MMA News

Tom Taylor - July 4, 2019

Former UFC strawweight and flyweight contender Bec Rawlings was one of the first fighters to make the jump to the surging sport of bare knuckle boxing. During her time as a bare knuckle fighter, which occurred under the BKFC banner, she picked up 3 impressive wins, and was hailed as the Queen of Bare Knuckle. While Rawlings has since returned to MMA roots, having recently signed with Bellator, she will soon be honored for her contributions to the sport of bare knuckle with an induction into the Bare Knuckle Boxing Hall of Hall of Fame.

Tom Taylor - July 4, 2019

Shortly after Jorge Masvidal knocked out his UFC London opponent Darren Till, he unleashed a bit of backstage violence on welterweight rival Leon Edwards. He referred to his attack on Edwards as “a three-piece and a soda.” From the sounds of it, Masvidal’s UFC 239 opponent Ben Askren could be in for a far crueler dish.

Fernando Quiles Jr. - July 4, 2019

From a promoter’s perspective, Michael Bisping can appreciate Dana White’s desire to have Jon Jones’ lone defeat overturned. Back in Dec. 2009, a young Jones took on Matt Hamill in the co-main event of TUF 10 Finale. This was Jones’ fourth fight under the UFC banner. “Bones” was teeing off on Hamill with some vicious ground-and-pound. When referee Steve Mazzagatti called a halt to the bout, most assumed that Jones scored a TKO victory. Instead, he was disqualified for illegal 12-6 elbow strikes.

Tom Taylor - July 4, 2019

Khabib Nurmagomedov vs. Tony Ferguson. It’s a dream fight for most fight fans, and one the UFC has tried multiple times to book. Yet thus far, fate has had other plans. Today, when the lightweight champion Nurmagomedov is gearing up for a UFC 242 title defense opposite Dustin Poirier, and Ferguson is riding a ridiculous 12-fight win-streak, it’s easy to imagine the fight happening quite soon.

Cole Shelton - July 4, 2019

In the main event of UFC 239, Jon Jones will be looking to defend his light heavyweight title when he takes on Thiago Santos. Heading into the fight, “Bones” is a -700 favorite, while the challenger is a hefty +450 underdog. Ahead of the title fight, BJPENN.com reached out to several pro fighters to get their predictions for the scrap. To no surprise most are picking the champ. But, one fighter believes it will be Santos’ day and he will be able to shock the world.

Natasha Hooper - July 4, 2019

The drama continues to unfold between Jorge Masvidal and Ben Askren. Masvidal recently sat down with ESPN’s Brett Okamoto to clarify some recent comments he made. Last week, Askren called out Masvidal for saying he wanted to end his bloodline. During a State of Combat podcast, Askren’ called the alleged comments “sick” and “disturbing.”

Natasha Hooper - July 4, 2019

Thiago Santos has seemingly bulked up in preparation for his UFC 239 bout against Jon Jones. The Brazilian light heavyweight fighter nicknamed “Marreta” looks like he’s packed on some pounds, if a recent Instagram post is any indication. Currently, he is in Las Vegas, the location of his upcoming fight. Santos is taking in some local attractions and sharing his experiences on his Instagram.

Natasha Hooper - July 4, 2019

Tyron Woodley believes a rematch against Kamaru Usman is in the cards for later this year. During the MMA Awards, Woodley shared his thoughts on his next fight in the Octagon.

Christopher Taylor - July 4, 2019

Former UFC light heavyweight champion Tito Ortiz had some high praise for Dana White at tonight’s World MMA Awards, this after announcing the death of Golden Boy MMA. During an interview with TSN’s Aaron Bronsteter, Tito Ortiz discussed the closure of Golden Boy MMA while comparing the promoting skills of UFC President Dana White against Boxing legend Oscar De La Hoya.

Christopher Taylor - July 3, 2019

Could you imagine a fight between lightweight standouts Tony Ferguson and Justin Gaethje? Well it almost happened! According to Justin Gaethje (20-2 MMA), the UFC had offered him a fight with Tony Ferguson on just four weeks notice at June’s UFC 238 event in Chicago.

Cole Shelton - July 3, 2019

At Bellator London, Rafael Lovato Jr. shocked many as he defeated Gegard Mousasi by majority decision to become the new middleweight champion. But, the now former champion claims the 36-year-old was on PEDs for the fight. “I should have won this match even with him using PEDs,” Mousasi said on Vechtersbazen Podcast (as transcribed by MMA Junkie).

Adam Martin - July 3, 2019

It looks like UFC Copenhagen has a main event, though perhaps one that’s a bit surprising. It was rumored for a while now that Jack Hermansson would fight Kelvin Gastelum in the main event of the UFC’s debut in Denmark on September 28. But according to MMA super agent Malki Kawa, Jared Cannonier has verbally agreed to fight Hermansson instead. Cannonier verbally agrees to fight hermansson in Copenhagen. Excited for this. Good work @LouDiBono

Tom Taylor - July 3, 2019

Even from the early vantage point, BKFC 6 stood out as the biggest card yet from the upstart Bare Knuckle Fighting Championship. The card, which was topped by a sizzling grudge match between UFC veteran Artem Lobov and former boxing champ Paulie Malignaggi, and featured a slew of UFC veterans and MMA notables, generated quite a bit of buzz throughout the combat sports world, and showed all the early signs of a major success for the promotion.

Mike Heck - July 3, 2019

A pivotal women’s flyweight bout is heading to Abu Dhabi. Sources have confirmed to BJPenn.com that Joanne Calderwood will take on Andrea Lee at UFC 242. The event will take place on Sept. 7 at The Arena in Yas Island. The bout was first reported by MMA Junkie. Joanne Calderwood was knocking on the door of a women’s flyweight title shot against Valentina Shevchenko before she suffered a unanimous decision loss to Katlyn Chookagian last month at UFC 238. Prior to the setback, “JoJo” had picked up a first-round submission win over Kalindra Faria at UFC Fight Night 135 and a unanimous decision victory against Ariane Lipski at UFC on ESPN+ 1. Calderwood has been able to get on track after back-to-back losses to Jessica Andrade in September 2016 and Cynthia Calvillo 10 months later.

Mike Pendleton - July 3, 2019

As UFC 239 approaches, Jon Jones is making his final preparations for another light heavyweight title fight; a scene that he is very familiar with. Since he captured the divisional title in 2011 with a TKO of Mauricio “Shogun” Rua, Jones has found himself in title fights ever since. The career of Jones inside the Octagon is one that can only be described as remarkable. He grew up before the eyes of UFC fans, taking out the veterans that paved the way for the light heavyweight division like Quinton “Rampage” Jackson, Lyoto Machida, Rashad Evans and Vitor Belfort, then taking on a wave of new challengers — most notably his chief rivals Daniel Cormier and Alexander Gustafsson.

Cole Shelton - July 3, 2019

In the co-main event of UFC 239, Amanda Nunes is looking to defend her bantamweight title against the former champ Holly Holm. Heading into the fight, the champion is a -380 favorite while the challenger is a +290 underdog. Ahead of the fight, BJPENN.com reached out to several pro fighters to get their predictions for the fight. Most are leaning towards Amanda Nunes defending her title. Some, like coach Mike Winkeljohn, believe Holly Holm will shock the world again.

Tom Taylor - July 3, 2019

On Saturday night, in the main event of UFC 239, light heavyweight champion Jon Jones and challenger Thiago Santos will step into the cage together with gold on the line. Earlier on the same card, former UFC middleweight champion Luke Rockhold will make his light heavyweight debut against Jan Blachowicz. If he’s successful, he believes he could be rewarded with a shot at the Jones vs. Santos winner. From the sounds of it, Luke Rockhold considers a Jon Jones win a near certainty. And because Jones’ arch rival Daniel Cormier is tied up at heavyweight, the former middleweight champ believes the path to a fight with Jones is wide open.

Tom Taylor - July 3, 2019

Former UFC strawweight champion Joanna Jedrzejczyk is set to return to the division she once ruled opposite long-time contender Michelle Waterson, per ESPN’s Brett Okamoto. The bout will reportedly headline a UFC Fight Night card scheduled for October 12. Breaking: Joanna Jedrzejczyk vs. Michelle Waterson verbally agreed to headline UFC Fight Night on Oct. 12, per sources. pic.twitter.com/kGuCi9wejL