MMA News

Tom Taylor - November 15, 2019

This weekend, in the co-main event of UFC Sao Paulo, former UFC light heavyweight champion and irrefutable MMA legend Mauricio “Shogun” Rua will return to the Octagon. The Brazilian will take on Scotland’s Paul Craig, who has stepped into replace the injured Sam Alvey. Shogun, now 37, is currently a solid 4-1 in his last five fights, with his lone loss coming against future title challenger Anthony Smith. Despite this recent success, he has confirmed to MMA Fighting that he intends to retire, and retire soon.

Tom Taylor - November 15, 2019

Earlier this year, Ben Askren stepped into the UFC’s Octagon for the first time, with mountains of hype associated with his name. After an impressive win over Robbie Lawler in his UFC debut, however, he’s experienced back-to-back losses to Jorge Masvidal and Demian Maia respectively — a five-second knockout and a submission. After these stoppage losses, some members of the MMA community believe Askren should retire. Askren himself seems to be thinking about it. 

Cole Shelton - November 15, 2019

Lineal boxing heavyweight champion Tyson Fury has been hinting pursuing MMA, and he is taking it seriously. Earlier this month, Fury and fellow Englishman Darren Till worked out and sparred. Now, Fury plans to take it a step further and go to Dublin, Ireland to train with Conor McGregor.

Tom Taylor - November 15, 2019

On Saturday, the UFC will return to our screens with the compelling UFC Sao Paulo card. The event will be topped by a light heavyweight duel between Polish contender Jan Blachowicz and former Strikeforce middleweight champ Ronaldo “Jacare” Souza, who will be making his debut in the division.

Tom Taylor - November 15, 2019

UFC commentator Joe Rogan and UFC middleweight champ Israel Adesanya recently sat down for a chat on the JRE MMA Show. The pair discussed a breadth of topics, including the recent BMF title fight between Jorge Masvidal and Nate Diaz. While the pair did not agree on the BMF title itself — Rogan liked the idea, Adesanya wasn’t so sure — they were unanimous in their praise of Masvidal.

Natasha Hooper - November 15, 2019

Michael Bisping has become a household name in MMA, particularly for British fans who are inspired by the former champion’s UFC journey. Now an MMA analyst and podcast connoisseur, Bisping often reflects on his fighting legacy, including his fight against Denis Kang on his home turf at UFC Manchester.

Natasha Hooper - November 15, 2019

Kyoji Horiguchi plans to avenge his loss against Kai Asakura will have to be put on hold. The Rizin and Bellator champion Horiguchi (28-3) has been forced to withdraw from the upcoming Rizin 20 bout against Asakura (14-1) due to a damaged meniscus and torn ACL.

Harry Kettle - November 15, 2019

UFC strawweight Joanna Jedrzejczyk is willing to do just about anything to get her hands on Strawweight Champion Weili Zhang. The Chinese champ is coming off the back of her sensational first round title win over Jessica Andrade which made her the first ever champion to stem from China. Ever since then there have been many questions raised as to who her first title defense will be against, with a series of names being suggested.

Harry Kettle - November 15, 2019

UFC heavyweight Walt Harris recently appeared on the Dr. Phil show alongside his wife to discuss the ongoing investigation into the disappearance of his stepdaughter. Aniah Blanchard was last seen on October 23, and after a week of no progress being made in the case, a breakthrough came with the arrest of Ibraheem Yazeed who has been charged with kidnapping. A DNA test from blood found in the car of Blanchard matches her, although she has yet to be found.

Natasha Hooper - November 14, 2019

Lightweight contender Charles Oliveira is preparing to square off against Jared Gordon on Saturday night at UFC Sao Paulo. However, “Do Bronx” already has his sights set on a bigger challenge: the undisputed lightweight champion, Khabib Nurmagomedov. The submission specialist feels most comfortable fighting off his back and will frequently challenge his opponents with his jiu-jitsu. Oliveira believes his skills pose a new threat to the lightweight champion who also uses his grappling expertise to smother opponents. He said during an interview with AG Fight:

Chris Taylor - November 14, 2019

Former UFC middleweight champion Robert Whittaker (20-5 MMA) has responded to Darren Till’s callout from earlier today. This morning the Liverpool native, Till, had taken to Twitter with the following challenge for ‘The Reaper’.

Fernando Quiles Jr. - November 14, 2019

Chael Sonnen thinks Nick Diaz vs. Jorge Masvidal will be an even bigger fight than “Gamebred” vs. Nate Diaz. Nick Diaz has made it clear that he doesn’t appreciate Masvidal’s use of the word “baptize” when describing what he wanted to do to his brother Nate. Diaz hinted at wanting a showdown with Masvidal inside AT&T Stadium after “Gamebred” defeated Nate via TKO at UFC 244. The Stockton native’s team later told ESPN’s Ariel Helwani that they want the fight for spring 2020.

Natasha Hooper - November 14, 2019

Chael Sonnen has fought Anderson Silva, Jon Jones, and Fedor Emelianenko — all fighters with claim to the title of Greatest of All Time. And while it’s not listed on his record, Sonnen claims he’s also fought another GOAT contender: Georges St-Pierre. The MMA analyst and former fighter is currently in Tel-Aviv, Israel for the upcoming Bellator 234 event. During his stay in Israel, Sonnen caught up with Bloody Elbow, and opened up on a “basement fight” that took place against St-Pierre.

Adam Martin - November 14, 2019

UFC light heavyweight contender Thiago Santos is crediting his girlfriend, UFC women’s bantamweight contender Yana Kunitskaya, for helping him recover after suffering devastating knee injuries during his fight against Jon Jones at UFC 239. Santos pushed Jones to the brink of defeat but ultimately lost a split decision in one of the more controversial decisions of 2019. Even in defeat, though, Santos’ stock went through the roof and he has since called for a title shot against the UFC light heavyweight champion Jones. Unfortunately, Santos suffered horrible injuries to both his knees in the fight.

Tom Taylor - November 14, 2019

Over the last few years, we’ve heard countless mixed martial artists call for fights with the world’s top boxers. This very week, Jorge Masvidal angled for a fight with Canelo Alvarez and Stipe Miocic expressed interest in a fight with Tyson Fury. Don’t expect UFC middleweight champ Israel Adesanya to follow in their footsteps. Adesanya shared his disinterest in a move to boxing on a recent episode of Ebro in the Morning.

Tom Taylor - November 14, 2019

Corey Anderson wants a fight with UFC light heavyweight champion Jon Jones. Unfortunately, he believes Jones is avoiding the matchup because of the high risks it poses. “I’ve been saying it since last year when I called for the fight,” Anderson told MMA Fighting. “He tweeted me saying, ‘You want the smoke?’ I answered back I want it right now. All of a sudden, he started dilly-dallying around my name, calling other people out. He’s avoiding me. He called me out thinking I would hesitate. I want that. I need that. I wanted that when I came here.

Tom Taylor - November 14, 2019

Where in the world is Rich Franklin? Depending on when you ask that question, the answer might be Singapore, Mongolia, Australia, Myanmar, Pakistan — any far-flung corner of the planet you can imagine. As the President and host of ONE Warrior Series, the former UFC middleweight champion is almost always on the move.

Harry Kettle - November 14, 2019

“BMF” Champion Jorge Masvidal has hinted at the possibility of a big future with Telemundo as his star continues to rise within the world of mixed martial arts. Masvidal has been on a phenomenal run of form in the UFC this year, coming off the back of a layoff that had many questioning whether or not he would be able to get himself back into contention. After finishes over Darren Till, Ben Askren and Nate Diaz, it’s become pretty clear that “Gamebred” is next in line for a shot at the UFC Welterweight Championship if he so desires.