MMA News

Josh Evanoff - March 13, 2025

U.S. President Donald Trump recently offered praise of UFC star Conor McGregor during a meeting with the Irish prime minister. It’s no secret that the 45th and 47th U.S. President is a longtime fan of MMA and the UFC. As a lifelong friend of Dana White, Donald Trump began attending events on a regular basis in 2022 to promote his second Presidential campaign. The organization’s efforts paid off in November, as the Republican nominee defeated then-Vice President Kamala Harris to win a second trip to the White House.

Josh Evanoff - March 13, 2025

Former UFC women’s strawweight contender Paige VanZant is interested in a return to the cage. ’12 Gauge’ recently made her return to the octagon, but not as a fighter. Last month, Paige VanZant was in the corner of her husband, Austin Vanderford, for his promotional debut at UFC Seattle. On a week’s notice, the former Bellator title challenger secured a second-round knockout win over Nikolay Veretennikov. For VanZant, the moment was an incredibly special one.

Josh Evanoff - March 13, 2025

UFC flyweight contender Manel Kape doesn’t want to hear any excuses about his fight with Asu Almabayev. ‘Starboy’ and ‘Zulfikar’ are fresh off their meeting at UFC Vegas 103 earlier this month in Las Vegas. Both men entered the flyweight headliner riding lengthy winning streaks, and hoping to earn a crack at reigning champion Alexandre Pantoja. In the end, the bout ended up being quite lopsided. Manel Kape broke down the younger Asu Almabayev, en route to a third-round stoppage victory.

Cole Shelton - March 13, 2025

Former Strikeforce lightweight champion Josh Thomson isn’t a fan of the PFL. Thomson has been retired since 2020, despite not fighting since 2017. Since then, he has gotten into commentary as he was an analyst for Bellator and even did some commentary for the PFL. Yet, he says after being around the PFL he realized they won’t be a top promotion, especially with how they are run.

Fernando Quiles Jr. - March 13, 2025

Belal Muhammad has quite the promise for his UFC 315 title defense against Jack Della Maddalena. Muhammad will be making his first UFC Welterweight Championship defense against Maddalena on May 10. UFC matchmakers were looking to have Shavkat Rakhmonov’s title shot against Muhammad rebooked, but Rakhmonov wasn’t ready due to an injury. Now, Muhammad and Maddalena will share the Octagon inside Bell Centre in Montreal, Quebec, Canada.

Fernando Quiles Jr. - March 13, 2025

When push comes to shove, one UFC Hall of Famer believes that Islam Makhachev vs. Ilia Topuria is happening next. Makhachev recently etched his name in the history books. He submitted last-minute replacement opponent Renato Moicano to secure his fourth UFC Lightweight Championship defense. That is the most successful title defenses in UFC lightweight history.

Fernando Quiles Jr. - March 13, 2025

Alexander Volkanovski wants to show the MMA world that he can reign supreme in the new era of featherweights. Volkanovski was down on his luck the last two outings. He suffered back-to-back knockout losses to UFC Lightweight Champion Islam Makhachev and Ilia Topuria. Volkanovski’s UFC 314 clash against Diego Lopes will be telling, as fans are wondering how much juice “The Great” has left. A win over Lopes would earn Volkanovski his second UFC Featherweight Championship.

BJPENN.COM Staff - March 13, 2025

A magnificent trilogy will take place on Friday, April 4, inside Bangkok, Thailand’s Lumpinee Stadium. Live in U.S. primetime, reigning ONE Lightweight Kickboxing World Champion Regian Eersel will meet Alexis Nicolas in the co-main event of ONE Fight Night 30: Kryklia vs. Knowles. The pair hope to settle the score in one of the most intriguing all-striking trilogies in recent times.

Harry Kettle - March 13, 2025

UFC lightweight Beneil Dariush believes Paddy Pimblett could have a lot of success against Michael Chandler at UFC 314. Next month, Paddy Pimblett will face the toughest test of his mixed martial arts career thus far. He will go head to head with Michael Chandler, in a fight that many believe he has a good chance of winning.

Harry Kettle - March 13, 2025

UFC commentator Jon Anik believes Justin Gaethje deserves a crack at Islam Makhachev’s UFC title. Last weekend, Justin Gaethje proved that he’s still an elite competitor in the lightweight division. He went toe to toe with Rafael Fiziev for the second time, and for the second time, he came away with a blockbuster victory.

Harry Kettle - March 13, 2025

UFC veteran Jeremy Stephens is set to return to the promotion, almost four years after he had his last fight with the company. For the longest time, Jeremy Stephens was an ever-present in the Ultimate Fighting Championship. He fought some of the very best that the company had to offer, and he did so with all the passion in the world. However, following a poor run of form, he left the UFC in pursuit of a new venture with PFL. There, he was only able to put together a record of 1-2.

BJPENN.COM Staff - March 12, 2025

When you think about fighters’ origins, they rarely emerge from comfort. They rise from hardship, desperation, necessity. Former ONE Flyweight Muay Thai World Champion Rodtang Jitmuangnon’s story exemplifies this truth.  “The Iron Man” faces Japanese kickboxing megastar Takeru Segawa at ONE 172 in a five-round flyweight kickboxing super-fight on Sunday, March 23, inside Japan’s Saitama Super Arena. 

Josh Evanoff - March 12, 2025

Former UFC lightweight contender Jalin Turner has released a statement confirming his retirement. ‘The Tarantula’ is fresh off his return to the cage on the UFC 313 main card on Saturday night. The bout was a pivotal one for the young Jalin Turner, who entered the bout having lost three of his last four fights. Sadly for the lightweight, he was handed another defeat over the weekend. In round one, Ignacio Bahamondes scored a stunning submission victory over Turner, his third stoppage win in a row.

Josh Evanoff - March 12, 2025

UFC lightweight contender Arman Tsarukyan doesn’t plan on letting Justin Gaethje get a title shot. ‘The Highlight’ is fresh off his return to the octagon in the co-main event of UFC 313 on Saturday. Back for the first time since a knockout loss to Max Holloway last April, Justin Gaethje met Rafael Fiziev. The former ‘BMF’ titleholder had previously handed the striker a unanimous decision defeat in 2023, and he made it 2-0 in the series over the weekend. Gaethje knocked down Fiziev in round two, en route to a decision victory.

Josh Evanoff - March 12, 2025

Former UFC star Jason ‘Mayhem’ Miller wants to see some sort of change in MMA. Before there were stars such as Alex Pereira and Ilia Topuria, there was the man known to fans as ‘Mayhem’. In the late 2000s, Jason Miller became a star through his crazy antics, fun fighting style, and rivalries with the likes of Nick Diaz. While he never held UFC gold or anything like that, his fanbase was massive. In 2009, he began hosting MTV’s ‘Bully Beatdown’, a reality show about MMA fighters facing off with real-life bullies.

Josh Evanoff - March 12, 2025

UFC light-heavyweight contender Jan Blachowicz wants to end his career as a champion. The 42-year-old hasn’t been seen since his meeting with Alex Pereira in July 2023. That night saw Jan Blachowicz take down the future UFC champion several times, but ultimately gas out doing so. After 15 minutes of action, it was ‘Poatan’ who emerged with a split-decision victory. The defeat was a brutal one for the former champion, who would then sit out the next two years due to a devastating shoulder injury.

Cole Shelton - March 12, 2025

Alex Pereira thinks he did an excellent job against Magomed Ankalaev and is confident going into a rematch. Pereira lost his light heavyweight title to Ankalaev in the main event of UFC 313. It was a disappointing loss for Pereira, and although he has yet to watch back the fight, he says he thought he did well, but he knows there are things he can improve on.

Fernando Quiles Jr. - March 12, 2025

One seasoned UFC veteran says his next fight will be his MMA swan song, and he won’t be looking back. Anthony Smith is scheduled to compete on the UFC Kansas City card. He will take on Zhang Mingyang inside T-Mobile Center on Aug. 26. Headlining that card will be a light heavyweight battle between former 205-pound champion Jamahal Hill and Khalil Rountree.