Burns dropped Maia with a brutal left hook and immediately celebrated, thinking the referee would step in and stop the fight. But the ref didn’t ump in immediately, making Burns have to go down to the mat and finish Maia off with nasty hammer fists. For Burns, it was hard for him to do that considering how much Maia means to young Brazilian jiu-jitsu grapplers such as him, but at the end of the day, he had to do his job.