MMA News

Tom Taylor - June 14, 2019

Earlier this year, news broke that UFC bantamweight champion TJ Dillashaw had tested positive for the injectable-only banned substance EPO. Dillashaw was stripped of his title, and suspended for two years by the United States Anti-Doping Agency for this crime. Though he quickly admitted to his mistakes on social media, Dillashaw has been quite quiet since this unfortunate news surfaced. Speaking on Chael Sonnen’s You’re Welcome podcast, however, the former bantamweight champion opened up on the ordeal in a way that he has not done yet.

BJPENN.COM Staff - June 14, 2019

Two of the youngest athletes on the ONE roster will clash at ONE: LEGENDARY QUEST on 15 June in Shanghai. 21-year-old Stamp Fairtex is set to defend her ONE Atomweight Muay Thai World Title against the 18-year-old Alma Juniku, a WBC and IPCC Muay Thai World Champion. The match will be Juniku’s ONE debut and Stamp’s second bout of the year.

Tom Taylor - June 14, 2019

Last weekend, Tony Ferguson and Donald Cerrone collided in a thrilling war, reminding the world why they’re regarded as two of the lightweight division’s top fighters. Reigning lightweight champion Khabib Nurmagomedov, however, wasn’t all that impressed with what he saw. Speaking to  ESPN recently, Nurmagomedov broke down the skills of the two fighters, starting with “Cowboy” Cerrone.

Tom Taylor - June 14, 2019

After he defeated Marlon Moraes to become a two-division UFC champion at UFC 238, UFC flyweight and bantamweight champ Henry Cejudo announced that he hopes to move up to the featherweight division in the future and challenge for that division’s belt too. Alex Volkanovski, arguably the top contender in the UFC featherweight division, is advising Henry Cejudo to think again.

Cole Shelton - June 13, 2019

Heavyweight boxing is the best it’s been in years. At the top, there are the likes of Tyson Fury, Deontay Wilder, Anthony Joshua, and now Andy Ruiz Jr. who is coming off of a shocking knockout win over Joshua. Although they all haven’t all fought each other, many rank them as the top-four. And, UFC president, Dana White agrees. In an interview with BT Sport, he decided to rank the four of them. There, he says Tyson Fury is the best heavyweight boxer right now.

Cole Shelton - June 13, 2019

In the co-main event of Bellator 222, Chael Sonnen will take on Lyoto Machida at light heavyweight. There, it is expected the winner of that fight will take on Ryan Bader for the promotions light heavyweight title. With that said, this could be the last time that Chael Sonnen finds himself within reach of a title shot. The 42-year-old made a promise to his father before he passed away that he would win a title in a major MMA promotion. After three attempts in the UFC and one in the WEC, he has yet to accomplish it. Sonnen still plans on keeping that promise, for if he doesn’t, he consider himself a failure.

Thomas Taylor - June 13, 2019

UFC San Antonio finally has a main event, according to a report from Kevin Iole. The July 20 card will now be topped by a five-round welterweight fight between former lightweight champion Rafael dos Anjos and streaking Brit Leon Edwards. Main event for UFC on ESPN 4 in San Antonio finalized: It will be Rafael dos Anjos vs Leon Edwards, five rounds. UFC wanted Blachowicz-Rockhold to move there, but Rockhold is filming a Ralph Lauren Polo commercial that day which couldn’t be moved.

Thomas Taylor - June 13, 2019

Last weekend, in the co-main event of UFC 238, UFC flyweight champion Valentina Shevchenko delivered one of the most brutal head kick knockouts in UFC history, decapitating challenger Jessica Eye in the second round. This thunderous knockout left the jaws of everyone watching on the floor — and that includes cage-side commentators Joe Rogan, Daniel Cormier and Jon Anik. In the latest episode of the UFC’s popular The Thrill and the Agony series, we get a head-on look at how Rogan, Cormier and Anik reacted to this vicious knockout from Shevchenko.

Tom Taylor - June 13, 2019

Under the leadership of Scott Coker, Bellator MMA has co-promoted with a number of other promotions, most notably Japan’s RIZIN Fighting Federation, but also with England’s BAMMA and Italy’s Oktagon. In fact, RIZIN bantamweight champion Kyoji Horiguchi will take to the Bellator cage to battle Bellator bantamweight champion Darrion Caldwell at Bellator 222 on Friday Night in New York City — the latest evidence of Coker’s willingness to work with other organizations.

Tom Taylor - June 13, 2019

UFC President Dana White has talking about getting into the boxing business for years. Yet so far, he’s made no headway on that mission. At least not publicly. That could soon change. According to The Athletic’s Mike Coppinger, UFC parent company Endeavor and its CEO Ari Emanuel could soon be buying Premier Boxing Champions (PBC), a boxing organization owned by Al Haymon.

Cole Shelton - June 13, 2019

Dillon Danis is set to return to the cage this Friday at Bellator 222. There, the jiu-jitsu star will take on Max Humphrey in what will be Danis’ second pro fight. Although Humphrey is the more experienced fighter, Danis is confident that won’t be a big factor in the fight.

Tom Taylor - June 13, 2019

Late last week, pop star Justin Bieber took to Twitter to call for a fight with Hollywood actor Tom Cruise. Normally, this kind of stuff would not make it onto MMA news sites. But when Bieber asked Dana White and the UFC to promote the fight, and UFC star Conor McGregor promptly chimed in and offered to promote the celebrity showdown himself, this weird storyline seeped into the collective consciousness of the MMA community. I wanna challenge Tom Cruise to fight in the octagon. Tom if you dont take this fight your scared and you will never live it down. Who is willing to put on the fight? @danawhite ?

Tom Taylor - June 13, 2019

Not long ago, Darren Till stood out as the top contender in the UFC welterweight division. After a submission loss to former champion Tyron Woodley and a knockout loss at the hands of Jorge Masvidal, however, the British striker has fallen on hard times. Speaking to BT Sport while in London for Thursday’s UFC 242 press conference, UFC President Dana White update on Till, explaining that the Brit’s next fight is on the agenda for an imminent matchmaking meeting.

Tom Taylor - June 13, 2019

Speaking to BT Sport while in the United Kingdom for Thursday’s UFC 242 press conference, UFC President Dana White provided an update on the sport’s biggest star, Conor McGregor. White says McGregor is simply waiting on the sidelines until the lightweight contendership picture becomes a little bit clearer.

Tom Taylor - June 13, 2019

There are always plenty of of exciting matchups to be made in the stacked UFC lightweight division. Of all the matchups available in this weight class, however, its arguable that none can rival a potential showdown between streaking contender Tony Ferguson and former World Series of Fighting champ Justin Gaethje in terms of pure excitement. Neither man is ever in a boring fight, and it’s hard to imagine their potential pairing resulting in anything other than Fight of the Year.

Tom Taylor - June 13, 2019

Former UFC featherweight champion Cris Cyborg recently stated that she plans to test her value as a free agent once her current UFC contract expires. That contract will conclude after her featherweight showdown with Felicia Spencer a UFC 240 in Edmonton in July. If Cyborg does indeed become a free agent, it sounds like she can expect a meeting with Bellator boss Scott Coker. “Listen, if you are a free agent, give us a call. This is a Viacom-backed company and we will take care of the fighters that move the needle for us,” Coker explained during a recent media scrum (transcript via MMA Mania). “So, if she is free one day, please give us a call.”

Tom Taylor - June 12, 2019

On Wednesday, the stars of Bellator 222 took center stage in New York City for a pre-fight media day. Among those appearing were welterweight champion Rory MacDonald, bantamweight champion Darrion Caldwell, and main card fighter Dillon Danis. At one point during the days festivities, Dillon Danis swiped MacDonald and Caldwell’s Bellator titles and posed for a photo with both straps slung over his shoulders.

Tom Taylor - June 12, 2019

UFC lightweight champion Khabib Nurmagomedov will reportedly have a school built in his honor in his native Dagestan. This school will be built using 600 million rubles (9.3M USD) allocated by Russian President Vladimir Putin (h/t Bloody Elbow). This news was announced by Khabib’s father Abdulmanap during an interview with the Teacher’s Newspaper. Abdulmanap claims this project came about after the UFC champion asked Putin to invest in education inside Dagestan during a recent phone call.