MMA News

Tom Taylor - February 28, 2020

Joshua Fabia says Diego Sanchez is still evolving as a fighter — even at 38 years old and after close to 20 years in the UFC. He believes that continued evolution is “remarkable” and is taking full credit for it. “You’re an expert, and you didn’t point out that it’s kind of (expletive) amazing that Diego Sanchez, 16 years in the UFC, been pretty much the Rocky Marciano of the sport – he’s moving,” Fabia told MMA Junkie this week. “He can change stance. He went from a southpaw to this. How are you not putting the emphasis on a 38-year-old man, in less than a year, changed his style – and one guy did it? Not a team of six guys. How come no one is saying anything positive like that? You see it, but you’re not giving credit to the professional that has done something remarkable.”

Adam Martin - February 28, 2020

UFC president Dana White says he doesn’t care if he loses UFC fans over his friendship with United States President Donald Trump. White recently spoke at Trump’s political rally in Colorado which led to criticism from a segment of MMA fans who are not Trump supporters. There were a number of MMA fans who were upset White spoke so glowingly about President Trump, but White doesn’t care what they think.

Cole Shelton - February 28, 2020

Deiveson Figueiredo was looking to become the new UFC flyweight champion on Saturday but that will no longer be the case. In the main event of UFC Norfolk, Figueiredo was set to take on Joseph Benavidez for the vacant flyweight title. Yet, on Friday morning, the Brazilian missed weight by 2.5 pounds and didn’t attempt to cut the remaining pounds. Meaning Benavidez will be the only one who can win the flyweight title on Saturday night.

Tom Taylor - February 28, 2020

Deiveson Figueiredo could have become a UFC champion this weekend. Unfortunately, a scale fail has dashed his title dreams. On Friday morning, Figueiredo missed weight for his flyweight title fight with Joseph Benavidez, which tops Saturday’s UFC Norfolk card. The Brazilian finished tipped the scales at 127.5 pounds, a significant 2.5 pounds over the 125-pound limit for flyweight title fights. While he was initially given an extra hour to make weight, he and his team ultimately abandoned their attempt to do so.

Harry Kettle - February 28, 2020

Umar Nurmagomedov has been immediately called out by Merab Dvalishvili after it was revealed that he has signed with the UFC. The highly thought of younger cousin of Khabib Nurmagomedov has been making waves for a while now, accumulating a 12-0 professional mixed martial arts record prior to his entry into the UFC. The expectations are obviously going to be high regarding what he can accomplish with the promotion, and it doesn’t seem as if the UFC is going to waste any time in booking him.

Natasha Hooper - February 28, 2020

Joseph Benavidez recently explained why he doesn’t need to beat Henry Cejudo to be worthy of the flyweight title. This weekend at UFC Norfolk, Benavidez will face Deiveson Figueiredo for the flyweight strap. The 125-pound belt is up for grabs ever since Henry Cejudo was stripped of the title. 

Tom Taylor - February 28, 2020

Stamp Fairtex is no longer a two-sport champ. In the main event of Friday’s ONE: King of the Jungle card in Singapore, Stamp sought to defend her ONE atomweight kickboxing title against California’s Janet Todd — who she defeated by decision to win the ONE atomweight Muay Thai title roughly one year ago. It was an extremely competitive fight, with Todd finding success with her boxing and volume, and Stamp bludgeoning her challenger with a steady diet of leg kicks. Ultimately, however, the judges handed Todd a split decision victory. She’ll return to California with a ONE world title belt in her luggage, while Stamp’s dreams of becoming a three-sport champ are dashed for the time being.

Tom Taylor - February 28, 2020

Yoshihiro Akiyama picked up an incredible knockout victory at Friday’s ONE: King of the Jungle card in Singapore. Akiyama appeared on the event’s main card, battling Egypt’s Sherif Mohamed in a 185-pound scrap.

Natasha Hooper - February 28, 2020

Diego Sanchez came up short against Michel Pereira this month at UFC on ESPN+ 25 in Rio Rancho. Pereira appeared to have the upper hand until he struck his opponent with an illegal knee that changed the course of action. Sanchez decided not to continue the bout and was awarded a disqualification victory.

Cole Shelton - February 27, 2020

Antonio Rogerio Nogueira expects to end his legendary career at UFC 250 when he has his trilogy fight against Shogun Rua. Nogueira hasn’t fought since he was knocked out by Ryan Spann back at UFC 237. The 43-year-old Brazilian legend is just 4-6 in his last 10, so he says this fight against Rua will be his farewell fight.

Cole Shelton - February 27, 2020

Dustin Poirier has hinted at his next fight on social media. Poirier has been campaigning for a scrap for weeks and now has taken to Twitter to hint at a possible main event fight against Dan Hooker. The Kiwi, of course, had stated that he would like to fight Poirier, if Justin Gaethje was not available.

Alfredo Zullino - February 27, 2020

Another member of the Nurmagomedov family is joining the Ultimate Fighting Championship ranks, and it’s Umar Nurmagomedov, cousin of current and undisputed promotion’s lightweight belt-holder, Khabib Nurmagomedov. Just like his cousin, Umar is still undefeated in his professional mixed martial arts career, holding a record of 12 victories and no losses.

Tom Taylor - February 27, 2020

Troy Worthen was in line to ride Doctor Doom’s Fearfall at Universal Studios in Orlando when he got an email that changed his life. Several weeks prior, he applied to try out for Evolve MMA, a famed fight team based in Singapore — a world away from his Central Florida home. As he waited to get on the ride, he finally heard back.

Mike Heck - February 27, 2020

After getting a short notice call to make his Octagon debut at UFC 247, Khaos Williams made a big statement in a short amount of time in Houston. Williams stepped in on less than two weeks notice to replace the injured Dhiego Lima and finished Alex Morono with a vicious KO in just 27 seconds. In a night of controversial judging and scorecards, the 25-year-old Michigan native left no question unanswered.

Mike Pendleton - February 27, 2020

After his fight against Tyson Fury was stopped in the seventh round by his corner and trainer Mark Breland, Deontay Wilder was visibly upset. He’s even considering removing Breland from his team. While some have understood Wilder’s desire to “go out on his shield” many have criticized him for his reaction towards Breland and now another name is being added to that list.

Tom Taylor - February 27, 2020

Tito Ortiz is not happy that his recent win over Alberto Del Rio has been overturned. Ortiz and Del Rio fought in the Combate Americas cage in late 2019. Ortiz wagered his UFC title on the matchup, while Del Rio promised to give his WWE belt to Ortiz in defeat. In the end, it was Ortiz that walked away with a new belt, as he defeated Del Rio via first-round submission.

Tom Taylor - February 27, 2020

UFC strawweight champ Weili Zhang has made it to the United States for her UFC 248 title defense against Joanna Jedrzejczyk, but the journey was not easy. Zhang’s homeland is still reeling from the headline-dominating novel coronavirus outbreak, which has claimed many lives and caused complicated travel restrictions worldwide. These restrictions made it extremely difficult for Zhang to make it to the US, and left her feeling like a “refugee.”

Mike Pendleton - February 27, 2020

Following a split decision loss to Dan Hooker, Paul Felder had a brief moment where he considered retirement. Yet Felder’s head coach Duke Roufus believes we’ll see “The Irish Dragon” back in the Octagon. Furthermore, Roufus believes Felder and Hooker could run it back and had an interesting suggestion for that potential rematch. Speaking on The Luke Thomas Show on Sirius XM, Roufus discussed the fight and emotion behind the loss for Felder.