MMA News
UFC 248 betting odds: Champions Israel Adesanya and Weili Zhang expected to retain titles
Natasha Hooper - March 5, 2020
UFC 248 on Saturday, March 7 promises to be a night of high-level action. At the T-Mobile Arena in Las Vegas, rising star Israel Adesanya will seek to defend his middleweight belt for the first time against feared contender Yoel Romero. The UFC’s first Chinese champion will also defend her strawweight belt for the first time against the former champ Joanna Jedrzejczyk in the co-main event.
Yoel Romero is looking absolutely yoked ahead of UFC 248
Christopher Taylor - March 4, 2020
Yoel Romero will get another opportunity to capture UFC gold when he takes on Israel Adesanya for the middleweight championship Saturday night in Las Vegas. The highly anticipated matchup will serve as the main event of UFC 248, which takes place live on pay-per-view from T-Mobile Arena.
Joseph Benavidez believes 'the headbutt altered' the entire fight against Deiveson Figueiredo
Cole Shelton - March 4, 2020
Joseph Benavidez believes the headbutt in his fight against Deiveson Figueiredo was the reason behind his loss. At UFC Norfolk, Benavidez was fighting Figueiredo for the vacant flyweight title. Yet, the Brazilian missed weight leaving the American as the only one who could win the title.
Yoel Romero says he'll knock out Israel Adesanya when the champ makes 'one mistake'
Cole Shelton - March 4, 2020
Yoel Romero plans on knocking out Israel Adesanya to win the UFC middleweight title. In the main event of UFC 248, Romero, who is on a two-fight losing streak is getting a title shot due to Paulo Costa being injured. However, the Cuban believes he won his last two scraps against the aforementioned Brazilian and Robert Whittaker. Yet, the judges saw different, so in this fight, the Cuban knows he has to finish the contest and is planning to knock Adesanya out.
Breaking | Dustin Poirier set to return at UFC San Diego against Dan Hooker
Natasha Hooper - March 4, 2020
Former UFC lightweight interim champion Dustin Poirier is expected to face the divisions surging contender, Dan Hooker in a 155-pound blockbuster showdown. According to MMA Junkie, “The Diamond” is expected to fight Hooker in the main event of UFC San Diego on May 16th, but contracts are yet to be signed. The sources have requested anonymity due to the fact that the UFC has yet to make an official announcement.
AJ McKee tears LCL, continued involvement in Bellator featherweight GP uncertain
Adam Martin - March 4, 2020
Bellator featherweight prospect AJ McKee tore his LCL in his last fight and is questionable to continue in the Bellator Featherweight Grand Prix. McKee defeated Derek Campos via third-round armbar in the quarterfinals of the tournament in his last bout. And he did so despite suffering a complete tear of his LCL within the first 30 seconds of the fight. In a new report from Josh Gross of The Atheltic, McKee said he suffered a complete tear of his LCL, and his continued participation in the Tourmalet is questionable. Check out what Gross wrote on Twitter.
Sean O'Malley gets high praise Dana White: 'He's an exciting fighter, people love him'
Adam Martin - March 4, 2020
UFC president Dana White praised bantamweight prospect Sean O’Malley, saying that he’s an “exciting fighter” and that “people love him.” O’Malley returns from a two-year layoff after numerous issues with USADA when he takes on Jose Quinonez this weekend at UFC 248. Prior to his USADA-induced layoff, O’Malley was quickly emerging as a superstar for the UFC. He had a tremendous performance on the Contender Series and then two wins in the Octagon before taking a long absence.
Meng Bo, the only woman to defeat Weili Zhang, discusses UFC champ’s success
Tom Taylor - March 4, 2020
You have to scroll a long way down Weili Zhang’s 20-1 record to find her only loss. That solitary L occurred all the way back in 2013, in her very first fight, when she was defeated by a woman named Meng Bo at a regional mixed martial arts show in Xuchang, China. The bout was Meng’s first, too. Although she and Zhang began their careers on the same night, the pair have had traveled different paths in the years since.
UFC rankings update: Deiveson Figueiredo moves up at flyweight
Tom Taylor - March 4, 2020
The official UFC rankings have been updated after last weekend’s UFC Norfolk card, and there have been some interesting changes. Most notably, Deiveson Figueiredo has swiped the No. 1 spot at flyweight after stopping Joseph Benavidez in the main event. Had Figueiredo made weight for the fight, he could now call himself the UFC flyweight champ, but his scale fail made him ineligible to win the division’s vacant title.
Israel Adesanya suggests solution to MMA's judging, scoring problems
Tom Taylor - March 4, 2020
Judging is a hot-button issue in MMA of late, and UFC middleweight champion Israel Adesanya has a suggestion that he believes could help mitigate the problem. MMA is scored using the 10 point must system. The winner of each round receives 10 points—unless there’s a point deduction—while the user receives 9 or less. That said, we really see a disparity greater than 10-9. 10-8 rounds are a real rarity. A 10-7 round is unheard of.
Dana White says UFC is bracing for coronavirus complications: 'This is a serious problem'
Tom Taylor - March 4, 2020
UFC President Dana White believes the novel coronavirus outbreak that’s currently sweeping the globe is “a serious problem” and assures that the promotion has been working diligently to determine how best to conduct business under the strain of this health crisis. “Everybody is fighting with the coronavirus,” White said during a media scrum ahead of UFC 248. “This thing started as a Chinese problem and it’s turned into a global problem. It’s going to be interesting to see how this plays out through the rest of this year. This isn’t really a Chinese problem, it’s a global problem.
Dana White discusses star power of Israel Adesanya, Weili Zhang
Tom Taylor - March 4, 2020
UFC strawweight champion Weili Zhang and UFC middleweight champ Israel Adesanya come from different worlds, but the two fighters definitely have one notable thing in common: they both have the potential to become massive stars for the UFC. At least, that’s what Dana White thinks. White commented on Zhang and Adesanya’s potential superstardom ahead of UFC 248 in Las Vegas, where the former will defend her title against Joanna Jedrzejczyk, and the latter will defend his belt against Yoel Romero.
UFC 248 | Pro fighters make their picks for Israel Adesanya vs. Yoel Romero title fight
Cole Shelton - March 4, 2020
In the main event of UFC 248, Israel Adesanya is looking to defend his middleweight title for the first time when he battles Yoel Romero. Heading into the fight, the champion is a -275 favorite while the challenger is a +215 underdog. Ahead of the fight, BJPENN.com reached out to several pro fighters to make their predictions for the scrap. There, the majority are leaning towards Adesanya but they know Romero only needs one punch to end it.
Petr Yan, Marlon Moraes to headline UFC's debut in Kazakstan
Tom Taylor - March 4, 2020
The UFC’s debut in Kazakhstan, scheduled for June 13, now has a main event — and it’s a good one. The card will reportedly be topped by a bantamweight contender bout between Russia’s Petr Yan and Brazil’s Marlon Moraes, which has been rumored for some time and has now been confirmed by MMA Junkie. Petr Yan will step into the cage in Kazakhstan, a country with a huge Russian population, on a fantastic nine-fight win-streak. His last six victories have occurred in the UFC’s Octagon, where he’s defeated the likes of John Dodson, Jimmie Rivera, and most recently, former bantamweight title challenger Urijah Faber, who he knocked out on the main card of UFC 245 in December. The Russian is 14-1 overall.
Dana White says former opponents have compared punching Yoel Romero to hitting a piece of concrete
Harry Kettle - March 4, 2020
Dana White claims that former opponents of Yoel Romero have said hitting him was like “hitting a piece of concrete”. Romero is widely considered to be one of the most terrifying competitors in the Ultimate Fighting Championship today, and potentially in all of mixed martial arts. At the age of 42 he still seems to possess an insane natural ability and speed that defies all forms of logic at this level.
Max Holloway discusses MMA’s scoring system: 'I’ve never met a fighter or even a judge who thinks it’s perfect'
Natasha Hooper - March 4, 2020
On Friday night, Kansas City will host a monumental night in MMA history, and Max Holloway wants to be a part of it. The former UFC featherweight champion will be in attendance for the Invicta FC show at the Memorial Hall in Kansas. It will be the first time in modern MMA that an open scoring system—or real-time scoring system—is used in major competition.
Urijah Faber vs Dustin Ortiz set to headline Copa Podio: California
Harry Kettle - March 4, 2020
Urijah Faber and Dustin Ortiz are set to headline Copa Podio: California this Sunday at Vacaville High School in Vacaville, California. The pair will compete against one another in a submission grappling match that will serve as the main event, whereas UFC veterans Danny Castillo and Carlos Rocha will also be squaring off in a no-gi fight in Cali.
Dana White on Deiveson Figueiredo's win: "I think the headbutt had a lot to do with the KO"
Christopher Taylor - March 3, 2020
Earlier today UFC President Dana White revealed his intention to book a rematch between flyweight standouts Deiveson Figueiredo and Joseph Benavidez. The pair collided in last weekend’s UFC Norfolk event headliner with the promotions vacant 125-pound title on the line, but only for Benavidez to capture. That was due to the fact that Figueiredo missed weight for the bout by 2.5lbs.